Chapter 7: Just Because There's a Keeper


"You think the dead we loved ever truly leave us? You think that we don't recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble?"
—Albus P.W.B Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J.K. Rowling


"Good evening to you all! While I am certain you must be quite done in after that delectable feast, I beg your attention for only a short while longer for the usual notices."

Uncharacteristically, I barely listened as Dumbledore addressed the school. I knew what his start-of-term notices entailed—no magic in the corridors, forthcoming Quidditch trials, the forest was forbidden for a very good reason, so on and so forth. I felt exhausted, my body heavy and sore. I was very ready for the pain potion I knew would be waiting for me in the Gryffindor dormitory.

"—for what Mister Filch tells me is the two hundred and seventy-second time. And finally, I am sorry to say that Professor Espenshade will not be joining us again this year, as he is still recovering in St. Mungos after the unfortunate accident of last term. However, I am pleased to welcome Professor Prewett, who will be taking over Defense Against the Dark Arts."

what?

I examined the staff table closely as raucous applause and cheers broke out across the hall. Sitting next to Professor Flitwick was an apparently extremely well-liked red-haired young man. A tall, broad-shouldered redhead that looked remarkably similar to Charlie Weasley, but had Ron's long nose.

What was it I'd overheard Mad-Eye telling Harry at Grimmauld Place?

Gideon Prewett, it took five Death Eaters to kill him and his brother Fabian, they fought like heroes—

Fought like heroes.

The gold watch on my wrist seemed to grow heavier as the new professor stood, grinning at his enthusiastic reception.

Oh, dear God, can't I ever catch a break? Which brother was this? Fabian or Gideon? Why had it never been mentioned to me that one of Mrs. Weasley's brothers had taught at Hogwarts?

"That's one of the Prewett twins," Sirius leaned over and whispered, his breath hot on my ear. "No clue which one though. They were on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and it was always a bitch to tell them apart. Finished Hogwarts three years ago—both of them are Aurors now, so I've heard. You know what Aurors are, right?"

I simply nodded in response. I didn't think I could form words properly yet. One of Ron's uncles teaching here at Hogwarts? I wasn't sure how I'd possibly be able to cope with it. I just keep adding more of the dead to my list, don't I?

"So lads, how long do you think this one will last?" James asked in an undertone, leaning forward conspiratorially across the table. "My money's on the full year. Those twins could take a Bludger hit better than anyone I've ever seen. But I'll get the books started, shall I?"

"James, you're Head Boy now," said Remus exasperatedly. "Let Padfoot handle the gambling this year, yeah?" James shrugged in a manner that I supposed meant that he'd consider it, and Sirius snorted.

Dumbledore concluded the feast by conducting a rousing version of the Hogwarts school song, just as he had my first year. The Marauders attempted their own version of something like a Barbershop Quartet, and truthfully, it was rather good. I simply hummed along under my breath.

When everyone had finished the catchy tune at their own pace, there was a great scraping of wood on stone as the benches were pushed back, signaling that it was time to head to our dormitories. I was more than ready to leave. My heart felt immeasurably heavy. This was just too much—the Sorting, our new professor, just being in the Great Hall. I needed to escape.

I stood and quickly made my way out the doors of the Great Hall and up the marble staircase in the direction of Gryffindor Tower. I didn't look behind me once, almost breaking into a full run in my haste. I just needed to go.

"Hey Hermione, wait!" someone shouted behind me. "Oi, Granger!"

Oh, for fucks sake, really?

I strongly considered ducking behind the nearest tapestry of Wilfred the Woeful and his gaggle of wistful witches and into a small passageway that I knew lay behind it, but ultimately, I decided it would look rather strange. I slowed my pace and turned around. James was hurrying up the corridor, and, to my great surprise, closely followed by Lily Potter.

Or, actually, she's still Lily Evans now, I reminded myself. From what I could tell, she and James weren't even dating yet, much less married. After so many years of hearing the names Lily and James Potter uttered with a reverence bordering on sainthood, it would be difficult to think of her any other way.

As James caught up to me, he said, "Where are you sprinting off to? You don't even know the way to the common room yet!"

Oh, damn. I'm supposed to be a new student. Right.

Thinking quickly, I gave one of my apparently newly-trademarked shrugs and said the first reasonable excuse that popped into my head. "Uncle Al gave me a tour of the castle yesterday, so I thought I'd see if I could make it there on my own."

I noticed Lily's eyebrows contract at the words Uncle Al.

"Oh, I was just worried that you'd get lost. I figured I'd try to catch you before you ended up at the top of the Astronomy Tower or something," said James. He must have noticed that my eyes were gazing straight past him, because he then turned around, looking almost as surprised as me to find Lily standing behind him.

"Uh, Evans? What are you doing here?" said James with a perplexed look on his face.

"Well we're both head students, right?" said Lily, straightening her robes. "I wanted to know where you were running off too. Usually when you disappear in a rush, it's never anything good. But I'm glad I followed you—our new student needs escorting to the girls' dormitories," she finished, holding out her hand to me. "Hi, I'm Lily Evans."

Being introduced to Lily Evans felt a bit like being introduced to the Muggle Pope or the Minister for Magic. She was breathtakingly beautiful, but there was an air about her that said she had no idea. It was as if she had once been awkward and gangly, but had never been told that she'd grown out of it. She had long auburn waves that reached her waist and a heart-shaped face with a smattering of freckles across her nose. I fully understood now why people constantly reminded Harry that he had his mother's eyes—staring into Lily's brilliantly green almond-shaped eyes almost made me feel as if I had Harry back again.

Thankfully, I managed to refrain from gawking at her as I'd done when meeting James. I smiled as I shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Lily. I'm Hermione Granger. I'm actually glad you're here—I do need to be shown to the seventh year dormitories."

She walked forward without sparing James another glance, and locked arms with me. It seemed that Lily wasn't the type to give a fuck about others' personal space, even those she'd only just met. "Oh, you're a seventh year too? Let's go then, shall we?"

As we began walking up the corridor toward the staircase to the seventh floor, I looked over my shoulder and called back to James, "Thanks for finding me. I'll see you around!"

He was still standing on the spot where we'd left him, looking utterly flabbergasted at what had just occurred.


"Password?" said the Fat Lady in a tired sort of voice as we approached the entrance to the Gryffindor Common Room.

"Mulled mead," said Lily, and the portrait swung open, revealing the round hole in the wall behind it. We both climbed through, and Lily, apparently noticing the quizzical look on my face, said quietly, "It seems the Fat Lady had a grand ol' holiday. One of the old warlocks from a portrait on the second floor told me she hasn't had a full day sober since term let out in June."

I giggled a little, and she added, "I asked Dumbledore if we could change it to something more appropriate, but he seemed to find it amusing."

"Yeah, that sounds like Uncle Al," I replied as I glanced around the Common Room. The familiarity of the room was comforting. It was almost deserted, with only a few students lingering before heading up to bed.

"Uncle Al?" Lily said questioningly as we walked across the Common Room to the stairs leading to the girls' dormitories. "So, Professor Dumbledore is your uncle?"

I nodded as we began to climb the spiral staircase, and responded, "Yep, my dad is his brother, but I have my Muggle mother's surname. I moved to America with her when I was eleven, and I've only just returned."

Lily's eyes lit up at this. "Oh, so you're a Half-blood? I'm Muggle-born! It'll be so great to have someone else around that actually understands what I'm talking about when it comes to Muggle things."

Oh, how I desperately wished that I could tell her that I was actually a Muggle-born too, but I just nodded my head again in agreement. "Absolutely! You'd think that the pure-bloods would take Muggle Studies and learn a thing or two, but most of them couldn't be bothered. My best friend was a pure-blood, and—" I broke off. Talking about Ron was just too painful.

Lily seemed to notice my melancholy, and grabbed my hand, halting our progress up the stairs. "You must really miss your friends back in America, don't you? I can't imagine starting a new school as a seventh year. But I promise, you'll make some really great friends here at Hogwarts." She paused, giving my hand a squeeze. "Including me, if you'd like."

Tears pricked at my eyes as I looked at Harry's mother, touched by her unwarranted kindness. "I'd love that, really. Thank you," I answered quietly, my voice slightly choked.

She smiled kindly, and pulled my hand as we continued up the spiral staircase. "So, you must have attended Ilvermorny, right? I've read all about it in the Encyclopedia of Magical Education in Europe and Abroad, but I'd love to hear what it's actually like sometime."

"Of course!" I replied, thankful that I'd read about it as well. I hoped I could spin decent fabrications of life at a school I'd never attended. We reached the top of the staircase and found the door with the golden plaque reading Seventh Years. Lily released my hand and pushed it open. The dormitory was just as I remembered it, but instead of Pavarti and Lavender, there were three other seventh year girls occupying the room. Two of the girls were lounging on the bed closest to the door, Witch Weekly open in front of them, while another was standing on top of her bed, attaching a poster of the Puddlemere United Quidditch team to the wall above it.

They all looked over to us as we entered. Lily pushed me forward slightly, as if presenting me to the room. "Hermione, this is Mary McDonald," she said, gesturing to one of the brunettes on the bed. She had a rather plain face, but her eyes were kind and her chocolate-colored hair shone sleekly in the light cast by the oil lamps on the bedside tables. She waved to me from her spot on the four-poster.

Lily then waved her hand to the girl lying on her stomach next to Mary, her pink-socked feet wiggling back and forth in the air, "Alice Fortescue."

I had to reign in my emotions as I registered exactly who Alice Fortescue was. She would one day be known as Alice Longbottom. This was Neville's mother. I pictured the woman that I had seen in St. Mungo's—her body withered away to nothing, eyes empty, wispy white hair hanging lank around her face. This girl looked nothing like the curse-addled woman that I had met. Her face was plump, but very pretty and cheerful. Her light brown hair was cropped at her shoulders and pinned back from her face. She grinned back at the introduction.

"And Marlene McKinnon," Lily finished, pointing to the girl who had finished hanging her poster and was now sitting cross-legged on her bed. "She may seem like a bit of a bitch when you first meet her, but once you get to know her, you'll know she's a total bitch."

Marlene McKinnon—what did I know about her? I sifted rapidly through the memories of my previous life. Hadn't Harry mentioned the McKinnons after seeing Karkaroff's trial in Dumbledore's Pensieve? "Travers—he helped murder the McKinnons—" Moody had mentioned her as well when he gave Harry the photograph of the First Order—"That's Marlene McKinnon, she was killed two weeks after this was taken, they got her whole family."

So I was currently sharing a dormitory with three future members of the First Order of the Phoenix, and all three would be dead, or worse, by 1981.

Unless I was able to do something about it.

"Right back 'atcha, Lily-willy," Marlene replied, sticking out her tongue. Her curly blonde hair was piled on top of her head, and although she didn't have a trace of makeup on, she was stunning. Like, stupidly so. In a way that was completely unfair to all females in her vicinity. She was very tan, likely from some sort of recent tropical holiday, and newly formed freckles were visible across her nose and shoulders.

"And this is Hermione Granger," Lily said to the room as a whole, gesturing back to me.

"Er, hi," I said awkwardly as all three girls turned to me. "Nice to meet you all." I glanced down the dormitory in search of my trunk, spotting it at the foot of the very last bed. I made my way toward it, shrugging off my robes as I walked, and sat down upon my new four-poster.

Seeming to sense my discomfort at being in the spotlight further, Alice spoke up. "So Lily, we were just talking about how our breaks were. How did you spend your hols? We hardly heard from you."

Lily was now sitting on the bed nearest mine, taking out a set of floral pajamas from her trunk. She rolled her eyes at Alice's question. "You know how much my sister hates owls. I was barely able to send any post all summer." She grimaced slightly before continuing, "I spent the whole damn summer being subjected to the constant presence of Tuney's darling new boyfriend Vernon." She made a face as if she smelled something foul. "What kind of name is Vernon, anyway? It definitely suits him, though—walrus of a man, I tell you…" Her face lightened slightly before she finished, "But at least I was able to get a job as a lifeguard at the lido in Cokeworth."

"Ooo, a lifeguard?" Mary asked, looking up from her magazine. "So you spent the whole summer ogling boys? Any of them fit enough for your tastes?"

Lily tossed a pillow at Mary, but Mary simply flicked her wand and the pillow flew back toward Lily, landing neatly on the bed beside her. Lily laughed before answering, "Well there was one boy…"

"Oh, really? Spill," I said, joining in on the conversation at last. I'd never been one for gossip, but this was an interesting turn of events.

"I agree with the new girl!" Marlene called out. I glanced over and noticed she was no longer sitting on her bed. Instead, she was lying on the floor in the middle of the room, clad only in her bra and knickers, evidently in the middle of her nightly fitness routine.

"The fuck are you doing, Mar?" Mary asked, tossing her magazine aside and scooting forward to peer over the edge of the bed at Marlene.

"Gotta be in top form for Quidditch!" Marlene huffed out as she completed another sit-up and flipped over to begin a set of push-ups.

Mary rolled her eyes, and Lily continued. "Well, his name was Christopher and he was positively dreamy," her eyes glazed over as she reminisced. "I met him right after I landed the lifeguard gig. Hard not to notice him without his shirt on." She wiggled her eyebrows roguishly.

"So he lived up to Lily Evans's notoriously high standards?" Alice asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Hell yes, he did. His dad owned the local pub, so we spent most of our nights there getting pissed off free drinks." I laughed along with the other girls at this, imagining Harry's expression if he were to hear about his mother's summer fling. "Absolutely brill. But he's a Muggle, so I ended things last week. It just wouldn't work with me back at school," she finished a little sadly.

"Well, at least you're single for the new term, right?" I asked as I began to plait my hair for bed.

Come on, isn't she meant to fancy James by this point?

Lily heaved a sigh. "I suppose. But really, there's no one here at Hogwarts I'm interested in…"

Fitness regimen apparently complete, Marlene sat up from the ground, crossing her legs beneath her. She eyed Lily skeptically before saying with a snort, "Don't give me that bullshit, Lils. We all know who you've been pining over for the past year, even if you won't admit it."

Ah, right on the money.

Lily flushed, turning her head away and saying with a sniff, "I have no clue what you're talking about."

All three girls burst into laughter, and Lily scowled at them. Marlene finally composed herself enough to say, "You know exactly what we're talking about. The new Head Boy was looking fit tonight, wasn't he?"

"Fuck off, Mar," retorted Lily, face still pink. "Anyway, he's dating that Ravenclaw, isn't he? What's her name?"

"Delia, I think," Marlene answered, rolling her eyes. Evidently she didn't think very highly of the Ravenclaw girl. "But just because there's a Keeper doesn't mean you can't get the Quaffle through the hoop, if you know what I mean."

So James was currently dating someone else? Hmm… the cauldron's been stirred and the potion thickens.

"Yeah, but unlike you, I'm not a slag," Lily replied with finality before tossing her hair over her shoulder and retreating to the bathroom.

Laughing along with the other girls, I extracted a new pair of pajama shorts and one of Ron's old Weasley jumper from my truck. With a flick of my wand, I drew the curtains of my four-poster shut and changed quickly. I pushed up the sleeves of the oversized maroon jumper and looked down at my arm. The charm obscuring the degrading scar had worn away by now, but rather than cast it again, I simply shook the sleeve of Ron's jumper back to my wrist. I grabbed my toothbrush and opened the hangings again. Mary and Alice were still chatting happily about their own holidays as they dressed for bed.

I walked into the steamy bathroom to the sound of water running in one of the shower cubicles. Lily was standing in front of the long mirror above the sinks, scrubbing her face with a flannel. As I began to brush my teeth, Lily muttered, "I really have no clue what they're talking about. Me fancy Potter? Pfft."

My mouth full of toothpaste, I could do nothing but grunt in response. She continued, "I mean, his head has deflated a bit, and he isn't as much of a bullying toerag anymore. But honestly, they're all barking."

She splashed her face as I spit toothpaste into the sink, and we both returned to the dormitory. I pulled back the blankets on my bed, and she crawled into hers. "Breakfast begins at seven in the morning," Lily called out as she extinguished the lamp on her bedside table. "I'll make sure you're up so we can walk down together. I'd hate for you to get lost on your first day."

"Thanks, I definitely appreciate it," I answered, stifling a yawn.

"No problem," she said, and before closing the hangings around her bed, she added, "Goodnight, Hermione."

"Night, Lily," I replied, pointing my wand at my own hangings and doing the same.

Sitting down on my four-poster, I grabbed my beaded bag from the bedside table and quickly summoned two tiny bottles of pain and Dreamless Sleep Potion. I certainly didn't need to have another breakdown on my first night in the dormitory. I knocked them back quickly, and then pointed my wand at my hangings, casting a quick Muffliato just in case the potion wasn't effective. I sank back into my pillows, pulling my blanket up to my nose, and sleep quickly overcame me.


Just as she had promised, Lily woke me the next morning with plenty of time to spare. I showered and dressed quickly, drying my hair and applying a touch of makeup with a few swipes of my wand. I walked out to find Lily already dressed impeccably in her school robes, her Head Girl badge pinned to her chest.

"Ready?" she asked, gesturing to the door.

"Just one moment," I replied, returning to my trunk to fetch my school bag. I stowed my beading bag at the bottom beneath my books, not wanting to be without it. Walking past our still-sleeping dorm mates, we left the dormitory and descended the spiral staircase into the Common Room. It was completely empty.

"Sorry it's so early," said Lily, yawning widely as we exited through the portrait hole. "I like to be the first up on the first day of lessons."

I shook my head. "No, no it's perfectly fine. I'm the exact same, actually. It used to drive Harry and Ron mental."

"Well at least now there's two of us," she said, smiling. Suddenly, footsteps could be heard running up the corridor behind us. I turned quickly, my hand on the handle of my wand, but it was only Remus. I sighed in relief as Lily's smile broadened into a grin. "Actually, three of us," she amended.

Remus caught up to us, pushing his sandy brown hair from his eyes and hiking his school bag further up onto his shoulder. "The fuck, Lily?" he asked, still panting from the jog. "We always walk down together on the first day of term."

"Sorry, sorry!" Lily said as she rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Remus's neck, giving him a tight embrace. He returned it, lifting her into the air and spinning her around. Laughing as her feet returned to the ground, Lily gave him a small peck on his scarred cheek and answered, "Sweet Merlin, I've missed you! Sorry we left without you." She then turned back to me and said, "I was distracted by Hermione—you two have met, right?"

"Yep, we have," I answered quickly before Remus could respond. I really didn't want word of my hospital wing stay to spread, even if was just to Lily. "Good morning, Remus," I said, giving him a small hug as well. People were certainly very touchy-feely in the '70s. "I see that Lily and I aren't the only early risers?"

The three us turned to continue our journey to the Great Hall as Remus explained. "Lily and I have gone down to breakfast together on the first day since we were second years. Our own little ritual of sorts. She insists that it's good luck, but we both know that she likes being the first to get her timetable."

Lily stuck out her tongue at Remus and nudged him with her elbow. "You say that as if you don't have the exact same intentions, Lupin."

Remus shrugged and I laughed at them both. Who knew that Remus and Lily had been such good friends? God, third year must've been awful for Professor Lupin—seeing Harry every day and not being able to tell him stories about both his father and mother.

I found myself drawn to Lily. I'd never had many female friends in my future, apart from Ginny, and our friendship had evolved throughout the years—and many visits to the Burrow—into something more akin to sisterhood. However, Lily and I seemed to have a great deal in common. She appeared to be as brilliant as I had been told, but she also seemed to absolutely ooze confidence and sincerity. Did this girl have any faults at all?

We entered the Great Hall at seven o'clock sharp, along with a few Ravenclaws and overly-eager Hufflepuffs. The ceiling of the Great Hall was dark and overcast, with the occasional flash of lightening crossing the swirling clouds. Lily and Remus acknowledged a few greetings from students of other houses as we crossed the hall to our table. They both seemed to be immensely well-liked, but I could also feel many eyes following me carefully as we took our places at the end of the Gryffindor table closest to the staff table. I was even more grateful now that we'd arrived early to a less-crowded Great Hall.

"Lovely morning, isn't it?" I said as we sat. All three of us looked up to the miserable gray sky above us.

Lily sighed, "I always hate when the weather is like this on the first day of term. If feels something like a bad omen for the coming year, you know?"

"Rubbish," Remus replied with a scoff, "Bad omen? You fucking hated Divination, Lils." Lily shrugged in response, still looking up to the dreary ceiling. "So, what classes are you two taking this year?" asked Remus conversationally as he poured himself a cup of tea and Lily a cup of coffee. "Tea or coffee, Hermione?"

Surprised at the gesture, I blinked at him for a moment, before answering, "Coffee, please."

I needed the caffeine boost, today of all days.

He nodded as he poured the steaming black liquid into the mug in front of me. I murmured my thanks as Lily answered his question. "Same as last year," she replied, ladeling porridge into her bowl. "N.E.W.T. level Transfiguration, Herbology, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Arithmancy, and Ancient Runes. What about you, Remus?"

He raised his hands, ticking them off as he went, "Transfiguration, Herbology, D.A.D.A., Charms, Care of Magical Creatures, Arithmancy, and Potions." He made a face at the last one. "No idea why I'm still taking Potions. I'm bloody awful at it. Honestly, without Lily or James's help, I'd be better off boiling water for tea in my cauldron."

"Too right you are, Moony," James said as he slid into the open seat beside me. Apparently the remaining Marauders had finally arrived. Sirius sat down opposite me next to Lily, with Peter joining us on Lily's other side. All three of them began loading their plates.

Lily rolled her eyes at James, before returning to our conversation, "So which classes will you be taking, Hermione? Do they have the same curriculum at Ilvermorny as we have here?"

I slowly took a sip of the scalding coffee, ignoring the sting on my tongue as I played for time. Which classes would I be taking? I didn't have any record of my O.W.L. results, and honestly, I didn't have a clue what sort of examinations the students sat at Ilvermorny. I lowered the mug from my lips. "The same as you, Lily. Well at least that's what I hope to be taking. I'm not sure if my records have arrived or not."

Lily waved a hand dismissively. "I'm sure it won't be a problem with Professor Dumbledore as family. He would've informed you if he hadn't received them."

"You're right, I suppose," I said, still slightly worried. I added eggs, toast, and bacon to my plate and began to eat, listening to the conversations going on around me.

There was a sudden rustling of wings and a loud whoosh as the morning post arrived. Hundreds of owls came soaring through the upper windows of the Great Hall, circling the house tables in search of their recipients. A sleek black owl appeared in front of James with a large package attached to its legs, and a brown barn owl had arrived for Lily, bearing the morning's Daily Prophet. I scolded myself for not taking out a subscription.

I'm forgetting my purpose here already.

To my immense surprise, a tiny gray Scops owl landed in front of me as well, a small scroll of slightly grubby-looking parchment clasped in its beak. The minuscule owl looked remarkably like Ron's owl Pigwidgeon, with a small white tuft of feathers on top of its head. It released the letter from its beak, and hopped over to my plate politely, eyeing me inquisitively.

"Oh sure, here you go," I said to the little owl, feeding it a slice of bacon. The owl hooted softly in thanks as I unfurled the parchment.


Hermione,

As your dad, I figured the decent thing to do would be to owl you on your first day of Hogwarts. Albus sent word of your arrival, and I'm pleased to hear you made it all right. I reckon we're both stuck with each other now, so why don't you come by the pub on Sunday around eleven for lunch? We might as well get formalities out of the way. I've cleared it with Albus. Send an answer back with the owl.

Don't take after me and get into any duels on your first day. Good luck in lessons.

Your father,
Aberforth P.C.W Dumbledore

P.S. The feathery snitch is for you. Bloke at Eeylops said it's a girl. Thought the fatherly thing would be to offer a welcome-back gift.


I read the letter twice, just to make sure that I wasn't mistaken. After the second time through, I stared down at the parchment, dumbfounded. Aberforth was actually going the full-hog with this father business, wasn't he? I looked over at the tiny owl that was sitting on the edge of my plate, nibbling on the crusts of my toast. "So, you're mine now?" I asked quietly, arching an eyebrow at the small owl, who hooted happily and gave a tiny hop in response. I dug a quill and bit of parchment from my bag and began to scribble a quick response to Aberforth.

"That your owl, Hermione?" Sirius asked from across the table as he sipped from his mug of coffee. While I'd been engrossed in my letter, Marlene, Mary, and Alice had joined the table. Marlene was sitting beside Sirius—very close to Sirius. I guess there's something going on there as well.

Ignoring the small pang in my gut at that thought, I nodded as I folded up the parchment. "Yeah, new owl actually. Gift from dad. Any idea what I should name her?"

"I've always been partial to Elvendork, myself," said James thoughtfully through a mouth full of scrambled egg.

Lily snorted. "Elvendork? Seriously, Potter?"

Sirius opened his mouth, evidently to make a lame pun, but Remus stopped him with a glare. "Don't, Padfoot. It's too early in the day for it."

"What's wrong with Elvendork?" asked James perplexedly as he swallowed, eyebrows furrowed almost comically at Lily's laughter.

"Oh come on, Lily-Flower. It's unisex!" added Sirius, elbowing Lily playfully in the ribs.

"How many times have I asked you not to call me that?" replied Lily exasperatedly, elbowing him back.

"Pfft, you love it," Sirius retorted flippantly, reaching out to stroke the owl who was now drinking from his glass of pumpkin juice. "You just refuse to admit it, among other things—"

Rolling my eyes at their banter, I interrupted him, "No, I don't think Elvendork is quite right... "

"Oh, what about Evie?" Alice piped up from beside Peter. "A sweet name like that seems fitting for such a precious little owl."

"What do you think?" I asked, bending my head low to the level of the tiny owl, who had now hopped back to my plate. "Do you feel like an Evie?" She hooted happily in response. "All right then, Evie it is!" Offering my letter to her, I added "Take this back to dad, please? You can go straight to the Owlery when you get back." She hooted once more, before nipping affectionately at my finger and accepting the letter in her beak. I gave her one last stroke on her feathery head before she took off, soaring through the high mullioned windows of the Great Hall.

Professor McGonagall finally made her descent from the staff table to begin distributing course schedules. Remus and Lily happily accepted theirs first—evidently McGonagall was aware of their tradition and was willing to go along with it.

"Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall said as she reached me. "Professor Dumbledore has provided me with your most recent exam results, and I must say, I'm very pleased to have you joining us this year. Which classes will you be taking this term?"

Exam results? I thought, holding in my laughter—only someone as respected as Uncle Albus would have enough clout to falsify such official documents..

"N.E.W.T. level Transfiguration, Charms, Herbology, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Arithmancy, and Ancient Runes. If that's okay, Professor?" I asked, looking up at her hopefully.

"Perfectly acceptable," she said with a nod, tapping the tip of her wand to the blank timetable and adding my list of courses to the parchment. "I'll see you Tuesday afternoon in Transfiguration." She then moved along the table to hand out the rest of the seventh year schedules.

"Hmm—Ancient Runes first," said Lily, her eyes rapidly scanning her own schedule. "Ready to go, Hermione?"

I nodded, downing the last of my cold coffee and tucking Aberforth's letter into my pocket. We both shouldered our bags and left the Great Hall, discussing our morning lessons as we departed.


A/N: So, we have a new D.A.D.A professor and Lily+Friends have finally joined the show! Please review and let me know what you think! Anything you'd like to see soon? Any common pitfalls of this type of story you think I should watch out for?

-liz