Third Year

The grounds were quiet, black. At ten, as was his custom, Argus Filch had made his rounds, polishing errant suits of armour and prowling the borders of the Forest. The students had not yet come back from their holidays, and as such by eleven most of the lights in the castle were out. All but one.

Laughter rang throughout the Headmaster's Study, bouncing off the walls, made golden by the twinkling candle lights. Momentarily distracted from the administrative fracas that ensued after Harry Potter's last adventure, Albus Dumbledore sat in reminiscent conversation with his newly engaged Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, Remus Lupin.

"And then James slipped his Cloak off his head, and the first-year screamed!" Remus cried. Albus was chuckling, and Remus almost crying- although from laughter or the bittersweet feeling of remembering his best friend, James Potter, neither knew. "I'll never know why you made me Prefect, Headmaster, I must admit I had a strong hand in the planning of all these pranks."

"As I suspected, Remus- and please, call me Albus. Well, I must admit I'd thought you'd rein them in a bit once made Prefect!"

"Well, I had the same motivations when it came to most of them, Albus," Remus admitted. "Except when it came to Severus Snape- why, he and James had a rivalry like anything! If he knew I'm to be colleagues with Severus this year, James would already be up to his knees in planning of poisons to lace his drinks with."

Albus paused to give Remus an amusedly chastising expression. "I did always wonder at their... rivalry, you call it? I assume it goes beyond house pride?"

"Oh, beyond that, Albus. If you don't mind me saying, it was over Lily that they fought..."

Both men paused, raising their champagne glasses ever slightly as if to acknowledge the constant presence of their late friends in their thoughts. Remus thought he knew where both men had gone –down the path of remembrance- but Albus's thoughts had gone down a fairly different route...

"It absolutely parallels," Albus remarked.

"True, but Hermione will end up with a Gryffindor, stout of heart, loyal and strong. I see the parallel in that."

"But how can you be sure that their ending was the best yet? We are always too apt to declare the past perfect, too ingrained to repeat it."

"Why not, when the past worked as well as it did? Have the events of last year not warned you enough? Draco and Hermione cannot be together. It will not work." Minerva folded her arms.

"We shall see..."

"Slapped him?"

"Yes, slap! SMACK!" Minerva was almost beside herself with excitement. Albus suspected a kind of vicious reliving in the woman, like Hermione Granger had unknowingly fulfilled a grudge long held by her Transfigurations professor. "I saw it through my window!"

"You know what that means, don't you?"

"Always keen to put an angle on it, aren't you?" she countered suspiciously.

"You put me in the worst light," he chuckled. "Of course it means there's repressed sexual tension between them!"

A string of updates! My writing's a bit off-whack, haven't been doing much for months while catching up on school work but felt highly inspired today to tie up some loose ends. I'm so sorry for leaving you guys hanging! Also apologies for leaving you hanging on writing of this bad quality.