The next week was an absolute whirlwind as everyone caught each other up to date on what had transpired during their trips. Bob Granger was cleared to leave St. Mungo's three days after he'd arrived – he confessed he was reluctant to leave, as watching the Healers doing magic fascinated him. Hermione merely rolled her eyes and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "typical" under her breath as she escorted her father through the lobby, but she couldn't hold back the giggles that escaped when Bob stared confusedly at the abandoned storefront that served as the hospital's entrance. Draco honored Snape's request and had himself checked out as well – the spell Krum had used on him turned out to be an enhanced Stunner, nothing more, but the Healers gave him a potion to take just in case. Draco wrinkled his nose at the foul-tasting stuff but pocketed the vial without a word – once Hermione had calmed down about the situation with her father, she'd shouted at Draco for nearly half an hour for being, in her words, "a brainless moron".
It was decided for the time being that everyone would remain at Grimmauld Place – the Grangers' house had been meticulously repaired, but nobody wanted to take the chance that the Death Eaters might hear that Bob had survived and come back to finish him off. At any rate, Bob himself wasn't ready to return home, and nobody blamed him after he'd told them exactly what had happened the night Lily and Helen had died. Apparently, Bob had been feeling a bit under the weather and had left work early that day, and he'd been upstairs taking a nap when a crash from downstairs had woken him. At first, he'd thought that one of the women had just dropped something – a large plate, perhaps – but then he'd heard the arguing, and a series of words he didn't recognize:
"I will die before I give up my son!" Lily shouted. The Death Eater sneered, the expression cold and cruel on his angular features.
"Foolish girl wants to play…so be it, then." A curse Lily didn't recognize came flying her way and she ducked, shoving Helen to the floor as she fired off a hex in retaliation. Spells of all sorts crashed into the cabinets, the walls, and the kitchen island as they dueled. A particularly nasty curse missed Lily's head by inches and burned a hole in the refrigerator door, and Helen screamed as one of the pots on the stove exploded, sending razor-sharp chunks of metal flying in all directions. Lily's attention automatically focused on Helen, hoping her friend hadn't been hit, and the intruder immediately jumped on the mistake.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
There was nothing Lily could do – her wand clattered to the ground as her limbs snapped painfully together and she fell, unable to move as the Death Eater crossed to stand over her.
"Stupid Mudblood bitch," he spat, stomping on her wand so that it snapped cleanly in two. "Scum like you don't belong in the Wizarding world." He sneered again. "I won't even tell you to say goodbye to your brat – the Dark Lord will find him, and he will pay. You'll see him again before you know it. Avada Kedavra!" The light in Lily's green eyes died instantly and her body slumped limply, the binding curse no longer necessary now that she was dead.
"And you," the Death Eater snarled as he rounded on Helen, who'd backed herself into a corner with the largest kitchen knife she could reach. "Polluting our world with Mudblood filth, are you? You don't even deserve a cell in Azkaban – worthless Muggle. No matter – we can insure it doesn't happen again." He repeated the Killing Curse, and Helen's lifeless form fell to the floor, the knife clattering across the tiles as it bounced and skidded to a halt.
"Helen? Is everything alright?" Bob stepped into the kitchen, wiping sleep from his eyes. He froze when he caught sight of the intruder, and he had to steady himself on the doorframe when he saw the bodies of his wife and friend.
"Oh, everything's just wonderful," the Death Eater said, flashing Bob a predatory smile.
"Who are you?" Bob demanded. "I'll call the police!"
"Foolish Muggle," the Death Eater practically crooned. "Your police can't help you now. Oh, no – you are going to suffer, and I am going to enjoy every second of it."
Coaxing the rest of the tale from Bob was a bit difficult – he was reluctant to relay the events in all their gristly detail – but Kingsley insisted that the Order needed to know. Bob swallowed heavily, steadfastly avoiding his daughter's piercing gaze, and told them how the Death Eater had picked up the kitchen knife and immobilized Bob before dragging him into the sitting room, where he proceeded to torture him with both magical and Muggle means. Bob now had a series of scars crisscrossing his back – the Death Eater had healed his victim, obviously wanting him to suffer as long as possible, but he hadn't bothered to do a good job of it, and there was only so much the Healers could do. Bob had been barely conscious when the Death Eater had finished and Apparated them to an abandoned warehouse, where several other Death Eaters came to 'pay their respects' over the next few days. Someone eventually transferred him to Malfoy Manor – why, Bob couldn't say, as he'd been delirious with pain, but he thought he'd heard them say something about the irony of it all – and he hadn't seen anyone since. Apparently, they'd decided he was going to die in that cellar and had left him in favor of finding someone else to torture.
"What can you tell us about your attacker?" Kingsley asked, his deep voice calming to the room's horrified occupants.
"Not much, I'm afraid," Bob replied, scratching at a spot on his arm that hadn't yet healed. "Tall, medium build, dark hair and eyes – I didn't really get much of a look at him."
"Is there a way to extract a Muggle's memories for Pensieve viewing, Kingsley?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, actually – it is a bit difficult, but it can be done." Kingsley explained what Bob needed to do, and Bob nodded before closing his eyes and signaling that he was concentrating on his memory of that night in the kitchen. Kingsley soon had the proper memory safely ensconced in a vial, and he promised that he would send word as soon as he'd had time to view it.
Hermione just about exploded with rage when they found out the attacker's identity: Antonin Dolohov.
"Dumbledore thinks Mum might've properly sealed the protection bond," Harry remarked one morning as he, Draco, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny tucked in to steaming plates of pancakes. "You know, the one that she sort of put in place the night my dad died."
"I'd rather have Mum than the bond," Draco said glumly, and Harry quickly agreed. Hermione could only pat his arm consolingly in response, no doubt thinking of her own mother, while Ginny and Ron looked away uncomfortably, neither one knowing how to comfort their friends when they hadn't experienced such horrible loss for themselves. For a long moment, the only sound in the kitchen was the scraping of cutlery as they halfheartedly ate.
"Post is here," Mrs. Weasley said as she returned to the kitchen. "I think you lot might be interested in these." She handed a thick parchment envelope to each of the teenagers save Ginny, who frowned.
"How come I didn't get a letter?" she asked. "I am going back to Hogwarts, aren't I?"
"Those aren't Hogwarts letters, dear," Mrs. Weasley replied. At her words, Hermione went white, her gaze fixated on the elegant wax seal holding the envelope shut.
"Oh, no," she whimpered. "It's our O.W.L. results…" In all the recent chaos, they'd completely forgotten that their exam scores were due to arrive at any moment.
"Let's get it over with?" Ron suggested, his thumb already parting the crease in his envelope. Harry and Draco nodded, and after a count of three, they each ripped their envelopes open. Hermione already had her results out and was scanning them intently while chewing her fingernails.
"Well?" Ginny asked. "How'd you do?" Harry looked up from his parchment.
"Not bad, actually," he said with a grin, and he passed Ginny his results. He hadn't passed Divination, but he hadn't been expecting to – he'd never liked the subject and had made up almost everything in the practical exam – but he'd done very well otherwise: A's in Astronomy and History of Magic; E's in Care of Magical Creatures, Charms, Herbology, Potions, and Transfiguration; and an O in Defense Against the Dark Arts! Thoughts of Dumbledore's Army and all they'd done against Umbridge made Harry especially proud of that last mark.
"Well done!" Ginny exclaimed, standing up on her toes to kiss Harry's cheek. "You're an N.E.W.T. student now!"
"I s'pose I am," Harry replied, still grinning. "How'd you lot do?"
They spent the next several minutes swapping results and congratulating each other. Draco had O's in Potions, Defense, and Charms, the last of which was his favorite class and one in which he'd always excelled. He was thrilled that he'd managed an E in Transfiguration, as that particular subject fascinated him but consistently gave him trouble, and he also had E's in Arithmancy, Herbology, and Astronomy. Finally, he had three A's – Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, and History of Magic. Ron had no O's but a healthy mix of E's and A's, as well as two P's in History of Magic and Divination, and Hermione had the best marks of the lot – O's in everything except Defense, in which she'd earned an E. Harry knew she was disappointed, but he wasn't surprised – Defense had always been Hermione's weak link, especially after the boggart incident in their third year.
"Well done, all of you!" Mrs. Weasley said, beaming as she hugged each of them in turn. "We might have to have a little celebration."
"Mum," Ron whined as his mother enveloped him in another hug, "cut it out!"
"Oh, enough of that, Ronnie dear," she scolded lightly. "Why don't you all finish your breakfasts and go find something to do? The Order's having a meeting this afternoon, and we can't have you all underfoot." Not wanting to get on Mrs. Weasley's bad side, they quickly complied, leaving their dishes in the sink and hurrying upstairs to find something to do. They found Sirius and Tonks in the tapestry room and excitedly shared their results – Sirius had them all tearing up when he remarked that Lily would have been extremely proud – and they then retreated to Hermione and Ginny's room, the boys' room being too messy for any sort of gathering.
"N.E.W.T. students," Ginny remarked as she flopped on her bed. "Wow. So which classes do you think you'll continue with, then?"
"Charms, Transfiguration, Defense, Potions, Herbology, Arithmancy, and Ancient Runes," Hermione said at once.
"Seven courses?" Ron asked, his mouth agape. "Blimey, Hermione, are you planning to sleep this year?"
"Oh, shut up," Hermione retorted.
"She'll be fine," Draco said. "She managed all those Outstandings, after all, and that was with eleven subjects." He paused to look at his marks. "I think I'm going to be taking the same, minus Runes, unfortunately – my marks decided for me there." Draco had an equal interest in both Arithmancy and Ancient Runes but hadn't been able to decided at his career meeting which he'd rather take if it came down to it – he hadn't been sure he could handle both electives if he were to get the necessary E to continue with Transfiguration. Of course, he could have just dropped Transfiguration and solved the problem that way, but Draco didn't want to do that – in spite of its challenges, the subject interested him greatly, and Professor McGonagall was one of his favorite teachers, so he really wanted to stick with it if he could. Snape had advised he wait for his marks and go from there – as both classes expected an E or higher, he hadn't achieved the required minimum to continue with Runes, so Arithmancy it was.
"You can always have Hermione teach you Runes on the side," Harry pointed out. "Just because you only got an A on the exam doesn't mean you wouldn't be able to handle a lesson or two every so often." He stared at his own sheet, particularly the Potions mark. "I guess I'm not continuing with Potions – which is a bit disappointing, to be honest; McGonagall said it'd be a good class to have if I want to go the Auror route. I'll definitely take Charms, Transfiguration, Herbology, and Defense though – I'm not sure about anything else."
"Of course you'll take Defense – you're top of our year," Draco said with a smirk. "The mere thought of the leader of Dumbledore's Army not taking Defense…" They all laughed at that.
"Ron?" Hermione asked. "What about you?"
"Oh…erm, guess I haven't thought about it much," Ron replied. "Probably the same as Harry, I s'pose."
They chatted about classes for a little while longer before settling into a games tournament for the afternoon, and that evening, Mrs. Weasley kept her promise and made all their favorites for dinner, during which everyone congratulated the teenagers on their achievements.
The rest of the summer passed quickly thanks to Harry's birthday celebrations, Order meetings, and preparations for school – this last task was unusually fun, as they got to visit Fred and George's new joke shop in Diagon Alley, which was doing extremely well and contained all sorts of interesting items. They ran into several of their classmates on that trip as well, and they had a grand time catching up over ice cream sundaes on the patio of Florean Fortescue's with Neville, Susan, and Eloise. Harry was extremely happy for Eloise when she revealed she'd started seeing Wayne Hopkins, a Hufflepuff in their year. Eloise was a sweet girl but extraordinarily shy, and while Harry didn't know Wayne all that well outside of Herbology lessons and D.A. meetings, he thought that the quiet, thoughtful boy was a perfect match for the curly-haired blonde. Eloise, in turn, insisted on buying a round of butterbeers in celebration when Harry revealed that he'd been made Gryffindor's newest Quidditch captain – Eloise didn't play, but she was a huge fan of the sport.
Before they knew it, September had arrived, and they were off to Kings Cross once more. For once, the sky was clear when they arrived in Hogsmeade that evening, and the friends chattered excitedly about the new term as the carriages took them up to Hogwarts. There was a teacher they didn't recognize at the top table, a short, exceptionally large man with an impressive mustache and robes embroidered with fine silver thread. He was chatting amiably with Professor Flitwick, his hands moving excitedly as he talked.
"Who's that?" Harry asked, gesturing towards the unknown man with his fork.
"Dunno," Ron said with a shrug. "New Defense teacher, probably. Too bad Lupin and Tonks couldn't continue, they were great."
"You know the Order needs them, Ron," Hermione said, though she too regretted their absence. They really had been fabulous instructors, but the Order couldn't afford to spare anyone, especially not their only connection to the werewolf community and one of their best Aurors.
Their speculation continued throughout the feast, and they were quite eager when Dumbledore finally stood to address the room. After the usual notices regarding banned objects and off-limits places, the headmaster said, "It is my pleasure to welcome back Professor Slughorn, who has kindly consented to return to his old post as Potions master."
Professor Slughorn stood and gave a jolly wave, but hardly anybody noticed, busy as they were staring at Dumbledore. Potions? But that couldn't be right…unless…
"In light of this appointment, Professor Snape will be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts this term."
Conversation erupted throughout the room at this announcement, the Slytherins cheering for their Head of House while many others voiced their shock or displeasure. Harry could only think one thing, and he expressed his thoughts to Draco via charmed parchment as he prepared for bed later that night:
Well that certainly makes things interesting, doesn't it?
A/N: Finally back to Hogwarts, yay!
Thank you for the follows/faves/reviews, & for reading! You guys are the best.
JKR owns all things Potter, I just play. Please R&R, & enjoy! :)
