The Unexpected Task [H.P.]

Chapter 8 - An Accident

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Two Weeks passed before I could even blink- I'd grown so used to my new world filled with moving staircases, talking portraits and piles of homework without even realizing it. I woke up most days rising with the sun- early enough to catch breakfast by myself, eat my two pieces of toast and watch the hall fill with sunlight and people.

Life at Hogwarts was always changing, sometimes dull, sometimes so overwhelming I thought I might have to shut myself in a broom closet to be able to take a deep enough breath. I was simultaneously always behind and also performing better than I ever had- Potions came easy, Charms too- but Transfiguration stumped me, as it always had. The rest of my classes were a mixed bag- Care of Magical Creatures would be great, I thought, if not for the steadily growing shell-less crabs that sought to incinerate every set of Robes I owned. I'd never be better at Herbology than Neville, or half of the Hufflepuff's, and Defense left me breathless every day under Professor Moody's eccentric eyes.

And that is precisely the state I found myself in one afternoon in Mid-October, watching as Moody announced it was "Time" as he sent the desks to slide against the walls of the classroom.

"Alright, hush up. Stand in a line," the room silenced, and we shuffled into a straight line. With a growl, Moody pointed at Dean Thomas, who looked incredibly nervous as he stepped out of the line and into the middle of the classroom next to Moody, raised his wand and said "Imperio!" . Moody jerked his wand, and Dean sped off in the same direction, twirling along with the motions like a marionette. After Moody made Dean do a backflip, which I'm not sure Dean knew he could do, it seemed to satisfy his wishes, and he dropped his wand. Dean immediately collapsed to the ground, howling with laughter. The nervous energy in the room burst, and the room filled with laughter as he rejoined the line of students.

The next few students passed (or maybe failed?) Moody's test, as he repeatedly cast the Imperius curse on them, making them do incredibly stupid things, like Lavender imitating a squirrel, Neville singing a song while standing on his head, and Pavarti doing cartwheels up and down the classroom.

"Potter," Moody growled as a pink-faced Seamus rejoined the line, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, "You're up."

Next to me, Harry gulped, but walked forward, meeting Moody in the center of the classroom. Moody looked him up and down, and cast the curse.

Harry's demeanor, like all the others, immediately changed. Moody flicked his wand towards the desks lining the wall, and Harry began to follow, but his knees buckled rather suddenly. When Moody flicked his wand upwards, wanting him to jump, Harry's knees both locked and extended at the same moment, sending him flying to the ground. The breath hitched in my throat as the line of students gasped, and Moody shouted, "Now THAT'S more like it!" and flicked his wand down. On the floor, Harry's body relaxed immediately, and he struggled to his feet, rubbing his knees, rather pink in the face.

I leaned over to Ron. "Did he ... just..."

Ron looked at me, and just muttered, "I bloody think he did."

Harry hobbled to us, rubbing his knee with a free hand and shaking his head. He offered me a strange sort of smile before Moody cleared his throat, and I looked up to catch him staring at me expectantly as he growled, "I don't have all day, Miss Barnes."

I nodded, blushing, and took the same walk as my classmates to the center of the room. Up close, Moody was even more mangled than ever, his scars layered over past healed ones. His eyes looked right through me, and a bubble of nerves burst in my stomach.