Disclaimer: All recognizable characters and settings belong to J.K. Rowling.
A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews, the adds and follows! I appreciate it so much!
Summer had come to an end and on September 1st, Harry looked for his friends on the crowded platform, thankful that he didn't have to deal with his luggage as it was already at the castle along with Hedwig and Nova. His dad had just made his departure, telling him to have a good train ride and to stay out of trouble. Harry shook his head. Trouble just finds me, he told himself. Well, usually, he amended.
"Harry!" Daphne and Astoria hurried over to him, big smiles on their faces as they pulled their luggage trolleys behind them.
"Did you have a good summer Harry?" Astoria asked eagerly as she gave him a hug.
"I did, how about you?" Harry replied fondly.
"It was fun although I still haven't convinced my parents to get me a snake," Astoria pouted.
"Not this again," Daphne groaned. All summer all she had heard about were reasons Astoria should have a snake for a pet.
"That's okay, Nova would probably get jealous," Harry said with a wink at Daphne.
Astoria brightened. "That's true, Nova loves me." She suddenly squealed. "Tabitha!" She hurried over to her friend.
Daphne laughed. "Thanks Harry, she's been driving my parents' nuts about getting her own snake."
"Not their kind of pet huh?" Harry teased as he reached out to take her trolley and roll it to the train for her.
"It's not that, it's the fact Astoria wouldn't be able to bring it to school as it is not one of the accepted familiars so they would have to take care of it the majority of the time." Daphne said as they made their way to the train.
"Oh, right," Harry said, feeling a little guilty that he got the privilege of having two familiars.
Daphne noticed the look on his face and frowned. "It's different with you, you can actually talk to Nova plus you have your own quarters in Hogwarts where Nova stays." She pointed out.
Harry nodded in agreement as they found an empty compartment. Each compartment had two long benches that could seat six comfortably although since there was seven of them, they just squeezed one extra on a bench and so far, no one had told them they couldn't.
"Hey mates!" Theo said cheerfully as he entered the compartment.
"Hey Theo, did you have fun on vacation?" Harry asked.
"Oh yeah, it was great. I loved visiting Ireland." Theo dropped into a seat as he began talking about his trip.
Tracey and Ron found them next and then Draco and Hermione.
"The four of you were made prefects?" Theo's mouth dropped open when he notice his friends prefect badges. He groaned. "Four friends who are rule enforcers." He shook his head in mock disappointment.
"Oh please," Ron said dismissively. "Like we would make our friends follow the rules."
"Ron!" Hermione scolded. "You are supposed to set an example!"
Ron merely rolled his eyes.
"Wow, you were really made prefect Ron?" Tracey said incredulously.
"Does that have to be everyone's first response?" Ron asked huffily.
"Sorry," Tracey grinned, sharing a smirk with Theo.
The door to their compartment suddenly opened. "Look Pansy, the scum of Hogwarts all here together." Blaise sneered as he leaned against the doorway.
"If only four of them weren't in our house," Pansy said in a nasty voice. "Slytherin is not a house for traitors." She gave a mean grin.
Blaise's gaze went to Hermione. "At least we don't have the annoying mud –"
"Finish that sentence and you will regret it!" Draco hissed, stepping forward with his hand gripping his wand.
"Yeah, four of us are prefects." Ron smirked, flashing his prefect badge. "Now let's see, for almost using that word, as well as being an annoying git in general, how about three hundred lines of… I must not look like a baboon's backside."
Harry bit his lip to try and keep from laughing. He could see Daphne begin to shake with suppressed laughter.
"Ron," Hermione started but was quickly interrupted.
"Of course, we could always get Professor Snape involved if you would rather," Draco said airily with a raised eyebrow. "It's your choice Zabini."
Blaise's face darkened in anger and he and Pansy withdrew from the doorway, slamming the compartment door shut.
Everyone burst into laughter. "Merlin, that was brilliant Ron," Draco chuckled.
Ron looked pleased. "Thank you and I hope that puts away and doubt that I am a great prefect." He gave a bow.
"There's just one thing, you can't assign lines." Hermione said, though she was still laughing as well.
"Yes, but does Zabini know that?" Draco asked slyly.
"Maybe now he will back off," Daphne said as she sat next to Harry.
Hermione started to sit down but then popped back up and gasped. "Wait, we have to go to our prefects meeting!"
Draco stood up. "Oops, forgot about that."
"You have a meeting?" Harry asked in confusion.
"Yeah, actually all the prefects are supposed to sit in a separate carriage near the front of the train," Hermione said somewhat apologetically. "We have to meet with the Head Boy and Girl and then do some patrolling."
Harry's face fell. He always sat with Ron and Hermione on the train and now he was used to sitting with his Slytherin friends too. He glanced at Daphne, feeling especially disappointed that he wouldn't be able to sit with her. "Bummer," He said quietly.
"I know, I totally forgot," Daphne sighed as she stood up. "We'll see you guys later."
"Have fun," Harry said glumly.
Theo stretched out on the bench. "Ah, more room for me."
Harry laughed; grateful he still had Theo and Tracey.
"Daphne told me about you guys running into Blaise and his mother," Tracey said grimly. "They've always been a hateful family."
Theo nodded in agreement. "Mr. Zabini always likes to act more powerful and influential than he actually is, just like his son."
"Yeah, I met Mr. Zabini briefly at the World Cup last year," Harry said, remembering how awful he and his wife had been.
The door slid open and Ginny peeked in. "I saw Ron walk by," She said brightly. "Can you believe he was made a prefect?" She stepped in and sat next to Harry.
"Disbelief seems to be everyone's first reaction." Theo commented with a smirk.
"It puts pressure on me, now Mum will expect me to be a prefect as well," Ginny complained. "Since everyone else in the family has been one so far."
"What are we, next door neighbors?" Fred asked sarcastically as he and George entered the compartment.
Ginny shrugged. "Guess so," She teased.
"You're the exceptions," Harry grinned.
"We're the smart ones," George corrected him with a smirk. "What fun would being a prefect be anyway?"
"I don't know, Ron appears to be having fun with it already," Tracey laughed. "At least, with Zabini and Parkinson," She told them what Ron had threatened Zabini with.
"Ah, that's our brother!" Fred grinned proudly.
"I knew we had been a good influence on the lad," George nodded in approval.
"Are you two sad it's your last year?" Harry asked the twins.
"Are you kidding? We're ready to go be a part of the adult world!" Fred said. "We have plans."
"Been having them for years," George added. "Saving our most of our allowance, making money on our joke products…"
"And as long as we graduate, our Aunt Muriel will give us money as a gift which will help us with our brilliant plan," Fred said, rubbing his hands together.
"What is the plan?" Harry asked curiously.
"It's a surprise," George said mysteriously. "Plus, we can't let our Mum know too early or she'll try to stop us."
"She thinks our money should be at Gringotts where it will be safe," Fred rolled his eyes.
"And that we should get respectable jobs at the Ministry like Percy," George shook his head. "Never going to happen."
"You two are being so secretive about it," Ginny said in frustration.
George simply smiled and handed out flyers. "Here, we're passing these out. If you want to order Weasley joke products, let us know." He and Fred walked out.
Theo began reading through the list. "Hmm, I may order from them. Zonko's hasn't come out with anything interesting in awhile."
Harry was reading through the flyer when he realized Ginny was sitting very close to him. He shifted over, frowning slightly when Ginny shifted over as well. Harry resisted the urge sigh. He had been hoping Ginny would get over her crush after he had found out she still had one on him last year.
The door opened again and Daphne walked through. "Everything okay in here? Any problems?" She asked loudly before pulling the door shut with a grin.
"I thought you had to sit in the prefect carriage," Harry said, his face lightening up. He moved again to make room for her.
"Well, prefects are supposed to take turns patrolling so I volunteered to go first," Daphne said smugly. "So I'm here making sure things are okay." She laughed and shrugged. "We already had our meeting so I doubt anyone will care if I don't come back."
"Brilliant!" Harry said happily.
Ginny gave a loud sigh and stood up. "See you guys later," She said curtly as she left.
"When is the sweet trolley coming? I'm hungry," Theo complained.
"I saw it when I walked here, it has several more stops to make before it reaches our compartment," Daphne said.
"I brought chocolate chip scones that I made," Tracey offered as she pulled out a bag from her knapsack. "It should hold you over." She teased Theo, who had eagerly grabbed one.
"Mm, you're the best Trace," Theo said as he scarfed the scone down.
Tracey rolled her eyes. "Guys and food."
They spent their time eating and joking with each other and after awhile Harry and Daphne began a game with a mini chess set Harry had received for his fifteenth birthday while Theo was dozing and Tracey was engrossed in a book.
"Daphne? What career are you thinking of going into?" Harry asked as they played. He'd been thinking of different careers, not sure which would be best for him.
Daphne sat back, a thoughtful look on her face. "I'm not sure yet," She said. "I thought about teaching but I think I want a break from school before dedicating nine months of the year to it again," She grinned. "Actually, I've always been interested in writing."
"Like a journalist?" Harry asked, thinking of Skeeter.
"No, an author. I've had an idea since I was little, of a young kid who shows talent in chasing dark wizards and solving mysteries that even trained Aurors can't figure out," Daphne shrugged, blushing a little. "Lame, maybe. Then as I got older I started thinking of what being an Auror would be like." She looked like she was bracing herself for criticism.
Harry broke into a grin. "I've been about being an Auror too! Well, ever since third year and I found out what it was. I like the story idea too, you could do both!"
Daphne laughed. "Maybe, I don't know. Being an Auror takes up a lot of time and isn't always exciting from the research I've done into it. But it still sounds interesting and at least you know you are doing something to help people, to keep them safe." She said, her tone more serious.
"Yeah," Harry said, his mind going to Voldemort. "I want to keep people safe too." His eyes connected with Daphne's and he had a feeling she knew exactly what he was thinking. He coughed and shrugged. "I don't know what else to think of, except maybe professional Quidditch."
"You would definitely be great at that," Daphne agreed. "I usually don't tell people that I think about being an Auror, I feel like they would be suspicious of me since I'm a Slytherin."
Harry frowned. "Why would that matter? Oh, because of the prejudice against Slytherins?" One thing he had learned since being a part of Slytherin House was the unfairness they received from their peers as well as some of the professors.
Daphne nodded. "There are Aurors that have been in Slytherin but, I don't know. I just feel like my motives would be questioned or I would be laughed at." She admitted.
"If being an Auror is what you want, don't let some people's ignorance stand in your way." Harry said seriously. "You'd be great."
"How do you know?"
"Because you're you," Harry said without thinking and then flushed. "You'd be great at anything." He said quietly.
Daphne fiddled with one of her chess pieces. "I think you're great too," She said softly.
Harry took a deep breath and gathered his courage. "Daphne, I like you. A lot." He felt encouraged by the smile forming on her face. "I don't want to ruin our friendship but…I just thought you should know." He felt like an idiot and he certainly hadn't planned on telling her how he felt on the train but it had just come out. He held his breath as he waited for her reaction.
Daphne's eyes brightened. "I really like you too, Harry. I was nervous to say anything because I didn't want to make our friendship weird if you didn't feel the same." She admitted with a shy smile.
Harry felt a rush of relief at her words. She liked him! He wished he knew how to be smoother with his words. "Um, so…do you want to go steady?" He stammered.
Daphne looked confused for a moment. "Steady?"
"Oh, it's a muggle term for dating," Harry said sheepishly. "I guess it sounds stupid. It's an old-fashioned term, I think."
"I like it," Daphne said, her blue eyes bright and smile on her face. "Yes Harry, I would love to go steady with you." She said happily.
They heard a small noise and then suddenly remembered that they were not alone. Theo was still asleep but Tracey was staring at them with wide eyes. "Merlin, this is so much better than the book I'm reading," She said with a grin.
Harry groaned while Daphne laughed.
"I think this is great." Tracey told them. "I'm happy for you two."
"Thanks Trace," Daphne said with a shake of her head. She felt herself blushing and shared an amused look with Harry.
The compartment door opened. "And Hermione doesn't think I will take my prefect duties responsibly." Ron said as he stood in the doorway, smirking at Daphne. "Here you are, hanging out and…hey, are those chocolate chip scones?" He eagerly grabbed on that was peeking out of the bag next to Tracey.
"Oh, is anyone asking where I am?" Daphne asked guiltily. "I figured since the meeting was over, it wouldn't really matter if I didn't go back."
"No one has asked, I'm just messing with you," Ron said as he munched happily on a scone. "The Head Boy and Girl didn't stay in our compartment and Draco and Hermione are studying before they take their turns doing patrol."
Theo had begun to stir. "Studying? Aren't we still on the train?" He mumbled sleepily.
"Exactly," Ron rolled his eyes. "Completely mental, those two. Anyway, it's my turn to patrol." He grabbed a second scone. "Though I don't see a problem with taking a little break."
Daphne sighed. "I should actually do some patrolling and then head back." She said reluctantly. She'd rather stay with Harry but as a prefect she did have duties to attend to.
"Aw, you two can't be separated now," Tracey protested, a teasing twinkle in her eye.
"Why not?" Theo asked, looking at from Tracey to Harry and Daphne.
Tracey looked at Harry and Daphne. "Is it a secret?"
"Is what a secret?" Ron asked as he brushed crumbs off his shirt.
"They're officially dating!" Tracey announced happily.
"When did this happen?" Theo asked, looking perplexed.
"When you were snoring," Tracey teased.
"I don't snore!"
"Congratulations mate," Ron said to Harry. "About time too," He added.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Harry asked.
Ron shrugged. "Well, it was obvious you two liked each other." He said easily.
Daphne looked surprised. "It was?"
Ron, Tracey and Theo nodded with grins on their faces. Daphne and Ron left to finish patrolling as Tracey gleefully told Theo about Harry asking Daphne to go steady. Harry would have been embarrassed but he was too happy at the moment. School was starting, he was with his friends, he had his dad at Hogwarts, and now he had the most amazing girlfriend. And this was only the beginning of the year! He was sure it would be a great year, as long as he didn't have any more dreams or pains in his scar. Last year had gone fairly smoothly and he wanted this year to do the same.
Before he knew it, the Hogwarts Express had reached its destination.
HP
An old manor, which in its day had looked quite fine, stood on a hill overlooking the village below it. The windows were boarded and many tiles were missing from the roof. Ivy had grown and spread; now covering the neglecting manor. For many years, since the murder of the Riddle family, the place had been unoccupied. Until now.
"How dare you leave me alone for so long!" An angry voice hissed as another joined him.
"I'm sorry Master, but it would be noticed if I was gone from work all of the time," A slightly trembling voice said.
"Perhaps you should get someone else to stay with me, though I detest being so dependent on you or anyone."
"We will get you strong again Master."
"Most of my loyal followers are locked in Azkaban, who else can I trust?" The high voice said in frustration, detesting being so weak. It reached out to stroke the large snake that was curled up on the floor.
"You still have loyal followers still around Master. I will bring one of them here to help you."
"Good. What of my talented potion-maker? I will need his expertise for my return."
"I am sorry Master that I did not tell you earlier but he is a traitor. He adopted Harry Potter and is loyal to Dumbledore," The voice said in apparent disgust.
"Is that so? He will pay for that, with his life but not before he watches me kill the Potter boy." The hissing voice seethed.
"I can make any potions you may need Master." The voice assured the hideous creature sitting in front of the fireplace.
"Can you?"
"Yes Master."
"You will be rewarded if all goes well, my loyal servant. We will get started right away."
TBC: If you could take a few seconds to review, that would be awesome! =)