Saudade

Chapter 9 Defending What Matters Most Harry

Hermione made no mention of Harry giving Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons for two whole weeks after her original suggestion. Which Harry was grateful for but he knew Hermione would ask soon. Harry's detentions with Umbridge were finally over; Ron had had four more Quidditch practices and not been shouted at during the last two; all three of them had managed to Vanish their mice in Transfiguration (Hermione had actually progressed to Vanishing kittens).

Ophelia had been acting strange since that night in the Gryffindor common room, she's been much quieter than usual and she stared at Harry most of the time with a look he couldn't quite read. Perhaps what he said that night had pushed her away. Harry had said some uncomfortable things that even he would be put off by. He hoped he hadn't pushed her away but it seemed like he had.

On a wild, blustery evening at the end of September, when the three of them, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting in the library, looking up potion ingredients for Snape. Ophelia and Blaise greeted them all.

"Hullo," Ophelia said smiling. "Mind if we sit?"

"Not at all," Harry said, moving his things aside so she could sit next to him but Ophelia took the seat next to Hermione, instead Blaise took the seat.

Harry blinked as Ophelia took out her book and began reading it without another word. Strangely enough, Harry felt hurt and confused and he wasn't the only one confused; Hermione glanced from Ophelia to Harry as if the two were silently fighting. Harry didn't think they were. He wanted to say something but felt too embarrassed with Ron, Hermione, and Blaise there. So hurt and confused Harry continued on with his work.

"I was wondering," Hermione said suddenly after a couple of minutes of unbearable silence, "whether you'd thought any more about Defense Against the Dark Arts, Harry."

"Course I have," Harry said grumpily, "can't forget it, can we, with that hag teaching us--"

"I meant the idea Ophelia, Ron, and I had--" Ron cast her an alarmed, threatening kind of look. She frowned at him, "--Oh, all right, the idea I had, then--about you teaching us."

Harry did not answer at once. He pretended to be perusing a page of Asiatic Anti-Venoms, because he did not want to say what was in his mind.

He had given the matter a great deal of thought over the past fortnight. Sometimes it seemed an insane idea, just as it had on the night Hermione had proposed it, but at others, he had found himself thinking about the spells that had served him best in his various encounters with Dark creatures and Death Eaters--found himself, in fact, subconsciously planning lessons...

"Well," he said slowly, when he could no longer pretend to find Asiatic Anti-Venoms interesting, "yeah, I--I've thought about it a bit."

"And?" Hermione said eagerly.

"I dunno," Harry said, playing for time. He looked up at Ron.

"I thought it was a good idea from the start," Ron said, who seemed keener to join in this conversation now that he was sure Harry was not going to start shouting again.

Harry shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

"You did listen to what I said about a load of it being luck, didn't you?"

"Yes, Harry," Hermione said gently, "but all the same, there's no point pretending that you're not good at Defense Against the Dark Arts, because you are. You were the only person last year who could throw off the Imperius Curse completely, you can produce a Patronus, you can do all sorts of stuff that full-grown wizards can't, Viktor always said--"