A/N: This story describes how Albus, Matt, Amanda, John, and Rose get their Hogwarts letters. Each chapter contians lyrics from a song by Jared Campbell. Each chapter’s name is a lyric from the same song. The story is named after his song, Life Is Good.

Disclaimer- I don’t own Harry Potter or any of Jared Campbell’s songs.

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Cause fate, it’s in my way
and I don’t have the patience to put life on hold,
I think I’m holding out for something more.
~Fate, Jared Campbell



Eleven-year-old Albus Severus Potter was standing in front of the window in the drawing room of his London house, Grimmauld Place. He had been standing perfectly still for the past two minutes, watching as a dot in the sky got larger and larger until it was recognizable as an owl.

The owl was close now and it looked like it was heading straight for Grimmauld Place. It was close enough for Albus to notice its ruffled brown feathers and the letters wrapped around its legs. Albus gulped and he rubbed his sweaty hands on his pants.

Watching for the morning post had become a routine for Albus over the past few days. As soon as he woke up, he would stand by the window waiting for the owl that he knew would arrive soon. The owl from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry that would bring him his acceptance letter. Albus’s older brother, James, had received his letter a year ago, in mid-July, and Albus was sure his would arrive at roughly the same time.

Albus wrenched open the window and the owl soared inside. It stuck out its leg and Albus quickly detached the letters. The owl gave a loud hoot and then soared out the window. Albus shut it as he rifled through the letters. One was addressed to James. But the other, the other was addressed to Albus.

Albus sat down on the couch and slowly turned the letter over in his hands. He swallowed hard and began to open it with shaking hands. He pulled it out of the envelop and read it.

Albus closed the letter, grinning to himself. It had finally arrived. Albus had been kind of anxious about it the entire summer. He knew it would arrive, but after days of no owls from Hogwarts, he had gotten a bit worried.

Albus stood up and ran to the stairs. He had to wake James up. James had been teasing Albus ever since he returned from Hogwarts, telling him he wouldn’t get his letter. Albus knew James liked to joke, but it had gotten a bit irritating by the third week.

James’s bedroom door was closed, but that didn’t stop Albus. After all, James always barged into Albus’s room. Albus banged open the door and peered down at James, who was curled up on his bed. He looked rather innocent when he was sleeping, but if anyone could make trouble even while sleeping, it was James.

Albus glanced around the room, trying to think of a creative way to wake him up. He wished he had a wand and could spout water in James’s face.

Albus decided to just go with the old standby of staring at James until he woke up. It usually worked. Albus peered down until he was only inches from James and waited.

All of a sudden, James’s eyes shot open and he jumped back. He hit his head on the wall behind his bed and winced.

“What the hell, Al?” James shouted as he rubbed his head, “Do you realize what time it is?”

“Nine in the morning,” Albus said, “Sorry about your head.”

“It’s ok,” James muttered, “I’ll get you back eventually. But why in the name of Merlin did you wake me up so early?”

Albus pulled his letter out of his envelop and proudly shoved it in James’s face. James grabbed it and scanned it. He gave it back to Albus and grinned.

“See, you got it,” James said.

“I know,” Albus said, “But you’re the one who said I wouldn’t.”

“I was only joking,” James shrugged, “It’s what brothers do. Now you get to do it with Lily.”

Albus shrugged. He sort of doubted Lily would believe him if he told her she wasn’t going to Hogwarts. She’d been waiting impatiently for her Hogwarts letter since she was five or so. Now she was nine and she still had two years to go.

“Oh, you got your book list, too,” Albus handed James the letter addressed to him.

“Excellent,” James grinned as he ripped it open, “Maybe Mum and Dad will get me a broom as an early birthday present. Then I can try out for Seeker this year and not have to use one of those school brooms.”

James was entering his second year and was determined to become Gryffindor’s new Seeker. He had been practicing all summer on one of their mum’s old brooms. James’s birthday was in November and he had been giving their parents not so subtle hints about a new broom ever since he returned home from school.

“Well, I’m going to go see if we can go to Diagon Alley today,” Albus said.

“Then I can get my broom,” James replied and laid back down.

Albus looked back at James as he left, and noticed that he already had his eyes closed.

Albus ran back downstairs and to the kitchen. Both of his parents were sitting at the table eating eggs and toast.

“It came!” Albus said proudly as he set his letter down in between his parents.

“Congratulations, Al,” Harry grinned and ruffled Ablus’s hair, “Told you you just had to be patient.”

“That’s wonderful, Albus,” Ginny got up and kissed the top of his head, “We can go shopping today, if you’d like.”

“Definitely,” Albus grinned, “James wants to go, too. He wants his new broom.”

Ginny rolled her eyes as she put her plate in the sink. “We’ll see about that.”

“Mummy!!!!” Lily came shrieking down the stairs.

Albus turned around and saw that she had a hair brush stuck in her hair and her eyes were welling up with tears.

“Mummy!” Lily cried, “It’s stuck!”

Ginny sighed and picked up her wand. “Lily, what were you doing?”

“I was just trying to make my hair curly like Rosie’s,” Lily pouted as Ginny started to extricate the brush from her hair.

“Lily, what have I told you about wrapping your hair around your brush?” Ginny asked.

“Not to do it,” Lily muttered.

“Exactly,” Ginny said, “Albus got his Hogwart’s letter.”

“Really?” Lily shrieked and ran away from Ginny just as she got the brush free, “Where is it? I want to see!”

Albus grabbed his letter off the table and held it in front of Lily. Lily stared wide eyed at it and tried to grab it away from Albus. Albus held it up above her head.

“I wanna hold it!” Lily shouted.

“No,” Albus shook his head.

“Mum!” Lily shouted, “He won’t let me see it!”

“It’s his letter, Lils,” Harry replied.

Lily crossed her arms across her chest. “Fine. I want to go to Hogwarts, too.”

“You’re not old enough. You just have to be patient, Lily,” Ginny told her.

Harry snorted into his juice. “I seem to remember someone else who was impatient about going to Hogwarts.”

Ginny smacked Harry playfully on the head with that morning’s copy of the Prophet. “Oh, shut it, Harry.”

Albus poured himself a bowl of cereal and sat down just as the fireplace lit up with green flames. It cleared a few seconds later and out stepped a boy in his late teens who had turquoise colored hair.

“Teddy!” Albus shouted and jumped up from the table, “I got my letter just now!” Albus handed Teddy his letter.

“Brilliant,” Teddy grinned and scanned Albus’s letter, “Merlin, I wish I still had another year there.”

“That’s only because then you could put off deciding what you want to do with your life,” Ginny laughed.

“No, so I could be there when Albus is there,” Teddy groaned, “But I suppose you’re right, too.”

“Of course I am,” Ginny said.

“Anyway, I just stopped by to say hi on my way to work,” Teddy said as he grabbed a piece of toast off Harry’s plate.

“And to steal my food,” Harry muttered.

“That, too,” Teddy grinned, “I’m working at the Diagon Alley store today, so will I see you lot there later?”

“Yep,” Harry nodded, “We’ll be there. I’m going to see if Ron and Hermione want to go as well. Rose probably got her letter today.”

“Sounds good,” Teddy said as he stepped back into the fireplace and disappeared in green flames.

******

A few hours later (after James had woken up), the Potter family found themselves in Diagon Alley. The street was filled with returning Hogwarts students and their families.

Albus had been to Diagon Alley numerous times before, but there was something very exciting about going there to buy supplies for Hogwarts. He was getting to do everything James had done the previous year. Albus was especially excited about going to Olivander’s and getting his wand.

They met Ron and Hermione Weasley, as well as their two kids, Rose and Hugo, in front of Gringott’s. Rose was a couple months younger than Albus, but would be turning eleven in August and would be going to Hogwarts as well. Hugo was Lily’s age.

“Where to first?” Harry asked.

“Olivander’s!” Albus announced.

“Flourish and Blotts!” Rose said excitedly.

Albus stared at her like she had three heads. How could his cousin want to go to the book store before she got her wand?

“You’re mental, Rose,” James laughed, “I say we go to Quality Quidditch Supplies!”

“Eyelops!” Lily shouted.

“You’re not even going to Hogwarts,” Albus pointed out.

“I don’t care,” Lily huffed.

“Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes,” Hugo suggested.

“Then it’s settled,” Harry grinned, “We’re going to the Apothecary first.”

Everybody groaned, but followed Harry down the street anyway. Albus sighed to himself. That was always how his dad settled arguments. He’d pick what nobody had suggested.

The trip to the Apothecary was quick. Nobody really wanted to linger in there. Albus didn’t particularly enjoy the place. It had an odd smell to it and there were cauldrons full of things that looked like they were decaying.

After the Apothecary, they went to Madam Malkin’s, which was boring as well. Albus just didn’t find buying robes very exciting. It seemed like his dad was doing the most boring shopping first.

Finally, after a long trip to Flourish and Blotts, Harry announced that Olivander’s was next on the list. Albus and Rose ran ahead of the rest of the group and arrived a few minutes before anyone else.

“Ah, Albus and Rose,” Olivander turned around and greeted them with a wispy voice.

“Hello, Mr. Olivander. We’re getting our wands today,” Albus grinned.

“I thought so,” Olivander smiled and walked slowly to the rows of wands that were behind him.

Olivander took measurements and then walked to the back of the shop. He returned with a few wands just as the rest of the Potter and Weasley families entered the shop. Olivander greeted them and then handed Albus and Rose each a wand.

Albus smiled as he held the wand in his hand. It was an unbelievable feeling; holding a wand that could be his. He waved it and the window behind him exploded.

James burst out in laughter as Albus’s face turned bright red. He set the wand on Olivander’s desk and looked sheepishly at his family. Harry grinned and repaired Olivander’s window with a wave of his own wand.

“Perhaps this one,” Olivander handed Albus another wand, “Eleven and a quarter inches, Ash, phoenix feather.”

Albus took the wand and all of a sudden a warm feeling enveloped him. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say the wand actually glowed in his hand for a split second. He could feel that it was the right one even before he waved it. He gave it a wave and gold sparks erupted from it.

“Excellent,” Olivander grinned.

A little while later, Rose had her wand as well and the group left the shop. Albus was carrying his wand with the utmost care and staring more at the box than what was in front of him.

The adults decided that it would be best to visit Eyelops last since both Albus and Rose were getting owls. They didn’t want to have to carry the owls around all day.

James was asking to go to Quality Quidditch Supplies every five minutes or so, but Harry led the way into Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes first.

“Ron, Ginny!” George greeted them as they entered, “And Harry and Hermione! You’ve got everyone with you today.”

“Hogwarts shopping,” Harry grinned, “Al and Rosie just got their wands.”

Albus proudly opened the box and showed his Uncle George his new wand. Rose did the same.

“Brilliant, both of you!” George said, “And now I shall get you both ready for Hogwarts in the prank department….”

Albus followed George into the depths of the shop. He was not at all surprised that his uncle was assisting him with pranks. George was the owner of Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes and was legendary at Hogwarts as one of the most mischievous students ever to attend.

“Now, every student needs a Skiving Snackbox or two,” George said as he handed Albus and Rose each a colorful box, “After all, I can’t imagine you’ll want to sit through History of Magic very often.”

Albus grinned as he took the box of sweets to make one ill. He had heard many a story from his parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and James about how boring Professor Binns’ classes were.

“And then you’ll need some dung bombs,” George said as he led them to a different display.

“Last time I checked, those were still forbidden at Hogwarts,” Hermione said sternly.

“Oh, I’m sure they are,” George winked, “But so long as Filch doesn’t find out it was these two who set them off, it doesn’t matter.”

“George Weasley!” Hermione scolded, “You should be setting a better example for these two! No wonder Fred was in detention every week last year!”

Albus laughed as he took a pack of dung bombs off the shelf. His cousin Fred was George’s son and just finished his third year at Hogwarts. Fred had taken after his father as far as pranking went.

“Lighten up, Hermione,” Ron laughed, “Let them have their fun.”

“Ronald!” Hermione shouted, “You’re even worse!”

“Harry!” Teddy burst out of the back room and joined the group, “Getting Al all the pranking products he’ll need this year?”

“Sure am,” Harry grinned, “Although I don’t think Hermione is too happy about it.”

“I am not buying this stuff for Rose,” Hermione stated.

After a few more minutes of arguing, Hermione gave up and both Albus and Rose had bagfuls of Weasleys’ products. James had replenished his stash as well and Albus had a feeling he’d use everything up within a month.

George closed the shop so he and Teddy could get something to eat and everyone went to the Leaky Cauldron for dinner. Albus mainly listened to the conversation but was very content. Going to Hogwarts was something he had been looking forward to for years and now it was finally happening.

James finally got to go to Quality Quidditch Supplies after dinner and got his early birthday present. Albus was slightly jealous about this, but knew that he couldn’t have his own broom at Hogwarts anyway. He was determined to make it onto the Quidditch team eventually, though.

The last stop of the day was Eyelops Owl Emporium, which was a place Albus was almost as excited about as he had been about Olivander’s. His parents had told him he’d be able to get an owl when he went to Hogwarts.

“I want an owl,” Lily whined as they entered the shop.

“In two years,” Harry replied.

“That’s so far away,” Lily groaned.

“I know,” Harry said as he picked her up, “But it’ll go by faster than you think.”

Albus began looking around at all the owls. He didn’t really have any ideas about what kind of owl he wanted; he just thought he’d look around and see what owl liked him.

There were owls of all sizes and colors. White ones, black ones, and speckled ones. Small ones, large ones, and medium sized ones. Albus walked slowly through the shop and looked at each owl. His eyes rested on an owl with gleaming topaz eyes and dark brown feathers. The owl had a few flecks of white on its head and it was staring directly at Albus.

Albus walked over to the owl and gave the owl a pat on its head. The owl gave a soft hoot and Albus knew it was the one for him. The owl flew onto his shoulder and Albus walked back to his parents.

“I’ve got my owl,” he grinned.

“What’s his name?” Harry asked.

“Dunno,” Albus shrugged, “Haven’t thought of one yet.”

“Name him Salazar,” James smirked, “Because you’ll be in Slytherin.”

“What?” Albus stared at his brother, “I’m not going to be in Slytherin.”

“You never know,” James said, “There’s a 25 percent chance that you might.”

Albus was stunned. It was so obvious. There was a 25 percent chance that he’d be in Slytherin. After all, there were four houses. But the thought of being in Slytherin had never crossed his mind. He always thought he’d be in Gryffindor, where everyone in his whole family had been. It was possible for him to be in Slytherin, though. Or Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. Neither of those would be that bad, but Albus wanted to be in Gryffindor.

“Ready to go, Al?” Harry asked, “Rose just found her owl.”

“Oh, yeah,” Albus said quietly, “I’m ready. And I’m naming my owl Godric.”

Albus followed his family out of the owl shop and to the Leaky Cauldron. In two months, he’d be at Hogwarts. The place where his parents went and most of the rest of his family. The place he had been impatiently waiting to go to for years. He couldn’t think of a time in his life where he had been more excited. All he hoped was that he would wind up in Gryffindor and maybe, just maybe, he would be able to make a name for himself.


But he knows that it’s going to be all right
Cause the love that he’s got will keep him warm through the night
Life is good, life is good
~LIfe Is Good, Jared Campbell


Eleven-year-old Matthew Conan Eckerton was sitting below a large oak tree in his backyard. His eyes were closed and he was resting his head against its rough trunk. The sun was beating down on him through the branches above. For the past hour, the only sound had been the occasional bird chirping or cow mooing. Then a loud revving broke the silence.

Matt slowly opened his eyes and squinted in the bright sunlight. He glanced around to try and find out where the noise was coming from. In the distance, he saw the farmer riding his tractor through the fields that surrounded Matt’s house.

Matt lived in the country, far from any towns. His house was on an acre of property that was surrounded by farmland on three sides and a forest on the other. The nearby farmer owned all of the surrounding farmland and was regularly seen plowing or performing other tasks. The farmer’s house was quite far away, although Matt could see it from where he was sitting. Other than the farmer, Matt had no other neighbors.

Matt’s parents, Walter and Julie, wanted it that way. Matt was not an ordinary eleven-year-old boy, even by wizarding standards. At the age of five, he was bitten by a werewolf and became one himself. For the past five and a half years, over half his life, he had been enduring painful transformations every month that left him exhausted and sick. As if he could be anymore unusual, the Wolfsbane Potion which normally enabled a werewolf to keep his mind during full moons, did not work for Matt.

That particular day happened to be the day of the full moon. In only a few short hours, Matt would be locked in a room in the basement and go through the painful transformation into the wolf.

As the full moon was only a short while away, Matt was already feeling the effects of it. A few days beforehand, he would tire quickly and get a lot of headaches. He also lost his appetite. At the moment, he had a splitting headache which was not helped by the tractor, but felt too exhausted to move. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the pounding in his head and the tractor’s roaring.

“Matt, are you out here?” someone shouted.

Matt opened his eyes again and saw his sister, Amy, walking towards him. “I’m over by the tree!” he shouted.

Amy ran the rest of the distance and sat down next to him. Her blond hair was thrown up into a messy ponytail and flying everywhere as she walked.

“Thank Merlin,” Amy sighed, “I couldn’t find you anywhere. You know Mum doesn’t like it when you go outside the day of the full moon.”

Matt groaned inwardly. His mother was extremely overprotective, in his opinion. He understood she had her reasons and after what had happened in the past, he couldn’t really blame her. But he wasn’t a baby anymore and he didn’t think going outside was going to hurt. He liked going outside before full moons since he’d be cooped up inside for a few days afterwards.

“Is she back yet?” Matt asked. His mother had gone to Diagon Alley to pick up some groceries a little while ago, leaving Amy to ‘babysit’ him. Matt thought this was ridiculous since he was eleven and certainly did not need a babysitter, but didn’t argue with her. Plus, Amy was home anyway.

“No,” Amy replied, “But I had to find you because this just came by owl.”

Amy grinned as she handed Matt a letter. Matt took it and turned it over. His breath caught in his chest as he saw the Hogwarts crest stamped on it. It was his Hogwarts letter.

Ever since Amy had begun her magical education, when Matt was four, he had been excited about going himself. Even after he had been bitten by a werewolf, he thought he’d get to go. His parents had never said otherwise. Until they received a letter telling them Matt couldn’t attend, that is.

The Eckertons had not lived in England their whole lives. Up until three years ago, they had lived in Australia. Amy had attended the Australian School of Sorcery until she was fourteen. That was when their parents had asked the headmaster if Matt would be able to attend. He said he could not.

Everything got worse from there. Someone who held a grudge against Matt’s dad at the Ministry announced to the entire country that Matt was a werewolf (something they had successfully hidden for over two years) and then his dad lost his job because of it. He had been the Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. After that, the man who had announced Matt’s lycanthropy became the head and passed legislation restricting the rights of werewolves.

Matt’s parents sent letters to numerous other schools asking if he could attend. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Scotland said yes. Matt’s dad found a job at the British Ministry, in Werewolf Support Services, and they moved. Life had been better since then. Amy had a hard time adjusting, but eventually began to enjoy Hogwarts.

Due to all of this, Matt knew he would get a letter from Hogwarts this summer. He had been waiting for it for weeks since he had no idea when it would arrive, but had momentarily forgotten about it that day. Despite knowing it was going to come, there was something very exciting about it actually arriving.

Matt slowly peeled back the seal and opened the envelop. He pulled the letter out and carefully unfolded it.

“Merlin, you’re slow with that!” Amy exclaimed, “I think I nearly ripped my letter from Australia when I got it.”

“That’s why I opened mine slowly,” Matt smirked. He looked at the letter and read it aloud. There was a post script at the end, one that Matt knew the rest of his fellow students would not have received.

P.S. Please have your parents contact
us so we can set up a time for you to
come to the school so we can discuss
the precautions we have set up for
your lycanthropy.

Matt folded the letter and then looked up at Amy. He still couldn’t believe that it was finally his turn to go to Hogwarts. He had been secretly jealous of Amy for years. Every time she got to go shopping for supplies and then speed away on the Hogwarts Express, he watched with envious eyes.

“It’ll be both of us going this year,” Amy grinned.

Matt nodded. “I just hope I’m in Gryffindor.”

“You will be,” Amy assured him, “Siblings usually get sorted into the same house. Victoire’s sister and brother are in Gryffindor like she is. All their cousins are there, too.”

“I got my supply list, too,” Matt said as he pulled out another piece of parchment, “You get yours?” Amy was entering her seventh and final year at Hogwarts.

“Yup,” Amy nodded, “We can go to Diagon Alley once you’re recovered from tonight.”

“Yeah,” Matt said, wishing he didn’t have to wait, “Says I can’t get a bring a broom, though.”

“Like Mum would let you bring one anyway,” Amy laughed, “Speaking of Mum, she’ll probably be back anytime. We should go back inside.”

“You won’t tell her I was out here, will you?” Matt asked as he stuffed his letter back in the envelop.

“Nah,” Amy grinned, “Since when have I been one to do what Mum says anyway?”

Matt stood up and felt dizzy as soon as he did so. He stumbled and Amy grabbed his arm. She let him lean on her as they walked slowly back to the house. The thing Matt hated even more than the actual transformation into the wolf was how sick he felt the days leading up to it. It was like getting the flu once a month.

To Matt’s relief, his mother was not back from Diagon Alley when they got back to the house. Amy helped him to the couch and he laid down on it.

“I am going to miss so many classes during the full moons,” Matt groaned.

“Yeah, you probably will,” Amy agreed, “But the teachers are nice so you’ll be able to catch up. Well, most of them are nice. Washburn’s a nasty piece of work, but the rest are nice. And it’s not necessarily a bad thing to miss History of Magic. There’s usually about a quarter of the people in my class using Puking Pastilles or Nosebleed Nougats before that class. You’ll have a built in excuse once a month. All the rest of the kids in your class will be jealous.”

“I doubt that,” Matt said darkly. Ever since he had first seen the sweets in a Skiving Snackbox, he was bewildered that people would actually eat sweets that would make you ill. He just couldn’t wrap his mind around actually wanting to be ill, even to miss a boring class. He’d rather sit through the class.

“Just keep an open mind,” Amy shrugged, “There have been quite a few times where I would rather be in the Hospital Wing than in class.”

Matt groaned and closed his eyes. He wished he could go all seven years at Hogwarts without ever setting foot in the Hospital Wing, but that wasn’t going to happen.

“Amy, could you get me some of that headache potion?” he asked.

“When did you last have it?” Amy asked.

“When I woke up this morning.”

“Sure,” Amy replied and got up.

Matt heard the door open a moment later and his mum walked in, her arms laden with grocery bags.

“Amy!” she shouted, “Can you come help me with these bags?”

“Hang on!” Amy shouted from the kitchen.

The bags dropped to the floor with a thump and Matt heard footsteps coming closer. He felt his mother kiss his forehead and ruffle his blonde hair.

“How are you?” she asked softly.

“Tired and I’ve got a headache,” Matt mumbled.

“I’ll get you some headache potion.”

“Amy’s already getting it,” Matt replied.

His mum kissed his forehead once more and sat down next to him on the couch. “Amy, could you bring the fever reducer, too?”

Matt squeezed his eyes shut tighter. No wonder he felt awful; he had a fever. Now he was sort of glad he came inside when he did.

“I got my Hogwarts letter, Mum,” he whispered.

“That’s wonderful, honey,” she replied, “We’ll go shopping in a few days.”

“Here’s the potions,” Amy said.

Matt cracked open his eyes and took one of the goblets Amy was holding. He drank it quickly and then grabbed the other one. He swallowed that one as fast as he could as well and gagged at the disgusting taste.

“Can I get an owl?” he yawned.

“Of course, honey,” his mum said as she rubbed his back, “Just go to sleep now. We’ll talk more about it tomorrow.”

Matt nodded and closed his eyes. He fell asleep quickly, feeling the happiest he had ever been the day of a full moon.

******

“Matt,” someone whispered as they shook him.

Matt opened his eyes and saw his dad bent down in front of the couch. “Hey, Dad.”

“I just heard you got your Hogwarts letter,” his dad smiled, “Congratulations.”

“Thanks,” Matt whispered.

“Well, I’ll let you get some more sleep. There’s still an hour or so until you have to go downstairs,” his dad said as he gave him a hug.

Matt watched his dad walk into the kitchen and closed his eyes once more. He drifted off to sleep again, trying not to think about what would happen in an hour.

After what seemed like only a few minutes later, Matt woke up in a cold sweat with an awful headache that no potion could ever help with. He sat up and looked out the window. It was dark, but he didn’t need to see the sky to know that the moon would rise soon.

“Mum!” his voice cracked. He swallowed hard. The pain always started before the transformation did. It was awful. He always tried not to cry, but it never worked. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to keep the tears from leaking out.

He heard three sets of footsteps run into the room and felt his mother’s arms wrap around him. He leaned into her and rested his head on her shoulder.

“It’s time,” his dad said quietly.

Matt shakily stood up and his parents helped him stumble towards the basement door. He could hear Amy’s footsteps behind them. Nobody said a word as they walked down the stairs and towards his transformation room.

Matt sat down on the padded floor as soon as he got into the room. His head was spinning and he didn’t think he’d be able to stand up much longer anyway. His parents and Amy each gave him a hug and then left the room. They didn’t say anything, but there was nothing to say. He’d done this so many times there wasn’t really any point in his parents saying anything. He knew they’d be there in the morning.

The door locked as his parents and Amy left, and Matt let out a loud sigh as he sat down. This was it. Another full moon. There was nothing he could do now but wait.

For years, he fought the change. He’d clench his hands and jaw and try to prevent the transformation, even though he knew it wouldn’t work. The only time he hadn’t fought it was the first one, where he had no idea what was going to happen. For the second one, he knew what was going to happen. He was only six, but he understood and he fought it with every part of his being. Now, five and a half years later, with five and a half years of proof that it wouldn’t work, he still fought it.

Matt didn’t have to wait long for the transformation to begin. His headache became unbearable and he felt his stomach lurch. He learned early on to not try and eat anything beforehand, because it always came back up during the first part of the transformation.

He curled up into a ball and let out a soft moan. He could feel his heart beating a mile a minute. His breathing was short and labored. It felt like he couldn’t breathe. He always tried not to scream, but that never worked either. He felt his bones breaking and elongating and hair sprouting everywhere.

He let out a loud scream and clenched his eyes as pain coerced through his body. No amount of previous full moons would ever prepare him for the painful transformation. Nothing helped with it either. His parents had given him so many different potions, but nothing decreased the pain.

His mind was always the last thing to go. Matt hated that. He wished his mind would go first. Then he wouldn’t have to remember the actual transformation. He always wished he’d pass out before the transformation began, but that never happened.

Matt took a few more ragged breaths and cried out in pain. He sat up and looked at his hands, which were quickly turning into paws of the wolf. He felt dizzy. The world was spinning around him and it felt like fog was clouding his mind. He let out one more scream and the world disappeared.

******

The wolf slowly stood up and took in his surroundings. It was dark and there was a faint smell of blood and humans lingering in the air. He was also trapped, again. The wolf was always trapped. He began to pace around the room and look for an escape route. It wasn’t there. There was never an escape route.

The wolf stood up on his hind legs and pointed his snout towards the ceiling. He let out a long howl and then glared at the opposite wall. He got back down on all fours and charged at it, slamming his head into the abnormally soft wall. He stepped back and repeated the process again and again.

He was alone. Alone and trapped. Every single full moon, the wolf was alone and stuck in the small padded room. He wanted to get out. He wanted to get out and find the people he could faintly smell beyond the walls.

However, there was no way out. No matter how many times the wolf rammed his head into the wall, he could not break it. Eventually, he sat down in the middle of the room and howled once more. He then proceeded to bite at his own body to relieve the urge to attack something.

******

Matt cracked his eyes open and tried to lift his head. A stabbing pain fled through his head and he dropped it back down onto the padded floor. He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on breathing. Each short, labored breath hurt. He couldn’t even figure out which parts of his body hurt the worse. Everything hurt. From the top of his head to his toes.

“Mum?” he said hoarsely. His voice was little more than a whisper. He knew there was no way his mother could hear him, but he called her name anyway.

The door clicked a short while later, but for Matt it felt like an eternity. Whoever came in the room made no sound as they walked across the mattress covered floor. They put a cloak over him and then picked him up. A wave of dizziness come over him as he was lifted up.

“It’s ok, I’ve got you,” his dad whispered.

Matt was hardly aware of being carried up to his room and he passed out on the way.

The next thing he knew, he was laying in his soft bed with layers of blankets on top of him. He could feel the warm sun shining through the window. He opened his eyes slowly and blinked as they adjusted to the brightness.

His body still ached despite the potions he knew his parents had given him. His head was throbbing dully as well. Worse yet, he was exhausted. He knew he had already slept for hours, but it felt like he hadn’t slept in days.

Who was he kidding? How was he going to go to Hogwarts? How would he manage full moons when he was by himself? He couldn’t even get up when he transformed back the next morning. His parents always had to carry him back to his room.

His parents. Matt felt a jolt in his stomach as he realized that they wouldn’t be there every full moon when he was in school. They had been there for every full moon he had ever endured. They took care of him the day of and the days following. They got him his potions and healed all his injuries.

He hated to admit it, but he was scared about doing it by himself. He knew he shouldn’t be; he was eleven years old for Merlin’s sake. Eleven-year-olds should not be afraid of going to school and being away from their parents.

It was a practical issue, he assured himself. That was all. He couldn’t physically deal with full moons by himself. That was why he was worried about going to school. It wasn’t like he couldn’t deal with being away from home.

Then there was the issue of his classmates. What if they found out? It wasn’t like he could sneak away for the full moon and be back in his dormitory the next morning before his roommates woke up. He’d be in the Hospital Wing for at least two days. He doubted he’d be able to go to classes the day of the full moon and he usually needed two days to recover. That was three days of missed classes, but more importantly, it was three days of disappearances to explain. What was he going to say? People didn’t normally get sick that much.

It was a stupid idea, he thought, going to school. He bit his lip and tried to stop the tears from welling in his eyes. Why didn’t his parents just home school him? It would be easier. They were both knowledgeable in most aspects of magic. If his parents had just decided to home school him, they could have stayed in Australia. Then Amy would have been happier.

No, they couldn’t have stayed. He sighed. Not after his dad lost his job and all the laws restricting the rights of werewolves had been passed. They were originally going to move so he could go to school. But then his dad lost his job. It wasn’t entirely Matt’s fault that they moved, was it? Not if his dad needed another job….

It was his fault his dad lost his job, though. If he hadn’t gotten bitten, his dad wouldn’t have lost his job. So, for all intents and purposes, his family had moved because of him. He couldn’t not go to school after all they’d done for him. He’d just have to suck it up and deal with it, no matter how terrifying the prospect was.

“Matt, are you awake?” Amy peeked her head into his room.

Matt quickly rubbed his eyes and turned to look at her. “Yeah.”

Amy gave a small smile and walked into the room. She set a goblet down on the bedside table and then sat on the foot of the bed.

“How are you?” she asked quietly.

“All-” he cut himself off and looked at Amy’s concerned expression. Ever since she had first seen him after a transformation, she had this uncanny way of knowing when something was bothering him. He wasn’t sure how she did it, but somehow she managed to get him to tell her what was wrong.

It was kind of strange since Amy normally had quite the temper and was very impatient. Their mum had once told Matt that she took after his grandmother, but Amy would never admit to it. The two of them did what they wanted and often disregarded other people’s emotions.

Amy used to be a lot like that with Matt, too. When they were younger, their parents insisted on keeping Amy away from the house during full moons. She hated it and resented their parents for keeping her out of the loop. She really had no idea what went on during full moons.

Then life as they knew it fell apart in Australia and Amy began to realize what went on. She did resent Matt for months about having to move, but eventually got used to Hogwarts. Then, the first full moon after her fourth year, she stayed at home during the full moon and saw Matt afterwards.

Amy never told Matt what she had thought of seeing him after a transformation, but her actions spoke more than words would have. She stayed by his side after every full moon that summer. A few weeks after that first full moon of the summer, she announced that she was going to become a healer and hoped to discover a version of the Wolfsbane Potion that would work for Matt.

Matt had been a little shocked when he heard this, but not incredibly surprised. As far back as he could remember, Amy had enjoyed experimenting with potions. She was also an avid star gazer and loved Astronomy. If anyone could come up with a better version about that potion, it was Amy. She had the skills, interests, and motivation to do it.

“Actually,” his voice caught in his throat, “I’m not that great.”

Amy crawled up the bed and laid down next to him, her mouth turning down in a frown. She grabbed the potion off the table and handed it to him. “What hurts? You should take this potion, it’ll help.”

“It’s not that,” Matt swallowed the potion in one gulp, “I mean, my head hurts but no worse than usual. It’s,” he paused, “It’s Hogwarts. I’m just not sure if I should go…” his voice trailed off.

Amy put her arm around Matt’s shoulders and looked at him sadly. “Why not?”

“This,” he muttered, “This probably sounds stupid, but I don’t think I can do it without Mum and Dad.”

“It’s not stupid,” Amy said quietly, “They’ve always been there for every full moon. But I think you’re wrong. You can do it without them.”

“How?” Matt’s voice wavered, “I can’t even get back up to my room without them? How in the name of Merlin will I get from that shack in Hogsmeade back to the castle?”

“The nurse,” Amy sighed, “You’re forgetting about the nurse. Madam Pomfrey. You’ve met her, haven’t you?”

“I think so,” Matt nodded, “But I hardly know her.”

“Well, I do,” Amy said, “And she’s one of the nicest adults at Hogwarts. She’ll help. And I’ll be there too. I’ll be there for your entire first year.”

“And you’ll be there? Can you go to the shack with Madam Pomfrey?”

“Of course,” Amy nodded, “And I’ll stay at the Hospital Wing with you except when I’m in class.”

Matt nodded. He felt a little better knowing that Amy would be there with him. She could practically do everything in order to heal his injuries after the full moon. Their parents had been teaching her ever since she was fifteen and she had actually been performing them ever since she turned seventeen. But he still felt uneasy about the whole thing.

“I know you’ll still miss them,” Amy said quietly, “And there’s nothing wrong with that. I was so homesick during first year and I didn’t have to deal with turning into a wolf once a month. I imagine that’ll make it even worse.”

Matt turned to his sister and laughed. He sort of liked how she just stated what was true and never tried to soften it.

“Yeah, probably,” he replied.

“But you’ll get used to it,” Amy assured him, “Soon you’ll make friends and get into mischief like half of Victoire’s cousins do.”

Matt shrugged. Making friends was another thing he was worried about. He didn’t really have many friends. He occasionally spent time with some of his dad’s coworkers’ kids, but didn’t know them very well.

“If I make any friends,” he said.

“You will,” Amy said.

“But they won’t like me if they find out who I am,” Matt replied.

“They won’t find out,” Amy said adamantly, “You’ll make plenty of friends. Victoire said a few of her cousins are starting this year and they’re certainly to be in Gryffindor like you will be.”

Matt had only met Victoire a few times, but from what he could tell, she was really nice. Matt only hoped her cousins were as well.

“I guess that would be good,” he yawned, “What time is it?”

Amy glanced at her watch. “Just after one. I should let you sleep.”

Matt nodded. “Ok. Thanks.” He was pretty tired. He didn’t normally have such long discussions with Amy so soon after the full moon. He usually slept until dinner time.

“I’ll be back later,” Amy gave him a gentle hug, grabbed the empty potion bottle, and quietly left the room.

Matt rolled over in bed and huddled under the many blankets. He closed his eyes feeling a bit better about going to Hogwarts, but still worried.


——————————————————————————–



A/N: Thanks to Luke, Moonylupin, and XDNLxtlz99 for the reviews!
Disclaimer- I don’t own Harry Potter or Jared Campbell’s songs.

——————————————————————————–



And she knows that this is real


It’s not something that she’s made up in her head
And there’s something that she feels but she hasn’t found the words
~It’s Love, Jared Campbell


Eleven-year-old Amanda Genevieve Tagger smiled to herself as she closed her book. She rolled over on her bed and set the it on her bedside table. Her bedside table was stacked high with at least ten books, most of which Amanda had already read.

Amanda had always enjoyed reading. Ever since she was a little girl, books had been some of her best friends. They were great company when she was sad or bored or just wanted to escape into a different world for a while. Best of all, books never made fun of her.

Amanda had always been shy and she was the first to admit it. She didn’t have very many friends and kids her age tended to stay away from her. This was most likely because strange things always happened around her.

She was only five when she first realized that she was different. Amanda, her older sister, Jen, who was nine at the time, and a few of her sister’s friends were playing outside. They decided to play hide-and-seek and Amanda climbed the biggest tree in their backyard and hid amongst the branches. Jen, who was ‘it’, had the hardest time finding her. In fact, Jen never found her. Amanda didn’t leave the tree until their mom called them in for a snack.

That was when it happened. Amanda’s foot caught on one of the branches and she lost her grip. She fell what must have been twenty or thirty feet out of that maple tree, hitting numerous branches on her way down.

When she was a mere five feet from the ground, she suddenly stopped falling. Then, she glided lightly to the ground, and landed softly on her feet. Amanda looked around and saw Jen staring open-mouthed at her. Their mother, who had seen Amanda falling, ran from the house and checked her over. She was completely fine, save for a few minor scratches and bruises. No one knew why it had happened, but Amanda’s mother said an angel must have been looking out for her that day.

Whatever it was, Amanda knew she was different that day. It was only the beginning. Strange things had happened to her ever since. When she was six and the class bully stole her biscuits at lunch, new ones appeared out of thin air in front of her. When she was seven and forgot to do her maths homework, it somehow did itself while sitting in her backpack.

A small, relatively harmless tornado had somehow descended upon a few boys who were chasing her when she was eight. That incident was what caused most of the other kids her age to steer clear of her.

There was one girl who did not care that strange things happened around Amanda. Jamie House, Amanda’s best friend since Kindergarten, never cared about the strange incidents. She actually thought they were funny. Amanda and Jamie were inseparable at school.

However, Jamie was currently spending a few weeks with her grandparents in Scotland. Without Jamie’s company, Amanda had spent most of her time reading. There wasn’t really anything else to do. Jen was fifteen and the last thing she wanted to do was hang out with her eleven-year-old sister. Amanda’s little brother, Max, was eight and all he wanted to do was ride his bike in the empty lot down the road with the other neighborhood boys.

Amanda was left with her books for company, not that she really minded. She was getting a bit restless, though. She stood up opened her bedroom door. Maybe Jen wasn’t on the computer and Amanda would be able to go online. Jamie managed to get on instant messager ever so often at her grandparents’ house and Amanda had talked to her a few times over the past week.

The doorbell rang just as Amanda was leaving her room.

“Amanda!” Jen shouted from her room, “Could you get that?”

“Sure,” Amanda said as she passed Jen’s room. She peeked inside and saw that Jen was in the process of straightening her light brown hair. Jen had straightened Amanda’s honey blonde hair a few times, but Amanda actually preferred it with its natural slight wave. Jen hated her own curly hair, though.

Amanda ran down the stairs and towards the door. She pulled it open and saw a man wearing the strangest outfit she had ever seen anyone wear on a day that was not Halloween. It looked like a black graduation gown. The man himself looked relatively sane, though. His blonde hair was neatly combed and he smiled when Amanda opened the door.

“Hello,” he greeted her, “Are your parents home?”

“Er,” Amanda began, “I think so. Are you selling something?” Her parents hated door to door salesmen. Amanda wasn’t exactly sure where her parents were, but she doubted they’d want to be interrupted to listen to someone trying to sell something.

The man laughed. “No, not at all.”

“Wait right here,” Amanda said and went to find her parents, “Mum! Dad! There’s some bloke at the door who wants to talk to you!”

“What’s he selling?” Mrs. Tagger shouted from the kitchen.

“Nothing!” Amanda replied.

Mrs. Tagger, a short, plump woman with flecks of grey in her dark brown hair walked out of the kitchen and followed Amanda to the door.

“Can I help you?” she asked the man.

“Yes,” the man replied, “I’m a teacher at a private school and I’m here to inform you that your daughter has been accepted.”

“Jen?” Mrs. Tagger asked, “I wasn’t aware she applied to any private schools.”

“No,” the man shook his head, “Not Jen. Amanda.”

Amanda gaped at the man and then turned to her mother, who was now frowning. Amanda hadn’t applied to any private schools. Why would she? She had already gotten into the secondary school she was attending in the fall.

“I know Amanda hasn’t applied to anymore schools,” Mrs. Tagger said.

“This isn’t one she applied for,” the man said quietly, “Her name has been down since she was born.”

Amanda was stunned. What was this about? How could her name have been down for a school since she was born?

“Could I come in?” the man asked.

“I think you’d better,” Mrs. Tagger said in barely more than a whisper.

The man stepped inside the house and followed Mrs. Tagger into the den. Amanda followed and sat down on a chair while the strange man took the couch.

“Henry!” Mrs. Tagger shouted down the basement stairs, “You’d better come upstairs!”

A minute later a tall man with a messy shock of blonde hair on his head walked into the room with Mrs. Tagger.

“My husband, Henry,” Mrs. Tagger replied, “And my name is Sarah. Who are you?”

“Professor Neville Longbottom,” the man replied as he stood up and shook each of my parents’ hands.

“Professor?” Henry raised his eyebrows.

“He told me Amanda has been accepted to a private school. One that her name’s been down for since birth,” Sarah explained, “Did you sign her up without telling me?”

“No,” Henry shook his head.

“I’ll explain everything if you’ll just sit down,” Neville said.

Henry and Sarah nodded and they sat down on the couch Neville had just vacated.

“I teach at a boarding school in Scotland called Hogwarts-“

Henry snorted and Sarah glared at him. “Sorry,” he muttered.

Neville grinned. “I get that reaction a lot. Anyway, Hogwarts is not an ordinary school. It is a school of magic. Mr. and Mrs. Tagger, your daughter is a witch.”

Amanda was glad she had been sitting down. If she hadn’t, she surely would have fainted. She stared in shock at Neville. What did he mean, witch? Amanda had read many stories about witches. Some had good witches and others had bad witches. Which witch was she?

How could she even be a witch? Witches weren’t real. They were made up to provide entertainment. They couldn’t actually exist. Magic didn’t exist.

“What are you getting at?” Henry said defensively, “If this is some sort of prank, it’s not funny.”

“It’s not a prank,” Neville said calmly, “Magic does exist. Witches and wizards have been hiding their world for generations. I teach at Britain’s only school of magic.”

“What do you teach?” Henry asked.

“Herbology. The study of magical plants.”

“Prove it,” Henry said, “Pull a rabbit out of your hat or something.”

Neville grinned and pulled out his wand. Amanda stared at it. A real magic wand. Just like the ones she’d read about in books.

“Accio pillow,” Neville pointed his wand at one of the pillows next to Henry. It soared through the air and landed neatly in Neville’s hand.

“Where’s the string?” Henry stood up and grabbed the pillow. He searched all over it for a string, but didn’t find one.

“No string,” Neville smiled. He took the pillow back and pointed his wand at it. He muttered something else and the pillow turned into a tea kettle.

“That is brilliant,” Amanda grinned, “Can I learn how to do that?”

“When you are older, yes,” Neville replied.

“What else can you do?” Amanda asked excitedly.

“Brew potions, various charms, disappear and reappear in a new place-“

“Seriously?” Amanda gaped, “Can you show me that?”

“Sure,” Neville replied. He disappeared from the room with a loud crack and then was back a few seconds later.

“What the bloody hell was that?” Jen ran into the room with her hair partially straight and partially curly.

“Language, Jennifer,” Sarah warned.

“I’m a witch,” Amanda grinned, “I can do magic.”

“What?!” Jen shouted and sat down on the nearest chair, clearly intent on staying in the room despite her hair.

“Wait, wait!” Henry shouted, “What if we choose not to let her attend this place?”

“You have to, Dad!” Amanda shouted.

“Henry, are you really so gullible? You can’t honestly think there is a school of magic!” Sarah shouted.

“Magic?” Jen asked, “Like pulling rabbits out of hats?”

“Of course it exists, Mum!” Amanda told her.

Sarah shook her head. “No. Amanda, you just want it to exist. Magic isn’t real. It’s fantasy.”

“It does,” Neville said quietly, “Can you remember a time Amanda has done something that couldn’t be explained? Any time where she should have been hurt and then somehow wasn’t?”

Sarah’s face went pale white and she turned to Henry. “Yes,” she whispered, “Many times.”

“It can be explained,” Neville replied, “It’s magic.”

“But what if we don’t let her go?” Henry asked again.

“That’s fine. But she won’t ever learn to control her magic and she will continue to cause strange things to happen.”

“I’m going,” Amanda crossed her arms on her chest.

“Glad to hear it,” Neville reached into his, what could only be described as a cloak, and pulled out a letter. He handed it to Amanda.

It was addressed to her. She turned it over and carefully opened it. She unfolded it and began to read it aloud.

There was another piece of paper that had a list of supplies written on it, including a cauldron, wand, and spell books. Amanda had about a million questions. Where could she buy a real wand? Had they gotten the platform wrong? There couldn’t be a Platform 9 3/4, could there? What did the letter mean, broomsticks? Did witches really ride around on brooms like they do in books?

“I’m home!” the front door slammed shut and Max ran into the room, his dark hair disheveled and his face coated in dirt. He stopped at the sight of Neville and grinned. “Nice costume, but Halloween’s not for a few months.”

“It’s not a costume,” Jen said, “He’s a wizard. He teaches at a school of magic and he’s here to tell us that Amanda is a witch.”

“That is brilliant,” Max grinned, “Am I one, too?”

“You’ll find out the summer you are eleven,” Neville answered.

“Max, please go upstairs and clean yourself up,” Sarah groaned, “You’re getting mud all over the carpet.”

“Oh, sorry,” Max turned and ran up the stairs.

“Mum, Dad,” Amanda began, “You’ve got to let me go to Hogwarts. This explains everything! I want to learn how to control my magic. I won’t be the weird girl at Hogwarts.”

Henry and Sarah shared a look. “I suppose you’re right,” Henry sighed, “We’ll let you go, so long as this professor explains everything about magic to us.”

“I will,” Neville nodded, “Actually, if you’re not busy today, I could take you to Diagon Alley. That’s the shopping area where you will be able to purchase everything Amanda needs for Hogwarts. It’s in London.”

“We’re not busy,” Henry said, “We’ll just wait for Max.”

Amanda grinned as she reread her letter over and over again. She still couldn’t believe it. A witch. She was a real witch! Amanda always knew she was different, but she never imagined it would be like this. She pinched herself to make sure it was real. It was. She, Amanda Tagger, was a witch. It was like she had fallen into one of her books.

——————————————————————————–

Days are different then they were before
And we both exchange
It’s only getting better
~Only Getting Better, Jared Campbell


Eleven-year-old John Malcolm Brickston was running around in a large circle as fast as he possibly could. He, along with two other boys, was spinning the merry-go-round in the park across the street from his house as fast as he could. A fourth boy was on the merry-go-round shrieking in delight.

It was a daily thing for John, playing with the other boys in his neighborhood at the park. They particularly liked spinning each other until they felt sick on the merry-go-round. Other activities included trying to push each other off the monkey bars and jumping off of the swings. They often spent all day doing this, until one of their mothers called them inside.

John had fun playing with the other boys from his neighborhood even though he was quite different from them. John was a wizard and all of his neighborhood friends were Muggles. John’s family was the only wizarding family living in a neighborhood of Muggles. He didn’t mind, of course. He was actually glad he lived in a neighborhood full of people to play with, rather than in the middle of nowhere like so many other wizards did. Most of his cousins didn’t have any close neighbors.

Without the neighborhood boys around, the only people John would have had to play with were his sisters. John had three of them and while he loved them, they got on his nerves. They were all younger than him and drove him mental on a daily basis.

Despite having so many Muggle friends, John could not wait to get to Hogwarts where he could meet other wizards his age. He knew a couple witches and wizards his age whose parents worked with his dad, but he didn’t see them too often. Then there were his cousins, but they were all younger than him.

John had been trying not to think about his Hogwarts letter, which he knew would be arriving soon. Thinking about it just made the time go by slower. So, he tried to get his mind off of it by goofing off at the playground.

“Enough, enough!” the boy on the merry-go-round shouted.

John and the other two boys stepped back and watched it slow down. Once it had almost stopped, the boy jumped off and stumbled around, falling on the ground. John and the others crowded around him.

“My turn!” John shouted as the dizzy boy sat up.

“Johnny!” someone shouted from the entrance to the park.

John turned his head towards the voice and groaned. It was his mother. The previous day she had made him watch over his little sisters when they played at the park and he really didn’t want to do that again. But his sisters weren’t with his mum, so maybe she wanted something else.

“What?” John shouted.

“You need to come home now!” she shouted back.

John groaned again and reluctantly said goodbye to his friends. He hated it when his mum called him home without explaining why.

“Why do I have to go home now?” John asked as he reached his mum, “It’s not dinner time.”

“Your letter arrived,” she said and began to walk across the street.

That was probably the only thing she could have said to make John no longer mind leaving his friends. He grinned and ran to catch up with his mum. Now it was official, he was going to Hogwarts!

John’s house was in its usual state of chaos when he entered it. Not two seconds after they stepped in the door, his second youngest sister, Gemma, ran up them screaming about how Amelia had taken her toy. Gemma was six and Amelia, his youngest sister, was five.

At any given moment there were probably five or six little kids at John’s house. He had a lot of cousins who were all younger than him. His mother was a stay at home mum, but a few of his aunts worked outside the home. They often dropped their kids off at John’s house while they were at work. Or when they had to go shopping. It was just another reason why John enjoyed spending his free time outside, away from the little kids.

That day, all his little sisters were home, of course. Plus, his cousins Isabelle, who was ten, and Isabelle’s three-year-old sister, Alyssa.

“Your Aunt Pam is grocery shopping,” his mother, Jan, replied as she picked up Gemma.

John nodded and stepped over a pile of Wendy Witch dolls that Ashtyn, his nine-year-old sister must have left in the doorway.

“Ashtyn, pick up your toys!” Jan shouted as she carried Gemma back into the den.

Ashtyn and Isabelle came running through the house, scooped up the dolls, and ran back to wherever they came from.

“Where’s my letter?” John asked as Jan set Gemma back down on the floor.

“It’s here somewhere,” Jan said as she rifled through a stack of mail, “I just had it a second ago. Hang on.”

John sighed as he leaned against the wall. He couldn’t wait to get to Hogwarts. Then he wouldn’t have to deal with all his little sisters and cousins anymore. He would be in a place where he was one of the youngest people. That rarely happened. John had always been the oldest, the one who was expected to be mature.

“Mum!” Ashtyn shrieked from upstairs, “I think John put a dung bomb in the toilet again!”

John grinned. He may be expected to be mature, but he wasn’t. Pulling pranks was one of his favorite things to do and the dung bomb in the toilet never got old, especially when Ashtyn was on the receiving end of it.

Jan sent him a withering look. “I cringe to think about the amount of owls I’ll be getting from Professor Kendrick about the mischief you get into next year,” she sighed, “Ashtyn, just flush it like usual!”

“Mum, she won’t give it back!” Gemma whined.

Jan groaned and walked over to the two girls, who were still fighting over a stuffed dragon. Jan wrenched it from Amelia’s hands and stuck it up on a high shelf. She continued searching for John’s letter while Gemma and Amelia complained.

“I think I found it,” John said as he bent down.

Three-year-old Alyssa was holding a torn envelope in her hands and giggling playfully. John grabbed it from her and she burst out crying. Jan picked her up as John took off for his bedroom, the only toddler free place in the entire house.

The letter wasn’t completely destroyed, much to John’s relief. He had caught Alyssa before she was able to do a lot of damage. The envelope was completely illegible, but the letter inside was spared from tears and baby slobber.

John tossed aside the damp envelope and unfolded the letter. He grinned widely as he read it, even though he already knew the gist of what it said.

He was in! John laid down on his bed and stared up at his ceiling. Of course he was in. There was never any doubt. Everyone in his entire family had gone to Hogwarts for as far back as anyone could remember. As far as he knew, his family didn’t have any Squibs.

John had been looking forward to Hogwarts for a very long time. His parents had all sorts of stories to tell of the place. Although, their education had been interrupted due to the final battle and Voldemort’s defeat. They had only been first years at the time and Hogwarts had closed for a year in order for it to be rebuilt. But after that, his parents had had a somewhat normal education.

There were all sorts of things that John was looking forward to. The Sorting (although his parents refused to tell him how it was done), the feasts, exploding potions, Peeves, Quidditch, Hogsmeade trips when he got older, the Gryffindor common room. John was sure he’d get into Gryffindor even though his mum had been a Hufflepuff. His dad was a Gryffindor and everyone said he took after his dad.

John’s dad, Jeff Brickston, had been the Hogwarts prankster when he was in school. John couldn’t wait to pull some pranks of his own. His dad had promised to get him well supplied with stuff from Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, although his mum wasn’t too happy about it.

John remained in his room for the rest of the afternoon. A glance out the window told him that his Muggle friends had left the park. It would have been boring for him to go back. Instead, he stayed in his room and pulled out his old but trusty Nimbus Two Thousand and One.

The broom had been his dad’s when he was at Hogwarts. John grabbed a bottle of polish and began to rub it into the worn wood. Jeff had given it to John when he was only five and John had been flying on it ever since.

If John had to pick the one thing he was most looking forward to at Hogwarts, it would be Quidditch. John had been flying for as long as he could remember and he had hopes of making it onto the Gryffindor Quidditch team. If he was sorted into Gryffindor, that is. He just hoped that there was a beater position open at the right time. He doubted he’d get chosen as a beater in his second year due to the fact that beaters were generally quite a lot bigger than the rest of the players. But if a beater position opened when he was in fourth or fifth year, he just might make it.

Isabelle and Alyssa had left by the time John left his room. He wandered into the kitchen and found his mum preparing dinner. Ashtyn, Gemma, and Amelia were ‘helping’.

“Can we go to Diagon Alley tomorrow?” John asked as he grabbed a carrot out of a bowl.

“I don’t know,” Jan replied, “Your Aunt Jodie is working tomorrow and I have to watch Stephanie as well as the twins. I don’t particularly want to drag three extra kids to Diagon Alley especially when two are babies. It may have to wait until the weekend. And please don’t eat the carrots.”

John sighed and sat down at the table. He didn’t want to wait until the weekend. He wished his mum didn’t watch all of his little cousins all the time.

“I’m home!” someone shouted from the den.

John jumped up from his chair and ran into the den. He saw his dad brushing ash off of his bright green healer robes. John grinned as he saw his great-great grandpa standing just behind his dad.

“Gramps!” John shouted, “What are you doing here?”

“Went to Mungo’s,” he replied, “Had to get this dang hip checked out. Then Jeffrey here invited me to dinner.”

John’s great-great grandpa, Zander Brickston, was over one hundred years old but was usually healthy as a hippogriff. He was a bit senile and forgetful at times, but it never bothered him. He was often the life of the party, too, despite his age. John loved him.

“I got my Hogwarts letter!” John said excitedly as he pulled the letter out of his pocket.

“Congratulations,” Jeff grinned and gave John a one-armed hug as he set his bag down.

“Well done, Johnny-Boy!” Zander gave him a surprisingly strong clap on the back, “Great place, Hogwarts. Best years of my life, except for the times I found myself in Professor Dippet’s office. You’d best stay out of there.”

“Professor Dippet’s been dead for years, Gramps,” John laughed.

“Then you stay out of trouble with whoever’s the headmaster now,” Zander said and lumbered off into the kitchen, “Where’s my girls?”

Dinner was lively that evening, as it always was when Zander was there. He dominated the conversation with stories of his own years at Hogwarts. John was sort of surprised he remembered them so well. He told of the time he and his friends went for a swim in the Black Lake at midnight during the full moon in January. The nurse had not been pleased when they showed up at the hospital wing with slight cases of hypothermia. She scolded them and told them if they were stupid enough to swim in the lake during January, they could at least use cold-repellent charms on themselves.

“Where would the fun be in that?” Zander laughed as he finished the story.

Other stories included the many pranks he pulled on the Slytherins. ‘Pranking’s a Brickston tradition,’ he told John solemnly. The times he snuck out of the castle and into Hogsmeade. The time he fell asleep during his History of Magic O.W.L. (“What do they expect, when Binns makes you fall asleep during class?”) Sneaking about the castle at night with whatever girlfriend he had at the time. Jan had to shut him up at that point and she and Jeff began to relay their own Hogwarts stories.

John was, if it was possible, even more excited about Hogwarts after hearing all of the stories. He wanted to swim in the Black Lake in the middle of winter. He wanted to sneak out of school to go to Hogsmeade. He wanted to paint half his face red and the other half gold for the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch match.

John didn’t know how he was going to be able to wait two days until Saturday to go to Diagon Alley, let alone wait the month and a half until he’d be able to actually go to Hogwarts. It seemed so far away. He had been waiting years to go to Hogwarts, but he had a feeling the last month and a half would drag by even slower than those years had.

——————————————————————————–

Cause there’s so much yet to see, that I haven’t seen yet
And there’s so much air to breathe, yeah
I want to take it in
~Take It In, Jared Campbell


Ten-year-old Rose Elizabeth Weasley put the end of her quill to her mouth and chewed it thoughtfully as she looked up from her parchment. She smiled and dipped the quill into her pot of ink and then wrote ‘Elandra Harvard took a deep breath and sat down on the three-legged stool’ onto the parchment. Rose set down the quill and picked up the parchment. She looked at it for a moment and then set it down again.

The parchment was a story. A story about a Muggle-born at Hogwarts. Ever since Rose was little, she liked coming up with stories. She used to just tell them to her parents and little brother, but then she got older and began writing them down.

Rose had spent the whole morning writing about Elandra. She supposed it was because Rose herself was going to Hogwarts soon and that was really all she could think about. Although she tried to come up with other story ideas, she just couldn’t. All the ideas were about Hogwarts. It was just about the only thing that could sort of keep her mind off her own Hogwarts letter.

Rose had been waiting for the letter all summer. She wished that Hogwarts would send them out in June instead of the end of July. The end of July was sort of late. That only gave a month and a half to prepare to go to school. Rose had been preparing since May, though. She knew she would get her letter this summer, as she would be turning eleven on August twentieth.

Her dad had located her mum’s old trunk in the attic and charmed an engraving of ‘REW’ to replace the ‘HJG’ that stood for Hermione Jean Granger. The trunk currently sat on the floor in Rose’s room. The only thing in it was a cauldron that her dad had found in the attic as well. It was a perfectly good cauldron, so neither of her parents saw any need to buy her a new one. Rose agreed. She kind of liked the old cauldron. There was something to be said about brewing potions in a cauldron that was older than you were.

“Rose!” someone banged on her door.

Rose groaned and got up. It was Hugo, her nine-year-old brother. He probably wanted to play Quidditch or something. Rose didn’t particularly like Quidditch. She preferred reading or pretty much anything that she remained on the ground to do.

“What?” Rose asked when she opened the door, “I don’t want to play Quidditch.”

“I wasn’t going to ask you,” Hugo muttered, “You’re no fun to play Quidditch with anyway. I’d rather just ask James and Al to play. I just wanted to give you this. The post just arrived.”

Hugo thrust an envelope into Rose’s hand and she caught a glimpse of the Hogwarts crest on the seal. The breath caught in her chest as she grabbed it. “Thanks, Hugo,” she grinned.

Hugo made no move to leave as Rose shakily began to open the envelope. “Hurry up!” he said.

“It’s my letter,” Rose replied and pulled it out of the envelope. Hugo peered over her shoulder as she began to read it.

Rose grinned looked at Hugo. “It’s official! I’m going to Hogwarts!”

“And I’ll get the house to myself,” Hugo grinned, “I can go through your stuff and you won’t be able to do anything about it.”

“Mum and Dad will be here,” Rose rolled her eyes, “And you better not go through my stuff.”

“You won’t be able to do anything about it!” Hugo gleefully ran off towards his room.

Rose turned the other way and went downstairs in order to find her mum. She eventually found her in the library, pouring over numerous books.

“It came,” Rose grinned and sat down across the table from Hermione.

Hermione looked up and smiled. “Congratulations!” She leaned over and kissed Rose’s forehead.

“What are you working on?” Rose asked.

“Oh, work stuff,” Hermione said as she closed the book, “It can wait. Let me see that letter!”

Rose handed her mother the letter and waited while she read it. Hermione handed it back to her and smiled even wider. “I can’t believe you’re going to Hogwarts already. Time has flown by! My little girl, all grown up.”

“I can’t wait, Mum,” Rose replied.

“We’ll have some shopping to do,” Hermione said as she stood up.

“Ron! Hermione! Anyone here?” someone shouted from the living room.

“Uncle Harry!” Rose shouted as she ran out of the library and into the living room.

Harry’s face was floating amongst green flames in the fireplace and Rose grinned when she saw him. “Hi Uncle Harry! Guess what? I got my letter!”

“Brilliant,” Harry grinned, “Al got his, too. Are your parents home?”

“Dad’s working at the London shop, but he’s supposed to be back soon,” Rose replied, “And Mum’s-“

“Right here,” Hermione said as she came into the room, “Hi Harry.”

“Hey, Hermione,” Harry said, “We were going to go to Diagon Alley after lunch. Al got his letter a few hours ago. Want to come?”

“That sounds good,” Hermione agreed, “We’ll meet you there around 1:30. Ron should be back from Weasleys’ by then.”

“See you then,” Harry said.

“Bye,” Hermione replied as Harry’s head disappeared and the green flames died down.

******

A few hours later Rose was standing with her family in front of Gringotts. She tapped her foot and sighed. They were waiting for the Potters, who were never on time for anything. Rose’s parents weren’t known for being on time either, but Rose had hurried them along.

“Sorry we’re late!” Harry shouted as he ran towards the Weasleys.

“James wouldn’t wake up,” Albus grinned at Rose.

“What else is new?” Rose smirked.

“Where to first?” Harry asked.

“Olivander’s!” Albus announced.

“Flourish and Blotts!” Rose said excitedly. She had been there numerous times, but never to buy books for school.

“You’re mental, Rose,” James laughed, “I say we go to Quality Quidditch Supplies!”

Rose rolled her eyes. James was the one who was mental. He spent more time at Quality Quidditch Supplies than all the other stores in Diagon Alley combined. Half the time he didn’t even buy anything. He just gawked at the broomsticks he wished he could have.

“Eyelops!” Lily shouted.

“You’re not even going to Hogwarts,” Albus pointed out.

“I don’t care,” Lily huffed.

“Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes,” Hugo suggested.

“Then it’s settled,” Harry grinned, “We’re going to the Apothecary first.”

Rose groaned. The Apothecary was possibly her least favorite shop, next to Quality Quidditch Supplies. It didn’t surprise her that Harry chose that store, though. He always did that when they argued. Rose’s parents did the same thing.

They finally made it to Flourish and Blott’s, after the Apothecary and Madam Malkin’s. Rose was the first one through the door and immediately started browsing. She didn’t know where everyone else was going in the shop, but she didn’t care.

Flourish and Blott’s had always fascinated Rose, ever since she was little. There were always at least five books she wanted to buy whenever she went in. Hermione usually bought her one every time they went.

“Rose, are you done yet?” James tapped her on the shoulder.

Rose jumped and looked up from the transfiguration book she was reading. “No.”

“Hurry up,” James whined, “I want to go get my broom.”

“What makes you think you’ll get it?”

“I’m trying out for the Quidditch team this year,” James told her.

“So?”

“So?” James gawked, “So? I need another broom! A better one! You’ll never understand.”

James sighed loudly and then walked away. Rose shook her head and went back to her book. A few minutes later her mum told her it was time to go. It was time to go to Ollivander’s, which was what Rose had been most looking forward to.

Rose ran ahead of the group with Albus and the two of them arrived at Ollivander’s long before the others. Ollivander had taken their measurements and brought out a few wands for Albus to try by the time the others got there.

Albus smashed the window with his first wand, which Rose thought was incredibly funny. She secretly hoped she wouldn’t do the same, though. The next wand chose Albus and then it was Rose’s turn.

The first three she tried out weren’t right. Although she didn’t break any windows, they didn’t work properly.

“How about this one?” Ollivander handed her another wand, “Ten and a half inches, yew, dragon heartstring.”

Rose took the wand and waved it. Red sparks erupted from it and Rose knew it was the right one. She grinned at Ollivander and he smiled.

Next on the list was Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, despite James’s constant badgering about the Quidditch store.

“Ron, Ginny!” George greeted them as they entered, “And Harry and Hermione! You’ve got everyone with you today.”

“Hogwarts shopping,” Harry grinned, “Al and Rosie just got their wands.”

Rose opened the box she was holding and showed her wand to her Uncle George. Albus did the same.

“Brilliant, both of you!” George said, “And now I shall get you both ready for Hogwarts in the prank department….”

Rose followed her uncle across the shop. The one thing she had inherited from the Weasley side of the family was the love for a good prank. So long as no one got hurt, that is.

“Now, every student needs a Skiving Snackbox or two,” George said as he handed Rose and Alubs each a colorful box, “After all, I can’t imagine you’ll want to sit through History of Magic very often.”

Rose smirked. She had heard about Professor Binns and his boring lectures, but she really didn’t think she’d ever use a Skiving Snackbox. Well, maybe if James wanted her to watch Quidditch practice, but never for skipping a class.

“And then you’ll need some dung bombs,” George said as he led them to a different display.

“Last time I checked, those were still forbidden at Hogwarts,” Hermione said sternly.

“Oh, I’m sure they are,” George winked, “But so long as Filch doesn’t find out it was these two who set them off, it doesn’t matter.”

“George Weasley!” Hermione scolded, “You should be setting a better example for these two! No wonder Fred was in detention every week last year!”

“Lighten up, Hermione,” Ron laughed, “Let them have their fun.”

“Ronald!” Hermione shouted, “You’re even worse!”

A few minutes later, Ron had convinced Hermione to let Rose get the dung bombs and other mischief making products. Hermione didn’t look too happy about it, though.

George and Teddy, who had also been working, closed the shop and they all went to the Leaky Cauldron for dinner. Everyone told stories about Hogwarts, which made Rose look forward to school even more.

James’s whining finally paid off after dinner and they went to Quality Quidditch Supplies. Rose thought he took far too long to pick out the perfect broom and she was bored out of her mind. James, Albus, Teddy, Ron, and Harry all spent at least a half hour going over the pros and cons of each model before they finally made a decision.

“And it goes from zero to 60 in less than twenty seconds!” James said excitedly on their way to Eyelops.

“I don’t care, James,” Rose groaned.

“The twigs repel water,” James added, “So there isn’t any drag when you’re playing in the rain or snow….”

Rose ignored him for the rest of the walk and then lost him inside of Eyelops. She knew exactly what kind of owl she wanted. A tawny one. She had always liked that kind of owl.

She found three tawny owls together in a cage towards the back of the shop and she put her hand up to the cage. Two of the owls ignored her but the third one hopped over and rubbed its head on her hand like a cat would. Rose grinned and knew that was the owl for her.

Albus found an owl as well and the group left with two hooting owls. James started telling Albus how he was going to wind up in Slytherin, which was kind of ridiculous in Rose’s opinion. Albus then announced that he was going to name his owl Godric.

That was a good name, Rose thought. She looked at her owl and thought about names. None of the usual animal names seemed to fit her owl. Godric, she thought. That was it. She would name her owl after another founder. Rose’s owl would be Rowena. She didn’t really think she’d be in Ravenclaw, but Rowena was a good name for an owl.

The walk back to the Leaky Cauldron was quiet. Hogwarts seemed closer than ever for Rose. She was ready. She had been ready for this for years. Her mum always told her that she had a knack for learning, and Rose was ready to learn everything Hogwarts had to offer.


Næsta saga
Albus waved to his parents and little sister, Lily, until he could no longer see them. “Well, we’d better go find a compartment,” he said to his cousin, Rose, who was standing next to him. Rose nodded her head and they started walking down the train corridor. It was a bit hard to walk on a moving train and Albus kept stumbling. The train rounded a corner and he fell into a rather mean looking older student.

“Watch where you’re going, midget,” the boy said as Albus and Rose quickly ran away from him.

“Better find a compartment quick”, Albus said. He continued to walk along the corridor, looking into each compartment as he passed. He spotted a lot of his other cousins, but didn’t really want to interrupt whatever they were doing with their friends. Albus also saw a few people who looked vaguely familiar, including the Jordan-Bell twins. Scorpius Malfoy was sitting in one of the compartments with a few other boys, but Albus definitely did not want to sit with them.

Albus peeked into the next compartment and saw that there was a rather pale boy sitting on one of the seats. He seemed very small and his face was quite scarred. There was also an older girl, who looked to be about Victoire’s age, sitting next to the boy. She looked vaguely familiar. Both of them had blue eyes and blond hair. They looked friendly enough. “How about this one?” he said to Rose.

Rose glanced into the compartment for a few seconds and replied, “Yeah, looks good to me.” She opened the door and the two cousins walked in.

“Can we sit here?” Albus asked.

“Sure,” the boy responded as he gestured to the seat opposite him. “My name’s Matt, Matt Eckerton.”

“I’m his sister, Amy. I’m a seventh year, Matt’s just starting,” the girl told him.

“Hi, I’m Albus Potter,” Albus said, “And this is my cousin, Rose Weasley,” he gestured to Rose. “We’re both first years.”

“Hi,” Rose waved. Rose sat down on the seat across from Amy and Albus sat down across from Matt.

“That’s where I know you two from! I knew I’d seen you somewhere. My best friend is your cousin, Victoire. I think I’ve seen you at her house before,” Amy explained.

“Probably. I think I’ve seen you, too,” Rose responded. Albus nodded his head in agreement.

Matt’s eyes opened wide as he stared at Albus. “So, you’re Harry Potter’s son? You know, you do look a whole lot like him. You’ve got his eyes and everything.”

“Yeah, I know,” Albus said shortly, he often got sick of people telling him this.

“I bet you two hear loads of stories of the battle. My parents have told me some, but they don’t know all the details, just the bits that are in books. You see, we’re from Australia. We moved hear when I was about eight,” Matt looked nervously at his sister.

“Yeah, I know all about the battle. My parents didn’t tell me the full story until I turned eleven. Same with Rose, our parents told us at the same time. They didn’t want to scare us, but thought we ought to know before we went to Hogwarts, since most people there will have heard all about it. But my parents don’t talk about it much. Guess it brings back bad memories,” Albus told Matt before changing the subject. He really didn’t enjoy people constantly asking him about his dad. “So, how’d you get all those scars?”

“I’m, um, er, very clumsy,” Matt glanced at Amy and started to stare absentmindedly out the window.

“Oh, that’s ok. A friend of my parents’ was very clumsy, kind of a problem since she was an Auror. But she was killed in the battle at Hogwarts. Along with her husband. My dad is their son, Teddy’s, godfather, so we see a lot of him,” Albus told Matt.

Matt just continued staring out the window. Albus didn’t know what to say, he hoped he hadn’t said anything to bother Matt. “So, do you have any other siblings?” Albus asked.

Matt turned away from the window. “Nope, just me and Amy. I know you’ve got siblings. I’ve read about you and them in books. A brother James and a sister Lily, right? And I think you’ve got a little brother, right, Rose?”

Albus just looked at Matt. It was a bit strange having other people know all about you. He supposed this was what it was like for his father when he went to Hogwarts. “Yup, James is a second year and Lily’s just nine, so she’s not here yet.”

“Yeah, my brother, Hugo, is nine, too,” Rose told him. Rose’s family was mentioned in numerous books as well, although not nearly as many as Albus’s.

At that moment, the compartment door opened and James walked in with two of their cousins, Ben and Cedric, and their friend Nathan. “How’s it going, little bro?” James asked. “Still worrying about being in Slytherin?”

“James, shut up!” Albus responded, blushing a little.

“Oh, I see you’ve met someone, what’s your name?” James asked Matt.

“Matt Eckerton.”

“Hi,” the boys responded.

“Oh, and hi Amy,” Ben added.

“Hi, Ben. How are you?” Amy asked.

“I’m good. So this is your brother?,” Ben said. Ben was Victoire’s brother, so he had seen Amy loads of times.

“Yeah, Matt’s just starting his first year,” Amy told him.

“Good luck with the sorting, then, Matt,” Ben grinned at Matt.

“Ah, well, we best be off, the trolley’s on it’s way to our compartment, wouldn’t want to miss that!” James said as he walked out of the compartment with his friends.

Matt stared at Albus. “You think you’re going to be in Slytherin?”

“No,” Albus said, turning more crimson.

“So, what house do you want to be in?”

“Gryffindor, just like my parents,” Albus told him, “And James and all my cousins are in Gryffindor, too. So were most of my aunts and uncles.”

“I hope you get in, then,” Matt said, “I’m hoping for Gryffindor, too. Amy’s in Gryffindor.”

“Hope you’re there, too.”

“I’m also hoping for Gryffindor,” Rose announced, “Although Ravenclaw looks nice, too.”

“Ravenclaw wouldn’t be so bad,” Matt agreed, “That’s where all the smart kids go, right?”

“In essence, yeah,” Amy told him.

The compartment door opened again. Another boy walked in, along with a scared looking girl. The boy was dark skinned, very tall, with brown hair and dark eyes. The girl was quite a bit shorter than the boy, with long, wavy, honey colored hair and light brown eyes.

“Can we sit in here?” the boy asked. “A bunch of Slytherins kicked us out of our compartment.”

“Sure,” Albus and Matt responded.

“Good. I’m John Brickston and this is Amanda Tagger. We’re both first years,” the boy told Albus, Rose, Matt, and Amy.

“Hi. I’m Albus Potter, this is my cousin Rose Weasley, and that’s Matt Eckerton, we’re also first years,” Albus responded, “And she’s Amy, Matt’s sister.” Albus pointed to Amy, who waved.

“Wow!” John exclaimed. “My dad said you’d be starting this year, Albus.” Amanda still hadn’t said anything.

Albus just smiled a little and his cheeks turned redder yet.

“Well, I think I’ll go find Victoire,” Amy grabbed her bag and got up, “You going to be ok, Matt?”

“Yes, I’ll be fine,” Matt told her.

“You sure?”

“Yeah, you can go. See you later,” Matt waved as his sister left the
compartment.

“And you’re Rose Weasley?” John asked. Rose nodded. “I’ve heard of you, too,” John continued. “Your family owns Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, right?”

“Well, it’s really my Uncle George who owns it. He’s Albus’s uncle, too. But my dad works there a lot. My Uncle George opened it with my Uncle Fred after they left school. They’re twins. But Uncle Fred died in the Battle at Hogwarts, so after that my dad helped Uncle George with it,” Rose explained.

John grinned, “I love that place. So does my dad. He’s always buying me stuff from there. Mum’s not always happy about it since I’m always using the stuff to pull pranks on my little sisters.”

Albus, Rose, and Matt laughed. “I’ve done that quite a bit, too,” Albus commented. “But now that Lily’s a bit older it’s harder to pull pranks on her.”

“Anything from the trolley?” A witch had appeared in the doorway with a trolley laden with delicious sweets.

“Definitely!” John shouted, as he jumped up from his seat and ran out into the corridor. Albus smiled. John reminded him of James. Albus, Rose, Matt, and Amanda followed John. All five returned with their arms full of food.

“So, what is all this stuff?” Amanda spoke for the first time since entering the compartment.

“Well, you have your cauldron cakes, pumpkin pasties, chocolate frogs, and Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans,” John explained, as he pointed to the various items. “Just be careful with the beans.”

“Why?” Amanda asked as she tried a greenish colored bean. “Ugh!” she exclaimed. “Bogey!” Amanda spat out the bean and it landed on John. Albus, Rose, and Matt broke out in fits of laughter.

“They mean every flavor!” Matt shouted. “So, you must be Muggle-born?”

“Yes,” Amanda answered. “My mum is a teacher and my dad’s a doctor.”

“What’s a doctor?” John asked.

“A muggle Healer,” Matt explained. “My mum’s Muggle born, but she’s a witch, and my dad’s a wizard. He works at the Ministry, in the Department for the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures,” Matt told everyone. “And my mum doesn’t work, but she’s thinking of getting a job now that I’ve started school.”

“Oh, my parents are a witch and wizard. My family’s mostly all magical, except for a few Muggle aunts and uncles and cousins. My dad is a Healer and my mum stays at home with my younger sisters, I’ve got three of them. They’re nine, six, and five. But before I was born she worked at the Ministry,” John explained. “How about your parents, Rose?”

“Well, like I said before, my dad works at Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, but he’s also an Auror, which is a Dark Wizard catcher. And my mum works at the Ministry. She’s the one who started all the House-Elf rights stuff.”

“Wow, your dad’s an Auror, too? That’s bloody brilliant!” John grinned.

“What do your parents do, Albus?” Amanda asked.

Albus was a little shocked at this question, since the whole magical world knew about his parents, but of course Amanda didn’t. “Well, my dad’s an Auror. And my mum’s a sportswriter for the Daily Prophet.”

“Yeah, Albus’s parents are famous!” John shouted. “Tell Amanda, won’t you, Albus?” Albus suspected John secretly wanted to hear all about the Potters directly from him, even though he’d probably read all about them in books.

And so, Albus, with a little help from Rose, told the story about how Lord Voldemort had killed his grandparents and tried to kill his dad, but his dad survived. He told them all about his parents’ years at Hogwarts, about the Horcruxes, and how Lord Voldemort met his downfall.

All three students stared at Albus and Rose with their mouths wide open. Matt and John had obviously heard the whole story before, but never this accurate an account. Amanda was practically in tears.

“Blimey,” John let out a low whistle, “Your dad’s amazing.”

“Yeah,” Matt agreed.

Albus blushed, “I guess, but I just think of him as my dad.”

The group of five first years spent the rest of the journey discussing what they knew was true about Hogwarts and what their siblings and cousins had told them about the ancient school. Everyone agreed that the Giant Squid did not eat a different first year each year while they crossed the lake on boats, despite what Albus and Rose’s cousin, Fred, had said.

“Well, you’d better change into your robes,” Rose said an hour or so after the sky turned dark. Rose had been wearing her robes since before she’d even gotten on the train. The four other students changed into their robes quietly.

Once the train arrived at Hogsmeade, the five students got off and looked around.

“Firs’ years! Firs’ years, this way!” a man shouted.

Albus and Rose ran up to him. “Hagrid!” Albus shouted.

“’ello, Albus! ‘Ello, Rose!” Hagrid responded. “Ready ter go? Here’s a boat for yeh.” Albus hurried into the boat, followed by John, and Matt, who were all gaping at Hagrid. Rose and Amanda got into a nearby boat and were joined by the Jordan-Bell twins. Another tall boy quickly joined Albus in his boat.

“You know him?” John pointed at Hagrid with an amazed look on his face.

“Yep, he’s a family friend,” Albus answered.

“I’ve never seen someone so big,” Matt commented.

“Well, he’s half-giant,” Albus told him.

“That’s so cool!” John grinned.

The boats started moving magically across the lake once everyone was in them. They sailed for what must have been at least a half hour before arriving at Hogwarts. Once they got there, Hagrid lead them into the castle and up a flight of stairs. The castle was incredible. It was big and intimidating looking on the outside. But once Albus stepped inside, it seemed warm and inviting, like he was home.

The first years came to a stop in front of strict looking woman. “Good evening. I’m Professor Patil, I teach transfiguration. In a moment, you will be able to join your fellow students in the Great Hall for dinner, but beforehand, you will need to be sorted into your houses. They are Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin,” she said Slytherin with a note of disgust in her voice. “While you’re here, you will be able to earn points for your house for any achievements. Likewise, any misbehavior will cause points to be taken away. At the end of the year, the house with the most points earns the House Cup. Now, follow me, please.”

———-
A/N: I hope you liked it! Feel free to leave a review. I’d like to thank my brother and sisters for reading this first and letting me know what they thought.
I don’t own Harry Potter. Nothing you recognize is mine.

******
The students followed Professor Patil into a large dining room. The ceiling looked just like the night sky outside. “It’s enchanted to look like the sky,” Rose whispered to Albus. The older students at all four of the tables were whispering to each other and pointing wildly at Albus. Once the first years reached the head table, Professor Patil turned around. The older students were still whispering, and they seemed to be doing so more loudly by the minute. Albus looked out at them and then inched his way to the back of the group so no one could see him. Sometimes, he hated how much he looked like his father.

“Quiet, please,” Professor Patil announced, and the students immediately stopped talking. An old, patched hat sat on a stool and all of a sudden it broke out in song. A few of the first years were quite shocked at this and jumped back. Once it stopped, Professor Patil started talking again. “When I call your name, you will come forward and try on the Sorting Hat.”

“Asterley, Elaine.” A short, blond haired girl ran forward and tried on the hat. “Hufflepuff!” the hat shouted.

“Brickston, John.” John ran up and jammed the hat on his head. It was only there for a second when it shouted out, “Gryffindor!” John let out a loud whoop and ran for the Gryffindor table, where he was patted on the back by a few older Gryffindors.

“Creevey, Janie.” She was also made a Gryffindor.

“Eckerton, Matthew.” The headmaster suddenly sat up straight in his seat and stared as Matt tried on the hat and was made a Gryffindor. The headmaster relaxed again. ‘That was strange,’ Albus thought. Matt walked calmly over to the Gryffindor table and sat next to John.

“Eubert, Carter.” Albus recognized the other boy from their boat as he walked up to the Sorting Hat. He put it on and a few seconds later it shouted out, “Ravenclaw!”

A few more students were sorted and then Professor Patil called “Malfoy, Scorpius.” Albus watched as a blond haired boy with a smug look on his face was made a Slytherin before the hat even touched his head.

“Potter, Albus.” A whisper went through the crowd. The headmaster had sat up straight again. Albus froze. He couldn’t do this. What if he was made Slytherin in front of all these people? All these people who expected him to be in Gryffindor? “Albus Potter?” Professor Patil said again. Someone pushed Albus forward. He walked up to the stool and put on the hat.

“Ah, yes, another Potter. I see it all here. The bravery, yes, yes, it’s all here,” the hat told Albus.

“Not Slytherin,” Albus thought, “Anything but Slytherin.”

“Oh, oh, this sounds familiar,” said the hat, “Yes, indeed, just like your father. And just like your father, Slytherin would help you achieve greatness, but if you insist, Gyffindor!”

Albus breathed a sigh of relief as he jumped off the stool and ran to sit across from John and Matt at the Gryffindor table. Albus didn’t even pay attention to the next few sortings. He was just so happy to be in Gryffindor.

Albus next looked up when Professor Patil called out “Tagger, Amanda.” Albus watched as Amanda cautiously put on the hat. “Gryffindor!” it shouted. Amanda ran to sit down across from John, with a smile on her face. Only one student was left to be sorted.

“Weasley, Rose.” Rose was made a Gryffindor before the hat had even touched her head. ‘Just like how James was sorted,’ Albus thought. It never hesitated for them. But it had for him. Albus stared glumly at his golden plate.

The headmaster rose from his chair. “Welcome back to Hogwarts to all returning students and welcome to those who are new. For those of you who don’t know, I’m Professor Kendrick, headmaster of Hogwarts. Now, I know the older students have noticed we are short one staff member,” the headmaster gestured to the empty chair beside him. “But I shall inform you about that later. Right now it is time to eat.” And the golden plates filled with food.

Albus stared in amazement as the food appeared in front of him. He started piling his plate with as much as would fit. John was using not only his plate, but an empty one that he found as well.

“This is amazing!” John exclaimed. “I might actually get full here! I hope all the meals are like this.”

“Yeah, it all looks very good,” Albus said. Albus started eating his food and couldn’t help but overhear a conversation between two older students.

“I wonder where Professor Torro is? It’s not usual for a teacher to miss the start of term feast,” a brown haired girl asked the boy sitting next to her.

“Yeah, quite strange, really. I hope he’s all right. Maybe he’s ill or something?” the boy responded.

“What does he teach?” John said, interrupting the two older students.

“Defense Against the Dark Arts,” the girl told him. The two older students continued their conversation, but in lower voices so John couldn’t overhear him.

*********

After the students had eaten their fill of dinner, the golden plates became clean for a moment, and then dessert appeared. Albus immediately helped himself to his favorite, treacle tart. While he was eating, he heard a scream coming from his left. A ghostly head had appeared right out of Amanda’s plate.

“Oh, so sorry to have scared you!” the ghost said as he glided out of Amanda’s plate. “I’m Sir Nicholas.”

“You’re Nearly Headless Nick!” John shouted. “Great to meet you. Can I see you pull off your head?”

Amanda looked like she might faint, but Nick grudgingly pulled on his ear and his head came partially off.

“Wow! That’s bloody brilliant!” John exclaimed. “Did you see that, Albus?”

“Yeah,” Albus responded. He didn’t think it was as neat as John did, and was beginning to wish he hadn’t eaten nearly as much treacle tart.

The headmaster got to his feet again as the golden plates became clean once more. “Is everyone satisfied? Good. Now, I have a few start of term notices. The village of Hogsmeade is out of bounds for first and second years, as well as the Forbidden Forest to everyone. As always, stay away from the Whomping Willow. Mr. Filch has added a few new items to the list of forbidden things and if you wish to inspect the list, it is pinned to Mr. Filch’s door.

“Now, as many of you have noticed, Professor Torro is not with us tonight. I regret to inform you that he has been discovered dead only a few hours ago,” Professor Kendrick stated with a sad expression on his face. There was a sharp intake of breath from the students. “Cause of death has not been determined. Until I can find a suitable replacement, Defense Against the Dark Arts classes will not take place. Now, it is time to go to your dormitories. Classes begin tomorrow and you will need to be well rested. First years, please follow a prefect to your common rooms.”

Albus got up and looked for his cousin, Georgia, for she was one of the Gryffindor prefects. Albus found her, and he, John, Matt, Rose, and Amanda all followed her up to the common room. As they walked through the castle, there was a whole lot of whispering about Professor Torro.

“He wasn’t even that old,” one student said.

“Yeah, and wasn’t DADA the subject that was jinxed years back?” another responded.

Albus and the others arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady. Georgia told her the password, Cornish Pixie, and everyone walked inside.

“Boys to the right, girls to the left. I hope everyone has a good night,” Georgia told the first years.

Albus walked up the spiral staircase to his dormitory with Matt, John, and two other boys Albus had not met yet. Albus thought their names were Bilius and Ethan. Albus was rather quiet while he got into bed. All the other boys were laughing and talking. But Albus couldn’t shake that he was considered for Slytherin. He was also a bit nervous about the fact that a professor had died. That didn’t happen often, did it? Albus was still thinking about these things as he drifted off to sleep.

******

When Harry, Ginny, and Lily walked back into their house after taking James and Albus to Platform 9 3/4, Harry noticed an owl waiting on the windowsill. He walked over to it and opened the letter.

Dear Harry,
I would appreciate it if you would come to Hogwarts later tonight, around 9pm.
I have something to ask you, and would prefer to do it in person, rather than by letter.
Please return this owl with your answer, thank you.
From,
Fabius Kendrick

‘That’s strange,’ thought Harry. Surely one of his boys couldn’t be in trouble already? “Ginny, I’m going to have to go to Hogwarts tonight. Fabius has requested that I meet with him. He hasn’t told me why,” Harry told his wife.

“Okay, just let me know before you leave. That is strange, though. Why wouldn’t he have met with you before term started? I hope James and Albus aren’t in trouble.”

*********

Later that night, Harry Apparated into Hogsmeade. It was a chilly night, but there was not a cloud in the sky. The stars and moon shone brightly. Harry thought the students must be in their common rooms by now, judging from the time. ‘That’s good, Albus and James have no idea I’m here’, thought Harry. He walked along the path and soon found himself walking through the big oak doors into the Great Hall. Kendrick was waiting for him there.

“Good evening, Harry,” Fabius greeted.

“How are you? What’s this about? Are James and Albus okay?” Harry asked anxiously.

“Oh, don’t worry, they’re fine. But I would prefer if we discuss what we need to discuss in my office,” Fabius responded. Harry followed Fabius up to the stone gargoyle. It leaped aside as Fabius murmured, “Woolen coat.”

Harry walked into the familiar circular office. He saw all the various possessions that Dumbledore had left to the school. He also noticed the sleeping portraits of previous headmasters. Only one was awake, the one of Albus Dumbledore. Harry smiled as he saw him.

“Please, sit down,” Professor Kendrick said as he gestured to a chair in front of his desk. Harry sat. “I have some bad news. Professor Torro was found dead in his house this morning.”

“What?! How did he die? He wasn’t very old,” Harry exclaimed. Professor Torro had been teaching DADA since Hogwarts reopened after the battle.

“I know, shocking, and very, very sad. His cause of death was Avada Kedarva, but I didn’t tell the students this. It does worry me. It is quite suspicious. Especially since DADA was the subject that Voldemort jinxed.”

“But he’s gone! I saw him die, I was there!” Harry shouted. “This can’t be the work of him, can it?” Harry knew there would be an investigation awaiting him when he returned to work the next day. He had taken the day off to see James and Albus onto the Hogwarts Express, and hadn’t heard a thing about Professor Torro’s death until just now.

“Of course not. But there are still Death Eaters out there. I have reason to believe that one of them killed Torro and the Minister agrees with me. But onto the reason I have summoned you here.

“We are, of course, in need of a new DADA teacher, and I was wondering if you would like the job. I think it would be a good idea to have an Auror here after recent events and you are the ideal candidate,” Kendrick told Harry.

“Me? A teacher? Well, I can’t say I’ve never thought about it. It would be nice to be back at Hogwarts. But what about Ginny and Lily? I can’t leave them.”

“Of course. And feel free to leave every weekend to spend time with them. Neville Longbottom does the same thing to visit Hannah,” Kendrick explained.

“I guess I could do it, but only if Ginny is okay with it. I tell you what, I’ll Apparate home tonight and ask her. You’ll have your answer in the morning, okay?” Harry asked.

“That’s fine. I’ll see you in the morning, then. Good night.”

“’Night,” Harry said as he walked out of the office.

As Harry left the castle, he pondered the death of Torro. Harry had only met Torro a few times, and he was not particularly close to him, but his death still troubled Harry. Was this another random Death Eater attack? There had been a few of them throughout the years after the battle. But why was Torro killed? He didn’t even live in Britain during the time of Voldemort, he lived in France then. Why were the Death Eaters going after Hogwarts teachers? Harry had a nagging feeling that this wasn’t like the other deaths, this had significance. Surely, Voldemort couldn’t return? He was dead. There were no more Horcruxes. Harry kept telling himself this, but he still felt very uneasy about it. The headmaster and the Minister felt the same way. Why else would they want an Auror at Hogwarts? Of course, Harry was the one who defeated Voldemort, so who else knew more about DADA?

Harry found himself back in Hogsmeade and he Disapparated. He appeared a moment later in his backyard and he walked into the house. It was time to tell Ginny what had happened. Luckily, Lily would be in bed.

*********

Early the next morning, Harry Apparated into Hogsmeade once again. This time he had his old Hogwarts trunk with him, along with a large, black owl named Harvey. This is familiar, he thought. Harry wheeled his trunk over to Hogsmeade station, where he would wait for a carriage to take him to the castle. Ginny had said yes right away. She felt that Harry’s presence in the school would protect her sons. Ginny was also quite worried about the death of Torro.

The carriage arrived and Harry loaded his trunk into it. ‘This sure is strange,’ he thought. Back at Hogwarts, once again. It kind of felt good, comforting in a way. Hogwarts had always felt like home to Harry. But he still couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling he had about Torro’s death. The carriage gave a lurch, and the thestrals pulled Harry up to the school.



“Get up, Albus! Get up!” Albus awoke with a start and saw John’s face looking down at him.

“Huh? Wha’s going on?” Albus said sleepily.

“First day of lessons! Let’s go down to breakfast,” John responded, excitedly. He was bouncing around the room, waking up all his fellow Gryffindors.

Albus got up and put on his robes. “Okay, I’m ready,”

“Great! Bilius and Ethan are up too. But I can’t get Matt up. He sleeps like a log,” John said as he shook Matt some more. Matt finally got up and put his robes on.

The five Gryffindor first year boys met the girls in the common room. Rose, Amanda, Janie Creevey, and the Jordan-Bell twins. Albus knew he’d met the twins a few times, but couldn’t remember their names They introduced themselves as Karina and Marina. They were identical with long black hair and blue eyes. The first years walked down to the Great Hall together, only getting lost once.

When Albus walked into the Great Hall, he glanced up at the head table and his jaw dropped. He stopped walking and an older Hufflepuff bumped into him.

“Sorry,” she said as she walked past.

Albus didn’t pay any attention to her. He continued to stare at the staff table. Sitting next to the headmaster, was his father. Albus shook his head and ran over to the Gryffindor table, where his fellow first years had already sat down.

“James! James!” Albus shouted, “Look who’s sitting next to Professor Kendrick! Isn’t that Dad? What’s he doing here? He doesn’t teach here!”

James was staring at Harry. “Yeah, I know. Funny how he never mentioned it. But I guess he must be the new DADA teacher. All the other teachers are there.”

“Honestly, James! He couldn’t have told us yet. Torro just died yesterday. Obviously, Kendrick asked him last night. It was only a matter of time, wasn’t it? I mean, he’s got to be the most qualified wizard for the job, right?” Georgia had sat down next to James and talked some sense into him.

“I suppose,” James said as he started to eat his eggs.

“Here are your schedules!” Neville Longbottom had appeared near the Gryffindor table.

Albus took his schedule from him and looked at it. He had DADA right after breakfast, then Charms, and after lunch he had double Herbology.

“Looks like a decent schedule,” John said, “Should be interesting having your dad as a teacher, Albus! I can’t wait! I’ve got so many questions for him.”

“Yeah, should be wonderful,” Albus said glumly as he dug into his waffles. Truthfully, Albus did not want his dad teaching at Hogwarts. With his dad here, Albus would be even more famous than usual. He did not like the staring eyes and the constant questions about his dad.

**********

After breakfast, the Gryffindors headed to the DADA classroom, with John leading the way. Albus hung back with Matt, who was going pretty slow.

“You okay, Matt?” Albus asked, “You look kind of sick. You want to go to the Hospital Wing?”

“No, I’ll be fine,” Matt replied with a yawn, “Guess I didn’t get to sleep until late, too nervous about lessons.”

When they arrived at the classroom, Albus ran and took the table in the back. Matt and Amanda followed him. John hesitated, apparently torn with joining his new friends and sitting up front. Finally, he, too, went and sat in the back.

“Why are we sitting back here?” John asked.

“Cause it’s my dad, John. How would you like it if your dad taught at Hogwarts?” Albus said in a rude tone. John didn’t say anything.

At that moment, another group of students came into the room. They were Slytherins. Scorpius Malfoy was leading them.

“Great, we’re with the Slytherins,” John whispered to Matt, “Hope they’re not going to ruin everything.” John was about to launch into a tirade about Slytherins, but Harry walked in.

“Good morning,” Harry said as he walked to the front desk, “I’m Professor Potter.” A few of the girls in front giggled. “I’ll start by taking attendance.” Harry ran down the attendance sheet. Everyone was there.

“Please open your books to page 5,” Harry told the students.

“Professor? Can you tell us about the battle? Please?” one of the twins asked, Albus didn’t know which one.

Harry sighed. “Well, I really don’t like to talk about it much. But I suppose I could. I know you won’t let it rest until I do,” he smiled and looked at Albus, “I know my own kids, nieces, and nephews kept asking me until I told them.”

Albus sunk lower in his chair. John was sitting straight up, staring at Harry, hardly blinking. Amanda and Matt were also paying close attention.

Harry’s story about the battle lasted the whole period. The bell rang shortly after Harry finished.

“Please read chapter one for next time, since we didn’t get a chance to cover it in class,” Harry told the students as they left. “And Albus, could you stay for a moment?”

“You guys go on ahead,” Albus told his friends, “I’ll meet you in Charms.” Albus approached his father’s desk after all the other students had left.

“Hi, Al, how was the Sorting? I see you did make it into Gryffindor. I knew you would,” Harry said with a proud look on his face.

“Yes, I did,” Albus said, his eyes brimming with tears as he remembered what the hat had told him, “But it wanted to put me in Slytherin!” Albus started crying and he couldn’t stop. “I told it to put me in Gryffindor, that’s the only reason it did!”

Harry quickly shut the door before responding. “I told you at the station that it did that to me, too.”

“But that’s cause you were a Horcrux!” Albus sobbed, “I’m not a Horcrux, so why should I have done well in Slytherin? It put Rose in Gryffindor before it even touched her head. And James said it did that with him, too.”

“Yes, I know, but everyone’s different. It means that you have qualities of many different houses. It doesn’t mean you should be in Slytherin. The hat put you in Gryffindor because you wanted it to. A great man once told me ‘it is our choices that show who we really are, far more than our abilities’. Albus Dumbledore was that man. He told me that when I was wondering the same thing you’re wondering right now. You chose to be in Gryffindor, which makes you very different from the Slytherins. Don’t worry about it,” Harry explained, as he drew Albus into a hug.

“O-k-kay,” Albus stuttered, “J-just, d-don’t tell J-James.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t. James doesn’t even know that the hat considered putting me in Slytherin,” Harry confided, “Now, I think you should be off to your next class. And don’t worry about me teaching here. I’ll treat you just like the other students, detentions and all.”

Albus laughed. “Well, you don’t have to do that.”

“See you later, Al.”

“Bye, Dad.”

**********

Albus was a bit more cheerful for the rest of the day. He thoroughly enjoyed double Herbology. He had known Professor Longbottom since he was born, and Albus was very interested in magical plants. Charms, however, wasn’t as enjoyable. The Charms professor, Professor Washburn was not very nice, and for some reason he seemed to have something against Gryffindor.

Soon enough, dinner came, and right when Albus walked into the Great Hall, James came running over to him.

“So, how was having Dad as a teacher?” James asked, breathlessly.

“You know, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” Albus said, while sitting down and grabbing the nearest bowl of potatoes. “He spent the whole period telling everyone about the battle because he figured no one would leave him alone until he did.”

“Sounds familiar!” James laughed, “Remember when we kept bugging him about it when I was 10? And then he said he’d tell us the whole story the summer before our first year of Hogwarts.”

“Yeah, I was kind of surprised he was so willing to tell the story. You know how he hates talking about it.”

“I know, but I suppose it’s better for everyone to hear it sooner rather than later, and now Dad can get on to teaching,” James explained as he shoved his mouth with chicken, “Should be pretty cool having him teach, he knows so much DADA.”

“Hey, Albus!” John shouted to Albus as he ran over to the Gryffindor table. Matt sat down on Albus’s other side.

“Hi John, Matt,” Albus said, passing them the pumpkin juice.

“Wow, this is just as good as last night!” John exclaimed as he piled his plate high with food, “I could definitely get used to this.”

“What? Did your mum starve you?” Albus joked.

“’Course not. But she didn’t make as much variety,” John explained. He turned to Matt. “You okay? You look kind of pale.”

That was an understatement. Matt looked like he was about to pass out in the potatoes. He hadn’t touched any of the food and his golden plate was still empty. Matt was leaning his head on his hand and was yawning a lot. “I’m all right, I guess, just tired.”

Albus and John eyed him warily. “You sure?” Albus asked.

“Yeah, I’m just not hungry tonight. I’ll be fine.”

At that moment, the headmaster stood up. “If I could have your attention for just a bit, I have some more announcements.” The room immediately fell silent. “Thank you. Now, as many of you have noticed, I did have success in securing a new DADA teacher and I would like to introduce him. This is Professor Potter.” Kendrick gestured to Harry. “Now, I know many of you will have questions for him when you have your first DADA lesson, but I ask you not to pester him. He will tell you what he wants to, and nothing more. I would also like to tell you that if you want to try out for your house Quidditch team, please give your name to your head of house. That is all. Thank you.” Kendrick sat back down again and proceeded to talk to Harry.

“Well, I’m trying out for Seeker this year!” James announced to the whole Gryffindor table, “I’ve been down to the Pitch practicing on my Firebolt during lunch.”

“Good luck, James,” Albus told him, “Dad’ll be proud if you make the team.”

“I sure hope I do. It’ll be great having him watch the games.”

Albus turned to John. “You finished? We should probably get started on that homework.”

John groaned, “Yeah, I suppose. You gonna come, Matt?”

Matt looked up from his plate. “Sure.” The three boys started walking back up to the Common room, with Matt lagging behind.

“Matt, are you sure you’re ok? You’re going pretty slow,” Albus asked, with a nervous look on his face. “I think you should probably go to the hospital wing.

Matt looked out the window. “I suppose you’re probably right. You guys go on ahead, I’ll meet you back in the Common room.”

“No, we’re going to take you. You look ready to collapse,” John insisted. They all trekked back down the stairs and to the Hospital Wing. When they got there, Madam Pomfrey was right by the door.

“Matt! Come here, you look dreadful,” she said, grabbing his shoulder and leading him to the bed, “Thanks for bringing him, boys, you can leave now.” Madam Pomfrey shooed them out of the room.

“You know, it almost looked like she was waiting for him,” Albus said as he walked up the stairs.

“Yeah, and she knew his name. That’s odd. I don’t think he’s been there yet,” John stated, “I wonder if he gets sick often? Or maybe he gets hurt a lot, he’s got loads of scars.”

“I know. I asked him about them on the train, before you came in. He said he was clumsy and quickly changed the subject.”

“Well, I’m sure he’ll tell us about it when he’s ready,” John reasoned, “Cornish Pixie.” The portrait opened and the two boys walked into the common room. They settled down to doing their homework with Amanda, Rose, Janie, Bilius, Ethan, and the twins. After a few hours, Albus bid them good night.

He walked up to his dormitory, changed into his pajamas, and climbed into bed. He pondered his lessons and the rest of his day. Albus was happy that having his dad there wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be. But why did Professor Washburn dislike him and the other Gryffindors so much? And was Matt okay? He still hadn’t returned to the common room. As Albus was worrying about Matt, he drifted off to sleep. Just after he drifted off, the Shrieking Shack shrieked for the first time in decades.




Harry was in the Great Hall. Ropes bound him to the Headmaster’s chair. His scar was searing in pain. Blood was pouring down his arms as he struggled against the restraints. He opened his eyes and glanced around, looking for his wand. There it was, lying uselessly halfway across the room. All around him, other people were bound to the other professor’s chairs, they were surrounding Harry in a circle. A cloaked figure was circling around the outside of the circle, while other cloaked figures stood stationary around the room. Bodies lay in pools of blood on the floor.

Harry glanced around at the other people bound to the chairs. The person directly across from him had long red hair. Harry screamed. “NO!!!! Ginny!” He looked at the other people. “James! Albus! Lily! Take me instead, not the kids!”

The hooded figure looked up and entered the circle. He stood directly in front of Harry. “Well, well, someone’s decided to regain his consciousness. As you see, the rest of them didn’t fair too well without you. Most are dead. But I’ve saved your dear family for last. I will torture them and kill them. And then, I shall kill you. At last, I’ve waited so long. You should have known you couldn’t kill me.” Voldemort rounded on the smallest child tied to a chair.

“Crucio!” he shouted.

“NO!!!! Do it to me instead! Lily!” Harry screamed. His scar started to hurt even worse, it burned so bad he couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore.
Harry awoke with a start. He was covered in sweat and his heart was beating fast. His hand automatically went to his scar, but he was not in any pain. He shakily got out of bed and went to the window.

‘Will it never end?’ he thought. The nightmare kept returning, but why? It was always the same one. It had been going on ever since the last battle. Only before he had kids, the people surrounding him were Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna. As soon as James was born, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna disappeared. Once Albus was born, he appeared too. Same with Lily.

Harry had no idea what the dreams meant, and neither did anyone else. Harry could think of only one person who may have been able to explain it, Dumbledore. However, as soon as Harry had a few of these dreams, he had gone to see the portrait in Dumbledore’s office. He was only 18 then. Unfortunately, Dumbledore had no useful explanation. Since Harry was no longer a Horcrux, he couldn’t possibly be seeing into Voldemort’s thoughts. Especially since Voldemort was dead. But the dreams continued.

Tonight’s dream had been more vivid than any of the past ones. Maybe it was because Harry had spent all day reliving the horrific scenes from his childhood to various DADA classes. He wished he hadn’t done that now. Oh, how he regretted it. But he’d have to put up with it the rest of the week, seeing as it wouldn’t be fair not to tell the other students.

Harry walked away from the window. He slowly walked into the corridor. His whole body was clammy. He needed a sleeping draught. He’d been relying on these more and more as time went on. ‘I really should learn how to brew them myself,’ he laughed to himself.

Walking through the corridors at night brought back many memories. He still felt like he was disobeying the rules, even though he was now a professor. It seemed like Snape was right around the corner waiting to catch him doing something wrong. Harry climbed the stairs to the hospital wing. He hated to wake Madam Pomfrey at this hour, however he knew he’d never get to sleep without it. Maybe she would give him a large supply to keep in his office.

Harry walked into the ward, only to see that Madam Pomfrey was already up. She was tending to a girl in one of the end beds.

“Hello, Poppy,” he whispered.

“Oh!” Madam Pomfrey jumped, “You frightened me. I wasn’t expecting you at this hour, Harry. You know, it’s almost like you’re a student again, coming in so late.”

“Yeah, I was thinking the same thing,” Harry glanced down at the girl, “Is she okay?”

“Yes, she’ll be fine. Someone levitated her in her sleep. She screamed and that scared the student who did it to her, that student gave the countercurse, and she promptly fell onto the floor and broke her arm.”

“Wow, doesn’t take very long for things to get interesting around here,” Harry said.

“Now, why are you here, Harry?”

“Well, er, remember after the battle and I had all those nightmares? They never completely stopped, and now they seem to be getting worse. I was wondering if I could have a sleeping draught. I’d also like to just have a supply of it on hand. I’ve never been much of a potion brewer and haven’t attempted to make it myself. I just can never manage to get to sleep without one after one of these nightmares,” Harry explained sheepishly. He felt like he was a kid again. How could he, the wizard who defeated Voldemort, who was known as the bravest wizard of the times, be afraid of a nightmare?

A sad gaze fell over Madam Pomfrey. “You know, this kind of reminds me of how you were so susceptible to the dementors in your third year. I know most people think you’re brave and nothing frightens you, but everyone has nightmares and being frightened is nothing to be ashamed of.” She walked over to a cabinet and came back with a large bottle filled with potion. “Here you go. Just come back to me whenever you need more.” She handed him the bottle.

“Thanks,” Harry replied, as he walked out of the Hospital Wing.

As he walked back towards his office, Harry thought about what Madam Pomfrey had said. He knew she was right, but he still couldn’t help but feel weak whenever he had one of these nightmares. He just wished he knew why he was having them and what he could do to stop them.

******

When Albus awoke the next morning, Matt still hadn’t returned from the Hospital Wing. John suggested that they go visit Matt before class, but since the two boys had gotten up late, they only had time to grab a quick bite to eat before heading to Potions in the dungeons.

“Good morning, class!” an old, round, professor greeted them, “I’m Professor Slughorn, your Potions Master. Today, we shall be learning about the basics of potion brewing, including the importance of proper stirring, heat, and ingredients. Please open your books to page 6.”

The class opened their books and spent the whole lesson listening to Slughorn and copying down notes.

“Well, we’re pretty much out of time, so I’ll see you all next lesson. Could I have Albus Potter and Rose Weasley please stop by my desk on their way out?” Slughorn told the class.

“I’ll see you in Transfiguration, John. Tell Professor Patil where I am,” Albus told his friend. He had a feeling he knew what Slughorn wanted. James had warned him about it.

Albus and Rose walked cautiously up to Slughorn’s desk after everyone else had left.

“Ah! Young Mr. Potter and Miss Weasley. Now, I would like to tell you about a little gathering I have scheduled for Friday. It’s for the students in the school whose parents are, for lack of a better term, popular. Or those who have shown exceptional magical skill. Of course, I’d be pleased if the both of you would attend. I’m sure your cousins will be attending. They seemed to like them in the past years,” Slughorn informed them.

“Well, er, I guess we could make it,” Albus told Slughorn, while looking at Rose.

“Yes, we’ll be there. See you next lesson, Professor,” Rose told him, as the two of them left the dungeon.

“I knew it was only a matter of time before we were invited to the Slug Club,” Albus groaned. James loved the Slug Club. It gave him a whole lot more attention and more people for him to tell his stories too. But Albus didn’t like the fame. He would have rather skipped the party, but as James and his cousins were going, it would be hard not to.

“Well, maybe it’ll be fun,” Rose stated in a hopeful tone. Albus rolled his eyes and the two of them went to Transfiguration.

***********
Matt didn’t show up in classes all day. Albus and John were really starting to worry. They decided to visit him before dinner. When they got into the Hospital Wing, they didn’t see Matt right away. There was one girl occupying a bed with her arm in a sling. Madam Pomfrey was fussing over her.

“I really think you need to stay here tonight. You can leave in the morning!”

“But, Madam Pomfrey, I’ve been here all day. My arm’s fine!” the girl exclaimed.

“No, I will not have it! You can leave in the morning,” Madam Pomfrey said in a tone that was not to be argued with. The girl pouted and stopped talking.

Albus and John approached Madam Pomfrey. “Um, where’s Matt Eckerton? We brought him here last night,” John said tentatively.

“He’s back there,” she said, pointing to a bed with the curtains pulled around it.

“Well, can we see him?” Albus asked.

“No, I’m sorry, but you can’t. He’s not in any state to have visitors at the moment. You can come see him this time tomorrow,” Madam Pomfrey said hurriedly.

“But could you at least tell us if he’s ok?” Albus asked.

“He’ll be fine in a few days. Now, you two should head down to dinner. You can see Matt tomorrow.”

Albus and John walked glumly down to the Great Hall. “That was strange. James said you can usually visit your friends when they’re in the Hospital Wing,” Albus told John.

“Very weird. You know, I think Matt’s keeping something from us. Madam Pomfrey seemed like she was expecting him last night, and now no one can visit him,” John told Albus in a worried tone.

“We’ll ask him about it when he gets out of the Hospital Wing. I don’t think he’ll be inclined to tell us tomorrow,” Albus reasoned.

*********

The next day, Gryffindor first years had DADA again. Nothing extraordinarily exciting happened during class. They mostly took notes on using Expeliarmus, the disarming spell. Harry said they would start being able to practice it on each other in the next class. John and Albus were really looking forward to this, as they really hadn’t used their wands for anything yet.

Charms, however, was quite eventful. Professor Washburn started class by taking attendance as usual. He gave a menacing glare to all the Gryffindors as he called their names. But Albus thought he stared especially long at him.

“Take out your wands,” snarled Wahsburn, “we’re practicing levitation today. Everyone take a feather.” Washburn waved his wand and a feather appeared in front of each student. “Remember to swish and flick.”

“Swish and flick,” murmured Albus from the back table. He waved his wand and said, “Wingardium Leviosa!” Nothing happened. He tried over and over again. Still, nothing happened. John, however, managed to do it.

“Look, Albus!” John exclaimed, “I’ve done it!” John’s feather had rose a few inches off the table, and fell down again.

“Congratulations,” Albus said flatly, his feather still remaining quite still on the table.

“I’ve done it, too!” Rose shouted. Her feather had also rose off the table, but it managed to make it a few feet in the air before falling.

Washburn stormed out from behind his desk and rounded on the back table, where Albus, John, Rose, and Amanda were sitting. “Well, do it again!” he growled.

John and Rose looked at him nervously and picked up their wands. “Wingardium Leviosa!” they said at the same time. Both their feathers rose feebly into the air and fell down again.

“Pathetic,” Washburn muttered, “Potter! You do it!” he shouted at Albus.

“But, Professor, I haven’t managed it yet,” Albus muttered quietly.

“You’ll do what I tell you to do! Perform the spell!” Washburn seemed to be getting angrier by the minute.

Albus nervously picked up his wand. His arm was shaking, this would not turn out good. “Wingardium Leviosa,” he muttered very quietly. His feather leaped into the air and caught fire. The whole class, which had been staring at the back table for quite some time, screamed.

The flame from the feather caught onto Washburn’s robes and set them on fire as well. “Bloody Hell!” Washburn screamed. He grabbed Albus’s wand out of his hand and produced water from it to douse the flames. “Potter! You’ll getting detention and 20 points from Gryffindor!” he shouted, glaring at Albus. “Class dismissed. Get out, all of you except Potter.”

Albus was visibly shaking now. The rest of the class quickly left, the Gryffindors glancing anxiously at Albus. He walked slowly up to Washburn’s desk.

“Well, you seem to have a knack for causing trouble, Potter,” Wahsburn spat.

“I’m sorry, Professor, I didn’t mean to,” Albus muttered, on the verge of tears.

“You’ll be doing detention tonight, I don’t care what other plans you might have. See you at 8pm.”

“But-”

Washburn cut him off. “I said tonight, now get out!” he screamed.

********

Later that night, Albus trudged his way back to the common room after doing detention with Washburn. He had Albus do lines, so it wasn’t too bad. But Washburn stared at Albus the whole time, his eyes like fire.

Albus climbed through the portrait and saw just who he needed to talk to. “James, I’ve got to ask you something.”

“What is it?” James asked, walking away from his friends.

“Why does Washburn hate me?” Albus asked. “During the first class, I thought he just hated all Gryffindors, but today he made it clear that it’s me he hates.”

“Really? It’s well known he hates Gryffindors. But he’s always seemed to hate me more than everyone else,” James explained, “I always assumed it’s because I cause so much trouble. You on the other hand, have always been so quiet. What did you do to him?”

Albus mumbled something incoherent.

“What?”

“I set him on fire.”

James burst out laughing.

“It’s not funny! I didn’t mean to do it. We were doing levitation, and he asked me to levitate the feather in front of everyone, when he knew I hadn’t managed to do it before. My arm was shaking so much I knew the spell wouldn’t work. The feather caught fire as soon as I muttered the spell, and then it spread to Washburn’s robes. I got lines and 20 points taken from Gryffindor,” Albus looked down, ashamed.

James looked stunned. “But that’s a mistake any first year could have made. I do see how he got mad, though. I think you should just try to avoid him. Sit in the back, don’t say anything. Ignore him in the halls. That’s what I do. I still get way more detentions from him than any other teacher, but I think I’ve become immune to them. Well, I’d better get back to my friends. See you later.”

Albus contemplated this information. Washburn hated all Gryffindors, but he hated James and Albus the most. Why? It didn’t make sense. Neither Albus nor James had met Washburn before Hogwarts.

“Albus!” John came running into the common room, “I’ve just been with Matt.”

“How is he?” Albus asked.

“Not good. He’s covered in cuts and bruises. Said he’d tripped on his way to the bathroom. He kept avoiding talking about being ill. Just wanted to talk about what’s going on in the school. So I told him about you setting Washburn on fire. He thought it was hilarious.”

“It’s NOT!” Albus shouted. He was sick of everyone thinking it was funny. The story had already made it around the school and at dinner everyone was staring at him more than usual. Some students even high fived him and patted him on the back. It seemed like Washburn was disliked by many students.

“Okay, okay,” John said, putting his hands up, “Anyway, Matt said he’d be back in class tomorrow morning. Madam Pomfrey just wanted him to stay the rest of the night.”

“Good. Let’s go to bed. I’m exhausted,” Albus said. He and John climbed up the circular staircase to the dormitory.

——————————————————————————–
Here’s the next chapter! I combined two short chapters into one, so this one’s a good bit longer than the previous ones.
Disclaimer- I don’t own Harry Potter.

——————————————————————————–



Friday came too quickly for Albus’s liking. He was not looking forward to the Slug Club meeting. Since the meeting and Gryffindor Quidditch try-outs were at the same time, James wouldn’t be joining Albus at the meeting. Albus had tried to get out of the meeting by watching try-outs, but the team captain decided to not let any spectators at the try-outs. A large number of students had wanted to attend just to see James, and the captain didn’t want anyone to disrupt the try-outs.

Later that day, Albus and Rose walked down to the dungeons together. Albus was dreading the meeting. They walked into the meeting to see that most everyone else was already there. Albus already knew most of them. Some of his cousins were there, along with various other Order members’ children. However, there were a few faces Albus had never seen before.

“Ah! Albus and Rose!” Slughorn gestured to a few chairs in the room, “Please have a seat. You already know many of the people here. But I don’t believe you know Tami Tobias, Frank Belleville, and Quinton Willinson?” he said, gesturing to a blond haired girl, a black haired boy, and a very sullen looking boy. “Tami is a 6th year Ravenclaw who brews the most excellent potions, Frank is a 4th year Hufflepuff who can already perform nonverbal spells! And Quinton’s a 7th year Slytherin whose father works at the Minsitry.”

“Er, hi,” Albus responded.

“Hello,” Rose smiled.

Unfortunately for Albus; Tami and Frank, along with Slughorn, spent much of the meeting hounding Albus with questions about his dad, the battle, and Albus’s childhood. Eventually, Albus just got fed up with it.

“Look, my dad’s told you all he wants to tell you. You’re not going to learn anything else from asking me!” Albus shouted.

Slughorn looked taken aback. “I thought you’d enjoyed talking about it. Your brother always enjoys telling stories about his childhood.”

“Well, I’m not James, now, am I?” Albus shouted. Everyone else was now staring at him. Albus jumped up from his chair and stormed out the door, slamming it behind him.

Albus stamped his feet the whole way up to the common room. He went through the portrait and was immediately bombarded by James.

“Albus! I got it! I’m the new Seeker!” James shouted over the noise, jumping up and down and spilling his butterbeer all over the floor.

“That’s great, James, really great,” Albus told him, trying to sound somewhat excited.

“What? You’re not happy for me? I thought you would be. Dad’s ecstatic. I told him as soon as I was done at tryouts,” James said tentatively.

“No, I am excited,” Albus responded glumly. All he wanted to do was go to bed, but James blocked his path.

“What’s wrong? I can tell something’s wrong. Tell me,” James said, in a voice that sounded strangely like their mother’s.

“It’s the Slug Club. I just left. All anyone wanted to do was listen to me blabber on about my childhood,” Albus shouted, all the anger coming back in full force. “They wouldn’t stop bothering me until I screamed at them and stormed out.”

James just stared at Albus. “And to top it all off, Slughorn said he thought I’d LIKE talking about all that, just because you do!” Albus screamed at James and punched the nearest armchair.

“Boy, you do have Dad’s temper,” James told Albus, “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there. I’ll be there at all the others. I swear. Well, unless there’s Quidditch practice.”

“Others?! You really think I’m going to another one of those?” Albus shouted disgustedly.

“Well, Slughorn has them all throughout the year. Sometimes they’re kind of fun. You know Dad used to go to them.”

“Fun?! Fun?! How could that possibly be fun? And I know Dad used to go to them, he didn’t exactly enjoy them, now did he?” Albus seethed.

“Yeah, some of them are fun,” James shifted from foot to foot. Albus could tell he was nervous.

“Just go back to your party. You deserve it. Good job at making Seeker, I really do mean that. But I think I’m going to bed. Good night.”

“’Night,” James said as he rejoined his party.

Albus walked up to his dormitory. It was still relatively early, so Albus was surprised to see Matt there. Matt had returned at breakfast yesterday morning, but he still didn’t seem himself, so John and Albus did not bring up the question of him being ill.

Albus went over to Matt’s bed and pulled back the curtains. He was sound asleep. That was strange. He just spent 2 days in the Hospital Wing, why was he still tired? Was he still sick? Albus sighed, he wouldn’t be able to question Matt tonight. Well, turning in early would do Albus some good too. Maybe he’d be able to calm down after the evening’s excitement. He got into his pajamas and got into bed.

********
Unfortunately, Albus did not have a restful sleep. He was having vivid nightmares which involved Slughorn questioning him while James stood behind him, laughing. This same image kept recurring over and over again. Albus tossed and turned and eventually, a new dream came over him.

Albus was sitting in a dark empty room. A man in a dark cloak appeared next to him.

“He will return,” the man said.

“What?” Albus asked. “Who’s returning?”

“He’s coming. He’ll find a way. He will return.”

“Tell me! Who?” Albus shouted.

“He will return, he will return, he will return….” the man said over and over again.

Albus awoke with a start. He was sweating. What was that about? He had never had such a vivid dream. Who was going to return? Albus raked his brains, and then it hit him. It felt like he’d been punched in the stomach. Of course! He jumped out of bed and put on his dressing robes. It must be late, he thought. Matt, John, Ethan, and Bilius were still sleeping. Albus tip-toed out of dormitory and carefully shut the door behind him.

Albus had to see his dad. He didn’t care that it was the middle of the night. He ran out of the common room and into the empty corridor. It was strange wandering around this late. Albus had never walked around the castle at night. He didn’t care that he wasn’t supposed to be out of his dormitory this late. All he thought about was telling his dad about that dream. Albus ran down the stairs, probably making too much noise. As he rounded the corner, someone reached out and grabbed his shoulder. Albus screamed.

“Shut up!” a man shouted, “You’ll wake the whole school. Then we’ll have a real problem.”

Albus looked into the eyes of the man who had caught him. It was Professor Washburn.

“Well, well, Mr. Potter is out of bed. And this late at night? Surely, he must be up to no good,” Washburn sneered. Albus heard the happiness in his tone. “We’d better be off to my office, shall we?”

Albus stood where he was. “No, I have to see my dad.”

“Running to Daddy, are we? Isn’t that sweet. Unfortunately for you, wandering corridors at night is against the rules, therefore, I will punish you.”

Washburn grabbed Albus’s hand and dragged him to his office. Albus was really shaking now. What would Washburn do to him?

When they entered Washburn’s dark office, he forced Albus into a chair directly in front of his desk.

Washburn slammed his hands on his desk. “So, decided to have a little midnight stroll? Care to tell me what you were up to?” he glared at Albus, not blinking.

“I’ve already told you. I need to see my dad,” Albus told him, nervously.

“Surely that could wait till morning? I bet you were setting up some kind of prank. Am I right? You know, I’ve caught your brother out of bed many a time for just that reason.”

So that was it. Washburn hated James, so he in turn hated Albus too. That was the second time in the past 12 hours that Albus had been compared to James. “I am NOT like my brother!” he stood up, fists clenched and stared at Washburn.

Washburn smiled. “I seem to have struck a nerve. But it hardly matters what you were doing out of bed. The fact remains that students are not to be out of bed at,” he glanced at his watch, “1:37 in the morning. Now, to discuss your punishment.”

“You can discuss my punishment after I see my dad,” Albus glared at Washburn.

“Sit back down, Potter. I know you’re just trying to get dear old Dad to save you.”

Albus remained standing. “I AM NOT!” he screamed, “I have something really important to discuss with him!”

“Fine, but I’ll take you to see him, so I can make sure you’re punished,” Washburn spat.

Albus didn’t say another word and ran out the door.

“Wait! Get back here, boy! I told you I’m taking you!” Washburn ran to catch up with Albus, breathing heavily. He was clearly out of shape. The two of them walked to Harry’s office in complete silence.

“Well, here we are,” Washburn stated, pushing Albus aside and opening the door. “Potter! Wake up! I caught your son out of bed.”

Harry quickly walked out of his bedroom. He had also been up after having a nightmare of his own. Harry looked at Albus and Washburn and jumped. “Sorry, I expected it to be James.”

“So did I. He insists that he discuss something with you before I punish him,” Washburn told Harry in a disgruntled voice.

Harry looked worriedly at Albus. “What is it? Are you okay, Al?”

“I just need to tell you something…” Albus replied, looking warily at Washburn.

“I must ask you to leave, Professor Washburn. I think this needs to be private.”

“Fine! I’ll wait outside the door, but he will be punished!” Washburn yelled as he walked out the door and slammed it behind him.

As soon as he left, Albus relayed his whole dream to Harry.

Harry pulled Albus into a hug and told him, “Albus, I don’t think your nightmare had any kind of significance. It was just a bad dream.”

“But, it seemed so real! And you had dreams like this when you were younger, and they were real!”

“Yes, that’s because I could see Voldemort’s thoughts. You know that. I think that hearing so much about the battle over and over again this week and being bombarded with questions about it has caused you to be worried,” Harry explained. “I understand your fears. I still have nightmares about it. But I think the best thing for you to do is just forget about it.”

“But, what if it is real?” Albus asked in a worried tone.

“Think about it, Al. How could he come back? He’s dead. Even in the Wizarding world, no one can come back from the dead.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. It was just so vivid and scary.”

“I know. Now I only hope that as you spend more time at Hogwarts, people will stop asking you so many questions. For tonight, I think you should have some Sleeping Draught,” Harry walked over to his cabinet and poured a potion into a small bottle. I’ll take you back to Gryffindor Tower, and drink this before you get into bed.”

“But what about detention?”

“Don’t worry. You won’t get detention. But wandering the corridors is against the rules, so please don’t do it anymore. Just send word with a portrait from the common room if you need me, and I’ll meet you in the common room. Now, let’s get you back to bed. Just follow me and don’t say anything. I’ll deal with Washburn.”

Harry opened the door and left the room. Albus followed. “There will be no detention tonight, Professor Washburn. Albus really did need to tell me something that was worrying him. It’s perfectly understandable what he did. I’ve talked to him and he won’t do it again,” Harry explained calmly.

“But, he broke the rules!” Washburn screamed.

“Careful, you’ll wake the whole castle,” Harry told him as he continued to walk down the halls with Albus following quickly behind.

They left Washburn standing with his mouth open in the hallway. When Albus got back to his bed, he took his potion and had a dreamless, restful sleep.

******

As the weeks past, people slowly got over the excitement of having Harry as a DADA teacher. Harry had explained the battle to every single one of his classes, and in the following classes he was able to teach without being disrupted with questions pertaining to the downfall of Voldemort. Harry was grateful for this. He was still having his nightmare more often than usual, but thanks to Madam Pomfrey’s potion, he was able to get a few decent night’s sleep a week.

Things seemed to be calming down for Albus too. There had not been anymore Slug Club meetings since the disastrous first one, but Albus had no intention of going to one even if he got invited. His classes were going well. He seemed to struggle the most in Charms, but that was to be expected. At least Albus now knew why Washburn hated him so much, it was because he hated James. As much as Albus hated being compared to James, it was nice to know it wasn’t anything Albus did to irritate Washburn. Unfortunately, Albus was earning a detention a week in his class.

Matt seemed to recover from his illness within a few days. However, as September grew into October, and the weather started getting colder, Matt got sick again.

Albus, John, Matt, Bilius, Ethan, Rose, Janie, Amanda, Karina, and Marina sat together at one table in the common room after dinner one Wednesday. They were working on a particularly hard Transfiguration essay.

“No, you’ve got that wrong,” Rose told Albus.

“Well, why don’t you tell me what the right answer is, then?” Albus said disgustedly.

“But then you won’t learn anything!”

“You’re just like your mother,” Albus told him, shaking his head. “Matt, what’s wrong?”

Matt had put his head down on his parchment, he had only written the first sentence of his essay.

“Huh?” he said, lifting up his head. He glanced out the window. “I’m not feeling too good. I think I might be sick.”

“Again? You do look a bit pale,” Amanda told him with a worried look on her face. “You better go to the Hospital Wing.

“All right. I’ll see you guys later,” Matt slowly got up from his chair and shuffled out of the common room. “You guys don’t have to come,” he said to Albus and John, who had gotten up.

Albus looked at him warily. “If you’re sure.” But Matt had already left the common room.

“I hope he’s all right. That’s the second time he’s been sick here and it’s only October,” John said.

“Yeah, I know. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see how long he spends in the Hospital Wing this time,” Albus told him.

“Well, I’m never going to get this done!” Janie shouted, exhaustedly. “I’m going to bed,” she got up and left, the other 4 girls following her.

“We’d better turn in, too,” Bilius told the other boys.

“Yeah, probably,” Albus agreed. The three boys walked up the circular staircase and got into bed.

*********

Matt didn’t get out of the Hospital Wing until Saturday. Although, he spent most of that day sleeping in his four poster bed. His friends weren’t all that surprised, since this exact same thing had happened during his previous illness. They gave him his space until classes started again on Monday.

Albus had started to dread Potions class. He was always afraid that Slughorn was going to bring up what happened in the previous Slug Club meeting. Unfortunately for Albus, after double potions that week, Slughorn called Rose and him up to his desk after class.

“See you in Transfiguration, then, Albus,” John told him as he and Matt started to walk out of the room.

“No, stay, please,” Albus hissed at them, “He won’t talk about what happened last time if you’re here.”

“All right,” John sighed and dropped his bag on the nearest desk.

“Rose and Albus! I just wanted to invite you to my next get together. It’s happening on Halloween. It’ll be a kind of Halloween party. You can each bring a guest,” Slughorn said, delightedly.

“Cool!” John shouted, running to the front of the room, “Bring me, Albus!”

“No, bring me!” Matt said louder, pushing past John.

“Don’t worry, boys, you can both come, all right?” Slughorn told them with a smile on his face.

“But, but-” Albus stammered, staring at John and Matt.

“Well, off you go, don’t want to be late for your next class!” Slughorn shooed them out of his classroom.

“John! Matt! Why did you do that?” Albus shouted, once Slughorn was back in his room.

“What? I wanted to see what all the fuss is about with those meetings,” John said innocently.

“Ugh! Now I have to go!” Albus threw his hands up in the air, “You knew I didn’t want to go to anymore.”

“Well, we’ll be with you, it’ll be all right,” Matt said sympathetically.

*********

Before Albus knew it, he, Matt, and John were trudging down to the dungeons for the Halloween party. John and Matt were running along excitedly, while Albus lagged behind. They walked into the dungeon, to find it packed.

“Good, maybe no one will notice me,” Albus said as he gazed around at the crowd. The same members who were at the last meeting were there, along with their guests and numerous adults. “Let’s go get some food.”

The three boys walked through the crowd and over to the food table. They each piled a plate high with food. When Albus turned around, he almost ran into someone.

“Watch it!” the boy shouted, he was a rather large Slytherin. The boy looked at Albus and then sneered. “Ah, Potter, can I ask you a few questions about your childhood? Or will that make baby Potter cry?”

“Shut it,” Albus muttered, trying to push past the boy.

“Trying to run away, are we? Well, that won’t do. I thought you’d enjoy talking about yourself. I certainly enjoy talking about me. So, I’ll talk. I’m Quinton Willinson.” Albus glanced at him again and now recognized him as the Slytherin that Slughorn introduced him to at the previous meeting.

John snorted into his pumpkin juice.

“You think that’s funny? Who are you?” Quinton glared at John.

“John Brickston. Pleased to meet you. This is Matt Eckerton,” he gestured towards Matt.

“Enough about you, more about me. My father high up at the Ministry. He does a variety of tasks and makes a load of gold from it. I’m a 7th year. Father’s getting me a Ministry job once I’m done here. I can’t wait until I get out of here and make gold like he does,” Quinton stole a cookie off of Albus’s plate and started to eat it.

“So,” he said in between bites, “What was it like growing up with ‘The Chosen One’?

“I said, shut it!” Albus said, a bit louder.

“Oh, are we going to have a repeat of last meeting?” Quinton asked excitedly, stealing another cookie.

“Definitely not,” shouted John, who drew his wand, “After this one, you’ll wish you’d never been born.” Matt quickly drew his own wand.

“No, guys, it’s okay, don’t get in trouble for him, he’s not worth it,” Albus told them.

“Gonna curse me, ickle firsties?” Quinton giggled, “I’m so scared.”

“What’s going on over here?” James asked as he walked over to the food table, “What do you want, Willinson?”

“Just thought I’d ask Albus about his life growing up,” Quinton told James innocently.

“Well, I think he said to stop, didn’t he?” James said, drawing his own wand.

“He might’ve mentioned it,” Quinton sneered as he, too, drew his wand, “But I don’t see what’s so wrong about wanting to know about ‘The Chosen One’. Maybe you could tell me how he managed to defeat the greatest wizard of all time?”

“Expeliarmus!” James shouted, and Quinton’s wand flew across the room.

Slughorn looked up at the shouting and hustled over to see what had happened. “You cannot duel at my party!”

“They started it,” Quinton said, pointing to Albus and his friends, “Little Potter had to have his big brother defend him.”

“Well, you’ll all put your wands away now so we can enjoy the rest of the party in peace. Or you’ll all get detention,” Slughorn growled as the boys all hastily put their wands away.

Quinton gave Albus one last sneer and he stalked off. Albus watched him go and turned and ran out of the room. He heard his friends following him, but didn’t stop to talk. He didn’t stop or turn around until he reached the Fat Lady’s portrait. He gave the password and ran into the common room and up to his dormitory.

Albus knew going to that party was a bad idea. He shouldn’t have gone. Never again. He punched his pillow. What did Quinton want with him anyway. And why did he call Voldemort ‘the greatest wizard of all time’? Voldemort was defeated before Quinton was even born, he couldn’t possibly have been a Death Eater.

The door to the dormitory opened and Matt and John walked in. “You okay?” Matt asked.

“Oh, I’m just fine,” Albus told them sarcastically, “I’m never going to one of those again, even if you two want to go as my guests. You saw what it’s like now, not much fun, is it?”

“Yeah, not that much fun, although wasn’t that cool how James disarmed Willinson?” John said excitedly. “I mean, he’s 5 years younger than him!”

“Real cool,” Albus said flatly, “I think I just want to go to bed.” Albus pulled the hangings of his bed closed and laid down. He fell asleep relatively quickly, but it wasn’t a restful sleep. He had the nightmare again. It happened a few times a week now, and try as he might, Albus couldn’t seem to forget about it.

——————————————————————————–


Sorry for the wait! I had to rewrite something and combine chapters because I thought this one was too short.

As usual, I do not own Harry Potter.

——————————————————————————–



As the first few days of November passed, the weather became gradually colder. The wind was blowing fiercely, and soon snow would be falling. The first year Gryffindors were not at all surprised when Matt got sick again and spent a few days in the hospital wing.

“Hey, Matt! How are you feeling?” Albus asked at dinner when Matt reappeared from the hospital wing.

“All right,” Matt told him while putting food onto his plate.

“You know, you get sick a lot, Matt. Are you sure you’re okay?” John chimed in.

“Yeah, I know. I’ve got this, er, illness. And it makes me get sick quite a bit. I didn’t want to worry you, so that’s why I never told you,” Matt replied quickly.

“But you’re better now, right?” Albus asked, nervously.

“Um, sort of. I mean, I’m better now, but it’ll happen again,” Matt told them and quickly changed the subject, “So, first Quidditch match in 2 weeks! Gyrffindor vs. Hufflepuff. Should be a good game!”

“Uh, yeah, it should be,” Albus looked warily at Matt. Clearly he didn’t like talking about his illness. Albus and John didn’t bring it up again during the meal. Albus, John, and Matt spent the rest of dinner talking about the upcoming match.

The next two weeks dragged by. As the time before the Quidditch match drew shorter, the anticipation and excitement increased. Both captains were holding practices more often than usual. They alternated evenings for the pitch, so each team was practicing every other night. The Gryffindor players trudged back into the common room well after ten o’clock at night on the days of their practices. They were usually muddy and cold, as the weather was not cooperating. Even the professors were getting into the spirit and were not assigning much homework to the players, however they still piled it on the other students.

Excitement was extremely high in the Gryffindor common room the night before the first Quidditch match. No one was getting much homework done. The only ones trying were a few 7th years and Rose, who was reading a book with her fingers in her ears.

“Oi! Rose!” Albus called across the common room as he walked over to her, “You actually trying to get homework done? Why don’t you take a break? You’ve been studying all day.”

“Yes, I know I have,” Rose said irritably, “We’ve got a big History of Magic exam this week, you know. And we haven’t even won the match, so why celebrate yet?”

“You know, you’re just like your mum,” Albus laughed as he left Rose to her book. He decided he’d find James and wish him good luck.

James was standing in the middle of the common room, surrounded by his fellow teammates. “James!” Albus shouted, “Could I have a word?”

“Sure!” James shouted back, as he left the group, “What’s up?”

“Just wanted to wish you luck, wasn’t sure if I’d see you before the match. You know, you’ll do fine,” Albus told his brother. “Are you nervous?”

“A bit, yeah,” James responded, “It’s just everyone thinks I’ll be a great Seeker because Dad was, so I don’t want to disappoint them.”

“You won’t. I’ve seen you play. You’re the best Seeker this house has, that’s why you’re on the team,” Albus said reassuringly.

“I suppose. I guess I’d better get back to the team, we’re talking strategy,” James told him.

“Ok, see you tomorrow.”

********

Albus was right that he wasn’t able to talk to James before the match. Albus saw him briefly at breakfast, he was looking a bit sick and wasn’t eating anything. Shortly after Albus arrived at the table, however, the whole team left for the locker rooms. After eating some breakfast, Albus walked down to the pitch with John and Matt. They found themselves seats high in the stands next to Rose, Amanda, Janie, Marina, and Karina.

“Is James nervous?” Rose asked Albus.

“A bit, yeah, he’s afraid everyone’s going to compare him to Dad, so he’s afraid he’s going to disappoint everybody,” Albus told her.

“Well, he won’t,” Rose said reassuringly.

“I know.”

The weather conditions couldn’t have been worse for a game of Quidditch. The wind and rain from the previous week had not let up at all. Albus had a hard time seeing onto the pitch. Visibility was terrible, so the spectators had to mainly rely on the commentary to tell them what was going on.

“Welcome to the first Quidditch match of the season!” a booming voice shouted. Albus recognized it as Todd Smith, one of his cousin Georgia’s friends. “Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff!

“And here come the teams! Gryffindor, Samantha Meyers, Ryan O’Malley, James Potter, Bradley Weasley, Fred Weasley, Georgia Weasley, and Heather Weasley. Blimey, that’s a lot of Weasleys! Here are the Hufflepuffs! Shawn Ames, Jason Bristol, Lisa Galivant, Jessica Harper, Andy Kaper, and Stacey Manson!

“Captains Meyers and Harper have shaken hands, and the Quaffle is up!”

14 players and Professor Oteski rose up into the sky on their brooms. Albus could just make out the red robed Gryffindors and the yellow robed Hufflepuffs. Although he had no idea who was who.

“Gryffindor is in possession of the Quaffle. Heather Weasley is storming up the pitch, headed for the Hufflepuff goal. Oh! Saved by Keeper Bristol. Hufflepuff now in possession. Nice beater work by Bradley Weasley, too bad Ames swerved just in time to avoid the bludger. And Hufflepuff scores!”

“Darn it!” Albus shouted. John and Matt were hissing at the Hufflepuffs.

“Fred Weasley is in possession of the Quaffle, passes to Meyers, who then passes to Heather Weasley and back to Fred. That’s the way to do it! Confuse them! Harper sends bludger to Fred, but it is intercepted by O’Malley! Great job! And Gryffindor scores!”

“Woohoo!!!” Albus shouted. Despite the rain, he was loving every minute of the game. Quidditch games always sounded so exciting when his dad told him about them, but Hogwarts games were much better in person. Albus had been to a few professional games, but it somehow seemed better to watch a game that had your own family on the team.

The game continued on for what seemed like hours. The rain and wind had long since made Albus’s hands numb. But he didn’t care.

“Blimey, do you think this could go on all day?” John asked as Hufflepuff scored.

“I sure hope so!” Matt shouted over the wind, “I’ve been putting off an essay for Potions and have no urge to start it anytime soon.”

“Matt! You should have done that essay days ago,” Rose scolded, “I hope it ends soon, I still have some more studying to do do for History of Magic.”

“And Heather Weasley scores for Gryffindor!” Smith shouted, “The score is currently 100-90 Gryffindor. With no sign of the Snitch! Both Seekers are flying slowly around the pitch, eyes peeled for that golden ball. Of course, the big excitement this game is James Potter, the new Gryffindor Seeker. His dad, Harry Potter, was one of the best Seekers Gryffindor house has ever seen. But will James live up to his dad’s legacy? Only time will tell. Captain Meyers has been quite secretive about their practices and would not let anyone watch James fly until this match.”

“Does Quidditch always last this long?” Amanda asked Albus.

“Not usually, but they do vary quite a bit. One world cup lasted over a month. All depends on the Seekers and the weather, usually. Weather like this, who knows when the Snitch will be seen,” Albus explained.

“Well, I think I like watching Quidditch. Course, I could never play. You saw me on my broom in flying lessons. The thing wouldn’t get up in the air,” Amanda laughed.

The first years had had a few flying lessons over the past few weeks. Amanda wasn’t the worst in the class, but wasn’t having much luck with her broom. Albus was pretty good. Not as good as James, but he thought he might be able to try out for Chaser next year when Samantha Meyers left.

“Gryffindor scores again! Blimey, if the match goes on much longer, we’ll be in for a Hogwarts record! It’s past lunch time, the match has been going on for 4 hours in case anyone had been wondering. Oh, look at this! I think Galivant has seen the Snitch!” Smith shouted.

Indeed, she had. Lisa Galivant was flying directly towards the ground, where the little golden winged ball was hovering. James was flying a few feet above her and noticed her dive. He quickly pulled his broom into a dive as well.

“And both Seekers are neck in neck, heading towards the ground, where the golden Snitch has been spotted! Potter is now pulling ahead a little. Kaper is headed towards a bludger that is right above both Seekers. And Kaper hits the bludger towards Potter, who hasn’t noticed it!”

Whack! The bludger collided with James’s skull, just as he reached for the Snitch. He fell, headfirst off his broom from a height of 10 feet, and landed on the ground, not moving.

“James!!!” Albus shouted, as he tried to move past all the students who were standing up in their seats looking at the pitch.

“Potter is knocked off his broom by a bludger sent by Andy Kaper. Surely, Galivant has caught the Snitch. But wait, she’s landing empty-handed. Where is the Snitch?”

Albus had managed to extricate himself from the stands, running onto the pitch, followed by John, Matt, Amanda, and Rose.

“James!” Albus shouted again, as he ran towards the crowd of teachers surrounding his brother. He pushed his way in between Profesor Patil and Professor Longbottom and saw his dad leaning down at James’s side. He had an extremely worried look on his face.

“I’m taking him to the Hospital Wing,” Harry told the teachers as he picked James up. Harry started walking towards the castle. Albus ran after him, followed by his friends.

They burst through the wooden doors and ran up the stairs to the Hospital Wing. When they got inside, Harry deposited James onto a bed. Madam Pomfrey was striding towards them.

“Well, what’s happened? Quidditch, right?” she clicked her tongue, “Such a dangerous sport. I don’t know why they still allow it.” She bustled over to James and examined him. “Cracked skull. I’ll have it mended in no time, but he’s unconscious, so it might be a while before he comes round.”

The doors of the Hospital Wing burst open and a few teachers made their way into the room and stood by Harry.

Madam Pomfrey ran over to a cabinet and grabbed some potion to put on James’s head. She went back over to James and started applying potion. Once she was done, she tapped her wand to his head and muttered a spell. She applied bandages and turned to his hand, which was clamped shut around something.

“Looks like he managed to catch the Snitch,” Madam Pomfrey announced as she pried the still struggling golden ball from his hand.

“Wow,” Harry smiled, “That’s impressive.” He took the Snitch from Madam Pomfrey and pocketed it. Harry sat down on a chair next to James’s bed and started stroking his hair.

“He’s going to be an incredible Seeker,” Neville commented.

Albus walked over to the bed and sat down next to Harry. “Is he going to be all right?” Albus whispered.

“I think he’ll be fine, Al,” Harry reassured Albus, “Although I can’t tell you it didn’t scare me half to death when I saw him fall from his broom. I never really thought much about the dangers of Quidditch when I was playing it, but now that my own son is getting hurt….”

Albus stared at his father. “You’re not going to make him stop playing, are you?”

Harry laughed, “’Course not! I’d be the hypocrite of the century. I just worry about him. I’m sure he’ll be fine, though. This certainly won’t be his last Quidditch injury. I had my fair share. I’m just in for a worrisome next 6 years.”

“More than that, Dad,” Albus laughed, “I’m going to try out for Chaser next year.”

“And I’m sure you’ll be great at it, Al. I’ll worry about you too. Although, Seekers tend to get injured the most out of all the players,” Harry got up from his chair, “Well, I’ve got to send an owl to your mother. She insisted I tell her how the game went, although she won’t be too happy once I’ve told her. Why don’t you and your friends go down and have some dinner? It’s been a long day,” Harry kissed James on the forehead and left the Hospital Wing.

James didn’t regain consciousness until 3 days after the match. Two days after that, Madam Pomfrey allowed him to leave the Hospital Wing. He was thrilled that he had managed to catch the Snitch and win Gryffindor the match, and was eager to tell the story over and over again to anyone who listened. Once James was out of the Hospital Wing, the Gryffindors had a loud and rowdy party until the wee hours of the morning to celebrate the win.

******

The next few weeks flew by for Albus and his friends. Their work load was steadily increasing as fall term drew to an end.

“Why did Patil have to give us an essay due the same day Slughorn did?” John asked disgustedly, one night in the common room.

“They always do that,” Albus groaned.

“Yeah, I’m never going to get this potions done. Why can’t they alternate days for homework giving? It’s stupid, really. I think they must all compete to see who can give the most homework,” John told Albus as he feverishly finished up his Transfiguration essay.

“Even my dad is giving us a huge load. I thought he’d go easy on us cause he used to tell me how much he hated how much homework he was given.”

“Done!” John exclaimed, as he slammed his Transfiguration book shut. “Now, on to that potions essay.” He dug around in his bag for his potions book. “Could I borrow your notes, Rose?”

“No, use your own notes,” Rose said coldly. Even she was faltering under the immense work load, and was huddled at a corner table which was buried under all her notes and books, doing her own potions essay.

“Ugh! You know I don’t take notes!” John groaned.

“Well, why not?” Rose asked.

“’Cause it’s boring,” John explained, “Can I borrow yours, Albus?”

“Sure, they’re in my bag,” Albus told John as he frantically finished up a History of Magic homework.

John dug around in Albus’s bag until he found the notes. “Thanks, mate! Matt, do you need to use them, too?” John looked over at his friend.

Matt was curled up in an armchair, wincing in pain.

“Hey, are you okay?” John asked with a concerned look on his face. He and Albus had been so preoccupied with their large amounts of homework that they hadn’t noticed Matt leave the table.

“Huh?” Matt looked up, with his hand pressed to his head. He yawned. “I guess I must be getting sick again. I think I’ll go to the Hospital Wing.” Matt stood up to leave, but he swayed on the spot and had to lean on the armchair for support.

“Matt!” John ran over to his friend and grabbed his arm, “I’ll take you, okay? You look like you’re about to fall over.”

“Okay, thanks,” Matt mumbled as the two of them left the common room.

Albus had stopped writing his essay and watched the two of them leave.

“I wish I knew some way to help him,” he murmured to Rose. “He hasn’t even told us what disease he’s got. I wonder if it’s some really rare kind that not many people have heard of.”

Rose looked up. “Isn’t it obvious?”

“What?”

Rose got up from her table, walked over to Albus, and whispered in his ear. “Haven’t you noticed that he always gets sick during the full moon? I realized that after he got sick in November, and I’ve been watching him the past few days.”

Albus just looked at her with a blank look on his face. “So? And why would I pay attention to full moons?”

“Ugh!” Rose groaned, “Put it together. I don’t want to say what I think it is right now with so many people around. And you should pay attention to full moons for Astronomy.”

“Well, then let’s wait until they all go to bed. I’ve certainly got enough homework to do between now and then,” Albus said impatiently.

“Fine, but it still seems obvious to me.”

The cousins spent the next few hours working on their homework, waiting for the common room to empty out. After a half hour or so, John came back. Albus filled him in on what Rose said, and he had no idea what she could be on about. He got out his potions essay and continued to work on it. Eventually, around midnight, Albus, John, Rose, and Amanda were the only ones left in the common room.

“So,” Albus whispered, “What have you figured out?”

“Well,” Rose said slowly, looking up from her Herbology reading, “The clues are that Matt always gets ill around the full moon, the few days before it he sleeps a lot and looks paler than usual.