This was just a basic HP fanfic that was never really named, but the file name was "Swiftclaw" so I called it that. It was going to be OVERLOADED with MarySues
and GaryStus... but oh well xD I also got reamed somewhere by someone saying "WTF British kids don't graduate!!" Which... I had no idea they didn't. This was
going to house information about the first Simon x) I wrote it after GoF (obviously) so several of the things that have happened so far won't be mentioned here x)
They're in their seventh year in this one.
Enjoy your final year at Hogwarts and remember to keep in touch.
With Love, Sirius
Harry Potter slowly folded his latest letter from his godfather and heaved a great sigh. It seemed like only yesterday he was stepping into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the first time. Now he was preparing for his seventh and final year.
Harry had just recently turned seventeen and he had changed a lot in the last few years. He looked in the mirror as he laid his letter on his desk. His green eyes shined from behind his circular glasses. They had gotten darker over the years and they were now a lovely forest green. His black hair was just the way he liked it: messy. It was not too long and not too short. He had had the same style for as long as he could remember. He reached up and scuffled his hair even more. He looked in the mirror again.
The image had changed; he could now see his scar where his hair had parted. Harry Potter was widely known for this scar. Wizards everywhere recognized the lightning bolt-shape on his forehead over his right eye.
Harry's parents had died when he was very young at the hands of the Dark Lord, Lord Voldemort. When Voldemort then turned to kill Harry, his curse was repelled and Harry survived the most dangerous of all curses with just a scar. That incident had put Voldemort out of business for a long time. Witches and Wizards everywhere were overjoyed that Voldemort's reign of terror had ended.
However Harry never got a chance to enjoy the limelight. He was immediately whisked away to go live with his terrible aunt, uncle, and cousin. There he grew up as a suppressed boy until the Wizarding world finally got a hold of him and took him to Hogwarts where he could learn to be a Wizard like he had been born. This had all been a shock for Harry who had lived with the Dursleys telling him his parents had died in a car wreck and that he was normal like all of the rest of the kids in his city.
Harry found his true home at Hogwarts. There he was accepted; he made friends, and lived the life his parents had led. He always counted down the days until the Hogwarts Express would take all of the students to the school for the school year.
He glanced over at his calendar. Only two days. He thought as he looked over to the wall where his trunk was already packed for school. He had done his shopping at Diagon Alley last week with his two best friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. They had picked up schoolbooks and supplies for that year in the local Wizarding Street for Wizarding supplies.
He was going to stay at Ron's house that night and the next day before the train left for Hogwarts. He normally did so because the Dursleys didn't want to have anything to do with Harry and his Wizarding ways.
He was now killing the time in his room before Ron came to pick him up. Ron was going to come to Harry's house by Floo Powder again this year. Harry didn't really like walking through fires. It brought back bad memories of his first year at Hogwarts. He shuddered at the thought.
"Boy!" came a screechy voice that broke Harry's train of thought. "Your friend is here."
Harry immediately stormed downstairs. He saw Ron's smiling freckly face sticking out of the fireplace. Ron's lofty figure then followed it. Harry could have sworn Ron grew about three inches every year. Now he was one of the tallest boys in school.
"Ron!" breathed Harry in relief of seeing a friendly face.
"Well, don't just stand there gawking, Harry" came another voice as Fred and George Weasley emerged. "Let's get your things. Come on."
Dudley gave a shriek and hid behind his mom, which didn't help much considering the fact that Harry's Aunt Petunia could fit her entire body into the sleeves of Dudley's overly large shirts. Dudley had probably gained about 50 pounds each year. He could now barely fit through the doors of 4 Privet Drive.
George flashed a smile at Dudley "Hey buddy. How have you been?"
"You... you stay away!" warned Uncle Vernon as he held up a fire prong as if to fend Ron's brothers back. "I haven't forgotten you!"
Harry took the three Weasleys up to his pint-sized room and they helped with his bundle. Ron noticed Sirius's letter.
"How is he?" Ron asked as he picked up the letter.
"He's fine." said Harry. "He was just wishing me luck this year in school and asking me what I'm going to do once I graduate from Hogwarts."
"Have you decided yet?" asked Ron as he stuffed the letter into Harry's trunk.
"Of course not." said Harry rather crossly. "I wish people would leave me alone about it."
"Right." said Ron, "I forgot that was such a touchy subject..."
"Hey, I'm just getting sick of people writing me so many letters about it."
"Well, at least people care about you and have concern for how you will fare as an adult." said Ron as he lifted one end of Harry's trunk.
Ron was right. A lot of adults had been looking out for him for his entire life. They wanted to see him become a successful wizard. He didn't want to let them down, but he didn't want them constantly breathing down his neck either. After all, he was pretty much an adult now. He didn't need people looking after him.
After they had lugged all of Harry's stuff downstairs, they took it all through the fire. Harry jumped out into the Weasley's living room of their house, the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley was standing there waiting for him.
"Harry!" she cried as she rushed to enfold him in a hug. "How are you?" Mrs. Weasley had been like Harry's foster mom. She was always looking out for him as if he was one of her many children.
Arthur Weasley came in and gave Harry a hug too. "Ready to start your seventh year, Harry?" he asked.
"Yes sir!" said Harry as he and Ron carried his trunk up to Ron's room.
Ron's room hadn't changed. It was still decked out in orange with the Chudley Cannons flying from poster to poster.
Harry noticed Ron look at one longingly and then set Hedwig's cage down. Harry opened the cage and let Hedwig get out to stretch. "Looking forward to it this year?" Harry asked Ron.
Ron's face lit up. He knew exactly what Harry was talking about: Quidditch. "You bet!" he said. "And Gryffindor has the best captain ever!"
Harry smiled and shook his head. Ron had been a chaser on the Gryffindor team for two years already and this year he was the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain. Harry knew this had been Ron's dream since he was little, so he was about as excited for this year as Ron was.
That night they stayed up talking. They talked about how Hermione had gotten a car from her parents as a present for being Head Girl. According to her letters when they found out they were so proud that they decided to get her a car as a Head Girl, Graduation, and early birthday present.
It sounded like Hermione was really getting a lot of attention. In her letters she would often talk about her old friends from her school that she went to before Hogwarts. They were still friends with her and they thought she attended a boarding school somewhere in the country. She tried to keep it a secret from them that she was a witch. She didn't want people freaking out. Besides, the Ministry of Magic kept tabs on situations like that because they don't want Muggles knowing anything about wizardry.
The next day they hung out at the burrow and played around. They helped clear the gnomes from Mrs. Weasley's garden and then Mr. Weasley showed Harry his latest treasure: a teapot.
"Isn't it great?" swooned Mr. Weasley. "Muggles put water in it and then put it on fire to make the water hot. Then it whistles when the water is hot enough. I was lucky to get one of these!"
Harry smiled. One man's trash was obviously another man's treasure at the Weasley's house. Mr. Weasley was fascinated by muggle objects and collected them.
Mr. Weasley started pouring gasoline all over the teapot. Then he lit a match, "Listen for the whistle!" he said.
"No... no, Mr. Weasley, that's not how you..." started Harry but with no avail when the garage burst into flames.
"Agghh!" screamed Ron as he started stamping on a nearby rag in order to put the fire out.
Mr. Weasley yelled an extinguishing charm and the fire disappeared.
All three of them stood there with blackened faces and burnt clothes and stared at each other. No one had gotten hurt, but Harry broke into laughter.
"What?" asked Mr. Weasley. "Oh dear, I think he's gone delirious. Ron, go get your mother!"
"No." chortled Harry because Mr. Weasley had obviously misinterpreted 'put it on fire'. "I'm fine, it's just... why don't I help you make some hot water, Mr. Weasley?"
"Splendid!" cheered Mr. Weasley as he picked up the now black teapot. "We'll have tea with our dinner and it'll be made the old fashioned way!"
Mrs. Weasley was horrified at the sight of them and immediately told them all to go wash up. When they came back, they had dinner and sure enough, real tea. It was a little strong because Mr. Weasley had completely saturated it with flavorings, but his well-meaning family choked it down anyway. It was worth it to see him beaming like that.
After dinner Fred and George fought Harry and Ron in a battle including colliding levitating furniture in the front yard. It was the Weasley boys' favorite pastime much like Dudley and his friends playing Play Station.
When they had had enough, they quickly charmed the furniture to repair and went inside. Mrs. Weasley told them to go to bed because tomorrow was a big day. Harry, Ron, and Ron's sister Ginny would be going to platform nine and three quarters to catch the Hogwarts Express and Fred and George would be going back to Hogsmeade to work at Zonko's, a Wizarding joke shop. Mrs. Weasley had first refused when they told her they wanted to apply there, but when they pointed out they'd be working, living on their own, and acting like responsible adults, she caved.
The next morning, to their disgust, Mr. Weasley had made more tea. They choked it down again and then gathered up their things.
Another member of Mr. Weasley's collection was a beat up old pick-up truck. He had gotten it a few years ago (with a lot of Ron and Harry's help) as repayment for what they had done to his Anglia.
Mr. Weasley crammed him, Harry, Ron and Ginny into the truck with all of their stuff in the back. The car looked like it would have quit working eighty years ago, but Mr. Weasley had bewitched it to run perfectly.
It was a crowded ride and it was long. Harry felt kind of awkward sitting next to Ginny. She had had a crush on him since the moment he first stayed at the burrow. Fortunately for him, it had died away a few years ago, but now he almost wished she did still like him. She had grown quite a lot, and for Ron's once scrawny little sister, she had become nothing less from being gorgeous. Her red hair was now just past shoulder length and her freckled face was always sporting a big, beautiful smile.
Ron, however, was always the last to notice things like this and treated her no different.
When they arrived at King's Cross, Mr. Weasley helped them unload their things and they wheeled them over to the wall entrance through the wall to Platform Nine and Three Quarters. Mr. Weasley said goodbye and then immediately took off following a frightened looking teenage muggle boy with a CD headset like Mr. Weasley had never seen.
"Hey, can I see that?" they heard Mr. Weasley say as they walked through the wall into the Platform.
Harry looked around. He could see tons of parents saying goodbye to their kids. He saw a lot of scared looking first years and then some other faces that looked familiar.
"Have you seen Hermione?" Harry asked Neville Longbottom as he walked by them.
"Oh, I just saw her out in King's Cross." said Neville as he turned to a nearby kid and asked if they had seen a toad anywhere.
"Let's go find her!" said Ron as Ginny left them for her best friend, Shannon Anderson.
Harry and Ron left their stuff with an Express attendant and ran back through the wall. "There she is!" said Harry as he spotted Hermione's long wavy brown hair.
All the sudden they stopped. She was talking to someone. They both ducked behind a pillar and watched. It was a guy. Someone they had never seen before.
"Probably one of her muggle friends." muttered Harry as he turned to Ron. Ron was just watching blankly and the tops of his ears had gone slightly pink.
They couldn't hear what she was saying, but they saw her wave goodbye. As soon as she turned back towards them, they were right there.
"Oh!" she said as she jumped a little. "You guys startled me!"
"Who was that?" Ron asked before she had even finished.
"Oh." She said as she flushed slightly. "Just a friend from school."
"School?" asked Ron, "Where's he goin'? The Train's this way. Oy!" He yelled after the boy.
"Ron!" said Hermione as she grabbed his arm to hold him back and went even redder. "He doesn't go to Hogwarts!"
Ron raised an eyebrow and gave her a confused look.
"I took some classes at a local college this summer and he was in one of them. I talked to Professor McGonagall and okayed it with her. I got Muggle Studies credits for taking classes there."
"Right." Harry spoke for the first time. "Summer school. I should have guessed."
Hermione blushed again and then changed the subject. "Will you two help me get my chest please?" She said as she lifted the kennel with Crookshanks in it.
Harry and Ron both got all of her stuff and heaved it back to Platform Nine and Three Quarters.
"Ugh!" exclaimed Ron as they set it by the attendants. "What have you got in there?"
"Books and clothes." she said.
"What are you changing your wardrobe to chain mail?"
Hermione went scarlet yet again. "No!" she said defensively. "Just my school robes, clothes and dress robes for the ball!"
"Ball?" asked Harry.
"Yes, ball." said Hermione as she busied herself and pretended to lock the already locked chest. "The Seventh Year Ball held for seventh years. You remember, don't you?"
"Oh." said Harry. "Right."
"Well, let's board shall we?" said Ron as he turned towards the train. Harry noticed his ears had gone slightly pink yet again. "Oh!" he said as he whirled around and almost smacked into Hermione. "Do you want help with that?" He said looking at her small purse sized carry on bag.
"I think I can handle it." said Hermione with a strange look.
Ron whirled back around and they continued to walk. Harry wondered what had gotten into him but mentioned nothing about it.
They arrived early so they got a first choice of cabins. They sat in it with the door closed and talked as they listened to people boarding the train.
They were just talking about classes they were taking this year when the door burst open. "Well what would you have done?" they heard.
A girl had walked in and stopped dead in her tracks. "Oh, I'm sorry." she said, "I didn't know anyone was in here."
Her cheeks went slightly pink as she prepared to back out but ran backwards into her companion.
Harry recognized her at once. She was a Gryffindor Beater. She had shoulder length auburn hair and auburn eyes. She was a seventh year also.
"Hey it's okay, Jessi." He said. "You two can stay in here if you want, we'll make room."
He hadn't even seen who was with her, but he already knew. It was Jessi's best friend and Head Boy, Brian Hardy, a Hufflepuff.
"Oh, Brian!" said Hermione who hadn't seen him yet either, but called him to enter the cabin. "Did you get the notice from Professor Dumbledore?"
Brian entered the cabin. He was tall and had short dark hair and brown eyes. "Yeah," he said. "What were we supposed to do tonight?"
Ron and Harry let Hermione and Brian do their official Head Student talks so they could talk Quidditch with Jessi.
"Congratulations on getting captain, Ron." said Jessi with a smile.
She had been a Beater ever since the year Fred and George, the previous Gryffindor Beaters, had left. She was pretty good at it. She was muggle born so she had played softball as a young girl and as a result was good with a bat.
"Thanks!" said Ron as he began to glow.
"I don't care what anyone says," said Harry, "I want the Quidditch Cup if it kills me!"
"I know where you're coming from." said Ron. "Previous years mean nothing. This is the year it all counts."
They continued talking until someone else opened the door.
"Ah, I was wondering when I'd find you." said a voice as the person came into view.
It was none other than Draco Malfoy.
"So what, do you go looking for us every time you board this train?" asked Ron crossly.
"Just thought I'd tell you not to get your hopes up for Gryffindor this year." said Draco. "Slytherin is going to dominate in every way possible! After all, I am the Team Captain this tear."
"Well then that is precisely the reason Gryffindor will win." said Harry.
"What's that?" asked Draco.
"Have you forgotten who you're up against?" asked Ron. "We aren't going to let anything stand in our way!"
Draco scowled as his eyes wandered around the cabin. "Jessi? What are you doing with these losers?"
It was well known that Jessi was the only person in the school who was friends with both Draco and Harry. She said Draco had some good qualities once you got to know him but Ron and Harry refused to believe it.
Jessi sighed, "Draco," she said. "We're just talking about Quidditch techniques for this year. Must you always pick a fight with them?"
"Oh, we're losers, are we?" asked Ron as he stood up.
"Come on, I'm starved! Let's go find the goodie cart!" said Jessi as she sensed tension and grabbed Draco's arm and dragged him out of the room.
The door shut behind them but Ron remained standing. "I swear." Harry heard him mumble. "One more word out of his mouth and I'll..."
Hermione and Brian who had stopped their in-depth conversation on ancient runes to watch the sparring had now resumed talk.
"Oh!" said Harry hoping to take Ron's mind off Draco. "The train's leaving!"
But Ron remained focused. "Why does she hang out with him anyway? She's the only Gryffindor who does. Much less, she's on our Quidditch team! You think she'd have a little more pride! Conversing with the enemy. What does she think she's..."
But Hermione who stood up and put her hands on her hips cut him off. "Honestly, Ron! You're beginning to sound just like Oliver Wood. Don't let this Captain thing go to your head."
"I won't!" said Ron defensively. "If you stop being big headed about being Head Girl!"
Hermione's hands dropped and hung. "You... you think I'm big headed?"
"No, I..." said Ron who had instantly regretted what he had just said, "I... was just using an example, I uh..."
Brian and Harry both stared in amazement.
"Why are you always finding ways to put me down, Ronald Weasley?" shrieked Hermione. "I think I deserve a little more credit!"
"So now I'm the bad guy, is that it?" shouted Ron. "Always bad Ron, bad Ron!"
"That's not what I said!" said Hermione as her eyes watered up.
"I'm back!" said Jessi as she opened the door and shut it loudly without even noticing the tenseness in the room. "Look!" she said. "I got some Bertie Bott's Beans and a few Chocolate Frogs. Want some?"
Brian and Harry who were relieved that she had stopped the eruption between Ron and Hermione were quick to grab some. Ron and Hermione both slumped into their seats with a loud thump.
Harry, Jessi, and Brian then had fun finding the gross flavors and making funny faces. Ron even got over his pout fest and joined in. He made a face so funny that Hermione laughed and things between them settled.
After that, the train started to slow. They all looked towards the window.
"Well, said Harry as he stood up and stretched "Looks like we're here!"
They all gathered up their things and piled off the train.
"Firs' Years over here!" bellowed a familiar voice. Brian and Jessi headed towards the castle as Harry, Ron, and Hermione ran towards Hagrid.
"Hey, Harry, Ron, and Hermione!" said the giant as he towered over them. "How are you all?"
They stayed and talked to him before they were herded inside with all of the other Hogwarts students.
This was one of their favorite times of the year: the Sorting Ceremony. They all took their seats at their respected tables and watched the nervous stream of first years flow into the Great Hall.
One by one, the Sorting Hat sorted them; each house cheering loudly with each new addition. Harry thought back to his time underneath the Sorting Hat. What an experience!
After that, they all headed up to the seventh floor where the entrance to the Gryffindor Tower was. The crowd as usual stopped outside the portrait of the fat lady and waited until Hermione came shoving through. "Excuse me!" she was saying. "Move out of my way, please, I'm Head Girl!"
Ron gave a sidelong glance to Harry as she finally got to the front of the crowd.
"May I have your attention, please?" she yelled trying to quiet the Gryffindors who were chatting excitedly. "The new password is Goat Hide."
The fat lady nodded as the portrait swung open, much to the delight of the first years, and all of the Gryffindors went in and up to their dorms.
Harry flopped down onto his bed. It's good to be home. He thought as he grabbed the pillow and put it under his head.
Seamus Finnigan, Neville Longbottom, and Dean Thomas were there too. They all shared a room with Harry and Ron.
That night Harry slept the best he had in a long time. It was a good thing, too, because classes would start tomorrow. He was taking Transfiguration, Potions, Charms, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and a new one this year, Wizarding Professions. It was all about jobs Wizard Graduates could do and it gave them basic skills for those jobs.
Unfortunately he had Potions tomorrow. He hated that class because he hated Professor Snape. With that thought, he finally drifted off to sleep.
In the morning, he and Ron met Hermione in the Great Hall where she was reading the Daily Prophet. "What's new?" They asked as they sat down beside her.
"Oh, this and that." She said as she adjusted her reading spectacles. "No recent attacks from You-Know-Who, but there have been a few mysterious kidnappings. No connection between them of course. Oh! The Chudley Cannons won last night!"
Ron dove to grab the paper. "They did, they really did!"
"Don't sound so surprised, Ron!" said Harry. "They can't lose them all!"
"Good morning class!" said Professor Lupin as the class walked in. Gryffindor had DADA with Hufflepuff this year. "It's good to see all of you again!"
Hermione, Ron and Harry shot glances at each other. He was, without a doubt, their favorite teacher.
"You guys are in a real treat this year." said Professor Lupin as he shoved his briefcase aside. Now that he had worked at Hogwarts for a few years, he had finally been able to afford nice clothes and accessories.
"I have okayed it with Professor Dumbledore and I have talked to Hagrid who has agreed to work conjointly with me..."
"What?" asked Hermione who was hardly able to stand the suspense.
"We will be working with Dragons this year." Professor Lupin announced.
Harry noticed Jessi shoot a glance to Brian who nodded and stared intently at Lupin.
"We'll be spending our class learning about protecting yourself and dealing with dragons..." Lupin continued.
"I wish I would have had this before my fourth year!" Harry muttered to Ron and Hermione. They both smothered laughs.
"... and in Hagrid's class you will be learning how to care for them and take care of them." Lupin finished. "We will spend the second half of the year working on defense against curses and the like. Heaven knows you'll all need it." He shot a quick glance at Harry and then told them all to turn to chapter 18 - Dealing with Dragons and read it thoroughly.
Ron groaned. "I hate reading." he said to Harry because Hermione had already started pouring over her book. Brian and Jessi had too.
"Come on," said Harry, "It'll be fun! Besides, wouldn't you like to know what to do if Hagrid gets another mysterious egg from a cloaked stranger?"
"That's not funny, Harry." said Ron although he couldn't suppress his smile.
"Now really!" shot Hermione, "I'm trying to read! This is very interesting. Did you know that dragons are extremely ticklish? Isn't that fascinating?"
Harry thought she was probably the only one who thought so, but Brian had overheard. "I never knew that." he said as he leaned in to look at her book. "There's so much I don't know!"
"Wonderful." Said Ron, "I'll bet our final will be on who can get the closest to one to tickle it without becoming a roasted marshmallow!"
After Defense Against the Dark Arts, they had potions, their least favorite class.
"Yippee." said Ron sarcastically as they walked down the steps to the Dungeons. "I've been looking forward to this all summer!"
Suddenly someone ran right through him and Hermione and almost knocked them both over. Hermione's bag flew out of her hands and all of her books and papers scattered everywhere.
"Hurry, hurry!" came Draco's voice. "You don't want to be late on your first day back!"
Harry scowled and helped Hermione with her books, but Ron had taken off.
"You!" he was shouting, "Get back here!"
Draco, who was running at a proud gait, had noticed that Ron was after him and yipped like a dog and changed to a bolting sort of run.
Ron was gaining just as Draco ducked into the classroom. As soon as Ron turned the corner into the classroom, he ran into something hard and fell backwards to land on his bum. He looked up and rubbed his nose to see Professor Snape towering over him like a big black raptor just waiting to strike.
"I will not have running in these dungeons." came his cold voice.
"But Malfoy..." started Ron in a stuffed up voice because he was holding his nose.
"That will be ten points from Gryffindor." Snape continued. "Don't let me catch you doing it again."
Ron took a deep breath to keep from jumping up to kill Snape and walked slowly back to Hermione and Harry who were just finishing cleaning up her books.
"Did you get him good?" asked Harry as Ron approached.
"No." said Ron. "Snape got me good, though. Ten points from Gryffindor and we haven't even been here a whole day!"
"Let me see." said Hermione as she walked up to Ron who was still holding his nose. However, he wouldn't let go.
"Ron!" she said. "How bad are you hurt?"
Ron's ears went pink as he let Hermione's small hands pull his away from his face. she gasped. "Oh, Ron!" she said as she looked at his hands that were covered in blood. "Honestly, must you always be angered so easily?"
She took a handkerchief from her pocked and soaked it with a water spell. Then she handed it to him. "Here, clean up so you don't go into Potions looking like you just jousted with a bull."
Ron took her handkerchief and cleaned up. Harry was sure he'd have a bruise tomorrow. He bet Malfoy would get a kick out of that!
"Have a nice fall?" asked Malfoy loudly as the trio walked into the room just barely on time.
"Come off it, Malfoy." said Harry as Snape ordered them to sit down.
"This will be the most important year of your Potions lives." said Snape with a strange glint in his eye. "I will be teaching you the potions that every Hogwarts graduate should know."
Harry, Ron and Hermione glanced at each other. It was going to be a long year.
After Potions was lunch. They were all relieved to get out of there. As they climbed the steps from the Dungeon they heard a commotion ahead of them. Some of the 6th and 7th year boys were talking in the Entrance Hall.
"Have you heard?" they were saying.
"What?" Harry and Ron asked as they approached the circle.
"The new teacher for Wizarding Professions, Professor Kelley, is in there."
"So?" said Ron. "What's so great about him?"
"It's not a him," said Dean Thomas, "That's why it's so great! You guys should just see her!"
The entire group of guys all peeked into the doors to the Great Hall and stared up at the teacher's table. There, in long, light blue robes was a new face. She was tall and shapely with short blonde hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. She was talking to Professor McGonagall.
"That's her?" said Ron as his mouth gaped open.
"How old is she?" asked Seamus Finnigan. "Surely she can't be that much older than us, she looks so young!"
"She's probably old enough to be your mother!" said Hermione as she broke into the middle of their circle, grabbed the arms of Harry and Ron and began to drag them into the Great Hall. "Honestly, you two!" she said. "School is about learning, not about gawking over professors!"
But Harry noticed she had turned slightly pink. Was it because she really cared about the dignity of the professors or was it that she had gone slightly jealous?
When everyone had taken their seats, the food magically appeared on their plates and they began to eat. The food was delicious, as usual, but half of the minds in that room were not thinking about that.
"We have that class this afternoon after Herbology." said Dean as he shoveled some more chicken onto his plate.
"How old do you reckon she is?" asked Seamus again.
Hermione's eyes narrowed as she dabbed her mouth with her napkin.
"I wonder if she's married."
"Now really!" said Hermione as she stood up. "This is not a fellow student, this is your teacher! You boys are talking about her as if she were just a regular schoolgirl. I hope you treat her with more respect in her classroom!"
All five of them stared at her. "Can't we have any fun?"
Hermione blushed. "Well... not like this... I mean, she's... well, she's a teacher. Treat her with respect..." but her words faded out as lunch was now over.
They all stood up and headed the charms classroom.
"Good afternoon, class." said Professor Flitwick as he bounced up to them and held the door. He was now barely waist high on all of the kids now that they were in their seventh year.
"Hope you're ready with your wands, because today we have a ton of stuff to catch up on!"
Some people in the class groaned, but Harry was excited. He liked Charms. He wasn't the best at it, but he still found it interesting. He had vowed, however, to never say such a thing in front of Hermione.
"First part of the year we will be going over basic charms and learning more basic charms. Then we'll move onto the hard stuff."
That class was spent doing grueling work. No one could remember all of the Charms they had learned (with the exception of Hermione) because they had all forgotten them over the summer.