Disclaimer: The characters, settings, and associated minutiae aren't mine. They are however the property of one JKR, and her assorted business partners.

In the immortal words of Freddie Mercury, "the show must go on."

As always thanks to my wonderful beta chem prof.

'''''''''''''''''

Christmas Eve passed quickly as each person in Grimmauld all had personal business to attend to one way or the other. Harry's trip to Gringott's went very much under the radar with the aid of Remus, and Harry was visibly reminded of why the man had been the brains of the Marauders.

There were still murmurs about the strong words Harry had used at the Order meeting from the few members that had stopped by Grimmauld, but with said teenager out of the house nothing came from the grumbling. In fact, Harry didn't return to Grimmauld until late evening, giving him enough time to spend an hour or so with Hermione and her parents before he bade everyone else a good night.

'''''''''''''''''

Dumbledore rubbed at his eyes tiredly as he finished making the requested adjustments to the new Minister's contingency plans should Voldemort attack either Hogwarts or the Ministry directly. He hated to think that the worst would come to pass, but at least Rufus was taking a much more pragmatic approach to the war.

Harry's words, while refreshing, had led to complaints from many of the older Order members via owl or Floo call during the day. Unsurprisingly, the younger members of the group seemed to rally around Harry's words, while the Aurors in the group seemed to accept his words at face value and move on.

It was definitely a sign of the times when the great Albus Dumbledore began to question his own mortality, and decided he needed to encourage Harry's fledgling leadership in the wizarding world. While Alastor and Minerva could lead in the interim if the worst came to pass, Harry would be the only viable long term replacement in the various positions he currently held. Great power and firm entrenchment to the light side was required to keep the purebloods from running roughshod over the muggleborns at Hogwarts and the Ministry, and Harry was the only one who fit the mold.

Fawkes trilled a melancholy note reflecting his human's morose musings; it appeared that even an immortal creature like a phoenix understood the concept of mortality.

'''''''''''''''''

Harry sighed as he stared into the fireplace Christmas morning; his stomach was currently somewhere in his throat by the feel of things as he turned a ring around in his hands. It wasn't like he was proposing to Hermione, but still; giving a ring to the girl you love is never an easy thing to do.

There would always be that small cynical part of him that would crop up at inopportune times like this, reminding him of the odds of both his and Hermione's survival by the time all of this mess with Riddle was finished. But, even with all of that in mind he knew he needed to keep living and this was just one example of what that meant.

So lost in his musings was he that he didn't hear the soft patter of steps come down the stairs and into the eve of the room. Hermione had Crookshanks in her arms as she stroked the orange ball of fur's head; her hair was rather sleep mussed and as a result was even wilder than normal. She was wearing pajama pants and a hooded sweatshirt she had permanently borrowed from Harry. While Grimmauld had been made far more habitable in the past year or so, it was still rather chilly during even the warmest times of year.

Silently Hermione approached Harry as he continued to sit on the couch and stare into the fire. As carefully as she could she cleared her throat so as not to startle him. After all, it wouldn't do to be stunned by him on Christmas morning of all times.

Of course Harry knew she had been there the moment she reached the eve; even if he couldn't read her thoughts he could tell her magic apart from any other witch alive. It wasn't something he even consciously was aware of for the longest time, but he could feel others' magic if he concentrated enough. Learning Occlumency had revealed many secrets of magic and many truths about his own abilities. Hermione's magic was so…focused compared to almost anyone else he had ever met.

Hermione sat down on the couch, taking care to put her feet in Harry's lap as Crookshanks lounged on her legs. Smiling softly she simply said, "Merry Christmas."

Harry rolled the ring around in his hand once more before he muttered to himself, "I sure hope so." Turning to Hermione, he noticed by her bemused expression that she had heard his words.

Reaching out he grasped one of her hands and held her wrist with the other hand, which was incidentally holding the ring. "I love you."

Hermione blinked before her eyes softened. "I love you too."

Harry couldn't keep the small grin on his face from forming before he slowly coaxed her hand open and ran his fingers over her palm. "Do you ever think about how much things have changed between us in such a short amount of time?" Hermione merely nodded as she was content to let Harry have this rare moment of emotional openness with her and not spoil it with her own words.

Harry released his grasp on her wrist but held her hand open with his hand as he cautiously took the ring and placed in her suddenly clammy palm. "This is erm, this is a promise ring and my formal request that we enter into a betrothal contract."

Hermione searched his eyes for any sign of hesitation for a long moment before she asked, "You're sure you want this?"

Harry nodded and released her hand, not knowing what to feel at the moment, "Yes erm, I hate all of this stuffy pretentious stuff, but it's required if we want to get engaged someday."

Hermione smiled softly before she grasped the ring in her hand and said, "Well then I suppose we should do this properly. Would you put the ring on me Harry?"

Harry's color immediately began to return as he took the ring with trembling fingers and slid it onto Hermione's hand. Hermione's smile was nearly blinding as Crookshanks just barely managed to abandon his perch before he would have been crushed between his mistress and the messy haired one.

As Hermione's kiss deepened Harry felt himself truly relax for the first time in what felt like forever. Life was good.

''''''''''''''''''''

The rest of Christmas went by in a blur of torn wrapping paper, eggnog, and stories told of more peaceful times. Thankfully Voldemort had gone quiet following the attack at Hogsmeade; apparently even he had limits as to the destruction he wanted to produce. The dementors had been quiet, and by whatever deity above allowed it, the new year came without another death attributable to murder or mayhem.

Harry had been trained briefly but intensely in the use of Gryffindor's sword during battle, the sword having enough inherent magic to allow the wielder to cast limited spells through the blade, as well as being sharp enough to cut through stone.

In fact, even Harry and Hermione's official announcement of being betrothed and its eventual placement on the front page of the Prophet hadn't slowed the days at all. The one thing Harry was counting down the days to would be his first appearance before the Wizengamot proper as the heir to a hereditary seat and future member of the body.

While Harry had first learned much about the Ministry and its various bodies from Mr. Weasley, those conversations were too painful to dredge up while still being able to seek out details. Therefore, it was with great reluctance that he approached Sirius about a decidedly serious issue a few days beforehand. It had taken a considerable amount of time, but in the end he had found Sirius with his head poking out of the icebox in a small anteroom of the main kitchen he had never taken the time to explore before.

"Sirius, I've been looking all over for you." Harry exclaimed.

Sirius' head popped up as he peered over the door to the enchanted icebox. If Harry had taken the time to look closely he would have noticed the lipstick print on his godfather's cheek. "Harry," he began hesitantly, "What can I help you with?"

Harry sighed. "I need to know more about the specifics of the Wizengamot, and I know you've been voting for the Black family for the last few months. Do you have some time to spare right now?"

Sirius squirmed slightly as a pair of warm hands began running up and down his thighs. "Harry, I'm entertaining a friend at the moment, can this wait until the afternoon?"

Harry's face flushed red as a head of blonde hair popped up at this point before it swiveled and light blue eyes regarded him.

Sirius cleared his throat awkwardly. "Harry, this is Evelyn Vance; I believe you've met her older sister Emmeline."

Harry's eyes shifted back and forth for a long moment before he grinned devilishly. "Of course I have." His eyes shifted to Evelyn. "It's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Vance."

Evelyn smiled brightly. "It's nice to meet you too Harry. Sirius has told me so much about you."

Harry grinned. "Well, I'm sad to say he hasn't mentioned you yet, but I'll forgive him this time." Nodding to himself he smirked before he slowly started to back out of the room. "I'll just leave you to your breakfast then."

Sirius suppressed a groan at the look on Harry's face. It was way too close to the look on James' face when he began to plot something.

''''''''''''''

Sirius finally found Harry in the library later that day, reading on the couch by the fireplace, hopefully having recovered from the dreadful embarrassment he had inadvertently caused him earlier.

"Harry?"

Harry glanced up from the book he was reading, Rules and Regulations for the Wizengamot. "Hey Paddy, what's up?"

Sirius plopped down next to Harry on the couch and sighed heavily. "Well, Evelyn just went back to her place and I figured I'd explain what you saw this morning before we get into the Wizengamot."

Harry merely shook his head. "You don't need to explain yourself Sirius. You're an adult and if you want to start dating, or even just erm, shagging witches I'm not going to tell you what to do."

Sirius chuckled lightly. "Well, I'm glad to hear that. But, just so you know I am dating Evelyn and we have been dating for about a week and a half now."

Harry nodded as Sirius continued, "So you wanted to talk about the Wizengamot, right?"

"I've read up on the proper means of addressing the body at large and individuals in specific, but how do votes and other administrative things work?" asked Harry.

Sirius grinned wryly. "You know, if you had told me that I was going to be in the Wizengamot when I was your age I would have laughed my arse off."

Harry nodded. "If someone had told me there was magic and I'd be famous six years ago I would have laughed my arse off too."

Sirius scowled as he thought about just who Harry was living with six years earlier, before he sighed, "Well kiddo, the Wizengamot is a pretty slimy place. That's not to say there aren't some good people there, but usually they don't have much of a voice due to Umbridge, Malfoy, and Fudge."

Harry furrowed his brow, "Fudge?"

Sirius nodded. "Yeah, he has a hereditary seat for something one of his ancestors did in a goblin war. The point is that no one can stand up to the Malfoy bloc of voters. You and your friend Neville will help when you get old enough, but for now it's like trying to wade through treacle to get something productive done."

Harry sighed. "This book indicates that everyone on the body has a single vote. How many voters are there exactly?"

Sirius shrugged. "Well that depends, currently there are 46 members of the entire body that can vote. Twenty five hereditary seats exist, and twenty five seats are appointed by a board of senior Wizengamot members. Four hereditary seats are currently vacant due to situations like yours. You, Neville, and that Zabini boy will claim three of the four available votes, and I think the Goldstein boy in Ravenclaw would claim the other vote through his mother's side."

Harry rubbed at his eyes. "Neville's gran would have been voting before she was killed, wouldn't she?"

Sirius shook his head. "No, it was a pretty common thing for the hereditary seats to be limited to male descendants only. The Potter seat is an exception to that, because your granddad changed the provisions on the seat. But, I'll tell you all about your grandpa Charlus some other time. Was there anything else you wanted to know?"

Harry absently shook his head. "No, that should do for now. Thanks Paddy."

Sirius slowly rose to his feet, suddenly feeling all of his 35 years; on an impulse he ruffled Harry's hair. "Get yourself cleaned up and ready for dinner. No more excuses about you being too busy to eat with your old godfather this time, you hear?" Harry rolled his eyes but grinned and nodded in assent before Sirius left the room to deal with some more of those damnable memories that always wanted to haunt him.

''''''''''''''''''''''

Harry had to suppress a sigh at the showing for the Wizengamot meeting, not that a filled press box should have surprised him in retrospect. Dumbledore had led the body through a variety of mindless minutiae, and it was about time for him to make his first public, political statement.

He knew he was going to ruffle some feathers with this announcement, but honestly he might as well use his fame for something worthwhile. Also, if he was going to live in this world for the rest of his life, then he was going to do his best to make it a place worth living in. This was to be the first step towards ending the centuries of blood bigotry and narrow-minded thinking that had plagued this world for far too long.

Dumbledore banged his enchanted gavel, thus ending all discussion on the latest topic before he made to read a note on his podium. "Next item of business has been brought forth to me. The Heads of the houses for Potter and Weasley wish to make a joint announcement. Please remember that Mr. Potter will be a peer by this time next year, so please take the time to pay attention."

It hadn't taken too long to figure out that while Bill was a very cool guy, he wasn't cut out for politics and public speaking. In the end it was decided that Harry would be the one to make the necessary statements and speak for both himself and Bill.

Harry stood and swallowed once in an attempt to combat the nauseous feeling sweeping over him. "Thank you Mr. Dumbledore. Venerated members of the Wizengamot, I come to you today as the last of my line. Four of my line have been murdered in the last twenty years and no satisfaction has been paid for these crimes. Therefore, it is in my capacity as the Head of Clan Potter that I declare a blood feud in a demand for satisfaction against Tom Marvolo Riddle Jr. and those that decide to follow him."

Taking a breath he glanced over at Bill who nodded. "Likewise, Bill Weasley, the de facto head of the Weasley family has declared a blood feud against the Lestrange family. I open the floor to any objections that might be made so that I might address them as is my right."

This is where things would get interesting according to Dumbledore. Having Malfoy, Fudge, and Umbridge as members of the body tended to mean as much.

Sure enough Umbridge stood. "Permission to speak Chief Warlock."

Dumbledore merely nodded as Umbridge turned her beady eyes towards Harry. "Mr. Potter, you wish to declare blood feud on the Riddle family is it?"

Harry nodded as she continued, "Very well, if you could perhaps show proof that Mr. Riddle was guilty of these charges perhaps we could better understand your request."

"Madam Umbridge, Tom Marvolo Riddle is an anagram for 'I am Lord Voldemort'. Would you care for me to explain further?" Gasps ran through the crowd at the casual mention of the dark lord.

Umbridge narrowed her eyes. "I am unaware of any pureblood families named Riddle, Mr. Potter. Surely you jest in telling us the dark lord is not a pureblood."

Harry arched his eyebrow. "Perhaps a little story would suffice in quenching your thirst for knowledge Madam."

Umbridge glanced over to Malfoy who nodded shortly, but if the pursed lips and narrowed eyes on the Malfoy scion were any indication he wasn't pleased with this turn of events.

Harry half bowed and began, "In the 1920's a magical family lived outside of Little Hangleton. They were known as the Gaunt family, and they claimed ancestry from Salazar Slytherin. There was a father, a son, and a timid daughter that lived together and they despised the muggles they were forced to live near. Unfortunately, as a byproduct of this family's desire to remain purebloods at all costs, a certain amount of genetic deformity had taken place. This was particularly problematic for the youngest, the daughter named Merope Gaunt. In the end her father understood that she would never attract a proper pureblood suitor and he treated her with cruelty as a result of this. Over time Merope despaired that she would never leave the house of her father and began to seek out a suitor that would take her away from her own personal hell."

Harry glanced around; the entire body was silent and listening intently. A quick glance to Dumbledore showed the aging wizard with something akin to a smirk on his face as he watched his protégé silence a group of witches and wizards many time his elders.

"In the end she became besotted with an attractive and wealthy young muggle in the village named Tom Riddle. Aware that she could never attract the man on her own merits she ensnared him with the application of a love potion. Of course her father and brother immediately disowned Merope, and she was burdened with the knowledge that the only person she still had in the world was one under the effects of an enchantment. As luck would have it, Merope became pregnant and her belief that her muggle husband would not abandon her led her to discontinue the use of the potion."

Harry smiled as a few of the members began to squirm in their seats. "Tom Riddle promptly abandoned Merope and divorced her, leaving the pregnant and nearly penniless witch homeless and without anyone to turn to. In the end she died in childbirth and placed her child up for adoption, naming the boy Tom Marvolo Riddle after the muggle she loved and her father Marvolo Gaunt."

Harry sighed. "The young Tom Riddle had a difficult childhood at a muggle orphanage before he discovered that he was a wizard when Albus Dumbledore gave him his Hogwarts acceptance letter when he turned 11. A phenomenal student at Hogwarts, Tom Riddle was a prefect and head boy, having also been wrongly honored for ending the threat of the Chamber of Secrets. After he left Hogwarts he delved deeply into the dark arts, traveling the world and gaining power through various dark rituals. Nearly twenty years passed before he reemerged as the dark wizard known as Lord Voldemort. History clearly shows that this creature killed both of my paternal grandparents and my parents through his reign of terror. By this do I make my rightful claim to a blood feud and the protections it affords me by the law."

Lucius Malfoy stood next, and he completely bypassed typical protocol and drawled, "How exactly are we to know this isn't a clever fabrication of facts perpetrated by Mr. Potter in an attempt to circumvent the law?"

Murmurs rose throughout the crowd and Harry raised his hand begging for silence. "If someone can disprove my claims now, or at any point in the future with an abundance of evidence deemed credible by this venerable body under the effects of Veritaserum, I will then drop my claim and not pursue it any further under the protection of law."

Harry hastened to add, "Bill Weasley's claim is much more straightforward, and forensic evidence does prove that Bellatrix Lestrange was the responsible party for Arthur Weasley's unfortunate death."

Dumbledore gazed over the crowd and he nodded to himself once. "Mr. Potter's claim has met all challenges thus far, and his concessions do meet the legal requirements to make such a proclamation. Mr. Weasley's claim also appears to meet the requirements. Are there any further challenges to these two demands for satisfaction?"

Harry's words had stunned many of those in the Wizengamot, and he had done so with an issue which would normally cause some dispute amongst the members. Due to the sheer inconceivability of the story, and the fact that it was most likely true, the assembled body for once remained silent on an issue.

No one spoke up and Dumbledore banged his gavel, making the motion a legally binding declaration. "So mote it be."

Harry released a deep breath as he stepped down from the podium and quickly left the main chambers with Bill hot on his heels. Once clear of the chambers Bill exclaimed, "Blood hell Harry, you had them all eating out of your hands. How did you know all of that about Voldemort anyways?"

Harry shrugged. "I learned some of it in the Chamber of Secrets, and the rest of it was directly from memories in Professor Dumbledore's pensieve. Useful things those pensieves are."

Bill merely nodded as they walked into the atrium and left via the Floo connections for an Order safe house before the pair then Flooed to Grimmauld Place, for a stiff drink of some sort. Their first appearance before the Wizengamot had gone off without too much trouble.

''''''''''''''''''''

Amelia Bones had a bit of a quandary on her hands; she had been amongst those that investigated whom Lord Voldemort might have been before he took on his dark lord persona. Years of painstaking research hadn't turned up anything as detailed as what Harry Potter had revealed, and while there had been rumors of Dumbledore knowing the dark lord's true identity she had never expected them to be true. After all, what could the headmaster of Hogwarts know, that an experienced investigative auror could not uncover?

Mere hours following the chaos of Harry Potter's first Wizengamot address, she had sent an owl off requesting a private audience with the young man for further elaboration on his earlier words regarding Riddle. She had even taken the socially prudent route and invited his betrothed as well. While she was like many women hoping their daughters or nieces would be in Ms. Granger's shoes some day, she harbored the impressive young woman no ill will.

It had come as no big surprise when an owl came back with an acceptance for the next day, and thanking her for inviting Ms. Granger as well. Amelia had been surprised by that little mention; it appeared that Mr. Potter wasn't exactly the brash young man that the Wizengamot had seen yesterday after all.

A buzz on her desk indicated her 3:00 appointment had just arrived, and with a flick of her wand Harry Potter and Hermione Granger were ushered in. After the customary offer of a drink she got right down to business, "A pleasure to finally make your acquaintance Mr. Potter and Ms, Granger."

Harry smiled and glanced over to Hermione, "Thank you Madam Bones."

Hermione added, "I appreciated your thoughtfulness in allowing me to come as well."

Amelia smiled, it was refreshing to meet respectful young people, "It's only proper Ms. Granger, and you'll find that short of the Wizengamot not a single place that Mr. Potter is allowed will be denied to his betrothed."

Harry nodded, "I'd prefer if you call me Harry, Madam Bones. I have no need for formality today; I think I had my fill of that for the month yesterday."

Amelia laughed, "Yes, you stirred up quite the hornet's nest yesterday, and in fact that was what I requested your audience for."

Harry nodded and casually motioned his hand beckoning her to continue, "You see Harry, I spent ten years following the initial emergence of Lord Voldemort trying to discover what his true identity was. I'm simply amazed that you would have access to such information."

Harry nodded, "May I speak candidly Madam Bones?"

Amelia nodded, "I'd prefer it Harry."

Harry smiled slowly, "In my second year, when the heir of Slytherin had made the appearance during the series of attacks, I discovered Voldemort's true identity. While I have no evidence of this claim, Lucius Malfoy placed an old school relic of his master's in a young witch's cauldron filled with school books.

This was no normal relic, in fact it was an enchanted diary that was able to possess and control the witch after a long struggle. The heir of Slytherin was indeed freed upon the castle, but he was not present in body, but through his vengeful spirit inhabiting a plain black diary."

Harry took a swallow from the small glass of water before he continued, "Hermione here was the one who actually broke the mystery right before she was petrified. The heir of Slytherin was commanding a basilisk to travel through the pipes of the school to attack students it came across when it was free. Ron Weasley and I discovered shortly after learning the identity of the monster that his sister had been taken down into the chamber of secrets."

Amelia nodded as a dictation quill continued to take down Harry's words, "We've been informed of as much by your headmaster, but please continue."

"Ron and I confronted Lockhart about helping us and he attempted to memory charm us. Fortunately he was a worthless excuse for a wizard, and two second years managed to get the drop on him and force him to join us. Upon finding the entrance of the chamber we ventured down, deep under the school in a desperate attempt to save Ginny.

Lockhart managed to grab Ron's wand, and once again he attempted to memory charm the both of us in a bid to save his cowardly hide. What he wasn't aware of, was that Ron's wand had been broken and malfunctioning for most of the year. The spell backfired and he memory charmed himself, also managing to cause a cave-in which separated Ron from me."

Amelia arched her eyebrow; this was moving into territory that she was unfamiliar with from Dumbledore's initial report of the incident.

Hermione broke in at this point, "Madam Bones, we'd prefer if the remainder of this conversation is kept a secret that you alone are aware of. Feel free to add pertinent details in your report, but much of this needs to remain confidential for reasons which Professor Dumbledore assured us he would explain to you."

Amelia nodded as she flicked her wand stopping the dictation quill and erasing the last set of statements. "Very well, that is an acceptable request Ms. Granger."

Hermione nodded as Harry continued, "I managed to enter the main chamber to find Ginny Weasley near death on the ground next to the little black diary of T.M Riddle. To my surprise a living avatar of Tom Riddle appeared as though from thin air and taunted me about Ginny's death, and then he explained that he was the 16-year-old avatar of Lord Voldemort. Using his ability to speak to snakes he summoned the basilisk and with a considerable amount of luck I managed to best it using Gryffindor's sword."

Harry turned to Hermione and grinned, "We should probably harvest the corpse for potions ingredients now that I think about it. I imagine a 1000 year old basilisk skin vest and pants would work rather nicely."

Amelia cleared her throat pointedly and Harry grinned sheepishly, "Right, well Professor Dumbledore's phoenix managed to heal my wounds and flew all of us out of the chamber. Once I had Voldemort's real name I learned a bit more, and Professor Dumbledore supplied me with memories detailing Merope Gaunt's sad story."

Amelia made a few notations on the piece of paper before she said, "While that is indeed an incredible story which many would be able to write quite the story from, I think it shall suffice for my own personal curiosities."

Hermione glanced at Harry, his eyes had gone distant in remembrance of his ordeal down in the chamber and she asked, "Was there anything else you would like to know Madam Bones?"

Amelia removed her monocle and polished on her vest before she replied, "While I would request you contact my department should you find yourself in an abundant surplus of that basilisk hide, I think I have gotten the answers I sought."

Hermione sighed in relief as she tugged on Harry's hand pulling him out of his seat, he graced her with a grateful smile before she turned to Madam Bones, "It was a pleasure Madam Bones."

Amelia graced Hermione with a warm smile, "I do believe the pleasure was all mine young lady, but I thank you nonetheless."

'''''''''''''''''''''

The Hogwarts Express departed from King's Cross without a whisper of trouble from Voldemort or his forces, but that's not to say there weren't distractions of another kind. Various press agencies from around the magical world were there trying to get some sort of word from either Harry Potter or Hermione Granger on a variety of topics.

Due to some creative contingencies devised by Moody, the aforementioned pair managed to sneak past detection via the polyjuiced forms of two teenage muggles found near Grimmauld Place. Hedwig and Crookshanks hadn't appreciated having their colors changed for any amount of time, but considering the compensation, in the form of treats, they didn't put up nearly as much fuss as they could have.

It was the first time Harry had ever gone anywhere during Christmas break since he had started at Hogwarts, so this was the first time he had ridden the Express back to school. Thus, he had been pleasantly surprised when Hermione informed him that Prefects did not have to take their customary rounds.

The pair settled into a compartment as Hermione sent off her patronus as a signal for the Order members to scatter and disperse.

Harry had to admit that Hermione as a pretty blonde did interest him in a few ways so he asked, "So, do blondes really have more fun?"

Hermione gave Harry a gimlet eye. "I don't know, but you as a redhead is doing nothing for me."

Harry chuckled in response. "Good thing I'm not a Weasley then."

Hermione mumbled something along the lines of "You got that right", but he didn't catch the exact words and was soon contented as he began to count down the minutes until the polyjuice potion wore off.

Once their doses had worn off the pair took care to return their familiars to their original forms before Hermione sent Crookshanks off to retrieve any of their friends that wanted to join them. They were enjoying the peaceful moment, merely snuggled together on the bench listening to the other breathe when Ron burst through the door.

"Bloody hell you two, I was going bonkers thinking something had happened to you," Ron exclaimed in his typical bombastic fashion.

Harry chuckled as Hermione rolled her eyes. "Ron, mate we had to figure out a way to get around the press. I'm sure you had to deal with them to a lesser extent, didn't you?"

Ron sighed and was about to answer when Neville and Luna Lovegood piled into the compartment. Ron's face went pink as Luna stared at him unabashedly for an awkward moment before she turned to Harry and Hermione. "Hello Potters, I heard that a sprig of Holly can keep the fizzwhingers away."

Harry grinned and pulled out his wand. "I've got my sprig of Holly right here."

Luna nodded, apparently appeased, as she plopped down on the opposite bench and produced a copy of the Quibbler from somewhere on her person.

Neville smiled indulgently at Luna before he greeted his friends, "Congratulations you two. Harry, bloody well done at the Wizengamot, it's been all my gran can talk about since you made your announcement. Apparently she wants to make a similar proclamation on my parents' behalf against that crazy bitch and Barty Crouch Jr."

Hermione looked like she wanted to chastise Neville for his language, but decided against the virtue of such a move considering what the monsters had done to his parents.

Harry furrowed his brow. "Where's Ginny at?"

Ron made a disgusted face. "Off with her new boyfriend I suspect. Michael Corner, if you can believe it."

Hermione frowned. "Michael Corner has a bit of a reputation amongst the girls. Do you think I should talk to Ginny about it?"

Harry opened his mouth, but it was Luna that spoke. "Maybe she feels like she deserves to be used. Stilted Ginger Hoppers often have that effect."

Harry digested Luna's words for a moment. "Why would she feel like she deserves to be used?"

Luna glanced up from her Quibbler with a bemused expression. "Well it's not like she is going to be used by the boy she wants to now, is it?"

Hermione sighed heavily and nodded before she grasped Harry's shoulder in an entreaty to let it go. "Harry, just let it be."

Ron nodded. "I talked to her mate, she sent one of those Bat Bogies at me, and told me to mind my own business. I'll talk to the twins later; maybe they'll have some ideas." Ron hesitated for a moment before he added, "Ginny…she's changed since Dad died. She's probably changed more than the rest of us combined. The last time I remember her being so moody is when she had that diary."

Harry sighed heavily before finally nodding his acquiescence, sometimes the only thing to do was the thing we least wanted to.

''''''''''''''''''

As the train pulled into Hogsmeade station the familiar presence of Hagrid beckoned the students to the carriages towards the castle. A few Aurors were stationed around the carriages forming a perimeter of sorts as the students were bustled aboard.

Hermione frowned. "It's sad that I'm getting used to Aurors at every turn when I go outside now."

Neville nodded. "My gran always used to say V-Voldemort always attacked from the shadows last time. This time he's doing everything out in the open."

Luna airily added, "Sometimes the best place to hide your true intentions is in plain sight. That's what Snorkacks are famous for, after all."

Harry eyed Luna appraisingly. "I think you might be on to something there Luna. Voldemort probably is making all of these public attacks to cover something else up."

Hagrid took advantage of the apparent lull in the conversation to lumber over to the group and make his presence known with a none-too-subtle clearing of his throat.

Harry arched his eyebrow. "What can we help you with Hagrid?"

"'Arry, do yah remember about that thing I had promised to show yah in the forest?" Hagrid spoke quietly, at least quietly for him.

Harry took Hagrid's tone for what it was an indirect request to speak in private. Stepping away from his friends he gestured his hand forming a simple privacy charm. "I had thought you'd forgotten about that Hagrid."

Hagrid's beard twitched as he grinned. "Won't be no forgettin this 'Arry, trust me on that."

Harry merely nodded as Hagrid clapped his shoulder. "I reckon yer gonna be right surprised when I show yer it. Meet me outside meh hut tomorrah night, and yeh can bring 'ermione and Ron if yer want to."

Harry blinked once before a gentle push from Hagrid had him stumbling backs towards his friends as they began to board their carriage.

After he helped Hermione aboard Harry hopped up to sit next to her before she spoke out of the side of her mouth. "What did Hagrid want, Harry?"

Harry grinned slightly. "Oh he just wants to show us something in the Forbidden Forest. I'm sure it's some creature that would kill as soon as it would kiss us."

Judging by the look in Hermione's eyes, she was thinking that the likelihood that any of Hagrid's beasties wanting a kiss was rather smaller than the likelihood it would kill them.

Deciding a change of topic would be best at this point Harry moved on to one he was sure Ron would be interested in. "So, what do you fancy they'll be serving for dinner?"

Ron's eyes went dreamy. "Oh, I hope they do some chicken. Treacle sounds good also."

Everyone in the carriage laughed at Ron's blissful expression. At least some things never changed.

''''''''''''''''''

A/N: Sorry about the delay in posting this one, I had written about half of it when the file was 'corrupted'. Things will start gaining some speed now that Riddle has been exposed publicly, and in a way that can't easily be refuted.

I imagine it will be 6-7 more chapters before the apex of this year comes to the fore, so I hope you can all hang with me until then. Thanks for all of the reviews, and thanks for reading.

Question of the chapter:

There have been rumors that Deathly Hallows may be split into two movies, for 'artistic' reasons? What are your thoughts on this idea?