Professor Robards stood in front of the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff first years lecturing them on the dangers of underestimating Pixies in the wild.
"They are devilishly tricky creatures that fool you with their mischievous and often 'cute' appearances but would sooner steal your wand and attack you en masse then allow you to pet them" he went on, not sounding enthusiastic about lecturing about this particular subject in the slightest.
The Defence against the Dark Arts position at Hogwarts was a revered and often sought after job at Hogwarts – surprisingly enough, for the past half century, no teacher has lasted longer then a single term in office, or so 'Hogwarts: A History' stated.
Looking to his left, he saw Cedric scribbling down notes at a furious pace, trying to keep up with the professor's lecture. Archades, on his right, seemed to be just as bored as he was; they had, after all, covered this a while ago in their weekly study sessions with the fifth years.
"You been to see Flitwick yet?" Archades asked tiredly, trying to stay awake by starting a conversation.
Harry looked up from his doodling and thought about the question. Once a week, Flitwick has invited one of the first years into his office for a talk. Those who came back from the meetings merely said that the tiny professor merely talked about what they thought of Hogwarts, their results in class, and about them personally. Harry figured that the man was merely trying to bond with the students and get to know his charges better – he was, after all, responsible for them.
"I haven't been yet, have you?" Harry asked, wondering if he was the only student who hadn't yet.
"Yeah" he replied "I had to go two weeks ago, it was OK" he answered "nothing hard, and he's a cool enough guy" he said, adding his two cents.
"Am I the only one who hasn't gone yet?"
"I'd imagine so, it's the ninth week of school and there are nine first year Ravenclaws; if you haven't gone yet, odds are you're up next" he said with a tired shrug, showing a surprising amount of logic for once.
"How long did the meeting go for?"
"About an hour I guess, why?" he asked, with amusement "you got somewhere else to be? Secret rendezvous with a forbidden love interest you haven't told me about? Its professor Sinistra isn't it!" he accused.
Harry just grinned at his friend and bopped him on the head. It was no surprise that Archades would suggest such a thing, the astronomy professor was the object of many male students' –even some females' – affection at Hogwarts. The woman was in her mid twenties, Harry would guess, and she was quite beautiful. Harry and Archades often joked about how Roger Davis would go on and on about her porcelain like skin, rich ebony locks, and dazzling blue eyes.
"So, how's Stephanie been lately? Aside from Transfiguration and Charms classes, I barely ever see her" Harry asked, trying to change the subject so that his mind wouldn't wander too much…
"She's okay I guess…" Archades offered with a small frown "she spends a fair bit of time with her little group of friends in Slytherin I guess" at the mention of said group, Harry rolled his eyes in annoyance. Lately, Stephanie had been spending a lot of time with three girls in particular, three very annoying girls in his opinion. Harry only knew them as Candice, Ashley and Samantha, not caring to know their surnames and their constant giggling in classes and in the corridors between them often raked on his nerves. From what he knew of Stephanie, he couldn't understand how she put up with them, especially if Archades apparently annoyed her so…
Archades looked at his friend, silently creeped out by the grin that suddenly appeared on his face. It was the grin he had come to realize was one of many that he tried to categorize. Harry often kept his emotions sealed behind a mask of neutrality, the likes of which even the most experienced of Slytherins would be proud of, however, sometimes Archades would see him let a grin slip that would tell a little about his mood or something about him. The grin he was currently sporting told Archades that Harry had figured something out that amused him greatly…he just wondered what that was.
"I want you all to give me a foot of parchment on the habitat of Cornish pixies by next lesson if you will, class dismissed" Professor Robards dismissed as the bell went, allowing the students to retire for the day. Harry and Archades bid Cedric goodbye as they went to get some homework done in the Library together before dinner.
Harry was making his way to the seventh floor corridor with a note from Professor Flitwick in his hand. During dinner, he had been interrupted by a majestic owl swooping down and delivering a letter from Flitwick himself to him requesting his presence in his office within the west tower that evening.
Harry wasn't sure what to make of the man from what he had known of him so far. There were many favourable mentions of the man in his mother's school books and journals stating that he was her favourite professor, also, the fact that he was an accomplished dueller in his youth earned him the respect of many as a powerful wizard in his own right.
Unfortunately, other then the levitation charm, the unlocking charm, and a charm that enchants objects to dance, they hadn't really learnt much. While the select few spells they had learned could be useful in certain circumstances, Harry hardly thought that it required two months of solid practical work to master; he would be much happier learning more charms and have the professor tell them to practise the new ones they learn in their own time.
Arriving at the door he knew to be Flitwick's, he used the bronze, eagle shaped door knocker that could be found on all the doors in the western tower to announce his presence.
There was a small crash from within "Oh!" exclaimed a squeaky voice "come in!"
Harry slowly opened the door to an oddly decorated office with several pieces of furniture charmed to act differently and the silver haired professor himself sitting atop a stack of books behind his desk with some tea and biscuits prepared before him.
"Ah, Mr. Potter, I'm happy you could join me, please take a seat" the ancient wizard greeted, motioning to the comfortable looking chair opposite his own for Harry to sit.
"Good evening professor" Harry greeted politely and took the offered chair without protest, even if it was a little bit small.
"Would you like some tea Mr. Potter? Perhaps some biscuits?" the tiny wizard offered.
"I'm full thanks, I might take a tea though" Harry accepted the cup of tea and took a sip, idly thinking that it could use some more sugar.
"Now, let's get started shall we?" he began with a cheerful voice "I'm sure you're wondering what this is about, as were all your peers" he began "this is merely a way for me to get to know the new students and connect with them – I find it helps with teaching and helps built a level of trust between my Raven's and I" he explained very truthfully, which Harry respected.
"So, what are your thoughts of Hogwarts now that you've had ample time to settle in? Is it what you expected?" he asked, taking a sip of his tea which oddly enough, had a colour changing umbrella twirling in it as he drank – each to his own, Harry mused.
"Hogwarts itself is very beautiful" Harry began "I had read a bit about it before coming, but seeing it for myself was definitely an experience I won't forget any time soon."
"Hmm, wonderful" he chirped happily "many students tend to think that, it's the reason we have the first years enter Hogwarts for the first time the way they do – it adds to the school's beauty" he said "What do you think of classes – honestly" he amended, at the end, seemingly thinking that Harry wouldn't be honest about his answer; he really couldn't blame him for such thoughts.
Harry took a sip of his tea, wanting to think about his answer before blurting one out that may seem inappropriate "I am…disappointed…at the lack of progress we seem to make in classes" he began "I was…hoping…that we would be able to learn at our own pace…" he said, trying to not sound boastful or resentful about his abilities or his problem.
"I figured you would say that" Flitwick said with a smile "You may hide it well Mr. Potter, but the speed at which you master any spells taught to you and the level of understanding you show in all of your homework in regards to magical theory suggest a heavy understanding of magic and its uses" he commented "I suppose Mr. Lupin had something to do with that?"
Harry didn't answer the obvious rhetorical question causing Flitwick to chuckle "Yes, I remember Mr. Lupin, quite the brilliant student; I'm hardly surprised by your knowledge if he was your guardian…"
Seeing how this could be taken the wrong way, Harry stepped in "He never forced me to learn anything sir" he said calmly yet with authority "I mostly had to pressure him into teaching me then he was usually comfortable with."
To that comment, Flitwick let out another chuckle "I'm sure you did Mr. Potter, I would expect nothing less from one of my Ravens" he said proudly. Harry flushed slightly in embarrassment for being caught assuming the worst about his head of house.
"Yes, your performance in both Minerva's class and my own is quite remarkable, I must say. I would also like to thank you for your assistance of your fellow peers in your study groups in those two subjects – I'm sure Mr. Montague appreciates it immensely" Harry flushed again in embarrassment, remembering to 'talk' to Archades about speaking to others about him in the future.
"Oh, it's nothing to be embarrassed about my dear boy" the professor chided "it's very gracious of you in fact, however, what interested me more was the fact that you helped your friend in his studies by explaining theory to him that isn't normally taught until NEWT level classes at least…that is something that even the most brightest of Ravenclaws can claim" he added with a little squeaky chuckle.
Harry remained silent as the professor was talking with him; he wondered where he was going with this.
Flitwick observed him curiously before chuckling again "Mr. Potter, you are so much like your parents yet so different I can't help but find it amusing" seeing the almost desperate inquisitive look in Harry's eyes, Flitwick decided to elaborate "Had your mother of father been in this position, the former would have been bursting with questions and the latter would have probably been a tad bit boastful, if not downright cocky about his own abilities" he admitted with a smile "yet you sit before me, the picture of the perfect gentleman by allowing me to speak with no interruptions – it shows that you have respect for me or my position and most probably have knowledge of pureblood customs."
Harry was getting slightly uncomfortable with Flitwick's ability to assess him so easily.
"However, you are so like your parents with your thirst to learn, your mother more so then your father. While your father always endeavoured to better his own skills at Transfiguration, he never really showed any interest in doing so until his third year, and even then, it remained solely in that field. Your mother however…" here he paused and stared out to space before letting out a wistful sigh "your mother was one of the most brilliant students I have ever had the pleasure of teaching – such a powerful thirst for knowledge and such brilliant skill in charms; it was a shame she was never sorted in my house."
"She mentioned you being her favourite professor in her journals a lot professor" he interjected when he was sure he wouldn't be interrupting "she also said you were an excellent teacher."
Harry found it amusing when the tiny wizard's cheeks turned red in embarrassment "Well, she was a most excellent student, I assure you" he replied, after a little cough.
"Your mother also had the same concerns as yourself, however they didn't show themselves until her fourth year from memory, with the speed at which she was learning" he explained with a smile "I imagine that she would have said something sooner had she been brought up as a witch instead of a muggleborn, she probably didn't feel comfortable in parading her knowledge around like others did" he said with a chuckle "though her thirst for knowledge eventually outweighed her reservations and she eventually asked me for help" he said with a twinkle in is eye.
Flitwick hopped off from his chair and removed a rather large and dusty book from his large library near his desk before placing it down and taking his seat again.
"I hope I have gained enough of your trust so that you can come to me if you feel you are not being tested sufficiently" he said with a smile "I must cut this wonderful meeting short however to take a bathroom break before resuming with the tedious task of correcting these troublesome homework assignments" he said, motioning towards the large stack of parchment sitting on his desk.
He got up abruptly and headed out the door "It would be a shame if my copy of 'Charms: More then making things float!' was misplaced from its current position on my desk" he said with a fake sigh "I could only hope that whoever happened on it would be able to use it to its full potential and return it when they were done with it" he finished with a chuckle, leaving a stunned Harry as he exited his office.
As soon as the office was empty, Harry scampered over to the desk and looked at the old and worn looking tome. Opening the plain cover, he was shocked to read that the book was first published in the year 1273 and had several additions made to it over the span of the last eight centuries or so. Grabbing the book under his arm, he suppressed a smile and hurried out of his head of house's office and straight into his room, ignoring anyone who tried to get his attention on the way – he had reading to do.
If Harry was honest with himself, he would admit he was fairly excited. Today was the day Hogwarts hosted the first Quidditch match of the Quidditch season and it would also mark the day that Harry would see his first Quidditch match.
Archades had told him that Gryffindor and Slytherin were scheduled to play against each other today, which apparently was the biggest rivalry in the school for a few reasons. One was the obvious hostility shared between the two houses, the noble Gryffindors being the perfect 'light' house and the slimy Slytherins being the 'dark' house – it was obvious who most of the school supported, but Harry didn't care either way; he just wanted to see a good game.
Another reason he was excited to watch the game was two of the players that would be playing today. One of them, Charlie Weasley, apparently the greatest seeker Hogwarts has seen in centuries and a shoe in to go professional when he graduated. The other was Abigail Moran, the Irish Chaser prodigy of Slytherin who is the only female to have ever been allowed to play on the Slytherin Quidditch team, having tried out in her second year and outclassing even some of the seventh years who tried. Harry heard rumours that the seventh year girl has already had offers from her native country to play for them; quite impressive, in his opinion.
"What time does the game start Archades?" asked Harry, trying not to let his excitement show; however Archades picked up on it quickly.
"The prefects told us last night that if we want to watch the game, we need to follow everyone else to the Quidditch pitch after breakfast. Why do you ask?"
Harry ignored him, much to the boy's chagrin and continued to eat his breakfast, looking at his watch every five minutes to check the time, much to Archades's amusement.
Harry sat in a sea of navy blue and bronze with his fellow peers in the Ravenclaw section of the Quidditch pitch stands. The pitch sported three fifty foot poles with hoops on them at each end of the five hundred foot pitch. The Stadium was also elevated so that the spectators could have better views of the game from an elevated position.
Suddenly, the crowd began to cheer wildly as seven players - each wearing mainly red coloured Quidditch robes - came walking out of the changing rooms. The one in the lead – obviously their captain – was easily identifiable with his infamous flaming red hair and strong build. Charley Weasley led his team out to the pitch as they lined up with their brooms in hand near the referee, Madam Hooch, awaiting their opponents.
The cheers almost instantly changed to jeers and sounds of disapproval, completely drowning the cheers given by the Slytherin house. The captain, a boy Harry didn't recognize, led his team out to face the Gryffindors. The other person Harry came to see, Moran, was as easily recognizable as her Weasley opponent, being the only girl on the team.
The two captains shook hands before Hooch released the golden snitch into the sky before releasing the bludgers. Finally, she picked up the Quaffle and flew up into the air with it under her arm, only to release it and start the game.
Like rockets, the Slytherin Chasers shot towards the Quaffle, taking it as their own and began their advance on the Gryffindor goal. One of the Slytherin chasers performed an impressive feint and allowed the Quaffle to pass him straight into Moran's hands. She flew at the goal that was being guarded by a nervous looking third year and pulled her arm back to make a shot only to fake it and pass to her completely open Chaser team mate who had no opposition and put the Quaffle through the hoop.
10 – 0 to Slytherin.
Harry saw Charley Weasley circling the pitch from above, probably looking for the golden Snitch while howling orders to his team.
The match didn't get much better for the Gryffindors from there with the Slytherin chasers flying rings around the Gryffindor teams. Weasley had spotted the snitch four times already, but with clever usage of the bludgers from the Slytherin beaters and careful manoeuvring on Moran's part, they were able to cut off all of his attempts to capture or even come close to the snitch while continuously scoring more and more goals.
The score was now 110 – 30 to Slytherin, the Gryffindor keeper seemed to be inexperienced, but not exactly bad.
"The Gryffindor's keeper is doing pretty well out there" Harry said to Archades, not taking his eyes off of Moran "considering Slytherin could be up almost 250 already had he not made those saves…"
Archades shrugged "Who cares? I'm just watching Weasley going for the snitch…OOOH! SO CLOSE! GO WEASLEY!" the boy cheered as Harry shook his head.
From what he could see from the game, people put way too much stock on seekers. Sure, if they catch the snitch, they score for their team an almost unfair amount of points equalling to that of fifteen goals, and end the match, but what if they couldn't catch the snitch quickly enough? The way things were going, Moran's scoring and assist streak would put them more then 150 points ahead, that is, if Gryffindor catches the snitch at all.
"Why do you care about the Seekers so much?" Harry asked his friend, watching as Slytherin defended their goals with a perfect zone defence, not allowing the Gryffindors a clear shot at the goal "Sure, they can win the match if they catch the Snitch, but Moran is making sure that doesn't happen while she tallies up the score for Slytherin…if things go the way they are, even if Weasley catches the snitch, they still won't win…"
Archades just shrugged "You're right, usually though in school games like these, it's the seekers that decide the game" he began "on the professional and international levels, it's more of a tactical game and while the seekers are in a position to lead each other around, players like Moran have a much greater impact on the game because they can interact with all of the players on the field and still do their job" he explained, as if reciting from a book "it also helps that the only two professional level players on either team are Weasley and Moran."
Harry was surprised at his friend's sudden knowledge of Quidditch tactics. His flying abilities had Harry thinking that he wasn't such a fan but that obviously wasn't the case "Then wouldn't that suggest that a Chaser of professional level has a greater impact on the game?" he asked "Why are Seeker's so valued and fawned over when they aren't necessarily the most important players?"
"No one said they weren't" Archie responded "The game ends when the Seeker catches the snitch, so, obviously, they would be the star attraction" he lectured "Also, in doing so they score the equivalent of fifteen goals in points which is usually only equalled rarely by a combination of three players working together" he said "Then there's the battles between the two Seekers and how they can disrupt plays, which is much more common on a professional level."
As if reading his thoughts, Charley Weasley swooped down and swatted away a pass that would have had Moran in the open to score another goal towards his own team mate before returning to circle the pitch.
"Okay, but given all of that, what do you think would be more valuable to a professional team, a world-class Chaser with good teamwork with his fellow chasers or a world-class Seeker?"
Archades stopped watching the game and turned to his friend in interest "Why do I get the feeling that my answer to this question will have serious repercussions for the Wizarding World and the world of Quidditch?" he asked with a grin which was mirrored by Harry.
Archades seemed to think for a bit with a calculative gleam in his eyes before answering "A world-class Seeker will always be more fun to watch, mainly because of their aerial acrobatics and fast paced battles, but a World-class Chaser can control a game much more easily with the assistance of his two other chasers and seeing as how Quidditch games on professional levels are played in a series of who scored most points, the Chasers would probably be more important" he answered "and hypothetically, if say, someone I knew wanted to play Quidditch, and that someone was really good at football, they would make more then a decent Chaser, especially if, hypothetically again, that person was a good centerfielder and was used to controlling the tempo of a game...hypothetically of course" he finished with a grin.
Harry chuckled "It's midfielder you git" he said, but he didn't correct his friend. Next year would definitely be interesting.
Harry watched Moran's playing style closely for the rest of the game. They seemed to keep up their relentless assault on the Gryffindor goals while the beaters and chasers ran interference on Weasley whenever he spotted the snitch.
The assault on the goals continued until the score was 210 – 50 to Slytherin and that point in the game marked a change in tactics for the Slytherin teem. It seemed that the Slytherin seeker had no delusions about beating Weasley to the Snitch, so Slytherin changed to a completely defensive playing style, no longer attacking unless they intercepted a Gryffindor attack and seeing as Gryffindor were more then 150 points down, they weren't focusing too much on defence.
By the time Weasley caught the snitch by performing a barrel roll on his broom then hanging upside down on it to avoid two bludgers aimed at his torso before catching it, the score was 260 – 50 to Slytherin, the Snitch making it 260 – 200, a Slytherin win.
Three quarters of the crowd seemed to be disappointed while the Slytherin students cheered wildly. Archades pointed out, rather amusingly in Harry's opinion, the normally cold Stephanie cheering just as wildly as her housemates while jumping up and down and waving her green and silver scarf in the air.
The Slytherin team were celebrating on the pitch; however, Moran rushed over to Weasley and shook his hand in a show of good sportsmanship that Weasley returned eagerly. Both walked off the pitch together talking animatedly about something no one could hear.
"I guess this is a perfect example of how a 'world-class' Chaser would be more valuable then a 'world-class' Seeker, eh?" Archades said with a chuckle as they both returned with their housemates back to the castle.
Harry stood outside the castle that had its lush green landscape covered in a blanket of fresh white snow with Cedric by his side. It was a week before Christmas and McGonagall had, earlier that month, had a form which students had to sign if they wished to return home for the holiday.
Archades and Stephanie had to stay at school because the Zabinis were on an important business trip to Japan for the rest of the month. Cedric and he however planned on returning home and taking the Hogwarts express together seeing as no one else Harry knew was going home for Christmas.
"We'll see you guys earlier next year, yeah?" offered Archie with a smile.
"Indeed" replied Harry "be sure not to accost Stephanie too much, she may not be as merciful without many witnesses around…" Harry supplied, suppressing a snort of amusement at Stephanie's 'evil' grin that she was currently sporting.
"Harry early Christmas guys, we better go Harry if we want to catch the train" Cedric said with as he bid his friends farewell. Harry nodded and wrapped his coat around him more to protect him from the cold.
"We'll see you guys in a week or so" Harry said in farewell and followed Cedric to Hogsmeade and the Hogwarts express.
Harry departed King's cross station after Cedric bid him farewell with a promise of gifts for Christmas.
"You have any idea what you want to do for the break then?" Remus asked his ward who was sitting beside him on the Knight Bus on their way to Knockturn Alley.
"Not really" Harry answered with a shrug "I've done all my homework so I figured I could help with whatever you planned on doing with that pub of yours and see mum on Christmas" he answered "I might need to get some gifts for a few people too, especially if they're getting me something" he said as an afterthought "what do you get someone you just met for Christmas?"
Remus grinned at Harry's obvious lack of knowledge with things like this "Get them something cheap, like a box of chocolate frogs; that way, if they don't get you anything in return they won't feel bad. If they do get you something, you know for next time to get something better" he answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"So" Remus said, after some silence "tell me about your new friends; you didn't go into much detail in your letters."
"There's Archades Montague" Harry answered, missing the dark look that passed over Remus's face at the mention of that name "he's kind of an idiot most of the time" Harry answered truthfully as Remus chuckled "but he's real good at potions and idolizes Professor Snape for his skill in the field…he also knows a lot about Quidditch but doesn't like to play…" he answered, after trying to think about what he knew of his friend, which regrettably wasn't much.
"He idolizes Severus?" Remus asked with amusement lacing his words "I'm sure he wasn't too happy about that."
"Yeah" Harry agreed "he's my partner in Potion's class so he's real uptight about doing well and impressing the professor" he said with a grin "he even scolds me for 'daring' to have the 'audacity' to warrant points being docked for my 'indecent' and 'moronic' behaviour" he said, accentuating certain words with air quotations when necessary.
Remus frowned at that "You're not causing trouble are you?"
Harry snorted "This coming from a marauder?" Harry asked, causing Remus to wince at the name of his childhood 'gang'.
"Touché" he conceded.
"No, I'm not getting in trouble, it seems Professor Snape is still bitter about what you guys did to him when you were children – he seems to be taking it out on me" he said with a shrug. When Remus looked concerned about that, Harry waved him off. It was no secret to the two of them what kind of things James Potter and Sirius Black, two of the Marauders and best friends, did to the miserable git of a Slytherin back when they were younger.
"Don't worry" he assured the man "he's more upset about the fact that he has no legitimate reason to punish a perfect student like me then having one to begin with" he assured with a smile.
Remus let out a bark of laughter "Any other friends?"
Harry shrugged "There's Stephanie and Cedric, but I'm closer to Archades I guess…Stephanie and Cedric are more Archades's friends" when he saw Remus looking at him with expectation he elaborated "Stephanie Zabini has is a Slytherin girl in our year who Archades has known for most of his life – she says he lives with her, I don't know why though, I was sure the Montagues were a well respected, still alive, pureblood family" Harry didn't miss the calculative gleam in Remus's eyes "They apparently live in their family villa in Italy but they still go to school here" Harry explained "I'm not sure why, the schools in Italy look much more fascinating without their ministry restricting the types of magic they can teach or the students they can take in" he said, in lecture mode.
"I'm well aware Lucky" Remus said with a chuckle, reverting to Harry's hated nickname "what about Cedric?"
"His name is Cedric Diggory; he's a cool enough guy; Hufflepuff. He really likes Quidditch and wants to try out like me next year" he said, ignoring the surprised look on his 'uncle's' face.
"You want to try out for Quidditch? I figured you'd be hounding me to find a summer football league for you to play on your holidays this year, I guess that's not the case anymore?"
Harry shrugged, noticing they were nearing the Leaky Cauldron by looking out the window of the bus "It looks really fun and aggressive; I wouldn't mind being a chaser, I still prefer football though" he confessed "but I may as well try out my luck with Quidditch if I'm going to be spending most of the next seven years of my life at Hogwarts."
"You thought about what position you'd want to be? Your father was a very talented Chaser you know" he said, getting Harry's interest "it was well known that he was offered a place on the English National team in his seventh year, but with the war going on he chose to become an Auror instead" Remus told in a wistful tone "he always used to lecture us, even if we didn't really care, that even though Seeker's got all the girls, Chasers were way more important to a Quidditch team's success" he said with a chuckle "I remember one summer he had done his hair in a certain way that made him look 'dashing' – or so Alice had told him – and fooled around with a snitch near your mother for hours. Peter called it 'Quidditch flirting'" Remus said with a fond smile, Harry chuckled, though was interested in the mentioning of Alive Longbottom – he reminded himself to ask about her at another time.
"Yeah, I wanted to try out for chaser too" Harry confessed "but this was before I knew of dad's skills at Quidditch – they really do seem to be the most important players of the team…in my opinion anyway."
Remus just ruffled his already messy hair before the bus came to a stop. They both disembarked, bidding the driver - Stan Shunpike – a good afternoon.
Remus led Harry through the busy Leaky Cauldron, out back, and straight into Diagon Alley. They continued to trek through the alley until they neared Gringotts before veering off and entering the dark and much quieter Knockturn Alley.
Knockturn Alley is a dark, twisting alley mainly devoted to the dark arts and dark creatures that the ministry either ban or disapprove of. Many 'light' sided families warn their children off from even stepping foot in the alley, and for good reason, for the alley was littered with dark and powerful objects, shady and unsavoury characters, prostitutes and numerous different types of creatures the ministry labels as 'dark'. These creatures were mostly just like his uncle, dark creatures who really couldn't go many other places to shop or eat without facing discrimination.
Thought technically, the ministry had just as much right to enforce the law in Knockturn Alley as they did in Diagon Alley and other parts of Wizarding England, they chose to turn a blind eye as long as nothing overly illegal is being done – nothing illegal that they know of anyway. This was the main reason Harry purchased the deed for a store front in one of the 'cleaner' parts of Knockturn Alley for Remus. Remus was always against charity and he knew that receiving money from the Potter family vault to raise him and living in a Potter owned home rubbed him the wrong way. This way, Remus could start his own business, earn some money and make his own way through life.
With the decision to open an inn, he could now live there instead of one of his houses, make his own money, provide a safe haven for people just like him – unjustly prosecuted werewolves, vampires, fae, goblins and dwarves – and live a happy life. It was the ultimate present for the man that had given him so much without asking for anything in return.
"Well, this is it" Remus said, motioning to the building they stood in front. Harry had never seen it, only having purchased the deed previously owned by Gringotts bank months ago with the only information being that it was one of the more sturdy and pleasant buildings in the alley – which wasn't saying much.
The building before them was squeezed between two other shops in the dark alley. The shops were 'Borgin & Burkes' and 'Meet-ya Creature'; the former a shop that sold barely legal artefacts – probably more if you asked correctly – and the latter a shop that sold all sorts of rare and exotic magical creatures – the kinds of which one wouldn't find in Diagon Alley.
The building itself was covered in ashen coloured wood with several large windows that would normally allow vision of the inside of the establishment were it not for the heavy curtains barring any view. There was a small flight of stairs leading up to a single, solid oak looking door with an antique looking bronze handle. Next to the small flight of stairs was a hatch that looked to be a passageway to get access to underneath the establishment. The building looked to be almost three stories tall and seemed to go far back showing that it was probably the largest building in the alley.
"That hatch leads to actual dungeons, not sure what I could use them for yet" said Remus, pointing to the hatch beside the stone stairs "and there are around twenty single rooms inside on both the second and third floors, lets go in shall we?" he asked, motioning Harry to enter.
Harry walked up the stairs, palming the black steel railing of the stairs as he ascended and opened the rather heavy door. He was surprised not to hear any squeaks of hinges or creaking of wood as he did so, however, when he crossed into the room, there was a bell noise that announced his entrance.
Looking to Remus in question, the man elaborated "I had Goblins enchant the hinges and door with permanent silencing charms and unbreakable charms; the same goes for the stair railing and the rest of the doors inside" he explained getting a look of understanding from Harry. Enchanting was the art of permanently charming an object to behave a certain way, or to change its base properties; it isn't referred to as 'charming', regardless of the similarities between the two because using charms are only temporary whereas when one Enchants an object, it is permanent.
Harry was surprised then when the lanterns on the walls all lit up and illuminated the room to see that instead of a dreary and dusty looking inn, he was privy to a somewhat comfortable environment that Harry mused would suit a tavern/ inn perfectly. The room was fairly large with a twelve foot ceiling littered with sturdy oak tables of different sizes seating to as little as two and a maximum of eight in different, synchronized locations. There was also a feature fireplace with a walk in firepit allowing for Floo travel at the head of the room surrounded by several comfortable looking couches and small coffee tables. Towards the back of the room was the bar counter that looked rather roomy with ten stools situated around it. Within the bar were several shelves to store alcohol or other beverages, he assumed, and a door most likely leading to what could be a kitchen – he hoped Lizzy would approve.
On the opposite end of the large room a large set of stairs leading to the upper levels that had lanterns leading up with them to illuminate the passageway of the tenants in the dark. Looking at the high ceiling, there was also two large plain chandeliers that held several candles in them adding more light to the room that could no doubt be seen through the thick crimson curtains covering the windows.
"What do you think?" asked Remus, sounding anxious after Harry's silent observation. Harry just turned to him and smiled at the anxious man.
"I think its wonderful Remus" he said, smiling more when the man let out a sigh of relief, it was nice to know his opinion was valued "Have you thought of a name for the place?"
"Erm…I was thinking 'Moony Nights', you know because of my nickname and the nature of this…"
"It's a fine name Remus" Harry said, cutting off his uncle's ramblings (I am going to refer to him as such as guardian seems too informal and cold) "have you started on the kitchen or hiring staff?"
Remus shook his head in the negative "As much as I appreciate this place Harry, Knockturn Alley isn't a nice place – I am waiting to get all the cheap furnishings and warding on the place done so we don't get thieves stealing valuables before we are up and running."
Harry conceded the point "Do you want me to research some wards we could try and cast on the place? I have to admit I am kind of excited about the prospect of starting as soon as possible" he said, getting in full 'research mode' and taking out a matchbox sized trunk from his pocket. Before Remus could stop him, Harry whipped out his wand from its holster and pointed it at the trunk on the floor.
"Engorgio"
Remus's breath caught and waited for some punishment to arrive in the form of a letter from the ministry. It was a well known fact that it was forbidden for any wizard or witch to perform magic outside of school until the age of their majority and anyone caught breaking the rule was severely punished – he'd doubt Harry would get in that much trouble for such a harmless charm, but he would at least get a warning and his name on record regardless.
As Harry rummaged through his trunk, Remus was stumped that the usual prompt Ministry owl had yet to arrive. Going to the door, he opened it and looked to the darkening sky through the dark rooftops of Knockturn Alley to see only two owls flying but neither of them heading in their direction.
"Remus, what're you doing?" Harry called from inside.
Closing the door and locking it with the heavy steel latches he had attached and had enchanted unbreakable by twisting a knob, he turned to Harry and coughed in his hand to get his attention.
"Harry, I have something you'll probably want to know that you overlooked in your rush to research our latest problem" he said with a grin that Harry learned to interpret as 'I know something you don't know' – it was a grin he hated.
"What is it Remus, I'm busy" he said distractedly as he continued to rummage through his trunk.
"Nothing much, but I must commend you on your excellent use of magic right there, quite a wonderful display of mastery of the enlarging charm" he said with a grin as he saw Harry's shoulder's stiffen as the boy looked to him with a shocked face.
"Ohshit!" he cursed, ignoring the admonishing of Remus for using bad language.
"What are we going to do? Can we give you my wand and just say you did it..."
"Harry…"
"What about leaving real quickly so the Ministry Owl can't find us?"
"Harry!"
"What would happen if we kill the owl and burn the letter?" he asked, sounding hopeful but still ignoring Remus.
"HARRY!"
"What?!" he yelled in anger, however it quickly dissipated when he saw the grin on Remus's face.
"Kill the owl?" Remus asked in amusement; Harry was about to deck the man before he interrupted him again.
"I have come to realize the sudden absence of a ministry owl even given the fact you have performed an illegal act of underage sorcery…"
Harry looked around and realized this statement was quite true. He then ran to the window, spreading the curtain and looking around outside to try and spot any owl only to find none. Realization then dawned on the eleven year old.
"Oh…this is awesome!"
"Indeed" Remus replied, agreeing.
"How do you suppose that happened? It hasn't got anything to do with this building, does it?"
Remus shrugged "I very much doubt it, but I do remember a rather fascinating story behind that wand of yours."
Suddenly Harry's eyes flashed in realization "Ollivander didn't make this wand…do you think he puts monitoring charms that are relayed to the ministry on every wand he sells so they can track underage sorcery?"
Remus nodded "I don't know, but it seems plausible, and if it were true it would explain why we are receiving no letter now for you doing so, after all, he did say he didn't make your wand."
There was silence in the candlelit room for several moments only to be broken by Harry.
"Oh…this is awesome!"
"Indeed."
Harry had spent most of his time forcing Remus to teach him as many spells as he could during their short time together to the holidays while they worked together to begin the processes of getting 'Moony Nights' off the ground.
The first thing they needed to do was get wards placed over the premises, similar and hopefully more advanced then the ones over other inns in the area; the only difference being theirs would need to be more powerful, due to their inn's location. This of course would mean that it would cost them more coin, but it was coin well spent in their opinion if it meant keeping their establishment safe.
Harry expressed his irritations at not being able to ward the property himself but Remus had told him that warding any property within the borders of England not only requires the skill and magical power necessary to erect the wards, but also a licence to prove you are proficient in the art and the permission of the ministry who like to keep track of who wards what on their soil. It would not be good business on their behalf if half of their land was erased due to people removing locations off the map with charms that make locations a secret to all but those who make the wards.
It was now Christmas morning when Harry awoke in the bedroom he claimed as his own in Moony Nights and got ready for the festivities of the day; when he left his room to go downstairs, he made sure to take his mother's guitar with him.
Harry arrived downstairs to see the poorly decorated Christmas tree in the corner of the main room of the inn that Remus and he had created with the man himself sitting by it in one of the comfortable couches reading today's 'Daily Prophet' – it seemed that even on Christmas, the press never rested.
"Morning Harry and Happy Christmas" Remus greeted, planting a kiss on the boy's forehead and retaking his seat by the fireplace before the boy could protest.
Harry went over to the tree to see several gifts from several people other then the standard ones between Remus and himself. There were gifts from Archades, Cedric, Stephanie and Professor Flitwick respectively. The gifts from his school friends were nothing extravagant - like they promised - chocolates and sweets mainly while the gift from his professor was something he definitely appreciated – a book on advanced and abstract charms with a note saying he had given his mother the same thing in her fifth year. He was beginning to really like this professor.
Remus's gift had definitely been something he had not been expecting – a full Quidditch game set including a Quaffle, two bludgers, a golden snitch and two beater bats with Quidditch plays and tactics books included in the gift. The box it was in kept rattling as if it were containing a live animal due to the violent bludgers being restrained inside. Remus had said his father had received a similar gift when he had first expressed an interest in Quidditch as a child from his parents.
Harry had given the man a magical device that was designed to store memories so that you can review them at a later date – a Pensieve. The stone basin like device was covered in many complicated runes and aids the owner in relieving the mind of cluttered information and also allows them the ability to review the memory at any time in a third person point of view. The man seemed to like the gift if the bone crushing hug he gave him was anything to go by – it must have had something to do with reliving his memories of happier times with his best friends.
Harry left Remus to his own business at the inn while he went about his own business for the rest of the day, business involving his mother, her guitar and himself.
Harry stepped through the magical entrance of St. Mungo's hospital by passing through the window of what appeared to be a derelict department store called Purge and Dowse Ltd. The inside of the hospital was very neat, sterile and tidy, just what one would expect from any hospital, and all the nurses and doctors wore lime green robes.
Flashing a card to show his identity and his reason for being here, the receptionist that was working that day – recognizing him – smiled at him sadly and motioned him towards the elevator which opened with a 'ding' as he approached it.
Passing another guard who waved him through as he approached the permanent spell damage ward, he approached a single bed housing a beautiful woman with pale white skin and long and wavy red hair that fanned out behind her motionless head. The only sign that the woman was still alive was the slow, rhythmic sounds of her breathing. Harry sat in the couch beside the bed with a neutral expression on his face.
"Happy Christmas mum" he greeted "I'm back again, like I promised I always would be" he said, his voice breaking but only slightly "You should probably know I started school this year…"
Harry proceeded to have a one sided conversation with his mother about his time so far at school, the friends he's made, his impression of the professors and what he has learned. He also mentioned how he and Remus were doing and the beginnings of 'Moony Nights'.
When Harry stopped talking, mainly because he honestly couldn't think of anything else to say, he took out her guitar and began to play the one song he felt connected him with his mother the most, oblivious to those listening in.
"You say he comes in every year?" said a young nurse while looking at the monitor which observed visitors in the permanent spell damage ward.
"He's been coming for year, since he was eight I think" said an older nurse as the two listened to the boy play the tune the older of the two had come to recognize.
"It's so sad…for a boy to spend his Christmas days like this…" the younger nurse said, her eyes watery.
"I think its beautiful" the older one replied, with a determined look on her face "not many would feel so dedicated to anyone like that to be so thoughtful and keep coma patients company" she paused "especially not a boy his age."
The younger nurse giggled as Harry began to play a rather difficult looking part of the song "He's so cute though, don't you think?"
The older woman looked down at the nurse in training with an amused look "Dear, he's only eleven, but I do suppose he'd be single then."
The younger nurse let out a laugh and slapped her mentor playfully "Oh shush you!"
The two continued to watch on this rather slow day for them as the boy spent the majority of the day beside his mother until visiting hours were over.