The Boy Who Lived

The Incident

A/N This chapter includes thoughts about self harm and suicide - please skip if you will find this triggering (I mark the beginning and end of the section with ***).

It turned out Slughorn was going to be teaching Potions. Which meant Snape had finally got his wish and he was to be teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts.

'Well, there's one good thing,' Harry said savagely, still angry about Malfoy. And Snape too for taking seventy House points from him for being late and not in his school uniform. He hadn't dared looked at Minnie when he walked in the Great Hall long after the Sorting with his face covered in blood. 'Snape'll be gone by the end of the year.'

'What d you mean?' asked Ron.

'That job's jinxed. No one's lasted more than a year... Quirrell actually died doing it. Personally, I'm going to keep my fingers crossed for another death...'

'Harry!' said Hermione, shocked and reproachful.

When Harry told Ron what had happened on the train, Ron seemed to think Malfoy was just showing off to Pansy.

Hermione said much the same thing at breakfast the following morning, '...it would be like Malfoy to make himself seem more important than he is...' but she didn't seem so certain.

Harry and Ron took great amusement in watching the new first-years stumbling around the corridors as Minnie tried to direct them in the right directions.

'Potter! Potter!' she called to him.

'Uh-oh, this can't be good, she's using my surname,' Harry mumbled to Ron but jumped off the stone bench and went over.

She shook her head and pursed her lips. 'Enjoying ourselves, are we?'

'Well, I have a free period this morning, mum.'

'So, I noticed. I would think you'd want to fill it with potions or is it no longer your ambition to become an Auror?'

'You know it was, but you told me I had to get an "Outstanding" in my O.W.L.'

'And so you did when Professor Snape was teaching the subject. Professor Slughorn, however, is perfectly happy to accept N.E.W.T. students with "Exceeds Expectations". Do you wish to proceed with Potions?'

'Yes. Brilliant, well, I'll head there straight away.'

'Good.'

Harry turned to leave.

'Harry, take Weasley with you. He looks far too happy over there.'

They charged off to Potions together and after a brief fight to grab the last two remaining Advanced Potions books, of which Harry came out worse, they settled into a new year.

Harry hoped, briefly, that things might be considered normal this year, he might even get through the first week without getting a detention. Maybe he might actually enjoy his subjects. Especially when he found the scruffy old potions book he'd ended up with was covered in scrawls and notes which actually aided his potion making. Suddenly he found he was understanding the subject without Snape sneering over his shoulder and throwing condescending comments his way. He was the only one in class to produce a perfect Draught of Living Death. His reward from Slughorn was a small bottle of Felix Felicis, a good luck potion. Harry saw Draco eyeing it enviously.

Defence proved equally as entertaining. Snape started them on non-verbal casting, wanting them to cast both jinxes and defence spells silently.

Although Snape did not know it, Harry had taught at least half the class in his DA group how to perform a Shield Charm the previous year. Ron, who was supposed to be jinxing Harry, was purple in the face, his lips compressed tightly to save himself from the temptation of muttering the incantation.