Chapter Five - Pumpkin Juice, It's Not Just For Breakfast Anymore
Arriving at the bottom landing of the stairs that led down from the Heads' quarters to the first floor, they stopped and looked at the square of dark crystal set beside the door that opened into the passageway. Seeing that no one was in the passageway that led from an alcove near the Great Hall down to the dungeon level, Harry and Hermione slipped through the sliding door and headed towards an alcove that would place them near the Great Hall.
"Harry?" Stopping just behind the suit of armor that camouflaged the passageway they were in, Hermione squeezed Harry's hand gently.
"Yes?" Looking down at their intertwined hands, Harry sighed. "Right, I suppose we should try to be as normal as possible when we go in there."
"Harry, we haven't done `normal' since Halloween our first year." Chuckling, Hermione's eyes twinkled in the dim light of the passageway. "You don't have to act as if you've never seen me before when we go in there. However, I think there are three things we should avoid until we're ready for everyone to know."
Holding up their hands and placing a tender kiss on the back of hers, Harry smiled. "I take it this is one?"
Nodding, Hermione bit her lower lip for a second as she squeezed his hand one last time before letting go. "That's one."
Taking her hands, she placed them on either side of Harry's face. Rising up on tiptoe, Hermione gently pulled Harry until his lips were brushing hers. "This is two," she murmured right before snogging him passionately.
As his arms encircled her and pulled her close, she slipped her tongue past his and began dueling with his for supremacy. As they finally broke the kiss and vainly tried to get their breathing under control, Harry shook his head, ruefully.
"Don't look like that. We should be back upstairs in about an hour, so it's not as if you're going off to the far side of the planet without me." Chuckling at the look Harry gave her; she kissed him quickly on the cheek and grinned.
"I'm almost afraid to ask what number three is." Shaking his head, Harry nodded back up the steps. "I think we could learn to ignore that bloody mare if we tried."
"Harry, you agreed with Luna that you were going to teach Ginny a lesson, and if we don't do it today, she'll just keep trying until she does something truly desperate."
"Slipping me a dodgy love potion isn't truly desperate?" Keeping quiet about some of the other aspects of this, Harry tried to keep his thoughts focused on the task at hand. "You're remarkably calm about all of this."
"Honestly Harry, I know that there's more going on here than meets the eye." Seeing the look on his face, she smiled. "And I also know that, despite what you think, there's more going on here than meets your eye."
"That's distinctly possible. Since I've become accustomed to not knowing what was going on when the witches I care about are involved, it's not a concept I'm totally unfamiliar with." Smiling at the amused look on her face, Harry nodded. "And the third thing?"
"We need to avoid this." Stepping back, Hermione looked up and locked her gaze with Harry's. Feeling herself drawn into those emerald eyes, she felt herself being caught up and held by the love for her she could see there, how the `windows to the soul' seemed to not only reveal the real Harry Potter, but reflect her presence as well. Forcing herself to blink and break the contact, she took a deep breath and felt a small shiver run up and down her spine as she looked away.
"I hope I never get used to that." Shaking his head, Harry slowly exhaled as he tried to focus his thoughts. "Would it help if I told you that I'm tempted to chuck my promise and just tell you everything?"
"Harry James Potter." Smiling, Hermione stepped forward and gently placed her hand on his cheek. "We're not going to start this way. I trust you and I trust Luna. We're going to walk in there, two best mates, and have lunch. Your ex-girlfriend is going to hand you a drink and things are going to get very confused from there. You're going to do whatever it is that you've promised Luna you would do to teach Ginny that she shouldn't mess with either of us, and I'm going to be the supportive best friend who's deeply concerned about both of you. Is that clear?"
"Except for the part about what I promised Luna that I was going to do was mostly what I wasn't going to do, I think we're clear." Leaning forward and placing a gently kiss on the tip of Hermione's nose; Harry smiled as he watched her eyes try to focus on him.
"Shall we?" As they turned and put their hands on the handles to the entrance to the Great Hall, Hermione turned and watched Harry carefully. "There's no chance that you'll come to harm from this?"
"Thanks to the amortentia, all of the effects of the prior potion are gone, and this new one should simply rebound upon Ginny. Other than a minor and temporary side effect, I should be just fine."
As they pulled the doors open, the sounds of the Great Hall on a weekend hit them after the relative quiet of the corridor. While by no means close to being full, the mostly younger students who were left behind on a Hogsmeade weekend more than made up for the absence of their older dormmates with their excited discussions over what was going on in the village and whether their friends and siblings would remember to bring them back the treats from the village they were expecting.
As they stepped towards the Gryffindor table, Hermione was suddenly surrounded by a quartet of Slytherin first and second year students. Looking at them expectantly, Hermione stopped and waited for a red-haired girl with glasses to nod to each of her companions before smiling at the Head Girl.
"Head Girl Granger?" Suddenly unsure of herself, the second year redhead began to blush as she realized she was actually carrying out whatever they had planned to do.
"Yes, Derbail? Can I help you?" Smiling warmly, Hermione paused and looked up as she could feel someone watching her. Noticing one of the Slytherin prefects glaring at her, she stared at Baddock for a moment before turning her attention back to the student in front of her.
"One of the prefects said that I and some of the others aren't real Slytherins because we're not purebloods." Looking around at the three that were with her, she smiled. "Karrin and Irving are both muggleborn and Heathcliff's a halfer like I am."
Seeing the Slytherin prefect drawing nearer, Hermione waited until he was a couple of steps away and just about to jump into the conversation before she pounced. "Prefect Baddock, would you be so kind as to assist me with a small problem?"
Staring sullenly at Hermione, Malcolm Baddock looked as if he would rather swallow a pail of flooberworms rather than assist her, but he was acutely aware of the formidable reputation of the Head Girl, and the fact that Harry Potter was standing there staring very intently at him. Swallowing twice, he nodded slowly. "If I can, Head Girl."
"Would you settle a matter for me?" Seeing the confused look on his face, she smiled wickedly. "Since you're a prefect from House Slytherin, I'd like you to answer a couple of questions for your housemates here." Gesturing with her hand, she included all four of the Slytherin students that had approached her.
"Wouldn't it be better if I escorted these four back to the dungeons and instruct them to not waste the time of the Head Girl and Boy with frivolous questions?"
"Oh, it's never a waste of my time, or Harry's, to correct misconceptions that seem to abound on certain subjects." Seeing the resigned look on his face, and trying to ignore the chuckle that was coming from Harry, she smiled. "All four of these students were sorted by the Sorting Hat, correct?"
"Correct, Head Girl." Looking as if that admission were drawn from him with hot irons, he frowned slightly.
"And the Sorting Hat has been the sole authority for the sorting of students here at Hogwarts since the last of the Founders relinquished their position here at the school, correct?" Smiling broadly, Hermione nodded to the four students in front of her.
"That is true, Head Girl." Staring sullenly at her, Baddock attempted to ignore the four students whose questions had started this questioning.
"And did you know that while the Sorting Hat originally belonged to Godric Gryffindor, all four of the Founders contributed to the magic that turned his hat into the Sorting Hat. That all four, including Salazar Slytherin cast the spells that allowed a bit of their essences to be captured in the hat so that their thoughts would be represented as students were sorted?"
"No Head Girl, I was not aware of that." Watching Hermione warily, Baddock began to consider the possibilities as he waited for her to continue.
"So, since Salazar Slytherin was, at least, the equal of the other Founders in magical ability, it would stand to reason that his input and wishes were just as important as any of the others when it comes to the decisions of the Sorting Hat, correct?" Smiling sweetly, Hermione resisted the urge to chuckle at the look on the Slytherin prefect's face as he considered her logic.
"It would seem so, Head Girl." Nodding grudgingly, Malcolm looked at each of the students before turning his attention back to her.
"So, it would be your opinion that if anyone were saying that Slytherin students, selected by the Sorting Hat weren't `real' Slytherins, they would be implying that Salazar Slytherin was a lesser wizard than Helga Hufflepuff or Godric Gryffindor, correct?" Watching him intently, Hermione locked her eyes on his. "That wouldn't be a good thing, would it?"
"No, Head Girl. It wouldn't." Staring intently at her for several seconds, Baddock seemed to come to some sort of internal decision. "In fact, for Miss Harrington and Mr. Jellicoe to be selected for this house as two of the first muggleborns in a very long time, they must exemplify the traits that the Founder was searching for."
"Excellent, I was certain you felt that way." Turning to the four who had started this, Hermione ignored the knowing smirks from the four that disappeared as soon as attention was returned to them. "I'm certain that should explain any lingering doubts about your authenticity, no?"
Nodding solemnly, her grey eyes sparkling, Derbail O'Connor smiled. "Yes Head Girl, I think you've answered all of our questions quite satisfactorily."
"Well then, if you four are done with lunch, why don't you head down to Hagrid's so you can be first in line for after lunch. Rumor has it, he's going to be giving thestral rides again."
Nodding to her, the young Slytherin witch turned and nodded to her house Prefect before turning in place and heading for the door, her companions in tow. Trying to keep her features from reflecting her amusement, Hermione nodded to Baddock and caught a knowing smile from him as he returned to the Slytherin table.
Waiting until Baddock was out of earshot; Harry chuckled and shook his head. "That was rather well played on their part, don't you think? "
"I don't know if anyone's keeping track of such things, these days, but if they are I'm going to find them and put five galleons down on that witch to be Head Girl her seventh year." Looking at him for a second, Hermione smiled fondly at Harry before gently shaking her head. "Business first, correct Head Boy?"
"Correct, Head Girl." As they turned and continued on towards the Gryffindor table, Harry gently rested his hand on her lower back, as he had done dozens of times since the start of term. This time, however, Hermione recognized the slight shiver that went up her spine when he did it and tried desperately to keep a smirk from forming on her face. Murmuring "that's number four" just loud enough for Harry to hear, they continued on their way without pause.
Seeing Ginny glaring at them from the table, Hermione glanced around to keep her gaze from locking with the ginger witch's. Looking over at the Staff table, she noticed the Headmistress paying particular attention to the two of them. Nodding to her, Hermione could have sworn she caught a glimpse of a smile on the older witch's face when she returned the nod.
Arriving at the Gryffindor table, she and Harry slid into open spots on the bench nearest. Harry was next to Ginny, with Hermione taking the seat on his other side. Across the table were Neville and Lavender.
An interesting and eyebrow raising pair, it seemed that the two had become `close' over the summer for a period of time. While not currently romantically linked, there was an easy rapport between the two that hinted that something had occurred between the two of them, and it had changed them both.
While Neville had grown up considerably during the war, being a leader of an active Resistance movement will do that to a bloke, his summer with Lavender had made even more changes in him. Gone was the painfully shy wizard who could only speak to a handful of witches that he knew, in his place was one who seemed to be able to chat with anyone, regardless.
Having seen the unwanted attention Harry had received over the years tied to an event that he really didn't have any control over, Neville played down his actions during the Final Battle when he used the Sword of Gryffindor to behead Voldemort's familiar. Never mentioning it, he instead seemed to have some sort of total recall regarding the night, pointing out what others had done in exacting detail as he deftly turned conversations from what he had done to what had been done by someone else in whatever group he found himself.
The changes in Lavender were even more pronounced. While still outgoing, fun loving and flirtatious, the witch who had desperately clung to any wizard who paid attention to her and relentlessly stalked the ones she was interested in was gone. More mature, she flirted without falling into physical relationships at the drop of a wand, and she worked diligently on getting to actually know some of the people she hadn't paid any attention to during her early years at Hogwarts.
Hermione had only asked the once about her summer after she had gotten released from St. Mungo's. Nodding towards a nearby Neville, who had just brought Lavender some trifle that she had forgotten after leaving potions, Hermione had enquired about how she had spent the last part of the summer after she had been released. Smiling wistfully, Lavender only replied that she had finally realized what it was like to be valued simply for being herself, and that there was one very lucky witch running around whom Neville was interested in, once he finally realized it.
Smiling at the pair across from them, and seeing the knowing look on Lavender's face as she scrutinized both of them very carefully, Hermione turned her attention to the interaction beginning, just to her right.
"Harry, it's about time you got down here." Scowling, Ginny tried to drape herself over Harry as she leaned around to get a look at Hermione. "I hope you've got plans here at the castle this afternoon, Harry's taking me into the village for the rest of the weekend." The fact that Harry leaned back and left her leaning on the table added to Ginny's level of annoyance.
Turning so that she was facing Ginny, but could still see Lavender and Neville out of the corner of her eye, Hermione smiled warmly. "That's odd; Harry was just remarking that a study session tomorrow after breakfast on those Transfiguration exercises that are due by week's end next week would be good." Turning slightly towards Harry, she smiled and nodded. "A late breakfast after we finally get around to getting up, didn't you say?"
"And I do owe you dinner, since we didn't seem to get into the village for lunch, as I'd promised." Turning his head so Ginny couldn't see, Harry's raised eyebrow seemed to convey an unspoken `behave yourself', as he held her gaze for a second. Seeing the mischievous twinkle in Hermione's eyes, Harry held her gaze for a couple of seconds longer until she gave him a very slight nod. Turning back towards Ginny, Harry shrugged. "I'm sorry I was so abrupt this morning at breakfast, I really wasn't myself earlier."
"Harry I know the stress that dealing with some people causes." Smiling sweetly, Ginny reached over and picked up a goblet that was sitting beside her plate. "I poured this for you and put a chilling charm on it." Casting a haughty smirk in Hermione's direction, she nodded. "I know how you like things, exactly how you need things to be."
Looking at her for several seconds, Harry studied the red-haired witch carefully. Seeing her maintain her wide-eyed innocent look under his scrutiny, Harry reached out his hand. Stopping just short of the taking the goblet, he smiled sadly. "Are you certain this is what I'll like?"
"Just the thing to put you back on track, clear your mind of all those distractions that keep nagging you incessantly." Smiling as Harry took the goblet from her, Ginny watched carefully as he slowly raised the goblet to his lips.
A look of shock and dismay appeared on Ginny's face as Harry abruptly turned to Hermione, raised the goblet in a toast and cheekily quipped, "To your health, Mi."
Raising the goblet to his lips, Harry allowed two swallows of the strangely tart pumpkin juice to pass his lips and down his throat. Mentally acknowledging the fact that the chilling charm Ginny had placed on the liquid would have made it very difficult notice a difference in the pumpkin juice if he hadn't been aware of it, he kept the goblet to his lips after he stopped drinking, watching Hermione's eyes go wide.
Three things happened within seconds of each other. As the ice-cold juice hit his stomach Harry felt a warm sensation flow over him, and it seemed to race to the top of his head. Hermione whispered "Protego" and he felt the touch of her magic as a shield appeared behind him just as a surprised and very distraught Ginny proclaimed, "I feel…"
The retching sounds that followed told Harry exactly what it was that Ginny was feeling as he heard, but didn't feel, a series of splattering sounds behind him as Ginny's breakfast and lunch made an unscheduled reappearance. The looks of disgust on Neville's face and amusement on Lavender's, and the smirk on Hermione's filled in the details that he was missing.
Chaos broke out at the Gryffindor table as Ginny's sudden predicament became noticed. Harry stood up and stepped back a bit, moving himself from the scene as he cast a silent scourgify to clean up the sick as Hermione moved over to assist Ginny. Neville came around the table and began to assist Hermione as Lavender moved beside Harry.
Giving him a knowing look, she simply nodded. "Nice hair." Seeing that Harry didn't take the bait, she smiled. "Hermione certainly was quick on the draw with that shield."
"She was facing Gin over my shoulder; she probably just noticed the look on her face and reacted without thinking." Smiling, Harry noted the Headmistress heading towards the table, a look of concern on her face. Curiously enough, she seemed to be heading towards him rather than towards the sick Gryffindor that was in the center of a growing circle of concerned housemates. Raising an eyebrow, he nodded to Lavender. "Nice hair?"
"Well, it's still got that roguish unkempt look that makes all the witches swoon, but the sudden vibrant blue coloring is definitely a new look for you."
"The pumpkin juice must be bad," Harry replied just as the Headmistress reached them. "I guess I've got the milder reaction to it, Ginny seems to not be able to stomach a good dose of pumpkin juice today." Nodding to the Headmistress, Harry tried to keep his features from breaking out into a smile as turned. "I think I'll go over and see if I can assist."
"Mr. Potter, before you go running off to the rescue, would my Head Boy have any opinion regarding the source of Miss Weasley's sudden discomfort?" Staring at Harry, the Headmistress' eyes kept going back up to his hair.
"If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say that the pumpkin juice she gave me didn't agree with either of us. Usually, I'm quite a fan, but that one left me with a bit of a sour taste and a brief flush." Shrugging, Harry looked over his shoulder to where Ginny was starting to recover a bit and trying to shake off Hermione's assistance as she was looking around for where Harry had gotten off to. Looking back to Professor McGonagall, Harry smiled sincerely. "I think I'll go over and see if I can help. Gin looks as if she's feeling a bit better."
As Harry stepped closer to her, he could see the look of distress grow on Ginny's face. As he knelt down beside her and put his arm around her shoulders, she was retching once again into a pail that Hermione had conjured. Winking at Hermione and shaking his head a bit, he leaned over and began trying to comfort Gin.
"That's a good girl. Ginny, why don't I help you up to the Hospital wing?" Seeing the hopeful look on her face as she looked up at him, Harry leaned closer as another spasm of nausea came over Ginny's face. "I'll stay with you until we can get you up to Poppy."
Gritting her teeth in an effort to control her rebellious stomach, Ginny nodded enthusiastically. "Harry, I'm so glad you're here. As long as I have you, I'm certain I'll be fine."
Missing the indelicate snort from Hermione, Ginny was beaming as Harry helped her to stand. Beaming around heaving her stomach up, but beaming nevertheless. Slowly walking her over to the Headmistress, Harry nodded to Hermione, who was accompanying them.
"Professor, we're going to take Ginny up to the Hospital Wing." Nodding at the pail that Hermione was carrying, he sighed. "We should be able to get her up there without causing too much extra work for Mr. Filch."
"You two take care of that, and ask the Matron to perform an Adscherer test on both you and Miss Weasley when you get up there." Seeing the puzzled look on the face of the Head Boy and the suspiciously blank expression on the face of the Head Girl, she nodded sadly. "It should enable her to pinpoint exactly what both of you are reacting badly to."
Casually pointing her wand first at the nauseous Ginny and then at the table after the trio had turned to head for the main entrance to the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall deftly palmed a small glass container that sailed out of the suffering witch's pocket as she cast a shimmering silver globe around both the goblet that Harry had been drinking from and the pitcher that was sitting on their end of the table. "I think that should help us isolate exactly where the problem originated," she said more to herself than anyone else.
Nodding cordially to the DADA professor and Head of House for Gryffindor that was making his way towards her, the Headmistress stepped away from the students that had gathered to watch their housemate head towards the infirmary, and greeted one of her newest staff members grimly. "Professor Weasley, it seems Miss Weasley has suffered a reaction to something that has had a very different effect on both her and the Head Boy there." Seeing the disturbed look on Bill Weasley's face as he took in Harry's blue hair and his sister's obvious discomfort, she nodded discretely to him.
"Headmistress, do you want me to escort Miss Weasley up to the Hospital Wing?" Although he was trying to keep his face neutral, his ears were beginning to show the barest tinge of `Weasley red' as his eyes narrowed as he regarded his sister who was slowly being led away.
"I'll have Professor Sprout check the kitchens to make certain that the source of the problem isn't down there. I'd like you to check Miss Weasley's trunk and wardrobe to see if you can find anything that would explain this reaction." Seeing the shocked look on his face, she nodded and opened her hand to show him the glass potion vial in her hand. "It's possible that she brought something from home that was poorly, ill advisedly or carelessly made that caused this."
"I see." Closing his eyes for a second, Bill Weasley took several deep breaths. "Headmistress, if this turns out the way I fear it will, I'd like to be the one to speak to her parents."
"Are you certain, Professor?" Watching the young man closely, Minerva saw the concern he had for his youngest sibling at war with his disbelief that she would do something like this. "This is the sort of thing that Headmistresses do. I realize as her Head of House you feel a degree of responsibility for the girl, but sometimes it's better if it's someone with a bit of perspective."
Seeing the sharp look he gave her, Minerva smiled sadly. "Years ago, before the first war against Voldemort, there was an incident with a student in my house. A young Gryffindor decided she wanted to dabble in love potions, and not just the cheap charm sorts that your brother peddles."
"I see. And this Gryffindor wouldn't have had a pair of older brothers, who were prefects?" Shaking his head, Bill looked up towards the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall. The sunny day displayed warred with the sudden chill he felt.
"I believe she did. Back to the point of my story, I discovered that she had used such a potion, and countered it at a very inopportune moment for her. Unfortunately, I made a rash decision…" Seeing the look of disbelief on his face, the Headmistress blushed a bit and nodded in concession. "It happens. I didn't make an official incident out of it, I simply assigned her a series of detentions, took away a substantial number of house points from her and instructed her to destroy her journals and notes regarding this `hobby' of hers."
"I see." Shaking his head, Bill sighed. "I take it you never mentioned this to the young wizard involved, did you?"
"No I didn't. And I never mentioned it to your father, either." Seeing the startled look on Bill's face, Minerva shrugged. "There was a young muggleborn wizard in Hufflepuff that a great number of witches in your mother's year found very charming. He, on the other hand, was greatly enamored of a young witch a year behind him in Slytherin, which was reciprocated but wasn't general knowledge since her family would have frowned upon her association with a muggle born. It seemed young Ted never quite recovered from the shock of your mother's very enthusiastic greeting in the corridor outside my Transfiguration class after I had countered the potion she had dosed him with." Seeing the gobsmacked look on his face, Minerva shrugged.
"Since the Slytherin witch in question was present when your mother discovered, much to her embarrassment that Mr. Tonks was no longer `infatuated' with her, it was a very awkward situation, to say the least.
It seems that the major drawback to that particular potion is that the subject has no memory of anything they did or said due to the potion once its hold was gone, Miss Black simply observed your mother attempting to poach a kiss from her unwilling wizard and reacted in a very Slytherin manner, for once. Fortunately Andromeda and your mother have gotten over their respective grievances as they seem to be amicably coexisting as grandmothers for young Teddy, but I am certainly regretting not having made certain your mother destroyed her notes and journal."
"Andromeda? How Slytherin?" Shaking his head, Bill watched sadly as the three Gryffindors made their way slowly from the Great Hall. Ginny was able to take about six steps before she would clutch the pail Hermione was holding.
"It was mostly harmless, though your mother did stay confined to the infirmary until her hair returned to its normal hue two days later." Shaking her head, the Headmistress sighed as Hermione looked over her shoulder at them as the three were passing through the door into the corridor beyond.
"Something I'm not willing to bet on if Hermione finds out what it appears Ginevra did."
"Horace is on his way to the Hospital Wing using the staff access, if you'd be so kind as to bring whatever it is you find to the Matron's office, I'll be there with Poppy trying to determine exactly what our options are."
Looking grim, Bill nodded once. "For the record, my father `heard' the rumors regarding what happened at the end of Ginny's fifth year. He had a long discussion with her after they returned to the Burrow following Albus' funeral. He told her, in no uncertain terms, that if it turned out to be true, or if she ever did anything like that again, he would be the first to insist that she would face the consequences of her actions."
"Bill, it's only because of your parents that I haven't called for aurors on the basis of what we do know now." Seeing the three exit from the Great Hall, she squared her shoulders as she watched the spot where the three had been for almost a minute. "I can only hope that Mr. Potter will understand and not see it as another betrayal from the Head of this august institution."
"A betrayal? Albus?"
"Things were not always what they seemed, and Albus never shied away from doing what he felt best, regardless of the cost." Shaking her head one last time, Minerva closed her eyes. "To him, or to anyone else. "
"Then the rumors are true?" Looking mildly disturbed, Bill Weasley shook his head and glanced over towards the corner where the large throne-like chair that the former Headmaster had used was sitting. Both Severus Snape and now Headmistress McGonagall had eschewed using the imposing chair, thought for very different reasons.
Minerva had dubbed the chair `the Siege Ridiculous' because of a hex that Fred Weasley had cast upon the chair the evening of the Final Battle.
While not normally fatalistic, Fred had decided that if Voldemort's forces were to win the day that evening, the Dark Lord would be unable to resist the temptation to seat himself in the imposing chair in the Great Hall. To counter this, the brash young wizard cast a spell of extreme complexity on the unsuspecting piece of furniture and, since there wasn't a clearly defined Headmaster/mistress at the moment, he was able to tie the hex into the power reservoir of the castle itself. Anyone seating themselves in the seat without uttering the phrase, `Voldemort is a poncy Muggle' at the top of their lungs was transformed into whatever image that would counter a boggart for that individual.
While Minerva found herself unwilling to undo a piece of magic that was a fitting tribute to a very talented young wizard who had died much too soon, she found that it made an interesting addition to the arsenal for teaching that particular lesson in DADA class. Since the castle itself seemed to consider the chair as part of the Great Hall's décor, the seat found its way back to the main room within a day or two of its removal for use in Defense.
"There are many rumors floating around about that night, but the ones I believe you are referring to are true. " Nodding grimly, Minerva noted the resigned look on the younger wizard's face. "It's amazing that any of them are doing as well as they are, and then this had to happen."
"Speaking of which, I've been trying to figure out just where the missing part of the `Golden Trio' has been keeping himself this term." Looking puzzled as he began walking towards the staff exit to the Great Hall that would take him and the Headmistress to the passages that facilitated staff movement around the castle. "I can only hope he's keeping himself better occupied that our sister."
Smiling for the first time since events had begun to unfold in the Great Hall, the Headmistress chuckled. "I think the youngest Mr. Weasley has been keeping himself quite profitably `occupied' this term, both academically and socially." Seeing the look on Bill's face, she nodded. "I'm certain it will become apparent in the very near future, but I do believe your brother has been giving our Head Boy and Girl space to see if they could figure things out between themselves, which I believe they finally have."
"Really now?" Looking a bit puzzled, Bill nodded to Minerva as he took the passage that would take him to the staff entrance into the Gryffindor Common Room. "Hopefully it will be something that will help take the onus off today; Merlin knows that the family could use a spot of good news after today's events."
"Whether or not `everyone' in the family will consider it `good news', is probably up for debate, but I think that everyone other than your Mother will be very pleased by it, once young Mr. Weasley gets around to making his relationship with one of my other Prefects public knowledge."
"And that's the problem with being on staff; it would be beneath the dignity of a Hogwarts professor to give a student the mickey regarding a personal relationship." Seeing the suspicious look on the Headmistress' face, he shrugged. "I'll just have to live vicariously through my brothers George and Charlie doing it."
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