WHOOHOOOO! The Block has been cleared! I've finally managed to finish that chapter! I can't begin to describe the relief I feel at being rid of this one!

Okay, this is still a bit of a filler, especially when one considers that it was actually part of the previous chapter. But, when the previous chapter was basically centered on personal plots, this one actually makes the story advance. It also gives another glimpse in Julie's relationship with her new teacher. I'll confess I'm quite fond of Desideria Wroxton, and I liked this chapter.

So, here it is, Hope you'll enjoy it.

Oh, I take the occasion of reminding everyone that this literary universe isn't mine to take profit from. It's JK Rowling's. Also, the title comes from an album by one of my favourite bands ever: Dream Theater.

Scenes from a memory

The wooden staff was only floating before her, bathed in a golden light. The sight was harmless enough, but she could feel a sense of dread, curiously. Something very important seemed tied to this staff. She could almost hear whispers, all of them sending a warning into her very being, and a sudden chill ran through her, forcing her awake.

Julie opened her eyes with a gasp. Looking around, she was relieved to see she hadn't woken any of her dorm-mates. Through the curtains of her bed, she could see that it was still dark outside, with only the moon sending light through the windows of Gryffindor Tower. She sat up and tried to write down what she had seen, like Wroxton had asked her.

Now, she was just confused. What could be the meaning of this one? It had no connection to any other vision; she had had, so far, even a dream of the previous term.

Still, there was the obvious conclusion she could draw immediately from the dream. The staff in her vision could only mean one thing in her mind.

It involved the Brotherhood.

As she got up to get something to drink, Julie felt restless, and as often when she got a vision like this, she knew that she wouldn't go back to sleep.

This was going to be a long day.

Ginny was early for her lunch with Luna, so she was taking a stroll on Diagon Alley, when she spotted a familiar silhouette. It was Sonia Jenkins, Auror in Kingsley's division and a former member of the Order of the Phoenix. Ginny remembered her from her days at the Order's headquarters. She had been a young recruit, back then, dedicated and enthusiastic. She reminded Ginny of Tonks, somewhat, without that funny goofy side of her. Ginny was about to wave at the woman, but then saw Sonia take a left turn and enter Knockturn Alley.

Well, maybe she has business there, thought Ginny, before her attention was drawn to someone else. This time, she reacted immediately.

"Angelina!" she called.

The tall chaser stopped and turned to greet her. She looked a little awkward.

"Oh, Hi, Ginny," she said. "What are you doing here?"

"Meeting Luna for lunch," said Ginny. "So what's up? And please don't say my brother..."

"Huh?" said Angelina, suddenly looking a little panicked.

"You and Fred," said Ginny, with a smile.

"Oh, you... you know about that?" said Angelina. "I mean... did Fred tell you?"

"No, George did," said Ginny. "He kinda walked into the two of you and he needed to ease the shock."

"Oh, Merlin," said Angelina, blanching slightly. "So your whole family knows it?"

"Nah," said Ginny. "Just Harry and me. Well, we told Ron and Hermione, but it hasn't left Hogwarts. But it's awesome, Angie."

"No, it's not," said Angelina, brusquely. "Because it … it didn't go anywhere."

"What?" said Ginny. "What happened? I mean, you had this thing going on."

"I know and it's not fair," said Angelina. "I feel terrible using Fred that way. I was so down and when we got drunk, well..."

"Oh," said Ginny. "Does Fred know?"

"I couldn't face him," said Angelina. "I... I just apparated."

"Oh come on, Angie, that makes it even worse!" said Ginny.

"I know," moaned Angelina. "But I... I can't do that to him! I just can't use Fred Weasley as a rebound guy."

"Okay, so he's not a rebound guy," said Ginny. "So what? You flirted, you shagged, and now, you go on from there."

"But I can't," said Angelina. "He doesn't feel that way! I know he's being supportive and all, but he is such a great friend... I can't do that to him!"

"Angelina, listen to me," said Ginny. "Fred..."

"Drop it, Ginny," said Angelina. "It just wasn't a good idea. I'll see you around... just not around Fred, alright?"

"What? But wait, Angelina!" she called after the tall witch as she was retreating in the crowd.

Ginny was left alone, astounded.

"What the hell just happened?" she asked to herself.

Julie's step quickened, as she reached the southern corridor on the second floor. She was late for her next session with Professor Wroxton. She had been delayed by Robert, and she was torn between annoyance and delight at the feeling of his kisses. Still, she hurried toward the seer's office, only to find her standing near a very curious object. It looked like a floating silver basin.

"Ah, Julie," Wroxton greeted her. "Come in, dear, this should be fascinating."

Since their first lesson, the teacher had opted for a lack of formality that Julie liked quite a lot. She wouldn't go as far as Ian and get on a first name basis with her teacher, but she liked the fact Wroxton didn't feel the need to be all formal with her.

Wroxton had been true to her word. Their lessons had consisted of mental exercises to clear the mind and enhance her focus. Julie had been given books about that, but also books that contained vast images with tiny details in which she was supposed to spot the slightest thing very quickly, to train her vision. She also had been assigned a Muggle book about facial micro-expressions, in case she needed to read the mood of someone in a vision, even without words.

Beyond the stakes of her visions, Julie had to admit that she was fascinated by the approach of what Wroxton called the "footwork" of divination. It seemed eminently more practical and serious than anything Trelawney had ever tried to teach her, especially since she had heard of Julie's vision. The ethereal teacher had spent half the term trying to provide Julie with helpful and very vague notions of what she needed to do "to expand her third eye". Julie chose to stick to Wroxton's approach.

Julie looked at the basin.

"What is that thing, Professor?" she asked.

"Ah, a very fascinating device," said Wroxton, "that Professor Dumbledore has been kind enough to lend us. It serves our purpose almost perfectly. This is a Pensieve. It is used to collect, store and explore one's memories, either your own or someone else's. This will be the perfect way to illustrate the importance of observation and interpretation. We will be exploring one of your visions, today."

"How?" asked Julie, a little awkward.

She realized that she didn't want to look weak in front of Wroxton and she was quite sure to crumble down, should they explore her recurring nightmare.

"By retrieving your memory of it," said Wroxton, tapping her wand gently on the edge of the Pensieve. "Of course, we will need to compare it to the memory of the actual event, to complete the exercise. So, we will need a vision that has already come to pass."

Julie let out a sigh of relief. But she realized that except for her dream about the unicorn, none of her visions had been very happy. The prospect of reliving one wasn't that great, actually.

"Professor Potter told me you had a vision of your rescue in the Maze of Era," said Wroxton. "Would it be alright if we explored this?"

Julie nodded slowly. At least she was certain of the outcome of that vision.

"Good," Wroxton commended her resolve. "Now, I will ask you to try and remember the vision you had of that moment, not the moment in itself, but your vision of it."

"It's not like I have much choice," said Julie. "I don't have much memory of the true event. I was stunned most of the time."

"True," said Wroxton. "But it doesn't stop the mind from creating memories. Now, please, try to focus on the vision."

Julie closed her eyes and tried to recall the moment she had that very specific dream, last year. She remembered that it was before the duel between Robert and Kenneth, and that the very same night, she had dreamed of being dragged to an altar, chained up on a stone table, and…

The woman had a mad glint in her eye.

"Time to enter eternal glory, young one," she said.

Julie fought against the chains, and spat in her face.

"You're insane!" she said.

The woman only smiled, as she wiped Julie's spit from her face.

"Brave and strong," she mused. "A true Gryffindor. Perfect. Time to die."

A bright light exploded around Julie and a wave of terrible pain engulfed her, and her scream tore through the cave.

Rough hands suddenly shook her...

The dream was clear in her memory, now.

"I've got it," she said.

"Just hold on to it for a moment, Julie," said Wroxton, and Julie felt the tip of her wand against her temple. "There, I have it, now."

Julie opened her eyes and saw, at the tip of the witch's wand, a tiny silvery wisp of glowing fog. Wroxton went to gently deposit it inside the Pensieve in what, Julie realized it now, was a pool made of memories. The surface shone briefly as the vision integrated the whole.

"Now, in order to compare the visions, and given that you were, indeed, stunned," said Wroxton, "I took the liberty of collecting a few memories of the actual events but from different sources."

"Excuse me?" said Julie, astonished.

"The Pensieve is a very clever device, that way," said Wroxton. "It allows one to compile memories of the same event from different persons, to get a clear picture of said moment. The spells on this specific Pensieve will allow us to go back and forth from the vision to the real thing, and see the differences. For the actual memory, your teachers and friends have been kind enough to allow me to collect their "side" of the moment, so to speak."

"Teachers and friends?" said Julie.

"Indeed," said Wroxton. "Harry and his friends, the adults in that battle weren't difficult to convince. I couldn't use Professor Lockenburn's memories, though, as the tension he experienced during the fight, makes them useless to our purpose. I was expecting more resistance from your young friends, but I was pleasantly surprised."

"Who…" began Julie.

"Mister Malcolm and Miss McDougall were very helpful," said Professor Wroxton. "As for Miss Johnson and Mister Lionheart, they gave their memories readily enough, and I must say that it is very precise, although Miss McDougall is by far the most observant of the lot."

"They… They gave it to you?" said Julie, astounded at the thought that Kalindra and Kenneth, despite being cold to her, would still help her that way.

"Is that so surprising?" asked the teacher.

"We're… we're not exactly on the best terms, right now," said Julie, lowering her eyes. "I didn't know they would still…"

"Never give up on real friends, Julie," said Wroxton.

"No, I'm not… It's… It's my fault, really," she said, suddenly feeling ashamed. "I'd rather not talk about it, now."

"Alright," said Wroxton, with a nod. "Let's proceed."

"How does it work?" asked Julie.

"You plunge your head into the Pensieve," said Wroxton. "I shall join you there. Rest assured that nothing can harm you in that vision."

Julie walked closer to the Pensieve, and slowly carefully, bent down until her face was inches from what looked like shiny water. She took a deep breath before to plunge into the liquid.

Except it wasn't like entering liquid at all. Instead, Julie felt like falling, out of sudden. She was lost inside a whirlwind of colour and sound, and couldn't tell which way she was falling until she suddenly found herself back in the cave of the Maze of Era where the Ritual of Life had taken place. Sound and light had faded, somehow, and everything looked and sounded dim, like lost in mist. Julie looked around, and saw the battle around her, but it did seem distant, and in fact, pretty harmless. This was a very curious feeling to witness a situation where she knew her life had been endangered, but to be able to see it with so much calm and detachment. After all, she knew for a fact that she had survived. This annihilated her fear and she was able to see what was going in a lot of details.

She noticed the way the warlocks used ancient, curious waves of wands, instead of the more efficient ones used by Professor Potter and his friends. She was able to admire the mastery with which Professor Weasley and Potter used magic in their duels. She found herself in awe of Professor Lockenburn's raw power, as he was fighting Waltz in the heights of the cave. And, with a cold chill through her heart, she saw herself, chained to the Altar, struck by the vicious lightning of the Ritual, writhing in pain. She saw the chains shatter, dissolving in the energy of the spell. The memories from that moment were a blur, actually, so to see them now was a weird feeling.

"Quite the commotion," noted Professor Wroxton.

Julie jumped and turned to face the older witch, who was looking around in interest.

"Er… yes, it was," said Julie. "I realise I never really saw what happened, back then."

"So, let's see," said Wroxton, getting her wand out. "Let's explore your vision."

She waved her wand and again, Julie saw the dream she had been having, back then, only, now, it seemed to be seen from another's eyes. She saw what she now knew to be Lilia, looking down at Julie, with a mad glint in her eye.

"Time to enter eternal glory, young one," she said.

Julie saw herself fighting against the chains, spitting in her face in an act of defiance.

"You're insane!" she said.

The woman only smiled, as she wiped Julie's spit from her face. Even after all these months, the way she acted chilled Julie to the bone.

"Brave and strong," mused Lilia. "A true Gryffindor. Perfect. Time to die."

A bright light exploded around Julie and a wave of terrible pain engulfed her, and her scream tore through the cave.

Rough hands suddenly shook her...

"Hey, hold on!" said Julie. "That's not what actually happened!"

"Is it not?" asked Wroxton. "Let's see, then, what the real memory contains."

She waved her wand again, and the whole scene shifted. Julie saw herself once more chained to the altar, but it was seen from above, and she realised that she was standing next to Ian, Kieran, Kalindra, Terry, Joel and Kenneth. When she saw Kenneth, kneeling over a chasm that let them look right down onto her, Julie felt her heart thump into her chest. He looked so… decided, so intense… it was almost inhuman.

With a nod from Wroxton, she focused on the scene unfolding below them.

"Enervate," said Lilia, as she was reviving Julie."You said you would be rescued?" she added. "I'd say your friends need to act quickly. Because it is time to die, now."

"Yes, that's what I remember," said Julie.

"So you see," said Wroxton, as Lilia turned to the crowd to address her follower. "A vision isn't a literal representation of the future, because the future is still shifting. For example, you do not remember that cut in your vision, do you?"

She pointed at the Altar and Julie saw Lilia draw blood from her cheek with her knife, which made her heart freeze. She instinctively turned to Kenneth as if begging him to step in now, to save her. And she saw the rage burning in his eyes as he was spying on them.

"Quiet, young one," said Lilia. "You will now be a nice little girl, and play your part in silence. The Ritual of Life will drain the living force of the young girl here to gather the Power needed to raise our Great Lord, the Bane of Atlantis. And her blood will help us, as well," she said, resuming her speech for her followers.

The crowd in the temple cheered. The scene shifted and Julie looked around, to see that she was now standing with Professor Potter, on the other side of the room, as he was sneaking inside the Temple, with his friends, ready for a fight. The words from Lilia were more distant, but Julie could tell she was talking a lot more than in her vision. Maybe the vision was cutting out a few details.

But Julie saw herself spit in her face, looking furious. She had a moment of pride, at seeing that she hadn't faltered in front of certain death. If only she would be that brave, now…

Lilia only smiled.

"You're really brave," she said. "But that won't save you."

"I think we can take care of that part," Professor Potter said, stepping out of his hiding place.

Before he could do anything more, though, the ritual's light suddenly exploded around Julie, and she heard the terrifying scream she had let out. She had been sure that she had been silent, when the lightning had hit. She had only thought and accepted that she was going to die. She remembered thinking of Kenneth, and… to hear herself let out such a sound was horrifying.

"Remember, Julie," said Wroxton, on a sympathetic tone. "You were rescued in the end."

"I just… I just had no idea of how horrible this went," she said.

Around them, the battle went crazy, as the teachers were using the surprise to overcome the warlocks. As the fanatics were regrouping to strike back, Julie saw the forces of the Order of the Phoenix show up and fight alongside Potter and the others. The bright pink hair of Hunter Tonks clashed with the dark grey of the cave.

"Ah, I've heard of this one," said Wroxton. "I taught her mother at school. The word is she is quite impressive."

And Julie couldn't deny that. Tonks was pretty skilled and her duels were quick and efficient. She was going through foes like through butter. At some point, Professor Weasley caught three wands she had snatched from her foes and after snapping them, she threw them into the flames of a brasero, where it created a huge explosion.

"Ingenious," said Wroxton, with a smile. "I had no idea that young woman was such a fierce fighter.

"They're all risking their life for me," said Julie, in awe. "I had no idea… oh, Merlin, Professor Weasley… she… she was pregnant at the time!" she exclaimed, horrified by the thought.

"Was she? I can hardly tell, given her way of fighting," said Wroxton. "Do not beat yourself up, Julie. This is all in the past, and they are all fine."

"But…" began Julie, but a shout from Mr Weasley.

"Alex, look out!"

"Avada Kedavra!" shouted Lilia, aiming at the Entropist

"Deflecto," replied Lockenburn.

Like in slow motion, Julie saw the green wave of the Killing Curse rush to meet Ian's mentor, but only to hit a powerful shield, and after a long moment of struggle, to bounce off, heading for Waltz. The scream from Lockenburn only ended to be echoed in the crazed servant of Lilia before the spell from his own mistress came to claim his life. Julie saw Waltz fall limply on the stone floor, while Lockenburn struggled to the floor, where he fell on his knees, exhausted by the incredible deed he had just performed.

"I had been told of this," said Wroxton, impressed. "I wasn't sure I believed that."

"Is that even possible?" asked Julie. "I thought no one could survive that curse."

"You mean beside this man, over there?" said Wroxton, nodding in Potter's direction, where Julie saw him dispatch a few more warlocks, before to confront Lilia. "The thing is, no one hit by the Killing curse survives it. Harry is quite the exception. But, you see, Professor Lockenburn didn't survive the curse. He shifted its course and deflected it from him. It's different, which allowed him to live through it, though you can see the strain it caused for him."

Julie nodded at that. Back at the Altar, Potter and Lilia were locked in a stand-off, with Lilia threatening to kill Julie, should the teacher make one more step. All of this had been lost to her, last time, as she still saw herself convulsing in pain, trapped inside the violent light of the ritual. And suddenly the spell was deflected! She was caught inside a protective bubble, just like the one Professor Lockenburn had created before the fight had broken loose.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"What do you think you're doing, Lockenburn?" said Lilia, as an echo of her thoughts. "You really want me to kill her?"

"This needs clarifying," said Wroxton, waving her wand.

Around them, the scene shifted again, and she found herself with Kenneth and the others once more.

"No way," Terry was saying. "We have to do something. If we don't, Julie will die anyway."

"Yes, we have to do something," said Kenneth, stunning Julie by his decided tone. "I go in there and I get her out of that damned spell."

"No, you can't," said Terry. "You'll be fried before to reach her. That would be useless."

"Alexander did something that stopped the spell from working," said Kieran, thoughtfully.

"And I can do it again," said Ian. "You'll have little time to act, though, but I'll hold as long as I can. My guess is that once you pull Julie out of this Altar, the spell will dissolve, or at least cease to work normally."

"Are you sure?" asked Kenneth.

"No," said Ian, sincerely. "But honestly do you want to leave her alone in this?"

Kenneth had a smile that caught Julie's heart into a grip.

"That's what I thought," said Ian.

Julie realized this was, in all appearances, a suicide move! And she found herself back near the Altar, as the bubble from Ian's magic was isolating her from the deadly lightning of the ritual. She then saw Kenneth plunge into the bubble of energy, with a scream of pain as the ritual inflicted its toll on him. He landed right next to her, and grasping her shoulders with his hands, he roughly pulled her off the Altar, leaving the ritual to lose its integrity. She heard Lilia's scream of rage, and Potter's counter spell that put an end to the ritual. And she saw Kenneth delicately carry her in his arms, emerging from behind the Altar to face both Lilia and Potter.

"She's breathing," he said, as a challenge.

Julie lost her focus on the rest. She barely paid attention to the fact Kalindra had blasted Lilia away before Kenneth's jump. She almost didn't see Ian land in front of the Altar, raise a shield to stop Lilia's demented charge. All that she could see, as Lilia got surrounded and disapparated with a promise of vengeance, was Kenneth, covered in burns all over his body and cradling her form in his arms, after he had just saved her life. And then it came to hit her.

"The rough hands in my vision," she whispered.

"Yes," said Wroxton. "They were the hands that were saving your life. Let me show you something."

She waved her wand a final time, and the scene shifted back to Julie's dream. The vision felt different from the memory, because it had a sense of urgency that lacked from the other. And Julie could barely focus on the contents of the vision, as it was going through a loop.

"Look," said Wroxton.

With a flick of her wand, everything crawled down to a stop and the image seemed to pause. Julie could finally take the time of studying what was going on. And she saw, at the point of the vision when those rough hands had seized her, that those hands weren't the ones of a faceless man. And she saw Kenneth, right there in her dream, saving her life, as he would in real life.

"He was there," said Julie. "He was there and I couldn't see it."

"Yes, he was," said Wroxton. "Come on, we're done, here."

She caught her hand, and suddenly, Julie took a step back, finding herself out of the Pensieve, back in Dumbledore's office. She took a moment to make sure that everything around her was real. Wroxton had a comprehensive smile.

"It takes a little while to adjust back to reality," she said. "So, what did we learn from the exercise?"

"That my vision held more than what I had seen," said Julie.

"Exactly," said Wroxton. "Now, that you have seen everything, what would have been your reaction about this vision?"

"I would have known that Kenneth would try to rescue me," said Julie.

"Indeed," said Wroxton. "This is what I'm aiming to teach you: to be able to observe so that you can catch on that kind of detail and get a better understanding of the warning."

"You think this can be taught?" asked Julie. "I mean… the way these images flash through my mind, I don't even know how I would be able to see all of this."

"It's difficult, it's true," said Wroxton. "But you can be trained to refine your perception of these visions."

"I understand the point," said Julie. "Is that why you have me playing with these huge images? So that I can learn to focus on every detail?"

"That's right," said Wroxton. "I'm sure you will not always get the chance to analyse a vision, but given the proper training and some time, you may be able to, let's say, have a closer look."

"We're getting close, Mandy."

Mandy Williams had never been the kind of girl who shied away from her goals. When she wanted something, she was most of times ready to kick some hides, in order to get it, if need be. But, right now was completely different. She was trying to gather her courage to do something really huge. And something that was, actually terrifying. Her own voice didn't do much, when it came to comfort her.

But, as the days were now flying, literally, the fateful date approached with rapid strides. And the occasion she was now facing, wouldn't present itself again every day.

"Come on, Mandy," she told herself, on a very low tone. "He's alone."

She breathed deeply in and crossed the common room, swooping on Thierry on the most decided pace she could manage. It was a miracle she didn't stumble and fall right onto his lap.

"Er… Thierry?" she asked shyly, blushing like mad.

The Novice turned to her and smiled.

"Yes?" he said.

"Can I ask you something?"

Thierry nodded, a little puzzled.

"Willyougototheballwithme?(*)" asked Mandy, going even redder.

Thierry jaw dropped. And suddenly he blushed, too.

Wow, is he pleased? Maybe he's horrified! Maybe he finds me ugly! I should never have asked him!

Thoughts were now running in circles in Mandy's head, and she was sure that if he didn't answer in the next seconds, she would crawl under the carpet of the common room, and die out of embarrassment.

Thankfully, whether he had been aware of her struggles, Thierry obliged at once.

"Of course," he said. "I'd be delighted to go with you. I didn't think you would be interested."

"You got to be kidding!" exclaimed Mandy. "I was dying to ask you…"

Then she realised that he had said yes. And the pure joy swept away her shyness. She smiled broadly.

"Cool," she said.

"Indeed," said Thierry, with an amused grin.

"See you at dinner, then," said Mandy.

"Sure," said Thierry.

Mandy managed to walk away serenely. But when she reached the stairs to her dorm, all dignity disappeared and she rushed up the staircase to tell the news to everyone in the dorm.

She had a partner for the Ball! And how cute was her partner!

As the Ravenclaws were heading by small groups to the dinner, Ian was walking a little behind Orlando, Gina and Joel. He was still kind of bothered by the shift of the mood in the Castle. It was as if anyone that was younger than Professor Potter was apparently obsessed with the Ball! You'd think that in a term that had seen the emergence of a Spell Writer, an attack on a student and a gigantic lightshow over the lake, maybe there were something more interesting to talk about than a dance, but no! Of course not! Dresses and shoes, partners and choice of hairdo seemed to be the single point of focus of every girl he knew. He was sad to have noticed that even level-headed, dependable Kieran was now joining in the preparations.

To be fair, Ian's current bitterness over the issue could be summed up into one simple statement: he didn't have a date. Obviously this, added to the merciless harassment of his young brother, who insisted on calling him on their bet, didn't help his mood or to take the whole business cheerfully.

Sure, Kenneth's words, "It's only a Ball," did help Ian to put things in a perspective, and hopefully, he would come up with an idea not to spend the Ball on his own like an idiot, but right now, he loathed the whole mood of the castle.

It seemed, though, that somebody had taken pity on him.

"So, Ian," said Morag, catching up with him in the stairs leading to the Great Hall. "Do you have any plan for the Ball? Any girl on your arm?"

Ian shook his head.

"I was beginning to think I'd just avoid the whole trouble," he said. "I planned on asking Kieran, but…"

"The best friend is always the worst plan for a Ball," said Morag wisely. "I'll admit I hadn't seen the 'going with Terry' thing coming, though. She probably had a slight stroke, the morning before she said yes."

Ian had a snort of laughter.

"What about you?" He asked. "Any devoted escort to go with you?"

"You would think so, when you look at me, right?" she laughed. "Turns out, I had my sights on some guy in Hufflepuff, but he dumped me for some prissy bimbo from Gryffindor."

"Do we hate Gryffindors, now?" Ian asked, raising his eyebrows, surprised by her tone.

"Yes, when they sweep my dates plans from under my feet," said Morag, chuckling. "Well, I can't let this guy get away with it. So, here's an idea: Let's go there, and show them."

"Show them what?" asked Ian.

"Let's make the other girls regret not to have invited you and I will make this idiot of Alan Parker regret not to have kept me as a partner," she explained.

"I was under the distinct impression that it was guys who were supposed to ask girls out for the Ball," said Ian. "I'm not sure I can really blame any girl for…"

"Oh, come on, Malcolm! This is the 21st century!" said Morag, grandiloquently. "I mean, witches can do stuff on their own, you know. If we're allowed to own a wand, we're surely allowed to ask guys out."

"Point," said Ian, nodding. "So, you're asking me, then?"

"Yep! Come on, Ian," said Morag. "It will be fun. And it's a simple choice, really. We can let this party slip by us, because we're busy pouting in our corner, like kids who didn't get what they wanted…"

"Or?" said Ian, on a drawling tone.

"Or we decide we can get over it, and try to have fun no matter what. You're my friend, and I guess you'll look presentable enough in dress robes, not to mention that it would give me months of teasing material. So we go there together, and we enjoy it. And we don't let anything ruin our mood. What do you think?"

"Let me think…" said Ian. "Okay," he added immediately, with a smile.

Morag's smile in return was a mix of smugness and pure delight. Ian began to chuckle and soon, Morag joined him in laughter.

"Good," said Morag. "I'll have this Hufflepuff idiot drool over my dress. And I will have the most powerful student of this school to protect me from anyone."

"My dear, your safety is my only reason to live, from now on," said Ian, with a twisted smile.

"Thank you," said Morag with a bow.

"I still don't understand what the fuss is all about," said Ian.

"You mean about the Ball?" said Morag. "I don't know. To be honest, none of it makes any sense to me. But that's teenagers for you."

"Says the fourteen year-old," said Ian, slyly.

"I never claimed to make sense, too," Morag defended herself, laughing.

"None of the words she said made any sense," said Ginny. "I mean, she was going on about rebound guys and that Fred means more, so she can't be with him. I don't get what she's on about, but it looked bad."

"Well, as soon as I got your message, I went and paid a visit to Fred," said Ron, from his seat at the staff table, as the great hall was filling in with students. "He didn't make much sense either. I guess there was a massive screw-up, somewhere."

"But how could they screw up?" They're both crazy about each other," said Ginny.

"But neither knows it," said Hermione. "I mean, Angie is still getting over Bob, which can't be easy, really. She ends up in bed with Fred, but realises he means more to her than that, so she refuses to use him, because she can't believe that he'd be willing to try for more."

"Well, Fred is not willing for more, right now," said Ron. "He's sputtering about being looked on as a child or not being taken seriously. He's furious."

"That's hurt," said Hermione. "He doesn't understand what Angelina must feel. For him, he's been used, and that did hurt him, because he does seriously fancy Angelina."

"That feels like a massive waste," said Harry.

"Oh, yeah," said Ron. "I almost want to smack the both of them on the head for being stupid. Me! That's actually coming from the emotionally teaspoon-ranged bloke! They make me appear romantically savvy! How sick is that?"

Hermione laughed out loud, and kissed his cheek. Harry and Ginny shared an amused look. Since Hermione had used that formula, back in their fifth year, it had become a regular joke and Ron had completely embraced it. He was now proud of acting like the guy who literally understood nothing, when it came to romance, though Harry was fully aware that he understood more than enough. Hermione wouldn't have stayed with him if Ron hadn't finally gotten a clue.

Once more, Harry wondered how it was possible that they, as a group of friends and family, were able to go through war and fight off evil forces but still managed to suck on the romantic level on such an epic scale.

He also wondered if the students, that were currently gossiping madly about the coming Ball would be having the same trouble when they were his age, or if it was just him.

"So, do you finally have a partner to get to the Ball?" asked Ewan, grinning.

It was right after the feast, as the students were leaving the tables. Ewan had caught up with his brother. And his grin was so wide that Ian couldn't fight the urge to have a little fun.

"Yep," he said, casually.

"Really?!" said Ewan, looking taken aback.

"Your vote of confidence overwhelms me, Brother Mine," laughed Ian. "Yes, I found a date for the Ball, thank you very much."

"Alright, don't get your knickers in a twist," retorted Ewan, evilly. "Let me guess… her name wouldn't, by any chance, be starting with a K?"

"Actually, it doesn't," said Ian.

"Oh, come on, Ian, don't lie to me," said Ewan. "You're trying to double cross me."

"Nope," said Ian, grinning ever wider.

"Then prove it, give me a name," said Ewan.

"Morag Monaghan."

Ewan looked suddenly like a fish out of water, which made Ian laugh.

"Hey, get a grip, Ewan," said Ian. "I told you I wasn't going with Kieran."

"You… but you…" stuttered Ewan.

"I won the bet, brother," said Ian, grinning. "You owe me a galleon. I'm sure I can give you some time to pay…"

Ewan mumbled, while searching his pockets, and finally put one gold coin in his brother's hand. Then he walked away, still muttering about treacherous brothers. Ian looked at him with a smile across his face. A smile that faded quite fast when a thought occurred to him.

He had won the bet with his brother, alright. But the trouble was that now that it came to it, Ian had realised that maybe, only maybe… Ewan had been right from the start.

That's it, I'm in trouble, he thought.

Right, so that's done. Ian is starting to get a clue. He'll still take some time, though.

Next: a very important milestone in the story... the Ball! The writer block being lifted, it should be up very soon.