Harry Potter and the Crystalline Darkness

Chapter 10

Harry spent the next few days mostly in Sirius and Remus' room, sometimes on his own, most often with Sirius or Ginny but by the time Madam Pomfrey ruled that Remus could get up, everyone had taken their turn on wolf-watch as they had come to call it. This morning, Remus was making his first venture downstairs since the shooting. Madam Pomfrey had determined that all of the silver was out of his system. The fact that the bullet wound had fully healed was indicative of that. Both Harry and Sirius were hovering around the werewolf as he made his careful way down the stairs. He stopped about halfway and gave the two of them very patient looks.

"I'm fine, you know," Remus said dryly. "Now that the silver is gone, the werewolf healing is kicking in. I'll be perfectly alright by tomorrow."

The other two looked slightly abashed at their overprotective act and Remus laughed at them as he started back downstairs. The three of them walked into the kitchen where Molly immediately descended on them. She had spent the last few days worrying about all three of them; Remus because of his injury and Harry and Sirius because they were spending most of their time with Remus and neither were eating or sleeping well. In short order she had them seated at the table with loaded breakfast plates in front of them and had ushered the others out of the room, saying they could pester Remus later.

When they had finished, Molly shooed them outside, saying that they would all feel better after a day in the sun. They trooped over to where Harry's Battle Guard was sitting. The other Weasleys had all returned to their various jobs but had been checking in regularly for updates. As soon as they were seated, Remus cleared his throat.

"Alright, now that I'm clear of silver, I want to know exactly what happened," he said firmly. "Who shot me and why?"

Everyone exchanged glances and then looked pointedly at Harry and Sirius.

"It was Draco," Harry said, rolling his eyes at the others. "He did it himself. We don't exactly know why but I'd say he was trying to get to me through you." Harry's voice was grim by the end of the sentence.

"Don't start, Harry," Remus said warningly. "Do not blame yourself for what happened. It was not your fault. Blame Draco if you must blame anyone."

Ginny wiggled around until she was leaning into Harry. "We've been telling him that for the last few days," she said tartly. "I hope he listens to you because he hasn't been listening to us very well."

"Harry," Remus chided. "It. Was. Not. Your. Fault."

Harry slowly wrapped his arms around Ginny and rested his chin on her shoulder. "I...know," he said slowly. "It's just..."

"No," Remus said firmly. "No ifs, no buts, no 'it's just'. It was not your fault. You could not have predicted that Draco would do this."

Harry sighed. "Yeah, that's what Siri's been saying."

Remus looked approvingly at his friend and Sirius chuckled. "Yes, but he seems to believe you more than me, Moony."

"Well, I am the responsible one, Padfoot," Remus replied cheekily.

"Oy, I can be responsible," Sirius said indignantly. "I'm even a teacher now." He paused and chuckled. "Though I bet a few our old teachers are rolling in their graves to hear that, eh Moony?"

"No doubt," Remus replied dryly.

Sirius grinned. "We got some good news too, Moony. Percy proved himself a real Weasley."

"Oh?" Remus said as he lay back on the grass and basked in the sun. "What did he do?"

"He caught Wormtail."

Remus sat up and stared disbelievingly at Sirius. "What?"

"The little rat was here," Sirius growled. "Actually he was up in Percy's old room. The kid saw him and stunned him. Handed him over to Dumbledore and he handed the rat over to the Aurors."

"What's been done with him?" Remus asked fiercely.

"The Aurors questioned him under veritaserum," Sirius said smugly. "Albus was there as a representative of the Wizangamot, the cagey old bugger. They got a massive amount of information out of him. He's yet to give up Draco as being the one he is working for; they haven't worked out the right question to ask. You know what veritaserum is like; you have to tell the truth but you do have a bit of leeway as long as you tell a truth that answers the question. Anyway, he's being held in Azakaban until they're sure they've got all the information they need and then he's been sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss."

Remus chewed that over for a while. "Good," he said finally and lay back down, an air of satisfaction surrounding him.

"Oh, there's one more thing we were waiting to tell you," Sirius said with a glance at Harry.

Harry sighed and nodded; yes, he'd tell Remus about this. "You know how I said I thought Voldemort wasn't dead?" Remus nodded. "Well, I was right. As far as Professor Dumbledore can determine, when I had that...well, vision on my birthday that was Voldemort trying to take over Draco's mind."

Remus sat up and stared at Harry. "Did he succeed?" he asked in a horrified tone.

"Yes and no," Harry replied. "Voldemort wasn't able to actually take over Draco's mind but he is in there. Professor Dumbledore said that they have melded in some way. Kind of like what Professor Snape and I did but a lot more permanent. He says that they both seem pretty happy with the idea or at least neither of them are complaining about it."

Remus sank back down onto the grass, mulling the idea over. "Merlin's beard," he said quietly. "So what happens now?"

"Albus warned Draco to back off," Sirius said grimly. "Said that if he kept pissing Harry off then Harry might just decide to take some direct action. That he'd be missing more than an eye and bit of his hamstring if that happened. He doesn't think that will stop Draco but he does think it'll give us some time to prepare. He thinks New Year or shortly afterwards is the best we can hope for."

"So what's being done?" Remus asked.

"The wards on the Burrow have been strengthened," Sirius said. "Snape and the Weasleys did that right after you got shot. Albus and I went back to Grimmauld Place and worked on the wards there. Albus is reserving the right to put the Fidelius charm back on the old place. He doesn't think we'll need to do it but he wants the ability to be able to do it quickly if necessary."

"Anything else?"

"Not at the moment," Sirius replied. "The three of us will be back at Hogwarts for the school year and Albus, Filius, Minerva, Pomona and Snape put the wards Voldemort managed to take down back up and they've added a few more to the set. We're just waiting to hear from Nhean. He sent a message to Albus two days ago. Something about the Council needing more information. I don't know anymore than that."

Remus nodded and thought things through for a moment. Then he seemed to put those thoughts away and turned to face Hermione.

"I never got a chance to congratulate you on being named Head Girl," he said with a smile. "So, congratulations!"

Hermione blushed and smiled back. "Thank you! I'm so excited."

"You'll look after Harry then? He's a little nervous," Remus said, shooting an amused look at Harry.

"Thanks, Remy," Harry said dryly as Hermione laughed. "And yes, Hermione has given me the whole chapter and verse on what I'm expected to do."

"Yeah," Ron said with a laugh. "Again and again and again. Ow!" He yelped as Hermione whacked him on the arm. "You know I meant that in a good way," he continued hastily as the others laughed.

Hermione was just about to answer when she saw someone come out of the house, heading towards them. She smiled and waved to them. "Master Nhean!"

Harry looked around as the diminutive Night Master walked up to the group. "Hello, Master. What are you doing here?"

Nhean smiled at his apprentice. "I've come to see you actually."

"Er, really?" Harry said a little nervously. "Why?"

Nhean chuckled. "I need your help."

"Okay," Harry said slowly. "With what?"

Remus looked over at Harry with a grin. "You know, you're getting very suspicious in your old age, Harry. There was a time you would have just jumped up and said 'Yeah, sure. Let's go.'."

"Yeah and look how most of those times worked out," Harry replied dryly.

Remus chuckled. "Good point."

"Well, this is nothing that drastic," Nhean said with amusement. "I need you to come and speak with the Guild Council."

Harry mouth dropped open. "The Council? Why?"

"You recall that the Aurors and the Unspeakables were interested in receiving training similar to what you and your friends have," Nhean explained. "Well, the Council has been very reluctant. So have I, for that matter. Training your friends was one thing, training just anyone is another matter entirely. We now seem to have come to something of a compromise but the Council wishes to speak to you regarding not only the wizarding world here in Britain but also the people we have agreed to train."

Harry looked confused. "Why me though? Surely it would be better to talk to Remy or Siri about something like that?"

"They are not Guild members," Nhean said simply. "You are."

"Oh," Harry said. "Well, okay then."

"Excellent," the little Night Master said, gesturing for Harry to stand. He looked over at Sirius and Remus. "I take it you two don't mind if I steal Harry for a short period of time. It should be no more than a couple of hours."

The two men exchanged glances. "No," Sirius replied. "Should either or both of us come along?"

Nhean thought about this. "You could if you wanted to but you would not be allowed into the Council chamber. Only members of the Guild are permitted to enter. Do not worry, Harry is not in any kind of trouble and I will be there with him at all times."

They exchanged glances again. "Alright," Remus said finally. "I suppose we shouldn't get overprotective. He's seventeen and we've already done this subject this summer."

Sirius grinned as he nodded. "Yeah, that was my first lesson. Don't get overprotective of Harry. It irritates him and he yells."

Harry blushed and poked his tongue out at his godfather then he turned to face Nhean. "Um, is what I'm wearing okay? Or should I get changed?"

Nhean looked at his student. Harry was wearing jeans, sneakers and another t-shirt that Sirius had bought him that had a picture of a big black dog on it with the words: "Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie'....until you can find a big stick."

"I think you should get changed," he replied dryly. "Dress robes aren't required but maybe your school robes would be appropriate."

Harry grinned and jogged into the house. He was back fairly shortly in his school robes with his new Head Boy badge pinned to the front. "This better?" he asked his teacher.

"Much," Nhean replied. He eyed the small badge and smiled. "Congratulations on being named Head Boy. It was well earned." He held out a small wooden statue. "We'll be using a portkey."

Harry grimaced as he laid a finger on the statue. "I hate portkeys," he grumbled. At Nhean's curious look, he elaborated. "Bad memories."

"Ah yes," Nhean replied. "Well, I can guarantee that this one is only going to the Guild Academy. Activate."

Harry felt the usual fishhook-in-the-stomach feel of the portkey and then he was standing in a large room with Master Nhean beside him.

"Welcome to Tokyo and the Guild Academy," Nhean said with a smile. "Come this way."

Harry followed his teacher over to a pair of large carved wooden doors. He opened them and they walked into the large room. Half of the room was taken up with by a long table that was curved into a wide U shape. Eleven people sat behind the table and they all looked over at Harry and Nhean as they walked in.

"Ah, Nhean," the man seated at the middle of the table said genially. "This must be Harry Potter."

Nhean led Harry so that he was standing in the middle of the room facing the table and bowed respectfully to the Council. "Yes, Sensai Takao." He turned to Harry. "Harry, this is Sensai Ichiro Takao, the Head of the Council."

Harry gave a short, awkward bow. "Er, hello, Sensai Takao," he said, copying his teacher's form of address.

The older man inclined his head and smiled. "Relax, Harry. We're not going to bite. We just have a few questions that you may be able to shed some light on."

Harry relaxed a little and smiled shyly.

Takao smiled again. "Now, Harry, has Nhean told you much about what we have been deliberating on the last few weeks?"

"Erm, not really," Harry replied. "Just that the Ministry made a request for training and you've been considering it."

"Yes, we have," Takao replied. "And this latest news about your adversary has made things a touch more difficult. I am not sure if you are aware but the Guild normally does not train those who are sighted. Your friends are a bit of an exception to the rule. We can't fault Nhean for his choice though. From what he has said, you needed a Battle Guard and you had the friends there who were willing to do the job." Takao chuckled. "And truly, who amongst us would pass up the opportunity to train a Battle Guard. There have been so few over the years." He paused. "Still, your Ministry has made some good arguments but we are still reluctant to train those who cannot become Guild members. We have come to something of a compromise that we have all agreed to." He indicated the other Council members. "We have decided that Nhean will train four people in some of our methods. In truth, he could not train them in all of our methods for the simple fact that they are not blind. What we want from you is an opinion on those that are to be trained. You know them better than Nhean, you are a Guild Warrior, you are the one whose opinions we will trust."

Harry swallowed and nodded. "Um, okay. Who are they?"

"Nhean suggested Nymphadora Tonks, Fred and George Weasley and Sirius Black," Takao replied.

Harry gaped at him in surprise for a moment then pulled his thoughts together. "Um, I think they'd all do well. Fred and George and Sirius have already done some training so they'd know what to expect and Tonks is an Auror so I think she'd adapt well to the training."

"Tonks?" one of the other Council members said curiously.

"Er, yes," Harry replied. "She doesn't really like her first name. She prefers to be called just Tonks."

"So, you think they could all handle the training physically?" Takao mused. "What about mentally?"

"Tonks and Sirius, definitely," Harry said firmly. "As I said, Tonks is an Auror and their training is pretty hard. She'll handle it fine. Sirius...has been through a lot in his life. I don't think the training will be something that defeats him."

"And the Weasleys?" Takao asked.

Harry grinned. "They'll be fine. Master Nhean might have to shock them a bit on occasion to get their minds on the job." Harry hurried to explain. "They're practical jokers, so they forget to take things seriously sometimes. They did some training with us at the start of the last school year and I think they were doing pretty well before they had to leave."

"You would have no problems working with them," Takao asked.

"No," Harry said simply. "Why?"

"Once they get to certain level, I will get you to help with their training," Nhean said quietly. "This will be part of your training as well."

"Oh, okay," Harry said, thinking about that for a moment. "No, I don't think I'd have any problems with that."

"Good," Nhean murmured.

"Indeed," Takao agreed. "We also wanted to talk to you about something else." Harry looked at him curiously. "This enemy of yours; this Voldemort. Nhean has told us what has happened with him and this former school mate of yours, Draco Malfoy. We wanted ask you whether you would like the Guild's aid. It is your right as a Guild Warrior to ask for this."

Harry blinked as Nhean chuckled quietly beside him. "I...I'd never really thought about it."

Takao smiled. "Well, you don't have to make a decision right now. Talk it over with Nhean and anyone else you think might have a helpful insight and let us know. One of the roles of the Guild is to help its members."

Harry nodded thoughtfully. "I'll consider it," he said slowly. "We're not really sure what Draco is planning other than coming after me and Hermione but if he manages to get the remaining Death Eaters on side, the Guild may be useful."

"Well, as I said you don't have to make a decision today," Takao said amiably. "But do keep us in mind."

Harry nodded. "Did you need anything else?" he asked politely.

One of the other Council members, a delicate-looking Asian woman, raised her hand. "I have a query regarding Sirius Black," she said calmly. Harry tensed a little as she continued. "He spent twelve years in the British prison of Azkaban surrounded by Dementors. Exactly how sane is he?"

Harry scowled and Nhean placed a hand on his shoulder. "Gently, Harry," the Night Master murmured. "She doesn't know about your relationship to Sirius. I chose not to inform them."

Harry took a deep breath to calm himself and nodded to his teacher. He turned to face the woman. "My godfather is perfectly sane," he said firmly. "He has been affected by the Dementors, there's no question about that but he is very sane."

The Council looked at Harry with surprise. "Your godfather?" the woman said, astonished.

"Yes," Harry replied. "Sirius is my godfather. What happened to him and to my parents and I was what kept him sane in Azkaban. He was innocent and because that wasn't a happy thought, he was able to hold onto it and his sanity."

"I see," one of the other men said. "But you said the experience did affect him. How?"

Harry sighed. "He's...clingy and a little insecure regarding Remus and myself. He's afraid of losing us like he lost my parents. He can be a little childish at times as well." He paused and thought for a moment. "Well, not actually childish, I suppose. Maybe a better way of putting it is he often acts like the twelve years never happened and he's still only in his twenties."

"A defensive mechanism?" Takao suggested. "To help him deal with what happened?"

"Maybe," Harry conceded. "But I don't care really. He's my family and I love him. He and Remus are like...I don't know, surrogate fathers or uncles or something."

"I'm sorry, Harry," the woman said kindly. "I didn't mean to insult either of you. I was just concerned. Very few people spend that long in the company of Dementors without losing their sanity."

Harry's thoughts turned to Bellatrix, who had been in Azkban for about the same amount of time. He remembered the madness that had been clear in her eyes and her actions and nodded slowly. "That's okay," he said carefully. "I guess you're right. There's a...woman who worked for Voldemort and now for Draco and she was in Azkaban for the same kind of time. She's definitely not sane so I can see your point."

"But he's your godfather," the woman said with a smile. Harry nodded and she continued. "I'm actually rather impressed that he has retained his sanity. He must be a remarkable man and those memories of you and your parents and what happened must have been very strong."

"He was falsely accused of murdering my parents," Harry said softly and the woman gasped.

"Well, that would explain much," she said gently. "A thought like that would be strong. If you chose to attach your sanity to it, it would be likely to hold you through the effects of the Dementors."

Harry nodded and the woman looked at the other Council members. "I think that clears up my qualms about Sirius Black," she said calmly. "I have no further objections."

Takao looked around the other Council members then back at Nhean and Harry. "Very well then, the Council approves the training of Nymphadora Tonks, Fred Weasley, George Weasley and Sirius Black," he said formally. "Train them well, Nhean."

Nhean bowed and Takao then declared the Council session closed. He and two of the Council members came over to speak to Harry.

"We won't hold you for too long, Harry," Takao said. "I know it is the middle of your summer holidays there but we've wanted to meet you for a while now. It is quite unusual for Guild Warriors to be trained anywhere other than the Academy but Albus' reasons were quite valid. How have you found your training?"

"Challenging," Harry replied with a smile. "Fun, interesting but very, very challenging."

The Council members chuckled. Takao then excused himself as one of the other Council members drew his attention.

"Good," the woman who had asked about Sirius said in response to Harry's answer. "That's the way it's supposed to be." She paused. "My name is Jun'ko Watanabe." She gestured to the scar-faced man beside her. "This is Nguyen Dinh Tien." She smiled at Harry. "I truly hope you were not offended by my question."

Harry gave a wan smile. "No, that's okay. I...understand why you were asking."

"Good," she said. "I'm glad."

"How have you adjusted to your blindness?" Tien asked bluntly.

Harry gave a one-shouldered shrug and wrapped both of his hands around his cane. "Um, okay, I guess. I don't like it very much but there's not much I can do about it."

Tien gave a short laugh. "Well, you've done better than me at the same time," he said ruefully. "I was still an absolute mess a year after I was blinded. I had only taken the very first steps in my training." He paused and gave a soft, rueful laugh. "I tried to deny what had happened to me for a long time. Which was a bit stupid in hindsight. Blindness is a very difficult thing to deny."

Harry laughed. "Definitely," he then looked curious. "Why did you do that? If you don't mind me asking?"

Tien looked thoughtful. "I'm not sure really. I was very upset and angry at what had happened and I let those emotions just take over. I was blinded when a mine left over from the Muggle War in Vietnam exploded in my face. I was skylarking with some friends of mine, showing off really. We knew that the old minefield was there. I was young, arrogant and foolish, trying to prove that I was a big man." He shook his head sadly and ran a hand over the scars that lined his face. "I paid the price for my stupidity."

"I'm sorry," Harry said, a little shocked at Tien's explanation.

"Don't be," Tien replied dismissively. "Wasn't your fault. I've got no one to blame but myself. You, at least, weren't a victim of your own stupidity."

Harry swallowed and nodded. He still didn't like to think about what had happened. "Yeah. I still wish it hadn't happened."

"We all do," Jun'ko replied softly. "I had a degenerative eye disease that claimed my sight." She then laughed and poked Tien in the ribs. "You know you shouldn't do that, Tien," she said with a small smile then turned back to Harry. "This always happens, you know. Whenever a group of Warriors meets for the first time, the first thing we all do is tell each other our blindness sob stories and try and outdo each other with how terrible they are. We can't seem to help ourselves. We just have to get the woe-is-me stories out first before we can get down to business."

Her comment surprised Harry into laughter and Tien and Nhean joined in.

"She's right, of course," Tien said with amused disgust. "Personally I think we all secretly want to have the most pathetic story and gain the most sympathy from our fellow Warriors."

"So who's got the best one you've heard?" Harry asked cheekily.

"Hmm," Tien mused. "Well, Albus told us yours when he was talking us into sending you Nhean and that wasn't too bad. Jun'ko's is good for sheer sob value." He grinned. "Poor Jun'ko with her degenerative eye disease. If you let her she'll go on and on about how her sight slowly, ever-so-slowly dwindled down to nothing and all she was left with was eternal blackness."

Jun'ko gave him a whack on the arm and laughed. "Oh, shut up, Tien. Like you're any better."

"Hey," Tien replied indignantly. "At least I admit to my own stupidity. That's more than some of our colleagues do."

"True," Jun'ko said tartly. "I think those colleagues should remain nameless though."

"Yes," Tien said dryly. "Far be it for us to spoil Harry's gradual discovery of who they are."

Jun'ko giggled. "Well, Harry, the whole point of this was we wanted to welcome you, as two of your fellow Night Warriors, to the Guild. We haven't had a chance before now. And we hope you won't stay away from the Academy when you finish your schooling in Britain."

"Yes, you should make some time to come here," Tien agreed cheerfully. "There are always new things to learn. No one Master can teach you everything."

Harry grinned at them. "Thank you and yes, I think I will come here." He smiled a little wistfully. "I think I'd like to spend some time with others like me."

The two Warriors beamed. "And try and bring your Battle Guard with you," Tien said enthusiastically. "We'd all love to see how the six of you work together."

"Yes," Jun'ko agreed. "I really envy you and Nhean. It's so hard to find five people who can cooperate to the extent that a Battle Guard needs to actually work. It would be fascinating to meet these friends of yours."

Harry beamed; he really was very proud of his friends and what they had achieved. "I'll talk to them. Maybe we can get over here after we graduate and before they all start on whatever it is they have planned."

"What do you have planned?" Jun'ko asked curiously.

Harry hesitated. "Well, I had wanted to become an Auror but I'm not sure if I'll be able to do that now." He shrugged. "I don't mind teaching. I've done a bit of that with a Defence group I organised at school." He paused. "I'm not really sure what I want to do now."

"Well, maybe spending a bit of time here at the Academy would be good for you then," Jun'ko said. "It's not like you have to stay away from your friends. As soon as you can apparate, you can commute here quite easily. Or you can just use one of the Guild portkeys."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Harry said, feeling quite pleased with the idea.

Nhean smiled. "I think you'd enjoy yourself. Now, we'd better get back before Sirius and Remus start champing at the bit."

"Okay," Harry said. "It was good to meet both of you."

"You too," Jun'ko said kindly.

"Likewise," Tien added. "And don't forget about coming back here."

"I won't," Harry said as he took the small wooden statue Nhean was holding. "Bye."

The two Warriors waved as the portkey activated and he was rushed back to the Burrow. He reappeared in the back garden where Sirius, Remus and his friends were still sprawled. He walked over and sat down with them, placing the small statue in front of him on the ground.

"Well, how did it go?" Sirius asked.

"Very interesting," Harry replied. "I met some of the other Night Warriors."

"What were they like," Ginny asked curiously.

"Nice. A little intimidating at first but when we all relaxed they were pretty funny." Harry laughed. "Apparently we fell into the same trap that all Night Warriors do when they first meet. We all told each other about how we were blinded."

"Really?" Ginny asked, a little startled.

Harry laughed again. "Yes, apparently it often turns into a small contest about who has the biggest sob-story."

Remus chuckled from where he lay on the grass. "Do they really do that?"

"Mmm," Harry confirmed as Ginny encouraged him to lie down with his head in her lap. Once he was comfortably settled, she began running her hand through his hair. He sighed contentedly then continued. "They said mine was pretty good."

The others looked a bit startled and slightly uncomfortable at the topic of conversation and Hermione decided to change it.

"So what did they want?" she asked from where she was leaning against Ron, who was resting against a tree with his arms wrapped around her.

"Just to ask me about the training candidates," Harry replied. "Nhean didn't really know them well and I do so they wanted my opinion on whether they would be able to handle the training."

"So who are they?" Sirius asked lazily.

Harry grinned. "Not telling. It's meant to be a surprise."

"Spoilsport," Sirius grumbled. "I put my name down on the list, I'll have you know. It's been very frustrating waiting for an answer."

"That's because you have no patience," Remus replied dryly.

Sirius opened his mouth to answer then laughed. "Yeah, you're right," he conceded. "I have no patience."

The others laughed and Neville looked over at the two men. "So when are you going to play this prank on Fred and George that I've been hearing so much about?"

"Well, we've had it ready for about a week," Sirius replied with a grin. "But Moony here decided to get himself shot so we had to delay it. Couldn't pull the prank without Moony."

"Yes, because I worked hard to make myself a target," Remus said dryly, throwing a handful of grass at Sirius. "And I enjoyed the silver poisoning so much."

The others chuckled and Neville pressed. "So when are you going to do it?"

"The twins are coming over for dinner tonight, aren't they?" Sirius asked Ron.

The red-head nodded. "Yep, Mum likes them to come over at least once a week and I think they've got some new prototypes they want to show Harry, seeing how he's their 'silent partner'."

The twins had finally confessed to their mother where they had gotten their start-up money. She had been startled and a little disapproving but when Harry had explained his reasoning she had quickly settled down. He had had a point after all. The twins had then formally announced to the family that Harry had a third share in their business and was their 'silent partner'. They had even had all the paperwork drawn up to make it legal. Harry had been a little uncomfortable at the idea at first but it was definitely starting to grow on him now.

"Well, we might do it tonight then," Sirius said slyly.

The students laughed and Ron grinned happily.

"I can't wait," he said with a fair amount of glee. "I've been the butt of their jokes so many times. I'm going to enjoy seeing the positions reversed."