A/N: We did it! We finally finished this story! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and favorited this story! And thanks also for sticking through with our extremely infrequent updates.

For those of you who have forgotten, or if we haven't actually ever mentioned it here, this is the first story in a planned eight story series. The good news is we have tentatively planned out the rest of the series...the bad news is we like to take a year-and-a-half to write one chapter. But the sequel should be posted eventually. Hopefully by the end of January, because we're optimistic like that.

Chapter Fourteen

Week One:

The first Friday of inter-house team-building dawned bright and early. Too early some students would say. In particular, a bleary-eyed Marlene McKinnon was joined by the Slytherin Head Boy, a Ravenclaw third year, and a fifth year Hufflepuff in some particularly loud grumbling. Marlene was far from a morning person on ordinary occasions, but having been up most of the night with the aforementioned students who comprised Teambuilding Takedown Team One, she was more grumbly than usual. She did manage to raise her head enough to share a conspiratorial look with her partners-in-crime at the end of breakfast, though.

If Dumbledore noticed a certain sense of anticipation in the air when he stood up to speak that morning, he chalked it up to excitement about participating in his excellent roster of team-building activities. "Welcome students to week one of our four week program for building inter-house unity. I know some of you have been skeptical of the merits of these activities but I think you will find by the end of today that you have gotten to know your fellow Hogwartians on a far deeper level. If you would all please stand and step back from your house tables we will begin."

Almost as soon as they stood up, Dumbledore sent the tables out of sight.

"We are going to start with a small getting to know you activity, this should be very easy for everyone to complete, all you have to do is find a member of another house, walk up to them and engage in conversation, in particular you should find three things that you have in common with the other student. Feel free to spread out and talk more privately."

Little did the Headmaster know spreading out was exactly what they intended to do. With a barely contained grin Marlene headed towards a sixth year Ravenclaw, while Sirius sauntered over to converse with a fourth year Slytherin, and other students quickly followed suit, all of them purposely approaching particular people. But something strange happened when the students approached within twenty feet of their intended target: they were blasted apart from each other until they hit some form of resistance that halted their momentum.

This generally resulted in students flying into walls, suits of armor, and other people. Dumbledore was curiously silent during these goings-on, and remained calmly seated, eating a lemon drop, while watching students fly backwards at high speed.

Unfortunately, the doors to the Great Hall were open, so the chaos was perhaps destined to explode outside of the room.

Approximately twenty minutes into the day's "teambuilding" Sirius bounded over to a third year Hufflepuff at high speed only to be thrown backwards through the open doors of the Great Hall straight on a collision course for Professor McGonagall, who narrowly avoided tumbling down a staircase by grabbing onto the nearest passerby.

Needless to say, it seemed wise to call a halt to the first week of teambuilding after that.

Week Two:

After the festivities of the first week of team-building the Headmaster decided it would be prudent to hold the week two events on the Quidditch Pitch where there was a lesser chance of injury to random passerby.

The students were greeted by a large rock wall in the center of the Quidditch Pitch and were promptly told to form groups of four consisting of a member of each house. Each group of four was supplied with climbing harnesses connected by five foot lengths of rope.

After more than one student utilized a severing charm to send the weakest members of their team plummeting to the ground, it was decided (read: ordered by Madam Pomfrey who was tired of fixing broken bones), that the activity should be called to a halt.

The professors attributed the incidents to random chaos, but it was actually a plot hatched by Teambuilding Takedown Team Two which consisted of James, a first year Hufflepuff, two fourth year Slytherins, a third year Gryffindor, and a seventh year Ravenclaw, all of whom had gone to great lengths to teach the charms to as many of their housemates as possible after all of their extra late night classes had been completed each day during the previous week.

Once they were out of eyeshot of the Hogwarts Staff, the escaping students enthusiastically applauded the troublemakers who offered an enthusiastic bow in recognition of their appreciation.

Week Three:

The third week of teambuilding was preceded by a set of very unusual happenings. All throughout the castle groups of students wearing an assortment of maroon, blue, green, and yellow could be spotted in deep conversation. Professor McGonagall even had the disturbing misfortune of spotting the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain having an apparently amicable conversation with the Captain of the Slytherin team and had to blink her eyes several times to ensure she was not hallucinating (maybe that near tumble down that stairs had messed with her mind?).

Dumbledore was just about to announce the activities for week three when the student body seemed to erupt into fits of coughing en masse. Additionally there was much sneezing, accompanied by red and swollen eyes.

"Perhaps we are allergic to the other houses?" A sixth year Gryffindor called out pausing to share a wink with a Slytherin fourth year who had comprised Teambuilding Takedown Team Three along with two Hufflepuff seventh years, Remus, and three Ravenclaw sixth years.

Dumbledore did not respond, but merely heaved what was meant to be a sad sigh but came off slightly over-dramatic. "I suppose we shall have to cancel this week's activities so you can all be seen to by Madam Pomfrey for whatever disturbing malady is circulating through your ranks. Do not despair, however, for there is still one last week of teambuilding to look forward to, and I know that next week will finally bring you all together regardless of your assigned houses."

After that pronouncement, the students of Hogwarts were determined to prove that they liked their house rivalries just the way they were, thank you very much.

Week Four:

The fourth week of teambuilding activities dawned bleak and ominous on the last Friday in May. Teambuilding Takedown Team Four had big plans to put the final nail in the coffin of inter-house unity forever. Sirius had been hard at work with his group which included his fifth year cousin Narcissa, two Ravenclaw six years, three seventh year Hufflepuffs, and an additional two fourth years from Slytherin and Gryffindor.

The students of Hogwarts met on the Quidditch pitch amidst howling winds and threatening rain, to find Professor Dumbledore had erected an entire obstacle course which they were apparently supposed to navigate in groups of four.

Unfortunately, several near lightening strikes and a rapid downpour forced Professor Dumbledore to call a temporary halt.

"I will not let this rain foil our final day of teambuilding, we shall instead move these festivities to the Great Hall. You may all return to your dormitories to change into dry clothes, and I expect you all to be reassembled within fifteen minutes in the Great Hall."

If Dumbledore expected them to groan at the seemed foiling of their plot, they were all surprisingly silent.

Professor Dumbledore found himself in an entirely empty room twenty minutes later, and was forced to go investigate. He soon found that every single common room appeared to be curiously sealed shut despite his use of the correct passwords. The entrances seemed to be under the influence of a time-release charm that would not open until the next morning.

Meanwhile on the other side of the common room entrances the students were greeted by victory banners and tables filled with butterbeer, treacle tarts and other delicious snacks stockpiled by Teambuilding Takedown Team Four for the enjoyment of the students during their self-imposed confinement.

Success.

One Month Later:

The end-of-year feast was always a momentous occasion at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It marked the passing of another year, with some students finishing their first year of schooling and others completing theirs once and for all. It was also an opportunity Professor Dumbledore used to speak briefly about the highlights of the past year.

"Good evening, students and staff," Dumbledore said pleasantly, his blues eyes twinkling merrily as he gazed out across the Great Hall. "We have come to the end of yet another wonderful year at Hogwarts. Congratulations once again to Hufflepuff on winning the House Cup and to Ravenclaw, also, on their victory of the Quidditch Cup."

"I still can't believe Hufflepuff won the House Cup," Remus murmured to his friends at the Gryffindor table. "I knew I didn't raise my hand nearly enough in class; I'll just have to earn more points next year."

"Forget that," James replied. "I can't believe Ravenclaw won the Quidditch Cup! Just wait until next year when I can try out for the team!"

"When we can try out," Sirius interjected, and Marlene nodded her agreement.

"Gryffindor will be unstoppable!" James declared, before turning back to Professor Dumbledore.

"In particular," the Headmaster was saying, "I was particularly saddened that you were all unable to fully enjoy the wonderful teambuilding activities that I organized for you. However," He continued, his eyes twinkling somehow even more than they were previously, "I do believe that all of you still managed to take something away from the experience, which is of course just as I intended."

"Ha!" Marlene laughed softly. "If only he knew the real reason none of those teambuilding activities worked out, he probably wouldn't say that at all. We all worked together too hard to achieve any inter-house unity!"

All of the marauders nodded solemnly in agreement.

"But it's not like he's ever going to know," Sirius stated. "Because we all know the Marauders' Motto: if you did it, deny it!"

"And so," Dumbledore concluded, "I hope everyone enjoys their summer holiday. I look forward to seeing all of your smiling faces once again on the first of September."