Chapter Two

The Gargoyle stepped aside and the hidden door opened showing the spiral staircase which lead to the Headmaster's office. When he arrived at the top, outside of the office door he heard voices from within ... one voice really ... Snape's voice.

"Headmaster, you cannot think that Potter will not ..."

"Professor Potter, Severus."

Harry almost laughed out loud at the correction and how many times he had been chastised for the exact same thing. He could almost hear Snape's teeth grind.

"You cannot think that he won't favor Gryffindor with hundreds of house points and take away as many as he can from Slytherin just to spite me!"

Harry chose that moment to open the door. "I'll favor Gryffindor only as much as you favor Slytherin, Professor."

Snape stared daggers at him and Harry almost laughed it away. "Hello, Professor Dumbledore."

The headmaster stood and smiled. "Welcome, Harry. I hope your 'official' honeymoon was pleasant."

Harry entered the room. "It was, thank you, Sir." After a moment. "Minerva, asked me to drop off these recommendations to you and said you wanted to speak with me."

He nodded. "Quite right. Have a seat, please. That will be all, Severus."

A swish of black cloak and a strong smell of body odor later and they were alone.

Dumbledore leaned forward and entertained his fingers. "I trust you will keep to your word regarding the awarding and withdrawing of house points, Harry.

"You know I'm fair, Sir."

He nodded and reviewed the recommendations. "I approve your prefect choices and will take into consideration your choices for Heads."

The headmaster leaned back into his chair and folded his hands in his lap. "Minerva says that you have accepted the role as Head of House for Gryffindor."

"Yes, Sir."

"Very good. If you have any questions regarding counseling feel free to visit me."

Harry smiled in appreciation. "Thank you, Sir."

Dumbledore's look became a tad bit serious for a moment. "Harry, I have one bit of advice for you, which you are entitled to disregard, but I hope you will take to heart."

Harry sat forward slightly.

"You will no doubt be approached by your friends for ... 'favors' as Head of House. I will warn you ahead of time to consider those very carefully before granting any. For it will reflect on you and on the school as well."

Harry turned serious with him. "I wouldn't do anything to embarrass you sir."

Dumbledore chuckled softly. "I am more than capable of embarrassing myself, Harry. You on the other hand are a leader and a hero of the wizarding world. As such, I am sure I don't have to tell, you will command respect and distain, but none of these things matter when you command the ability to help our young to grow in their knowledge and spirit. Lead them well, Harry and they will follow you through the gates of hell itself."

Harry considered the comments. "Thank you for your advice, Sir."

Dumbledore smiled. "That is all, Harry. I just wanted to make sure you were settling in well."

Harry stood with the headmaster. "Yes, Sir."

"Very good," he paused. "I hear tell, Hermione will be joining us in due time.

Harry looked at his watch. "About thirty minutes sir. I'm going to meet her at the gates.

Dumbledore's eyes lit up. "Very good. Please relay that the third floor corridor has been prepared for her research and we are very glad to have her ... well I suppose I could relay my own comments at lunch then."

Harry smiled and stepped on the spiral staircase. "See you at lunch, Sir."

He took off at a slow trot down the hall to meet Hermione at the gates of the school in time and was pleasantly surprised to find her Apparating back and forth to bring along her many trunks of supplies and books that she would need for her research. When she Apparated for the last time, it had been thirty minutes to the moment and she smiled brightly and jumped into Harry's arms.

"I missed you so much!" she said as she planted kisses all over his face ending lastly on his lips.

Harry laughed throughout. "Hermione, it's only been five hours."

She looked almost in despair. "I know, can you believe it. It's felt like five days."

He looked poignantly to the number of trunks. "Bring the whole house?"

She shrugged with a dry look on her face. "If you would have enchanted these trunks like you did yours, then it wouldn't have been such a problem."

Harry laughed out loud. "I did enchant them!"

"Oh, that's right ... well I guess I did bring the whole house then," she smiled devilishly. "These are my supplies."

Harry took out his wand. "Locomotor Trunks!"

They walked along to the castle in conversation.

"All unpacked?" she asked.

He nodded. "And already at work. Minerva has gotten me submitting choices for prefects and head boy and girl, plus the books which you nicely supplied me with."

It was then that he noticed that she wasn't with him anymore. He stopped and looked back. "What?"

"You're Head of House?" she asked astonished.

Harry nodded. "Minerva said that she still wasn't over the whole stunning thing with Umbridge from fifth-year. Needed to take a load off or something."

Hermione caught up with him. "Harry, that's an enormous responsibility!"

He shrugged. "It's no big deal. Once you get away from the start of year it's mostly talking to students which I do, already."

She linked her arm in his. "So who did you pick for prefects?"

"Ginny, of course, and Chris Yeats."

She thought on it for a moment. "The boy who asked you for you autograph in front of your fourth-year class?"

Harry smirked. "With stones like that I know he won't have a problem confronting the upperclassmen."

She nodded, "How about Head Girl and Boy?"

"I would have put Ron, but I think he's had his taste of power as prefect and didn't like it much. So I suggested ..."

"There you both are," yelled Hagrid as he was coming out of his hut.

Harry and Hermione waved and they all met up at the entrance to the castle.

"It's good ter see you two again. Had a good holiday, did yeh?"

Hermione smiled wide. "It was wonderful, Hagrid. Harry and I had the best time."

The half-Giant almost blushed. "Bet yeh did."

Hermione covered her mouth. "Hagrid, really!"

Harry and Hagrid laughed until they reached the Great Hall where he opened the door for his wife, and half for Hagrid. The large man opened the other door as well because he was much too big to fit thought only one.

In the middle of the Hall sat a circular table with a number of seats already filled, but only with the main portion of the staff. Dumbledore waved them in. "Come, come. We were just beginning lunch."

Harry set the numerous trunks on the floor beside the door and followed his wife to the table, holding out her chair for her in the process.

She smiled back at him with a silent, 'thank you.'

Dumbledore started off with, "Hermione I hope you enjoyed your holiday?"

Hermione tried not to seem as enthusiastic with her answer as she was with Hagrid. "Yes, Professor. It was very pleasant, thank you."

He chuckled knowingly and Hermione blushed nonetheless. "I see you have brought your supplies with you."

Heads turned to the many trunks beside the door.

"Yes, Sir. I wanted to get started right away."

Professor Sprout apparently took a keen interest. "Albus has been so secretive, Hermione. What are you researching?"

Hermione smiled. "Well, I suppose it you all can keep a secret. Do you mind, Professor."

He nodded. "Not at all, but just a reminder, we have all graduated Hogwarts and are not on with titles when we are not in front of the students. My name is Albus."

She grinned at the informality. "Yes, Sir."

McGonagall huffed, "She just as bad as Potter, Albus. Pay them no mind."

Hermione continued with her explanation. "After branching out with the various forms of magic, I am exploring the possibilities of combining certain fields with others to create an entirely new form."

"You are joking," Snape said dryly.

She smiled back. "No, Severus, I'm not."

He almost recoiled at the use of his first name from someone so young. His eyes thinned and he batted a hand in the air. "The fields of magic have been the same for thousands of years. There are no new magics and there will never be new magics, only variations of the form."

"This where I believe you are mistaken, Severus," interjected Dumbledore. "I have had the chance to peruse Hermione's theory on the subject and I find her questions and suppositions quite intriguing."

McGonagall was still in shock. Madam Pomfrey's mouth hung open slightly. "Think of the implications."

Dumbledore nodded, "Think of the applications."

Hermione continued, "Professor ... Albus, do you think any of the seventh-years might be interested in assisting."

He considered. "I do not believe anyone in our school, or for the last few decades for that matter, has possessed your sense of experimentation or ability to logically apply the arts in such a way, however if you need assistants for preparation work, or in a learning capacity alone I believe you will find a few willing to submit their applications.

She almost bounced in her seat. "That's exactly what I need. It would help immensely."

He nodded. "Very well I will announce your need for volunteers at the Sorting Feast. I suppose none of you will have a problem with assigning extra credit points for an outside project?"

Snape looked like he was going to argue, but relented. "As long as their grades do not suffer, I will not stand in your way."

The rest of their lunch went about with relative small talk until they were finished. Harry reached into his pocket before McGonagall stood up from her seat.

"I have the list of books for the students, Professor."

She reached for it and opened the folded parchment to scan the titles. "Good enough, Harry. They are acceptable. Owls should go out early this year."

At that thought, Harry felt a bit melancholy. This would be the first time in six years he would not receive his Hogwarts letter.

"Professor, would you mind if I took the Weasley's letters with me. They've invited Hermione and I over for dinner one night this week."

She nodded. "I'll prepare Gryffindor first then. Pick them up this afternoon, Harry."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Hermione nudged him in the side on the way out. "You just want to see her squeal don't you."

He shrugged. "What can I say, you've spoiled me. Now I have to compare her squeal with yours."

She smiled and looked at his deep green eyes. "But you make me squeal for entirely different reasons."

Harry whipped out his wand charmed the trunks. "Come on, lets get you unpacked then we'll see if I can make you squeak as well."