Disclaimer: I own nothing other than the plot. The original concepts belong to JKR and Warner Brothers. Any concepts brought from other fictions are either coincidental or will be used in their own way, and no plagiarism is meant.

A/N: So I haven't found what states the Hogwarts school year. So for the sake of this fiction, the year goes from September first to June thirtieth.

Chapter 3: Final Weeks

Harry was finally released from the hospital the morning after the chamber incident, and was quite happy to be free of the matron, even if she meant well. Having the night to think in his own peace, the first thing Harry set out to do was shower, before sitting down with his coursebooks for the year, and reviewing everything. He wanted to make his parents proud, and part of that was ensuring he did his best in school.

It was two hours into studying in the dorm when Neville came in, and was quite shocked to see Harry sitting there, writing out notes for Transfiguration. "Hey Harry, Ron is looking for you, though by the looks of it, he hasn't looked very hard."

"He hasn't been in here to check. Stupid really, as this was the first place I went to after being released from the Hospital Wing. I've been here studying since." Harry replied.

"Would… Would it be ok if I joined you? I'm rubbish in class and could use someone to study with." Neville asked.

"Yea, let's go to the library. More quiet in there, and with the twins still celebrating the death of the basilisk and their sister being saved, it will be easier to not be distracted." Harry replied, capping off his ink and picking his material up.

The twins, Fred and George Weasley, had spent the whole night and most of the morning setting off different fireworks, playing celebration music, and shooting red and gold confetti everywhere. Walking in, the two had covered him in confetti, and yelled a loud 'thank you' in the most obnoxious way possible.

The studying in the library went well. The two stayed there through lunch and didn't pack up until nearly dinner. They had covered a significant portion of Defense against the Dark Arts, using the book Quirrelmort had assigned the previous year, along with some charms and transfiguration. Neville had made progress in understanding topics he hadn't before, while Harry was now understanding why some spells worked at all.

Ron had questioned where Harry had hidden all day, and at hearing that Harry spent the day studying, scoffed. "You're the boy-who-lived, you don't need to study."

Ron was less pleased with Harry's reply. "I do Ron, and I intend on spending more time studying. I think my parents would be quite disappointed if I didn't put effort into my classes."

Ron remained silent, and over the following days, his attitude hadn't improved much, other than the night they played a game of chess, and even then, he seemed distant. Neville had spent the same days alongside Harry, studying hard when they weren't in class and had begun to improve with his practical abilities. Harry had noted a small increase in his confidence, though in Potions, he still struggled. Harry had begun to ignore Professor Snape entirely, unless he was called on, it was something that the professor was confused by, but it didn't stop the comments.

Hagrid had also returned a few days after the chamber incident, and said he had been in his cabin trying to regain his strength after being in Azkaban for over a month. "I's tha wors' place in tha world, Azkaban is. Tha ruddy Dementors make it Mis'rble." Harry, of course, hadn't known what a Dementor was, and certainly wasn't pleased to find out about what they did being in their presence. After all, he had already suffered enough of his worst nightmares.

Nothing truly of note had happened until the following Sunday when they announced that the victims of the basilisk would be unpetrified, which made Harry feel better. He was missing Hermione, as even with her rule-following ways and the love of books Harry could never match, she was one of his first friends. Dinnertime showed the return of all of the victims, including a very anxious Hermione. After squeezing the life out of Harry, she immediately went into a thousand questions.

"Madam Pomfrey wouldn't tell me what happened. How did you kill the basilisk, Harry? How big was it? Madam Pomfrey said you got bit, how did you survive? Was Fawkes really there?-" Hermione rambled out, asking more questions before Harry could answer the first, or second….or third. Harry had to interrupt her.

"Hermione!" he said loudly, causing said girl to stop speaking suddenly. "Firstly, you need to ask questions one at a time, or how else am I supposed to answer them when you keep piling more on?"

She flushed, and looked down, muttering a small apology. "I'm not mad at you Hermione, you just need to slow down a little. To answer your questions, what of them I remember, I killed the basilisk with the Sword of Gryffindor, and I got bit in the process of it, but Fawkes used his tears to save my life." Harry spoke. "Ron cleared the cave in from Lockhart's failed memory spell, and once Ginny was awake, we left for the Hospital Wing."

As we ate, we caught her up on recent events. She was extremely worried about exams and her missed classes, and was surprised and happy to hear that I was studying more, and made friends with Neville. Ron seemed disgruntled by that, but didn't comment. He tried to keep her focused on other events that had occurred, and talked about the twins and their cheerfulness, all while stuffing his face at an alarming rate.

When dessert was finished, Dumbledore stood and spoke. "May I have your attention please. There are a few announcements I would like to make." Once there was silence, he continued.

"With recent events, I would like to make a few announcements. Firstly, as many of you might know, the Heir of Slytherin has been stopped. A student was being controlled by a cursed artifact, and was being forced into releasing a monster, called a Basilisk, on the students. Thanks to Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, and Ms. Granger, they found and killed the Basilisk, and destroyed the artifact, saving the student from a most certain death. As such, for their major parts, Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley are awarded awards for special services to the school. Along with that, the three have earned Gryffindor two hundred points." Dumbledore announced, having to speak louder at the end as Gryffindor erupted in cheers. We were now in the lead to win the house cup.

Once things calmed down, he continued. "As I am sure has been noticed, Defense against the Dark Arts class was canceled this week. It is with regret that I must announce that Gilderoy Lockhart has been removed as the teacher for Defense against the Dark Arts after an accident with a spell. It was a very unfortunate circumstance, but he attempted to do a memory charm with a broken wand. The wand backfired, and instead wiped out most of his long term memory, and is now admitted into the Janus Thickey ward in St. Mungos for long term mind healing. As such, other teachers will be substituting to fill the role until the end of the year. Depending on what year you are in, decide what teacher you will have."

A number of conversations broke out as many people were curious as to who they may get as a teacher. "Lastly, as there has been a major disruption in the year, especially for those petrified, I have chosen to cancel exams this year for those not in fifth or seventh year. To those in fifth or seventh year, I am sorry to say that the exams cannot be moved or canceled, but that I will be open to answering questions and assisting those who need it, and the staff has also agreed to host office hours for those who need it."

A number of people looked excited about that prospect, and several nearby fifth years immediately started to make plans to speak with the headmaster. After thanking us for our time, we were sent off to do our own things.

Wednesday

"You have been given several weeks to think about and research the electives available for you next year. These parchments have the options we listed. You are to select your options and hand them back to me before class dismisses in ten minutes." McGonagall called out.

Harry sat there for a moment, debating on what to do. On one hand, there is Ron, who is insistent on us both taking Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. Hermione wants me to do what I want, while she takes all of the classes, and Neville wants to do Ancient Runes, Divinations, and Care of Magical Creatures.

Harry looked at the sheet, and made his decision. Quickly checking them off, his walked up to the professor and handed it to her. She smiled.

"Much like your mother, I approve of your selections, just be warned, you choose the hardest electives, So I expect to see hard work and good effort put in, much like the last two weeks." She said.

Harry nodded, not in the least deterred from his decisions, before walking back. At the end of class, Ron asked what subjects we selected. Of course, Hermione took all of them…somehow, Neville took his three, and then it was my turn.

"Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, and Arithmancy." Harry spoke. Before he was even finished, he saw the look on Ron's face turn sour.

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT!" Ron yelled. Harry tried to remain calm when he responded.

"Because, I looked at the courses and thought they looked interesting, and like something I would be interested in." He replied.

"But… we agreed to take those two. They were easy." Ron whined, glaring at Harry.

"I never agreed to it, you said that's what we were doing, and never asked my opinion. I didn't matter, just what you wanted. I made my decision. I will not change it." Harry responded, shocking everyone present with his firmness and directness.

Ron stood slack jawed for a moment, before huffing and walking off. "He will come around, Harry. It's just… since the Chamber incident, you've been more driven to do better, and he isn't sure what to do." Neville said quietly.

"Try harder in class. I almost died-" Did die, and talked to Death embodied "-and I feel like if I had, I would have let my parents down by not trying to do and be my best." Harry replied.

Hermione and Neville were both silent, eying Harry like they had never seen him before. "I like the new you, you're better, more driven, than when you went into the chamber." Hermione said, smiling.

Better, but yet my wand barely works for me. It takes effort to use it, though it doesn't seem to tire me out much.

"Thank you, I am trying to be."

June 28th, 1993

Hogwarts, Gryffindor Tower

Only three days until the end of the term when they would take the train back home, and Harry was prepared. He had set a plan to leave the Dursleys at first opportunity, and visit Gringotts. Neville had told him how to access transportation, something called the Knight Bus, which apparently sucked to use, but was simple and accessible anywhere in the UK. Once he visited Gringotts, and got the stuff his parents left him, he had planned on doing some significant shopping, including a new wand, if it was needed.

His studying was going well. He had slipped off a few times to practice some spells from a dueling book. Several he learned quickly, including the stunner, banisher, and a cutting hex. He had practiced his accuracy and speed too, and could fire a few stunners back to back pretty quickly, though he didn't have a timer to see how quick he actually was.

Professors McGonagall and Flitwick had both complimented him on his improvement in their classes, and that, thanks to Neville's tutelage, his handwriting had improved significantly. It was something small, but it was something he was proud of. Neville had worked Hermione's too, but she was far better off that he had been.

Every grade, bar potions due to a major issue of biasedness, had gone up. He was even able to pay better attention in History Of Magic, and even if the class made him wonder if facing another basilisk would be better than sitting there, he still did it.

Unfortunately, due to a lack of supplies, he had yet to prank anyone. He had eyed the twins a few dozen times, and saw how they kept their secrets, and often whispered with Lee Jordan, their fellow fourth year, but he could never catch how they did them. He figured it would be something else to research in the summer, even if his father had said it as a joke.

Headmasters Office

Albus Dumbledore was in a quandary. He had expected Harry Potter to have taken Divination, hearing that it was a simple subject, yet to his surprise, the boy had picked the hardest three courses the school offered. At first, he planned to reject it on the grounds that the boy barely passed his classes as it was, but then he spoke to the professors.

Imagine his shock when every single teacher had spoken in favor of Harry. Each one, minus Severus Snape, had agreed that since the Chamber incident, Mr. Potter's marks had risen, even to the point where, had he taken exams, he might have scored near the top of the year. At least in the top ten.

He truely counted on the boy's laziness to get him to take the class, so he could learn about prophecies and how they had power, and how to interpret one. One of the few things Dumbledore was ashamed to admit was that his abilities to use Divination were severely lacking. He had no idea how to handle the prophecy. Yet he feared confiding it in the wrong person would cause it to get back to Voldemort.

And worse still, he believed that Harry and Voldemort possibly had a mental connection, so he couldn't tell him yet what the prophecy was. At least the boy was still clueless, as if the boy found everything out, he would never follow a word Dumbledore said, and that scared the 'Leader of the light' more than almost anything.

For now, he would be happy so long as Harry stayed at his relatives, as then he knew that the boy wasn't learning too much to become a danger to any future plans Dumbledore might have to make.

June 30th, 1993

The Great Hall, Hogwarts

"And what a year it has been. I must congratulate the seventh years. You have all done amazing in your days within these walls, learned a lot of things, and hopefully met some lifelong friends, or even found love. You have a lot to look forward to once you leave here, even if one day, you may return. I wish you all the best of luck, and may see some of you again some day." Dumbledore spoke, his voice echoing off of the walls.

"And to those of you returning to us next year, you too, have done amazing. Despite the trials everyone has faced this year, we all banded together, and in the end, thanks Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, and Ms. Granger, everything turned out for the best, and no one suffered lasting damage." Dumbledore said.

Harry internally scoffed at the end of his sentence, as he could definitely say that Lockhart, Ginny, and himself suffered some lasting damage. But he wasn't about to comment that out loud.

"Now, only a few last minute announcements to make. Firstly, the house cup. In fourth place, Hufflepuff, with 319 points. Third place is held by Ravenclaw, at 364 points. In second place, Slytherin, with 378 points, and finally, Gryffindor, with 437 points. Congratulations to Gryffindor." Dumbledore finished with a swish of his wand, causing the silverware to turn gold, and red and gold banners to drop with the Gryffindor house colors and crest.

"Due to the final game of quidditch being canceled, the cup will not be awarded, and returned to the headmasters office until next year. Lastly, the train will be leaving at 11a.m sharp. Make sure your trunks are packed and you are on the train by that time, otherwise you will be left behind. Now, enjoy your dinner!"

With that, he sat back down, and food appeared, smothering the Great Hall in the wonderful smell of food. The feast lasted nearly two hours, most of which was everyone celebrating and talking to one another. Ron seemed back to his normal self, even if Harry got a dirty look when they talked about electives or studying. Harry was still spending more time with Neville and Hermione in the Library than Ron could tolerate, but they still talked during meals and in the evenings. Ron was dismayed that Hermione wasn't willing to assist him with his homework as much, as she had been spending the time trying to catch up with what she had missed.

Ron would figure it out sooner or later though. He needed to realize that we were growing up, and that we had to be more driven to reach our goals. Ron desires to be a quidditch player, but never attempts to practice. He wants to be a keeper, and has probably the best keeper in school in the very same house, yet doesn't train.

Harry shook his head, clearing the thoughts out to listen to what Hermione said her summer plans were. Apparently she was going to France, and she was excited at getting to explore Paris, including some of the magical districts that she had discovered. She started talking about Beauxbatons, a magical school in southern France. Apparently, they competed for one of the best schools in Europe, and had a large percentage of graduates coming from school to learn enchanting and charmswork. It was interesting, but not something Harry thought of as important. Instead, he started thinking about his summer, and what was to come.

July 1st, 1993

Harry woke up early and immediately got ready for his day. Wearing his baggy muggle clothes, he tossed his school robe over them, before ensuring everything was packed in his trunk. Once he was sure he had everything, he, along with Neville, headed down to breakfast. He had attempted to wake Ron up to no avail. Hermione showed up about a half hour later, and asked where Ron was.

"In bed. I attempted to wake him but he muttered something about 'I've got time, leave me alone.' So it's his problem if he isn't up and ready when the train leaves in two hours." Harry replied.

"He would deserve it if he left things behind. I wonder if it is a Weasley thing, to not be ready until the very last moment?" Hermione thought out loud. Neville laughed.

"It wouldn't surprise me. It seems only the Twins and Percy are ever prepared, though I think with the twins, it is less of good motivation, and more about finding new ways to prank people." He said, eying the twin who seemed to be conspiriting about something.

Harry shrugged, "It's possible, in fact more than likely true, but at least they don't bully people. Their pranks have humor, and they don't target anyone."

Ron showed up at breakfast just before they quit serving food, griping about oversleeping and no one waking him up. He got frustrated when Harry told him he had tried to get him up, but got ignored and dismissed. It was a tense group that made their way down to the train, yet Harry had a hard time caring. It was an incredibly nice day out, and he was determined to enjoy it while it lasted.

…Which was about an hour into the train ride. Draco Malfoy decided to make his typical appearance, right along with his two bookends. "Well look at this, even for a squib, I thought you had better taste, Longbottom. Now you're hanging out with the blood traitors and mudbloods." He sneered out, shockingly similar to Snape.

"Better blood traitors and mudbloods than the likes of you and your father, Malfoy." Neville replied with bravado, shocking Malfoy. Harry suddenly had an idea.

Harry looked at Neville and laughed. "You know what's funny, Neville?"

"What's that?" Neville smirked.

"Malfoy here goes on and on about being in Slytherin, and how he is the epitome of Slytherin. Yet here he is, being bolder than a Gryffindor. He always, every train ride, comes and seeks me out for a verbal spar, almost always with no tact, and always has to run away. It makes me wonder if the Hat made a mistake!" Harry said, watching as Draco flushed.

Neville lost it as Draco made a face similar to a goldfish, opening and closing his mouth repeatedly, before slamming the door shut. Ron and Hermione both were laughing hard enough to be gasping for breath.

"Harry! Please do something like that again." Ron barely managed to get out. "That was bloody brilliant."

After things calmed down, Hermione asked, "Do you think your relatives will sign the slip to allow you to visit Hogsmeade?"

Harry frowned, "I might be able to convince them if I am on good behavior." The girl nodded, unsure what to respond with. Truthfully, when Harry received the form from McGonagall in her last class, explaining the rules for visiting the village, and that it was a privilege that could be revoked if you were in trouble, Harry didn't believe he would get permission to visit the village, though he hoped he could convince them to sign the form. Silence fell amongst the group while they thought about different things, or in Hermione's case, read a book.

Not much else happened until just before we reached the station. There was a knock on the door, showing it clearly wasn't Malfoy. "Come in," Neville called out.

The door opened, revealing Susan Bones, a Hufflepuff second year, and one who made a few less than ok comments during the period when everyone firmly believed I was the Heir of Slytherin. Behind her was another Hufflepuff, Hannah Abbot, and Ernie Macmillain. The three had lingered in the library occasionally when Harry had been studying, yet never had approached him.

Hi, sorry to bother you." Susan said nervously. Ron was glaring at her, clearly not ok with her presence, but as to why he didn't like her, I didn't know.

She looked at Harry, ignoring the others flat out, before speaking again. "I, and by I, I mean myself, Hannah, and Ernie, wanted to apologize for the things we said about you this year. We were in the wrong, and shouldn't have said the things that we did. Especially the things I had said."

Harry watched her for a moment, allowing her to fidget some, before finally responding. "If you are sorry, then you won't do it again, will you?"

"No, I never should have in the first place, and I promise it won't happen again." She said quietly.

"And you, Ernie, Hannah?" Harry asked, a slight edge to his voice. They both repeated Susan's sentiments, and after a 'enjoy your summer', they left, leaving the compartment quiet until they arrived at the station.

The station was packed as it always was, with kids running to their families, hugs and questions being asked. It was odd though, as no one seemed to be mentioning the petrifications or anything. Harry waved it off as they all probably knew already, and followed Ron and Hermione to where the Weasleys were.

Mrs. Weasley fretted over all of them, saying they needed to eat more, and that Hermione and Harry were welcome to spend time at the Burrow this summer. Harry smiled and thanked her, and Hermione said it was unlikely because she was going on vacation. After goodbyes from the Weasleys, including overly dramatic goodbyes from the twins, Harry made his way to the faux barrier and slipped through.

It only took him a few moments to find his relatives as they stood out quite easily due to their sizes. Spotting Vernon, Harry noticed the man wasn't in a terrible mood.

"Come on Boy, there is traffic and I want to be home before midnight." Vernon grunted out.

Harry sighed and followed his relatives, thinking it was about to be a long summer, even if he did get to accomplish his plans.

Headmaster's Office

Hogwarts

Late evening

Albus Dumbledore sighed as the monitor for the blood wards being charged again showed that Harry Potter had made it back to his relatives, and was safe and kept away from things he didn't need to know yet.