Defense Against Dumbledore's Army
There were a lot of new people. Mary wanted to know all of them. Alexander wanted to get his nose up in everyone's business. Peter wanted to crawl into a corner and Remus wanted to crawl into himself.
"Alright." Hermione clapped to get everyone's attention. "There are news. We're welcoming a few new members into the group, there's fifth and sixth years, you probably hadn't met before because of... well the school's huge so... it's alright. Let's just get started." At least she tried something. Everyone was generally frozen and gravitating around their own people. Remus was not letting go of Sirius' side. A true testament to his patience because Sirius was being the biggest attention whore and introducing himself as "Sirius No Last Name". Obviously trying to get people to ask about that, and they obviously did. So it came to Remus to shut them off until it was enough. It was never enough Sirius Black, but Sirius No Last Name could be James Fleamont's problem.
They were true shit at names. Remus was no better, so he plagiarized James' idea, best as he could and went by John (his middle name) Lupin. Barty was the only one who needed to change his name to keep the time travelling under wraps. He didn't. He was just Barty. But he did inspire enough twitching in whoever was across him to not ask any more questions.
Remus ended up next to Regulus and Peter, the only other wallflowers reluctantly in each other's company. And while werewolves attacks and such did nothing to scare him, socializing did stress him, to which he had one coping mechanism available: smoking. Because Sirius was busy socializing.
He pulled out a pack from his robes and Regulus turned fully to him. Like he was invisible before. And although Remus didn't like him as a person, right now he understood him. And no one is kinder than a fellow smoker. So Remus didn't talk, just held out the package for Regulus to grab one, which he did. Remus knew Peter didn't smoke so he put it away and fumbled his bags for a lighter.
"Shit." Remus broke the news to Regulus, "forgot my lighter," he said through the cigarette being held loosely between his lips.
Regulus scowled like he was stupid and brought his wand up to the cigarette. It lit it up quickly like second nature, and in the same manner Remus offered the pack of cigarettes, Regulus held out the tip of his wand.
"You shouldn't be smoking!" Herminoe once again approached.
"Shouldn't be holding a traitorous guérilla group class either." Regulus blew smoke to his side, unmoved.
"We should actually get started now." Hermione could recognize a loosing battle at least, a trait hard to find among Gryffindor students. "For today's lesson, we're trying to get started on Shield Charms." She herded everyone around Harry, which was an odd sight. James' kid like that, telling them about their many brushes with death, which Remus leant, although they were less in quantity than their own, Harry's were first of all not a byproduct of pranks gone wrong or werewolf doings, and second, were quite violently targeted at him.
James and Lily, from the looks of it, were having an odd time processing all that, they kept their facades, but Remus had seen them saving face like this before.
"We'll demonstrate first." Harry looked towards a small group of much younger students. Yes Shielding Charms were taught from the first years, but it's different to shield from a whiff of a shit charm from another first year than a curse from a death eater. Leant that the hard way. Fucking pricks.
"Remus is outstanding at Shields!" Sirius pushed him forward into the middle of the crowd. If it had been anyone else, he'd had to have been held back with force before having clocked them.
"Just shoot out." It was a bit cheating in a way. He wasn't just good out of the blue, but the wolf's smell was powerful, and magic carried a fuzzy scent before reaching you, and with that heads up, casting a shield proportional to the smell was easier.
Harry readied in the opposite side of the crowd. They were surrounded by the crowd. And honestly, the stares were bothering him more than the the fact James' kid was not yet firing.
"Are you ready?" Harry pointed his wand.
Remus huffed. Then nodded.
It came from straight ahead, a blast of white light, narrow and directed, simple stunning spell. Remus tilted his wand forward without much thinking and the spell bounced off to the ceiling.
Rust. His nose.
He waved his arm quickly, turned around just quickly enough to see a faint copper light hit the top of the wall behind him.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Ronald screamed at Regulus who'd already stepped into the circle. Clearly having had shot the spell himself.
"You can't expect someone to ask if you're ready. That's how you get killed in a war." Regulus hadn't dropped the cigarette from his mouth. His wand was a long and perfect spiral, blackwood, the handle was black marble, with a bit of a white cracks, it always bothered him how it contrasted with the rest of the wand. An ordered affair, symmetric and calculated, broken up by cracks of white.
Remus held up his empty hand to stop the redhead boy.
"And that flimsy stun was tragically weak. Harry. A strong wind would've shielded you from it."
"Regulus is right." Remus would agree with him, of course. He hadn't caught him off guard, but Regulus had learnt he wasn't much off guard. You'd have to catch him caught up in his brother for that. Which again, was disgusting to think about.
"And what do you propose then?" Ronald asked.
"Everyone here knows how to cast a shield?" Regulus surveyed, a few older students raised their hands, redheads mostly. "No matter how weak." Everyone raised them. What to do... what... to... do... "Perhaps grouping up, there's no use in trying to maintain a uniform level since there's such a variety of ages present. You'd agree, Granger, right?"
"A fair point."
"Alexander and James can take the first years. Me and Barty will take the seventh years. I don't have much thoughts on the rest, as long as Remus and Sirius--or whatever nicknames I'm not bothering to learn you used, aren't paired. Don't pair Evan with the younger ones though. Granger." She twitched a little when he called her that. Regardless. Evan knew a lot of curses and didn't like to lose, the second years would be incapacitated for weeks if he got his hands on them, even at a teaching capability. Evan, Barty and Regulus were the most proficients in cursing, so it made sense to have them for the upper years. And Alexander and James behaved like children, so they made sense with the first years. Alright, James was patient and Alexander could look into their minds to spare them the inhibitions being scared of them would bring. Logic.
"How do you figure you know more than us?" Ronald's scepticism was somewhat refreshing, annoying, but refreshing. Someone questioning him in a rational way and not just to get a rise of him.
Still. That question was ridiculous.
"I was asked to leave out the details." And he wouldn't be goaded into telling like the rest of his friends. "So I'll just say we've been involved in the war much longer than you." It wasn't a lie. From what Regulus had gathered up until now, him and the Slytherins, save for Dorcas, were already being trained for joining the Death Eater ranks, lifelong preparation for some of them as well, and the Gryffindors were all already wrapped up with the Order and Remus had even been sent in a few missions involving other werewolves. So practice and history had to serve them something. Even if they did not technically fight the war, they were about to in their time. And well, history repeats itself, right?
Regulus and Barty were stuck with about six students, two Gryffindors--twins. Two Ravenclaws, both girls. And a boy and a girl from Hufflepuff.
The room moved and expanded and set up platforms to divide the seven groups, it was truly a wonderful room. Mary said, Hermione paired her with Ronald, Ron, who knows why. And they were assigned the second years. The platform for her group though, had the best view of the room, you could spot the seventh years being unable to catch spells from Barty and Regulus. Which was a funny sight, those twins were quite handsome even when their face was dragged through the floor, someone had to say it, and Mary was a beacon of truth. It was funny when that Cho girl, who, by the way, just, Mary heard from Ginny, who turned out to be Ron and the twins' sister, big ass family, but it seemed that Cho was kind of dating, not dating actually, but Harry had a crush on her all through last year and this year, but the thing was that there was this kid, Cedric, Ginny didn't want to talk about him much, which was odd, but well, what about this wasn't? So, alright, He was Cho's boyfriend, but something happened that he's not here this year, and so Cho's single, and it seems that she's getting closer to Harry. Ginny wasn't happy about it, but Mary couldn't judge yet, she didn't know her, but right, Cho was hit with a tap dance jinx that flew from the Lily's platform with the Third Years and Barty literally booger-rocket-laughed, it was nasty but such a funny sight.
Right though. Back to business.
"Ron will be shooting out the spells and I'll stand next to you guys to give you feedback, alright?" She looked at Ron, "Don't you dare shot any pimple jinxes or shields won't be enough to save you Ron." She'll be damned if she was hit with one of those.
They had five third-years, and they were so cute! There was this little girl, with big blue doe eyes and these pigtails that made you just want to cuddle her, but, also, there was this other girl, Ravenclaw, somehow the Ravenclaws were always to like, hot in like a classic way? But this other girl, the Ravenclaw, she had this auburn almost brown hair, back in a low ponytail and she had just this elegant look. But back to business!
"Let's go party people!" She brought out her wand.
Lily and Hermione got the fourth years. Only two years younger than them, one than Hermione probably. It was a bit of a cruel twist of fate, thought Sirius, they were doing a fantastic job, which was worse. They'd enlisted to the order in the first place so that no one else had to go through it. The ministry was chaos back then, and the Order had student be able to join, but only if they were of age, which wasn't good, but it was not as bad. They were training first years here. Second years. Third years. Merlin!
"Harry," Sirius kicked back behind a ready wand, they had the fifth years though, so it was a bit more exciting. Harry across from him was acting really odd towards him, like he wanted to be more wary than he actually was being with Sirius. Of course, Sirius was a laid back dude, cool all around, so his chill had to rub off on others, and James' kid trusting him was only natural, still he was hesitant to send any spells his way. "Don't you dare hold back."
A red light flew from Harry's wand. Short, brief, precise, pale sort of red-- expeliarmus.
Sirius barely had to lift his wand to block it.
"Come on, you can do better! Blast me something to show them a good shield Harry."
"Alright!" He was easier on his feet, Harry was. He something in Sirius' wicked thrill-seeking grin was contagious, always had been. Even Reggie had fallen for it on occasion.
"Reducto!" Harry shot a copper shining curse straight at him.
Sirius was nimble, his pointed his wand perfectly forward, and kept his hand true, "Protego." A light blue, almost white, circle formed in front of Sirius, a faint sound like a chord struck in a harp rang through the room as Harry's curse was fully stopped by the shield. Sirius smiled, catching the sight of Regulus from the other side of the room looking at him with a glimpse of something. He turned back to the fifth years, "see? That's how you do it. You want that ringing sound, then you know it didn't just bounce off, because if it does do that, it may catch someone else on your side. Right Harry?"
"Right. That's the kind of shield's you'll need if you mean to stop a proper curse from a Death Eater."
"Now who's up first, you, Neville." Sirius called him up, he was odd looking, not acting odd like Harry. Tall and like he hadn't grown into his features yet. And it showed in how awkwardly he moved, like his body wasn't the right size for him yet or something. "Harry will fire a spell, and then I will, try to keep it up mate."
He nodded a few times, whispering to himself that he could do it several times.
"Reducto!" Harry shot.
"Obscuro!" Sirius thought that he might as well go with a harmless jinx, worse thing that happened with Obscuro was him getting blinded for a week, best case he gets blindfolded. And if Sirius was judging from his mannerisms, the boy wouldn't be able to hold up the shield.
The two lights flew almost simultaneously, still, shaking not only his hand, but his whole arm, Neville managed to hold up the shield to both the spells.
Sirius was surprised, the kid could do better than he looked. How much better though?
"Stupify." Sirius shot a spiral grey light at him, bounced, but the shield cracked, he could push a bit more. "Incarcerus." A enchanted metal chain shot from Sirius' wand and cracked thought the shield. Neville gasped as the chain took him hostage and started falling back from pure inertia. Off the platform, and Neville started screaming for mercy.
Sirius ran to the edge of the platform before one Lily Evans was holding him up with a levitation charm from below. "Care to explain?" She said as soon as Neville calmed down.
"Got caught in the moment?" Sirius smirked. Relief behind his eyes.
"I'm not Remus, your dimples won't get you out of trouble with me Sirius." She lowered Neville carefully on the floor and unspelled the chain. "Apologize." She pointed her wand at Sirius, she wasn't kidding, she was totally--"Sirius, apologize."
"I'm sorry mate, got a bit out of hand." Sirius reached out to help Neville up again to their platform.
"It's fine." Neville brushed it off, his words only, he was still quite red and shaky and sweaty. He sweat from his palms, Sirius leaned.
"Let's keep at it then," Sirius patted him on the back, supportive. Neville didn't have to know he was drying the sweat that got on his palm. But he had to help, that's why they were here, not just funsies, "you have to keep your hand steadier, the chant may help as well until you can hold to stronger spells..."