For the rest of the week's Potions lessons, Harry continued to follow the Half-Blood Prince's instructions wherever they deviated from Libatius Borage's, with the result that by their fourth lesson Slughorn was raving about Harry's abilities, saying that he had rarely taught anyone so talented. Y/n did not particularly care but neither Ron nor Hermione was delighted by this. Although Harry had offered to share his book with both of them, Ron had more difficulty deciphering the handwriting than Harry did, and could not keep asking Harry to read aloud or it might look suspicious. Hermione, meanwhile, was resolutely plowing on with what she called the "official" instructions, but becoming increasingly bad-tempered as they yielded poorer results than the Prince's. Y/n had borrowed the book a few times to compare results but the look of annoyance on Hermione's face whenever he did told Harry it was best for Y/n if he did not share it again.
Harry wondered vaguely who the Half-Blood Prince had been. Although the amount of homework they had been given prevented him from reading the whole of his copy of Advanced Potion-Making, he had skimmed through it sufficiently to see that there was barely a page on which the Prince had not made additional notes, not all of them concerned with potion-making. Here and there were directions for what looked like spells that the Prince had made up himself.
"Or herself." said Hermione irritably, overhearing Harry pointing some of these out to Y/n in the common room on Saturday evening. "It might have been a girl. I think the handwriting looks more like a girl's than a boy's."
"The Half-Blood Prince, he was called." Harry said. "How many girls have been princes?"
Hermione seemed to have no answer to this. She merely scowled and twitched her essay on 'The Principles of Rematerialization' away from Ron, who was trying to read it upside down.
Y/n however had been intrigued by the spells written in the book.
Harry looked at his watch and hurriedly put the old copy of Advanced Potion-Making back into his bag. "It's five to eight, I'd better go, I'll be late for Dumbledore."
"Ooooh!" gasped Hermione, looking up at once. "Good luck! We'll wait up, we want to hear what he teaches you!"
"Hope it goes okay." said Ron,
"Harry." Y/n getting up at the same time as him. "Might I ask to borrow your cloak this evening?"
"My cloak?" Harry asked confused.
"Yes. Just for this evening. I will hand it back to you once I am finished." Y/n told him.
"Alright, but I do need it back quickly. Dumbledore wants me to keep it on me at all times." Harry said taking the cloak out of his bag and handing it to Y/n.
"Y/n what are you sneaking out for?" Hermione asked him as she lowered her quill.
"I am going for a walk, Do not wait up for me." Y/n said back to her as he turned and left with Harry disappearing under the cloak.
"What do you think Y/n's wanting Harry's cloak for?" Ron asked Hermione curiously.
"I don't know Ron...but I don't like it. Y/n's never kept something like this from me before."
"Share everything to each other do you?" Ron said a little annoyed.
"Oh Stop it Ron." Hermione said seriously. "Ever since his grandmother died he's been closing himself from me slowly. I want to help him but he won't talk to me about what happened. In fact he won't talk to anyone about it. Even if it's not me, I just want him to talk to someone about what happened so that he can start to heal. I am doing my best but I am constantly worried about him..."
"I get that he's sad about his grandmother, but he's been fine now we're back at Hogwarts right? I mean he's not refusing food outright like before and he talks a bit more." Ron said.
"That's because he doesn't want anyone to worry about him! Honestly Ronald, Just because he gets out of bed every morning and is hanging out with friends doesn't mean it isn't harder for him to do those things then ever before."
Y/n was walking through the slowly emptying corridors underneath Harry's invisibility cloak. As he carefully made his way through them he could see the older students all heading back towards their common rooms. He had to hug the wall at one point when a large seventh year student grumpily made their way toward him. As they passed Y/n waited until they were out of sight to move again.
Soon he reached his destination. The Library. It had been closed for a while now as Madam Pince was in his eyes always eager to kick students out early. She had an odd obsession with taking care of the books. The door to the library was locked as Y/n expected it to be when he tested it, he drew his wand and used the unlocking charm upon it. Then, he quietly pushed the door open and closed it behind him.
It was empty, but to Y/n the quietness was not strange, after all, Madam Pince made it her duty to hush students down with ferocity. What felt odd to Y/n was not seeing Hermione reading or working on a piece of parchment at a table. Ignoring the feeling he moved through the library careful not to knock into anything that would make a sound. It took him only a minute to find what he was looking for.
The Restricted Section.
In front of it stood two large locked gates. Y/n once again raised his wand and waved it. To his surprise it worked as the gates unlocked and opened for him, he had expected more protective spells to have been placed over such a place truthfully.
As he entered Y/n looked around at the many books on the shelves, some even locked shut with chains. Y/n would ignore those. They would be too much hassle. There were too many books and too little time for Y/n to waste. He raised his wand and whispered.
"Accio books on Dark protective spells."
At once several books began to fly off their shelves towards him and Y/n dropped the cloak to catch them for a moment and soon he was stood with a pile of books in his hands. As he looked at the books in his arms he contemplated if this was the right decision to make. But he thought about Harry, Ron, Hermione...and his grandmother.
He would not let what happened to her happen to any of them. They were all he had left now. He carefully set the books down on the ground and moved to open his school bag that he had emptied earlier and placed the books inside it.
Not wanting to linger any longer Y/n pulled the cloak back around himself and left the restricted section locking it behind him to cover his tracks. He did the same when leaving the library.
Y/n was now walking along the corridors again as he made his way up to the seventh-floor corridor. Seeing that it too was empty he walked up and down it a few times with one thought in his head.
'Please give me a place to practice without being found.'
As Hermione had predicted before, the sixth-years' free periods were not the hours of blissful relaxation Ron had anticipated, but times in which to attempt to keep up with the vast amount of homework they were being set. Not only were they studying as though they had exams every day, but the lessons themselves had become more demanding than ever before. Harry barely understood half of what Professor McGonagall said to them these days, even Hermione had had to ask her to repeat instructions once or twice. Incredibly, and to Hermione's increasing resentment, Harry's best subject had suddenly become Potions, thanks to the Half-Blood Prince.
Non-verbal spells were now expected, not only in Defense Against the Dark Arts, but in Charms and Transfiguration too. Harry frequently looked over at his classmates in the common room or at mealtimes to see them purple in the face and straining as though they had overdosed on U-No-Poo; but he knew that they were really struggling to make spells work without saying incantations aloud. It was a relief to get outside into the greenhouses, they were dealing with more dangerous plants than ever in Herbology, but at least they were still allowed to swear loudly if the Venomous Tentacula seized them unexpectedly from behind.
One result of their enormous workload and the frantic hours of practicing non-verbal spells was that Harry, Ron, and Hermione had so far been unable to find time to go and visit Hagrid. He had stopped coming to meals at the staff table, an ominous sign, and on the few occasions when they had passed him in the corridors or out in the grounds, he had mysteriously failed to notice them or hear their greetings.
"I did give him a reason as to why you dropped his subject." Y/n said.
"We've got to go and explain ourselves." said Hermione, looking up at Hagrid's huge empty chair at the staff table the following Saturday at breakfast.
"We've got Quidditch tryouts this morning!" said Ron. "And we're supposed to be practicing that Aguamenti Charm from Flitwick!"
"I can teach you that..." Y/n said waving his wand effortlessly to cast the charm for a few moments before stopping it. "So that will give you time to explain to Hagrid..."
"Explain what?" Ron cut in. "How are we going to tell him we hated his stupid subject?"
"We didn't hate it!" said Hermione.
"Speak for yourself, I haven't forgotten the Skrewts." said Ron darkly. "And I'm telling you now, we've had a narrow escape. You didn't hear him going on about his gormless brother...we'd have been teaching Grawp how to tie his shoelaces if we'd stayed."
"I hate not talking to Hagrid." said Hermione, looking upset.
"We'll go down after Quidditch." Harry assured her. He too was missing Hagrid, although like Ron he thought that they were better off without Grawp in their lives. "But trials might take all morning, the number of people who have applied. " He felt slightly nervous at confronting the first hurdle of his Captaincy. "I dunno why the team's this popular all of a sudden."
"Oh, come on, Harry." said Hermione, suddenly impatient. "It's not Quidditch that's popular, it's you! You've never been more interesting, and frankly, you've never been more fanciable. "
Ron gagged on a large piece of kipper. Hermione just rolled her eyes before turning back to Harry.
"Everyone knows you've been telling the truth now, don't they? The whole Wizarding world has had to admit that you and Y/n were right about Voldemort being back and that you really have fought him twice in the last two years and escaped both times. And now they're calling you 'the Chosen One'...well, come on, can't you see why people are fascinated by you?"
Harry was finding the Great Hall very hot all of a sudden, even though the ceiling still looked cold and rainy.
The post owls arrived, swooping down through rain-flecked windows, scattering everyone with droplets of water. Most people were receiving more post than usual, anxious parents were keen to hear from their children and to reassure them, in turn, that all was well at home. Y/n looked around at them all but he knew he would receive no mail. the only person who would write to him was now gone...
Harry himself was very surprised to see the snowy white Hedwig circling amongst all the brown and gray owls. She landed in front of him carrying a large, square package. A moment later, an identical package landed in front of Ron, crushing beneath it his minuscule and exhausted owl, Pigwidgeon.
"Ha!" said Harry, unwrapping the parcel to reveal a new copy of Advanced Potion-Making, fresh from Flourish and Blotts.
"Oh good." said Hermione, delighted. "Now you can give that graffitied copy back."
"Are you mad?" said Harry. "I'm keeping it! Look, I've thought it out..." He pulled the old copy of Advanced Potion-Making out of his bag and tapped the cover with his wand, muttering, "Diffindo!" The cover fell off. He did the same thing with the brand-new book.
Hermione looked scandalized while Y/n just watched lazily.
Harry then swapped the covers, tapped each, and said. "Reparo!"
There sat the Prince's copy, disguised as a new book, and there sat the fresh copy from Flourish and Blotts, looking thoroughly second-hand.
"I'll give Slughorn back the new one, he can't complain, it cost nine Galleons."
Hermione pressed her lips together, looking angry and disapproving, but was distracted by a third owl landing in front of her carrying that day's copy of the Daily Prophet. She unfolded it hastily and scanned the front page.
"Anyone we know dead?" asked Ron in a determinedly casual voice, he posed the same question every time Hermione opened her paper.
"No, but there have been more dementor attacks." said Hermione. "And an arrest."
"Excellent, who?" said Harry, thinking of Bellatrix Lestrange.
Y/n was hoping it would be his parents but he knew the odds were low.
"Stan Shunpike." said Hermione.
"What?" said Harry, startled.
"'Stanley Shunpike, conductor on the popular Wizarding conveyance the Knight Bus, has been arrested on suspicion of Death Eater activity. Mr. Shunpike, 21, was taken into custody late last night after a raid on his Clapham home...'"
"Stan Shunpike, a Death Eater?" said Harry. "No way!"
"He might have been put under the Imperius Curse." said Ron reasonably. "You never can tell."
"It doesn't look like it." said Hermione, who was still reading. "It says here he was arrested after he was overheard talking about the Death Eaters' secret plans in a pub." She looked up with a troubled expression on her face. "If he was under the Imperius Curse, he'd hardly stand around gossiping about their plans, would he?"
"What a stupid fool..." Y/n said.
"It sounds like he was trying to make out he knew more than he did." said Ron. "Isn't he the one who claimed he was going to become Minister of Magic when he was trying to chat up those Veela?"
"Yeah, that's him." said Harry. "I dunno what they're playing at, taking Stan seriously."
"They probably want to look as though they're doing something." said Hermione, frowning. "People are terrified...you know the Patil twins' parents want them to go home? And Eloise Midgen has already been withdrawn. Her father picked her up last night."
"What!" said Ron, goggling at Hermione. "But Hogwarts is safer than their homes, bound to be! We've got Aurors, and all those extra protective spells, and we've got Dumbledore!"
"I don't think we've got him all the time." said Hermione very quietly, glancing toward the staff table over the top of the Prophet. "Haven't you noticed? His seat's been empty as often as Hagrid's this past week."
Harry, Y/n and Ron looked up at the staff table. The Headmaster's chair was indeed empty.
Now Harry came to think of it, he had not seen Dumbledore since their private lesson a week ago.
"I think he's left the school to do something with the Order." said Hermione in a low voice. "I mean...it's all looking serious, isn't it?"
Harry, Y/n and Ron did not answer, but Harry knew that they were all thinking the same thing. There had been a horrible incident the day before, when Hannah Abbott had been taken out of Herbology to be told her mother had been found dead. They had not seen Hannah since.
When they left the Gryffindor table five minutes later to head down to the Quidditch pitch, they passed Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil. Remembering what Hermione had said about the Patil twins' parents wanting them to leave Hogwarts, Y/n was unsurprised to see that the two best friends were whispering together, looking distressed. What did surprise him was that when Ron drew level with them, Parvati suddenly nudged Lavender, who looked around and gave Ron a wide smile. Ron blinked at her, then returned the smile uncertainly. His walk instantly became something more like a strut. Harry resisted the temptation to laugh, remembering that Ron had refrained from doing so after Malfoy had broken Harry's nose. They continued their way down to the stadium through the cool, misty drizzle, and Hermione kissed Y/n then wished him luck before she departed to find a place in the stands.
As she left Ginny made her way over to them.
"You trying out as well Gin?" Ron asked her.
"As a chaser, I enjoyed playing on the team last year so I thought I'd give it a shot." Ginny shrugged before she turned to Y/n. "Maybe we'll be fellow Chasers."
Y/n just looked at her for a moment. "Maybe..." He said slowly.
"Right let's head to the changing rooms and get changed into our Quidditch gear. Our brooms are in there too." Harry said beginning to head in that direction.
"Harry I am going to say this now to save you time..." Y/n began as Ginny and the three boys walked. "I cannot dedicate my time to Quidditch practice."
"What!?" Harry said quickly turning his head.
Ron and Ginny also turned their heads.
"I said, I cannot dedicate my time to practice...If it was not for you or Ron I would not trying out for the team this year." Y/n revealed.
"Where is this all coming from?" Ginny asked.
"Yeah, What gives mate? You love Quidditch." Ron chuckled nervously.
"I...cannot say..." Y/n said turning his head away from them now.
"You can't say....Y/n I can't choose you as a Chaser for the team if you can't find the time to 'dedicate' to the team." Harry said annoyed.
"Then if you find someone to replace me, do so." Y/n told him. "I do not expect you to keep me on the team out of friendship and I will not be bitter if you decide to choose someone else."
"Trust me if I find someone I will!" Harry said still annoyed before he turned to Ron and Ginny who still looked surprised. "Come on." Harry said then walking off ahead.
Not one of them said a word as they entered the Quidditch changing rooms and split off to change. Nor did they speak as they entered onto the Quidditch pitch.
Harry was still fuming with Y/n but he needed to focus on the tryouts for now. As he had expected, the trials took most of the morning. Half of Gryffindor House seemed to have turned up, from first years who were nervously clutching a selection of the dreadful old school brooms, to seventh years who towered over the rest, looking coolly intimidating. The latter included a large, wiry-haired boy Harry recognized immediately from the Hogwarts Express.
"We met on the train, in old Sluggy's compartment." he said confidently, stepping out of the crowd to shake Harry's hand. "Cormac McLaggen, Keeper."
"You didn't try out last year, did you?" asked Harry, taking note of the breadth of McLaggen and thinking that he would probably block all three goal hoops without even moving.
"I was in the hospital wing when they held the trials." said McLaggen, with something of a swagger. "Ate a pound of Doxy eggs for a bet."
"Right." said Harry. "Well...if you wait over there..."
He pointed over to the edge of the pitch, close to where Hermione was sitting. He thought he saw a flicker of annoyance pass over McLaggen's face and wondered whether McLaggen expected preferential treatment because they were both 'old Sluggy's' favorites.
"Think you could introduce me to your friend Granger? Wouldn't mind getting on a first name basis... know what I mean?" McLaggen asked Harry.
"She is dating my friend..." Harry said. As annoyed as he was at Y/n right now he was not about to let Y/n and Hermione's relationship come into threat.
"She's still dating Grindelwald? That relationship is ready to come apart just you watch." McLaggen said taking off to stand by the edge of the pitch.
Harry decided to start with a basic test, asking all applicants for the team to divide into groups of ten and fly once around the pitch. This was a good decision, the first ten was made up of first years, and it could not have been plainer that they had hardly ever flown before. Only one boy managed to remain airborne for more than a few seconds, and he was so surprised he promptly crashed into one of the goal posts.
The second group was comprised of ten of the silliest girls Harry had ever encountered, who, when he blew his whistle, merely fell about giggling and clutching one another. Romilda Vane was amongst them. When he told them to leave the pitch, they did so quite cheerfully and went to sit in the stands to heckle everyone else.
The third group had a pile-up halfway around the pitch. Most of the fourth group had come without broomsticks. The fifth group were Hufflepuffs.
"If there's anyone else here who's not from Gryffindor." roared Harry, who was starting to get seriously annoyed. "Leave now, please!"
There was a pause, then a couple of little Ravenclaws went sprinting off the pitch, snorting with laughter.
After two hours, many complaints, and several tantrums, one involving a crashed Comet Two Sixty and several broken teeth, Harry had found himself three Chasers, Katie Bell returned to the team after an excellent trial, Ginny Weasley, who had deeply impressed Harry as she scored seventeen goals to boot and Y/n Grindelwald...
Harry had begrudgingly learned he could not replace Y/n. Having played and trained with him for the amount of years that he had Harry knew that Y/n would be a pivotal member of the team. He already had a well-established partnership with Katie Bell and he could easily form one with Ginny.
Harry had also shouted himself hoarse at the many complainers and was now enduring a similar battle with the rejected Beaters. "That's my final decision and if you don't get out of the way of the Keepers I'll hex you." he bellowed.
Neither of his chosen Beaters had the old brilliance of Fred and George, but he was still reasonably pleased with them, Jimmy Peakes, a short but broad-chested third-year boy who had managed to raise a lump the size of an egg on the back of Harry's head with a ferociously hit Bludger, and Ritchie Coote, who looked weedy but aimed well. They now joined Katie, Y/n, and Ginny near the stands to watch the selection of their last team member.
"Did you really mean what you said to Harry?" Ginny quietly asked Y/n so Katie could not hear them as they stood near the stands.
"I did." Y/n said looking out to Harry talking to the Keeper applicants.
Ginny was about to ask another question when a familiar voice called out to them from behind. "How did you do?"
Y/n and Ginny turned around to see Hermione in the row closest to the pitch.
"We both made the team." Y/n informed her.
"Well done! You did brilliantly!" Hermione said pleased and she climbed over the stand now to hug Y/n who just wrapped around her and kept watching the pitch.
"Well done to you as well Ginny." Hermione said happily.
"Thanks Hermione." Ginny smiled at her and decided to drop the topic she had brought up. "How do they tryout the keepers then?"
"We will be taking penalty shots at them." Y/n said remembering previous tryouts he had done. "I just hope Ron pulls off a better performance than that McLaggen..."
Ginny groaned. "He's ghastly."
"Look Harry's calling you back over, you two had better go, and well done again!" Hermione said proudly before she returned back to the stands.
"Do not let McLaggen save your shot." Y/n said to Ginny.
"No chance I'm letting him." Ginny said.
Harry had deliberately left the trial of the Keepers until last, hoping for an emptier stadium and less pressure on all concerned. Unfortunately, however, all the rejected players and a number of people who had come down to watch after a lengthy breakfast had joined the crowd by now, so that it was larger than ever. As each Keeper flew up to the goal hoops, the crowd roared and jeered in equal measure. Y/n glanced over at Ron, who had always had a problem with nerves, He had hoped that winning their final match last term might have cured it, but apparently not. Ron was a delicate shade of green. He cleared his throat and managed to get Ron's attention while McLaggen was showing off. Y/n held up his right hand slightly and indicated it was the side he was going to throw towards.
None of the first five applicants saved more than two goals apiece and to Harry's great disappointment, Cormac McLaggen saved four penalties out of five. On the last one, however, he shot off in completely the wrong direction, the crowd laughed and booed and McLaggen returned to the ground grinding his teeth.
Ron looked ready to pass out as he mounted the Nimbus Y/n had bought him last year.
"Good luck!" cried a voice from the stands. Y/n and Harry looked around to see it was Lavender Brown. Harry would have quite liked to have hidden his face in his hands, as she did a moment later, but thought that as the Captain he ought to show slightly more grit, and so turned to watch Ron do his trial.
Yet he need not have worried, Ron saved one, two, three, four, five penalties in a row. Delighted, and resisting joining in the cheers of the crowd with difficulty, Harry turned to McLaggen to tell him that, most unfortunately, Ron had beaten him, only to find McLaggen's red face inches from his own. He stepped back hastily.
"Grindelwald and Weasley's sister didn't really try!" said McLaggen menacingly. There was a vein pulsing in his temple like the one Harry had often admired in Uncle Vernon's. "They gave him easy saves."
"Rubbish." said Harry coldly. "Y/n has the fastest throw on the team and Ginny's was the one he nearly missed."
McLaggen took a step nearer Harry, who stood his ground this time. "Give me another go."
"No." said Harry. "You've had your go. You saved four. Ron saved five. Ron's Keeper, he won it fair and square. Now get out of my way. "
But McLaggen stayed in Harry's way staring down at him until he suddenly felt himself thrust down harshly to the floor.
Harry looked to see Y/n standing with his wand drawn. "He said...'You had your go...' Now do kindly move along...you are causing quite the scene." Y/n warned him.
Harry thought for a moment that McLaggen might punch Y/n, but he contented himself with an ugly grimace and stormed away, growling what sounded like threats to thin air.
Y/n just put his wand away now Harry turned around to find the rest of his new team beaming at him.
"Well done." Harry croaked. "You all flew really well..."
"You did brilliantly, Y/n!" A voice called and Hermione was running toward them from the stands.
Harry saw Lavender walking off the pitch, arm in arm with Parvati, a rather happy expression on her face.
Ron was looking extremely pleased with himself and even taller than usual as he grinned at the team.
After fixing the time of their first full practice for the following Thursday, Harry, Ron, Y/n and Hermione bade goodbye to the rest of the team and headed off toward Hagrid's. A watery sun was trying to break through the clouds now and it had stopped drizzling at last.
Y/n and Harry were walking ahead of Ron and Hermione engaged in conversation. Harry had brought up the subject to practice again.
Ron however was still talking about the tryouts. "I thought I was going to miss that fourth penalty." He was saying happily to Hermione. "Tricky shot from Bell, did you see, had a bit of spin on it.."
"Yes, yes, you were magnificent," said Hermione, looking amused but her amusement soon wore off as she could hear and see Y/n and Harry were now lightly arguing ahead.
"And I told you that if you feel that way you could take me off the team." Y/n said to Harry heatedly.
"You've always taken Quidditch seriously so I don't understand why you're now blowing it off because you won't even tell me!"
"As I said it is a private matter. If you are unhappy with the scenario then you know the solution now either drop me or drop the matter entirely. Otherwise I will hand in my resignation." Y/n warned him and both boys looked at one another annoyed.
"What is going on?" Hermione whispered to Ron as she watched Y/n and Harry who would no longer look at each other.
"Oh...yeah...So Y/n told Harry he's not going to be turning up to Quidditch practices." Ron told her.
"He what?" Hermione asked.
"Yeah came as a bit of a shock to us all. He won't even tell us what he's dropping them for either." Ron said. "Don't suppose you know do you?"
"No, I don't." Hermione admitted. "Y/n has never mentioned cutting back on Quidditch at all. This is the opposite of what I wanted."
"The opposite?" Ron repeated confused.
"I was hoping Quidditch could be a good distraction for Y/n, take his mind off of things for a little bit." Hermione said unhappy with this discovery.
The great gray hippogriff, Buckbeak, was tethered in front of Hagrid's cabin. He clicked his razor-sharp beak at their approach and turned his huge head toward them.
"Oh dear." said Hermione nervously. "He's still a bit scary, isn't he?"
"Come off it, you've ridden him, haven't you?" said Ron. Y/n stepped forward and bowed low to the hippogriff without breaking eye contact or blinking. After a few seconds, Buckbeak sank into a bow too.
Y/n moved and Harry did the same as Buckbeak bowed to him too.
"How are you?" Harry asked him in a low voice, moving forward to stroke the feathery head. "Missing him? But you're okay here with Hagrid, aren't you?"
"Oi!" said a loud voice.
Hagrid had come striding around the corner of his cabin wearing a large flowery apron and carrying a sack of potatoes. His enormous boarhound, Fang, was at his heels, Fang gave a booming bark and bounded forward.
"Git away from him! He'll have yer fingers...oh. It's yeh lot."
Fang was jumping up at Hermione and Ron, attempting to lick their ears. Hagrid stood and looked at them all for a split second, then turned and strode into his cabin, slamming the door behind him.
"Oh dear!" said Hermione, looking stricken.
"Don't worry about it." said Harry grimly. He walked over to the door and knocked loudly.
"Hagrid! Open up, we want to talk to you!"
There was no sound from within.
Y/n let out a sigh. "Move..." He said to Harry and drew his wand.
Harry quickly moved out of the way and mere seconds afterwards the door to Hagrid's hut was blown off its hinges and onto the floor.
"Y/n!" cried Hermione, sounding shocked.
But before she could say anything else, there stood Hagrid, glowering down at Y/n and looking, despite the flowery apron, positively alarming.
"I'm a teacher!" he roared at Y/n. "A teacher, Grindelwald! How dare yeh break down my door!"
Y/n just waved his wand and the door fixed itself to hang off it's hinges as if had just been opened.
"We're sorry, sir." said Harry, emphasizing the last word.
Hagrid looked at Harry stunned. "Since when have yeh called me 'sir'?"
"Since when have you ignored me?" Harry said back.
"Oh, very clever." growled Hagrid. "Very amusin'. That's me outsmarted, innit? All righ', come in then, yeh ungrateful little..."
Mumbling darkly, he stood back to let them pass. Hermione scurried in after Harry and Y/n, looking rather frightened.
"Well?" said Hagrid grumpily, as Harry, Ron, Y/n and Hermione sat down around his enormous wooden table, Fang laying his head immediately upon Y/n's knee and drooling all over his robes. "What's this? Feelin' sorry for me? Reckon I'm lonely or summat?"
"No." said Harry at once. "We wanted to see you. "
"We've missed you!" said Hermione tremulously.
"Missed me, have yeh?" snorted Hagrid. "Yeah. Righ'. Only Y/n comes to visit me these days."
He stomped around, brewing up tea in his enormous copper kettle, muttering all the while. Finally he slammed down four bucket-sized mugs of mahogany-brown tea in front of them and a plate of his rock cakes. Harry was hungry enough even for Hagrid's cooking, and took one at once.
"Hagrid." said Hermione timidly, when he joined them at the table and started peeling his potatoes with a brutality that suggested that each tuber had done him a great personal wrong, "We really wanted to carry on with Care of Magical Creatures, you know. " Hagrid gave another great snort. Harry rather thought some bogeys landed on the potatoes, and was inwardly thankful that they were not staying for dinner.
"We did!" said Hermione. "But none of us could fit it into our schedules!"
"Yeah. Righ." said Hagrid again.
There was a funny squelching sound and they all looked around, Hermione let out a tiny shriek, and Ron leapt out of his seat and hurried around the table away from the large barrel standing in the corner that they had only just noticed. It was full of what looked like foot-long maggots, slimy, white, and writhing.
"What are they, Hagrid? Are they do with lessons?" asked Y/n, trying to sound interested rather than revolted.
"Jus' giant grubs." said Hagrid.
"And they grow into...?" said Ron, looking apprehensive.
"They won' grow inter nuthin." said Hagrid. "I got 'em ter feed ter Aragog."
And without warning, he burst into tears.
"Hagrid!" cried Hermione, leaping up, hurrying around the table the long way to avoid the barrel of maggots, and putting an arm around his shaking shoulders.
"What is the matter Hagrid?" Y/n asked worried for his friend.
"It's...him..." gulped Hagrid, his beetle-black eyes streaming as he mopped his face with his apron. "It's... Aragog...I think he's dyin'...He got ill over the summer an' he's not gettin' better...I don' know what I'll do if he...if he...We've bin tergether so long..."
Hermione patted Hagrid's shoulder, looking at a complete loss for anything to say. Y/n knew how she felt. He had known Hagrid to present a vicious baby dragon with a teddy bear, seen him croon over giant scorpions with suckers and stingers, attempt to reason with his brutal giant of a half-brother, but this was perhaps the most incomprehensible of all his monster fancies, the gigantic talking spider, Aragog, who dwelled deep in the Forbidden Forest and which he, Harry and Ron had only narrowly escaped four years previously.
"Is there...is there anything we can do?" Hermione asked, ignoring Ron's frantic grimaces and head-shakings.
"I don' think there is, Hermione." choked Hagrid, attempting to stem the flood of his tears. "See, the rest o' the tribe...Aragog's family...they're gettin' a bit funny now he's ill...bit restive..."
"Yeah, I think we saw a bit of that side of them." said Ron in an undertone.
"Be respectful." Y/n said quietly to Ron.
"...I don' reckon it'd be safe fer anyone but me ter go near the colony at the mo." Hagrid finished, blowing his nose hard on his apron and looking up. "But thanks fer offerin', Hermione...It means a lot."
After that, the atmosphere lightened considerably, for although neither Harry nor Ron had shown any inclination to go and feed giant grubs to a murderous, gargantuan spider, Hagrid seemed to take it for granted that they would have liked to have done and became his usual self once more.
"Ar, I always knew yeh'd find it hard ter squeeze me inter yer timetables. Y/n's the only one who had room too afer all." he said gruffly, pouring them more tea. "Even if yeh applied fer Time-Turners..."
"We couldn't have done." said Hermione. "We smashed the entire stock of Ministry Time-Turners when we were there last summer. It was in the Daily Prophet."
"Ar, well then." said Hagrid. "There's no way yeh could've done it...I'm sorry I've bin...yeh know--I've jus' bin worried about Aragog...an I did wonder whether, if Professor Grubbly-Plank had bin teachin' yeh..."
At which all four of them stated categorically and untruthfully that Professor Grubbly-Plank, who had substituted for Hagrid a few times, was a dreadful teacher, with the result that by the time Hagrid waved them off the premises at dusk, he looked quite cheerful.
"I'm starving." said Harry, once the door had closed behind them and they were hurrying through the dark and deserted grounds, he had abandoned the rock cake after an ominous cracking noise from one of his back teeth. "And I've got that detention with Snape tonight, I haven't got much time for dinner."
As they came into the castle they spotted Cormac McLaggen entering the Great Hall. It took him two attempts to get through the doors, he ricocheted off the frame on the first attempt. Ron merely guffawed gloatingly and strode off into the Hall after him, but Harry caught Hermione's arm and held her back causing Y/n to notice and stop.
"What?" said Hermione defensively.
"If you ask me." said Harry quietly. "McLaggen looks like he was Confunded this morning. And he was standing right in front of where you were sitting."
"Oh, all right then, I did it." she whispered. "But you should have heard the way he was talking about Y/n, Ron and Ginny! Anyway, he's got a nasty temper, you saw how he reacted when he didn't get in...you wouldn't have wanted someone like that on the team."
"No." said Harry. "No, I suppose that's true. But wasn't that dishonest, Hermione? I mean, you're a prefect, aren't you?"
"Hermione was not the only one being dishonest, I signalled to Ron which way I would be shooting for him." Y/n revealed to Harry.
"...You're both as bad as each other." Harry said.
"Oh, be quiet." Hermione snapped as Harry smirked.
"What are you three doing?" demanded Ron, reappearing in the doorway to the Great Hall and looking suspicious.
"Nothing." said Harry, Y/n and Hermione together, and they hurried after Ron. The smell of roast beef made Harry's stomach ache with hunger, but they had barely taken three steps toward the Gryffindor table when Professor Slughorn appeared in front of them, blocking their path.
"Harry, Y/n, just the two I was hoping to see!" he boomed genially, twiddling the ends of his walrus mustache and puffing out his enormous belly. "I was hoping to catch you both before dinner! What do you say to a spot of supper tonight in my rooms instead? We're having a little party, just a few rising stars, I've got McLaggen coming and Zabini, the charming Melinda Bobbin...I don't know whether you know her? Her family owns a large chain of apothecaries. And, of course, I hope very much that Miss Granger will favor me by coming too."
Slughorn made Hermione a little bow as he finished speaking. It was as though Ron was not present, Slughorn did not so much as look at him.
"I..." Y/n began.
"We will be there Professor." Hermione said cutting him off.
Y/n just turned his eyes to look down at her as Hermione turned her head away.
"I can't come, Professor." said Harry at once. "I've got a detention with Professor Snape."
"Oh dear!" said Slughorn, his face falling comically. "Dear, dear, I was counting on you, Harry! Well, now, I'll just have to have a word with Severus and explain the situation. I'm sure I'll be able to persuade him to postpone your detention. Yes, I'll see you three later!" He bustled away out of the Hall.
"He's got no chance of persuading Snape." said Harry, the moment Slughorn was out of earshot. "This detention's already been postponed once. Snape did it for Dumbledore, but he won't do it for anyone else."
"Why did you say we would be going..." Y/n asked Hermione slightly annoyed.
"B..Because I don't want to go on my own!" said Hermione anxiously and Y/n sighed now knowing that she was thinking about McLaggen.
"I doubt you'd be alone, Ginny'll probably be invited." snapped Ron, who did not seem to have taken kindly to being ignored by Slughorn.
After dinner they made their way back to Gryffindor Tower. The common room was very crowded, as most people had finished dinner by now, but they managed to find a free table and sat down. Ron, who had been in a bad mood ever since the encounter with Slughorn, folded his arms and frowned at the ceiling. Hermione reached out for a copy of the Evening Prophet, which somebody had left abandoned on a chair.
"Anything new?" said Harry.
"Not really..." Hermione had opened the newspaper and was scanning the inside pages. "Oh, look, your dad's in here, Ron...he's all right!" she added quickly, for Ron had looked around in alarm. "It just says he's been to visit the Malfoys' house. 'This second search of the Death Eaters residence does not seem to have yielded any results. Arthur Weasley of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects said that his team had been acting upon a confidential tip-off.'"
"Yeah, mine!" said Harry. "I told him at Kings Cross about Malfoy and that thing he was trying to get Borgin to fix! Well, if it's not at their house, he must have brought whatever it is to Hogwarts with him."
"But how can he have done, Harry?" said Hermione, putting down the newspaper with a surprised look. "We were all searched when we arrived, weren't we?"
"Were you?" said Harry, taken aback. "I wasn't!"
"Oh no, of course you weren't, I forgot you were late. Well, Filch ran over all of us with Secrecy Sensors when we got into the entrance hall. Any Dark object would have been found, I know for a fact Crabbe had a shrunken head confiscated. So you see, Malfoy can't have brought in anything dangerous!"
Momentarily stymied, Harry watched Ginny Weasley playing with Arnold the Pygmy Puff for a while before seeing a way around this objection.
"Someone's sent it to him by owl, then." he said. "His mother or someone."
"All the owls are being checked too." said Hermione.
"Filch told us so when he was pointing those Secrecy Sensors everywhere he could reach. Gruby little man." Y/n said annoyed.
Really stumped this time, Harry found nothing else to say. There did not seem to be any way Malfoy could have brought a dangerous or Dark object into the school. He looked hopefully at Ron, who was sitting with his arms folded, staring over at Lavender Brown.
"Can you think of any way Malfoy..."
"Oh, drop it, Harry." said Ron.
"Listen, it's not my fault Slughorn invited Hermione, Y/n and me to his stupid party, neither me or Y/n wanted to go, you know!" said Harry, firing up.
"Well, as I'm not invited to any parties." said Ron, getting to his feet again, "I think I'll go to bed."
He stomped off toward the door to the boys' dormitories, leaving Harry, Y/n and Hermione staring after him.
"Harry?" said a girl named Demelza Robins, appearing suddenly at his shoulder. "I've got a message for you."
"From Professor Slughorn?" asked Harry, sitting up hopefully.
"No...from Professor Snape." said Demelza. Harry's heart sank. "He says you're to come to his office at half past eight tonight to do your detention...er...no matter how many party invitations you've received. And he wanted you to know you'll be sorting out rotten flobberworms from good ones, to use in Potions and...and he says there's no need to bring protective gloves."
"Right." said Harry grimly. "Thanks a lot, Demelza."
When Harry went off to detention Y/n and Hermione were left alone.
"We should change for Slughorn's party." Hermione said to him.
"I still do not understand why you said we would be there." Y/n said.
"It would have been rude to decline his invitation Y/n, especially when he asked us in person." Hermione said.
"It is Harry that he wants as a guest most to me it would seem." Y/n said. "And now we shall have to inform Slughorn that he cannot attend."
"Are you angry with me then?" Hermione asked.
"No, I am not angry with you." Y/n sighed. "Annoyed slightly, yes. But not angry. I am going to get changed." He said rising from his chair at the table. "I will wait for you down here."
"Dress smartly." Hermione advised him. "I get the feeling Slughorn wants us to look our best."
And Hermione was right, for when they arrived together at Slughorn's party they saw the professor himself had changed into smart robes. Y/n had changed into a fresh white shirt and some black suit pants.
"Jolly good you could make it you two...but I dare say where is Harry?" Slughorn asked.
"I'm afraid Harry couldn't get out of detention Professor." Hermione told him.
"Oh, I see." Professor Slughorn said sounding quite disappointed but he quickly perked himself back up. "Still not worry eh, both you two have arrived and we have several guests inside already. Didn't realize you two were friends however, seems bright and talented students must stick together." Slughorn chortled.
"Hermione is my partner sir..." Y/n said.
"Is that so? Very good, very good. Well in you come then." Slughorn said inviting them inside with a smile and they stepped in. "I was just talking to McLaggen about his uncle Tieberus."
Hermione could tell Y/n was closing his eyes out of frustration as they followed Professor Slughorn inside to sit at a table with several other guests already sitting down.
"Two more guests have arrived." Slughorn said to the room. "I believe you might be more familiar with Mr Grindelwald and Miss Granger McLaggen seeing as you are all in the same house."
"Hoping to be sir..." McLaggen said in a tone Y/n did not appreciate.
"Good. Good. Take a seat you two." Slughorn said and both Y/n and Hermione sat next to one another away from McLaggen, who was opposite them beside Slughorn.
Y/n sat with Hermione counting down the minutes that seemed to getting slower with each one that passed by.
"Well you must give him my best when you see speak to him next McLaggen." Slughorn said coming to the end of a conversation before he looked around the table now. "And you, Miss Granger? What is it your family does in the Muggle world?" Slughorn asked her putting her on the spot.
"My parents are dentists." Hermione said but when no one reacted she felt she needed to elaborate. "They tend to people's teeth."
"Fascinating. And is that considered a dangerous profession?" Slughorn asked her.
"No." Hermione said. "Though, a boy named Robbie Fenwick did bite my father once. He needed ten stitches." She tried to say humorously but none of the others laughed.
"I see." Slughorn smiled politely and moved on now.
"That could have gone better." Y/n whispered to Hermione.
"Oh be quiet." Hermione whispered back embarrassed. "I meant to ask before, how are you sleeping now that we are back at Hogwarts?" She changed the topic.
Y/n not wanting to tell Hermione that he was actually sneaking out of the common room every night to use the room of requirement decided to lie. "Reasonably."
"Ron told me you are quitting Quidditch practice." Hermione brought up now.
"Did he..." Y/n said.
"I saw you and and Harry arguing about it." She admitted.
"I simply have more important things on my mind right now." Y/n said to her.
"Like what?" Hermione asked him.
Y/n hesitated for a moment then spoke. "My studies. We are N.E.W.T students now and I do not wish to fall behind."
"But you are much further ahead than anyone else, You already have perfected wordless magic which even I can only manage sometimes." Hermione pointed out.
"Complacency leads to laziness...One must always seek to improve or they shall falter." Y/n simply said.
"I suppose that is true...Oh no" Hermione began but Y/n suddenly felt Hermione move her chair closer to him.
"What is it?" Y/n asked her.
"It's McLaggen, he keeps looking over at me." Hermione said feeling uncomfortable.
Y/n's eyes moved from Hermione to look over at McLaggen and he felt a fire slowly burning inside of him as he saw what he was certain was a hint of lust in the boy's eyes.
"If you wish to come to these parties then I will come with you." Y/n turned his head to Hermione.
"You will?" Hermione asked him.
"I do not find them enjoyable in the very slightest...but I would rather not leave you alone with McLaggen." Y/n said.
In truth Hermione was finding the party rather boring herself but if she could use it to distract Y/n for even just a few hours at a time she would accept that.