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Moody's Blues
By gryffins_door

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Category: Post-OotP, Alternate Universe
Characters:Harry/Ginny
Genres: Action/Adventure, Drama, Romance
Warnings: Death, Mild Language, Sexual Situations, Violence
Rating: PG-13
Reviews: 81
Summary: The adults in Harry's life start acting more like adults; in the meantime, Harry discovers something special in Ginny. Starts late in OotP; mostly canon to that point. Total AU after Book 6. H/G, mentor Moody.
Hitcount: Story Total: 22659; Chapter Total: 1109
Awards: View Trophy Room




Author's Notes:
"Fly Me High" was the first single released after new members Justin Hayward and John Lodge joined Mike Pinder, Ray Thomas, and Graeme Edge to complete the ensemble responsible for much of the Moody Blues' greatest work. Listening to this reminds us that they were once just another group of talented young guys who loved rock and roll.

Some trivia: “Nights in White Satin” (featured in the previous chapter as Lily’s lullaby) is the first of only a few songs in history to chart as a single in its original form on three separate occasions - 1967, 1972 and 1979. (Others include “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “1999”). This would be a good place to remind everyone that I don’t own any music or lyrics by the Moody Blues which appear as a transformative work under fair use rights.

Real life - it can be at times fabulous or frustrating, and occasionally… I lost my father since the last chapter was published and this story has taken on an additional dimension for me. I have added a dedication to him at the beginning of Chapter 1. I have heard some say that, even as grown-ups, when you lose both your parents you become an orphan. I prefer to believe what my father once said - that's when you become an adult.

Ch. 10 in which Harry dons his captain's robes…




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10 -

Fly Me High

I'm up to the eyes and I love everyone
Today I could cry I could reach for the sun
I'm walking on air and I'm here and I'm there
I travel the sky but for what I don't care

Fly me straight and fly me high

- The Moody Blues

o o
o

James and Lily stayed with the teens in the Room of Requirement for the rest of the day, watching them eat (after meeting the amazed Dobby), sharing stories of their school days and particular events of interest. Eventually, the energy levels were dropping to the point that Harry and his friends were so exhausted that - as much as they hated to - they had to send them back.

"Remember, Harry," said Lily, "share your memory of that night we were attacked with Albus. I know there is something important that we are missing."

"I will, Mum," Harry said. "Can I call you again?"

"Yes, of course, son," James said. "We're happy to visit anytime you want us."

"We love you so much," said Lily. "And we support you in everything you do. Never forget that."

"Thank you," Harry said, visibly spent. "I love you too, Mum… Dad… Goodbye."

His parents faded from view as he collapsed onto his back, eyes closed and leaking tears. The others slid into place around him and the sofa enlarged into a platform bed with fluffy pillows and the teens quickly fell asleep in a cozy dogpile.

It seemed only minutes had passed when Harry awoke, but the stiffness in his limbs told him otherwise. He felt a head of bushy hair on his shoulder, but on closer inspection he noticed that Hermione was actually facing Ron and they had their arms draped around each other. He looked the other way into the blazing eyes of his girlfriend.

"Hey," whispered Ginny. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah, I did. How about you?"

"Fine, but apparently not as well as those two," she replied, inclining her head towards Ron and Hermione.

Harry grinned. "And they're still asleep."

"Good," she said with a matching grin. She slid up so she could press her lips against his.

Sliding his arms around her as he deepened the kiss, Harry decided that he had it pretty good after all.

o o o

Monday morning meant Harry returned to Defense Against the Dark Arts class after missing the first week. Snape was his usually surly self, but did not look Harry's way during his lecture, apparently preferring to ignore him as Dumbledore had said. He did quirk an eyebrow when Harry turned in his first week essay with everyone else, but made no comment.

Harry had been practicing all his spells wordlessly and found that this came somewhat easier with the Elder Wand. When Snape called for them to pair up and practice, he had no trouble with either the jinx or the shield. In fact, he began surreptitiously bouncing the spells shot at him to others in the room, so they had to figure out how to shield themselves from multiple directions at once. The former members of the DA that he had worked with on similar drills the previous year took this in stride, but the others found it increasingly frustrating, especially when they couldn't tell where the jinxes were coming from.

When they complained, an irritable Snape was unsympathetic.

"When you get in a real fight, your opposition will attempt to surround you," he snapped. "Adjust your shields accordingly!"

Snape said nothing directly to Harry per his arrangement with the headmaster, but that didn't prevent his scowl from bearing down on Harry whenever he was in the vicinity.

When the class period was finally over, Snape passed by and muttered in his direction, "A word, if you will, Potter."

Ron and Hermione gave him worried looks as they and the others left the room.

Snape was obviously trying to contain his ire when he turned on Harry. "With your new-found skills of deduction and reasoning, you can certainly appreciate how difficult it is for me to convince the Dark Lord that you are an average student of no appreciable talent when he sees in the minds of your peers a performance such as the stunts you pulled today."

Harry hadn't even given that possibly a thought. "So… you don't want me to do my best?"

"A little less showing off at the very least."

"Okay, so I hold back in class. Nothing I haven't done before."

"What do you mean?"

"Outperforming my cousin on a test meant a day or two locked up without food. So, yeah, I know the drill."

Snape made no comment. Harry accepted that as a dismissal, so he nodded and left the classroom.

The potions master turned DADA professor stared after the boy, unable to make an intelligent reply, for he couldn't help wondering what sort of monsters Petunia and her husband had turned out to be.

o o o

Despite a schedule that appeared to allow plenty of time for relaxation and non-academic pursuits, Harry and the other sixth years were quickly covered with so much to do that there was little time left over for such things. All the teachers seemed to be in agreement that the NEWT level students would spend any time outside the classroom in research and essay writing.

For most, Quidditch tryouts could not come soon enough.

"Is it just me, or has Quidditch become more popular this year?" said Harry, surveying the lengthy signup roster in the Gryffindor common room.

"Actually, it probably is you," said Hermione without a hint of sarcasm.

"What?"

"Well, people are more fascinated with you, Harry. You've proven yourself again against Death Eaters and Voldemort himself, that you weren't lying about him, you led the DA last year and stood up to Umbridge. It doesn't hurt that you've grown about a foot since last year - ."

"He's still a bit of a specky git, if you ask me," said Ron, grinning.

"I don't believe I asked you, mate," returned Harry.

"- and you're more fanciable than ever," finished Hermione.

"Okay, now you're just taking the mickey," said Harry.

"Take a look around, Harry, and see for yourself," said Ginny, stifling a giggle.

Harry slowly turned and surveyed the common room. Some of the blokes were looking curiously their way, but the girls, especially those in the years below him, were gazing at them - at him - with an unusual gleam in their eyes, and there was much conspiratorial whispering going on as well.

He was doomed.

o o o

"How do I deal with this?" moaned Harry, leading Ginny towards the transfigured settee. It was a rare break that they had in common and would secretly meet in their fourth floor hideaway.

"Deal with what?"

"You know - all those fangirls! You pointed them out to me!"

Ginny knew Harry hated attention, but this was just too good to pass on. "I thought you were dealing with it just fine by being your usual oblivious self."

Harry gave her a pointed look. "If I was oblivious to them, it was because I was focused on you."

"Oooh, good answer, Mr. Potter! Full marks." She pushed him back onto the settee and resumed her favorite spot on his lap. "I think you deserve a reward."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled her lips to his. The kiss started off tenderly but quickly became more heated as their passions built and they fell into their mutual need for each other's contact and affection.

Finally, they stopped to breathe, resting their foreheads together. They both marvelled at how well they fit together, both physically and emotionally.

"Thank you," said Harry.

"For what? The snog?" Ginny said with a snicker. "That was for me as much as it was for you."

"For that, for everything, for… keeping me sane."

He pushed her back so he could see her fully. His intense green eyes bore into her bright browns, and Ginny felt like she was being drawn into the depths of the sea.

"I love you, Ginny."

The intensity of his gaze would have melted most girls into a puddle, but Ginny was made of sterner stuff and returned his passion with a fierceness that surprised both of them.

"I know," she said after the long kiss, "it's about time you admitted it."

"Yeah?" he said, smirking.

"And I love you too, silly boy," she continued. "When I met you that first time at King's Cross, I was captivated by your eyes - they were so vivid and you had this look of wonder that tugged at my heart. When I found out that you were Harry Potter, my childhood visions of you were shattered, but I wanted so badly to find out what you were really like -"

"And your mum wouldn't let you come talk to me."

"Yes, you remember! At least I got to wave at you from the platform."

"After Hagrid, you were the first person I ever met that seemed to really care about me. I've never forgotten that, you know."

She snuggled in closer to his chest. "When Ron wrote home with all those stories, I developed a whole new fantasy about you, but then you showed up at the house and I got to know the real you at last. Of course, you had to go and save the poor damsel in the Chamber -"

"Hey," he said with a start, "Dumbledore said that Pettigrew owes me a life debt from the time I talked Sirius out of killing him. Your situation was even worse - does that mean you…"

"Yes, it probably does, and I'm okay with owing you a life debt."

"Does it change anything between us?"

"Only if we want it to."

"Okay. I like what we've got."

"So do I. Now, where were we?" She reached up to press her lips against his once again.

"Right about here," he mumbled happily.

o o o

"Bloody hell," muttered Harry, surveying the crowds of students at the Quidditch pitch, exceeding even the numbers on the sign-up list.

"You've got all years out here, Harry," said Ginny. "I recognize some firsties."

"Huh, they probably haven't even learned how to fly yet," added Katie Bell.

"That's a good one," said Ron, who rounded out the remaining members from last year's team. "See if they can actually fly a lap around the pitch."

"Great idea, mate," said Harry, so he gathered the students in groups of ten, starting with the youngest-looking ones, and set them to task.

It was as bad as expected - some had never touched a broom before, and even some who had had no idea how to get the broom going where they wanted. There were lots of collisions and cursing, but just as much laughter and giggling, especially from a group of third and fourth year girls who probably could have flown if they bothered. It seemed that this was more of a social occasion for them. One group didn't even have brooms.

More than once, Harry had to yell off members of other houses who had wandered into the tryouts, presumably to get a closer look at the new Gryffindor captain. They simply went into the stands to heckle everyone else.

"Hey, Captain, I don't need to be flying laps," said the lanky Cormac McLaggen. "I'm a seventh year."

Harry wasn't sure if McLaggen thought he was privileged for being one of the oldest trying out or because they'd both been tagged by Professor Slughorn on the Hogwarts Express.

"I don't care," said Harry, "I've never seen you fly, so right now, you're the same as everybody else."

Grumbling, McLaggen took off with one of roommates, Seth Filmore, in the last group and made the easy lap without further difficulty.

"The next phase will be Chaser drills," Harry said, "If you are trying out for Chaser, you will pair up and pass the Quaffle back and forth as you fly the length of the pitch."

Harry had Ron help keep watch on who was having the most difficulty. When Harry told them to go sit down, more than a few were blaming their partner. Harry relented on a few of these when they did have a poor partner, letting them fly with Ginny or Katie. None of them did much better.

After the second round of eliminations, Harry let them pair up again running the same passing play, but a second pair would be trying to steal the Quaffle. Tempers began to flair even more when less talented flyers got embarrassed by their housemates. Harry was also kept busy by catching those who found themselves broomless after a collision or other careless antics.

Eventually the remaining few were put through real game simulations with Bludgers from potential beater candidates until Harry was satisfied he'd found the best Chasers for the team. Katie Bell had an excellent trial as expected, but a new find named Demelza Robins had a knack for dodging Bludgers. Ginny proved to be the best of the lot, scoring the most goals and outflying everyone on the pitch. Harry's roommate Dean Thomas made a decent showing and Harry told him he might be used as a reserve.

His choices for Beaters were not up to Fred and George Weasley's level, but third year Jimmy Peakes managed to get a good hit on Harry himself, and Richie Coote could aim a Bludger just about as well.

Harry had left Keeper tryouts for last in hopes that Ron wouldn't have a huge audience, remembering his problem with nerves, but that strategy failed as no one had left the pitch and many others had come down after breakfast to watch.

"Good luck, mate," was all Harry could say to Ron, who appeared to be turning a little green as he flew up to the rings, preparing to block shots from the new Chasers.

Ron shakily but successfully blocked the first pass from Katie.

"I bet he makes it on the team just because he's mates with the captain," said a voice to Harry's right. Harry glanced with annoyance at McLaggen, who had yet to try out.

Ron's second save blocked a wicked curving shot from Ginny. He got several cheers and a few catcalls.

"His sister's going easy on him!" cried McLaggen.

"Yeah, but she's a bit of all right, don't you think?" said his roommate Filmore.

"All that long red hair?" said McLaggen. "Who wouldn't want to get wrapped up in that?"

Incensed, Harry barely noticed that Ron made another save off Demelza.

"Better her than the bushy-haired swot they hang out with," continued McLaggen, adding more insults with every play.

By the time Ron had made his last two saves, Harry had more than enough.

"McLaggen!" Harry called.

"My turn to show you how it's done?" he said, standing and stretching.

"No, you're done," Harry said angrily. "You and Filmore need to leave the pitch."

"What? We haven't tried out yet!"

"Let me put it to you this way," Harry gritted out. "Quidditch is a team sport, and you don't strike me as team players. Furthermore, my friend - the swot, I believed you called her - looks about ready to banish you into the lake. Of course, you'd have to clear the stands over there, and I'm just curious to see if you'd make it or not. Do you want to find out?"

Sure enough, Hermione stood below them with a stormy look and her wand held tightly.

The seventh years took notice and reluctantly but wisely sauntered off, mumbling insults the whole way.

"Thank you, Harry," said Hermione. "I knew they were rude, but -"

"No worries, Hermione. If you had hexed them, I would've backed you up."

"You're not worried that he might be better than Ron? He's got a Keeper's build."

"Hermione, I'd have to be knocked unconscious by a Bludger to let that guy on the team. Let's go tell Ron the good news, shall we?"

o o o

"What exactly is your goal with the boy, Albus?"

It was only the third day of school as Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody sat in front of the headmaster's desk. As always, he refused the offer of one of those infernal lemon sweets. He assumed that they were laced with calming or truth potions or both, but he never bothered to have one tested. Constant vigilance and all that…

"To survive any encounters with opponents, to be sure," said Dumbledore dryly. "Yet I am also concerned that, as he grows in ability and confidence, that he does not become reckless in his defense of others."

"He doesn't seem the type to me," Mad-Eye said. "At Godric's Hollow, he sensed danger and immediately said, 'We need to leave.' We, the adults, of course thought we knew better. His actions following that were both creative and appropriate. I wish half our Aurors had the same kind of situational awareness and focus under pressure. I'm sorry I missed him in the Tri-Wizard."

"Harry was nothing short of spectacular, but I confess to be somewhat biased. Yet he had already proven himself against a swarm of dementors, a 60-foot basilisk, and a wizard possessed by Voldemort."

"Aye, I heard stories -"

"Which probably pale in the face of the fearsome realities he experienced. Harry has a 'saving people thing' as his friends refer to it, and places the value of others' lives above his own."

"And you want me to convince him of his own self-worth? I'm an Auror, not a mind healer."

Dumbledore chuckled. "No, I'm working on that side of things. I merely need you to enhance and hone his abilities as much as you can, in as little time as you can. The approaching conflict will find him sooner than later, and he needs to be prepared."

"These tales of the Chosen One - you want the point of your sword to be extra sharp, eh?"

"As a razor, Alastor."

o o o

"Come in!"

This time, Mad-Eye sat behind Dumbledore's desk as Harry Potter walked through the door, looking around curiously but cautiously. That was good, Mad-Eye thought, he was checking the environment already in what was supposed to be the safest place in the castle.

"Hello, sir," the boy said, "the headmaster isn't here?"

"No, Potter, he has places to be, or he might be training you himself. As it is, he wants me to teach you how to fight. He seems to think you're gonna get dragged into this mess despite all he's done to keep you out of it."

"Yes. sir. I want to be ready."

"Fair enough," Mad-Eye said as he pushed up from the chair and fired a hex before he was fully upright.

The boy is fast, too, Mad-Eye mused, as he evaded both the first and then another spell.

"Nice reaction time," Mad-Eye said as he had to deflect Potter's spells before he could send more.

They began to circle the office, trading hexes, trying to find an opening. Mad-Eye was beginning to enjoy himself - the boy did have a knack for dodging, which meant he didn't have to waste time on shielding. It was an interesting change of pace and more challenging than he had expected, but he needed to end this quickly so the boy wouldn't get over-confident.

He fired off a series of disarming spells in a pattern that would be impossible to avoid completely. Sure enough, the boy lost his wand and was thrown back to the wall, where he sat breathing heavily.

"Not bad, Potter," Mad-Eye said, walking back to the desk. "You show some promise, but -"

His words hung in the air, unfinished due to the stunning spell he never saw coming from the supposedly disarmed teen on the floor.

Harry took a couple of breaths, stood and walked towards the old Auror. "Accio wands," he intoned, and the Elder Wand flew up from the floor as well as the one from Mad-Eye's hand.

"I'm probably gonna regret this," he said as he revived his opponent/mentor.

"What's this?" Mad-Eye said as he regained his feet. "How'd you manage that?"

"Constant vigilance, sir," Harry said, smirking as he twirled Mad-Eye's wand in the air.

o

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