Disclaimer: Aidoneus Malfoy, Don Weasley, William Potter.all Dumbledore and
McGonagall's schoolmates and teachers, (except for young Madam Hooch, young
Professor Sprouts, Professor Dippet and young Madam Pomfrey) belongs to me.
The rest belongs to J.K Rowling.
Chapter 11: Exams and an Announcement.
The whole school year passed by very quickly without much incident, unless you counted the time when Malfoy was getting dreamy and always stared at Professor Adara with a rapt, misty-eyed expression during Charms. Professor Adara had been found giving the Gryffindors points, smiled at them and praised them for their hard work, which was quite a shock to the Gryffindors and the Slytherins. And soon the end-of-year exams were coming. To the all students at Hogwarts, the exams meant burning more of the midnight oil and no fooling around anymore. Well....all except Albus Dumbledore. He treated exams like a normal, everyday thing. He was seen flipping through a Muggle comic book when everyone around him was reading his or her textbooks after breakfast in a Sunday morning. Minerva was nowhere in sight.
"Albus, how can you be reading a Muggle comic book when the exams are around the corner?" William asked, with his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook in his hands.
"I'm ready, ask me any questions." Dumbledore said, flipping a page on his comic.
All the Gryffindor boys near Dumbledore looked at each other and grinned evilly.
"Okay, Albus, in Muggle Studies, what's a telephone?"
"The system of communication that Muggle use to have a conversation with someone in another place."
"Name all the planets in the sky and tell us what do they named after?"
"You mean, who do they named after." Dumbledore corrected, looking up from his comic. "There are 9 planets, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and of course, Earth. Earth didn't name after anything or anyone. Mercury is named after the Roman messenger of the gods, Venus is named after the Roman Goddess of Love, Mars is named after the Roman God of War, Jupiter is named after the Roman King of the Gods, Saturn is named after the Roman God of Time, Son of Uranus, Uranus is named after the Roman God of the Sky, Neptune is named after the Roman God of the Sea and finally, Pluto is named after the Roman God of the Underworld." Dumbledore stopped and took a sip from his glass of pumpkin juice.
The boys gaped at him.
"In Defense Against the Dark Arts, what does a Troll looks like?"
"Depends. Mountain troll is bald, with a pale-grey skin. Forest troll has a pale-green skin and some specimens have hair, which is green or brown, thin and straggly. River troll has short horns and may be hairy. It has a purplish skin." Dumbledore turned his attention back to his comic.
Wood frowned a little. He just couldn't believe that Dumbledore had really studied for the exams. "Okay, Albus, try to transfigure a person here into an animal."
All the boys, except Wood and Dumbledore, said: "Bad move."
Dumbledore looked up. "You ask for it." He grinned and took out his wand.
SNAP
The boys stared while the girls paused and said: "Ooooo, he is cute!!!!!"
A Snidget sat at where Wood had been sitting. The very round, small bird flapped its small wings and flew around the boys with uncanny speed. It looked at Dumbledore with its glistening, jewel-like red eyes.
"Awesome." William said in awe.
"Suit your image, Jonathan, you love Quidditch and Albus transformed you into a Snidget, the bird that was used in Quidditch matches before the Golden Snitch was invented." Don grinned.
"Albus, I think you better change Wood back before some mad Snidget lover see him, Snidget is a very rare bird and its species are protected the Wizards' Council." Michael Johnson said seriously.
Dumbledore pointed his wand at the Snidget, which was flying back to Wood's seat.
SNAP
Wood re-appeared, sitting on his seat.
"Don't you remember that Albus is an expert in Transfigurations, Wood?" Lawrence asked.
"Name a dangerous Muggle plant, Albus." Nicholas, who was an expert in Herbology. "And oh yeah, name its harmful effects as well."
"Pong Pong tree. The sap can cause blindness and the fruits are commonly used by Muggles for poisoning rats." Dumbledore said, smiling.
Thomas Jordan flipped his Care For Magical Creatures textbook quickly, tried to look for a question that Dumbledore couldn't answer. He smiled at his find and asked. "Hey, Albus, would you mind to name all the pure-bred dragon species?" Jordan grinned at Don. There, Dumbledore couldn't possibly answer that.
"Antipodean Opaleye, Chinese Fireball, or sometimes known as Liondragon, Common Welsh Green, Hebridean Black, Hungarian Horntail, Norwegian Ridgeback, Peruvian Vipertooth, Romanian Longhorn, Swedish Short-Snout, and Ukrainian Ironbelly. Need I to say what is the dragon's blood for?" Dumbledore asked without even paused for thinking.
Thomas stared at him in awe and shook his head slowly.
Wood threw up his hands. "Isn't there anything that you don't know?!"
"Yes, I don't know where Minerva is, has anyone of you seen her?"
"No." The boys answered.
"Girls?"
"I think she is in the library." Madeline said, looking up from her Potions textbook.
"No, I think she is in the Greenhouse, looking at the Muggle flowers." A girl answered.
"I think she is in her bedroom, sleeping. It is Sunday after all." Another girl answered.
"I think she is in the common room." Another girl answered.
"I will take that all of you don't know where she is. I will go and look for her in the library, then the Greenhouse, then the common room. See you later." Dumbledore pick up the comic and left.
"What's so good about Minerva? She is too young for him anyway." A 6th year grumbled at the boys.
"Shut up, I'm trying to study." Wood snapped.
Dumbledore didn't have to look so hard for Minerva, for he have found her in the library, reading her History of Magic textbook.
"Hi, Minerva."
Minerva looked up and Dumbledore gasped. She looked very tired and pale.
"What happened to you?" Dumbldore asked as he sat down beside Minerva.
Minerva stared at her textbook and sighed.
"Minerva, what's wrong?" Dumbledore asked gently.
"Exams. I can't concentrate." Minerva said, slamming her textbook shut and rested her head on the textbook's hard cover.
"How long have you been studying like this?" Dumbledore asked with concern.
"Ever since the exam dates are set." Minerva said without lifting her head from the book.
"Nonstop?" Dumbledore asked again.
Minerva lifted her head, looked at Dumbledore with her weary eyes, nodded and paused. "Well, except mealtimes."
"No wonder." Dumbledore said to himself. "Minerva, you are stressing yourself out. You need to take a break."
"I can't! I have tons to study!" Minerva snapped.
"If you don't take a break, you can't absorb much things into your brain." Dumbledore said firmly, ignoring Minerva's tone. He got up and walked to the Sports section of the library. He returned with a thin green book. "Here, read this." He said and handed the book to Minerva.
Minerva looked at Dumbledore and took the book. "Quidditch Through the Ages." She read slowly.
"Since you are a die-hard Qudditch fan, I think you will like to read this." Dumbledore smiled as Minerva flipped eagerly through the pages.
She smiled. "Thanks."
"Take my advice, study hard but take some time for a break." Dumbledore smiled. "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"
Minerva smiled embarrassedly and shook her head.
"I figure. Come on." Dumbledore took her hand and took her out of the library to the Great Hall.
The exams came a week later. On the last day of exams, Dumbledore was the first one to finish his questions and he kept on checking his answers for mistakes while waiting for the rest of the class to finish.
Wood was trying his best but his mind always wandered off to the Quidditch pitch outside the castle.
Don and William finished theirs and they doodled on the parchments while waiting for the rest.
Nicholas finished and began to think about how to disturb Malfoy when the exams were over.
Daisy Brown finished hers and started to daydream about her and Dumbledore together but she stopped her daydream when she saw Minerva, who was pondering over her questions. Once Daisy saw Minerva's beautiful appearance and her seriousness over the test, she realized that she couldn't win Albus Dumbledore from Minerva McGonagall.
Madeline finished hers and drew all the 13 professional Quidditch teams players' robe designs on her parchment. For example, a speeding cannon ball and a double 'C' for the Chudley Cannons, two crossed bulrushes for the Puddlemere United, a double T for the Tutshill Tornados, a wasp for the Wimbourne Wasps.....and so on.
Robert and Joe finished theirs and started to plan their break after exams in their minds.
Georgia Sprout finished hers and started to think about Muggle flowers and their names to pass the time.
When the 2 hours were up and the test was announced over, all the students in Hogwarts jumped for joy and started to discuss about what were they going to do after the exams.
"Boy, I'm glad that it is over, I am going back to the common room to read up "Flying with the Cannons"." Wood grinned and ran back to the common room.
"That reminds me! I need to read "Quidditch Teams of Britain and Ireland" !" Madeline said, stuffed her inkbottle in her bag and ran after Wood.
"They were acting like they were rushing to see their lovers." William said.
"Of course they are. Do you remember what Wood said about his love for Quidditch?" Don reminded.
"Oh yeah," William said, lowered his voice a little to imitate Wood. "Quidditch is the best sport in the whole world! I will die if Quidditch is banned!" "I hope that he won't marry a Bludger as his wife." William said in his normal voice.
"Nah, a Bludger is too rough for him. How about a Golden Snitch?" Don asked, trying to keep a straight face.
"Too fast." Nicholas grinned, trying not to laugh.
"Or a Quaffle?" Robert suggested and finally all the Gryffindor students broke down into laughter.
"Look... oh great, I can't stand it.. there's..... Malfoy with Professor Adara." Dumbledore said, wiping his tears out of his eyes.
Slowly, one by one, all of them stopped laughing and looked at Malfoy. Malfoy was asking Professor Adara something and she was answering him and smiling. The Gryffindor boys grinned at each other.
"Oh come on, boys, give him a break." Dumbledore said.
"Sorry, Captain, we can't follow your orders this time, we are itching for teasing." Nicholas said, grinning.
When Professor Adara walked away, the Gryffindor boys approached Malfoy slowly.
"So, what is Aidoneus Malfoy up to this time?" William asked loudly with an unpleasant smile on his face.
Malfoy stopped looking at Professor Adara, blushed and scowled at the Gryffindor boys. "Stay out of this."
"Why? Hmm..looks like Professor Adara likes you. What did she say to you? Meet her tonight in the Slytherin common room?" Don asked, grinning.
Malfoy sneered at them. "For your information, Weasel, (that word wiped Don's grin off his face) I was asking her about my Charms results. She said that I got the first place among the Slytherins."
"Yeah, the first place all right, starting from the back." Nicholas said and the boys started laughing.
Malfoy scowled at them, turned around and stormed away.
The exams results were finally out. Minerva was glad that she managed to make it into the 1st years' top ten positions in Hogwarts. The Gryffindors congratulated Dumbledore for being the top scholar again for the 6th time in Hogwarts. Malfoy was not lying, his Charms' result was excellent, but his marks were still lower than Dumbledore's.
The Leaving Feast on the last day of school was wonderful. Gryffindor had won the House Cup. (Malfoy scowled when the Headmaster announced the winner) When Dumbledore was drinking his pink lemonade, he noticed Professor Jupiter and Professor Adara were whispering at each other. Professor Adara giggled and Professor Jupiter smiled. A Gryffindor (Professor Jupiter used to be in Gryffindor) and a Slytherin chatting with each other? That's odd.
"Hey, Minerva, look." He whispered.
Minerva looked up from her mashed potato and Dumbledore indicated the two professors with his head. Minerva looked, gasped and whispered to Madeline. Madeline looked and whispered to Wood. Soon all the Gryffindors noticed what's going on.
"I think Malfoy notices about it too, look." Poppy said, pointing at the Slytherin table. The Gryffindors turned their attention to the Slytherins. Malfoy didn't look happy at the sight of a Gryffindor whispering to a Slytherin, he looked totally green.
"Good, I like to see Malfoy like that." Nicholas said after he had swallowed his peas.
"May I have your attention please?" Professor Dippet called out and the Great Hall went silent.
The Headmaster stood up from his seat. "I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter are not going to be in Hogwarts next year."
"WHAT?!" Malfoy exclaimed. The Slytherins looked as shock as the Gryffindors.
The Great Hall soon filled with the students' protests, groans of disappointment and maybe a bit of cheering from some of the Gryffindors because Professor Adara was not going to teach them Charms again next year. The Slytherins cheered a little too because they didn't like Professor Jupiter's lessons.
"Who is going to teach us Care for Magical Creatures next year?" Thomas asked.
"Aww, I was looking forward to Professor Jupiter's lessons next year." Minerva groaned. "He is such a nice teacher."
"The best." Madeline said sadly.
The Slytherins, however, didn't agree with the Gryffindors.
"Good thing that Professor Jupiter is leaving, he is such a goody-goody." Snape said.
"But why does he has to take Professor Adara with him?" Malfoy asked angrily.
"Who is going to teach us Charms next year?" A Slytherin asked Malfoy.
"I don't know and shut up." Malfoy snapped. Something tells him that the worst had yet to come.
"The good news!" The Headmaster said loudly and the Great Hall quieted down again. "Is the reason why they have to leave Hogwarts."
"Huh? I don't get it." Robert said.
"The good news is Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter are getting married."
"WHAT?!" Malfoy exclaimed again. The Slytherins had their mouths dropped open.
"Is it just me or the Headmaster just said that Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter are getting married?" Minerva asked Dumbledore.
"It is not just you, Minerva, I think all of us heard that." Dumbledore said.
"WHAT? THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!!" The Slytherins yelled.
"You heard me, they are getting married, to each other. They want to settle down so they decided to quit Hogwarts and teach somewhere else near their residence." The Headmaster said as if that's the most obvious thing in the wizarding world.
The students were too shocked to say anything. A Gryffindor and a Slytherin? Together?
Peter Clearwater found his voice first. "But..I...I thought Gryffindor and Slytherin never get along with each other..you can just compare those two houses to a Gnome and a Jarvey..."
"Well, here's a living proof that Slytherin and Gryffindor can get along." The Headmaster said. "Now enough questions, shall we congratulate them?"
Dumbledore smiled and clapped. The rest of the Gryffindors followed suit. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff applauded a few moments later. The Slytherins were too shocked to do anything.
"I should have known! No wonder Professor Adara had been so good to us! She was changed by the power of love!" Poppy said, clapping. "This is so romantic." She added dreamily.
"Stop it, Pomfrey, you are giving me goosebumps." Wood said.
"Look at Malfoy!" Joe said and the boys looked at Aidoneus, who looked paler then usual. He pushed his food away and stared sadly at Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter, who were smiling at each other.
"Aww, his love is getting married and he is not the groom." William grinned.
But before Dumbledore could say that William was beginning to act like a Slytherin, William said: "But I pity him. He must be pretty upset."
"I hope that he will get over it next year and start disturbing us again," Nicholas said. "If he doesn't, I am going to miss all the fights and teasing."
Dumbledore and the rest of the students alighted from the Hogwarts Express at the King's Cross Station, carrying their trunks.
"I can't believe that a year passed by so quickly." Wood sighed and stared at his broomstick. "And next year is my last year to play in the school's Quidditch team and get the Quidditch Cup."
"Our last year. Don't forget about us." William corrected.
"Hey, Albus, do you think that you can be the Head Boy next year?" Don asked.
"I don't care about it much." Dumbledore smiled. "Minerva, have you got it?"
"I got it in my brain and a piece of parchment." Minerva smiled.
"I will be waiting for it." Dumbledore said before they passed through the barrier.
"Waiting for what?" Nicholas asked.
"Letter, Minerva and I exchanged our addresses." Dumbledore smiled happily and called out. "See you after summer, Minerva!" He waved at Minerva, who was waving back at him and she walked away with her parents.
"So, Minerva, do you have a good time at school?" Mr. McGonagall asked as he put down Minerva's trunk in their living room after they had arrived home.
"It's wonderful, Dad! I get to learn Transfigurations, see a Quidditch match in the school stadium, go to Hogsmeade..."
"Any new friends?" Mrs. McGonagall asked, smiling.
"Yes! There's Madeline Hooch and Jonathan Wood, who are obsessed in Quidditch, Don Weasley and William Potter, who are pals, there's Georgia Spouts, who is very, very good in Herbology...."
"Then who is that young boy that you are waving to?" Mr. McGonagall asked.
"He's Albus Dumbledore." Minerva said, smiling widely. " He is wonderful! He is a Prefect, an expert in every subjects, he is kind and understanding...." Minerva stopped when she saw a mischievous grin on her father's face. "We are just friends."
"Oh really?" Her father's grin widened.
"Really!" Minerva insisted but she doubt that her father believed her.
Chapter 11: Exams and an Announcement.
The whole school year passed by very quickly without much incident, unless you counted the time when Malfoy was getting dreamy and always stared at Professor Adara with a rapt, misty-eyed expression during Charms. Professor Adara had been found giving the Gryffindors points, smiled at them and praised them for their hard work, which was quite a shock to the Gryffindors and the Slytherins. And soon the end-of-year exams were coming. To the all students at Hogwarts, the exams meant burning more of the midnight oil and no fooling around anymore. Well....all except Albus Dumbledore. He treated exams like a normal, everyday thing. He was seen flipping through a Muggle comic book when everyone around him was reading his or her textbooks after breakfast in a Sunday morning. Minerva was nowhere in sight.
"Albus, how can you be reading a Muggle comic book when the exams are around the corner?" William asked, with his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook in his hands.
"I'm ready, ask me any questions." Dumbledore said, flipping a page on his comic.
All the Gryffindor boys near Dumbledore looked at each other and grinned evilly.
"Okay, Albus, in Muggle Studies, what's a telephone?"
"The system of communication that Muggle use to have a conversation with someone in another place."
"Name all the planets in the sky and tell us what do they named after?"
"You mean, who do they named after." Dumbledore corrected, looking up from his comic. "There are 9 planets, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and of course, Earth. Earth didn't name after anything or anyone. Mercury is named after the Roman messenger of the gods, Venus is named after the Roman Goddess of Love, Mars is named after the Roman God of War, Jupiter is named after the Roman King of the Gods, Saturn is named after the Roman God of Time, Son of Uranus, Uranus is named after the Roman God of the Sky, Neptune is named after the Roman God of the Sea and finally, Pluto is named after the Roman God of the Underworld." Dumbledore stopped and took a sip from his glass of pumpkin juice.
The boys gaped at him.
"In Defense Against the Dark Arts, what does a Troll looks like?"
"Depends. Mountain troll is bald, with a pale-grey skin. Forest troll has a pale-green skin and some specimens have hair, which is green or brown, thin and straggly. River troll has short horns and may be hairy. It has a purplish skin." Dumbledore turned his attention back to his comic.
Wood frowned a little. He just couldn't believe that Dumbledore had really studied for the exams. "Okay, Albus, try to transfigure a person here into an animal."
All the boys, except Wood and Dumbledore, said: "Bad move."
Dumbledore looked up. "You ask for it." He grinned and took out his wand.
SNAP
The boys stared while the girls paused and said: "Ooooo, he is cute!!!!!"
A Snidget sat at where Wood had been sitting. The very round, small bird flapped its small wings and flew around the boys with uncanny speed. It looked at Dumbledore with its glistening, jewel-like red eyes.
"Awesome." William said in awe.
"Suit your image, Jonathan, you love Quidditch and Albus transformed you into a Snidget, the bird that was used in Quidditch matches before the Golden Snitch was invented." Don grinned.
"Albus, I think you better change Wood back before some mad Snidget lover see him, Snidget is a very rare bird and its species are protected the Wizards' Council." Michael Johnson said seriously.
Dumbledore pointed his wand at the Snidget, which was flying back to Wood's seat.
SNAP
Wood re-appeared, sitting on his seat.
"Don't you remember that Albus is an expert in Transfigurations, Wood?" Lawrence asked.
"Name a dangerous Muggle plant, Albus." Nicholas, who was an expert in Herbology. "And oh yeah, name its harmful effects as well."
"Pong Pong tree. The sap can cause blindness and the fruits are commonly used by Muggles for poisoning rats." Dumbledore said, smiling.
Thomas Jordan flipped his Care For Magical Creatures textbook quickly, tried to look for a question that Dumbledore couldn't answer. He smiled at his find and asked. "Hey, Albus, would you mind to name all the pure-bred dragon species?" Jordan grinned at Don. There, Dumbledore couldn't possibly answer that.
"Antipodean Opaleye, Chinese Fireball, or sometimes known as Liondragon, Common Welsh Green, Hebridean Black, Hungarian Horntail, Norwegian Ridgeback, Peruvian Vipertooth, Romanian Longhorn, Swedish Short-Snout, and Ukrainian Ironbelly. Need I to say what is the dragon's blood for?" Dumbledore asked without even paused for thinking.
Thomas stared at him in awe and shook his head slowly.
Wood threw up his hands. "Isn't there anything that you don't know?!"
"Yes, I don't know where Minerva is, has anyone of you seen her?"
"No." The boys answered.
"Girls?"
"I think she is in the library." Madeline said, looking up from her Potions textbook.
"No, I think she is in the Greenhouse, looking at the Muggle flowers." A girl answered.
"I think she is in her bedroom, sleeping. It is Sunday after all." Another girl answered.
"I think she is in the common room." Another girl answered.
"I will take that all of you don't know where she is. I will go and look for her in the library, then the Greenhouse, then the common room. See you later." Dumbledore pick up the comic and left.
"What's so good about Minerva? She is too young for him anyway." A 6th year grumbled at the boys.
"Shut up, I'm trying to study." Wood snapped.
Dumbledore didn't have to look so hard for Minerva, for he have found her in the library, reading her History of Magic textbook.
"Hi, Minerva."
Minerva looked up and Dumbledore gasped. She looked very tired and pale.
"What happened to you?" Dumbldore asked as he sat down beside Minerva.
Minerva stared at her textbook and sighed.
"Minerva, what's wrong?" Dumbledore asked gently.
"Exams. I can't concentrate." Minerva said, slamming her textbook shut and rested her head on the textbook's hard cover.
"How long have you been studying like this?" Dumbledore asked with concern.
"Ever since the exam dates are set." Minerva said without lifting her head from the book.
"Nonstop?" Dumbledore asked again.
Minerva lifted her head, looked at Dumbledore with her weary eyes, nodded and paused. "Well, except mealtimes."
"No wonder." Dumbledore said to himself. "Minerva, you are stressing yourself out. You need to take a break."
"I can't! I have tons to study!" Minerva snapped.
"If you don't take a break, you can't absorb much things into your brain." Dumbledore said firmly, ignoring Minerva's tone. He got up and walked to the Sports section of the library. He returned with a thin green book. "Here, read this." He said and handed the book to Minerva.
Minerva looked at Dumbledore and took the book. "Quidditch Through the Ages." She read slowly.
"Since you are a die-hard Qudditch fan, I think you will like to read this." Dumbledore smiled as Minerva flipped eagerly through the pages.
She smiled. "Thanks."
"Take my advice, study hard but take some time for a break." Dumbledore smiled. "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"
Minerva smiled embarrassedly and shook her head.
"I figure. Come on." Dumbledore took her hand and took her out of the library to the Great Hall.
The exams came a week later. On the last day of exams, Dumbledore was the first one to finish his questions and he kept on checking his answers for mistakes while waiting for the rest of the class to finish.
Wood was trying his best but his mind always wandered off to the Quidditch pitch outside the castle.
Don and William finished theirs and they doodled on the parchments while waiting for the rest.
Nicholas finished and began to think about how to disturb Malfoy when the exams were over.
Daisy Brown finished hers and started to daydream about her and Dumbledore together but she stopped her daydream when she saw Minerva, who was pondering over her questions. Once Daisy saw Minerva's beautiful appearance and her seriousness over the test, she realized that she couldn't win Albus Dumbledore from Minerva McGonagall.
Madeline finished hers and drew all the 13 professional Quidditch teams players' robe designs on her parchment. For example, a speeding cannon ball and a double 'C' for the Chudley Cannons, two crossed bulrushes for the Puddlemere United, a double T for the Tutshill Tornados, a wasp for the Wimbourne Wasps.....and so on.
Robert and Joe finished theirs and started to plan their break after exams in their minds.
Georgia Sprout finished hers and started to think about Muggle flowers and their names to pass the time.
When the 2 hours were up and the test was announced over, all the students in Hogwarts jumped for joy and started to discuss about what were they going to do after the exams.
"Boy, I'm glad that it is over, I am going back to the common room to read up "Flying with the Cannons"." Wood grinned and ran back to the common room.
"That reminds me! I need to read "Quidditch Teams of Britain and Ireland" !" Madeline said, stuffed her inkbottle in her bag and ran after Wood.
"They were acting like they were rushing to see their lovers." William said.
"Of course they are. Do you remember what Wood said about his love for Quidditch?" Don reminded.
"Oh yeah," William said, lowered his voice a little to imitate Wood. "Quidditch is the best sport in the whole world! I will die if Quidditch is banned!" "I hope that he won't marry a Bludger as his wife." William said in his normal voice.
"Nah, a Bludger is too rough for him. How about a Golden Snitch?" Don asked, trying to keep a straight face.
"Too fast." Nicholas grinned, trying not to laugh.
"Or a Quaffle?" Robert suggested and finally all the Gryffindor students broke down into laughter.
"Look... oh great, I can't stand it.. there's..... Malfoy with Professor Adara." Dumbledore said, wiping his tears out of his eyes.
Slowly, one by one, all of them stopped laughing and looked at Malfoy. Malfoy was asking Professor Adara something and she was answering him and smiling. The Gryffindor boys grinned at each other.
"Oh come on, boys, give him a break." Dumbledore said.
"Sorry, Captain, we can't follow your orders this time, we are itching for teasing." Nicholas said, grinning.
When Professor Adara walked away, the Gryffindor boys approached Malfoy slowly.
"So, what is Aidoneus Malfoy up to this time?" William asked loudly with an unpleasant smile on his face.
Malfoy stopped looking at Professor Adara, blushed and scowled at the Gryffindor boys. "Stay out of this."
"Why? Hmm..looks like Professor Adara likes you. What did she say to you? Meet her tonight in the Slytherin common room?" Don asked, grinning.
Malfoy sneered at them. "For your information, Weasel, (that word wiped Don's grin off his face) I was asking her about my Charms results. She said that I got the first place among the Slytherins."
"Yeah, the first place all right, starting from the back." Nicholas said and the boys started laughing.
Malfoy scowled at them, turned around and stormed away.
The exams results were finally out. Minerva was glad that she managed to make it into the 1st years' top ten positions in Hogwarts. The Gryffindors congratulated Dumbledore for being the top scholar again for the 6th time in Hogwarts. Malfoy was not lying, his Charms' result was excellent, but his marks were still lower than Dumbledore's.
The Leaving Feast on the last day of school was wonderful. Gryffindor had won the House Cup. (Malfoy scowled when the Headmaster announced the winner) When Dumbledore was drinking his pink lemonade, he noticed Professor Jupiter and Professor Adara were whispering at each other. Professor Adara giggled and Professor Jupiter smiled. A Gryffindor (Professor Jupiter used to be in Gryffindor) and a Slytherin chatting with each other? That's odd.
"Hey, Minerva, look." He whispered.
Minerva looked up from her mashed potato and Dumbledore indicated the two professors with his head. Minerva looked, gasped and whispered to Madeline. Madeline looked and whispered to Wood. Soon all the Gryffindors noticed what's going on.
"I think Malfoy notices about it too, look." Poppy said, pointing at the Slytherin table. The Gryffindors turned their attention to the Slytherins. Malfoy didn't look happy at the sight of a Gryffindor whispering to a Slytherin, he looked totally green.
"Good, I like to see Malfoy like that." Nicholas said after he had swallowed his peas.
"May I have your attention please?" Professor Dippet called out and the Great Hall went silent.
The Headmaster stood up from his seat. "I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter are not going to be in Hogwarts next year."
"WHAT?!" Malfoy exclaimed. The Slytherins looked as shock as the Gryffindors.
The Great Hall soon filled with the students' protests, groans of disappointment and maybe a bit of cheering from some of the Gryffindors because Professor Adara was not going to teach them Charms again next year. The Slytherins cheered a little too because they didn't like Professor Jupiter's lessons.
"Who is going to teach us Care for Magical Creatures next year?" Thomas asked.
"Aww, I was looking forward to Professor Jupiter's lessons next year." Minerva groaned. "He is such a nice teacher."
"The best." Madeline said sadly.
The Slytherins, however, didn't agree with the Gryffindors.
"Good thing that Professor Jupiter is leaving, he is such a goody-goody." Snape said.
"But why does he has to take Professor Adara with him?" Malfoy asked angrily.
"Who is going to teach us Charms next year?" A Slytherin asked Malfoy.
"I don't know and shut up." Malfoy snapped. Something tells him that the worst had yet to come.
"The good news!" The Headmaster said loudly and the Great Hall quieted down again. "Is the reason why they have to leave Hogwarts."
"Huh? I don't get it." Robert said.
"The good news is Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter are getting married."
"WHAT?!" Malfoy exclaimed again. The Slytherins had their mouths dropped open.
"Is it just me or the Headmaster just said that Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter are getting married?" Minerva asked Dumbledore.
"It is not just you, Minerva, I think all of us heard that." Dumbledore said.
"WHAT? THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!!" The Slytherins yelled.
"You heard me, they are getting married, to each other. They want to settle down so they decided to quit Hogwarts and teach somewhere else near their residence." The Headmaster said as if that's the most obvious thing in the wizarding world.
The students were too shocked to say anything. A Gryffindor and a Slytherin? Together?
Peter Clearwater found his voice first. "But..I...I thought Gryffindor and Slytherin never get along with each other..you can just compare those two houses to a Gnome and a Jarvey..."
"Well, here's a living proof that Slytherin and Gryffindor can get along." The Headmaster said. "Now enough questions, shall we congratulate them?"
Dumbledore smiled and clapped. The rest of the Gryffindors followed suit. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff applauded a few moments later. The Slytherins were too shocked to do anything.
"I should have known! No wonder Professor Adara had been so good to us! She was changed by the power of love!" Poppy said, clapping. "This is so romantic." She added dreamily.
"Stop it, Pomfrey, you are giving me goosebumps." Wood said.
"Look at Malfoy!" Joe said and the boys looked at Aidoneus, who looked paler then usual. He pushed his food away and stared sadly at Professor Adara and Professor Jupiter, who were smiling at each other.
"Aww, his love is getting married and he is not the groom." William grinned.
But before Dumbledore could say that William was beginning to act like a Slytherin, William said: "But I pity him. He must be pretty upset."
"I hope that he will get over it next year and start disturbing us again," Nicholas said. "If he doesn't, I am going to miss all the fights and teasing."
Dumbledore and the rest of the students alighted from the Hogwarts Express at the King's Cross Station, carrying their trunks.
"I can't believe that a year passed by so quickly." Wood sighed and stared at his broomstick. "And next year is my last year to play in the school's Quidditch team and get the Quidditch Cup."
"Our last year. Don't forget about us." William corrected.
"Hey, Albus, do you think that you can be the Head Boy next year?" Don asked.
"I don't care about it much." Dumbledore smiled. "Minerva, have you got it?"
"I got it in my brain and a piece of parchment." Minerva smiled.
"I will be waiting for it." Dumbledore said before they passed through the barrier.
"Waiting for what?" Nicholas asked.
"Letter, Minerva and I exchanged our addresses." Dumbledore smiled happily and called out. "See you after summer, Minerva!" He waved at Minerva, who was waving back at him and she walked away with her parents.
"So, Minerva, do you have a good time at school?" Mr. McGonagall asked as he put down Minerva's trunk in their living room after they had arrived home.
"It's wonderful, Dad! I get to learn Transfigurations, see a Quidditch match in the school stadium, go to Hogsmeade..."
"Any new friends?" Mrs. McGonagall asked, smiling.
"Yes! There's Madeline Hooch and Jonathan Wood, who are obsessed in Quidditch, Don Weasley and William Potter, who are pals, there's Georgia Spouts, who is very, very good in Herbology...."
"Then who is that young boy that you are waving to?" Mr. McGonagall asked.
"He's Albus Dumbledore." Minerva said, smiling widely. " He is wonderful! He is a Prefect, an expert in every subjects, he is kind and understanding...." Minerva stopped when she saw a mischievous grin on her father's face. "We are just friends."
"Oh really?" Her father's grin widened.
"Really!" Minerva insisted but she doubt that her father believed her.