Spoilers: first five books.

Disclaimer: if you recognise it then it probably belongs to someone else - I'm just playing with it for a while.

Important Mail

Harry slid the letter from its envelope and slowly unfolded it. He knew it had to be his OWL results. His heart was pounding rapidly and he felt a little sick. He was fairly confident of his marks in defence but his mind insisted on going over all the mistakes he knew he'd made in the other exams: the fanged geranium bite, the way he'd mixed up the growth and colour change charms on his practical, the way he'd forgotten the definition of the switching spell in Transfiguration.

Then he thought of the fact that he'd probably made other mistakes that he didn't remember, or didn't even know that he'd made - truthfully most of the exam period was something of a blur. Now he really felt sick.

He took a few calming breaths, swallowed hard, and finally looked down to see his marks.

Dear Mr Potter,

Enclosed are the results of your Ordinary Wizarding Level examinations. Due to the circumstances under which your Astronomy exam took place, the Ministry has approved a lowering of the grade requirements for that examination in order to take into account the disruption.

Astronomy: Acceptable

Care of Magical Creatures: Outstanding

Charms: Outstanding

Defence Against the Dark Arts: Outstanding

Divination: Dreadful

Herbology: Exceeds Expectations

History of Magic: Poor

Potions: Exceeds Expectations

Transfiguration: Exceeds Expectations

Overall Result: Seven Owls.

Congratulations on your success Mr Potter and best wishes for your sixth year.

Yours Sincerely,

Griselda Marchbanks

Head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority.

Harry blinked, and suddenly remembered to breathe. Seven OWLs. He had seven OWLs. He had seven OWLs! He reminded himself that breathing that fast really wasn't healthy and decided to take a few more calming breaths before he hyperventilated. Wow, he thought; he had seven OWL's.

He hadn't actually been expecting to do quite that well, what with everything that had happened. Of course he'd known that he had failed History of Magic and Divination and was quite frankly glad that he never had to face another lesson with either Trelawney or Binns.

He was pleasantly surprised at the Astronomy mark, he knew he hadn't done all that well in the theory exam and the practical had been a complete waste of time once Umbridge and her Ministry goons had gone after Hagrid. If they hadn't lowered the grading curve then there was no way he would have passed.

And he'd gotten O's and E's for all the rest. Even Potions. Now that was a bit of a surpise, he'd felt sure during the exam that he had managed to pass but he hadn't actually expected to do that well. As far as Harry was concerned it was yet another thing that showed what a truly rotten teacher Snape was. Imagine what he might have been capapble of with a decent teacher!

He had to admit that he was a bit disappointed, it would have been so great if he had received the grade he needed for the NEWT class. Not just to become an Auror but so he could seriously rub Snapes nose in the fact that he was an 'Outstanding' Potions student. It would almost have been worth signing on for the extra two years of abuse, just to see his face.

On the other hand he didn't have to have Snape again, unless Dumbledore made him take more 'extra-curricular' lessons like Occlumency from him. That was a definite plus.

He was a bit ambivalous over the whole issue really. He did want to train as an Auror because they were the very best, and he would need that sort of training against Voldemort. Even if he somehow managed to kill Voldemort before he left Hogwarts there was still a high probability that the Death Eaters would come after him hoping for revenge, or that another Dark Wizard or Witch would eventually decide that their best way to fame and fear would be to kill The-Boy-Who-Lived.

He wasn't likely to forget that what had happenned to the Longbottoms had happenned after the Dark Lord was defeated. Or that bad people could still wriggle out of being sent to Azkhaban. Look at Lucius Malfoy, or Macnair and the others, who were trusted and even employed by the Ministry, leaving them free to do things like, oh, set basilisks loose on the school.

Harry was under no illusions that the world would suddenly become perfectly safe when Voldemort died. He hoped he didn't end up as paranoid as Moody but he did feel that he needed as much training in defending himself as he could get.

However he wasn't sure he actually wanted to be an Auror. He didn't like having to be the one to rid the world of one Dark Lord - would he really enjoy spending the rest of his life running around after more?

And the whole being-under-the-control-of-the-Ministry thing; he didn't like the idea of having to obey an idiot like Fudge at all! Shacklebolt and Tonks were alright but even if they had managed to do their bit for the Order since it had been reformed he'd bet they still had to spend most of their time running around and doing Fudges bidding.

Harry may not have known exactly what he wanted to do with his life but he knew damn well that he didn't want to spend it kissing the misistries ass!

No, he was sick enough of being yanked around by Dumbledore, who he knew was only doing what he thought was best. No way was he going to take on a career that meant bowing to the whims of ministerial incompetents like Fudge, or Umbridge, or Percy Weasley for that matter! Not a chance!

He really wasn't sure what he wanted. He was only (just) sixteen - how was he supposed to know what he wanted to do for the rest of his life? After all, he thought darkly, as the words of the prophecy resurfaced, he didn't even know if he was likely to have a life to plan for.

He mentally shrugged, no matter how long he lived, whether he graduated or not, he had to know how to fight. Given the chance, despite the downsides, he would train as an auror. They were the best, and he needed to be the best if he was going to survive, that's all there was to it. Besides, once the training was over he could always quit.

He sighed. There had to be ways around the problem of his lack of potions NEWT. He smirked slightly; there was always the chance that he could use his fame for him for once. Now that he was the Golden Boy again he might be able to talk the Ministry into letting him in without one. He was sure some of the Order's Aurors would recommend him, if he asked.

Did wizards have night school? Or correspondence courses? There was that Kwikspell course, it was always possible there was a OWL level potions one. Maybe he could take a summer course or something that would give him enough knowledge of potions to get in.

Now he thought about it, McGonagall had said she would make damn sure he could become an Auror during that careers interview. His head of house knew what Snape was like; she had to know there was a good chance he wouldn't get in to the NEWT class. So there had to be a way around it, otherwise she wouldn't have said it. He smiled, pleased to have resolved that in his mind. He'd have to go talk to her once they got back to Hogwarts.

And if worst came to worst, there were other options. He supposed he could always apprentice to a Duelling Master like Flitwick, that sort of specialized training might work almost as well as Auror training. At least in the attacking and defending aspects. It probably didn't include things like 'Stealth and Tracking' but maybe Tonks or someone could give him some extra training? He was sure he could work something out.

He looked down at the results again. Seven Owls was pretty good. Fred and George had only gotten three each. Of course Hermione was likely to have ten O's but that was Hermione. He wondered what Ron and Neville had.

He hoped Ron had done well enough to please his Mother, she had been rather vocal in her disappointment with the twins and he didn't want that for his best mate. As for Neville's Gran, well, she could probably give Molly Weasley a good run for her money! He didn't think either of them would have done too badly, after all they had all put in an awful lot of effort, and they'd had the benefit of Hermione to push them. He felt sure they would have done quite well.

Harry realised he was sporting a huge grin as he went over to share his news with Hedwig. It wasn't as if he could share it with the Dursleys after all, and his friends weren't there to share it with. They had agreed to wait until they got together to share their results with each other, since otherwise it would mean them celebrating at Grimmauld Place while Harry was stuck in Surrey.

He wondered if Ron or Hermione was likely to burst before he got there. Or if Mrs Weasley would shake it out of them. His grin widened even more at the resulting mental images. Then he wondered what the Dursleys faces would be like if he was there when Dudley got his G.C.S.E results and just happened to mention how well his own exams had gone. He quickly stifled the snickers that were threatening to burst out; it wouldn't do to wake them up.

Looking around the room he realised most of the owls had taken the opportunity to leave while he'd been reading, with the exception of Hedwig, Errol, Pig and what looked like one of the school owls. Of course, his Hogwarts letter. He reached for it and thanked the owl, apologising for taking so long to get to it. The owl seemed understanding; it had probably had to deal with other OWL students over the years. Besides, not everyone was awake at the early morning hour when he usually received owls, he supposed they sometimes had to roost outside and wait for a decent hour.

He didn't hesitate at all as he opened this letter.

Dear Mr Potter,

Congratulations on the results of your OWL examinations. As you are no doubt aware your Sixth and Seventh Years will focus on preparing for your NEWT examinations. Enclosed is a form of the options available, please refrain from choosing any of those whose entry requirements you do not meet, as you will not be accepted onto the course without the appropriate grades. You will notice that Hogwarts offers a number of courses which are not available at OWL level; a form summarizing the contents of these courses has also been enclosed. We await your owl not later than August 6th. Your book list will be sent out to you by August 22nd.

Yours Sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress.

New courses? Harry turned eagerly to the second form.

Sixth Year Courses available at Hogwarts School of Witch craft and Wizardry

Basic Medimagic: entry requirements: Potions (A), Transfigurations (A), and Charms (E).

This course introduces the student to the basics of Mediwizardry. The student will learn a variety of skills including how to use diagnosis spells, the reversal of simple magical mishaps and ways of treating common illnesses and accidental injuries.

Wandless Magic: entry requirements: Charms (E).

This course will look at the wide variety of talents and skills which do not require the use of a wand including Elemental Magics, Warding, and true Wandless Magic, which is the ability to cast normal spells without a wand.

Household Magic: entry requirements: Charms (A) and Transfiguration (A).

This course involves learning the incredibly useful 'everyday' magics involved in making cooking, cleaning, dressmaking, gardening and other domestic chores easier.

Enchantment: entry requirements: Charms (E) and Transfiguration (E).

This course shows how enchanted items are made, from simple Protective Talismans to the feats of magical engineering involved in Broom Design. Students are expected to learn how to enchant a number of items, how to identify enchanted items from ordinary ones, and how to discover the uses of various enchantments on unfamiliar objects.

Magical Law: entry requirements: History of Magic (A)

This course charts the development of the laws governing Wizarding society as a whole and the way laws are created, changed and carried out by the Ministry. It also covers the ways in which the various departments work within the Ministry and how the various Ministries work together on an international level.

Ritual Magics: entry requirements: Astronomy (A), Arithmancy (A) and Ancient Runes (E).

This course teaches complex rituals and their uses. Rituals, although more common in the past, are still used today to summon, ground and shape very powerful magics.

One Year Courses of Certification.

Magic Maintenance: entry requirements Charms (A), Herbology (A) and Transfiguration (A).

This course teaches how to keep magical equipment working at peak performance, including how to spot and how to fix various malfunctions or quirks.

Apparition: entry requirements: none.

This course, completed when the student takes their Apparition Test at the Ministry of Magic, teaches the art of almost instantaneous travel from one point to another.

Well, thought Harry. Some of those definitely sound interesting. He looked at the list again. Ritual Magics was out for a start, since he didn't have OWLs in Arithmancy or Ancient Runes, though he rather wished that he'd taken one of them (Ancient Runes probably) rather than wasting his time with Divination. He could take his pick of the rest though.

He definitely wanted to learn Apparition since neither Floo travel nor Portkeys particularly agreed with him and being able to apparate out of trouble would certainly be an advantage.

Medimagic would be very useful considering how much time he often spent in the hospital wing, whether from sheer chance or from deliberate action by Voldie's various supporters. Yes, Medimagic would be a very useful skill to know.

Wandless Magic. Well, he'd been curious about that for a while since he knew he had been making things happen wandlessly ever since he was a baby. Look at what had happened to Aunt Marge! If he could learn to do that sort of thing at will then that would be a definite advantage the next time he found himself without a wand.

He had a sudden mental image of an enormously bloated Voldemort floating away while Mr Malfoy ran about trying to catch him and snorted softly.

Enchantment must be how the Marauders made their map or Sirius his mirror and the knife. It was probably how Tom made his diary. He definitely wanted to take that course.

Magic Maintenance could be useful, though it sounded rather like magical DIY and he knew from seeing Uncle Vernon's efforts that it was usually better to call in an expert. As for Household Magic, he could certainly make use of it; he imagined the Dursleys faces next summer, after he turned seventeen, using his wand to do chores. It would also be good for when he eventually got his own place.

On the other hand, the other courses sounded a lot more useful in helping him survive long enough to actually get his own place. Not knowing how to fold laundry with his wand wasn't exactly life threatening after all. Besides, it wasn't really that important - he already knew how to do everything around the house the Muggle way.

So that left him with four new courses: Basic Medimagic, Wandless Magic, Apparition and Enchantment. He was definitely dropping Astronomy, History and Divination, and possibly Potions as well so it fit rather neatly. Although he had to wonder if he would have any spare time at all in the next two years since the NEWT courses were supposed to be considerably harder than the OWL's.

He wondered what Hermione was going to do, faced with all these new lessons to be learned but being forced to drop some of her old ones. She was probably drawing up huge lists of pros and cons to try and help her decide.

Well, at least his decision was made. He reached for his options form, deciding to fill it in immediately rather than leave it to the last minute. That way he wouldn't have to worry about it. He filled in his choices, wondering at his sanity in wanting to take so many exams. He could almost hear Ron's voice telling him that he was mental.

He reached the box for Potions and realised suddenly that the entry requirement was marked down as an E. He could still take Potions! He wasn't quite sure whether to be relieved or not. And what on earth had forced Snape to change his mind? He wouldn't have just decided to change it out of the goodness of his heart. Harry wasn't sure he had one.

It had to be McGonagall or Dumbledore. One of them had to have forced him into it. He didn't look forward to the snide remarks that was sure to get him, about how the rules were always bent for the Gryffindor Golden Boy and how he was just like his father. He sighed softly and suddenly caught sight of his battered old clock radio. It was ten past two!

He decided not to worry about it until the morning and walked over to say a soft goodnight to the owls on his desk, even though Errol was once again unconscious and Pig's sugar high had obviously crashed. Hedwig on the other hand was obviously determined to keep him company as long as he was awake and was watching him affectionately from her perch. He ruffled her feathers gently and she rubbed her beak against his hand fondly.

'Night Hedwig,' he whispered as he climbed into bed, smiling at the knowledge that the Dursleys weren't likely to wake him up too early on his birthday, just in case he happened to mention it to any of his 'freak friends.'