September 1st, 1995

"Do you think I told my parents about any of this?" Dean exclaimed to Seamus in a hurried whisper as they moved with the throng of students from the Great Hall. Dean almost got knocked over by a small heard of second year Gryffindors before they made him a quick apology as they ducked under his arms and dashed down the corridor towards the staircase.

"I want to be back at Hogwarts," Seamus' voice was low and he was speaking quickly out of a rush of frustration. "I barely managed to get mam to lemme go. She don't like me sharin' a room with a crackknob!"

"I can't tell my mum anything about this, she won't understand or she'll take me out of school," Dean's voice was low and rushed. "I'm not sure what to think, I just know that I need to be at Hogwarts!"

"Yeah, O.W.L.s this year." Seamus shuddered, "If I don't get any, she'll never lemme back in the house."

"You can stay with me, my parents would love you." Dean grinned broadly. "I did not mention anything about tests to my mum so you'll be completely safe."

"Thanks mate! You're brilliant!"

"Or an idiot. We'll find out next year."

The two boys laughed, it was like a valve had been released on their worries from the last few weeks. The chorus of excited students and the chatter of First Years on their way to the Ravenclaw Tower made for a interesting diversion as one of these eleven-year-olds tried to follow a stray ghost, asking questions about its spectral existence before being dragged away by a prefect.

"Me mam's after me to get at least seven O.W.L.s, meaning she wants twelve. I ain't even taking twelve classes!" Seamus paused. "She's almost as bad as Granger."

Seamus' mother was the Head Librarian for one of the seven branches of the Library of Merlin. She was working on several fiction novels about the complications of love and war. She had told Dean she was struggling to maintain inspiration, but she felt she was one the right track.

"I'm not sure Hermione would know how to read fiction. Not enough facts."

"How's she not in Ravenclaw?" Seamus asked, his face betraying real confusion over the matter as they amended the moving staircase. "It's bothered me for years."

"Take that up with the magical, talking hat mate."

"When you say it like that it sounds stupid!"

Dean shrugged, "If I had not just seen a posse of ghosts, I would have thought it was!"

"True. Mam's library is haunted, did I ever tell you that?"

"No!"

"It's true!" Seamus got a glint in his green eyes that spoke of mischief and good stories. "Haunts the children's section. His name's Walt. He likes the sad stories where the children die terrible deaths for mischief."

A second year Gryffindor looked back at them with a raised eyebrow as the staircase came to a slow stop.

Dean's eyes rolled. "You're pulling my leg."

"I ain't! When have I lied to you about anything?"

"Never," Dean conceded, "but you like to tell tales that get bigger each time."

"No fun saying the same stuff, over and over again. Gotta entertain myself somehow."

Over the course of the conversation the boys had managed to step off the moving stairs. The crowd was now thinning as the Ravenclaws separated from the larger group to go to the tower.

"What do you think about the Harry thing?" Dean asked as he stepped around a group of fourth year boys who were laughing over a political cartoon.

Seamus' eyes grew hard. "I don't." There was a moment's pause as the pair moved through the crowd. Seamus' brow furrowing in thought before he spoke again. "I think something happened in the maze. Maybe he saw a boggart, maybe he got hit on the head, maybe he saw Cedric die and it all got mixed together in his head? I dunno, but You-Know-Who is long dead. Dead is dead and that's all there is too it."

"So no wizard has ever tried to bring back the dead?" Dean asked as turned down the corridor that would lead them to the Fat Lady's portrait. The pair had slowed, allowing younger students to pass them as they continued to talk.

"A few, but…" Seamus paused and motioned for Dean to bend down to hear better. "They'd come back… wrong."

"Like Frankenstien's monster?"

"Who is that?"

"Muggle book, a mad scientist steals dead bodies and creates a monster."

"What?"

Dean shrugged, "It's better than it sounds. The movie is pretty good, I'll have to show you sometime."

Seamus took a minute to comprehend muggle oddities before speaking again.

"Anyway, even for wizards, dead is dead and Potter has gone mental!"

February 26th, 1996

Dean watched Seamus read the Quibbler, his eyes growing wider and his jaw becoming more firmly set as he finished each paragraph.

"Bloody hell." Seamus breathed as he set the Quibbler aside for a moment before picking it up again to reread the article continuing to whisper curses and awed mumblings under his breath. He finished the article a second time before standing to pace the room, tossing the Quibbler into Dean's lap. His footsteps echoed off the stone walls of the empty classroom where the pair had retreated to read this contraband article.

"I had doubts over the summer and thought Harry hit his head in the maze or something," Dean said quietly, looking at the gap under the door for lurking shadows. "But, we know Harry, he's kind of a nutter, but he can tell the difference between reality and nightmares. After reading that, and seeing some of the other stuff going on helped put the last few pieces in place for me."

Seamus nodded.

"I don't want to believe that You-Know-Who is back, but it looks more likely every time I read that article."

Seamus sat down on a nearby desk. "Mum talks a bit about what it was like when You-Know-Who was running the place. People went missing all the time, people who spoke up or fought back would go missing or turn up dead within six months. One of her cousins got killed for mouthing off to a Death Eater."

The two boys were quiet for a few moments.

"We have to stop him, or help stop him at any rate." Dean stated grimly.

"Mam's is gonna have a stroke or kill me, whatever happens first." Seamus groaned. "It will be her killin' me I think."

"My family would love to take you in, Seamus."

"Yeah, and my mum loves you so much it might motivate her to get on with it and adopt you as a replacement."

Dean laughed.

Seamus ran his hand though his sandy hair with a sigh. "What do we do now? Wait for the Ministry to admit that they were wrong or…"

Dean played with quill he kept in his robe pocket, running his fingers up and down the soft feather. His mind whirred, wanting to speak of Dumbledore's Army and extend the invitation but he would have to consult with Hermione, Ron and Harry. Mostly Hermione, she had more of a head for management.

"I know you and that lot are up to something." Seamus said quietly, his eyes darting towards the door. "The Common Room has been a bit empty lately." He paused, as if steeling himself for the end result of what he would say next. "I want in."

Dean felt his mouth stretch into a wide grin, he put his quill back in his pocket and took another glance under the door, not responding until he was sure the shadows he thoughts he had seen pass. "I'll see what I can do."

Oo0Oo0

Author's Note: I like to tell stories about people who were not involved in the heart of the action of the series. I enjoy exploring how the effects of war have reaching effects within snapshots of the lives of normal people. Exploring this from the perspective of the four houses seemed a logical step in that direction. Then breaking it down into separate parts of the conflict, the before, quiet war, active war and post-war period.

The next chapter is done, and the other two are outlined in a way that I am happy with.