Wednesday, 18 September 1991
"Right now!" Harry hissed, and his lab partner dropped the herbs into the potion.
Almost instantly, Professor Snape was standing by them, a ticking watch in hand. He stared at the potion for a moment.
Harry stirred it silently, willing it to work… and when it slowly turned a dark red, he suppressed a sigh of relief.
"You're totally right," Justin Finch-Fletchley muttered to Harry. "He's never been this attentive with me before – it's got to be you."
"It's like he expects me to do badly," Harry frowned, watching Snape wind around the classroom, glancing over everyone's potions. "I haven't had a class where he doesn't just appear at my shoulder every other minute."
"Kinda creepy," Justin commented. "But still, good class, huh?"
"It's one of my favorites," Harry admitted quietly. "I used to cook a lot, so I'm used to working from recipes – Potions comes to me more naturally than the classes that need lots of wand work."
"I'm just bad at following directions," Justin admitted with a chuckle. "I'm glad I got you as a partner today. You're on top of things."
"I guess." Harry continued stirring, keeping count of the full circles in his head. Potions were a very exact art, he was learning.
On the first day of class, Harry had been the first to be asked a question about the book's contents - but then Snape had quizzed Anthony Goldstein, and Lea Spinks from Hufflepuff. Harry had answered the question correctly and promptly, and Professor Snape hadn't spoken to him directly ever since.
Hedwig had told him that the Professor and James Potter had disliked each other when they were in school, and warned Harry that any prejudice he encountered was not Harry's fault in any way, but resulted from past grievances.
Other than being watched constantly, Harry didn't think the Potions Master was acting too prejudiced. Maybe my dad was really bad at Potions, Harry reasoned, so Snape thinks he needs to keep an extra eye on my work. Not even that was completely logical, but it was something, right?
"You're really over him?" Susan was whispering to Hannah, on the other side of the room.
"For the final time, yes," Hannah hissed back. "He's not exactly what I imagined the Boy-who-Lived to be like… I mean, Harry's nice, but he's so…" She glanced around to make sure nobody could hear. "Bookworm-y! Which could be great for someone else, but I wanted the boy from all the stories – brave and bold and romantic. And Harry's just… Harry," Hannah shrugged. "I want to be his friend, but I've decided that for my next crush, I need to find an older boy."
Susan groaned as she tossed in the diced dried snail.
"How much older?"
"Oh, not ancient," Hannah assured her. "Someone like our new Seeker, Cedric Diggory. He's a third year and he is yummy…"
"How's the box going?"
"It's slow work," Remus admitted. "I haven't worked with runic warding since school."
"But you'll get it in time?" Sirius asked worriedly. "Moony, maybe we should think about going to Dumbledore…"
"Hedwig's been right about everything else so far," Remus said, setting down his carving knife beside the partially finished wooden box. "Maybe you're right and Dumbledore would want the same things as us, or maybe Hedwig's speculations are true. If he is truly obsessed with the prophecy, then he may very well have taken the stone in order to engineer a confrontation between Harry and… Quirrell."
Sirius let out a soft growl of frustration. "I know. I just hate waiting when he's at Hogwarts with Harry."
Remus put a gentle hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "I'll put on some tea."
Sirius followed him into the kitchen, and sat down in his favorite of Remus' chairs, the one with the faded blue cushion that still bore the coffee stain Sirius had left on it eleven years ago. Remus glanced over at it, and wondered if Sirius had any idea that Remus had never sat in it in the last ten years. He'd hidden or burned most things that reminded him of Sirius, but not Sirius' chair. Remus had left it there, and looked at it on occasion, reminded of the empty space in his life where Sirius had used to be.
"Peter," Remus said suddenly, startling him.
"What about him?"
"Is there any word on a trial? I was thinking I might go."
"I went an owl to Amelia Bones, asking about it," Sirius said shortly. Remus was surprised - he had thought that Sirius might not go through with it, and he would have to.
They sat in silence until the kettle whistled, then Remus poured it into the pot with some loose leafed tea, and let it steep.
"If Peter was telling the truth, and he wasn't the spy in the Order," Remus speculated quietly. "Then it's possible that person is still out there."
Sirius looked at him, startled. He hadn't even thought about that.
"Was there anyone else you suspected at the time?" Remus asked quietly. "Besides the werewolf?"
Sirius flinched bodily. "Remus," he said roughly. "I shouldn't have… Forgive me."
"Not at all, Padfoot," Remus said softly. "If you will forgive me for believing you were the spy?"
"Of course," Sirius breathed. He reached out, sliding his hand over Remus' on the tabletop.
"I didn't believe it at first," Remus said after a moment. "Then Dumbledore showed me his memory, of performing the Fidelius with you as Secret Keeper. I thought… that I couldn't trust myself, my own feelings. You were my biggest blind spot, and I had never thought rationally when it came to you."
Sirius' hand tightened over his. "And you were mine," he said roughly. "Werewolves had every reason to hate the Ministry and join the Death Eaters. I wondered what could possibly keep you loyal to us, what the Order had to offer you…"
Remus turned his hand over, and laced his fingers through Sirius'. "All I ever needed was your friendship," the werewolf murmured. "It is the greatest gift I've had in my life."
"You will always have it," Sirius swore.
Remus' shoulders shook, and to Sirius' great surprise, tears came pouring down his face.
"Moony," Sirius said hoarsely, then pulled him into a fierce embrace. After weeks of being the strong one, Remus finally broke apart in his arms, letting go of ten years' worth of rage, fear, and misery.
Thursday, 19 September
"This is amazing," Hermione breathed, staring at the display before her. "Who baked the cake?"
"I didn't make it, my brothers got it from the kitchens," Ron admitted. "It's chocolate."
"My favorite," Hermione beamed, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet.
"This is butterbeer," Parvati told Hermione excitedly as she brought her over a mug of something gold and creamy. Hermione took the mug and took a sip, her eyes widening. It was sweet and frothy, kind of like a root beer float that was flavored with butterscotch instead.
"Delicious, right?" Parvati said knowingly. Hermione nodded, her eyes going next to the pile of presents.
"Cake, then presents," Padma decided. She cut the cake carefully, and gave Hermione the first slice.
When everyone was served, Hermione took a bite and groaned happily. The cake itself was a rich dark chocolate, with sweet vanilla frosting and a layer of cherries in the middle. She looked around as she ate, incredibly happy that she had so many friends here. The cake was soon finished, and Harry quietly vanished while the others began handing Hermione her presents.
Susan presented her with a small bottle of blue ink, and Padma gave her a brand new copy of Our Magical World: A guide to Magical Communities around the Globe. There were six books from her parents, four about the wizarding world, and two were literary works. The Doctors Granger had also sent their daughter a set of jewelry: a beautiful blue stone pendant and matching earrings.
Hermione put on the pendant and let Parvati help her tie her hair back. "I don't have pierced ears," she pointed out.
"We'll find someone who knows the charm," Padma assured her.
"Mroww!" The loud yowl drew their attention. They turned, and Hermione's jaw dropped as she saw Harry walking in, holding a wriggling orange kitten in his hands.
He walked up to her with a smile and held out the kitten. Hermione took it in her hands, and gasped as it licked her hand, then jumped to the table and began licking her plate.
"Happy birthday," Harry told her, and Hermione leapt out of her chair and hugged him fiercely.
Harry froze for a moment in shock before relaxing, then tentatively reached out and wrapping an arm around her. Hermione sighed happily, then let him go.
"How did you know I wanted a cat?" Hermione asked breathlessly.
"You seemed like a cat person," Harry said bashfully, and Hermione beamed and ran over to the kitten, scooping it up in her arms and stroking its head. Actually, Harry had asked Hedwig for advice. She'd assured him he knew the perfect thing, and had dragged Sirius to Magical Menagerie in Diagon Alley, where they'd picked up this kitten. Hedwig assured Harry that Hermione would love it.
"That's the ugliest kitten I've ever seen," Terry whispered to Blaise, who snorted and nodded in agreement.
Hermione felt deliriously happy. She'd never celebrated her birthday without her parents before, and she'd been worried she'd feel lonely and homesick all day. But her friends had made sure she had a wonderful birthday anyways! She stroked her kitten's back. He was a tiny, energetic little ball of fluff, the cuddliest creature she had ever found – and he was all hers!
"His name is Crookshanks," Harry informed her.
"Crookshanks," Hermione breathed. "It suits you, doesn't it? Oh Harry!" Overjoyed, she passed her new kitten to Terry and hugged Harry again.
"Ouch!" Terry shrieked, rubbing his arm. "He's got serious claws for a tiny kitten."
Hermione glanced back and scooped up her tiny, misunderstood cat. "Oh, Crookshanks," she purred.
"Careful, Hermione, he's dangerous!"
"Nonsense," Hermione disagreed, bringing the ball of fluff up to her face, where she planted a kiss on its little nose. Crookshanks purred happily, rolling around in her hands.
Hermione's friends exchanged knowing glances as she was utterly distracted and charmed by the mischievous little half-Kneazle.
"He's perfect."
"Hey, Harry," Ron said quietly, approaching the other boy. "Are you done with Scabbers yet?"
Harry turned to him – he'd completely forgotten. "Um. Ron… I'm really sorry, but Scabbers disappeared."
"What?" Ron stared. Then his head jerked around to look at Hermione and the kitten. "Did that cat -"
"It was before I got Crookshanks," Harry said apologetically. "I think he slipped out of the dorm room a few days ago. I looked for him all over the dorms and the Common Room, but I think he's gone. I'm really sorry. I was hoping that I could get you an owl instead?"
Ron stared, a mix of emotions crossing his face. He was clearly upset about the loss of his pet, despite having called it useless, but Harry's last sentence had surprised him.
"An owl? Really?"
"Yeah," Harry nodded.
Ron nodded slowly. "Alright," he said with a grin. "Scabbers is probably happier in the wild." He tried to push away his thought that he might have been eaten by Mrs. Norris. "But, I know he wasn't actually worth much, so the owl can count as an early Christmas present, alright?"
"Sure," Harry grinned, pleased that it was resolved. And with luck, Ron would never find out about his deception, and would instead enjoy having his own owl.
Monday, 23 September
Their 'special project' had stalled for a few weeks. Susan and Hannah had been able to get most of the ingredients, but not a rare plant called Mirin's Troika. Neville had subtly inquired about it from Professor Sprout, who told him that it only emerges from the ground on the full moon. She goes out sometimes to pick some in the Forest.
"You're saying we need to go into the Forbidden Forest on a full moon?" Ron Weasley had looked positively horrified.
"Nothing dangerous about that," Blaise groaned.
"Sounds fun to me," Terry said with a shrug.
"You're insane," Ron told him flatly.
"I live for danger."
"You remind me of my brothers," Ron groaned, and when Terry looked happy about that, he clarified. "In a bad, very scary way."
So on the night of the full moon, a rather nervous Neville led them into the Forbidden Forest to find the final ingredient. Padma was getting set up in the secret room Harry had found them on the seventh floor, preparing the cauldron and the other ingredients.
"See those silver veins? The veins on Kirin's Troika appear pale white all the time - except for the night of the full moon. Exactly, Hermione… Wait Hannah, not that one!"
She froze, her hand halfway to a plant.
"That's Morgana's Clover, and it'll give you a nasty rash if you touch it. It has silver veins too, but we need the ones with three leaves," Neville said patiently. "The clover has five leaves."
"Oh, thanks." Hannah carefully reached around and found a three-leaved silver-veined clover. "They look so similar."
"That's why we have to be careful," Neville nodded, plucking another one. "But if you make a mistake, its not the end of the world - the antidote is Caleb's Wort, which is that little yellow one by your feet. You can always find it growing within four feet of Morgana's Clover – that's nature's way of balancing itself out."
"Neville, I think you know a hundred times more than the rest of us do about herbology put together." Harry told him frankly.
Neville flushed, but nodded at the compliment. He walked around quietly, making sure everyone was finding the Troika properly. Soon enough they had their pockets stuffed full, and all eight of them walked quietly back to the castle.
They'd just snuck into the main hall when they heard footsteps coming up the stairs from the basement. Someone was humming…
Blaise bolted for the grand staircase. After a half second pause, everyone else followed him. Unfortunately, the sound of sixteen feet pounding up the stairs wasn't exactly subtle.
"Students out of bounds!" Came a terrifying scream. "We'll catch them, Mrs. Norris!" It was Filch, the caretaker – and his cat.
They could hear his footsteps behind them, and they kept running faster and faster, hoping to lose him. But their legs were short, and their breathing was coming faster.
At the next landing, Blaise abandoned the stairs and tore off down a corridor. Terry stumbled, but managed to follow, as did Susan and Hannah, but the others, who had been ahead of them, hadn't noticed, and continued upwards.
On the next landing, Ron turned right and ran down the hall. Harry followed, his sneakers squeaking as he turned, and Hermione and Neville were right on his heels. After turning the next corner, Ron decided he'd had enough running and would try hiding. He bolted down a side corridor and picked a door at random. But it was locked!
"Alohamora!" Hermione gasped, and the lock turned by magic.
Ron opened the door, and they all hurried inside, closing it behind them.
"Colloportus," Hermione cast, locking it again, and collapsed to the floor beside her friends.
Neville felt like Filch must be able to hear his panting from the stairs, and would be following them any minute. He felt embarrassed, knowing that he wasn't in very good shape.
"Bloody hell," Ron wheezed.
"Shh!" Hermione hissed. "Do you want to be expelled?
They heard a cat's yowl from nearby, and they all froze. Hermione grabbed Harry's hand tightly, her eyes closing as she prayed not to be found. He squeezed back, hoping they were hidden well enough… Finally, the footsteps faded away.
"That was way too close." Harry whispered.
"I don't know how I'm getting back to my dorm now," Ron groaned as he stood up.
Harry stood as well, pulling Hermione up with him. He glanced around the room, and saw a tall mirror standing in the corner.
"Why's there a mirror in a classroom?" Hermione noticed it at the same time.
Harry walked over to the mirror, pulling her by the hand, and stopped still in front of it. He didn't just see their reflection. There were four figures behind him, all grinning at him. Sirius was there, one hand on his shoulder, grinning and shoving at Remus, who laughed and pushed right back. And on Harry's other side, was a tall, beautiful auburn haired woman. She beamed at him, and his heart stopped as he realized she had the same green eyes as him.
"Mum," Harry whispered in wonder.
She could only be Lily Potter. And beside her was the man who could only be Harry's father. James Potter had the same messy black hair and spectacles, though his eyes were a dark hazel. He had an arm about Lily's shoulder, and was casually tossing a snitch. Before he could catch it, Hedwig zoomed into the picture and caught the golden snitch in her mouth, then landed on Harry's shoulder and handed it to him. Mirror Harry grinned and slipped it in his pocket, then blushed as Hermione turned to him and kissed him on the cheek.
Hermione was also looking into the mirror. She looked older, closer to her parents' age than her own. And for once, she looked beautiful – her hair was no longer bushy, but curly and pinned up, and her teeth were even smaller! Mirror Hermione wore elegant dark blue robes, and was cradling a silver statuette in one arm that bore the words Order of Merlin.
And the Harry standing beside her was older too. His messy hair was slightly sleeked back, and his bright green eyes shone as he gazed at her wondrously. Confetti suddenly rained down on them, and a banner behind them flipped over. Congratulations Minister Granger! Mirror Hermione turned towards Harry and flung her arms about her neck. He lifted her easily and spun her around, both of them laughing with joy.
Behind them, her parents were beaming proudly, and all her classmates and professors were applauding. But her eyes came inevitably back to the foreground, where Harry had set her down, but his arms were still wound about her waist. He reached up and brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear -
Ron grabbed their arms and dragged them away from the mirror. "Hey!"
Harry and Hermione blinked, then glanced at each other, both of them blushing furiously.
"I've been calling your names for ages!" Ron said, dragging them further away. "You looked like you were under a spell."
"No," Harry shook his head. "I saw my family. You saw them too, didn't you Hermione?"
"Um," she said, a little confused and rather shy. "No, Harry. I saw – I was…" she trailed off, blushing.
Curious, Neville had stepped up in front of the mirror. He froze, and when they turned and saw where he was, Ron bolted over to him and pulled him away.
"Come on, Neville," Ron growled. "There's something wrong with it, don't look!"
Neville was pale as a ghost and biting his lip so hard it drew blood.
"Did you see my parents?" Harry asked eagerly.
"No," Neville's voice cracked involuntarily. "I saw mine." He stared at the mirror as if he could somehow bring that image to life - bring them to life. He could see them as clearly as if they real. They were smiling at him, looking happy and lively and as if they could sweep down to hug him any second.
Realizing that they had all seen different things, Hermione darted forward to study the bottom of the mirror.
"There's letters," she said out loud. "Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi."
"What is that?"
"Do you think it shows the future?" Neville asked hopefully.
"How can it? My parents are dead." Harry said bitterly.
"Wait," Hermione breathed. "It's a code. The simplest one there is. Read it backwards! I show not your face but your heart's desire."
Harry's heart sank, and Neville fell into the nearest seat, burying his face in his hands.
"It shows what we want most," Hermione finished softly.
Ron swallowed. "If I look, you guys promise to pull me back if I can't look away?"
Hermione nodded in affirmation, and Ron took a deep breath, stepped forward, and looked. He stared in wonder at his own reflection, and after a minute, Hermione gently took him by the hand and pulled him back.
"I was Head Boy," Ron whispered, amazed. "And Quidditch Captain. I'd just won the House Cup… And my parents were proud." They'd seen him in Slytherin robes, and were just smiling at him, clapping approvingly…
Hermione smiled understandingly. "I was Minister of Magic," she volunteered. "And I had an Order of Merlin."
"Guess I should aim higher," Ron said ruefully.
"If all goes well, I'll get you a job in my Ministry," Hermione said sweetly, and they both laughed. In the silence that followed, they turned back to the others. Harry and Neville both looked like they'd been hit in the face by something heavy.
"We should go," Harry said quietly. "Padma's waiting for us."
"Of course you would pick the dodgiest corridor in the school."
"Well, I didn't realize it at the time," Terry said back, almost lightly. "There weren't any signs saying Warning: Three-Headed Dog Monster This Way!"
"Don't be a prat, come up with a solution." Blaise hissed.
"You picked this door, you figure it out!"
"You followed of your own volition," Blaise reminded him.
The four first years looked grimly at the sleeping three-headed dog before them. Susan had a hand over Hannah's mouth, and her best friend was trembling and trying not to scream. Susan stared at the giant Cerberus, strongly regretting their choice of hiding place. She'd take Filch over a three headed dog any day of the week.
"I can hear Filch outside," Blaise murmured.
"Until this or these guys, I should say, wake up, I say we stay here." Terry whispered. "Right next to the door."
"Agreed." Blaise murmured.
"Shut up," Susan said, very quietly. Hannah turned around, unable to look at the dog any longer. Susan hugged Hannah to her very tightly, a very simple mantra going through her head… Don't wake up, don't wake up, don't wake up.
There were most definitely footsteps outside the door, but after a minute of searching to the end of the corridor, Filch moved on, muttering about lost opportunities.
"Now?"
"Let's." Terry agreed.
Blaise opened the doorknob and they exited as quickly and quietly as possible. Hannah was still shaking, leaning against the wall. Susan quietly closed the door behind them. Just as the last few inches of the vision inside the room disappeared, the she glimpsed the central head opening one eye slowly, catching a glimpse of her before the door shut. Susan shuddered, and was grateful when Blaise quietly cast a locking charm on it.
The growl that followed them as they headed down the corridor haunted them for a while.
"We're meeting on the seventh floor," Terry remembered, pausing as he tried to figure out which way to go.
Blaise nodded, heading left – and then looked down, realizing that upon seeing the dog, they'd grabbed each other's hands, and had yet to let go.
The boys suddenly dropped each other's hands like they were burning, internally swearing to themselves to never bring this part of the story up. After all, they were boys. They hadn't been scared by a small, albeit three-headed canine.
Susan thanked her lucky stars that they managed to get to the seventh floor corridor without wandering upon Filch again. Locating the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy and the Trolls, they carefully walked past it, then back again, and past it once more. She was thinking carefully – We need to join our friends in making the potion.
After the third pass, a polished wooden door appeared opposite the tapestry.
"Wow," Terry breathed. "That's really something."
Susan took a hold of the brass handle and pulled open the door, then stepped inside. She let out a sigh of relief as she saw everyone else waiting there.
"I was worried you'd gotten caught!" Hermione cried as she hurried over, beaming at them.
"No, just nearly eaten," Hannah said, her voice still shaking.
"Eaten?"
"It was the third floor corridor," Blaise said quietly, but his voice rang through the silent room. "There was a Cerberus."
A few people were confused, and Susan quickly cleared that up.
"A gigantic three-headed dog," she stated. "I don't know what they think they're doing, having that in a school."
"Is anyone hurt?" Padma asked worriedly.
"No, we were lucky it was sleeping," Terry replied.
They took turns describing the dog as they gathered about the table.
"We found an enchanted mirror," Hermione informed the others. "It's spelled to show not your regular reflection, but whatever you want most."
"I was Head Boy," Ron said with a grin. "And Quidditch Captain."
That earned a few appreciative laughs.
"But it was really hard to pull away," Harry said quietly. Hermione reached out and caught his hand again, concerned by the sad look on his face. "I'm okay," he continued after a moment.
I have Sirius now, Harry reminded himself. And Hedwig, and Remus. I don't need to imagine my parents anymore.
"You definitely collected enough," Padma declared as she'd finished weighing their final ingredient. "It needs to be finely minced."
"I'll get started," Hermione volunteered.
Harry took up the second knife and got to work, letting the precision of the task focus his mind. This was going to work, he thought happily. Once they'd finished this potion, he'd learn to become an Animagus… Just like Sirius. He remembered the look of pride on Sirius' face when Harry told him he'd made Seeker. Harry knew that when he finally did transform, he'd see that look again. The thought warmed his heart, and as the potion started to bubble, Harry felt the anticipation inside him growing.