kbinnz - Harry's New Home

TBC...

*Chapter 15*: Chapter 15

Harry hurried down the steps to the Great Hall. He had had no idea that doing magic could work up such an appetite, but after spending the past two hours with Professor Flitwick, working on his Accio, Harry was ravenous.

When Harry had returned from his overnight visit with the Weasleys four days ago, Professor Snape had greeted him with a revised schedule. In addition to his regular classes (and, of course, Quidditch), Harry now had individual study sessions with Professors Flitwick, McGonagall, and of course Snape. He had blinked as Professor Snape had brandished the new schedule beneath his nose. "But how come I have to do extra?" he had asked, curious.

"Foolish child!" Snape scolded. "You have to work to overcome the inadequacies of your upbringing. Those disgusting creatures you lived with have ill-prepared you for a life in Wizarding society. Just as you must take nutritive potions to overcome their physical neglect, you must similarly engage in remedial classes to overcome their inattention to the development of your magical abilities." Snape saw no reason to share with the brat that he had made it very clear to the other professors that, far from maintaining a focus on remedial material, they were in fact expected to advance Harry's knowledge as quickly as possible.

Snape's visit to Azkaban, hearing Bellatrix's maniacal screaming and the howls and threats of some of his other former comrades, had brought home the reality of Harry's situation like a punch in the gut. The boy was practically a Muggle for all intents and purposes, and yet some of the most evil and twisted witches and wizards in Britain wanted him dead. If the Dark Lord ever returned тАУ or Lucius Malfoy's never-ending efforts to solidify his political power were successful тАУ Harry would need to be well-prepared to defend himself. Having him sit around in class, surrounded by a bunch of little dunderheads trying to float a feather, was a ridiculous waste of his time. He should be advanced through the material as rapidly as his mind and magic would allow, not forced to wait patiently while idiots like Longbottom struggled to catch up.

If he had thought Albus would let him get away with it, Snape would have pulled Harry out of school altogether, in preference for individualized tutoring at an Unplottable location. Realizing that Dumbledore's rampaging sentimentality would never permit Harry to skip the alleged joys of youthful schooldays (not that Snape had ever found much to enjoy about his time as a student at Hogwarts, other than the indisputable fact that it took him away from home) and that McGonagall would never give up a talented Seeker on her House team, Snape had decided it was better not to engage in a battle he knew he would lose. Instead, he ensured that Harry would begin to receive advanced training from those professors whom Snape trustedтАж as much as he trusted anyone, that is.

Snape was more than ready to deal with the little monster if he wanted to whinge about his loss of free time and his inability to sit around doing nothing with the other empty-headed idiots. Perhaps a few hours spent staring into a corner or copying pages from his Potions textbook would convince the brat that extra lessons were a lot more entertaining than the alternatives.

"I will not tolerate any complaints about your lack of unscheduled leisure time, Potter," Snape continued, his voice rising. "You are here at school to learn, regardless of what your cretinous peers might think, and if you тАУ"

Harry frowned up at him in confusion. "I wasn't complaining, Pr'fessor," he protested. "I just don't knowтАжErm тАУ that is, I can'tтАж" He looked down in embarrassment. This was mortifying!

Harry knew perfectly well that he needed extra lessons; his visit to the Burrow, where magic was used in such a casual, unthinking way to carry out everyday household chores, had taught him just what a new world he had entered. As much as he had enjoyed his time with the Weasleys - after that rather unfortunate beginning - it had made him realize just how much he didn't know about Wizarding society.

Hogwarts was where students learned to use their magic, so naturally there was magic around. But since most of the students were still relatively unskilled with their magic, it wasn't yet fully integrated into student life. Harry and his peers still did many of their daily tasks in ways that weren't all that different to Muggle life, but at the Burrow, Harry had seen for the first time what it was like to live in a Wizarding home, among powerful, mature wizards and witches.

Molly, Arthur, Bill, and Charlie used magic as easily as breathing. They accio'd objects rather than walking to the next room to retrieve them. Housecleaning was done with magic, not elbow grease. The books, magazines, and games in the house were (despite Arthur's fascination with all things Muggle) completely foreign to Harry.

So when he had floo'd back to Hogwarts and Professor Snape had informed him that he had тАУ with typical thoughtfulness! тАУ arranged extra tutoring, Harry's first reaction was unmitigated relief. But then he had remembered how special lessons at Muggle school тАУ whether extra prep for maths or training in a musical instrument or participation in a sports team тАУ cost money. Although Harry was still getting accustomed to the Wizarding world, he could think of no reason why Wizard instructors would differ from their Muggle counterparts and eschew payment for extra time and effort.

Harry knew he had a lot to learn about the economics of his new world тАУ beyond the basics of how many knuts in a galleon тАУ but Hogwarts tuition must cost a lot and while he hadn't had the chance to really look around his vault when Hagrid took him to Gringotts', he knew that whatever money was there needed to last him until he was old enough to have a job of his own. He was certain that in addition to school fees and uniforms and potion ingredients and textbooks and the odd chocolate frog, there would be other expenses as he grew up тАУ did wizards go to uni, and if so, how much did that cost? тАУ and so he was leery of spending any money he didn't absolutely have to spend.

Maybe, instead of tutoring, he could just do extra reading? Granger would probably be thrilled to bits if he asked her for advice, and maybe Professor Snape could suggest some books. He hadn't actually spent much time in the Hogwarts library yet, but surely they had to have some books to help Muggle-borns and тАУraiseds learn about the Wizarding world?

"Can't do what, you insolent brat?" Snape demanded. Make time? Be bothered? Obviously the boy's paternal heritage was making itself felt.

Harry stared at his feet, crimson. Now he knew how Ron felt when everyone else was buying sweets on the Hogwarts Express. "ErmтАж 'S just that my relatives won't, y'know, help me out with money 'n' I'm just not sure how much money's left in my parents' vault 'n' I want to be sure that I have enough for all seven years at HogwartsтАж"

"And?" Snape demanded. What was the child babbling about? What difference did it make how much money was in the Potter account?

"Well," Harry mumbled, "I know that I need tutoring but you 'n' the other professors must have really high fees since you're all so smart an' busy an' all, and I'm just not sure I c'n pay for it."

Snape's world reeled around him. The boy actually thought тАУ "Potter!" the snap in his voice brought the boy's head up, eyes wide with alarm. "Did your oaf of a cousin have to pay his own school fees?"

"No, sir," Harry replied, thinking the professor must be really unfamiliar with the Muggle world to imagine such a thing. "My aunt and uncle pay for everything Dudley needs for school тАУ or anything else," he added a bit resentfully. "That's how it works with Muggles. Parents pay for their kids' stuff. But my relatives never would pay for anything for me, not back at my Muggle school and definitely not here. I mean, when Dudley wanted to тАУ"