[A/N: Rumors of my untimely demise are greatly exaggerated. I came down with COVID related pneumonia for about a week and have been using the time to recover. As it is, my hands are still shaky and my sense of touch is skewed so if you see some mistakes, they're entirely mine. On top of that, my energy levels have been ridiculously low. COVID is a nasty piece of work. Stay safe, stay clean, stay masked and if you see anyone not following the rules by being an anti-masker/vaxxer/science denier, you have my permission to 'manually insert the information into the offender's head.']

[A/N2: I have never been inside the London Planetarium. I have however been inside the Griffith Park, CA Planetarium and Observatory. The description I'm using will be of the California location. I will be taking creative license since from what I've researched; observatories are pretty much the same in terms of the science. It's only the history of the site that's different.]


Chapter 17: Springtime Socials, The Room and The Night Sky

Headmaster's Office

The senior staff assembled in Daggerclaw's office for their monthly procedural meeting. They started off with the usual 'old business' gripes and complaints; usually stemming from inadequate or outdated equipment, lack of funding or various other reasons. Ever since Daggerclaw had taken over however, those gripes and complaints had become fewer and further apart.

Aurora Sinastra tapped on the table to get everyone's attention, "I would like to submit my proposal for obtaining new telescopes. The current models being sold in Diagon Alley are wholly unsuitable given the expectations of today's muggleborns. I've brought with me sample images taken from muggle telescopes and comparative images taken from our own models. As you can see, there can only be one conclusion: our telescopes are utter garbage! The manufacturing quality of the muggle scopes is miles above and away anything we could hope to achieve." She passed out color images taken from the non-magical world.

There were gasps and exclamations of how detailed the images were then when they looked at the magical photos realized how blurry and indistinct the exact same image was.

"Why wasn't this brought to my attention before?" Daggerclaw inquired as he examined a high resolution image of the Eagle Nebula.

"I've been waiting for the Americans to fix their orbital telescope," was her response.

Eyebrows went up, "You mean to tell us that the Americans have put a telescope into orbit around the Earth? How do they look through the lens?" Pomona asked curiously.

Aurora began explaining how stellar photography worked and the advancements made by various countries in conjunction with each other over the years. One by one, each of the senior teachers could be seen shaking their heads in disbelief.

Aurora growled in frustration as she ran her fingers through her hair, "What I would love to do is to take a field trip to the Royal Observatory in London and let you all witness the modern advancements yourselves but as it's been pointed out to me many times; there's no money for the trip and the 'muggles just can't be so much more advanced than we are.' I can accept the money part but the tripe about the muggles? I refuse to accept that. I've been to the muggle world to see their advancements for myself."

The staff nodded in understanding and personal approval. Daggerclaw tapped on the table, "As it happens, I do believe the school does have the funds to be able to purchase new telescopes and allow you to take the students, and staff if they wish, to this observatory and planetarium."

That got everyone's attention.

"As with a lot of things around here, all one needs to do is ask those who are most knowledgeable about the school. The elves have informed me of a room on the seventh floor, known as the 'Come and Go Room.' They say it's the school's lost and found and contains huge amounts of riches such as jewels, furniture, equipment, you name it."

Minerva looked puzzled, "Perhaps after this meeting we should go and investigate this room? I'm most curious as to what else might be inside." Daggerclaw allowed for this.

"I think the first thing that should occur is a parental permission slip for this field trip. If we don't get enough slips, there would be no need to plan further," Severus observed to which Aurora accepted.

"That's fair. I'll get some made up."

"Another thing for consideration is transport to and from the observatory. How would you bring let's say forty or fifty people at once?"

"Portkey?"

Aurora squinted in thought, "I would have to scout ahead to see if there are any protected areas to hide our arrival but I think a large-scale Portkey would be the best bet."

Daggerclaw motioned for their attention, "Proceed with your scouting trip and report back by our next meeting." Aurora bowed her head in agreement.

"Next item up for discussion: I have a list of students who wish to hold an 'open house' of sorts. They wish to open up the castle and the grounds to all parents, magical and non; the media, the ministry and beyond. It has been suggested that we've been hiding ourselves away from public scrutiny for far too long. The social gatherings we've held this year and last were a great success but now the students feel that we should be taking the next step."

"How would we bring the guests in? Hogwarts Express? Does it have enough carriages to handle all the people?"

"That is something we'd have to look into," Minerva replied, "I do think that the magical parents, media and ministry could floo into the castle via the Great Hall while the non-magical parents or those who don't wish to floo could use the train. It would save time and effort; we'd just have to adjust the wards.

"Headmaster, what do they mean by 'beyond?' Who else could we invite?" Flitwick interjected.

Daggerclaw retrieved a sheet of paper, "I have here a suggestion from a first year Ravenclaw, Isobel MacDougal that we should invite the Queen of England and her staff."

"…" Rapid blinking accompanied the deafening silence of the room.

"Th, the Quee-Queen? Would she be receptive to the idea?"

"That is one task that we would need to investigate before we even consider going further with this 'open house' idea."

The staff began murmuring amongst themselves about the possibility of including the Royal Family into their world.

Charity Burbage knocked on the table, "In the end, we are all British subjects. As long as we are polite about our request, I don't think it'd be too much of a problem. I've been informed by my friends within the Ministry that the Queen has full knowledge of our existence."


After the meeting…

Minerva strode up the stairs until she reached the seventh floor and looked around. She rarely had the need to come up this high and never to this particular hallway. She called for a house-elf and one popped in.

"How can Katy help?"

"Katy, I've been given to understand that there is a lost and found room of sorts located on this floor that the elves know about. Would you help me understand what it is?"

Katy led Minerva over to the wall opposite of the tapestry of Barnabus the Barmy trying to teach Trolls to dance. She explained how to activate the magics to reveal the door.

Minerva's eyes narrowed in thought, "So I just have to think of what I want? Anything I want?"

Katy shrugged, "Within reason. There are limits to what the Room can be doing. No food or drink can be made within and anything made within will disappear the moment you is be leaving. Also, if you wish to leave the door will disappear and the Room will reset itself."

Minerva accepted the explanation then paced back and forth in front of the wall thinking that she wanted the room where everything is hidden. On the third pass, Katy alerted her to the suddenly appearing door.

Minerva opened the door and strode in, only to stop three steps into the room in shock and hushed awe at the mountains of detritus that had accumulated over the centuries. Her sharp eyes spotted baskets of jewels, racks of clothing of various eras, rolled up tapestries, damaged furniture and more. She slowly shook her head and knew at once that organizing this would be a major undertaking.

"Katy? How long would it take the elves to sort through and organize everything in here?"

Katy peered around, her large ears drooping, "It would take months at least, Professor Kitty. All the elves would have to be on-hand."

Minerva slowly nodded and led the elf out of the room and let the door closed behind her.


Daggerclaw's Office…

"…There are centuries worth of materials and detritus contained within that hidden room, Headmaster. Katy has said that it would take all the elves months to sort through and organize. That being said, I would like to bring in outside help," Minerva finished explaining what all she'd discovered in her brief foray into the Room of Hidden Things.

Daggerclaw leant back in his chair and laced his long fingers together, "Whom did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking that we should contact the Department of Mysteries. I'm certain that there would be some Dark artifacts within the room that we as regular teachers would have no defense against. I would also suggest that we take the Sorting Hat as well." Both turned to the Hat who peered back at them curiously.

"Why me, Minerva?" The Hat inquired.

"To act as a verbal connection to the castle and perhaps the room. If the castle is as sentient as we all like to think she is then it would prudent to take you along so she has a voice."

The Hat appeared to think about this then nodded once, "A very logical and astute assumption. She and I would appreciate this."


Mathematics-General Education class

The problem sitting before Harry was frustrating beyond comprehension. If only it was something simple like fractions or decimals, that he could handle; it was no different from what he used in cooking. Why the heck would he care what X was and how it interacted with Y?

Harry was sitting at his desk reading his textbook trying to get the concept of his algebraic formulas to sink into his thick skull. He growled and gave it up as a bad job for the moment and set his book down on his desk and glanced around the room for any sort of welcome distraction. He spotted Hermione busily working her way through the assignment without any problems; Millicent too, was scratching away at the third problem on the list. While the teacher's back was turned, Seamus Finnegan of Gryffindor House launched a paper airplane towards Terry Boot of Ravenclaw. Harry sighed and reached for the textbook again when he heard a noise coming from behind him.

"Psst! Harry? You…you got a moment?" Harry turned to see Ronald Weasley looking hopefully at him.

"If you need help on the assignment, I'm afraid you're out of luck. I'm having a tough time figuring it out myself." Ron's face fell in sadness. "What about asking Millie or Pansy?"

Ron paled and shuddered at the mention of the Slytherin girls' names, "Umm…never, never mind."

Harry raised an eyebrow in silent confusion but let it be. If Weasley was having problems, it wasn't his job to sort the redhead out. He leant his head back and stared at the ceiling hoping that a change in view might help dislodge something loose but it just still wouldn't come to him.

His teacher made her rounds and stopped at Harry's desk a moment later, "Are you finished, Mr. Potter?"

He shook his head, "No, I'm trying an alternative viewpoint to see if I can solve the problem by not thinking about it."

She chuckled lightly, "I've tried that. It doesn't always work."


After class, Harry wandered around until he got to the Great Hall Quad and found an unoccupied bench. He pulled out an apple he'd been saving since lunch and bit into the crispy and cool fruit. He had been sitting there only for a few moments when a shadow fell over him. Looking up he saw Hermione sitting astride her favorite school broom wearing goggles and a beaming smile on her face.

"You wanna go flying with me, Harry?" she asked.

Harry shook his head and laughed, "The last time I went flying with you, you outflew me so easily one could think you cheated! No, I'm just going to sit here and think about what I did wrong on the algebra assignment."

"Spoilsport. Fine, I'm gonna go see if the Gryffindors are airborne."

"Why not our own House?"

Hermione glanced around nervously, "Because they can't fly very well. They don't see flying as a challenge, rather more of a 'gentlemanly' pursuit. The Gryffs on the other hand, see it as a pure competition."

Harry grinned at his best friend, "Well, good luck in your search."


Quidditch Pitch

Hermione was in luck. The Gryffindor team was currently using the pitch so she angled her broom up and climbed until she was directly overhead then dove down on the Chaser formation sun side. The Chasers, collectively known as the 'Flying Foxes,' scattered mid-play when one of them noticed at the last minute the attacking, diving firstie. Hermione pulled up out of her dive at the last minute and heeled around sharply to intercept the Beaters, Fred and George as they whacked a Bludger at her to try and throw her off her broom. She spun a tight barrel-roll and transitioned into a Sloth-grip before flipping herself up and back on the broomstick. She then intercepted the Quaffle and made a mad dash for the upper left hoop. The Gryffindor Keeper, Oliver Wood tried to intercept her but she ducked his outstretched hands and sped through the hoop setting off the scoring alarm.

Pulling up to a hovering stop and pushing her goggles up onto her forehead, she grinned widely at the Lions who were staring unabashedly at her play. Oliver pulled up to berate her, "Just what do you think you were doing? What kind of play do you think you were pulling? How did you get the scoring alarm to sound when you were still holding the Quaffle?"

"I was trying to get a bit of competition going, I made it up as I went along, I bounced the Quaffle out of my grip just long enough to let the hoop sense that the ball was in play." She responded to each of his questions in sequence, still with that manic grin on her face. Oliver looked rather stunned as he tried to sort out her answers. The Twins were howling with laughter while the Chasers were shaking their collective heads at her antics.

"Hermione? Why us? I mean, why not train with the Puffs?" George asked as he continued to laugh.

Her manic grin slid off her face, "The Puffs are frankly a terrible team and it's not so much Quidditch that interests me, it's the competition. Quidditch itself is horribly mismanaged and skewed towards capturing the Snitch. I just like to fly and unfortunately there are no obstacle courses here unless you count slaloming the guest review stands."

The Gryffindors could understand her frustration, "So you flew over and interfered with our practice because you were bored?"

"Pretty much."

"Why not speak with Madam Hooch about setting up an obstacle course?"

"I've tried! She's too busy with her flying lessons with the other firsties. She did set up one course for me but I defeated that within the first week. I need a challenge and by all accounts, that's you guys." Hermione complained.

The Gryffindor team took a moment by themselves to discuss this new development. Oliver pulled out the school's Quidditch rulebook and looked through it to see if there was anything against a member of another House playing for an opposing team but found nothing.

"It could just because no one's ever thought of trying it," Fred reasoned to which George nodded thoughtfully.

Oliver shook his head, "I don't like it but her talent is incredible. We need to seek a higher authority for this."


Minerva's Office

The Lions plus Hermione trooped over to Professor McGonagall's office and explained the problem to the Scotswoman. She looked pensive during the whole thing before speaking, "Myself, I wouldn't have a problem if you wished to play against the team during a practice but for an actual game? I'm going have to deny your request. It would upset too many people and traditions to be allowed to happen. Miss Granger, I know that the Puff's Captain has sought you out repeatedly; why not give your team a chance?"

Hermione flopped back in her seat and let loose a frustrated sigh, "Like I told Harry, the Puffs view Quidditch as a 'gentlemanly' pursuit and not something to be too competitive about. I need something involving flying that challenges me; which is why I would love to have an obstacle course that changes patterns after each run."

Minerva blinked, "An automatic, ever-changing obstacle course? That's a novel idea…"

Hermione gestured with her hands as if to say, 'Right?'

"If this were possible, where… wait, I think I have an idea as to where you might be able to do this. All of you; follow me." She got up and led the group from her office and towards the stairs.


Seventh Floor, Room of Requirement

"Now, I'm about to show you a secret of the school that before now only the elves have had any real inkling of an idea as to its capabilities. Opposite this tapestry of Barnabus the Barmy is a hidden room; a Room of Requirement. It's able to reconfigure itself based on the user's needs."

"How do you activate it?"

"You, or whomever is creating the room within, needs to think carefully about what they're trying to recreate and pass back and forth in front of this wall three times. For example, 'I need a room to fly a broom through an ever changing obstacle course.'" She said this repeatedly as she passed by the wall three times. On the third pass, a door materialized out of thin air to the collective gasps of the kids. Minerva opened the door and led them inside.

The room was immense. There was really no other word to describe the sheer size of the space created. The terrain was constantly shifting; sometimes within minutes, other times the terrain lasted longer. There were crevasses, caves, tunnels, trees, waterfalls and more. The team took their brooms to the sky and tried out the course, marveling at how quick they needed to be to keep from being whacked out off their brooms by flailing tree branches or golems in various shapes and sizes. When they all landed, breathless and excited; Hermione thanked the professor profusely.

"One thing I wish to stress, Miss Granger. Until you get more skilled at flying, I do not wish you to be up here alone. I want you fully kitted out with Quidditch armor as well. You will need to have an older student or preferably a staff member keep watch; is that understood?"

Hermione beamed, "Yes, ma'am."

"One last bit of information. The course difficulty can be adjusted up to Level Ten. Do not try to attempt that without an adult present."

"Yes, ma'am."

Katie Bell raised her hand, "Professor? Can this room simulate weather conditions as well?" Minerva nodded to which the Chasers and Oliver got excited. "Just think of the practices we could hold if we can control the conditions!"

Minerva led them out of the Room of Requirement and showed them how when the last person left the room, the door de-materialized and became hidden once more.

"Is this something that we need to keep a secret or can we tell our friends about it?"

Minerva thought about it, "I don't see why you can't tell anyone about the Room. Just try to keep the crowds to a maximum of ten people." The others agreed.


Hufflepuff Common Room, later in the evening

Hermione pounced on Harry as he relaxed on the couch in front of the fireplace, "Harry! You won't believe what happened to me today!"

Harry scrunched his face up in thought, "Mmm…let's see. Oh, you got married! No, wait! You've discovered the entrance to the legendary Chamber of Secrets and had a tea party with the monster inside," She cocked her head and gave him her patented 'Death Glare.'

"Zip it, Potter. No, I went and practiced a bit with the Gryffs like I said I would and after a bit of play we went to see if Professor McGonagall would allow me to continue practicing Quidditch with them. As it turns out, I can't but that led her to show us a room that changes based on the user's need! I can now create as many obstacle courses to my heart's content." Her eyes were glittering with excitement.

Harry was impressed, "Neat. So what else can this room do?"

She shrugged, "I don't know yet. I want to go back after class tomorrow and investigate further." She flopped down on the couch next to him and leant up against him, sighing in contentment.


A Week Later

Aurora Sinastra entered Daggerclaw's office with a sheaf of paperwork in her hands and a big smile on her face. He gestured for her to take a seat and told her to wait a moment while he finished filling out a last form he was working.

"Ok," he said as he signed the form and put it aside, "What's gotten you in such a tizzy?"

Aurora smirked, "I've gotten the documentation for the observatory field trip. A two way, password activated Portkey has been issued to me and copies of the parental permission slips."

"Assuming you get the parents' permission, when would this trip take place?"

"I'd like it to happen within the next week or so."

"Is there some sort of celestial event that's going to occur during that timeframe?"

She shook her head, "No but that's when the observatory is hosting a guest speaker, a new display of stellar photography and the improved Hubble Telescope images."

Daggerclaw looked over the documentation once more pensively, "Well… you have my approval for this venture. It's a shame that I cannot go along with you, I would like to have seen this in person but someone needs to stay behind and monitor those who didn't get permission."

Permission slips were sent home via the school owls and Aurora's students were excited and hopeful that their parents' or guardians would come through. The returning owls brought a whole new excitement as the slips had been signed as well as a couple of notes from the muggle parents who offered their services as chaperones for the trip. That surprised Aurora but made for a welcome addition to her planning. She had stressed over whether or not she might need to bring a couple of elves to make sure the students stayed together but this new development took the load off her mind.


The day of the trip came and everyone who'd had permission lined up to take hold of the Portkey chain. With a whispered activation phrase, the crowd was whisked off to Marylebone Road.

"All right, listen up!" Aurora announced as the children turned to face her, "I want you all on your best behavior. This field trip is being used as a test to see if we can integrate ourselves into the non-magical world without attracting too much attention as well as a potential learning experience for future classes. Please do not touch anything unless the docent or an official sign says it's okay to do so. Everyone's wand needs to remain in their holster, pocket or purse. I do not want to have to call in the Obliviators because you were careless." She peered at all of their wide-eyed expressions, "At lunch time, we will all gather at the front lawn where the elves will provide the food. Are there any questions?"

An adult hand went up in the back.

"Yes, Mrs. Dursley was it?"

Petunia nodded, "Yes, will the elves be able to disguise themselves to either not be seen or appear as human to the other patrons?"

Aurora understood this concern, "As it happens, the area designated for us has been warded to exclude those not in the know about magic. I don't completely understand how they did it but the elves set it up. They won't be seen." Petunia accepted this and laid her hand on Harry's shoulder.

The Hogwarts contingent streamed into the observatory agog with wonder. The very first thing that was pointed out was a scale model of the solar system engraved in the concrete pavement. It had a marker indicating where the sun's position was and spreading out from there was an engraved line representing the orbit and planetary marker for Mercury, Venus and Earth; all the way out to Pluto in concentric rings; all set to scale. A couple of the kids ran to the different orbits to make it easier to see the distances in one go yet it was still immensely difficult to imagine the sheer distances involved! Once inside the building proper, Aurora handled getting the tickets to the next planetarium showing while the other chaperones led their charges around the Observatory.

Their first stop was the Hall of the Eye which held exhibits on the history and development of the human exploration of the sky and cosmos starting with the most primitive tools, our own eyes. From there the exhibit progressed all the way up to the most modern of tools, the newly repaired Hubble Deep Space Telescope. Draco was not the only one of the many magically raised who could barely comprehend just how advanced the muggles were in comparison to the magical view of the heavens. He was seen slowly shaking his head in continuous wonder, his eyes wide and not a bit fearful of all the information his senses were taking in.

Petunia moved up next to him and knelt down to his level, "Mr. Malfoy? Is there a problem?"

Draco turned his stupified expression to her, "How can we cope with all of this?" He gestured to the room around them, "All my life I've been told that the muggles are nothing more than animals scratching in the dirt. This blows all that away! I…I don't know if I can continue. My head is starting to hurt."

Petunia gave him a one-armed hug around his shoulders and led him off to a bench where he could sit and compose himself. He ended up getting joined by most of the other Slytherins suffering from the same culture shock. He switched places with Millie and sat down next to Pansy and rested his head on her shoulder.

"Pansy?"

"Hmmm?"

"How can we tell our fathers that everything they've ever taught us is just plain wrong?"

Pansy let loose a nervous shiver of dread, "I don't know but I'm terrified to do so. Maybe Mrs. Dursley might have an idea?"


Hermione was checking herself out in a monitor that displayed not her true image but one based on the amount of heat she was generating. Harry sidled up next to her and commented, "Wow, Hermione! You look hot!" She immediately blushed and whapped him on the arm, "You do realize what you said?"

His only response was a heart-stopping lop-sided grin that made her knees weak.

"You prat," she admonished him and wrapped her arms around him as he laughed and led them both over to see the display of the Tesla Coil with Neville and a couple of others.


When they finally re-gathered together for the planetarium showing, Draco had recovered his wits for the most part. They filed into the theater and found their seats whispering about all they'd seen as the lights went down. Silence filled the room until the docent began his show. The projector rose out of its housing and the projected sky darkened, "We often imagine ourselves at the center of things. That includes our place in the universe…"

Tears formed in the corner of Draco's eyes as he took in the incredible wonder of not just the show but the newfound knowledge of what he wanted to do with his life from that point forward.

As the children and parents exited the theater and headed to the front lawn to have lunch; everyone was chattering about what they'd seen and learned. Nearly every pureblood was asking questions that never would've occurred to them had they stayed in the castle. Aurora was practically glowing with professional and personal pride that her endeavor had worked so well.

Their next to last stop was a new exhibit that showcased the Deep Sky Project. It was a huge room featuring one entire floor to ceiling wall that contained all of the stars, nebulae, and galaxies that could be seen defined through telescopes. A couple of exhibits had weight scales that would show how much you would weigh depending on which planet you were standing on along with some general information and pictures. Other exhibits included meteorites, cloud chambers and lunar photography.

"Hey, Aunt Petunia?" Harry asked his aunt, "I bet Uncle Remus would love to see the exhibit on Lunar photography."

She smiled, "He probably would."


Back at Hogwarts…

Their trip over, the returning students were tired yet practically fizzing with newly gained intelligence on how the cosmos worked and the advancements made over the centuries. Draco and the other Gryffindors dragged themselves up the many stairs and into their respective dorms. His mind still whirling from everything he'd learned today and crashing face-down on his bed, not even bothering to get changed; he was out before his head hit the pillow. The Ravenclaws were still chattering about what they'd seen and learned; many were collating the information and the notes they'd taken along with whatever brochures and books they'd picked up from the gift shop. The Puffs dropped into the couches and chairs and just spent some time communing in relative silence, occasionally broken by a reminiscing thought. Harry disappeared into the kitchens for a while then returned bearing a tray of cinnamon pastries with Tiny bearing a large container of hot chocolate.

It was down in the Slytherin Common Room where the most intense discussions of the events of the day were being held. Those who didn't get to go along on the field trip were arguing vehemently that there was no way the muggles were capable of all that had been described. Those who did get to go were standing toe to toe with the deniers.

"Flint, you're an idiot. If you had just gotten parental permission, you would've seen with your own eyes what marvels awaited us there!"

"And I'm saying that the muggles are just not smart enough to do all that! They're dirty, disgusting animals who scratch in the dirt and live in hovels. If we can't put anything up in space, the muggles surely couldn't."

Eye rolls dominated the responses of those who went on the trip.


The next monthly staff meeting

Aurora was all smiles at the next meeting where the others congratulated her on a successful field trip to the muggle world and with her students. Daggerclaw tapped the table to get everyone's attention, "In addition to Aurora's success, I have some other good news. The Ministry has agreed to a 'Springtime Social' event to be held here at the castle. This means that officials from all over the world, the media, the parents and yes, even the Royal family has been invited to attend." Shock and murmurs were heard.

"I think this would be a great boon to our continuing efforts of revamping and modernizing our curriculum and the school itself. We will need to coordinate with everyone to get the castle itself and the grounds cleaned and spruced up to be at its best for showing. The event will also be potentially beneficial as it will allow us to bring to light whatever deficiencies still exist within the castle."

Severus made a motion for attention, "It will also bring our detractors who think we're pushing too hard to change from tradition. What are we going to do about that?"

"To not adapt to the ever changing modern world is to beggar the possibility of our own extinction. More and more muggleborn are coming into our world and with them come new ideas and challenges. If those families wish to remain in the past, it's up to them but I for one will not let the small-minded drag us back to the Dark Ages," remarked Minerva vehemently as the others agreed.

"When would this 'Springtime Social' take place?"

"If everything can be made ready in time, the Minister and I were hoping to hold it in May," commented the Headmaster.


Dinnertime, Great Hall

Before the food was served, Daggerclaw got up and climbed the steps to the podium, "May I have your attention, please. Before we begin our meal, I wish to announce an event that will be taking place in May. Hogwarts will be hosting a 'Springtime Social' where guests from the Ministry as well as around the world and your guardians and parents will be invited to attend. They will be able to visit you and see how your classes are run, get to speak with you about your aspirations and dreams as well as take note of any complaints you may have about the way the school is run."

He outlined some of the events that would take place during the Social; like Quidditch exhibition games, broom flying obstacles courses (that got Hermione's attention), the kitchens would be open to any and all to witness the cooking talents of the elves and Mr. Potter (who blushed). "Additionally, this event will give you all the chance to demonstrate your skill in magic without fear of reprisal from the Ministry. We want you to show off, within reason. You will get to speak with representatives from all magical disciplines and trades as well as politicians from across the world."

The murmurs from the students were loud enough that Daggerclaw had to tap the annunciator again.

"I am almost finished, please keep your comments down to a dull roar," he admonished to a bit of laughter, "To continue, our previous social engagements like the Valentine's Day Ball have been a rousing success in the past and it's time we held another one. One other major point I wish to stress; amongst the other important politicians and international guests and thanks to the suggestion by Miss Isobel MacDougal, we sent out and received an affirmative response that the Royal Family will be in attendance."

Deafening silence… then all eyes swung over to where a pale-faced Isobel was sitting with her mouth dangling open.

She squeaked, "They actually accepted my idea?!"

Daggerclaw nodded, "You should feel proud, Miss MacDougal. From what my contacts have said, it's exceedingly rare for such an honor to take place."

"On that note, the Social will take place in May so we have just a little over a month to get the castle and the grounds in shape and cleanliness. The elves will be working as hard as they ever have so please don't add to their workload."


May's Spring Social

The castle walls and floor had been scrubbed to within an inch of their stony lives, the windows polished to a high sheen, the ceiling as well as all of the suits of armor, tapestries and everything else within the castle had been cleaned and readied for the impending arrival of their guests. Harry had worked in conjunction with Tiny and the other Kitchen Elves to make sure the pantries, workstations and ingredients were at their absolute best. Neville had shown the initiative (that surprised no one who knew him) and coordinated with his gardening club to sweep out and organize the greenhouses. With his natural flora magics, he got the more dangerous plants to calm down and not try to attack everyone that came close or passed by on whatever assignment they had (Pomona took notice and vowed to see if she could promote him to help her with more advanced work.)

Various other students were seen performing their tasks with nary a complaint or hassle. Ron Weasley put his recently acquired knowledge of farm labor practices into use by assisting in corralling the Care of Magic Creatures exhibit animals into their pens. When observed at how good he was doing in his assignment, Professor Kettleburn praised his efforts and told him that his new job was to care and feed the Class X and XX animals. Ron beamed with pride and couldn't wait to tell his parents! Draco was in the kitchens alongside Harry and a few others making their signature dishes. In Draco's case, he was making pizzas and calzones. He made varieties of each, all the way down to the dessert pizzas. He even made something he called 'pizza cones.' Harry wandered over when he heard about the blonde Gryffindor's new creation and inquired about it.

Draco shrugged a shoulder, "It's nothing special, really. All I did was take a funnel and wrapped a pizza crust dough around the outside then partially baked it. After that, I wrapped it in tinfoil then filled in the cone with sauce, cheese and a variety of toppings, flipped over the funnel so that the newly made cone rested inside then finished the baking."

Harry shook his head, "That's the thing, Draco. I never would've thought of doing that. You've just surpassed me in culinary creativity! According to everyone here, that's an incredible honor." He left the blonde boy in a state of shock.

Down in the Grand Baths of Hogwarts, Millie was busy coordinating with the elves to clean and repair the weightlifting machines as well assisting by putting out brochures and information packets about what benefits there were for working out in conjunction with learning magic. Every now and then, she'd take a break and use the bench press machine or the pull down bars just to revel in how it made her muscles bulge.

Dean Thomas was busy coordinating the making of banners and signs as well as putting the finishing touches on them. Anyone who saw him, saw a kid completely in his element. Daggerclaw stopped and watched for a while before making a note that there should be a tent set up dedicated to Magical Arts and Crafts.

The Unspeakables had stopped by the month prior and had gone through the Room of Hidden Things with a fine toothed comb looking for Dark Objects. If they did find anything, no one except Daggerclaw was told. The rest of the items within the room were organized based on type and labeled accordingly. In the Obstacle course configuration, Hermione put on the finishing touches to a particularly complicated run then locked it in place. She wasn't the only one to have a room to configure. Minerva had taken it upon herself to recreate historic moments of the Castle over the past thousand years since its inception (The Hat coordinating with the Castle was a big help in that regard.)

"Who knew that Godric Gryffindor had such a reedy voice? I would've thought that trait would've gone to Salazar…"Minerva commented to the Hat who hummed in acknowledgement.

On the front lawn, wizarding tents had been set up as focal points for various student interests and clubs as well as an active display of magical prowess in creating the seemingly impossible. Many a non-magically raised had commented that the tents reminded them of the TARDIS from Doctor Who. Argus made sure that the Grand Baths of Hogwarts were in their peak condition as well as making sure the portraits were repaired and functioning.

Finally all the work and preparation was set. It was the morning of the Social and most everyone had quickly headed off to their assigned spots after breakfast. In the distance, the school population heard the whistle from the Hogwarts Express. They were ready…


Daggerclaw stood waiting in the Great Hall along with the rest of the senior staff not otherwise assigned. They would be on hand to greet those coming in by Floo. The Grand Hearth's fire flared green as Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge was first through. He greeted everyone and shook Daggerclaw's hand.

"Thank you for inviting me to attend this Social, Headmaster."

Daggerclaw bowed lightly, "You're welcome, Minister. If you would just step this way, we can get the rest of the travelers through quickly." Once Fudge was out of the way, the fire flared green again and began disgorging the mass of parents, dignitaries and other magical guests.


Down at the Hogsmeade Train Platform…

It was Minerva's job as Deputy to handle and direct the guests who didn't wish to (or couldn't) floo from the train carriages and onto the Thestral-pulled carts. A few non-magical guests stopped to stare at the strange creatures and asked Minerva what they were.

"You can see them?" she asked in surprise as they nodded in response, "Well, to answer your question, they are a carnivorous species of winged horses. They have excellent directional senses and our herd has been tamed and trained to pull the carts. They will be explained in further detail at our Care of Magical Creatures exhibit."

Just then they all heard the thumping of something flying overhead. All heads turned upwards as they spotted the trio of helicopters heading in their direction. The muggle parents knew what they were and excitedly chattered about who it could possibly be. The magical parents crowded around them to find out what those strange machines were. Minerva finally managed to get them all onto the carriages and sent up to the school.


Main Courtyard Lawn

Rubeus Hagrid, recently returned from his 'working vacation' at the Romanian Dragon Preserve guided the three strange flying vehicles in for a landing. He didn't know what they were but it didn't really matter. He'd seen other magical flying vehicles before so in his mind this was just some foreign dignitary looking to show off. Two of the vehicles hovered for a moment while the less threatening looking model touched down and shut off the engines. The two supporting helicopters then moved to another spot and settled in for a landing as well. The door to the civilian model opened and a guard emerged while peering around. He spotted Hagrid as his eyes widened and mouth dropped open. Shaking himself a bit, he turned and said something to someone inside. An older woman with a regal bearing stepped out and onto the lawn before appraising Hagrid for herself.

Daggerclaw and Cornelius hurried up to the newly arrived guests as they glanced around at their surroundings, "Your Majesty, please excuse our tardiness. More guests than we'd anticipated arrived at the last moment. Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." The two leaders bowed before their sovereign. Daggerclaw nudged Hagrid in the leg to get him to follow suit.

The Queen waved it off as no importance, "Thank you for your welcome, gentlemen. Shall we begin the tour?"


Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth the Second was not an easy person to impress but somehow the Castle of Hogwarts and inhabitants managed to do so. As she and her entourage were escorted around, various suits of armor would snap to attention, the portraits greeted them and a poltergeist of all things appeared and bowed low to her. She noticed the tension of the Headmaster when this 'Peeves' arrived and inquired what that was about.

Daggerclaw swallowed, "Peeves is the resident poltergeist. He's been a part of the castle since its inception and is known for causing chaos and mild destruction wherever he goes. Many attempts have been made to control him but all have failed. It seems that your presence is the only thing holding him back."

"I see."

They toured the craft and trades tents and she spoke with the students and staff about the various topics. She was pleased to learn that there weren't any sort of 'classically Dark' elements that were taught at the school. When she asked if black cats were a requirement to fly on a broom, a couple of the kids giggled and shook their heads.

"If you'd like, Your Majesty, we can give you a ride on one of our brooms? We promise not to go too high or fast unless you like that sort of thing then you can fly with Hermione," Oliver Wood quipped then muttered the last part under his breath.

An eyebrow quirked up, "Who is this Hermione?"

Oliver blushed as he realized he'd been overheard, "Umm, Hermione Granger is a first year student sorted into Hufflepuff. She's…well…driven. Our main sport is called Quidditch but she considers it too 'pedestrian' I guess would be the best term I could use. She prefers obstacle course racing and is a sight to behold."

"And where would she be right now?"

"Probably up in our special Room of Requirement awaiting our arrival, Your Majesty."

The Queen nodded, thanked Oliver for his time and moved on.


Just as they were turning a corner, the Queen spotted a group of students crowded around a table and headed over. On display was an assortment of treats and other dishes, a young boy was pointing to the various items and giving descriptions of each.

"This tray here contains samples of Slow-cooked Moroccan Lamb pies, this one over here contains Pork Ginger Potstickers and the third tray holds Cheese Sauce Stuffed Herbed Yorkshire Puddings." He spotted the Queen; paled and gulped loudly, "Um… guys, turn around but don't scream." The others turned as instructed and paled as drastically as Harry had. The girls immediately curtsied while the boys bowed before their Sovereign.

"Your Majesty, the boy in charge of this display is our very own Student Head Chef, Harry James Potter. His culinary skills are second to none in both the magical and non-magical worlds," Daggerclaw explained as he introduced Harry.

"You, er…Your Majesty. You honor me by stopping by," Harry stammered nervously. The Queen merely smiled warmly, "May I have your suggestion as to what to try?" Harry's lips pursed as he scanned his arrangement.

"Well, it depends on what you're in the mood for. I have samples ranging from sweet to savory… Oh, I guess you could try the sampler platter. It contains a bit of everything and comes in a handy carry-away box." He picked one up and handed it over. The Queen's Taster opened the box and peered inside before taking a piece of the Moroccan Lamb pie and eating it. His eyes closed briefly as the taste sensation danced on his tongue. The look on his face caused the others who'd already experienced Harry's talent to smirk knowingly. It was only then he held the open box to the Queen and allowed her to take a sample and try for herself.

"This is exquisite, Mr. Potter. Did you take a class to learn how to cook like this?" Harry shook his head.

"No, Your Majesty. This is just raw talent. I would love nothing more than for our school to have a regular class in the Culinary Arts but I was informed a while ago that such things take time to set up." He shrugged, "I'm not worried, I was told that a chef had been scouted and the curriculum was being worked on."

"I understand that you will be giving a demonstration later?"

Harry nodded his head, "Yes, Your Majesty. It will be down in the Kitchens and I will be demonstrating how to make a 3 Cheese Italian Sausage and Vegetable Lasagna." A whimper was heard from a couple of the attending students. The Queen laughed lightly, "It would seem then that it will be a demonstration worth attending if their reactions are any indication. Thank you for the sampler, Mr. Potter. Good day and I shall see you later."


Word spread like wildfire that the Queen herself was in the castle. This caused the non-magical guests to go into a tizzy to make sure that their appearance was in tip-top shape. Several ran to the bathrooms to wash their hands and to take calming breaths.

Daggerclaw led the Queen over to the Grand Staircase and let her marvel at the ever-changing stairs as they swung back and forth re-arranging their patterns. He finally stepped over to the statue holding its hand out and spoke the pass-phrase to get them to stop and reset. Prince Phillip was heard commenting that the stairs presented a tactical challenge that would be interesting to see if it could be recreated elsewhere.

The Headmaster led his charges to the Third Floor Corridor towards the Grand Baths of Hogwarts. Inside, the tour was taken over by Argus Filch in general as he explained the history of its re-discovery and refurbishment. A couple of dignitaries inquired about Argus' qualifications and he calmly supplied the information. Most, if not all, of the alumni were stunned to learn that the curmudgeonly caretaker was in fact a highly trained and knowledgeable art historian. Millie's parents were stunned to discover their daughter working out and were rather scandalized by her attire. Her mother tried to cover her daughter up while making excuses but another muggle parent calmed her down by saying that the outfit being worn was perfectly acceptable and afforded the girl free range of motion to workout. Millie stammered a few times as she explained the Magical Theory behind the notion that a healthy body produced healthy magic. By working out and improving her stamina and physical strength, she would be able to last longer in a duel or a fight with an opponent.

Next up was the Baths themselves. Nearly all of the parents and guardians were in awe of the grandeur and opulence. Tracy was on-hand to answer questions about her favorite location within the school. She chattered on at length about how the mood and look of each of the different zones changed depending on the time of day. She explained how the magic of the enchantments that governed the moving artwork and murals worked as well as the atmosphere and sounds of the birds.

Professor Flitwick and several of his most promising students put on a dueling competition and wowed the audience with their talent and prowess. The Queen's military advisor was seen whispering to her and anyone close enough heard that he would love to see more examples of this skill as well as getting permission to see if there were any witches and wizards within the military. When the Queen asked why, the advisor commented that a special unit comprised of magicals could perform assignments that their usual special forces couldn't.

One demonstration cemented that idea in the advisor's mind permanently. The Ministry had brought along a contingent of Aurors and when the description of Apparition was mentioned, one offered to take the man on a Side-Along Apparition to another part of the castle then bring him back. When asked what the farthest this 'Apparition' could go, the Auror replied that he and his team came directly in from their base in London. Wide-eyed and impressed, the advisor inquired if they could do that instead. The Auror got permission to do so and took the advisor by the arm before disappearing with a loud CRACK! The Queen and the rest of her entourage as well as the muggle parents who'd never seen such a thing before, exclaimed in surprise. A few moments later and another loud crack, the two reappeared. The advisor promptly sank to the ground gulping in air as best he could. Shaking his head to clear his ears, he declared that this method of travel was definitely not for the faint-hearted!


The Social was a huge success as far as everyone was concerned. Students and parents got to meet with the teachers, staff and dignitaries as well as the media to go over various interests within the school. Demonstrations across the seven years of education were held, each by the best (and the worst) students to show just how differently some learned and remembered. Class work examples were brought out and explained, the House Common Rooms were opened up to anyone who wished to visit, and dorm rooms were examined. There were magical games and activities for the smaller children and for those who needed to take a break. The Darker Families tried once again to complain to the Minister about how their traditions were being suppressed and trampled on by allowing outsiders in. Cornelius' response was to tell them to get stuffed.

Professor Kettleburn, along with Hagrid as his assistant, held seminars on the various sorts of creatures that the students would most likely come across living in the British Isles. There were even paddocks set up for those who wished to pet the more docile animals. Hagrid made the off-handed comment that it was a shame that they couldn't bring in a couple of dragons but understood that it would've been a logistical nightmare, not to mention that the Hebredians weren't exactly the friendliest of the breeds. Ron got to demonstrate his knowledge of handling the gentler animals and was praised yet again by Professor Kettleburn to the boy's parents which caused Ron to blush madly.


Room of Requirement, Hermione's set up

The Queen and her entourage as well as most of the other guests stepped into the room setup by Hermione. The girl in question was nowhere to be seen however until they all heard a whoop of delight and a brown haired blur coming racing up to them at full speed only to slam on the brakes a split second later, hauling back on the broomstick hard and coming to a stop in front of the Headmaster.

Beaming with excitement and adrenaline, Hermione waved to the crowd, "Hi there and welcome to the Room of Requirement. My name is Hermione Granger and I will be your host for this particular configuration. As you can see, my configuration is that of an obstacle course and…"

After her speech, she put on a demonstration of advanced broom flying and handling techniques that had even the more sturdy guests turning a pale green. When she landed again, she challenged anyone of the guests to go up with her. There was silence before a hand went up. It was the pilot of one of the Queen's military helicopter escort. Hermione handed him a helmet and instructed him how to hold onto the broom and where to put his feet then took off. When they returned, the pilot shook her hand and remarked that she'd be a natural with The Red Arrows as the team from the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team was known as which caused Hermione to blush.


Hogwarts Kitchens

Harry nervously re-examined his utensils and workstation while Tiny stood nearby. She shook her head at his tension and commented that he should relax and treat this exhibition as just another cooking show.

"But Tiny, you don't understand! The Queen of England will be in attendance." He whined.

Tiny crossed her arms over her chest, "So? You've done shows for the Minister as well as a couple of other important people. Focus on the food, ignore the people." He sighed and nodded. The door to the kitchens opened and the crowds started filing in and taking their seats.

Steeling himself, Harry stood tall and addressed the crowd, "Thank you all for coming to yet another exciting culinary demonstration of 'Yes, Harry Potter Cooks!'" A round of applause and light cheering were heard from the students.

"Today I will be demonstrating how to make a '3 Cheese Italian Sausage and Vegetable Lasagna.' As always, ingredient freshness is key and remember to check your equipment for damage and replace if necessary. So let's begin, first preheat the oven to 176 degrees C. My ingredients are as follows: 453 grams of fresh Italian mild ground sausage, 12 lasagna noodles, uncooked; extra virgin olive oil, 1 medium onion, chopped, 2 cloves of garlic, chopped. Marinara sauce, either homemade or shop-bought, 4 cups of ricotta cheese, 1 large egg, ½ cup of fresh grated Parmesan cheese, 2 cups fresh spinach, chopped, 2 cups of shredded Italian blend cheese, 2 red or gold bell peppers, chopped; 1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano."

"What I will be preparing first are the vegetables; I have chosen red and gold bell peppers and onions. First roughly chop and sauté the vegetables lightly in olive oil until just softened and put aside."

"Next, cook the noodles according to the package directions; drain and toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and set aside. The oil keeps the noodles from sticking together as they cool."

Harry then pulled out a skillet and turned the stove on medium, "In a medium skillet, cook and crumble the sausage in 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat until browned and fully cooked. This should take about seven to ten minutes."

The Queen glanced around at the other guests and nodded to herself that nearly all the students were taking diligent notes. 'This boy knows how to command and hold onto a crowd's attention. His sampler platter was heavenly as well; I can only imagine what this will taste like.'

"Our next step is to add the onion and garlic; cook and stir them until tender and aromatic. Now, you have the option of buying a jar of marinara sauce or making it from scratch. As many of you know, I prefer to make things from scratch so I premade a batch of the sauce. Add the sauce to the sausage mixture then set aside."

Ronald Weasley had debated with himself whether or not to attend the cooking show. He wanted to prove to himself that he could control his urges but the delicious smells coming from Harry's demonstration were making it difficult for him. He squirmed in his seat until he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning he saw his father smile warmly at him and whisper in his ear that he was proud that Ron had managed to last this long and that it shouldn't be too much longer. Beaming with newfound pride, Ron settled back into his seat and leant up against his dad.

Harry pulled out a medium mixing bowl and whisked together the ricotta cheese, egg, ¼ cup of the Parmesan Cheese, chopped spinach as well as the sautéed peppers and onions and set that aside as well.

"Coat a 9x13-inch baking dish with olive oil and spread 1 cup of the sausage mix on the bottom. Top with 3 lasagna noodles then spread a fourth of the ricotta cheese mix on top of that. Keep layering until you are out of noodles or out of the mix. Sprinkle the top with oregano and the remaining Parmesan. Bake it until hot and bubbly; roughly 45 minutes. Once you remove it at the end of the cooking time, let it stand and settle for about ten minutes before cutting."

Tiny took over and sliced up samples of the lasagna before handing them out to her assistant to distribute to the guests. The Queen smelled hers and took a bite. As always, Harry's cooking skills elicited a wave of delighted moans and commentary.

Patting her mouth with a napkin, she turned to her secretary, "Make sure you get the recipe and instructions on how to make this." Her secretary agreed vigorously.


Finally, it was all done. The guests had departed either via the Floo, personal helicopter or the train. The students and staff sighed in utterly exhausted contentment proud in the knowledge that what they had accomplished here today would be felt world-wide by tomorrow. Several students were giddy with excitement despite how tired they were. Draco's pizza cones were an absolute hit with everyone who tried one. Narcissa Malfoy, normally a prim and proper pureblood socialite was spotted in the dining tent scarfing her pepperoni and sausage cone down while sipping on chilled bottle of Coke.

Hermione's parents were in awe of her skills on a broom and each took a ride with their daughter. Petunia and Vernon had praised Harry for getting to perform in front of the Queen herself. He was still blushing even at this late hour.

[A/N3: Well, there you have it. I hope it measured up to the rest of the standards I've held for the other chapters. As I've stated, I'm recovering from COVID so if there's anything missing or unclear, please leave a review or a private message.]

Recipes:

Slow-cooked Moroccan Lamb Pies (Pinterest, Mention Only)

Pork Ginger Potstickers (Pinterest, Mention Only)

Cheese Stuffed Herbed Yorkshire Puddings (Pinterest, Mention Only)

3 Cheese Italian Sausage and Vegetable Lasagna (Pinterest)

Draco's Pizza Cones (Pinterest)