Chapter Three
The next hour was spent happily answering the questions Harry asked them. The students were now over the initial shock of meeting Harry Potter and were enjoying the challenge of remembering the details of his career fighting Voldemort, and correctly performing several advanced defensive spells.
Anna was surprised when after the first hour of class Professor Granger announced that they had now completed their course in Advanced Defence against the Dark Arts, but the students were excited to learn that they would now be able to ask Harry questions about whatever they wanted for the rest of the class.
"How did you manage to fight Voldemort when you were only eleven?" Tom asked curiously, wanting to hear the details from Harry himself, rather than a vague account in a textbook.
"Well, it helped that I had no idea what I was doing, nor what Voldemort was truly capable of at that point…but I need help explaining this particular event…" Harry said cryptically. The students watched as Harry and Professor Granger had a silent conversation and a moment later Professor Granger nodded and grabbing a handful of Floo powder stuck her head into the fire.
Lu stifled a giggle as from her position at the front of the class she overheard Professor Granger's words.
"Hey, are you up, you lazy git? And don't come to the fireplace unless you're fully dressed, I've got a class full of students who don't want to be scarred for life."
Lu heard a deep male voice reply though she couldn't see anyone as he view of the fireplace was obstructed by Professor Granger's chair.
"Yeah I'm up. You ok?"
"Fancy joining me and Harry in a bit of reminiscing?"
"I'm on my way." Said the voice with a trace of a laugh.
If it was possible, the students looked even more shocked as the figure emerged from the fireplace to stand before them. Alan especially looked as if he'd died and gone to heaven as his Quidditch hero stood in front of him.
Hermione smirked.
"I'm going to guess you all recognise Ron?" She said chuckling.
"Unless you've been living under a rock you can't escape the notoriety of the English national Quidditch team." She said with a grin.
Ron lifted a hand and waved at the students gaping at him, taking a seat on the other side of Hermione on the desk.
"So what are we talking about?" Ron asked looking around the room.
Tom repeated his question about their first year adventure and Ron looked at Harry and Hermione and grinned.
"Now that was an eventful first year of school…" He said with a chuckle.
Harry took over the explanation briefly explaining that they had learnt that the Philosophers Stone was hidden in the school.
"So, you were standing face to face with a three headed dog?" Josh asked incredulously.
Harry nodded.
"We had no idea what was going on, we were lost and hiding from Mrs. Norris and that was when we met Fluffy."
"Fluffy?"
"Ah, well he was one of Hagrid's pets…" Ron explained and the class nodded their heads in understanding, everyone knew about Hagrid's bizarre penchant for dangerous pets.
"Of course, Ron and I were busy trying to get away from all its teeth, only Hermione noticed the trapdoor it was standing over. That was how we figured out the stone was hidden there, and Fluffy was guarding it."
"So how did you get past Fluffy?" Anna asked. Harry laughed.
"Well, it was close at one point…"
Harry, Hermione and Ron spent the next hour answering questions, finishing each others sentences as they explained their adventures, sticking mainly to the humorous aspects of the events, and not dwelling too much on the darkness and fear of the times. They didn't speak too much of death until Lu raised her hand to ask a question she had always wondered about.
"Harry, did you know that yours and Voldemort's wands were brothers before the Tri-Wizard Tournament?" Harry looked at Lu.
"Your surname's Chang?" She nodded.
"I thought so. You look a lot like Cho…then I guess you met Cedric while they were dating?" Lu nodded sadly.
"I'm sorry for your loss. Cedric was a great guy, and a fantastic Quidditch player…In answer to your question, I did know that our wands were brothers before that day."
Hermione and Ron turned to him in surprise.
"What?" They exclaimed in unison.
"Well, I didn't want to freak people out by telling them." He said turning to his best friends. They nodded their understanding however and Harry turned back to the class.
"Mr. Ollivander told me the day I bought my wand, though at that point I had never even heard Voldemort's name…I only knew that my wand's brother had given me my scar. Dumbledore later explained the connection…he had been notified by Ollivander immediately."
Hermione smiled to think that she was actually learning things today along with her students. She looked to her left and right at her best friends, remembering all their Hogwarts days as they sat in a classroom of their old school. She could just see the three of them sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room, Ron and Harry playing wizard chess as she worked or read `Hogwarts: A History'. She turned her mind back to the discussion and chuckled under her breath to find that they had digressed and were rather predictably considering the boys preoccupation, discussing Quidditch. Harry caught her eye and winked, she winked back, knowing how Ron loved the attention he got as Keeper for the Chudley Cannons, and the English National Team.
"Do you know Victor Krum?" John asked excitedly as he was a big Krum fan.
Harry laughed at the question they had asked Ron, and John looked at him with a confused expression until Anna turned to him with an exasperated expression.
"Remember the Tri-Wizard Tournament?"
John blushed.
"Oh yeah, but do you still know him?"
"Well we met him when we were fourteen as he was one of Harry's opponents in the Tri-Wizard, but ah, we weren't exactly the best of friends then." Ron said with a smirk and Harry laughed again. The students looked at them in confusion, and Hermione groaned.
"Did we have to bring this up?" She said looking at her friends. They grinned cheekily at her.
"Well, they're graduating now, maybe it's time they knew the real Professor Granger." Harry said with a smirk.
Hermione stuck her tongue out at her friends, and turned to the class again who were watching this exchange with interest.
"Fine…the boys here had some issues with me dating Victor, and didn't get along too well with him at the time." Hermione blushed as she said it, and twelve sets of eyebrows went up as they took in the fact that their quiet Defence against the Dark Arts teacher was not only best friends with two of the most famous wizards in the world, but had dated the most famous Quidditch player in the world.
Hermione looked at their expressions and laughed.
"Hey Ron, they all look like you did when I went to stay with Victor in Bulgaria after Graduation." She teased her friend.
"We do all know Victor Krum," Ron confirmed with a grin. "And we all get along much better now that Hermione doesn't date him anymore, in fact he's coming over for dinner next week isn't he?" He turned to ask Harry. Harry nodded to confirm the date, as Ron tended to have trouble remembering what day it was let alone plans for the week ahead.
Harry took in Hermione's blush, and he grinned. It was good to see her interact with her students. He hadn't visited Hogwarts openly in the last seven years, though he did meet with Dumbledore quite frequently in the privacy of the Headmasters office to talk. Harry still found it hard to walk around in public without being mobbed, so he tended to transfigure his features, changing his hair colour, hiding his scar and at times he even wore coloured contact lenses to disguise his distinctive green eyes. It was quite a relief to be around young wizards who recognised him but weren't mobbing him. The school bell sounded, signalling the end of the lesson, bringing Harry back to the present. He looked up and smiled to see that Hermione's students hadn't moved from their seats. He looked questioningly at Hermione whose hair had now returned to its usual brown curly state. He smiled to see her back to normal. She smiled back and leaned over to whisper in his ear. He nodded and stood to go and talk with Josh. Hermione then whispered in Ron's ear and he stood and went to speak individually with Tom. She watched Tom's face as Ron began speaking to him, and then handed him a piece of parchment, his eyes widened and he nodded frantically. Hermione grinned, she had told Ron to bring Tom in for a trial for the Canons after watching him play Quidditch over the last few years, knowing that Tom was probably too shy to actively approach teams.
Hermione stood and walked over to where Anna, Lu and Karen were chatting away at one of the front desks.
"Hey girls."
"Professor Granger." They all greeted her. She smiled in response.
"I think we can dispense with formality now, I'm no longer officially your teacher, just call me Hermione. Thanks to those two you know too much about me to think of me as a Professor now anyway!" She giggled, and they laughed with her.
"Did you enjoy the last class then?" She asked them.
They all nodded excitedly.
"Anna, you not worried anymore?" Hermione asked her favourite student. Anna looked at her in surprise, then realised that Hermione must have guessed what she was worried about. She smiled.
"Thanks. I know it'll be ok now." She replied, her eyes glancing towards where Josh sat talking animatedly with Harry. Hermione followed Anna's gaze and then looked at Anna's face intently. Lu and Karen had joined Tom talking to Ron now and Anna and Hermione were alone.
"Anna, maybe you aren't just worried about your friendship drifting apart…" Hermione said softly. Anna looked up at Hermione surprised.
"Anna, you look at Josh like I look at Harry…not how I look at Ron…Ron and I are so close that he's the brother I never had. But, I know I can trust you, as very few people know that, well, that Harry and aren't just best friends, we've been dating for three years Anna." Hermione saw Anna's shocked face and decided to continue.
"It took me a long time to see what was there Anna, and I was almost too late. I was dating Victor for a long time after we left school, denying what I felt for Harry as I didn't want to wreck out friendship, but it was always there…I may be completely wrong, but you remind me so much of myself at seventeen, and Josh is so much like Harry. I've seen how close you two are, and you look at him when he's not watching, but Anna, he looks at you too…he stares at the back of your head for long periods of time…I know it's weird realising your feelings have changed towards a friend. I feel strange pointing it out to you, but I'm only saying this as Harry and I wasted so much time by not acknowledging what was between us, and not wanting to leave Ron out, but we all still live together and we get along better than ever." Hermione said as Anna listened silently, keeping an eye on Josh as she did so.
Anna turned back to Hermione, unshed tears in her eyes.
"What if he doesn't feel the same way?" She asked softly.
"Then you'll still have your best friend." Hermione replied.
"Thanks Hermione." Anna said, suddenly feeling comfortable calling Professor Granger by her first name. Impulsively Hermione hugged her. They smiled at each other.
"You know you're still at the number one spot in the game show?" Hermione asked her casually? Anna looked at the scoreboard and nodded.
"I know I said I wouldn't tell you till Graduation, but I'm offering you a job. I'm researching the development of several new defensive spells, and will then be writing a study on the experiments, and Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to hire a research assistant, and I'd like you to fill that position. But before you make your decision you need to know that Harry would also like to hire you…dependent on your NEWT results you will be offered a position in the Ministry of Magic as an Auror due to your skill in Defence Against the Dark Arts." Hermione told her shocked student. Anna looked back at her with wide eyes.
"So Harry's an Auror?"
Hermione nodded.
"That's what he was talking to Josh about a few minutes ago." Anna nodded her understanding.
"You don't need to make a decision yet, you have until Graduation, but I thought you'd like some time to think things over."
"Thank you Hermione. There's so much to take in at once…can I come and talk to you about it all?" She asked hesitantly.
"Anytime Anna. Just send me an OWL and I'll come and meet you at my office." The two women smiled at each other and Anna went to join her friends, taking a seat next to Josh and ruffling his hair teasingly.