acatalepsy [Fred Weasley]

28 - Expecto Patronum

"Today I'm going to be showing you the Patronus Charm," Harry announced to the members of Dumbledore's Army.

"What? That's really advanced magic," Neville exclaimed in shock. He struggles with the most simple of spells so he's really not looking forward to trying something so complex.

"Now, a Patronus is like a magical guardian. It'll protect you against any opponent but is the only defence against Dementors. It can either be corporeal or non-corporeal meaning that your Patronus may take the shape of an animal but it might not," Harry explains, walking between the crowd of students to make everyone feel involved.

"Everyone's Patronus, if in the form of an animal, is different-" Harry continues.

"So, no one has the same animal?" Luna asked in a dazed sort of tone.

"Not usually. However, true love, whether romantic of familial, can change the form of a Patronus. For example, Expecto Patronum," Harry casts, a great wispy blue stag galloping around the room. "I have the same Patronus as my father... I also know someone whose Patronus changed animal form once they fell in love so that it matched the other persons," he says, looking towards Atlas and she smiles back, knowing that he's talking about her dad and Tonks.

"Now watch me carefully... Expecto Patronum," he casts again, going slowly so that everyone can watch his wand movement and listen to the incantation properly.

Everyone disperses around the room and starts to attempt to cast their Patronuses. "You need a happy memory to help you cast it and you need to focus on it. Make it a powerful memory, the happiest you can remember. Allow it to fill you up."

Choruses of 'Expecto Patronum' could be heard around the room, most of them getting nowhere but some people already being able to emit a slight blue streak from the end of their wands.

Atlas closed her eyes and gripped her wand tight, taking a deep breath and blocking out all of the sounds around her. "Expecto Patronum," she said with confidence, allowing her happy memory to take over her mind and a smile unknowingly spread across her face but nothing happened.

"Don't worry, Atlas, you'll get there," Harry reassured her, placing a comforting hand on her back.

"What memory are you using?" George asked her.

"When my dad took me to see Sirius for the first time after escaping Azkaban..." she said quietly, knowing that he was still technically a wanted criminal, a smile once again creeping onto her face as she thought about it.

As the end of the lesson neared, Harry continued to make his way around the room to see how everyone was getting on with the charm. "A full-bodied Patronus is the hardest to produce but shield forms can also be equally useful against a variety of opponents... Fantastic, Ginny!" He praised as she managed to conjure a corporeal Patronus and a horse started making its way around the room.

"Just remember, your Patronus can only protect you for as long as you stay focused. So focus, Luna," he tells her before her Hare bounced around.

Atlas moved to the other side of the room, away from Fred and George in hopes that she'd be able to focus a little more but it was no use. She just couldn't do it.

"Think of the happiest thing you can... This is really advanced stuff, guys. You're doing so well," Harry's voice echoed.

'Maybe if you shut up for one second, I could bloody focus,' Atlas thinks as she tries to block out everything around her.
She wasn't annoyed at Harry but Atlas is normally so good at everything, she's always in the top spot in every single one of her classes and things like this were usually so easy for her. But for some reason, she was really struggling to cast her Patronus and she was embarrassed. Almost everyone, even people years younger had managed to do it and she just couldn't understand why it was so hard for her.