Harry Potter and the Book of Shadows

Advanced Potions

When Harry awoke the next morning, it took him a minute to reconcile his surroundings. Recognizing the red velvet drapes in the dim morning light, Harry felt a sense of comforting homecoming, remembering he was back in the familiar circular room of Gryffindor Tower. While he thoroughly enjoyed his visits to the Burrow and appreciated the sense of family and belonging the Weasleys created, Hogwarts would always hold the feeling of his first real home. Gazing up at the canopy of his bed, Harry wondered if that was why his night had been, for once, dreamless and peaceful. Whatever the reason, he was glad to have had a decent night's rest for the first time in a very long time.

The relative quiet of the room told Harry the others were either still asleep or already on their way to breakfast. Fumbling for his glasses on the nightstand, Harry put them on and sat up. Finding his watch, a joint birthday gift from Ron and Hermione (Ron had whispered he'd talked Hermione out of the one that occasionally shouted reminders like 'finish your homework!' and 'do your chores!'), he realized it was probably the latter. Anxious but also eager to begin the sixth year's more advanced classes, Harry swung his feet out from under the warm covers onto the cold stone floor. Stretching, he hoped that if he showed a bit of enthusiasm about classes, Hermione might finally leave him in peace.

As he descended the stairs, Harry saw Ron and Ginny having a quiet conversation with Dean and Seamus. He could only guess at what they might be talking about, thought it was obviously something serious by the way Seamus was frowning. Seeing Ginny standing so close to Dean irritated Harry for some reason, though he shook off the thought as soon as it had arisen. Hermione was off to one side, talking to Neville.

Just as Harry reached the bottom stair, Ron turned around, a faint blush creeping across his face. "Hey, Harry. I was about to go wake you up in a minute."

Seamus and Dean waved and headed toward the portrait hole. Neville followed, smiling hesitantly at Harry. "See you later."

Watching them go, Ron eyed his sister suspiciously. "That still going on, then?"

Harry, having joined them by this point, caught the flare of annoyance in Ginny's eyes, though Ron didn't seem to have noticed. Still, she merely replied, "Not that it's any of your business, but no."

Ron still looked doubtful but said, "Can we go, then? I'm starved."

"How did you sleep, Harry?" Hermione asked as they walked down to the Great Hall.

Harry figured he should be grateful she hadn't asked if he was all right. "Fine."

Hermione's lips thinned at this answer, but for once Harry wasn't lying and so, he simply shrugged.

"How about you, Ron?" she looked at Ron pointedly.

Harry wondered why Ron looked so caught off guard. Ears tinged pink, Ron replied. "Um...fine."

Relived to arrive at the Great Hall and its distractions, the foursome quickly found places at the Gryffindor table. Ron eagerly spooned piles of eggs and sausages onto his plate, while Harry reluctantly poked at the scone placed on his by Hermione. Ginny took her usual favored toast and jelly while Hermione branched out from her customary routine to sample a cheese Danish.

Owls began swooping in with the morning's delivery of forgotten schoolbooks, misplaced clothing, and other sundry items students always seemed to forget at the beginning of every year. With a whoosh and a clanging splat, what looked like a bedraggled grey feather duster landed in the porridge tureen just to the left and in front of Ron.

"Ruddy menace," Ron muttered as he fished Errol out of the oatmeal. "Really, mum ought to retire him and get a younger- OW!"

With an indignant hoot, Errol unceremoniously dropped the parcel he'd been carrying by the twine that held it together in front of Ron and flew off, dripping porridge as he went.

Somewhat chastised, Ron mumbled, "I was thinking of him, really. It's not like he doesn't need the rest."

Knowing Hedwig would have pecked him to death if he'd said something like that in front of her, Harry refrained from admonishing Ron. Noticing the bleeding peck mark, he figured Ron had already gotten the point.

"What'd you forget?" Ginny asked.

Ron unwrapped the brown paper. Reading the book's cover quizzically, he looked to Harry and held it out. "Must've been for you, mate."

Harry took the copy of Advanced Potion-Making and frowned. "But I packed my copy." Unsure, Harry dug around in his bag, positive he'd seen it that morning, but wondering if perhaps he had forgotten it after all. After a moment, Harry held up the book he'd brought just in case potions was one of his first classes. "See?"

Ron tossed the new book on the table. "Wonder why mum thought you forgot it. It's not for you, is it, Mione?"

Hermione shook her head. Harry could sense her slight annoyance that Ron would dare think her that disorganized. "No, mine's right here."

She held up her copy and then placed it back on top of the neat stack in her bag. Wondering why Mrs. Weasley had sent a book no one seemed to need, Harry spied Professor McGonagall handing out schedules further down the table.

A tiny flicker of excitement bubbled in Harry's stomach. Should he ask about his potions OWL? As Professor McGonagall neared, he debated then finally decided not to ask. He was still afraid if he brought it up, he might find out that it had been a mistake, after all. In fact, Harry wondered if McGonagall was about to tell him his O potions OWL was some error and he'd have to pick another class instead.

Ginny received her schedule first. Looking overwhelmed at the classes, and obviously thinking about her own upcoming OWLs, she merely mumbled a 'thank you' and examined her class list forlornly.

McGonagall handed the trio their sixth year courses, stopping long enough to commend them on their OWL scores. "Well done, all of you. Of course, I expect nothing less than your best efforts in my Advanced Transfiguration class."

Hermione nodded enthusiastically as she reviewed her schedule. Harry glanced over and thought it looked rather fuller than his own.

"Potter," Harry looked up guiltily, though being only breakfast the first day, he couldn't imagine what he could have done wrong. McGonagall seemed to sense his thoughts and shook her head a fraction. "Since there are no more Educational Decrees, you are welcome to rejoin the Gryffindor quidditch team. That is, if you would still like to play."

Harry's heart leapt. "I...I can? I mean, I will! I'd love to!"

Looking at Ron, Harry grinned. McGonagall seemed relieved at Harry's reaction. "Well, I'm sure you'd like to attend the House try-outs, then. They will be this afternoon, though I'm sure Miss Bell won't require you to try out for Seeker."

Harry slanted a glance at Ron, wondering if he'd have to try out for Keeper again. Suddenly he looked up again, "Wait, Katie's the new captain?"

"Yes, Potter," McGonagall replied.

Disappointment overshadowed Harry's sudden burst of happiness. "Oh."

As McGonagall continued down the table, Harry caught Ron's eye and shrugged. "Makes sense, I guess."

Hermione seemed to debate whether or not to say something then finally said, "Well, she probably didn't think you would be interested." Before Harry could protest, she added, "You weren't really interested in much of anything this summer."

Knowing she was right didn't make him feel any better, nor did Ron's comment Katie was a year ahead and Harry might get captain the following year. Looking back down at his own schedule, hoping for a distraction, Harry saw that Care of Magical Creatures was their first class and he did in fact, have potions the following day. A wave of relief washed over him. His hopes of becoming an Auror weren't over yet. Ron had also excitedly scanned his parchment, though his smile had quickly turned to a frown. He held the paper up.

"Professor, wait!" he called. "You gave me the wrong schedule."

Professor McGonagall strode back toward them and quickly looked over the paper Ron had handed back to her. "No, Mr. Weasley, this is yours. That is clearly your name written at the top."

Ron shook his head as he took the parchment from her once again. "Well someone wrote down the wrong classes for me, then. It says I have double Potions tomorrow."

"But you got a-" Hermione whispered loudly.

"I know what I got on my potions OWL!" Ron hissed back.

"Professor Snape only takes O students in sixth year." Ron looked up to McGonagall, his voice pleading.

McGonagall gave Ron a stern look. "I am well aware of Professor Snape's usual restrictions for his sixth year class. However, your schedule is correct and you will be taking Advanced Potions this year."

Her tone left no room for argument. As she strode away, continuing to hand out Gryffindor schedules, Ron mouthed wordlessly.

After a moment, he looked back at the parchment in his hand, horrified. "But...wha... Advanced? But..." Panicked, he turned to Hermione. "I can't take Advanced Potions! Snape'll kill me for sure!"

Ginny looked torn between concern and laughter a she held Advanced Potion-Making out at Ron. "Guess the book was for you after all."

Ron eyed the book as though it were the foulest thing he could possibly imagine.

"Oh, Ron, you'll do fine. Obviously they thought..." Hermione trailed off uncertainly. "Um, you'll do fine. It's not until tomorrow, anyway. At least we've got Hagrid first, right?"

Unconvinced, Ron shoved Advanced Potion-Making into his bag, still shaking his head. Wondering why Ron had been let in without an O potions OWL, Harry took Ron's schedule and compared it to his own.

"Well, we've got all the same classes, at least," he said helpfully. "Looks like you're not taking Astronomy."

Hermione's brow furrowed at this, but she said nothing. Ron looked somewhat cheered, though still a bit sick. The soft click of footsteps made Ron's head pick up, Harry thought in a last-ditch hope McGonagall had made a mistake and was coming to tell him he didn't have to take advanced potions after all.

Instead, the new Assistant Caretaker looked as though she was headed straight for them, though Harry couldn't devise a reason why she could possibly want to talk to them. Ron's look of dismay merely changed focus when she smiled and sat next to him.

"Good morning," she greeted them.

Ron opened his mouth but nothing came out.

Puzzled, Hermione said guardedly, "Good morning."

Putting down the cup of coffee she'd been drinking, she held out a hand. "Persephone Hade, new Assistant Caretaker. Hermione Granger, yes?"

Hermione nodded her head as she shook Persephone's hand. Persephone turned to Ron, still holding out her hand. "Ronald Weasley?" Ron just stared at her hand and made a vague 'uh?' noise. After a moment, she gave up and picked her coffee cup back up. "I just wanted to meet the prefects from all the Houses. You have some kind of student authority and responsibility, I gather? I'm sorry, but this prefect system is a bit new to me."

Hermione seemed to recover and briefly explained how the prefect system worked. After her explanation, Persephone murmured, "Ah, I see."

Harry had been observing quietly through all of this, wondering when she would take notice of him and stare at his scar or ogle at him as so many wizards did when they met him for the first time. Just as he'd thought it, Persephone looked past Ron's shoulder and caught his eye. Bracing himself, Harry attempted a polite smile.

Smiling back, she held out her hand. "Persephone Hade."

Not having been at all what he expected, Harry found himself staring at her hand, much like Ron. Recovering, he shook it. It was very cold. "Harry Potter."

"Nice to meet you." Up close, Harry saw her eyes were a rather unnerving shade of amber-yellow as she held his gaze with an unsettling intensity. Though he expected it, her eyes never flicked upward to his scar. Breaking away from her gaze, Harry noticed a purplish mark on her collarbone and what appeared to be odd red marks further below that. Noticing his look, Persephone withdrew her hand and discreetly buttoned another button on her blouse.

Across the table, Ginny, not wanting to be left out, introduced herself. Before the ensuing silence could become awkward, Persephone nodded once and stood. "Well, I just wanted to put a face to the names. If you have any issues, feel free to let me know. It was nice to meet you all."

After she had left, Hermione turned to the others, eyebrows raised. "That was odd."

Ginny shrugged. "If she's going to have authority like Filch, I guess it makes sense she'd want to know who the prefects were."

Hermione frowned. "She didn't stop at any of the other tables."

"Maybe she'd met the others before us," Ron suggested, finally having found his voice.

Unconvinced, Hermione said, "I suppose."

Bidding Ginny goodbye in the entrance hall, the trio stepped out into the early September sunshine. Their first Care of Magical Creatures class looked as though it would have agreeable weather at least. Spying the line of Slytherins making their way toward Hagrid's, Harry thought the weather was probably going to be the only pleasant thing about their first class of the day.

As students milled about outside the small cabin, Harry felt the usual tension before one of Hagrid's classes. What would be their first creature? Would it hideous? Dangerous? Poisonous? Spying Malfoy whispering something to his little band of followers, Harry almost hoped it would be, just to see Malfoy retreat in fright.

After a moment, Hagrid bustled out of his cabin, cupping something in his large hands. Harry felt a bit of relief. Whatever it was, at least it would be small. Remembering the Blast-Ended Skrewts, Harry hoped whatever it was would stay that way. After gaining everyone's attention, Hagrid placed the creature on the rough-hewn table set up outside. Everyone leaned forward to look, but kept a healthy distance away. Harry thought he saw a few wands clutched discreetly.

A small ball of fur, mostly black with a few dark brown spots, sat on the table. It shivered and several students backed up. After a moment, it uncurled and yawned, exposing sharp white teeth, then began to wash, haughtily ignoring the students. Seeing the large bat-like ears and tufted tail flicking back and forth, Harry realized it was-

"A kneazle kitten?" Malfoy drawled derisively. "We did this already. What kind of sixth year class is this anyway?"

"Maybe you should have dropped it, then." Hermione shot him a dirty look. "Or did you get so few OWLs you didn't have enough passing classes to choose from?"

Glaring hatefully, Malfoy opened his mouth, but was cut off by Hagrid.

"I know yeh did kneazles last year, however, this here's a kitten and I thought it'd be interestin' ter watch him grow. There's a big difference between readin' about development in animals and actually seein' it happen," Hagrid said. "We'll watch Noir here for the next few months and see how he changes and learns."

Last year Hagrid would have blundered a bit at Malfoy's disrespect, but he seemed to be far surer of himself. Harry felt a swell of pride at Hagrid's composure, wondering what had wrought the change.

"Now yeh'll see his eyes are still blue. Kneazle kittens all have blue eyes at first, jest like regular cats. Now, a regular kitten will change to its natural eye color between five and twelve weeks old, but kneazle kittens' eyes start to change at about six months or so." Hagrid petted the small ball of fuzz and the kitten began to purr. "Noir's here should be changing in the next month. As yeh probably know from las' year, kneazles come in lotsa colors but almost always with some kind of patches. Noir here is one of the rarer types, with a dark background color."

As the class took turns petting the small catlike creature, the trio took the opportunity to talk to Hagrid.

"How was your summer, Hagrid?" Hermione began.

"Oh, fine, fine." Hagrid replied quietly, keeping an eye on the students crowding around the table. "Found Grawp a nice place up in the mountains, a little cave lookin' over the lake. Seems happy enough, findin' his own food and all. Solitary sorts, giants. Only hafta visit him once a month or so. That seems to be all he wants."

"How is he doing?" Hermione asked tentatively.

"Oh, all right. Seems to be gettin' the hang of English." Hagrid shrugged a bit. "Well, best he can, anyhow. Maybe I'll take yeh up there to say hello sometime."

Hermione looked a bit apprehensive at this but didn't say anything.

"Why do we really have a kneazle kitten, Hagrid?" Harry asked. Hagrid's reason, while perfectly acceptable, somehow rang a bit false.

"Oh, that." Hagrid looked up and had to take a moment to tell Lavender to let the others have a chance to hold Noir. Turning back to the trio, he said quietly, "Ministry's keeping to their word about not interferin' with Dumbledore or the school," Hagrid paused and eyed Harry, then continued, "but they're making it hard fer me to get some of the creatures I thought sixth and seventh years might want ter see. I think Umbridge is making trouble fer all the teachers where she can." Hagrid shrugged. "Can't really complain, though. I've got some really great creatures lined up." He paused again. "Well, hopefully. But we'll be goin' between watchin' Noir and some other things. I did think it was nice of Persephone to let me borrow him fer my first class, seein' as nothing else I've requested has shown up yet. Should have summat more interestin' fer next class."

"Noir is hers?" Hermione asked, surprised.

Hagrid nodded. "Yeah. Friendly little beast. He'll make a good study."

Just then, there was a loud hiss and several students backed up. Malfoy was glaring at the kitten as it spit at him again, arching its tiny back. Hagrid quickly scooped the agitated kitten up before he could aim a needle-sharp scratch. "I think he's had enough fer one day. Kneazles can get grumpy if yeh bother 'em too much. Independent sorts, yeh know."

"They're also really good at sensing unsavory people," Hermione whispered so only Harry and Ron could hear. Ron laughed, Harry frowned.

Leaving their first class with a sense of reassurance and a two-page essay on possible combinations of coat and eye colors of kneazles, the trio headed back to the castle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Their first Herbology class had been cancelled. Harry found out from Neville there was some kind of problem with the plants Professor Sprout had received for the sixth years, so Ron and Harry only had History of Magic that afternoon. Even though Hermione had Arithmancy on top of that, even she admitted the lighter schedule was a welcome relief from the previous year's heavy workload. Using her newfound spare time to do some reading, Hermione remained in the common room while Harry, Ron, and Ginny headed out to the quidditch pitch for Gryffindor's team tryouts.

Clutching one of the twin's old brooms, Ginny stared straight ahead as they walked, obviously nervous about trying out for the team.

"You're sure you don't want to go for Chaser?" Ron asked.

Ginny shot him a dirty look. "Why? Don't think I'm good enough for Beater?"

"It's just Beaters are usually...um," Ron hesitated, "bigger."

"Maybe I should have let you eat all my chocolate frogs, then," Harry said, referring to the present Ginny had gotten him for his birthday. When Ginny forced a laugh in response, Harry added, "Don't worry, you'll do great. You've been practicing all summer."

Ginny gave Ron a look that clearly stated that was what he was supposed to say. "Thanks, Harry."

Even the weather seemed to smile as Harry and the others walked onto the quidditch pitch. The assembled Gryffindors seemed thrilled to see Harry and he felt some of his disappointment that he had not been made captain ebb away. Seeing the new faces there for tryouts and Katie trying to organize everyone, Harry realized maybe he was better off as just Seeker.

Spotting him, Katie directed a tall brown-haired boy toward a small knot of people, and hurried his way. "Harry, great!" She paused uncomfortably. "Um, everyone heard you'd be back so there's no one else here for Seeker..."

Harry felt a wave of relief. Not that he thought anyone would have been chosen over him, but not having to try out was still welcome news. He smiled, "Great. Ron and Ginny are trying out."

Katie glanced behind Harry but barely acknowledged them. "Um..." Katie looked as if she didn't know how to say what she wanted to say and suddenly blurted, "You're not upset are you?"

Confused, Harry just stared at her. "No?"

Katie didn't look convinced. "I mean, it's not that I'm not happy to be captain, but everyone thought..."

Harry shrugged. "Oh, that. I think you'll be a great captain."

She smiled brightly, obviously relieved. "Thanks, Harry! Well, I guess we'd better get started."

She directed Ron to where only one other boy was standing, Harry recognized as Dennis Creevey. Ginny joined the brown haired boy Katie had been talking to along with several other people. Harry hoped Ginny would do well, but she seemed out of place, being the smallest and only girl of her group. There were five people in the Chaser group, three girls and two boys, and only Ron and Dennis trying out for Keeper. Harry, sitting down to watch, speculated why no one seemed to want to try for Keeper, wondering if Slytherin's targeting Ron last year had anything to do with it. Catching sight of Colin in the stands snapping pictures, Harry waved. As he lowered his hand, Harry realized Dennis probably didn't even want to try out. Colin was aiming his camera at Harry, not his brother, and Harry figured Dennis had only agreed to come so Colin could take pictures. There was another boy sitting with Colin who Harry was almost positive was a new first year. Trying to remember his name from the Sorting, Harry thought it was something Thorne. Timothy? Thomas? Seeing the drills were starting, Harry turned his attention back to the pitch.

Overall, the afternoon was entertaining. Ron easily out maneuvered Dennis and did far better in general. Having a full summer of practice away from the twins, Harry saw a great deal of improvement in Ron. He only hoped Ron would be able to keep his cool when the pressure was on during a real game. The Chasers went next, and while the seamless communication Harry had once seen between his former teammates was not there, there seemed to be some potential in the new candidates. When Ginny's group took to the air, Harry tried to give her an encouraging smile, though he wasn't sure if she noticed.

Ron plopped down next to him, watching the first of the Beater drills. "I don't think Dennis really wanted to be here."

Harry pointed to where Colin and the other boy were sitting, though he didn't take his eyes off the brooms whizzing above them. "I think Colin just wanted an excuse to come and take pictures."

Sparing a quick glance, Ron said, "Oh. Yeah. Well, looks like you're stuck with me again, then."

Harry heard Ron's not quite laugh. "You did really great today. All those practices this summer really- whoa!"

Ron had sat up as well. His sister had just knocked five practice bludgers dead center into their targets in quick succession. Not only had none of the other Beaters made all five, they hadn't done it dead-on or as quickly, either. While the boys easily outdistanced her in the power drills, Ginny remained the most accurate of the group. Touching down, she smiled at Ron and Harry.

"Great job, everyone!" Katie yelled. "Really great. I'll have the new list up before dinner."

Ginny was talking to the tall brown-haired boy as Harry and Ron rose to congratulate her. "Thanks, Julian! You did really great, too."

Julian grinned back at her. "Well, I can hit it harder than you, but that accuracy drill, you were amazing!"

Ron was scowling as they joined them. Harry didn't know why, but he also felt a surge of annoyance.

"Hey, Gin, great job!" Ron said loudly.

Julian turned to Harry and Ron and held out a hand. "Julian Gosse. Nice moves, Ron."

Ron shook his hand, but didn't return his smile. "Thanks."

"Harry Potter." Julian's eyes widened. "If it wasn't enough you-" Ginny cleared her throat loudly, and Julian looked back at her. "We have a great chance at the Cup this year with you back as Seeker."

"I hope you made the team," Ginny said as Julian turned to head back to the school.

Flashing a grin at her, Julian replied, "I hope you did, too."

Ron glared at his back as Julian walked out of earshot. "What's this we have a great chance? It's not like he's on the team."

"Yet," Ginny added. "You saw him, though. He's really good." Ginny frowned uncertainly. "Better than me."

"No way," Harry spoke up. "They might have hit it harder, but I'd choose you over any of them to actually get the bludger where it needed to go."

"I agree." Katie had joined them. She smiled at Harry and Ron. "I need to think a bit about some of the others, but I wanted to see what you guys thought about today."

Harry thought for a moment. "Julian is pretty good. He seems nice enough, too." Ignoring Ron's huff, Harry said, "I'd think he'd do all right. And Ginny, too. No one else could aim like that."

Katie nodded. "What about you, Ron?"

Ron scowled. "Yeah Julian was okay. I don't know about Ginny, though."

Ginny's jaw dropped in shocked anger. Harry could see the betrayal behind the fury in her eyes. "Come on, Ron, she was one of the best out there. You saw for yourself."

"That's not the point!" Ron said angrily.

Katie raised her eyebrows. "Actually, I thought that was the point. To get the best team together we can."

Flushing, Ron stammered, "All right. She's good."

"How about the Chasers?" Katie moved on. "I thought that Taylor Wells was pretty decent."

Shrugging, Harry said, "That's really up to you. You have to work with them more than any of us would."

Nodding, Ron agreed.

"All right. Well, the official list will go up tonight, but congratulations!" Katie beamed at them all.

After Katie had started back to the castle, Ginny gave a little squeal of delight and leapt at Harry in a joyful hug. "I made the team!"

Taken aback, Harry didn't know what to do. Suddenly realizing fully, he too, was back on the team, he hugged her back, lifting her off the ground a bit. Catching sight of Ron's baffled look over her shoulder, Harry quickly put Ginny back down and stepped back.

"All right, then," Ron said, turning toward the castle. "Come on, I'm starved."

"When are you not?" Ginny poked him in the side. They laughed as they made their way back to the school, for once all of them in good spirits.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Great Hall was full of first-day chatter as Harry, Ron, and Ginny joined Hermione at the Gryffindor table. While not all students ate at the same pace or arrived at the same time, the tables were fairly full.

"I made the team!" Ginny announced as soon as they sat.

Hermione smiled. "That's great Ginny!"

Neville added to the congratulations, as did Lee Jordan.

Leaning over, Lee spoke to Ron, "Have you heard from your brothers? They said they might be moving to Hogsmeade. Something about Diagon Alley being too," he glanced at Harry, "expensive."

Ron shrugged. "They don't tell me anything. I don't know why they didn't start there anyway. Seems they'd get lots more business from Hogwarts students than in Diagon Alley."

"I guess I'll have to send an owl. Can I borrow yours?" Lee asked.

Ron nodded as he heaped potatoes onto his plate. "Sure."

Lee looked up and shook his head, his eyes following someone walking by. "I can't believe she's related to Filch."

"Huh?" Ron turned around. Persephone had left her place at the Head Table and was walking toward the Entrance Hall. "Yeah."

Harry's eyes narrowed when he spotted Draco Malfoy turn in his seat and smirk evilly at Persephone. As she approached, he saw Malfoy say something, but wasn't close enough to hear what it was. Persephone stopped where she was and Malfoy sneered and added something else he couldn't hear.

Before anyone knew what was happening, Persephone had grabbed the back of Malfoy's robes and dragged him out of his seat. Twisting his wand arm painfully behind his back Harry saw her whisper something in his ear, but again, couldn't make it out. Wincing in pain, Malfoy didn't speak right away, though he did produce a rather pathetic yelp. Persephone moved slightly, though obviously enough to add to his discomfort, because he finally mumbled something in reply.

By then the whole Hall had gone silent and several teachers had taken notice. Before they had gotten out of their chairs, Persephone released Malfoy and he dropped back onto the Slytherin bench, glaring at her hatefully. By the time Persephone had reached the doors to the entry, Professor McGonagall had swept down the aisle after her, Snape right on her heels.

The Gryffindors turned back to face one another in shocked silence. After a moment, a low babble of voices broke out and everyone started talking at once.

"What the bloody hell was that all about?" Lee asked, eyes wide.

Neville's face was a mix of shock and fascination. "Did you see Professor McGonagall's face?"

"Forget McGonagall," Ron said gleefully. "Did you see Malfoy?"

Harry stole a quick glance over his shoulder. Sure enough, Malfoy was glowering, hunched over in humiliation at the Slytherin table. Harry wondered why he didn't just leave, but figured Malfoy was too embarrassed to get up and draw further attention to himself.

Ginny shook her head. "Forget Malfoy, did you see Snape? If I were Persephone, I'd be more worried about him than McGonagall."

Hermione had been conspicuously silent. "Well, whatever happens, I'm sure they can't let an assault on a student just slide." At the incredulous silence that followed her comment, she straightened. "What? I liked seeing Malfoy put in his place as much as anyone, but she did-"

"He started it!" Ron said vehemently. "You saw he said something to her when she walked by."

"I'm not saying he didn't deserve-"

Lee cut her off. "You're on Malfoy's side?"

"No!" Hermione insisted. "I just meant-" She threw up her hands in defeat. "Oh, never mind. It was rather nice to see someone stand up to him."

Mollified, Ron grinned when he saw Malfoy slink off in a crowd of Slytherins. "Serves him right." His face took on a more contemplative air. "Still, you have to wonder what he said."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, students were still talking about the scene at dinner. When Persephone strode into the Great Hall, all chatter stopped for a second then just as quickly, began again. Ignoring it, she headed straight for the Gryffindor table.

Having turned to see what had made the Hall momentarily go silent, Harry wondered what she could possibly want this time, as she seemed to be headed straight for them. Ginny discreetly put her toast down and Ron almost choked trying to swallow his enormous bite of muffin.

Nodding in greeting to the others, Persephone looked directly at Hermione. "Hermione, I'd like to see you in my office, please."

Suddenly afraid she was in some kind of trouble, Hermione hastily put down her spoon. "I...um...all right. When?"

"Well, what's your schedule like today?" When Hermione replied she had some time before their first class, Persephone nodded. "I have time now as well, if that's all right."

Apprehensive, Hermione gathered up her things, though it was clear she would rather get whatever it was over sooner rather than later. Seeing an opportunity, Ginny brazenly asked, "So what did he say, anyway?"

Hermione froze. Ron and Harry held their breaths, amazed Ginny had dared to ask. Persephone merely raised an eyebrow. She eyed Ginny for a moment then replied simply, "He asked how my mother was."

Turning, Hermione asked hesitantly, "Oh. Is she not well?"

Persephone's expression darkened. "She's dead."

Fearing she had just made her situation worse, Hermione colored and went back to collecting her belongings. Bidding the others a subdued goodbye, she followed Persephone out of the Great Hall.

When Ron and Harry entered the Transfiguration classroom, they saw Hermione was not there yet and exchanged a look, wondering what Persephone had needed to speak with her about. When Hermione rushed in, seconds before class began, obviously upset, Ron tried to ask what had happened but was silenced by a look from McGonagall. Unable to question her during class, Harry and Ron flanked Hermione as they left the classroom and headed for the dungeons.

"So what did she want?" Ron asked. Throughout the whole of Transfiguration, Hermione had looked on the verge of tears. "Come on, what's wrong?"

"I have to give up S.P.E.W," Hermione said, sniffing.

Ron looked baffled this would have upset her so much. "She said you had to give up SPEW?"

"Well, not in so many words," Hermione admitted, looking distraught. "But she said...well, it doesn't really matter what she said, specifically. Did you know Dobby and Winky were the only ones cleaning Gryffindor Tower all last year?"

Harry blinked at the sudden question. "What?"

Hermione sighed. "All those things I knitted last year, the hats and things. Dobby was taking them all. The other house elves refused to even go into Gryffindor because they were afraid if they found anything I'd left, they'd lose their jobs."

Harry of course, had already known this. Ron just shook his head. "We told you they didn't want to be free."

Hermione shot him a hurt look. "I just want them to be happy! It's so unfair!"

Harry was about to reply, but seeing the chance for Ron to make up for his thoughtless comment, gestured for Ron to say something instead.

A fleeting look of panic crossed Ron's face, but he managed, "We know, Mione, but most of them are happy. At least the ones here at Hogwarts are." Seeing he wasn't helping much, Ron hastily added, "But it's not like it was a completely horrible idea. I mean, it was a nice thing to do."

Harry inwardly winced at Ron's floundering, but Hermione seemed to appreciate it nonetheless. Sighing heavily, she said, "I suppose the house elves here are okay. I just know there are a lot of them out there that aren't."

"Well, if anyone was going to figure out a way to help them, it'd be you, Mione," Ron said.

Hermione turned to him, a surprised smile spreading across her face. "Thanks, Ron."

Harry almost laughed at Ron's expression, but managed to hold it back.

They were the first students to arrive in Snape's classroom and Harry and Ron quickly claimed the bench in the far back corner, as far away from Snape's desk as possible. Obviously disapproving of their choice, Hermione shook her head, but took the bench in front of them.

Once they had arranged their books and stopped shifting around, Harry realized the room was not as quiet as they had first thought. Voices sounded from Snape's office. Catching Ron's eye, they stilled and listened.

"All right then, I get the point. Can we just move on?"

Harry recognized Persephone's distinctive American accent. Having noticed Ron and Harry watching the slightly ajar office door with avid curiosity, Hermione too had turned in interest. Snape said something in response, but he must have been facing away from the door because Harry couldn't make it out. There was a loud creak followed by the sound of something heavy being moved across the floor.

"Has anyone even opened this door in the last century?"

The trio exchanged looks. What was going on? Harry racked his brain trying to remember what door was in Snape's office. Truthfully, during his Occlumency lessons the previous year he'd been too busy focusing on the office's occupant to notice much about his surroundings.

"Without magic."

"You've got to be joking!"

There was a slight pause in which Harry could picture Persephone staring at something wholly unpleasant, though he didn't know what it could possibly be. There was a loud expletive followed by:

"This is going take until Christmas!"

"It's better than what his father demanded."

"Of that I have no doubt."

Persephone's voice held a bitter sort of conviction that made Harry pause. Was Snape somehow in charge of Persephone's punishment for what had happened the previous night? Glancing over, he saw Ron looked as confused as he. Hermione too, seemed to be trying to decipher what was going on based on the limited conversation they'd overheard. Their individual ponderings were disrupted when Snape yanked open his office door. Obviously surprised to see the three of them already standing at their benches, he shot Ron a particularly nasty look. The sound of chatter in the hallway was quickly followed by students filing into the classroom.

Malfoy immediately spotted Harry and shot him a malevolent look, though it was instantly replaced by one of utter shock when he spied Ron standing next to Harry. Ron gave Malfoy a little wave in return. They quickly found out Snape fully expected them to be able to produce a potion without anything more than the instructions he put on the board. He did not lecture or say much of anything at all, only that they were to place whatever they managed by the end of class in the small vials labeled with their names. The sneer he aimed at Ron stated he clearly did not expect good results from everyone.

About halfway through the class, there was a crash and a swear from somewhere in Snape's office. Barking at them to continue with their work, Snape went to investigate. Harry saw Malfoy snicker and lean over to the Slytherin next to him. Straining to hear, he thought he heard Malfoy say something about Persephone getting the punishment she deserved. Harry didn't have time to contemplate because the potion Snape had assigned was particularly tricky and required a good bit of attention. Not to mention Ron needed all the help he could get. Seeing Snape's momentary absence as an opportunity, Hermione hastily turned and glancing into Ron's bubbling cauldron, whispered suggestions.

Several minutes later, Snape rejoined the class. Harry thought he looked a bit paler than usual, but when Snape snapped at Harry to pay attention to what he was doing, Harry dismissed the thought and turned back to his potion.

When they had all placed their samples on his desk at the end of the class, Snape spoke, "After you receive your marks for each class' potion, you will write an essay detailing why you did not receive a perfect score and what you could have done to rectify your mistakes, to be handed in at the beginning of the next class." He was staring directly at Ron. "I expect that some of you will be writing quite a few of these essays."

Ignoring Malfoy's snickers, the trio hurried out the door. As soon as they were climbing the stairs out of the dungeons, Ron said heatedly, "I told you Snape was going to make this class miserable for me!"

"Oh, Ron, you'll do all right," Hermione insisted. "You just need to concentrate more."

"It's a bit hard to concentrate with Snape glaring at you the whole time," Ron grumbled.

With homework already piling up, the trio claimed a table in the common room that night, making room when Ginny arrived with a stack of books. Smiling sympathetically, Harry moved over and everyone settled in for a long night of work.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry felt a twinge of excitement as he, Ron and Hermione made their way to class the next day. Defense Against the Dark Arts was first, and they were eager to see how the new professor would compare. They hadn't talked to anyone who had had Dunn yet, but since they hadn't heard any rumors he was as bad as or worse than Umbridge, they let themselves hope this year would be better than the last. Sitting along with the rest of the chattering class, the trio watched the front of the room in tense expectation. Dunn entered, wearing a set of taupe robes, and smiled at them.

"Morning, all. I'm Professor Dunn, and this is sixth year Defense Against the Dark Arts. From what Professor Dumbledore has told me, you've covered Dark creatures and the basic curses, hexes, jinxes and the like." He looked around the room. "Since you to seem to have had a rather... diverse set of professors and syllabi, I thought we'd begin with some illegal curses and hexes, discuss why they were outlawed, how and why they were developed in the first place, and how you can defend against them should you ever need to."

The class perked up. It already sounded as though they might actually learn something useful. Ron and Harry held their quills poised to take notes. Hermione, for once, looked at them approvingly.

"Can anyone name an illegal hex?" Dunn's gaze swept over the class. As usual, Hermione's hand shot up. Dunn pulled a pair of glasses out of a pocket of his robes and glanced at the class roster on his desk. "Yes, Miss Granger."

"The Immutable Hex," she said confidently.

"A very good example of a good idea gone wrong. Five points to Gryffindor. For another five, can you tell me why it was outlawed?" he asked.

Ron and Harry rolled their eyes. Dunn had no idea what he was asking. Hermione smiled.

"Originally called the Immutable Charm, the Immutable Hex was first designed as a way to brand magical animals like dragons, which have magically resistant skin. While it didn't work very well for that, many wizards found it useful for permanently branding winged horses, unicorns, and other magical beasts. Later, it was found that, while it created a magically irreversible mark, it was an incredibly painful process, so other painless spells were researched. When the Tattoo Charm was developed, the Immutable Hex was outlawed as an unnecessarily cruel branding method."

Dunn looked rather impressed. Lavender raised her hand. "If it was so painful, why didn't they notice when they used it on other animals?"

Unlike Umbridge, Dunn seemed pleased someone had raised their hand. "A very good question. Sadly, though it should have been obvious, many people just assumed the animals were overreacting or just didn't care. Before the Tattoo Charm, there were not many options available to insure proof of ownership of magical beasts. Does anyone know how it was found that the Immutable Hex was such an agonizingly painful process?" He looked around the room. "Yes, Mr. Weasley."

Harry was surprised to see Ron raise his hand. "The Greenwich Griffins decided to use it to brand their team mascot on each other the year they won the British Quidditch Cup. They had only gotten part of the head drawn when the Keeper passed out from the pain. Since he'd played a seven-hour game with a dislocated shoulder and four broken ribs without complaining, they decided not to finish it." Ron turned to Hermione, "And you said knowing all those quidditch facts was never going to be useful."

"Why would they do that?" Pravati asked. "Use a spell like that when they could have used the Tattoo Charm?"

"Because the Griffins are hardcore!" Someone yelled from the back.

The class laughed and even Professor Dunn chuckled. "Precisely. Another five points. It's also said, during You-Know-Who's rise the Immutable Hex was often used as a means to test loyalty, and unfortunately, also as a method of torture." Dunn ignored the students who had turned to glance in Harry's direction and continued on smoothly, "Though, it was not often used that way, as the wand must be in contact with the skin to be effective, and the Cruciatus Curse was far more efficient. However, some people have said the Immutable Hex is more painful than the Cruciatus Curse. A simple disarming spell or Shield Charm will usually defend against it, as will breaking the contact of the wand with the skin. The mark that it creates is irreversible."

Everyone scribbled notes as Dunn continued to lecture. The rest of the class passed quickly. They discussed the Effete Curse, which rendered any plant or animal it hit unable to reproduce, the Vegimortis Curse, which caused the person it hit to kill vegetation with a touch (a modified gardening spell gone wrong), and the Naiveté Hex, which caused the victim to revert to a childlike state of mind that in many cases, was permanent.

"He's a pretty decent teacher. I think Defense Against the Dark Arts is going to be much better than last year," Ron commented as they left the classroom. Hermione and Harry agreed, though Hermione frowned, thinking this made it less likely Harry would want to continue DA club.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Much later that evening, Ginny spied them as soon as she entered the portrait hole. She rushed over and claimed the seat next to Hermione. "So what's the new Dark Arts teacher like?"

Ron happily abandoned his Transfiguration homework. "Loads better than Umbridge. We did illegal hexes and jinxes today. Sounds like he's got lots of interesting stuff planned for us, too."

Ginny looked both happy and anxious at this news. "That's good. I'd hate to have to take my OWLs after a year of classes like Umbridge's."

The trio muttered their agreement, remembering how useless their classes had been.

"Where were you at dinner, anyhow?" Ron asked as Ginny pulled out books and parchments.

Ginny arranged her notes. "I was at the library. We got a load of homework." she looked up. "Well, I'm sure you remember. I stopped in the kitchens after and got something after. Actually, I talked to Dobby." She paused and looked at Hermione. "What did Persephone say to you? Dobby was really worried he'd gotten you into trouble."

"He was?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah. He said Persephone had asked him who had been leaving all those hats and things last year and he had to tell her it was you. I guess he said he didn't mind cleaning Gryffindor all by himself but she said she was going to talk with you about it anyway," Looking at her expectantly, Ginny seemed to be waiting for Hermione to fill her in.

Blushing, Hermione stammered, "Well...I...she...we talked about it. She said that the house-elves didn't like that I was leaving clothes..."

Sensing her discomfort, Ron jumped in, "Hermione's going to give up SPEW."

"I never said that!" Hermione insisted. Confused, Ron shrunk back and looked down at his homework. More quietly, Hermione added, "Well, I suppose I ought to, but..."

"Hermione, they do like it here," Ginny said gently, trying to make her feel better.

Sighing, Hermione pulled a book closer. "I know. I just keep remembering how miserable Dobby was... and I know there are others out there like him. They need help."

Ginny opened one of her own books. "You'll figure something out."

Hermione stopped and looked up, first at Ginny, then at Ron and Harry who had nodded in agreement. A small smile touched her lips. "Thanks."

Eventually Ron and Harry headed off to bed, followed not long after by Hermione. Ginny remained in the common room, along with several other fifth years and a few seventh years until sleep would not be held at bay any longer.