Author's note. Phew, you would not believe how many reviews I got suggesting Dan and Emma/Jean for the Grangers. However, I also got a lot asking that I not use Dan and Emma so you'll be happy to know I'm not just because Dan and Emma don't appeal to me. Nothing wrong with the names, they just don't feel right. The second most common set was Richard and Helen and actually, they feel right to me. Nice ordinary names which suit the Grangers very well.
It should be noted that while I'm doing my best to keep everyone in characters, the two characters I have the most trouble writing are Luna and Snape. Luna is difficult partly because of how unique she is but also because fan fiction has rather ruined her either by making her a prophet, slut or a weirdo that makes everyone uncomfortable. She's a tricky one to write so I'm sorry if I mess her up.
As for Snape, because I love him as a character so much, I'm not good at doing his evil, cruelly sarcastic personality, I always end up making him strict but sort of caring which I know isn't canon. So to help me get in the right frame of mind for him, would everyone like to give me some Snape worthy phrases? I don't mean quotes from the books, just things you think Snape is likely to say with plenty of sarcastic snark through in.
On another note, I've just joined Pottermore and I was sorted into Hufflepuff. Ironically, my school had four houses with the same colours and the yellow one always came first. My house, the red one was always second. Enjoying Pottermore a lot although Ron Weasley would like to point out Galleons are not to be found so easily lying around. ;)
If you've already played Pottermore, I messed up the polyjuice potion when that dratted bottle spilled into the Cauldron. I can't restock as you've got to find these ingredients but I've already collected them, how can I solve this? Also, how do you get into Snape's office, someone said go back to the 'third moment' any idea what this is? Thanks.
Enjoy and please review.
They could not stop laughing as they ran back to their compartment; the looks on the twins' faces had just been priceless. Ron in particular had a rather gleeful look on his face as they collapsed into their seats, causing Crookshanks to give them a curious look as Scabbers slept on.
"That was bloody brilliant," Ron declared, wiping tears of laughter away.
"They're going to get you back for that," Harry reminded him with a chuckle but Ron waved that away.
"They'd get me whether I did anything or not. This way, they might actually show me a bit of respect."
His smile faded a little as he said.
"They've always had a go at me."
"Why is that?" Hermione said with a frown. "And what about Percy?"
Ron chuckled rather grimly.
"Percy might be easy to wind up and be stuffy to boot but he's two years older than them. As much as they don't like to admit it, he'd got more magical experience and knowledge than them so if they try anything, he doesn't find it difficult to counter it. As for Bill, well, they wouldn't dare try anything behind beetles in his soup; he's a curse breaker for Merlin's sake. Charlie wrestles dragons for a living so he's a match for them and Ginny's mum precious baby. Trust me; if they tried half the things they have with me with her, they wouldn't be able to walk by the time mum finished with them."
He looked out of the window rather moodily.
"But I'm two years younger and a boy so I'm free range for them, especially Fred. Sometimes I don't know what his problem was."
Hermione sat beside him and put her arm around him.
"I'm sure he wasn't being deliberately malicious but as you said, you had a disadvantage being a lot younger. Plus, he always had George to back him up. I suppose me and Harry can't really understand since we don't have any siblings, and Harry's cousin doesn't really count."
"Yeah," Ron mumbled before saying in a rush. "But I don't want him to die...I'd die if he died...again...you know..."
"We know," Hermione said soothingly. "He might be as you say, a git but he's your brother and you still love him. He and George get a lot better once they've got their joke shop to focus on."
As Ron nodded, Harry added.
"And don't forget, you're a lot older than him and you've got a few tricks up your sleeve. You can handle anything they throw at you."
Ron half smiled before saying.
"What about their Joke shop? I mean, we don't know if you're going to be in the Tri-Wizard Tournament or anything."
"We'll find a way," Harry assured him. "At the very least, I think Sirius would be interested in helping to found their business. Probably give him something to focus on."
"Yeah," Ron said with a sigh, he wanted his brothers' dream to succeed even if they did delight in tormenting him at times.
With a slight shake, he said briskly.
"So...it'll be great to be back in Hogwarts, won't it?"
"It'll be wonderful," Hermione agreed with a happy sigh. "We'll see everyone again, all our friends, the teachers, everything."
"It'll be brilliant," Harry said with a nod. "Although we'll need to avoid Quirrel, we can't risk Voldemort seeing what we are."
His friends nodded as Ron said.
"It'll be weird getting Sorted again, won't it?"
Hermione and Harry nodded as Hermione said slowly.
"You know it's funny...if we wanted to, we could probably be put in a new House."
"What?" exclaimed Ron in surprise, he hadn't thought of this at all.
"It's true," Harry said. "The Sorting Hat takes our choices into account, if you're desperate to go somewhere, it'll put you there."
"But why would you want to go to a different House?" Ron persisted, he couldn't imagine being anywhere but Gryffindor.
"We're not saying we don't want to go to Gryffindor," Hermione said quickly. "It's just...interesting that we could go to another House. We would have a new circle of friends for one, wouldn't we? A new dormitory, a new Head of House, it opens a lot of possibilities."
Ron frowned at this before grimacing.
"Urgh, imagine having Snape as your Head, he'd be a nightmare."
"Would he though," Harry mused. "We all know he favours his students and if we were his students, chances are he wouldn't hate us. And we'd have an opportunity to convince Slytherins they don't have to follow Voldemort."
"You'd have to deal with Malfoy," Ron pointed out.
"That would be...trying," Harry acknowledged. "But you know, we never really had much to do with some of the other Slytherins, some of them might be alright. We could help them realise they don't have to be enemies with every Gryffindor they come across."
"Suppose so," Ron said before smiling. "But there's no way I could ever be Slytherin, even if I was cunning and stuff, you can bet me and Malfoy would just argue all the time. Not to mention my brothers would never let me hear the end of it."
"Good point," Harry chuckled.
"Well, I can definitely see you in Ravenclaw," Ron said to Hermione who smiled and said.
"I think you could go as well."
"Me?" Ron exclaimed in great surprise. "But I'm not brainy."
"Compared to the others in our year, you are," Hermione reminded him with a smile. "You are intelligent Ron, you always have been but now you have a distinct advantage, you won't struggle at all with the coursework so you would do just fine in Ravenclaw."
Ron considered this thoughtfully before shaking.
"I don't think Ravenclaw's for me...they just...they like to study way too much, I wouldn't fit in. I know they're not all obsessed with studying and stuff but I just wouldn't be able to get into it. And if any of them get wind of the fact I know more than I should, all they'll want me to do is study or tutor people."
"That's fair enough," Hermione said with a nod. "We're just discussing what it would be like to be in different Houses."
"Yeah," Harry said, it had been something he'd pondered over during the summer. "In a way, I could see myself in Slytherin and maybe even Hermione too."
"Hermione's Muggleborn," Ron pointed out as Hermione herself said.
"But there are Muggleborns in Slytherin, they just keep their heads down a lot. And from what I've read, it's only during times of Pureblood mania that you get less Muggleborns there. I think the Sorting Hat could put those who truly belong in Slytherin so as to protect the others."
"But you could show that not all Slytherins are evil," Harry said slowly. "You're the best in our year and kind; it could help change their image."
"Yes but I don't know if I can ever get on with Pansy and some of the other girls," Hermione said wistfully. "I've managed to make friends with most of the girls in our years, even a couple of the Slytherin girls but most of them couldn't stand me. I think I'd rather be in another House."
"You'd want Ravenclaw for that," Ron stated wisely. "The Slytherins look down on Hufflepuffs and hate Gryffindors but I have noticed a lot of them make friends with Ravenclaws. I heard they share a couple of classes and they respect Ravens for their smarts even if they think their boring at times. I even heard Snape tolerates the Ravens out of the three Houses the most."
`"That is a good point," Hermione said. "And in a way, our advanced knowledge would in some way be easier to hide and it wouldn't be difficult to make friends with other Houses. We could even look after Luna; make sure she wasn't bullied so badly."
Harry had confessed this to his friends in Sixth year, to help them understand the girl better. He liked Luna a lot and wanted her to have more allies in Hogwarts and when he saw that mural on her bedroom ceiling; he'd seen it had worked.
As everyone thought on the issue of Houses, Ron spoke somewhat hesitantly.
"I...this might sounds stupid but...I don't want to be separated from you guys."
He continued quickly as they looked at him.
"I know I could maybe go into another House but...Gryffindor's my home, my House and I don't want to leave it. I know you guys would be great in the other Houses, you're both loyal and kind as anything, and you'd make great Badgers. But...maybe I'm wrong but if we're all separated, won't that make things harder? You know, trying to change things, think how much harder it'll be to meet up and talk?"
This made his friends pause and give this serious thought. Seeing that they weren't adding anything, Ron continued.
"If you guys went to Ravenclaw and I went to Gryffindor, we'd barely be able to see each other. We only share classes with the Badgers and Snakes, they rotate these things every year. We're only really allowed to sit at our House tables and we're not meant to visit each other's Dormitories."
"I'm...I'm not trying to force you guys to stay with me," he said hurriedly, worried they might think he was holding them back or something. "But it would make hanging out next to impossible and planning...I think we do need to be together for that, otherwise it won't work."
There was a pause and then Harry said.
"I think you're right Ron, we do need to be together, not just because of planning but because we're a team. You guys are my best friends and I don't want to be separated from you. I've been thinking about how we can change things and if we split up...who knows what might be changed. Things have already changed and we've barely started, it'll all get out of control if we change stuff we don't' need to."
"And I think it's time Gryffindor reached out to the other Houses, especially Slytherin," Hermione now said. "Ravenclaw is already friends with Slytherin, we don't really need to do anything there. We need to try and reunite Slytherin and Gryffindor, they were once best friends. We can start with our year mates and maybe...as time goes on, we can influence the younger years so that they don't have to hate each other."
"We can reach out to everyone," Harry said softly. "It's not going to be easy but we've got a good chance I think. We know the Badgers aren't stupid, especially Cedric..."
His voice trailed away slightly as he remembered he'd be seeing the kind boy again. Probably the most innocent of all the beings he'd seen die and he was alive and whole. Harry had to swallow heavily before clearing his throat and continuing.
"And the Ravens aren't all obsessed with studying and as for the Snakes; I know they're not all evil. Hell, most of them definitely aren't, only a few individuals just like there's probably some in the other Houses. We know that and we can help others see that, show them that Gryffindors aren't just brave idiots."
He was a little flushed as he said this; just the thought was working him up a bit.
"We can make a real difference; show that not everyone's a stereotype, that people can share the traits of more than one House."
"We can," Hermione said firmly and even though they still resided in barely teenage bodies, somehow it felt like they were back in their old adult bodies. Just the sheer conviction and determination that these three had was enough to create this strange illusion. A moment later, it was broken as Ron said.
"So...Gryffindor then?"
"Gryffindor," Harry and Hermione agreed.
"Thank Merlin," Ron sighed. "Oliver would kill you if you weren't in Gryffindor, Harry."
"He probably would," Harry agreed as he laughed. He did wonder, if he had headed for Slytherin, how many people would have refused to even consider being friends with him. Would even the Weasley twins turn their backs?
"I'm straved," Ron suddenly declared. "Can we eat lunch?"
"Some things never change," Hermione giggled but she was giving the hamper a rather hungry look so it was all in jest.
Sometime later, they were all enjoying their lunch. Both Harry and Hermione were very impressed and told Ron that he seemed to have inherited his mother's talent with food with made the boy blush with pride. While it was always nice to gorge a little on the trolley food, having a proper meal was even better. The homemade strawberry lemonade was particularly welcome as the long train journey always made them thirsty.
Just as they were more than half way through, their compartment door opened to reveal a small plump and rather tearful boy.
"Sorry to bother you," he mumbled. "Has anyone seen a toad?"
"Oh," exclaimed Hermione, somehow managing to stop herself from blurting out the boy's name. "Have you lost your toad?"
"Yeah," Neville said miserably. "He keeps getting away."
"Have you tried asking a Prefect to summon him?" Hermione asked but Neville shook his head.
"No, they just say they haven't seen him."
"Do you want a help looking for him?" Hermione asked kindly as Neville shyly nodded.
"I'll be back in a bit," she said to the two boys who nodded.
"I'm Ron," Ron managed to say as Hermione got up as Harry also introduced himself.
"Neville," Neville mumbled as Hermione joined him in the corridor.
"Wow," Ron said as the compartment door closed. "I've forgotten what Neville used to be like."
"Same here," Harry repeated almost faintly, was this really the boy who'd publically defied Voldemort before decapitating Nagini?
"It's weird," Ron said quietly. "That he could have been the Chosen one, If Voldemort had made a different choice."
Harry nodded; he'd dealt a long time on this. It was probably something he'd never know, why had Voldemort chosen him? Why hadn't he simply gone for both boys, just to be safe? Maybe Voldemort didn't even know, not fully, he was just the type who got an idea into his head and went for it, no matter what.
Ron idly levitated a spare sausage roll into his mouth, chewing in a rather thoughtful way.
"Neville doesn't have his own wand," he said thickly, still chewing. "It's his dad's wand."
"Yeah," Harry agreed, remembering when Neville broke it and how upset he'd been. Well, he'd been mostly worried about upsetting his Gran but it appeared that breaking it while fighting off several Death Eaters was acceptable. Neville had been allowed to get his very own wand and his magical skills had definitely improved.
Part of this was because his confidence had grown but a new wand did play a huge factor in being able to finally cope with his schoolwork. He even managed Defence against the Dark Arts just fine, despite who was teaching. Harry had practically forgotten that bumbling, forgetful boy Neville had been in their younger years but he was uncomfortably reminded now.
Unlike the others who'd simply grown in their ability, Neville had basically leapt suddenly into it. Harry did wonder how things would be different now for Neville.
"Think Hermione will be able to find Trevor?" he asked Ron who nodded.
"Probably, I bet she'll summon him when Neville's not looking or something."
Harry agreed as he helped himself to a bit more pasta, he found he really loved it.
"We need to tell him he's not useless," he said firmly. "He was always convinced he couldn't do anything, even when he was good at things."
"He won't believe us," Ron sighed. "Remember we tried to convince him before? He's been told by his Gran and other mad relatives that he can never measure up to his parents so he's convinced that's true. Especially as he's not instantly great at stuff, it just convinces him even more."
Harry smiled ruefully.
"Guess we have to try harder."
Turning more serious, he said.
"I think little things can make a difference, for instance, one of us should try to partner him in Potions so that Snape doesn't get mad. Encourage him in Charms and Herbology, he was always good at those and give him help in Transfiguration. As for History, well, we all need help for that."
Both of them laughed how true that was.
"Okay," Ron said with a grin. "Maybe we could set up something similar to the DA?"
"Don't tell Hermione," Harry couldn't resist saying. "You know what happen if we suggest this."
"Oh I do," Ron said with a nod just as Hermione entered.
"I found his toad," she said breathlessly. "But I had to walk him back to his compartment; it's almost at the other end of the train. He's with Ernie, Hannah, Fay a couple of others."
"He's in good company then," Harry said, relieved Neville was sitting with very good natured people.
She nodded, taking her seat and bending over to help herself to some more lunch. Harry spotted Ron's wide grin and knew he was happy Hermione liked the food so much. He'd so wanted to please her and he certainly had.
"I'm just heading to the loo," he told his friends before leaving the compartment.
"Chocolate frog?" Ron offered to Hermione who shook her head.
"Not when I've still got this?" she explained, indicating her slice of tart. "I can't eat sweet before savoury."
Ron just shrugged, biting the head of his frog and examining the card. It was one he hadn't found until he was thirteen so he was pleased to make a good start to his collection. Now that he was alone with Hermione, he felt he should say something to her. But just as he started opening his mouth, the compartment door opened.
It wasn't Harry.
"Have any of you seen Harry Potter?" the blond boy, flanked by two massive bodyguards drawled.
They had finally bumped into Draco Malfoy.
Author's note. How does the encounter go? What happens when they reach Hogwarts? Find out next time, until then.