Chapter 5
"So Hedwig, as we already knew, you can only see thestrals once you've seen death and accepted it."
Hedwig hooted knowingly in response.
"Exactly!" Harry said as he turned the page of his book. Hedwig sat on her perch, tilting her head as her master continued reading.
"It says right here that they serve as some sort of bridge between the world of the living and the dead. They are generally accepted as an ill omen but they're really kind creatures – Luna would agree with that, I'm sure – that merely seek to heal the ones left behind. Mentally, that is."
Harry sighed, "The bridge between our worlds…"
Hedwig flapped her wings twice and clicked her beak sharply, causing Harry to look up;
"Oh, right!" He grabbed hold of the sprigs of lavender he had already prepared and threw them in his simmering cauldron. "Just in time. Thanks, Hedwig." Harry stirred his concoction a few times, checking to make sure that it changed into the correct colour and sat back down into his chair.
"So perhaps a few strands of thestral hair could do the trick," Harry mused. He scribbled a few notes on a piece of parchment that was already littered with askew sentences, carelessly deposited onto the paper as if written down in haste. "But should I use the hair of their tails or the hair of their manes? Hmmm…"
Hedwig sagged somewhat on her perch, visibly relaxing as her master continued studying.
"Marigold flowers would work well in contrast," Harry mused out loud, "But I could also use Acacia leaves."
Hedwig ruffled her feathers in obvious dismay.
"What?" Harry chuckled, looking up, "You don't like Acacia leaves?"
Hedwig screeched shortly in response.
"Marigold flowers it is," Harry said, writing down his chosen ingredient. Hedwig hooted softly, tucking her head under her wing.
"Oh, shoot!" Harry suddenly exclaimed, "I'm going to be late for History of Magic!"
He hastily put a stasis spell on the cauldron, swept his notes into one big, messy pile and grabbed his bag and books as he held his quill between his teeth.
"Ber Herdwerg," Harry tried saying but he got no response from the owl. In a hasty flurry, he bolted out of the dungeon and raced towards his next class, spotting the person in his path just a tad too late.
And who better to crash into than Draco Malfoy? With a thud, Harry landed hard on his backside, his books scattered everywhere, pieces of parchment still fluttering in the air as they slowly descended. Harry's quill had dropped to the ground and rolled away somewhere.
"Seriously, Potter, can't you watch where you're going?" Draco chided in annoyance, "A guy can't even walk through the dungeons anymore without being knocked on his arse."
"Sorry," Harry mumbled sheepishly as he got off the floor. He rubbed his backside tenderly before extending a hand to the Malfoy heir who took it gracefully. Harry pulled him upright before he went to pick up his things in a hurry.
"Sorry, Draco," Harry apologized, "I'm going to be late for History."
"You're actually going?" Draco asked incredulously, "You Gryffindors really are too goody-two-shoes. You dropped the class! There's really no reason to go back there. It's boring as hell anyway."
"So I take it you didn't go?" Harry asked as he took one of the books Draco offered him.
"Not a chance," Draco replied easily, "I've got better things to do than listen to the tedious details of orc and goblin wars. I would think you do too."
Harry shrugged. "I don't see the harm," he admitted, "If I don't like it, I can always drop it again, just like Dumbledore said. I just feel kind of bad for Professor Bell you know?"
"Oh, I get it now!" Draco exclaimed happily, "You've got the hots for her."
"Wha- no!" Harry replied hastily, "She's like thirty"
Harry started walking at a hurried pace. If he was fast, he could still make it. Draco followed along, not letting up.
"True as that may be," he said, "You have to admit that she's easily the hottest teacher we've ever got."
"Hermione would argue that that honour would befall Lockhart," Harry chuckled.
Draco rolled his eyes. "Of the female teachers, you dunce," he said, slapping Harry lightly on the head.
"Please," Harry scoffed, "I prefer girls my own age."
"Oh? Like who?" Draco urged.
"Well, this is my stop!" Harry deflected easily, hurrying into the designated classroom. He glanced over his shoulder to see Draco give him an exasperated look but simply sent him a defiant smirk before he went to sit beside Ron and Hermione. Draco left, smiling triumphantly for some reason.
"What was that all about?" Ron asked.
"Just Draco telling me how hot he thinks Professor Bell is," Harry divulged.
Hermione huffed. "Boys," she growled but made no further comment. Harry's eyes locked with Ron's for a moment before they boy chuckled. It was barely a few seconds later that professor Bell flew into the class, looking a bit flustered with several strands of hair out of place.
She smiled warmly at the full class of teenagers that was already waiting for her.
"Hi guys!" she greeted, "I'm sorry I'm late. It's just so hard to find my way around here."
With a loud thud, she allowed her books to fall on her desk. "Oops, sorry!" she winced at the loud noise. "Say, did you know that the staircases move on their own in here? How does anybody get anywhere on time?" The look of amazement in her eyes reminded Harry of many a first grader and made him realize that Bell did not go to school here.
"Oh, but I really should get started, shouldn't I?" she said somewhat apologetically. She took out her wand and faced her class, still smiling brightly. "Please open your books to page twenty-three. Today, we will be learning about wizards and witches who have been worshipped by muggles throughout the ages, raising them to a God-like status."
"That's a long title," Ron whispered. Harry chuckled and Hermione shot him a disparaging glance. Bell didn't seem to notice though.
"There's no need to keep your eyes glued to your textbooks, children," Bell said, "All of my classes have been doing that but I will make sure that you see the world around you instead."
She swished her wand in some complicated, elegant patterns when the air itself started to vibrate, taking on colours and foreign outlines. Sounds started to fill the room and Harry clutched his desk hard out of fear that he would fall to the ground as soon as the room stopped writhing and moving. He noticed several others do the same.
"Don't worry," Bell said in a soothing voice, "Relax and take in the scene around you. The year is 975 AD. We find ourselves in a town called 'Hofstadir where the winds are cold but the pastures are green."
Harry gasped in amazement as he laid eyes upon the large valleys and hillsides as people hustled and bustled to get on with their lives. Most people wore thick, woollen clothes. Pigs, sheep and goats seemed to be walking around in utter chaos but this went unnoticed by the passers-by.
"Among the villagers in this town, walks one that is more devious and clever than any of his peers. Here he comes now!"
A man walked among the villagers with his head held high, his posture proud as he saluted those he passed. The ones that noticed him bowed down deeply, their noses touching the ground as the man swept past, his long cloak billowing after him as his long, black hair swept in the mind. A mischievous smile adorned his handsome face and his long fingers held a lute that he played as he walked.
"His name is Loki," Bell explained, "Some of you have probably heard about him before. He is known as one of the most accomplished Masters in transmutation that have ever walked this green earth. Back then, there was no ministry to keep the wizards in check, so there was no one to stop a wizard from flaunting his skill. Such a wizard often became revered."
Loki bowed down to a beautiful young lady with long blond hair, tied into a braid and held out an elegant hand. He spoke in a language that Harry did not understand but the young lady giggled girlishly and took the hand. With one gesture, Loki transformed her old rags into rich clothes. He picked up a few rocks from the ground and transformed them into jewellery which he graciously handed over to the woman.
Bell shook her head, smiling thinly. "A very accomplished master indeed but also a trickster," Bell continued. "He broke many a woman's heart as he travelled, and deceived many people just to get what he wanted."
"Sounds like he would have done well in Slytherin," Ron snorted."
"Quite right, Mr Weasley," Bell agreed, "He would have. If not for his cunning, then surely for his ambition. But let's move on shall we?"
Professor Bell swished her wand to the left and the room spun until it stopped on an entirely new scene.
"Since we're on the subject of incorrigible tricksters, we shall move further into the past. We are in Greece and the era is 500 BC. Here we encounter a wizard that loved muggles more than anything and was always doing his best to make their lives better, much to the dismay of his fellow wizards and witches, of course. You can imagine just how important 'pure blood' was at that time."
The children watched a tall man wearing a ridiculous outfit mingle among what seemed like commoners. Whenever someone tried to bow before him – which many obviously felt compelled to do – he quickly stopped them and held them upright.
"This is Hermes. I called him a trickster," Bell explained, "But he is one with a good heart. He would mostly trick his own kind to the benefit of the muggles whom he sought to protect. Pay close attention to the items he carries."
Harry squinted and tried to discern the many silly-looking things this Hermes carried with him. He wore a large satchel which depicted a rooster. He also wore a round hat and a travellers cloak. With him, he carried a winged staff which was entwined by two snakes but what was most noticeable were the ridiculous winged sandals he wore.
"Could he actually fly with those?" some disbelieving Hufflepuff asked.
"He most certainly could," Bell said, "He charmed them much in the way one would charm a broomstick. The wings are completely unnecessary, yes, but they surely filled the hearts of his beloved muggles with awe. The most tricky part was to actually maintain his balance in those shoes as he flew. Can you imagine?"
As if ordered to do so, Hermes leapt into the sky and took off, the useless wings on his sandals flapping for nothing but show as he wielded his staff at nothing in particular.
"He used his staff for healing and - according to some accounts – for alchemy as well. It is clear how much the muggles loved him and he was rewarded for his efforts by being considered a God."
Bell flicked her wand once more and the scenery changed to that of a desert zone. Large pyramids permeated the area and everyone recognised it unmistakably as Egypt.
"We have time for one more," Bell said happily, "I clearly don't need to tell you where we are. It is about 2400 BC. This tour of our history would obviously not be complete without including the ancient Egyptians, now would it?"
Some of the students agreed wholeheartedly, Hermione being one of them. She had been taking in all of the new information with wide-open eyes and a gleeful smile on her face.
In a flash, the scene zoomed in on the base of one of the pyramids where a female lion lay basking in the sun.
"Meet Sekhmet," Bell said dreamily, "She was known as the Goddess of War and Healing but truthfully she was just a witch albeit a very powerful one at that."
The class watched as the lioness rose from her spot and transformed into a gorgeous woman with long, black hair. Her face was painted with black streaks and she wore garish jewellery coloured in gold and blue.
"As you can all see, she was an animagus which only served to enthral the muggles even more."
Some of the girls sighed dreamily as they watched the beautiful woman walk towards her subjects. In the background, slaves were hard at work, sweating and labouring away in the dry desert, their slavers always behind them.
"It was a different time," Bell said sadly, "And Sekhmet was royalty. She never saw any problem in using slaves and even used them herself. We can only hope that she treated them with kindness."
The scenery changed again but was still focused on Sekhmet who stood at the front lines of what appeared to be an army.
"She was ferocious," Bell continued, "And she was one of the very best at duelling. She was always at the front lines of any battle and helped her people through many wars."
The students watched, their hands clinging to their seats in excitement as Sekhmet charged into battle, casting spells left and right while not even using a wand or anything of the sort.
"Even when the enemy had their own wizard or witch –" Bell continued, focusing the scene on another magic user that now came to stand in front of Sekhmet "- She still won every battle. But even so –" The scenery changed again. They were now seeing the aftermath of the battle. Many people were injured and dying. Sekhmet could be seen kneeling down next to a bleeding man. "- She still cared for the lives of the people. She was skilled in battle but also in healing charms. Unfortunately for her, she had plenty of opportunities to practice both."
Bell raised her wand into the air and in one fell swoop, the scenery seemed to get sucked up into its tip. The entire class groaned but Bell smiled fondly.
"Don't worry, class," she said, "If you would like to, you can take my class for the rest of the year. I understand that history can be a bit boring but if you apply yourself you can learn some interesting stuff."
The class murmured incoherently in agreement, excitement clear in the air.
"Now," Bell said, clapping her hands together, "I do believe it's time for lunch. This is a bit embarrassing but could any of you show me the way to the great hall? I'm afraid I'll just get lost again and miss lunch entirely."
"We'll take you, Professor!" Hermione shouted excitedly, practically jumping up and down.
Bell chuckled. "Thank you very much, Ms Granger. I'll take you up on that."
She picked up her bag and waited for the golden trio to get out of the classroom after which she locked it magically.
"I don't think anyone will be stealing anything from inside there, Professor," Ron said.
"Most definitely not, no," Bell replied, "But the magic in this room has been strengthened to aid me in my… way of teaching, so to speak. I wouldn't want anyone wandering in there unsupervised."
"That was amazing, Professor!" Hermione said happily before Ron could retort, "Who knew that History of Magic could be so amazing?!"
Bell laughed, "Thank you, Ms Granger," she said, "That's quite the compliment. Especially after learning about the horrible reputation my subject has in this school. Everyone seemed to dread coming to my class."
"Well, we were taught by a ghost," Ron said evenly, "And he was so boring, everyone always fell asleep."
"So I've heard," Bell said shaking her head, "It's such a shame, really. If I had been taught by such a Professor, I'm sure I never would've taken a liking to the subject myself."
"Where did you go to school, Professor?" Harry asked daringly.
"Ilvermorny," Bells admitted.
"That's so far away!" Hermione exclaimed, "You don't sound American at all."
"That's because I'm not," Bell chuckled, "But my father had us moved there for work so I had to attend Ilvermorny instead of Hogwarts. It's a shame, really. I had always wanted to come to Hogwarts."
"Well, at least now you get to experience it," Harry offered, "And you don't even have to sit through Binn's classes for it."
Bell laughed. "I don't think I should be allowing you to speak about my predecessor that way, but I'll permit it just this once." She winked at the threesome as the stairway they were just on changed direction. Bell let out a little yelp and clutched the balustrade tightly.
"Why does it do that?" she asked in amusement.
"We honestly don't know," Harry replied.
"Some would say that Hogwarts is a bit fickle," Hermione supplied, "She likes to toy with new people."
"Oh, come on Hogwarts, be nice," Bell chided, "I'm not going to spray paint your walls or anything like that."
"It's okay, Professor," Hermione said, "We're still going in the right direction."
"This castle is huge," Bell said in awe, "Do you think we're –"
"And what is the golden trio doing, wandering around the corridors?" drawled a familiar voice, "Lunch will be starting soon."
"Hi, Professor," Harry greeted Snape, completely undeterred by his sour attitude, "We were just on our way there but the staircase moved on us."
Snape frowned. "I didn't expect you to be needing a chaperone at this age. Afraid to get cornered by a fantastical beast of sorts?"
Harry frowned at Snape's odd behaviour. He opened his mouth to say something when Bell interjected.
"Actually, Professor Snape, they're the ones escorting me," she said, biting her lip in embarrassment. "I haven't gotten the hang of navigating this place yet. It's very daunting and I was worried that I wouldn't make it to the great hall in time."
Snape raised a sardonic eyebrow, "I understand," he replied curtly and swivelled on his heel to depart but Harry stopped him.
"You could help her out, Professor," Harry said sweetly, "You know, show your fellow colleague the area. Show her the secret passages and everything."
Snape narrowed his eyes at Harry. "Don't presume to tell me what to do, Mr Potter or I will be forced to punish you accordingly."
Harry was ready to fight Snape on this but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. It was Bell's. She smiled sweetly at Snape and said: "That's okay, really. I'll be fine. You go on ahead and we'll make it there on time as well."
Snape nodded curtly and walked away, his robes ever-billowing.
"What's his problem?" Harry muttered, "He's acting as if someone stole all of his dragon blood."
Bell chuckled softly, "Now, Harry, you shouldn't say stuff like that."
"And why do you call him 'Professor Snape'?" Harry asked, "All of the other teachers call him Severus. And he's about your age."
"Well," Bell said in a hushed voice, "He kind of scares me. But don't tell him I said that! He'll probably be very mad that I said anything of the sorts to a student. As a matter of fact, could you just forget the last five minutes happened? That would be great."
"If you say so, Professor," Ron shrugged.
"But he's really not as bad as he seems," Harry said.
"Though he does take some getting used to," Hermione supplied, "But once you've moved past his walls, you'll see that he has a heart of gold."
Ron snorted, "Hermione! Did you forget that awful potion he fed me?"
"Well, you were rummaging through his potions lab," Hermione said smartly, "What did you expect?"
"You all dared me to do it!" Ron huffed, "And a Gryffindor does not back away from a dare."
Bell chuckled merrily, "Is that what Gryffindors stand for then? I'll be sure to remember that."
"What house were you sorted into, Professor?" Hermione asked, "I know that Ilvermorny has four houses as well."
"I love that you know that!" Bell said happily, "Well, I was sorted into Thunderbird."
"I guess I can see that," Hermione nodded knowingly. Harry and Ron just shared a confused look.
"Here we are!" Harry said as he gestured towards the open doors to the great hall.
"You three are my heroes!" Bell exclaimed happily as she led the way inside. She waved one last time at the trio as they took their seat. "See you next time!" she shouted before half-walking, half-running to the high table to sit in the last available spot next to Filch to whom she amicably started chatting away.
"What are you looking at?" Ginny chided as she saw Harry staring after Bell.
"Just wondering how someone so airheaded managed a teaching position here," Harry said, shaking his head.
"I like the way she teaches, though," Ginny said, "She's much better than Binns ever was."
"Much better looking too – Ow! Hermione!"
Ron was rubbing the sore spot on his head where Hermione had hit her with her book.
"What was that for?"
"For being a pig," Hermione snarled before digging into her food.
Ron rolled his eyes and stuffed two rolls in his mouth. Meanwhile, Harry smiled wryly at Ginny who winked at him with a smirk.
"Why are you being such a git?" Harry asked as he carefully measured his sheep's milk.
"Excuse me?" Snape snarled. Harry finished measuring, the tip of this tongue between his teeth and waited to respond until he had put the beaker back down.
"To Professor Bell, I mean," Harry said, "You're acting as if she were some first-year Gryffindor or something."
"I believe that my interactions with other members of the staff are of no concern to you," Snape said dangerously, "Now, focus."
"Don't be like that," Harry groaned, "No one is around to hear us anyway. I don't get why you're being so defensive. Hold on, it says here to use a sprig of rosemary but wouldn't the potion do better with azaleas? I'm sure it would react better to the acid of the snake venom."
"Interesting argument," Snape conceded, "Go ahead and try it but be sure to wear gloves as you do so. Also, I am not being defensive. I simply do not like her. There are a lot of people I don't like and I don't want to be forced to interact with them."
"No one is forcing you," Harry said as he rummaged through the stash of ingredients, looking for azaleas.
"Then what would you call that attempt to have me show her around the castle?" Snape huffed, "Social interactions are bad enough without them being forced on me."
"A little bit of common courtesy could go a long way," Harry said as he retrieved his prize. "And who knows, you might end up liking her."
"She is far too child-like and energetic for my taste," Snape snarled, his nose scrunched up in disgust, "I've heard about her lessons. Ridiculous."
"Brilliant!" Harry countered, "I don't think anyone will want to drop History of magic now. If she teaches like that all the time, we will all be history buffs in no time."
"I would rather you focused on potions," Snape said, watching with interest how Harry carefully tossed in the azalea leaves.
"I am!" Harry said, "And hey. You're the one who told me to keep up with my other classes as well. Don't get all upset with me that I find them interesting."
Snape didn't respond. He watched intently as the potion in Harry's cauldron bubbled gently. Hedwig flew over and landed on Harry's shoulder, hooting softly.
"What do you think?" Harry asked.
"Shh," Snape hushed him, "Give it some time."
They both watched the concoction intently. When it stopped bubbling, Harry hauled it off the fire and bottled the brew.
"Hmm," Snape pondered, "I suggest that we test the potion as soon as we can. Don't forget to write down your findings and your work. If this potion turns out to be more potent, it might interest a lot of people."
"I only changed one thing." Harry argued, "It won't change the world."
"We can only change one thing at a time, Harry," Snape said, "The important thing is for you to keep trying.
I hope you all enjoyed that. What do you all make of Professor Bell?
Please grace me with your reviews! They help keep me happy and motivated.