Disclaimer: Paul, Apollos, Cephas, the world, life, death, things present, and things to come are mine. Harry Potter, on the other hand, is J. K. Rowling's.


"And now, my dear young minds," Dumbledore concluded, "off with you! Your beds await!"

"He skipped the school song again," Professor Snape observed to Professor Sinistra as the Headmaster resumed his seat amid the clamour of departing students.

Sinistra blinked. "Why, so he did," she said. "Good heavens, that makes the third year in a row. All these recent Dark matters must really be preoccupying him."

Snape smirked. "Perhaps the Dark Lord's return was not wholly undesirable, after all," he said. "If it keeps us from having to sing about 'Hoggy Warty Hogwarts', we clearly owe it some small gratitude."