Emma Melody Vane: Harry Potter Fanfic

Boggart

Emma's POV

I visited Draco in the hospital wing. He was ok according to Madame Pomfrey. But it seemed like he was still in a lot of pain. Snape made Harry and Ron cut u his potion ingredients for him during potions. It felt great to be able to make a potion on my own for the first time.

But now it's time for our first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson with Professor Lupin. Who has taken us to the staff room for a practical lesson. I'm a little unsure of it, because of what happened last year. But Fay assures me everything would be fine.

Professor Lupin stands next to a wardrobe that wobbles and rattles. "Nothing to worry about" he assures us. "There's a Boggart in there" he tells us. I raise my hand. "Yes, Emma?" he asks.

"What is a boggart?" I ask him curious.

"A very good question, can anyone answer it?" he asks the class. Hermione put up her hand. "Hermione" he says.

"It's a shape-shifter, it can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most" Hermione states.

"Couldn't have put it better myself" Professor Lupin says with a smile. "So the Boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a Boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears" he explains.

What's my worst fear? I think about it. I guess it'd be going blind again and never being able to get my sight back. Professor Lupin asks Harry a questions as I focus back on the present.

"Er -- because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape it should be?" Harry suggests.

"Precisely" Lupin says smiling. "It's always best to have company when you're dealing with a Boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug? I once saw a Boggart make that very mistake -- tried to frighten two people at once and turned himself into half a slug. Not remotely frightening." he explains and I suppress a giggle.

I raise my hand again and he says my name. "How does one repel a boggart?" I ask him.

"A simple charm exists that repels a Boggart, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a Boggart is laughter. What you need to do is force it to assume a shape that you find amusing" he explains.  "We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, please. . . riddikulus" he says.

"Riddikulus" we say together.

"Very good. But that was the easy part, I'm afraid. You see, the word alone is not enough. And this is where you come in, Neville" Lupin says.  The wardrobe shook again, though not as much as Neville, who walked forward as though he were heading for the gallows. "First things first: what would you say is the thing that frightens you most in the world?" he asks.

"A galleon it's Snape" I whisper to Fay.

"Sure, but I bet it's his grandmother" she tells me. Neville's lips moved, but no noise came out.

"I didn't catch that, Neville, sorry" Professor Lupin says cheerfully.

Neville looked around rather wildly, as though begging someone to help him. Until he finally whispered "Professor Snape". Nearly everyone laughed. Even Neville grinned apologetically. Professor Lupin, however, looked thoughtful.

"You owe me a galleon" I tell Fay and she nods her head.

"Professor Snape. . . hmmm. . . Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother?" Professor Lupin asks him.

"Yes, but I don't want the Boggart to turn into her either" Nevile tells him.

"No, you miss understand me" Lupin tells him. "I wonder, could you tell us what sort of clothes your grandmother usually wears?" he asks him.

"Well. . . always the same hat. A tall one with a stuffed vulture on top. And a long dress. . . green, normally. . . and sometimes a fox-fur scar" Neville explains.

"And a hand bag?" Lupin asks.

"A big red one" Neville says.

"Can you picture those clothes very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your mind's eye?" Lupin asks him. Neville nods his head saying 'yes'. "When the Boggart bursts out of this wardrobe, Neville, and sees you, it will assume the form of Professor Snape. "And you will raise your wand -- thus -- and cry "Riddikulus" -- and concentrate hard on your grandmother's clothes. If all goes well, Professor Boggart Snape will be forced into that vulture-topped hat, and that green dress, with that big red handbag" Lupin explains.

There was a great shout of laughter. The wardrobe wobbled more violently. This is going to be fun. But I don't want to face the Boggart. "If Neville is successful, the Boggart is likely to shift his attention to each of us in turn" Lupin tells us."I would like all of you to take a moment now to think of the thing that scares you most, and imagine how you might force it to look comical" he tells us.

We all take time to think. I can't think of a way to make being blind amusing. "Everybody ready?" Lupin asks us. Everyone agreed and Neville went first. He succeed and we all got into a line. I ended p beside Draco.

"You ok?" he asks me.

"I don't know how to make my fear amusing" I tell him.

"Don't worry, I'm sure we won't be able to get through everyone" he assures me. I give him a grateful smile as Ron stepped forward. A giant spider appears.

"Riddikulus!" Ron bellows. The spider's legs vanished; it rolled over and over; Lavender Brown squealed and ran out of its way and it came to a halt at Harry's feet. "Here!" shouted Professor Lupin suddenly, hurrying forward. He stands in front of Harry.

The legless spider had vanished. For a second, everyone looked wildly around to see where it was. Then they saw a silvery-white orb hanging in the air in front of Lupin. I recognized it straight away. Why would Professor Lupin be scared of a full moon?

Neville finished the boggart off. "Excellent, Neville. Well done, everyone. . . Let me see. . . five points to Gryffindor for every person to tackle the Boggart -- ten for Neville because he did it twice. . . and five each to Hermione and Harry. Twenty points to Emma" Lupin says.

"But I didn't do anything" Harry and I say.

"You and Hermione answered my questions correctly at the start of the class, Harry. Emma you asked two very good questions" Lupin tells us. ""Very well, everyone, an excellent lesson. Homework, kindly read the chapter on Boggarts and summarize it for me. . . to be handed in on Monday. That will be all" he tells the class.

Talking excitedly, the class left the staff room. While I decide to stay. "Professor Lupin" I say.

"Yes Emma, what is it?" he asks me curious.

"I have a question" I tell him.

"Ask away" he tells me.

"Why are you scared of a full moon?" I ask him curious.