Disclaimer: I do not own it.
"Potter, Lily!" Professor Wolfe boomed across the Great Hall.
James sat on the edge of his seat as his sister made his way up to the stool. Her face was white, paler than Al's had been two years before, but James was confident. He knew Lily belonged in Gryffindor with him, just like he knew Al would be in Ravenclaw. Grinning, he stood up as Wolfe put the sorting hat on her head.
It didn't give an answer immediately, like it did for him and Al. Did it not know where she belonged? No, that was impossible. She was a Gryffindor -- brave, courageous, witty, and what she lacked in magical prowess, she more than made up for it in ingenuity. Gryffindor was where she belonged, no contest.
"What's going on?" Fred whispered in his ear. "Why isn't she being sorted?"
James bit his lip and stared at Lily. She had gotten paler, if at all possible, and she was fidgeting. Why was she so nervous? James caught her eye and she looked away.
"Slytherin!"
"What?" Fred yelled. "How can she be in Slytherin? She's the least Slytherin person in the whole family!"
James was the only one who could hear his vehement cousin. Everything else was drowned out by the hoopla at the Slytherin table. Lily took off the hat and looked like she was going to vomit. She stumbled toward the Slytherin table and was embraced by some of the seventh years.
They had gotten Potter.
3
Lily stared at the green tablecloth. This wasn't right. It shouldn't be green. It should be scarlet. It shouldn't be silver. It should be gold. It shouldn't be a serpent. It should be a lion.
"Hey, I'm Tad," another first year said, offering his hand. Lily looked over at him. She took his hand without thinking.
"Lily," she said.
"I've been told this place is astounding," Tad said, tilting his blond head to look at the ceiling. "But I never realized quite how astounding."
"At least you had some warning," a girl across from them said, "I had no idea what to expect."
"Muggle born?" Tad asked.
"What?" she replied.
"Your parents -- they aren't magical."
"Oh, no, not at all. They nearly died when Professor Longbottom took us to Diagon Alley. I'm Kelsie, by the way. So what's with the houses?"
"Four houses -- Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin, which is clearly the best," Tad said with a slightly condescending tone. "Slytherin and Gryffindor are always competing against each other and no one really likes Slytherin, but that's just because we've won twelve of the last twenty house cups. The rest were split between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw."
"House cup?"
"You get house points," Tad said, pointing to the hourglasses on the far wall. "Right now, we're all at zero, but they'll increase as the year goes on."
"I'm starving," Kelsie muttered, picking up her empty plate. "When do we get to eat?"
"After the Headmistress makes an address," Lily said. As she spoke, McGonnagall stood up.
"Hello and welcome back to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am obliged to inform you all products from Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes are banned from the school, as are most joke products. You can see the complete list posted in all common rooms. As usual the Forbidden Forest is off limits.
"This year, the staff hopes to encourage intellectual and magical development in the safe environment of Hogwarts. Enjoy."
She flicked her wand and food appeared on the trays in front of them.
"Holy crap!" Kelsie said, reaching out and grabbing one of the rolls. "How are we supposed to eat so much food?"
"One bite at a time," Tad said, shoveling a healthy forkful of potato into his mouth.
3
"I can't believe Lily is in Slytherin," Teddy said, settling on the Gryffindor couch next to Victoire.
"Well, you'd better believe it or you're going to have some problems real fast," she replied. "And you might want to talk with James about it." Vicky motioned to the pocket of fourth-years, James at the center, who were already getting riled up about the Quidditch season and how they're going to crush Slytherin.
"Maybe," Teddy sighed, "but I need to think about the NEWTs this year, too. I should probably start studying soon."
"But you won't, at least not until Quidditch starts up."
"Just because you started studying for the OWLs your fourth year doesn't mean anything. You still did just as well as I did."
"Because I helped you study."
"Should we try and get these kids to bed?"
"We need to wait for Professor Longbottom to address us."
"Ah, yes, that's true." Teddy stretched his arm around Vicky.
"Teddy!" James yelled across the common room. "When are we going to start Quidditch practice?"
"What do you want from me, Jim? My stomach's full and my head is clouded. Talk to me next week," Teddy replied.
"I want to try out this year, though!"
"Didn't I already tell you we need a seeker this year? You're still small enough for that position. Now leave me alone."
The door to the common room swung open and Professor Longbottom entered, hitting his head as usual on the low entryway.
"Hello, everyone," he said, rubbing his head. "And welcome back. For those of you who are new to Gryffindor, I am Professor Longbottom, Gryffindor's head professor. I will give you your punishments and I won't go easy. The list of banned items is on the board. We'll also post Quidditch schedule there, and your class schedules will be on your beds. Prefects, if you could round everyone up and put them in their rooms, please. I look forward to a brilliant year with you. Any questions, you can direct them to the prefects. Thank you."
Professor Longbottom left the common room, hitting his head against the door jam again. Some of the first years snickered. Teddy pulled himself off the couch, as the Headboy, and started corralling the students to their rooms. Vicky followed suit as a prefect.
3
Lily wasn't sure whether she should be enthralled or disgusted. Sure, she was a Slytherin. No one else in her family had ever been in Slytherin. In fact, both her brothers absolutely loathed Slytherins. Christmas break probably would not be fun. But this common room was astounding. The leather couches were extraordinarily comfortable and the green blankets laid across their back were all really soft. The rugs on the floor covering the stone were regal and the fire was warm. It was dark, but comfortable. Cold, but welcoming. She doubted anything could compete with this -- not even the Gryffindor common room.
They had set the first years down on one of the couches, where the prefects had told them to wait for Professor Wolfe.
At first, Wolfe seemed to be a rather rough man. His graying beard and hair gave him a coarse look, but when he walked into the Slytherin common room with a bag slung across his shoulders and a stack of papers in his hands, Lily warmed up to him. He didn't say anything, just gave the stack of papers to his prefects, and sat in a stool in front of the first years.
"Well, guys, this is Slytherin," he said. His voice was soft, warm, and gentle. He didn't seem to be the harsh, hard man James made him out to be. Then again, most of the Slytherins she had met so far hadn't been nearly as bad as he claimed they were. He took out ten pieces of parchment out of his bag. "These are your schedules; they're all the same, so don't get picky." He passed them out to each of the first years. "So I'm Professor Gaius Wolfe. Take a look at your schedules. The first few weeks the professors will show you around and then you're on your own, so pay attention to where you're going at all times. The castle has a few tricks up her sleeves, so always be on the lookout. I won't spoil many surprises for you.
"The board above the fireplace has all the house information on it, from the list of banned items to announcements to Quidditch schedules. You can't play Quidditch until second year, but they might take you on as equipment manager."
"Why is that?" Jones asked, flipping his long brown hair out of his face.
"We don't want our first years to get throttled by a seventh year behind a bludger's bat. Besides, it's hard enough getting used to the castle without worrying about Quidditch, too."
"What if we're really good?" Andrew asked.
"You'll be an asset to the team next year. Right now, most of the team is seventh-years, so next year we'll need two chasers, a beater, and a keeper -- just to give you a heads up. Any immediate questions?"
"Where's the bathroom?" Beecher asked.
"Down the hall to the left. There are showers there, too. Anything else?"
All they could hear were the older students making all sorts of noises in their dorms.
"Alright, girls Barbara will show you your dormitories, boys, you're with Robert. I think you'll all like it here." Grinning, Professor Wolfe stood up and left his house alone.
3
"'Oy, Al, are you going to try out for Quidditch this year?" Ike asked, opening a book.
"Nah, I don't think so," Al replied, pulling out his cauldron. It figures his first class of the day would be potions.
"Why not? From what I hear you're an amazing seeker, and with Greg just graduated..."
"I think Jim would get mad at me."
"What? Why?" Ike asked.
"Quidditch is his thing, it always has. Besides, I don't like it that much."
"Why do you go out of your way not to step on Jim's toes? It isn't like he's never stepped on yours."
"But still...I don't know. It isn't worth it. Besides, I'm not that great of a seeker."
"A chaser, then."
"I definitely couldn't do that."
"What about a beater? A whole bunch of our team graduated. It isn't like anyone expects the Ravenclaw team to amount to anything this year -- it's a building year, no pressure."
"Are you trying out?"
"Yeah, of course. I'm going to be the best keeper Ravenclaw has ever seen!" Ike punched the air in mock victory.
"You look like you belong in Hufflepuff when you do that," Al said.
"Well if you'd stop sulking like a spoiled little Slytherin brat, then I wouldn't have to."
"Alright, boys, enough mocking my house," Professor Wolfe said, taking his podium at the front of the class. "Three points from Ravenclaw. Now, if you will, turn to page 35 of your book and proceed with caution. You may leave when you're finished."
"Nice going, we've already lost points because of you," Al muttered, opening his book.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Ike replied.
3
Teddy was shocked at how quickly the first few weeks of classes went by. And he was shocked with how much work the professors were loading on them. For the first time in all his years at Hogwarts, he was actually spending more time on work than Vicky, and that annoyed him.
Quidditch snuck up on him and attacked him when he wasn't ready, not because of his energetic cousins. James had been pestering him since the first week and the second week Fred joined in. By the third week, Vicky was on his back and Rose was getting ready to join in the fun. Sometimes he wondered if he could just have a Weasley/Potter team. They'd probably do pretty well; they practice together all summer after all. But they don't have a keeper or seeker -- they'd been sorted into Ravenclaw and Slytherin.
"When are you going to tell us who made the team?" James whined.
"Shut up, Jim."
Teddy was short on sleep, still acclimating to sleeping in the same room as Quinn, who snored louder than his grandmother had. He had looked at his roster and had decided he needed a second round of tryouts. His definites were Fred as beater, he was a chaser, Jerry could still do keeping, and Vicky was a chaser. He needed another chaser, a beater, and a seeker. Little Tim could probably do seeking, although it depended on his eyesight. James wouldn't be able to do it. He seemed to be a competent beater, though, and he worked well with Fred. Any number of people could be the new chaser. He'd have to have a practice just with them.
He took out a piece of parchment and made a quick Quidditch notice to post on the board in the common room, calling all his potential chasers back to the pitch for a Saturday practice. Teddy hated Saturday practices.
3
Lily stared at the fire crackling in the Slytherin common room. She had finished her homework and was waiting for Tad and Kelsie. They had been invited on a midnight escapade to the kitchens with the seventh-years. They had been told it was an annual event; the seventh years always treated the first years.
"How long have you been done for?" Tad asked, bursting into the common room with an armful of books.
"Awhile," Lily answered.
"How'd it go?"
"Good."
In truth, she had asked one of the older students to help her master a spell, but it ended badly and she had to bring him to the hospital wing. She felt badly about it, so she didn't bring it up.
"I'll be right down, I just need to drop these off in my room," Tad said, disappearing down one of the tunnels.
"Oh my god," Kelsie groaned, sprawling on the couch next to Lily. "Why does history of magic make my head throb so much?"
"Because you're better at practical application," Lily replied nonchalantly. It was true, Kelsie was the one best at spells, Tad the best at everything else, and Lily was somewhere a kilometer or so behind them. It seemed she could never get a spell right no matter how much she practiced and she had already ruined three cauldrons. Her parents were beginning to get angry with her. James had already mocked her: If you can't do potions, why are you in Slytherin? Just thinking about it made her dread the coming vacation. She couldn't imagine what the holiday was going to be like.
The other first years congregated in the common room and waited for the seventh years. Lily still couldn't figure out what James meant by complaining about them. She had never seen a Slytherin initiate a fight, nor seen any feuds among the Slytherin. A few fights had begun between Slytherin and Gryffindor because Gryffindor insists that James is the only true Potter. Naturally, the Slytherins refute that. The Ravenclaws stay out of it.
Lily knew she was different than her brothers; even the sorting hat had said so -- that's why she wasn't in Gryffindor with James. At times, she would wonder what made her so different. So far, the only difference seemed to be that she couldn't levitate a feather, never mind transfigure her cat into something interesting.
"Alright, first years," one of the prefects said. "We'll guard the way so no one will catch you. Follow the seventh years, they know how this is done, ok?"
The first years nodded in agreement.
"You'll leave fifteen minutes after us, so we have enough time to clear the way."
The six prefects left the common room to secure the path. The seventh years anxiously stared at the clock above the entranceway. Fifteen minutes to go.
3
"Teddy, there isn't one time in all the time I've known you that you would rather stay in the library and study rather than go to Honeydukes or the Three Broomsticks. What's wrong with you?" Vicky asked, playfully slapping his arm.
"I need to study for the NEWTs," he replied, getting up with a massive tome.
"Teddy..."
"Vicky, I'm sorry I can't go, but I have to stay here."
"It's still the beginning of the year, you can miss one day."
"I'm behind in divination."
"Why are you taking that for your NEWT?"
"It'll give me an edge."
"You aren't a seer."
"But I can learn to interpret signs, which is what I'm trying to do, and it's going to take a very long time to learn."
"Then why didn't you start last year?"
"Last year I went to Hogsmeade. I know you're disappointed, and I really am sorry. Why don't you go and hang out with Laura and Mitchell?"
"And what? Watch them snog all afternoon?"
"I want you to go."
"Then come with me!"
"I need to study!"
"Fine! Forget it, see if I care!"
"Vicky..."
"Teddy...you didn't remember, did you?"
"Remember what?"
Vicky shook her head and left him alone in the library. Fine, if he was going to be like that, there was nothing she could do to stop him. Damn him, damn their anniversary, damn the NEWTs. She would go to Hogsmeade without him, lead the third-years around and show them the sights. She would deal with Teddy later, in the practice room.
3
For the first time in her life, Lily didn't know who to root for. Kelsie and Tad insisted that she root for Slytherin; it was her house, after all, and chances are some of the older students would never let her live it down if she cheered for Gryffindor. Then again, half of the Gryffindor team was her family -- Teddy, Vicky, Fred, and James she had all known for her entire life. The Slytherin team had been good to her -- even going so far as to let her practice with them when their keeper was out with the flu. Yuzi -- next year's captain -- had already promised her the keeper position for next year. But the Gryffindors had her blood...she had to get Vicky's opinion.
Lily looked up and down the Gryffindor table. She was sitting with two Gryffindors Lily didn't know. Quickly, she approached the Gryffindors and sat next to Vicky.
"I can't believe they're actually letting Yuzi play," one of the Gryffindors said, "especially after he nearly killed Professor Longbottom."
"He served his detentions, it's their call," the other said.
"Why is there a Slytherin sitting next to you?" the first one said.
"This is Lily, my cousin. Lily, this is Laura and Mitchell," Vicky said.
"I thought you'd be taller," Lily admitted. She had only heard about how Mitchell kept stuffing Teddy in muggle basketball outside. Teddy wasn't a short person, so she thought Mitchell would be taller than Teddy. But he wasn't.
"Umm...coming from a scrawny first-year, I don't appreciate that," Mitchell said defensively, crossing his arms.
"Lily, watch it. What do you need?"
"Well...I...umm..."
"What is it?"
"I don't know who to root for at the game." She could feel her cheeks flush with embarrassment.
"Gryffindor," Laura said quickly.
"I agree," Mitchell consented.
"I didn't ask you," Lily said sharply. Vicky started laughing.
"Don't listen to them, Lily; House always trumps blood," Vicky said.
"Always?"
"Unless you're at home. At Hogwarts, it does. Just don't take your house home. You know? It could get really messy between you and Jim and even Al could get in on the action, but he'd probably just read a book."
"So I should go for Slytherin?"
"As much as it pains me to say so," Vicky said.
"You're killing me, Frenchie," Mitchell said, grasping his chest in mock-pain.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I've done that before," Vicky said, brushing his comment away.
"Thanks," Lily said, hugging her cousin before running off.
It was solved, then; she would wear her green sweater Grandma Weasley made her instead of her mother's red one.
3
Teddy let the water run over his bare back. He had forgone the regality of the prefect bathroom for the simplicity of a shower. He didn't deserve a bath.
How could he score nothing? Against Slytherin? He hit his head against the wall. How had he slipped up so much?
"Teddy? Are you in here?"
It was James.
"What do you want, James?"
"I'm sorry for knocking Vicky off her broom, and for not protecting Timmy as much as I should have."
"Don't worry about it, James."
"I feel bad about it, though."
"It isn't your fault we lost the match."
"But...still...I contributed."
"James, shut up! It wasn't your fault! If it was anyone's it was mine!"
All he could hear was the running water pattering against the floor.
"Alright," James said softly.
Why did he have to be so harsh with him? Why did he suck so badly today? He was forgetting something. His team was falling apart -- Vicky in the infirmary, Timmy struggling to get over a broken shoulder...and he trying to focus on what had to be done. His work, his NEWTs, his Quidditch, his Headboy duties...all of it weighed heavily on him.
He rinsed the soap off of his body.
3
"Ike, have you seen my transfiguration book around?" Al asked.
"Pshaw, no, why would I keep track of your stuff? I have trouble figuring out where my own stuff is." Ike looked around the room for a second. "You'd think a group of kids supposed to be the smartest in the school could keep their room clean."
"No way," Al said, picking his way over a stack of books, a pile of clothes, and a mess of papers. "We're smart, not tidy. So long as we do our work and keep our grades up, we'll be fine. But I need that book. Can I borrow yours?"
"I need to work on my own homework. Do you think Cara would have one you can borrow?"
"I doubt it. Last time I asked her, she looked at me like I had three and half heads. She won't let her books out of her sight." Al flopped down on his bed. "I really need to get organized."
"So what are you doing for vacation?" Ike asked, sitting on his own bed.
"Going home. I don't really want to. I can only imagine the fireworks James is going to set off because we have a Slytherin in the family, now."
"Do you even know why Lily is in Slytherin?"
"No, it doesn't really matter to me. I mean, I would have preferred it for her to be in Gryffindor, a better environment and stuff, but she'll be fine in Slytherin. I've seen her talking with Vicky and stuff, so I know that she's still getting the support outside of the Slytherins. So...yeah."
"Are you happy in Ravenclaw?" Ike looked over at Al expectantly.
"I suppose so."
"You don't know for sure?"
"Well, sometimes I wonder how it would have been if I was in Gryffindor with James. He kind of looks down on me now, and I don't like that. I take it you like it?"
"There isn't any other house I could picture myself in."
"I'm going to see if the library has a spare copy," Al said.
"Good luck."
"Thanks."
Al grabbed his bag off the end of his bed and meandered through the hallways. He had to do something about his disorganization.
3
Lily grabbed her books and shoved them in her bag. She'd leave her locked trunk at school over the vacation. The Burrow had most of her clothes, and all she had to worry about was school work.
"Are you going home?" Lily asked Kelsie. She hadn't packed anything, yet, but she had it all spread out on her bed.
"I think so, but I like it better here," Kelsie, her voice low, said.
"Why wouldn't you want to go home?"
"It's just...never mind, it isn't important."
"Alright." Lily let the topic drop, not sure what to say. "Do you need any help packing?"
"No, I'll manage."
"Ok, I need to talk to Jim and see when we're leaving."
"Have a good vacation if I don't see you again."
"You, too."
3
Teddy stared at the train, waiting to get on. Vicky stood next to him. Neither said anything. The only thing Teddy could think about was how the team wouldn't be able to practice for a week and then when they came back, they had a game that week. And the team was still recovering from the crushing Slytherin defeat. And all week, he would be staring at a Slytherin.
He took a deep breath and followed Vicky onto the train. She entered the prefect cabin and he followed. Nodding to the others, he took his seat next to Vicky.
"What's wrong, Teddy?"
"Nothing."
"You're lying."
"We aren't going to be able to practice for a week."
"Teddy, it's Christmas break. Give it a rest."
"Slytherin beat us! That hasn't happened in all the years I've been on the team. Ravenclaw, sure, Hufflepuff, once, but Slytherin? Never! It's unacceptable!"
"Tell you what, Teddy, how about you practice outside in the freezing cold. I'm sure at least Jim will accommodate your ridiculous needs."
"What? You won't practice?"
"It's Christmas break! At home, with my parents!"
"Why won't you practice?"
"Teddy, sometimes you make me infuriated."
Teddy looked at her, confused, and saw the anger rise in her eyes.
"I can't believe you think I'd play a game with you rather than be with my family," Vicky snapped.
"Why are you angry with me?"
"Why am I angry? For the past three months you've refused to consider anything but Quidditch or school work. You haven't even listened whenever I tried to talk with you and you didn't participate in any house events! Something's changed in you, and I'm not sure it's for the better."
"So it's my fault I'm trying to become more responsible?"
"There's a difference between trying to change and forgetting who you are. I think you've forgotten who you are, Teddy."
"What are you talking about?"
"Forget it, then! It isn't like you listen to anything I say, anyway!"
Vicky stood up and left the cabin, leaving Teddy completely confused, irate, and with a group of interested prefects.
3
"Why are you wearing green, Lily?" James asked.
"Umm...I dunno, why are you wearing red, James?" Lily replied, throwing her bag over her shoulder.
"I'm not letting you get in the car with that on."
"Stop being such a baby, James," Lily said, pushing through the crowd in an effort to get
to the platform.
"You're one to talk."
"What? Just because I'm the youngest?"
"Will you two stop? There's mum and dad," Al said, diverging from the pair.
"Hello mum!" Lily yelled, waving her hand. Their mother smiled and waved her own hand, beckoning them to hurry.
"We're taking everyone back to the Burrow," their father said, "so if you see any of your cousins, let them know to come this way."
"So long as I don't have to sit next to Teddy," Vicky said irately, taking her position next to Lily.
"Fine with me," Teddy said, standing on the other side of James.
"We'll let you figure out the seating position. Where're Rose and Fred?"
"Right here," the two said, coming up behind the rest of them.
"Alright, everyone have their stuff?" Ginny asked.
"Yep, damn us if we don't."
"Fred, watch your language," Harry said sternly.
"What about Eustice, Andrea, Tanya, and little George?" Ginny asked.
"Eustice has to stay at Hogwarts. Andrea and Tanya are both going to the Longbottom
house for a couple of days. George is...right there!" Teddy said, pointing through the crowd at the tallest, most red haired kid in the crowd.
"Georgie!" Vicky yelled over the crowd. "Get over here!"
James glanced at her, shocked at how loud she was being. She was angry, the faint red fire stirring in eyes, a result of her veela blood.
"Teddy, what did you do to Vicky?" James whispered.
"Shut up, Jim."
"Alright, let's go," George said, clapping James on the back.
"Really? You determine when we stay and when we go?" Harry asked.
"Uncle Harry, really, I want to get home," Vicky said tersely.
"Alright, alright," Harry said. "Come on, get in the car."
The group left the platform and piled into Harry's car.
3
Lily stared at her room in the Burrow. She had been told multiple times that she had her mother's old room, but it looked much different. Rather than the posters of the latest band, she had her uncle's old Chudley Cannon gear -- refurbished to her liking, of course. All of it was really valuable since they had revamped their team.
It was good to be home.
"Lily, it's time for dinner!" her grandmother yelled up the stairs. She pulled her Chudley Cannons sweatshirt on and ran down the stairs. The others were already seated at the table -- the silent Teddy and Vicky, Fred and little George conspiring together, all of her mother's brothers and their wives laughing and swapping all sorts of stories.
"How do you like Hogwarts, Lily?"
"I love it, although I'm pretty bad at most of the magic part."
"Yeah, she burned through three cauldrons and she's a Slytherin, supposedly some of the best potion makers," James laughed.
"Hey, James, don't make fun of your sister," their mum said sharply. "She's doing the best she can."
"At least my Quidditch team didn't get crushed," Lily muttered.
"What was that?" James demanded.
"Lily, don't bring that up," Vicky said loudly.
"She said something about that match, didn't she?" Teddy yelled from across the room.
"Great, now we're in for this for the rest of vacation?" Al said.
"Oh, come on, did you really expect to beat us? The Slytherin team is the strongest it's
been in decades!" Lily stood up in defense of her point.
"The only reason we lost is because half of our players have never played before!" Teddy declared.
"You had already played the other houses and won!" Lily replied.
"Both of you, stop it! You leave Hogwarts at Hogwarts. James and Teddy, you know that; Lily, I didn't think I would have to explain that to you," their mum snapped. "If I hear one more insult geared towards houses this vacation, you do not want to know what will happen to you! Do you understand?"
"Sure," Lily said haphazardly.
Aunt Fleur put all of the food on the table with a wave of her wand and they began to eat.
3
Teddy stared at the pages of his book. He needed to memorize the dates of the Goblin Rebellion. Even after seven years of hearing about it, he still couldn't remember the dates. Everyone has a weakness and his was dates.
He rubbed his eyes and looked around his stark room. Last summer he had moved in with Ginny and Harry. It had been fun, but it wasn't the same as living with his grandmother. It was hard to study, too. Lily was above him and he could always hear her music blaring through the walls. Al was next to him and he was pretty quiet, but when James got riled up, he would throw a ball against his wall, making quite a racket in Teddy's room. He thought about asking to move into the attic, but it was thoroughly used for storage and it would be too much work to clean it out. So he stayed in his room.
A part of him wished he had personalized his room more. All he had done was throw his red bedspread over his mattress and put a picture of him and his grandmother on his desk. But this didn't feel like home. It was still a bit foreign to him. Home was his old room in his grandmother's house, the room that had been his mother's growing up, the room that had the posters and pictures plastered on the walls, the room that held the memories of his grandmother bringing him milk and cookies and little Quidditch toys.
He bowed his head to his book. His grandmother always encouraged him to become an Auror, like his mother. She had told him he looked like her a lot. The hair -- it was all in the hair. He couldn't concentrate. Glancing at himself in the mirror, he changed his hair color from turquoise to red. These funny hair colors...who could take him seriously? Who would hire him as an Auror with this hair? He let the color drain from them, to its natural brown color. Was that better? He couldn't tell. Shaking his head, he resumed his studying. Prepare for the NEWTs, that was the best use of his time if he couldn't train Quidditch.
3
"What did you do to your hair, Teddy?" Al asked casually, passing the pitcher of orange juice.
"Let it return to my natural hair color. Is it that bad?"
"No, it doesn't look bad. Just...different is all," Al said. Teddy shrugged and took his toast.
"Where's Ginny?"
"Still asleep, I guess. Why?"
"I want to go to Diagon Alley today and pick up a few things, if it's alright with her."
"Can I come?"
"If it's ok with your mum."
"Oh, hey Al," his mum said, entering the room. "Good morning, James."
Al laughed at his mum's mistake and Teddy turned around.
"My god, Teddy? Wow...I...I'm sorry. Has...has anyone ever told you you look just like
your father?" she said.
"No, I don't think so."
"Do you have a picture of him?" Al's mum started fishing through one of the drawers.
"I don't think so; most of my grandmother's photographs were burned in the fire."
"Well, here's a nice one. Hold onto it. I never realized how much of Remus you really had in you."
Al craned his neck to look at the photo. It was of his father when he was young, a man he presumed was Remus and a woman with pink hair -- obviously Tonks, Teddy's mother.
"Thanks," Teddy said, staring at the picture. "These are my parents, right?"
"Yep."
"Um...Can I take Al to Diagon Alley with me to do some Christmas shopping?" Teddy didn't take his eyes off the picture.
"Sure."
"Do you need me to get anything for you?"
"No, I'm fine. You two just stay out of trouble."
"We'll probably go this afternoon, if that's ok, Al."
"That's fine," Al said, grinning. An afternoon with Teddy...he couldn't wait.
3
It was Christmas. Lily could smell her grandmother's cinnamon buns in her room. She opened her eyes and her presents were piled on the end of her bed. Quickly, she opened them all. All of her presents were wonderful. Except for one.
Uncle Percy and Eustice had given her a nice set of quills and ink. Uncle George and his family had given her a huge package of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur had given her a massive box of chocolate. Uncle Charlie and his wife had given her a nice pair of dragonhide gloves. Uncle Ron and his family had given her a very nice journal. Vicky had given her two sets of basic potion ingredients and a basic potions book. Teddy and Al had given her a stocking full of candy. Her parents had given her a new Chudley Cannons sweatshirt. Her grandmother gave her handmade gloves and a scarf, both Slytherin green, and a chocolate cake. And, of course, James had given her a cauldron.
The last gift ruined her appetite for her candies, cakes, and her grandmother's cinnamon buns. Why did he have to do that?
3
Vicky looked at her presents laid out in front of her. They were wonderful -- perfumes, candies, the usual Weasley sweater, a couple of books, and even a new telescope. But not one of them was from Teddy. Did he forget Christmas, too?
No, he had said he was going to go in Diagon Alley. So why didn't he get her a present? Lily had said that Al went with him, but wouldn't say what he got. She had Al's present -- a cute little bobble head lion -- but where was Teddy's? She had sent Teddy's present to him -- a nice bottle of cologne. And she had nothing in return.
"Victoire!" her papa called up the stairs. "We're leaving! Hurry up!"
She put on her new sweater and jogged down the stairs.
3
Lily wanted to pull her wand on James, but she knew he would only mock her for it and she would get in trouble for it. Vicky sat between her and James, and there was no doubt she did that on purpose. Al sat on her other side, munching on his candy from Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur and a cinnamon bun in his other hand.
"You're going to get sick, Al," their mum said, shaking her head.
"Oh, let the boy eat his candy, Ginny," Uncle Bill said. "He either eats it now or gets it stolen at Hogwarts, am I right?"
"I can't keep anything from Ike," Al admitted, wiping his face on his sleeve. Uncle Charlie and Aunt Emma came into the crowded Burrow, Andrea and Tanya shortly behind them.
"Hello, Lily," they greeted, reaching down and hugging her. "How do you like Slytherin?"
"It's ok."
"Yeah, just ok," James said. "Nothing compared to Gryffindor."
"Shove it, Jim."
"Why because I'm right?"
Lily wanted to hit him, to put him in his place, to pound his face in. She jerked to get up, but Vicky restrained her. None of the adults noticed.
"Save it for Quidditch," Vicky said. Lily leaned back in the chair and crossed her arms. Lily hated James right now.
3
Al was the first one on the broom and off flying around. He always forgot how much he loved flying over the fields by the Burrow, especially when they were covered in snow. It was so tranquil, peaceful, natural. He could hear James speeding behind him, his breathing rough and ragged. He wasn't so peaceful. Lily was behind him, her own movements silent. The three of them flew in a few circles until everyone but Grandma Weasley was mounted and ready to play.
Al was Keeper, even though he begged with James to be seeker. He could see Lily's disappointment when Al took his keeper position; for some reason, she always wanted the position, but never got it. He had never seen her play keeper, only chaser, and she was pretty good, matching even their mum, but James was no contest for their father. It didn't matter, though, since they were only playing for fun. He thought.
James started scouring the field for the snitch, so did their father. Al watched the chasers as they flew around and kept an eye out for any bludgers; you never knew when Uncle George would spring one on you. He was captivated by Lily; something was different about her and Vicky. They were angry, really really angry.
Lily was flying like a maniac, left, right, up, down. No one was really sure what to do with her. The other team just kept away.
Their mum had the quaffle -- or what was the quaffle -- and was flying towards Al. Lily sped up on her broom and tackled her, stealing the quaffle and passing it to Vicky. Their mum nearly fell off the broom.
"Lily!" she screamed. "What was that?"
Lily ignored her and continued on to face Uncle Ron.
"Get off the broom, Al. This is done," his mum said, spiraling toward the ground. Al landed, regretting that he couldn't show off any of his skills, and dismounted his broom. Lily was in for it.
3
Teddy threw all of his stuff in his trunk, carefully placing the photo of his parents on top. This vacation was a disaster. Of all the stupid things James has done, irritating his sister about her house was probably the stupidest. This wasn't his home.
He looked around, making sure he didn't miss anything. Nope. His room was cleared out. After checking the mirror, he slid into his shirt and went down the stairs to breakfast. Lily was sitting next to James, staring at her oatmeal. Al, too, was downcast, staring at his toast.
"I can't wait to get back to Hogwarts!" James expounded, his eyes wide. "The Gryffindors always have a party the week after vacation! It's going to be awesome. Does Slytherin have holiday parties? I bet you don't. Slytherins always act like they have a stick in their pants." He chomped down on his toast. "And the Ravenclaws are too stuck to their books to do anything fun."
Teddy wanted to go back upstairs; he could see Al becoming irritated. Lily was already beyond irritated, verging on infuriated. One of them was going to deck him. He didn't want to know which one it was.
But there were left over cinnamon buns from Christmas still on the stove...ugh.
"Good morning, Lily, Al, Jim," Teddy said, hopping down the stairs and scoffing a few cinnamon buns off the stove.
"Are you excited for the Gryffindor Christmas Party?" James asked, pointing his finger excitedly.
"I think you're getting too excited."
"Oh, come on. You know Gryffindor is the best. I mean, do other houses have parties?"
"Actually, they do," Al said. Teddy could hear his restraint.
"Really? When was the last time Ravenclaw had one?"
"We have one the first Friday for the first years."
"Hmm...Doesn't sound interesting."
"James, you don't know what you're talking about," Al said, again struggling to control his temper.
"No, I think I do."
"Shut up!" Lily shouted.
Teddy shoved his cinnamon roll in his mouth and booked it up the stairs before it got messy. He knew someone had to teach James a lesson; he just didn't want it on his head.
3
Lily stared at Al, shocked. Al's face was red, his hand fisted, and his other hand full of James's shirt.
"What did you do?" Lily screamed, pulling Al off James.
"I punched him!" Al replied, spitting on James.
Blood gushed down James's face, spouting from his nose.
"You broke his nose!" Lily said.
"No I didn't."
"What is going on down here?" their mum said, coming into the kitchen. She saw James and pulled out her wand. "Sit still." She shoved him on the chair and tapped his face with her wand. He screamed in pain, his arms struggling against his mother's binding charm.
"Who did this?" she said sternly, facing Lily and Al.
Lily glanced at Al, but kept quiet.
"Lily, I expected more from you," she said.
"It wasn't Lily," Al said, still angry. "I did it. Because he wouldn't shut up about how Gryffindor is soooo much better than all of the other houses."
"It wasn't Lily?"
"No," Al said firmly. "I did it."
"You aren't protecting her?"
"No."
"Alright, Lily go upstairs. I need to speak with these two."
"Why should I leave?"
"Lily, get out of here," her mum said louder.
Grudgingly, Lily thudded up the stairs to her room. She didn't think Al would actually do that. Sure, he had threatened it enough times, but to think of Al fighting...it was ludicrous. James certainly deserved it; he had been a jerk to Al since he was sorted and had been riding her since she was sorted.
But Al really went at it. He broke James's nose! Never in a million years had she expected that. Mindlessly, she threw her stuff in her bag and got ready to go.
3
"Not born, but from a Mother's body drawn, I hang until half of me is gone. I sleep in a cave until I grow old, then valued for my hardened gold. What am I?" the statue said.
"Can't you just let me in today?" Al said morosely, leaning against the wall. "I really don't know."
"Well, that's the riddle for now, so until you or someone else gets it, you're stuck out here."
"I hate you sometimes."
"Most students do."
Al slid against the wall until he was sitting on the floor. He was not in the mood for this. His father had yelled at him for over an hour for slugging James. He still thought James deserved it, no matter what his parents said. Lily knew he deserved, even Teddy had said he deserved it and he rarely thought violence was appropriate. When he refused to apologize, his mother yelled at him for half an hour and then his grandmother took over for a few minutes and then his Aunt Hermione had a go at it. None of them were successful. None of them understood. James wasn't bashing their house every three seconds.
"What are you doing here, Al?" Ike said, offering his hand. Al helped himself up and looked at his friend.
"Couldn't figure out the riddle."
"What is it?"
The statue reiterated the riddle.
"I heard this one before we left -- Cheese?"
"Yes, hurry up and get inside before I change my mind."
The pair of them scurried into the common room.
"So how was your vacation, Potter?" Ike asked, sliding into the dormitory.
"Terrible. My brother rode me and Lily all week."
"James?"
"Yeah -- I slugged him this morning."
"Crap, Al, I didn't think you had it in you."
"No?"
"No."
"So how was your vacation?"
"Better than yours, evidently."
"Yep."
3
Vicky stared at Teddy bowed over a book in the corner. Nothing had changed over vacation. He was still obsessed with his studies, with Quidditch, with anything but her. She knew it was selfish, that she should be concerned for him -- and she was -- but they had been dating since her third year. She couldn't imagine he would just change his priorities so rapidly. Maybe he just didn't care anymore.
"Hey, what's wrong with you?" Laura asked, sitting next to her on the couch.
"Nothing," Vicky replied, looking at the fire instead.
"It's Teddy, isn't it?"
"It's just...never mind...it doesn't matter."
"You need to talk to him or something."
"I know...but he's always busy."
"You need to do it."
Vicky looked back to Teddy, his brown hair flopping over his eyes and his head bowed to his book. Maybe it wasn't what she thought it was. Maybe it was just nothing at all and it was only her imagination that was playing all sorts of games on her.
3
Lily stared into the depths of her cauldron, sniffing the thin smoke rising from its surface. It smelled like flowers, which was in line with the book, but she had to keep paying attention. She might very well be wrong, but it smelled ok, so she kept putting in the ingredients the recipe called for. She glanced into Kelsie's cauldron to make sure she was on track. Kelsie's potion was clear and they were on the same step.
Damn it. She was wrong. She felt heat rise in her face. She thought she was actually doing it right this time, too. She glanced at the clock; there wasn't enough time to start over, so she just continued to make the potion as described.
"You need a bit less of eye newt, Lily," Professor Wolfe said. "It won't have any detrimental effects in the long run, but it does give it the pinkish hue here. Good work, though."
Lily looked over her shoulder at Wolfe and nodded. Phew. So there really wasn't a reason to start over. She bowed her head over her cauldron and began stirring. The fumes made her head light, but she had to make sure she was stirring at the right pace in the right direction. As it simmered, the fumes intensified. She inhaled them, not sure if it was going to be detrimental to her health or not. It was a rudimentary potion, so it couldn't be that damaging, right?
Beneath the surface of her potion, she thought she could see something stirring -- like bubbles or small pieces of goat liver. But it wasn't either of those things. They were too big and a bit more defined. One of them looked like...well, a snake, she supposed. The other like a cat, or maybe a lion. They seemed to be fighting, taken up in the bubbles of simmering, and the lion seemed to be winning. However, another piece of debris, one that almost looked like a bird, came out of nowhere and ate the lion. Then it fell back into the cauldron, leaving only the snake.
"Lily," Kelsie whispered, "are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," Lily replied, shaking off the sense of reverie she had.
She looked into her potion, now clear, and then at the clock.
"Once you bring me your samples, you are dismissed!" Professor Wolfe said. Lily dipped a vial into her cauldron, labeled it, and put it on Professor Wolfe's desk.
"Wow, Lily, I'm impressed. I think this is the best one here. Three points for Slytherin."
Lily looked at the others on the table -- some of them had various hues of color, others were foggy, one was black, but only hers was perfectly clear. Even Kelsie's had a tint of blue.
"Thank you, professor."
Lily grabbed her bag and left the room. Her next class was charms, which certainly was not going to be loads of fun.
3
Teddy stared at the pages of his history book. Why was he even taking this class? Did he really need these NEWTs? He still had muggle studies, but that was his back up in case history of magic fell through. It certainly seemed like it was going to fall through, especially if he couldn't even remember the dates of the most monumental events.
He let his head fall against his desk. Why did he put himself through this? Maybe he had had enough of history. Maybe he should look for a moment at muggle studies. He could understand this -- the way things worked in their world, the way a car moved or a refrigerator refriged. The technical stuff was easy; it was the past that got him.
"Err, Teddy, what are you doing?" Quinn asked, grabbing his muggle studies book from him.
"Ah, studying for your NEWTs, I see. Why in the world are you doing this? No one else is. It isn't like you're going to be able to memorize everything there is to memorize before the test. You should have started studying back in first year with this attitude you've developed. You're never going to be able to do it."
"I only need five -- one in Transfiguration, Defense, Charms, Potions, and either muggle studies or history of magic because those are the classes I'm taking this year."
"You're crazy, you know that, right?"
"Yeah."
"Oh, and Vicky wants to talk with you."
"What?"
"Yeah -- I don't know why. She just told me to get you because she didn't want to track you down like a hound."
"Tell her I'm in the middle of studying."
"She's going to eat me, or at least put a fireball through me, if I tell her that. She's really angry with you."
"She'll understand that I need to do this right now."
"Hey, she's your girlfriend, for now, at least."
"Whatever, Quinn. I just need to finish going over some dates."
Alright, then, see you later.
3
"To Albus Potter!" Ike screamed across the common room.
"To Albus Potter!" The Ravenclaws agreed.
They all lifted their butterbeer and clinked them together. Al laughed, inexpressibly thrilled at his success of seeker. He had caught the snitch in three minutes, one of the fastest times in Hogwarts history, to beat down Gryffindor and, at least temporarily, put Ravenclaw in first place for the house cup.
"I don't think I deserve this," Al said humbly, standing on a chair. "I think the real credit goes to our keeper, Kat, and the several saves she made while I tried to figure out where, exactly the snitch was. To Katherine Gordon!"
"To Katherine Gordon!" The Ravenclaws agreed.
They all clinked their bottles together and took a long draught.
"You're too humble, Potter!" Kat yelled across the room.
"I think you've set a Ravenclaw record, Al," Ike said energetically. He pointed to the board with all the announcements and, sure enough, there was a small blue slip of paper that announced the new Ravenclaw record. Everyone saw it and cheered again. Al just laughed, proud that he could carry on the family legacy. He had to write home to his father.
Just not now. He took a pastry off the tray one of the first years was passing around and sunk his teeth into its flaky sweetness. Tonight, he would celebrate.
3
"How could you let Al catch the snitch before you?" James yelled at Tim in the common room.
"Hey, look, if you hadn't let the bludger knock Teddy out, then we wouldn't have had that distraction!"
"It isn't my fault!"
"Shut up!" Vicky yelled across the room. A hush fell over the common room. "Teddy got knocked off his broom because he's an idiot. You didn't catch the snitch because you were worried about Teddy. And you, Jim, need to remember your place! I'm sick of you acting like you know more about stuff or like you're better than everyone else. Got it?"
"Yeah, I got it. I got that you're a stuck up prick," James said.
"James you do not want to fight with me tonight."
"And if I do?"
Vicky snapped out her wand and aimed it at the boy.
"I know curses that would make your insides boil."
"You'll get expelled."
She flicked her wand without muttering a spell and it felt as if hot iron belts were wrapping around James's body. He screamed and fell to the floor, writhing in pain. They seared his flesh. They restrained his movement. He couldn't escape.
She flicked her wand again and the burning bindings were gone, the pain was subsiding but still prominent.
"Do not underestimate me."
Vicky pocketed her wand and went up to the girl's dormitories.
"James, are you alright?" Rose asked, kneeling down besides him.
"Yeah," he said. His breathing was ragged and sweat dripped down the sides of his face. "I'm fine."
3
Lily paced back and forth in the corridor, her wand in her hand. How was she supposed to learn how to disarm someone in less than a week? It took her more than a month to figure out the levitating charm, never mind stupefy -- she still couldn't even get Tad to become faintly dazed. Last time she asked someone for help, they ended up in the hospital wing. She had sent Tad there twice, Kelsie three times, and various older students several times. No one would let her practice on them.
Professor Berne was going to kill her if she couldn't get this, what he said was one of the fundamentals in protecting yourself, in the next week. She didn't know what to do.
Maybe Al would help. He might have heard about all of her forays into involuntary homicide -- the Slytherins were usually really good at keeping their deviant students shrouded in mystery -- so there was hope someone from outside of the house would help her.
She slumped against the wall and stared at the high ceiling. Why did she have to be so bad all the time?
3
Teddy flipped through his potions book. Where was the page on the polyjuice potion? It didn't list it in his index, but he knew he saw it somewhere. Professor Wolfe, the bastard, had given them the assignment last night to start it. The result would count for half of their final grade.
Why did he have a different edition of the book than everyone else? He flung it across the room and ran his fingers through his hair. Did anyone in Gryffindor have the new edition? None of the seventh year Gryffindors were taking potions. The only sixth years in advanced potions were Vicky and Mitchell. Both of them were currently in transfiguration.
There was no point in him making polyjuice potion, anyway. He could transfigure into whatever he wanted without it. Professor Wolfe was just a dingbat.
"Hey, Teddy, Vicky is looking for you," Quinn said, coming into the room.
"I thought she was in Transfiguration," Teddy said.
"You've been up here all afternoon; you've missed dinner and you know the clock in here doesn't work."
"Well, what does she want with me?"
"How the hell should I know?" Quinn flopped on his bed and stared at the ceiling. "Go find out for yourself."
"Fine -- I need to figure out if I can use her potions book, anyway," Teddy said.
He pulled himself out of the chair, nearly knocking over his inkwell in the process. If Vicky wanted to talk to him, fine, he would talk with her.
"She in the common room?"
"Yeah."
Teddy thudded down the stairs to the common room; why did Vicky have to keep bothering him when he was trying to study?
3
Al looked across the room at Lily.
"Just focus on what you're trying to do, say the incantation, and flick your wand," he said. "It's easy."
"Ok."
Al stared at Lily as she said the incantation and flicked her wand. A weak stream of red slipped from the tip of her wand, but didn't make it all the way to Al, tapering out halfway across the room instead.
"I'm never going to be able to disarm anything!"
Lily slumped to the floor. Al looked at her, unsure of what to do. He wanted to help his sister, to teach how to use the spell properly, but she just couldn't do it. They'd been going at it for almost four hours. She was becoming disheartened, and that would not help her. He heard her sniffle. Was she crying? He couldn't deal with this.
"Do you want to disarm something?" he asked harshly.
"What?" She looked up at him, wiping away tears from her cheeks.
"You're acting like you don't want to. You're acting like no one could ever disarm someone."
"Al, you don't understand! I'm not nearly as good at magic as you and Jim."
"It doesn't matter."
"How does it not matter? It took me a month to figure out levitation!"
"So what? You did it, didn't you? What's different about this?"
"It's a higher level spell."
"Lily, if you're going to give up on this, you might as well go home."
Al could hear peeves in the hallway, banging on doors of uninhabited classrooms and making a general ruckus.
"Get something to eat. We've done enough today," Al said, pocketing his wand.
"No," Lily said, getting up off the floor. "I don't want to leave."
"Look, I'm hungry. I'll give you three more tries before I'm going to dinner. Just remember to focus on the goal, the wand movements, and the incantation, and you should be good."
Al watched Lily, surprised by her sudden change of demeanor. She looked fierce, as if she would kill him if he tried to leave.
"Expelliarmus!"
She flicked her wand just right, aimed it well, but the power behind it was still lacking. This frustrated Al as much as it did Lily. He had invested all morning in trying to get her to do this properly, she had all the mechanics down, but her innate ability was so little it took her hours to even get the slightest result. He knew James didn't have this problem, and he was one of the fastest learners in Ravenclaw. So why did the third Potter have so much difficulty with this?
"Expelliarmus!"
The power this time made it over three quarters of the way across the room. She was making improvement. But it still wasn't enough. Al could see Lily getting red in the face. He gripped his wand tightly, ready to block her spell but not really fully preparing. What were the odds that she would get it now?
"Expelliarmus!"
Al's wand shot from his hand.
Lily stared at Al, her face white.
"Are you hurt?" she asked.
"No, why? You did it! Hurry up and do it again before I change my mind." Al picked up his wand and took a few steps back.
"Expelliarmus!"
Again, his wand flew out of his hand.
"Well, it seems you have this down pretty well," Al said.
"Thanks!" Lily ran up to him and hugged him tightly before scuttling off down the hall, remembering their plan. She would go three minutes before him so as to not cause house tension. Al sat down in one of the vacant chairs. He hoped he didn't have to do this every week -- it was exhausting and time consuming.
Ah well, time for dinner.
3
Vicky burrowed her face in her pillow. Damn him. Damn their relationship. Damn the past three years. Damn it all. It didn't mean anything to him. Nothing. He threw it all away. And for what? A few extra minutes studying? She had given him everything he asked for. And she didn't even get a Christmas present.
She couldn't stop the tears flowing from her eyes, nor her throat from aching, nor her breath from catching.
Why did he have to be such a prick?
"Vicky?" Laura asked, sitting on her bed. "Are you coming down to eat?"
"I'm not hungry," Vicky replied between sobs.
"Alright."
Vicky cried herself to sleep.
3
Teddy stared at the jewelry box in his hands. Had he done something wrong? He had known he didn't give her a Christmas present; he was waiting until her birthday. And he thought their anniversary was closer to the end of the year rather than before Christmas. Then again, he was always bad with dates.
"Hey, man, heard what happened," Quinn said, sitting on the end of the bed. "What's that?"
"Her birthday present."
Teddy tossed it haphazardly into his trunk. It didn't matter anymore. Everything he tried to do ended in misery. He tried to ensure a better future for himself and Vicky and it ended up splitting them up. He tried to make his present special and it just made her angry. He tried to memorize the date of their anniversary and he memorized the wrong date.
"Looks nice."
"I worked scrubbing the cauldrons for Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes research and development department all summer to get the cash."
"All summer?"
"Three to five every weekday."
"Must've been nasty."
"Especially when they were still working out the kinks for their fart pills. Nasty stuff, that."
"That's disgusting."
"Don't need to tell me."
"So...how are you doing?"
"I need to keep studying. My history dates still aren't up to par and I still can't label all the parts to a car."
"Are you going to do anything to try and get her back?"
"What can I do?" Teddy flung himself back on his bed. "Everything I try to do ends in ruins."
Teddy listened to the clock ticking above the door.
"Are you coming down to dinner?" Quinn asked.
"No, I'm not hungry."
"Ok, see you later."
"Yeah."
Teddy stared at the ceiling. He heard the door open and close. He was alone. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled the photo of his parents out. He had heard multiple times their love story; about the werewolf who fell in love with an animorphus who accepted him, about how they struggled to find the balance between sacrificing themselves for the cause of ridding Voldemort from the world and protecting each other, about how they had him, Teddy, and how they died together, protecting him and all of Hogwarts.
And here he was, not even managing to pick up on the hints his girlfriend left for him. How did his father ever manage to get a wife?
He tucked the picture back in his pocket and rolled over.
How did anyone manage to get a wife?
3
"Finals are in three weeks, Lily, what are you doing?" Kelsie asked.
"Relaxing," Lily replied, stretching out on one of the leather couches.
"You can't let up just because you succeeded in passing one of Professor Berne's tests. We have a history of magic review coming up."
"I know all of that."
"How can you know all of that?"
"Easy -- I pay attention."
"How can you pay attention to Binns?"
"It's a gift, I guess."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah."
"Hey guys!" Tad burst into the common room, his blond hair disheveled and his face red. "Guess what? Slytherin's in the lead for the house cup!"
"What?" one of the fifth years said, jumping out of his chair. "Really? You aren't just pulling my leg?"
"No! Gryffindor and Ravenclaw both lost five hundred house points last night!"
A universal cheer echoed through the common room. Students dashed into the dormitories to spread the news. One of the older students took out a Slytherin banner from a closet and hung it in the common room. Lily joined in the celebration, proud to be a part of it.
3
"What the -- how did we loose five hundred points?" Ike demanded.
"Ten Ravenclaws and ten Gryffindors were found wandering through the hallway last night, getting ready to do the annual prank on Slytherin," one of the fifth years replied.
"How can they get caught? Weren't the prefects in on it?" Al said.
"No -- there was a breakdown in communication somewhere. I blame Teddy and Vicky," the fifth year said. "Teddy was supposed to head it this year as Gryffindor Headboy, but he got distracted by his girlfriend. Go figure."
"Fifty points each for getting caught out of bed? I thought that was a standard twenty-five," Al said.
"They were caught by Professor Wolfe and he knew they were going to prank Slytherin. Someone must have tipped him," the fifth year said. "Besides, all of them had their wands drawn, an immediate twenty point deduction in suspicious cases. They were obviously up to something."
"Idiots," Al whispered. "I bet it was mostly the Gryffindors. Ravenclaws are smart enough not to walk around in the middle of the night with their wands drawn."
"There isn't any way we can come back from this," Ike muttered.
"And there isn't any way the Hufflepuffs can overcome the three hundred point lead Slytherin has."
"I suppose we should prepare ourselves for a Slytherin feast, then," the fifth year sadly remarked.
3
"So," Professor Longbottom said, "Have you given any thought about a career?"
Vicky looked at him sitting on the other side of the desk, his hands shrouded by various plants.
"I don't know, maybe working for the department of control of magical creatures for the ministry."
"You aren't sure?"
"No, I am sure -- that's what I want to do."
Professor Longbottom flipped through a couple of pages in front of him.
"Well, then, you need to get at least an E in care for magical creatures, and charms as well as one of your choice for your NEWTs -- they like potions, though. We like our students to carry on core subjects -- potions, history of magic, defense against the dark arts, and transfiguration -- if they are applicable after the OWLs. I have no doubt in your ability to excel in all of these areas, Weasley.'
"Thank you, sir."
"You may go and continue studying."
Vicky bowed out of the room and stood in the hallway for a few seconds. If all went well, the next few years would be a breeze. Care of magical creatures and charms? How easier could it get?
She returned to the common room and cracked open her potions book -- her most challenging course -- and started memorizing the cures for various poisons.
3
Teddy sprawled out on the grass by the lake. It was over. The NEWTs were done. He was done. No more academics. No more house Quidditch. No more Gryffindor. No more Hogwarts. This was it. The last week on Hogwarts grounds. The last time he could sneak off to the kitchens. The last time he could sneak into the cellar of Honeydukes. The last time he could annoy Quinn into playing a game of wizarding chess. His head throbbed with all of his knowledge leaked onto a page.
The sun beamed down on him with a comforting embrace. Quinn came over and laid down next to him.
"Glad that's over," Quinn muttered, closing his eyes.
"Mmm," Teddy agreed. "They really are nastily exhausting."
"How do you think you did?"
"I think I managed to scrape by in muggle studies, but history of magic is in the toilet. The others are fine. We'll get the official word in a few weeks."
"I know."
The birds twittered overhead.
"It's weird to think that this is what our seven years at Hogwarts has culminated to," Quinn mused. "A really really long test."
"I suppose."
"Yeah."
"I think we'll really know what Hogwarts has taught us next September, when we go to our new jobs instead of returning here. The next time we see the train will be when our kids come here. And we'll never set foot here again unless we become a professor or something terrible happens to our kid."
Some of the first years threw candy into the lake to see the octopus come to the surface.
"I don't want to leave," Quinn sighed.
"I knew it was coming, but it still feels like someone punched me in the gut."
"Mmm; don't talk to me anymore. I'm going to take a nap."
"Alright, that sounds like a good idea. Just like after our first round of final exams?"
"Yep."
Teddy stretched out on the grass, let his eyes close, and fell into a shallow sleep with the sounds of Hogwarts surrounding him.
3
"What happens if you fail your final?" Lily asked, sprawled out on the green bedspread.
"You didn't fail," Kelsie replied, throwing her stuff in her trunk. "Tad did worse than you on the transfiguration final."
"The only reason I even managed to get my matchbox covered in fur was because I used a charm on it."
"Well, you still transfigured it, I guess. It looked like a square mouse. A blind square mouse, but still a mouse."
"I failed."
"You didn't fail; now pack up so we can go down to the feast."
"She's going to know I charmed it."
"Relax. Cunning resourcefulness, remember?" Keslie pointed to the banner across the top of the wall that read off the majority of Slytherin traits they were to take pride in. "Doesn't say anything about honesty."
"Keslie..."
"Stop being so uptight. We won the cup!" Kelsie flopped on her bed and examined the green drapes over their beds. "Why do we have to leave?"
"The professors need a vacation, too."
Lily started throwing stuff into her trunk, not worrying if it would all fit.
"I just don't want to leave."
"I told you my parents said you could visit the Burrow at some point -- I could probably convince them to let you stay for a month, especially when I mention the muggle parents part, why won't this thing close?"
Kelsie took out her wand and flicked it at the trunk. It snapped closed.
"Thanks," Lily sighed.
"Alright, let's go eat."
"Geez, is that all you can think about?"
"I haven't eaten since breakfast out of anticipation."
"That's just stupid."
They went down to the great hall, Tad joining them once they got out of the dungeons.
"I'm going to invite you two to the Malfoy Manor at some point this summer," Tad said.
"I don't think I'd be able to go," Lily said sheepishly, "My father kind of hates your father."
"Yeah...I was afraid of that," Tad admitted, scratching his head. "I guess it won't work out if your father won't let you. I'm not even sure if my father would let a Potter step through the door."
"That would be good to know ahead of time," Kelsie said.
"Holy crap!" Lily pointed at the great hall, all other words failing her.
The hall was entirely decorated with green and silver, from the table clothes to the candles. Tapestries that hung from the wall depicted the serpent and the Slytherin traits. Slytherin pride swelled within Lily; nothing James could say would dampen it.
3
James crossed his arms and slumped against the window in the train.
"What's got you so surly?" Tim asked, sitting across from him.
"Slytherin won the house cup," James muttered.
"Oh, come on, Jim. The food was still good."
"I suppose."
"You really need to stop being so...anti-Slytherin, especially with Lily in the family."
"Please tell me you're joking."
The train started moving.
"Look, all I'm trying to say is...have a nice vacation, Potter," Tim grinned. "It was a fun year, I have to admit."
"Yeah, I suppose it was. I'm glad I got to play Quidditch, even though we sucked this year."
"Next year won't be as nasty. We have Rick for chaser, and Vicky as captain. We can't go wrong. The rest of the team stays. So long as I keep my eyesight sharp, we'll be good."
"Yeah -- Al's going to give you a run for your money, though. He's inherited my father's genes."
"Don't make me laugh -- I have the mighty lion on my side!" Tim flexed his arm in mock strength. James laughed. When all was said and done, it had been a good year. It would have been perfect if Lily hadn't been sorted into Slytherin, but other than that...it was pretty good.
3
Teddy looked out his window the entire way back to Platform 9 3/4. It was the only thing he could do to keep himself composed. He was leaving Hogwarts -- the only place that felt like it was truly home since he had moved in with the Potters. And now he would have to go back there, to the place where he was welcomed but he didn't welcome it. Lily and James would be at each other's throats all summer. He would need to start Auror training as soon as humanly possible.
Playtime was over. It was time to get serious.
3
"So," Lily's dad said, putting his hands on her shoulders, "I see you've survived your first year at Hogwarts?"
"Yep!" Lily said proudly. "And we won the house cup!"
"Really? Slytherin? Congratulations," he said.
"I have a question."
"Yeah?"
"Can a friend stay with us for a while?"
"How long is a while?"
"I dunno. Her parents are muggles and she's never been in a magical household before."
"Is she Slytherin?"
"Yeah."
"I'd have to talk with your mother."
"Why? What does it matter if she's Slytherin or Ravenclaw?"
"I'd still have to talk with your mother."
"True."
"Go wash up for dinner."
Grinning, Lily bolted upstairs. Whether he realized it or not, her father had agreed to the arrangement -- the full month, in fact. They would probably bring Kelsie to Platform 9 3/4 and take her school shopping so her parents didn't have to be bothered by it. She dried her hands on a white towel and went down to the delicious aromas of dinner.
As good as Hogwarts food was, nothing could compare with her grandmother's cooking.
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