Yes, I'm still alive!

A belated Happy Easter gift for you, lovely readers. Big, big thank you again to acnelli for their beta reader work. Excellent stuff, as usual. 😊


Chapter 13: On Flamel and Noble Houses


I am so fucking screwed.

Ron face palmed himself for the nth time that morning, curled up in one of the squishy armchairs by the fireplace, Second Chance laid open in his lap. This is just stupid. I can't do shite because I can't concentrate! Why am I doing this to myself at bloody six in the morning anyway? And during the holidays?

...Because I can't sleep thanks to a nosey old codger. Ron blew at his bangs in irritation. Argh!

Try as he might, he couldn't get another wink of sleep last night—early this morning—after his latest run-in with Dumbledore. Bloody hell, just when he thought he was past his first major hurdle, another one shoves its way in before he could take a breather.

And to think the rest of yesterday went so well too. After lunch, Professor McGonagall led Harry and Ron into an empty classroom where Sirius and Remus were waiting for them. Magic was really a splendid thing, Ron thought at the time, when he saw how much better Sirius looked since he last saw him at the trial. He was still a bit too thin, but at least his face was a little less gaunt. He was clean shaven, and his grizzly black hair was now properly combed past his inner shirt collar, the dark circles under his grey eyes barely noticeable.

When Sirius saw Harry, the man immediately brightened, walking to them in what Ron swore took two strides to shake the surprised boy's hand. Sirius had also been exuberant in talking to Ron, pleasantly surprised to find that the boy who led to his name being cleared was also his godson's best friend.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, just...thank you!" said Sirius. "I don't have the words to express how grateful I am!"

"Err, no problem, Mr. Black. Glad to help you and Harry."

"Just Sirius, Ron. Mr. Black makes me think of my father, and I'd rather not be reminded of him." Sirius' grey eyes softened. "But seriously, thank you. If I had to live in that dump for one more year, knowing that that rat is still out there, not being able to see Harry…" He cleared his throat. "Really, Ron, I mean it. I owe you everything." And nothing Ron said convinced Sirius otherwise.

Remus, on the other hand, was more composed, though no less visibly delighted to be introduced to the two boys. He was amiable as Ron remembered him, letting Sirius play the excited, doting godfather Ron suspected he always wanted to be while subtly drawing the line when it looked like Harry was going to be overwhelmed by the attention.

("I apologize for this man child, Harry, Ron." Remus smiled lightly over Sirius' petulant scowl after being reprimanded for being overwhelmingly energetic. "Sirius never truly learned to act his age.")

Which, Ron observed, became less often the longer Harry was around the two wizards.

The start was a bit somber at first. Harry, struggling to find his footing among his company, quietly asked what Sirius meant when he said he was partly at fault for what happened to his parents. Sirius had been rather forthcoming about it (considering that Ron was present for the conversation), saying that he had been the one who suggested the Secret Keeper switch after explaining the Fidelus charm's effects to Harry, which was what enabled Pettigrew to lead Voldemort to the Potters.

Just when Sirius looked like he was going to drag himself into a self-depreciating slump, Harry stood up and exclaimed, "That's rubbish! If Pettigrew hadn't turned out to be a traitor, your plan would have been brilliant! You were risking your life for my Mum and Dad! If anything, you're a bloody hero!"

The other three had been so surprised by the outburst that the boy slumped back to his seat, his face red as a tomato, but that broke whatever ice was left among them. Time flew so fast as Sirius and Remus told Harry so many stories of the Potters and the Marauders during their school years.

("Six years, Harry! Your father had been chasing your mother for six years! Now that's dedication. If it were me, I would have just given up and moved to the next girl as early as second year!" said Sirius, which made Remus snort. "Of course he would. Your godfather's list of ex-girlfriends is longer than all the essays we had to write for Professor McGonagall put together.")

Harry looked like he was having so much fun with the two men that by the time the visit was almost over, his shoulders visibly slumped until Sirius promised to see him again before New Year's. Ron had never seen Harry go from kicked to eager puppy so fast in all his years of knowing him.

Needless to say, Harry's first meeting with his godfather and surrogate uncle was a resounding success, which was great and exactly how Ron wanted the holidays to end. Now he could worry about the next big thing on his first year shenanigans list.

But then Dumbledore just had to complicate things, make me more stressed out than I already am. Ron massaged his temples in an effort to get rid of the ensuing migraine before resting his head on the back of the armchair. I just had to go back to that stupid mirror and get myself caught. Then again, knowing Dumbledore, he must have warded that room so that he'll know if someone went in or not. Can't imagine him staying all night in that place. Wonder how he did that.

Anyway, he flipped through his Second Chance notes again. Back to topic. What did we accomplish so far, Ron? Made friends with Hermione and Neville; joined a couple of Study Clubs; kicked a troll's arse; helped save Harry from falling off his broom during the first Quidditch match; helped send Pettigrew to Azkaban and set Sirius free. And no one got seriously hurt after all that. Great. So far, so good. Now what's next?

After crossing off all the accomplished bullets of the First Year Events list, Ron was left with just a few more: Flamel, Norberta and Quirrel. Back when he made this list, he was pretty confident that he hadn't left anything out. Now, after realizing that he had forgotten several minor but still important events (like that bloody mirror), Ron was starting to think that he shouldn't be so complacent about the thoroughness of his future knowledge.

Is that why It gave me this? Ron fished out the Deluminator from his pocket. Now that he thought about it, why hadn't he tried to flick its switch before, just to see if it works just like Dumbledore's? He had been carrying around the technical Hallow like a security blanket, yet, he never thought of seeing what it could do?

Looks like I have something new to add to my list before the year is over. If I can manage it. Ron thought. All I know is that this thing is connected to the visions I'd get every now and then, but most of them don't make sense. Some look like my memories, but others, like those of Bill and Charlie and the one with Luna and her mum, I don't remember any of them happening…

He filed the thought away for later reference after writing down Check the Deluminator on his To-Do page. So now that I got the rat out of the way, the next big thing that will happen is that match where Snape referees, then Harry and the others find out about Flamel. Or wait, did finding out about Flamel happen before the match? He grunted. I'll just see what I can do. Nothing big or dangerous happened back then anyway, except for Harry becoming more suspicious of Snape. Just have to keep my head down low and not catch anymore of Dumbledore's attention, at least until that dragon comes along.

Hope Charlie will still be able to help us out when the time comes. I don't know how else we can get Norberta out of here without him. Oh, and I have to make sure we won't forget the cloak. That's why Harry and Hermoine got caught last time and got that stupid detention in the forest. And I also need to make sure I don't get my hand bitten by Norberta either! Bloody hell, why do I have to remember so many things?! Why did we have to get into so much shite in our first year in the first place?! We were only firsties! What were we thinking?!

After a few more seconds of bemoaning his eventful first year, Ron finally managed to get his plan back to somewhat working order: gently nudge his friends into the right direction regarding Nicholas Flamel; convince them to join the study clubs while they're at it; get Norberta out of Hogwarts while avoiding detention and being bitten by the ungrateful oversized lizard; find a way to learn Occlumency; learn more about his Deluminator; figure out how to work his way around his wand acting like a stubborn tot (or get that new wand from Hui, whichever comes first); and help Harry get safely past the dangerous obstacle course underneath the school to stop Quirrel from getting the stone.

Oh, and not to screw up with his subjects, his study clubs, and pretend to be a normal wide-eyed first year all the while.

No pressure.

I don't remember being this exhausted after my first year. Then again, I didn't really pay much attention to anything either. Ron sighed. Welp. This plan is better than no plan, I guess. One item at a time. First order of business being—

"Ron? Why are you up so bloody early?"

And there he is. Ron discreetly tucked his Deluminator away and shut Second Chance to face Bill and Charlie coming down from the boys dorm. Today was their last day in Hogwart and they were due to leave after breakfast. While Bill looked prepped and ready to go, Charlie looked like he was going to keel over at the sight of a pillow despite already donning his travelling gear.

"Morning to you too, Charlie, Bill. Nothing much, I'm usually up around this time anyway."

"You are?" The oldest Weasley said bemusedly while the second oldest raised a brow. "Since when?"

"New morning habit. You lot off to breakfast?"

Bill nodded. "Err, yeah. Thought we'd get an early breakfast in before we have to leave for Portkey Central. Wouldn't want to leave without our coffee, eh, Charlie?"

"Bugger off, Bill." Charlie growled with a hard rub on his eyes. "Why did you have to get us passes for a seven Merlin-forsaken AM trip anyway?"

"Odd. I thought dragon tamer hours are much earlier than curse breaker ones."

"Fuck off, 'm not—"

"Charlie!" Bill cut his younger brother off with a shove before smiling sheepishly at Ron. "Sorry, Ronnie. Charlie really needs some of that coffee now. Want to come with us?"

"Sure, but—" Ron stood up. "Wait! Charlie!"

Charlie poked his head out of the portrait hole, already halfway out. "What?"

"Since you're already here," Taking his brother's old wand out of his robe pocket, Ron did the best puppy dog eyes he knew he was capable of. "I was hoping you could do me a favor…"


Barely a day after Bill and Charlie left, Arthur, Molly and Ginny also had to leave Hogwarts as the holiday season was almost over. Ginny had been especially sad about it, having fallen in love with Hogwarts since the first day she came there, but their parents assured her that it won't be long before she too will be staying all year round in the school with her brothers. It was with some laughter, hugs and even a bit of tears that Ron, his brothers and Harry bid the three Weasleys goodbye with promises to write more and stern warnings to stay out of trouble, courtesy of Molly. Percy had proudly puffed his chest while declaring that she can leave it to him to keep his brothers in line, leaving Ron torn between rolling his eyes and looking away guiltily.

Hermione and Neville came back within the first week of January, and the four quickly filled each other in on what happened during Christmas break. Harry had been especially eager to share about Sirius and Remus, who he had already met up with twice so far since their first meeting. On their second visit, the two wizards were introduced to the Weasleys, save for Bill and Charlie, who had left hours prior, and had hit off with the family pretty well. Percy had been quite taken by the mild-mannered intellectual Remus, who was patient in answering the boy's eager questions about electives, NEWTs and other scholarly things. The twins, on the other hand, were more inclined to learn more about Sirius, especially when they found that the man was suspiciously knowledgeable about spells and tricks which were mighty useful for pranks.

Ron fervently wished he'll be around again when Sirius and Remus would reveal the truth to Fred and George. It was one of the handful of times he had ever seen the twins turn into gaping fishes on land from shock.

While Hermione and Neville were happy for Harry, their moods dipped when they heard about the Mirror of Erised debacle. Hermione was shocked that Harry and Ron dared to sneak around during curfew hours and encountered such a dangerous object, but also disappointed that they hadn't found out anything about Flamel. Neville, on the other hand, was more relieved that they weren't caught by Filch and pretty relaxed about Harry and Ron not being able to do research about Flamel, as he hadn't had the time or the focus to do the same either.

But then all too soon, classes started again, as well as club meetings and Quidditch practice. It was still a mystery to him how he did it, but Ron managed to finish all of his holiday homework, including those for his study clubs, which had been downright nightmares on their own. Especially, Arithmancy. He wouldn't have gotten that Acceptable in his charts if it hadn't been for Sue correcting most of his work, something Ron knew he needed to work on.

On the bright side, Ron finally managed to convince Hermione and Neville to give the Study Clubs a try.

Hermione was easier to convince with the promise of learning more about new branches of magic, despite her own concern over being around other non-Gryffindor students, and decided to try the Arithmancy Club, both because Ron would be there and because it was similar to one of her favorite Muggle subjects, Maths. Fortunately, the class received Hermione warmly.

"Oh, hello!, Hermione! Is it OK if I call you Hermione? I'm Sue, Sue Li from Ravenclaw." Sue shook the other girl's hand eagerly. "Ron's told us much about you! Says you're the brightest witch of our generation, did you know?"

Hermione's face burned bright red. "Oh, I—thank you, but I—I think that's a bit of an exaggeration. I just like learning as much as I can. It's very nice to meet you too, Sue."

"A girl after my own heart," Penelope smiled brightly. "You would have fit right in here with us Ravenclaws, but I trust there's a reason why you're more of a lion than an eagle."

"Thank you, uhm, Penelope, right?"

Penelope made an exaggerated bow. "Ravenclaw prefect at your service!"

Ron elbowed Hermione lightly. "Way different from Percy, eh?" That got a laugh from Hermione before Sue drew her into an energetic exchange about numbers, diagrams and arrays that he honestly could not follow past the first ten seconds.

Nevertheless, it made Ron happy to see Hermione making friends outside the comfort zone of their House, and a friend who is on her level intellectually. Maybe with Sue's and Penelope's influence, she'll learn to be more personable. Still, more or less, Hermione's first week with the club went as well as Ron hoped it would.

Neville's experience, on the other hand, was a bit of a surprise.

Encouraged by the prospect of getting more help for Potions, Neville decided to try out the club for the subject. Not wanting to leave his friend any more confused and overwhelmed, Ron agreed to accompany him after asking Cedric for help. The Potions Study Club meetings were held in one of the dungeons further east of the castle, where the sound of rushing lake water was louder and the air was colder than usual. Good thing Cedric advised the boys in advance to wear thicker coats and gloves.

The lecturer for the Potions Study Club was Professor Ibis Imhotep, the dark skinned Professor Ron saw with Durand during the Holiday feast. Up close, the man was quite intimidating, with broad shoulders, arms that looked like they could snap Ron's back like a twig, a big, square nose with naturally flared nostrils, and round, deep-set eyes as brown as chocolate rum balls. But unlike Snape, Imhotep was far more amicable than his appearance would suggest.

"Well met, Mr. Longbottom, Mr. Weasley." Imhotep said with a slight bow, a large hand to his chest. "Welcome to the Potions study club. Since you have both joined at the middle of the year, you might find yourself behind your peers. But with hard work and commitment, I cannot see why you will not be able to catch up. Should you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to approach me or our club representative, Ms. Farley."

"I...I hope so, Sir." Neville said glumly. "I'm not, err, I'm pants at Potions."

"That is why you are here, is it not, Mr. Longbottom? Mayhap your, ah, underperformance in class can be attributed to your current inability to tap into your potential. I heard that you are quite the star pupil in Professor Sprout's class, and Herbology, while underappreciated, is in fact as complex a study as Potions, to which it is closely intertwined."

Neville blushed with a squeak.

"You will not be the first student to have difficulty with the subject due to…teaching concerns." To Ron's and Neville's further surprise, he actually winked. "But I am here to help students appreciate that Potions can actually be an enjoyable subject. Rather off topic, but do any of you cook?"

"A little bit," shrugged Ron while Neville nodded. "I learned it from my Gran and our House Elves since I was a tot. I…" The chubby boy's eyes turned wistful. "Gran always said that Dad was a Merlin in the kitchen."

Now this was something new. Neville brought them homemade snacks a few times in the old life (even just brought his friends a delectable Shepherd pie from home after the holidays), but the boy never mentioned that he might have been the one who made them, let alone the fact that he could actually cook.

Huh. You do learn something new everyday.

Imhotep's smile broadened. "Then you will be able to do better than you think."

Imhotep may be just as meticulous as McGonagall and knowledgeable as Snape in the subject, but the key difference was his energy. For today's session, which was about the Forgetfulness Potion, he went into detail regarding not just the rationale behind the stirring and wand waving techniques, but also in the properties of the ingredients that contribute to the potion's desired effect.

Ron initially joined the club with the plan to leave when Neville was comfortable enough to go on his own, but the way Imhotep was handling the club was making the idea to stay more appealing. There was also the fact that he actually knew more students in the club than he initially thought.

"Greengrass?" Ron's brows rose to his hairline when he saw the blonde Slytherin in the club. "What are you doing here?"

"I should be the one asking you that," answered Greengrass, her stare mirroring his disbelief. "I have been a member of this club since the beginning of the year."

"Neville here," Ron clapped a hand onto Neville's shoulder. "Thought of giving the Potions study club a try, see if it could help him with our class. I just came along for the ride."

Greengrass gave the wary Neville a once over before shrugging. "I see. You'll have your work cut out for you since you both came in late, Heir Longbottom. Professor Imhotep expects as much from the club members as Professor Snape does from us."

At those words, Neville straightened. "I...I am aware, Heiress Greengrass. Thank you for your advice. I wan...I intend to do my best in this club as well as my class."

It took Ron a couple of seconds to understand the change in tone of the conversation. Shite, you have got to be kidding me! Who asked the Noble House business to follow me all the way back to Hogwarts? Like hell I'm letting it!

"Well, since you're here with us too, might as well have us ickle firsties stick together, right?" Ron held a thumbs up. "Mind helping bring us up to speed, Greengrass? We could use all the help we can get."

Greengrass' brows twitched. "Yes, I do mind. Why should I help you?"

"Because we're Potions class partners?" Ron offered.

"Try harder."

"Err, because you're a real nice person deep inside that ice princess image you have going on?"

"I'm this close to throwing these frog spawns at you, you insufferable smart arse."

Ron hummed thoughtfully before shrugging. "Because you like me, even though I'm an insufferable smart arse?"

Needless to say, Ron did end up getting frog spawns to the face, much to that traitor Neville's amusement.

That being said, Ron felt that it was worth it. He and Neville had acclimated to the study clubs better than Ron had anticipated.

It was encouraging to see the reserved Neville nod enthusiastically while Imhotep would discuss the plants involved ("Valerians' use in Herbology dates back to the 1500s, where records showed it being prescribed to remedy sleeplessness and mood disorders. That is why it is important to not add too many of its sprigs, or increase its potency in our potion." ) followed by a bright eyed stare when Imhotep would explain preparation and stirring techniques next. ("3 times clockwise evens the distribution of not only the Lethe River Water and the Valerian sprigs but also of the magic you will be imbuing your mixture with. As those studying Arithmancy will know, the number 7 may be the most magically powerful, but the number 3 is the most magically balanced.")

And, in the end, Greengrass gave them an outline of the club's activities so far and even allowed them to copy some of her notes in exchange for Ron doing most of the "dirty work" for their Potions class for the rest of the month, which Ron considered a pretty fair exchange. Her notes were so detailed and informative Ron wouldn't be surprised if she was planning to write her own Potions book someday (which she should, if his opinion counted for anything)

Overall, Ron considered the whole Hermione and Neville joining the study clubs affair to be a success. A bit of levity he was grateful for when the next expected curveball came rolling their way.


It was a slow evening in the Tower, with only about ten students lounging in the Common Room when Harry came marching in from Quidditch practice looking like Fluffy was at his heels. At the time, Ron and Hermione were playing chess by the fireplace with Dean, Parvati and Lee for their audience. Neville, on the other hand, had gone to send an owl to his Gran.

Lee craned his neck to look around before asking, "Fred and George not with you?"

Harry shrugged. "Said something about needing something to eat after today."

The older teen rolled his eyes. "Figured those wankers would do that and forget to drag me along. But enough about them. What's with you?"

Hermione frowned in concern at Harry's disturbed grimace. "Is everything all right?"

Harry swept his eyes around the Common Room before lowering his voice a tad. "It's about the next match. Snape's going to be the referee."

A lot of good that did, however, with the way everyone except Ron reacted. "WHAT?!"

Still, the redhead had a part to play. "Bloody hell, is he serious? Since when has anyone other than Hooch been the referee?"

"Since never!" Lee said heatedly. "Not just because it'll eliminate the risk for bias, but because Hooch is the only one among the staff trained and qualified to be a Quidditch referee by the Department of Magical Games and Sports! Not to mention she actually played for the Holyhead Harpies before becoming referee so she really knows how the game is played. What is Snape playing at?"

At the first years' questioning looks, Lee puffed his chest. "I love Quidditch, in case you couldn't tell yet."

"Still," said Hermione fretfully, turning to Harry. "If Snape's really going to be the referee, you have to tell Wood you can't play."

Lee raised a brow. "Why shouldn't he be able to play because of the giant bat?"

"Oh, uhm, because Snape loves to single out Harry in class." Hermione reasoned quickly. "I wouldn't put it past him to use Harry as an excuse to hand out unfair penalties in Slytherin's favor."

"Say you have a broken leg." Dean suggested.

"Really break your leg." Parvati added, then raised a brow at Dean's horrified look. "What? They're easy to fix! Unless you have to regrow them." She made a face. "Ugh. Nasty business, that one! Like your arm was suddenly stuffed by hot pins and needles trying to poke their way out of your skin!"

"You had to regrow a bone?" Asked Harry, looking troubled at the thought.

Parvati waved a hand. "Accidental magic. Don't mention it around Padma. She still gets really upset about it."

"Anyway, I can't skip this match," Harry went on, his tone resigned. "There's no reserve seeker, and Oliver will skin me alive if I don't play."

"Oliver won't do that…," Lee paused before continuing sheepishly, "Hopefully. But you have a point. If you pull out, the Gryffindor team won't have a seeker and they'll be forced to forfeit."

Hermione's eyes flashed. "Is a game really that more important than—"

But then the portrait hole opened, and in hopped Neville, panting and sweaty with his legs awkwardly bound together by the Leg Locker Curse. He tried to make his way to their group, but a missed hop caused him to fall flat to the floor.

Ron's eyes widened. Right. This happened.

It took a second before the majority of the occupants of the Common Room burst into laughter, including Dean and Parvati. It made Ron's gut queasy with disgust, especially when he saw the pained look in Neville's eyes.

"Neville!" Harry exclaimed, running over to the fallen boy while Hermione whipped out her wand to cast the counter curse.

"SHUT IT, ALL OF YOU!" Ron snarled. "Before I shove that curse right up your stupid arses!"

One of the older Gryffindors' grins dropped into a glare. "Who died and made you Merlin, Weasley?"

"He said shut it, Towler," Lee growled, "And there's nothing funny about this! Neville could barely move right!"

"Bit rich coming from you, Jordan," said Towler coldly, "Pranks and shite are only funny if they're coming from you or the Weasley twins, eh?"

"Why you—!"

"I'm OK." Neville panted with a hand in the air. "I'm OK. Sorry for the trouble, but I'm OK."

Dean, who now looked rightly ashamed for his initial reaction, went to help Neville to the couch. At that, the crowd in the Common Room shrugged the whole event off as if it were nothing and went back to their own business.

"Sorry about that, mate." Dean said apologetically.

"Sorry, Neville." Parvati seconded weakly, looking just as guilty.

Neville smiled understandingly. "It's OK. If the circumstances were different, I'd be laughing with you too."

Harry frowned. "What happened, Nev?"

"Malfoy. Ran into him at the hall near the library. Wanted to practice that curse on me or something like that."

"You should have gone to a teacher!" Hermione exclaimed.

"What good will that do?" Neville said sadly. "Snape will make it my fault somehow, and then Malfoy will just get back at me. I don't want to cause any more trouble!"

Ron exhaled noisily at that. He knew Neville still had confidence issues around this time, but he had hoped that by being included earlier, the boy would lose them sooner this time around.

"You ought to stand up to him, Neville!" Parvati said strongly. "Those bullies will just keep tormenting you until you do. You can't let him keep getting away with doing this to you! Trust me, I'd know. Padma and I get it a lot because our parents are not originally from Britain."

"Or for not being a pureblood," Dean added, "But you're a Gryffindor, Neville! And you're worth more than ten of that snake!"

Lee frowned thoughtfully. "Shite, we all know the lions and the snakes have bad blood between them, but to think firsties would actually do this to one another…" He nodded. "I'll have to bring this up to a few people sometime. Can't have you lot worrying about getting hexed out of nowhere, can we?"

Harry fished out a Chocolate Frog pack from his pocket and handed it to Neville. "We have your back, Nev. Like what Dean said, you're worth more than what Malfoy will ever be."

"...Am I?"

"Sure you are!" Ron said confidently. "Malfoy and his dumb and dumber babysitters got nothing on you. One way or another, we'll rub that onto their sorry mugs!"

Neville let out a watery laugh after a bite into his frog candy. "Thanks, mates."

"Oi, what are you lot doing over there?"

The group looked up to see Fred, George, Angelina and Alicia stepping out of the portrait hole, with Fred's arms full of colorful bags and wrapped sandwiches.

Harry blinked. "Where's Oliver?"

Fred shook his head. "Still flying over the pitch—"

"Practicing like a mad man—"

"As if he's not a bloody red whirlwind of a Keeper already—"

"Gotta hand it to him. He's committed, that one." George pulled out a bag from Fred's stash. "Sweets, anyone?"

Angelina noticed Neville's slightly dishevelled state and frowned. "Are you OK, Longbottom?" To which the boy nodded quickly. "Fine, thanks." The twins however sent questioning looks to Ron and Lee, with the latter mouthing "Later," at them in response.

"Hey, since we're all here," Fred plopped on the floor in front of Harry and Neville. "I say we ought to have an impromptu tea time!"

"Without the tea, Forge? Blasphemous!"

Alicia shrugged. "Why not? We all need the little pick-me-up anyway, before that match with Snape as the referee."

Neville's eyes bugged out of his head. "SNAPE'S GOING TO WHAT?!"

The previous incident off everyone's minds for the moment, Ron and the others helped themselves to the snacks the twins brought (most likely taken from the kitchen). Neville had been more affected by the idea of Snape being the referee than Ron remembered, and his worries had not lessened in the slightest long after it was just him, Harry, Hermione and Ron left in the Common Room.

"If Snape will try anything during the match, I'm sure Professor Dumbledore and the other staff won't just let him." Harry reassured Neville.

"And besides, didn't we already agree that it may not be Snape who wants to kill Harry?" pressed Ron. "For all we know, he could be doing this to try to stop whoever it is."

Neville sighed. "I just can't help but be worried anyway. We got lucky with the jinx during the first match. What happens if the next attempt will be something we can't stop?"

Hermione bit her lip. "I could try reading all the possible jinxes and curses you could use to make it look like you were killed by accident, but that could take days! And the match is within the week! Not to mention our research on whoever this Flamel character is!"

Harry's eyes hardened. "Well, I'm not letting Snape or whoever it is get in the way of us getting the House and Quidditch Cup this year! And I'm not going to give the Slytherins—especially Malfoy—the chance to say that I backed out of the match because I'm scared of Snape!"

Neville and Hermione traded looks before the former raised his hands in surrender. "Just don't do anything reckless and keep an eye out for anything suspicious. The last thing we want is to have to wipe you off the field.

"Anyway," Neville held up several cards in his hand. "I don't know where the twins got all those sweets, but now I have too many Chocolate Frog cards on me. You lot collect them, right? Maybe there's something new in here for you."

Ron's eyes brightened in recollection of this particular moment. "Hey, Harry, got anything there that you can trade in with me?"

"Doubt it. I only have about ten cards." Harry looked through the cards. "Let me see: one Professor Dippet, Bertie Bott, Wendelin the Weird, a couple of Merlins, Herpo the Foul, Celestina Warbeck—great, I have three of her already!—Newt Scamander…" He raised a particular one aloft. "And Professor Dumbledore! This is the first card I ever—"

Ron watched as realization dawned in Harry's eyes before flipping Dumbledore's card to read the back. "That's it! I found him!" Harry declared with renewed excitement. "I found Nicolas Flamel!"


The days counting down to the upcoming match were filled with as much restless energy as the time before the last one. While Ron's friends were worried about Snape's sudden decision to be Quidditch referee and how it could affect the match, they were also just as excited about discovering who Flamel was and the existence of the Philosopher's Stone.

"The Philosopher's Stone is a legendary substance with astonishing powers, able to transform any metal into pure gold," Hermoine read from that absurdly large book she said she borrowed from the library for a bit of 'light reading", "It also produces the fabled Elixir of Life, which is said to make its drinker immortal."

"Immortal?" Neville repeated. "As in the 'cannot be killed by anything' sort of immortal?"

"And able to live for years on end as long as you continue consuming the Elixir," Hermione elaborated, "Look at how old the Flamels are! They're both past six hundred years old! An average wizard's lifespan is around a hundred and twenty years, with the oldest known other than the Flamels and Barry Winkle—who some suspect have his own Philosopher's Stone—is 355!"

"I bet that's what was in that vault in Gringotts." Harry said excitedly. "No wonder Snape wants it! Anyone would!"

Now that that mystery was solved, the group's plan shifted to how to stop Snape from getting the Stone.

"If Professor Dumbledore transferred the Stone from Gringotts, he'll definitely have some protections in place for it." Hermione said. "I doubt that the Stone would still be here if he hadn't."

"What sort of protections would be in place, you reckon?" said Neville. "Maybe the Professors are in on it? I mean, Professor Dumbledore's powerful, but it won't hurt to have extra help."

"Maybe Hagrid would know more about it," suggested Ron, "It's because of him we found out about Flamel in the first place."

Harry nodded. "We ought to bring it up the next time we see him. But if what Neville says is true, you reckon Snape's one of the Professors who added protections for the Stone?"

"Could be," Ron answered, "But didn't you say you thought Snape was after the Stone?"

"Just because he added protections doesn't mean he isn't after it anymore," Harry countered easily, "Just means there's one less obstacle for him to worry about."

But there wasn't time to dwell on the subject any further until after the next Quidditch match, which was inching closer by the day. And just like last time, Harry became noticeably quieter as his nerves were getting the better of him. His fellow Gryffindors offered as much encouragement and reassurance as they could, but Ron knew that Harry would only be completely relieved once Gryffindor wins the match.

And before long, the awaited day finally arrived.

It was a clear, albeit slightly less sunny afternoon when most of Hogwarts' population assembled in the stadium for the Gryffindor versus Slytherin game. As soon as Harry left with the rest of the Gryffindor team to change, Ron, Hermione and Neville went to find some good seats in the stands armed with their wands. Hermione had insisted on Ron and Neville learning the Leg Locker Curse, just in case, and among the three of them, worked out a plan on how to watch out for signs of anyone casting any jinxes or curses. Not that Ron thought they really needed it, but if it would help ease his friends' nerves, he was fine with it.

For that purpose, Neville suggested sitting on one of the middle platforms with a good view of where the staff was seated. From their position, they could also see the pitch clear enough to pick out Harry from the Gryffindor team, and it would be easy for them to follow their friend's flight around the field once the game is afoot.

Unfortunately, that meant that they would be sharing seats with…

"Ouch! What the—?"

"Oh, sorry, Weasley, didn't see you there."

That familiar, annoyingly nasal voice had Ron forcing air through his pursed lips in an effort to keep calm. "Fancy seeing you here too, Malfoy."

Beside him, Neville stiffened while he heard Hermione hiss in irritation. The redhead ignored them all in favor of subtly glancing at the others in the stands with them, finding only a few familiar faces who were barely his friends.

And not any other lion in sight, since we had to sit somewhere else to get a good vantage point. But why does Malfoy have to be here this time too? If I didn't know better, I'd say he just followed us here to be a total prick. Ron shook his head. On second thought, knowing him, he definitely would. What I'd give to smash the ferret's face in...no, Ron, stop! Change for the better, remember? You're supposed to be eighteen, not eleven! Don't let that idiot get a rise out of you!

"Wonder how long Potter's going to stay on in his broom this time? Want to make a bet, Weasley?" Malfoy crooned haughtily. "Oh, that's right, you probably don't have even a single Knut to your name!"

"Hilarious, Malfoy, but I actually have a couple of Sickles on me right now."

Ron did a mental cheer when he saw Malfoy do a double take at his deadpan answer. Since he was fairly certain that Harry would stay safe in this match, he wasn't as high strung as he was in his first life, and was in a better mindset to verbally spar with this younger version of their pathetic rival. Seeing that Ron was keeping Malfoy occupied, Hermione gently directed Neville to focus on keeping his eyes on the pitch.

Snape had just blown the whistle to start the match, and at once, the players quickly dispersed, with Harry circling the pitch like a hawk in search of the Snitch. Hermione made a noise at the back of her throat, crossing her fingers while keeping her eyes on Harry, while Neville sucked in a breath and stayed rather still while gripping his wand tightly.

"You know how I think they choose people for your Quidditch team, Weasley?" Malfoy tried again. "They pick people they feel sorry for. There's Potter, who's got no parents, then your brothers, who have no money. Maybe you should try for your team, Longbottom, having no brains and all."

Neville's blush was especially apparent with his face as pale as it was right now, but he managed to say clearly. "I'm worth more than ten of you, Malfoy."

It got a laugh out of the idiot and his airheaded bodyguards, but Neville didn't say anything more. Ron grit his teeth in a bid to reign his temper in, but bloody hell, even at eleven, Malfoy was brilliant at pushing someone's buttons! Although he wasn't any good at dealing with the aftermath because he was such a snivelling, spineless berk.

There has to be a way to get him off my back without having to use our fists or getting detention. Come on, Weasley, think. What made Malfoy leave us alone whenever he'd try to pick a fight with us? Other than punching his stupid mug in? A nice jinx? Like that one that'll give him oversized buck teeth? Ron shook his head. No, Weasley, no ideas that could get you detention! So what else? Other than getting hurt or jinxed, it's usually because there's a Professor around, wasn't it? So an authority figure. But there's no one around right now with enough authority or power to scare Malfoy...

...Wait, power?

A wild idea suddenly occurred to Ron. Now that he thought about it, it made a lot of sense since it was something Malfoy took as much pride in as being a Slytherin. He wouldn't have thought of it before, but after everything that happened, everything he had to learn this month…

And with the people around me, this could actually work. What do I have to lose at this point, anyway? At least I could say I tried to not go straight to giving Malfoy that black eye.

"—and if brains were gold, you'd be poorer than—"

"You know what, Malfoy, I think I want to take on that bet."

The declaration cut Malfoy off so suddenly that it made Hermione and Neville look up to Ron in shock. From behind Ron, Malfoy spluttered in equal stupor. "Wh—what?"

"That bet you mentioned earlier, but with a few changes," said Ron, "I bet that Gryffindor will not only win the match, but also that Harry will catch the Snitch."

Malfoy sneered. "Like you have anything worth betting."

"What's wrong, Malfoy? I'm going all in risking my neck, two Sickles and more on this and you're not going to take it?" Ron said in a sing-song coo that he knew would grate on anyone's nerves. "You afraid you'll lose to a penniless blood traitor like me?"

Malfoy's jaw remained hanging open for a few more seconds before he forced his jaw closed with a growl and a bright angry red flush on his cheeks. "Ten galleons that you Gryffindors will lose, and Potter will eat shite."

Ron leaned back to his seat with a smirk on his face. "You're on, Malfoy."

At that moment, Harry suddenly made a fantastic dive, barreling past Snape, to the cheers of most of the audience. Hermione jumped up from her seat, clapping her hands fretfully. "Come on, Harry!"

Neville joined her, pumping a hand up in the air. "YOU CAN DO IT, HARRY! GO GET THAT SNITCH!"

For a long, heart stopping minute, the audience watched as the Seekers whipped around the field like darting arrows of red and green as both gave chase for the Snitch. It felt like forever before Harry shot up, again barely missing Snape, raising a hand clutching the Snitch frantically beating its wings, in triumph.

The stands erupted in pandemonium.

"HE DID IT! HARRY CAUGHT THE SNITCH!" Hermione and Neville traded hugs of giddy happiness and relief. "GRYFFINDOR WON! WE WON!"

"'Course we won." Ron said easily while joining his friends in their standing ovation for Harry. "Never doubted Harry for a second."

And the fact that I already knew that we will win, of course. But mostly me not doubting the Albus Dumbledore of flying…

"YOU!" Malfoy was onto his feet for a different reason, however, grabbing Ron by the collar. "You cheater! You set me up!"

The smile slid off Hermione's face, replaced by alarm. "Ron—!"

The time traveller raised a hand to stop Hermione or Neville from interfering, his face impassive as he regarded Malfoy. "Set you up, how exactly? The match was largely in your favor, wasn't it? But Harry won fair and square, and so did I."

Malfoy was close to foaming in the mouth with the way his face glowed with rage. Behind the blond, Crabbe and Goyle were on their feet as well, looking ready to join the fight should their boss just say the word.

But Ron was not finished. "And you're not going to back out of your word, are you? That would be downright shameful for the heir of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy to do, wouldn't it? To not keep their word when it was said in front of witnesses, especially in front of those from the great Noble Houses." He then met the gazes of each member he was referring to, looks ranging from surprised to curious. "Heir Nott. Heir Zabini. Heir Macmillan. Lady Haywood." He shifted his head to the side. "Not to mention Heir Longbottom, who you may have, ah, unintentionally slighted."

It was fascinating to watch the red in Malfoy's face turn sickly pale as he dropped his hold on Ron's collar as if he had just been made aware that it was actually hot coal. He could feel stares coming at him from all directions, but he kept his gaze on Malfoy, his face as neutral as he could manage, until the Slytherin turned with a curt order to Crabbe and Goyle.

Malfoy barely made two steps away when Ron called out. "Oh, and Heir Malfoy?"

The other boy skidded to a halt but didn't turn around.

"I never said what I wanted in exchange for winning the bet."

"I bet ten galleons!"

"That you did. But how about something else? Something without money involved?"

That made Malfoy turn around, his eyes wary but interested. "What is it?"

Ron gestured towards himself and his friends. "No coming after me or any of my friends anymore, for the rest of the year. That includes any name calling, harassment and the like. Sounds simple enough, right?"

It took a few more seconds, with much effort on Malfoy's part, but with the slightest incline of his head, the Slytherin answered. "Fine. But this isn't over, Weasley."

"For now, it is." Ron said, his voice a tad cold. "And if I find out that you tried to go around our agreement in any way, either by your or any of your cronies, then not only will I be making good on that ten galleons you owe me, but our world will know that Heir Malfoy is untrustworthy and not a Wizard of his word." He smiled innocently again. "Which you are not, of course. Am I right?"

A bit of fear actually made its way into Malfoy's eyes, plain enough for Ron to commit to memory, before the blond finally stalked away without looking back, leaving the platform in silence before Ron broke it.

"Right, sorry for dragging you lot into that." The boy said with a stretch of his thin arms.

"That. Was. Bloody Amazing, Ron!" Neville gushed admiringly. "You actually got Malfoy to leave us alone for the rest of the year! Wait till Harry hears about this!"

"Would he really leave us alone, though?" Hermione asked faintly. "You mentioned something about Ancient and Noble Houses earlier? Is it really that big of a deal?"

"For someone like Malfoy, definitely," said Neville, "Though it's not common practice anymore, following the Ways still stands, especially for the Most Ancient and Noble Houses."

"The...Ways?"

"We can talk about it later." Ron clapped both of his friends on their shoulders, ignoring the stares he was still getting from the others in their stand. "Come on! Let's go meet Harry!"


It took them a while, but they managed to find Harry near one of the arena exits, already out of his Quidditch uniform. But he was not alone.

"Sirius! Remus!" Ron exclaimed in pleasant surprise.

"Hullo, Ron!" Sirius greeted merrily, an arm around Harry's shoulder. "We were just about to come looking for you. Harry said he didn't see you with the other Gryffindors."

"Oh, err, just went to where the view was better, is all."

Remus then nodded towards the other two Gryffindors. "You must be Hermione and Neville. Harry's written much about you."

"This is Remus Lupin and my godfather, Sirius Black." Harry introduced the older wizards, practically glowing when he said the word 'godfather'.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Lupin, Mr. Black." Hermione said politely while Neville gave them a shy smile.

"We were going to let you know about that party the Quidditch team's got going at the Tower, Harry, but," Neville glanced at Sirius and Remus.

"We wouldn't want to intrude," said Remus. "We just came to see Harry's game. Such a talented flyer. James and Lily would have been so proud. James was a Chaser for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. But if he puts his mind to it, he can play for any position, really."

"You obviously got a lot of your father's talent." Sirius ruffled Harry's hair fondly. "Though I have to admit, that mad dive you did earlier nearly gave me a heart attack! If this was how it was for Lily whenever she'd watch us play, I take back everything I said about her worrying too much!"

"Oh, but…" The way Harry's eyes brightened at the prospect of spending more time with his godfathers (since Remus was one in all but paper, even in the first life), it was obvious that he wished Sirius and Remus wouldn't have to go so soon. And as his best mate, Ron knew he was responsible for stopping Harry's misguided sense of duty from getting in the way of what he really wanted when it wasn't necessary.

"I don't think it'll be a problem." Ron said. "We'll just let the others know that Harry decided to celebrate with his godparents, since it's the first game they've been to and all."

"I think it would be a wonderful idea, Harry," Hermione seconded, "We'll just meet up in the Common Room when you get back."

"You should go, Harry," Neville added in a wistful tone, "Trust us, everyone will understand if you do."

Harry looked so taken aback by his friends' encouragement that it was kind of hilarious. "Err, I-that would be great, but...maybe, if Sirius and Remus have other plans-"

"'Course we don't!" Sirius said immediately. "Why wouldn't we want to spend more time with our little Prongslet? There's just this place in Hogsmeade that has food to die for!"

"I hope you don't mean that teashop, Padfoot." Remus said teasingly, making Sirius mock growl at him, while Harry tilted his head in confusion. "Teashop?"

"Of course not! Like I'd let Harry anywhere near that place until he's of age!"

"Isn't that a bit extreme? You've been going there since our-"

"Like what I said, Harry," Sirius half-shouted over Remus' rebuttal, already leading Harry back to the Great Hall. "There's this restaurant at Hogsmeade-this quaint village near Hogwarts that you can get to visit with your friends starting your Third Year-that makes the best mince pies and-"

"And they're off." Remus laughed good naturedly before turning back to Ron, Hermione and Neville. "I really hope we're not intruding, though. We'd love to spend more time with Harry, but he's here at Hogwarts to spend more time with friends his age."

Ron scratched the back of his neck. "He's got months with us already, Remus. Missing a day won't hurt him."

"Besides, he's had years without family, so this will just be making up for lost time. And I'm sure Harry wants this more than he thinks he can say at the moment." Neville's cheeks then colored. "Not that I meant to imply that his Muggle relatives haven't been like family to him in some way-"

"It's all right," Remus smiled kindly. "I understand, Neville."

And truth be told, you're not far off the mark there, Ron thought to himself.

"I'd best be off. As much as I trust Sirius with keeping Harry safe, he does have the tendency to get carried away too easily." The sandy haired wizard straightened his coat. "On behalf of myself and Sirius, thank you for being such good friends to Harry."

"The pleasure is all ours, Mr. Lupin." Hermione answered for them.

"Remus is fine, Hermione. Mr. Lupin makes me feel too old." He waved a hand. "It was nice meeting all of you!"

"Wow, Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin seem like really nice blokes, huh?" Neville said once he, Ron and Hermione were on their back to the Tower.

Hermione nodded eagerly. "I've never seen Harry smile so brightly before. Hopefully, Harry could spend more time with them during the summer break. It would be nice if Sirius could adopt Harry, since he's his godfather. But it wouldn't be right to make him choose between his Muggle guardians and Sirius and Remus, would it?"

"Wouldn't even be a bloody contest." Ron mumbled lowly, sorely wishing he could tell his friends that Harry's experience with the Dursleys was far from pleasant, but that wasn't his story to tell. Not that Harry ever told them outright, however. Ron and Hermione had managed to figure it out from the little clues they pieced together from the meager hints Harry had dropped every now and then. He just had to trust that Neville and Hermione would be able to do the same in this timeline as well.

That, or somehow find a way for Sirius to get Harry away from the Dursleys, whichever comes first.

"But I wonder what kept Harry for so long," Hermione continued. "We saw the rest of the Quidditch team come right up after the game ended. Harry, though, had been gone for, what, ten more minutes? He actually had me a little worried."

Ron shrugged. "Whatever it was, if it's anything important, I reckon Harry will tell us all about it as soon as he gets back."

Neville frowned thoughtfully. "You think it has something to do with the Stone? Or whoever it is that's trying to get it?"

It's something that will definitely make you doubt Snape even more. Ron groaned in his head, not looking forward to having to play the devil's advocate again. Why does he have to be so good at making everyone believe he's the bad guy? Is there such a thing as being too suspicious to be true?

Whatever. I'll just worry about this once Harry gets back. In the meantime, I hope Fred and George have some of that butterbeer left. I like pumpkin juice as much as the next bloke, but after all this shite I've been through, don't I deserve to have at least one bloody bottle?


Second Chance Notebook

Things to Do

27 December 1991

[X] WORK ON THIS STUBBORN WAND!

[X ] Help others learn about Flamel without being obvious about me knowing who Flamel is

[X] Convince mates to join the study clubs

[ ] Get Norberta out of Hogwarts while avoiding detention and being bitten by the ungrateful oversized lizard

[ ] Learn Occlumency?

[ ] Learn more about the Deluminator

[ ] Help Harry get safely past the traps guarding the stone

[ ] Stop Quirrel from getting the stone.

[ ] Don't die trying


Well, that's done. Yay!

Still in the process of migrating the whole fanfic to AO3. Hopefully, I'll be able to finish soon so I can post the latest chapters simultaneously. And the art! Need to work on the art.

Again, thank you for reading all the way down here. And thank you also to everyone who are still following TBA and kept it in their favorites. Feel free to send in your comments, suggestions and corrections! I thrive in the discussion and interacting with my readers. Hope this chapter is to your liking.

See you in the next one!

UP NEXT: Did someone miss a certain baby dragon? Ron definitely did not, but whether he likes it or not, Norberta is coming to officially be his problem. Will the temperamental, perpetually teething lizard's great escape go over well for everyone involved?