The Recurring Nytdmare

Another Mainely Hogwarts Story.

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So.....here you all are again?

I suppose most of you are here because you cannot get enough of all the stories out there about.....Potter.

And I suppose that I, Professor Severus Snape, after having dealt with Mr. Potter for the past five long years, should not be surprised that a bunch of muggles such as yourselves would be easily impressed by the wonder wizard's illicit adventures, and habitual rule-breaking.

Well, then, if that's what you are looking for, read on....but let me give you fair warning. These chapters hold not only the sixth year escapades of three most troublesome Gryffindors, but accounts of the daily lives and adventures of model student, Draco Malfoy......

Severus?

Yes, Nytd?

I wouldn't really call Draco a model student after the whole party incident.

One tiny infraction and you condemn a fellow Slytherin....

Tiny? I'd hardly call a hundred mangabeys tiny, Severus.

May I continue?

Certainly.

The writings within document the lives of Marlina Perkins, Care of Magical Creatures Professor at Hogwarts, and her annoying little brat of a son, Noah....

Severus?

What?

Most people find Noah absolutely adorable.

*rolls eyes* Fine. And the (urgh) adorable Noah.

Better.

May I go on?

Please do, Severus.

Of course, by now most of you are aware of her *shudders* romance with that werewolf, Remus Lupin, the passable DADA teacher.....

Severus, Remus is an outstanding teacher.

If you say so.

I do, and it's my story.

Fine. *clenches teeth* May I finish MY introduction?

By all means.

Where was I? Oh, yes - More adventure and romance for Kaneene Moody, who's really not so bad for an Auror, even if she does hand around with that.....*mutters something unintelligible*....Sirius Black.....

I heard that.

Do you mind? *glares and waits* Ahem, and her kid brother Keath, who's still trying to get under the robes of that Granger girl and.....

Severus!

Well, he IS! Merlin's wand! Why did I ever agree to do this?

*Sirius pokes head into room* Probably because you're still trying to get under Nytd's.....

That's enough of that, Padfoot!

*Sirius and Remus can be heard laughing outside the doorway.*

I can't do this with all that racket!

Yes, you can. Please finish the introduction, Severus.....for me?

Oh, all right. Anyway, more from the lovely Mistress Lorien, the Red Witch, consummate Potions Mistress; Perth Taber, Ariel Sinistra, that *mutters something else*, Death Eaters, Voldemort......*pauses, frowns and looks at Nytd*.... Must we?

Yes, Severus. It's tradition. All good Harry Potter fanfic stories usually include him.

And do all good Harry Potter fanfic authors usually have cappuccino with the Dark Lord?

*looks a bit sheepish* I suppose not.

Hmph. And are all fanfic authors SAVED by a certain Potions Master?

Well, er.....no, I guess not.

Yes, well, if they were, I bet they would have thanked him properly.

I thanked you profusely, Severus.

*drops voice dangerously* I said....properly.

Which would mean? *narrows eyes suspiciously*

Huh! Read your own chapter on thanking one's champion.

Severus!

Oh, don't go looking so shocked. You're the one that wrote the bloody thing!

Look, we'll discuss this later.

*raises one eyebrow* Is that a promise?

You're very wicked Severus, did you know that?

That, my dear, is what you love about me. *turns and exits with signature sweep of dark robes*

Welcome back old friends, and welcome as well to any of you new readers that stumbled upon the Wandless Magic Trilogy. I didn't want to say anything while Severus was here, Merlin knows his ego is big enough, but there's a fair bit about our favorite Potions Master ahead too. Hope you all enjoy the third installment. Read on and have fun!

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Return to Hogwarts: Year Six ~*~

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It seemed very strange to Hermione and Ron when they boarded the Hogwarts Express on September first, and found themselves sitting together in the last car without Harry.

Of course they were happy, in a way, that he wasn't there. It meant that he hadn't had to spend his entire summer at the Dursley's, and that he was spending the last part of his summer holiday studying Nemorosi magic and catching up on time long lost with his godfather, Sirius Black.

They knew this already because it had been the first summer that the three of them could freely send each other owls on a regular basis, and Harry had made it a point to update them regularly on his progress.

They'd also had a chance to visit Harry for a few days at the end of July to hear in person about the strides he was making. Ron had little idea of what Harry was talking about half the time, and Hermione had found it maddening to not be able to rush to the library to look up the spells that Harry wrote them about, but now as they chatted on the train, they both agree on one thing; Harry seemed happy.

"About time," Ron observed, watching Pig do corkscrews and loop-the-loops around the car with excitement over the journey. "He deserves a bit of happiness after what he's been through."

"I'll say," agreed Hermione. She and Crookshanks, who had assumed the contented feline 'loaf-of-bread' position on her lap, were both watching the hyper little feathered monster with faint interest. A thought struck her, and she looked back at Ron and grinned before she could even speak again.

"So, how is Percy getting along?" she asked. Mrs. Weasley had already told her, quite excitedly, in Diagon Alley, that Percy and his long-time girlfriend were engaged.

Ron groaned and let his head fall back against the seat.

"You have no idea," he wailed. "Percy's been downright impossible since Penelope said yes. They talk for HOURS about the stupidest stuff. You just wouldn't believe what goes into planning a wedding, 'Mione."

Hermione gave him a pointed look.

"Well, ok, you might," Ron admitted, "I mean, you are a witch."

"Just what is that supposed to mean, Ron Weasley?" Hermione asked in a stern way, but a half-smile was still on her lips.

"Well, you know - witches always know more about that stuff," replied Ron, not realizing he was possibly getting himself into trouble.

Hermione's brow lifted. "That stuff?"

"Yeah." Ron busied himself looking around the car for Pig. "Engagements and, er..weddings and things."

Hermione's brow crept a notch higher. "Things?" She was beginning to smile again at watching Ron squirm a little.

"Oh, get off it, Hermione! You know what I mean. Women always know a lot more about, well....woman stuff."

A slightly older wizard would have recognized that he'd put his foot in his mouth the moment it happened, but Ron didn't - at least not for a few seconds.

Hermione was happy to point out his error.

"You think engagement and marriage are 'woman stuff?' Did it ever occur to you, Ron, that it takes two people, a man AND a woman, to be engaged and to get married?" Hermione asked with less of a smile and more annoyance now.

"Well, duh!" answered Ron. "I meant the planning. That's the....." Ron suddenly realized that he probably ought not complete his sentence.

Hermione pounced on him anyway. "You mean to tell me, that if you get engaged, you're not going to help plan your own wedding?"

"Nope. I'll leave that up to her," Ron answered.

"Wouldn't it matter to you where it was, or who was there, or what you ate, or any of that?" Asked Hermione, now genuinely curious more than anything.

Ron shrugged. "I guess I've just never thought about it."

Hermione, being a witch, found this concept alien, and somewhat disturbing. She peered closely at Ron but spoke softly. "Don't you ever wonder who she is, or how you'll meet her?"

"Who?"

Hermione's jaw dropped open a little, but then she saw Ron break into a wide smile, and realized that he was just teasing her.

Ron shrugged again. "I dunno. Not really. I mean, I just have this feeling I'll just..know."

Hermione nodded in understanding and sat quietly for a minute.

Ron couldn't pass up the opportunity that had obviously now presented itself. "So, what about you?" he asked. "Do you wonder who he is, or how you'll meet him?"

Hermione was about to answer when Ron interrupted her.

"Or maybe you've already met him?" he asked slyly.

"Already met....?" Hermione looked at him blankly.

Ron sat back with a jovial air of triumph about him. "Yeah. How's Hermione Moody sound to you?"

Hermione huffed. "Ron, really."

Ron sniggered.

"He's an Auror, Ron, and I'm a sixth-year student....."

"You don't think he's cute?" Ron was baiting her still.

"That has nothing to do with anything," said Hermione hastily, now going a bit red. "He's been answering a lot of questions about being an Auror for me."

Ron knew he had her and stared her down. "You usually go to the LIBRARY for your answers." He broke into a wide grin.

Hermione was very red at this point and didn't even try for a suitable answer. "Oh just shut up about the whole thing!" she finally sputtered. She knew her face was very red, and was glad when Ron was suddenly distracted by the appearance of the witch who pushed the snack cart.

Both of them settled back into their seats to munch quietly as the train clacked along, Ron wondering if Harry would be back in time for the sorting this year, and Hermione wondering just how soon she might run into the youngest Auror stationed at Hogwarts.

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Harry stood in the shadows, among the trees, as quietly as possible while he watched Lorien work in the garden behind Perth Taber's house. He'd already said his goodbyes to Perth and to Fagan LaRue, and this was going to be his last chance to try the spell that he'd been shown by none other than the Red Witch, before he'd have to gather up his things and leave with Sirius to return to Hogwarts.

This had been the best summer that Harry could remember, since he'd only had to stay at the Dursley's for a few weeks after the end of the school year, and the remainder of the time had been spent learning to master more wandless spells under the instruction of Perth Taber.

His summer days had been spent doing his homework, and studying with Taber, with a couple of hours off every afternoon to swim or nap or whatever he felt like. His evenings had been spent talking to Taber, and LaRue, and occasionally the other Nemorosi elders that would come to visit, but mostly they'd been spent with Sirius.

He and Sirius sat up together, often into the wee hours talking about Harry's parents, Sirius's adventures with his three best friends at Hogwarts, Quidditch, brooms, girls, life in general, and on one or two occasions......the return of the Dark Lord.

Which was the reason that Harry had had to return to Privet Drive at all earlier on. Sirius had informed him before he left on the train that Dumbledore had very good reasons for wanting Harry to go back at least for a short while, but that it wouldn't be long, and he himself would come and get Harry when his stay was up.

Harry smiled to himself as he thought back to the last evening of June, when his godfather had actually come to Number Four Privet Drive to collect him and escort him to the Herbrides. Needless to say it had created quite an uproar when Uncle Vernon had answered the door and discovered that the tall, dark haired man standing on the doormat was none other than Sirius Black, especially since Harry had managed to overlook mentioning the fact that Sirius had had his name cleared the previous fall.

Sirius had been expecting a negative reaction from Harry's uncle when the man realized that he was a wizard, but had been taken aback by the severity of the heavy man's nearly violent response when he announced that he'd come to collect Harry.

"YOU JUST....JUST.....STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" the man roared, backpedaling into the house as fast as he could. He rushed to the bottom of the stairs to call after Harry to speed him on his way. "WHERE ARE YOU, BOY?"

Sirius looked puzzled for a minute, frowning to himself as he decided instantly that the Dursleys must be at least as bad as Harry had let on, and probably worse. He folded his arms and waited while more bellowing reverberated through the house.

While he stood there he saw the curtains in the window pull aside ever so slightly so that Harry's aunt could peek out at the dreaded visitor on the stoop. It took Sirius about a second to recognize Petunia Dursley, even though it'd been years since the one or two times he'd seen Lily's sister when he'd gone visiting with James.

Sirius gave her one of his most charming smiles and spoke. "Hello, Petunia."

The curtain had been yanked sharply back across the window as a small shriek had issued from behind it. Sirius smiled to himself in a satisfied way, and then turned his attention to where Harry was struggling to get both his trunk and Hedwig's cage down the stairs.

"Here," Sirius offered, taking a step forward into the doorway, "let me help you with...."

"DON'T YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT SETTING A BLOODY TOE IN THIS HOUSE!" Uncle Vernon roared. "I'll not have another one under this roof, DO YOU HEAR? It's bad enough that......" He broke off as Sirius turned and fixed a cold, penetrating gaze on him.

Sirius didn't blink once, and spoke slowly in a low voice. "Kindly step out of my way."

He stepped past Dursley without lowering his gaze, and took the trunk from Harry who was standing near the bottom of the stairs, trying desperately not to grin from ear to ear as he watched his uncle shrink back wordlessly from the tall animagus.

Sirius spoke again as he and Harry made for the door. "Thank you for looking after Harry."

"You're taking him off are hands for good, then, are you?" Uncle Vernon had inquired cautiously, squirming under the intense stare.

"Until the end of the school year, when he'll be back for a few more weeks," Sirius said evenly.

Dursley opened his mouth to protest, but closed it again as Sirius spoke.

"I trust that won't be an issue?" he asked dangerously.

"No," Dursley answered, violently red in the face from the effort of restraining himself after hearing that Harry would indeed be returning at some point.

"Good." Sirius fixed him with one last meaningful look, and then turned to smile at Harry. "Alright there, Harry?"

"Wonderful," Harry answered, walking out the door into the dark driveway next to his godfather. He laughed as Sirius rolled his eyes at the terrific 'WHAM' that came as the door to the house was slammed violently shut.

When they'd arrived on the cliffs by portkey, (an overripe dead plover) Harry gave a little shudder at the thought that it'd only been a matter of weeks since he'd faced Voldemort here, and quickly followed Sirius down the path that led inland.

Harry was nervous at first about working with someone other than Lorien, but he'd gotten to know Perth Taber fairly well, and the man proved to be ever bit as fine a teacher as Lorien had said that he would be.

They'd spent a month building upon the foundation that Harry had started with the Mistress of the Healing Arts, and Harry enjoyed every day learning something new, and improving his wandless abilities.

The last evening of July Harry had a special surprise.....he enjoyed his first-ever birthday party at Taber's house. Sirius, Taber, and the Red Witch had thrown a small bash to which they'd also invited Kaneene and Keath Moody, who were acting as a bit of a bodyguard for Harry on the island; Lorien, who'd come from Hogwarts to stay for a few days; and to Harry's great joy, Ron and Hermione, who stayed for two days before returning home for the remainder of the summer holiday.

Harry had been a bit down about his best friends having to leave so soon, but Sirius had provided a distraction a day or so later that cheered him up immensely.

Sirius informed Harry at breakfast one morning that they would be going on a day-long trip to London, and when Harry asked why, merely grinned at him.

"Birthday present," was all Sirius would say, and he told Harry nothing more, even when they finally arrived in London.

"Will you at least tell me where we're going?" Harry pleaded, as he walked briskly alongside Sirius.

Sirius smiled and glanced sideways at Harry. "Ministry of Magic."

Harry looked startled. "The Min......really?"

Sirius continued to smile, and nodded.

Harry thought things over for a minute, still at a loss as to why Sirius would be taking him to the actual Ministry, and then he found himself grinning back at his godfather. "Did you every think you'd see the time when you could walk right into the Ministry in person?"

"You mean without an escort of about a dozen aurors and a full body bind hex?" Sirius asked with a laugh. He led Harry through a well-to-do section of the city, and up a hill that overlooked the Ministry, as well as the ATC in the distance.

Harry looked over the scene before him, and then asked Sirius the obvious question. "I expected the Ministry entrance to be hidden in an old muggle phone booth or something, not out in plain view. Why don't the muggles around here question what it is?"

Sirius smiled at his godson. "Yes, well it's only in plain view if you're a wizard. That baby has more disillusionment on her than all of Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade put together."

Harry mentally kicked himself for not seeing the obvious answer, and followed Sirius down to the entrance at the north end of the building.

Sirius paused outside the Ministry entrance for just a moment and looked around. When last he'd seen the place, black smoke had been billowing out of this end of the building, and he'd stood here with Remus as a Nemorosi Death Eater had thrown Lorien off the roof. Of course, now, nine months later, there was no trace of fire damage to the structure. He shook his head to clear the rest of the memories from that night, both good and bad, from his thoughts, and led Harry up to the receptionist stationed in the foyer.

"May I help you?" A witch with short red hair and horn-rimmed glasses was seated at a large desk, behind which stood two motionless security trolls.

Harry eyed them warily as Sirius spoke with the woman behind the desk.

"We're here to visit Sam Gumbold in the Department of Magical Transportation."

She nodded, tapped two square silver badges with her wand, and handed them over to Sirius. They now read 'visitor'. "Sixth floor," she said pleasantly, and pointed down the hall a ways. "West stairs, there on your left. Please stop by the security desk first."

"Thanks." Sirius gave her a winning smile and led Harry to the security officer's station, behind which stood two more unmoving security trolls

"Name?" The bored-looking security guard droned the inquiry for the umpteenth time that morning as he looked over the man and the boy.

"Sirius Black," replied Sirius politely, "and this is......"

The security guard frowned and spoke sharply this time. "Oh, a wiseguy, huh? You know how many of you jokers think it's funny to pull that same old crap every week? Now, cut out the cute stuff. Name, please." He looked at Sirius expectantly.

Sirius glanced at Harry, and then smiled at the guard. "I'm sorry, you must have misunderstood. I was serious when I said my name was Sirius Black."

The guard frowned even more. "You were Sirius when you said you were Sirius? Quite the comedian, aren't you? Now, are you going to give me your name, or do I have to have you escorted out?"

Sirius was starting to get impatient. "Look," he replied sternly. "I told you already, my name is......"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're Sirius Frigging Black," the guard quipped, turning to summon one of the trolls, " and my name's Harry Potter."

Harry and Sirius exchanged looks again and then Harry finally spoke up. "Excuse me, but he's telling you the truth. He IS Sirius Black."

The guard peered closely at Harry. "And I suppose you know that how?" he asked sarcastically.

"He's my godfather," Harry said, a bit of irritation creeping into his voice. "My name is Harry Potter." When the guard still looked about to call one of the trolls, Harry blew out an exasperated breath and swept his hair away from his forehead.

The guard's eyes went wide. "Blimely! You really....so that is....so you are..." he turned his incredulous stare back to Sirius, who nodded.

The guard stared fixedly at Sirius and croaked directions at them. "Go on then, sixth floor is it? Yes, well, er....have a good day then..."

Sirius turned toward the stairs and Harry shot a passing comment at the guard. "He IS innocent, you know." He caught up to Sirius, who had already started up the stairs.

"Here we are," Sirius announced with a flourish as they reached the sixth landing. "Sixth floor - Department of Magical Transportation."

Harry looked up and down the hall around him, and then back at Sirius with a skeptical expression.

"Magical transportation," re-explained Sirius, "you know, Floo Network, Broom Regulation......Apparation TEST CENTER?"

Harry continued to frown for about two seconds and then it sank in. "Test center?" he asked, now starting to become excited. "Do you mean......?"

Sirius placed a hand on Harry's shoulder and steered him toward the appropriate office. "Yup. Sixteenth birthday....about time you got your learner's permit." He was grinning from ear to ear when he saw the look on Harry's face as the younger wizard finally realized what the surprise was.

Sam Gumbold, (Samantha, as it turned out) was a former classmate of Sirius, and was all too excited that she was the one who was actually getting to issue a learner's permit for the Boy-Who-Lived.

Harry noticed immediately that her skirt was probably a bit too short to be wearing in an office of the Ministry, but since she obviously had the legs for it, who could blame her? Certainly not Sirius, Harry mused, as he noticed that his godfather had apparently made the exact same observation he had, and was watching the attractive witch as she retrieved the necessary paperwork.

Harry just couldn't help but give his godfather a hard time. "I'm so glad that you decided we should take this little trip," he began, watching Sirius continue to assess his former classmate's assets. "It sure beats how MOODY I was at home."

Sirius averted his eyes and a smirk crossed his face as he nodded to himself without looking at Harry. "Very cute, Potter," he muttered in a soft, amused voice.

Harry read the scroll handed to him by Sam, and when he'd finished, signed the application at the bottom. He was all smiles as he handed the quill to Sirius, who signed his name with a flourish in the space labeled 'parent or guardian', certifying that he would be supervising Harry's lessons in apparation.

And so the summer had passed all too quickly while Harry had lessons in wandless spell work, and beginning apparation, and now he found himself here, in the trees, on his last day before returning to Hogwarts, spying on Lorien, who had come to escort him back along with Sirius. She was preoccupied with her work among the flower beds, and would be the perfect unsuspecting target for his practice.

Harry cleared his mind and focused, something that he'd become much quicker at after five years of study at Hogwarts, and a summer of instruction with Perth. He'd chosen Lorien because he knew her well - the Shadowing Spell was easiest to master at first when you knew the person . Shadowing an unknown person was something he'd have to learn later. He concentrated on the exchange, and spoke the command words.

"Ath sequax," Harry said very softly, with his eyes closed. He could picture the shadow forming around Lorien in his mind, and he experienced the slightest warming sensation along the back of his arms and legs as the spell initiated. A good sign, he thought, focusing his concentration on Lorien once again to see if it had worked. It meant his own shadow was lifting.

Harry smiled to himself as he saw, in his mind's eye, a very hazy vision of the area immediately surrounding the healer in the garden. He'd successfully achieved the transfer of his own shadow to Lorien after many tries over the past weeks, and he watched as if over her shoulder as she cut a few more irises to take with her.

Although his view was a bit hazy - as if looking through a fine mist, even with this early success Harry could hear that Lorien was humming to herself. He wondered how long the transfer would last, knowing that for the most accomplished wizards it could be as long as twenty-four hours, but realizing that his weak attempts would probably last a much shorter period of time. Probably a few minutes, he guessed as he watched Lorien straighten up and head back toward the house.

Harry concentrated harder to be able to see her as she moved farther away, and startled at the voice that interrupted him from behind.

"Whatcha doing, Harry?"

Harry whirled to see Sirius leaning against a tree, arms folded across his chest, and one foot crossed over the other. He appeared to be somewhat amused.

"Oh, nothing.....I was just.....er...well, that is....." Harry struggled to explain his situation.

Sirius uncrossed his arms and righted himself off the tree. "What have you done to Lorien?" he asked, sounding as if he might actually hope that Harry had indeed done something to her. Lorien was a dear friend, but that didn't stop Sirius from occasionally getting enjoyment from aggravating the witch that spent so much time in the company of Severus Snape.

Harry smiled sheepishly, and deciding to come clean, took a step forward out of the trees and into the sunlight.

Sirius was about to ask for a bit more explanation when he realized what he was seeing - Harry stood there in the bright sun without casting a shadow.

"Where is it?" Sirius asked, now looking off toward the house, where Lorien had gone.

"Spying on Lorien," Harry admitted.

"Really?" Sirius sounded impressed.

"Yeah."

"You can do that?" Sirius asked incredulously.

"I guess so," Harry replied casually.

"What's she doing now?" Sirius asked. He obviously wanted proof that Harry had in fact accomplished what he was saying he had.

Harry concentrated again, closing his eyes, and began narrating for Sirius. "She's just put the flowers in a vase....she's going to her room upstairs.....she's standing in front of her closet....pulling out another set of robes - blue ones it looks like.....she looks like she's...."

Harry's eyes snapped open and he turned a rapidly reddening expression to face Sirius.

"What?" Sirius asked, frowning a little at Harry's look of mild distress.

"Undressing," Harry croaked, going even redder as he answered his godfather.

"Un....dressing?" Sirius's eyes went wide, and then he threw his head back and laughed as he realized what Harry had started to witness. "Handy little spell, that, isn't it?" he laughed again.

It took him a moment to compose himself and stop chuckling, and for Harry's face to return to an approximation of it's normal color. Harry went red all over again as Lorien rounded the corner of the house and called to the two of them that she was ready to leave. Sirius snickered once more as the two of them approached the house and he noted that Lorien had changed into a clean set of blue robes.

"Are you two ready?" Lorien asked as Harry and Sirius walked up to her.

"Yes," said Harry quietly, looking primarily at his feet while he stood there, as he could feel his cheeks flushing a bit still.

"Harry, are you alright?" asked Lorien, looking a bit concerned. The Nemorosi healer was ever sensitive to any signs that might indicate an ailment, magical or otherwise.

"He's fine," Sirius cut in, steering Harry quickly toward the house to gather their things before Lorien might notice anything strange. " Be back in a flash.....just a little too much sun, that's all......" He dropped his voice as he and Harry rounded the corner. "..and not enough shadow, eh?"

Harry and Sirius gathered up their things and met Lorien out in front of the house a few moments later, where Harry was glad to see that his own shadow was trailing him once more.

Lorien looked at each of them and smiled. "Shall we go?"

Harry and Sirius nodded, and casting a tracing charm together, followed Lorien back to Hogwarts.

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And so the third episode begins.....;)