Dear Friends, it appears that my traffic counter has once again flatlined despite reviews appearing to the contrary. I beg your indulgence again to drop a line or emoticon after you read this so I know you are still out there. Building up a plot line twist,… with some new additions to the staff.

Merick

Chapter Twenty-Seven

I slept in Saturday morning; it felt great to wake up without a feeling of anxiety that I needed to be anywhere else but my bed right at that moment. I had a long shower, again with the happy feeling of not having to rush. The talk I had had with Draco, well, the offer of my home for us, had made one thing necessary. I had to order some furniture. In a seeming stroke of luck I had awoken to find the catalogue back on my beside table, one page corner creased and a little pencil circle drawn around a child's bedroom set. Kreacher's choice was a lovely white and gold canopy bed with a matching dresser and nightstand. It was a girl's set, but I knew immediately that the gold inlay in each piece had drawn him to it and the little crystal gems set in the headboard. It would be perfect for him.

I headed down to the common room with my quill, the catalogue and some blank papers to write a note to the shop to place the order for that, and for the set I still had to choose for myself. I had settled myself by one of the large windows when Hermione came down from her dorm to join me.

"You were out late last night?"

"Just finishing off an Astronomy assignment for Monday." I said it matter of factly, as much as I was able. "I was up in the tower charting stars."

She looked at me with one eyebrow cocked and shook her head. She didn't believe me?

"Harry Potter, you got an assignment finished two days before it was due?" Then she laughed at me.

"And I did it without your help."

"Will wonders never cease."? She wasn't being condescending, but she knew, as well as I did, that without her help I wouldn't have even made it to NEWT levels.

"I really want to do well this year Hermione, really prove to the Ministry that I'll make a good Auror." And I did, seriously. I said it before, my name wasn't going to get me that job; I had to prove my skills.

"Well I'm glad you're taking things seriously this year. At least ways, your school work." I nodded knowingly; we'd both had to be incredibly serious, as we'd searched for the horcruxes. Memories we'd both share for a very long time. "What are you doing, if you don't mind me asking?" She used her wand to draw up one of the other chairs in the room to beside mine.

"Shopping." I answered. "I have to order furniture for 12 G or we won't have anything to sleep in at Christmas time." She looked over my shoulder at the bedroom set I had been looking at.

"That's nice."

"Do you think so? I was thinking about it for myself." I pushed the papers towards her so she could have a better look. The set was different than the beds at Hogwarts in that it didn't have curtains around it, and wasn't as ornate. It was a light honey-maple kind of color, with a very basic headboard and footboard with chunky legs, topped by large globes of the same wood. The set came with a long dresser with brass hardware, a wardrobe with mirror fronted doors, and two beside tables whose legs matched in miniature, the posts on the bed.

"Yes, I think that's an excellent choice Harry, so unlike everything that was in the house before."

"Would you like to choose a set for you and Ron?" A little smile lit her face.

"Really?"

"Of course, you guys will come for Christmas won't you? No matter what Ginny says?"

"Yes Harry, we'll all be there."

"And I kind of thought that you and Ron might want to come stay after school? Until you find your own place that is, if you want?" I was stuttering again, a habit that seemed to be growing with me, and one I didn't much like. It was odd being unsure with myself in front of my friends. More than odd, I hated it; not that there was much I could do to change it right then it seemed.

"You would want us there?"

"Hermione, you guys are my only family. We've been through everything together over the last seven years. I can't even imagine being without you."

"Harry?" She sighed. I thought she was going to reject me just then. "I think it's a wonderful offer. And I don't think I'd want to be anywhere else." And then she hugged me. Some of my self imposed anxiety drifted away at that point.

"Pick whatever you want, I'm sending the order today." She started flipping through the pages and I just watched her. I liked seeing her happy, finally. And I liked anything that I could do to add to it. After about ten minutes she settled on an oak set, and we chose another two for the remaining bedrooms. I noted it all down and asked her if she wanted to join me on a walk to the Owlery to send off the post. She agreed and we stopped there before heading to the Great Hall for breakfast.

In a strange coincidence I received a letter as I was setting down my plate. Hermione looked at me oddly as if to question how I could have possibly received an answer so quickly. But if course it wasn't from the furniture store, it was from Charlie.

He related that the dragon hunt in Enneskilen had gone rather well, and they had trapped their quarry only having to oblivate a few muggles along the way. It was on its way to a preserve in Romanian, Charlie riding escort, and he expected to be back to finish up the house the week after. I really appreciated how much he was doing for me, there really was no way I could have coordinated half of what he had been able to. And now I had a timeline for the furniture delivery wizards, so that in only another two weeks my house would be pretty much put together and ready for guests. Kreacher would likely want to go along early, before Christmas to stock the pantry and get the china and silverware all ready. And the butterflies in my gut also now knew when Draco and I could plan our little escape. Thoughts of that made my hand wobble a little as I picked up my coffee. But it was a good wobble.

I didn't see Draco until dinnertime, Ron managed to get us an hour on the pitch mid afternoon and had us all running sprints while he hurled balls at us. We came back inside, just in time for dinner, red faced, and with a few new bruises to find the Great Hall had been reassembled into the long house tables, unlike the last two weekends when it had been the smaller rounds. Candles were shimmering everywhere and it seemed quite obvious that something important was going to be happening. I felt distinctly underdressed in my jeans and long sleeved polo shirt. At least I had thought to run a proper comb through my hair instead of my fingers this time. I took my seat beside Hermione, who was beside Ron, with the same look in my eyes as most everyone else. Wide-eyed curiosity.

Draco, I noted was sitting at his house table, looking distinctly better than me, pressed black shirt and pants, long hair combed flawlessly into a cascade of white blond, beautiful blue eyes staring at me with a flash of a smile before he glanced away as the Professors entered the room with a bit of a flourish. Minerva went straight to the podium; at least she wasn't going to keep us in suspense for too long.

"Students, I hope you will all please join me in welcoming our two new Professors this evening." She gestured to the wings of the stage with an outstretched arm all of our eyes following her.

"Professor Genvieve LaSeigne, our new Potions Professor." We were all prepared to clap as she walked out onto the stage, but the only sound that initially greeted her were dozens of jaws dropping.

"Merlin's Blood Harry." I heard Ron gasp under his breath, "She's a Veela."

"Yes she is." I responded, not able to take my eyes off of her. After a moment nervous twittering gave way to the delayed applause as some us came back to our senses. I can admit I wasn't the first one to do so. Hermione might have been.

She was enchanting, long white hair, falling below her waist, pale skin and green eyes, which was unusual, but of course she wasn't a full Veela, none of us males could possibly have been safe if she was. Her robes were a pale blue, trimmed with white and she walked with a dancer's grace, every step looking perfectly placed but effortless, as if the floor simply came to her and not the other way around. Her smile, as she nodded first to the other Professors, and then to us, was serene and magical, and collective sighs were heard in the room, quickly followed by embarrassed breaths, and huffs from some of the girls who were not terribly impressed at the way the boys seemed completely oblivious to everything but the new Professor. I got the impression that there were going to be a lot more students signing up for Potions class.

"Honestly." I heard Hermione mumble, "How on earth does the Headmistress think the boys around here are going to get any work done now?"

It got better.

Minerva, still standing at the podium announced that Professor LaSeigne was also going to be the new head of house for Gryffindor. I honestly thought that Hermione's head was going to explode, but she kept her cool quite well, managing not to smack Ron who had yet to close his awestruck mouth.

It was quite amusing to watch the male professors stumble about to rise from their seats, and those closest to her try to pull out a chair for her. They looked as awkward as I imagine many of us felt. Hermione might have been right; it was going to take some doing to get past her natural enchantments. But we had all managed it with Fleur so I knew it could be done, and I was certain that Minerva wasn't so daft as to bring more problems to Hogwarts. Her second announcement proved nearly as exciting, at least for the girls in the room.