Past Present

"So let me see... 'The Patronus is a particularly unique defense mechanism exhibited by wizards in that the form the Patronus takes seem to have little to do with any conscious thought on the part of the witch or wizard casting the..." Viktor read, then suddenly his voice dissolved into poorly stifled laughter.

"What's so funny?" Hermione asked, lowering her own book and looking across the library table.

"Sorry... I... I just looked out the window... and I could not help it," Viktor snickered.

"Quite the madhouse out there, isn't it? Which bit in particular struck you funny?" Hermione asked, looking out. The lawn was fairly crawling with students, some sprawled on the grass, frantically studying for the OWLS and NEWTS, which were in progress already, some playing games in the warm late afternoon sunshine, and a cluster of Hermione's fellow fifth years were busy sending their respective Patronuses galloping, flying, slinking, and running around the lake in preparation for the practical exams. There was also still one rogue pinwheel, shooting gold and red sparks, Gryffindor colors, skipping along the treetops. It had managed to elude capture all these weeks, despite Filch and Umbridge giving their best efforts.

"I think the fact that little Colin Creevey managed to just about dunk Dean Thomas in the lake right about the time I looked out. And seeing Crabbe and Goyle over there under that tree with a real live book, and the cover is right way up. Malfoy must have helped. And I admit seeing I was right and Neville's Patronus is indeed a Welsh Green didn't hurt. Then the Welsh Green took off after the swan and... Sorry... now where was I? '...form the Patronus takes... conscious thought... witch or wizard casting the spell... It has been the study of many years to try to determine the deciding factors in the forms a Patronus may choose. One thing has been firmly established in all of this research. A witch or wizard seems incapable of changing the form of a Patronus, either voluntarily or involuntarily. Theories are many, and answers are few. A Patronus seems to be a highly personal thing. A Patronus may seem to reflect some physical or personality aspect of the caster,' Check there. That sort of takes in the otter and the hawk, I guess. '... or some aspect of character, much like Animagus forms. They may also reflect some of the caster's past experience, or even that of an ancestor, in rare cases.' Harry's stag maybe? You said James Potter... Maybe Ron fits in under that personality bit too.... hotheaded maybe?"

Hermione snickered in spite of herself. "Ron? Merely hotheaded? Oh, okay, I'll give you that one. Anything else? We're getting a little slaphappy in here. Maybe we should have gone outside."

"Concentrate in that circus out there? Ahhhhh... Oh! Here's the other bit I wanted you to hear. 'There haff been unsubstantiated stories through the ages that certain wizards and witches haff been able to find a way to combine the powers of their respective Patronuses, making the power of the sum greater than the power of the respective parts, but supporting details are so thin that we are inclined to relegate them to the status of mere myth and superstition. In the modern era, many magical folk haff attempted to reproduce this effect under controlled conditions, with no success.' It was interesting up until that last bit, anyway. Where they completely puncture the idea. But it kind of drew my attention. I do not remember reading anything like that before. That is about all this book has to say on the Patronus. Nothing new in the other one. How many exams do you haff left?" Viktor asked, laying the book on the table and stretching.

"Herbology, Arithmancy, and Astronomy. And DADA of course," Hermione counted off on her fingers.

"Hem, hem." Dolores Umbridge approached their table and they both cast a sidelong glance at one another. Neither one had heard her come in. Hermione thought she was looking particularly smug this afternoon, and when Dolores Umbridge looks smug, she thought ruefully, that can never be a good thing.

"Professor Krum, what might you be doing?" Umbridge asked, giving a horrible grin.

"I might be reading, if I were not haffing this conversation. Why?" Viktor asked innocently, and Hermione had to bite the inside of her lip to keep from laughing out loud.

"You're at a table together..." Umbridge began.

"Oh my Lord! So we are. How about that? I hadn't noticed, Dolores. Good thing you pointed it out or I might never haff caught on. Was there something else you wanted, or did you just come over here to point that out to the both of us?" he added sweetly.

"Professor Snape said I might find you and Miss Granger here..."

"Well bless me, he was right. So did Longbottom manage not to panic too badly in the Potions test earlier?" Viktor asked Hermione, ignoring Umbridge.

"Well, I didn't hear any explosions, and his cauldron was still in one piece, but I didn't get a chance to ask really..." Hermione responded.

"Hem. Hem. I wanted to ask you a few questions," Umbridge forged on.

"Oh, are you still here, Dolores?" Viktor asked, raising his eyebrows. Hermione slid behind the cover of her open book.

"I understand you're tutoring Potter. Why? Professor Snape used to tutor him..."

"They had a difference of opinion on the nature of his training. I'm tutoring him in the same thing Professor Snape was. And for the same reason. Surely he told you what he was tutoring him for?" Viktor replied, propping his chin on his hand. Hermione had to suppress a snicker when she realized that he had answered the question with nothing but the truth.

"Of course!"

"Well, sure. Not a thing goes on in this school you do not know about, right?"

"Right. But why are you tutoring just Potter?"

"Now, Dolores, that is not so. Any student can come to me and ask for tutoring, in fact, there is a signup sheet on my office door. In fact, in the last six weeks, I had at least an hour each with about eight students. They finally realized OWLS and NEWTS were upon them when the examiners arrived. But I am sure you checked the signup sheet, right? I must haff just put up a fresh one," Viktor added, cocking a brow at her.

"Of course. I also wanted to ask you if you had heard Potter talking about Sirius Black in any of your conversations." At that, Hermione nearly dropped her book.

"Cannot say that I haff. Not a single mention of the name Sirius Black since I got to Hogwarts. Why?" Viktor asked.

"The Ministry and I have it on good authority that Potter knows where he is. Where he might be hiding. That they may even have been in contact," Umbridge said, crossing her stubby arms.

"Well, then, why doesn't your 'good authority' know where he is, if he or she knows so much? And why would a fifteen-year-old know where a dangerous wanted criminal is, unless he is hiding under the boy's bed? Or more like next to his Quidditch equipment in this case. Especially when said criminal supposedly helped murder said boy's parents?" Viktor asked incredulously.

"Potter hasn't exactly been the most stable individual..."

"I bet your 'good authority' had a French ackzent," Viktor muttered.

Umbridge stiffened, sniffed, and said, "The Ministry does not reveal confidential sources! Now, where's Potter! I need to question him!"

"Try taking a gander straight out that window. And if you plan on taking him anywhere out of plain sight, like your new office, you can expect me to be there in a minute. Surely you wouldn't interrogate a boy on that serious a matter without an advocate present, Dolores? We cannot invite his guardians. They're Muggles," Viktor protested.

Umbridge seemed to give a little shudder. "No, of course not. I just have a few questions for the boy," she said, turning on her heel and heading for the door.

"She's not going to rest long on just asking him a few questions," Hermione fretted.

"That's exactly what I am afraid of. Got to keep her off of him somehow," Viktor replied, shaking his head.

"And precisely how are we going to do that?" Hermione asked.

"Never leave him alone. She will probably not try anything if she thinks Minerva will find out about it. She is almost as scared of her as she was of Dumbledore."

"So... watch him?"

"Like a hawk," Viktor said offhandedly. It took a second for what he had said to register with both of them. When they had stopped laughing, Hermione shut her book with a clap.

"I say we quit. I think we just crossed the line from slaphappy to entirely useless. I get a break between the Herbology and DADA OWLS tomorrow. What do you say we take it up then?"

"Okay. I need to go in a half hour and get one of the poor little fifth years from Ravenclaw straightened out on the difference between Parseltongue and being a snake charmer anyway. Langdon had a cold last week and missed the lecture."