The end of the year was approaching, and Hermione tried to help the Gryffindor seventh years prepare for their N.E.W.T.s. The rest of the class didn't know what her exams were going to be, but they assumed that they would be even worse than theirs. For once, however, she didn't have the same study pressures as everyone else. Her pressures had come earlier. Now she was trying to marshal everyone else into a study regimen that would have them ready before it was too late.

The class would gather each evening in the library, working together, discussing their notes from years before, and reviewing likely topics for testing. After they got organized, Hermione was able to step back and let them work, pleading that she had her own studying to do. Actually, she was working on something other than schoolwork. She had a wedding to think about…hers!

It was mid-April when the last item on the chart was finally crossed off. After a couple of revisions, the potion was finally complete, and the testing was conclusive. No matter how hard they tried, the toppers couldn't be injured after taking the potion. They wanted to conduct at least one test on a human, and Harry said he was willing to try, but Snape said it was unnecessary. He was comfortable there would be no problems.

It was Thursday, and Harry and Hermione were sitting in their common room, discussing their day when the clock announced it was time for rounds.

"Harry, would you do rounds tonight? This headache just won't quit." She had been complaining about the pain for most of the evening, and Harry quickly agreed, suggesting she should take something and then go to bed.

"Do you want me to stop and get something?"

"No. I'll just lie down. It will be gone in the morning. It always is." Harry kissed her forehead, and left. She waited a few minutes and then got up herself.

Harry started his rounds in the dungeons for no particular reason, he simply had to start somewhere. He checked all the corridors and rooms near Slytherian, hearing and seeing nothing out of the ordinary. As he proceeded north, he checked the potions classroom and the N.E.W.T. student workspace. Again nothing, and he turned west, heading towards the corridor beneath the Great Hall. Suddenly there was noise from a side hall and he stopped, igniting his wand to see in the dim lighting.

He just started down the hall when a door burst open and a screaming girl ran out. She turned and tried to run away but then realized her error…it was a cul-de-sac and she was trapped. She turned back, screaming again when she saw Harry. He recognized her and called out.

"Heidi, come here! Quickly! Come this way." She looked at him and started running. He grabbed her as she tried to run past him, and she screamed yet again. Harry held her shoulders firmly, looking at her face. "What is it? What happened?"

"It's him! He's in there." Harry's blood froze. Who was there? Who was "he?" Did she mean Voldemort was here? In the school? How did he get here? NOW? What should he do…the potion was done, but he didn't have any, and he had to fight. NOW! He held Heidi and looked straight at her, locking her eyes in his.

"Find Dumbledore. Tell him what you saw. Go NOW!" He released her with a push in the right direction and she ran away. Then he took a deep breath and walked forward, extinguishing his wand and opening the door while standing to the side. He peered around the doorframe, ducking low in case a spell was flying towards him. The room was partially filled with unused furniture and other debris, but he could see no one. Slowly he crept through the door, staying low to avoid becoming a silhouette. Once inside, he stood up next to the door. From his left came a red flash, and a desk on the other side of the door exploded, sending splinters everywhere.

"So, we meet again, Harry. I'm sorry this is our last visit, I do so enjoy them." Harry moved slowly to his right, trying to sense where Voldemort was. "What's the matter, Harry? You aren't happy to see me?"

"You don't belong at Hogwarts, Tom. You've already graduated," he said, continuing to move. Voldemort laughed, that high-pitched screaming laugh that still echoed in Harry's mind. He could feel his scar glowing warmer.

"I decided to come back…this time to teach. You know how hard it is to get a good Dark Arts teacher these days." Another curse flew, closer this time, hitting a wardrobe cabinet and tossing several old robes into the air. Harry saw an opportunity, speaking quickly, pointing his wand towards the robes As he moved further right, two of the robes stood up and moved left, away from him, assuming nearly-human forms.

"This is a great place for you to teach, Tom…in a dark room…with no students. Apparently no one wants to listen to you anymore." Harry was still trying to evaluate where Voldemort stood and baiting him might bring results.

"They will listen when I am the only voice left. They will listen to Lord Voldemort!" One of the robes began to close on a spot near a pile of boxes, and Voldemort sent it flying into a heap in the corner. Harry saw a figure briefly in the light of the spell, and moved again, never staying in one place too long.

"That was a Slytherian robe, Tom. Now you've upset your great relative. Even your dear father might be mad at that." Harry's taunts were starting to have an effect, as Voldemort blasted several more objects in the room, occasionally sending spells near Harry. In the dim light coming through the door, Harry saw his first chance and aimed carefully. "Unterfission!" Harry yelled, and a bluish glow enveloped Voldemort, the Stripping Spell attacking the cocoon of protection that Voldemort had built up over the years. Harry spun and disappeared, reappearing on the other side of the door where the robes had been. Voldemort seemed to stagger slightly, then stood straight and yelled.

"Avada Kedavra!" The familiar green light flew towards the spot where Harry had been, hitting the wall and burning a hole through to the hallway outside.

"Missed me, Tom. I'm not over there anymore." Harry turned again, apparating right back to the same spot but avoiding the hole in the wall since the light showing through it would betray his presence.

"Why, Harry, your skills are improving. You're almost a worthy opponent." Harry had anticipated something like this comment from meetings with Dumbledore.

"I was a worthy opponent when I was a baby, Tom. I have lost track of the times we've met, but I'm still here. Have you forgotten that I defeated you before I could even walk?" Harry could see better now, with some light coming through the hole, and he went to the attack again. "Unterdocile!" Voldemort screamed and twisted as another Stripping Spell exposed him even more. He raised his wand to answer, returning another curse that missed completely, hitting the door.

Before things could settle down, Harry sensed he might have the advantage, and prepared to finish the fight. "Avada Kedavra," he yelled, but the green jet from his wand was deflected by a curse from somewhere else in the room, and suddenly there was light everywhere. As his eyes began to adjust, he saw Dumbledore, McGonagall, Flitwick, and Hermione standing off in a corner, and Snape standing where Voldemort had been.

Before he could even understand what had happened, Hermione ran to him, her face covered with red marks from her fingernails. "You were fantastic, Harry," she said and hugged him tightly. Over her shoulder, he could see Dumbledore smiling. McGonagall looked both deadly serious and happy, something only she could manage. Flitwick, as always, was bouncing up and down, cheering. Harry turned Hermione slightly and looked at Snape, who was kneeling to catch his breath. Finally, it sank in…this was a test.

As Harry calmed, and his heart began to beat more normally, Snape came over to him, extending his hand. "That was well done Potter. I was never certain where you were, and the robes were very effective. The Stripping Spells you used would have been effective on the Dark Lord. They did not effect me because I took your potion tonight." Harry gasped, recognizing that Snape had risked himself to try an untested potion.

"Thank you, Professor," Harry said, moving from Hermione and giving Snape a hug. "You were very good…I never doubted that I was fighting Voldemort."

"I warn you, Potter. The Dark Lord will not appreciate your comments. They will be very effective, especially if you can remind him he hasn't defeated you yet. The comments about your childhood will certain enrage him. And mentioning his muggle father will provoke a dramatic response."

Dumbledore approached them both, smiling at what he had seen, and what he was seeing. "Harry, you need to get some rest now," he said, winking at Hermione. "Tomorrow afternoon, we will review what happened and what we can learn." He paused, and then remembered something else. "Do not be concerned about Ms. Spillmore. She may have a great future as an actress; she is completely unhurt."

Hermione kept gushing all the way back to their rooms, replaying everything. As an observer, she had taken a Seeing Draught and could easily follow the action in the darkness.

"Harry, you were incredible! Using those robes like that! Snape almost hit us trying to stop the second one! And then when you apparated back…"

Harry just walked. He was exhilarated, and exhausted, trying to remember what he did and what he was thinking. His hours in the Room of Requirement had paid dividends – he reacted without needing to think. It had become almost as automatic as Quidditch.

Once in their common room, he collapsed onto the couch as Hermione just stood, grinning. She was very proud of him. He had passed a significant test – he just received an Outstanding N.E.W.T. and more. Finally, the obvious question occurred to him.

"Who decided to do that? Was it Dumbledore?"

Hermione started to grin, and then stopped, uncertain of his mood. Was he upset? Was he mad? "Harry," she said gently, trying to sound slightly seductive, "all of us thought it would be the best evaluation of what we've learned." She was dodging his question, and they both knew it. "And you were fantastic!"

Harry still looked very serious. "It was your idea, wasn't it…to make it a surprise and spring it on me like that?"

She knew she couldn't hide anymore. "Are you mad?" she asked in a very small voice, trying to peer around the corner in his mind and see if he was upset. She was a little girl again, trying to see if she was in trouble. His face didn't change, and she thought she saw anger growing in his eyes.

"It was the only way to have a real test…anything else would be…" She froze as he got up and started walking towards her, his face still a rigid mask.

"Ms. Granger," he said when he finally spoke, using his voice of authority usually reserved for underclass students who were way out of line. "You may be the Head Girl, but the rules of this institution still apply to you. You have planned and executed an attack upon another student, and even solicited the help of others to assist you. I will not rest until you are forced to leave this school, preferably consigned to the custody of someone who will monitor your behavior, and with the authority to dispense appropriate discipline." There was still not a hint of compassion in his voice: he was pronouncing judgement!

"For the moment, I suggest that you confine yourself to your room, and, pending further consideration, you will leave your wand here," he finished, pointing to her desk. Hermione wasn't sure what to do. She thought he was teasing her, but he sounded so serious. Was he really mad? Had they gone too far? Maybe the test was too real, and he was having memories of prior fights with Voldemort or the death of Cedric or his parents. She didn't cry, but meekly put her wand on the desk and turned to go to her room, disheartened and not knowing what else to do. This was a Harry she'd never seen before, and she thought she'd seen them all. As she reached the door, he spoke again.

"Ms. Granger, I'm sorry, but I feel that I may have been unclear about your punishment. Would you please return here?"

He still sounded stern, and she wasn't sure what more he would do, but she turned and slowly walked over to him, standing next to the wall.

"I have decided that I should clarify what I just told you, so here is no misunderstanding. Are you listening?" Hermione nodded, looking down, unwilling to face his wrath, feeling like she had let him down, and seriously damaged their relationship.

"Here is what I expect," and he pointed to the chart. "You will mark this item as completed. You will mark this item as resolved. You will cancel this item," pointing to when they would announce their engagement publicly. She gasped! "You will be allowed to remain at school until this date," and he pointed at graduation day. "You will leave the school promptly after that day. You will have no contact with any students beyond your official duties."

He stopped and reached out, taking her head in his hands and forcing her to look at him. He was looking directly at her, his mind boring through her eyes and straight to her brain. "You will have no contact with any students beyond your official duties…unless you are wearing your ring." She gasped again, but he continued as before.

"There will be no more nights spent in your room. You will spend all your nights in the room of the Head Boy, and you will follow his directions explicitly. You will no longer have the privilege of making the rules, since you have demonstrated an inability to be trusted with such responsibility." He paused, and she started to grin.

"This is not a laughing matter, Ms. Granger, although you seem to believe it is. When you leave the school, you will be placed in the custody of Mr. Harry Potter, who, fortunately has demonstrated the skills necessary to control your periodic lapses in common sense." He was still looking very stern, with no hint of softness or compassion.

"Finally, you will reveal, to anyone who asks, how much I love you and how happy you make me, every day." His face still hadn't changed, and Hermione was still questioning what to do. "For now, I suggest you walk into that room, and remove your clothing, because I have plans for you." That said, he grinned and swatted her bum. His plans did not include rising early tomorrow.