Early on Saturday morning, Harry heard faint whisperings beyond the drawn curtains around his bed. He was wishing that they could have waited a little while longer before waking him up. He had been right at the best part of his recurring dream about Ginny when their voices filtered in and disrupted the whole thing.
"Is there a particular reason why all of you are up so early this morning?" Harry asked as he tried to hang on to the memory of his dream.
"How can you sleep at a time like this?" Hermione said, unable to contain her frustration any more.
"Well, I was managing it very nicely until I was woken up by some very loud whispering," Harry said as he opened the drapes and reached for his glasses.
"Sorry, mate," Ron said.
"Look, Harry," Hermione began as she set down a heavy book next to him, "you have got to study something before you go into the test. If you won't do it for yourself, then do it for my sanity."
Harry was just about to tell her, once again, not to worry, but he stopped himself when he looked over her shoulder and noticed Ginny giving him a look that told him to be nice.
"I'll look at it while we're eating breakfast," Harry said submitting to Ginny's unspoken request.
"Great," Hermione said, feeling as if a weight had been lifted from her conscience. "I don't know if it'll do much good at his point, but it couldn't hurt."
"Why don't we go down to the common room and let Harry get dressed," Ron suggested.
They all agreed, and left Harry with the book Hermione had brought. Harry glanced down at it and smiled to himself. He hadn't had the heart to tell Hermione that he had studied the same book from cover to cover over the summer. Besides, if he knew Snape, nothing on the test he had prepared would have come from a book that Hermione would have had access to without the use of an invisibility cloak. He would at least make it seem as if he was studying though. If he didn't, he thought Hermione would likely have to be sedated before he even went into the test. The more he thought about it, the more he thought that it might not be a bad idea anyway. At least she could be relaxed until it was over.
If anything, breakfast only served to frustrate Hermione even more. Harry tried to keep up his end of the agreement. He sat there with the book open in front of him as he ate, and made a great show of being deeply into reading it. The problem was, that every couple of minutes someone would interrupt him to wish him luck and let him know that they were pulling for him.
"Oh I wish you had started trying to study sooner, Harry," Hermione said looking as if she was ready to pull her hair out. "You'll never be able to concentrate if people don't just leave you alone."
Harry looked up at her and saw the frantic look forming in her eyes as he said, "I think a walk by the lake would be in order." Harry looked over at Ron and motioned for him to do something about his fiancé.
"A walk?" Hermione asked not believing she had heard him correctly. "You can't seriously mean that you want to…"
"I don't think he was talking about himself, love," Ron said as he stood and stuck his hand out for Hermione to take.
Hermione looked at Ron and then turned to Harry to see if that was really what he had meant as Harry said, "I'm not going to be able to concentrate during my test if I think you're waiting out here ready to explode, Hermione. Either take a walk with Ron and calm down or I'll have Madame Pomfrey sedate you until it's over."
"You wouldn't!" Hermione exclaimed.
"Try me," Harry responded seriously. "You go snuggle with Ron for a while, and don't come back until you can think of something other than my test. Talk over the wedding details if you have to, but you have got to find a way to relax."
Hermione started to open her mouth in protest, but thought better of it as she stood and took Ron's hand. They walked out of the Great Hall, and Harry couldn't help but feel sorry for Ron and the job that was ahead of him.
"She really was just trying to help you know," Ginny said.
"I know," Harry said. "I meant what I said though. I'd never be able to concentrate on the test knowing she was climbing the walls out here."
"I can't say that I blame her," Ginny said. "I feel like climbing a few walls myself sometimes."
"Don't worry," Harry said taking hold of her hand. "I've told you that I'll be fine."
"How can you say that?" Ginny asked. "Professor Dumbledore himself told you how difficult this test was going to be. How many times has he told you now that you can still back out of the test? Do you think he would do that if he wasn't worried? If he's worried then you should be."
"Let me tell you, Ginny," Harry said with gentle smile, "I'll either pass this test or I won't. To tell you the truth, it doesn't really matter to me any more. If this is what it takes to get Snape off my back, then so be it. I'll let you in on a little secret though. As well as I did on the tests I went through last weekend, they weren't my best subjects. The subject I feel most confident about is Potions. A good portion of my summer was spent filling in gaps of things I didn't know about Potions. I'm fairly confident that I'll know a fair number of the things he puts on the test. What remains to be seen, is if I know enough."
"It's an awfully big risk to take," Ginny said.
"Getting in some last minute studying, Potter?" Snape said as he stopped just behind Harry and looked over his shoulder.
"Every little bit helps, Professor," Harry said with a mocking smile.
Snape gave a small chuckle followed by an evil grin, and said, "We shall see about that, Potter."
"Yes, sir," Harry said continuing to smile. "I have no doubt that we will."
Twenty minutes later, Harry walked toward a classroom on the first floor in a wing of the castle he had found rare occasion to visit during his years there. Ginny, Ron, and an apparently calmer Hermione walked with Harry, and as they began hearing voices behind them, they saw that a large group of students wanted to go with them to the testing room.
As Harry turned a corner he realized that his entourage had reached the end of their journey. There ahead of them in the corridor, a group of students were standing around listening to Professor McGonagall explain to them why they couldn't proceed any further.
"Ah, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said as Harry drew near to the group. "You may proceed on past this point. Walk straight ahead and take the third corridor to your right. Follow that corridor to the classroom at its far end. That is where your test will take place. You will find that Professor Snape and all of the teachers who will be observing the test are already waiting for you there."
"Can Ginny walk with me?" Harry asked, already suspecting what the answer would be.
"No one will be allowed past this point other than yourself and the observers," McGonagall answered.
"Aren't you going to be one of the observers, Professor?" Harry asked.
"No, Mr. Potter," McGonagall answered. "Professor Snape has requested that I, as your Head of House, not be present as an observer. He feels that my desire to see you do well would put me in a compromising position, since I would not be allowed to help you in any way."
"That snake," Harry said angrily. "How dare he not trust you. As if your integrity could be called into question."
"He is quite right not to have me there," McGonagall said. "It is the custom in cases like this. And remember Harry, you should refer to him as Professor Snape."
"So you get to stay here and handle crowd control?" Harry asked.
"There won't be any need for that, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said. "There are charms and spells guarding this end of the corridor, that will not only insure that none of your classmates are able to move more than ten more steps past this point without getting the hexing of their life, but will guard against attempts to cheat in any way as well."
"Seems foolproof to me," Harry said. "Ginny, don't you dare wait out here for me until this is over. I suspect it'll be rather lengthy. Enjoy the day, and try to keep Ron and Hermione out of trouble."
"I'll see what I can do," Ginny said trying to stay positive even though she was more nervous about the test than Harry.
Harry gave Ginny a kiss before he turned and walked off down the corridor. She stood and watched until he reached the correct corridor and turned out of sight before she let the mask that she had been wearing fall. She looked at the ground and could no longer hold back her tears.
"There, there, Miss Weasley," McGonagall said as she placed a hand on Ginny's shoulder. "Somehow, if anyone could ever pull this off, I have to believe that Mr. Potter has the best chance."
"I know, Professor," Ginny said as she tried to dry her tears. "Harry is just so loaded with confidence that someone has to carry the doubt."
"I quite understand," McGonagall said. "Does that mean that you will not be leaving as Mr. Potter requested?"
"Not a chance, Professor," Ginny said.
"I rather thought not," McGonagall said as she waved her wand and caused chairs to appear lining both sides of the hallway for everyone to sit in. "No reason we should stand while we wait."
Snape saw Harry walk through the door of the classroom and said, "It's about time, Potter."
Harry looked down at his watch and then to Snape as he said, "Actually, the test isn't supposed to start for another five minutes. If you're that anxious though, I wouldn't mind starting a bit early."
"Very well," Snape said as if he were just waiting to spring a trap. "Have a seat then, Potter."
Harry walked to the lone chair in the center of the room and sat down, taking in the panel of teachers assembled to watch the proceedings. Professor Dumbledore sat behind the center of a long table at the front of the classroom. To either side of him were Professor Bane, Professor Sinistra, Professor Flitwick, Professor Vector, Professor Sprout, Madam Pince, Professor Trelawney and Madam Hooch. Harry had to admit that they certainly took the test seriously to have so many people observing it.
"Harry," Dumbledore said as he looked over his glasses at him, "I must ask you once more if you wish to change your mind and cancel this test."
Harry looked him straight in the eye with just a hint of a smile and said, "I haven't changed my mind, Professor."
"I must also make sure that you understand the consequences of what will happen if you fail the test," Dumbledore said. "If you fail, all of your past potions grades will be replaced with the test grade. In addition, the OWL level you attained in potions will be stripped. In order to graduate, you will have to come back next year and take potions class every day with every year of Gryffindor's. You will then have to take your Owls over again in Potions and then take your NEWTs. Do you still want to go ahead with this test?"
"Yes," Harry said.
Dumbledore sat back in his chair and took a deep breath as Snape turned to Harry and said, "Then by all means, let's begin. The first part of the test, as you know, is an oral question and answer section."
"Yes, Professor," Harry said calmly.
"Then tell me, Mr. Potter," Snape said as he looked down at him, "how would you brew the Draught of the Living Death?"
Harry smiled at Snape for a second before saying, "Of all questions, I should know the answer to that one. After all, you asked me the same thing during my first Potions class. The Draught of the Living Death is made, by adding asphodel to an infusion of wormwood. The resulting Potion causes the unfortunate person who takes it to fall into a deep sleep that simulates death."
"Yes," Snape said, "I thought I would start you out with an easy one, Potter. I can assure you they get harder from this point on."
"Then we had better get to them," Harry said brightly.
"Name all of the ingredients in Veritaserum," Snape said smoothly.
"Leech juice," Harry began quickly, "broth of alihotsy, powdered dragon horn, eppich, devil's herb, tubeworms, jabberknoll feather, centaurion, erumpent fluid, and dragon blood."
Snape eyed Harry suspiciously before he asked, "What is the purpose of the dragon's blood in that potion?"
"To keep the volatile erumpent fluid from exploding," Harry said.
Harry could see the frustration building already in Snape as he eyed Harry dubiously. Harry had just thrown Snape the first indication that trying to use a Potion that could only be found in the restricted section of the library was not a sure way to stump him. He wondered how much it would take to break Snape's confidence completely.
"Polyjuice potion," Snape said. "Name all of the ingredients, and explain exactly how it is brewed."
Harry smiled. The day was about to get very long for someone if the current level of difficulty didn't raise considerably.
Four hours later, Harry sat calmly in his chair as a near mad Snape asked, "And just why do you say that the potion can no longer be brewed, Potter?"
"Because the main ingredient was a rare plant that was impossible to grow outside of its native region," Harry said. "A Goblin rebellion several hundred years ago saw that region's local ecology nearly destroyed. When it was over, there were no more fazlam thorns left to harvest. Since then, several attempts have been made to brew the potion using substitute materials, but the effort was given up as impossible nearly two hundred years ago."
Snape looked at Harry as if he wanted to strangle him slowly as a silence descended for several seconds on the room.
"I believe that covers everything that you had originally listed on your draft of questions, Severus," Dumbledore said. "Are their any follow up questions you would like to ask Harry before we move on?"
"No," Snape growled slowly and softly.
"Then I would recommend that we take a short break for refreshments," Dumbledore said. "Some of us are not as young as we used to be."
Harry remained in his seat as all of the teachers stood and stretched their numb muscled and worked the stiffness out of joints that had remained unused for too long. As they started to walk out, Harry watched Snape run to Dumbledore to plead his case.
"Headmaster," Snape said trying to keep his voice low, "Potter is cheating. There is no way he could have answered every one of those questions correctly without a great deal of help."
"I would remind you, Severus," Dumbledore began, "that there are powerfull spells surrounding this entire wing of the castle to protect against that very thing. Many of them, I placed there myself."
"But it is impossible I tell you," Snape pleaded.
"I admit that even I would not have been able to give such complete answers to your questions, Severus," Dumbledore said. "In fact, I am quite sure that I would have been flat wrong on several of them. However, to suggest that Harry has found a way to counter privacy spells that have been used for centuries without fail, is high praise indeed. Unless I can be shown some evidence that such a thing has occurred, I'm afraid that I have to conclude that Harry did in fact answer everything correctly. As miraculous as that is to us, he seems to have done it."
"He won't do as well on the next part of the test, I can assure you," Snape said as he looked back at Harry still sitting in his chair looking away from them.
Thirty minutes later, Dumbledore and the rest of the teachers walked back into the classroom to find Harry still sitting in the same chair where he had been when they left. Giving that they had been in another classroom down the hall where the food had been served, and considering that none of them ever saw Harry come to eat or go into the hall, they all had to assume that Harry had remained in the room, if not in the chair, where he sat.
"How are you feeling, Harry?" Dumbledore asked.
"Fine, sir," Harry responded cheerily. "I'm ready to get started with the next part of the test."
"Very well," Dumbledore said. "Professor Snape?"
"Thank you, Headmaster," Snape said, obviously still steaming over the oral part of the test. "Your next task, Potter, will be a practical potion making one."
Snape pulled out his wand, and Harry saw the gleam in his eye as he briefly thought about how nice it would be to hex Harry right then. After the moment had passed, Snape waved his wand, and a long table appeared in front of Harry. The table had a cauldron on one end, and jars full of ingredients on the other. Harry looked at the jars and noticed that Snape conveniently left the labels off of all of them.
Snape pulled a piece of parchment from his robes and laid it on the table before Harry as he said, "You'll have three hours to complete brewing all of these potions, Potter. I would advise that you get started."
Harry stood and walked to the table to look at the list before saying, "I won't be able to brew these potions, Professor."
Snape's eyes gleamed with joy as he said, "Don't tell me you aren't even going to try, Potter."
"I'm perfectly willing to try," Harry said, "but it's impossible to brew these fifteen potions in three hours. Many of them will take nearly that long to brew just by themselves. Not even the greatest potions master could brew all of them in that time with a single cauldron to brew them in."
Dumbledore waved his hand, and fourteen more cauldrons appeared before he said, "I trust that will be enough for you to work with."
"More than enough, Professor," Harry said with a smile.
Harry worked steadily as he measured out ingredients and began working on several potions at once. Within thirty minutes, Harry began putting samples of some of the potions into small vials that he carefully labeled before turning them in to Snape. Harry then went back to his remaining potions to stir some, and to add more ingredients to others. At the end of one hour, Harry had turned in all but five of the original fifteen potions. By the end of the next hour, he had turned in all but one potion. He measured out precise amounts of two potions he had already turned in and added those to the remaining potion. With just fifteen minutes to spare, Harry labeled his last sample and handed it to a furious Snape.
Dumbledore called for another break, and the last Harry saw of Snape was him following Dumbledore out closely, again protesting that Harry had indeed found a way to cheat. The thing that amused Harry the most was that, Dumbledore just continued walking and began humming to himself in an effort to tune Snape's protests out.
By the time the break was over, all of the teachers came back to the classroom to find Harry seated in his chair once again. Once they were all seated, Snape walked toward Harry. Harry didn't know what Dumbledore might have said to Snape during the break, but Harry could see the suppressed anger in his eyes.
"You final task, Potter," Snape said, not attempting to hide his contempt any longer, "will count as fifty percent of your grade."
Harry sat in the chair and stayed as emotionless as he could, but out of the corner of his eye he could see several of the observers shift uncomfortably in their seats.
"You have forty five minutes," Snape said, "to formulate an original potion that was not covered in class, has not been part of the test to this point, and has never been used in the wizarding world before. After that, you will have two hours to brew the potion and identify what effect the potion is supposed to have. In order to receive any points at all for this task, the potion will have to be tested and actually work. If it fails, you fail."
Snape waved his wand and parchment and a quill appeared on the table for Harry to use. Harry walked right up to the table, and instead of taking time to think about what he might want to do, bent down and began writing a list of ingredients immediately. Less than five minutes later, Harry handed the long list of ingredients to Snape, who looked it over carefully trying to figure out what Harry could be planning.
Harry ignored Snape, and went back to the table, where, for the next fifteen minutes, he wrote down the exact brewing procedure. Once Harry signaled that he was done, Snape waved his wand causing all of the cauldrons from the last part of the test to vanish and be replaced with a single one.
"I trust that one will be sufficient this time," Snape growled.
"Quite sufficient," Harry responded. "Now, I just need the ingredients that I asked for and then I'll be ready to begin."
Snape gave a wave of his wand, and most of the ingredients that were left from the last task vanished just as the cauldrons had. With another wave of Snape's wand, several new ingredients were added to the remaining ones.
Harry immediately went to work brewing his potion, continually stirring, adding new ingredients or adjusting the brewing temperature. After a solid hour of continual activity, Harry removed a portion of the steaming potion and placed it into a vial. He then labeled the potion as 'Final Victory', and handed it to Snape.
"I trust that one sample will be sufficient," Harry said.
"That all depends, Potter," Snape said.
"I must say that I am not familiar with the ingredient combinations or brewing procedure of the potion that you have just brewed, Harry," Dumbledore said leaning forward as if to get a closer look at the sample vial. "Is it familiar to you, Professor Snape?"
"It is not," Snape said bitterly. "Don't forget, Potter, that you were to brew a potion that would actually work. What you have brewed may do no more than to give someone who drinks it a sour stomach. If that is the case, then no points will be awarded for this portion of the test."
"I'm aware of that, Professor," Harry said. "The reason you are not familiar with the potion, is because it is one that I created, and I assure you that it will work. I've already tested it as far as it was safe to do so."
"What exactly is it that the potion is supposed to do, Mr. Potter?" Professor Bane asked.
Harry looked back at Bane seriously and said, "It's designed to turn a wizard into a muggle."
A stir of murmurs rippled through the room as the observers shifted in their seats, Snape stared with suspicion, and Dumbledore asked, "Do you mean that it is supposed to temporarily suppress a wizard's magical ability?"
"No, Professor," Harry said looking deadly serious. "It will remove all magical ability, permanently."
A stunned silence filled the room as everyone's mouth opened as if to speak, but no words would come, until Snape said, "That is quite a boast, Potter, but I don't see how you could have tested it."
"I tested it on a wizard conjured in the room of requirement," Harry explained.
The teachers remained silent for several more seconds. They all looked at the vial Snape was holding, and thought about the power and the danger that such a potion could have.
"I believe that we may have done all that we can in this classroom," Dumbledore said as he tried to bring the others out of their thoughts. "If this potion must be tested, then it would seem obvious that we can not do so here. I would suggest that we move this test to the room of requirement."
"But, Headmaster," Snape protested, "the room of requirement is not within the area protected by the spells to prevent cheating."
"The potion has already been completed, Severus," Dumbledore said. "I seriously doubt that any students are waiting outside for us to move the test just so they can attempt to change the potion somehow on the way. I shall carry the potion to the room personally. On the way there, you must not speak to any students that you may encounter, Harry."
"I understand, Professor," Harry said.
Dumbledore led the way out of the room. All of the other observers followed in two rows behind, with Harry between them. Snape followed last so as to guard the rear and make sure Harry didn't try to communicate with anyone in any way. He half hoped that he would try though. He would take joy in failing him instantly.
As the group reached the end of the hallway, and took a left into the main corridor, they looked ahead of them to see what looked like half of the school waiting for them to emerge. As they got nearer, Harry could see that Ginny, Hermione and Ron hadn't done what he had asked them to after all.
"Professor McGonagall," Dumbledore said as he reached the line where the anti-cheating charms ended, "I might have expected to find you here."
"I wanted to be the first to learn how Mr. Potter faired on his exam, Headmaster," McGonagall said.
"It would appear that you have had a fair bit of company," Dumbledore said gesturing to the students that trailed off as far as could be seen down the corridor. "I am sorry to say that I can not tell you how Mr. Potter is doing yet. We have found it necessary to move the test to a different location for the final part of the exam. Mr. Potter is not allowed to communicate with anyone on the way there, so I will have to ask you all to refrain from speaking to him"
Ginny looked at Harry as he passed, and a warm feeling washed over her. He certainly didn't look like someone who had gone through an entire day of testing by Snape. It was so hard to read Harry though. With the carefree way he had approached the test, she thought that he may have missed every question and still smiled about it. Something deep inside of her told her otherwise though.
As Harry, his escorts, and a few hundred students got to the level of the room of requirement, Dumbledore performed the ritual to make the door appear. Dumbledore drew his wand as he opened the door and went inside, and Harry made his way inside, before Snape slammed the door in the face of McGonagall and everyone else who had made the trip with them, Harry saw a wizard he didn't recognize glaring at Dumbledore.
"So, we meet again, Albus" the wizard said with a look that sent a shiver up Harry's spine. "I see you've brought some friends to help you in your attempt to defeat me."
"I am not here to defeat you, Grindelwald," Dumbledore said. "I have done that once already. We are here because young Harry here is in the middle of a potions test, and we are in need of your assistance."
"There is no way I'm going to take a potion willingly without knowing what it does, Albus," Grindelwald said with an eerie chuckle.
With a sudden swift movement, Grindelwald reached inside his robes to retrieve his wand. All of the teachers present drew their wands immediately, while Harry, who had surrendered his wand to Snape before they began the trip to the room of requirement, wondered which way he should jump.
Grindelwald, not having located what he was after on his first try, groped franticly at his robes as Dumbledore said, "Don't bother looking for your wand. It isn't there. We are in the room of requirement at Hogwarts. I summoned you here specifically without your wand, since I know perfectly well what you are capable of with one."
'Of course,' Harry thought. 'I knew I had heard that name before. Dumbledore defeated the dark wizard, Grindelwald, when he was younger.'
"You are simply the conjured image of a wizard who lived many years ago," Dumbledore explained. "You no longer have a life outside of this room. Whether you take the potion or not, you will cease to exist as soon as we leave this room."
"Assuming that you're right," Grindelwald asked suspiciously, "what is there in this deal for me?"
"If you take the potion," Dumbledore said, "you will be given your wand. Then you are free you wreak what havoc you can before my associates and I are able to subdue you."
Grindlewald got a nasty grin on his face, and said, "Well, it would seem that taking your mystery potion would offer the most promising outcome for me. Unless it kills me."
"It wasn't designed to anyway," Dumbledore said.
Grindelwald leveled his gaze on Harry and said, "I hope you're good at your potions work, boy. Give it to me then, Albus."
Dumbledore took the potion out of his robes and levitated it over to Grindelwald. Grindelwald eyed the vial for a few seconds before he turned it up and drank all of the contents. Several second passed, and there was no change in anyone except Harry, who was finally able to relax a bit.
Grindelwald laughed and looked at Harry as he said, "It would appear that you have failed your test, boy. We may be enemies, Albus, but I have never known you to go back on your word once you gave it. I'll be expecting my wand back now."
"Look in your robes," Dumbledore said as he lowered his own wand, "and you will find your wand as promised."
Grindelwald drew his wand and uttered a stunning spell before anyone had a chance to react. All of the teachers were about to cast their own spells in answer, but something occurred to them just before they did. Nothing had happened. Grindlewald began to shout out spell after spell, but to no avail.
As Grindlewald finally stopped and looked at them with horror on his face, Dumbledore said, "We thank you for your assistance, but your assistance is no longer needed."
An instant later, Grindelwald disappeared from the room. All of the teachers took a breath and put away their wands.
"If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I never would have believed it possible," Professor Flitwick said in amazement.
"Harry's potion seems to work just as he said it would," Dumbledore said.
"It would appear so," Snape said grudgingly, "but there is no way to know if it would be as effective against a live wizard."
"Unless you know of a live wizard who would be willing to test it, Severus," Dumbledore said as he looked over his glasses at him, "I think we may just have to give Harry the benefit of the doubt."
Snape does not take up the challenge, but instead turns to Harry and asks, "What wizard have you been conjuring into this room to test your potion on? You weren't summoning the Dark Lord himself were you?"
Harry's eyes went wide as a smile spread across his face and he said, "Of course not. There would be too much danger of him getting out."
"A wise thing to realize, Harry," Dumbledore said smiling. "Conjured people can leave the room of requirement just as conjured objects can. If you had summoned Voldemort, and he had gotten out of the room, there would be two Voldemorts to deal with."
"Do you mean that the wizard you just conjured in here could have just walked out the door and been alive again if the potion hadn't worked?" Bane asked.
"Yes," Dumbledore confirmed, "but I had enough faith in Harry to think it was a reasonable risk. He had tested the potion already after all."
"That may be," Snape said, "but we still don't know who he used as his test subject."
"I picked another student here at Hogwarts as my conjured test subject," Harry said. "No harm ever came to the real student."
"And what is the student's name, Potter?" Snape asked.
"Can't you think of a student at the beginning of the year that I would want to see lose his powers, and also one who's powers were no match for my own?" Harry asked.
Snape's eyes went wide as it came to him suddenly and he exclaimed, "Malfoy! Fifty points from Gryffindor for injuring another student, even if it was only a conjured copy of one."
"Quite right," Dumbledore said. "Quite right. What exactly made you create such a devastating potion in the first place, Harry?"
"It was the inability of the Ministry of Magic to effectively hold the death eaters they captured in Azkaban after the dementors left," Harry said. "Other death eaters would go there and bust them out. Then they were back on the streets fighting against the Ministry again. I thought that there must be a way to make the captured death eaters useless to Voldemort. If they were to use this potion on them, and Voldemort broke them out, even he wouldn't be able to restore their powers."
"Would you mind then," Dumbledore began, "if I sent a sample of your potion to the Ministry for further testing?"
"Not at all," Harry answered. "I just have one condition. Don't tell them that I invented it. I've had enough fame for a lifetime."
"As you wish, Harry," Dumbledore said with a smile. "You've made what is likely one of the biggest contributions to the wizarding world in a century, and you don't want to take any credit for it. I think we can reward it internally however. Sixty points will be awarded to Gryffindor. Are you ready, Severus, to officially end the test and confer a grade, or do you have further tasks you wish for Harry to perform?"
Snape looked angrily at Harry as he grudgingly said, "Perfect marks."
"Do the observers concur?" Dumbledore asked as he watched them all nod their agreement. "As the result of your most wonderful test, you are exempt from Potions classes for the remainder of the year. You're free to go, Harry. I believe there are a few hundred people outside this room who are very anxious to find out how you did."
Harry got his wand back from Snape and stuck his hand out and said, "I know that you don't like me, Professor Snape, but I just wanted to thank you. You've been hard on me from the minute I arrived here, but you taught me quite a bit during that time as well. I wouldn't be the person I am today partially without your influence. Not to mention all the times you saved my life. I won't forget it. I'll be proud to fight by your side, and if there is ever anything you need from me, you just have to ask. I would understand if you didn't want to shake my hand, but I would like to at least make an effort to put our differences aside. My name is Harry Potter, and I am not my father."
Snape was shocked into silence. Could he have been so wrong about Harry? He had always believed him to be just as boastful and glory seeking as his father, but he had just witnessed Harry give away a potion that would have assured his name would appear in every book written about potions from then on. Could it be that he really didn't like all of the fame and attention that came with being 'the famous Harry Potter'? Harry had just gone out of his way to make a fool out of him by getting perfect marks on the most difficult Potions test that had ever been given, yet he had also just thanked him humbly and offered his friendship. Perhaps, he wasn't his father after all.
Snape looked down at Harry's out stretched hand, and reached his own out to meet it, as he looked into Harry's eyes and said softly, "Thank you, Harry."
Dumbledore stood and watched the two one time bitter enemies shake hands. He knew that between them, a new understanding had been formed. It was at that moment that he realized that Harry was indeed shedding the skin of the boy to become a man. He had just taken his first steps, and they were huge.
Harry opened the door to the room of requirement, and stepped out to find the huge throng of people who had made the trip before had grown in numbers.
Harry walked over to Ginny and took her in his arms and whispered, "I hope I never have to go that long without you again."
Ginny clutched Harry tighter to her as she said, "That's a hope we both share. I think everyone wants to know how you did on your test though."
Harry smiled as he placed his mouth very close to Ginny's ear and whispered so softly that only she would be able to hear him as he said, "I passed."
Ginny's tears exploded from her in rivers as she held on to him. Everyone watching mistook her reaction for bad news, and they all began to think of what consoling words they could say to let him know how sorry they were. It wasn't until Harry and Ginny separated that they caught sight of the smile on her face.
Harry turned and looked at a very concerned McGonagall and said, "I passed."
Cheers erupted in a wave as word of what Harry had said was passed down to those not close enough to have heard it. For several minutes, the noise of the celebration was deafening. Eventually, it had died down to a low rumble, and everyone tried to get to Harry to congratulate him.
"So what do you plan on doing now?" Neville asked.
"Actually, isn't it almost dinner time?" Harry asked. "I'm starving."
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