They were all curious as to why they didn't see him until dinner if their meeting was that short, so Harry told them that he needed time to himself to gather his thoughts and to go over the progress they had made in their lessons that day. Hermione and Neville seemed to buy that, but Ginny looked skeptical. She cocked an eyebrow at him when the other two weren't looking. He just shrugged in response.
The rest of the evening passed by quickly, spent mostly writing essays for the week ahead. Harry often smiled as he finished his essays, knowing that last year each would have taken him at least twice as long to write. He didn't even need Hermione to look over them for him, nor did he need to look over her notes to verify any of the information. Oddly enough, Hermione actually seemed put out by that fact. She often offered to read through his essays or asked if he needed any help. He always thanked her for the offer, but politely declined, saying he was getting along fine.
At first, this behavior puzzled Harry. Hermione had been getting on his and Ron's cases for the past five years to study more and to do their homework on their own. But now that he actually was, she seemed to want the old, lazy Harry back. He realized that while she may have sometimes felt like she was being taken advantage of in the past, it was probably comforting to know that they depended on her.
This was not the only behavior of Hermione's that set him thinking. She had not dropped the issue of Sirius's death. Every so often she would not so subtly open up a booklet entitled "The Dangers of Denial" or "Dealing With Loss" in front of him. This irked Harry to no end, but he chose to just pointedly ignore her any time she tried anything like that. Ginny seemed to notice what Hermione was trying to do and how it frustrated him, so she would often offer Harry an encouraging smile, for which he was always grateful.
Quidditch practices were going pretty well for Gryffindor. The members were starting to come together to play as a team rather than a bunch of individuals. Ginny and Katie had hit it off immediately and played like they had been teammates for years. It took a little longer for Stephanie to find that same rhythm, but she was starting to work her way into it. Jack and Andrew were getting better, but they were still a far cry from the Weasley twins in the beater position. Ron was on top of his game. Assuming his nerves didn't overcome him come game time, the other teams would be hard pressed to get much of anything past him. And of course Harry was flying as well as he ever had, if not better.
Harry had always felt at home in the air. The first time he had taken to the air on a broom, it had been completely natural and instinctive. So it was unsurprising that one of his animagus forms was an owl. Flying through the air in owl form felt just as good. It was like coming home for him. It was where he belonged. And ever since then, he had felt even more at home in the air, whether in owl form or on a broom. And his flying abilities reflected that.
He was now much more attuned to air currents and thermals than he had ever been before making his transformation. Any time he needed to race across the pitch, he used this to his advantage by finding the path of least resistance. It also aided him in his maneuvering as well. He knew ahead of time what effect a sharp turn at any given moment would cause. There were spots where the action would be facilitated, while there were others that would hinder the change in movement. It took a little bit of learning to get his form down on his broom, since his instincts were geared more toward flying as an owl. But once he did, it was a sight to behold.
His teammates often complimented him on his flying after practice, none more so than Ginny. The first few times she had commented had left Harry slightly embarrassed and at a loss for words. After that, he always tried to pay a little attention to her own flying during practice so that he could have something to compliment her on in return. He was satisfied to see her cheeks fill with color the first couple times he did this, but eventually they were both comfortable with the other remarking on their abilities.
Practices became a little strained with Ron mad at Harry, but his anger faded after a few days. It returned that Friday, though not directed directly at Harry, when the prank Ginny and Harry had set up came into fruition. They had charmed his robes so that as soon as he sat down at Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, they would turn a shocking pink, with red hearts scattered throughout. In the middle of those hearts would be the initials H.G.
Ron didn't notice the change at first; he was too focused on his breakfast. The snickering started small, with people trying to hide it behind their hands. But once the first person began laughing outright, the entire hall was soon filled with laughter. It didn't take Ron too long to realize that everyone was looking at him. When he looked down and saw his robes, his eyes widened in horror, and a deep red color crept up his face and all the way to his ears. Needless to say, Ron flew out of their like a bat out of hell. Speaking of bats, Harry thought he might have seen Snape give off a ghost of a smirk, but it was gone before he could really tell. Knowing Snape, Harry probably just imagined it.
Ginny and Harry shared many looks over the table that morning, and every time their eyes met, they would both be overcome with laughter. After several times, Hermione caught on and questioned the two. "Was that your handiwork?" She at least had the decency to keep her voice down so as not to be overheard.
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