January 1945

"What do we think then?" Septima asked between mouthfuls of dinner, "which of our Christmases has been the most... interesting?"

It certainly was a good question, Ro thought. "Depends whether you mean actual Christmas day, or just the holiday," she pointed out.

Poppy nodded, hastily swallowing before saying "In first year it was before Christmas, second year it was after Christmas and this year the most interesting day was Christmas itself."

"Most interesting- that's one way of putting it!" Minerva said exasperatedly, and everyone laughed.

Christmas day had indeed been very interesting. After fleeing the Entrance Hall, they had made it undisturbed all the way up to the seventh floor where they waited to catch their breath before climbing the spiral staircase to Ravenclaw Tower. As they'd all hoped, Professor Merrythought hadn't batted an eyelid when Septima let them in and believed their cover story immediately.

"I've always said to Professor Dippet that it shouldn't be allowed, but he just won't listen," she huffed as she healed the wounds on Poppy's wrist. "That'll probably end up scarring I'm afraid, neither Professor Slughorn or Madame Quinine are here and I'm not much of a potioneer anymore with this arm." She waved her wrist stump in the air and Ro couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks, Professor Merrythought." Poppy smiled brightly, but Ro could still sense how tense she was by the way she was clenching her shoulders.

"Not a problem, my dear. Now, we all should get down to the Great Hall for the Feast!" Professor Merrythought said, walking over to the door and holding it open for Harvey Dale to take.

Once she and all the other Ravenclaws had filed out and were out of earshot, Ro whispered "What do we do about Fleamont's cloak? We can't leave it here, and we can't be late for the Feast!"

"We'll have to take it with us," Irma said, looking down at the cloak tucked under her arm. "It doesn't show up unless you're wearing it, and we can give it to Fleamont then."

Although the plan wasn't ideal, they quickly agreed it was the best thing they could do. Thankfully they were quickly able to pass it onto Fleamont, who was sat down one end of the student's table with Augusta, Alastor and Lester. Only the staff and those from the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw Common Rooms had arrived, so they were able sit down beside Larry and his fellow fourth years without a problem. The Hufflepuffs arrived next, Wilhelmina leaving her dorm-mates to join her sisters with Emery, Winston, Malcolm and Imogen. It seemed that the chandelier incident had gone entirely unnoticed, but since the Slytherins hadn't yet arrived they still weren't able to fully relax.

As predicted, trouble arrived the moment that the Slytherins appeared from the dungeons. Headed by Walburga, Lucretia, Orion and Alphard Black, they made quite an entrance as they stormed through the Hall and straight up to the staff table, where Walburga shrieked "Professor Dippet, have you seen the state of the Entrance Hall?"

Professor Dippet looked a little startled as he replied "Yes Miss Black, it seems that Peeves has turned his attention from the suits of armour to the chandeliers. Not to worry though, Professor Dumbledore and I have put everything back into order so we can enjoy our Christmas Feast in peace." It seemed to Ro that Walburga had regained consciousness and run back to the dungeons before any teachers arrived on the scene, and she heard Poppy sigh quietly beside her.

"You think this was Peeves!" Walburga shouted; although the arrogance of the House of Black was well known, Ro was amazed that she had the nerve to talk back at none other than the Headmaster. The thought was pushed immediately out of her head, however, when Walburga turned to point an accusing finger at where Ro and Septima were sat. "I came upstairs from the dungeons to see those two loosening the chandelier, and then that one-" her attention switched to Poppy "-Stupefied me!"

The peaceful chatter in the Hall quickly turned into an all out shouting match. Fleamont rose from his seat with fury in his eyes, flanked by a visibly seething Alastor. "I advise you to think twice about accusing my House-mates, Walburga," he growled in uncharacteristic anger, "you may be Head Girl, but I am Head Boy and they have my defence." Ro tried to shoot Fleamont a grateful smile, but it was met instead with Augusta's deeply disapproving frown. There was going to be a serious reckoning when they returned to Gryffindor Tower after the Feast.

"It's your word against hers, Potter!" Lucretia retorted viciously, leaving Walburga to continue her argument with Professor Dippet. Professors Merrythought and Dumbledore were talking between themselves, Professor Dumbledore looking bemused and Professor Merrythought exasperated. The other members of staff present- Professors Kettleburn, Beery and Callisto- were all looking thoroughly confused. On the other end of the student table, Filius Flitwick and Orion were shouting at each other, while Alphard stood a few feet behind looking a little unsure of himself.

"What's going on?" Wilhelmina hissed.

Millicent shrugged, a panicked look on her face that Ro knew wasn't entirely acting. "No idea!"

Larry looked about to say something when a deafening blast sounded. Several people screamed in surprise, everyone clamping their hands over their ears. When quiet resumed, Ro's ears were ringing but she was just about able to understand Professor Dippet's words when he started speaking again.

"Miss Black," he thundered, standing up to tower over Walburga, "I'm not sure where these accusations have come from, but they are absolutely ludicrous."

Walburga started to protest, but the few words she got out of her mouth were met with another blast which Ro realised was coming from Professor Merrythought's wand. She too got out of her seat, fixing Walburga with a glare from piercing blue eyes as she said "How can they have been in the Entrance Hall when they were with me in Ravenclaw Tower?"

The immense stress Ro was feeling lessened instantly- it seemed their plan had worked. Walburga's mouth fell open, eyes goggling at Professor Merrythought. "They might have gone there first," Orion bluffed.

This time it was Fleamont who responded. "They were hardly gone 10 minutes! There's no way they'd have had the time!"

"Miss Black," Professor Dippet said, motioning for Fleamont to sit down, "I think it is time for you to calm down, unless you and your family wish to eat your Christmas dinner in the Dungeons."

There was quiet for a moment, before Walburga turned around and flounced over to the student table as far as she could get from the Gryffindors. Ro was very grateful that the food chose then to suddenly appear, as she didn't think she could take another moment of one of the Blacks trying to stare her down.

Thankfully the rest of the Christmas period wasn't quite as confrontational, but the charged atmosphere was noticeable whenever Ro encountered one of the Blacks around the castle. It took a lot of self control not to shoot a sneaky hex their way, especially when Poppy and Millicent winced at the mention of 'Mudblood' or when 'blood traitor' was shot in Irma's direction. But Irma never reacted to the comments of her House-mates; the only time her unbreakable mask faltered was when it was time for her to move back into her own Slytherin dormitory.

"You'll be ok?" Ro asked as Irma clicked the lock on her trunk. Irma didn't respond, only nodding once before turning to look up at her.

"You're always welcome here. The Fat Lady's password for this term is chandelier, and we'll let you know if it changes." As Minerva spoke, Ro couldn't help smirking at the mention of the password. Fleamont had specifically requested it, in honour of the prank that no-one acknowledged but everyone remembered.

"I'll be fine," Irma insisted quietly, wearing the pretend smile that Ro remembered from when Slytherin were being blamed for the Muggleborn attacks back in first year. Minerva pulled her into a brief hug before she opened the door of the dormitory to where Professor Dumbledore was waiting in the Common Room to take her trunk back to the Slytherin Dungeons.

For reasons other than the hostility from Slytherin, things at Hogwarts seemed a little different when everyone returned for the new term. Ro hadn't been able to quite pin it down, until they arrived for a Herbology lesson a couple of weeks into the term to see Professor Kettleburn waiting for them rather than Professor Beery.

"Professor Beery has been forced to take some time away," Professor Kettleburn announced as the third years all sat down, "as his brother's family home was hit by one of those Muggle bombs this morning. We would get Professor Ainsley back to teach in his place-" despite the graveness of the message, Ro found herself begging for Professor Ainsley to be unavailable "-but he too has faced a family tragedy. So until circumstances change, you Herbology lessons will be covered by any free members of staff."

"Poor Professor Beery," Poppy whispered as Professor Kettleburn left them to carry on pruning the giant Umbrella Flower as Professor Beery had instructed them on the previous lesson.

Ro was silent for a moment, lost in thought, before she spoke. "I think I've worked out why everything seems different now. I might be losing my marbles here, but have you noticed some people never came back after Christmas?"

Millicent gasped, the dawning realisation clear on her face. "Irvin and Elspeth Reid! Their father's a Muggle, something must have happened to him!"

"And Tomoko Chang was missing from our last Quidditch practise," Septima added, "I heard Brutus talking to Peggy about getting a substitute Chaser for the match next month. Do you reckon it was something similar?"

"Hiro said it was," Mali Shafiq said, appearing from behind Septima and Millicent, "he's playing Chaser for the Gryffindor match, and the Hufflepuff match too if Tomoko still isn't back. Her mother was serving as a Hit Wizard in Europe against Grindlewald and their whole unit's been massacred."

Ro gulped involuntarily, and she instantly felt Minerva's hand on her shoulder. Her mind raced furiously as she tried to remember whether Kurtis had ever mentioned a Chang on his Unit; as an Auror he'd been recruited to serve in Europe a couple of months ago. She didn't hear the rest of the conversation, hardly able to think straight until she was back in Gryffindor Tower and Floo-calling her mother. It was Tavin who answered, and he was quick to reassure her that Kurtis' unit remained unharmed.

From then on it seemed as if there were people disappearing left, right and centre. Edwin Doyle, another third year Gryffindor, was nowhere to be seen the next morning, and Mary Taylor in sixth year was seen leaving hurriedly a week or so later. Wilhelmina reported Eglantine Puffett's absence at the beginning of February, not long before Imogen mentioned one of her Slytherin friends, Reginald Vanity, had lost his father though Grindlewald. The whole school seemed to have fallen under a fog of gloom that only lifted at the end of February, when the excitement of Quidditch got strong enough to overcome it.

The buzz on the pitch was just the same as it ever was when the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw teams faced each other, waiting for Spinnet to blow the whistle and start the match. Fleamont had been cautiously optimistic for an easy win; after all, they had beaten Ravenclaw the previous year and this year they'd had to do an emergency substitute. But it quickly became apparent that their new Captain, Beater Brutus Scrimegeour, had made some vast improvements to his team. The new Keeper, Philip Ackerley, was irritatingly good at catching Quaffles to the point that between him and Alastor neither team was scoring very regularly. Over half and hour into the game, the score was a mere 20 all, and Seeker Nina Hilliard was starting to get worryingly close to the Snitch.

But Gryffindor hadn't come entirely unprepared. A flash of red in the corner of Ro's eye alerted her of Ernest's presence behind her, as had been agreed in the case of a diversion being needed. Although Ro had been half-hoping she'd get an opportunity to pull off a move similar to the one she'd used to get the Snitch in the Ravenclaw match last year, Poppy had made her promise to avoid anything too death-defying. Ro turned and nodded to Ernest, before dropping several feet to give him a clear shot of Hilliard. A Bludger was heading towards him at rapid speeds, but as Ernest raised his club he was abruptly taken out by the other Bludger slamming into him from behind.

"Keep going!" Ernest hollered just before he hit the ground. Ro winced and quickly looked up, trying to pick out the Beater responsible. It was none other than Scrimegeour himself; the burly sixth year looked up from where Spinnet was tending to Ernest as he flew over to the other side of the pitch. Fleamont had possession of the Quaffle, heading fast towards the scoring rings, but that wasn't what made her heart stop for a second. Minerva was swooping down to take the Quaffle from Fleamont, black plait streaming out behind her as she flew, and it was clear that Scrimegeour had her in his sights.

Gritting her teeth, Ro leaned forward on her Silver Arrow and silently urged it to fly faster. Minerva was still clearly oblivious of Scrimegeour behind her, all her focus directed on the Quaffle as she caught it from Fleamont and aimed for the centre hoop. Time seemed to slow down; a Bludger hit by Ravenclaw's other Beater zoomed towards Scrimegeour and he lifted his club into the air just as the Quaffle left Minerva's fingers.

"Min!" Ro shrieked, and Minerva's gaze flickered from Ackerley in front of her to Scrimegeour behind. Taking a deep breath, Ro dove between her and Scrimegeour, hoping to distract him enough for Minerva to make a getaway. A pained grunt sounded somewhere in the distance, and she looked up in time to see the hit Bludger miss Minerva entirely and collide with Ackerley's stomach. He was knocked backwards and the Quaffle sailed straight through the hoop.

The magical megaphone boomed Filius Flitwick announced the goal. "Gryffindor's McGonagall scores a goal after Ackerley is taken out, but the Gryffindors will need to react fast if they want to win this match!" Ro's head snapped up at Flitwick's words, exchanging a horrified glance with Fleamont as he continued "Hilliard is gaining on the Snitch; 30 feet, 25, 20-"

Ro didn't wait around to hear the rest of his commentary. It took a second to locate Hilliard, and without thinking she shot off in hot pursuit. She willed her broom to go faster, panting desperately as the distance between Hilliard's outstretched hand and the glimmering Snitch grew smaller and smaller. They were head to head, shoulders brushing as Ro took both hands off her broom and lunged for the Snitch. The cold metal touched her fingertips, but then Nina's hand closed around it and Ro felt herself sliding forwards. Quick reflexes saved her from plunging to the ground as Ernest had done, but when she saw the devastated expressions of the Gryffindor Team she almost wished she had fallen.

"Ravenclaw win the match with a final score of 180:50 to the Ravenclaws!" Flitwick reported as Ro rejoined Fleamont and the team. Her stomach clenched as she waited for Fleamont's response, but he only seemed a little crestfallen in contrast to the mass disappointment she was expecting.

"It's alright Ro," he sighed, patting her shoulder, "you can't expect to win every match. We've suffered worse defeats than this. We can still get the Cup; Hufflepuff beat Ravenclaw back in November and if Slytherin beat Hufflepuff next weekend then the field will be fairly even with the exception of Slytherin."

Nancy appeared to suffer a short coughing fit that sounded suspiciously like 'serves 'em right'.

Fleamont smirked before continuing. "And there are still the May matches still to go. Back to the Changing Rooms, Team!"

The Ravenclaw team intercepted them en route back to the Changing Rooms, Scrimegeour shaking Fleamont by the hand. "Good game, Potter, your team flew well."

"As did yours, Brutus," Fleamont nodded with a smile, "that's a fantastic Keeper you've got there!"

Ro's attention was jolted from the Captains' conversation by an enthusiastic tap to her shoulder. It was Septima, grinning ecstatically at her and Minerva. "Well done, both of you!"

Ro huffed, lifting her goggles onto her forehead. "What did I do for a well done? Nina beat me to the Snitch-"

"But it was so very close!" Millicent's voice sounded, and Ro turned to see her, Irma and Poppy had run out onto the pitch to join them. Poppy instantly began scrutinising Minerva in search of injuries, and Ro braced herself for her own impending check-over. "We could barely see whose hand was who, one minute it looked like you'd get it, then it looked more like Nina, then you again!"

"Apart from my own House, the scores are incredibly close. Serves them right I suppose." Irma said, rolling her eyes. "It really could go any way."

Septima nodded eagerly. "I can't wait for the May matches!"

"Actually, neither can I." They all turned to stare at Poppy, greatly surprised at her comment. She usually dreaded Quidditch matches, her dislike for the dangerous sport made very clear as the matches drew closer. "Haven't you noticed?"

Ro couldn't restrain her laughter. "All I've noticed is the fact that you've just admitted you're looking forward to a Quidditch match, but I'll be on the lookout for a pig flying by any second!"

Poppy sighed with a grin. "Not for the Quidditch, I haven't had quite that much of a change of heart!"

"What then?" Irma asked, voicing Ro's own curiosity. Poppy was silent for a moment, and Ro could hear the laughter of the rest of the two Teams mingling with the general chatter all around the stadium. It was a stark contrast to the atmosphere they'd grown used to.

"For the first time since Christmas, I could actually forget that we've got two wars going on."

Author's Note:
So here you have the conclusion to the Christmas chandelier episode. I never intended to have it split over two chapters, but ch.24 just got a little too long. I hope it meets your expectations!

Our emphasis here returns more to the wars going on, and it will stay that way until the end of third-year. I thought that between WWII where practically every family had a loss or more, and the war against Grindlewald which in my opinion must have been the same for wizarding families, there would be a massive amount of students both muggleborn and pureblood who were affected. I'm not going to say any more on the subject for fear of spoiling future chapters, but that's just my reasoning behind it.

It was never made specifically clear in the series whether Floo-calling from the Common Room fireplaces was possible, but I'm go with the fact that it must be since it was mentioned that all the fireplaces in Hogwarts were being monitored by Umbridge during OotP. This indicated (in my opinion) that any one of them could be used for Floo-calling out of the castle, not just the ones on teacher's offices.

I'll just quickly go through the new character mentions. Professor Stella Callisto is the Astrology professor, who we haven't met yet but will before long. Irvin and Elspeth Reid are half blood Ravenclaws in fourth year and first year respectively. Hiro Shafiq (sixth year) is Mali Shafiq's older brother, their surname is canon but they themselves aren't. Eglantine Puffett (fourth year) is a canon character, mentioned very briefly on Pottermore. Edwin Doyle, Mary Taylor, Reginald Vanity and Philip Ackerley are all completely made up, and you've already met the rest of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team.

The next chapter may not be here for a while, because I have mock exams starting in a couple of weeks so I really need to put my usual writing time into revision (as boring as that is). It'll definitely be up by March 21st but I should think it'll be done by then, because writing actually makes a very nice break from revision so I doubt I'll drop it completely. Keep an eye on your email alerts if you're a follower, it could arrive at any given time! And on the subject of the next chapter... I'm just going to apologise in advance. Bring tissues if you're an emotional soul like I am, we're in for a wild ride.