Morning after the failed Wizengamot trial, Aria was pleased to see a headline disparaging Minister Fudge for once. She and Harry took pleasure at reading the headline and front-page article while Remus held the paper up so that he could read the articles on the inside.

"What does 'formal reprimand' mean exactly?" Aria asked, spooning cereal into her mouth.

"It means someone gave him a good spanking," Kenneth muttered, placing a cup of tea in front of Remus.

"If only," Remus muttered.

Harry turned to the back page of the paper for the Quidditch scores. Oliver Wood's name was listed as the starting Keeper for Puddlemere. Apparently, their usual Keeper was out sick.

"A formal reprimand means that means that they've given him a formal, written rebuke about his conduct," Kenneth corrected himself. "If a formal reprimand was given in the Muggle world it'd be only one more toe out of line before being fired."

Sirius came into the kitchen, pressing morning kisses to Remus and Kenneth's cheeks and to Harry's head. He ruffled Aria's hair, and she batted his hand away, scowling playfully as she had to pull out her ponytail to redo it.

An owl swooped into the kitchen, dropping an envelope in front of Aria and Harry, sealed with the crest of Hogwarts. Aria's landed against the table with a solid thud that had her frowning.

"What could be making that noise?" she wondered aloud, putting her spoon down. Remus folded the top of the paper down to peer across at her, even as Sirius spun around from the coffee maker, a grin spreading across his face.

"I think I know what that is," Sirius said.

"Me too," Remus agreed.

"What?" Aria questioned.

"No, no, you've got to open it," Sirius said. Aria sighed, ripping off the wax seal and pulling out her Hogwarts letter for the year. Along with the parchment, a silver and green badge came tumbling out, almost falling into her cereal bowl. She gaped at the gleaming badge, the silver P against an emerald green background sparkling in the morning light.

"Prefect," she breathed. "I made prefect! DAD! I made prefect!" She jumped to her feet, throwing her arms around Kenneth who twirled her about the kitchen.

"Harry, did you get prefect too?" she asked, once she was on her feet. Harry pulled out his letter, checking inside his envelope.

"No," he said, a little disappointed. "I bet Draco did though. He's the top academically for our year in Slytherin."

"Oh!" Aria gasped. "I wonder who's Head Boy and Head Girl? I could go on prefect rounds with Draco!"

Kenneth used the rolled up Cokesworth newspaper to hit her on the back of the head.

"You're meant to set an example of responsibility as a prefect," he said, "not use it as an excuse to go off and snog in broom cupboards."

"I think now would be a good time to have that sex talk," Sirius said. "I've still got the pamphlets from the healers."

"That's a good idea," Kenneth said.

"NO!" Harry and Aria cried, scandalized. Remus put the top of the newspaper back up and went back to reading.

"I think we should celebrate," Remus said from behind the paper. "Being chosen as prefect is a great honor."

"I should go thank Professor Snape!" Aria cried, racing out of the kitchen. She burst out the house and ran next door, banging on the front door until Snape tore open the door to glare at her.

"What is it?" he demanded. Aria threw her arms around his waist.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She cried. "I'll be the best prefect ever!"

"Get a hold of yourself!" Snape cried, disentangling himself from her grip. Aria grinned at him. He scowled at her.

"We're going to celebrate later, you need to come."

"I might have plans."

"Yeah, plans to celebrate my becoming prefect."

"Why do I need to celebrate? I already knew you were prefect because I chose you to be prefect."

"I'll have Remus tell you the details." Aria darted off before Snape could get another word in. She saw Robert leaving his house on his way to work and bounded over to him, showing off her new shiny prefect badge. She could understand why Percy had protected his so much, it was so exciting telling people and having them congratulate her.

Robert spun her around in the middle of the street at her announcement. He, Samuel, and Tommy did not seem any worse for wear after being Obliviated, for which Aria was glad. Not that she thought the aurors would screw it up, but after seeing what could happen with the Longbottoms, the whole idea of messing with people's memories made her uncomfortable.

Back inside the house, Harry was bullying Remus into taking them to Diagon Alley that day. He had to put in more work to convince Remus than necessary, as it was clear that Remus was just stringing him along.

"The letters seem to be quite late this year," Kenneth commented as they all finished their breakfasts.

"The Defense textbooks aren't on here," Aria observed. "I wish Professor Moody was coming back. I thought the curse on the Defense post was meant to like . . . cause gruesome deaths or something, but it just seems to be that no one lasts more than a year."

"It's . . . kinder at times than others," Sirius said slowly. "Though your first DADA professor died gruesomely and the other nearly died from his own stupidity."

"He was permanently injured," Harry pointed out. "I hear he doesn't go in public anymore because of all the scars."

"Serves him right," Aria said. "He was a creep. Did you know that after I killed the basilisk he gave me a dress? Suggested that he could help me with my new found fame."

"He gave you a what?" Kenneth cried.

"A dress, Dad. I gave it to Lavender as the color and style didn't suit me."

"Is that all he did?"

Aria frowned at her dad and the other two men who were now looking at her with an intense worry.

"He taught us Defense . . ." she said.

"I mean did he give you other things?" Kenneth asked. "Other . . . personal gifts?"

"No? I don't think he looked at me twice until he thought he could use my fame somehow. He liked Harry though."

"I had detention with him once," Harry said. "Had to help him sign fan mail. It was so boring."

Kenneth muttered something under his breath which Aria didn't catch, but Remus and Sirius nodded in agreement with whatever her dad said. It probably wasn't very kind anyway.

After breakfast, Sirius sent a note to his PA to say he would not be in at the ministry until later and the family of five went off to Diagon Alley.

The alley was as crowded as ever with the arrival of Hogwarts letters. It seemed every student and their parents wanted to go shopping that day. Aria spotted multiple students as they went to Gringotts to pull money out. She noticed when people spotted them, because people would either start whispering or walk in the opposite direction.

Their business at Gringotts did not last long and soon they were out in the alley, heading straight to Madam Malkin's to get measured for new robes as both Aria and Harry had already had growth spurts and the growing charms on their old robes could not match their growth rate. Harry was quite pleased with the fact that he had grown, which only showed what good food and some high-powered nutrition potions could do for a person.

The Patil twins were in getting new robes as well with their parents and the families spent a pleasant few minutes chatting while their children got poked and prodded and measured.

Passing by Quality Quidditch Supplies, they bumped into the Weasleys and Hermione.

"I made prefect!" Aria and Hermione shouted at the same time. They squealed, hugging each other tightly, the noise frightening both Harry and Ron.

"Ron made prefect too," Ginny piped up with a devilish grin on her face. "It's all the twins could talk about." Aria squealed again and hugged Ron too, nearly knocking him over.

"How did you make prefect?" Harry asked. "Is McGonagall okay?"

"Haha, very funny," Ron muttered, disentangling himself from Aria. "I will have you know that everyone in the family, except Fred and George, have been prefects."

"I expect I will also be a prefect," Ginny stated confidently. "Seeing what my year has to offer."

"Mum and Dad always get us a gift if we make prefect," Ron said. "I've asked for a new broom so we're going to price it out, see if maybe we can get a Cleansweep or something. I'd like to try out for the Quidditch team this year."

The friends all went into Quality Quidditch Supplies. Ron wandered over to the brooms on sale with his mother and father while the rest fanned out throughout the store to browse. The purchase didn't take long, and Ron soon walked out of the shop with a brand new Cleansweep Eleven, the latest model of the Cleansweeps. Aria had watched as Molly hesitated slightly at the price, had recognized the look of mental calculation that her own dad had had many times throughout her childhood before she had slain a basilisk and inherited money from the Flamels.

After the Quidditch shop, they moved onto Flourish and Blott's where they spread out to collect their schoolbooks and look around. Aria was looking through a stack of books on the second floor near the railing when she spotted several other classmates walk in with their families.

Draco looked gorgeous as always, his white-blonde hair slicked back in a style that showed off his angular cheekbones, similar to Sirius'. He wore a carefully tailored set of dark burgundy day robes and he walked with a confidence even Aria didn't possess. She stepped behind a taller stack of books to keep out of view of the Slytherins, as Pansy had her arm around Draco's while her parents and Draco's parents spoke with one another. Daphne, Astoria, and their mother were with them, as was Millicent and Mrs. Bulstrode. As the group stood in the large front entrance of the bookshop, Theo strolled in with his own father following behind.

Someone said something funny as everyone burst out laughing. Pansy extracted herself from Draco's side, bouncing over to her father and linking arms with him. The man smiled at Pansy, patting her hand as he adjusted himself to allow her to lean against him. Lady Parkinson didn't look so approving, but neither was she upset. She turned and made pleasant conversation with Lady Greengrass and Mrs. Bulstrode.

"Deep thoughts?"

Aria jumped, slamming a hand over her chest as she turned to her dad. Kenneth grinned.

"Sorry," he said, not at all apologetic. "Didn't mean to startle you. What're we looking at?" He peered around the stack of books at her house mates and their families. Lord Nott and Theo had just walked in and were greeting everyone in their serious way.

"They all look so happy," Aria said. "Like they love each other."

"Probably 'cause they do, honey."

"But . . ." Aria sighed, not sure how to word what she wanted to say. "I guess I just don't understand how some of these people . . . they're genuine Death Eaters and . . . and yet they have the ability to love and care for people. If they're able to do that, how can they also hate so deeply?"

Kenneth pulled Aria to his side, letting her put her head against his shoulder while his own arm wrapped around her waist, holding her secure against him. She breathed in his cologne, dark and musky. He had never worn a different cologne in all her fifteen years.

"People aren't born good people and Death Eaters, Aria," he murmured, pressing his cheek against her head. "We're all born with light and dark within us. What matters is what we choose to do with it all." He wrapped his other arm around her, pulling Aria into a proper hug.

"No one is born completely evil," Kenneth continued, watching as Narcissa Malfoy cast a proud look at Draco and his chest puffed at something Lucius said. "And no one is born completely good. We all have choices to make. Sometimes it's easier to make up for the bad choices we make, other times not so much. And sometimes, there's no making up for what we've chosen to do. We have to suffer the consequences of our actions."

Aria thought about Professor Snape, about the bad choices he had made that had led him to being a Death Eater. She didn't know everything he had chosen, but she could see how hard it was for him to make up for it now. Many of the adults at the Order meeting at the Burrow had not even tried to hide their distrust of her Head of House. There was a good chance he would be making up for the bad choices of his youth for the rest of his life.

She also knew her dad had made some wrong choices when he was younger. He had a criminal record, though he was tight lipped about it. It was one reason why he and DS Reynolds didn't get along and why he knew DI Sheard so well. It was why he had poured so much time and effort into Robert and Samuel and Tommy and the other kids on Spinner's End. The street had a past reputation of criminal activity, of gangs and poverty; a whole street full of wrong choices and people living the consequences.

"Life's complicated," she settled on complaining. Kenneth laughed, kissing her forehead.

"That it is," he agreed. "But we're always better for it, in the end, as long as we're willing to learn the lessons life puts in front of us. Now. Are we going to hide behind the stacks all day or are we going to be brave and face the world?"

"We're going to be brave," Aria stated.

"That's my girl." Kenneth chucked her gently under the chin with a grin. "Let's go face the day."

They came out from around the stack of books and made their way together down the stairs to the ground floor. Her housemates and their parents immediately spotted them coming down. Aria slipped a smile onto her face, even as some of the smiles disappeared off the faces of the adults.

"Good morning," she greeted them cheerily. She bobbed a curtsy towards the adults. Lucius and Narcissa nodded politely at her while Lady Parkinson and Lady Greengrass wrinkled their noses like they had smelled something rotten. Mrs. Bulstrode didn't look impressed by her either.

"At least someone has manners," Lord Nott murmured, putting a hand on Theo's shoulder. "I believe it's been a few years since we last met, Miss Bourne. I am Lord Nott."

"Very nice to meet you again," Aria said. "So . . . do we know who the fifth-year boy prefect is?"

"It's not me!" Theo cried, holding up his arms.

"Ah. So, it's Goyle then."

"I beg your pardon?" Draco cried, even as Daphne laughed loudly. Aria grinned.

"I guess that means we'll be spending time together this year," she said. "Seeing as we're both prefects."

Draco tried to look horrified at that but failed miserably. The only people who thought he looked horrified at the prospect were their house mates' parents, though Lord Nott had a knowing look on his face. Lucius rolled his eyes like he was praying.

"I don't know what Professor Snape was thinking," Lady Greengrass stated. "Making . . . someone of your station a prefect."

Aria shrugged.

"I suppose it came down to academics if anything," she said. "I wasn't expecting to be made prefect. Not like how I was expecting Hermione to be prefect."

"Did she make prefect?" Daphne asked.

"Obviously."

"Do you know who's the boy prefect?" Theo asked.

"That would be me." Ron, Hermione, and Harry joined the group. Ron gave a mock bow towards their classmates.

"You're prefect?" Draco questioned. "Is Professor McGonagall sick or something? Confounded? On death's door?"

Narcissa nudged him sharply.

"Very funny," Ron replied. "I will have you know she is in perfect health."

"How has your summer been?" Daphne asked Aria, cutting off any possible arguments. Her mother hissed at her to stop talking, but Daphne ignored her.

"It's been eventful," Aria answered diplomatically. "I presented at the YEP Symposium on my current lycanthropy research—," Lord Parkinson made some kind of surprised choking noise. "—and I had to turn Prince Nikola down again."

"Again?" Kenneth questioned. "What do you mean again?"

"Didn't I tell you?" Aria asked innocently because she had not told her dad. "The heir to the Bulgarian throne asked me to marry him before he left Hogwarts at the end of the school year."

Now multiple adults made surprised choking noises.

"I told him I didn't wish to be queen of Bulgaria," Aria said with a dramatic sigh. "But he proposed again while we were in Berlin. We were on a river cruise . . . it was all very romantic."

Draco scowled at her. She met his gaze head on.

"I told him that I wished to focus on my NEWTs," she said. "And he said if he couldn't get me to agree to be his queen, then he would give me the position of Court Sorcerer."

"Which you turned down of course," Draco snipped. Aria shrugged.

"I think we'd better check out now," she said to Ron, Harry, and Hermione. "It's getting rather crowded in here don't you think?" Kenneth went to go find Sirius and Remus.

"You turned him down, right?" Draco questioned as Aria trotted past him with her books. She smirked at him, liking how his face flushed a bit in jealousy. If they were at Hogwarts Draco would pull her into a cupboard and they'd snog passionately.

"You're bloody mad!" Ron whispered as they paid for their books.

"Did you see their faces?" Hermione whispered with a giggle. "Priceless!" She and Aria dissolved into a fit of giggles. They walked around the pureblood families who still congregated in the large entry way when the door to the shop opened, the bell tinkled, and Neville walked in followed by Fortescue, Barty Crouch Jr., and Frank Longbottom.

"Neville!" Hermione cried, greeting him with her famous bone-crushing hug, hair whipping about his face. Neville spat hair out of his mouth as he returned the bug.

"Glad to see you too, Hermione," he wheezed.

"I thought you'd have gone to Geneva to shop," Ron commented as he tugged Hermione off of their housemate.

"Dad wanted to come to Diagon," Neville said. "And I think he's getting a little stir crazy."

"Is this another one of your friends?" Frank asked, motioning to Ron.

"This is Ron Weasley," Neville answered. "He's my year in Gryffindor."

"Great Merlin! You were just at tiny tyke last I saw you." He cast his gaze around the bookshop, clearly remembering something fondly, when his eyes settled on the gathered purebloods and their children. Something in Frank's eyes shifted and Aria saw his hand twitch, his wand coming out of its holster into his hand. He set a hand on Neville's shoulder, angling himself between his son and the group.

"Oh, hello!" Neville greeted. "Dad, these are my year mates, though they're with Harry and Aria in Slytherin."

"Wait, you're a Slytherin?" Frank questioned, looking at Harry and Aria.

"Didn't I mention?" Neville asked nervously. "I . . . well I thought I did."

"Sorry . . . I don't think that came out right," Frank admitted. "Only James got Harry a lion's suit for Halloween, and it came with a little Gryffindor scarf."

"Oh, that's adorable!" Hermione cried. "Harry's we'll have to get you another one!"

"Absolutely not!"

"And isn't Aria a Muggleborn?"

"I am," Aria said proudly. "Drives half my house mates up the wall." She and Astoria glared at each other. "Mr—er—Lord Longbottom, may I introduce you to our year mates? Theo Nott, Daphne Greengrass, Pansy Parkinson, and Draco Malfoy."

The younger generation managed to bow and curtsy politely even if Frank and their parents held some kind of staring contest. Frank's grip around his wand was white-knuckled.

"I think now is a good time for you to go and grab your books," Narcissa stated, cutting through the awkward silence. "Go along now, Draco." Draco cast one last look at Frank before disappearing into the stacks, Pansy, Theo, and Daphne hurrying after him. Astoria followed too, but at a slightly slower gait.

"You're looking well, Barty," Lucius said after another minute of awkward silence.

"I've never felt better," Barty answered.

"The crowds aren't bothering you too much?"

Barty shook his head.

"Come along, Neville," Frank said, nudging Neville in a direction that would take them into another part of the shop. "We've still got to go get you new robes."

Fortescue went with them while Barty hovered for a moment, glancing between the Malfoys and Frank before hurrying after his brother and nephew.

"Well . . ." Aria declared. "That was . . . exciting. Shall we be off now?" She grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him after her into the alley. Ron and Hermione hurried to follow.

"That was bloody awkward!" Ron muttered as they crossed the alley to the apothecary's.

"What was the deal with Lord Longbottom and the Malfoys?" Hermione asked.

"Bellatrix Lestrange, one of the people who tortured the Longbottoms, is Mrs. Malfoy's older sister," Ron explained as they entered Slug and Jigger's. "Family's very important so I'm pretty certain Neville's dad just dislikes the Malfoys for their association to the Lestranges."

"If family's so important, why did Algernon Longbottom curse his nephew and sister-in-law?" Aria asked.

"I don't know! People do terrible stuff all the time."

"At least Lord Longbottom's getting back on his feet," Hermione commented, handing each of them a standard 5th year potions kit. "It'll help keep Neville from worrying too much during the school year if at least one of his parents is well enough to look after the other."

They were just exiting the apothecary when Kenneth, Sirius, and Remus found them.

"Don't just disappear like that!" Kenneth cried. "I thought maybe one of the Slytherin Families had . . . I don't know . . . banished your or something."

"Sorry," Harry apologized. "We ran into the Longbottoms just as we left and needed to make a quick exit the tension was so thick."

"Yes, we figured based on how each family was walking around the shop," Sirius said.

"Hopefully it doesn't make school any more awkward than it can be," Aria moaned.