Harry Potter And The Unexpected Friend

The next day Harry sat in the Great Hall finishing his dinner. He was eager to go meet Professor Dumbledore so the older man could observe his training and hopefull" "y tell him whether or not it was having any negative effects on him. Hermione and Daphne had both expressed interest in being there but he preferred to have the meeting without the distraction they would provide. Daphne had been disappointed, but not enough so for her to not sit by him at dinner.

"I wonder what Dumbledore is going to have me do." Harry wondered aloud to no one in particular.

"If I knew I would have told you the first time you said that three days ago." Daphne answered, softly laughing at him. "You said he wants to see what you've been doing, he'll probably just let you do whatever you want."

"I still don't understand why he wants you to do this. Is it because of the Dementors?" Neville asked. Harry frowned at the question. He had not made Neville a part of his training or been as open with him as he had been with Daphne and Hermione. Part of him wanted to keep his actions as secret as possible, but another part of him argued that Neville had been a good friend to him when he needed it the most and he owed the other boy the truth.

"Neville, it's because of the training I have been doing for the tournament. It's not exactly normal." Harry began, wondering how to explain what he had doing. "I'll tell you more later, but basically it comes down to the fact that I don't react like other people do to very strenuous spell casting."

"Ok, I guess I'll just have to wait to understand it." Neville said with a laugh. Harry sighed, grateful that his friend had taken his answer so well. Harry was wondering if he should invite Neville to practice with him along with Daphne and Hermione. Although he liked Neville he was not convinced the other boy had the potential to be a powerful wizard even with a lot of work. His excellence at Herbology seemed to be evened out by his ineptitude in potions and poor spell work. Harry decided that Neville deserved a chance to prove himself, perhaps there was more to the boy than met the eye.

"I promise you, Neville, that if this goes like I am hoping I will tell you everything." Harry said sincerely. Daphne looked at him curiously, wondering what exactly her boyfriend meant by that but having a fairly good idea. It was then that they heard a familiar voice speaking behind them.

"Good evening, Harry. It's wonderful to see you again."

Harry turned to look at who was speaking to him and was surprised but happy to see…

"Professor Lupin? What are you doing here?" The former professor just laughed at Harry's question.

"I'm not your professor anymore Harry. It's just Remus, or I think you've earned the right to call me Moony like Padfoot does." Remus answered. The older man looked tired, something Harry attributed to the fact that the full moon was only a few days earlier. Despite this he still looked happier than he had been for most of the previous year when he still believed all of his friends were either dead or traitors.

"I guess I could call you Moony." Harry answered, smiling. "How have you been? I hadn't heard from you in a while."

"Doing good, Harry. You could say that I am doing some freelance work for Professor Dumbledore. That's actually part of the reason I am here tonight, I offered to help him monitor your practice tonight. If that would be ok with you, of course."

"That would be great!" Harry said excitedly. Remus had been his favorite professor and to be honest he was a little bit disappointed not to have heard from him until now, especially with all that had happened at the end of last year.

"Actually I have a feeling that he wants me to do more than just monitor, but we will have to wait and see what the old man has to say." Remus added with a small shake of his head at the thought of Dumbledore's little games. "We can go whenever you're ready."

"Thanks, Moony." Harry said obviously still feeling a little awkward using his old professor's nickname. After giving Daphne a quick kiss he said good bye to his friends and followed Remus out of the Great Hall. They were headed to a magically expanded classroom near the infirmary that Professor Dumbledore had prepared for their experiment. "So what exactly are you doing for Dumbledore?" Harry asked as they walked. Remus took a few moments to answer, clearly trying to think of a good way to phrase his response.

"Professor Dumbledore wishes to improve relations between werewolves and wizards and I am acting as sort of an ambassador. It's difficult though, especially since the Ministry of Magic considers us 'dark creatures'. It's pathetic really, I'm the ambassador and I can't even keep a job in the wizarding world because of my condition. I wouldn't listen to me in their position." Remus said with a disappointed shrug.

"Maybe he is going about this in the wrong way then. He's got a lot of political power, maybe he should start changing the laws to make them more friendly towards werewolves and then start trying to improve ties." Harry suggested.

"As powerful as he is not even Dumbledore could force through legislation like that. The laws exist as they do because that is what most of the wizarding world wants, Harry. I know you don't care about a person's blood status or wealth or whether they are even considered 'fully human', but others do. Sadly, I don't think that is going to change in the near future."

"Then it sounds like Dumbledore is wasting his time." Harry answered his former professor. Remus nodded in agreement with Harry's assessment of the situation, but unlike Harry he knew how important his mission was. The werewolves would never oppose Voldemort if he returned, but if they were lucky he could convince them to remain neutral. It was the best they could hope for. Remus decided not to continue the discussion that could lead to Harry questioning why he was on that particular mission and luckily for him had a good excuse as they had reached their destination.

When they walked through the doors Harry was immediately impressed by the changes Professor Dumbledore had made to the once tiny classroom. It had been magically expanded to at least three times its original size and the desks and chairs which once filled the room had been shoved against the wall. The floor itself had a mild cushioning charm on it which would make falls a little more bearable but not hinder a person's ability to run. A ring of stronger cushioning charms had been erected around the room a few feet away from the walls. Apparently Professor Dumbledore had prepared the room for a fight.

"Ah, Harry! So glad you could make it." Professor Dumbledore said while motioning for him to come in. "I had thought that before you begin your normal routine you might enjoy a little challenge, assuming you agree as well Remus." Remus smirked as the old man explained. He had not known exactly what the Headmaster was planning, but this was an interesting surprise. He had been told Harry was rapidly improving as he prepared for the tournament but wondered how well the student would do against his former teacher.

"Sure, Professor." Harry answered. He understood what Dumbledore was proposing before Dumbledore had to explain it. He was going to have to duel Moony. "What are the rules?"

"Just try not to cast anything too dangerous, Harry." Remus answered with a smile, not believing that Harry could do him any real damage. No one had told him exactly how well Harry had done in his duel against Barty Crouch Junior and so he was prepared to face a merely above average fourth year, not an exceptional one.

"I do have one request though." Professor Dumbledore announced, drawing Harry's attention back to him. Dumbledore held what looked like a black leather belt with a variety of runes on it in his hand and presented it to Harry. "Wear this for tonight. It will monitor your health and strength, both physical and magical. Hopefully it will help us to determine if any harm is being done to you." Harry nodded and put the belt on, relieved to note that he felt no different with it on than he did with it off.

"Are you ready, Moony?" Harry asked as he moved to the center of the room. He felt confident in his ability to put up a good fight, if not win outright. He had seen the obvious signs that his former professor was underestimating him and planned on taking advantage of that. Perhaps he would start out casting simple spells verbally and let the older man think he was going to win easily, then he would spring the trap. Harry smiled, it was a good plan.

"Of course, Harry. Just do your best." Remus answered. He failed to notice the grin this response prompted in his opponent however. The two competitors faced each other and saluted in the traditional manner. They were standing approximately twenty feet away from each other and the room was clear of all obstructions. There would be no hiding under tables in this duel.

"Begin." Professor Dumbledore said loudly from his spot on the other side of the room where he could observe the duel.

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