Harry woke to find himself in his bed, wearing pajamas, red drapes and covers pulled closed over him, and no idea how he got here. The room showed signs of first light and closed drapes around the room that held the other Gryffindor boys in his year. He made his way to the joint bathroom for a shower and paused at the mirror to stare at his red-rimmed, dry eyes.
Oh, now he remembered. Professor Emrys had taken him to the astronomy tower for an Occlumency lesson though he doesn't remember going to bed. He pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes as the memories of last night flashed through his mind. Taking a deep breath, Harry stripped and entered the shower, relaxing under the hot water, the sting of the pressure emptying his mind.
He stepped out once he heard movement outside the door and made way for Neville. He gave a quick nod as he passed, now dressed for the weekend. The first DA meeting was today since Saturday was the only time everyone's schedule would allow attendance.
He left for the room of requirement, wanting to get there first even if that meant leaving Ron behind. He felt guilty but didn't turn back as he walked ahead, avoiding Mr. Filch as he patrolled the area. Heaving a sigh of relief as he went undetected, he paced in front of the door, thinking about the room they had first met in.
He opened the door when it appeared and saw Professor Emrys and Draco sitting near the lit fireplace. He cleared his throat, not wanting to risk eavesdropping on a conversation he did not belong in again. They turned at the sound, the fire illuminating their faces.
"Harry," Emrys welcomed him. Harry was grateful he hadn't said anything about last night.
"Potter," Draco acknowledged, his voice holding no hatred nor any emotion.
"Professor Emrys, Malfoy," Harry greeted them, feeling awkward as he stood by the door.
"Come sit, Harry. We were just chatting about how I thought Draco would be interested in learning Occlumency too," Emrys gave an apologetic smile, though not for the idea, looking more so that he was sorry he had not told Harry sooner.
"It's alright," Harry reassured, finding himself truly believing that it was fine as he moved to sit opposite the two.
"Really?" Draco voiced in disbelief.
"Really," Harry repeated.
"Great, I think you two could be great friends if you stopped letting your pride get in the way," Emrys beamed, eyeing them. Harry nodded, he didn't think he had much ego but ego and pride were two separate things and let the comment pass. Draco hesitated but eventually nodded too.
"Astronomy tower, after the meeting," Professor Emrys announced, getting to his feet, leaving them by themselves as he pursued the bookshelves.
"How did your first lesson go?" Draco blurted out, startling Harry who had still been watching the Professor.
"I guess if you count crying as a success then great," sighing.
"That bad?" Draco asked, head tilted in curiosity.
"Just about."
"Do you feel like you could do it though. Eventually?" Draco continued. Harry thought it over for a minute. Did he think he could get better? Maybe, with practice. Because that was mainly what magic was, practice, nothing is created without hard work, not even the most powerful witches and wizards could go without practice.
"Yeah, I think so," Harry nodded as if to reassure himself.
"What kind is he having you do?"
"Um, using my emotions. At least that's what I got from what he was telling me," Draco shrugged as well. Harry transferred his gaze from the Slytherin to the dancing flames. Flames that looked like dragons.
"Me- Emrys, Emrys enchanted the fire to look like flying dragons. He said it was boring to watch the fire grow in one direction," awe in his voice even as he snorted, shaking his head. Harry had to laugh with Draco, not catching the Professor's small smile.
"That sounds about right," Harry said once he calmed down enough, wiping to mirth from his eyes. For the next half hour, Harry found himself enjoying Malfoy's company more than he thought he would.
Eventually, people started turning up as they set up the room starting with Hermione and Ron who turned to help.
"Er...I guess we can start," Harry muttered to himself once everyone was here.
"We'll start with the basics, today. Get a feel for how far along you are," Harry said. He had them separate into four groups and rotate between different spells, mainly Expelliarmus, Accio, Protego, and Stupify.
The good news was that everyone knew the basics but the spells weren't very powerful. Most of the Protego shields tended to shatter quickly, protecting them from flung pencils but not much more, Stupify merely stunned them for a few seconds and did not push them back. Half the wands didn't even disarm the opposing wizards and witches with Expelliarmus. Accio was the only one that seemed to be fine, but those were charm spells and this was mainly for the defense of dark magic.
They had a lot of work to do.
Harry had the groups working on Expelliarmus, the simplest spell of the four. Harry glanced at the clock and calculated that there was not much time before curfew, forty minutes at most. Harry, Hermione, Ron, Draco, and Professor Emrys walked around the room, helping the others adjust where needed.
There was a tweeting sound, making everyone stare in the direction of the clock. It was a cuckoo clock, now that Harry looked closer. He wasn't fond of them, but it was helpful in knowing when to stop so as not to get caught out by Mrs. Norris and Filch.
"Well, that was pretty good," said Harry, "we'd better leave it here. Same time, same place next week?"
"Sooner!' said Dean Thomas eagerly and many people nodded in agreement.
Angelina quickly said, "The Quidditch season's about to start, we need team practices too!"
"Let's say next Wednesday night, then," said Harry. "We can decide on additional meetings then. Come on, we'd better get going."
He pulled out the Marauder's Map again and checked it carefully for signs of teachers on the seventh floor. He let them all leave in threes and fours, watching their tiny dots anxiously to see that they returned safely to their dormitories. This continued until it was only Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Draco. The professor had just left. Harry glanced down at the map one last time to find Emrys, no first name, only last. Confused, Harry called the others over, making sure that he wasn't seeing things and hoping the map wasn't broken.
"That's strange," Hermione commented, and Harry had to agree. Ron had nodded his head but Draco had yet to say anything.
"Maybe it's broken?" Ron suggests but Hermione shakes her head.
"The names come from the ministry, when you're born or when you turn eleven for muggle-borns, and it would have both your first and last name in the system," Harry nods, Sirius having told him where the map got the names.
"The ministry wouldn't have foreign names in it, would it? Emrys never said he was from England," Harry voices aloud. Hermione shrugs, but Harry knows her too well, well enough to know she will be snooping about to find an answer.
"You coming?" Harry asked Draco, who was a bit paler than normal but otherwise didn't show any other emotion. Harry wondered what had made it change too quickly.
Draco gives a quick nod and they walk out of the room together, making their way to the Astronomy tower to meet Emrys.
"Why do you want to learn Occlumency, Malfoy?" Harry asked, wondering if it had been his idea or the Professor's.
"Draco," Harry looked confused which in turn prompted Malfoy to make a face at him. Slowly, dawning comprehension showed, he wanted him to call him by his first name. "Anyway, Emrys mentioned it to me, asked if I wanted to learn. Snape was supposed to teach me after I turned seventeen, but I think Emrys might be a better teacher," giving a small smile, almost fond. Harry had to give a snort of amusement, trying to imagine an exasperated Snape snip at Draco about for not getting it on the first try to a smug smirk when he got it on the second.
"Is it as hard as it sounds?" Cutting off Harry's daydream.
"Oh...erm, yeah, but apparently Emrys is trying something new, so we don't know if it will work," scratching the back of his neck. He doesn't know why it's awkward, but he's growing more nervous the closer they get, he doesn't really fancy breaking down in front of Draco because the Professor saw something in his mind that he would rather not be dredged up.
Draco only hummed though, content to continue in silence the rest of the walk-up. Harry had only been to the top of the tower a few times, once helping get Norbert away. He didn't take astronomy, therefore having no reason to visit. But it's quite nice, with thousands of stars one was able to see clearly, unlike in the city. It's quiet and has a rather calming effect, maybe that's what Emrys was hoping for.
Speaking of the Professor, he was already there sitting on one of four cushions, another being used by Aithusa.
Emrys doesn't say anything as they walked up, only giving a pointed look. Draco plops down first, Harry following after, both waiting for the Professor to start.
"Harry, continue with what I said yesterday, I'll work with you. Draco I want you to keep your mind blank instead and Aithusa will attempt to penetrate your mind. Ready?" The professor asked. Harry rubbed his sweating hands over his pants but nodded.
He was watching Uncle Vernon hammering the letterbox shut . . . a hundred dementors were drifting across the lake in the grounds towards him . . . he was running along a windowless passage with Mr. Weasley . . . they were drawing nearer to the plain black door at the end of the corridor . . . Harry expected to go through it . . . but Mr. Weasley led him off to the left, down a flight of stone steps . . .
Harry returned gasping, holding his head.
"Sorry," Harry says as he breathes deep to find oxygen. A moment later Harry can hear Draco gasping similar to him, and it makes him feel a tiny bit better.
"It's alright, Harry what emotion are you using?" Professor Emrys asked, rubbing his back to offer comfort. The question makes Harry pause, once Emrys was in his head he got lost in the memories, not feeling his chosen emotion.
"Er...I was using love but when you got past I stopped feeling it. I was focusing on the memories," Harry admitted, looking down at his hands. He didn't know why it was so hard to not get lost in what he was seeing. Emrys didn't say anything for a while, but Harry was okay with that. He needed to figure out how to adjust to this new thing, figure it out on his own. Emrys must have realized this, or was just giving him a moment because he turned to Draco, speaking about how to efficiently clear his mind of anything.
Harry's mind drifted as flashes came back in his mind when he pressed the heel of his palms into his eyes. Harry's eyes shot open as the black door flashed. He had been dreaming about a windowless corridor ending in a locked door for months, without once realizing that it was a real place. Now, seeing the memory again, he knew that all along he had been dreaming about the corridor down which he had run with Mr. Weasley on the twelfth of August as they hurried to the courtrooms in the Ministry. It was the corridor leading to the Department of Mysteries and Mr. Weasley had been there the night that he had been attacked by Voldemort's snake.
"Professor Emrys?" Harry called, watching as all three turned their heads to him.
"What's in the Department of Mysteries?" Emrys stiffened slightly, but relaxed quickly. Harry would have missed it if he hadn't been studying the Professor so closely.
"A lot of things, Harry," Emrys said, not elaborating. Huffing, Harry nodded, he had hoped it would be easy, asking Emrys. He would usually answer his questions but he guessed even Emrys had his limit.
"Why?" Draco asked, Emrys seeming to have a silent conversation with his familiar.
"It's...it's just. I've just seen--I've been dreaming about a door for months--I've just recognized it--it leads to the Department of Mysteries . . . and I think Voldemort wants something from--"
"Harry? Why haven't you said anything?" Emrys asked, cutting off the rest of his babbling.
"I...I don't know. I didn't think it meant anything. But I saw the door when I was at the ministry for my hearing. Fudge and Lucious Malfoy we're talking in front of it," Harry tried to explain.
Emrys nodded, " That cannot be good. Listen, Harry, I don't know everything. I don't know what Riddle is after, I only know that Arthur Weasley was guarding it that night he was attacked. That the Order switches off to protect it," Emrys spoke slowly for Harry to understand and he did, he didn't know why no one would tell him anything. He only knows he's eternally grateful to the Professor for being honest with him.
"Why are you telling me this? Won't you get in trouble?" Harry asked. His stomach clenched in uneasiness at the thought of him getting in trouble because of what he told them.
"I won't get in trouble, not if you don't mention anything," Emrys spoke, winking in their direction. It lightened the mood slightly and Harry felt a little better.
"Ready to try again?" Professor Emrys asked, looking expectantly at both boys. Draco and Harry nodded. This time Harry would focus on his grief for his parents, new determination boiling over into his expression.
"Alright, Harry. Feel, don't think," Emrys said the next he was in his mind.
Harry was eleven, staring at his parents in the mirror of Erised. Harry pushes the memory away regretfully, but held onto the feeling he felt during the scene. Harry waited for another image to appear but none came. Next, he was ripped out of his headspace to the starlit sky. Somehow he ended up on his back.
"That was good, Harry," Emrys' voice sounded as he appeared above Harry's face before helping him up.
"Did I do it?" Harry asked, he was a little confused.
"Yes, you did. I'm very proud of you Harry. That was the easy part though, I'm afraid,"
"That was easy?" Harry asked in disbelief.
"Yes, and you did it remarkably fast for it being your second night. Now, you have to make sure to do it at regular intervals to renew and strengthen the small ward around your mind. Right now, it's about the size of an atom, the more you do it the harder it will be for someone to influence your mind," Emrys explained as Harry took the chocolate frog the Professor handed him.
"What's this for?" he questioned, examining the packaged chocolate frog box.
"Positive reinforcement," the Professor answered as a way of explanation. Harry supposed it worked as he unboxed the frog and bit into it before it attempted to hop away.
Harry looked at Draco who had a similar chocolate frog in his hand with one of its legs bitten off.
"Alright, bed I think. We've made great progress though," Emrys said as he stood, Aithusa flying onto his shoulder," I trust you to make your way back to your rooms with no delays, yes?" Harry nodded. He felt like he could sleep for years, exhausted from the Occlumency Lessons. Once Draco nodded as well, Professor Emrys walked to the door and down the spiral stairs until he was gone.
Thank you beta Adriana_reads_a_lot