I'll Take That Chance

CH 49 - "I'm Thinking A Lot of Things"

"Good afternoon, Minerva. We weren't expecting you back until much later this evening."

"I honestly wasn't expecting to be back this early, but I wanted to speak with you about something. Actually, I would need to speak to both you and Draco about it, as soon as possible."

"As soon as possible? Is everything alright?" Harry asked her quickly.

"Oh yes, everything is fine. A small matter of delicate urgency is all."

"Okay. How about coming over for dinner this evening? Teddy is spending the weekend with us and I know he'd love to see you. It's been too long since you've been out anyways."

"Sounds wonderful, Harry. I'll be by about seven once I've made sure all of the students have had their dinner and everything is settled for the evening."

"See you then," he said and he escorted her out of his office. He watched her for a moment before heading back in to stack his graded papers in his bag. He picked up his quill and penned a quick note to Draco.

'Draco,

Minerva is going to come by for dinner this evening. I'll stop and pick up a few groceries on the way home if you can pick up Teddy from school.

She said she has something urgent to speak with us about. No idea what it could be.

Hope you're having a great day,

Love you,

Harry'

He set off for the owlery and enjoyed the brisk air on his face. His students had been testing all week and he felt like he had spent too much time in the classroom and his stuffy office and this little trip was just the trick he needed to cheer him up. A tawny brown school owl flew down and greeted him warmly and he tousled its feathers.

"Take this to Draco Malfoy-Potter at St. Mungos please," he instructed as he tied the note to the owl's leg. The bird stretched its wings and flew off, seemingly as happy as he was to get out for a bit. He looked at his watch and instead of going back to his classroom, he decided to take a trip down to Hagrid's. He was just about to end his last lesson of the day when Harry came upon them. He saw them all standing around the paddock, a small herd of Thestrals watching them from inside.

"Afternoon, Professor," Hagrid called out as he came closer. "Come to say hello to my Thestrals? Care to pet one this afternoon?"

"Of course," Harry said as he came forward. Hagrid grinned and clapped him on the back, handing him some cubed meat. He fed it to the nearest Thestral and it gently nuzzled his hand afterwards. The students 'oohed' and 'ahhed' as the meat disappeared. He turned to them and recognized them as his Second Year Slytherins and Hufflepuffs.

"Can anyone here see them?" he asked the class. They all shook their heads and Harry smiled, grateful. A small girl near the middle raised her hand.

"Have you really ridden one, Professor?" she asked and he nodded, reliving the memory that seemed so long ago.

"I have. It was quite an experience, too. That evening, there were some of us who couldn't see them and the entire trip to London, they flew on these creatures that were invisible to them. It was quite an adventure." Their eyes grew large and some of them craned their necks farther as if hoping to catch a glimpse.

"I was jus' tellin' them that even though they may look a little scary, they are right gentle creatures," Hagrid explained, tossing more meat for them. The children all clapped as the cubes vanished.

"Can Mr. Malfoy-Potter see them as well?" another student asked, and Harry nodded once more.

"He can. One evening, while we were travelling, a herd of them flew overhead and landed somewhere nearby. It was a sight to see, and we could hear them calling out to one another for hours."