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Duel of the Hearts	By : bigtrw Category: Harry Potter > General > General Views: 7445 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Just like always, the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmeade Station in the mid-evening. Harry and Hermione had changed into their robes a short while before. They each put on their Head Boy and Girl badges and went to meet up with Ron and Lavender. The four exited the train and headed for the boats.
"First years—first years this way—first years—" a familiar voice boomed.
Harry smiled at seeing Hagrid in his use spot, lantern in hand.
"Hi Hagrid," he said with a bright smile.
"Why Harry, hello there!" The half-giant shook his friend's hand, effectively making the young wizard's disappear inside his massive palm.
"Hermione—Ron—Lavender—glad to you you all again."
They each greeted him cheerfully and left him to attend to the first years.
"Oh my, isn't that Harry Potter?"
"Bloody hell, it is Harry Potter!"
Harry suppressed the grin that wanted to appear on his face as he listened the new students mutter among themselves. After last year, he was sure the entire wizarding world had heard quite a few stories about him and what he'd done. Luckily, his fellow seventh years didn't gawk at him too much.
They reached the boats and headed across the channel towards Hogwarts Castle.
A half-hour later, Harry and others were seated at the Gryffindor table waiting for Professor McGonagall to bring in the first year students. Harry had been hoping to speak with Professor Dumbledore beforehand, but there hadn't been time. What was more surprising was the fact of who was sitting at the professors' table. To the far right, next to Professor Trelawney was Sirius and to his right, sat Remus Lupin. They each smiled at Harry, and he did the same, but why were they here?
"What is going on here?' Harry contemplated.
At the far end of the hall, the massive doors swung open, and Professor McGonagall led the new students inside. Harry smiled inwardly at the nervous expressions on the young kids faces; he imagined that he looked very much like them his first year.
In front of the professors' table sat a familiar stool, and the Sorting Hat sat on top. Professor McGonagall took out a rolled parchment and undid the list.
"When I call your name, please come forward. I will place the Sorting Hat on your head, and you will be sorted into your house."
As the next hour passed, each first year came forward to be sorted. Gryffindor received thirty new students, Ravenclaw received twenty-nine, Hufflepuff received twenty-three, and Slytherin received twenty. Harry was about to welcome the new house members when Professor McGonagall spoke once again.
"Students, I wish to announce that we have a transfer student this year as well. She has come a long way to attend our school. She is originally from our school in Salem, Massachusetts over in the United States. She is a seventh year student, and I ask that each of you give her a warm welcome." McGonagall raised her hand towards Filch who stood in the back.
"Please show her in. I'd like everyone to meet—Miss Cassandra Cross."
All eyes turned toward the doorway, and about a hundred jaws hit the ground. The girl was absolutely flawless. She had long, golden-brown hair, stunning blue eyes, and a body that would make a supermodel jealous. The young woman silently walked down the main aisle; her steps showing both confidence and elegance.
The male students began muttering about her, and there were even a few wolf whistles heard. Ron's eyes were wide with astonishment.
"Bloody hell—where'd she come from?" he gulped. Lavender nudged him in the side, but the young Weasley didn't budge.
"Hey Harry—" Seamus Finnegan snickered, "—check out the hottie."
"Yes, she is quite pretty," he admitted. "I wonder why she's here though."
"Who cares? I hope she gets put in our house!"
"Would you shut-up!" Hermione said with a glare.
She conceded that the girl was quite attractive, and her stomach turned slightly at seeing Harry watching her. Did he think Cassandra was prettier than she was? That was when she felt a gentle hand on her thigh, and she turned to see her fiancé gazing at her with warm eyes.
"You," he simply said. Her eyes lit up as she understood, and he grinned slightly. He squeezed her thigh and turned back to the front of the Great Hall.
"Now Cassandra, if you would please sit down," McGonagall instructed.
The young woman sat down on the stool, and the Sorting Hat was put on top of her head.
"Hmm—most intriguing—such potential I see—and intelligence as well—however something has you preoccupied—it is difficult to decide—where should you go—"
The Sorting Hat scrunched up as it thought long and hard.
"I see that you have suffered great loss—but you have the strength to persevere—therefore—it shall be—GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindors cheered for their new house member, and the guys were happy that they had such a pretty girl in close proximity.
Cassandra strolled down the table to sit with the seventh year students. She stopped across from a young man with round glasses.
"Excuse me, are you Harry Potter?"
"Yes, I am, nice to meet you." Harry extended his hand, and she shook it. He noticed that her hand was soft and delicate.
"May I sit down?"
"Of course!" Ron answered for him and moved over to make a spot for her.
"Thank you," she smiled and suppressed a giggle.
"I'm Cassandra; it's an honor to meet you in person."
"I'm no different than anyone else," Harry replied.
Hermione felt a little uneasy at the way Cassandra was staring at Harry; she looked like she was about to bore a hole into his head with her eyes.
"How do you do?" she interrupted, "I'm—"
"—Hermione Granger," Cassandra answered.
"You know me?" The young woman smiled.
"I received copies of the Daily Prophet at my old school. The article had a picture of Harry, you, and—" she turned to her left, "—and you," she pointed at Ron.
"Ron Weasley at your service," he drawled.
"I should've known from your hair," Cassandra laughed.
"So, what brings you all the way here?" Harry inquired.
"My parents took a job in London so we packed up and crossed over the Atlantic. I was hoping that it would've happened after my last year, but my father said that we had to leave immediately."
"That's gotta be rough, but I think you'll like it here," Harry said with a smile.
"Thank you, I hope so too."
"So what classes are you planning on taking?" Hermione asked.
Cassandra reached into her robes and drew out a folded parchment. She handed it to Hermione, and her eyes skimmed over the list. Harry read it over her shoulder, and his eyes widened slightly.
"My goodness, with the exception of Divination, you have the same classes I do," he stated with a chuckle.
"Really, that's quite a coincidence."
"Not really, Cassandra, Ron and I have almost the same schedule so it's not that uncommon. I've been with the same group for most of my six years here."
"Harry's right. We've always been together. The only exception was Hermione because she takes more advanced classes than us," Ron added.
"That's quite impressive, not to mention difficult!" Cassandra gasped.
"She's the smartest witch that I know!" Harry said with a proud smile, making Hermione's cheeks tint slightly. Her eyes met his, and she flushed completely at seeing the admiration and love in his emerald pools.
"Come on, Harry, you and Ron are just as good as me," she protested.
"Are you nuts, Herm? You could learn Potions in your sleep," Ron retorted.
"Ahem!" Ron suddenly felt a firm nudge in the ribs, and he turned to see Lavender glaring at him.
"Are you going to introduce me or not?" The young Weasley gulped at the fiery look in her eyes.
"S-sorry "bout that! Cassandra—this is Lavender, my girlfriend."
"How do you do?" The girls shook hands, but Lavender's eyes narrowed slightly in warning.
Hermione saw the "hands off' look that she was giving Cassandra, and she couldn't really blame her. It was obvious that the girl could make any man come at her beckoned call. Hell, she had half the male population of Hogwarts staring at her already. Hermione suddenly felt very plain in the presence of such raving beauty. She knew that she wasn't ugly, and Harry always told her she was beautiful, but in her heart, she knew that she'd never look like Cassandra. Why did she feel so flustered? Was she afraid that if Cassandra would turn her charms on Harry, he'd actually fall for her?
"No, he'd never do that! Harry loves you!' she shouted to herself. Hermione remained lost in her thoughts all the way through Dumbledore's welcoming speech.
"Hermione!"
"Huh—what?" She shook her head to see Harry gazing at her worriedly.
"You okay—you zoned out there for awhile."
"Sorry—I was just thinking—that's all. What is it?"
"Dumbledore's about to tell us about a new class."
Hermione immediately clammed up and turned her attention to the professors' table.
"As the sixth and seventh year students may have noticed, there is no listing for Defense Against the Dark Arts this year. That is because the course has changed. With the attack from Voldemort last year, the Ministry of Magic had split the class into two pieces," Dumbledore explained.
"As such, we have two professors teaching the class, Professor Remus Lupin and Professor Sirius Black."
Harry's eyes shot open at the news; he couldn't believe it! No wonder it wasn't on his schedule; they'd remade the class into two parts. Not only that, but he'd have teachers that he both knew and cared about.
"Now then, the course will consist of material in both magical and physical defense. In other words, each of you will receive weapons training along with magical training. You are to learn how to duel both ways if needed. Professor Lupin will be teaching the magical half, while Professor Black will be teaching the weapons portion. As a demonstration, I've asked Professor Black to provide us with a presentation. Professor—if you would?"
Sirius stood up and picked up two swords seated next to him.
"Thank you, Professor Dumbledore. I doubt that many of you how to use one of these properly," he stated and twirled the swords in his hands. The students just stared back at him silently.
"I see these interest all of you; then why don't we have a volunteer?"
Harry kept his hand down, but he just knew that Sirius was going to pick him.
"Let me see—Harry—Hermione—would could come up here please?"
Rolling his eyes in exasperation, Harry stood up and extended his hand to his fiancée. She grinned and accepted his hand. She followed him up to the front, and Sirius grinned slightly.
"Now then, Hermione, why don't you go first?"
"Okay."
Swallowing nervously, she approached Sirius, and he handed her one of the swords.
"Go ahead, it's not as heavy as it looks," he stated firmly.
Hermione curved her hand around the sword and and grasped it firmly. It was a slight strain, but she lifted the blade.
"We'll start slowly—"
Sirius spent the next ten minutes walking Hermione through the basic movements. He knew that Hermione had an analytical mind so he told her to try and keep her sword to a perpendicular angle to his. After that, she began to pick up the technique rather quickly.
"Excellent, well done Hermione."
Her cheeks flushed at his compliment; she'd never even used a sword before tonight!
"All right, Harry, it's your turn."
Hermione stayed up front; this she had to see.
Sirius was grinning widely at his godson, and Harry was grinning right back.
"Hope you haven't gotten too rusty, boy!"
"I think I remember everything."
The two wizards raised their swords in front of their faces.
"Touché!"
Sirius immediately went after him. Harry raised his hands and bent his sword to the side to block the strike. He pushed up to force Sirius back slightly and thrust forward with his own attack.
Hermione watched in fascination as the two traded blow for blow. Their blades clanged together, and they spun around the front of the Great Hall. Both were grinning at one another; they were enjoying this far too much!
The professors were also watching the duel intently. Dumbledore was trying hard not to chuckle. This looked more like a sparring session than a fight. Harry and Sirius were just testing each other.
"Look at them go!"
"Wow, that's so cool!"
"We get to learn that."
The sixth and seventh years muttered amongst themselves as they watched the pair go back and forth.
"They're having fun!" Ron chuckled.
"What do you mean?" Lavender asked.
"There both grinning from ear to ear; I'd say this is more like practice to those two."
"Goodness, Harry sure knows how to handle a sword," Cassandra broke in.
"You haven't seen anything yet; you should've seen him last year. He kicked the bloody hell out of Lucius Malfoy, the Death Eaters, and You-Know-Who all in one day."
"He must be very popular with a reputation like his," she stated firmly. Ron rolled his eyes slightly.
"You should've seen it; he used to have girls practically hanging on him from dawn till dusk. They all wanted a piece of the "great Harry Potter'."
"What made them stop?" Cassandra asked intently. Ron smiled broadly.
"He fell in love with Hermione. When they saw the way he looked at her, it stopped "em cold in their tracks. Those two are perfect together; there's nothing they can't do!"
What the young Weasley didn't notice was the darkness that flashed through Cassandra's eyes, and she glanced towards the front where Hermione was standing.
Meanwhile, Sirius and Harry were still going at it.
"You have remembered, Harry, but not quite enough."
Harry thrust forward a little too far, and Sirius knocked the sword out of his hand. It hit the stone floor with a clang, and the two men took a deep breath.
"Not bad for a student," Sirius chuckled.
"Not bad for an aging professor," Harry shot back.
"Watch it, Potter!"
Harry wiped the sweat off his brow and nodded to his godfather. He walked back to Hermione, and they returned to their seats.
"Well done, Professor Black—Harry—Hermione—I see much promise for the upcoming year. Now, as everyone has been quite patient, let the feast begin."
After waving his hands, every plate on the long tables was filled with delicious looking food. The students eagerly dug in.
"Hey Harry, I've just been telling Cassandra about our adventures from first through sixth year," Ron said with a proud smile.
"That's a long story," his friend retorted.
"Okay, so maybe not everything, just the good parts."
"It's amazing, Harry, everything that you've had to face," Cassandra said in shock, "I don't see how you could do it."
"My only answer is—great friends, and—" He turned his head and gazed at Hermione.
"—a great girl. They've been my strength and confidants."
"Perhaps, you could tell me about your adventures sometime Harry," Cassandra said and batted her eyes at him.
"I wouldn't exactly call them adventures, but I guess so. Actually, Ron's a better storyteller than me. Bes, es, after dinner, Hermione and I have to meet with the house prefects since it's the first night back."
"I understand, Harry, I'm sure you'll be busy this year. Don't mind me."
"Hold it, Cassandra, just because I'm busy doesn't mean I act like a jerk. I always make time for my friends," he said with a smile.
"Thank you, I really appreciate it."
"Good, then let's eat, cause I'm starving!"
As dinner progressed, Harry and his friends laughed and discussed how their summer had gone. Suddenly, he flinched as he felt a familiar burning on his forehead, his scar. Something wasn't right, and his eyes flashed around the room. Glancing over at the Slytherin table, he saw Draco Malfoy glaring at him with hateful eyes. His senses told him that wasn't it, and he moved on.
"What's going on?' he asked himself.
His gaze shifted closer, and his eyes ran across the face of Cassandra Cross. The pain intensified, and Harry clenched his fist. No, he couldn't react with her so close. What could it be? Why was his scar burning again, and why was it reacting to her? Was their something about Cassandra that she wasn't admitting?
Harry watched her carrying on a conversation with Ron and Lavender and occasionally laughing gaily. Despite, her outward serenity, Harry had come to trust his scar as an early warning mechanism, and if Cassandra was a wolf in sheep's clothing, he had to be ready for her.
Author's Notes: And here ends this chapter. Stay tuned and see why Harry's scar was reacting. Plus, what role is Cassandra going to play?
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Duel of the Hearts