'Dear Tom, today a strange professor showed up at supper. Gloria said one of her friends said she's the Divination teacher. She looked the part, I guess. I think she was wearing at least two shawls and at least five necklaces. And she kept pointing to things and apparently making little predictions all throughout supper. And when Filch, the caretaker, came late to supper and was about to sit down, she actually leapt up and screamed something about it being bad to seat 13 people at a table at a time! And then she refused to sit back down and left without finishing her meal! Anyways, she gave people quite a fright. Is 13 even special?'

'It's been theorised that some numbers are magically significant, like 7,' Tom replied, 'I don't know if any number warrants running away from supper though.'

'I hope not, because that would be annoying. I never believed in fortune telling before, but I didn't know there was a whole subject about it at Hogwarts,' Hermione wrote back in preparation for the question that she really wanted him to answer. 'Tom, do you think Divination is real? Can people really see the future?'

'I never thought too highly of Divination class when I was in school, to be honest, so I didn't take that elective. But then again, there are well-known seers like Cassandra Trelawney in the magical world, and they didn't get famous for nothing. We should keep an open mind, I'd say.'

He wasn't lying, Hermione noted.

So that was why he went after the Potters. He didn't feel prophesies were important enough to study their nature extensively, but he wasn't willing to take any chances. A great deal of caution was at play here. A great deal, indeed…

'But tell me about your group project, Sally. It sounds like you and Gloria are getting along?'

'Oh yes! The four of us meet for a while every day to talk about our research, and we even sit together at meals sometime.' Hermione wrote, 'I hope I can become as good friends with them as you and me, Tom.'

'I'm glad you're making new friends, Sally,' Tom wrote in perfectly neat printing. And he seemed to be turning up the attachment-inducing charm again.

A horcrux, it seemed, can have direct control over the spells anchored on its vessel. It supported the theory that the soul fragment within the horcrux powered the magic of its enchantments. It also suggested that any extremely powerful attack should be able to overcome the shielding and destroy the horcrux, not just the basilisk venom that did it for Herpo's. 'Thanks, Tom! You're the best. Goodnight!'

'Sleep well, Sally.'


Late afternoon, the formerly empty hall was suddenly filled with laughter.

"You guys are good," Terry Boot nodded appreciatively as they left the Room of Requirements. "I only started learning last year."

"Same here," Anthony Goldstein admitted, "at first I just started reading about it because I was curious what the Baron meant by Nocturne, but it turned out to be pretty neat."

"I know right? That's how I felt when I first found out about it too!" Hermione offered up. She'd been hoping to bring someone from Ravenclaw into their group for a while now. Spending so much time in the library had certainly helped this cause. Terry and Anthony were both smart, competent students who she'd been fairly sure her friends in the newly dubbed Nocturne Group would get along with fine. So far, it seemed her guess was correct.

"And I love your idea of the tickle duel," said Terry, "This way we get to practice aiming and dodging, and it's really fun."

("Duels should not be fun! Ha!" Interjected Sir Cadogan from the wall, swinging his sword as they passed, "Duels should be deadly! Fought in the name of valour - ")

"Hey, you guys excited for the Hogsmeade visit on Halloween or what?" Blaise remembered.

"Biggest understatement of the year, mate," Harry grinned. "I'm so glad I could convince my uncle…" They'd all received permission to visit the little village. Even Harry, having carefully planned, timed, and worded his request for Uncle Vernon's signature. The reward clearly made the victory sweeter.

"My mum was a bit concerned about Sirius Black showing up, to be honest," said Anthony, "but she figured I'd be okay with the professors and dementors guarding us. Although personally, I can't say I like the dementors there too much."

"Do you think having the dementors here is really necessary?" asked Terry. "I keep hearing people say that a criminal like him might do anything, but that doesn't mean he's going to do every bad thing he can think of, right? I'd reckon it's most likely that he'd disappeared off to somewhere to live quietly. Who says he's even going to infiltrate Hogwarts anyways?"

"Most of the rumours you hear here is nonsense," Theo frowned, "but Minister Fudge said he heard Black muttering 'He's at Hogwarts' in the days before his escape. We think that's why Dumbledore's even worried in the first place. Although, there is that smear campaign theory…"

"I don't think Sirius Black is the sort of man to hide away in obscurity for the rest of his life," a new voice said, "Although I didn't think he would do what he did either."

"Professor Lupin!" Harry greeted happily.

Strange, Hermione could swear the hallway had been completely empty a few seconds ago. Lupin must've came from the secret passage. Interesting, that he should know about that one.

"Oh, you were in school around the same time as Sirius Black, right, Professor Lupin?" Daphne asked.

Lupin nodded, but did not elaborate. Though Hermione noticed he looked visibly saddened at that.

"I think they were friends once," Daphne declared not long after they parted with the new professor. Evidently she noticed Lupin's reaction as well.

"It would make sense," said Harry thoughtfully as they descended the stairs, "Sirius Black was best friends with my dad and Professor Lupin knew my mum very well – he told me when he was teaching me to cast a patronus. They were probably all in the same class."

"If you don't mind me saying, Harry," Blaise nodded sagely, "people ought to be more careful with who they trust."

"Easier said than done," Anthony snorted. "Nobody expects to get betrayed, do they?"

"True, but there's also a reason why the careful ones tend to live longer," Blaise pointed out, "but I guess you're right. Easier said than done."

"Spoken like a Slytherin," Anthony snorted again. "…But who would've thought? I mean, they were all friends once!"

Friends may move on though, Hermione answered silently. Unbidden thoughts flew back to another lifetime, to four intrepid youths fighting together for a goal so much greater than any thought possible. Such great friends, who seemed as if they'd never leave each other's sides. 'Unlike with the Potters, my friends had never betrayed me, and they'd always given me help when I asked.'

But friends do move on…

Hermione shook her head free of that train of thoughts. She was reminiscing too much again. But Anthony was right. The circumstances around Sirius Black were quite sad. And now that he'd escaped from Azkaban Lupin would be feeling at once angry, hurt and confused, she'd imagine.

"I guess that's something, huh? Anyways, we'd better go. I'm hungry…"


When Remus emerged from what used to be one of the Marauders' favourite secret passages to hear Prongslet and friends theorizing that Sirius might've hidden away to live quietly, he just had to say something.

Sirius would rather eat his own foot than live quietly. Or being thought to hide away, especially by his godson.

'Why, Sirius? Are you really coming here to murder your own godson, as they say?'

To be honest, Remus didn't expect to see a group of three Slytherins, two Ravenclaws and one Gryffindor with Harry. It was another one of the things he was pleasantly surprised by upon returning to Hogwarts to teach this year. He didn't think it was possible for Gryffindors and Slytherins to pass each other in the halls without throwing some hexes, and what his own friends used to do to poor Severus was unfortunately an example of this. Yet this year, all the older students seemed at least civil with each other as far as Remus could see, while quite a few mixed groups like these even formed among the younger students (although, those were rarely larger than three). Remus now very vaguely remembered Harry mentioning the name Blaise when he was talking about practicing spells with his friends, but Remus certainly didn't make the connection at the time.

James would probably throw a fit if he was to see his son's present company, Remus chuckled to himself. It seemed that Harry was a more mature person than James at this age.

"Watch where you're going, Lupin."

Remus stopped and looked up just in time to narrowly avoid walking into Severus, who seemed to be shielding a smoking goblet from the expected impact. 'Well speak of the devil…'

"Your potion. I made a cauldron full if you need more."

"Thank you, Severus," Remus took the goblet of Wolfsbane potion, feeling extremely awkward. "Er, I really appreciate this." Really, what was one supposed to say when the person you used to gang up on became the brewer of the only thing that allowed you to live like a normal person?

Severus's lips twitched. "I do believe this is the door to your office, Lupin. Are you going to go in, or are you waiting for me to open the door for you?"

"Er, right, have a good day, then," Remus wanted nothing more than to finish this conversation that he knew neither of them enjoyed, except just ducking away would be rude. Not to mention cowardly. "Er, Severus, I've been meaning to ask you, what's your impression on a third year Gryffindor named Hermione Granger?"

Snape arched a sardonic eyebrow. "What's this about, Lupin?"

"Er, well," Honestly, Remus had just blurted out the first thing he thought of. And he'd actually been planning to start his inquiries with Minerva, not Severus. Ah, well. "it just seems to me that there's something about her that makes her stand out, and just now I passed her walking with Harry and three of your students -"

Severus's nostrils flared angrily, informing Remus that it had been the wrong thing to say. "Yes, Harry Potter is not turning out to be James Junior, is he? If you're afraid that we've been corrupting your precious –"

"No, no, that's not what I meant! I'm just curious, is all. Forget I said anything. See you at dinner, Severus."

And fled into the safety of his office. Today was really not his day.


Leaving the Defence classroom, Severus made a beeline for the dungeons. He'd really rather not interact with the mutt more than absolutely necessary, yet Lupin was actually prolonging the conversation by blathering on and on!

For the umpteenth time since the start of the year, Severus silently cursed the headmaster for hiring a Marauder. Just when the idiot Lockhart landed himself in St Mungo's and he thought things were taking an upturn!

"You've delivered Mr. Lupin's potion, I notice." A familiar voice floated from the wall.

"You notice too much for a portrait, has anyone told you that?" Severus glared at the potion master in the portrait. As always, unperturbed silver eyes stared back at him.

"Not really," The figure in green shrugged and swapped two flasks. "Besides, hasn't my noticing things helped you in the past?"

That was true. Back when Severus was a student, it had been this portrait who used to warned him whenever he heard the group of four students who called themselves the Marauders plotting one of their more … targeted pranks. James Potter and his crew did eventually catch on and realize that a portrait might be snitching, but it took them nearly two years. Morons.

"If it helps, Remus Lupin didn't like the Marauders bullying you. In private he would try to convince them to stop, and suggest a general prank instead. Some of the times he succeeded."

"But he still stood by them when they were publically humiliating me," Severus countered. 'And he almost killed me in fifth year. But that was more Black's fault than his.'

"True, he did," the Potion Master nodded. "How much you choose to forgive is, of course, up to you."

"Well, I suppose I should thank you for your preaching."

"Just looking out for a fellow potion master," the portrait waved airily. The sarcasm was completely ignored – deliberately, Severus was sure.

"Lupin was asking me about one of Potter's friends, Hermione Granger. He told me he thought there's something off about her and said he'd seen her and Potter walk with three of my students. Then he tried to pretend he meant nothing by it," Severus snorted, "He's such a bad liar he shouldn't even try." The slight inflection of surprise in Lupin's voice when he said that bit had been clear. Probably wondering how the girl managed to talk Potter into associating with the snakes, he'd imagine, because oh no, James's son would never do that.

Granted, it was rather hypocritical of himself, since hadn't he believed that Harry Potter couldn't possibly be any different from his father until last year?

Though, now that he thought about it, it was Hermione Granger who'd somehow made friends with Theodore Nott, Blaise Zabini, and Daphne Greengrass first. So technically the wolf would be right in that she probably influenced Potter. In fact, she might even be the first...?

"Hmm," the Potion Master contemplated, "but you know Lupin has just returned to Hogwarts this year. It's understandable that he would find some things different from his old school days. He doesn't necessarily mean any ill by his surprise."

"Perhaps," Severus conceded. What was he thinking about before the portrait spoke again?

"I'd gladly preach some more, as you put it, but I have a feeling that it would not be appreciated," the Potion Master leaned over a thin vase of roses to peer at him, "Good day, Severus."

"Have fun watching students scramble up to dinner, Potion Master."

"Oh don't worry, Severus," the portrait's silver eyes gleamed, "I'll make my own plans."