46

Chapter 46

There had not been much sleep for the two seventh-year Slytherins that night as they comforted each other, and talked of things they would do after graduation.  Having had a taste of travel, Elaina declared she wanted to see more of magical Europe and take the trip to America that the Potters had nearly taken her on over the break.  Come August she would enter her name into the dueling circuit and start clawing her way through the ranks.  Harry admired the girl's ambition as she talked of becoming a champion, and wanting him to be at as many of her matches as he could manage to cheer her on.

In return, Harry had confided that after the war was over he would really just like to play Quidditch.  He had a deep love for the sport since he was eleven years old, and thought he had what it took to be great.  He shared his dream of sharing the pitch with James one day, and just maybe play for the English National Team.  The girl joked about him always needing a thrill in his life, and he couldn't quite find a way to fault the statement so just chuckled with her.

As the two walked down to training they discussed Harry's friends in more detail than he had ever provided.  Ron was discussed in depth as well as his six other siblings.  Details had been slightly vague, but he described enough of their personalities and passions that he felt he painted an accurate picture.  He even went further to explain things about Ron's parents who had taken him in.  He shared memories of the burrow, and even stories of playing Quidditch at their home over the Summers.

"Those twins sound like they missed their calling to be Marauders." Elaina said with a chuckle after Harry explained their departure from formal education by sabotaging their defense teacher.

"They would've loved my cousin and his friends.  They would have probably considered it an honor to be among them." Harry joked fondly.

Training had been light that morning as the two had worked through some spells and Elaina once again practiced her ever-evolving patronus charm.  Whatever the creature was, it was big, and Harry wondered if it would take the form of his own patronus as he tried to make out the creature.  She was getting so close, and he knew it was only a matter of time before she managed the corporeal form.

Arriving at breakfast Frank followed by Alice approached the arriving couple with determined smiles on each of their faces, "What do you say, Harry?  Training tonight?"

"Tonight." Harry acknowledged, "Meet us on the seventh floor just off the staircase.  I will share a secret I have been holding on to since my arrival here.  It will be a perfect place for us to train without interruption."

All three looked interested in his words and he grinned, "7 o'clock.  Don't be late."

Frank patted the boy on the back, "Wouldn't dream of it."

As the couple headed off towards the Gryffindor table Harry called out, "Make sure the Marauders know, Frank.  We may have some guests."

Alice and Frank exchanged looks at this before shrugging and the short-haired girl said, "The more the merrier."

With that, the couple turned and returned to their own table.  Elaina for her part looked at Harry questioningly, "How you have only been here for a little over four months and know more about the castle then the rest of us really is a mystery."

"Potter's have been attending Hogwarts for generations.  There are lots of notes on the castle throughout my family's extensive journals." Harry deflected easily.

The statement was not a lie.  The location of each Common Room could be found easily enough in the various journals.  Harry had little doubt it was how James instructed Peter where to look when he was plotting the original Marauders Map.  A few of his ancestors even alluded to discovering a room that may have been the Room of Requirements but each of them only accessed it once.  Without Dobby, Harry may not have ever found it.

Elaina for her part merely nodded  her head, "I suppose Charlus, Dorea, and Arcturus deeply briefed you on the layout of the castle as well.  I can't believe they would let you come in here at the beginning of the year without knowing your way around."

Smiling at her lightly without words she immediately groaned, "Another secret?"

Chuckling, the young man shook his head as he took a seat at the Slytherin table, "Would it make you feel better if I said I wasn't intentionally being difficult?"

A smile began playing at the corners of her mouth, but she rolled her eyes saying, "I wouldn't believe you."

Harry sighed half-heartedly and began serving up his plate.  He felt the glares on him before he caught any of their eyes.  As he glanced around him he could see Snape, Rabastan, Mulciber, Avery, and Yaxley looking at him hatefully.  Snape?  That's a new one. Harry thought morbidly wondering what had created the animosity there.

Of course the two had traded barbs a few times, but Snape was smarter than the rest of his idiot friends.  He knew better than to have a go with Harry even though the two had never personally exchanged spells.

The two teens locked eyes for a moment, and Harry felt the slightest prod of legilimency, but Harry clamped down on the probe, causing Snape to recoil.  Winking at the boy, Snape seemed to turn red with fury or embarrassment, Harry could not tell, but he quickly jumped into a conversation with the arriving Pandora, and Andromeda.

When Elaina invited the pair to train with them that evening Harry drew a deep breath realizing he would have his hands full preparing the group that was destined to take the fight to the Dark Lord.  Glancing around the table he realized the fifth member of their party, Nate, was absent.  This was becoming a new norm for the Greengrass Heir and he wondered what exactly was troubling the teen.  Shaking his head Harry promised to try and talk to the only seventh-year Slytherin boy he got along with whenever the opportunity presented itself.

.o.

That night on the seventh floor nearly a dozen had gathered outside the portrait of Barnabus the Barmy.  The four marauders, Alice, Lily, Frank, and Harry's three Slytherin female friends.  The entirety of the group was looking skeptical as they all looked around for Harry's magic room, but when the last of the group arrived Harry had stood to address them, "So I am guessing you all probably think I am a bit of a nutter at this point?"

"The thought did cross our minds, mate!" Sirius piped up.

James nodded his head in agreement, looking slightly agitated at being dragged up here for nothing, "Yeah Harry, we explored every inch of this floor when we were plotting out the castle.  There is no secret room."

Grinning at his cousin Harry closed his eyes and waved his wand dramatically as he stepped back and forth in the hallway.  In moments a door began to form on the wall and Harry heard the gasps but ignored them as he plunged forward into the Room of Requirements.  The room was exactly as he remembered when he had trained in here with the DA.  The fireplace, the mirrors, all of it. Down to the details.

Closing his eyes he recalled some of his fondest Hogwarts memories as he heard the footsteps go past him as the group entered the room taking it in amazement.

Every great Wizard in history started out as nothing more than we are now, students.  If they can do it, why not us?

A satisfied look crossed his countenance as he recalled his word to the DA in his own time.  As he observed the area a lone dummy stood in the center of the room holding a wand at the ready.  The dummy was wearing Death Eater garb and Harry stared at it with the memory of his group blasting it around echoing in his mind.

Frank thumped Harry on the shoulder, "Never doubted you, Harry."

Neville didn't either, Harry thought with a sad smile.  It was in this room that Neville transformed into the Wizard he was destined to be.  A flash of his friend's lifeless eyes crossed through his mind and he quickly shook out of it trying to forge on, "We all know why we are here."

No one said a word as his voice echoed off the walls, each of their eyes on him, "The Heir of Slytherin, the man proclaiming to be Lord Voldemort, means to start a war.  He means to kill good people that will stand against his ideology, and eradicate people like Lily and Elaina.  My parents and I have already decided to stand against him.  If you are all here, and willing to learn, I hope that means you are as well."

Frank was the first the nod, followed by Elaina, the rest followed a little more hesitantly, giving Harry pause.  Taking a breath he said, "I won't be playing nice here.  These bastards have killed some of my friends, tried to kill my godfather, and attacked other people dear to me.  I intend to see all of you alive at the end of the coming war, and I will do anything to make sure you don't share a similar fate to those lost on the Platform yesterday."

Shifts of discomfort and looks of surprise were seen on some of their faces, but Harry continued a little quieter, "And maybe, just maybe, if you are confronted by these bastards you and your loved ones will escape, or win.  That's the goal here."

More nods, and Harry raised his voice, "A man confronts you, he is the enemy.  An enemy deserves no mercy.  Especially…when you are outnumbered, which is where we are going to start today."

"Frank, Lily, Alice, you three will be against me.  Sirius, Andi, and Remus will take on Elaina.  James, Peter, Pandora, observe what works and what doesn't.  You will be going next." Harry explained commandingly.

Elaina didn't hesitate to stride across the room to give herself an area to duel in while her 3 opponents seemed to hesitate. Harry looked at the three in amusement, "If I was you three I wouldn't hold back.  She has been training with me for three months, and spent two weeks straight getting throttled by my parents and the Lord Black before he was injured.  She will be playing for keeps."

Andi for her part began to look nervous while Sirius and Remus seemed confident in their chances as they whispered tactics.  Harry shook his head, they should immediately have included Andi in their plans.  Elaina began to eye the girl obviously picking out her first target, and he gave her an approving nod as he turned to face his three opponents who were huddled together not nearly as cautious as his protege's opponents were.

Harry turned to face Pandora, "The wards will keep each of us safe.  Can you count us down when my opponents are ready?"

The blonde nodded her head as she watched in trepidation as the group of Gryffindors broke from their group looking determined.  After an affirming nod from Frank who took the lead in a triangle-like formation, Pandora glanced at Harry for permission as he drew his wand, and closed his eyes indicating his preparation.

The countdown began and as soon it was at 1 Harry batted Frank's initial curse back at Alice so fast she had no chance to block as she went flying backward towards the wall.  In a panic, Frank turned to help his fiance and was stunned for his efforts.  This caught Lily flat-footed as she attempted to revive one of her fallen teammates, but Harry used the stunned body of Frank and pushed it across the floor causing Lily to trip while Harry stunned her before hitting the ground.  The whole thing couldn't have lasted fifteen seconds, and Harry shook his head as he turned to Elaina who had already knocked Andi out as Harry expected.

As the fight carried on Harry had revived his opponents and told them to discuss what happened as he gave his friend his undivided attention.  The duel only lasted a few minutes, but while Sirius began to wear down, Remus was having to shield as Elaina seemed to launch every spell Sirius cast back at the werewolf while slipping in her own offensive spells as well.  In no time Remus was caught off guard, and with the fully charged Slytherin teen going after Sirius he crumbled in moments.

Taking a deep breath Harry shook his head.  He thought this group would be far ahead of where the DA was in his time, but they were hardly better than his former seventh-year members.  Of course they were talented, but they panicked.  Panicked so fast it was unbelievable.  Harry had suspected the three on one would be very difficult for him, but to end it as quickly as he did gave him pause.

"Good work, Elaina.  Revive your opponents" Harry instructed.

While his dark haired friend set to work on that Harry turned on his own opponents, "What happened?"

Frank looked abashed as he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, "I thought Alice could have been hurt.  I threw a pretty powerful banishing charm at you, and when you batted it at her I thought-"

"You panicked." Harry interrupted, "Your panic would've gotten you killed, Alice killed, and Lily defenseless in the face of superior numbers or fighters."

Frank looked flustered by the interruption, but closed his eyes and nodded as Alice took his hand.  Harry for his part didn't wait to go to Lily, "You panicked as well.  Even in the face of knowing you likely couldn't beat me you should have held to your strengths.  You never know if an opportunity to revive your allies would have come.  Instead you took a gamble and immediately paid for it.  I expected a lot better from you three."

With that, he moved on as they all bowed their heads in shame.  Harry caught a glance at James' face and he looked alarmed by his cousin's attitude, but the teen didn't hesitate to go to the next group.

Looking at the three carefully, Harry could tell they were prepared for an earful, and he wasn't willing to spare feelings, "You three could have had a great fight with Elaina, however, you forgot to include a member of your team into your plans.  You would've gotten Andi killed right out of the gates because you two felt confident in your abilities to work together.  Something Elaina picked up on before the duel even started."

Harry turned to Elaina to confirm his words and she nodded, "I saw you two whispering and Andi was nervous.  Harry and I used similar tactics and I batted both of your spells as well as slipping a few of my own towards her.  With the element of surprise that would've been hard to shield for anyone."

Remus and Sirius both looked ashamed and Harry took a breath before turning to the three spectators, "Anything you three would like to add?"

The boys seemed like they would prefer to be anywhere else while Pandora looked thoughtful, "Harry, your opponents put together a plan, but it didn't survive the first blunder.  Plans should be adaptive if they are going to be successful."

The green-eyed teen nodded his head in acceptance to her words as Pandora turned to face Sirius and Remus she added, "For you two, it was obvious Sirius was getting tired, but neither of you moved to correct the issue.  The inevitable outcome was that he was going to go down and leave Remus facing a more skilled opponent.  I'm not sure what could've been done, but corrections had to be made?"

The last part ended in a question and Harry nodded, "There is a reason magical endurance is so important.  Pandora is right on both accounts, but in this case, it would've been prudent for Remus to take the lead while Sirius amped up his more powerful spells or attempted to find ways to escape.  It is also worth noting that neither of you even attempted to revive Andi."

The girl harrumphed as she turned to face her allies of the last duel who both looked sheepish.  Harry for his part just moved on, "This is not a completely realistic drill.  Odds are you are going to be outnumbered, but what I am trying to teach you all is teamwork.  The realism in this is that you likely won't be completely alone if there is an attack.  That gives you a chance to come up with a plan, and escape or fight."

Silence reigned and Harry forged on, "Let's try again.  James' let's see if you can learn from Franks' mistakes.  You two pair up with Lily and take on Elaina.  Pandora, Peter, and Alice, you three can be with me."

Elaina looked at Harry with a brief look of concern, before shaking it off and confidently striding over to her area of the room.  Harry knew the girl needed to be tested, and if the three kept their heads this would be a fight that he was uncertain Elaina could win.

For his part, Harry knew his opponents likely wouldn't have very good chemistry.  He would not push them too hard, and he would give them opportunities, but he knew the trio would need a miracle to land a clean hit on him.

The look of alarm on Peter's face would have been funny to Harry as he watched the group discuss the tactic they would take, but he quickly became annoyed.  Pandora and Alice seemed grim but prepared, while Peter just had a scared expression.  Maybe he is the coward he was in my time.  In the face of danger, the little rat is going to crumble. Harry thought bleakly.

His interactions with Peter since his arrival in this time had been nothing negative, and he appeared quite innocent so far.  His concern was that when the Dark Lord and his forces came knocking he would sell them all out again to save his own skin.  Shaking those thoughts away for now Harry promised himself to take care of the rogue Marauder if it became necessary, but focused on the task ahead.

As the groups prepared to face off Harry asked Sirius to give the countdown.  What followed the countdown was better than Harry had expected, at least on Pandora and Alice's part.  The two witches bombarded him with low-powered high-pace spells that at times proved difficult due to the variety of shields he was required to cycle through.  The duel would've been quite interesting had Peter not been flinging inaccurate spells around, and ducking and dodging behind his allies making them shield for two.

It quickly became old for Harry as he pushed forward weaving through the spells with ease.  To the credit of Pandora and Alice they stood their ground and switched to higher powered blasting curses in an attempt to push him back, but it was fruitless as they broke ranks in the face of his arrival.  With quick work, Harry ducked under a spell from Alice that stunned Pandora, while Harry took advantage of the girl's surprise and froze her with petrificus totalus.  This left Peter who was trying to fire off a spell, but froze as Harry stormed towards him and grabbed his arm roughly.  Before Harry could do anything to the boy he transformed into a rat and began scurrying off.

This was not going to work on Harry however as he cast the immobulus charm, lifted the rat into the air, and hit it with a well-placed stunner, before reverting the rat back into a man.  The gasp behind him showed the surprised face of Andi, but Sirius was already whispering into her ear trying to keep her quiet.  No one else seemed to catch the transformation and Harry turned to a spectacular showing.

The duel between Elaina, and the three Gryffindors was fast-paced, and all three were fighting as a team to keep the girl from moving around pinning her to a central location that they were trying to pin her down too.  It was a good tactic and if Elaina wasn't careful she was going to go down.

Elaina for her part never seemed panicked as she continued to fight through her devolving situation.  Her eyes were alight with focus, and she seemed to glow with power as the concentration on her features was palpable.

Another minute passed and Harry could admit the girl's ability to shield had become a phenomenon, but he knew her options were becoming more and more limited as she was backed towards a corner.

In a surprise move, Elaina dropped to her knees in a twirl and threw a light blue spell at Lily's face that caused the girl to begin screaming instantly, making both James and Frank stop in shock.  James for his part was bound and disarmed immediately as he struggled to get closer to Lily.  Frank was however not out of the fight as he pushed harder than ever against Elaina.  Harry was about to stop the fight when he realized that Lily was still going.

Harry couldn't see the red-heads face, but nothing had changed about the pace of her magic.  Nothing had even changed in the girl's posture.  The scream was nearly haunting, but soon it was over, and the duel continued as if nothing had happened much to the confusion of all the onlookers, even James who was on the floor.

With one last caster however Elaina had capitalized and moved herself out of the corner.  It was here Harry was given a chance to glance at Lily who seemed irritated, but certainly not in hurt.  Realization dawned on Harry of what had happened, while Elaina was revitalized that her trick had worked.  Suddenly she was moving around so much Lily and Frank were bumping into each other trying to aim their spells properly.

It was here Elaina found a comfortable rhythm of disrupting her opponents.  Lily surged forward in an attempt to distract the girl so Frank could revive James, but in retaliation, Elaina animated the ropes that bound James into snakes causing Frank to stumble backwards and James to yelp.

Lily to her credit never became distracted, but Frank was dropped with a stunning charm.  From there Lily was barraged with impact spells until Elaina managed to disarm the girl in a flurry of spells, taking one right out of Harry's books.

The group immediately erupted into applause at her victory and demonstration while the girl merely slumped over in exhaustion putting her hands on her knees.  Lily was the first to congratulate her, while Remus moved to rescue James, and Frank was helped up by Alice.

When James found his feet he immediately stormed over to Elaina with a furious look on his face, "What the bloody hell was that all about?  You could have seriously hurt someone!"

"What are you on about?" The girl demanded a look of defensive anger quickly overtaking her features.

Harry immediately set about getting in between the two, "James, enough."

James for his part however pushed him back as Harry gently pried his way between the two, "She cursed Lily!"

"With prank magic!" Harry barked back, "You would think you would recognize something like that."

James' face ashened immediately as he whispered, "What?"

Lily had her arms crossed as she approached the trio, "He's right James.  Elaina hit me with a screaming charm.  It didn't hurt at all.  It was meant to distract you two.  It's not much different than the tickling charm."

Frank added quietly as the tension mounted, "It's why I didn't hesitate.  I could see it in Lily's eyes that she wasn't hurt.  She fought all the way through it.  It caught me off guard, but only for a second."

It was clear to Harry that James was embarrassed, and for some reason the younger Potter could not have been more displeased with the teen, "Apologize."

James recoiled at his words, "What?"

"You bit Elaina's head off for no reason." Harry grounded out through gritted teeth. "You think I would've let Lily get cursed like that and do nothing?"

"I don't know you get crazy when it comes to things like this!" James defended vehemently.

The room was silent at this, and Harry froze with indignation, "Crazy?"

The word was spoken quietly, and James could seemed to sense he was in danger as he attempted to say, "Harry I'm so-"

"Crazy is that people have been dying across this country for the last year and you, along with the rest of the country, have been burying their heads in the sand.  Crazy is the fact that despite how close these attacks got to home it took Harfang Longbottom getting murdered in front of your eyes before you decided to do something about it.  Crazy is that you think my friend, Lily's friend, would curse her so badly she would be screaming in pain.  You want to talk about crazy, James?  I don't think you know what crazy is, yet.  I don't think you have any idea what length I am willing to go to protect the people in this room, and if we are being honest with each other, I don't think you can handle it."

James had wide eyes and he glanced around the room looking for help, but everyone except Elaina had found a sudden interest in the floor.  With no further words, James departed the room quickly with the Marauders on his heels.

The room remained quiet for a minute and Harry turned to address the group, "I think that is enough for tonight.  If anyone wishes to continue training we will try again next week.  I doubt the Marauders will be joining us."

The last sentence was said quietly, but Frank shook his head, "This was great dueling practice. I assume you will teach us real tactics next time."

"Sure, Frank." Harry said with a forced smile.

"We will be here, then." Alice offered, placing an arm on Harry's elbow, "Thanks, Harry."

She offered him a final smile before taking Franks' hand and walking towards the exit.  Alice glanced toward her red-headed friend, but Lily just shook her head, "I am going to stay and talk to Harry for a minute."

In understanding, Alice nodded, while the couple departed without looking back.  Andi and Pandora were next while Andi said, "Well I wish I had been given another chance, but next week.  We will be back."

Pandora nodded her head, "We will.  This is too important."

Harry offered them a grateful nod and watched as they departed leaving Lily, Elaina, and Harry alone.  Elaina slipped her hand into his when it was just the three of them and he took a calming breath.  Lily didn't raise an eyebrow at the two, nor did she question it. Instead, she started with an apology, "James has always been overprotective of me.  I am sorry about him."

Snorting, Harry shook his head, "You don't have to apologize for my family, Lily.  James has a lot of potential.  It's just been frustrating watching him waste it."

"Not everyone can be as determined as you, Harry." Elaina offered gently.

"I don't expect him to be, but he keeps showing me flashes of his potential and I want him to make it out of this war alive!" Harry said in frustration.

The girls gave Harry a sympathetic look, and he exhaled, "I told him if he just wanted to play Quidditch and focus on being an athlete I would support him, but he made it sound like he wanted to make a difference.  Even yesterday he sounded so sure."

"Some people only want to make a difference, Harry." Elaina offered delicately.

"Like you said, Harry, James has shown flashes of good.  When a friend of mine and I had a fallout he was there for me.  The Marauders haven't played any malicious pranks this year, and they have all really straightened up since your arrival.  I think it was just expecting too much too fast." Lily added.

Some people only want to make a difference. The words seemed to echo as Harry considered them.  James had made a difference.  He was a War Hero.  His arrival couldn't have made him softer?  He was more exposed to violence, and the war than he possibly could have been in his timeline.  It hardly made sense.  What happened to him to make him turn into the man he was?  How did Lily fall for this immature version of his birth father?

Looking at Lily who had eyes full of sympathy Harry could hardly imagine how James deserved her.  She was ready to rise to the challenge.  To defend her friends and her fellow muggleborns like Elaina.  That was before she even received training.  In her life, Harry might make a difference, yet, he could no longer be distracted by James unwillingness to take those leaps.  He needed to make sure his birth mum, and the others who wanted to defend themselves and others were as capable as he could make them.  Whatever it takes.

"I suppose I should apologize for ripping his head off." Harry added weakly.

Elaina snorted, "Don't do it on my behalf.  I think the git had it coming."

Lily's serious face broke into something of a sad smile, "I think Elaina is right. James still isn't really seeing what is out there.  If you want to make things better with him, maybe just allow him to apologize. I think in time he will."

"I guess I did just embarrass him pretty good." Harry added rubbing his eyes with his hands.

"He did that himself." Elaina chuckled.

"He's never had any issues with that." Lily agreed.

This caused the three to share a small laugh that seemed to lighten the room.  The trio then began to depart the room and made their way to Gryffindor Common Room first to drop off Lily before returning to the dungeons on their own.

As they reached the lower levels of the castle Elaina sighed, but had a content look on her face, "What did you think of my performance?"

The question broke Harry out of his stray thoughts about his ever straining relationship with James and he placed an arm on the girl's shoulder, "You were spectacular.  Things were looking rough towards the end of your second duel, but you handled three very talented people at the same time.  Your speed has become remarkable."

"I wonder if my family had talented witches and wizards in it…before my mom was born." Elaina pondered not looking any less pleased with herself after the thought.

"It would certainly make sense." Harry conceded, feeling his throat dry.  If his family was right then she was a legacy of one of the most powerful Wizards to walk the Earth and that's before even knowing who the mother could have been, "As I told you over the break your gifts are so natural I thought you had done something unnatural to accomplish them."

In understanding the girl just nodded, "I look forward to investigating my family more with you.  For now, though, I had some books checked out on magical creatures.  If we are really going to come face to face with what you think we are I want to be ready."

Knowing he had beaten one with zero magical talent and a lot of luck when he was twelve he had some faith that the two would be able to accomplish the task.  Arriving at the Slytherin Common Room Entrance Harry released a breath, tired from the long day, "We will be ready."

Looking around the empty corridors Elaina stopped before the password could be said and turned to face Harry with a soft look, "We are going to figure it all out, Harry.  My family, James, the basilisk.  We can do it together.  I know we can."

Her confidence made his spirits lift as he glanced into her eyes the same fire that she had while dueling was in them now.  Leaning forward he caught her lips with his own gently and she grabbed him by the front of the shirt as if she wanted to press things between them.  After a moment passed between them, they separated, but only a few inches apart before she said, "Just because you kiss me like that doesn't mean I will be back in your bedroom tonight."

"I would never assume such a thing mi'lady." Harry said back quietly with amusement in his voice.  With a push Elaina shoved him away, chuckling at his words as she muttered the password to the Common Room.  As Harry followed behind her he could only hope her confidence was not misplaced.