A/N So this is a day late. I'll just say I had a lot of things going on yesterday, and I didn't have the proper time to polish the chapter like I usually would have, so I pushed the release back a day. Also, it is shorter than usual, but it felt like a good place to leave off when I finished the chapter.

As always, unbeta-ed, sorry if I miss any errors.

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Harry Potter or Supernatural, or anything belonging to J.K. Rowling or Eric Kripke, I'm just using the characters for fun. I receive no money off of this story. Don't sue me.

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Chapter 14: Creatures and Teachers

Harry woke up to a pillow to the face and a very loud Hermione. "Harry! Get up, we're going to be late to breakfast!" Harry reluctantly rolled out of bed, stalking into the bathroom to get ready. Twenty minutes later she was walking down to breakfast, sandwiched safely between Ron and Hermione so as to not fall down any staircases with a grudge.

She was finally drawn into the conversation sometime after her second glass of black tea, noticing Hermione and Ron arguing again.

"It's a monster!"

"I don't call your rat ugly, do I Ron? No! And Crookshanks isn't ugly," Hermione protested. "He's...unique!"

"Uniquely hideous, maybe."

"All right, break it up. You're ruining my morning haze."

"Well, you shouldn't have stolen my bed last night."

"Hermione, they're the same bed."

"I don't have the energy to debate this with you right now. I'm already facing Ronald's bullheadedness."

"It's a cat, Hermione." Just then, the sweep of dark green robes alerted Harry to the presence of Professor McGonagall behind her.

"Miss Potter, Mister Weasley, here you are." McGonagall handed two pieces of parchment out to the students. "Oh, and Miss Granger." A seemingly longer piece of parchment floated towards Hermione.

"Thank you Professor!"

"Thanks." The witch moved further down the table, and Harry glanced at her schedule. Divination first, then Care of Magical Creatures. She was excited for Divination, knowing a few psychics in America who helped hunters. She was curious to see if it could be applied to her 'extracurricular' work.

"Hermione, they've messed up your schedule." Ron muttered, frowning.

"Don't be ridiculous, Ronald." The witch in question yanked her parchment away from Ron's bacon greased hands. "No they haven't."

"But it said right there, Divination at nine o'clock, Muggle Studies at nine o'clock, and Arithmancy at nine o'clock! You can't be in three places at once!"

"Well, technically-"

"No, Harry, I don't want to hear one of your gruesome jokes. I'm trying to enjoy my toast here."

"Suit yourself." The three finished up their breakfast, and trudged through the castle, trying to find the North Tower where Divination would begin in half an hour. After ten minutes of wandering and an awful lot of swearing at moving staircases, the trio stopped in front of a wall of portraits.

"Where the bloody hell is this place? Hermione, you know everything, where are we going?"

"Honestly, Ronald. I don't know everything. And really, we should be asking Harry, she loves to creep around at night."

"I've never been to the North Tower, the Astronomy Tower is higher anyway," Harry replied.

"Stand and fight! You scoundrels!" The three of them whirled around, Harry with her wand out in warning, only to come to face a portrait of a very fat knight on a pudgy pony.

"What-"

"A duel to the death! Or are you cowards?" The knight accused, brandishing a thin rapier at them.

"Um, Mister…" Hermione began.

"Sir! Sir Cadogan, at your service my lady." He swept over in a bow, his helmet falling off his head onto the ground.

"Do you know the way to the North Tower?" She asked hesitantly.

"A quest! Of course! Follow me Madams, Sir." He tried to jump onto his horse, only to slide off as the horse sat down obstinately. Sir Cadogan stood up, brushed himself off, and took off through the next portraits with a slight hint of blush on his cheeks. Harry exchanged a look with Ron and Hermione, before the three Gryffindors hitched up their robes and took off after him.

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An hour and a half later, Harry was feeling very bitter. Hermione's chatter about the class washed over her as she made her way to Transfiguration, ignoring the whispers aimed in her direction. She only looked up when Hermione suggested that she shouldn't be scared because Trelawney was obviously a fake.

"You think I'm upset about the Grim?" Harry asked, halting and turning on the spot. Hermione stopped her feet quickly, leaning back so as to not run into Harry.

"Well, of course."

"Hermione, that was probably the most accurate part of the whole class."

"What?! Harry, you can't-"

"How many times have I been in life-threatening danger at this school? How many times in the past couple weeks alone? The prediction of my imminent demise might just be the closest to a prophecy she'll ever get." Hermione just sputtered, and Ron looked vaguely interested in her point.

"Well, then why did you storm out after class?" She asked.

"I could have taken arithmancy and supplied my Runes work instead of wasting some time in the Divination department. But no, I had to see if my psychic theory was right. Now I owe Dean twenty bucks."

"What?" asked Dean Thomas, looking over from where he was chatting with Seamus.

"Not you."

"Okay." Hermione rolled her eyes, grabbing Harry and Ron's robes and pulling them towards Transfiguration.

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"That's the first time my transformation hasn't been met with applause. What's the matter with you lot?"

"They've realised that some other conspiracy aimed to kill me is in play this year, and they were upset enough with the giant snake last year."

"Now really, Miss Potter!"

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Harry jogged down the front lawn, heading over to the clearing that was listed for the Care of Creatures meeting spot. Ron and Hermione hurried down behind her, wanting to be early for Hagrid's first class. By Harry's side was a growling book attempting to escape the constraints of a worn leather belt. She did have to admit that Malfoy made a good point when he asked how to open the book.

"Yeh got ter stroke 'em." Hagrid seemed so depressed that no one figured out how to do it, so Harry unwrapped the belt while stroking the spine of the book, sighing in relief when the book didn't try to give her a few hundred papercuts. Still, she wasn't sure if she would have volunteered for the Hippogriff. However, the rest of the class stepping backwards silently didn't really give her a choice.

"Traitors," she hissed at Ron and Hermione.

"But Harry, you're teacup!" Lavender squealed. That was a good point. Eh, Harry thought the universe might give her a cooler death than 'trampled by Hippogriff'. The lesson did actually go pretty well, that is until-

"Dammit Malfoy."

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Overall, Harry's first week could have gone better. She'd been warned about her imminent death, again, she'd somehow blown up her first Runes assignment, and she was pretty sure Malfoy was trying to sue a Hippogriff. Harry sat thinking about all this while stabbing absently at her Thursday morning toast. Ron and Hermione were arguing about Crookshanks again. Honestly, she was looking forward to double potions just to get out of her current situation. Having thought that, she stood up and walked to class ten minutes early, Ron and Hermione not even noticing her leave.

"What does a Boggart look like? Yes, Miss Granger." Lupin said, pointing at Hermione.

"When did you get here?" Ron gasped. Hermione glared, shushing him, and turned back to Lupin.

"It's impossible to know what a boggart actually looks like, as it is a shapeshifter that takes different forms for everyone, Specifically, it shows one their worst fear." Hermione finished, rocking back on her heels.

"Excellent answer. There's a boggart in this cabinet, and instead of clearing it out, I asked Mr. Filch if he would lend it to me for my third years to practice on. Now Neville, up here." Harry raised an eyebrow. It wasn't often that Neville was recognized in class or called on in confidence. She hoped he managed, because it would absolutely destroy him if he couldn't perform whatever the Professor was thinking of. After a quick whisper match, Lupin waved his hand at the door. The sound of a lock unhooking echoed in the silence of apprehension, and everyone watched as the door creaked open. Sweeping from the wardrobe in dark robes was Professor Snape. He glared at Neville, who whimpered slightly.

"Go on Neville. Like we practiced," Lupin encouraged.

"R-riddikulus!" A burst of red shot out of Neville's wand, hitting Snape, who suddenly didn't look very much like Snape anymore. The usually dour potions professor stood in the middle of the staffroom, decked out with baggy maroon robes, a large red handbag, and a magnificent hat adorned with a giant stuffed vulture. Harry burst into laughter, doubling over and smacking her leg. Neville was going to be a legend.

Well, about until double potions.

Lupin had the class cycle through, everyone getting a turn at the creature. While Harry was uncertain about the idea of revealing your deepest darkest fear to your peers, she did notice a majority of the boggarts turned into the more childlike phobias. She also noticed that a lot of the Slytherins stayed huddled near the back of the queue. Before she could move back, Ron dismantled the spider, and she was jostled to the front. For a moment, the room darkened, and Harry saw a figure begin bubbling out of the floor. She panicked, and before it's true shape could be shown, she tried to think of something other than the void. It was unneeded, though, as Lupin practically shoved himself in front of her, waving his wand and putting an end to the lesson. Harry disappeared back into the crowd, trying to get her breathing under control while the other students were paying attention to the wrap up of the lesson.

"Best Defense teacher we've had!" Harry heard someone say as she walked out of the room after class. Ron frowned as Hermione hummed in agreement.

"Wonder why you didn't get a real turn, Harry." The witch in question shrugged, moving her feet unconsciously towards her next period. Along with the confusion about not being denied the chance to deal with the boggart, Harry was a bit confused as to why it had taken that shape. She doesn't fear death. Does she?

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Harry heard gasps from the front of the crowd as the students filed into the history classroom. She saw why everyone was shocked, stepping into the space that was cleaner and more brightly lit than she'd ever seen it. The old carvings depicting scenes from Goblin rebellions were missing, replaced with colorful tapestries weaving stories. A desk sat in front of the chalkboard, overpiled with stacks of paper and a cup of assorted quills perched on the edge. Harry was impressed by the change. She looked over and saw Hermione practically bubbling in her seat, placed in the middle row as the compromise generally went for the group. After Lockhart, Harry wasn't going to change front row seats with unfamiliar professors again.

"Welcome to History. Let's hope you learn something." Everyone jumped, looking up to the balcony where the new professor had appeared. "I'm Professor Corbyn, as you might know. Am I to understand that you've only covered goblin wars in this class?"

"Well, we learned a bit about the Chamber of Secrets last year," Seamus blurted out.

"Apparently so." The man smiled, clasping his hands together. "So, shall we dive right in? We'll be starting with the origins of Hogwarts. Everyone pull out your copies of "Hogwarts, a History.'" Harry smothered a grin at Hermione, whose eyes widened excitedly, a well-loved copy of the book already resting on her desk. "Alright, so back before Hogwarts was founded, most wizards and witches learned as muggles might have learned, through smaller schools and tutors. Advanced education often took the form of apprenticeships. These were especially popular among witches, as covens would form and take junior members to replenish their members, teaching them ritual magic and spellbinding. In these cases, the members would be allowed to leave the coven to create their own, or join permanently through ritual initiation. Wizards were more versed in the art of spellcasting and alchemy, training a more solitary sport. Wizards often only had a few apprentices in their lifetimes, while witches formed groups and could train several collectively."

"Sir, I've never read of such discrimination among genders in magic. The books that I've read call it the great equalizer," Hermione recited after Corbyn called on her.

"Well, Miss, what was it, Granger? That's a common mistake that people make. The terms 'witch' and 'wizard' weren't actually meant to refer to gender, originally. A witch is someone who practices forms of magic that could include group magic or rituals, while wizards perform more solitary magic, using their own power instead of siphoning from others or from the Earth. The terms shifted to refer to gender over the years as wizardry was seen as a masculine art, and witchcraft a feminine one. Of course, anyone could practice either, or possibly both if they had enough ambition." Harry grinned. She liked this new professor. "Where were we...Ah! So, education before Hogwarts."

Harry walked out of history an hour later feeling as if she'd learned more in one lesson with Professor Corbyn than she did in a year with Binns. She hadn't regretted the banishment, but it was nice to know that the near death experience had some good come of it.

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September soon turned to October, the Whomping Willow shedding orange leaves on the students, before using them as a target if they got close enough. October, historically, wasn't a great month for Harry. Still, she lounged around outside with Rion and Hermione as much as she could before the weather turned nasty again. She might have enjoyed the grounds more if Oliver Wood hadn't been hounding her about Quidditch formations and strategies. It was the gryffindor's final year, and his last chance to win the Quidditch Cup. Of course, that didn't give him an excuse to be completely manic. Well, more than usual.

Somehow, she found herself in Quidditch strategy meetings more than once a week, the team sitting around a board in the locker room, learning new formations and going over familiar ones tirelessly. Harry was about ready to claw her eyes out if she saw another board of x's and oh's in flight formation, and she wasn't the only one.

"Oliver, give it a rest." Katie rubbed her eyes.

"Yah, it's four am."

"If we have to be-"

"Up this early-"

"It should be because-"

"We're plotting a series of-"

"Stunning!"

"Fantastic!"

Mischievous,"

"Pranks!" Finished out George, the twins hopping up onto the benches and waving their arms around. Wood gave them the murder glare. Harry should know, she's seen that glare directed at her often enough.

"We have to have all of our strategies down. Slytherin's gonna be tough to beat this year."

"This is torture," Angelina groaned.

"Necessary." Oliver corrected.

"Yes, but Oliver, you've been ranting about barrel rolls for twenty minutes."

"Necessary!"

Harry was tired enough from the multiple Quidditch practices that week, that she almost walked past the shouting match going on in the front hall. She stopped, turning back and nudging Hannah Abbott in the side to ask her what was going on.

"Lavender's pet died, and Professor Trelawney predicted it, and she can't stop crying, and those two are making it worse with their yelling." Harry scoffed.

"Idiots. Lavender cries more when she's stressed."

"-big, fat, mangy monster!"

"Ronald, if you say one more word about my cat-" Harry's eyes widened.

"Shit. They're my idiots." She shoved her way to the front of the crowd, grabbing the still yelling pair and dragging them away from the sobbing blonde. "I leave to talk with Peeves for one minute, honestly," Harry mumbled.

"I'm sorry about your rabbit Lavender. Don't mind Hermuone, she doesn't care much about other people's pets," Ron threw over his shoulder, still staring determinedly at Hermione. The girl scrunched up her face and got ready to let out a rant, but Harry clapped her hand over the bookworm's mouth. They made it outside successfully, and Harry let them yell, interjecting when she felt a point wasn't fair.

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The month went on, and soon enough it was Halloween. It was also the first hogsmeade trip, and Harry was ready to hand in the forged signature of a Mrs. Petunia Dursley on the permission slip. Before she could join the line of students waiting to board carriages, Professor McGonagall appeared out of nowhere and blocked her attempts.

"I'm sorry, Miss Potter, but unfortunately we cannot allow you to go to Hogsmeade." Harry blinked.

"Sorry, what?"

"Recent factors have come into play, and the faculty agrees it is a bad idea for you to be roaming about the village." Harry frowned.

"Is this about Sirius Black?" McGonagall flinched for a moment, but Harry caught it. "Look, murderous psychos have been after me before. Last I checked, they're all dead, and I'm still here."

"Regardless, the risk is too high." Harry grumbled, handing over the parchment when the older witch's hand reached out for it. 'I'm sorry, Miss Potter. Truly." The witch stared at her with sad eyes that made Harry uncomfortable for a moment more, before tartan robes swept away. Harry kicked the dirt, then moved to go back inside after informing Ron and Hermione of her predicament. She was considering attempting to sneak out, trying to figure out which passage a dementor wouldn't cover, when Lupin saw her in the halls. Somehow, she found herself having tea in his office. Honestly, that man and his attempts to feed her. Although, this little talk could give her the answer she'd been looking for.

"Sir, why did you jump in front of me during the boggart lesson?" Lupin put down his mug, smiling obligingly.

"It's not that I thought you couldn't handle it, I just thought the rest of the class might protest at watching Voldemort appear in the middle of the room." Harry could see how the figure rising out of the floor could be Voldemort, with the deep black robes and hidden face. She might be able to get out of this unquestioned. "I noticed it started to shift though?" Damn.

"Uh, yah. I imagined Voldemort at first, but…" Harry trailed off, thinking. "Then the other images came back, the dementor and what it did."

"That's very wise of you. Your fear is… fear." He gave a little chuckle. "Speaking of the dementor, interesting potions knife that you have there." He gave her a look that told her he absolutely did not believe it was just a potions knife, but Harry appreciated the fact that he didn't call her out.

"I'm an aggressive gardener," she said straight-faced. He nodded, just as seriously, before letting his face relax in a grin. Harry suddenly had a thought.

"Sir, is there a way to fight the dementors?" Patronus charm, patronus charm, say patronus charm. Harry was counting on some professional help for the charm that still seemed to elude her, despite her attempts. It was honestly something that hadn't happened to her before. Pretty much ever. And even if she did manage the basics of the spell, she didn't want to test it on a dementor unless she was sure.

"There is a spell, the Patronus Charm." Bingo. "But it's very advanced."

"Could you, maybe teach it to me? It's just, the dementors affect me more than anyone else," She looked into her lap. Surely he would say yes?

"Dementors feed on one's worst memories. I'd wager your worst memories are more severe than the majority of others at this school." He paused for a moment, appraising her. "I suppose I could show you the spell, try and teach you the principles. But it would have to wait until after the winter break, I'm afraid." Harry smiled triumphantly.

"Thank you, that would be great."

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The best way to end a halfway disappointing day, Harry learned, was not with a manhunt. She turned on her side in the surprisingly comfortable purple sleeping bag, trying to block out the obnoxious snoring of Ron and several others in the large hall. She stilled as the sound of hurried footsteps entered the hall.

"Professor Snape." That was Dumbledore.

"Headmaster. Everywhere has been searched."

"Very well, Severus, I didn't expect him to linger."

"Have you any idea as to how he infiltrated the castle?" Harry heard an undertone to the question that she couldn't quite decipher.

"Several." There was silence. "No, Severus, I still do not believe your fears to be true."

"Fears," the potions master scoffed. "It's unlikely that Black got in on his own, Professor, he-"

"Enough, Severus." The two lapsed into silence again, apart from the sound of slow footsteps circling the hall. "I must go inform our security that our search has been completed."

"Didn't the dementors want to help, Professor?" Percy asked, coming up the pair again.

"I have no doubt that they did, but no Dementor will enter this castle while I Headmaster." Harry had to give Dumbledore points for that, but she did so grudgingly. She turned her mind back to the fact that Black was trying to enter Gryffindor Tower. It was probably going to add to the Grim rumours circling Harry, and Professor Trelawney would be twice as bad. Harry stifled a snort.

Hermione was going to be pissed.

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MagicalCatgirl68: It will be very obvious when the men of letters make an appearance, and you'll get a shoutout in that chapter for the Hogsmeade idea. As for the 'death' of Binns, that will most definitely be discussed among the ghost community. Although, I think they'd be more unsettled that it's the second ghost to go missing instead of the fact that the Hogwarts ghosts knew Binns.

Zimzimgar: Fudge was more preoccupied with the whole Harry being missing thing than her coming in-tru-da window. Plus, he knows it's the Girl-Who-Lived, and she's bound to be eccentric. I think Loki is worried more about her emotional wellbeing, because he does know that Sirius is her godfather, and it's unclear whether he knows that Sirius isn't actually after her. He's not up on all the gossip in the wizarding world. It could also be the dementors, as Harry has had some crappy experiences. It was her demon killing knife, and it is still a prototype. The way the dementors are going to be developed in this story will probably focus on them being more like the cousin to demons, or maybe the antithesis, than them being related to ghosts. It is possible that iron could hurt them, but with Azkaban and the probability of some of the metal in the prison being iron, I'm unsure. Maybe they use iron to separate the prisoners so they aren't immediately kissed, or iron is used to protect the human guards. I'm unsure of Harry's exact reaction to Dean's death, but I think it would involve a lot of swearing and probably some attempts to go to hell to yell at him. I don't know for sure yet.

MikaToshino: Thanks! As for the breakdown of Draco Malfoy, it's an enjoyable part to write. The story is supposed to be relatively light right now, but I plan on it devolving into a darker story as the years go by, so it's entirely possible that Malfoy will eventually emotionally crash and do something that Harry won't forgive as easily.

Jedi SteelWolf: Honestly, I actually forgot about the Animagus thing. That's probably a good thing, though, because it means I can make it a part of her connecting to her Dad after learning about his Animagus form this year.

Guest: Thanks, I enjoy writing those lines. So the knife thing probably wouldn't be all that crazy, except for the fact that the dementor was obviously injured. Students at Hogwarts carry around potions knives and Herbology kits, which could easily be weapons, so it's not completely out of the ordinary for Harry to just have a knife on her. Also, Lupin got into a lot of stuff with her dad, and knows exactly how messed up Hogwarts can be, especially when introduced to a Potter. I think his thought process was sort of "Wow is that Harriet Potter, she looks like her parents" and then cue the angry slashing at a Dementor "Shit she's just like her parents".

Zasha the Cat: I wanted to torture you with ambiguity but logic won out. Yes, Gabriel is Loki.

Guest: At this point, Ginny was pretty obvious about some sort of attachment to Harry. Ron wasn't entirely sure about what type of attachment, but I thought that Ginny hero worshipping and crushing on Harry could be played out similarly. The story will probably write itself on that point, depending on which road I take. And I think the magical community would probably be more open about sexuality, in that 1500s French court sort of way where you know someone's gay but it isn't publicly acknowledged because they have the baby for the crown and then have mistresses. I don't think Harry would have a crush on Cho, mainly because I don't think Cho would be the right personality for Harry in this story. So I'm usually just ambiguous about Harry's future love life, but so many people have commented on it in relation to Sam and Dean. I'm not going to pair her with either of them, they're too much like family, and it would feel weird.

Guest: Harry's pretty smart, and semi-trained in the hunter way of thinking and noticing things, so she'll notice something's off about the whole Sirius situation pretty soon.