Harry Potter and the Shadow Cat

Chapter three; Lessons of Life

Hope you enjoy this story and would love some feedback. Sorry about and grammar and/or spelling errors, while I want to be a writer, grammar and spelling is my Achilles heel.

Disclaimer; I do not nor will I ever own Harry Potter.

(Start scene)

Harry could not help but feel nervous come potions class. True, word was going around the school that he was not acting as much as 'a git' as what most students call him. Harry knew it was his mother being here that caused this change. But Harry could not figure out why. True his mother did say they were friends but to act so, there was no other way to say it, un-Snape like. He thought of when his mother said they had a fight that pretty much ruined their friendship. Maybe he was acting this way so they wouldn't have another fight; he knew his mother would not approve of Snape's attitude before hand. He didn't think that was it. To put his mind as ease he would have to ask his mother. Part of him didn't want too as he felt this might be a sore subject. There was no way he was going to Snape and asks him. He rather tells his mother about his adventure in his first year with the stone, or worst the time in the chamber of secrets. He figured not only would his mother have a heart attack but punished him for all of that, no matter if he had too or not.

Harry's train of thought turned to the other events of this week. Besides Hermione seems to be not only carrying more book then normal but she also seems to be in every class at once, even when she is with them. The little bit of homework he got seemed easier then before. Maybe it was because his mother helped explained it better then some of the teachers did. She let do his own work, check it, have him correct his mistakes and helped explain the work to him. He knew Hermione did this but he felt like this was better somehow. At least Hermione does not have to worry about him.

As they enter the potions class room to find the Lily was sitting on Snape's desk waiting for class to begin. After the rest of the class rolled in Snape entered and with a flick of his wand and the instructions were written on the board. "We shall be starting the shirking potions, also know as the de-ageing potion or rejuvenation potion. When it is swallowed the subject is shrunk or de-aged to a younger age at random."

"The affects are also different for animals. Should the potion be use on a full grown animal they will be reducing to an infant like state. A toad would become a tadpole, a cat into a kitten and so on. The antidote to counteract this potion is so sensitive all it really needs is skin contact. Now you should all pay attention to the instructions as adding too many of some of the ingredients could turn your potion in a poison. Miss Parkinson it is rude to gossip while I am talking, that will be five points from Slytherin."

Pansy Parkinson, who was talking to one of her friends jumped up and almost sneered at the cat but flinched at the glare from said cat. The class began to work on their potions. Lily was going around helping students that needed it. Harry could not help but notice that Snape wasn't giving his unusual comments to his class mates. Lily stopped at Neville who seemed confused. "Careful Neville, you only need one rat's spleen for this." She said softly.

Neville jumped, not noticing she was there. "Sorry, I'm just no good at potions."

"It's alright; it's nothing to be ashamed of. Your mother could not last a month without melting a cauldron, a week for your father." Neville just stared at Lily.

Lily continues to help Neville through out the class. She helps several other student including Ron and Harry. The next table over Seamus Finnigan leaned over and said to Harry, "Hey Harry, did you hear? They say that Sirius Black was spotted not too far from here."

Harry Ron and Hermione stared at him, out of the corner of Harry's eye he swore he saw his mother cat ears twitch. "Yeah, coarse it was a muggle that spotted him. She had no idea who he is so she called the hot line. When the ministry got their, he was gone."

Harry looked at Ron, "Not too far from here, sound like he is heading for Hogwarts."

Snape came over to them near the end of the class. Harry's and Ron's were only a shade lighter then Hermione's was. Snape looked at Neville then seemed to do a double take. Neville's potion looks as if Hermione had made it. Snape looked at Lily, who sat next to Neville with what was believed to be a smug look. "I see your potion skills haven't degraded at all, Lily. If I didn't know this was only temporarily, I would have to be afraid for my job. If you can help Mr. Longbottom make what seems to be a perfect potion, who I must say is one of my worst students, perhaps you could help tutor any student struggling in my class." He then turned to Neville. "There may be hope for you let in the art of potion making Mr. Longbottom. With Lily's help that is."

The class end and Lily could be found sitting on Harry's shoulder as they went to Defense Against the Dark Arts. "That was really nice, helping Neville out."

"It was nothing really, he just needed some help and maybe some confidences and he will be a strong wizard."

As they got closer to class harry remembered something. "Mom, did you know Professor Lupin?"

Lily nodded, "Yes, he was in the same year and house as I was. He was friends with your father and part of his little gang. They were a group of trouble makers whose main goal was to make Professor McGonagall get grey hairs. They were smart of course but not so much tact, expect Remus that is. Your father asked me out at least once everyday, twice on some, until I accepted in our seventh year. Remus was too shy to ask a girl, though I know a few that would have loved to date him and maybe do more. The other two however, one was hopeless in pretty much everything and the other one chased anything that wore a skirt."

They found that Professor Lupin wasn't there when they arrived. He showed up when the bell rung and the last of the students came in. "You can put away your books, you won't need them. All you need is your wands. Now I have something special planed for this class so if you all could follow me."

The class gather there wands and followed the professor down the hall. On the way the meet Peeves, who was sticking gum into a keyhole. When he saw Professor Lupin he jumped in the air singing, "Loony, loopy Lupin. Loony, loopy Lupin."

"I see he still hasn't forgiven you guys for beating him in that prank war." Lily said amused.

Professor Lupin just smile at Peeves. "I wouldn't do that Peeves. Our caretaker won't be able to get to his brooms."

Peeves just brew a raspberry at Professor Lupin, who just sighed and drew his wand. "This is a useful little spell," he told the class over his shoulder. "Please watch closely." He raised the wand to shoulder height, said, "Waddiwasi!" and pointed it at Peeves. With the force of a bullet, the wad of chewing gum shot out of the keyhole and straight down Peeves' left nostril; he whirled upright and zoomed away, cursing.

"Cool, sir!" said Dean Thomas in amazement.

"Thank you, Dean," said Professor Lupin, putting his wand away again. "Shall we proceed?"

They set off again, the class looking at shabby Professor Lupin with increased respect. He led them down a second corridor and stopped, right outside the staff room door. "Inside, please," said Professor Lupin, opening it and standing back.

The staff room, a long, paneled room full of old, mismatched chairs, was empty except for one teacher. Professor Snape was sitting in a low armchair reading a book, and he looked around as the class filed in. As Professor Lupin came in and made to close the door behind him, Snape said, "Leave it open, Lupin. I'd rather not witness this."

He got to his feet and strode past the class, his black robes billowing behind him. "Ah come on Sev, I shouldn't be that bad." Lily said look at him as he pass.

He looked at her and mumbled something that sounded like "I rather not,"

"Now, then," said Professor Lupin, beckoning the class toward the end of the room, where there was nothing but an old wardrobe where the teachers kept their spare robes. As Professor Lupin went to stand next to it, the wardrobe gave a sudden wobble, banging off the wall. "Nothing to worry about," said Professor Lupin calmly because a few people had jumped backward in alarm. "There's a Boggart in there."

Most people seemed to feel that this was something to worry about. Neville gave Professor Lupin a look of pure terror, and Seamus Finnigan eyed the now rattling doorknob apprehensively. "Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces," said Professor Lupin. "Wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, the cupboards under sinks — I've even met one that had lodged itself in a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday afternoon, and I asked the headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third years some practice. So, the first question we must ask ourselves is, what is a Boggart?"

Hermione put up her hand. "It's a shape-shifter," she said. "It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most."

"Couldn't have put it better myself," said Professor Lupin, and Hermione glowed. "So the Boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a Boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears. This means," said Professor Lupin, choosing to ignore Neville's small sputter of terror, "that we have a huge advantage over the Boggart before we begin. Have you spotted it, Harry?"

Harry thought it over before having a go. ""Er — because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape it should be?"

"Precisely," said Professor Lupin, "It's always best to have company when you're dealing with a Boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug? I once saw a Boggart make that very mistake — tried to frighten two people at once and turned himself into half a slug. Not remotely frightening."

"Was that when you idiots got rid of that Boggart in our attic when we got Harry home? I wonder what you guys did that was so funny that you had to wake Harry and me from our nap."

The class found it funny to see Professor Lupin blushing in embarrassment. "We might have gotten carry away there, and we did say sorry. After hexed us that is" this last part he muttered to himself but got back on track. "The charm that repels a Boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a Boggart is laughter. What you need to do is force it to assume a shape that you find amusing.

We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, please… riddikulus!"

"Riddikulus!" said the class together.

"Good," said Professor Lupin. "Very good. But that was the easy part, I'm afraid. You see, the word alone is not enough. And this is where you come in, Neville."

The wardrobe shook again, though not as much as Neville, who walked forward as though he were heading for the gallows.

"Right, Neville," said Professor Lupin. "First things first: what would you say is the thing that frightens you most in the world?"

Neville's lips moved, but no noise came out.

"I didn't catch that, Neville, sorry," said Professor Lupin cheerfully.

Neville looked around rather wildly, as though begging someone to help him, then said, in barely more than a whisper, "Professor Snape."

Nearly everyone laughed. Even Neville grinned apologetically. Professor Lupin, however, looked thoughtful "Professor Snape… hmmm… Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother?"

"Er — yes," said Neville nervously. "But — I don't want the Boggart to turn into her either."

"No, no, you misunderstand me," said Professor Lupin, now smiling. "I wonder, could you tell us what sort of clothes your grandmother usually wears?"

Neville looked startled, but said, "Well… always the same hat. A tall one with a stuffed vulture on top. And a long dress… green, normally… and sometimes a fox-fur scarf."

"And a handbag?" prompted Professor Lupin.

"A big red one," said Neville.

Right then," said Professor Lupin. "Can you picture those clothes very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your mind's eye?"

"Yes," said Neville uncertainty, plainly wondering what was coming next.

"When the Boggart bursts out of this wardrobe, Neville, and sees you, it will assume the form of Professor Snape," said Lupin. "And you will raise your wand — thus — and cry 'Riddikulus' — and concentrate hard on your grandmother's clothes. If all goes well, Professor Boggart Snape will be forced into that vulture-topped hat, and that green dress, with that big red handbag."

There was a great shout of laughter. The wardrobe wobbled more violently.

"If Neville is successful, the Boggart is likely to shift his attention to each of us in turn," said Professor Lupin. "I would like all of you to take a moment now to think of the thing that scares you most, and imagine how you might force it to look comical…"

The room went quiet. Harry thought… What scared him most in the world? His first thought was Lord Voldemort — a Voldemort returned to full strength. But before he had even started to plan a possible counterattack on a Boggart-Voldemort, a horrible image came floating to the surface of his mind…A rotting, glistening hand, slithering back beneath a black cloak… a long, rattling breath from an unseen mouth… then a cold so penetrating it felt like drowning…

Harry shivered, then looked around, hoping no one had noticed. Many people had their eyes shut tight. Ron was muttering to himself, "Take its legs off." Harry was sure he knew what that was about. Ron's greatest fear was spiders.

"Stuck, honey?" his mother asked.

Harry looked at her and whispered, "Do you know a way you can make a dementor funny?"

Lily thought for a moment before saying, "I think I have a way," and she whispered something in his ear.

Harry snickered and tried hard not to laugh out loud. He nodded ready. He didn't notice that Lily looked at Professor Lupin and nodded to him. He nodded back understanding.

"Everybody ready?" ask Professor Lupin and seeing everyone nod continue "Neville, we're going to back away, let you have a clear field, all right? I'll call the next person forward… Everyone back, now, so Neville can get a clear shot —"

They all retreated, backed against the walls, leaving Neville alone beside the wardrobe. He looked pale and frightened, but he had pushed up the sleeves of his robes and was holding his wand ready.

"On the count of three, Neville," said Professor Lupin, who was pointing his own wand at the handle of the wardrobe. "One — two — three —now!"

A jet of sparks shot from the end of Professor Lupin's wand and hit the doorknob. The wardrobe burst open. Hook-nosed and menacing, Professor Snape stepped out, his eyes flashing at Neville. Neville backed away, his wand up, mouthing wordlessly. Snape was bearing down upon him, reaching inside his robes.

"R — r — riddikulus! " squeaked Neville.

There was a noise like a whip crack. Snape stumbled; he was wearing a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten vulture, and he was swinging a huge crimson handbag.

There was a roar of laughter; the Boggart paused, confused, and Professor Lupin shouted, "Parvarti! Forward!"

Parvarti walked forward, her face set. Snape rounded on her. There was another crack, and where he had stood was a bloodstained, bandaged mummy; its sightless face was turned to Parvarti and it began to walk toward her very slowly, dragging its feet, its stiff arms rising —"Riddikulus!" cried Parvarti. A bandage unraveled at the mummy's feet; it became entangled, fell face forward, and its head rolled off.

"Seamus!" roared Professor Lupin.

Seamus darted past Parvarti. Crack! Where the mummy had been was a woman with floor-length black hair and a skeletal, green-tinged face — a banshee. She opened her mouth wide and an unearthly sound filled the room, a long, wailing shriek that made the hair on Harry's head stand on end — "Riddikulus!" shouted Seamus.

The banshee made a rasping noise and clutched her throat; her voice was gone. Crack! The banshee turned into a rat, which chased its tail in a circle, then —crack! —became a rattlesnake, which slithered and writhed before —crack! — becoming a single, bloody eyeball.

"It's confused!" shouted Lupin. "We're getting there! Dean!"

Dean hurried forward. Crack! The eyeball became a severed hand, which flipped over and began to creep along the floor like a crab. "Riddikulus!" yelled Dean.

There was a snap, and the hand was trapped in a mousetrap.

"Excellent! Ron, you next!"

Ron leapt forward. Crack! Quite a few people screamed. A giant spider, six feet tall and covered in hair, was advancing on Ron, clicking its pincers menacingly.

For a moment, Harry thought Ron had frozen. Then — "Riddikulus!" bellowed Ron, and the spider's legs vanished; it rolled over and over; Lavender Brown squealed and ran out of its way and it came to a halt at Harry's feet.

He raised his wand, ready. Crack! A dementor rose up a chill swept the room. It glided toward Harry. "Riddikulus!" he shouted.

The dementor's cloak caught a snag on the floor and fell off. Underneath were thirty or so chipmunks all from a misshaped pyramid. The one at the very top had a small megaphone and was making those breathing noises a dementor makes. The class snickered as the chipmunk notice they lost the cloak and poked the one sitting on him. it got annoyed and squeaked, "What?" it was then it notice the class could see them and squeaked again, "We've been found out, run away!" and the misshaped pyramid of chipmunks fell apart as they all tried to run if every direction. The class was laughing, none harder then Harry.

"Forward, Neville, and finish him off!" said Lupin

Crack! Snape was back. This time Neville charged forward looking determined. "Riddikulus!" he shouted, and they had a split second's view of Snape in his lacy dress before Neville let out a great "Ha!" of laughter, and the Boggart exploded, burst into a thousand tiny wisps of smoke, and was gone.

"Excellent!" cried Professor Lupin as the class broke into applause. "Excellent, Neville. Well done, everyone… Let me see… five points to Gryffindor for every person to tackle the Boggart — ten for Neville because he did it twice… and five each to Hermione and Harry."

"But I didn't do anything," said Hermione.

"You and Harry answered my questions correctly at the start of the class, Hermione," Lupin said lightly. "Very well, everyone, an excellent lesson. Homework, kindly read the chapter on Boggarts and summarize it for me… to be handed in on Monday. That will be all."

Talking excitedly, the class left the staff room. "Did you see me take that banshee?" shouted Seamus.

"And the hand!" said Dean, waving his own around.

"And Snape in that hat!"

"And my mummy!"

"That was the best Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson we've ever had, wasn't it?" said Ron excitedly as they made their way back to the classroom to get their bags.

"He seems like a very good teacher," said Hermione approvingly. "But I wish I could have had a turn with the Boggart —"

"What would it have been for you?" said Ron, sniggering. "A piece of homework that only got nine out of ten?"

"Now don't go making fun of other people fear." Lily said sternly before he turned to Harry "that was very good Harry."

Harry grinned unable to help himself.

Okay I had a tough time finding a way to make a dementor funny but I came up with two choices here is what it could have been like;

What could have been;

The dementor's cloak caught a snag on the floor and fell off. And underneath was …a frog? A simple green frog just sitting there on the floor. Everybody stared as the frog gave a slow croak. Suddenly it stood on its hind legs and grabbed a top hat ad a cane from behind its back. The frog then started a dance kicking it legs and singing in a male voice;

Hello, my baby

Hello, my honey

Hello, my ragtime gal

Send me a kiss by wire

Baby, my hearts on fire

If you refuse me

Honey, you'll lose me

Then you'll be left alone

Oh baby, telephone

And tell me I'm your own

The frog then sat right back down on the floor its hat fallen off and gave another slow croak. The whole class unable to hold back laughed and laughed.

Hope you like this story so far. I will try and make future chapters longer. If you like this story, then check out some of my other ones. Please review.