Chapter 23

After lunch was the first Defence Against the Dark Arts class of the year. Students walked into the classroom, took their seats, pulled out books, parchment, and quills and joked around while waiting for the professor. Finally, she entered, smiling and looking carefully around at all the gathered students. As usual, Bella was dressed in a long black robe.

- Good afternoon," she greeted the students. - You may put away your textbooks. We have a practical lesson today, just leave the wands."

Looking around curiously, the students hid their textbooks, paper and quills. They had only had a practical lesson on Defence Against the Dark Arts once, and they remembered it well: Professor Lockhart had brought in a cage of varmint pixies, let them out, and they had turned the classroom upside down.

- Well, are you ready? - Black asked. - Come with me.

The students were burning with curiosity. Following the professor, they left the classroom, walked down the corridor and turned a corner. Walking down the next corridor, Black stopped in front of the professor's office.

- Well, here we are. Come on in. - And she opened the door. There were old, sprawling chairs in the spacious, wood-panelled teacher's room.

- Look at the wardrobe," the Dean of Slytherin said and gestured to the far end of the room, where an old wardrobe stood. The wizard approached the cupboard, something stirred inside, the cupboard shook, and the door handle jerked. The students in the front row recoiled.

- 'It's just an ordinary boggart,' the teacher reassured them. - 'So there's nothing to be afraid of. Most of them thought a boggart was something to be afraid of. Neville looked at the professor in horror. Seamus Finnigan watched the door warily, hoping it wouldn't open.

- Boggarts like the dark," said the wizard, "and most often hide in a cupboard, under the bed, in a drawer under the washbasin, and I found one in the case of a floor clock. This one got here only yesterday. I asked the headmistress to save it for today's lesson. Who can answer what a boggart is?

Hermione instantly raised her hand.

- A boggart is a ghost that changes its appearance. It transforms into what a person fears the most.

- 'Excellent, Miss Granger,' the professor complimented Hermione, and Hermione blushed.

- 'Now, the boggart in the cupboard is like no other. He doesn't know who or what he's going to scare. We don't know what he looks like, but if we let him out, he'll turn into what we fear most in the world.

Neville stared at him wildly and muttered something.

- 'Which means,' the Professor went on, ignoring Neville, 'that we have a huge advantage over the boggart. Can you tell me, Harry, what that advantage is?

Hermione threw up her hand and even raised herself on her toes to address him. It was confusing, but Harry still dared to answer:

- There are a lot of us here.

- Right. That's why it's best to fight a boggart in twos, threes, in general, the more of you the better. He is immediately lost, unable to choose who to turn into. A headless dead man or a giant flesh-eating slug? I once saw a boggart who tried to scare two people at once and turned into half a slug. What a laugh! The spell against a boggart is very simple, you just have to concentrate hard. The best weapon against it is laughter. Turn it into something funny, make it laugh and it will disappear. First, let's learn a spell without wands. Repeat after me: Ridiculous!

- Ridiculous! - exclaimed the students in unison.

- That's great! But that's the easy part. The magic word alone won't help you. That's where I'm going to need some help. Mr Malfoy, come here. The cloakroom shook again, some of the students shaking with terror.

The blond-haired Slytherin walked towards the wardrobe rather slowly, trying to show his confidence.

- Stand up here. Tell me, what do you fear more than anything else in the world?

Malfoy was silent for a while before muttering something.

- 'What did you say, Draco? I didn't hear it," Bellatrix said in a cold tone, keeping her gaze on her nephew.

- Professor to you," the third year finally said.

Everyone laughed. The Gryffindors laughed especially loudly. The professor thought for a moment.

- Well, well, well, nephew. Who else are you afraid of but me? 'Think hard,' Black said, keeping her stern gaze on Malfoy.

- Well, Headmistresses," the blond-haired Slytherin admitted nonchalantly.

- 'Now, try to visualise the funny image as vividly as possible. Did you get it?

- Yes," Malfoy replied, "and what happens next, Professor?

- Boggart jumps out of the cloakroom, sees you and turns into Professor Le Fey. You'll point your wand at him, visualise the funny image you're thinking of, and say loudly, "Ridiculous!".

The wardrobe was delighted.

- 'If Mr Malfoy succeeds, the boggart will scare everyone one by one,' said Black, 'now remember what you fear most and think of a way to turn the boggart into a laughing stock.'

All were instantly silent.

What am I most afraid of in the world? - Harry wondered. - 'I don't think it's the best idea to put your fears on display.' replied the Slytherin.

- 'So, do you have an idea? - Bellatrix asked. Harry suddenly felt uneasy. He hadn't come up with anything yet. But it was a shame to ask - everyone was already nodding and rolling up their sleeves.

- 'Mr Malfoy, we're going to back off a bit so you can act more freely. Then I'll call in the next one,' Black said.

- 'Everyone back up, don't get in his way.

The students backed away and pressed themselves against the wall. Malfoy was left alone by the wardrobe. The blond-haired Slytherin rolled up his sleeves and gripped his wand tightly in his hands.

- On the count of three, you begin. - Professor Black pointed her wand at the wardrobe door.

- One, two, three!

A jet of sparks erupted from the wand and struck the door handle. The wardrobe swung open and Morgana stepped out of it, glaring her eyes as if alive, straight at Malfoy.

The Slytherin recoiled, but kept his wand up, whispering a spell with just his lips. The headmistress continued to approach him.

- Ridiculous! - Malfoy said loudly. There was a click, and Morgana swayed.

She then became slightly dizzy, and soon a completely naked brunette was standing in front of the students. There was silence in the hall for a while. Until someone in the back rows let out a loud laugh. From the sound of his voice, it was Ronald Weasley. However, when the Dean of Slytherin glared at the redhead, he immediately fell silent, startled by Bellatrix's glare.

Meanwhile, Malfoy stood there, eyes wide and staring at Morgana's fake spell. Bella quickly shoved the boggart back in. After that, she silenced the class. Grabbing her nephew by the ear, she dragged Malfoy over to the couch where the teachers often sat. Casting an eavesdropping spell on herself and Draco, Bellatrix spent several minutes shouting at the teenager, who couldn't get a word out.

- 'I asked you to show something funny, not obscene, Malfoy, you idiot!!!' - screamed the black-haired wizard at her nephew.

Slapping the Slytherin with a punishment and taking a few dozen penalty points off him, Bella continued the lesson.

- Miss Parvati Patil, now it's your turn! - Standing next to the cupboard, Black pronounced.

The Indian woman stepped forward confidently. Boggart moved towards her. A blood-stained mummy appeared. It stared blindly at Parvati, stretched out its arms and, slowly dragging its feet, ran towards the girl.....

- Ridiculous! The ropes on the mummy's legs developed, braided around its feet, and the mummy fell to the floor, ripping its head off and rolling on the floor.

- Finnigan, you're next," Black turned to the Gryffindor. Seamus darted towards the ghost. With a snap, the mummy was replaced by a banshee, a gaunt ghostly witch with floor-length hair and a green face, the messenger of death. She opened her mouth wide and the room erupted into a piercing scream that made the hairs on Harry's head stand up.

- Ridiculous! - Shouted Seamus. The banshee wheezed and clutched at her throat, her voice completely gone. With a click, instead of a mouse, a rat appeared, chasing its tail. Another click and the mouse turned into a rattlesnake, wriggling, wriggling, wriggling, wriggling and suddenly turning into a bloodshot eye.

- Thomas, it's your turn!

Dean ran up to the boggart. With a click, the severed arm jumped to the floor and crawled crab-like towards Dean.

- Ridiculous! - Dean shouted. Clap - the arm was slammed shut with a mousetrap.

- And now Mr Weasley.

Ronald leapt out into the middle of the room. Click! A huge, taller than a grown man, furry spider pounced on the Sixth, jaws clacking menacingly. Someone shrieked, Weasley was dazed for a moment, then suddenly roared:

- Ridiculous! The spider's legs disappeared and it rolled towards Lavender Brown. She bounced aside with a squeak. The spider rolled towards Harry. Potter chased the rich boy into the cupboard and stepped back to the window.

- Well done everyone, except Mr Malfoy. He'll have a separate conversation with him in the Headmaster's office. Grades: five points to everyone who fought the boggart. And five points to Hermione and Harry. Homework: read the Boggart textbook, take notes and hand it in on Monday. That's it," Bellatrix dismissed the students.

The students shouted happily and ran out of the teacher's lounge. Harry was one of the last to leave the classroom and watched as Bella caught up with Malfoy grabbed him by the arm and dragged him towards the Headmaster's office, not listening to the blond third-year student's objections. Someone's going to get it soon.

Not hiding his smirk, because he couldn't stand Malfoy, Harry headed out into the courtyard for a walk before his next lesson, which was about half an hour away.