A/N: Sorry for this late update, I have been busy these past few weeks and I can't see it changing in near future. Hopefully, I will have another chapter up before the end of January. The name of students in Harry's year are on my profile, categorized by house (it might be useful).
Merry Christmas
Please Review.
Chapter Twenty-Four : The New Professor
The voice level in the great hall suddenly rose a few decibel levels but it went to zero in a moment as dumbledore raised his hand to silence the students. McGonagall could not resist herself from rebuking, "I'm sure Ministry is thrilled with your appointment but we already have a DADA professor, Madam Umbridge."
McGonagall pointed towards Amelia as she said, "let me introduce you to our new DADA teacher, Prof. Bones. And I'm sure you are well acquainted to her."
"What's the meaning of this Dumbledore?" She angrily asked to the old wizard. "Shall I remind you Dumbledore about the Education Decree Number Twenty-Two, under which Ministry has the right to appoint a suitable candidate?"
"Then I will be reminding you that the Ministry has the power to do so if – and only if – the headmaster is unable to find one. And in this case, we have already found a new DADA professor." Dumbledore replied in his trademark calm and composed manner.
"But... but she wasn't appointed before the school started and Ministry wasn't informed about it. Her appointment is invalid, Dumbledore." Umbridge was on the verge of shouting, her anger was boiling and was about to overflow.
"I should remind you Madam Under-secretary that the School starts with the 'start-of-the-term' feast and Madam Bones was appointed well before that. Moreover, there was nothing in the decree regarding conveying the information of such appointment to Ministry." Dumbledore sighed deeply before continuing, "your argument thus stands void and I would suggest that you return to your position of Senior Under-secretary. Although, I would like to invite you to my office for tea before you take your leave."
"No thanks, Dumbledore but I will make sure that the Minister would pay you a visit, Headmaster." Umbridge turned and left without another word.
"Indeed." All the gears in Dumbledore's wise brain were in top speed. Dumbledore clapped his hands once and the tables turned spotless instantenously, marking the end of the breakfast. There were a few grumpy faces and a couple of voices of dissent but they were drowned in the scraping noises of benches and footsteps. Harry had stood up along with Hermione to walk out of the great hall but he was interrupted.
"Mr. Potter, may I have a word with you." It was McGonagall and it wasn't a request by any means. "In my office, in fifteen minutes."
She left with that veiled command, this left Harry a bit puzzled regarding the reason of such an invitation. He voiced it to Hermione, "what did I do now?"
"Nothing. I just had a word with her before you arrived for breakfast." Hermione answered with a knowing smile.
"And what did you complain about this time?" Harry asked playfully.
"I don't complain." She answered defensively, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "... much."
"Of course, you don't." Harry replied with a wink. "You just point out the flaws and problems."
He received a playful punch on his shoulder for his cheek. "Ron is a bad influence on you."
"Don't always blame the ginger, I picked the fancy wordplay from you." This brought a hard blush and a sweet smile on her face. For the next ten minutes they just wandered along the corridors towards McGonagall's office, discussing the turn of events during breakfast. As the time drew near, they stood outside McGonagall's office.
"Should I wait?" Hermione asked.
"No, no, you go on, I will find you in library." Harry answered off-handedly.
"Why would I be in library on the first day?" Hermione asked him, seeming offended.
"Okay, so where would you be?" Harry asked, his eyebrows rising a bit.
"In the library." Hermione answered sheepishly. "But you could have said lakeside or common-room. I can be adventures too, you know."
"Oh, I know. I have been with you this past four years. I will see you later." Harry replied.
"Okay." Hermione left with a peck on his cheek.
He knocked on the door of McGonagall's office as Hermione walked away, the door swung open the very next moment. "Good morning, professor."
"Good morning, Mr. Potter. Have a seat. I would have offered you a biscuit but I believe you had a nice breakfast." McGonagall replied from her seat behind the desk, Harry acquiesced. "Ms. Granger told me this morning that you were disappointed with my choice of prefects."
"It's not like that professor and I am fine with it now. It was just momentary." Harry replied defensively. "I understand that you must have had your reasons."
McGonagall didn't say anything immediately, it seemed that she was trying to decide the next part of their conversation. "There were reasons, but not my own, Mr. Potter."
Harry was unable to get the meaning behind the sentence and that showed on his face. "Excuse me professor but what do you mean by that?"
"What did Mr. Weasley tell you about his visit to my office last night?" McGonagall asked suspiciously.
"That he got a stern warning from you about his behavior. He didn't talk much when he returned." Harry answered, thinking hard about the brief conversation that took place on Ron's return from McGonagall's office.
"Very Well." McGonagall rose from her chair and walked to the file cabinet in the room, opened the drawer, she flipped through the immaculately organized files and folders within it. She pulled two files from the drawer, one was significantly thicker than the other. She returned to her seat and placed the files in front of Harry.
"Please open the maroon file, Mr. Potter and go to the page titled - 1975. You might find a friendly face." Harry did as he was asked and he wasn't disappointed. The page had a small photo of a pale-looking teenager with light-green eyes, light brown hair and a kind smile. The name accompanying the photo proved that Harry's guess was correct. It was indeed Remus. "Sirius told me about it."
"Then he must have told you about the other part too. Open the other folder, to the page titled - 1977." McGonagall pointed out, "another familiar face, might I add."
"I know, Ma'am. Sorry to sound rude but what's your point?" Harry answered as he skipped to the page labeled 1977. It was like he was looking at a mirror but instead of the emerald of his eyes, hazel ones looked back.
"Dumbledore appointed me as the head of Gryffindor house when he was appointed the headmaster in '71." McGonagall replied after a small pause.
"Its nice to know, Ma'am." Harry said politely, thoroughly confused about the direction of the discussion.
"Thank you, Mr. Potter but I didn't ask you to come to my office to narrate you my biography." McGonagall replied with a thin smile. "These two folders contained the student details of the past prefects and head-boys from Gryffindor, respectively, since I was appointed as the head."
"The point, Mr. Potter, is that it wasn't my decision, neither this time nor during your father's time. Professor Dumbledore has a unique way of thinking and even after so many years, I still can't anticipate or digest quite a handful of his unorthodox and baffling decisions. This being one of them." McGonagall huffed at the end of her rant.
"Headmaster believes that it would do Mr. Weasley a lot of good if he was given more responsibility so that he can learn to shoulder them in the times to come. Moreover, he believes that it would be better if you don't take much pressure and stress this year, it would adversely affect you. I am unconvinced by his reasoning and most probably you are too." McGonagall gave the long explanation with a blank face, leaving Harry ill at ease. McGonagall sighed before starting again. "Mr. Lupin was given the prefect position to boost his confidence and self-esteem and Dumbledore thinks that doing the same would diminish the chances of further discord between you and Mr. Weasley. And that's not all, although, I'm very skeptical, I think it might be a blessing in disguise for you."
"Excuse me for asking but how would that be, ma'am?" Harry inquired with an expression of disbelief.
"Mr. Potter, I believe you would understand that the situation that exists at the moment is going to worsen over the coming years until it gets better. And if the past is any indication, you will be most certainly in the thick of the danger. You not being a prefect would leave you enough time to train yourself for whatever that may lie in the future." McGonagall answered somberly. Her expression was enough to convey the message to Harry. He just nodded in understanding before he was dismissed.
-0X0-0X0-0X0-
"What are we going to do with our bug-problem?" Hermione asked Harry and Ron as the three of them were sitting on a deserted staircase in a remote and unused part of the castle on the Sunday evening before the classes begin.
"I have no idea." Harry confessed.
"Can't we just keep her corked in the glass phial?" Ron suggested with an exasperated tone.
"I don't like that idea, it's inhuman." Harry made his thoughts clear.
"Obviously, it's inhuman. She is an insect for all purposes." Ron defended his idea. "Do you have any better ideas?"
"None." Harry answered disinterestedly.
"You are the strategist for the team, why don't you come up with one?" Hermione said, mocking his chess-prowess.
"You know, Hermione, for someone so intelligent like yourself, you don't know when to stay silent." Ron replied with a hint of anger.
"Guys, let's not descend into an uncivilized argument, shall we?" Harry tried to pacify the brewing storm.
"Ask your girlfriend to keep her temper in check." Ron said but he suddenly went silent, a look of surprise on his face. "You know what, the lead strategist of the team actually has an idea."
"Oh really? Let's hear it then." Hermione replied with the same intensity before folding her arms in front.
"Huh, the brain of the group could not figure it out yet but I did. I must be smarter then." Ron mocked Hermione but went silent when he received a pointed glare from her. "OK but let me ask you one thing first, what happened to the out-of-bounds third-floor corridor from our first-year?"
That got both Harry and Hermione thinking, nobody had spoken a single word about it in the school since then. Hermione was the first to react, but it was like a loudly spoken inner-thought. "I think students still believe that it's out-of-bounds."
"Precisely. Nobody had told them that its safe now, they didn't know what was there in the first place. It hadn't come up in any discussion so far." Ron continued with his idea.
"But what about the younger students, they don't know about it so, they have no fear about it." Harry interjected.
"Hah, pretty intelligent idea, you thought about it because it wasn't a good one." Hermione pulled no punches when it came to mocking Ron.
"Ms. Granger, you don't seem to learn from your mistakes, 'Hogwarts, a history' doesn't tell you everything about the school and certainly not about its students." Ron was on a roll and he did not back down this time.
"It's rich, coming from someone who is almost pathologically repulsed by books and one book in particular." Hermione retorted.
"Hang on a second, Hermione. There might be some merit in his idea." Harry jumped in the middle of the 2-way discussion.
"Not you too, Harry. The idea is naive, for the lack of a proper word." Hermione defended her stand.
"Since when do you have vocabulary deficiency, Hermione?" Ron was the one to comment.
"And since when did you start using fancy words?" Hermione replied sarcastically.
"I read something and it got me reading." Ron answered a bit shyly.
"Oh really? And what was that thing you read, your grade-sheet?" Hermione taunted him again.
"That's enough!" Harry had to shout to get them back to the discussion. "Why the two of you have to quarrel incessantly? There are more important things to talk about than Ron's reading list or Hermione's sudden inability to find proper words."
"Sorry." Hermione was the first to take a step back. She was immediately followed by Ron, "yeah mate, let's get back to the matter at hand".
"I think there is a good chance that students are unaware about that corridor and it very well might have been a customary thing to tell the juniors not to go to the restricted third-floor corridor." Harry continued with his thoughts from the point where it was left. "The problem is, how do we confirm it? Because if we started asking, people will notice and they might get suspicious. However, if we did not confirm, we might run into serious problem."
"So, its the 'Schroedinger cat' problem." Hermione commented off-handedly.
"A what?" Ron asked, totally confused.
"The 'Schroedinger's Cat', it's a physics experiment by a great scientist." Hermione explained in least number of words that she could manage. "My dad told me about it last summer when my mom was thinking about preparing a Thai meal but had reservations."
"Muggles!" Ron took a sigh of exasperation, "obsessed with ducks and cats".
"Ron!" That came out as a warning from Hermione. There wasn't any heat in it but there was steel.
"So, how do we confirm it either way?" Harry asked.
"We three can go and check the location. During the prefects' rounds, its the quietest and there will be no one around. Harry, you should use your cloak when we do it." Hermione suggested.
"Okay and I will talk to twins and try to find out what do they know about the corridor and what is their opinion about it." Ron suggested to Harry. "You can use the map to check if that place is being used by anyone."
"So, we have a plan but we must have a backup, don't you think, Harry?" Hermione popped the question.
"Don't we usually use the backup plan and isn't it just 'no-plan'?" Ron was the one to make his opinion clear.
"Can't argue with that." Harry said, deep in thought, remembering his life-and-death encounters over the years. "We will think about the other options once this one is decided either way."
"So that wraps up our most important discussion of the evening." Hermione said taking a step closer to Harry. "We have prefects' meeting tonight, Harry, we will see you in the common-room."
She gave him a peck on the lips before stepping back. Ron was making a bad face as a reaction to their display of affection. "Please stop doing that, would you?"
"Get used to it, Ronnie." Hermione said in a mischievous tone.
"And by the way, Ron was reading '12 ways to charm a witch' and Ron, just for your information, Hermione can't find words when she is confused or flustered." There would have been laughter on Hermione's part but the last part of Harry's words killed the chances of that.
"Hey!" Ron was offended, "I told you that in confidence."
"Uh huh, you didn't tell me, I found out and then you pleaded to keep it a secret." Harry replied.
"Isn't that the same thing?" Ron questioned, his ears turning red to match his hair. "I am leaving."
"I'm right behind you." Hermione said before giving Harry a heartfelt smile and following Ron towards McGonagall's office for their meeting.
Harry turned to walk back to the Gryffindor common-room but he decided to take a longer route to think about a few things, he had some quite time for himself. He would have gone to his favorite spot by the lake but it was late for that and he did not have his invisibility cloak with him. He decided to go to the astronomy tower, the warm breeze throughout his brief walk to the tower was soothing to his senses. It was quiet, and the moonlight trickling through the clouds and windows gave the setting an ethereal feel. As he opened the door at the end of the stairway, he came across not-so-deserted astronomy tower. In the center of the circular open area stood a blonde girl with a bronze instrument in her hand, gazing at the stars through that instrument.
Harry did not want to intrude so he turned to leave but his steps were halted. "Hello, Harry Potter."
Now there was no way he could leave so he faced the student on the astronomy tower. "Hello, Luna. Sorry to disturb you."
She did not say anything in reply, she didn't even look at him. Harry was feeling uncomfortable so he tried his best to continue the conversation. "How did you know it was me?"
"I guessed." She was still busy with the instrument.
"What's this?" Harry asked, giving a last shot at a conversation.
This got her attention, she turned to talk to him and showed him the instrument. "It's a sextant, sailors and travelers use it for navigation."
Harry was reluctant to try the instrument but he decided to try it once. "How does it work?"
Luna first corrected his hold on the sextant then positioned it for him to use and started on a long explanation about its working. Harry was amazed by the intricacy and the usefulness of the instrument and was surprised that someone still used an instrument this complicated. "It's great, Luna. But why do you use such a complicated instrument just for navigation? I'm sure there must be some spell for it."
She just shrugged before replying in her trademark far-away manner. "It reminds me of my mum, she loved it, she was an explorer."
The somewhat passive excitement was drained and Harry had to ask, "what happened to her, is she alright?"
"Oh, she is alright, she is just not alive anymore." Harry could not judge her emotions through her far-away look, a serene smile and almost muted body language and the confusing statement that she made. So, he went to the easiest response he could think of. "I'm sorry, Luna."
"Why are you sorry, Harry Potter? It wasn't your fault." She picked up the instrument and placed it in front of her eye. "She passed away when I was nine, it was a charms accident. But dad is still here."
"Oh." Harry did not know how to respond to that so he didn't he just stood there for a couple of minutes before something popped up in his mind. "Luna, what are those creatures pulling the carriages?"
"They are Thestrals, Harry Potter. They are quite gentle creatures but people stay away from them usually." Luna was now looking at Harry with an expression that bordered on curiosity and understanding.
"Because people are afraid of them?" Harry expressed his thoughts.
"People fear what they don't understand. Thestrals are just a bit different, most people are unable to appreciate them just because their different appearance and characteristics which give them macabre reputation which comes in the way of it." Luna answered before turning to leave.
"People don't appreciate them maybe because most people can't see them? Why is that so?" Harry asked the question that bothered him the most.
"Only those can see Thestrals who are touched by death." Luna was looking at Harry's confused expression with even more curiosity. "They can be seen only by those who have seen death, experienced it and accepted its reality."
The realization dawned on Harry the very next moment. In all the excitement of return and everything that had happened in the last two days had pushed the memories of the last year to the back of his mind, just for the time being. But there was something nagging him still. "I'm not sure about that Luna. I should have been able to see them even before because my mother was killed in front of my eyes. But it didn't happen that way."
Luna was in a deep thought for not more than a couple of seconds before she clarified her answer. During the moments of thinking, the look of curiosity and interest remained on her face. "It would have been amazing if you could comprehend the depth of death due to something that happened to you when you were in your crib, Harry Potter. Death and mortality are neither abstract nor simple, one can't just understand them. You can only understand them when you have accepted your own mortality at some point."
"I can believe that you faced him, I can see it in your eyes that you have been touched by death." It seemed that Luna understood his emotions. "I believe in you, Harry Potter and so does my dad. We will support you, no matter what."
She took a step closer to Harry and patted him on his shoulder before asking him something. "You can come with me to visit the Thestrals on Saturday, after breakfast."
She did not wait for his response and left the astronomy tower, leaving Harry standing alone in the center of the star-gazing platform, thinking about the possibility of meeting Thestrals again.
-0X0-0X0-0X0-
Harry had just entered the common-room when he noticed that the twins and Lee Jordan were floating a few cardboard boxes up the stairs. But before he could ask or say anything, one of the twins turned towards him. "I hope you won't rat us to your prefect-girlfriend, Harry."
"That depends." Harry was quick to react.
"Ooooh! Somebody has gone wicked." The other twin said before placing the boxes on the ground and moving closer to Harry. "So tell us Potter, how can we help our chief benefactor?"
"Oh it's nothing, I was just wondering something." Harry kept up the charade.
"And what would that be?" The first twin asked in a fake serious tone. They were busy talking while Lee was floating the boxes up the stairs.
"I was always curious how well you know and understand the students and the castle." Harry tried to be smooth with the twins.
"You know half of our secret, you own it now." Gred answered.
"The rest is just our good nature, looks and brains." Forge completed the answer pompously.
"Then you might be able to tell what happened to the third floor corridor?" Harry asked in a casual way.
"Nothing really." Gred said off-handedly.
"Actually it's still out of bounds." Forge leaned forward to whisper in Harry's ear. "...but since Hagrid has removed his cute monstrosity, we have been using the chamber as our private lab."
"And since, there are only three seventh-year Gryffindor boys..."
"We two and Lee."
"... We have the dorm all to ourselves."
"So, we are moving the lab closer to our beds."
Harry had assumed that after four years of this ping-pong conversational style, he would get accustomed to it, but he realized that his assumption could not have been more wrong. "Wasn't Kenneth Towler in your year too?"
"That lucky bastard was promoted to the Head-boy..."
"... Because there was no one else competent enough."
"Great for you but aren't you worried that McGonagall would find out?" Harry was more worried that Hermione would find out.
"We will manage, won't we, Fred?"
"We sure will, George. Just a couple of weeks more Harry and we will show you what we have been doing all this time." Fred answered before they walked up the stairs towards their dorm, cardboard boxes floating in front of them.
Harry decided to wait for Ron and Hermione in the almost empty commonroom of Gryffindor tower. There were only a few students sitting around, three of whom Harry knew quite well, they were the Chaser Trinity of Hogwarts, Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet and Katie Bell. Harry went to the corner table, around which these three were huddled up.
"What are you three up to?" Harry inquired, a bit curious.
"Ah, here is our seeker." Angelina greeted him and pulled a chair for him. "Have a seat, Potter. We have a lot to discuss."
"Okay." Harry did as he was asked. "What are you guys talking about?"
"Angelina was named captain for this year, so, just the strategy session." Katie answered for the three girls.
"And mind you, she is not even a little bit less annoying than Wood was as captain." Alicia continued the banter.
"Hey! I want to get that trophy too and to get it, no one gets to slack off." Angelina said, her eyes narrowing, her expressions and words reminding Harry of Oliver Wood.
"I am starting to see the similarities." Harry commented. "Anything for me?"
"Just get the snitch." Angelina replied off-handedly. "Before the other one."
"You got off cheaply." Katie nudged him lightly. "We are here for the last 2 hours."
"Any dates for the try-outs?" Harry quizzed them casually. "For Wood's position."
"In a couple of weeks, by the latest. I want the team up-and-flying before the end of September." Angelina answered excitedly.
The discussion was halted as the portrait swung open and Ron and Hermione entered. Harry could feel that there was something wrong with the two of them. He bid goodbye to his quidditch teammates and walked up to his two best friends who were now sitting on the opposite ends of the couch. Ron's ears were noticeably red while Hermione looked irritated.
"What's wrong?" Harry asked to both of them but he knew that the response would surely come from Hermione.
"Care to tell him, Ronald?" Hermione said through clenched teeth. 'Ronald' and the clenched teeth were the red flag for Harry.
"Is everything alright?" Harry had to ask before Hermione turned to him to answer as Ron just shook his head, he was looking at his toes.
"Some people don't know when to talk and when to keep quiet." Hermione hissed.
"I didn't know it would go this way." Ron defended, finally looking up from his feet.
"Seriously, you didn't think about the possibilities?" Hermione wasn't giving him any room to escape.
"I didn't think about it, okay? It wasn't preplanned and I didn't get time to think it through." Ron was in the corner but he wasn't down yet, he was trying his best to deflect any accusation coming his way. Harry had to intervene before the whole house descended to the common-room due to all the shouting. "Please be less noisy and tell me what's going on."
Hermione just huffed and turned away from Ron without giving any explanation to Harry. A couple of moments later, Ron spoke. "We got assigned random partners."
"What?" Harry wasn't getting what exactly happened but he was sure that it wasn't anything good. "Please be a bit more elaborate."
"McGonagall asked us if we had any suggestions and I happen to had one." He turned to Hermione as if to apologize but he stopped just a moment short. "And I did not think it through, Hermione."
"Are you trying to apologize, Ronald?" Hermione's expression was completely blank. Ron flinched at the pronunciation of his birth name. Ron did not answer but the raised eyebrow from Hermione got him talking. "I umm... that is to say... I guess I mean uhh..."
"Hurry up, Ron, I don't want to be late on my first day as a prefect to the lecture." Hermione tried to get the apology out of him.
"Okay, Okay." He took a deep breath before the words came out of him. "I'm sorry, Hermione."
"Don't think you are out of danger, Ronald. This is not over yet." The tension in Hermione's shoulders was gone instantaneously. "Now, let me tell you what happened, Harry."
"Waiting for it." Harry gestured her to continue. "Go on."
"We were the last ones to reach McGonagall's office, after explaining our duties, procedures and protocols, prof. McGonagall asked if we had any creative suggestions. And then this half-brained human here, speaks for the first time during the meeting and the worst idea in the history of Ron's worst ideas came out in the open." Hermione paused in her ramblings to give a disgusted look to Ron before she turned towards Harry and continued. "He suggested that the partners for prefect duties should be shuffled."
It took a few seconds for Harry to understand the meaning of the statement but as the meaning seeped in, the blood rushed-out of his face, the look could clearly explain his reaction. "Merlin's pants! Ron, what mess did you create this time?"
Ron was unable to answer due to regret so Hermione helped him out. "He got his wish to accompany either Susan or Padma for the prefects' rounds. He got paired with Padma. Me with Terry Boot and Susan got the worst of it, she got paired with Malfoy."
"I already apologized for it to her. I didn't know that McGonagall would accept the suggestion." Ron was apologetic not only through words but his demeanor showed it too.
"This is bad, I already feel sorry for her." Harry said before Hermione added her thoughts too. "She is a sweet person, she doesn't deserve Malfoy's company."
"Did you try to talk to McGonagall to reverse the decision." Harry asked with very little hope of anything good.
"Actually its temporary provision till the end of Halloween. She took a vote and it was a tie, so she randomized the pairs on temporary basis, if there are any problems, she will discontinue it." Hermione gave a long explanation for the happenings of meeting.
"That's some relief." Harry words reflected his feelings pretty accurately. "Is she going to do the same with other prefects?."
"Hopefully not." Ron was one to speak now. "Can you imagine how volatile it can become? Just short of instigating a riot if a Gryffindor and a Slytherin is paired."
"I think McGonagall knows that much, she is smart." Hermione tried to defend her favourite professor.
"I'm not saying otherwise either." Ron went completely defensive.
"Apart from all the mess you went through this evening, I have got something interesting." Harry tried to divert the conversation towards something more positive. As he got the attention of the two fifth-year Gryffindor prefects, he told them about the conversation he had with the twins at his return to the common-room. "So, we have got our secret chamber, all we need to do is some dusting."
"I'm sure there is more than just dusting we would need to do." Ron commented sarcastically.
"We should still scout it for a few days and put some wards around it to increase the security." Hermione did what she was good at, giving well-informed advice.
"Well at least one of us would have free evenings, you will have company for scouting, Harry." Ron commented with a chuckle.
-0X0-0X0-0X0-
"Why do they always put Gryffindor with Slytherin for DADA? I think they do it deliberately." Ron complained to Harry as they were walking to the DADA classroom, they had the first lecture unassigned while Hermione was busy with Arithmancy.
"That makes two of us." Neville said to Ron as he came level with them.
"Sorry to leave you behind." Harry apologized to the youngest Longbottom. "Where were you last night?"
"I was talking to prof. Sprout, she was giving me some advice and instructions." Neville answered off-handedly.
"Just a couple of questions, Neville. By 'prof. Sprout', did you mean 'Hannah' and by 'advice and instructions', did you mean 'pulling you in broom cupboards and snogging'?" Ron was at his sarcastic best for a few days now and he wasn't shy of showing it off. Neville turned tomato-red as the question bounced off him.
"Don't tease him too much, Ron, he might turn into a ginger." Harry nudged Ron before continuing. "Hannah already has a ginger attached to her at hips."
That got a hearty laugh out of Ron and a embarassed chuckle from Neville. Neville used the little bit of confidence he had developed to come up with a reply. "I hear that Ron messed things up again last night. I'm sure that he had a pleasant evening after the meeting."
"How did you know?" Ron asked, befuddled.
"People talk, Ron, especially girls." Neville replied as they entered the DADA corridor. "And by the way, from next week onwards DADA will have all houses together."
"Why would they keep it separate it for even this week?" Ron questioned the timetable again. But it remained unanswered as they walked ahead.
Most other students from Gryffindor and Slytherin were standing outside the classroom but Hermione wasn't there yet. She hadn't reached there yet but the Blonde-ponce had and he made it known the very next moment.
"Here comes the liar, the dumb and the pauper from the house of sissies." The young Malfoy commented which got a hearty laugh out of the Slytherin fifth-years as a reaction.
"It's really a school of magic, isn't it?" Harry asked Ron, rhetorically. "I just saw a white talking ferret."
This time the laughter was from the other half of the assembled students but before it could go any further, the door to the classroom opened on its own accord. A moment later, they were told to enter. The DADA hall looked polar opposite to the last year. The desks were in a circular pattern, facing the center of the room. A raised platform was placed at the center of the classroom, barely half-a-foot elevation. Madam Bones was standing at the top of the staircase leading to her office.
"Take your seats." Amelia said and waited till all the students were seated but Hermione and a couple of Slytherins were yet to arrive, their seats were empty.
"Where is Hermione?" Harry asked to Ron and Neville. All he received in response was a couple of shrugs. Although, his question was answered as the missing students entered the classroom. Hermione took her seat next to Harry after apologizing for her late entry, she got a look of disapproval from Bones. The Slytherin pair of Tracey Davis and Daphne Greengrass followed the suit and received the same treatment from the new DADA professor.
"Two points each would be deducted for entering the classroom late and that too without asking for permission. I hope that it would not be repeated in future." The expressions of Amelia Bones could give McGonagall a run for her money. Her crisp yellow-trimmed black robes were quite contrasting to the green-red tartan of McGonagall's, the only contrast in their appearance, except the obvious age difference. Amelia stepped down from the top of the stairs and stood in the center of the room.
"Good morning to all of you." She waited as there were half-hearted replies from the assembled students, she saw no need to introduce herself again and came straight to the point. "I should make myself abundantly clear at the beginning. No behavior or act of indiscipline will be tolerated."
There were muted nods from the fifth-year students so she continued. "I was told that you have suffered from an inconsistent syllabus and fragmented education in the subject. I was given the responsibility to streamline your education in the subject."
She did not wait for students' response and continued. "In the last three years, DMLE hadn't received any satisfactory applicants for the Auror Corps. I hope to rectify the situation. Can anyone tell us what are the requirements for being inducted into the Auror program?"
Hermione's hand shot up in the air along with a couple of others, including Neville, although he hesitated and did not look very sure. Amelia looked at all the students who wished to answer before turning to Neville. "Mr. Longbottom."
"Umm... They require minimum 5 N.E.W.T.s with 'exceed expectations' or above." Neville's response had jitters only at the beginning but apart from that, his answer was confident enough.
"And the subject?" Amelia asked, there was no sign of a smile on her face.
"Potions, DADA, Charms and Transfiguration are mandatory, the other subjects may vary." Neville completed his answer and he had a smile of satisfaction on his face.
"Correct, Mr. Longbottom. I believe your grandmother must have given you a lecture about it." There was just a hint of smile and a twinkle in her eyes but it was gone in a moment, replaced by the stern exterior. "It goes without saying that this is just the eligibility criteria for applying to the Auror program. You have to go through a series of evaluations of your magical, physical and mental capabilities. If your performance is satisfactory, you would be inducted into the three year long program at the end of which you would be tested again before being commissioned as an Auror."
There was a pin-drop silence in the classroom, nobody dared to even breathe, all eyes fixed on Amelia. "This year would decide if you are capable enough to even dream about the career of an Auror."
"Let's play a game first. One by one, you would come to the center of this area and try to disarm me. Everyone who succeeds would earn 10 points." She didn't give them enough time to think about her words before another command was fired. "Starting from here."
The first person on her left was Tracey Davis, she rose from her seat as Amelia pointed towards her. One could actually see her shaking, she wasn't tall or well-built and she looked like a kitten in front of the former DMLE Director. Tracey stood facing Amelia, her wand-arm shaking,she pursed her lips trying to concentrate.
"Try to keep the wand movement fluid and incantation loud and clear." Amelia instructed before folding her hands in front of her chest. "Whenever you are ready."
"Expelliarmus!"
The tip of her wand glowed red and a dull scarlet streak shot towards Amelia but it missed her completely, she did not even move a muscle, the shot was that off-target.
"Your wand-arm is shaking, your grip is not correct and your wrist is too rigid for the fluid hand movement. Instead of your wrist, you are moving your shoulder to get the wand movement." Amelia read all the flaws in her spell-casting and explained them to her. She went to Tracey and corrected her grip and wrist and then asked her to take her seat. "Next!"
By the time all Slytherins have tried, Amelia had to dodge thrice, not because they were perfectly aimed but because they were close enough to her. The three Slytherins who did not receive much corrective instructions were Draco Malfoy, Theo Nott and Daphne Greengrass.
Now it was the turn of Gryffindors, starting with Lavender Brown who missed the target by a foot. Parvati and Fay weren't much better. Dean was quite an improvement over the previous three and Amelia had to dodge. Seamus was off-target, Neville could not even cast the spell but his wand-tip glowed red for a moment. Ron's attempt was good but missed by a few centimeter, grazing Amelia's robe collar. The next in line was Harry.
Amelia drew her wand from her sleeve but managed to keep it hidden. She was told by McGonagall that Potter was the best of his year in DADA and Amelia did not want to take any chances. Harry took his position, his posture was perfect, his grip and wrist position impeccable.
"Expelliarmus", Harry shouted and the red sparks shot from his wand towards Amelia. She made no movement and the spell bounced off the shield charm she had cast non-verbally and without any wand movement. Harry was quite surprised and the rest of the students stunned.
"Good job, Mr. Potter. Take your seat." Amelia commented before show-fully putting the wand back in her sleeve-holster. The only student remaining was Hermione, her spell was powerful and close to target but Amelia was easily able to dodge it.
"5 points to Gryffindor for Mr. Potter's perfectly cast spell. Except him, you all were more worried about the spell itself rather than the target and what your output should be." Amelia was walking along the desks, in a circle while looking at each of them in a way that would make them realize their mistakes. "You must understand that the spell is not the end in itself, its the means only. You must realize that the incantation and the wand movement is a way for you to concentrate your magic to get the required effect."
"You were unable to direct the spell towards its target because you weren't concentrating on the target, rather you were targeting on the spell." She sighed before asking to the class. "Didn't your previous teachers ever mentioned something anywhere remotely related?"
Everyone was looking at each other's faces when Hermione's hand shot up. "Professor Lupin something along those lines when he taught us how to defend against a boggart."
"I was told that he knew what he was doing." There was some sympathy in her eyes as she spoke about Lupin. "A pity that a good person had to suffer in such a way."
There was a derogatory chuckle from none other than the self-proclaimed prince of Slytherin, Draco Malfoy. The deadly stare he received for his behavior was as deadly as a Basilisk's. "It seems you have a different opinion about it, Mr. Malfoy. So, let's hear what you think about it."
Malfoy didn't lose his haughty composure and just leaned forward to answer in his spiteful voice. "He was a pathetic excuse of a teacher, he wasn't even a human, he was a beast."
His gang of Slytherins nodded in the support of his views. Enough to say that Amelia did not agree to the views and she was trying very hard not to give a solid retort. "Thanks for sharing your opinion, Mr. Malfoy. 5 points would be deducted from Slytherin for using foul language for an ex-professor. It would serve you well to remember Mr. Malfoy that Pure Bloods are respected for their culture, manners and knowledge rather than their birth and family name."
Malfoy had an expression of utter contempt as Amelia turned to address the rest of the class but not anyone in particular. "Going ahead in your life, all of you must understand one thing very clearly, getting rid of the patient is not the solution for any disease, the only solution is treating it with utmost sincerity. It is not just in case of someone struggling against lycanthropy, but any problem you might encounter in your life."
"In my career as an Auror and in various capacities with DMLE, I have learned a crucial lesson." She was back in her commanding and dominant persona. "You must learn to help others to help yourself."
-0X0-0X0-0X0-
"She was amazing." Hermione commented as they were walking towards their next lecture which was Transfiguration. Harry had a smile on his face as Hermione was singing praises for the new DADA professor. He could not hold himself back from responding. "Ron, should we tell McGonagall that she's got some serious competition for her position as Hermione's favorite professor?"
Ron answered laughingly. "Oh, I think she had already lost. Bones won for blasting that ferret out of this world."
"Professor Bones, Ronald. And for the kind information of you two, McGonagall is still my favorite." Hermione reply cheekily.
"I agree with them, Hermione." Neville interjected from the other side of Hermione. "You couldn't stop talking about her since we left the classroom."
"You are the one to talk." Hermione defended in her trademark, folded-arm, tilted-head, squinted-eyed body-language. "You were making cow-eyes at her. Should we tell Hannah that you are cheating on her with none other than her best friend's aunt?"
He just raised his hands to pull out of the discussion and turned to the other two boys. "Guys, you are on your own now."
They were met by the said Hufflepuffs a few moments later as they turned towards the transfiguration classroom. Hannah was the first to greet them. "Hey guys and hey you, hunk."
Neville turned red with embarrassment at the nickname Hannah had given him. "Hannah! Not around everyone."
"Hunk, huh?" Ronald could help but comment. "Hannah, do you need eye treatment or mental treatment? Hunk, really? You could've come up with a thousand, less ridiculous, names."
Hannah returned the favor in kind, her sweet voice did not sugarcoat the sting of the meaning of her words. "Oh Ronnie, Ronnie, Ronnie. For someone with good chess-brain, you screw things pretty bad, don't you? How was the meeting last night?"
That got a good laugh out of everyone except the butt of the joke himself. "I already said I'm sorry. Ok?"
"That doesn't change the position you have put us in." Susan replied, a bit angrily. "How could you, Weasley?"
"Well, I thought may be we would be paired up, I preferred that." Ron answered shyly, his hesitation was pretty clear in his voice.
"That's not happening now, Ron. You are such an incorrigible git." Susan huffed.
"Hey! That was a bit harsh." Ron answered in his defense.
"And you deserve every bit of that harshness." That was the last words they exchanged before entering the transfiguration classroom.
"You got burned there, ginger." Hannah mocked Ron one last time before taking her seat next to Susan, leaving Neville to sit with Ron, behind Hermione and Harry.
"Take your seats. Quick!" McGonagall commanded. Order was restored in the classroom as she stood up from her seat and walked to the blackboard. "The importance of O.W.L.s can't be overstated, simply put, they decide what you do in future."
"Keeping that in mind, we will begin the course with a quick revision of what we have learned in the last four years before we move on to the new things in your syllabus." She scanned the classroom with a purposeful look. "To pass your O.W.L.s, you need to be excellent, there is no place for mediocrity in your future education."
"We will start with the most rudimentary of things." McGonagall flicked her wand once and a matchbox appeared on each desk. "Turning matchsticks into needles."
There was a groan of protest from Ron which was immediately noticed by McGonagall. "Is there any problem Mr. Weasley."
"None, professor." Ron answered, unable to even look in her direction.
"Good." She waited a moment before continuing. "The task is a series of transfiguration exercises, matchsticks to needles to rings and to springs. You have fifteen minute to make a spring out of 15 matchsticks. Your time starts now."
-0X0-0X0-0X0-
"Springs are difficult to make." Ron wasn't shutting up about why he failed to assemble a satisfactory length of spring in the transfiguration task.
"Oh common, Ronald. It was the easiest task to do." Hermione exclaimed. "I can't believe you are in your O.W.L. year and you can't turn matchsticks into a spring."
"Easy for you to say, 'I-earned-twenty-points-for-Gryffindor' Granger." Ron mocked Hermione for her excellent performance.
"Real mature from you, Ron." Hermione replied as they sat for lunch on the Gryffindor table.
"Cut it out guys, let's have a quiet meal. Ok?" Harry tried to pacify the brewing quarrel. Harry noticed that Neville was awfully quiet since the end of the transfiguration class. He was sitting next to Ron, opposite to Harry so Harry nudged his foot under the table. "You alright, Nev?"
"Yeah." Neville replied but his mind was somewhere else.
"What is it about Neville?" Hermione probed him when he didn't answer any further.
"You were right, Hermione, like you always are. I couldn't complete the task, the simplest task in transfiguration. How am I supposed to pass the O.W.L.s?" Neville replied after a lot of thinking. "I am useless."
Harry could see that the confidence that was built in Neville through the last year was severely damaged by today's class. He was on his way to a positive physical transformation but it did not reflect in his magical capabilities. "We will find a way to make you better, Nev. I am sure Hermione would know just what to do."
"I wish I could be that optimistic." Neville left the great hall with those words. He didn't even talk to Hannah before walking out of the great hall.
"And I thought I had it bad." Ron commented as he saw Neville leave. "What should we do?"
"I have no idea." Hermione answered before she stood up and walked to Hannah.
"Hey Hannah, can I talk to you for a moment?" Hermione leaned closer to the Hufflepuff girl.
"What's up, Hermione?" Hannah asked in a upbeat tone.
"Can you come over to our table, you too Susan?" Hermione asked pointing to the Gryffindor table where Harry and Ron were sitting.
"Yeah, sure." Hannah replied when she received a nod of agreement from Susan.
"What's going on, guys?" Susan asked as she sat next to Harry while Hannah took the seat next to Ron.
"Neville just left in the middle of the meal, he didn't even touch food." Ron answered for the three of them.
"He was upset, Hannah. You should go and talk to him." Harry told Hannah worriedly.
Hannah just turned to Ron with a accusatory look in her eyes. "What did you do? What did you say to him this time?"
"I didn't do anything, I'm innocent." Ron went total defensive and raised his arms to show that he meant what he said.
"It's not him, Hannah. Neville is just upset because he couldn't complete the transfiguration task. He is questioning himself." Hermione clarified the reason of Neville's blue mood. "He thinks he is useless and unworthy."
"You should go and cheer him up, Han." Susan suggested to her best friend who agreed without a moment's thought.
"I should leave now, I need to find him before the lunch is over." Hannah left to find her doubting boyfriend as the group waved her bye.
"I don't understand what's the problem?" Harry had his head in his hands. "He is doing good in our physical training."
"No doubt he has grown in the right proportions." Ron commented while shoveling food into his mouth. All the drama going around him hadn't affected his appetite much.
"He might be going through some emotional crisis." Susan pointed out. She had to clarify her views when Harry gave her a questioning look. "You can't perform magic if you are emotionally unstable. Emotional fluctuations can create issues in performing magic. Right, Hermione?"
"The idea is right, Susan but I don't think its that." Hermione was contemplating her thoughts, her chin resting on her palm. "He was in a good mood after DADA and he hasn't been through any emotional wreckage in the past few days to have that impact."
"Then what could it be?" Harry spoke out, although the thought was an internal one. The reaction was shrugs and head bobs of understanding but uncertainty of the answer to it.
-0X0-0X0-0X0-
Hannah crossed the lawns as she came closer to the one place where she knew Neville goes whenever he is conflicted or worried or angry, the only place where he experiences solitude, the greenhouse. She knocked at the glass door of the greenhouse where she could see Neville's blurry outline and turned the knob when there was no response from the other side.
"Hey, big guy." Hannah said cautiously as she stepped inside the greenhouse and locked the door from the inside so that they wouldn't be disturbed. "Mind if I join?"
Neville had his back turned towards her, all the response Hannah received from his for her question was a non-committal shrug of acknowledgement. Neville was cleaning the gardening tools when Hannah walked in and placed her gentle hand on his arm. It didn't stop Neville's work but it conveyed that she was there if he wanted to talk.
All Neville could do was drop the tools and just rested his hands on the worktable, his head bowed down. A thousand thoughts rushing through his mind but there was only one emotion. It was the feeling of worthlessness, of self-doubt, the fear of disappointing his grandmother and parents, all wrapped in one. He didn't want to break down, he didn't want to cry in front of Hannah, he didn't want her to know that he was so weak. He had to rein in his wandering emotions. He took a couple of deep breaths before he started to feel a bit more in control of himself.
"I need some time alone, Hannah." Neville said in a raspy but shaking voice, without making any eye-contact. "I will see you later."
Hannah wasn't sure how to make him feel better, she had no idea what to do so she did what she thought was the best option. She said nothing, she just wraped her arms around Neville from behind, bringing him in a tight embrace, her nose nuzzling his neck. She gave a light pack on the side of his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. She could feel his unsteady and shaky breathing, she could also sense his efforts of trying to stabilize his rowdy emotions and unsteady breathing. "You are better than you think, I believe in you and so should you."
"Yeah. Tell that to those partially transfigured matchsticks." Neville just scoffed at her thoughtful words.
"You don't need to exhibit yourself, I know you and I appreciate who you are." She just chuckled at the thought that brewed within the confines of her mischievous mind. "Screw those who doubt you."
"You don't understand, Hannah." Neville sounded defeated.
"Then make me understand, tell me." Hannah begged when Neville unwrapped her hands from around him. She was a bit hurt, not by his words, but by his actions.
"You won't understand even if I explained it." He walked away from her to a corner in the greenhouse and tried to busy himself for the rest of the lunch hour. "Nobody can."
"You underestimate me, Neville." She stepped a bit closer and rested her hand on his shoulder. The tension in Neville's body evaporated a few moments later as he made the decision to tell Hannah what's bothering him so much.
"Promise me, you will never tell anyone about this." The eyes Neville made compelled Hannah to give him her word. "I won't tell a soul."
Neville just nodded, he still needed some time to get his words in line and muster enough courage to implement his decision. He took a deep breath before releasing it shakily, trying to strengthen his resolve about discussing the matter. "Let me ask you first, Hannah. What's your greatest fear?"
He waited as Hannah contemplated her answer. "Being eaten by the giant squid."
An unexpected chuckle escaped Neville on Hannah's answer. "I'm trying to be serious here, Han."
"Me too, you are the one laughing." She had the innocent and cute look on her face. The tension was knocked down a couple of levels in just a few words and that was a good thing. "You don't need to be gloomy or brooding or worried. Isn't that Harry's forte?"
That got a hearty laughter out of Neville and Hannah couldn't help but join in. "Don't tell him that I said it okay, Nev?"
"I won't, although I am pretty sure Hermione would like to know." Neville responded in the same light manner.
"She is not too different, she worries too much." Hannah continued the banter. "But she is a good influence on Harry. He would've been rotten spoiled in Ron's company."
"Ron's gonna love your remarks about his potential influence on Harry." Neville teased her as he brought her closer in a loose embrace. But their moment was broken as the door to the greenhouse opened as moment later as Madam Sprout entered the greenhouse. The couple jumped away from each other as a knee-jerk reaction, their faces as red as a ripe tomato.
"Five points from each of you for this incident. Mr. Longbottom, I didn't allow you to use the greenhouse in your free time for these activities." Sprout was shocked and it was evident from her expressions. "Ms. Abbott, I expected more sincerity from a student of my house."
"I'm sorry professor, it's my fault." Neville tried to defend Hannah.
"I can imagine that." Sprout commented. "Kids these days!"
"No, no, professor, you are getting it wrong." He looked at Hannah before turning back towards Sprout. "I was upset about something and Hannah was just came to talk to me."
"Behind a locked door, no less." Sprout replied, more as a teasing accusation. The couple turned even darker shade of scarlet, if that was even possible and Neville started stuttering in his response. Hannah had to rescue the situation. "I'm sorry professor, it won't happen again. We will maintain the decorum."
"Good. Now, out of here, you two." Sprout waved them to leave quickly. "Quick."
"Sorry, Madam Sprout." Both of them chimed as they walked out of the greenhouse with smiles on their faces. They sprinted across the school grounds as the lunch was about to end but there was discussion was just put on hold. As they came nearer to the entrance to the great hall, Hannah stopped him with a firm hand on his chest. "Listen to me and cement it in your Herbology brain. Doubting yourself isn't what you need. I believe in you and I think that should be encouragement enough to believe in yourself. Have I made myself clear, Longbottom?"
"Crystal." Neville replied before they entered the great hall, the lunch was about to end but they might still be able to get something to eat.
"Hey look, the weird couple is back." Ron announced their entrance to his three friends sitting with him. "Took you long enough to cheer him up, Hannah. Your snogging sessions are way overstretched, Nev."
There was laughter for the moment as they stood up to walk out of the great hall to their next lecture.
-0X0-0X0-0X0-
He was standing at the window of the room he had occupied since his return. The sky was turning purple as the night drew closer, a light warm breeze was present with played with the loose dark robes of his. He looked like death incarnated in the light of dusk, his pale gray skin and obsidian scales amplifying the effect to a great extent.
There was a click behind him, the click of the door knob being turned. He waited for his servant who entered through the door and bowed to him. "My lord, he is here."
He was in no mood to talk so he just waved his hand, the free one. Because the other hand was patting the head of his pet snake, Nagini who was whispering something in Parseltongue. He didn't look at her, he didn't have to. "I know, Nagini, he smells like a rat. You can have him for lunch if he makes another mistake, but right now he is useful."
"My Lord." There was another man, bowing to him, dressed in an elegant black dress robe. His pale blonde hair standing in stark contrast to his outfit.
"Ah, Lucius." One would have thought they could get accustomed to the hissing voice but they would have been dearly wrong. "It needs to be done, tonight."
"Yes, my lord. It will be done, as you have planned." The Death Eater answered. "Forgive me, my lord but isn't there any other way to accomplish it?"
All blood drained out of his face as the red eyes of his master focused on him. Voldemort needed no words to convey his anger towards his follower, Nagini did that job tremendously well. "Never question my orders. Leave!"
"Yes, my lord. Forgive me, my lord." He stuttered in his reply before bowing down and leaving the room the next moment.
Voldemort was contemplating the possibilities of the mission. If Lucius was successful tonight, their work would be cut short exponentially. Then he wouldn't need to execute his backup plan which involved a long term process that required the participation of someone extremely non-cooperative. Although, the ground work for the backup plan was already in place.
He had to wait for the next dawn to decide the next step of his great grand plan.
A/N: I hope you liked it. Please Review.