Unofficial Portkey Archive

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, so there!

A/N: Oops, I did it again... I got to page 22 of this chapter when I realized it needed to be split up, or else it would never get finished. Gee, that sounds familiar... So I found a decent splitting point somewhere in the middle. Because of that, Chapters 11 and 12 are more like two halves to one really long chapter rather than separate scenes. Chapter 12 will pick up literally where 11 left off. Just keep that in mind when this chapter ends rather suddenly. Fear not, however. Chapter 12 is more than half done! As Homer says... Woo-hoo!

Second but by no means lesser, thank you to my beta MapleMountain.

And finally, just a reminder... this is PG-13. I haven't done much to earn it (yet). But, sometimes "real life" is not rated G, though I promise we won't earn a pirate rating (Arrrrr.) Yes, that's my mature sense of humor showing itself. :-)

Chapter 11. The Weeks that Followed, Part Deux: O.W.L.s and Owls.

The next few days at Hermione's house each started much like his second. Sometimes, however, it was he who woke Hermione up with the smell of whatever he decided to make for breakfast (and sometimes they had cereal). They did their homework, ate lunch, and then did some more homework; in the evenings after Dan and Emma came home they had dinner and then spent the evening together.

Sometimes they watched TV. The Summer Olympics had started the previous week, and since it was being hosted in the States in Atlanta, it promised to be highly televised (along with "a few words from our sponsors"). Other nights, they played games. Thursday night, Dan and Harry were knocked out of Monopoly within half an hour; Hermione and Emma battled on for another half hour until Emma finally won.

The tables were turned, however, the next game night when they played Risk. After Dan and Harry spent nearly two hours trying to take over the world, Harry was in pretty bad shape after what he thought was a bad strategic decision made in the beginning of the game. Things were looking pretty bleak, but after a series of bad rolls of the dice on Dan's part, Harry finally had been awarded enough armies to begin an unstoppable campaign from his obscure little corner of the map.

When he evaluated his position, Dan (whose armies were now thinly spread across the rest of the board) wisely conceded. This elicited a grateful sigh from Emma and Hermione, who had been unsuccessfully pretending to be interested in the outcome of each roll of the dice after being wiped out early on.

By lunchtime Friday, much to his surprise, Harry was finished with his homework. During lunch, Hermione had insisted to Harry that if he did anything while in the Muggle world, he had to watch all three Star Wars movies. People were more likely to believe he was a wizard than that he had no idea who Darth Vader was. That afternoon, they watched A New Hope ("Erm, Hermione, why does this start at number four?" Harry asked.)

Harry found that he and the Grangers were quickly settling into a routine. It was this daily routine that he found very comforting. It was simply life as normal (as he'd thought of it earlier when he first drove through Wandsworth). One of his favorite parts of that routine was his daily battle with Hermione over possession of their favorite seat on the sofa. Somehow, it always seemed to work out that Hermione won when they were doing their homework, and Harry won when watching TV.

Before Harry and Hermione knew it, the weekend was upon them. On Saturday, the four of them spent the morning and early afternoon in King George's Park which was right across the street from Broomhill Road. Even though he was nearly sixteen, Harry was having way too much fun in the park making up for all those lost years on Privet Drive.

There was a play park in Harry's neighborhood on Privet Drive, but his experiences there consisted mainly of running away from Dudley's gang or trying to find something they hadn't broken. He had been perfectly content playing on the equipment until Hermione decided she would instigate a game of Tag. Considering he was a Seeker, he was quite surprised at how hard it was to catch his prey with both feet on the ground and without a Firebolt, particularly when the prey had a mind of her own (and especially when said mind belonged to one Hermione Jane Granger).

Once the two of them were sufficiently tired from chasing each other around (Dan and Emma just took a leisurely walk around the park), they all walked back home, got cleaned up, and headed into town. After driving around for a while showing Harry all there was to see in Wandsworth, they stopped at the local Kwik-E-Burger for dinner, which Harry enjoyed just as much as all of his other dinners (he was beginning to suspect that cardboard would taste good as long as he had the right company). After dinner, they returned home and watched The Empire Strikes Back. (When Darth Vader revealed his true identity, "I am your father," Harry actually gasped.)

After the movie, Harry returned to his room to find that Pig had been by to deliver a letter from Ron. Hedwig's disgruntled appearance, as well as the splashed water from Hedwig's dish confirmed Pig's presence. Ron updated Harry on news from the Percy front. He told him all about the pranks Fred and George had pulled on Percy. Charlie had been spending most of his time refereeing between Percy and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, while Bill had been spending an increasing amount of time with his now official girlfriend Fleur Delacour.

Ron mentioned that Percy and his parents had a major blow up. Even Ron didn't recognize some of the words exchanged. But afterwards something changed, for they were now at least listening to each other, even though they weren't agreeing. Before, it was like each side was talking to a wall.

To Harry's (pleasant) surprise, Ron again mentioned Luna's letter. Granted it was mostly Ron repeating what was in her letter, and him asking if Harry though Luna as unusual as he did. It seemed however that Hermione may have been right about what Luna was doing. While by no means did Ron at all seem interested in her, she was at least on his mind.

After a late breakfast on Sunday, they drove into London for some sightseeing and shopping. They spent half the day visiting the local tourist destinations (Harry was a tourist for all intents and purposes), and the other half at one of Emma's favorite stores: Harrods. Afterwards, they had dinner at a very nice Italian restaurant, La Volpe e l'Uva. They returned home in time for Harry to complete the trilogy with Return of the Jedi. (Ewww! You kissed your sister! That certainly had an impact on Harry after a certain discussion earlier in the week.)

On Monday, with his homework finished the previous Friday, Harry enjoyed his first weekday free. He had to admit... there was a certain dangerous thrill involved in procrastinating as long as possible. But, now that it was actually done, it was a far better feeling to know that he was finished. That nagging sense of guilt he felt in the back of his mind while wasting time doing something else was completely absent. Harry decided to celebrate that feeling by sending Ron a letter.

Ron,

How's life in that grim old place? Sounds pretty exciting.

Maybe I can stop by and visit sometime. Our O.W.L.s should be arriving soon, so I imagine we'll all have to go shopping for books and stuff. Maybe we can meet up then.

I really hope things work out with Percy. I know a lot happened between you, but he's still your brother, even if he is a Humongous Bighead.

Harry stopped writing for a minute. What would he say about Luna? Harry really didn't want to be playing matchmaker. He'd seen Lavender and Parvati doing that enough, thank you very much. But he couldn't just ignore it; Ron had mentioned it again, so Harry assumed he wanted to talk about it, in some way or another. What would he do in Ron's place?

Luna sent me a letter too. She pretty much just said the same things you did in your letter a couple weeks ago... but just in her own way. I sent her a thank you letter too.

You know, you should also send her a letter, just to be nice. Just thank her for her letter, ask her how her trip was. You know, the same things you'd say if you were talking to her in person. Besides, what's the worst that can happen? She'll tell you all about the Crumpled-Horned Snorkacks.

I'll send you an owl once I get my O.W.L.s so we can make plans.

Oh, and in case you were wondering... Yes, my homework is done. And, yes, I DID do it by myself, though I did check to make sure everything was correct before finishing.

Thanks,

Harry

Satisfied that he had said what he wanted to for now, he gave the letter to Hedwig and sent her on her way to Ron.

During lunch that day, Hermione brought up a subject that Harry had actually managed to forget about.

"So, Harry. I couldn't help but notice that it's your birthday this Thursday," she said, trying to look disinterested as she poked at her leftovers from the Italian restaurant.

Harry set down his fork containing the last bite of his. "It is, isn't it?" Harry responded, surprised. Time had flown by in his exile on Privet Drive, and even more so here on Broomhill Road.

"Did you have any idea what you wanted to do for it? It is Sweet Sixteen, you know," she said with a look and a tone of voice that implied something about sixteen was special. If he had had normal birthdays for most of his life, maybe he'd understand it too.

"I had actually forgotten about it, to be honest. I've had more important things on my mind lately. You know, like getting to the sofa first," he added with a wink. Hermione had said several times that she didn't care where she sat. Everyday, however, she tried just as hard as Harry did to get to that coveted seat first.

"But," Harry added after thinking for a few moments, "I think I would just like a small party. I suppose that we'd have to have it at Sirius's house if everyone's going to be there." Harry paused for a few moments.

"I think that'll be OK, as long as it's only for a while. Besides, if there's a party, it shouldn't be so bad," Harry finally decided. "Oh, and if he doesn't already have any plans, I'd really like it if we could have a combined party for Neville's birthday too. It's on Wednesday."

"Oh, I didn't know that," Hermione said, slightly surprised. Harry felt this would've been a perfect moment to tease her about not knowing something, but then he realized that he wouldn't have known either if Professor Dumbledore hadn't told him. He didn't want to have to explain that he learned about Neville's birthday when he and the Headmaster discussed the prophecy.

The prophecy. Harry still hadn't told Hermione or Ron anyone else about it. Ron was easy: that just wasn't the sort of thing you told someone about in a letter. He had an easy excuse to delay that. But what about Hermione? He saw her everyday and still hadn't told her.

Ever since they became best friends after the troll incident in first year, Harry felt he could talk to Hermione about anything. Sure, there were things he didn't want to talk to her about (like Cho, or his "detentions" with Umbridge), but he knew he could, if he needed to. He always could. Well, except maybe during the whole Firebolt episode third year. Then again, that did actually helped solidify his trust in her afterwards when he found out that she was right, that Sirius did send him the broom (even though she was wrong about his motives).

So, should he tell her about the prophecy? Could he? Would he? He had always been pretty sure that she would be there to listen if he needed her to. Now, after this last week, there was absolutely no doubt in his mind that she would. The question was did he want her to know about it? Would that change things between them? Would that put her in danger knowing?

Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how one looked at it), he was spared from having to answer those questions because Hermione was still waiting for him to answer her question about his birthday party.

"Yeah, Professor Dumbledore mentioned it to me once." Harry suddenly mentally kicked himself for that, though he tried not to show it. Didn't I just decide NOT to talk about that? Luckily for him, Hermione accepted his answer without question.

"So, you said small. Have you given any thought to who you want there?" she asked.

"Well..." Harry pondered for a moment, the wheels of his mind turning. "Neville obviously. Ron and his family of course, Percy too if they've worked things out... not, if they haven't. And Luna, of course." Harry paused for a moment. "If Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall wanted to come, that would be OK too. And Professor Lupin and Tonks, also. Hagrid. I can't forget Hagrid."

Harry stopped and thought again for a few seconds. "That's about everyone, I think. I really don't want the whole school invited. Especially if we're going to have to do this at Sirius's house. There certainly isn't room for that. Right now, just the people who are important to me," Harry said emphatically.

Harry noticed a look of feigned annoyance on Hermione's face. "Is that everyone? You're not forgetting anyone, are you?" she asked suggestively.

Harry again thought about it for a few seconds. "No, I'm pretty sure that's everyone. Why, do you think I'm forgetting anyone?" he asked. This was a lot harder that he expected.

Hermione started at him expectantly.

"Oh! I'm sorry. Did you want to come too? You're welcome also, if you want." Harry finally said. Truth be told, hers was actually the first name to pop into his mind when she asked who he wanted at his party. He did say "we" several times, didn't he? The way she had asked though just seemed too good of an opportunity to be missed. It had taken everything he had to not start laughing as soon as he finished his list of "approved" guests.

He fought as hard as he could, but finally Harry's control failed and he began to laugh out loud. As Hermione continued to glare disapprovingly at him, she too eventually began to grin as the sight of Harry laughing began to look funny. Finally, her resolve broke as well and she joined him in laughter.

As is often the case, the laughter actually grew instead of diminishing as the seconds passed. With both of them laughing, they quickly reached the point where they were simply laughing at each other's laughter. Harry, who had started first, was definitely worse off. Tears were streaming and his face began to turn red.

Finally, his lungs reached their limit. Desperate for a much needed fix of oxygen, they spasmed suddenly, drawing in a large volume of air, and also causing Harry to snort loudly. This sent Hermione over the edge; she spread her arms out on the table and buried her face in them to laugh even harder. In the process, she knocked over her glass of milk.

Harry and Hermione were laughing so hard that neither of them noticed it until she let out a surprised squeak as the spreading spill finally reached the edge of the table, where it began to soak into her shirt.

"Oh no!" Hermione exclaimed between laughs, which were now subsiding.

The sustaining fuel of Hermione's laughter now gone, Harry began to stop, finally and properly catching his breath. Hermione jumped up and rushed over to cabinet under which the paper towel holder was mounted. Tearing off several sheets, she tried to blot up as much as she could from the fabric. Harry grabbed the dish towel from the refrigerator door handle and began to clean up the mess.

After cleaning up the floor and the chair, Harry set the towel on the small puddle on the table. Looking at it, he suddenly began to laugh again.

"Well, I guess there's no point in crying over spilt milk," he said with an idiot-grin on his face. Hermione, though not at all happy with the large wet spot on the front of her blue shirt, could not help but laugh as well.

"Oh Harry, that was absolutely awful!" she finally said once she stopped laughing.

"Yeah, I know, but you still laughed," he replied.

"Git," she retorted. Since they were both pretty much done with their lunches anyway, they finished cleaning up the table and then washed their dishes rather than leave them sit for a week (they had finally filled the dishwasher after brunch yesterday; Emma let Harry put the soap in and push the start button as promised).

After lunch, Harry decided he would go and watch some television. Hermione went upstairs to change and then fetch her Numerology book. This should be fun, Harry anticipated. I'm watching TV and she's reading. What's she going to do to get back her seat?

Harry walked over to the coffee table and started looking through the listings to see what was on. He had heard several of his Muggle-born classmates mention daytime "talk" shows. The way he heard it, they were supposed to be pretty interesting, and sometimes unpredictable. After scanning through the listings for a minute or so, he found one that had started only a few minutes ago. He picked up the remote, turned on the television, and switched to the right channel.

Right as his backside was about to hit the seat cushion, Harry heard a shriek coming from Hermione's room. By the time he heard her calling out his name, he had already leapt up, vaulted over the coffee table, and was half way up the stairs with his wand drawn.

As he raced down the hall, he saw that her door was closed; he didn't want to waste any time with the doorknob in case it had been locked by a spell. As soon as he was close enough, he kicked in the door and burst into Hermione's room, ready to stun or kill whatever had caused her to scream.

What he found was Hermione standing next to her bed, looking towards his right, clad in naught from the waist up. The shirt she had been wearing (along with her... intimates) was lying on the bed, next to a clean set. Though Harry didn't actually see anything, the unexpected sight of so much exposed skin effectively wiped all conscious thought from his mind. He had to concentrate for a moment to remember why he had barged in there in the first place.

After a half-second or so, his mind clicked back into gear and he turned on his heel to confront the threat. There, standing on Hermione's desk, was a beautiful snowy owl (that was not Hedwig). Attached to its leg was an envelope, tied with a red ribbon. Harry was now officially confused.

"What?" he asked Hermione, still on defense watching the owl.

"It's... it's our O.W.L.s," she said breathlessly, staring at the owl on her desk.

Now that he actually looked at her face, he realized that she must have shrieked in excitement, not fear. That also explained why he ended up not seeing a side of his best friend he had never seen before. In her excitement, she had clasped her hands together and brought them up to her chest, her arms effectively covering all of the entirely unfamiliar parts in the process. Harry also realized that her level of clothing had not changed in the last three seconds. He looked down at his feet; it was the only place he trusted himself to look.

"I'll... ah... OK then... I'll just be in my room if you need me."

Putting his wand back in his pocket, he quickly turned to go back into the hall. As he spun around and headed out the now broken door, he heard behind him a shocked "Oh my God!" Hermione must have just now realized her state of (un)dress.

On his way back to his room, Harry was struck by a sudden thought. Sure enough, upon entering his room he found another large, majestic snowy owl on his dresser. This owl, mostly white like Hermione's, must not have been quite as well behaved as hers for it had its head in Hedwig's cage, trying to get at her food dish.

"Hey! Get out of there," he scolded the bird. Harry went over to the dresser, retrieved a few treats from the drawer, and gave them to the owl as he untied his letter. After finishing its snack, the beautiful creature took flight and headed out the window. Harry sat down on his bed and looked at the envelope in his hands. This was it.

Harry stared at his name written on the envelope. He wasn't sure if he wanted to see his results or not. He knew he had to; they would determine whether he could go on to become an Auror. But did he really want to read them? He sat there for another minute simply looking at parchment of the envelope, almost as if he hoped he could somehow absorb the information inside without actually reading it. Twice he started to open the envelope, but each time he stopped himself.

Fortunately, to his great relief, Hermione (now fully clothed) came into his room, carrying her unopened envelope in her hand. The owl that delivered it hadn't left yet; it was perched precariously on her shoulder (it was obvious to Harry that she wasn't accustomed to having an owl sitting there).

"It won't leave," Hermione explained after seeing Harry stand up and look curiously at the owl.

"Well?" both asked each other simultaneously.

"I haven't opened it yet," they again overlapped.

After a shared laugh, both Harry and Hermione stared nervously at the envelopes in their hands. Neither seemed able to open them; they looked pleadingly at each other. A moment later, they exchanged envelopes. Harry opened Hermione's letter; Hermione opened Harry's.

Harry unfolded the piece of parchment and began to read.

Wizarding Examinations Authority

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Hermione Jane Granger

Your Ordinary Wizarding Level results are as follows:

According to the information provided by your Head of House, your career plans are UNDECIDED. Your O.W.L. results permit you to take the necessary courses to pursue any field of study.

Your overall average O.W.L. score is 9.845. This is the highest overall score achieved in the last fifty-five years. Congratulations.

It is a long held custom for the Wizarding Examinations Authority to award an owl to the highest ranking student in his or her class. Please accept this owl as congratulations on your achievement.

A copy of your results has been forwarded to your Head of House, who will be in contact with you shortly regarding the selection of N.E.W.T. classes.

I wish you the best in your N.E.W.T. years.

Professor Griselda Marchbanks

"Oh," Harry said as he read about the owl.

"What?!" Hermione asked very anxiously, looking up from Harry's results.

"That explains the owl on your shoulder," Harry explained. Hermione was wearing a mixture of confusion and anticipation on her face. "Do you want me to explain it or do you just want to read it for yourself?" he asked.

Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'll read it," she finally said, opening her eyes. Harry handed her the letter. She didn't take it. "Just tell me! How bad did I do?!"

Harry could not resist grinning. "Eleven out of eleven O.W.L.s! Best score in fifty-five years! AND you get to keep the owl," Harry exclaimed, nodding towards her shoulder. He was very happy for Hermione. At least he knew that one of them would pass.

Harry's stomach began to turn knots. "And mine?" he asked very hesitantly.

Hermione slowly looked down at his letter, and then fixed him with a very somber stare. Harry's heart sank.

"YOU DID IT!!" she shouted with glee. "Seven out of nine O.W.L.s. You passed everything you needed to! And don't you dare talk to me about your Defense score!" she warned him with a smile. They traded envelopes back. Harry began to read his own results.

Wizarding Examinations Authority

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Harry James Potter

Your Ordinary Wizarding Level results are as follows:

According to the information provided by your Head of House, your career plans are AUROR. Your O.W.L. results permit you to take the necessary courses to pursue this field of study.

Your overall average O.W.L. score is 8.167. Your score of 10.8 in Defense Against the Dark Arts is the first time in nearly 150 years that a student has earned more points than an O.W.L. exam is worth. Congratulations.

A copy of your results has been forwarded to your Head of House, who will be in contact with you shortly regarding the selection of N.E.W.T. classes.

I wish you the best in your N.E.W.T. years.

Professor Griselda Marchbanks

"How in the bloody hell did you get a 10.8, Harry?" Hermione asked sharply, though it was obvious she was very happy for him. It was strange to hear Hermione swear like that; he found it quite amusing actually (though he knew better than to show it).

"My examiner heard about my Patronus, from someone at my trial, I think. He gave me a bonus point for demonstrating it."

"Well," Hermione started very dramatically, "it is very unusual to award bonus points during testing. But," her face lightened, "if anyone deserves it, it's you. A Patronus is N.E.W.T. standard. Congratulations Harry!"

He had done it! The letter said he could be an Auror! As that fact began to sink in, he felt as though a great weight of uncertainty had been lifted off of his heart, one that he hadn't really noticed was there until now that it was gone. Finding himself quite overwhelmed by his sudden burst of happiness, he did the first thing that came into his mind: he rushed forward, gave Hermione a great big hug, kissed her on the cheek, and then hugged her again.

"Thank you," he told her. When he finally let go of her, he stepped back and looked at her; she was blushing furiously.

"For what?" she was barely able to ask.

"For being there. For helping me study, for yelling at me for not studying. For just being you. You know," he said nonchalantly, "pretty much everything that happened last year."

Hermione's tendency to be overwhelmed by such compliments seemed to return for she forced herself to look down at her shoes. After a moment, she seemed to collect herself and looked back up.

"Thank you, Harry. And you're welcome."

Now that everything had finally sunk in, Harry suddenly realized that he just kissed Hermione. It was now his turn to blush; his blush far surpassed hers in intensity.

"Oh... I'm... I just... It... And then..." Harry babbled, gesturing vaguely towards his letter and then her cheek. Hermione began to smile, though she pursed her lips together to try to hide it; she didn't succeed. Harry eventually stopped talking and took a deep, steadying breath, "Sorry about that," he eventually said guiltily. "I guess I just got carried away there for a second. I was just so happy..."

"So you snogged me?" she asked, finally abandoning her attempt to hide her amusement.

Harry turned red again. "Well, erm... No... It's just..." Another pause, another breath. "Yes?"

"Relax, Harry," Hermione told him, trying to reassure him. "I understand. It's OK. I was just kidding. Don't worry about it. You just got carried away. It was just an accident."

An accident, Harry suddenly thought to himself. He turned red, once again. "Oh my God! I'm so sorry about bursting in on you like that." Hermione now regained her own bright red hue. "I heard you scream," he tried to explain.

Feeling rather exposed (literally, in this case), Hermione again looked down at her feet for a moment before speaking again. "I had been facing away from my desk as I started to change my clothes. My shirt and... they both got wet," she explained, very embarrassed. "After setting them down, I turned and saw the owl in my mirror. I wasn't at all expecting it there. Seeing it like that so suddenly, it just scared the daylights out of me.

"As soon as I saw it (after I screamed), I just knew it was our O.W.L.s. I was so excited that I yelled to tell you they were here. I, ah, forgot what I was, or wasn't wearing at the time," Hermione said, blushing again.

After she finally regained her composure, Hermione began to look at Harry curiously. "Why did you kick in my door?" she asked

Feeling quite guilty, and embarrassed, for his sudden entrance, Harry stared at the owl on Hermione's shoulder as he talked. "I was sitting down on the couch when I heard you scream. As I ran down the hall, I saw your door was closed. I figured that if you were in trouble, your door would be charmed and the doorknob wouldn't be any help. So I just decided to kick it in as soon as I got to it," he admitted.

Hermione began to laugh; Harry wasn't sure if he should be relieved or not. "Oh Harry. Don't you know that if my door had been sealed, you wouldn't have been able to kick it in?" she asked, fighting to stop her laughter.

"Erm, I forgot," he admitted sheepishly. "I really didn't think that far ahead."

"So... what do you think?" Hermione asked, looking at her new owl.

As Harry looked at it perched on Hermione's shoulder, he could not help but think how much it reminded him of when Hagrid had bought Hedwig for him. Hedwig was a little smaller back then (As was I...), just like this one. He seemed to recall that the black spotting pattern on her feathers was lighter when he got her, just as this one's was also.

He remembered the Eeylops clerk mentioning once when he stopped by to buy some owl treats that an owl's spot patterns were as unique as fingerprints. This owl of course had a different pattern than Hedwig, and also had a smaller number than she did. Harry smiled. He remembered how excited he was to get Hedwig. He was always very proud of her; a lot of students had commented over the years how much they liked her. And right now, Hermione seemed to be looking at her owl in just the same way.

Harry knew that Hedwig was still out delivering Ron's letter, but he still checked anyway, just to be sure, before answering. "She's very beautiful." He didn't want Hedwig to get jealous of another owl (let alone another snowy owl) in the house. As he began to consider this, his post-O.W.L. happiness began to be replaced by a Post Owl concern.

Would Hedwig and Hermione's yet-to-be-named owl get along? Harry knew that Hedwig didn't seem to like Pigwidgeon all that much (more like barely tolerated his existence). And she wasn't at all impressed by the flashy tropical bird that had once delivered a letter from Sirius. Hedwig seemed to be a very proud, very independent owl. How would it be with another owl right next door, literally?

Fortunately, as his concerns began to grow, he immediately thought of a way to express it that he knew Hermione would understand (and appreciate).

"I have a bad feeling about this," he admitted (Hermione smiled slightly). "What if they don't get along? I've heard that snowy owls are very territorial. Do you think it will be OK for them to be in the same house?"

Recognizing that Harry was genuinely concerned, Hermione did her best to alleviate his fears. "It'll be OK, Harry. You have to remember that these are Wizarding Post Owls. They aren't wild owls. Not only are they magical creatures, but over generations, they've had most of their natural instincts bred out of them.

"For example, most owls are nocturnal, and generally quite unremarkable in intelligence according to the Muggle experts. As you know though, post owls sleep the same hours as we do (besides the naps) and I don't have to tell you how smart Hedwig is. Furthermore, haven't you ever noticed that all the school owls don't disappear for a couple months during spring to find mates? They've been bred in captivity for centuries, raised by wizards, and of course are affected by magic. These aren't 'natural' owls."

Now that Harry thought about it, he suddenly realized that one could argue that post owls were no better off than house-elves. As he saw it however, there were several important differences. Fearing the creation of S.P.O.W., Harry tried to convey his thoughts to Hermione.

"Yeah, now that you mention it, they really aren't what you'd call wild animals. It's a good thing people treat them like beloved pets instead of lowly servants. We're so dependent on them to deliver messages. Where would the wizarding world be if they were treated like house-elves? They could all just up and fly away if we treated them badly." Harry hoped Hermione wouldn't analyze that too closely. He knew it was a bit of an exaggeration; the Ministry had figured out how to live without owls out of a practical necessity.

Fortunately with the invoking of her favorite cause, Hermione seemed to simply accept it and agree. "Yeah that's true. And back to your concern about being territorial, it shouldn't be a problem. Remember that all of the school's and students' owls live together in the Owlery. They all get along fine. I think Hedwig and, hmmm, I need to find you a name," she said to her new owl. "They'll be fine here for the next month or so. They're smart enough to know that they need to get along."

Harry nodded his head; He really liked Hedwig, and he hoped Hermione would really like her new owl.

"Speaking of things going wrong," Hermione suddenly exclaimed, "I don't have anything for an owl, other than a few treats. What do I need? I know I need a cage for her. Oh, does it have to be a magical cage or will a regular one work? We could pick up some stuff for her at the pet store, if it doesn't have to be magical. Is there anything else? Oh, this is so exciting!" she exclaimed, again clasping her hands together and holding them up to her chest in a way that Harry would never forget.

Having an owl was now second nature to Harry; he had to stop and think about it for a second. "Well, you'll need a cage, some newspapers to line it, food, and water. That's about it. I don't know about the cage. Hedwig came from Eeylops with her cage," Harry remembered. "Maybe you could 'break her in' and ask Hagrid. You'll need to clean her cage on a regular basis and let her out to hunt. I know Hedwig likes a little variety, frogs, mice, and the like. At least there's a big park at the end of the street. I still don't know where Hedwig went hunting back on Privet Drive."

Hermione thought about it for a moment. "I'll ask Professor McGonagall. I need to ask her some other stuff anyway. I'm sure she would know. The Transfiguration Department has a whole collection of animals they use for classes. Here Harry, would you take her for a minute while I go write a letter?"

Harry went over to his closet and put on his jacket. He then held out his arm like a perch, onto which the new owl flew. "Talons and long sleeves," Harry explained. Hermione sat down at Harry's desk, grabbed a blank sheet of parchment, and started writing a letter to Professor McGonagall.

After about a minute, Harry realized that Hermione was probably asking a few N.E.W.T.-related questions, so he coaxed the owl onto his shoulder (his arm was quickly getting tired) and carefully sat down on his bed. Several minutes later, she finished her letter. As Hermione walked towards the two of them, she smiled slightly. "Sitting on your shoulder like that, she really does remind me of Hedwig the first time I saw her." She then rolled up the letter and tied it her owl's leg.

"I would like you to take this to Professor Minerva McGonagall. She's probably at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but I don't know for sure." The owl blinked twice and hooted softly. Both Harry and Hermione hoped that indicated understanding; every owl was different, after all. After taking flight, Hermione went to the window to watch her new owl fly off.

"You know, I really need to find her a name," Hermione said. "I hate to keep calling her 'girl' or 'her,' simply because I don't have a name yet. And 'it' is just plain rude. How did you name Hedwig?" she asked Harry.

"It was just a name I found in one of my magic history books that I liked. It's as simple as that. It doesn't have to have any secret meaning, you know. Just as long as it's something that you like."

"So, if I named her Cho, would that be OK?" Hermione asked, a teasing grin on her face.

Harry gave Hermione the best eye roll he could. "If you did that, I'd probably have to move out," Harry said, returning the grin.

"OK, 'Cho' is definitely off the list."

With both of their owls gone, Harry and Hermione turned their attention from their owls to their O.W.L.s. Both began to examine them more closely.

"An 'E'? I got an 'E' in Potions. Not that I'm complaining or anything, but I thought Professor McGonagall told me that I had to get an 'O' in Potions to get into the N.E.W.T. class," Harry said out loud, more to himself than to Hermione.

"Yeah, that's what she told me too. Does it matter?" Hermione asked. "I mean, sure, it would have been nice if you had gotten an 'O', but still, 'E' means 'Exceeds Expectations.' It's still a very good grade. Besides, maybe Professor Snape was so impressed by your 'E' that he decided to let you in anyway."

Harry and Hermione looked at each other seriously for a second.

"OK, maybe not," she said with a grin. "But still, the letter says you can take the class, so don't worry about it. Believe me, you'll have plenty of time to worry about it once we get our homework assignments." Harry shuddered. Oh, it was nice to be homework free for a while. But soon he would get his first N.E.W.T. homework assignment, and then once that was done, he had two more years of Potions to look forward to.

"Yay," Harry said unenthusiastically.

Hermione heard the sarcasm in his voice and patted his shoulder encouragingly. "That's the spirit, Harry!" she exhorted, though she knew Harry felt otherwise. "Come on, the letter said you can be an Auror. That's what you wanted, right? Don't worry about the rest. I mean, you collapsed during your History test, so that grade doesn't really reflect anything, and we all know how useful Trelawney's classes were."

Harry smiled a little. "You're right, of course. Thanks. What about you? Eleven O.W.L.s. Not too shabby if you ask me."

"They took off a whole point in Defense," Hermione said unhappily. "I completely failed the boggart, again! I'm pretty sure about everything else on the test. I just knew it when the examiner started writing afterwards."

Harry looked at Hermione in surprise. "Didn't you have the same problem for Professor Lupin's test?" he asked gently.

"I remembered what happened last time, so I thought I was ready for it this time. But the boggart was different this time. I wasn't expecting it. And of course the examiner didn't tell me it was a boggart beforehand." Hermione stopped for a moment to take a deep breath. From the look on Harry's face, it was obvious he was waiting for her to continue.

"I was in the middle of my test, when all of the sudden Professor Dumbledore walked into the room," Hermione began to explain. "He said that there had been an attack and that... that I needed to go to the Hospital Wing immediately. My heart just sank. For him to interrupt a test, I knew it had to be bad. It was my worst fear come true." She paused again for another shaky-sounding breath. For a second, Harry thought he saw her eyes moisten slightly as she relived what had happened, but she turned away from him before he could be sure. She then continued her story as she stared off into space.

"As I ran to the door, the examiner called out to me. I glanced back just in time to see him point his wand at the Headmaster and shout 'Riddikulus!' I knew I had just failed that part of the test," Hermione said, resigned.

After thinking for a moment, Harry came up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder, giving her a comforting squeeze. "You know, someone a lot smarter than me once told me that what's in the past is in the past and all we can do is learn from it so we can know how to deal with today and tomorrow."

A small smile began to break through the look of defeat on Hermione's face as she turned around to face Harry. "It sounds like this person knows a thing or two."

"A thing or two," Harry agreed, smiling. "She's the smartest person I know. Sometimes I think I would be lost without her." As he watched a smile replace the disappointment on Hermione's face, Harry realized he still had his hand on her shoulder. He quickly removed it and returned his attention to his O.W.L. results.

"So," he started after clearing his throat twice, "Professor McGonagall will be owling us with class selections, I suppose?"

"Yeah, even though you already know that you can take the classes needed for the Auror program, you'll still have a couple holes in your schedule," Hermione explained. "I'm sure she'll send us a listing of classes we can sign up for. I had a few other questions for her also."

"One or two?" Harry asked knowingly.

"One or two," Hermione responded with a slightly guilty look.

"So," Harry asked casually, "what are we going to do about, hem hem, your door?" Harry tried to put on the most innocent expression he could muster.

"Well, you certainly gave it a good kick, I'll grant you that," Hermione said after a slight chuckle. "If only I were a few months older, I could take care of it myself. We'll have to get it fixed. I doubt we have all the parts we need, so Dad'll probably have to go buy it."

"I'll let you tell the story," Harry quickly volunteered. "Speaking of which, is there a garden center or nursery around here? I was thinking about something I could get Neville for his birthday."

"Well, the home improvement center has a garden center. If you don't see anything you like there, London's not that far away. I'm sure there're plenty of places around to find whatever you want. Do you know what you want to get him?" Hermione asked.

"Not exactly," Harry admitted. "Just some kind of Muggle plant, something exotic if I can find one. Anything really, as long as it doesn't squirt Stinksap," Harry said with a laugh as he recalled his first encounter with Neville's prized plant.

"Well, I'm going to start going through some of my books and see if I can find a name I like for my new owl," Hermione said, finishing in a sing-song voice. After she returned to her room, Harry looked at his O.W.L.s one last time, just to make sure it was still true. He had passed. He could continue in his plans to become an Auror.

Tucking his letter into the desk drawer where he had put all of the thank you letters from his friends and their families, Harry turned around and gave a quick glance at Hedwig's empty cage.

"Good luck girl," Harry said to the empty cage. "I hope you get along. I'd hate it if we had to leave if you didn't," Harry said sadly.

Coming soon to a monitor near you!

Chapter 12. The Weeks that Followed 3: The Quidditch Captain (and an owl) is Named.

A/N again... In case anyone was wondering, La Volpe e l'Uva is a real Italian restaurant, it's just not in London... it's in Italy. It's one of the favorite restaurants of my friend Petronilla. Thanks so much for letting me include it in my story.

Do I really believe that Hermione would watch the Star Wars movies? She reminds me so much of myself at her age (minus the magic, of course), so yes, I do believe she would like Star Wars. She's only about a year younger than I am (in 2005) so the timeline works out just fine too...

Hey MapleMountain! Thanks for the Risk addition. It was fun to imagine the women sitting there pretending to actually care! Ha ha!