Chapter 21: Are We Having Fun Yet?
*********************Hogwarts, Room of Requirement*****************
*******
May 1, 2005.
2pm
"Come on Harry, are you afraid to hit a GURRRL?" Hermione mocked as she stood a couple of meters away, her feet apart in a ready stance. She motioned with a hand, daring him. Harry rolled his eyes as he stood ready, bouncing on the balls of his feet, his face expressionless otherwise.
"Twenty galleons on Harry, Moony?" Ron asked out the side of his mouth as he stood next to Lupin. He along with, the remainder of the "inner circle" stood resting against the walls of the room, watching the impending match-up. Harry and Hermione had already beaten the rest of them, though Ron and quite surprisingly Luna had given the pair, respectively, a run for their money.
"I'll take that, just be glad the dueling charms are on." Lupin replied quietly. And with that, the pair went at it. Harry knocked aside the punch sent at his head, swept at Hermione's legs in response. She jumped over the sweep, using the spring to launch a kick at his chest that connected and sent him back a few paces. Harry grinned at her bounced a bit and came back with a kick, punch and backfist. The last hit her in the back, and knocked her stumbling forward. She spun and glared at him, though a corner of her mouth crooked upwards. In a flash the bout was over. The two came together Harry landed another punch right as Hermione hooked a leg behind his knee, and took him to the floor. She rode him down to the floor, and snapped a punch at his throat, stopping barely an inch from his Adam's apple. Harry tapped the mat beside him, and tried to ignore Hermione's grin. Ron groaned and dug in a pocket, he slammed the coins down in Lupin's hand and walked away dejectedly.
"Wotcher, Hermione" Tonks laughed as Hermione climbed off Harry, and flicked her hair at him. Harry didn't speak; just kicked himself back to his feet and stalked over to join Ron. "Ok, then, that's it get out of here, Harry I'll see you tomorrow for surveillance training?
"Yeah Tonks" Harry muttered as he leaned against the wall next to Lupin and Ron. With a small sigh, he pulled his glasses off and started to clean them on the edge of his sweatshirt. Hermione sauntered over to him and leaning close she whispered something that caused him to let out a little laugh. "Ok, lets go, I'm sure Ron needs a shower." Harry put in as the six of them headed out the door, Neville holding it for Ginny as they left the room.
After the door closed behind the teens with muffled thump, Lupin looked over at Tonks, "You know he pulled that don't you?"
Tonks walked over to him, and grabbed a paw, "They both were holding back, Moony" She replied with a combination grin and shrug. "They were holding back against the others too, though Luna almost made Hermione pay for holding back."
"And she realized it and ended it a second later. Harry did the same with Ron." Remus replied, thoughtfully. "I'm just glad that the protection charms held, anyway dear, how would you like to have dinner in Diagon Alley this evening, I seem to have found twenty galleons." He gave a huge, slightly lecherous wink, as he held up his winnings.
"Why good sir, I would love to." Tonks replied, chuckling.
***************************Gryffindor Tower******************************
4:00pm
"Mione, where are you going?" Harry asked from the couch. He was once again loosing to Ron at wizard chess, and with a tiny groan he witnessed the last defender of his king crumble to dust.
"Library," Hermione replied with a shrug. She slung her bag over her shoulder and started to head towards the portrait hole, only to be stopped again.
"Hold up, I'll go along with you" Harry replied as he got up rapidly from the already lost game. "Ron?" Harry asked as he grabbed his bag from the floor by the couch. Harry automatically checked his wand as he got up; Moody was a good teacher in paranoia. And anyway as the muggle philosopher said, you are only paranoid if no one was after you; Harry had the opposite problem, unfortunately.
Ron looked up and glanced around the room, but as he noticed his sister sitting at a corner desk with Luna, a conflicting thought crossed his mind. "No Harry, you two go on."
"Ok then mate, see you at dinner then." Harry replied and he and Hermione left by the portrait hole.
Ron watched them leave, an odd little grin on his face. He got up and walked over to Ginny. Leaning over he muttered in her ear. "Gin can I talk to you in private?" Ginny gave Ron an odd look, but nodded anyway. Giving a slight shrug to Luna, Ginny got up and led Ron to the side room that Hermione had chewed the twins out in months earlier.
The door closed and Ginny crooked an eyebrow at him, "what Ronnikens?"
Ron ignored the nickname and just looked at his little sister, he seemed weird today. "Ginny, would you say that you are Hermione's best friend here, I mean besides me and Harry?" Ginny nodded slowly in response, wondering where this was going. "Ginny, I think I want to ask Hermione out."
Crap, crap, crap Ginny thought a touch desperately, "Umm Ron, what brought this on?" Ginny asked more to buy herself time than anything else. She already more or less knew the answer to that question, and she also knew the eventual outcome of Ron's chosen course of action.
"I just like her, and she likes me, I mean look, we always make up even when we squabble, and she's pretty, and I don't know..." Ron replied, a little hurried. He ran a hand through his red mane, in a rather good impression of one of Harry's nervous tics.
"Umm, Ron you might want to hold off on that thought. I mean she might get a touch stressed with exams in a few weeks, you know how she is..." Ginny replied reasonably. The tiny witch twirled her finger near her temple and Ron nodded in agreement.
"Thanks, Ginny, I'll do that" Ron replied eagerly.
Thank God, another few weeks reprieve until she shoots him down Ginny kept a smile on her face for her brother, even as the thought went through her head. Ron smiled at her and left the room. Ginny collapsed against a nearby wall and slid down it. As her butt hit the floor, she started laughing quietly.
****************************Hogwarts Library*****************************
"Harry, I think I proved that I can take care of myself this afternoon," Hermione murmured across the table to Harry. Both of them were back at her back table, the bookshelf that had almost fallen on them a few months ago was now magically secured to the floor. It had been almost a month and a half since the last real act against any of them, besides the ongoing prank war of course. The attacks: the shelf, Ron's poisoning, and the "sudden failure" of the rail at the Quiddich pitch had all obviously been attacks on her or Ron, but no true suspects had been found. Their prime suspect, Draco, was out of the picture as he had a perfect alibi during the Quiddich match, he'd been playing.
"I wanted to leave anyway, I was losing, as usual." Harry replied as he looked up from his potions notes. "Besides I needed to study. And isn't it you who is always harping on me, us to study."
"Honestly Harry...I do not harp!" Hermione's lip twitched for a moment, and she tried and failed to glare. She gave up, and looked at him with an odd glint in her eye, "do I really?" She asked in a soft voice, as she bit her lip.
"No Mione, I'm sorry, you don't, not really." Harry replied with a small grin. "Not more than you should anyway. I would have failed out long ago, if it wasn't for you." Harry gave a nod, and turned back to his potions notes. Hermione mutely shook her head, but she didn't trust her voice. She picked her quill back up and with another slightly nervous glance across the table; she started in on an essay for Dumbledore on the spell resistance of common materials.
After a few minutes of silence, Hermione looked up again, "Harry?" Harry looked up and cocked an eyebrow in mute response. "You were holding back today...why?" She glanced across the expanse of the table, her eyes questing.
Harry took a deep breath, and looked deep into the depths of her chocolate pools. "You were also, Mione" he replied softly. Harry paused, then in a thoughtful tone of voice, he added, "Lupin noticed...I don't know, it's like I just know that there's this reserve that I feel...yes, I was holding back, and yeah Lupin and I'm sure Tonks noticed, but I'm also sure that they don't realize how much...do they Hermione?" He asked quietly with a knowing look as he regarded her.
"I'm scared Harry...I can feel it inside, it's like..."
"Like you can hear it whispering inside, that you can do that spell, even though you shouldn't be able to...that you can move faster, if you just will it enough?" Harry completed her thought in a whisper. Hermione nodded wordlessly, her eyes on his.
"Sometimes, I'm in a class, like Defense and I just know, that I can breeze though every one there...except you or Dumbledore." She shrugged with her statement. At the same time, something, some knowledge tickled her brain. She knew somehow, that she knew what this meant though she just couldn't or wouldn't put it together right now.
************************Hogwarts, Hagrid's Hut****************************
May 6, 2005
9:50 am
RING, Harry looked up from the book on countercurses that he had been perusing while he waited outside of Arithmency for a certain witch. Hermione had reluctantly given up on persuading him not to meet her after class as a lost cause. He was, after all, the only person as stubborn as her in the castle, or very possibly in the British Wizarding community as a whole. Harry put the book away in his pack as he stood, rising from one of the stone benches set outside of the classroom, each bench polished smooth with a thousand years of students waiting on others. As the door opened, a couple of Ravenclaw girls saw him and pointed. Whispering to each other, they headed on down the hall, giggling at him. Harry just ignored them; he knew quite well that Hermione was the first in the class, and the last out. Except when I intervene of course, Harry thought with a concealed grin.
Hermione finally came out the classroom lugging along her books. Noticing Harry, she gave a slight sigh and headed down the hall. As they entered a deserted section of hallway, she looked down the hall in both directions with a mischievous grin. Verifying that they were out of sight of any witnesses, she stepped into a small alcove with a wave. And a heartbeat later, a large brown eagle swooped out. Hermione circled around Harry's head once and flew out a conveniently open window. "Show off" Harry muttered as he continued on down the hall to the entrance and the path to Hagrid's hut.
As Harry reached the entrance doors, he found Ron, Neville and Hermione's roommates all walking out the front doors as well. "Where's Hermione, Harry?" Ron asked as they headed down the steps.
"She had to fly" Harry replied sarcastically, "she'll meet us at Hagrid's." Ron bit back a chuckle as he realized the double meaning of Harry's statement. Reaching the end of the stairs, the Gryffindors started off down the dirt path to Hagrid's. Outside, Hagrid had several odd perches set up, but so far nothing was on them. Harry immediately noticed the brown eagle circling over the hut, and as it spotted them approaching, she dived behind Hagrid's.
"Harry" Neville looked over at him as the group reached the pumpkin patch, "Can I get you help with disabling charms this evening. Lupin said to ask you."
"Sure Neville, though Hermione's better...and speak of the devil" Harry muttered the last as Hermione appeared from behind the small house. She gave Harry a small wink as she joined the rest of them.
"What am I better at, Harry?" She asked as she took a seat on one of Hagrid's benches. Neville had gone over to sit with Dean and Seamus, and was out of earshot.
"Disabling Charm's, Neville asked me for help, so I'll help him this evening, want to give me a hand?" Harry replied as Hagrid walked up to the front of the class. He had an odd leathery winged creature on one shoulder.
"Ok" Hermione replied as she took out parchment to take notes on.
"'ELLO CLASS" Hagrid began. "T'day we 'ave a particularly interesting creature to study." Hagrid gently placed the creature on one of he perches they had noticed earlier. "T'day we will study Sneezy here. He is a velium, does anyone know about these creatures...'Ermione?" He nodded to the raised hand in the front row almost automatically.
Hermione's face lit up like it always did when she got to answer a question, "Well Sir...."
***************************Hogwarts, DADA****************************
1:00 pm
As the bell rang for the start of their DADA double, Harry, Hermione, Ron and the rest of the Gryffindors along with the other sixth years that had elected to take DADA, walked into the main DADA classroom. Immediately on entering they could tell that books probably would not be needed today. Instead of the usual desks, mats covered the floor, and it looked as if the size of the room had been magically expanded to several times its normal volume. Dumbledore stood at the head of the room, along with McGonagall, Tonks and Lupin. He had an odd glint in his eye, quite similar to that worn by Fred or George, right before they would pull off a particularly good joke. "Good afternoon class" Dumbledore said to the assembled students. "As you may have noticed, today's lesson will be a practical one. Today, we will be practicing dueling in teams. I will split you up into groups of...say three" Dumbledore winked at Harry, Ron and Hermione as he gazed over the class. "Those three will defend themselves against two other groups of three." With a twinkle in his eye, "Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, come here please."
With shared slightly pained looks, the trio trundled up to the front of the room as Dumbledore surveyed the rest of the class. With an odd, almost merry look he peered at the back of the large room, "Miss Bulstrode, Miss Parkinson, Mr. Crabbe, Mr. Goyle, Mr. Nott, Mr. Malfoy, you will be the...opposition. Everyone else please step aside." The rest of the class hurried to the edge of the room, to get out of the line of fire. Dumbledore nodded slightly and looked at the two groups, comparing. The trio stood almost relaxed, relatively neutral expressions on their faces. Meanwhile, the Slytherin contingent led by Draco was grinning and fingering their wands, ready to get in a little sanctioned cursing and hexing, with the noted exception of Draco himself. Oddly his appearance was closer to Harry, Ron and Hermione's. "The rules...disabling charms only, the use of any charm, on a person, that can cause permanent harm will cost you house points. Conversely, the winning side will receive fifty house points. Now to make it a bit more interesting..." with a wave of his wand, a maze cropped up in the magically enlarged room. The non-participating students that had been over to one side, and Dumbledore and the other spectators were now suddenly on raised platforms so they could easily see the action. The two teams were on opposite sides of the maze, unable to see the other group.
On the raised platform, McGonagall leaned over to Dumbledore, and in a soft whisper, "Just what are you playing at Albus?"
"Unless I miss my guess, proving a point, Minerva, or rather letting others prove their points without causing permanent harm." Dumbledore murmured back, then in a loud voice filled with power, "BEGIN" Immediately the difference between the two sides became apparent. Harry darted to the entrance of the maze, and carefully covered the corners before he waved the other two up. Hermione dove in beside him as Ron automatically covered their back. Not a one of them so much as muttering a curse. The Slytherins, except Draco, hurried ahead into the maze almost causally. This act caused a pained look to cross his face. He cautiously edged forward, trying his best to stay behind cover.
Harry glanced ahead at the maze then with a slight grin, " What do you think, subtle or direct?" Harry asked his friends in a pensive murmur.
"Honestly Harry...you don't know the meaning of subtle" Hermione shot back in an undertone, her brown eyes shining as she glanced over at him. She fingered her wand and crept ahead to the next corner of the maze, the boys following after.
"Sure I do" Harry replied with a smirk, "discrete, understated, subdued, non-direct." Hermione rolled her eyes and stuck out her tongue at him.
Suddenly Ron's face lit up as a sudden thought crossed his mind. He stood up fully for a second, to verify that the walls of Dumbledore's maze were a foot taller than him, about seven five, and glancing up he figured there was about another ten foot between top of the walls and the ceiling. "Harry, Hermione...they never look up." The other two looked at each other for a second, Hermione's eyebrow crooked upward. Ron grinned at her and whispered, "you're the lightest, Hermione," as he pointed his wand at her.
But before he could do anything, she snarled back in a soft tone. "No, Ron..." Harry looked over and gave her an evil grin and she groaned quietly, "Bloody hell...Ok, but Harry lifts me, Ron." Of course if the entire sixth year wasn't watching, I'd just transform, but... She gave a nod to Harry. With a small whish and flick, "WINGARDIUM LEVIOSA" Hermione floated up above the maze. Softly landing on top of the walls of the maze, she looked down and saw the Slytherins, minus Draco in a clump. That group was packed into a little cul-de-sac all looking apprehensively at the next corner of the maze. All five of them with their wands pointed at the same place, down the maze and not at her. Hermione glanced down at the boys, and showed five fingers, then mouthed "Draco" and shrugged to Harry. She turned back to the Slytherins, and with a complicated movement of her wand, "ENCLOSIUM" A wall sprang up in front of the Slytherins, and a top suddenly appeared over the Slytherins, boxing them in like mice in a cage. With a wry grin, Hermione gave another wand flick, and air holes appeared in the top of the box. Suddenly out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a flash of green. She jumped down from the top of the wall, just as a red stunner bolt flashed through were she had been, landing with bent knees next to Harry. "He's all alone Harry" Hermione said with a flash of teeth, as she rose up.
Harry flicked his gaze over at Ron, who chuckled and pointed his wand at himself. "Imago emino" Instantly Ron's doppelganger appeared. The image moved wherever Ron pointed his wand, walking exactly like he himself did. Hermione and Harry looked over at him, impressed despite themselves. Ron grinned, and in a chuckling whisper, "Oh, I forgot, you two were unconscious then." Hermione glared at him, then nodded along with Harry, as Ron pointed with his free hand at himself then at his replica and mimed walking with it. Ron proceeded to creep around corners of the maze, while letting his replica seemingly walk upright, not even bothering to take cover. Finally as the trio, and the fake reached the middle of the maze, a red bolt passed through the center of the fake Ron. As the fake Ron vanished, a muttered curse was heard from around the corner. Even as Ron's image was fading away, Harry and Hermione swung around the corner, "Petrificus Totalus." Draco fell to the ground with a loud thump, landing face down on the matted-covered stone floor.
Harry sauntered over to Draco, and bent low. Flipping Draco over on his back, he whispered in his ear, "Having fun yet Draco?" Draco just glared at him, frozen in place. "Malfoy, I honestly don't think you were behind the attacks this semester, but I think you know who was...they stop, or we play for real." Harry replied, serious as a heart attack. Straightening up he nonchalantly pointed his wand at Draco; "Finite" Harry purposely turned his back on Draco as he walked over to Ron and Hermione, hoping that Draco would try. Draco, however just shook his head as he got to his feet and sheathed his wand with a snarl.
"EXCELLENT," Dumbledore boomed from his raised position. Beside him, Lupin and Tonks were carefully not smiling, merely looking interested. McGonagall looked pensive, though her lips flickered for a second as her gaze wandered over the box still trapping the five Slytherins. "Fifty points to Gryffindor. Now, Mr. Malfoy" Dumbledore said almost gently, "please explain to the class how your side lost, when you outnumbered them two to one?"
Draco gave a slight grimace, and glared for a second at Harry. Harry however did not look happy, or sad, just neutral and Draco's rage faded to annoyance. Yes, though both Weasley's doppelganger spell that Draco had never seen before and Granger's transfiguration of the walls to trap his compatriots were very advanced magic, his side beat themselves. With a sigh, he answered, "Sir we lost as my group let themselves be trapped, and Potter's team, used the surroundings to their advantage." Draco's voice was introspective as he finished.
"Correct Mr. Malfoy, ten points to Slytherin for that honest answer." Dumbledore replied evenly. Draco's eyebrows shot up, but he just nodded in response. Across the room, still in the maze, a loud thump and several muted voices were heard. OOPS, Dumbledore thought to himself as he remembered the trapped Slytherins. She did leave them air holes though. "Finite Mutiao" Dumbledore waved his wand in a hard slashing motion. Without warning the maze suddenly disappeared, and the five, trapped Slytherins who had been leaning on the now vanished walls fell instantly to the floor in a pile. Titters of laughter broke out, but to Dumbledore's satisfaction, no one got caught laughing.
Dumbledore next picked another group, this time three Hufflepuffs, more or less led by Ernie Macmillan, against several Ravenclaws. This next fight was not as one sided as the first, though the fact that all of those chosen were in the DA may have had a great deal to do with it. In the end, that match came down to Ernie against two, and he did manage to stop one of them, Terry Boot, but the other got him from behind. Harry stood watching, and taking notes. He was actually proud of them, but he saw some factors that he wanted to go over especially since Ernie's loss was more due to both of his partners being caught napping than anything else.
After a couple of more groups had their turn, Dumbledore dismissed the class. As the class was filling out, Draco held back. Catching Harry's eye, he gave Harry a touch to the head, which in a formal duel would signify a point. Harry returned a slow nod, from where he stood waiting for Hermione to ask Dumbledore a question about a reading assignment. Ron's gaze caught the exchange, and he asked Harry in a quiet, urgent tone. "What was that mate?"
Harry grimaced, "I have no bloody clue."