Red dragon

38

Harry was probably the most exited for his Defense against the dark arts lesson. He was going to be first in line so that he could face a Boggart; would it still be a dementor? He felt he needed to know.

Harry stayed close to Lupin as they walked into the staff room.

"Professor?" Snape was reading a potions journal in the staff room.

"Hello Professor Snape, I'm needing my third years in here. You're welcome to stay."

"Actually Lupin. I find screaming students distract me from my reading." The professor stood up and tucked his journals under his arm. "Good luck Lupin. I'm sure you'll need it."

That was not very civil but Harry was distracted by the lesson before him.

"There is a Boggart in that wardrobe." The professor explained. "Boggarts like dark enclosed spaces. Cupboards, Under the bed. I once encountered a Boggart who had lodged itself in a grandfather clock. This one moved himself in yesterday afternoon." He pointed to the moving wardrobe. "Now who can tell me what is a Boggart?"

"A Boggart is a shape shifter sir. It manifests into the thing it believes you fear the most."

"Well done Miss Granger."

"Now against this particular Boggart we have an advantage. Who can tell me what that is? Harry?"

"There are tons of us. It won't know what to change into."

"Right you are. I once encountered aBoggart with my three best friends; I was only a little older than you are. It transformed itself into a fat woman with wolf paws as hands; a horse head and a clown horn. We laughed for about twenty minutes."

The class looked at him quite confused.

"See Boggarts exist to scare you; defeating them requires a simple thing- laughter. The spell to defeat a Boggart is quite simple. You force it to become amusing by casting the spell Riddikulus."

"Now that is the easy part. It takes deep concentration. Let's see; Mr Weasley what is the thing that scares you the most."

"Umm…. Spiders sir."

"Arachnophobia." Remus Lupin nodded. "Well how would you make that funny?"

"Well I don't like the way the legs move." Ron shuddered.

"Okay Ron- imagine it learning to roller-skate." Ron sniggered slightly. "Exactly Ron. Now I'm going to let the Boggart spider out. You cast the spell and imagine the spider rolling away in the skates."

"Umm okay."

"Right everyone in line." Harry slid into line behind Hermione; Lupin frowned at this.

The giant spider came out of the wardrobe; many people screamed or went stiff. "RIDDIKULUS!"

The spider did begin rolling away. "Right Now Draco go."

Draco stood forward and the spider morphed into an image of Lucius Malfoy. Many people gasped. "Father- right Riddikulus." Draco's father shifted ever so slightly; a fuzzy hat appeared on his head. 'I love Harry Potter.' Draco and his friends gave a small laugh. Hermione saved the day.

She moved forward and declared Lucius a "Bastard! How dare you. Your wife and child you Bastard!" She seemed to really enjoy shouting at the Boggart. More people laughed but the Boggart shifted.

Hermione's fear. Three people stood but only their backs could be seen. One had red hair, one black, the other blond.

"Guyys?" Hermione asked quietly.