Chérie, parchments and quills

Chapter Four - Apologies

Harry was just preparing the defence against the dark's arts class room - to accommodate the larger number of first years that would be arriving in two weeks, when an Owl started tapping rapidly at one of the windows. Harry smiled as he went to open it; after nineteen years in the Wizarding world, it still amazed him how owls could find him nearly anywhere he went. As long as there was a window - or a way to enter the building, they would find him.

Once the owl had left - after its gratitude for the treats and some affection, Harry noticed the letter had the Le'Amortentia wax seal. He quickly broke the seal and read the letter:

Dear Mr Potter,

We don't usually agree to the sending of gifts, but if I can't do a favour for the man who saved the wizard world twice, then what sort of witch would I be? A disgrace of one that's what!

Well, anyways Mr Potter, I wrote to your secret Chérie and asked him if that would be okay. I can only bend the rules so far you see, and asking his permission first was necessary if I wished to keep my job. He said that was perfectly fine, so I have just sent your gifts to him.

You said it was chocolate, but I've never heard of anything called 'Maltesers' before, nor that long one called 'Galaxy caramel'. Perhaps you could enlighten me one day?

Nonetheless Mr Potter, I just wrote to let you know that your gifts are on their way.

Yours truly,

From Le'Amortentia,

Miss Malaise Vixen.

Harry's smile widened, wondering what Tau's reaction to his choice of 'making it up to him' would be.

He folded his letter, making a note to thank Miss Vixen, and then slide it into his jeans pocket before continuing to play around with the tables. He had no idea how many students he would have in each of his classes yet, but if he halved the number of first years starting ... he guessed thirty-two wouldn't be a far-off estimation for the number of students his classroom needed to hold at full capacity. Now he just needed to figure out how to get thirty-two students into his class with room for spell casting and practical work.

He flicked his wand, levitating and manipulating the tables and chairs once again as he tried to form a semicircle this time.

---OOO---

Back in his private room, he wiped the soup bowl clean with his bread and popped the last of it into his mouth. The spoon clinked as it landed into the bowl and he pushed it aside. A few moments later, the bowl vanished and a fresh cup of coffee appeared. He thanked Kreacher - not knowing if he'd heard him or not.

Having already finished planning the schedule to meet the curriculum for the first years', he was now working on the same plans for the second years. He had to fit in a multitude of topics, from Dark creatures such as Banshees, Cornish pixies and trolls - including the correct way to handle such creatures, to Defence against the dark arts spells, such as the disarming charm or the full body bind curse, and he only had thirty-nine weeks in which to achieve this for all his students - including all the revision for the things that they had learnt from the previous years. The students were not going to be pleased with the amount of homework he had to set them.

It was tiring work, and he soon decided to take a break. He sat on his bed - his head against the headboard, his coffee to his left on the bedside table, and he pulled out the magical parchment and quill from the draw. Smiling when he saw the new message, he eagerly read the words.