Luna the Moon Monster's Fanfiction Archive     |   home
Prologue   |   Chapter One   |   Chapter Two   |   Chapter Three   |   Chapter Four   |   Chapter Five   |   First Interlude   |   Chapter Six   |   Chapter Seven   |   Chapter Eight   |   Chapter Nine   |   Chapter Ten   |   Chapter Eleven   |   Chapter Twelve   |   Chapter Thirteen   |   Chapter Fourteen   |   Chapter Fifteen   |   Chapter Sixteen   |   Chapter Seventeen   |   Chapter Eighteen   |   Chapter Nineteen   |   Chapter Twenty   |   Second Interlude   |   Chapter Twenty-One   |   Chapter Twenty-Two   |   Chapter Twenty-Three   |   Chapter Twenty-Four   |   Chapter Twenty-Five   |   Chapter Twenty-Six   |   Third Interlude   |   Chapter Twenty-Seven   |   Chapter Twenty-Eight   |   Chapter Twenty-Nine   |   Epilogue   |   Timeline

Chapter Fourteen
Bows and Arrows

The next day the four were still talking about what happened in the library the day before.  At the Ravenclaw table, Harry was telling Gallatea about it.  She sat in silence until he had finished before mulling the information over for a few minutes.  

“ I agree with my mother,” she said, “ You must have been feeling very strong emotions at the time.  What I can't understand is why you got so angry.  Surely you would have had time to intervene in a calmer way, without blasting him across the library.”

Harry looked back at her a little sheepishly.  He still couldn't believe his reaction himself.  Even when Aunt Marge had been insulting his parents, he hadn't performed a spell that strong.  He considered his reasons for a few minutes before responding.

“ I don't know, `Tea.  I just…I couldn't let him hurt her.  She's my friend, and Ron's little sister.  I just felt as if I had to protect her.”

Gallatea gave him a slight smirk.

“ Are you sure there isn't more to it?  Would your reaction have been that strong if Hermione or Ron had been in danger?  And because she's Ron's sister and not yours, shouldn't Ron have been the first one to jump in and protect her?”

“ I would have done it for anyone!  What are you implying?”

“ Nothing, nothing, no need to get so worked up,” she said with an impish smile.  Harry just rolled his eyes and went back to his breakfast.

*~*~*

The rest of the day passed fairly quickly, with another Dark Arts lesson, much to Harry's delight and Ron's disgust.  Horatio hadn't turned up all day, so most people assumed he was still in the hospital wing.  By the end of breakfast the whole school had found out what had happened in the library the day before.  People kept coming up to Harry all morning to congratulate him, telling him how they would have loved to have done it themselves.  The problem for other people was that Horatio's family was very rich, and had a lot of power and influence in the wizarding world.  If anyone else had tried to hurt the boy, their family would have found themselves unemployed, or even killed.  Harry didn't have to worry about repercussions, though, as he didn't have anyone that could be hurt.  Ron, Ginny and Hermione were safe at Hogwarts, and even if Horatio tried to retaliate, the four of them were more than a match for one boy.

That evening's lesson with Lady Hufflepuff was eagerly anticipated.  Ginny, especially, seemed excited about learning archery.  She had always taken a secret interest in the art, and had long wished to learn it for herself.  Eventually, her Head of House bounced through the door with a wide smile, looking as if she was looking forward to the lesson as much as the students.  When she had reached the middle of the floor, she addressed her charges.

“ Now, today we will be learning about the art of archery.  Once mastered, archery can be one of the most deadly and efficient forms of attack.  With a bow and arrow, you can take out an opponent from a great distance, without having to be close enough to them, that they can attack you with a sword.  Now, I will expect you to purchase your own bows and arrows when you go on the Hogsmeade trip after All Hallows Eve, but for now you can choose weapons from the armoury.  Off you go, I'm sure Godric showed you where it is.”

As the students were moving towards the armoury, Hufflepuff wandered over to Harry and whispered in his ear.

“ Congratulations on your wandless magic.  I hear you threw the boy all the way across the room.  From what I hear he'll be in the hospital wing for at least a week.  I can't tell you the number of times I've wished someone would stand up to him.  And doing it to protect your friend, that shows true Hufflepuff loyalty, Harry.”


Harry blushed.  To have the great founder herself tell him he showed Hufflepuff loyalty was a great compliment.  By the time his cheeks had returned to their normal colour, the others had chosen their weapons and were making their way back to the central mat.  Harry hurried and chose his equipment before moving to join them.  When they were all ready, Lady Hufflepuff demonstrated how to wear the quiver and hold the bow properly.  They practiced this for a while before Helga decided they were ready to try hitting targets.  With a wave of her hand, four targets appeared at the other side of the room, and the four teenagers started their training.

*~*~*

All went well for the next hour and a half.  At around 9:45 Ginny moved over to where Harry was practicing.  Out of all of them, Ginny had been making the most progress.  Once she reached Harry she waited for him to finish shooting before telling him what was bothering her.

“ It's back, Harry.”

“ What's back, Gin?”

“ The feeling I had yesterday in the library.  That something bad's going to happen.”

“ Don't worry about it, Gin, it might not be as bad as you think.”

Just as the words were out of his mouth, a pained yelp was heard from the other side of the room.  Turning in alarm, Harry and Ginny came face to face with a distraught Ron.  Hermione was lying on the floor with Lady Hufflepuff leaning over her.  On closer inspection, they could see an arrow sticking out of her left shoulder.

*~*~*

The infirmary was much the same as it was in their time, with the obvious exception of a bustling Madam Pomfrey hovering around.  Instead, a tall willowy woman with long, pale blond hair and pointed ears was tending to the now unconscious Hermione.  Harry and Ginny turned to Ron and asked the obvious question.

“ What happened in there, Ron?”

Ron looked a little distressed before answering their question.

“ It was all my fault.  I didn't mean to…”

“ What happened?”

“ I got distracted when Lady Hufflepuff was talking to Hermione.  I accidentally shot her with my arrow.”

“ What!” Harry yelled, “ How can you accidentally hit her with an arrow???  Why were you pointing it at her in the first place?”

“ I'm sorry, Harry, I didn't mean to.  I was about to fire at the target, and I turned to see what Hufflepuff was saying to `Mione and the string slipped out of my hand.”

Seeing how distraught his friend was, Harry let it drop.  He knew Ron would never do anything to intentionally hurt Hermione.  As he was watching the girl being healed, he tapped Ron on the shoulder and asked him what the strange woman was.  Ron hadn't noticed her pointed ears, and when he did his mouth fell open in shock.  Once he had recovered, to whisper to Harry.

“ She's a wood elf.  They're of no relation to house elves.  They are said to be beautiful, and very powerful.  There aren't many left in our time, and those that are around stay away from humans as a rule.  We're privileged to see a real one.”

Harry took this in, and by the time he had finished his pondering, Lady Hufflepuff had come over.

“ She's going to be fine.  The wound will need to heal overnight, but she should be back in the morning.  I suggest you get back to your common rooms now.  There's nothing more you can do tonight.”

The three nodded in agreement and turned to leave.  As they were nearing the door, Harry spotted another occupied bed.  Grinning maliciously, he waved his wand and a bucket of ice cold water appeared above the small figure.  When they were out of the room and halfway down the corridor, the shrill screams of a now soaking Horatio followed behind them.

Previous chapter                                                                                                         Next chapter