Author's Note: Wow. Thank you all so much for your wonderful reviews. I'm so…honored, really. Fizzing Wizzbee, I cannot believe you reviewed Chapter 23 five times! I'm amazed! So, to thank you, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to you. You're the reason why this chapter is out today. Also, as always, thanks to my lovely betas, Nitya and Kalie. It constantly amazes me that you two take time out of your busy schedules to bother with this fic. So really, thank you.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
WINDOW TO THE PAST
Getting their homework done was Harry and Ron's objective for the next few days. They were both up by noon and they worked steadily, with Hermione smiling approvingly at them, for three straight hours before taking a long break. Then, after dinner, they would go at it again for another hour. They both just wanted to get their work done and to enjoy the rest of their holiday.
But that was not the only reason why Harry was working so diligently. His real reason for doing his homework nonstop was to have an excuse not to talk to Hermione, and he was sure Hermione was just as grateful for it. They had rarely spoken after the incident (they hadn't even gone to the library to study) and when they did, both blushed frequently. They found it best not to speak at all because if Ron was in the vicinity when the blushing occurred, which he was constantly, he would ask questions, questions that Harry and Hermione were not ready to answer. So, for the time being, they both avoided each other, which gave Harry ample time to think.
He didn't know what drove him to kiss her that day. He couldn't understand why he had so suddenly lost all control and went with his instincts. More to the point, why did his instincts decide that he should kiss his best friend? Why did his body just go on autopilot?
He rubbed at his forehead dully, looking down at his Potions essay on the properties of dragon's blood. It was the last bit of homework he still had to finish. Ron was sitting next to him with his unfinished Charms essay out, twirling his quill. Hermione was sitting in front of the fire, writing nonstop on two different rolls of parchment while Ginny sat in a chair, scratching the ears of the purring Crookshanks, who was lying in her lap. The only other people in the common room were the four first years. Ally sat sitting in another chair, reading, while Hunter was over in a corner with the other two first years, playing a game of Gobstones.
Harry sighed heavily and started to write again. Next to him, Ron returned to writing too, and occasionally Harry would hear him cross out words with his quill, grunt at something he was reading, or yawn. It was not the way either of them wanted to spend their Saturday night, but they wanted to get their work done in time for Sunday night, which was New Year's Eve. Dumbledore had announced at breakfast that morning that Hogsmeade was planning on shooting off fireworks in celebration and that everyone would be welcome to go up to the Astronomy Tower to watch them if they wanted to. It sounded at lot more fun than just sitting around the common room, playing Exploding Snap or wizard's chess, two activities that had been play constantly since the end of Christmas Day.
Then, quite suddenly, Hermione jumped up from her place in front of the fire and beamed at the rolls of parchment she was holding. "There," she said triumphantly, "it's done."
"What's done?" Ron asked and dropped his quill, obviously happy to have a distraction.
"My petitions," she replied, waving both rolls, "for S.P.E.W. I've had the hardest time trying to word them, because I know if I called the wizarding race a bunch of idiotic and lazy trolls, I wouldn't get anywhere, and phrases just like those seemed to always want to pop up and be written."
"That would have been a lovely petition," Ginny said with a smirk.
"So, you all will sign, won't you?" she asked anxiously.
Harry, deciding that this would be a good way to break the ice with Hermione, held out his hand. "Sure, I'll sign."
She beamed at him and walked over quickly, handing him one of the rolls of parchment while Ron simply stared. "You want me to sign that, when the elves are perfectly happy?"
"They are not happy," Hermione said stiffly. "They don't know what the happiness of freedom feels like. Dobby could tell them."
"Yeah, well, Dobby's a bit of a nutter, don't you think?" Ron muttered and went back to his essay.
Hermione frowned as Harry finished signing the petition. "Does that mean you aren't going to sign it?"
"I don't see why I should. Right now, the elves don't want to be set free, Hermione. If you are so interested in their rights, become a barrister or something. Help werewolves get rights."
Hermione looked like she had been slapped across the face. It was Harry who spoke next. "Ron, she's going to have to face attitudes like yours the more she pursues S.P.E.W. Can't you be a friend and support her?"
Ron dropped his quill again, staring at Harry. "What? But I-I am-you can't be-" He huffed out a breath. "Oh alright, hand it over."
Harry gave Ron the petition and turned back to Hermione with a smile as Ron opened it up and dipped his quill in his ink bottle. "Y'know, Hermione, Ron's idea isn't a bad one. You should become a barrister. Imagine all the things you could do, fighting for those who can't fight for themselves."
"D'you really think so?" she asked. "I've thought about it once or twice, but it would mean working for the Wizengamot, and with Cornelius Fudge as Minister, I don't think I could stand working for him."
"Well, anyone who gets a Ministry job has to work under Fudge," said Ginny fairly as she walked up to the table. "Your only hope is that he gets sacked."
"We haven't heard anything more on the subject, have we?" asked Ron as he finished signing his name. "The people are getting quite upset at him and yet he hasn't been sacked. What're they waiting for?"
Hermione passed the petition to Ginny, who snatched her brother's quill right from his grasp. "Well," Hermione said, "at a time like this, it wouldn't be exactly the wisest idea to have a political upheaval. Getting rid of our Minister in a war must be done delicately, very delicately."
"But Fudge has to know what's coming," Ron said. "If he wasn't so bloody stupid and believed Harry and Dumbledore straight away we wouldn't be in this mess."
"Oh, I'm sure he does know that he's not going to stay in office for much longer," murmured Hermione. "It's going to be very interesting to see what happens."
Harry finally put the finishing touches on his Potions essay. Closing his book and letting the ink dry on his parchment, he sat back and said, "Well, we do know he's worried. He wouldn't have been in Dumbledore's office that one day."
"Who d'you think will replace him?" Ron asked.
Harry could only shrug. "I dunno."
*****
That night, Harry sat in front of the fire in his favorite chair, writing a letter to Fred and George describing the effects the L'eau d'âne had on Malfoy. I have never seen Malfoy look more like an ass than that night, he wrote. Bloody brilliant, mates.
Ron got up with a yawn and stretched. "I'm exhausted. I can enjoy the rest of the holidays though." He, Harry, and Hermione were the only ones left in the common room. "G'night."
"G'night, Ron," Harry and Hermione replied in unison and Ron left, leaving Harry and Hermione alone for the first time in four days.
Harry sealed his letter to Fred and George and looked up at Hermione, who was gazing into the fire. She was biting her lower lip and tapping her foot incessantly. Harry felt a lump rise into his throat right by his Adam's apple.
"Harry?" Hermione said suddenly, causing him to jump.
"Er-Yeah?" he asked, trying to sound calm.
"Er-" She glanced at him momentarily, blushed, and got up. "Good night, Harry."
"Good night," he said quietly, wishing that the awkwardness between them would end. Then suddenly, just as she pulled open the door to the staircase leading up to the girls' dormitories, he jumped up and shouted, "WAIT!"
Slowly, she turned and faced him, a look of fear in her eyes. "Yes?" she asked.
"W-we need to talk," Harry said, shifting uncomfortably.
"You're right, we do," she replied. "But are we ready to talk?"
"We have to. We can't keep going on like this forever."
Hermione looked at him as though he were a different person. "Harry, sometimes you are wise beyond your years."
He gave a shaky laugh. "Thanks, I think. Er-we should probably sit down."
"Good idea," she agreed and retook her seat. Harry sat down across from her. She looked vaguely into the fire before saying, "Why did you do it, Harry? Why did you kiss me?"
"I-er-I dunno," he answered truthfully. "I don't know why I did it, and even if I did know why, I don't think I'd understand it. It wasn't intentional, I assure you. I didn't mean-" He cut himself off when he saw the stricken look on her face. His stomach sank when he saw tears forming in her eyes just as she jumped out of her seat and turned away from him. "Hermione?" he asked weakly. "What's-"
"Y-you didn't mean it," Hermione said, her voice trembling as she turned back to face him. "D-don't you understand, Harry? T-that was m-my f-first kiss."
His stomach sank even lower. "It was?" And then he remembered that she and Krum had never had a romantic relationship. He mentally slapped himself for being so stupid and insensitive. "Oh, Hermione, I'm so-"
"Please, don't be," she said quietly.
"I'm a git, a daft git," Harry muttered.
A ghost of a smile worked its way onto Hermione's face. "A git you are not, but daft…well, yes."
Harry stood up so that he could eye her levelly before murmuring, "I don't want to lose you."
Her sad eyes were now sharp as she stared at him. "Lose me? What made you think that you were going to lose me?"
He scratched the side of his head uncomfortably. "Well…I kissed you, did I not? Friends don't just kiss each other and remain friends. They lose everything, or their friendship develops into something more, and I don't think that's going to happen here."
Hermione looked down at her feet, biting her bottom lip as though she was trying to stop herself from saying something. Then, with a sigh, she said, "Yes, you're right."
"So then you see why I'm worried? The only other option is to lose everything."
"We're not going to lose anything," Hermione said sharply. "I won't let that happen, and I hope you won't either."
"No! No, of course not," Harry replied.
"Then we shouldn't be worrying about it," said Hermione.
"But-but what about all of the awkward moments?" Harry asked, shifting uneasily.
"We're friends," Hermione said firmly. "Let's just-let's just put all of this behind us, okay? Forget about it."
"Can we?"
Hermione frowned. "Honestly, no, but if it meant nothing, then what's to worry about?"
Harry considered this. She had a really good point. "Yeah, it's not like we fancy each other," he said brightly. Hermione gave a small laugh and looked at her shoes again. "We're going to be fine, right Hermione?"
"I think so, yes."
"Thank God."
Hermione laughed. "You know, Harry, we never went to the library so that I could tutor you. Monday?"
"That would be nice," he replied.
"I'll tell Ron you're helping me with S.P.E.W. or something," said Hermione.
"D'you think he'd believe that?" he asked, starting to feel some of the awkwardness leave them.
"Well, say I convinced you tonight to talk to Dobby about talking to the other house-elves about the petition," she said, a hopeful tone in her voice.
"Very subtle," he teased. "I could do that too, if you'd like."
"You would?" Her entire face lit up. "Really?"
He nodded. "Sure."
She squealed in delight before rushing forward and enveloping him in a bear hug. "Thank you so much!" she said, and kissed him on the cheek.
"Er-no problem," he said, feeling his face go red.
She released him, her smile radiant. "You know, I was thinking…you and Ron are right, perhaps I should become a barrister. I mean, sure it would be awful working under Fudge, but I will run into closemindedness for as long as I try to gain rights for house-elves and other beings."
"You'd be a good barrister." Suddenly, the clock in the common room chimed midnight. "It's late."
"Yes. We should head off to bed. G'night, Harry," she said.
"G'night Hermione," he said and then added as she opened the door to her dormitory, "Sweet dreams."
She laughed. "You too, Harry."
After she closed the door, Harry turned and headed up to his own dormitory, and that night, he did have sweet dreams.
*****
Harry was up bright and early the next morning, and he didn't know why. After listening to Ron snore for several minutes, Harry finally got dressed, grabbed his letter to Fred and George, and proceeded down to the common room, intending to go to the Owlery. When he arrived, however, he saw Hunter Farrell sitting by the hearth, looking into it gloomily.
"'Morning, Hunter," Harry said. The boy did not look up. "Something wrong?"
Hunter sighed. "No, not really, it's just that-that this was the first time I haven't spent the holidays with my dad. I could have gone home to visit my mother, but I-well, neither of us have been quite the same since he died."
Harry frowned and walked over before settling himself down next to Hunter by the hearth. "I spent my Christmas last year with Sirius and I would give anything to be able to spend another Christmas with him again. I know how you feel."
"How many years did you know Sirius?" Hunter asked.
"Two," Harry replied. "Not a long time, I know, but long enough for him to become the only father figure I have ever known."
"Two," Hunter repeated and then sighed. "I want my dad back so bad. I'd do anything-anything-just to be with him again." He looked forlornly into the fire as he said this. Then suddenly, he asked, "When is Quidditch practice going to start again?"
"Er-I was thinking perhaps a week after everyone returns. We're going to have to be sharp for the Hufflepuff match," Harry answered.
"And what about the D.A.?"
"Er-again, a week after everyone returns."
Hunter nodded. "I wish I could duel as well as you do."
Harry chuckled. "Well, I am a little older than you, Hunter, and I have quite a bit of experience, sadly."
"You can fight Death Eaters," Hunter pointed out. "I want to be able to do that."
"No, you don't. You may have the impression that I go looking for fights. I don't. I defend myself, not enact revenge on Voldemort and his followers," he said, frowning slightly when Hunter jumped at the sound of Voldemort's name.
"How can you say his name like that?" Hunter hissed.
"Because it's just a name. Who needs to fear a name?" Harry replied.
The boy stared at him wide-eyed. "You're nuts. This is You-Know-Who we're talking about, the most feared wizard of all time."
"Yeah, Voldemort. And okay, so people fear him, but why be scared of his name? Fear of his name only increases your fear of him," Harry said, paraphrasing something that Dumbledore had said to him his first year at Hogwarts.
"Again, you're nuts."
Harry rolled his eyes and got up. "Maybe one day you'll understand. See you later, Hunter."
Hunter simply nodded. Shaking his head, Harry turned around and headed out of the portrait hole.
His walk to the Owlery was prolonged when Peeves suddenly zoomed into view and dropped several ink bottles right near Harry. Harry jumped back just in time, and scowled up at Peeves, who was cackling.
"Peeves-" Harry began to yell when Peeves suddenly blew him a raspberry and flew away. A moment later, Harry realized why as Argus Filch came panting up the steps, his cat Mrs. Norris in tow.
"Potter!" Filch barked. "How dare you make this mess!"
"Me! I didn't do it-Peeves did," Harry said indignantly.
"Did not, sir," said Peeves, coming back through a wall. "I was about to tear down a tapestry." He laughed wickedly.
Harry glared at Peeves while Filch looked back and forth between the two, deciding who to believe.
"Look," Harry said, "if I dropped ink, I'd have it one me, right? I don't, do I?"
Filch scanned Harry momentarily, then with a scowl, muttered, "No." He shot a nasty look at Peeves. "I'm going to find the Bloody Baron."
Peeves' eyes suddenly went wide and he gasped. "You wouldn't!"
"I am-right now." And with that, Filch stalked off, closely followed by Peeves.
Pleased with his triumph over Peeves, Harry took off again for the Owlery, grinning. When he arrived, he was surprised to see that he wasn't the only person sending off a letter early that morning. The Auror, Joaquin Crow, was muttering something just as a tawny owl flew off his shoulder and out the window.
"Un día, cuando esta guerra termine, volveré victorioso a España. Ahí sí valdré la pena."
Harry frowned, wishing he understood Spanish. Quietly, he walked in, hoping not to disturb the now brooding Crow. But suddenly, Crow turned around and looked momentarily shocked to see Harry. A slow smile crept over his face. "Mr. Potter," he said in his accented voice. "You're up quite early."
"Er-yeah," Harry said and held up his letter. "Mail to send."
Crow smiled again. "Me too. A letter to Mateo, my brother. That is an interesting necklace," he said, pointing to the Snitch necklace that Harry hadn't tucked under his shirt, as he was prone to do.
"Er-yeah. It was a birthday gift from Hermione," he replied.
"Hermione? The prefect-Granger, right?"
Harry nodded. Crow eyed the necklace for another moment, making Harry feel slightly uncomfortable. To ease the discomfort, Harry walked over and called Hedwig down from her perch.
"She and Mr. Weasley are very good friends of yours, no?" Crow asked suddenly.
Harry paused and nodded. "My best friends."
Crow smiled again. "It's important to have good friends. You are lucky."
Harry took Hedwig over to the window. Looking back at Crow, he said, "Yeah, they mean a lot to me." Suddenly he caught a glimpse of a gold chain around Crow's neck. "I see you wear a necklace too."
Crow blinked and touched the gold chain before smiling. "A gift from my brother. I have finally found free time to sit down and write a letter to thank him. I've been busy patrolling and continuously scanning the lavatory that-" He cut off abruptly and looked away.
"That June Winters died in," Harry finished for him. It had seemed like a long time ago, but Harry suddenly realized that it had been exactly two months. "Have any leads?"
"None," Crow said. "Why would someone kill a helpless girl-with a knife no less? Why didn't the murder use a wand? Kingsley, Mara, and I are looking into it, but there aren't any promises." Suddenly Crow's eyes sparkled. "But what if…what if the person couldn't use a wand?"
Hedwig hooted dolefully and Harry, who had been listening to Crow, turned back and tied the letter to her leg. Then, with a spread of her wings, she took off.
Crow was stroking his chin. "Something has just occurred to me, Harry. I must go discuss this with Kingsley and Mara. Oh, why haven't we thought of this before?" And without saying anything else, he turned and strode quickly out of the Owlery, leaving Harry puzzled.
Harry eventually left the Owlery with the intentions of going to the Great Hall for an early breakfast. However, before he got there, he saw Lupin climbing the stairs. He smiled when he saw Harry.
"Good morning," he said.
"'Morning, Professor," Harry replied, smiling back.
"I have barely seen you this entire holiday. Where have you been hiding yourself?" Lupin asked.
"Under piles of homework," Harry muttered. "Have a good Christmas?"
Lupin nodded. "Yes, I did. It was nice. Here, why don't you come into my office? We can have a nice long chat then."
Harry turned and followed Lupin up a flight of steps and down a corridor. Skipping breakfast was no big loss when it came to talking to Professor Lupin, Harry decided. Lupin was, after all, somewhat like Sirius, although Harry privately preferred his godfather.
When they walked into Lupin's office, Harry caught sight of a shallow stone basin on Lupin's desk-a basin with runes and symbols carved on it.
"A Christmas gift from Dumbledore," Lupin said, following Harry's eyesight. "It's a Pensieve. Dumbledore has one too."
"Yes, I know. I've seen it," Harry said.
"Dumbledore thought I could use it. I've been placing memories into it since Christmas. A lot of memories…"
"It's a nice gift," Harry mumbled, looking at the basin. "It must be nice to be able to just siphon off your thoughts."
"Yes, it has been useful," Lupin said, walking over to his desk and peering down into the basin. "I would have gotten you something for Christmas, but as a teacher, it would have been highly inappropriate. Although," he said, taking out his wand and stirring the contents in the Pensieve with a perplexed look on his face, "I could…yes, I could. Harry, come here please."
Suddenly feeling nervous, Harry stepped forward. "Yes, Professor?"
Lupin was looking at the substance in the basin, which was now becoming clear as glass. "I want to show you something. Dip your head into the Pensieve."
"Sir?" Harry asked, his eyes widening. Lupin wanted him to go inside his memories?
"Consider it a Christmas gift," Lupin said. "Come on now; dip your head into the Pensieve. I'll be right behind you."
Harry looked down at the surface of the contents in the Pensieve. Then, inhaling sharply, he dipped his head down into the Pensieve and immediately felt as though he were being tipped forward into it.
He landed on his feet on grassy land. Cheerful music was playing and Harry turned to see a good number of witches and wizards all wearing colorful dress robes. Three canopied tents had been erected behind all of them. Harry heard chatter and laughter-sounds of joy.
"This was quite the day," Lupin said from behind him. Harry was just about to ask him where they were at when Lupin suddenly said, "Ah, there I am."
Harry turned to see a younger version of Lupin standing with a rather pretty young woman. "Who is she?" Harry asked.
"Zelda Starling, a girl from my year at Hogwarts and one of your mother's former dorm mates," Lupin replied. "Pity what happened to her."
"What happened?"
"Murdered by a Death Eater for trying to protect a Muggle," Lupin said grimly. "But that's not why we're here. Come on."
Lupin headed into the crowd, Harry following at his heels. They had made it all the way to the tents when Lupin stopped. "There they are," he murmured.
Harry looked over-and received quite a jolt. Standing before him were three people Harry recognized instantly: his mother, his father, and Sirius Black. James had his arm around Lily as Sirius clapped James on the back.
"I can't believe you're hitched already, mate," Sirius said. "But hey, I could pick no better woman for you."
Lily rolled her eyes. "Thanks, Sirius."
"You're welcome. Now, I think this party needs to liven up. What d'you say to a drinking contest, Prongs?" Sirius asked with a smirk on his face.
"I think that's an ex-"
"James!" Lily scolded and nudged him playfully in the ribs.
James laughed. "Sorry, Padfoot, but my lovely wife wins. You're more than welcome to try it against Moony or Wormtail, but I think your best bet is Mundungus."
"Are you mad?" Sirius said, his eyes alight with mirth. "Get Moony drunk? That'll never happen. But a contest against Mundungus doesn't sound half bad. Excuse me. Oi! Mundungus!"
James and Lily laughed. "Sirius is going in over his head if he thinks he can win a drinking contest against Mundungus," Lily said.
"Well, that's Padfoot for you-completely reckless," James said with a grin and pecked Lily on the lips.
"Ah, there you two are," said an older man with messy gray hair that stood up in the back. He was walking towards James and Lily with a woman who also had gray hair.
"Mum-Dad!" James said happily as he let go of Lily and hugged the older woman before shaking hands with the older man.
Harry felt a tear at his heart. "My God," he whispered.
"Your grandparents," Lupin murmured from beside him.
"This has been a lovely wedding," Harry's grandmother said. "Lily, dear, you're absolutely stunning."
Lily blushed. "Thank you."
"We've got a gift for you two," Harry's grandfather said as he reached for the pockets of his robes, a second later producing an envelope. At this point, Harry suddenly noticed that all conversations had stopped and everyone was watching the Potters intently.
"A gift?" James asked. "Mum-Dad-you shouldn't have."
"Yes, well, we wanted to," Harry's grandmother said.
Glancing sideways at Lily, James accepted the envelope and tore it open. Lily leaned over to read what the letter that James pulled out said and gasped.
"Merlin's beard," James murmured, his eyes wide. "You bought us a house!"
The crowd cheered in approval, clapping and discussing. Lily stepped forward and threw her arms around both of Harry's grandparents. "Thank you so much!" she cried.
Lupin placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Perhaps another memory now?" Suddenly everything swirled together and faded, then swirled again and refocused. They were not, however, outside standing on the grass. They were inside in a room lit only by a single lamp. Lupin was there, sitting in an armchair and across from him, also sitting an armchair was Sirius. Both of them were looking rather anxious.
"How long has it been?" Lupin asked.
"Five hours," Sirius said immediately.
"Did you hear that the Longbottoms had a boy?" Lupin asked.
"Did they?" Sirius asked. "Good for them."
Sirius examined the clock on the wall and began to tap his foot impatiently. Lupin took out a copy of the Daily Prophet.
Harry turned to the real Lupin. "What are we waiting for?" he asked.
Lupin only grinned. "You'll see."
Harry turned back and looked at the other Lupin's copy of the Prophet. Suddenly he caught eye of the date: 31 July, 1980.
"Bloody-" But he was cut off when James ran into the room, a look of elation on his face.
"A boy!" he cried. "It's a boy!"
Sirius jumped up and shook James's hand heartily. "Good job, Prongs. D'you hear that, Moony? Another Potter boy!"
"So I heard," Lupin said, tossing aside the Prophet and grinning. He, too, got up and shook James' hand. "Another rascal. Well done, mate."
"Thanks Moony," James said. "D'you want to see him?"
"Of course!" Sirius said.
James led the way. Sirius and Lupin followed him upstairs, as did Harry, who was too absorbed in the memory to pay any attention to the real Lupin. They went straight down a hallway to the last door on the left, which James opened and let Sirius and Lupin inside. Harry and the real Lupin followed before Sirius shut the door.
There, lying in the middle of a large four-poster bed, was his mother. She looked weary, but her green eyes were brighter than Harry could ever imagine. And in her arms was a small bundle wrapped in blankets-a bundle that had jet black hair protruding from the side that laid in the crook of Lily's arm.
"A fine patient," said a woman in neon green robes from the side of the room. "Congratulations again, Mr. and Mrs. Potter."
"Thanks," James replied as the woman stepped between Sirius and Lupin, opened the door, and left.
Lily looked up at them all, smiling. Harry couldn't help it, he walked right up to her bedside and looked down at the bundle. Sirius and Lupin had done the same thing.
"Merlin-he's beautiful," Sirius whispered.
"Look at those eyes," Lupin said. "Just like his mother's."
James sat down on the edge of the bed, his hazel eyes shining. "I can't believe I have a son."
Lily's smile widened and then she said to the little bundle, "It's about time you're introduced, isn't it? Sirius-Remus, this is Harry."
Harry felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see Lupin, who was smiling. Suddenly, the room began to fade. Harry looked back one last time at his mother, father, and his newborn self as he felt himself rise and quite suddenly found himself back inside Lupin's office.
Harry wiped away a stubborn tear from his eye and whispered, "Thanks."
"Of course," Lupin replied. "Would you like some tea?"
"Er-sure," Harry said and sat down in a rickety chair sitting in front of Lupin's desk.
Lupin grabbed two tea cups and then with a wave of his wand, he produced a steaming hot kettle of tea. After pouring Harry a cup, he poured himself one and then settled down into the chair behind his desk. "So," he said, "how are you doing, exactly? Anything troubling you?"
Harry stared into his cup of tea for a moment, then murmured, "Frost-Mara Frost. She hated my mother and she hates me. I don't understand why."
"Frost has a bitter soul, that is for certain. She-" Suddenly there was a knock at the door. "Come in," Lupin said.
The door opened to reveal Snape, who was holding a steaming goblet. He scowled at Harry when he saw him. "Your potion, Lupin," Snape said stiffly and set the goblet on Lupin's desk. Then, without saying another word, he turned and left.
"Right. Well, Harry, you should go. It's not pleasant to be around me when I'm drinking this. Enjoy the rest of your holidays, okay?" Lupin said with a slight smile.
"Yeah, okay. You too," Harry mumbled and got up. "Thanks again, Professor."
"Anytime, Harry," Lupin replied.
Harry took one last glance at Lupin and his Pensieve before opening the door, stepping through, and shutting it.
He spent the rest of his day in the company of Ron and Hermione. Hermione, however, remained uncharacteristically quiet for most of the day though, which made Harry worry slightly. So when it was time for everyone to hike up to the Astronomy Tower to watch the fireworks display Hogsmeade was putting on, Harry let Ron walk ahead with Ginny and he hung back so that he could talk to Hermione.
"You okay today?" he asked quietly.
"Hmm? Oh, yes," she said vaguely.
"Then why are you being so quiet?"
"I've been doing a lot of thinking today," she replied.
"About…"
"Lots of things."
"Like?"
"The upcoming term, S.P.E.W., my parents…lots of stuff."
Harry frowned. "We're still okay, right?"
She glanced at him. "Of course. Why wouldn't we be?"
"Oh, no reason," Harry murmured.
"Come on, you two!" Ron said, looking over his shoulder. "It's almost midnight!"
"We're coming," Harry assured him. To prove it, they both walked faster to catch up.
They entered the tower with five minutes to go and began to chat idly while they waited. Finally, with a minute to go, Dumbledore silenced them and they all began to count down. Then, right at zero, fireworks lit up the sky. The younger students watched in awe and the older students who had a girlfriend or boyfriend that remained for the holidays kissed them passionately.
"Get a room," Ron murmured before turning towards the colorful night sky.
Harry and Hermione laughed. "Happy New Year, Harry," Hermione said.
Harry turned and saw that her face was bathed in the color of the fireworks going off above them. Then, on a strange impulse, he leaned over and kissed her on her cheek, whispering, "Happy New Year, Hermione."
She smiled and he put his arm around her as they turned back to watch the fireworks.