Nearly

On the morning of the first of September, Harry wakes up to his daddy hollering his name from the floor below and with a groan he burrows deeper into his bed, desperately chasing after the nice dream he’d been having… He’s so close to catching the snitch… Just a few more inches—

”Harry! HARRY!”

”Five more minutes!” Harry yells back before slamming his pillow over his head. 

”That’s what you said five minutes ago! And five minutes before that! Now get up!”

With a strangled yell of frustration Harry hurls his pillow off his head and across the room. It bounces off the opposite wall and lands with an anti-climactic flop on the floor. 

Before the temptation to doze off again gets the better of him, Harry swings himself up to sitting and stretches his arms over his head even though his eyelids are still glued shut with sleep. Yawning, he reaching blindly for his glasses on the bedside table. 

”Harry James Potter—”

”I’M UP!”

Grumbling to himself, Harry makes his way downstairs and collapses onto his chair at the table. Remus huffs from somewhere to his right, probably standing at the stove… Harry rubs the heel of his hand into his eye and yawns again. 

”You’re not even dressed”, Remus mutters and puts the toast rack down in front of Harry. 

”I’m not awake”, Harry grumbles. ”I need coffee.”

”You’re a bad influence on him”, Remus says, but Harry figures it must have been directed at his dad and not him so he doesn’t respond.

”Here, Harry”, Sirius says and pours him a mug of coffee. 

”Have you finished packing?”

”Daddy, stop nagging me!” Harry whines and cradles his coffee mug close to his face and eagerly inhales the nutty, woody scent of the dark roast.

He can hear his dad laugh. Taking a couple of small sips of the hot liquid, he blinks his eyes open to see what the man finds so funny… Except he still can’t see anything… At first he thinks he’s still got too much sleep in his eyes, but as soon as he puts the mug down on the table and his vision immediately begins to clear, he realises what Sirius had laughed at… His glasses had got fogged up by the coffee. He takes them off and wipes them on the hem of his pyjamas. 

”Awake yet?” Remus asks, but he sounds amused rather than nagging now. 

”Almost”, Harry mutters and takes another large gulp of coffee before putting his glasses back on. 

His dads smiling faces immediately come into view and he gives them a small smile back. 

”Excited to go back to Hogwarts?” Sirius asks. 

”I guess…” Harry says, trying really hard to keep his smile in place but the thought of going back to school and going to sleep every night next to Draco and not be able to talk to him, or make him smile, or hold his hand, or kiss—

Harry takes a deep breath and focuses on draining his mug of coffee instead. 

”It’ll be alright, you’ll see”, Remus says as though he’d been able to read Harry’s mind. ”Now, finish up your breakfast so you can go finish packing… We need to leave in twenty minutes.”

”That’s ages!”

”Yeah, I’ve heard that before”, Remus mumbles. ”Don’t argue, Harry. Just finish up. I don’t want to have to stress when we get to the station…”

When they get to platform nine and three quarters, Harry hugs Sirius goodbye quickly and then turns away to give his dads some privacy. He catches sight of Seamus’s grinning face in the crowd and feels his face flush even as he gives the Irish boy a warning glare. The other slytherin simply laughs though and then lets out a catcall — ”Way to go, Professor!” — Harry squeezes his eyes shut and groans. 

Someone ruffles his hair and he quickly wrenches his head out of reach. Sirius chuckles and chases after him and doesn’t stop until Harry hides behind Remus who gives his husband an exasperated look. Sirius grins back unapologetically and winks at him. 

”Sorry Harry”, Remus murmurs quietly. ”I think the day has finally arrived when you’ve become more mature than your dad…”

Sirius snorts and leans in to plant another loud kiss on the other man’s mouth. 

”Will you two stop it already?” Harry hisses from behind Remus’s back. ”Everyone’s looking!”

”Have a good term, both of you”, Sirius says and steps back from Remus again. ”I’ll see you in the new house, soon.”

”First Hogsmeade weekend is on the fourteenth”, Remus reminds him. ”I’ll probably see you before then, though…”

”Unfair”, Harry mumbles. 

”One last hug for the road?” Sirius says with a grin. 

Harry rolls his eyes, but steps into the man’s waiting arms. 

”You be good for your daddy now”, Sirius murmurs quietly as he hugs him close. 

”Yeah, promise”, Harry whispers back. 

Remus grabs Harry’s trunk for him and climbs on board the Hogwarts Express, Harry trailing after him. They make their way down the train, looking for Harry’s friends and finally finds a compartment where Seamus and Blaise are sitting at the opposite end from Pansy and her girlfriends Millicent Bulstrode and Daphne Greengrass. Harry gives the girls a pinched smile in greeting, but they ignore him and greet his daddy instead, their magically curled eyelashes fluttering madly. 

Remus smiles back politely and greets them back, then turns to Seamus and Blaise and says hello to them as well. After having heaved Harry’s trunk on to the overhead rack, he turns to Harry and says in an undertone that he can go sit in the Prefects’ compartment if Harry wants to spend some time alone with his friends. Harry frowns and shakes his head. 

”Are you sure?” Remus murmurs with a gentle smile. ”I wouldn’t mind…”

”No, I want you to sit with me”, Harry says. ”Please?”

”All right…” Remus says and gives his arm a quick squeeze, before choosing the seat opposite Seamus. 

”Professor Lupin, Sir”, Seamus says eagerly. ”Is it true Dumbledore chased Lockhart away from Hogwarts?”

Remus chuckles, ”I hardly think so… I came close a couple of times, but Professor Dumbledore is more patient and forgiving than I am.”

”He wasn’t that bad…” Daphne says, blushing. 

”If you say so, Miss Greengrass”, Remus replies kindly. 

”He was”, Pansy counters. ”Daph just had a massive crush on him!”

”Shut up!” Daphne hisses. 

”Hey Harry, where’s Draco?” Seamus asks. ”The train’s started moving… D’you think he missed it?”

”No, I’m sure he’s in another compartment, that’s all…” Harry mumbles uncomfortably. 

”Why would he sit in another compartment?” Pansy says immediately, narrowing her eyes at Harry who simply shoots her a glare back. ”Did you two have a fight?”

”None of your busieness…”

”I’m going to see if he’s okay”, the girl says haughtily. 

She jumps to her feet, Millicent and Daphne quickly mirroring her and then the three of them strut out of the compartment like a mother duck and her two ducklings. 

”Did you have a fight?” Blaise asks. 

”No… He’s just not allowed to be friends with me anymore”, Harry mutters and turns his head away to glare out the window. 

Remus reaches out and pets his head briefly, but doesn’t say anything. The other boys take the hint and start talking about quidditch instead. After a minute or so, as the conversation turns into a good old-fashioned argument over which team is better: Kenmare Kestrels or Wimbourne Wasps, Harry turns his head back.

”The Kestrels have been at the top of the league for the last five years—” 

”We have beat you and won the Cup eightteen times!”

”Not in the last five years!” Seamus insists. ”And trust me, this is our year! You just wait and see!”

”See the Tornados win”, Harry chimes in. 

”Oh shove off!” Seamus splutters. ”The Tornados! You’re having a laugh—!”

”We have Rogers and Lufkin—!”

”We have the fastest Seeker in the League!”

”Yeah, when he’s not having a narcoleptic fit and falls asleep on his broom”, Blaise cuts in drily. 

”Hey, that’s crossing a line”, Seamus growls, pointing a threatening finger at the other boy. 

Blaise just shrugs and smirks across the compartment at Harry who quickly covers his mouth with his hand to hide his grin. 

”Hey professor…” Seamus says. ”Are you a Tornados fan as well?”

”Not really” Remus says, closing the book he’s been reading. ”Harry’s other dad is though…”

”Daddy isn’t that into Quidditch”, Harry cuts in. 

”No, I enjoy watching a good match”, Remus says. ”But I never played myself and never had a favourite regional team growing up… When I was a young boy I was actually quite interested in a muggle sport called football that is quite similar to Quidditch.”

”You were?” Harry says, feeling a stab of ill-ease over not knowing this already. 

”Yes”, Remus says simply and smiles at him. ”My mother introduced me to the sport… She was a muggle”, he adds, glancing over at the other two boys. ”She even got me involved with a team in one of the villages we lived in, but I was never very good… In fact I think she rather fancied playing herself. Of course, at that time, it wasn’t very common for women to be playing sports in the muggle world, and she couldn’t exactly play Quidditch or Wizards Skittles, although I’m sure she would have loved to!”

”Really?” Harry says. 

”Oh yeah… If she’d have been magical I’m sure she would have made a great Seeker, she was both quick and perceptive! What about you, Mr Finnigan, Mr Zabini, do either of you play?”

Blaise shakes his head. 

”I might try out for the team this year”, Seamus says. ”With half the team gone, I reckon my chances are good…”

”Half the Slytherin team graduated last year?” Remus asks, surprised. 

”Yeah — well, not Harry, obviously.”

”Right…” Remus says, giving Harry a sidelong glance.

”You going to try out for the Seeker position?” Harry asks Seamus. 

”Nah, I reckon Flint will give that to Malfoy. I’m going to try out for either Chaser or Keeper. I think I’d make a fair Chaser, but everyone knows the Keepers get all the ladies…”

Blaise roll his eyes and sighs, ”Where is Draco… This conversation needs some more intelligence to balance out the dung that you come up with, Finnigan…”

Everyone but Seamus chuckle at that and then the conversation tapers off. Remus returns to his book and Harry slumps against him and dozes off until the Trolley Witch appears outside the compartment door. Remus waits for Harry to lean back before he gets up and buys them a Chocolate Frog each. 

”Who did you get?” Harry asks eagerly around a mouth-ful of chocolate and craning his neck to peer down at his daddy’s Chocolate Frog card. ”If you got Alberic Grunnion or Cliodne or—”

”I got Dumbledore”, Remus interrupts. ”But you can have it if you want.”

”No…” Harry says and sighs in disappointment. ”He’s in the Gold series… Do you want mine? It’s a Dragon card.”

”No, thank you.”

They finally arrive in Hogsmeade and Harry narrowly escapes a run-in with the gamekeeper Hagrid, ducking out of sight behind his daddy when he hears the booming voice calling for the first-years. Remus gives him an unimpressed look, but lets him sneak into one of the horse-less carriages unseen and ungreeted by the half-giant. However, once the carriage starts making its bumpy way to the castle, he makes Harry promise to write Hagrid a thank note for sending him a gift for his birthday. Harry starts to complain, saying that a book that nearly bit his wand hand off should hardly be considered a gift but a threat, but Remus cuts him off, ”It’s either one short note to Hagrid or long, extensive letters to everyone who sent you something for your birthday!”

”Fine, I’ll write him a note…” Harry grumbles. 

”Good”, Remus says and looks out the window, adding in an undertone half to himself, ”People will think you were raised by wolves…”

They trundle on through the darkness along the small path leading from the village to the castle on top of the hill, past the massive wrought iron gates flanked by a couple of winged boars carved out of stone, that can just be seen through the dim light of a couple of torches on the columns below and finally come to a stop below the stone steps of the castle. 

Harry catches a brief glimpse of white-blonde hair amongst the shadows, before Remus urges him on with a gentle hand on his shoulder. 

Inside the vast Entrance Hall, the white marble staircase stretches out in front of them, almost glittering in the warm glow of the torches around the hall, but Harry and Remus follow the throng of people heading into the Great Hall. The enchanted ceiling is pitch-black above them, the stars hidden behind a blanket of clouds most likely.

”Miss Granger, a word with you!” the stern voice of Professor McGonagall can be heard over the ruckus. 

Harry turns his head around instinctively to see a bushy mane of mousy-brown hair bob its way back through the crowd and disappear into the Entrance Hall again, his eyes locking briefly with Ron Weasley’s before he looks away again. 

Remus gives his shoulder a quick squeeze before he weaves his way to the front of the Hall and takes a seat next to Professor Snape at the Head Table. Harry smiles a little to himself, a surge of pride welling up in his chest at the sight… My daddy, a Hogwarts Professor… 

”Oi, Potter!” 

”Shut up, Seamus”, Harry says with a grin and joins the waving Irish boy at the end of the Slytherin table.

Draco is sitting with the girls on the other side of the table. Harry tries to catch his eye, but the blonde is either unusually interested in the Sorting hat that Professor Dumbledore has now placed on the stool at the front of the Hall — even before it’s started singing — or he’s trying really hard to avoid eye-contact with him. Harry swallows a sigh and looks over at the Hat when it finally does start belting out its song, and when the Sorting starts he tries to work up enough enthusiasm to at least clap his hands whenever a young child gets sorted into Slytherin. 

Finally the last timid-looking boy is Sorted into Hufflepuff and scurries over to the designated Hufflepuff table to a smatter of applause and Professor Dumbledore takes his place behind the small podium and beams down at them all. He looks exactly like Harry remembers him: thick, wavy, white hair and beard, a very crooked nose and almost annoyingly twinkly eyes behind half-moon spectacles. 

”Welcome!” he says in a carrying, booming voice and holds out his arms, the golden details on his plum-coloured robes glittering in the candle-light. ”Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! Before we commence another excellent feast, I have an announcement to make…”

Harry’s stomach growls softly in protest. 

”I’m thrilled to welcome two new teachers to our ranks this year… Firstly, Professor Lupin, who most of you had the pleasure of meeting at the end of last year when he filled in for our last Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, has kindly consented to fill the post permanently—”

There is an uproar of cheers and applause, the Gryffindors and Slytherin seemingly competing over who can make the most noise, and Harry laughs as his daddy ducks his head bashfully but gives them all a small, pleased smile. 

”Secondly”, Dumbledore says as soon as the noise dies down again. ”Since Professor Kettleburn retired last year in order to spend more time with his remaining limbs, our gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid has agreed to take up the position as Care of Magical Creatures teacher in addition to his gamekeeping duties!”

There is a smatter of applause, mostly from the Gryffindor/Hufflepuff side of the Hall. Harry quickly claps a few times as well when he imagines he feels Remus’s eyes on him. I guess that explains the biting book, he thinks wryly. Who else but the man who keeps monsters as pets would set them a Monster Book…

Finally, the food appears on the table in front of them… Having had nothing but a Chocolate Frog to eat since his toast at breakfast, Harry’s stomach feels like it might start eating itself at any moment, so he eagerly digs in. Next to him Seamus starts wolfing down a Shepard’s pie with equal gusto and they end up fighting over the gravy boat good-naturedly. Across the table from them the girls and Draco seem to be having a similar eating contest, except whereas Harry and Seamus try to see who can fit the most food into their mouths at once, they do the opposite… Draco, Pansy and Daphne all move their food around on their plates to make it look like they’re eating more than they actually are… Millicent however seem to be moving her food around to make it look like she’s eating less than she is…

”Watch it there, Daph!” Seamus says teasingly. ”I think you actually swallowed—”

”Shut up, dorcus!” the girl snaps, her cheeks darkening to a rosy pink and she turns to Pansy and mutters something about gross boys. 

”She likes me”, Seamus leans in and mutters to Harry with a wink. 

”Whatever you say”, Harry mutters back, shaking his head. 

When most of the students have finished their pudding, Dumbledore stands up again and directs them all in another whimsical rendition of the school song. Harry moves his lips half-heartedly, silently begging for the song to end as soon as possible and hoping that the Weasley twins haven’t chosen a slow funeral tune again as he’s struggling to keep his eyes open now that his stomach is full and it’s getting late… Luckily, the twins seem to have gone for a quick foxtrot this year and finish before everyone else. After that it’s only a matter of minutes before the last few people round off their final tunes. 

When the newly made fifth-year Prefects Charles Machin and Imogen Stretton start gathering the first-years together, Harry and the other third-years slip past them and follow Cowley and Lympsham, now Head Boy and Girl, to the dungeons. 

”The new password is Parsletongue”, Cowley says in a loud and clear voice, with a sideways glance at Harry. 

”Really…” Harry mutters. 

Seamus snickers and shoves him in the back. Harry turns around and swats at his head. 

”Settle down”, Lympsham says in a long-suffering voice and starts herding them through the doorway into the Common Room. 

Harry sweeps his gaze over the familiar surroundings and smiles to himself. It’s a special feeling, walking into your Common Room again after a summer away… Almost like coming home. 

”Hey Harry”, Seamus says. ”Want to play Exploding Snap?”

”Nah, I’m knackered… I’ll see you in the morning”, Harry says and makes his way to the Third Year dormitory. 

He’s just finished changing into his pyjamas when the door creaks open again behind him. He turns around and his heart stutters in his chest as he suddenly finds himself staring into a familiar pair grey eyes… He opens his mouth to say something, anything… But before his brain has managed to come up with the word hello, Draco has whipped his gaze away and walked over to one of the fourposter beds on the opposite side of the dorm. 

Harry’s hello lodges itself in his throat and he blinks quickly, hoping to bat away the stinging sensation in his eyes… Draco doesn’t even want to sleep in the bed next to mine… He wants to be as far away from me as possible… 

Harry curls up in his bed and turns his back to the room — and Draco — and pretends to fall asleep, but even after the last stragglers, probably Crabbe and Goyle, have started snoring in their beds, he still lies awake, trying not to cry.

The next morning, as Harry is getting ready in the communal bathroom, he mentally steels himself for the day to come; It’s no good crying like a little baby every time I see him, he tells himself sternly as he squints at his own blurry reflection. We’re in the same class and sleep in the same dorm, so I just have to get used to this… With a sigh, he puts his glasses on. 

As his reflection comes into focus, he sighs again but for a different reason… Taking in the emaciated cheeks, bushy eyebrows and ridiculously messy hair — even when it’s damp, like now! — not to mention the monstrosity of a scar cutting his forehead in two, Harry suddenly can’t think of any reason why Draco would ever want to be his boyfriend, and despite his earlier pep talk to himself, his eyes start stinging again… Damn it, he thinks furiously and turns away from the mirror with a scowl. Get it together!

And you’re practically a midget, his mean inner voice adds. 

Shut up, he tells it and storms out of the bathroom. 

Their first lesson, according to their new timetables, is Transfiguration and for once Harry is eager to delve into the tough subject. If anything is going to take his mind off things, is the stern teachings of Professor McGonagall and the immense focus required in her subject, second only to Potions with Professor Snape. 

Again, Draco sits with the girls, as far away from Harry as possible. At this point, it’s starting to annoy Harry more than anything. 

Professor McGonagall tells them about witches and wizards that can change into an animal at will.

”I myself happen to be an animagus”, she adds and Harry jerks his head up, the word triggering a vague memory. ”Let me demonstrate.”

Suddenly, a tabby cat with spectacles marking around the eyes sit where Professor McGonagall stood only seconds ago and the class break our in applause. The old witch transforms back into her human form again and thanks them curtly, before continuing with her lecture. 

Harry tunes her out again, trying to think where he’s heard the term Animagus before… Then he remembers. In the kitchen. His dads arguing over that picture in the Prophet. Some man they once knew who disappeared… His daddy said he’d been an animagus, that he could transform into a rat at will, and dad was sure Ron’s pet rat Scabbers was that man… And judging by his dad’s anger, they can’t have been on good terms with the man before he disappeared either… 

Harry keeps brooding over it for the rest of the lesson, but finally forgets about it again as they make their way to the next lesson. It’s their first new subject of the year — Divination — and if the long trek up the North Tower wasn’t enough to distract him, the gloomy, incense-heavy classroom surely is. 

Although, it doesn’t look like any classroom Harry has ever seen before, more like someone’s attic or possibly a shady tearoom. Instead of desks, the cramped, circular room was filled with little round tables and chintz armchairs and puffy pouffes. All the windows have their curtains drawn and the lamps are covered in red fabric, giving the whole room a red glow. 

Harry waits for Draco to choose a pouffe for himself next to Pansy and then deliberately chooses an armchair on the other end of the room. He imagines he can feel the blonde’s eyes on him but forces himself to keep staring ahead. 

”So where is she?” Seamus mutters as he drops down on the pouffe next to Harry. 

As if she’s heard him, a soft, misty voice suddenly slithers out of the gloom towards them, ”Welcome… How nice to see you in the physical world at last…”

The owner of the voice slowly steps out of the shadows and Harry blinks. The Divination Professor is a very thin and spindly woman, wrapped in layers upon layers of flimsy scarves and tinkling with beads and chains. Her butterbeer bottom spectacles are so thick her eyes are magnified to at least three times their natural size and makes her look like a giant insect. 

”Sit, my children… Sit…”

Harry glances around. Everyone is already sitting. 

”Welcome to Divination”, the Professor continues and sinks into a large winged armchair in front of the fireplace. ”My name is Professor Trewlawny. You might not have seen me before. You see, I find that descending too often into the hustle and bustle of the main school clouds my Inner Eye…”

She takes a moment to pause, as if waiting for a response or reaction of some sort, but no-one says anything, just exchange wary looks with each other. 

”So you have chosen to study the noble art of Divination… I must warn you at the outset, that if you do not possess the Sight, there is very little I can teach you…”

Harry suddenly remembers everything Sirius said about Divination before Remus made him be quiet and wonders if it’s too late to change to Arithmancy…

”Many witches and wizards, talented though they may be in the area of loud bangs and smells and sudden disappearings, or at memorising entire textbooks, are yet unable to penetrate the veiled mysteries of the future… It is a Gift granted to few… You, girl—!” she says, turning suddenly to Daphne who lets out a tiny squeak of surprise. ”How is your grandfather?”

”My grandfather?” Daphne says with a frown. 

”…’s wife, your grandfather’s wife, is she quite well?”

”Grandma?” Daphne says suspiciously. ”Yeah? Why?”

”Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure of that, my dear…”

”What—!”

”We will be covering the basic methods of Divination this year. The first term will be devoted to reading tea leaves. Next term we shall progress to palmistry. By the way, my dear”, she turns to Theodore Nott who straightens up in alarm. ”Beware an old woman with dark hair…”

”And how old are you?” Nott mumbles as soon as the professor has turned away again, and several of the other students snicker. 

”In the summer term”, Professor Trewlawny continues as though she didn’t hear him. ”We shall progress to the crystal ball — if we have finished with the fire-omens, that is — Unfortunately, classes will be disrupted in February by a nasty bout of flu. I myself will lose my voice. And around Easter, one of our number will leave us for ever.”

A sudden hush spreads over the small room, the snickers and whispers immediately dying down and they all exchange incredulous or uncomfortable looks with each other. 

”I wonder, dear”, says Professor Trewlawny to Pansy who immediately shrinks back into her armchair. ”Would you pass me that teapot?”

Sagging with relief, Pansy gets up and grabs the largest, silver teapot and hands it to the Professor. 

”Thank you, dear — and incidentally, that thing you are dreading, it will not transpire for another year, so you can relax…”

Pansy stares at the older woman, stricken and anything but relaxed. Harry can’t help but feel a small jolt of malice and hides a smirk behind his hand. Blaise gives him a knowing look from across the small table and smirks as well. 

What, Harry mouths. 

Blaise just shakes his head and looks away as Professor Trewlawny continues to instruct them to pair up and retrieve a set of teacups from the shelves. Harry quickly looks at Seamus and Blaise, but they shrug apologetically at him. Scowling, Harry turns to his other side and comes face to face with a sour-looking Millicent Bulstrode who instantly glares back and says she’s pairing up with Daphne. 

”Fine”, Harry mutters and stands up, looking around. 

Draco and Pansy have paired up, unsurprisingly and just as unsurprisingly, so have Crabbe and Goyle… Which leaves Nott… He and Harry eye each other warily, but there’s nothing for it. Harry shrugs and gestures for the other boy to come join him, but he points to Seamus and Blaise who have claimed the table for themselves. Nott has a table all to himself. Harry swallows a sigh and nods, making his way over… Nott goes to get them a teacup each while Harry gingerly lowers himself on a small, springy pouffe. Despite his best efforts, he’s now sitting within touching distance of Draco. Just great.

”Come to me and I will your cups”, Professor Trewlawny instructs. ”Then drink the tea until only the dregs remain — these you will swill around the cup three times using your left hand, then you will place the cup upside down on the saucer; wait for the tea to drain away, then hand the cup to your partner to read… Use pages five and six in your copies of Unfogging the Future to interpret the patterns… I shall move among you, helping and instructing…”

”Here”, Nott says, handing him a steaming cup of tea. ”How’s it going anyway?”

”Great”, Harry mutters sarcastically and puts the cup down on the table, bending down awkwardly to blow on it. 

”What a load of rubbish, this, eh?” 

”Yeah… How come you chose it?”

”Figured it’d be an easy O — what about you?”

”Yeah, same”, Harry lies. 

They sip their scalding hot tea carefully, but after Trewlawny has swept past them for the third time, they decide to chug it and Harry burns the roof of his mouth in the process, swearing under his breath. 

”What’s that, my dear?” Trewlawny says directly behind him and Harry startles. 

”N-Nothing…” he mutters and quickly swill his cup around before thrusting it into Theodore’s hands then grabbing his cup from him in return and pretends to study the soggy tealeaves intently until the woman sweeps away again. 

”Okay…” he mutters, opening his book to page five. 

”See anything interesting?” 

”I don’t know…” Harry more or less whines. ”That perfume or whatever it is starting to give me a headache… I see a load of soggy brown stuff… I guess that bit there looks a bit like a cloud…”

Theodore cranes his neck and peers into the cup as well, ”I think it kind of look like an acorn…”

”Oh yeah, you’re right… What does that mean then, let’s see… A windfall, unexpected gold”, Harry recites, then gives the other boy a sharp look. ”You knew that!”

Theodore grins cheekily, ”My turn!”

Harry just rolls his eyes and puts the cup down, ”Go for it…”

”Well… Let’s see… Oh, that’s definitely a heart—”

”Shut up”, Harry snaps. ”Stop making stuff up! And don’t — don’t check the book first! I know you’re cheating—”

Theodore snickers and holds the cup out of reach as Harry makes a grab for it. 

”Let me see that, dear” the wispy voice Trewlawny interrupts them suddenly and she grabs the cup out of Theodore’s hand and peers into it with narrowed eyes while turning it around slowly. ”Ah, the falcon… My dear, you have a deadly enemy…”

”Oh no”, Harry mutters sarcastically, glancing over at Blaise and Seamus who are both stifling their laughter behind their hands. 

”The club… An attack, oh dear, this is not a happy cup… The skull… Danger in your path, my dear…”

Everyone in the room hold their breaths and watch transfixed despite themselves as Professor Trewlawny continues to spin Harry’s cup and speaking in an almost dazed voice and then suddenly, on the final turn, she gasps in horror and lets out a scream — everyone recoils in alarm and Harry’s heart starts hammering harder in his chest, even though his rational mind is telling him this whole thing is humbug…

”Oh my dear boy — my poor, poor dear boy”, Trewlawny says in a weak voice, clutching her heart and shutting her eyes as though in pain. 

She winks into her armchair and continues to whimper, ”Oh no… No… Kinder not to say… Don’t ask me…”

”What is it?” someone speaks up finally, and to Harry’s amazement, it’s Draco. 

”My dear”, Trewlawny says in a quivering voice and opens her magnified eyes once more, fixing them on Harry. ”You have the Grim…”

A deafening silence descends on the room and everyone turns to stare in horror at Harry. He swallows thickly and attempts to give a chuckle… Seamus is the only one who doesn’t seem to understand what’s going on and he quickly leans in to talk to Blaise who whispers something back. Harry quickly turns away before the Irish boy reacts to the information. 

”Oh, my dear boy!” Trewlawny cries dramatically. ”It is the worst of all omens! I am so sorry, my dear, to be the bearer of such diabolical news—”

”You can’t just say something like that!” Draco says, scowling at her and despite everything, Harry’s heart leaps in his chest. 

”I am sorry”, Trewlawny says again, looking anything but. ”I believe we ought to end the lesson here. I cannot possibly expect you to carry on after such horrible news…”

Draco quickly stuffs his copy of Unfogging the Future into his book bag and hurries over to the trapdoor, avoiding everyone’s eyes. Pansy and Daphne hurries after him, but Harry stays seated, smiling to himself. 

”You’re looking very cheerful for someone who’s just seen their death omen”, Seamus Irish lilt speaks up behind him. 

”I didn’t see anything”, Harry counters. ”And I think all this tea leaf stuff is hokum anyway.”

”Yeah, that would make you grin like a lunatic”, Seamus comments drily.

”Whatever…” Harry says, his grin widening. 

Harry’s joy is short-lived however, since Draco is even more adamant about avoiding any and all contact with him it turns out, even going so far as to skip lunch altogether and despite his stomach growling in protest, Harry finds himself picking at his food like the blonde usually does. 

After the perfume-heavy air of the Divination classroom and then his lacking appetite, Harry is relieved to get out of the castle after lunch, especially since the air is crisp and clean after the night’s heavy rain. He gulps down several lungfuls and feels his headache start to dissipate almost immediately. 

He waits for Seamus and Blaise to catch up and then they make their way across the damp lawn towards Hagrid’s hut for their first Care of Magical Creatures lesson. When they get there, Draco and the girls are already there, as are a few of the Gryffindors. Harry ignores Draco and waves hello to Ron and Granger instead. 

Hagrid is standing in front of the door to his hut, waiting for them all to gather around and by the looks of it he’s getting impatient. 

”C’mon now, get a move on!” he calls out to the last stragglers and waves his massive arm for them all to get nearer. ”Got a real treat for yeh today! Great lesson comin’ up! Everyone here? Right, follow me!”

The students follow him at a wary pace, but they all exchange relieved looks and relax as a group when the gamekeeper veers away from the Forbidden Forest and instead leads them to an empty paddock. 

”Everyone gather round the fence here! That’s it — make sure yeh can see. Now, firs’ thing yeh’ll want ter do is open yer books —”

”How?” Pansy pipes up, raising a perfectly trimmed eyebrow at the half-giant.

”Eh?” Hagrid says in confusion.

”How are we supposed to open our books?” Draco clarifies coolly, holding up his copy of The Monster Book of Monsters which he’s bound shut with a length of rope. 

Other people take out their copies too, some of them crammed into tight bags or clamped together with huge bull-clips, others, like Harry, have belted their books shut. 

”Hasn’ — hasn’ anyone bin able ter open their books?” asks Hagrid with fast faltering enthusiasm. 

They all shake their heads. 

”Yeh’ve got ter stroke ’em”, he says as though it’s the most obvious thing and the world and Harry barely refrains from letting out an incredulous huff, silently reminding himself that he still owes the half-giant a thank you-note and really should try and stay in his good books. ”Look…”

He grabs Draco’s book from him and tears the rope off. The book immediately tries to clamp down its jaws on his hand, but Hagrid smoothly moves it away and drags the forefinger down the book’s spine. It shivers and then falls open. 

”Oh, how silly we’ve all been!” Draco sneers as Hagrid hands it back to him. ”We should have stroked them! Why didn’t we guess?”

”I… I thought they were funny…” Hagrid says uncertainly. 

”Oh, very funny”, Pansy scoffs. ”Really witty, giving us books that try and rip our hands off!”

”Shut up, Parkinson!” Granger says, receiving a bucktoothed grimace from the Slytherin girl in response. 

”Righ’ then…” Hagrid says, clearly having lost his thread. ”So yeh’ve got yer books an’… an’ now yeh need the magical creatures. Yeah. So I’ll go an’ get ’em. Hang on…”

They watch silently as he strides off towards the forest. As soon as he’s out of sight, Draco and Pansy begin to mutter about the outrage of Dumbledore letting such an oaf teach classes. 

”My father will have a fit when I tell him…” Draco sniffs. 

”Shut up, Malfoy!” Ron barks suddenly. 

”Was I talking to you, Weasel?” Draco shoots back. ”I don’t think so—”

”You—!”

But whatever Ron was about to say gets drowned out by Lavender Brown’s terrified squeal. Everyone startles and turn to see what she’s pointing at. Hagrid comes lumbering back towards them and trailing behind him is a herd of… Hippogriffs… Harry stares in wonder, feeling a mix of dread and amazement. As the creatures get nearer to the paddock and he can see their plumage gleam in the sunlight, he can’t help but admire them… 

But still… Hippogriff! What’s Hagrid got planned for their NEWTS, dragons? With a sinking feeling, Harry realises that that is actually very likely…

The students draw back as Hagrid leads the hippogriffs up to the fence in front of them and tether them to it. 

”Hippogriffs!” Hagrid exclaims happily. ”Beautiful creatures aren’ they? So… If yeh wan’ ter come a bit nearer…”

No-one seems to want to, but Ron and Hermione, who both seem determined to make Hagrid’s first lesson a good one, cautiously takes a few steps closer to the fence anyway. 

Harry stays where he is. As beautiful as the creatures might be — and they actually are, Harry has to agree with Hagrid in this particular instance — he rather not have to explain to his daddy how he ended up in the hospital wing, if one of them decides to peck out his eyes for some reason… 

”Now, firs’ thing yeh need ter know abou’ Hippogriffs is they’re proud”, Hagrid says. ”Easily offended. Don’t never insult one, ’cause it might be the last thing yeh do…”

Great, Harry thinks, glancing at the large creatures again. They look less and less beautiful as Hagrid talks, he thinks. Especially when they toss their heads and flap their massive wings. They really don’t seem to like being tethered at all…

”Yeh always wait fer the Hippogriff ter make the firs’ move. It’s polite, see? Yeh walk towards ’im and then yeh bow… If he bows back, yeh can go ahead an’ touch ’im… If he doesn’ then yeh better back off sharpish ’cause those talons hurt… Now, who wants ter go first?”

Most of the class backs further away in answer and Hagrid’s face falls. 

”I’m fine thanks”, Harry mutters to Seamus who snickers. 

”Yeah, remember your tea leaves, Harry…”

”No-one?” Hagrid says with a pleading look. ”It’s not dangerous, as long as yeh take it easy and bow like I said…”

”I’ll do it”, Ron says finally and steps right up to the fence. 

”Good man, Ron!” Hagrid exclaims happily. ”Right then — let’s see how yeh get on with Buckbeak!”

Hagrid unties one of the chains and leads a silvery grey Hippogriff away from the herd, as Ron clambers over the fence. Removing Buckbeak’s leather collar last, Hagrid gestures for Ron to come closer. 

”Easy, now, Ron… Yeh’ve got eye contact, now try not ter blink — Hippogriffs don’t trust yeh if yeh blink too much — That’s it, good… Good… Now, bow… A little more… Little more… Tha’s it…”

Harry finds himself holding his breath as he watches Ron bow low in front of the massive beast that just keeps staring haughtily at him. But then, to his immense relief, the Hippogriff bends its’ front knees and bows back!

”Well done, Ron!” Hagrid shouts ecstatically. ”Well done! Right — yeh can touch ’im now. Pat ’is beak, go on!”

The Gryffindors break out into applause as Ron cautiously moves his hand up the Hippogriff’s beak and pats him a few times. Harry smiles and claps his hands a few times as well. 

”Right then, Ron”, Hagrid says matter-of-factly. ”I think he might let yeh ride ’im now!”

”What?” Ron squeaks. 

”Go on, it’s perfectly safe! He’s already accepted yeh, so it’s not dangerous at all. C’mon, up yeh get—”

Before Ron has a chance to protest or back away, Hagrid grabs him under the arms and hoists him up to perch on top of the Hippogriff and then gives the creature’s back a gentle slap. The massive, twelve-foot wings expand and flex, and then the Hippogriff kicks off the ground and soars into the sky. 

Harry tilts his head back and watches as the silhouette darts across the bright afternoon sun, before zooming back down again and landing gracefully in the paddock. The Gryffindors cheer and Harry and some of the Slytherins clap their hands. A quick glance over the class tells Harry that everyone but Draco and Pansy seem to be a least a little impressed, but the blonde looks outright disappointed when Ron slides off the Hippogriff in one piece and grinning proudly. 

”Okay, who else wants a go?” Hagrid yells. 

After having seen Ron fly one of them successfully, Harry feels a little safer stepping into the paddock. He won’t want to ride one, but he’ll at least pat one, he thinks. If he can get it to bow for him, that is…

Hagrid guides him over to a chestnut Hippogriff and Harry takes a deep breath to calm his beating heart before slowly approaching the creature. It looks even more massive close up. But it tilts its head slightly to the side as though curious and blinks its huge eyes, unlike Buckbeak who had given Ron a dead stare, so Harry thinks he’s probably okay to expose his neck… He bows low, like Ron did, and waits with bated breath… 

The Hippogriff gives off a soft caw and when Harry glances up, he can see it bowing before him. Releasing a relieved breath, Harry beams at it and walks up to pet it on the side of the beak. It closes its eyes and moves its head into the caress. Harry chuckles. 

Looking up to try and catch any of his friends’ eyes so he can share this moment of triumph with them, Harry accidentally locks eyes Draco who is patting Buckbeak on the head a few yards away. Harry’s heart stutters, but Draco immediately looks away and scowls at the creature in front of him. Harry can see his mouth move as he says something to Pansy and the girl nods, her disdainful gaze darting over to Ron and Granger as she sneers. 

Suddenly, Buckbeak lets out a furious caw and in the next moment, before anyone has realised what’s happened, Draco screams and crumples to the ground. Harry’s heart jumps into his throat and before he knows what he’s doing he’s running towards him… 

Hagrid shoves him aside with such force that he gets knocked off his feet and fall to the ground and he quickly scrambles to his feet again to see the gamekeeper wrestle the enraged Hippogriff away from Draco who lies curled up on the ground, wailing and… Harry’s ears start ringing and his heart beats a tattoo in his chest… Bleeding… So much blood…

”I’m dying!” Draco wails. ”I’m dying, look at me! It’s killed me!”

”Yer not dyin’!” Hagrid says in a strained voice and finally manages to get Buckbeak into his collar again, then bends down and scoops Draco into his arms. ”Someone help me — gotta get ’im outta here!”

Harry hurries forward and opens the gate to the paddock so that Hagrid can carry Draco out and then run up to the castle with him. Everyone exchange panicked looks and then quickly hurry out of the paddock as well. 

”What about the others, they’re not tethered—” Blaise says uncertainly. 

”Not our problem!” Pansy snaps. ”Poor Draco! I’m going to go see if he’s okay—”

Harry, who was just about to go tearing after Hagrid and Draco himself, stops and frowns to himself. 

”We’ll all go”, Blaise tells him quietly. ”He’s our friend too. Come on…”

Harry gives him a small, grateful smile and they start walking quickly back towards the castle, leaving the Gryffindors to deal with the Hippogriffs. As they get nearer they start running and they take the stairs to at a time… Thundering into the Entrance Hall, they make a beeline for the marble staircase.

Remus comes running round a corner at the other end of the corridor just outside the Hospital Wing but stop abruptly and lets out a breath of relief when he sees Harry. 

”Oh, thank goodness”, he pants. ”I just heard someone got hurt — what — what happened?” he adds worriedly as Harry runs up to him and his pinched face registers. 

”Draco”, Harry says in a strained voice. 

”Oh no…” Remus sighs and pulls Harry into his arms, but Harry only lets himself be hugged for a second before he pulls away again. 

”I need to go see that he’s okay…”

”Yeah, of course… Come on…”

Remus puts his arm around Harry’s shoulders and walks with them, but they’re all stopped at the door by Madam Pomfrey who refuses to let them in. 

”Mr Malfoy does not want any visitors”, she says firmly. 

”But I — We have to see him!”

”I’m sorry, Mr Potter. I can’t let you in. Mr Malfoy doesn’t want you here…”

”What?” Harry says. 

”Please, Poppy…” Remus says. ”Can you just tell us if he’s going to be okay?”

”Oh, he’ll be fine”, she reassures him. ”He just needs a blood replenishing potion and some rest for now. Then we’ll see about the wound — nasty gash — but I’ve healed worse!”

”Thank you”, Remus says. 

Madam Pomfrey nods curtly and slams the door in their faces. Harry stares incredulously at it. 

”But Pansy’s in there — that’s not fair!”

”Come on, Harry… You have to respect Draco’s wishes…”

”But… What, it’s just me that’s not allowed to see him then? Fine! Fine, I’ll just go and you guys can visit him”, he tells his friends and then turns away and storms back down the corridor.

”Harry, wait…” Remus calls after him and then jogs to catch up with him at the end of the corridor. ”Wait…”

”What?” Harry snaps thickly. 

”Come on… This way”, Remus says gently and steers him down the passage on the right.

He leads him to a classroom that Harry wouldn’t have known was the DADA classroom at all if he hadn’t recognised the paintings in the hallway outside. Without the many portraits of Lockhart crowding the walls, the room is quite unrecognisable. Remus keeps ushering him to the back of the classroom, then opens the door to the office and lets him step inside. 

Even in his upset state, Harry can’t help but marvel at all the cool things his dad has managed to collect in the small space and peers curiously at a rather large water tank just inside the door that seemed to house a green tentacled creature with sharp little horns. 

”It’s a Grindylow”, Remus tells him. ”You’re going to learn all about them in a few weeks…”

”It’s a little scary-looking”, Harry mumbles. 

”Come and have a seat, Harry…” 

Harry tears his eyes away from the Grindylow and follows his daddy to the desk. He sits down in the chair and silently accepts the piece of chocolate Remus hands him and takes a small bite. 

”Do you want to tell me about what happened?”

”Don’t you have a class to teach?” Harry mumbles, thinking the last thing he wants is to prevent his daddy from doing his job or Dumbledore won’t let him keep it. 

”Not for another forty minutes. But you do in twenty minutes.”

”You know my timetable?”

”Of course I do, I’m a worrier, I need to know everything”, Remus says.

Harry smiles and nods, ”Yeah, I know that…”

”So…”

Harry swallows thickly. He doesn’t even know where to start… Finally he just tells Remus about what happened in Care of Magical Creatures and how scared he’d been that Draco was seriously hurt. Remus nods in understanding, then studies him silently for a moment. Harry looks down and nibbles on the chocolate bar. 

”And what is really bothering you?” Remus says. ”Is it that Draco didn’t want any visitors?”

”He didn’t want me to visit him”, Harry says in a small voice. 

”You don’t know that, Harry—”

”Yeah, I do! He doesn’t talk to me at all anymore! He always makes sure to sit as far away from me as possible in class! He chose another bed, so he wouldn’t be sleeping next to mine like before! He hates me—!”

”Hey…” Remus murmurs and wraps his arms around him. ”Shhh… Calm down… Listen… He doesn’t hate you, Harry.”

”Yes, he does—!” Harry sobs. 

”No, he doesn’t. He might act like it right now, because it’s easier that way. But he doesn’t really hate you. Far from it, I think.”

”How do you know?” Harry says in a small voice. 

”Well… This might be hard for you to wrap your mind around, but I was once a teenager too…”

Harry gives a watery chuckle and wipes his face on his sleeve. 

”And I know a thing or two about being forced to… go against my nature and hide who I am…”

”What do you mean?”

”I just mean that if Draco’s father has told him he can’t spend time with you and he actually really wants to, it might be easier for him to keep his resolve and stay away from you if you’re angry with him, so he pushes you away…”

”But Mr Malfoy’s not even here! How’s he going to know if Draco sleeps in the bed next to mine or talks to me at lunch or reads my stupid tea leaves?”

Remus sighs. 

”And why does he have to care what his father thinks anyway?” Harry grumbles. 

”Don’t you?” Remus counters. 

”What? Well, yeah… But… That’s different.”

”So if Sirius and I told you we don’t approve of your relationship with Draco, what would you do?”

”I… I… I don’t know”, Harry says honestly. 

Remus smiles kindly at him and strokes his hair, ”Well, we’ll never have to find out…”

*

Draco doesn’t return from the Hospital Wing for several days and Harry’s worry is slowly eating away at him, so when the blonde suddenly struts into the Potions Classroom halfway through Double Potions with the Gryffindors on Friday morning, his arm in a sling but otherwise in perfect health and smirking, Harry almost forgets they’re supposed to be on bad terms and perks up. At the sound of Pansy’s squeal however, he perks right back down then…

”Settle down, settle down”, Professor Snape says idly, barely looking up from the potion he’s inspecting. 

”Does it hurt terribly, Draco?” Pansy says in a hushed voice. 

”A little…”

Draco grabs his cauldron and zigzags between the desks, managing to find the desk furthest away from Harry without even having looked in his general direction since stepping foot inside the classroom. Harry hunches over in his seat and scowls to himself. 

”Sir”, Draco calls out after a minute. ”Sir, I’ll need help cutting up these daisy roots, because of my arm…”

”Weasley, cut up Malfoy’s roots for him”, Snape says without looking up. 

Harry can see the tips of Ron’s ears go beet red and wonders if the Gryffindor will refuse or start a fight… But after only a second’s hesitation he starts to cut into Draco’s roots. Harry goes back to his own daisy roots, carefully dicing them into identical pieces. 

”Professor, Weasley’s mutilating my roots, Sir…”

Professor Snape straightens up and swoops down on the Ron and Granger, narrowing his eyes at what must be very sloppily cut roots judging by his scowl.

”Change roots with Malfoy, Weasley.”

”But, Sir—!”

”Now.”

Ron shoves his own roots over to Draco’s side of the desk and then picks up his knife again, probably to try and save the uneven pieces he’d cut for the other boy.

”And, Sir, I’ll need this Shrivelfig skinned…”

”Weasley, skin Malfoy’s Shrivelfig”, Snape says smoothly, then turns to give Seamus a sharp look when the boy lets out a snort of laughter. 

”Hey, Daph…” the Irish boy stage-whispers. ”Will you skin my Shrivelfig—?”

”That’s enough, Finnigan. Back to work”, Snape says sternly.

”Yes, Sir…”

Snape remains hovering behind Seamus for a moment, to ensure he really does get back to work, but something catches his eye and with a sharp intake of breath he descends on Neville Longbottom who startles and drops his ladle into his fizzing cauldron. Harry can see some of the potion splash over the side… The potion that should be a bright, acid green by now, except Longbottom has somehow managed to turn his—

”Orange”, Snape growls. ”Really, Longbottom? Orange! Tell me, boy, does anything penetrate that thick skull of yours? Didn’t you hear me say, quite clearly, that only one rat spleen was needed? Didn’t I state plainly that just one dash of leech juice would suffice? What do I have to do to make you understand, Longbottom?”

Longbottom just stands there trembling and staring up at Professor Snape as though he was a banshee. He looks close to tears. 

”Please, Sir”, Granger says. ”Please, I can help Neville out it right —”

”I don’t remember asking you to show off, Miss Granger!” Snape snaps, then turns back to Longbottom again. ”At the end of the lesson, we will feed a few drops of your potion to your toad and see what happens to it, Longbottom. Perhaps that will finally encourage you to follow instructions…”

Longbottom looks close to fainting by the time Snape has swept away again. Harry feelings a twinge of sympathy for the boy… But he can see Granger is giving him directions through the corner of her mouth, so he isn’t that worried about the boy or his toad. 

While their potions are simmering, they all clear their equipment away and then gather around Longbottom’s cauldron on Snape’s request. The professor grabs Trevor the toad firmly in one hand and with the other dips a small spoon into Longbottom’s potions, that has now changed colours and looks green at least, if more of a mossy nuance rather than the acid green a perfect Shrinking Solution should be. 

”Now, let’s see what happens to Longbottom’s toad…” Snape says. ”If he has managed to produce a Shrinking Solution, it will shrink to a tadpole. If, as I don’t doubt, he has done it wrong, his toad is likely to be poisoned…”

”Wicked”, Seamus whispers excited and Harry gives him a light shove. 

Professor Snape trickles a few drops of the potion into Trevor’s mouth and everyone watches with bated breath as the toad gulps… Then suddenly, with a small pop, Trevor the tadpole lies wriggling in the palm of Professor Snape’s hand. The Gryffindors cheer and the Slytherins glance at Snape’s sour face with trepidation. 

”Five points from Gryffindor”, he snarls as he drops the anti-solution onto Trevor and then thrusts the fully grown toad back into Longbottom’s hands. ”I told you not to help him, Miss Granger. Class dismissed.”

Harry almost feels like laughing at the crestfallen look on Granger’s face, but Ron’s reddening ears helps him keep a straight face… It is kind of funny how Snape refuses to show any favouritism towards the Gryffindors, like most of the other teachers do… But poisoning Longbottom’s toad might have been a step too far, Harry thinks. But even if it had been poisoned, he feels positive that Snape had an antidote ready. He wouldn’t actually kill a student’s pet. 

”Looks who’s got a spring in his step for the first time this week…” Seamus comments with a grin as he sidles up to Harry just inside the doors of the Potions classroom and waggles his eyebrows when Harry rolls his eyes in response. ”Now, you either really hate animals, or…”

”Shut up, dorcus”, Harry mutters and gives him a playful shove. 

”Move it along, boys…” Snape says tiredly from the front of the classroom. 

”Yes, Sir”, Harry calls back and then shoves Seamus in front of him out the door. 

Harry actually has another reason to be excited today, that has nothing to do with Draco being back or Snape terrorising the Gryffindors… Their last lesson of the day is Defence Against the Dark Arts, their first of the year! But before then, they have to sit through Charms, Transfiguration and then walk down to Hagrid’s hut for their first Care of Magical Creatures lesson since Draco got attacked by the Hippogriff. 

The Slytherins were first to arrive, even though their trepidation had made them all drag their feet. But they needn’t have worried as it turns out. Hagrid, who looks extremely downcast when they gather around him, instructs them to pair up and pick a Flobberworm per pair. Harry stares down at the ten-inch, toothless brown worm wriggling on the ground between him and Seamus. 

”Grab some lettuce from the this barrel and feed it to yer Flobberworm”, Hagrid says. 

Seamus goes to fetch a bowl of lettuce for him and Harry and puts it down on the ground next to the Flobberworm. Harry grabs a piece of lettuce and holds it out uncertainly, studying the wriggling worm. 

”Er… Which end is the — eh — mouth end?” he mutters. 

”Well, it just squirted something out of this end, so I’m guessing that one…” Seamus says. 

Harry holds the piece of lettuce close to the other end, but quickly recoils as mucus suddenly squirts out of what he’d assumed was the mouth. 

”Or not…” Seamus mutters. ”Hey, look at the lions…”

”What?” Harry says in alarm. 

He looks around half-expecting to see Hagrid lead a couple of live lions into their midst, but Seamus points to the approaching Gryffindors. 

”Oh… What about them—?” Harry says, but then he sees it too. 

All the Gryffindors are beaming and chatting excitedly. Even Granger looks happy, despite being late for class. 

”Hey, Harry!” Ron shouts. ”Your dad’s bloody brilliant! We just had the best DADA lesson ever!”

”Really?” Harry says with a proud smile as the redhead walks up to him. ”What did you get to do?”

”Oh it was wicked — Hey, Finnigan”, he says casually as he drops down on the ground next to their Flobberworm. ”We got to face a real life Boggart! And — this is the best part — Neville went first, right? And —” Ron snickers. ”His biggest fear is Snape…”

”No…” Harry says with a chuckle. ”The Boggart turned into Snape?”

”Yes! And then — Oh, it was priceless! Professor Lupin — well, your dad — he showed us this spell that makes the thing you’re scared of turn into something funny-looking, so he told Neville to picture Snape in his grandmother’s clothes!”

”He didn’t…” Harry says and laughs incredulously. ”And did the Boggart—?”

”Oh yes!”

”Oh man, I want to see that!” Seamus says and quickly looks around. ”Think anyone in our class is scared of Snape, Harry?”

”Not likely”, Ron mutters. ”You lot don’t have any reason to be… Hey, what is this thing?”

Harry looks down at the mucus-spitting Flobberworm. He can’t wait for this lesson to be over…

By the time they reach the DADA classroom, the whole class is already buzzing with excitement, the stories from the Gryffindors’ lesson having reached all of them. But if Remus finds their enthusiasm odd when he walks into the classroom, he doesn’t let on. He merely smiles back at them all and instructs them to leave their book bags behind and follow him. 

They all eagerly trail after him as he strides down the corridor and then turns into a second corridor before he stops outside the staff room’s door and holds it open for them. They all file inside, looking around curiously. Harry, who has already been inside the staff room on a couple of occasions, is less curious about the decor and more intrigued about the Boggart that he hopes they’ll all get to encounter.

”This way…” Remus says, gesturing for them to follow him into far corner of the room where an old wardrobe stands and as Remus stands next to it, it gives a sudden wobble and bangs against the wall. 

Harry and the others exchange excited looks. 

”Can anyone guess what’s inside here?” Remus asks with a knowing smirk as several people raise their hands and he points at Millicent, nodding when she says it’s a Boggart. ”I believe some of you have friends in Gryffindor… Yes, that is correct, Miss Bulstrode. Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces, like wardrobes, the gaps beneath beds or cupboards under sinks. I once found one in an old grandfather clock. This particular one moved in yesterday afternoon and I asked the Headmaster if the staff could leave it for a few days so that my third-years could have something to practise on…Now, who can tell me, what exactly a Boggart is? Draco?”

The blonde who has been lurking at the back of the group startles slightly and blushes a subtle pink, but straightens up respectfully and mumbles, ”It’s a shape-shifter, Sir…”

”Yes…” Remus says slowly. ”Go on…”

”Well it… It can assume whatever shape the person is frightened of… It kind of lives off fear.”

”Exactly! Very well put, Draco — Have a point for Slytherin — No-one knows what a Boggart looks like when it’s alone. The Boggart inside this wardrobe has not assumed its form yet, because it cannot know what the person on the other side of the door fears the most until it comes face to face with that person… So when I let him out in a minute, it will immediately seem to become whatever each of us fear the most… That means that we have a huge advantage on the Boggart before we even begin. Have you spotted it, Harry?”

Harry blinks in surprising. Remus gives him an expectant look. 

”Well… Ehm… Because there are so many of us, won’t it get confused as to what shape to take?”

”Precisely! Have another point for Slytherin”, Remus says and turns to the rest of the class. ”Therefore you should always have company when dealing with a Boggart. It confuses it. Suddenly it doesn’t know which to become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug… In fact, I once saw a Boggart make the mistake of trying to frighten two people at once and turned itself into half a slug — not very scary at all, as you can imagine — The charm that repels a Boggart is simple, but it requires force of mind… As I’m sure your friends in Gryffindor have told you, what really finishes a Boggart off, is laughter… We must force it to assume an amusing shape. Something that makes us laugh—”

”Like Professor Snape wearing a dress?” Seamus pipes up. 

Remus’s mouth twitches slightly, ”Yes, like that. Although I hope the Boggart won’t turn into Professor Snape again, or something’s quite awry… In fact, I want you all to take a moment now to think of the thing that you fear the most and then try and come up with a way to alter that thing to make it funny.”

Harry feels like someone’s just dumped a bucket of ice water over his head. When Ron told him and Seamus about their lesson, he made it sound like the charm itself forced the Boggart into a funny form. Harry hadn’t realised he would have to come up with that himself… Thinking quickly, Harry tries to come up with some way, somehow, to make Lord Voldemort funny, but… Even after meeting the memory Tom Riddle, it’s still the shadowed creature with the burning red eyes that haunts his nightmares… How can I possibly turn that into something funny? he thinks desperately. 

”Okay, we’ll practise the charm without wands first”, Remus says. ”Repeat after me… Riddikulus!”

”Riddikulus!” the class choruses. 

”Very good”, Remus says and reaches for the rattling wardrobe’s door-handle. ”Now, wands at the ready, everyone….”

Harry’s heart jumps into his throat and he quickly shrinks back. Seized by an indescribable fear of having to face even a Boggart version of Voldemort and not be able to deal with it, in front of all his friends and in front of his daddy, he quickly decides to hide behind Crabbe and Goyle and accidentally stumbles into Draco in his haste to get behind them. Draco, it seems, has had the same idea as him. They glare uncomfortably at each other, but don’t say anything. 

Remus opens the wardrobe and a terrifying banshee flies out and gets right in Seamus’s face, her skeletal face breaking open in a wide gape from which a wailing shriek erupted… Harry feels the hairs on his arms stand up and shivers… But then Seamus raises his wand and shouts ”Riddikulus!” and with a crack the shriek stops with a rasping gurgle and the banshee clutches her throat indignantly. A few people laugh nervously. The banshee looks around in confusion… Crack! It turns into an enraged Chimera with a swinging dragon’s tail and a massive lion’s head that roars loudly, until Daphne shouts ”Riddikulus!” — Crack! — The Chimera shrinks to the size of a kitten and lets out a pitiful meow, then — Crack! — an Inferi erupts out of the kitten and reaches out to strangle Blaise, who shouts ”Riddikulus!” and — Crack! — the living corpse suddenly finds itself in a pair of rollerblades and waves its arms around like windmills trying to keep its balance, doubling over as the laughter grows all around it — Crack! — a massive snake — Crack! — chasing its own tail and turning into a huge knot — Crack! — a bloody mummy — Crack! — tripping over its own gauze — Crack! — Crack! — Crack! —

”Good, good”, Remus shouts. ”It’s getting confused! Keep going, keep going!”

Pansy leaps forward and the bouncing eyeball swirls around in the air and suddenly becomes a vicious werewolf who tilts his head back and howls, then lurches forward to attack —

”Riddikulus!”

Crack! — The werewolf’s teeth fall out of its mouth — Everyone laughs —

”G-Good, very good, who’s next?” Remus says.  

The toothless werewolf turns into a massive spider with savagely clicking pincers, that — Crack! — suddenly loses its’ legs and rolls around uselessly on the floor, trying to get at the laughing and screaming students who hop out of its way and then suddenly it lands in front of Harry —

Harry’s heart stutters to a stop and he stares in horror as the legless spider spins around in the air in front of him… He just has time to make out a pair of scarlet eyes in the growing shadow, when suddenly his daddy leaps forward and positions himself in-between Harry and the Boggart that recoils and turns into glowing white orb —

”Riddikulus”, Remus says clearly and the orb turns black drops to the floor and starts scurrying around, but with a bang, Remus sends it flying back into the wardrobe and quickly locks the door again. ”S-Sorry everyone, we seem to have run out of time… But that was great work! Very good, indeed! Have a great weekend, everyone! Harry, can I have a quick word with you?” he adds in an undertone. 

Harry nods and waves goodbye to his friends as they hurry out of the staff room, all chatting excitedly about their various Boggarts and how they dealt with them. Harry feels like a large stone drops into his stomach. I didn’t even get a chance to fail, daddy wouldn’t even let me try… 

”Harry, come here…” Remus says and reaches out for him, grabbing his hand and pulling him into his chest. 

Harry means to fight against the hug, but his body acts of its own accord and eagerly burrows into the embrace. Remus sighs and his voice shakes a little when he says, ”I’m sorry I stopped you from facing the Boggart. I didn’t think it would be very wise to introduce Lord Voldemort to those who have been fortunate enough not to have made his acquaintance yet…”

”Just as well”, Harry mutters and steps back again. ”I couldn’t think of anything funny anyway…”

”What do you say we sneak you out of the castle and have dinner with your dad in the new house?”

”Really?” Harry says hopefully. 

”Now, I want to make it clear that you won’t be able to visit him every weekend, but —”

”Okay, that’s fine!” Harry says eagerly. ”Can we go right now?”

Remus chuckles, ”All right… Let’s just go get your book-bag from the classroom first, so I can grab my coat from the office.”

As they make their way off the school grounds and follow the sloping path down to Hogsmeade, Harry is reminded of their journey up almost a week ago and hearing Remus talk about his childhood and playing a muggle version of Quidditch… Harry felt bad at the time that he hadn’t already known this and now he wonders what else he doesn’t know about his daddy. 

”Daddy…”

”Yes, Harry?” 

”Can you tell me some more about your parents?” 

”Well…” Remus says slowly. ”My mother was a muggle and she actually came upon a Boggart in the woods one day — of course she had no idea what it was, all she saw was the large, vicious man the Boggart had turned into and she screamed out in fear — my father heard her and rushed to her aid, and that’s how they met… My father was a world renowned expert on non-human spirituous apparitions, such as boggarts, as it happens… In fact, he once got rid of a Boggart that had fed on the fears of a whole Muggle town to the point where it had become an elephantine black shadow… with glowing white eyes…” 

”How did he stop it?” Harry asks breathlessly. 

”He trapped it — in a matchbox — anyway, they got married and had me, and then my father was offered a position at the Ministry as part of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures; This was in the mid-60s when Lord Voldemort’s powers were growing and his followers started recruiting all manner of Dark creatures to their cause… I never knew any of this at the time, of course. I just thought he went to work in an office while I stayed at home with mum. She was a remarkable woman.”

”I wish I could have met her…” Harry says.

”Yeah, I do too…” Remus says with a smile. ”I think the two of you would have been like a niffler in a treasure chest… You kind of remind me of her sometimes. Same whimsical sense of humour, same sensitivity…”

”You think I’m sensitive?”

”I do, and it’s not a bad thing at all. The world could do with a few more sensitive people…”

”I remember meeting grandpa Lyall… He didn’t say much, but he kept giving me sweets under the table.”

”I knew it”, Remus mutters and Harry giggles. ”Yeah, my father was rather shy and quiet, especially towards the end… But I know he was deeply grateful to have got to know you before he died.”

They walk in silence for a moment. Harry glances up at his daddy’s face, wondering if he can risk asking him about his Boggart, but the wistful, almost sad expression on his face makes Harry decide to leave that question for another time. Instead he tries to think of something that will cheer him up, and that’s when it strikes him —

”Hey, I just thought of something I could have done to the Boggart!” Harry says excitedly.

He’s not sure what made him think of it, but he had suddenly remembered that day he spent at Hogwarts with the Weasleys during Christmas holds in First Year, when the twins bewitched a few snowballs to follow Quirrell around and bounce against the back of his turban — He’d had Voldemort hidden beneath that turban! 

”Yeah?” Remus says. ”What is it?”

”I’d make him get chased by a bunch of snowballs that keeps whacking him in the face!” Harry says triumphantly and when Remus lets out a bark of surprised laughter he joins in. ”See? That’s funny!”

”Where on earth did you get that absurd idea?”

”It actually happened once!”

”What do you mean—?”

”In my first year! The Weasley twins made these snowballs chase after Quirrell and smash him in the back of the head!”

”Well, there you have it… You’ll be able to face any Boggart now…” Remus says with a chuckle. 

As though he’d been expecting them, Sirius comes out of the front door to greet them and he grins happily when Harry runs into his arms and hugs him. Harry hears the telltale smack of his dads’ kissing over his head, but doesn’t complain, just hugs Sirius a little harder before letting go again. 

”So… How was the first week?” Sirius says excitedly. 

Harry looks up at Remus who gives him a small smile and strokes his head, before turning back to his husband. 

”Eventful…”