Two days before Midwinter and the morning that Hermione got to leave the hospital and return to Harry's home, the paper again had important news to report. Dumbledore had finally acknowledged mounting pressure and declining public favor. He made another of his odd speeches, this one about how his work at Hogwarts was finished and he was ready for retirement so that his time and energy could be devoted to projects that truly needed it. The whole thing was rather chivalrously framed but the frustrated public was not in the mood for face-saving. They did not appreciate the speech but were glad that Dumbledore was finally out of reach of their children wherever he had disappeared to after leaving Hogwarts.

The next morning, the paper carried both McGonagall's and Sprout's reactions to the news. Professor Sprout wrote that she would do her best to ease her students back into a normal routine. She also stated that it simply would not be fair to expect students to take exams and warned the public to expect somewhat lower OWL and NEWT scores than in the past. In stark contrast, Professor McGonagall proclaimed that 'Hogwarts in Exile' would continue for all those that chose to remain. She assured people that NEWTs, OWLs, and final exams would be given and passed since her students were receiving outstanding lessons and extra help whenever it was needed. The students should not be punished, she said, for the inability of the adults in their lives to manage mature conflict resolution and negotiation.

Over the next few days, some of the neutral students left the village school to return to Hogwarts but most parents chose to support McGonagall after her impressive press release with its assurances of academic quality.

This was the political climate for the holidays. Harry, like many other students and families, took the opportunity to go shopping. Those who did not wish to leave the wards were treated to another market day but Harry and his friends made use of his portkey into the French Rue d'Etoiles for gift shopping. They spent an entire day just being teenagers and enjoyed it immensely. When they got home, they had more fun wrapping the parcels in brightly colored holiday paper and sending them off with their two owls in several trips spread over the course of a week. They also took the time to decorate the house for both Christmas and Midwinter. Hermione was still unable to go out into the towns so they were planning to have their own Midwinter celebration at home.

/-/-/-/-/

On the second day back in school after Midwinter holidays, Professor Snape took Harry aside after class and told him when the Dark Lord's plan was to take place.

Harry spent the appointed day making sure that friends or his with Death Eaters in the family knew that they were to sit next to students whose reactions Harry was worried about. Just after noon, when the professors led their classes to the Great Hall for the assembly, Harry double-checked that his orders were being followed. Not one of the friends he had asked to help him had neglected their task.

When all the students were seated, Professor McGonagall spoke. "As some of you may be aware, there have been rumors of a dangerous sort circulating. They have caused conflict between friends and classmates. That cannot be allowed. We are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to host many visitors this afternoon in the hope that you may all ease your minds and reconcile with your neighbors. I must stress to you all that you are in no danger from these visitors and I expect exemplary behavior from each and every one of you."

She gestured towards the doors with her wand and they opened. The students and professors all turned their heads to watch as the chosen Death Eaters and their families filed into the room. First came Professor Snape, Aurelia beside him, each holding the hand of one of their children. Harry caught a rare smile on Professor McGonagall's usually stern face but also the confused looks from Ron and Hermione before he turned his attention back to the doors. Two families Harry did not know had come in while he had been looking elsewhere. Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy arrived next. The Death Eaters and their families were lining up in the front of the room where professors and the older students were offering up their seats to the children guests and the one woman who was heavily pregnant. Harry saw that Voldemor... no... Tom himself had come in after the Malfoys and was followed in by Percy, then Regulus and his family, then by one more family Harry did not know.

Harry looked over the audience and saw a fairly predictable split between those who knew the visitors and those who did not. The latter looked far more confused than the former but Harry could also see wariness in the eyes of a few of both groups. Few people had recognized Tom as the Dark Lord until he began to address the gathered students.

"Children," he began, "I want to first give you my solemn promise that you are in no danger from myself or my followers. Secondly, I believe introductions are in order. For those of you who do not know, I am Tom Riddle, also known as the Dark Lord or sometimes Lord Voldemort."

There were numerous gasps and more than one student tried to jump out of their seat only to find their neighbor pulling them back down and whispering to them. Harry himself had a hand on Hermione's shoulder when she tried to jump into dueling stance.

"Please," Tom said. "We came not to fight, but to welcome you. It is true that some of you cannot see beyond the boundaries of the schoolyard but if you could, you would find only streets lined with homes, the homes of our families and friends."

With that, Mr. Riddle began the introductions. He gave the names of each adult and child present. As he did so, those who were Marked rolled up their sleeve to show their Dark Mark to the students and professors before covering it again.

There was surprisingly little whispered communication going on during the Dark Lord's speech, perhaps because people were either respectfully silent or watching and listening too critically to comment.

When introductions were through, students and teachers were invited to come forward and converse with their visitors. For a long moment, no one stood or said anything. The professors watched the students, the visitors shifted nervously, and even the students with family standing at the front of the room seemed to want someone else to make the first move.

Deciding that he had had enough of the tension, Harry stood and, as all eyes turned to watch him, he walked to the end of his row and turned to approach the guests. He walked right up to the Dark Lord and extended a hand.

"Welcome, Mr. Riddle," he said, loudly enough for the whole room to hear.

The Dark Lord took Harry's hand and shook it. "The pleasure is mine, Mr. Potter," he said.

With that, several students stood and went to their families. Draco Malfoy was the first. He reached his parents and bowed his head to his father and hugged his mother before leading them off towards a few free seats at the table he and his friends had claimed.

Harry walked down the line to where the Snapes stood. He greeted them all and allowed himself to be embraced by Aurelia. He stayed with them until more students approached their feared professor. Ironically, to most of the students who had once considered themselves to be Dumbledore supporters, Professor Snape seemed like the safest bet on who to approach first.

Harry went next to the Blacks, who had only a few students whom they already knew sitting with them. Before too long, Harry noticed that some of the Death Eater children were taking it upon themselves to introduce some of their more reluctant classmates to some of the more lonely-looking families. Harry looked around and saw Ron with Percy but Hermione was still only standing at the back of a small group of muggleborn students who continued to eye the visitors nervously.

Harry looked around. Other than sending them to Professor Snape or Percy, he didn't know if the other visitors would wish to be introduced to muggleborns. He went to attempt to convince them to approach the Snapes, who had told Harry that they weren't against muggleborns, but the students proved unwilling. The Dark Mark still scared them. All of these students were really only in this school because they had feared Dumbledore. Finding themselves in a room with Death Eaters had not been on their agendas in attending this school. They were merely guests in the homes of friends and, though those friends had tried as Harry was to get them to talk with the visitors, it was an all-around uncomfortable situation for them to be in.

As Harry talked with them, he belatedly realized that, at some point during the conversation, they had ceased listening and begun to stare open-mouthed and wide-eyed at a point just behind Harry. Harry turned to find Tom Riddle standing there.

"Mr. Potter, would your friends allow me to speak with them for a few moments?"

Harry was unsure of how to answer. He hoped the Dark Lord knew what he was doing.

Tom said. "I know you have probably heard a lot about me, some of it most unflattering. Am I right to assume that all of you are muggleborn?"

Hermione gathered her Gryffindor courage and challenged, "That's right. What do you have to say to that?"

"Do you know that I was raised by muggles?" Tom answered. "I would not wish my upbringing on any of you but I do recognize that many of you had a better childhood than my own. I am very pleased to see you here in this school. Are you enjoying your lessons?"

It was Hermione that answered again. "I miss Hogwarts' library," she said under her breath.

Tom Riddle laughed, not an evil cackle or a high giggle, but a pleasant chuckle. "It is quite a remarkable collection, isn't it? Hopefully you and all of your classmates will be able to return soon. Have any of you taken the special class in magical culture and customs here?"

They all nodded. It had been assigned to each muggleborn and half-blood student from their first day there.

"Do you like it?"

"It's interesting," a fourth year Hufflepuff replied timidly.

"Did you learn anything useful?" Tom asked.

Another Hufflepuff answered this question. "It was good to know about Midwinter before my friend and her family celebrated it. I didn't know anything about it until class."

"That's good," Tom said. "Does anyone else care to share a story?"

A few other students told the Dark Lord about their holiday celebrations before he led them all over to meet certain families. While he avoided the Blacks and the Malfoys, the others were perfectly polite to the children even though some of the students, such as Hermione, were known to be 'mudbloods'.

When the Dark Lord was finished with the muggleborns and once again alone, Harry approached him.

"What was that all about?' Harry asked barely loud enough for Tom to hear. "I thought you hated muggleborns."

"I do. Most of them stay only long enough to learn how to use their magic, leaching our resources away, and then they live more in the muggle world than the magical one and fail to teach their children our customs if they themselves even bothered to learn them in the first place."

"Then what's so different about these ones you were civil enough with?"

"They are making an effort. I have no choice but to respect that. I was in their shoes once, after all. However, if they abandon our ways now that they know them, I will hate them more than I hate their ignorant brethren."

Harry glared at the Dark Lord but straightened his face before walking away and making rounds among the visitors.

//-//-//-//-

That evening, when Ron, Hermione, and Harry had returned to Harry's house, they took some time to discuss the day's events. Hermione was more interested in posing questions she did not expect anyone present to be able to answer. She was looking for the plot behind the assembly and behind Voldemort's behavior. She didn't believe that Voldemort would accept peace without victory after so many years of fighting. She also kept asking, "If it's really just homes around us, why aren't I allowed to see them? It must be something else."

When Harry started explaining that these families were used to being secretive for their own safety and that Tom was trying to bring peace so his causes could be addressed in the Wizengamut, she realized immediately that he had kept things from her, big things, and she was not pleased. She stormed up to her room and locked herself in. Harry and Ron were actually worried for a while that she was packing her trunk to leave but when Ron went to check on her later that night, she had fallen asleep with her trunk still unpacked. They would work things out in the morning.

//-//-//-//-

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were able to talk things out the following morning. Hermione was not pleased at being left out and she was reluctant to trust Harry because of his seeming trust of Voldemort. Harry told her what he and Tom had talked about both at the manor and at school.

As usual, Hermione's love of a research puzzle pushed aside her other concerns and she eagerly searched the library, the study, and all three students' schoolbooks until she could verify or refute Harry's questioning of Dark simulation magic. She found that Tom and Electra had told Harry the truth.

With Hermione again at Harry's side, though with reservations, Harry turned his attention to other matters. He still wanted to know the rest of the real prophecy about him. He had found, back when he was still at Hogwarts, that the only place to find the prophecy as long as Dumbledore wouldn't tell him was the Hall of Prophecy at the Ministry of Magic. It was a long shot. But Harry decided to check with the Ministry. He had seen the glass sphere smashed but there was a very small, miniscule chance that there was some other record.