Obligatory Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any character, story element or plot item originally published in the Harry Potter books or movies that I may refer to in this story. I'm merely playing in the sandbox.

Hannah walked into breakfast with them the next day, having spent a full day in recovery. Pomfrey had done it to keep her out of the line of fire with Dumbledore, he was doing his best Snape impression with every Hufflepuff except for Brahm. He stayed silent when Brahm was there.

Sarah waved and gestured to a seat but found herself surprised when Hannah walked up to Brahm and hugged him, sitting on the other side of Sarah. "Do I need to warn you about this?" Sarah asked, gesturing to the ring on her finger. The smile on her face lightened what would have been a threat otherwise.

"Madame Pomfrey overheard his and my conversation…and we talked. Besides, he's taken. I'm going to look for a good one who's not."

Neville joined them, greeting them. "Glad you're feeling better. Susan was worried."

Hannah nodded and Sarah looked at Brahm, who was shocked. "Eat, you goof."

"Yes, ma'am." Brahm stuck his tongue out at her, lifting a bite of eggs.

Sarah shook her head, trying not to think about their conversation yesterday. Granger said it right first year. Hearing voices isn't a good thing, even among wizards. She hated at Brahm's passive acceptance of it, thought she could see with some of the stories of his first few years in their world. Her uncle was convinced that there was some latent Divination talent that allowed this knowledge. Brahm had pulled his wand and threatened to blow him through the tent wall at that.

"I still can't believe they're going to have that last Hogsmeade visit."

"Hmm?" Sarah looked up.

"You didn't hear? Dumbledore argued for one last visit, right after exams. He said something about lost revenue for the village. It's like he's lost his mind."

"Too old, too many lemon drops," Brahm grunted, cutting up some fruit. His eyes met Sarah's though and she felt a push. She skimmed his surface thoughts and could see the potential risk. "In no way is some gold worth the risk to the students."

"I don't think we should go."

"Hufflepuff is skipping. I've asked around. We're going to setup something with the elves and have snacks and stuff in the Common Room."

Brahm nodded. "I like that idea. Haven't felt the need to draw my wand in there yet."

"Sarah did when we were playing cards."

"He was giving my hand away!" She protested.

Brahm laughed, then finished his plate in time to gesture to the door. "I'm headed to the library, have an essay for McGonagall. See you later!"

"We should do something for Valentine's Day." Susan said. "Maybe we can meet in the Room of Requirement, get some food up there, too."

"Yeah, we did miss out because of the last attack. It'd be nice to have some normalcy."

Justin leaned over. "Leave it to me. Potter explained the room to me last year, so I could open it one day when he was being held up."

Sarah nodded "No pink. I heard about Lockhart."

There was some laughter, but Hannah flushed. Sarah wondered if she hadn't found a fan of the man but said nothing. They started to string together some plans and to put the word out to a few friends in other houses. When Susan mentioned some of her tormentors from Ravenclaw, she was thrilled to realize she didn't care. That was a part of her past, no matter what. "The more the merrier. I bet Mimsy would help, maybe some of the kitchen elves, too."

The next evening, Sarah stood with a cup of punch in her hand, her new charm bracelet glinting in the firelight. Dobby and Mimsy were popping in and out with food for the party and she smiled. There were groups of friends all over the interior room and a few couples had strayed out onto the warm balcony for viewing the stars or sitting by fires and chatting.

"You and Susan did good."

"It was her idea," she said, leaning back into Brahm's arms. Laughter caught her attention, and her smile grew broader as she watched Hannah laughing with Susan and Neville. "What did you do to her?"

"We talked. About us." Brahm leaned his chin to rest on her head and she sighed, enjoying the feeling. "I went up to visit her after lunch and we talked longer. She had a rough breakup."

"I'm surprised she talked to you."

"I did save her life. It forced her to reevaluate me, I guess." His chin lifted and she watched as Hannah held a punch in one hand, then pointed at Neville. "She's still tense, but she's at least acknowledging Neville and I aren't secretly evil. Imperfect, but not evil."

"You're secretly imperfect?"

"Not with you broadcasting it to the rafters."

Sarah laughed, then pulled free and tugged him over to the couch with the others sitting on it. Sarah landed just as Mimsy appeared with a small tray, setting it on the table. "Is this fruit you grew?"

Mimsy nodded, then seemed to freeze as she noticed Neville. "You grow things?"

Mimsy looked to the ground, nodding. After a quick glimpse at Sarah, she popped away. "What was that? She looked terrified of me."

Sarah shrugged, but Brahm seemed to consider things, then sighed. "She was a rescue, too, remember?"

Sarah looked at Brahm, who glanced at Neville, who asked the question. "Who was her previous Master?"

Brahm sighed again, reaching for a butterbeer. "Crouch."

Neville frowned. "I don't blame her; she didn't know better."

"I'm missing something." Sarah said.

"Barty Crouch Jr. tortured my parents, along with a few other Death Eaters. They never recovered." Neville looked at Brahm. "How did you make that connection…and that elf's name wasn't Mimsy."

"She told me one day. She said her Old Master was bad and asked for a new name."

Susan whistled. "She must have felt bad. I've never heard of that before. Where did Mimsy come from then?"

"I named her for a short story I read in school."

Sarah shook her head. "I'll talk to her, Neville. I think you'd get along. She's great in the garden."

"Maybe she could come by this summer, see my greenhouses. I'd be glad to share cuttings."

There was a moment of silence, which Sarah used to glance around the room. "The turnout was pretty good." She nodded to Flitwick and Sprout, who were perched in a corner in between tours to make sure none of the couples took advantage of the situation.

"I'm impressed the professor's allowed it."

"Dumbledore was the hold out, but with two Heads acting as chaperones and the house elves controlling the potential chemical content, it was pretty simple to get it together. Umm…I told Dobby to buy supplies from Hogsmeade to prove we weren't taking business away from the village."

Brahm waved casually. "For this kind of good will, it's worth it. I even saw some green in the group."

Sarah nodded. "Some of the younger Slytherins came. Draco made a stink, but he was found tied up in a broom closet, his sleeves ripped off."

Brahm glanced at Susan, who shook her head. "There was a confession note by one of the older Slytherins. Apparently, he was fine with missing the party, he just found out that Draco's aunt had attacked his parents over the summer and decided for retribution."

"Wow…never saw the Slytherins turning on their own."

"We're not all bad, Evans."

Daphne Greengrass stood over him and Sarah looked back. Brahm shrugged. "Never said you were, Greengrass. I even commented the other day that I'd seen you smile."

The blonde snorted, then nudged him. "Don't forget the Runes project. I expect an O."

He laughed and Sarah leaned against Brahm. "You work with her?"

Brahm turned to her and kissed her cheek softly. "And have eyes for you."

Hannah made a gagging sound but followed up with laughter. She was soon joined by most of the group, except for Sarah, who kissed Brahm softly. "I know."