Author's Note: Time for a little more of this story, which the muse seems to like at the moment. I'm enjoying expanding the charactorization of students in Slytherin. This particular chapter is set up for the beginning of the end of this story. While Gryffindor is a place of adventure, Slytherin is not. What Slytherin is, I leave you to discover.

I'd like to thank Jimbocus, Jenifer W, Mike G, The Plot Machanic, and Matej Cepl for their feedback in the writing of this chatper, as well as the two Correct denizens of the Survivors of Caer Azkaban discord.


Chapter Eight Tinderbox

Pansy Parkinson would have never tried out for Quidditch if it wasn't for the Slytherin First Year's football game against the Gryffindor First Years. She'd managed to score on Ron Weasley, and been part of a team for the first time. Pansy had never really been part of a team before. She liked it. It made her feel like she belonged, and belonging somewhere, well that was something she'd not really felt before. Her father had wanted a boy, and her mother, well the less said about her mother's maternal urges the better. She was the girl trod out to show the visitors, and then promptly sent back to her room when the visitors were gone.

It was why she'd developed the "like" for a particular shade of pink. Pink was not an expected girls' shade in the wizarding world, at the moment. A sort of aquamarine was the current favored girl color, while a rich gold was the favored boys' color. Pansy had accidentally flooed into a muggle toy store when she was seven, and seen that garish pink shade and immediately hit upon a way to get attention with pink. She'd insisted on pink robes for events. She'd insisted on a pink trunk for Hogwarts. She'd insisted on pink everything public. It got her attention.

So far her parents hadn't caught on, or if they had, they had never let on. There was one person she'd never had to get attention from, though. That was Draco. Draco had never treated her like her parents said a girl should be. She wasn't quite sure that Draco had any idea that Pansy was a girl the first time she'd been brought over to Malfoy Manor when they were five. They'd both been lonely at the time, and playing games on the terrace outside his room had always been fun.

Draco was her best friend, so she'd been the first to volunteer when that challenge had been made. Pansy had discovered playing football that she liked playing sports. She'd even gotten into keeping up with the Muggle football standings, professing a preference for Nottingham Forest whose home ground turned out to be within walking distance of her home. Thomas said that was as good a reason as any to choose a team to follow, though Pansy thought that he didn't actually think it was a good reason.

In any case, today she was going to tryout for Quidditch as a Chaser. She didn't actually think she had much of a chance, but she was going to try. Pansy wasn't going to let the fact that she was a girl hold her back anymore. She heard the whistle and looked up, broom in hand. If Victoria Malfoy could become Quidditch Captain, the "rule" that Slytherins didn't field female players that Flint had professed was gone. She might not get a spot, she was a first year, after all, but looking to her right and left at her suddenly silent companions, Pansy Parkinson wouldn't be alone in proving that Slytherin girls could play.


"We're not going to start out with the tryouts for Seeker on the pitch," Harry Potter said as he gathered the prospective Seekers into a small area under the stands.

Draco hadn't expected Potter to really be running the Seeker tryouts, but Victoria had seen Draco's name on the list, turned to Potter, and said, "Pick me the best two, and ignore anything you've experienced with my little brother."

Being called little brother was not exactly something that Draco was used to. Being reminded what a jerk he'd been for his first term at Hogwarts by his older sister, well, that he had rapidly become accustomed to. Not being an only child anymore was really different.

"I sort of fell into the job of Seeker for Gryffindor, and I'm not entirely sure how I ended up here, but my job today is to find the best Seekers Slytherin can field. But the question is, what type of Seeker does Slytherin need. There are three. First there is the active seeker, which I'm one. We search, quarter the field perhaps, keeping an eye on the other seeker, but mainly focusing on finding the snitch. Second is the reactive seeker. This seeker knows that they're not going to find the snitch, probably because they're not expecting to be able to find the snitch against the active seeker they are playing against. Finally there is the interactive seeker, perhaps the most difficult of the seekers. This seeker doesn't just search for the snitch, he actively helps his team, sometimes by functioning as a fourth chaser. They modify their search so that as they searched so they can help their team. They are never reactive seekers.

"Some day I hope to be good enough to become an interactive seeker, but for now I need to know what types of seekers you are. In order to do this, when the beater trials begin, all of you will be up in the air, looking for one of the dozen snitches that I've obtained from Madam Hooch. We'll see how many the four of you do. The beaters will be up as well, with training bludgers. Fred and George have altered them to paint robes gold and scarlet respectively when hit to you by them, other colors when the beater candidates hit them. When all the snitches have been caught, I will be inspecting your robes for how much gold and scarlet you have. If I know Fred and George, none of you will escape it."

Chasers and Keepers were up first, and Draco stepped out from under the stands to catch his sister in flight. He'd seen Victoria flying on her Nimbus 2000 several times during the last half of their last break. He'd been asked to help her get back into shape several times, feeding her quaffles as she flew, and watching her try different angles on the empty hoops that their father had put up. Once, Julian had come over and manned the hoops. He was a fair keeper, but not on the order of an Oliver Wood.

Oliver Wood was good. Even Slytherin acknowledged that. But Oliver wasn't in the rings at the moment. Instead he was seated with Professors McGonagall and Snape, along with Madam Hooch. He could see McGonagall opening up a set of folders in front of her, as his sister called all seven chaser contenders up to join her. She'd already sent the two keeper contenders to hoop sets. Draco settled down to watch, only to discover that Potter had taken a seat next to him.

"Seekers, watch the Chasers," Potter said. "Knowing the chasers you're working with is important. We don't know who Miss Malfoy will chose, yet, but that doesn't mean you can't observe them and figure out how they work. An observant seeker is often in a position to see something about their teammates that they need to know. It's better that you find their weaknesses than the other team does when you play against them. These are going to be your teammates, your best friends on the pitch."

"How in the world do you know all of this, Potter?" Fenton Foster, the seventh year who was trying out for seeker, having apparently decided that he'd studied enough for his NEWTs.

"Wood is a font of Quidditch knowledge," Potter replied. "He's also been quizzing me after every single practice, and sometimes in the Common room. Lately he's been having me work with the chasers more. I might have glasses, but you spend hours searching for that walnut sized golden snitch, and you'll be surprised what you spot in your search, looking for things that effect the snitch."


Victoria Malfoy was pretty certain that no room in Slytherin had ever hosted such a combination of guests. It wasn't her new dorm room, where Dobby was watching over little Patrick Draco at the moment. The door to her dorm room was through this particular study, though. The study had just been designated as the Quidditch Study Room, and thus was the logical place for the post tryout discussion of who should make the team.

Madam Hooch was there, of course, as was Victoria's Head of House, Professor Snape. It was the three Gryffindors that made the combination unique. Victoria was quite glad that Professor McGonagall was there with her legendary folders of players, something that only the Gryffindor Team Captain and the Quidditch Commentator had ever had access to before. She'd just finished reading through the chaser candidates.

Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor Team Captain was shuffling through the keeper candidates. She was a bit worried about that come this autumn when Slytherin opened the Quidditch season against Gryffindor, but she was also sure that she'd be getting an honest assessment of the prospects from him. He'd also been invaluable in helping her prepare for the full team tryouts. She'd expressed both her worries and thanks, and his only reply was that all he wanted was a good hard fought clean game from her Slytherins, and he's be well paid back.

For the Seekers, she'd been glad to get the use of Harry Potter. Potter may have been Hogwart's newest seeker, but he had shown that he was perhaps the best. Overhearing his opening talk to the four seeker prospects, had given her so much. It had also impressed her younger half-brother who had to be reminded of her request to hold the topic of the tryouts until after the team was announced. They'd switched back to the discussion of Julie's first crush, a boy two years ahead of her at the boy's school that her school shared athletic fields with.

"First things first," Victoria began. "We're going to have to eliminate a few of those that tried out due to the not meeting the behavior standards. I know, I might be excluding some really good players, but I want my team to be fair players, and to do that, I need good sportsmen. Professor Snape, I gave you the list of those that tried out. Who do we eliminate?

Professor Snape pulled up the list, which had several red lines through names. "Fortunately, not as many as I expected. I expected that Cattivafede would try out, he didn't, but Orpington did and is on my list, as is Dewar. I'm also going to have to strike Davidson."

"Bit surprised with Davidson, but the others, I expected. I told Cattivadfede that he better not show up. I didn't want to inflict him on even the tryouts after I saw him 'practicing'"

"Except for Orphington, I don't think that's hurting your choices," McGonagall said. "She was a good chaser. Davidson, I may recommend remedial flying lessons. There is always one who really shouldn't even be on a broom."

"Wood, let's start with my Chasers. Who are you recommending?"

"Your best is probably Michael Eddington, the girl, not the boy. Seventh Year, but I'm wondering why she never tried out before. I've never seen quite much accuracy, and she worked well with you. Downside is she is a seventh year, so you'll have to replace her next year.

"I also, to a lesser extent recommend Afton Arkwright. I have an issue with his left ring targeting. He seems weak there, especially from an oblique angle."

Victoria noted that down. She'd noticed that he was a bit weak with cross body shots. "Madam Hooch?"

"I strongly recommend Eddington, now that she's away from her abusive parents," Hooch began. That was something that Victoria hadn't been aware off. She was aware that Eddington had a toddler, and rumor was that the seventh year hadn't gone home last Summer.

"I wish I'd been able to do something about that earlier" Professor Snape grouched. "She's good though, and you may wish to talk with her on other matters."

Victoria nodded. Eddington became the first name other than hers to make the team. "Anyone else?"

"She's a first year, but I think Pansy Parkinson should be at least a reserve as your Eddington successor. She slotted right into Eddington's position when the switch was called and just fit in that left chaser slot like she was made for it. Only down side is her throwing strength.

"I was also very impressed with Fiona Portinmire. I don't think that girl has any fear, and I'm still unsure how she captured that loose quaffle that glanced off both the center and right hoop."

"Professor McGonagall," Victoria asked, still undecided on the final starting chaser.

"I agree on Eddington, if we'd been able to do something sooner, well, I'm pretty certain that it was her home life that prevented her from being able to tryout in the autumn, most years. Arkwright isn't ready, and lacks team chemistry for a chaser. Portinmire is interesting, and when you were in with either Eddington or Parkinson, there was some real team chemistry. Orphington would have been good, but I agree with Professor Snape that her change in behavior is too new to be sure."

"Okay, chasers, Eddington, Portinmire, myself, and Parkinson for reserve," Victoria said. Having at least one reserve was a blessing she hadn't thought she'd get. Ideally she'd like to field a full team of reserves, but couldn't afford to train up that many for one game in just four short weeks.

"That's probably the only reserve you're going to get," McGonnagall said, echoing Victoria's thoughts. "Some of your best prospects didn't try out due to their OWL year, or NEWTs."

"That brings the question, should I be worried about Eddington and NEWTs?" Victoria asked.

"No, she's the top of her year, and does it easily," Professor Snape said. "Plus, this is her dream to play for Slytherin which she thought was impossible for her. She'll give you her best, and for this game, with the intense practice schedule you have set, you've got have a team that wants to give it their best efforts."

"I want to see how Eddington, Portinmire, and you do against my trio," Wood said. "If you want, I'll bring them for a little chaser/keeper scrimmage."

"I'll keep that in mind," Victoria said, already planning a practice with Gryffindor in her head. Her team needed all the help it could get given the short time until the Hufflepuff game. "Beaters. Wood?"

"You had the most uncoordinated pairings I have ever seen in a tryout," Wood said. "No one was working with each other."

"I think you missed when they were coordinated," Potter interrupted. "Probably because it wasn't on the pitch. Perrie Graham and Neve McPhee were hitting acorns back and forth with their beater's bats on the way to the pitch, and kept it up until you called Graham up for her turn."

"Graham was good alone, McPhee fair." Wood judged, his hand on his chin. Victoria had quickly learnt that it was a sign that the Gryffindor was giving well considered thought. She wondered where he'd picked up that habit though.

"I'd go the opposite, actually," Hooch remarked. "Minerva."

"I took ten points Friday from them both for doing that in my class," McGonagall said. "You'd be a fool not to take them."

"I'm not a fool. Keepers, Wood?" Victoria figured that as a keeper, Wood would be the best first opinion to ask.

"Emerson Cox, maybe Arkwright as a reserve, he tried out for everything but seeker."

"He asked if he could do Seeker too, but I wanted to see their reactions: the mindsets as well as abilities for Seeker, so he was too late to join my four candidates," Potter said. Victoria had not been aware of that.

"I think Arkwright was trying too hard," Hooch said. "He's just not ready for what he calls the utility player. I'm not sure Quidditch is ready for his dream."

"Indeed," McGonagall said. "He is one to watch though. Give him some time, good practice in each role, and it might be possible. I've seen a player do three of the four positions before. James Potter did Seeker, Chaser, and Beater. He and Sirius Black were murder on the pitch as Beaters."

Victoria could see that Potter was brimming with questions, that would probably derail them for an hour or so that she didn't have. "Then Cox for Keeper. Seekers, Potter?"

Harry Potter reached down and pulled up a first year robe that Victoria was sure she recognized. "I asked Draco Malfoy if I could bring his robe in," Potter began. "I had Fred and George beating paint bludgers at the Seekers trying out. You know how good they are at that when we let them loose on the chasers. Fred had scarlet, George had gold. You'll notice that there are just six spots on this. All but one are on the sleeves, and that one was a broom shot. He did this while catching eight out of the dozen snitches. McKeon caught two, and the others one each, but McKeon was practically wearing Gryffindor colors at the end, and I don't think you want such an unobservant player.

"Draco Malfoy listened to me, and applied the lessons I gave. He watched not just quartering the field but keeping an eye on everything that was going on. I did not ask him to dive and feint through the chasers when Eddington, Orphington, and Parkinson were in, but he did, and he broke up that formation brilliantly. He missed a few chances at snitches that I thought he could have gotten, but he was the best you have by a mile. He was certainly better than the one I played against in my first game."

"I have to agree with Potter," McGonagall said. "I know you don't want to seem to be favoring your half brother, Victoria, but he is your best option, and I'd go without a seeker before I put Tomlin or Brokensgate in."

"My brother it is, and it looks like I have a team," Victoria said, writing down the list in her best handwriting. "Any final objections, or comments?"

"You probably could get a better team next fall, with the current fifth years who chose not to try out, so I'd plan on try outs then, rather than just promoting Parkinson and being done with it, but I think you've got a good team, that I'm looking forward to see play," McGonagall said.

"Are you ready to announce now, or do you want to wait until morning?" Snape asked.

"First years should still be up, so let's go," Victoria said, standing up.

The door to the common room opened to let in a calliope of noise. Victoria caught snippets of conversation as she stepped out flanked by Professors Snape and McGonagall. She looked to her right where Snape was standing, Wood behind him, and cocked her head to the right. Professor Snape held out his hand, and Victoria handed him the list.

With a forceful pinning, Professor Snape covered the old list of players with the new one on the board next to the door they'd just exited, the sound of the pin going home cutting through the noise of the common room somehow. Conversation quickly cut off and Victoria found the room's attention focused on her, the Quidditch Captain.

She looked at Professor Snape, and in response to his nod, announced. "With the help of Professors Snape and McGonagal, Madam Hooch, and Gryffindor's Captain Wood and Seeker Potter, I have chosen the new members of the Slytherin Quidditch Team for our game in four weeks against Hufflepuff."

Victoria paused, looking around the crowded room. It looked like nearly every Slytherin, even a few she knew had regular Saturday detentions, had gathered there. There were even three of the former team members in their black sackcloth over in one corner, their attention focused on her, and expressions ones of loss.

"First, I will be taking the role of Center Chaser as Captain. Michael Eddington will be Left Chaser, and Fiona Portinmire will be Right Chaser. Pansy Parkinson has been chosen as our lone reserve player as a chaser."

Victoria had looked at each player as she announced their names. Eddington had given a small smile, though her toddler girl on her lap had a bigger smile. Fiona's smile was practically busting the sixth year's cheeks. It was Parkinson who had the biggest reaction, falling back in her seat in shock.

"Beaters will be Perrie Graham and Neve McPhee."

The two new announced second year beaters looked at each other with mischievous smiles that would not be out of place on Fred and George Weasley. For some reason the expression on the two girls gave her a shiver.

"Keeper will be Emerson Cox."

The fourth year boy was seated between her two beaters, and he raise his hand, smiling, for the two beaters to slap their hands to his.

"And Seeker, by unanimous recommendation, will be Draco Malfoy."

Parkinson's shock at being chosen was mild when compared to her half brother. He dropped his copy of History of Magic on Davis's foot, earning him a shove that barely got him out of the open mouthed unmoving pose that the announcement had frozen him in.

Soon the whole room was filled with friends congratulating their friends who had made the team. The first-years in particular seemed to be rejoicing. With both of those of that year that tried out having made the team, one as a reserve, true, it gave them a lot to celebrate.

Professor Snape waited just a few minutes, allowing the new team members to get their just accolades from their friends. When he stepped forward, though it was with a vindictive expression. His movement alone was enough to make the Common Room go silent again.

With a low but sharp tone that carried throughout the room. "As you know, the prior team members were such poor examples of Slytherin and sportsmanship that the Department of Magical Law Enforcement felt it necessary to speak to all of them. Three of your former classmates are quite likely to end up in Azkaban as a result of their conduct in pursuit of an a win. Besides them, I and my fellow Heads of House felt that it was appropriate that three of your fellow Slytherins spend the rest of the term away from Hogwarts. Four more are undergoing penance in this very room right now for their behavior before, after, and during our game against Ravenclaw.

"I shall not go into their full behavior, now. You know who they are, and their boasting in this very room before Easter certainly gave all enough details of their maleficence. Today, with Miss Malfoy's announcement, we are wiping out the last remnants of that team, with a team that I trust will perform to the best of their ablities, not only in within the rules of Quidditch, but as good sportsmen, both on and off the pitch.

"Quidditch is a privilege at Hogwarts. A privilege that was wasted in this house. For too long the Slytherin Team has been known for their dirty play. No longer. That was the old team, a team that as far as Hogwarts records are concerned did not exist this year. All points scored by the team have been wiped from the record book. The team portrait that was hanging in the trophy room, will be replaced as soon as the new uniforms are fitted.

"Of Slytherin's new Quidditch Team, ambition is good; cunning play, expected; fair play, required. In four weeks we will be playing against Hufflepuff. I expect to see the level of good sportsmanship that all usually expect on that side of the pitch on by our team. Captain Malfoy has assured me that her team will meet that expectation.

"I expect that all of Slytherin will meet that expectation. Do not disappoint me."

Victoria had no intention of disappointing Professor Snape, and from the expressions around the room, neither did any other Slytherin in the room. Sure that Snape was done, as he was moving with Professor McGonagall to the Common Room exit along with Potter and Wood, Victoria spoke up in the silence that followed. "Team, Madam Hooch will be opening up the Slytherin Quidditch Locker Rooms at seven tomorrow for fitting and broom inspection. Parkinson, Draco, team brooms for you will be waiting. We will have our team picture taken immediately following breakfast, before having our first team practice at ten. It's going to be a busy four weeks, so I


Professor Severus Snape, Head of Slytherin, had decided to let the parents of the former Quidditch Team come to him, rather than go to them, or go somewhere that he might encounter them. He had not left Hogwarts, even to pick up additional ingredients that he might had otherwise done. It was not Hogwarts policy to let parents know most disciplinary actions at the time they occurred. It was usually communicated once a month, unless extraordinary events occurred. Suspensions and expulsions were one of those things that were communicated immediately, of course. Someone had to pick up the miscreant, after all.

Misters Wyndhame, Wymane, Averille, and Backburne's parents hadn't found out about their son's punishment until a good three weeks after their detentions and sackcloth attire had begun. He suspected that knowledge of the punishment had gotten out of Hogwarts a lot earlier. The school was full of gossips, and if the Knitting Circle of Hogsmeade wasn't aware after the first Hogsmeade weekend, well then those old crones who had even frightened the Dark Lord were losing their touch.

The winds had changed in Slytherin over Yule, and those winds were just beginning to reach the student's homes. He was certain that a sly comment from Narcissa Malfoy was behind the arrival of Wendon Wymane to his office. Snape could appreciate the dramatics that Wymane had arranged. The carriage pulled by nightmares entered through Hogwart's main gates, the black horse's eyes glowing red, in the darking eve. Lightning struck just as Warlock Wymane stepped out of the carriage, and thunder rolled. His silver lined cloak fluttered behind him as the Warlock strode through the entrance hall, past the open doors to the Great Hall, and down to Snape's Office.

As he approached Snape's office, the sound of Warlock Wymane's boots got progressively louder, louder than the reduction of distance would explain. Snape let the spectacle go, even though he had ways to stop it. Slytherin had plenty of grandstanding students that needed that to stop before they reached his office. With parents, though, Snape had different priorities. If Warlock Wymane wand to make a point that he'd visited Hogwarts all up in arms in dramatic fashion, well it was much more satisfying afterwards.

Snape waved his wand to open the door, after closing his scrying mirror. Glancing over to the open door to his private lab, he made sure that Victoria Malfoy was still at work on her make up potions that she hadn't been able to do when she was pregnant. He did not get up from behind his desk. "Warlock Wymane, what brings you to my office?"

"I've just heard that you've punished my son for what I'm sure was minor offenses, kicking him off the Quidditch team and stripping him of everything that identifies him as Slytherin."

"And I suppose you want me to reverse that, given your alliances," Snape said. "I have to wonder if you've heard the full story yet."

"I'm sure my son's letter was perfectly honest and complete," the Warlock said, his hands going down on the front of Snape's desk but not making a single sound, despite his obvious intentions.

"Please, in all my time as Head of Slytherin, only twice have I found such a letter to be perfectly honest and complete, and I'm not entirely sure about those. There is no way that your son honestly wrote to you and told you what he actually did before the Ravenclaw game as a member of the former Quidditch team. Let me outline, exactly what I have personally verified that your son was responsible for.

"Your son was part of a conspiracy to injure multiple members of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, one of which was actually raped. A couple more were injured to the point that reserves had to be called in. Your son was personally responsible for the Ravenclaw beaters playing with fractures of their ulna. Then during the game, your son personally set a new record for cobbing penalties at Hogwarts, by actually doubling the prior record. I have never felt more ashamed of the Quidditch team in my entire time at Hogwarts, and that includes the infamous Gryffindor/Slytherin game of '71.

"Then while we were investigating those events, I discovered that your son had installed paired mirrors so he could watch the girls of Slytherin shower. Not the upper years, but the lower years. There also were several fights that had been concealed until it became clear that he was not protected by your late patron, the late Abraxas Malfoy, and was unlikely to curry the favor of the incumbent Lord Malfoy and especially his heiress presumptive."

Severus waved his wand again, calling a chair to be placed right behind the Warlock. It was clear that he'd knocked some wind out of the Warlock's sails. It looked like he was starting to marshal up more of an excuse. Snape smiled in a fashion that some had called his evil smile.

"I personally brought him up for suspension. Unfortunately, I was not able to convince enough of my fellow Heads of House or the Headmaster, so I settled for punishments under my power. He has a weekly detention with me, I've kicked him off the Quidditch Team, and I have restricted his attire for the rest of the school year to sack cloth with no Hogwarts embellishments. If he can bear his punishments like the gentlemen he is supposed to be, I may let up on the latter. As for getting back on the Quidditch team next autumn, that would be up to my new Quidditch Captain. I shall let the Quidditch Captain speak for herself. Miss Malfoy."

Severus knew his timing was almost perfect. The potion had been chosen for timing from among the ones that he knew that Victoria Malfoy need to brew this year, after all. The blond new mother stepped out of his private lab, her Quidditch Captain badge gleaming on her chest.

"Warlock Wymane, I am Victoria Malfoy, Heiress Malfoy, and new Quidditch Team Captain for Slytherin. I can honestly say that there is no way that your son will ever meet the standards to be on a Slytherin Quidditch team as long as I am Captain. As your son is a fifth year, and I am a third year, he can give up on getting on the team."

Severus could see that Wymane was not expecting the slight thirteen-year-old to be so firm against him. In fact, he was sure that Wymane had yet to register that key pair of words, "Heiress Malfoy." Thought part of that might have been because she'd lately decided to use the feminine form.

"And what makes you think you'll hold that position that long?" Wymane sneered. "You don't understand the forces I can rally against you and your family."

Victoria Malfoy shook her head before responding. "Warlock Wymane, I understand that your wife was a bit under the weather this past Yule, and thus missed the Annual Yule ball at my father's manor. I do hope she has recovered, dragon pox is not easy at any age. If you were, you might have seen the beginnings of the recent realignment in the Wizengamont, following my unlamented grandfather Abraxas Malfoy's death. It's probably why you don't recognize me, having missed the Yule Ball, and if you hadn't come to Hogwarts, you wouldn't have met me until Heiress Bones's Debutante Ball this summer. So I shall excuse the lack of your recognizing the Heir to your House's patron, and for now will not make your House's situation any worse than your son has already made it.

"I shall not be surprised if additional charges come the way of your son, based on his deplorable behavior in Slytherin. I would strongly advise that upon the completion of your meeting with Professor Snape, you personally rein him in. In particular, I would recommend that he disassociate himself from Misters Wyndhame, Averille, and Backburne, his former teammates, as well as Mister Dewar, who seems to be goading your son into behavior in the Common Room that is most inappropriate for a wizard of his station.

"Professor Snape, my potion is ready for evaluation," Victoria said, turning back to Severus.

"I shall evaluate it, momentarily," Severus said. "Do you have any further questions, about your son's behavior, Warlock Wymane?"

The warlock swallowed, and Severus upped the chances of Victoria Malfoy becoming prefect to virtual certainty. "I believe my son would benefit from a public dressing down from his father. Is he currently likely to be in the Slytherin Common Room?"

"It is a near certainty," Severus replied. "He is confined there when he doesn't have class or a detention. Heir Malfoy, please escort Warlock Wymane to the Common Room. I should have your grade on your potion when I make my nightly check of the dorms in an hour."

Severus watched with great statisfaction as Warlock Wymane meekly followed Victoria Malfoy out of his office. He stepped out for a second, spotting Afton Arkwright sitting on a bench, seeming to be idly sketching a suit of armor that was posed as if it was polishing the wall of the alcove it was in. He nodded at Arkwright.

Arkwright nodded back, closed his sketch pad, and headed back towards the stairs. "Arkwright, there is only thirty-two minutes left before curfew, don't be late to the Common Room tonight."

"I won't, Professor," Arkwright replied. "I just have to post this letter to my father. It's been a fascinating week."

"Indeed," Severus said, returning to his office and wondering which father would be the next to grace his office.


Julie was going to miss her school. True, she had to be driven a long way to Houn6slow, a distance that was only possible due to her father's discreetly modified Wyvern. She was pretty sure that the vehicle was going much faster than most vehicles manufactured in 1948 did. It most certainly was breaking speed laws doing so. There was some sort of mysterious rotation between her three parents, another thing she was getting used to, that Julie hadn't quite figured out.

She wasn't quite sure she knew what her father did. He sat in something called the Wizengamot, whatever that was, so she had settled on saying that her father worked in government, and hoped that her classmates would let it go. For the most part, they had. Julie was finding it much more fun in school now that she wasn't part of the poor council housing students that the founders of the girl's school had insisted that were regularly taken, subsidized by paying rich students like Winton-Henke.

Once, she'd wore old, not exactly fitting uniforms, handed down from Victoria, and intended to be handed down to Judy eventually. Now she wore new ones that fit her, showing her fit body, the product of good diet and exercise. Now she had friends, like Astoria, but hadn't given up on those in council housing, like Beth Collings, who had actually been in Nursery with her and Junior. It was so hard not to tell Beth about the return of her twin brother. There was also Diana Doggett, who had lived in the apartment below. She hadn't be close to the two since Junior had died, but since Christmas, that had change.

Now the four were regularly together, eating lunch together, waiting in lines together. Even once, last week, she'd gone to Diana's after school, and the four had enjoyed a popcorn and movie night with Diane's mother jokingly referring to herself as the harried nanny. At the moment the four of them were dressed in their athletic attire, waiting for the field to be cleared by the boys school that shared the fields with Julie's school.

The current class on the football field were sixth year boys, and Julie couldn't stop from following one of the boys. He was slightly shorter than the rest of the class, but he had slightly longer blond hair, messy and straight. She wasn't quite sure why her attention was focused on that one boy, who looked up when another boy called out "Pavel." The ball was swiftly passed to Pavel, who made a brilliant shot that just arced right to the moving left goalie. Julie cheered.

"That was a brilliant shot," Julie stated, as Molodyy's friends congratulated him.

"Yeah, but he's nothing special," Astoria said as the game resumed.

"How could you say that," Julie asked, as Molodyy stole that ball from the opposing side, smiling as he did so. It was obvious to Julie that the older boy was enjoying the game. He made another shot on goal, just as the boys' gym teacher blew his whistle.

"Molodyy, good job today," the gym teacher said as the boy passed him. Julie turned her head to watch Pavel head towards the boy's school.

"Malfoy! Stop lollygagging," the teacher said. "You're in goal today." Julie found herself sighing as she headed on to the field, but glad that her teacher was finally using her correct last name.