* ~ The Eighth Year Universe Series ~ *

PART THREE

The Eighth Year

Chapter 47: I Wouldn't Be Bitter, I'd Just Be Better Now

A/N: The chapter title is from the song:

Better Now by Rascal Flatts.

After Melody had settled in on Friday, Hermione only saw her once, and that was when she made her way through the common room upstairs to bed. Hermione had learned earlier from Sadie that Melody was joining the dorm she shared with Hannah and Annie. It had been Tracey's dorm room, but her bed had disappeared from the room after her death which had been difficult for Sadie to comprehend and deal with. Dean's bed had also vanished from the dorm he had shared with Neville, Theo, Ernie and Justin.

When Hermione woke up on Saturday morning, Melody didn't even cross her mind as she ate breakfast with her friends. She then made her way to the library with Daphne, Sadie, Susan and Lilly. The boys were out playing Quidditch, and the girls had decided to spend the day in the library, hoping that if they worked right through, they would finish their potions project. The group made their way to the table in the library they usually worked at. They had just settled down with their books when they heard a strange noise coming from nearby.

Daphne heard it first. She frowned and looked up at the others, and they were still engrossed in their books. She listened and heard it again; this time, it was clear that the sound was a girl crying. Lilly looked up this time. She had heard it too.

"Guys," Daphne whispered, "Do you hear that?"

Sadie and Susan looked up and listened. They nodded as they heard the crying.

"It sounds like a girl," Susan said quietly as she glanced over her shoulder to try and figure out where Madam Pince was, but she was stacking books at the other side of the library.

"Where is it coming from?" Sadie whispered as she glanced behind the bookcase where the sound seemed to be coming from, "There's no one there."

"Maybe it's Myrtle," Sadie said, "She can make herself invisible."

"It's not Myrtle," Hermione said as she finally looked up from her book, "Trust me, I spent enough time in her bathroom to know how her cry sounds."

"Hermione is right," Susan said, "Myrtle doesn't cry. She kind of wails."

Hermione and Susan chuckled at the thought, and Daphne sighed, "Whoever it is, she sounds upset. We should try and help her."

With another glance to make sure Pince was still at the other side of the library, she stood up and made her way around the bookcase, and the others followed her. Daphne indicated that they shouldn't speak and edged towards a tapestry on the wall. When she approached it, she lightly pushed against it. The tapestry moved, indicating that there was an opening behind it.

"Excuse me," Daphne said gently, "Can we help you?"

The girl in the alcove stopped crying, and the girls listened to the silence for a moment.

Finally, there was a call of, "Come in then, if you want."

Daphne walked in first. The alcove was more like a room with a table and a few chairs in it. She motioned for the others to come in, and the girls strolled into the room where the girl who had been crying was sitting in one of the chairs; it was Melody.

"Melody!" Sadie realised, "Are you okay?"

Melody sighed and looked down; her eyes were red, puffy and bloodshot.

"No," Melody said honestly, and her voice broke a little.

"Is there anything we can do?" Hermione asked her.

"I'm sorry," Melody said quietly, "For the way I treated you all yesterday, but I'm scared that if I make friends, I'll lose them all again."

"It's okay," Hermione said as she took one of the wooden seats, Sadie took the other and Susan, Daphne and Lilly pushed themselves up onto the table.

"You especially Hermione," Melody said with a guilty expression on her face, "You tried to be nice to me, and I was horrible for no reason, even after all you did in the Magnus tower."

"Don't worry about it," Hermione said honestly, "With the situation you're in, I didn't expect you to be perfectly fine and happy straight away."

"I doubt I'll ever be perfectly happy," Melody said sadly, she looked down at her hands, and her voice started to shake again, "Not without Roy anyway."

"Was Roy your boyfriend?" Lilly asked.

Melody nodded. She looked close to tears again, "Dad said he bought a ring, he was going to propose at the prom...I got the pox two weeks before he got the chance."

"Gosh, that's awful," Sadie said quietly.

Melody shrugged, "I just wish I could have my life back."

"Well, Roy would only be 31 now if he was in your year," Daphne said. She was trying to look on the bright side, but it didn't come across that way to Melody.

"Only 31?" Melody cried loudly. Hermione quickly performed a muffliato charm on the tapestry at the entrance to their little nook.

Melody burst into tears again and became a little hysterical, "I'm 18! That's not a small age gap; it's 13 years! He's probably married with children; he's probably forgotten all about me!"

"What's his full name?" Daphne interjected. She was calm even now that Melody was freaking out, "You won't know unless you find him if he has moved on, will you?"

Melody seemed to consider this and sighed, "His name is Roy Lockhart."

Hermione's jaw dropped, Susan's jaw dropped, Daphne gaped like a fish, Sadie and Lilly shared gazes of surprise.

"Gilderoy Lockhart?" Hermione exclaimed.

Melody was confused by their reactions, but she nodded, "Uh…yeah, but nobody called him that. He hated it."

"Well," Susan said slowly, "He definitely doesn't remember you."

Melody immediately broke down in tears, "He's dead. I knew it!"

"Susan!" Lilly hissed, "Come on, have some tact!"

"She needs to find out anyway," Daphne reasoned quietly, "And whatever way she does, it will be hard."

"He isn't dead, Melody," Hermione said gently, and the girl's sobs eased enough for Hermione to be able to hear herself think, "He isn't married, and he doesn't have kids."

"Then what do you mean?" Melody asked miserably.

Susan sighed, "He taught at Hogwarts in our second year, but he had an accident. He tried to cast a memory charm, and it backfired. He barely knows who he is. He's been in St. Mungo's for the last six years."

This set Melody off once more, and the others just shared looks and mouthed to each other, "What now?"

They decided to wait a moment and see if Melody's crying eased, "Do I have any friends still alive?" she asked through her tears.

"I'm sure you do," Hermione said kindly, "Tell us who some of your friends are. We'll see if we can help."

Melody nodded and wiped her tears on the sleeve of her cloak, "My two best friends were Glenda Chittock and Gwenog Jones. Glenda was four years younger than me, so she should be 26 now, and Gwenog was my age, so she should be 31."

Hermione felt glad that she could give the girl some good news, "Well, Gwenog is still alive, and she's very famous. She plays for the Holyhead Harpies and has done for quite some time."

"She definitely remembers you," Susan said with a smile, "She has a tattoo on her neck of the Ravenclaw crest with a snitch, quaffle and bludger around it. In interviews, she says it's a mark of respect to her best friend who she lost as a teenager."

Melody's eyes welled up with tears at this; "Really?" she asked quietly, "That's so sweet."

Susan reached into her back pocket and pulled out a chocolate frog card, "This is her," she said as she handed it to Melody.

Melody took the photograph with shaking hands and half-laughed, half-cried when she saw it, "Oh my gosh, she looks the same…so pretty," she shook her head as if she couldn't believe what she saw, "And she has a chocolate frog card!"

"And Glenda?"

"She's famous too," Lilly said with a smile, "She has a chocolate frog card as well."

"Wow," Melody said as the tears spilt from her eyes, "What for?"

"She was the host of 'Witching Hour' on the Wizarding Wireless Network," Lilly replied, "She's just left the show because she's pregnant with her first baby."

"A baby, oh my gosh, that's so great," Melody whispered to herself, "And what about Bill, Bill Weasley? Is he okay? He was so sweet…he was a prefect when I was head girl. We always did our patrols together. Is he alright?"

The others were surprised that Melody had known Bill but Hermione replied, "Yes, he's great actually," she said honestly, "He got married recently to a French woman, and they are having a baby."

Melody smiled broadly at this, "That is so so great."

"Melody," Sadie said slowly as an idea struck her, "If you'd like, we could take you to St. Mungo's to see Lockhart - I mean Roy - he won't recognise you, but you would at least be able to see him."

Melody considered this in silence for a moment as she wiped her tears again, "I'd like that, but it will be hard, I think."

"I imagine it will be," Sadie said, "But we'll all be there."

"If you want us to be, that is," Daphne added.

Melody nodded. She took a moment to catch her breath and said, "I'd like you all to be there, but I don't deserve your kindness, not after my treatment of you yesterday."

"The past is called the past for a reason," Hermione said simply as she helped Melody to her feet.

"Let's get you back to the common room so you can get cleaned up," Susan said kindly as she and Sadie linked an arm through Melody's on either side. If Melody needed anything at the moment, it was friends.

The boys had planned to have a day of mucking about on the Quidditch field, but they had only been out for half an hour when the rain began to pour, so they quickly changed their plans. Twenty minutes and several drying charms later, they found themselves in 'The Three Broomsticks' with a pint of butterbeer in front of them, or in Draco's case, a glass of firewhiskey.

"Can you believe it's March?" Neville said with a shake of his head, "We've only got a few months left until exams, prom and graduation, and then that's it; we're done with school."

"It's gone so fast," Theo admitted as he looked thoughtfully into his glass.

"It's been pretty eventful, though," Draco said as he thought back to all that had happened so far, the good and the bad.

"It always is when you're around me," Harry joked.

Neville chuckled, "That's true."

"What are we going to do when school is done?" Theo asked, partly to himself and slightly to the others, "We're all going to be going our separate ways."

"Nah, we're not," Harry said, "Well, us four aren't anyway. We're going to see each other every day at Auror training Theo, don't get sentimental."

"I'm not getting into Auror training Harry," Theo said with a sigh as he drank from his pint glass, "They do a background check. There's no way I'd pass."

"Don't be daft, Theo," Harry said.

Neville nodded, "You don't have anything that's going to come up in a background check Theo, don't worry."

Theo checked that no one was looking and said, "Oh yeah? I think they might take this into account," he pulled his sleeve up and showed them the faint outline of a dark mark.

Harry and Neville were shocked, but Draco didn't seem to be. He had already known. Theo was his best friend, after all.

"Theo, you didn't tell me you were a Death Eater," Harry hissed across the table.

"I wasn't," Theo said bitterly, "I never did anything; I never hurt anyone or killed anyone. My Dad forced it on me, same as Draco."

"It doesn't change anything, Theo. You still don't have a record," Draco said, "And the mark will be gone soon. Mine disappeared last month, and I got it a month before you did. If anyone isn't going to become an Auror, it's me. I do have a criminal record, one that lists me as a Death Eater and a traitor. Oh yeah, and it also has me down for the attempted murder of Albus Dumbledore."

"Draco, I told you I'd pull all the necessary strings," Harry began to say.

Draco cut him off, "What strings? You'd have to pull all the bloody strings in the Ministry!"

"Draco," Harry said quietly, "I only have to pull one string. The Minister for Magic was up until recently the Head Auror. I'll show him the memories and prove that you saved my life in the war; I'll prove you deserve it. They will at least give you a chance; once you're in the selection process, there's an impartial judge. That part is on you."

The air was tense for a moment until Neville made a terrible joke, "An impartial judge? Does the goblet of fire watch us and then hold up a bit of paper with a number on it?"

It was so bad that it broke the tension and made everybody laugh.

"Anyway, I have something I need to tell you," Theo began. He sounded earnest, which didn't happen very often.

"Another bombshell along the lines of, by the way, I was a Death Eater?" Neville asked in an amused undertone.

"No," Theo said with a roll of his eyes, "I've been thinking about this...a lot, and I've decided to spend this afternoon ring shopping."

Draco gaped at his friend, "Like engagement ring shopping?"

Theo nodded, and Harry grinned, "Oh wow, that's fantastic!"

Neville nodded, "Yeah, that's fantastic, mate!"

Theo smiled, "Cheers, guys. I don't know when I'll do it yet, but I want to get the ring."

Draco shook his head at his friend, "Theodore Roosevelt Nott, buying an engagement ring! What happened to you?"

"A lovely lady called Sadie Cauldwell happened to me," Theo said with a smile.

"Well, good luck with the shopping," Harry said to his friend as they finished their drinks and stood up to leave.

"Yeah," Draco said, he was a lot more shocked than Harry at this news, "Good luck."

"Make sure you pick something nice, not just the most expensive thing in the shop!" Neville joked as they left the three broomsticks and went their separate ways. Theo just gave Neville the middle finger behind his back before he apparated away from the village.

Draco shook his head again as the remaining three made their way back to Hogwarts, "Can you believe it? Engagements? You're not thinking of proposing to Daph, are you?"

Harry shook his head with a slight frown, "Oh no, no way. We've only been together since November, remember?"

"Yeah, well, Hermione and I haven't exactly been together long, but it's about the same length of time as Theo and Sadie's relationship," Draco said.

Neville shrugged, "Yeah, but it's different. Theo and Sadie have known each other as friends since their first year. You and Hermione have only actually liked each other as people for a few months."

Harry and Draco both laughed at the way Neville had worded it, but Harry nodded, "You're right, Nev. I hadn't noticed Daphne until I came back for eighth year, apart from that huge sixth-year crush, so obviously, we're going to do things at a different pace from the others."

"That's true," Draco said with a frown, "But you do realise things won't always be this way, don't you?"

"What do you mean by 'this way', Draco?" Harry asked. He was utterly at a loss as to what the Slytherin meant.

Draco caught Harry's eye, "In Hogwarts, unity is all fine and well, but the world isn't like that. You've seen what the papers have done and what they have been saying."

"Draco, what are you trying to say?" Neville asked as he studied his friend.

Draco looked down, "When we get out of here, the world isn't going to accept that Ron Weasley, the sidekick with who you saved the world, isn't one of your closest friends anymore. But that the bastard who tormented you in high school is."

"For Godric's sake Draco, you're a drama queen," Harry muttered in amusement, "Ron and I are still really good friends. We're just living different lives at the moment. The world, the press, they can think what they want. I don't care, and you shouldn't either."

Neville chuckled, "Harry's right, it doesn't matter. So what if Harry and I get a bit of bad press for being your friend, or if Hermione gets a bit of hate mail for dating you? We've all had worse, and we can all handle it."

"Listen to me and stop being noble for a second," Draco said quietly, "What I am trying to say is that if you two want to distance yourselves from me once we leave Hogwarts. If you want to make our connection disappear, I'll understand."

Harry couldn't actually believe what Draco was suggesting. He looked at Neville in disbelief, and they both shook their heads, "Hmm, let us think about that for a second," Harry said thoughtfully.

Draco surveyed them as they pretended to think very hard about this. Then Harry and Neville said in unison, "No."

Neville glared at his friend, "You are a drama queen. Of course, we won't distance ourselves from you!"

Harry nodded, "You are one of my best friends, you idiot. I'm not going to ditch you that easily, not unless you do something really bloody stupid like cheat on Hermione or try and steal my girlfriend, or beat Gryffindor in the Quidditch cup."

Draco smiled slightly; he didn't often let people see his emotions or even let people in that quickly. Still, Harry and Neville had fast become part of the select group of people who he trusted enough to be entirely himself around.

"Well, I will never betray Hermione; you can be sure of that. And you don't have to worry about me stealing your girlfriend. However, no promises on the Quidditch cup," he smirked.

Neville laughed, "That's more like it. Stop being a stupid git now, alright?"

Harry and Draco both chuckled, but Draco appeared to be thoughtful once more as he said, "It's not just us you'll have to worry about, you know. In school, the only problems you and Daph have are some extreme Gryffindors or Slytherins. Still, when the wizarding world realise that your relationship with Daphne is serious, it's going to affect your reputation. It's as prejudiced as ever out there."

"Well, as I said, whatever bad press I get, I'll deal with it. It's that simple," Harry said. In truth, he didn't know how simple or complicated it would be.

"Hogwarts shelters you at the moment; the real world is different. I know Hermione will get it too, I've had a similar conversation with her. She says she doesn't care, and she'll handle it, just like you have. When it happens, though, it's different," Draco sighed, "All I'm saying is this 'perfect' world we live in, this bubble, it's going to burst the second school ends."

"I know," Harry said quietly. It was a harsh truth he'd been avoiding, "I know it will, Draco, but can't I enjoy living in the bubble while it lasts? Haven't we had enough pain recently with what happened to Dean and Tracey?"

Draco nodded, "I'll say just one more thing. Once we're out there, we're in the public eye, and once that happens, they'll find out about you and Daphne. As soon as they know you can't go back, a bad break-up will cause you so many problems, not just with the press but in your career. Trust me on this, Harry; I grew up being taught about this kind of thing by my father. All I'm asking is that you think about your relationship with Daphne, make sure you really love her, make sure it's worth it and that it's going to last, okay?"

Neville sighed, "Draco is right on that one. Being an Auror is similar to being a Politician, especially if you want to climb the ranks. And if you're going to take your seat on the Wizengamot, it's even more serious."

Harry tried to comprehend everything that Draco and Neville had said to give himself time to think of an answer, but in the end, all he could do was nod and say weakly, "Right, I'll think about it."

"Good," Draco said with a deep sigh, "Merlin, I don't want school to end."

Harry sighed too, "Neither do I."

When Hermione, Daphne, Sadie, Susan and Lilly arrived in the entrance hall of St. Mungo's, they were supporting a very nervous and shaky Melody.

There was a small queue which gave Melody a little time to look around. The hospital hadn't changed since the last time she was here, which felt like yesterday. She had been back here briefly after her breakdown, but Melody hadn't seen the reception then. This was the first time she had seen it since she had come here with the pox. It was a little more up to date and clean but no less white or funny smelling. Melody wrinkled her nose; she hated hospitals. She caught sight of a sign near the desk and swallowed hard as she read what one of the floors was for, "Magical Bugs – Contagious maladies, e.g. dragon pox, vanishing sickness, scrofungulus, etc."

Melody's gaze was drawn away from the sign as their 'little' group reached the WelcomeWitch at the front desk.

She had bleached blonde hair, was sitting with her feet up on a stool and was chewing something pink that looked mysteriously like gum despite the sign above her head, which stated, "NO FOOD OR DRINK."

Hermione took the lead, although she did gently take Melody's hand and pull her forward, "Hi, we're here to visit Gilderoy Lockhart. He has severe memory loss."

"Can't you read the sign?" The witch asked. She looked at them like they were stupid, "Memory loss clearly comes under spell damage, fourth floor."

"Right," Hermione mumbled. She led the others through the double doors behind the desk and mumbled to Melody, "I forgot how happy the workers here are."

This got a nervous chuckle from the girl. Hermione saw how much she was shaking and linked her arm through Melody's. The Ravenclaw stopped shaking slightly and quietly said, "Thank you, Hermione'"

When they got to the end of the corridor, they made their way up a staircase, and Daphne hurried to catch up with her friend, "You know your way about St. Mungo's a bit too well," she said quietly so that Melody wouldn't hear.

Hermione nodded, "I've been here before. I spent Christmas here with Ron's family because his Dad was very ill. That same Christmas, I saw Lockhart, and he's completely out of it. Melody isn't going to recognise him."

"She needs to see him and see that for herself if she's going to take the first step towards getting over him," Daphne reasoned.

Hermione smiled slightly, "That was very wise, Daphne."

Daphne smirked, "Sadie said it a moment ago when you were talking to the WelcomeWitch," she admitted with a laugh. Hermione only rolled her eyes at her as they continued to climb the staircase.

Eventually, they reached the top and saw a sign saying "SPELL DAMAGE". There was a mini-reception with a much more welcoming middle-aged witch. Hermione walked up to the desk, ready to speak for Melody again, but this time she didn't need to.

"Excuse me," Melody said rather quietly, "I'm here to see Gilderoy Lockhart."

The witch smiled, "Oh Gilderoy, that will be lovely dear, he doesn't get many visitors. He's so sweet as well."

Melody only managed to nod as the witch led her along a corridor and said, "He's just in there, Miss."

Melody took a deep breath and turned around, "Do you mind if I go in alone?" she asked anxiously. There was a line of chairs in the corridor and a window into the room where Gilderoy Lockhart was staying.

The others shook their heads and took seats; they didn't mind at all. They would have felt like intruders if they had gone in.

"We just wanted to be here for moral support," Sadie said.

Lilly nodded, "And you know we're right outside if you need us."

Melody nodded and looked through the glass. All she could see was the back of his head, but his hair was as blonde and curly as it had been then. She smiled, although she still felt more nervous than she ever had in her life.

Hermione was making her way over to a seat next to Daphne when Melody grabbed her hand, "Hermione, I wondered..." Melody trailed off and flushed pink a little, "I wondered if you'd come in with me?"

Hermione smiled and nodded, "Of course I will," she said.

Melody took a deep breath, and Hermione asked, "Are you ready?"

Melody nodded, so Hermione opened the door into the room and let Melody walk in. She kept a little distance between herself and the girl; she wanted Melody to handle this on her own. But this way, Melody knew that Hermione was there if she needed her.

Lockhart didn't turn around at the door opening; he was too busy talking to the old healer who was doing her rounds.

"Oh yes, I'm quite famous, do you know? You should read my books," He was saying.

"Oh, I will," The old witch said with a smile. Hermione guessed this conversation had happened several times with several different healers.

Melody finally seemed to have found her voice, "Roy," she said quietly in a small, broken voice.

Lockhart was getting his blood tests done, so he didn't turn around from where he was sitting on the bed, "Roy? There's no Roy here, only me, Gilderoy Lockhart! Would you like an autograph?"

Melody's eyes began to fill up with tears because she didn't know this man. She didn't know what to say to him or what to do; she just wanted to run away.

"Roy, don't you know who I am?" Melody asked as the tears spilt from her eyes.

The healer finished her tests and walked by Melody. She paused and said, "I wouldn't expect much, my dear. He doesn't remember himself, let alone anyone else."

Melody nodded, and a few more tears fell as she did so. The healer left the room, and the door closed with a loud click. Every wall was covered with pictures of the man, photos of himself, all signed. Who was this man?

"Roy...please..." Melody begged, "You must recognise me. You must know who I am."

Lockhart stood up and said jovially, "Oh alright, let me have a look at you, then I'll get you this autograph," he finished signing the photo of himself that was in his hand and turned around to face Melody for the first time.

The moment his eyes fell on Melody, something changed. The photograph fell out of his hands, and he walked forward with wide eyes.

"Melody?" He croaked. His voice was suddenly small, quiet and harsh.

"Roy?" Melody asked. She was unsure if it was him. He looked so different; he seemed so old, he had so many more lines than she had known upon his face, but his eyes were as blue as she remembered.

"I thought...your father...he told me you were gone," Lockhart said in a quiet, broken voice.

"I was, but I'm back, and you remember, you remember me, Roy!" Melody cried. She rushed forward and threw herself into his arms, and held him tightly. She sobbed hard onto his shoulder and Lockhart himself shed tears as he held Melody tightly. Hermione quietly slipped from the room and rolled her eyes when she saw five girls all crowded around an extendable ear as they looked through the glass.

"You are all so nosy!" Hermione exclaimed as she placed her ear as close to the extendable ear as she could.

"Hypocrite," Daphne mouthed, and Hermione childishly stuck her tongue out at this comment.

Inside the room, Melody pulled away from the hug, and Lockhart looked at her like he hadn't seen her in years. Well, he hadn't.

"What happened, Mel?" He asked.

"It's a long story Roy, but I'll explain that later," Melody said. She laughed because she could, because she was with Roy again, and it felt like some part of her life was restored.

It was only then that Lockhart looked down and frowned, "What am I wearing?" he asked as he looked at the white cotton hospital pyjamas he was wearing. He frowned as he looked at his arms, "What's happened to me, Mel?" he asked as he began to panic.

Hermione quickly called the Mediwitch from earlier, who hurried into the room and was astounded to see that Lockhart had his memory back.

"What happened? Why do I look like this?" Lockhart asked as he caught sight of his face in a mirror, "Why am I so old?"

"Gilderoy," The old witch began to say.

Lockhart made a face, "Don't call me that. My name is Roy."

"Roy, you suffered from extreme memory loss," Melody explained, putting her hand on his arm to calm him down. He frowned and sat down on the bed; Melody sat down next to him.

"What happened?" The witch asked Melody as she jotted down notes on her clipboard.

Melody replied, "Roy looked at me, and he remembered me; it was instant. It will last, won't it? This won't go away again?"

The old witch smiled, "I highly doubt it miss," she said honestly, "However Gi-" she cut herself off, "Roy doesn't seem to have recovered all of his memories, so I'll have to ask him a few questions."

"Roy, can you tell me what your oldest memory is?" the witch asked kindly as she sat down on a plastic stool by Lockhart's bed.

Lockhart thought about this for a moment and then replied, "My first fishing trip with my father when I was around five years old."

The witch nodded and jotted this down, "And what do you remember of your school years?" she asked.

"I was a Ravenclaw, I was in the same year as this beautiful girl," He added as he looked fondly at Melody, "My favourite subject was Defence Against the Dark Arts though my best O.W.L was Transfiguration. I was a member of the Ravenclaw duelling club...is that enough? Oh, I played seeker on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team too."

The witch nodded once more and wrote this down.

"When were you born?"

"The 26th of January, 1968."

"Full name?"

"Gilderoy Matthew Lockhart."

The witch took down both of these details then asked simple questions like what Lockhart's blood status was and the names of his parents. Once these standard questions were out of the way, she moved onto the big one.

"And Roy, what is the last thing you remember?"

Lockhart didn't seem to have to think hard about this at all, "I remember being in seventh year at Hogwarts. I remember Melody getting sick with the pox and then disappearing. I was told she was dead by her father. The last thing I remember is failing my N.E.W.T's and getting drunk."

"And what date was that?"

Lockhart again didn't seem to think very hard about this as he replied, "The 28th of June, 1986."

Outside in the corridor, everyone gasped and gaped as they realised that Lockhart had only regained his memories up until the moment Melody had left. Inside the room, Melody explained that she had caught the pox, and experimental treatment had led to her being stuck in the body of a cat for 13 years. She then told the witch that Lockhart had suffered a breakdown on the 28th of June, and according to her father, had never been the same since.

The witch said she would have to do some tests, but Melody was welcome to stay in the room, so Melody sat on the plastic stool by Lockhart's bed as he lay on the bed to get tests done. The curtain of the window they were looking through was pulled shut, so the girls drew in the extendable ears.

"So he only remembers up until Melody left," Susan stated. No one was quite sure what to make of that.

The others nodded, "Is that good or bad?" Lilly asked, and nobody knew the answer.

"Good," Hermione said with a bit of a smile, "Mentally, they are the same age now."

"Yes, but he has to live in a body much older than his years. That isn't fair, is it?" Sadie questioned. She was always looking into the moral and ethical side of these things.

"True, but he was unhappy after Melody left. You heard her say he had a breakdown," Daphne argued, "I mean, isn't he better off not remembering all of that pain?"

"Not to mention remembering the fact he was a fraud," Lilly piped up, "He must have become that way because of Melody's disappearance. I'm sure he'd be ashamed if he had to remember that."

"I suppose," Susan said thoughtfully. For a moment, they were silent as they all thought about the scenario and how they would feel if it was them.

They were then distracted because the door opened, and Melody walked out with a smile on her face, "He remembers me!" she said happily. However, they already knew this from their nosiness, "The healer just did a few quick tests, and she says that whatever clicked when he saw me was so powerful that his brain used all it had to restore the memories of me. She says there is no chance of his other memories coming back."

"What about his short term memory?" Lilly asked. She was the one who wanted to be a healer.

"It's fine," Melody said happily. She grinned broadly from ear to ear, "The only problem now, of course, is the fact that he's in the body of a 31-year-old man, but mentally he's 18, like me."

The others nodded, but Lilly was frowning slightly as if in thought, "What about a de-ageing potion? That could change his looks and give him back the years he lost; it would effectively make you both the same age again. But of course, it wouldn't change his insides, just his external appearance. It's designed for people who have been in a coma for a long time to help them adjust. You would still outlive him, but it's better than nothing, isn't it?"

The Mediwitch had just come out of the room in time to hear Lilly say this and responded, "De-aging potions are extremely rare and very expensive. There is a long waiting list for them, ma'am."

"How long a list?" Lilly asked.

The witch seemed to think about this a moment before replying, "Six months to a year."

Melody had up until now been feeling quite hopeful, but her face fell at these words.

Lilly narrowed her eyes, "That doesn't sound right," she said.

The witch just grunted at this response and said, "Well, it is. I work here, missy, not you."

On that note, she walked away, but Lilly gave Melody a comforting smile, "Don't worry just yet, Melody, I'll be right back," she said as she hurried off down the corridor.

"Where on earth is she going?" Daphne asked as she watched Lilly hurry away.

"I have no idea," Hermione replied as she too frowned after the girl.

"I have an idea," Susan said with a small smile.

"What is it?" Sadie asked, but Susan just shook her head and refused to answer, so they sat in silence and waited for Lilly to return. The seconds ticked by, and then the minutes did too.

Nobody could find it in themselves to make small talk, so when Lilly returned 10 minutes later, everybody was glad, but they were also surprised when they realised that she had brought Neville with her.

"What are you doing here?" Daphne asked in surprise.

Neville grinned, "Nice to see you too, Daph," he joked.

The Slytherin girl rolled her eyes, "You know what I mean."

"I had a feeling you'd left to call Neville," Susan said with a sad sort of smile.

"So who do I speak to?" Neville asked Lilly simply.

Lilly grinned, "The big boss," she said.

"Alright, but this is your idea, so I'm dragging you with me, Lilly," Neville said with a pointed look at the Ravenclaw.

"Come on then," Lilly said impatiently, and they disappeared down a corridor just like that.

"What on earth is that about?" Daphne asked the others, who shrugged.

"I don't know what hold Neville has over St. Mungos. Surely Harry or Draco would have been better," Sadie said with a frown.

Daphne shook her head, "No, Harry has no hold here, only at the Ministry."

"Doesn't Draco own a share in St. Mungo's, though?" Hermione asked the others generally.

Daphne shook her head, "Not anymore. His father was forced to sell it when he was arrested at the end of the war. But either way, I don't know what Neville's hold over anyone here is."

Susan shrugged. She didn't know exactly what was going on either, "It might have something to do with his parents," she guessed.

"It could do," Hermione said.

Before anyone could find out what it could or couldn't be, Neville and Lilly walked past once more, and Lilly called to them, "We're going to talk to the Head of St. Mungo's; we'll be back soon!"

Hermione and Daphne shared a mischievous glance. Daphne grinned and grabbed the extendable ears.

Hermione smirked, "Stay here and keep an eye on Melody," she told the others. Melody was back in the room with Lockhart now. With that, she and Daphne hurried after Neville and Lilly to the office of the Head of St. Mungos.

By the time they reached the office, they were many things, including out of breath. Daphne gasped, "Wow, this place has a lot of stairs. Shouldn't hospitals have bloody ramps or something?"

"You're supposed to be the fit Quidditch player," Hermione teased as she slipped the extendable ear underneath the door and pressed her ear against it. Daphne caught her breath and pressed her ear against the fake ear too.

After a couple of minutes, they finally got some audio coming through. They could now hear what was going on inside the office.

"I still don't understand why you're here, Mr Longbottom," A brisk, harsh voice was saying.

"I'm not entirely happy with your practice Mr Beckett," Neville said. He sounded slightly angry but not fired up.

"My practice is as good as ever, Mr Longbottom. I see no reason for you being unhappy with it," Beckett said, his voice was steady and calm.

"I happen to know a girl called Melody Norris-Filch. Do you recognise that name? Of course, you do because she's suing you for malpractice and her lawyer, by the way, is very good. So you are going to lose a hefty sum to that girl. Unless, of course, you give her what she wants, which is a de-ageing potion."

"De-aging potions are rare, and the waiting list is long," The head began to say, but Neville wouldn't let him continue.

"Show me your stock list, Mr Beckett."

"I have no requirement to do that-"

"No, Mr Beckett, you don't," Neville said as he raised his voice, "However I own 25% of the shares of this hospital, and at a time as critical at this, I don't think you want the bad publicity that comes with shareholders pulling out."

"He's got a point, Mr Beckett," Lilly said matter of factly, "You don't want to go around losing support at a critical time. Aren't you trying to recruit a lot of Hogwarts graduates for your new apprenticeship programmes?"

"That has nothing to do with you, Miss Moon."

"Hear her out, Mr Beckett," Neville said calmly.

Beckett sighed, "Fine," he said through gritted teeth, "Yes, I am trying to do that."

"Well, we have a lot of friends who are graduating soon. It wouldn't be hard to dissuade them from applying to these programs," Lilly said smoothly.

"Are you two blackmailing me?"

From what they could hear, it sounded like Neville was now pacing the room, "If blackmail is what it takes, then yes. I know how you got to the top, and it wasn't through legitimate methods, Mr Beckett! That girl down there has gone through hell, and by giving the man she loves a simple potion that would restore his looks to his mental age, you could be giving her back her life! I would like to see that stock list now, Mr Beckett."

There was a pause, and then...

"Of course, Mr Longbottom."

Outside Hermione and Daphne shared a grin.

Inside the room, the sound of paper being shuffled was heard. Then there was a tense silence in which they could only assume that Neville was looking at the stock list.

"You have six brewed de-ageing potions in your stock," Neville stated, and Beckett didn't speak, so he had obviously merely nodded.

"Your waiting list, Mr Beckett," Neville said. The authority in his voice sounded out of place but intriguing.

There was the sound of paper being shuffled yet again and another silence that was broken quickly.

"You have six potions in your stock and only four people on your waiting list! Yet your staff are refusing to give that potion to someone in need of it!"

Nobody had ever really heard Neville that angry, but Hermione smirked. This was bad-arse snake killing, cardigan-wearing Neville.

Inside the room, there was silence and then...

"Mr Longbottom, we reserve the use of these potions for people in coma's. We have several patients in a vegetative state who could wake. It takes a year to brew a potion; if we give one to this man, then we will be short if a comatose patient awakes," Mr Beckett explained.

"How often do comatose patients awake?" Neville asked calmly.

"Well-"

"Better yet, let's talk statistics," Lilly cut in, "How many coma patients awake, Mr Beckett?"

"Research suggests 1 in 100," Mr Beckett admitted.

"So it's improbable that someone will awake needing that potion, and you will still have one in reserve anyway," Neville pointed out.

"I see your point, Mr Longbottom. I will allow the use of this potion on two conditions."

"I understand. The conditions are that Melody is to lessen her charges on the hospital and that I pay you a fee?"

"No," The voice was harsh and in control again, "The girl drops her claim to sue the hospital, and you either up your shares to 40% or get one of your influential friends to take on 15% and become a shareholder in the company."

There was a pause again; outside in the corridor, Daphne and Hermione both held their breath.

"How does Harry Potter sound? " Neville asked.

Daphne's eyes widened.

"Harry Potter? The boy-who-lived?" Mr Beckett asked in disbelief.

"The one and only," Neville replied, "He will publically announce that he has become a shareholder in St Mungos."

"Deal," Beckett said instantly, "Once the girl has signed the relevant paperwork, I will release the potion to you."

"Done," Neville said.

Hermione quickly pulled the extendable ears out of the door and pushed them into her pocket. She and Daphne hurried to a seat and sat down; they tried to look innocent as Beckett saw Neville and Lilly out of his office.

The moment the door clicked shut behind Beckett, Hermione grinned at Neville, "You were brilliant!" she said as they began to make their way back to the fourth floor to give Melody the good news.

"I can't get over it sometimes," Lilly laughed, "I'm sorry, but I still see that guy who always lost his Toad and ended up in ridiculous situations. Not some aristocratic pureblood."

Neville shrugged, "Well, I only use it when I need to, and I think this situation called for it."

Lilly nodded, "I admire you for what you did Nev, it was very noble of you, and I think it's going to change Melody's life."

"It is," Hermione said as she smiled at her friend, "You did something amazing today, Neville."

"You also used your best friend," Daphne said. She raised an eyebrow at Neville, "And I can't quite believe that I, the Slytherin, am the one telling you off for that. But you bargained using Harry."

"But Harry kind of knows about it," Neville explained with a smile, "And it will help him in the long run anyway. We had a chat about publicity the other day. He has hold at the Ministry and mountains of old money in Gringotts vaults, but he doesn't have any current income and Auror training isn't going to pay much. I told him to become a shareholder in a reliable company, and what's more reliable than a hospital?"

Daphne grinned, "Neville Longbottom, you sly little Gryffindor. I think I love you."

Neville laughed, "Don't tell Harry that he joked."

Hermione and Lilly chuckled too as they reached the fourth-floor corridor where the others were waiting.

"Well, Neville is pretty fantastic," Lilly said matter of factly to her friends, "He just managed to convince the Head of St. Mungo's to give Lockhart the potion, but there are conditions, and we'll need to check with Melody."

"How did you hear our conversation through the door?" Neville asked in amusement as Hermione knocked and slowly entered the room to run the conditions by Melody.

Daphne grinned and smirked, "Extendable ears," she said with a grin.

Neville laughed, "Right, I forgot you were a prankster."

Daphne laughed too, "Wait until Harry finds out you've out-bad-arsed him," she said. She whistled as she imagined her boyfriend's reaction, "I reckon it will be the start of a prank war."

"Alright then, you can tell him to bring it on," Neville chuckled, and Daphne's grin widened. She could have some real fun with this.

Hermione came out of the room and gave Neville the thumbs up, "She agreed. She says she'll sign as soon as possible."

Neville walked into the room with a stack of paper he had come out of Beckett's office with, and 30 minutes later, everybody was anxiously waiting outside the curtained off room while Lockhart was being given the potion.

The air was quite tense because everybody was worried, more for Melody than Lockhart, but either way, they all wanted this to go well. They felt like they had been waiting forever when the door to the room opened, and Melody and Lockhart walked out of the room together.

The sight was amazing; Lockhart was still wearing the same white hospital pyjamas, but he looked remarkably different. The lines on his face were gone; his eyes were as blue as ever but far more alive and bright. His blonde hair was bouncy and curly as it had always been. He was the same height but slimmer, and as he stood in the doorway holding Melody's hand, the others cheered.

It was such a happy ending to such a sad story, and in the world that they lived in, that just didn't happen very often. Melody had never looked happier, and the others were just as happy for her, even if they had only known her for a few days. Melody rushed forward and hugged them all individually.

"Thank you for being such good friends," she said, and she meant it.

It was then, as Hermione grinned at Melody, that she realised how glad she was that she hadn't given up on Melody the day before when she had been so bitter and cold. Perseverance had won, and it had also earned her a friend.

As Harry and Draco made their way through the rain back to Hogwarts after another failed attempt at Quidditch, the rain turned into snow. It was March, but it was still the Scottish Highlands. The two friends didn't talk much as they walked through what was fast becoming a blizzard; they kept their cloaks close to their bodies and walked briskly. Harry had no intention of going straight back to the castle, however.

"Draco!" He called to get the Slytherins attention over the howling wind.

"Yeah?" Draco called back as he stopped and turned around to face Harry; his cheeks were pink with the cold.

"Head back to the castle; I'm going to stop off somewhere!" Harry shouted. He pulled his cloak closer and cast a warming charm on himself.

"Are you sure? I don't think you're going to want to be out in this for much longer!" Draco yelled as he followed Harry's lead and cast a warming charm on himself too.

"I'll be fine, honestly. I'll see you later!" Harry shouted as he turned and began to trudge through the snow, which was falling so fast and thick that it was lying on the ground already.

Draco watched him for a moment and wondered if he should try and convince his friend to go back to the castle with him. Still, when he realised that Harry was making his way towards the little graveyard in the grounds he knew, there was no point trying to convince the Gryffindor to come back. So Draco trudged towards the front doors of the castle. Harry was a big boy; he knew how to cast warming charms; he wasn't stupid enough to let himself die of hypothermia.

Harry was on route to the graveyard, and when he got there and forcefully pushed the little gate open, he felt tears start to well in his eyes. He wasn't entirely sure why they were there or who they were for. Harry made his way to the grave he was looking for, that of Remus Lupin. He reached it and dropped to his knees in front of it. He hoped if he stared at the grave for long enough, it would help him, but he knew he was being foolish.

Harry had been thinking about what Draco had said ever since he had said it. Remus would have known what to do, he would have given Harry advice, and Harry would have then known what to do, but he wasn't here now.

How could Draco tell him to do that, to think carefully about whether or not he loved Daphne? Of course, he loved her, didn't he? Or was it lust or teenage romance? It felt like love now, it had always felt like love, but Draco had put doubts in his mind now as to whether or not it was. Now he was faced with coming out into the public eye with her and dealing with the backlash.

Harry didn't realise how long he had been sitting in front of the grave until he felt a large hand on his shoulder. He jumped at first until he realised that it was only Hagrid who wordlessly and effortlessly picked Harry up and plopped him down on his feet. They walked back to Hagrids 'hut' in silence, and when they walked into the warm cottage and Harry sat down in an armchair by the fire, he realised how cold he was.

"Wha' were yeh doing at Remus's grave?" Hagrid asked as he started to boil the kettle.

Harry's teeth were chattering as he replied, "T...t...trying to s...s...seek some advice."

"From a gravestone?" Hagrid asked as he gave Harry a sympathetic look.

Harry couldn't bring himself to speak, so he just nodded.

Hagrid sighed, "Harry, yeh need ter talk ter people who are alive for advice," he said as he made Harry a large cup of tea which immediately warmed his hands the moment Hagrid placed it in them.

Harry stared into the fire for a while as he sipped his tea. Hagrid didn't push him to speak or bother him by asking questions. He just let him sit and be lost in his thoughts.

"Hagrid, I'm worried about my relationship with Daphne and how it's going to appear to the public when school ends and the Prophet get a hold of it," Harry eventually said. He was glad to find that his teeth were no longer chattering and that his lips didn't feel as swollen.

Hagrid didn't seem to know how to reply; he simply sighed and placed his mug of tea down on the coffee table. He then stood up and left the room for a moment which left Harry confused until Hagrid returned with something that looked strangely like a...

"Hagrid!" Harry exclaimed, "Is that a pensieve?"

Hagrid nodded as he placed it on the coffee table and closed his eyes. He held his finger against his temple and pulled out a silvery memory. He frowned as he placed the memory in the pensieve. It immediately began to take shape, although all that could be seen was darkness, trees and two blurry, shadowy figures.

"Hagrid, where did you get a pensieve?" Harry asked in surprise.

Hagrid looked a little sheepish, "It's no' mine, it's Olympe's. She's ou' today, but I don' think she'll mind me using it this once."

"What are you going to show me?" Harry asked with a frown as he tried to get a closer look at the memory in the pensieve.

"See for yoursel'," Hagrid said simply, so Harry did as he was told and took a breath before sticking his head inside the pensieve. He felt the falling feeling take over, and then when he opened his eyes, he found himself standing inside the memory.

He was near Hagrid's hut, and it was very late at night. The spot was very close to the forbidden forest. At first, Harry was confused about what he was supposed to be seeing, but then two young men came into the scene, and they were arguing fairly loudly.

Harry frowned and squinted at the two men as they got closer. Finally, he recognised them as Remus and Sirius. They were much younger; they looked around the age he was now. They were obviously in their seventh year at Hogwarts.

"Sirius, stop and think about it!" Remus begged, and Sirius eventually stopped walking away from him.

"I've thought about it!" Sirius exclaimed as he spun around to face Remus, "And it is not happening, Remus! I'm not letting the Prophet find out!"

"So it's okay when nobody apart from James, Lily and Peter knows about us? But the second somebody gets suspicious. I mean nothing to you?!" Remus asked.

Harry couldn't see his face clearly, but he could hear the sadness, anger, betrayal and hurt in the young man's voice.

"Remus, I can't let it happen. I'm not letting the press find out, I won't," Sirius said, he sounded upset, but he was not relenting.

"Then you don't love me, Sirius, because if you did, you would stand through everything with me!" Remus said. His voice was quieter, but he sounded even more hurt than before.

"Remus! I would stand with you, I have-"

"But you don't want anyone to know about it," Remus said bitterly, "So that's a lie, Sirius."

"Well, what are you going to do about it then, Remus?" Sirius asked, "Because I'm never going to be okay with the world knowing about me. I've lied to myself for a long fucking time; I won't walk down a street holding your hand, this…us…it's always got to be in the shadows."

"Then that's it," Remus said. It sounded like his heart was breaking, "I'm not going to stand by your side while you get married to someone you don't love. I'm not going to be the guy you keep on the side while you shag her to make an heir. I won't live that like Sirius; I'd rather not have you at all than have you like that."

"Fine," Sirius said, he sounded both angry and bitter, '"We're done then."

"Yeah, we are," Remus agreed, "It's over."

Remus was already walking away as Sirius yelled, "Fuck you, Remus!"

The memory began to fade and blur, and Harry felt himself being pulled back into the real world. He opened his eyes and was back in Hagrid's kitchen. They both looked out of the window into the blizzard-like weather.

Hagrid sighed, "So, you see. It ended badly, all becaus' Sirius was scared o' how his reputation would be affected."

"Was that it then?" Harry frowned.

"They were friends again," Hagrid shrugged, "And then when Sirius got ou' o' Azkaban, Remus didn't care much about being kept in the shadows."

"Because he'd missed him so much," Harry realised.

Hagrid nodded, "But do yeh understand?"

Harry nodded; he understood completely. He stared into the fire once more and accepted Hagrid's offer of a cupcake.

The rest of the day turned out to be rather enjoyable as Harry spent it catching up with Hagrid with hot tea in front of a warm, toasty fire. As he trudged through the snow back to the castle two hours later, Harry was still unsure about many things, but there was one thing he was sure about, thanks to Hagrid.

And that was that no matter what happened and regardless of what anyone else said, Harry was completely in love with Daphne Greengrass. She was worth anything that the press could throw at him, and he was never going to give her up.

He wouldn't make the same mistake his godfather had made so many years before him.

* ~ TBC ~ *