The following morning dawned bright and early as Harry exited the castle to complete his morning run around the lake, somewhere he hadn't visited as yet since his arrival at Hogwarts.
More than anything, he wanted some fresh air and to clear his head before he approached the day, knowing that he needed to be thinking as clearly as possible, particularly when it came to meeting Bellatrix later to complete the assigned work for Defense Against the Dark Arts.
He arrived back in the dormitory a while later, pleased that he had decided to take his run outside and complete his spell work later in the day; he did only have potions to go to after all.
He had decided that, despite how difficult it may be, he would give the girl the benefit of the doubt, the same courtesy that he had granted to Peter, even though he knew it would be very difficult. He had prepared himself for months to be able to face the rat and had barely a days notice to come to terms with the Bellatrix situation, something he knew he should have prepared for, just in case.
He exited the shower to be greeted by the rest of his dorm mates who were as excited as he was about their partnerships, except of course for James and Remus who had been paired together.
"Seriously, I bet McKinnon somehow fixed it so I would be stuck with her" Sirius grumbled.
"For Merlin sake Padfoot, will you just shut up about it" James sighed. "It's all you've talked about since yesterday, we all know you're really happy about it so why don't you get your victory jig out of the way and move on" he suggested exasperatedly.
Sirius scowled at the boy and launched his pillow at him.
"If anyone has reason to complain it's Harry" Remus broke in sympathetically.
"True" Sirius conceded with a firm nod.
"And Peter" James pointed out.
Peter shook his head.
"Augustus and I grew up together, he won't be much of a problem" the smaller boy shrugged.
"You never mentioned that" Sirius replied with a frown.
"We haven't been friends since we were little" Peter explained. "But we will at least be able to tolerate each other, it's Harry that needs to watch out" he advised.
"Yeah just don't turn your back on her and get out of there as quickly as possible" Sirius suggested. "Believe me, she will curse you for no reason" he warned.
Harry shook his head.
"I'll handle it" he sighed. "And it's only until Christmas" he reminded them.
"Thank Merlin" Sirius muttered.
The boy's headed down for breakfast where they were joined by Lily, Alice and Marlene, much to the annoyance of Sirius.
"Isn't it bad enough that I already have to spend more time with you?" he asked as the girl's sat down.
"Oh stop pretending you're upset Sirius" Marlene chided. "Lily wanted to speak with Harry about something" she added.
"What can I do for you?" Harry inquired curiously.
"Well, Professor Flitwick asked me to give this to you" she began, handing him a small leather book. "He said it will help control your power a little more" she explained.
Harry gratefully took the book; he had been trying to find the text for some time now but it was rather rare.
"Thank you, I think I need this" he chuckled.
Lily just nodded and gave him a warm smile.
"I also wanted to ask what you know about the Fidelius Charm" she stated questioningly. "I'm trying to research it but there's almost nothing in the library besides what it does" she sighed.
"Do you want the spell itself and its origins?" Harry asked.
"Can you get them?" she questioned excitedly.
"I can write them down for you" he shrugged in reply.
He had the spell itself in one of the books he had liberated from the room of requirement, but it was largely a book on very offensive protection charms and not exactly written with friendly intent in mind. Certainly not a book he should have or loan out to a fellow student.
"You know it?" she requested, her eyebrows raised.
"I will write it down for you later, but don't try to cast it, I know that you are a gifted witch but you need to be more than exceptionally powerful to do it, people have died trying to perform it" he warned.
The girl squealed in delight and threw her arms around him, almost squeezing the air out of him in the process.
Harry swallowed deeply at receiving the first ever hug from his mother that he remembered and reveled in the feeling, simply trying to absorb both the memory and feeling of it so that he could revisit it at will.
"I promise I won't try to cast it, Professor Flitwick gave me the same warning" she explained.
Harry just nodded and went back to eating his eggs.
"Harry?" Peter called. "What are you planning on doing after Hogwarts?" he asked.
Everyone looked at him, clearly eager to hear his answer.
"I'm not planning anything until the war is over" he answered simply.
"You should join the Auror's with Sirius and myself" James recommended.
Harry shook his head.
"I thought about it before but I'm not interested now" he returned. "What are you planning to do Peter?" he questioned.
"I want to be a potioneer" the boy answered with a broad smile.
"So potions is your favourite?" Harry asked further, a little surprised by his ambition.
The boy just nodded and kept smiling.
"Remus?" Harry inquired.
The werewolf frowned in thought.
"Maybe an enchanter" he shrugged. "I can work for myself and you can make a good bit of gold" he elaborated.
Harry agreed that the boy would suit that profession, he was certainly gifted enough to do it. He just hoped that it would work out for him this time around as his life had not been so kind to him when Harry had met him as a Defense professor.
"Come on" James sighed. "Potions".
The group made their way down to the dungeons where Harry would get to experience his first Hogwarts class without it being taught by Snape, something he was very much looking forward to.
Croaker himself had tutored Harry in the subject, and though it was not his favourite subject by any means, he still found it much more enjoyable than he ever had under the direction of his former instructor.
They entered the room and Harry was pleased to see that they were sharing the class with the Hufflepuff students.
The very rotund Professor Slughorn was waiting for them, his overly large mustache and belly quivering in excitement as he stood at the front of the room with several cauldrons bubbling merrily around him.
"Come now, gather round" he instructed. "We are going to look at various potions today and brew one of the more simple concoctions we will be studying this year to get settled in" he announced jovially.
The class gathered around the man and Harry got his first glimpse into the cauldrons. He immediately recognised the contents of each having had their properties drilled into him by Croaker, who had insisted he learn how to recognise potions that could potentially compromise him in some way.
"Now, who can identify this?" Slughorn asked, pointing to a completely transparent liquid.
Lily raised her hand immediately.
"Ahh, Miss Evans, I should have known" Slughorn said with a nod, causing his overly pronounced jowls to flap comically.
"Veritaserum sir" Lily answered knowledgably.
"Very good, five points to Gryffindor" the man praised. "And this?" he inquired, pointing to the mud-like substance in the next cauldron. "Mr. Pettigrew?".
"Polyjuice Potion" Peter replied confidently.
"Indeed it is, take five points young man" Slughorn offered. "And what about this?" he questioned, gesturing to a pink translucent concoction with a shimmering sheen resting on the top. "Mr. Potter" the man implored, looking at Harry.
"Amortentia" Harry answered knowingly.
Slughorn smiled.
"The most powerful love potion known to man" he stated simply. "The smell of the potion is dependent on what it is that attracts us" he explained. "I myself smell pineapple, suede and mint" he informed them. "What is it you smell Mr. Potter?" he inquired.
Harry smirked.
The truth was he didn't really recognise anything of what he was smelling. He was sure there was some kind of berry but it was not one that was particularly sweet, it had a more musky aroma about it.
"That is rather personal don't you think sir?" he asked with a chuckle. "Almost as personal as asking about another's wand" he pointed out.
"Oho, touché young man" Slughorn responded good naturedly. "Take five points for yourself" he finished with a smile.
"What about that one sir?" Marlene asked, pointing to the smallest of the cauldrons that contained a gold liquid swirling within.
"Oho, indeed Miss McKinnon" he exclaimed. "Can anyone explain this one?" he asked curiously.
Seeing that no one else was going to raise their hand Harry did and was immediately prompted by Slughorn to continue.
"It's Felix Felicis, liquid luck" he informed them. "One of the most difficult potions to brew and highly toxic" he explained.
"Well put Mr. Potter, take another ten points" Slughorn praised again with another smile. "Now usually I would offer a vial of this as a prize for the best brewed potion of the lesson, but it has recently been placed on the restricted list so I am no longer able to" he sighed. "However, we will be brewing the Draught of the Living Dead and do be very careful, it is a very volatile mixture" he warned.
Harry set to work on his potion and brewed it the way that Croaker had taught him, using the instructions the man had provided him with personally and achieving the best potion he had ever brewed in class.
By the end of the session himself, Lily and Peter had all been giving an Outstanding for their efforts, though Harry could see that the other two's potions were certainly better than his own. He was simply pleased that he could do as well in a subject that he had previously been rather abysmal at, even if the reason for it was the constant criticism by Snape and interference by the Slytherin students from his time.
After potions had finished, the Marauder's all had other lessons to attend to so Harry opted to get the rest of his training completed while he had the time. He decided that he would work more on controlling the power of his spells using the book that Flitwick had given him. He knew that he was wasting power at times and although he never really tired, it could become a factor if he found himself in a drawn out fight. Which was certainly going to happen in all likelihood with what the future held for him and who he knew that he would be fighting.
(BREAK)
Charlus Potter exited the training room after an exhaustive workout, something he had been dedicated to ever since he could remember.
It was something that he liked to focus more on when James was at all school more so and was a little more negligent towards during the holidays when he would much rather be spending time with his son as this quality time was severely limited for most of the year.
He sighed as he became lost in thoughts about the other boy that had recently came into their lives.
Harry was different; there was no other way to put it. The boy had experienced nothing short of an awful upbringing and it pained the man to know that a member of his family had had to endure this in any way. What did surprise him was the resilience the young man had demonstrated throughout his life. But this did not stop the older Potter worrying about the boy.
He knew that Harry would not be compromised on his goals and he also knew that he would do whatever was necessary to complete said goals. He was worried about the sacrifices that the boy would make to see the end of his own suffering.
He sighed again and dragged a hand through his hair as he entered the living room to be greeted by the sight of his brother-in-law.
'That did not take long' he mused.
"I've heard some rather strange news Charlus" Arcturus began with a frown. "It seems that you have apparently acquired a new son recently, one that claims to be James's twin, care to explain" he stated questioningly.
Charlus gestured for the man to follow him into his study and took a seat opposite him, deciding how and what exactly he should say.
"You mean Harry" he said simply.
Arcturus just nodded.
Charlus drew his wand and conjured two large tumblers, passing one to the other man before reaching into one of his desk draws and removing a bottle of firewhisky.
"That bad huh?" Arcturus inquired.
"Not bad no, it's just one hell of a story" Charlus replied seriously. "I can explain how and who he is, but I won't share anything further" he warned. "Harry does not trust many and I don't want to break the trust he has shown me" he finished firmly.
"I'm not bloody interested in his story, I just want to know what the hell is going on, we both know that boy is not your son" Arcturus pointed out irritably.
Charlus nodded.
"Harry is our grandson" he began simply.
Arcturus frowned and shook his head disbelievingly but allowed the other man to continue.
"He time travelled here from 1996, as hard as it is to believe it is the truth" Charlus explained.
"I've heard crazier things" Arcturus conceded with a sigh. "Why?" he questioned.
"I can't say, but things were not good for him at all and he didn't exactly volunteer to come here originally, he was sent by very high up officials" Charlus answered cryptically.
Arcturus nodded his understanding.
"So what are you going to do?" he asked curiously.
"Try to give him a good life, the boy deserves some happiness, he is family after all, no matter how or why he is here" Charlus sighed.
"I'd probably do the same" Arcturus agreed. "Family first" he added firmly. "How's Dorea taking it?".
"She loves the boy like he's our own" Charlus answered amusedly. "You know how she is".
"I do" the other man replied knowingly.
The two sat in silence for some time just enjoying their drinks before Charlus spoke again.
"He's a good kid" he declared after he had drained the remaining liquor from his glass.
Arcturus just nodded.
"So, when do I get to meet the little bugger then? He is supposed to be my nephew after all" he pointed out.
"I'll get Dor to talk to him about it at Christmas" Charlus promised. "Just go easy on him, he won't take kindly to being pushed much" he advised.
"What is it you're not telling me?" Arcturus asked with a frown.
Charlus sighed and dragged his hand through his hair from frustration.
"I can't really say much but the boy is very gifted and he's had to be just to survive up until now" he explained coyly. "Get to know him and earn his trust, you'll be glad you did" he added.
"Then I look forward to meeting him" Arcturus declared with a smirk.
(BREAK)
Harry entered the Gryffindor common room after he had finished his training to find that the Marauder's had also completed their lessons for the day and were sat in their usual seats, poring over some parchment.
"What are you guys doing?" he asked as he took his place among them.
"Homework" Sirius sighed irritably.
"Just finishing this up for you" Peter cut in, handing Harry a roll of parchment after he had finished his sentence. "You'll want to read this before we start with the last bit of your transformation" he added in a whisper.
Harry nodded.
"Thanks" he replied gratefully as he pulled some parchment out for himself and began writing down what he had promised to Lily.
They sat this way for some time until they had all completed their tasks and breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"So when are you going to teach me the Patronus Charm?" Sirius questioned Harry eagerly.
"You can do a Patronus Charm" Remus interjected, clearly impressed by the advanced magic.
Harry simply nodded his response to the werewolf before turning to face the other boy.
"How about we start tomorrow after transfiguration?" he offered.
Sirius nodded enthusiastically.
"And the wandless magic" he reminded him.
Harry sighed.
"OK, but don't get your hopes up with any of them, you have to be powerful and be able to focus enough to even have a chance" he warned.
"Hey, what about us?" James broke in with a frown.
"I can try and teach all of you but it's unlikely you'll all be able to do it" Harry pointed out. "We will find a room to practice in" he shrugged.
The other boy's shared a grin of eager anticipation before Remus reminded them it was almost dinner time so they left the common room and made their way down to the Great Hall.
"So Sirius" Remus addressed the boy with a mischievous grin. "Looking forward to your date with Marlene?" he asked innocently.
"It's not a bloody date" Sirius ground out irritably.
"He just wishes it was" Peter piped up.
Sirius shook his head.
"Just don't ok, it's bad enough that I get it from her" he sighed. "I asked her out once and she said no and that's that, I won't be doing it again" he vowed firmly.
"10 Galleons says by February" Harry whispered to Remus.
"Done" Remus agreed immediately shaking the other boys hand.
"Not until after Easter" James cut in confidently.
Both Remus and Harry shrugged but took the bet.
"I can bloody well hear you" Sirius hissed angrily.
"If you're so confident then why don't you get in on it?" James asked with a smirk.
Sirius just huffed and fell silent.
"Christmas" Peter whispered with a snicker.
They entered the hall and took their seats at the Gryffindor table and began spooning their servings of food on to their plates.
"Any idea how you're going to work with my cousin?" Sirius questioned Harry gravely.
"Just get in, get the work done and get out" he surmised.
"Best way" Sirius agreed. "And avoid eye contact, I swear her stare will freeze your soul, she must be part Dementor or something" he finished with a shiver.
"She's not that bad" Remus sighed. "Just don't look at her too much and whatever you do, do not make jokes, she doesn't like jokes, does she Sirius?" he questioned with a grin.
Sirius just shook his head.
"And don't try to flirt either" he warned. "I wouldn't put it past her to claim your stones as a memento of your time together" he added severely.
"Believe me, the last thing I would do is flirt with her" Harry replied seriously.
"What kind of girls do you like Harry?" James asked suddenly.
"I don't really have a type" Harry mused aloud. "But I might have a crack at McKinnon if Sirius doesn't get in there quickly" he concluded jokingly.
"You bloody well won't" the other boy retorted heatedly before he inwardly scolded himself for his outburst.
The others just laughed at him victoriously.
"You know Peter, you might be right with your Christmas prediction" Remus quipped.
(BREAK)
Knowing he could no longer put off his meeting with Bellatrix, Harry tentatively exited the Gryffindor common after receiving some final sympathetic looks from the rest of the group before removing his copy of the map from his pocket and checking that he was not about to be ambushed. He would not put it past the LeStrange's to do so or even Bellatrix to help them.
After seeing that she was indeed alone on the third floor he sighed deeply and made his way to where she was waiting for him.
He steeled himself before opening the door and entering the room to be greeted by the sight of the girl herself sat at a table surrounded by various sheets of parchment.
"You know, it is rather rude to keep a lady waiting" she spoke casually, though Harry could tell she was irritated with him.
"I wasn't aware there was a lady waiting" Harry shrugged in reply.
Bellatrix narrowed her eyes at him.
"Very funny Potter, but it doesn't change the fact that you are late" she retorted.
"It's after dinner" Harry pointed out. "You didn't actually give a specific time" he added.
"It means that when the plates are clear, you get your stuff and come here" Bellatrix growled.
"Ahh, then you have my deepest apologies for the misunderstanding my lady" Harry bit back sarcastically giving an elaborate vow.
The girl narrowed her eyes at him again but there was a hint of amusement in them.
"Your sarcasm needs work, the brutal honesty approach you used on that buffoon Rudolphus was much better" She praised genuinely.
"Well I imagine that spending time with you will give me plenty of chances to improve" Harry shrugged, ignoring the compliment. "And I'm surprised you haven't cursed me yet for embarrassing him" he added seriously.
"The only time I've thought about cursing you is for being late" she returned with a frown. "And now for your poor attempt at sarcasm" she continued. "Rudolphus is a moron and got exactly what he deserved and there's definitely more to you than meets the eye" she finished confidently.
'How the hell did she end up married to the prat, she clearly cannot stand him?' Harry questioned internally. 'Something must have happened for it to have happened, something big'.
He decided to put that away to think about further later, but something certainly was not adding up about the entire thing.
"And why would you think there is more to me, we have only been speaking for a few minutes" he reminded her.
"I watched you yesterday, you're not like my cousin and those other Gryffindor idiots you spend time with" she replied with a shrug.
"How so?" Harry questioned curiously.
Bellatrix sighed and placed her quill down before looking at him calculatingly.
"Firstly, you didn't immediately attack him when he insulted you and you even stopped your brother from being his typical obtuse self" she began.
Harry grudgingly nodded his agreement, clearly she was observant.
"Secondly, you drew your wand and was ready to defend yourself if by some miracle he could understand what you were saying" she continued. "Also, you didn't confront him, he confronted you like the fool he is and tried to attack someone he knew nothing about and he paid the price" she added.
"True" Harry responded simply.
"See, that makes you different, that was more of a Slytherin move" she returned curiously. "And you are somewhat interesting considering no one knew you existed until a few days ago" she elaborated thoughtfully.
"Family secret" Harry shrugged.
Bellatrix just nodded.
"Don't care" She stated. "So, clearly you have some preconceived notions about me, what have you heard?" she asked.
Harry did indeed have some preconceived notions of the girl, but they were not based on what Sirius or the others had said. His had been based on experience of her, yet the Bellatrix sat in front of him was a far cry from the insane, loud and cringe worthy woman he had met.
This Bellatrix did not add up at all. Clearly the insanity must have changed her somewhere along the line. She was more relaxed than Harry had expected and even had a dry sense of humour, something he had not ever associated with her.
"Well I was warned not to turn my back on you and that you might even remove my pebbles if I attempted to make a joke or flirt with you" Harry answered honestly with a smirk.
Bellatrix just raised an eyebrow at him and again had a slight look of amusement about her.
"I might" she shrugged. "I haven't decided yet, but for now I'll leave you with them, at least until we have gotten the work done" she returned. "But you might want to learn to form your own opinion of people Potter" she added seriously. "And I thought it was us Slytherin's that were supposed to be prejudice and ignorant" she mused to herself with a sigh.
Harry just nodded reluctantly, knowing that what she said made sense.
This was not going at all how he thought it would and he actually found this Bellatrix tolerable and even interesting, something he had not expected.
It was very much similar to the Peter situation. Despite his experiences of the man before Harry found himself slowly warming to him the same way that he was able to be in a room with Bellatrix and not immediately want to kill her, but he didn't find himself becoming any more fond of her. He knew for a fact that she would curse him if he gave her a reason to so he decided that for the sake of himself he would just put up with her, it was only a temporary situation after all.
He shook his head and tried to clear the conflicting thoughts he was having. Although he could see that this Bellatrix was different, he couldn't entirely remove the image of her as the lunatic she would become.
"Shall we get on" he suggested. "That way I can get back and show them that you haven't cursed me, yet" he added.
Bellatrix just shrugged and removed the list of curses they had been given to research.
"Blood boiling curse?" she asked.
Harry nodded his agreement.
"Oh, and you can go to the library and get the books next time" she informed him.
"Fair enough" Harry agreed with a sigh.
"What do you know about the curse?" she asked with a frown. "It's not in any of these books".
Harry pondered the curse for a moment trying to remember its origins.
"It was created in the early 18th century by a Polish Mediwizard named Jarek Siaucila as a treatment for hyperthermia but as with a lot of medical spells it can be used offensively" he began. "If cast verbally it's results depend on how much power you will into it, but non-verbally takes that control away and it will solely depend on how powerful the caster is at their maximum" he continued thoughtfully. "You don't have to be at all powerful to kill someone with it as the blood in the human body has to stay around 37 degrees Celsius and any difference of a few degrees either way can kill you if left untreated" he concluded confidently.
"Well, if you keep that up I might just leave you in tact" Bellatrix stated, clearly impressed by his knowledge.
"That would be appreciated" Harry replied with a smirk.
"Keep up with those smart remarks and I'll take them and boil them, it would definitely add to my reputation" she surmised with a smirk of her own.
It was around an hour later that they completed the assigned work and both packed away their things and readied themselves to lead.
"Well it looks like you get to keep them today" Bellatrix sighed in mock disappointment. "I can see why you got an O+ but I guess there's always next time" she finished with a grin.
Harry breathed a faux sigh of relief.
"Well if you like I could just limp for a few days then that way your reputation won't be tarnished" Harry offered sarcastically.
"No, I would know that it wasn't real and my reputation to myself is all I really care about but thanks for the offer, I'd rather find a reason to do it for real" she quipped.
"Well maybe you'll get lucky" Harry shrugged.
"Or maybe I've been lenient today" Bellatrix countered.
Harry narrowed his eyes at her and shoo his head amusedly.
"Same time next week?" he asked.
"No" Bellatrix responded. "You'd better be on time next week or I will reconsider my generosity" She warned with a raised eyebrow.
Harry left the room and though back over the past couple of hours and how surreal the experience had been.
Initially, he had been ready to just curse the girl but he quickly found her to at least be bearable, much to his own confusion. She was actually rather entertaining to talk to and was clearly very intelligent and witty.
'How did that girl in there turn into what she did before?' he questioned himself, frustrated.
He grudgingly admitted that his time with her had been interesting and that she had been right to some extent about the preconceived notions thing, but she was of course not aware that Harry knew what she would become one day.
Harry was confused and had a million questions swirling around his mind. He decided not to dwell on the topic, it was not important after all.
He again reminded himself that it was only temporary and would be a waste of his time looking into it any further. He would only have to see her once a week for an hour or so at a time and then it would be over with.
He entered the Gryffindor common room to be immediately approached by Remus, James and Peter who were all looking rather concerned.
"Merlin Harry, we were about to come and get you" James informed him seriously.
"I was only gone a couple of hours" Harry responded.
"We were done in an hour" Remus cut in. "She didn't curse you then?" he asked worriedly.
"No, but there's always next time as she pointed out" Harry sighed, though he was still a little amused.
"Well, how was it?" Peter questioned.
"She doesn't like any of you" Harry said flatly. "But then again, I don't really think she likes anyone" he added thoughtfully.
"For Merlin sake McKinnon can we just get this done now?" the irritated voice of Sirius sounded throughout the room.
Remus, James and Peter snickered.
"They've been there for two hours and Marlene has spent the whole time winding him up" Remus explained through his laughter.
Harry looked over and could see that Marlene was grinning mischievously while Sirius looked as though he wanted to tear his own hair out.
"The tension between them is disgusting" Remus continued. "It actually makes me queasy" he added with a grimace.
Harry just shook his head in sympathy and made his way over to Lily.
"Hey Lily" he greeted her. "As promised" he intoned holding out a piece of parchment to her.
"It's blank" she pointed out with a frown.
"Tap it with your wand, I put a signature charm on it so that only you can read it" he explained.
Lily did as she was instructed and her eyes lit up in awe and excitement.
"How did you do that?" she questioned. "That's really advanced" she stated.
"I'll teach you at some point" Harry offered having purposely put the charm on it as an excuse to spend more time with her at a later date.
He knew that she would be interested in learning the charm he had used.
"Thank you" She replied excitedly and threw her arms around him.
"You sure you haven't got anything to worry about with Evans and Harry?" Remus asked James seriously.
"Not even remotely" James answered with a smile aimed at the pair in question.
Remus just shook his head, not understanding his friend at all. James would usually be very jealous of any boy that gave Lily their attention, but he seemed sure that Harry was no threat at all.
'He knows his brother better than anyone else I guess' he mused to himself.
(BREAK)
It was the next day, after a Transfiguration lesson spent reviewing fifth year material, that found Harry and the Marauder's in an empty classroom on the fourth floor where he would attempt to teach them how to cast a Patronus Charm.
"Ok, you have to remember that this is very, very advanced magic and only few are even capable of producing it" he began seriously. "You have to think of your happiest memory and allow that feeling to wash over you completely before you will even begin to be able to get any results" he instructed firmly. "If you do manage to produce something then that in itself is a hell of an achievement" he finished.
"Is everyone's different" Peter piped up.
Harry nodded.
"Your patronus usually reflects something that means the most to you or what you most resemble in animal form" Harry answered. "It could be something that makes you feel safe or something that is relatable to yourself" he added.
"Can we see yours, so we can get an idea?" Remus requested.
Harry nodded, drew his wand and immediately cast his patronus.
"That's you" Remus said dumbly, looking at James.
James just nodded proudly.
'That's why he trusts him with Lily, Harry would never do anything to hurt him' Remus surmised.
"That's all I can really tell you" Harry broke in once more. "It will take a while to even get a wisp of a shield so just work on it and remember it is all about the emotion and basking in it, if you can do that and you get no results, then you just aren't powerful enough" he concluded with a shrug.
"How long did it take you to get it?" Sirius inquired.
"It took me a few months just to get a shield" Harry answered. "But I could do it in less than a year" he added.
"And you were thirteen when you learnt it" a red faced James asked incredulously.
Harry just nodded.
Peter and Remus just shook their head disbelievingly.
The group spent a couple of hours in the room with none of the boy's yielding any results but none were disheartened by the attempt as Harry had pointed out that it takes a lot of work.
The exited the classroom and made their way back to Gryffindor Tower, all pleased that the lessons for the week had been completed for all of them.
They entered the common room to be greeted by Frank Longbottom who had clearly been waiting for them.
"First practice is on Monday" he informed them. "6 o'clock, don't be late" he added sternly before walking away.
Harry smiled.
He truly could not wait to play quidditch again. It was nice that himself, James and Sirius had played a few pick up games before coming here but it wasn't the same as playing it at Hogwarts with a full team and competing against the other houses.
He did wonder however, how different it would be. This was a whole new team after all. In fact, all of the teams were different.
He pushed those thoughts aside and in favour simply reveled in the knowledge that he was going to get to play his favourite game with his Father, Remus and Sirius, something that had not been possible before he came here for many reasons.
Regardless of how different the set up here would be, he would just enjoy it for what it was; a chance to have a little bit of the childhood that had been taken away from him, despite the fact that he was the same age as his father.
(BREAK)
Friday evening arrived and Albus Dumbledore had called a staff meeting to discuss the first week of classes and to give the Professor's a chance to raise any concerns they may have in relation to any students or their posts in general.
The staff gathered around him as he sat at his desk in his office and waited for them to settle before he begun.
"Are there any pressing matters that need to be brought to my attention?" he asked, looking at each member of staff in turn.
It was Professor McGonagall that spoke first, though it seemed that most of the staff had something to say.
"I cannot understand for the life of me why Rudolphus LeStrange is still here Albus" She began exasperatedly. "The boy simply is not capable of passing the sixth year material with the incompetence he demonstrates in his theory work".
"I understand your annoyance but my hands are tied" the headmaster sighed. "Randolph would make life very difficult if we were to remove his son from the school without due cause, he does have the right to complete his education after all".
There was a collective groan at the conclusion of the man's response.
"The boy is a moron Albus" Professor Mortlake exclaimed. "Within two minutes of being in my classroom he tried to pick a fight with the new Potter" he informed them irritably.
"Ahh, and how is the young Mr. Potter settling?" Dumbledore questioned curiously.
"The boy knows his stuff, of that there is no doubt, he even knew about Inferi" Mortlake responded. "And I'm sure Mr. LeStrange will think twice before picking a fight with him anymore, but then again. Lestrange is an idiot and will not likely learn his lesson" he concluded with a shake of his head.
"What did happen between the two?" Professor McGonagall inquired.
Mortlake sighed.
"LeStrange started spewing his typical nonsense and Potter exposed him for the Neanderthal he is" Mortlake began. "I intervened before the exchange got too heated but LeStrange confronted him after the class and found himself blasted down the corridor by the boy, who no doubt would have attacked him further had his brother and friends not prevented it" he finished warningly.
"I see" Dumbledore mused. "It would not be wise for Mr. LeStrange to continue to goad young Harry, he will not like the results" he added gravely, remembering what he had been allowed to witness through his memories. "What does everybody else think of the boy?" he asked further.
"He is very gifted, clearly" Flitwick piped up. "He has more power than I have ever seen in a student so I have provided him with a book on how to control it a little better, though I think his control will be limited just because of how much power he possesses" he sighed.
"I agree" McGonagall interjected. "His Transfiguration skills are exemplary and he has no problems performing the more intricate spells, I imagine he has rather good control but even when he does attempt to control his power with power based spells it simply is not enough dampen it sufficiently" she theorised. "Does he seem out of control when he casts the spells?" she asked the diminutive charms master.
"No, he even warned me that he was reining it in as best he could and it was still considerably more powerful than those pushing themselves, but maybe he will get a better grasp of it" he shrugged.
"Horace?" Dumbledore questioned.
"The lad is in the top 5 students in his year, but it is clear he has little passion for the subject, although he will have no problem in attaining an outstanding in his NEWTS" he declared confidently.
Dumbledore next turned his attention to Professor Merrythought who smiled.
"The young man was the only student who could see the Thestral" he revealed. "He is clearly compassionate and understanding and certainly a lover of animals and does not take their reputation into account" he elaborated.
"He could see it?" McGonagall asked disbelievingly.
"Young Mr. Potter has witnessed several unpleasant things throughout his education" Dumbledore sighed.
"Where has the boy been educated?" Mortlake broke in with a frown.
"I have no idea, but he is certainly more than capable" Dumbledore returned. "I suggest we keep an eye on him however, I do not believe that he is dark in any way but he certainly is not light minded, as I believe Mr. LeStrange would have discovered had the other Gryffindor's intervened." he stated seriously.
(BREAK)
Monday evening arrived and Harry was making his way down to the quidditch pitch with the others. Peter did not play on the team but he was an avid fan of the sport, something that surprised Harry.
He had spent the weekend training and helping the Marauder's with their Patronus charms, with Remus even achieving his first results of the spell in the form of a weak misty shield forming.
He had also spent some time with Lily, helping her with her research project. In this time he had learnt much about his Mother, the most prominent being that she was very dedicated in the study of charms. He was simply amazed by her ability and though he arguably knew more spells than her, he was left with no doubt that her knowledge in the subject was second to none.
He certainly enjoyed spending time with the girl. She was an interesting person to talk to, warm and very kind; a welcome escape from the continuous teasing and taunting that the boy's inflicted on each other continuously, although he would not trade his time spent with them for anything.
The defense lesson that day had consisted of a lecture about giants and how one would escape from them if you were not capable of fighting one, which very few were.
Rudolphus and the rest of his cohorts had spent the duration of the lesson shooting Harry death glares, though none attempted to confront him again, something that Harry knew would not last long.
Harry had no doubt that they would eventually and that he would just have to make sure that he was ready when the time came. Rudolphus was too stupid to learn from his mistakes and not antagonise him any further.
Although the constant staring bothered him he managed to completely ignore them as he had more important things on his mind, namely Quidditch and the first team practice of the year.
The group reached the pitch and Harry was introduced to the other members of the team. Of course, there was Frank Longbottom himself who played chaser along with James and a fifth year boy named Malcolm Singleton who looked as though he should be a beater. He was of a large build with blonde hair that was cropped short with, very bright blue eyes that oozed friendliness.
Sirius and Remus were the two beaters and the keeper was an even larger boy than Singleton. He was well over six feet tall and was a mass of solid muscle. He was introduced as Albert Kilburn, a seventh year boy.
"Alright lads, fall in" Frank commanded. "We'll take it easy today and get rid of the cobwebs from the summer" he informed them. "Standard set up and let's see what Harry is made of" he added with a smirk. "First match is against Slytherin in October, so we need to be ready for the filthy bastards" he sighed.
"Who's their team this year?" James asked.
"Same as last" Frank responded. "The LeStrange's as beaters, Black, Avery and Mulciber chasing, Selwyn in goal and Rookwood as seeker" he explained.
"Great" Sirius huffed irritably.
"Black?" Harry questioned.
"My Brother Regulus" Sirius grumbled bitterly.
"I didn't know you had a brother" Harry stated in surprise.
"Family secret" Sirius returned with a smirk. "He's a prick any way, he's no brother of mine" he declared vehemently.
Harry just shook his head.
"Come on, up we go boy's, let's get on with it" Frank instructed.
The team spent a couple of hours in the air running standard drills while Harry chased the snitch around the pitch, catching it with ease on several occasions and impressing the rest of the team deeply in the process.
"Shit, you weren't joking about him" Frank exclaimed once they had landed and grouped together once more. "Where the hell did you learn to play like that?" he asked seriously. "I've never seen anything like it" he finished with a shake of his head.
Harry shrugged.
"I've always been comfortable on a broom" he deadpanned.
"Well, I think it's safe to say that we have no worries with the snitch this year, he is way out of everyone else's league by miles" Frank declared gleefully.
It wasn't long after that the practice ended and Harry and the rest made their way back up to the tower to relax for the rest of the evening and start putting some final touches on pranks they were planning.
"What about this one?" Sirius asked, pointing to one of the pranks they had been working on.
Harry sighed and shook his head.
"I've said it more than a few times, that is not a prank, that is just being a bastard" he pointed out.
"Well the gits deserve it" Sirius grumbled.
"Look, if they do something bad enough to provoke it then that's fair enough, but targeting single people like that is just malicious, that's why people think you're just bullying" Harry replied knowingly.
"Well then you pick one that you approve of" Sirius challenged heatedly.
"Fine" Harry agreed and began leafing through the sheets of parchment. "How about this one?" he asked after a few moments.
"I like it, but who?" James inquired.
"The staff" Harry suggested with a grin. "Let's call it a practice run for Christmas, just without the hat".
"You're mental" Remus interjected.
"No one gets hurt and it shows that you won't only target the Slytherin's" Harry shrugged. "I bet Dumbledore will find it amusing" he added.
"McGonagall will skin us alive" Sirius cut in, his eyes alight with amusement. "I'm in" he finished firmly.
"Definitely" James vowed.
"Why not" Peter shrugged.
"Damn" Remus whispered. "If this goes wrong you're taking the blame for this one" he informed Harry.
"Works for me" Harry returned with a chuckle.
(BREAK)
It was the following evening that found Peter making his way to the second floor to meet Rookwood so they could complete their Defense assignment for the week, though the boy couldn't see why he was bothering, especially if it turned out to be anything like it had the previous week.
He had arrived as instructed and Rookwood had simply told him to research the final two spells on the list and the pair completed the work in silence. It had only taken the duo around about an hour to finish and Rookwood had simply grunted his approval before leaving.
Peter sighed as he reached the designated classroom and entered, keen to just get it done so he could return to the tower.
"Same as last week" Rookwood instructed succinctly, his attention never wavering from the book he was buried in.
Peter just nodded and took his place. Perhaps it was better to do it this way and avoid the idle chit-chat. It had been years since the boys had spoken after all, so he took a seat and began working on his section of the spells.
It was around half an hour into the session that he noticed that Rookwood was staring at him speculatively and Peter frowned at the boy.
"What is it Augustus?" he sighed impatiently.
"I'm just trying to work out how you ended up in Gryffindor" Rookwood replied curiously.
"Because that is where the hat put me" Peter shrugged.
"We both know you're a sniveling coward Peter" the other boy stated. "You hide behind Potter, Black and Lupin like a terrified puppy, there's nothing brave about that" he added disgustedly.
"They are my friends and we look out for each other" Peter returned heatedly.
Rookwood shook his head.
"They are your friends here, but what happens when you finish school?" he asked. "Do you actually think they will still want a mediocre lackey hanging on to them like a lost kitten?" he asked further.
Peter swallowed deeply.
It was something that he himself had been thinking about. The other three and Harry were much more talented than him and there was no doubt that he would be left behind.
"You know as well as I do what's going on out there" Rookwood cut in with a whisper. "All the mudbloods and blood traitors will be killed along with those they associate with, you at least are smart enough to know that you definitely won't be safe" he pointed out.
Peter shrugged, not knowing what else to say but he had to concede the fact that Rookwood had a point.
"You have the protection of being a pureblood" Rookwood continued. "You will be left alone so long as you don't associate with the scum of society, and you could be very useful to the Dark Lord yourself, you have 5 years of knowledge about the blood traitors" he said charismatically.
Peter shook his head, trying to rid his mind of the doubts.
"They are my friends" he hissed angrily though there was still a hint of doubt in his voice.
"Then you are signing your own death warrant and are an idiot, just think about it Peter, none of them can protect you from him" he said confidently. "None of them" he reiterated firmly. "Anyway, it's your life, you can die how you please I guess, makes no difference to me" he shrugged.
With that said the boy took the sheaf of parchment and packed his things before exiting the room, leaving a very thoughtful Peter Pettigrew in his wake.