Marauder's Daughter (Eventual Tom Riddle X OC)

Chapter 18: Occlumency Master

Lessons with Quirrell were fine, though he wasn't a very 'hands-on' type of teacher. We were third years, so our focus was supposed to be dark magical creatures. He said he could bring in some, but many of them would be too dangerous to actually have in the classroom. I was relieved when he said he wasn't going to have a real boggart in the classroom though, I really didn't need to know which horror of my past was going to form out of it in front of my entire class. I have an inkling I'll still need to face that once Uncle Remy comes to Hogwarts though. Quirrell focused a lot on theory, and I had to admit, he was good at it. He did give real experience stories he had of fighting the dark creatures, even if he sounded like he was going to pass out from the fear of the memory with all his fake stuttering.

Harry complained to me about Snape by the end of the first week of classes. He said he was unfairly called out, and I told him the same thing happened to me. I let him know what I did to get him to stop, that I was just honest that I wanted to learn the topic and have him as a good teacher, and threatened to be a prankster brat otherwise. I then proceeded to tell him how I spent most of my first year terrorizing Snape until he relented. Harry felt that approach wouldn't work for him, which makes sense, he's not a prankster at all. I told him briefly how his dad had known Snape in school, but I was also honest with him about it.

"Harry... As much as I loved James when I knew him, he had calmed down by that point. He was, well, a bit of a prat in school. He wasn't very nice to Snape, so you can see how Snape might not like you very much because of that. Snape hated me at first, and my dad almost killed him at school. And not on accident, either." I tell Harry honestly in private that Friday night after classes, once he finished his ranting. "But they were kids, and kids change when they grow up. I'm not defending Snape here at all, he should know better than to hold a grudge against a child, but I'm just giving you a back story. Just stay after one day, and tell him you're not your father, you are your own person, and that he should treat you just as fairly. Also, maybe mention your mum too, they were actually friends, you know? I heard your mum mention Snape a few times, they were friends in school, before the war got too bad." I tell him vaguely, hoping the Lily angle will work.

"I can't see that helping at all." Harry grumbles out, so I clapped him on his shoulder.

"Then you know the only other option is to be miserable and hated the entire seven years of school, because he isn't going anywhere." I grin wickedly at him, and he groans again. "Now come on, get your homework done, I'll check it when you're finished to make sure he can't dock any points off." I send him on his way to do his homework with Ron.

"Um, Ms. Abigail?" I turn around and see Neville nervously standing next to me, holding his homework out. "Would... would you be able to help me?"

"Of course!" I say cheerfully, pulling his homework out of his hands. "What do you need help with?"

"I can't get this spell to work." He mumbles out, and I look at his notes. It's the transfiguration spell for changing a match to a needle. I helped him out the same way I remember doing in my first year, and after some one on one work for about 20 minutes, he got it.

"You just have to really visualize what you want, and focus on it. You kept changing the material to metal, which is great, but you weren't getting the shape. Now that you've got it, you can try and change the color of it next, that's what I did to get really good at it when I was bored." I tell him honestly, and he sets about to do it. He has the magical strength, he just isn't focused or confident in it yet. "Also, just call me Abigail, or Abby." I add to him as I stand to leave.

"Or Princess." Fred adds, coming to my side and wrapping an arm over my shoulder.

"Or Your Highness." George adds, mirroring his brother.