The Darkening of Your Soul

Chapter 53

The whole class was silent as everyone stared at Alastor Moody in shock. Even the Gryffindors were suitably impressed by the sight of the old, grizzled Auror with many scars marring his face.

Harry had to work very hard not to glower at Moody. That pillock had tried to kidnap Harry during the Yule Holidays on Dumbledore's order. Harry was sure that Dumbledore was behind all of this. Quirrell had suffered an 'accident' and very conveniently Dumbledore's most loyal lackey showed up to take over his class.

So, that's how Dumbledore was going to play it. Since the old man wasn't allowed to approach Harry anymore on pain of losing his actual job as Headmaster of Hogwarts, he instead sent a flunky to keep Harry in check. Though, to be fair, Moody was by no means a powerless underling. Moody and that blasted eye of his were able to cause plenty of problems for Harry at Hogwarts. If he ever looked through the bathroom wall and saw Harry disappear down to the Chamber of Secrets, who knew what might happen? Harry's dates with Tom were clearly at risk here.

Moody stood in the front of the class and looked from student to student. When his eyes landed on a Gryffindor, Moody tilted one corner of his mouth up in a crooked smile, but when his eyes found a Slytherin, he sneered.

"While I'm here I'm going to teach you about curses," Moody said in a grumbling voice as he took out his wand. "I'm going to need an assistant for a demonstration."

Every student in the room shrank back, even Harry, who had no desire to become a convenient target for Moody to use in the name of education.

Moody swept his gaze across the students, artificial eye spinning a few times before it landed on Draco, who was sitting in front of Harry. "You are Lucius Malfoy's spawn, aren't you?"

Draco kept his mouth firmly closed and nodded once, eyes narrowed in defiance but cheeks frightfully pale.

"Come here, boy." Moody's grizzled face morphed into a parody of geniality as he made a sweeping motion with his arm to invite Draco to join him in front of the classroom. "Today, you'll help me demonstrate the boil curse."

Hermione's hand shot up straight into the air. "But Professor," she said without waiting for Moody to notice her. "We were only just practicing Petrificus Totalus. Professor Quirrell said we wouldn't start on more advanced curses until our second year."

"Well, I'm not Professor Quirrell, now am I?" Moody barked, glaring at Hermione, who immediately hunched her shoulders and bowed her head. "Right now you're learning curses and young Malfoy here is going to help me."

Malfoy swallowed audibly and slunk towards the front of the room. He kept his head down but his grey eyes were blazing with hatred as he kept them fixed on the old Auror.

"There's no need to hold your wand," Moody said when Draco raised his wand in self-defence. "You're just here to demonstrate the curse." And before Draco could say or do anything, Moody shot off a silent curse. Boils erupted across every inch of Draco's pale skin, thick, red pustules that oozed puss.

Draco cried out in shock and pain, dropping his wand as he hugged his own body. He squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth.

And Harry had enough. He didn't particularly like Draco and he certainly enjoyed putting Draco in his place when he deserved it, but this was just plain assault. Moody was an adult Auror who purposefully cursed an eleven-year-old child.

Hermione's hand shot up again before Harry could say anything. "Sir, you never said a spell out loud. How are we supposed to learn it if we don't know what curse you used?"

"Silence," Moody snarled, clearly annoyed at being constantly questioned.

"She's got a point," Harry called out, sitting up so he could glare at Moody. "Right now it looks like you're merely torturing a student you don't like, instead of teaching us about magical Defence."