Chapter Fifteen: A Really, Really Good Day

"So let me get this straight," said Ron, swallowing a mouthful of eggs, "instead of going to Hogsmeade with us, you're taking a bunch of third-year Ravenclaws?"

"Just two, actually — Astoria and her friend Felicity," replied Harry. "Their other friend Noreen is working on some project. There's a bloke who hangs out with them too sometimes, but I don't think he likes me much."

"Well, I think it's nice," declared Hermione. "You're also looking quite dapper today," she added, with just a hint of mischief. "Are those some of the clothes you ordered over the summer?"

Harry briefly glanced down at himself. He was wearing one of his new sets of casual robes, which were black in colour and open at the chest, overtop a lightweight, forest green jumper with black trousers.

"Not exactly," he replied, feeling somewhat abashed. "I didn't want to say anything at the time, but Astoria actually bought them for me, the day I met with the solicitor."

Ron and Hermione first looked at each other with raised eyebrows, and then back at Harry.

"Look, I know what you're going to say, but I'm pretty sure she doesn't think of me that way," he insisted.

"I wouldn't be so sure," countered Hermione, "but are you saying you do think of her that way?"

"What?" spluttered Harry. "No — I mean…not really? I don't know…the way things are right now…well, it's all a bit complicated, isn't it?"

"It always is with you, mate," joked Ron, slapping Harry on the back.

"I don't know, Harry," Hermione said sympathetically, her eyes shifting momentarily to Ron. "I can't claim to be an expert in these matters, but from what I've seen, people tend to make things out to be a lot more complicated than they really are."

"Yeah…maybe," shrugged Harry. "Anyway, I should probably go. Maybe we'll meet up at the Three Broomsticks later?"

"If you'd like, but don't worry about us," she replied. "Just have fun."

"All right; see you later," he said, and then headed out the double doors and down to the entrance hall.

It turned out that Astoria and Felicity were already there waiting for him. Both were appropriately dressed for a brisk October morning: Astoria in a cloak of deep royal blue, trimmed with gold and clasped at the neck with a jewelled brooch, and Felicity in a similar cloak, only hers was light tan in colour, with a thin cowl made from white fur of some sort.

"Good morning," he greeted both the girls, as he made his way over to them.

"Good morning, Harry," they returned brightly.

"Shall we grab a carriage, or are we waiting for someone else?"

"No, we can go," said Astoria. "Noreen said she might be able to join us later, but she wasn't sure."

"Yep, that's what she said," added Felicity, in an odd voice.

"All right…well, let's go then," said Harry, and the three of them joined the queue waiting for the carriages, their group drawing more than a few curious stares.

They managed to secure a carriage for themselves and spent most of their journey down to the village deciding where they wanted to go. Honeydukes was on all of their lists, of course, as was an eventual trip to the Three Broomsticks. Astoria wanted to stop by the bookshop first, and then look for some new clothes — which suited Harry just fine, as he needed to pick up some socks for Dobby anyway. Felicity said she was fine with anything, as long as they visited Zonko's at some point.

After exiting the carriage, they walked across the covered bridge and entered Hogsmeade. The morning sun was reflecting off the dew-covered rooftops, making for a rather picturesque scene as they entered the village. Plenty of students were already milling about, with the occasional owl swooping back and forth as the local residents went about their usual weekend business.

Being right near the entrance, Tomes and Scrolls was the obvious choice for their first stop of the day. Harry was already quite familiar with the place, as spending large amounts of time in bookshops was an inevitable consequence of being best friends with Hermione Granger. He looked through the spellbooks while Astoria and Felicity browsed the fiction section, but he found nothing of any particular interest.

Thirty minutes later, Astoria was the proud owner of half a dozen new books, which the shopkeeper kindly shrank down for her. Neither Harry nor Felicity made any purchases of their own. With their first objective of the day now complete, the three stepped out of the shop and down onto the cobblestone street, squinting as their eyes adjusted to the light.

"So, where to next?" Harry asked the other two.

"I'm…ah…not really sure," said Felicity, who was looking around distractedly.

"We have plenty of time," replied Astoria. "Didn't you say —"

"Aha — look who it is," Felicity interrupted, pointing back towards the entrance of the village.

Much to Harry's surprise, Noreen had apparently just arrived and was walking towards them, almost as if she expected to find them there waiting for her.

"Hey Noreen, I thought you had work to do," said Felicity, greeting her friend almost too enthusiastically.

"Changed my mind," she replied simply. "I'll just work on it tomorrow instead."

"Great, we were just deciding where to go next," said Harry. "Is there anywhere specific you wanted to go?"

"I need to stop by Scrivenshaft's and get a new quill, and I should probably pick up some more food for my cat."

"The pet shop's all the way on the other end of the village, isn't it?" replied Harry, trying to recall what the place looked like.

"It is," confirmed Noreen, "which is why I usually like to go there first."

"Well, these two have whole itinerary," said Felicity, gesturing towards Astoria and Harry, "but I really don't need anything. Why don't I tag along with you, and we let them take care of their shopping together?"

"Fine by me," shrugged Noreen.

"Is that okay with you?" Astoria asked Harry hesitantly.

Harry couldn't help but crack a grin. If Felicity had been a better actor he may not have noticed, but he had a sneaking suspicion this had been the plan all along. The only question was whether Astoria was in on it or not, but he ultimately decided that he really didn't care much either way.

"Of course," he replied. "We can always meet up with them later, if you'd like."

"Great! We'll see you later, then," announced Felicity, who was already making her way up the street, only briefly turning around to add, "Or not — Hogsmeade's a big place."

Noreen rolled her eyes and followed after her, not even bothering to try and catch up. Harry could only shake his head and chuckle quietly to himself. Hogsmeade was many wonderful things, but 'big' was not one of them. There was a moment of awkward silence between them once they were left alone, but Harry quickly recovered and cleared his throat.

"So, Spintwitches is just up the street. Do you mind if we stop there next?"

"Not at all," replied Astoria. "You said you needed new gloves for Quidditch, right?"

"Yeah, I think I finally outgrew mine," he said, examining his hand.

Seeing no reason to hurry, they began strolling up the street at a leisurely pace. Harry glanced sideways at Astoria, who turned towards him and smiled when she noticed he was looking at her.

"Have you been practicing with Daphne at all?" she asked.

"I have," he confirmed. "She's already come a long way since the summer."

"You must have improved too, then."

"Definitely," he nodded. "I'm working with some of my friends in Gryffindor too, so I'm getting plenty of practice."

"Wait," she said, stopping just outside their destination. "You're having extra practice sessions with Daphne and with your friends? When do you get your schoolwork done?"

"It hasn't been easy," admitted Harry. "It helps that I'm already able to do all the spells, but the essays don't write themselves."

"I should think not."

Coming to a quick decision, Harry first checked to make sure no one was within earshot and leaned in closer to Astoria.

"Listen — we're thinking about inviting more people to train with us, once we figure out how to keep it a secret," he told her quietly. "I think you should join us. Your friends can come too, of course."

Astoria looked up at him in surprise, as if that were the last thing she'd expected him to ask her.

"I don't know," she replied tentatively. "You know I'm not interested in learning to fight."

"I know, but I'd feel better if you at least let me teach you how to defend yourself, if necessary," he said earnestly.

At first, Harry was afraid she would refuse, but something in his expression seemed to change her mind, and she wound up nodding in agreement.

"I — I'll think about it, okay?"

"Great — you still have a little time to decide," he said with a satisfied grin, and then opened the door to Spintwitches Sporting Needs, allowing her to step in ahead of him.

Once inside, they quickly fell into the kind of easy conversation they had grown accustomed to over the summer, and she patiently followed him around the shop until he found a satisfactory pair of the fingerless leather gloves favoured by Seekers.

Their next stop was Gladrags Wizardwear, and Harry could tell by the way Astoria's face lit up as they entered the store that it would not be a short visit. Grabbing him by the hand, she pulled Harry towards the women's side of the store and proceeded to search through their latest selection of new robes and dresses.

He even held her cloak for her while she tried on a few of her favourites. She would step out from behind the curtain every so often to ask his opinion, and then pretend to be annoyed when he told her that everything looked great on her. Harry didn't think she really minded, though — besides, what did he know about women's fashion?

After trying on nearly two dozen garments, Astoria finally decided to buy three of them — but Harry was sorely mistaken if he thought they were done, because she insisted on finding something new for him, too. Harry audibly groaned when she suggested it, but unsurprisingly, she ignored his complaints and dragged him over to the men's section.

He was surprised, however, to find himself actually enjoying the experience.

Somewhere down the line, he had grown so accustomed to having Dudley's castoffs that he barely ever thought about how he dressed anymore. While it had only been a few new outfits, the new clothes Astoria bought for him in Diagon Alley seemed to have planted a seed within him — one which was now beginning to sprout in earnest.

Wearing clothes that no one else had ever worn before, and which actually fit him properly, made him feel better about himself in ways he never could have expected. He almost wished he had taken more money out of his vault, so he could replace his entire wardrobe in one shot. In the past, he'd been afraid to buy new things only to have the Dursleys chuck them out or ruin them in some way, but that was no longer a problem, considering he planned never to return there.

"Here, you should definitely buy this one," said Astoria, handing him a set of robes made from a heavy fabric dyed a deep, emerald-green colour, with some black accents.

"Is green your favourite colour or something?" Harry asked cheekily, gesturing between the robes and his green jumper, which was one she had picked out herself.

"No, I just think it brings out the colour in your eyes," she replied nonchalantly, though she avoided making eye contact with him as she said it.

"All right, green it is," he grinned, tossing the robes onto his modest pile of items to purchase.

"Let's see…what else?" murmured Astoria, her eyes scanning the nearby racks of clothing.

"I think that's enough for today," replied Harry, chuckling slightly. "I'm going to be running short on gold as it is."

"Oh! I'm so sorry, I didn't realise," she said quickly, looking slightly mortified. "Should we put something back? I could lend you some money too, if you'd rather…"

"Stop — I was mostly kidding," he insisted, smiling to let her know everything was all right. "I wouldn't mind picking up a few more things at some point, but I should probably go to Gringotts first. I do need to pick up some socks for Dobby, though."

"Your elf?" she asked, her brow wrinkling in confusion.

"He's not my elf. He's a free elf and my friend, but yes — I owe him one, and he loves socks more than anything," explained Harry. "Want to help me pick some out? The more ridiculous they look, the better."

Each of them picked out a pair of socks for the enthusiastic house-elf. Harry chose a particularly lurid pair, which were decorated with bright stripes that cycled through different colours in seemingly random patterns, while Astoria's selection was midnight-blue and magically embroidered with twinkling stars and orbiting planets.

After paying for their respective purchases, they stepped out into the street and took a look around. Their trip to Gladrags had taken a lot longer than Harry had expected, and noon was rapidly approaching. The streets were much livelier than they were earlier that morning, and Harry noticed that the weather had also warmed up considerably. Astoria obviously agreed with his assessment, as she had shrugged off her cloak and stuffed it into one of her shopping bags, apparently believing that her long-sleeved dress was sufficiently warm.

"Do you think it's almost lunchtime?" Astoria asked him.

"It's definitely getting close," replied Harry. "Honeydukes is on the other side of the square," he said, nodding in the direction of the famous sweetshop. "Do you want to stop in there first, or would you rather go straight to the Three Broomsticks?"

Astoria looked torn, biting her lower lip indecisively. "I skipped breakfast, so maybe Three Broomsticks first?" she responded, phrasing it more as a question.

"Fine by me — we'll still have plenty of time after."

"I should certainly hope so," she replied, and then added with faux haughtiness, "My decision does not relieve you of your duty to buy me all the chocolate I desire."

"Buy you chocolate?" he laughed. "You're the one with all the gold, so why don't you buy me some chocolate?"

"Because I'm a lady, of course," she replied, smiling broadly.

"Of course…"

"Now, care to escort me like a proper gentleman?" Astoria asked him, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

Harry grinned and extended his elbow to her. "Yes, of course — where are my manners?" he replied without missing a beat, using his best impression of a posh accent.

Astoria happily looped her arm through his, and together they set off down the cobblestone streets, following a path that would eventually bring them to the Three Broomsticks. As luck would have it, they happened across Ron, Hermione, and Neville on their way, just as the three Gryffindors were about to enter Zonko's Joke Shop.

"Hi, Harry. Hi, Astoria," called Hermione, being the first one to spot them. "It looks like you two have done some shopping."

"Just a bit," said Harry, lifting up his shopping bags. "What have you all been up to?"

"Not much. Ronald insists on going to Zonko's, so here we are."

"I'm looking for something to get McLaggen back," Ron explained. "Ever since I made the team, the git hasn't stopped talking about what a great Keeper he is — thinks he would've had the spot, had he made it to tryouts."

"Yeah, McLaggen is a bit of a tosser," Harry agreed sympathetically, while Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Come on, you can help me figure out what to get," said Ron, pointing towards Zonko's with his thumb.

"Maybe later," Harry replied noncommittally. "We were about to go grab a bite."

"What? Come on, it'll only take a few minutes…"

"Let's go, Ron, let's leave them to their…day," huffed Hermione, tugging at the boy's elbow.

Ron turned towards Hermione with a look of confusion, and then back to Harry. He finally spotted the way Astoria's arm was wrapped around Harry's, and a look of recognition dawned on his face.

"Oh…right," Ron said finally. "Yeah, we'll just see you later, then."

"'Bye, you two. Have fun," said Hermione, pulling Ron into Zonko's.

Judging by his grin, Neville seemed to find the whole exchange very amusing, and he gave Harry and Astoria a friendly wave before following the others inside.

"You could've gone with your friends, you know. I wouldn't have minded," Astoria told him, but Harry just shook his head.

"Nah, I'm having fun with it being just us," he replied. "Besides, I shouldn't be wasting my money on pranks if I still have chocolate to buy," he added cheekily.

Astoria laughed at his joke, but Harry could tell she was really pleased. It was only a few minutes later that they were inside the Three Broomsticks. It was still a bit early for the lunchtime rush, so Astoria was easily able to find a small table near the corner while Harry ordered them both lunch and a couple Butterbeers from Madam Rosmerta.

"Food will be out in a bit," said Harry, setting a tankard of Butterbeer down in front of Astoria.

"Thank you, I was really thirsty," she stated gratefully, daintily wiping the foam from her mouth after taking a long drink.

The next few moments passed in relative silence as each of them sipped their Butterbeers.

"Are you still having problems with Professor Umbridge?" Astoria asked after a while.

"You could say that," grimaced Harry. "I have a feeling it'll get worse before it gets better, too."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, this week she — you know what? No," he said, interrupting himself with a shake of the head. "Let's talk about something else."

"Um…sure," she agreed uncertainly. "Like what?"

"I don't know…" sighed Harry. "It just feels like we always wind up talking about my problems. Let's talk about you for a change."

"Okay, what do you want to know?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Er — how about your family?" he offered. "You said your dad's a businessman and your mum plans parties or something like that, but that's about all I know."

Astoria laughed at Harry's description of her mother. "There's really not much to say," she told him. "I have a few aunts and uncles, but we don't see them very often. My father's younger brother Gareth works at the Ministry, so he comes around every so often, and my great uncle Timothy on my mother's side is a well-known enchanter."

"You said your dad sells potion ingredients, right?"

"More or less, but it's not like he has a shop or anything. He mostly just works with the major suppliers to find buyers for their ingredients, or at least I think that's how it works," she explained. "We might supply some of them ourselves, but I'm not sure — Father's never really explained it all to me. Daphne is the one who's expected to go into the family business."

"Why not you?" asked Harry. "From what I can tell, you're definitely smart enough."

Astoria smiled at the compliment. "Thank you for saying so, but no, it really should be Daphne," she replied. Harry wasn't entirely sure, but he thought he detected a hint of sadness in her voice.

"How come?"

"She's the oldest," she replied simply.

Something about her demeanour gave Harry the sense that there was more to it, but he decided not to press her. "If you say so," he responded, shrugging his shoulders. "So, what would you like to do, then?"

"I'm really not sure. Enchanting does sound really interesting, but it takes a lot of magical power, and I'm not sure I'm up for it."

Harry remembered Daphne saying something about Astoria's health and how easily exhausted she could be, but he didn't think it was his place to bring it up. The thought was driven from his head only a few moments later when lunch arrived at their table.

"Here you are, dears," said Madam Rosmerta, as she set down their plates — steak and ale pie with mash for him; oxtail soup and a large hunk of crusty bread for her.

"Another round of Butterbeers?"

"Yes, please," they both replied, before tucking into their meals.

"You know…" Astoria started a few minutes later, a thoughtful expression on her face. "If I had to pick, I think I might like to be a writer."

"Really?" replied Harry interestedly. "What kind of writer?"

"I think I'd like to write novels," she responded. "Don't think badly of me, but I love reading cheesy romance stories — you know, the ones where the hero saves the damsel, or where two people on opposite sides of a war find happiness with one another against all odds."

"I can't say I've read many of those," grinned Harry.

"No, I wouldn't suspect you have," she laughed. "I may not have any personal experience, but I think I've read enough of those stories that I could write a decent one of my own."

"I have no doubt," he replied encouragingly. "Are there many wizarding authors? Besides you, Hermione's the only big reader I know, and she reads mostly reference books."

Astoria shook her head. "No, not many at all," she said, "and most of them aren't very good. There's a shop in Diagon Alley that sells muggle books, though. I bought a few one day out of curiosity, and I almost couldn't believe what I was reading! The stories and the characters in some of the stories are so amazing that it doesn't even bother me when I don't understand all the references."

"Wow, that's great — and a little surprising," said Harry. "I did grow up in the muggle world, you know, so if you have any questions about what you're reading you can always just ask me."

"I'll take you up on that," she replied eagerly. "I can usually figure it out — well enough, at least — but it would be nice having someone who can properly explain things. I've always been afraid to ask anyone else. My parents would be furious if they knew I was reading muggle literature."

"Really? Just for reading books?" asked Harry, a slight frown appearing on his face.

Astoria took a sip of her Butterbeer and stared down at the table.

"The Greengrass family is one of the oldest pure-blood families in Britain," she said softly. "Father is very proud of our family's status, and he would be upset if any of us did something to…damage our reputation."

Harry took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

"You never struck me as someone who cared about that sort of thing," he said after a moment, carefully managing his tone as to not sound accusatory.

Astoria's eyes snapped up to meet his, looking slightly alarmed.

"I don't! Please believe me that I don't!" she insisted. "My parents always taught us that pure-bloods were superior, but I've never believed we were better than everyone else — at least not since I've been old enough to understand what it all meant."

"I'm glad to hear it," replied Harry, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Daphne doesn't believe in it either — not really, at least. We've spoken about it before. She readily admits to enjoying the benefits that come with being a pure-blood witch, and she has to play the part to an extent, being in Slytherin, but she's not really like that."

"I guess I could see that," Harry said thoughtfully. "She's made it pretty clear that she doesn't care about much of anything, if it doesn't directly affect her or your family."

"Exactly," nodded Astoria, the smile briefly returning to her face.

"So, your father," started Harry, not exactly sure how to broach the subject. "Was he…I mean, did he ever…"

Fortunately, Astoria quickly picked up on what he was asking.

"Oh no, he'd never join You-Know-Who!" she assured him. "Father would never condone killing muggles and muggle-borns. I've even heard him admit they have a place in our society, even if he does believe pure-bloods should be of higher status," she continued, a look of disappointment flashing across her face.

Not knowing how to respond, Harry simply nodded and took a drink; an action mirrored by Astoria.

"I love my father," she sighed, setting her tankard back down on the table. "Even though he's spent more time working than he has with us, and even though we'll never see eye to eye on things like blood purity, he's always been kind to Daphne and me."

"What about your mother?"

"Mother is…"

Astoria trailed off, her expression taking on a faraway look.

"Astoria?" he asked concernedly.

After a moment's hesitation, he reached across the table to place his hand on top of hers, which seemed to recapture her attention. She rewarded him with a small smile, and then she turned her hand slightly to grasp his, while using her other to wipe a tear from the corner of her eye.

"My mother is nine years younger than my father. Their marriage was arranged between their parents within a few months of her leaving Hogwarts," she explained.

"An arranged marriage?" Harry asked in surprise. "Is that really common in the magical world?"

"Not so much anymore, but it's not that uncommon for old pure-blood families to put pressure on their children to be matched with someone they deem suitable," explained Astoria. "They can refuse, of course, but it would likely be at the expense of their own inheritance, so not many would."

"That sounds pretty awful," muttered Harry. "Wait — is that something you have to worry about?"

"No, not me," she assured him. "I do worry about Daphne sometimes, but I think she's too stubborn to accept a match with someone she doesn't like."

"Yeah, you're probably right," chuckled Harry.

"Anyway, I don't know if my mother ever loved my father, but she was happy enough to accept the lifestyle that marrying him afforded. I'm not sure if she even wanted to have children in the first place, but it would have been expected of her," continued Astoria. "I know Father was disappointed that she never gave him a son to carry on the Greengrass name, but at least he seems to love us. Mother never seemed interested in actually being our mother, unless it was as a means to hobnob with other 'important' families who happened to have young children."

"Which is why Flopsy is so important to you," said Harry understandingly.

"Yes!" she practically choked out. "For as long as I can remember, Flopsy has always taken care of us. I don't know what I ever would have done without her. Daphne, too," she said, taking back her hand so she could fish a handkerchief out of her robe pocket.

For a few moments, Harry just sat there silently observing the girl who had quickly become a fixture in his life. He knew from their conversations over the summer that she didn't have the best relationship with her parents, but their issues apparently ran even deeper than he had suspected. While his own parents had died when he was barely a year old, he'd learned enough about them to be confident that they at least loved him. He knew from experience what sort of cruelty adults could enact on children in their care, but even so, having one's own parent treat them with such…indifference…was a difficult concept for Harry to wrap his mind around.

"Listen…Astoria," he said eventually, "For what it's worth, I know what it's like to feel unwanted." She looked up at him questioningly, so he continued, "Everyone says my parents were great, but the relatives I grew up with…let's just say that ignoring me would've been an improvement."

"Was it really that bad?" she asked, dabbing at her eyes.

Harry looked away momentarily but answered her with a single nod.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No…maybe one day," he replied. "The point I'm trying to make is…it wasn't our fault. We were kids — neither of us did anything to deserve being treated like that."

"I know," she sniffed. "Thank you."

Each of them took a few moments to compose themselves. A quick glance around told Harry that it was right around noon, perhaps even a bit after. There were Hogwarts students crowding every corner of the Three Broomsticks, and the level of noise in the room had correspondingly doubled. Harry briefly wondered if any of their friends were there looking for them.

"Sorry if I brought down the mood," Astoria said after a while.

"Not at all," replied Harry. "Thanks for telling me all that."

"Thanks for listening."

"Anytime. For now, though, why don't we try a more cheerful topic," suggested Harry. "What do you like to do for fun, besides reading?"

Astoria tapped her finger to her chin. "Let's see…I like to go shopping — obviously," she said, causing Harry to snort, "and I love going to watch the Arrows."

"Have you been to many matches?"

"Father used to take us all the time when we were younger," she nodded. "Not as much lately, because most of the matches happen while we're at school, but sometimes Daphne and I go during the holidays."

"That's wicked," said Harry. "I went to the World Cup final last year, but that's the only time I've ever seen professional Quidditch."

"Really? But you're so good at it!" exclaimed Astoria. "That settles it — you absolutely have to come to a match with us. Which team do you support?"

"To be honest, I've never really followed the leagues," admitted Harry. "I like Puddlemere because that's where Oliver Wood went — he was the Gryffindor captain my first three years — but other than that, I don't really have a favourite."

Astoria's eyes lit up, sensing an opportunity. "I'll make an Arrows supporter of you yet," she said with a wide grin. "I'll check the calendar and see when they play Puddlemere. If we're lucky, there will be a match during one of the school holidays."

"That'd be brilliant," agreed Harry, internally resolving to make sure it happened.

He and Dumbledore had yet to speak about his future living arrangements, in light of his refusal to return to Privet Drive. Ideally, he would be allowed to stay with Sirius. As much as he loved the Weasleys and always enjoyed his time at the Burrow, Harry would prefer to have his own space — and as uninviting as Grimmauld Place could be at times, no one could argue that it didn't have enough room for him.

In any case, Harry wasn't going to be stopped by something as trivial as not having permission. After all, he'd already proven capable of evading authority figures to get what he wanted, and if a repeat performance was necessary, then so be it.

The rest of their conversation went on in the same vein, sticking to lighter fare and avoiding more emotional topics. Harry secured a promise from Astoria to go flying with him some time, though he was warned not to engage in any of the death-defying manoeuvres that he and Daphne seemed to prefer. They talked about school, their friends, and some of the more amusing things they'd experienced during their time at Hogwarts, before eventually deciding to move on to their final planned stop of the day.

"So, are you ready to buy me some chocolate?" Astoria asked, as they stepped back out into the sunlight.

"Me? I'm pretty sure we decided that you were buying," he countered, but she just laughed and took his arm, just as she had done before.

They set off in the direction of Honeydukes, once again in no particular hurry. The day hadn't gone quite how Harry had expected, but he certainly wasn't complaining. Even though he'd attempted to on more than one occasion, Harry could no longer deny that there was something unspoken happening between him and Astoria.

While he may not have been the best at understanding girls, Harry wasn't entirely thick — their excursion had been a date by almost anyone's definition. The fact that it had been at least partially orchestrated by her friends didn't really bother him, although he had to admit that it might have under different circumstances. He had also come to suspect that Astoria had, at minimum, prior knowledge of Felicity and Noreen's plan, which implied that she had at the very least not been opposed to it.

What Harry was struggling with was where to go from there. While he had definitely enjoyed their date, the way it came about did leave them in a somewhat unclear position. Was it his responsibility to broach the subject? He'd never done anything like that before and honestly wouldn't even know where to start. On top of that, there was another complication that he couldn't seem to let go of. Astoria was already in enough danger simply by being his friend, and he had to believe that being his girlfriend would make it even worse. How could it not be? Regardless of how he felt, Harry wasn't sure he was willing to subject her to all that.

"Hello? Are you in there?"

"Hmm?" he hummed in response, turning to see Astoria looking at him expectantly.

"I was talking to you, and you were miles away."

"Er — sorry, I was just thinking."

"Oh? About anything in particular?" she asked teasingly.

"Just that I liked spending the day with you today," Harry said finally, "and that I wouldn't mind doing it again sometime."

"All you have to do is ask," she replied, giving him a brilliant smile that made his heart momentarily flutter.

Harry was readying himself to do that very thing, but then he saw something, or rather someone, that quickly wiped the smile from his face. Just as they were approaching Flutes and Lutes, the magical musical instrument shop, Draco Malfoy and some of his Slytherin year mates came into view, having just come down the adjacent stairway.

Astoria's grip on his arm tightened, while Harry looked straight ahead and tried to avoid eye contact, in hopes that the Slytherins would simply pass them by without incident. He knew his hopes were dashed, when out of the corner of his eye, he saw Nott tap Malfoy on the shoulder to get his attention.

A look of annoyance flashed across the boy's face, but still, he turned and called out to Harry.

"All right there, Scarhead?"

It wasn't his most inspired taunt, but then again, Malfoy had never been particularly creative. Even so, Harry felt his magic responding to the perceived threat, like a surge of electricity building up inside of him, just waiting to be released. Knowing it wasn't the time or place for a confrontation, he gritted his teeth and tried focusing on the sensation of Astoria's fingers digging into his arm.

"I really don't have time for you today, Malfoy," Harry replied dismissively and continued walking.

"Don't you ignore me, you filthy half-blood," spat Malfoy, as Crabbe and Goyle moved up to stand on either side of him. "It's bad enough I have to put up with you and your blood traitor pal in Potions, but now I find you sullying pure-blood girls with your presence."

Harry stopped and turned to look at Malfoy. He could almost feel his wand calling out to him from his robe pocket. It would be almost too easy. Malfoy was no threat, Crabbe and Goyle were usually lucky to even locate the correct end of their wands, and Pansy's words were far sharper than her wandwork. The only unknown commodity was Theo Nott, but Harry hadn't seen anything from the skinny, mouse-like boy that gave him much cause for concern.

"You know, Malfoy, I really thought we came to an understanding the last time I had to warn you about watching your mouth," Harry said coldly.

Malfoy paled slightly but otherwise didn't outwardly react, while Crabbe and Goyle exchanged glances with one another over their leader's head.

"Come on, Harry, let's just go," whispered Astoria.

Harry nodded and led her past the Slytherins and towards the staircase.

"I didn't know the Greengrasses were blood traitors," Pansy shouted after them. "But don't worry, they'll get what's coming to them, too."

This time, they both stopped walking. A hard look came over Astoria's face, but she continued to face forward while Harry turned to look at the Slytherins over his shoulder.

"You going to do something about it, Potter?" said Nott, reaching into his robes and drawing his wand.

In one swift movement, Harry turned back around and drew his own wand, while sweeping Astoria behind him. As soon as his fingers were wrapped around his holly and phoenix companion, Harry's magic began flowing through him in waves, so much so that it seemed to fill the narrow section of side street with his presence.

Even though Harry had yet to raise his wand, his sudden action had prompted the other four Slytherins to draw their wands as well, looking questioningly at one another. Five on one weren't the best odds, but Harry still liked his chances if it came to a fight. His first priority, however, was to keep Astoria out of it.

Still, he couldn't deny that a small part of him wanted the morons to try their luck. The Slytherins were clearly the aggressors, so to Harry, even a single wand raised in his direction would be enough to justify a response. Wand at the ready, he stared unblinkingly at his enemies, focusing his concentration on sensing the inevitable buildup of magic that would precede their attack. Harry wouldn't be the first one to cast, but he intended to put them down hard and fast the moment he sensed the first spell.

By this point, the commotion had drawn a small crowd — mainly shopkeepers and Hogsmeade residents, but a handful of students as well. If they weren't already regretting their decision to confront Harry in the middle of the street, the increased attention definitely had the Slytherins rethinking their strategy.

"Harry…please…" came a quiet voice from behind him.

It was only two words, but it was enough to quell Harry's desire to battle the Slytherins on the streets of Hogsmeade — which, now that he was thinking more clearly, seemed a rather foolish idea in the first place. Harry's posture relaxed slightly; he was obviously still ready to defend himself, but the shift was enough to give the Slytherins an opportunity to back down.

"Come on, he's not worth the effort," declared Malfoy, stashing away his wand. The other four followed suit, and then they all turned and continued down the street, with only Nott turning back briefly to sneer at them.

Once the Slytherins were out of sight, Harry returned his wand to his pocket, then turned to check on Astoria.

"Are you okay?" he asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Yes…thank you," she replied shakily.

"I'm sorry about all that," Harry said apologetically. "I should have just ignored them and kept walking."

Astoria shook her head. "No, I stopped too," she said. "I just don't understand why they're like that. What is their problem with you?"

"Well, Malfoy and I have never got on, but as for the rest of them?" Harry shrugged. "Aside from being spoiled arseholes, their fathers are all Death Eaters…well, I'm not actually sure about Parkinson's, but I wouldn't be surprised," he explained calmly, even though he was still fuming internally. "I bet they can't wait to get their own white mask and start torturing muggles in their spare time."

"Do you really think so?"

"Yeah…I hope I'm wrong, but I really don't think I am."

"I hope you're wrong, too," she agreed.

"Do you want to just head back?"

"No, definitely not," Astoria firmly stated. "I've had a really nice time today, and I'm not going to let people like Draco Malfoy ruin it. Besides, if you think I'm releasing you from your obligation to buy me chocolate, you're sorely mistaken," she added cheekily.

"Of course; whatever was I thinking?" he grinned, and Astoria once again took his arm as they marched up the stairs that would bring them to their destination.

By the time they left Honeydukes, the incident with Malfoy and the other Slytherins was mostly forgotten — temporarily, at least. Astoria had been merciful and only made Harry buy her a small selection of their finest chocolates — which, all kidding aside, he was more than happy to do. While he was at it, he even picked up a package of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans and a few Chocolate Frogs for himself.

With their final planned stop crossed off the list, Harry and Astoria mutually agreed that they'd had enough excitement for one day. They wound their way back through Hogsmeade and were once again fortunate enough to secure an empty carriage for themselves. The first part of their journey back to the castle was spent with each of them lost in their own thoughts, until Harry eventually spoke up.

"I think you need to tell your sister about what happened today. With the other Slytherins," he clarified, after noticing Astoria's puzzled expression.

"Oh — yes, you're probably right," she agreed. "I'll look for her at dinner if I can't get in touch with her before then. Were you planning to meet up with her anytime soon?"

"Tomorrow, I think," confirmed Harry. "She's getting pretty good — I don't think any of the other Slytherins in our year could take her in a fair fight."

"That's a relief," she sighed. "Thank you for helping her."

"It's nothing, really. Practicing with her helps me too."

"It's not nothing, Harry," Astoria insisted. "You're helping keep my sister safe. I can't tell you how much better I feel knowing Daphne can defend herself, if she needs to."

"Then you should understand why I want you to join my other group," he replied significantly.

She opened her mouth to respond, but all that came out was a heavy sigh.

"Fine…just promise you'll go easy on me."

"Don't worry, I won't let you get hurt."

"I know," replied Astoria, and then she leaned over to rest her head on Harry's shoulder, where it remained for the rest of their journey back to Hogwarts.

Harry had planned on escorting Astoria back to her common room, but that proved to be unnecessary, because as soon as they passed through the doors to the entrance hall, they saw Noreen and Felicity sitting together on one of the padded benches.

"Looks like someone's been waiting for me," observed Astoria, as the other girls waived to them.

"Curious about the results of their plan, I assume," responded Harry, shooting her a wry smile.

Astoria sighed resignedly. "They weren't very subtle, were they?" she murmured. "I'm sorry — they do mean well, though."

"Hey, I'm not complaining," Harry said reassuringly.

"Neither am I," she replied, almost bashfully. "I had a really good time with you today. Thanks for making my first trip to Hogsmeade memorable — and for the chocolate," she added, making Harry grin in response. Astoria hesitated for a moment, and then lifted herself up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek.

"Let's talk soon, okay?"

"Definitely," he agreed, and then watched as she left to join her friends.

After exchanging quick greetings, the three Ravenclaws left the entrance hall together — presumably to return to their common room. Astoria looked back over her shoulder one last time, and Harry held up his hand in farewell as they passed through the double doors at the top of the stairs.

oOoOoOo

Harry huffed in annoyance after scanning the Marauder's Map for at least the tenth time in the past twenty minutes. Just as they were the last time he checked, his quarry were still in the Great Hall eating dinner, while Harry was standing sentinel near the stairs that led down to the Slytherin dungeons — under his Invisibility Cloak, of course.

While no spells had been cast during their earlier confrontation, Harry knew he couldn't let the threat to his and Astoria's safety go unchallenged. Malfoy was obviously the ringleader, but Nott had been unusually bold as of late. In fact, what Harry had observed in Hogsmeade had him questioning which one of them really tried to curse him during Potions, but as they had clearly been in on it together, Harry ultimately decided that it didn't matter who actually cast the spell.

If nothing else, today had proven that the Slytherins felt way too secure in the notion that they could attack him without reprisal — something which Harry had realised was his own fault. It wasn't as if he had forgotten their cowardly attack and Snape's failure to do anything about it; he'd just been extremely busy lately, and revenge hadn't been a priority.

After what happened in Hogsmeade, he decided to make it one.

That being said, as important as it was for Malfoy and Nott to pay for what they'd done, it was more important that he didn't get caught. As much as Harry would have liked to demonstrate to them what he was truly capable of, he couldn't risk it —at least not yet. After stewing over it in the Gryffindor common room for an hour, he finally came up with an idea that couldn't easily be traced back to him. It was simple — almost juvenile, if he were being honest — but Harry thought he could make it work for him.

Harry purposely went down to dinner early and sat so that he could clearly see the Slytherin table. Ron, Hermione, and Neville arrived shortly after he did, having come straight from Hogsmeade after a long day out. He barely had a chance to speak with them, though, because Malfoy and company entered the Great Hall only a short while later, which was Harry's cue to leave. After quickly excusing himself and promising to explain later, Harry quickly left the Great Hall to get himself into position.

He had been waiting there for over half an hour by that point, but eventually he checked the map and saw Malfoy, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle's dots finally move away from the Slytherin table. Even better, Parkinson had apparently stayed behind with Bulstrode and Davis. Harry's heart began beating a bit more rapidly as he watched his targets slowly approach his position. Once they were nearly upon him, he put the map away and readied his wand.

"I don't know, Nott," he heard Malfoy say from around the corner. "Father says the Dark Lord is preparing for something, and he wants us to keep a low profile for now."

"What's the point of that?" argued Nott, as they came into view. Malfoy was in the lead, with Nott slightly behind him, and Crabbe and Goyle flanking them on either side. "The mudbloods and blood traitors will get theirs one way or another, so why not get an early start?" the reedy boy added.

"If you think you know better than the Dark Lord, then why don't you go tell him," retorted Malfoy, his voice dripping with irritation.

Harry could hear Nott muttering under his breath as they passed him on the way to the stairs. Quietly as he could, he stuck the very tip of his wand out from between the folds of his Invisibility Cloak and waited for his opportunity.

Merely seconds later, the four Slytherins had just started descending the stairs when Harry hit Nott with a silent Trip Jinx, immediately followed by an underpowered Banishing Charm. As a result, Nott was practically launched into Malfoy's back, and the two of them tumbled hard down the long, stone staircase, leaving a dumbfounded Crabbe and Goyle in their wake.

Malfoy's cries of pain were enough to jolt his two henchmen into action, and they raced down the stairs after him. Making sure he was still fully invisible, Harry crept to the top of the stairs to observe the results of his work.

Nott was crumpled in a heap on the landing below, his right leg sticking out at an odd angle and blood pouring from his face, while Malfoy was sprawled out across the bottom two steps, clutching his arm and whimpering in pain. Crabbe and Goyle were clearly at a loss as to what to do and had apparently settled for staring dumbfoundedly at their leader.

"My arm's broken, you bloody idiots," snapped Malfoy. "Go get Professor Snape!"

If Snape was on the way, then it was clearly time for Harry to go. He hustled back to the Gryffindor common room as fast as he could while remaining under the Cloak, so he was practically out of breath by the time he reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. Thankfully, once he was inside, he saw Ron and Hermione waiting up for him in their usual spot by the fireplace.

After first confirming that no one was looking in their direction, Harry plopped down on the sofa across from his friends and pulled off his Invisibility Cloak.

"There you are, mate, where've you been?" Ron asked him.

"I've been here with you," replied Harry, giving them both a meaningful look.

Ron and Hermione exchanged confused glances.

"I'm pretty sure we would have noticed if you were here, Harry," said Hermione slowly.

"No, really," he repeated. "If anyone asks, I've been here the entire time you have."

Hermione's eyes narrowed at him. "What did you do?" she enquired.

"Only what was necessary," he replied vaguely, and then slumped back into the cushions while attempting to get his heart rate back under control. "I'll tell you the whole story, just give me a minute," he promised, heading off his friends' impending protest.

A few minutes later, Professor McGonagall entered the common room through the portrait hole.

"Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger — have you seen Mr. Potter?" asked their head of house.

"Right here, Professor," said Harry, sitting up and craning his head over the back of the sofa.

"Yes, I see," said McGonagall. "And have you been here long?"

"Ever since dinner," he replied as innocently as he could.

"Miss Granger, can you confirm this?"

"Yes, Professor," Hermione responded. "Harry has been here as long as we have, so at least half an hour. Has something happened?"

"Nothing you need be concerned with. Enjoy the rest of your evening," McGonagall responded, before exiting the common room.

"Okay, now you really need to tell us what happened," demanded Hermione, clearly not pleased with having to lie to her favourite teacher.

"All right, but let's go sit in the corner so nobody overhears us," proposed Harry, indicating the empty seating area on the far side of the common room.

Now tucked away in the corner, Harry first reminded Ron and Hermione of the attempted attack on him during Potions class, and then told them all about his confrontation with the Slytherins outside of Flutes and Lutes. Their reactions were pretty much what he expected — Ron got angry and went on about how he wished he had been there, while Hermione was mostly relieved that the incident didn't devolve into violence.

Once the background of his story was firmly established, Harry went on to describe exactly what he had done to cause McGonagall to come looking for him, including the aftermath he had witnessed at the bottom of the stairs and his rationale for taking the actions that he did.

"I was a little worried they were too stupid to make the connection," explained Harry, "but if McGonagall came looking for me, it means that Snape at least suspects I had something to do with it."

"All right, but isn't that a bad thing?" asked Ron.

"Usually, yeah," conceded Harry, "but Snape's always blaming me for stuff. Nobody will be able to prove it was me, but I'm hoping this means that Malfoy and Nott got the message."

"I don't know, Harry," Hermione replied worriedly. "If anyone does find out, you'll be in so much trouble."

"Maybe," he shrugged, "but I think it'd be worth it."

Hermione opened her mouth to argue, but Harry interrupted her.

"I get what you're saying, Hermione, but trust me. Things will only get worse if we allow them to think they can do whatever they want to us without consequence," he said firmly. "I've already told you; I refuse to be a victim this year, and sometimes that means fighting fire with fire."

"Right, well I think they had it coming," Ron cut in. "From what Harry said, Malfoy's dad is taking orders from You-Know-Who, and Nott wants it to be open season on muggle-borns."

"I know, it's just that…"

Hermione hesitated for a moment while gnawing on her lower lip, apparently torn about what she was going to say.

"It's just that I've never known you to actually go out of your way to hurt someone," she said finally, looking Harry directly in the eye. "Even if they deserved it — and Ron's right, they probably did — this is just a new side of you, and I can't help but worry."

Harry once again sat back in his seat. He didn't regret what he had done, but he couldn't deny the correctness of Hermione's statement. Over the past couple of months, it had become increasingly apparent that Harry had developed a bit of a ruthless streak — something which had unnerved him at first, but that he was now coming to accept as necessary, especially knowing his friends would help keep him in check. Besides, a little trip and fall was extraordinarily tame compared to some of the other payback scenarios he had first envisioned.

"Look, if it makes you feel any better, I doubt either of them were permanently injured," Harry said soothingly. "This is the magical world, remember? I once had every bone in my arm vanished, and I was fine by the next day. Madam Pomfrey probably has those two already fixed up and back to their common room."

"I suppose you're right," she said, though she still didn't look happy about it.

For a few moments, the three of them just sat there silently reflecting on the situation. That was, until Hermione sat up a bit straighter and looked at Harry with a mischievous grin.

"So…stand-offs with Slytherins aside, how was your date?"

Ron suddenly perked up at Hermione's question and looked expectantly at Harry. Realising there would be no avoiding the topic, Harry sighed and gave them the answer they were hoping for.

"It was brilliant."

Ron pumped his fist in the air and started laughing while Hermione lightly chastised him.

"You were right, I really like her," admitted Harry. "It ended up being only the two of us because her friends sort of set us up, but honestly, the whole day was pretty much perfect."

"Did you kiss her?" Ron asked excitedly, loud enough that a few fourth-year girls looked over at them curiously.

"Keep it down," hissed Harry. "And no, it never came to that, but she did kiss me on the cheek right at the end."

"She must have enjoyed herself, then," Hermione said supportively.

"Yeah, I think so," nodded Harry.

"So, you're going to see her again?"

"Definitely," replied Harry, leaning back in his seat. "The only thing is, with the way it all happened we never really talked about, you know, what this was," he attempted to explain. "I mean, it's not like I even knew it was a date going in."

"Of course, you didn't," said Hermione, with a slight roll of the eyes. "I'm sure you'll figure it out, though. Just be nice, and don't be afraid to tell her how you feel."

"And next time, make sure you kiss her," Ron added unhelpfully, earning a pillow to the face from Harry.

"Oi!"

All three of them wound up laughing, and then it was Ron and Hermione's turn to tell Harry about their day, which was decidedly less exciting than his own. Ron eventually cajoled Harry into a game of chess, which gave Hermione the opportunity to read relatively undisturbed.

By the time he climbed into his four-poster bed to go to sleep, Harry was completely exhausted, but he didn't care in the slightest. Even considering the ugliness with the Slytherins, it had been a really, really good day.