The Legend of the Phoenix Well

Chapter Sixteen: Normal Life

"Hagrid," Ron agreed. "He'll know the legend for sure. And you know he'll tell us, even through he's in the Order and all."

The smiling dimpled witch with the snack trolley came around to their compartment, and Ron rushed towards her, buying nearly half her wares. Ginny looked at Ron. "How can you eat that much?"

Ron ripped the wrapping off a Chocolate Frog greedily and bit into it, giving a small noise of contentment. He sighed. "Chocolate," he said dreamily. "Chocolate after more than a week without any sugar."

"You had sugar, Ron!" Hermione said. "Plenty of chocolate-covered raisins and peanuts. You nearly ate all of them in the entire house!"

"How do you know?" Harry said.

"Toomy told me. He seemed to think it was amusing," Hermione sniffed, clearly thinking that Ron shoving chocolate down his throat was not the least bit amusing.

Ron scowled. "For your information, Hermione, Toomy and Jingle were trying to give me chocolate covered-strawberries too, but I resisted," he said in a tone that made it sound as though he had gone through terrible ordeals of pain and suffering. Hermione snorted.

"You still had sugar, Ron. Even without the chocolate-covered strawberries, you had sugar. Chocolate is sugar, Ron."

"Chocolate-covered raisins and peanuts are not sugar!" Ron argued.

"And why not?" Hermione said.

"Because chocolate-covered raisins and peanuts are nutritious, and therefore, do not count as sweets!" Ron said. "So there."

The other three in the compartment did a collective eye roll, but said nothing. Harry picked up one of the Pumpkin Pasties and ate it. He was the only one able to eat anything as Ron gobbled down everything in sight; everyone else was put off by the disgusting noises and mess Ron was making.

"You're going to feel ill," Hermione muttered as Ron finished his last bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, sighing contentedly.

"Who cares?" Ron said. "Sugar..." he said dreamily.

Ginny shook her head, exasperated, and turned to her Teen Witch Weekly. She started giggling in a matter of moments. Hermione looked amused at this, but Harry and Ron exchanged looks as if Ginny had gone mad.

"Are you a complete nutter, Ginny?" Ron asked.

"Leave her alone, Ron," Hermione said. "After all, just a few minutes ago, you were acting like a starved idiot who had found a feast."

Ron looked at her. "But I was a starved idiot in the middle of a feast, 'Mione. Except for the idiot part."

Hermione scowled at the use of the nickname, but moved over to Ginny to see what was so funny. Her eyes widened, and she began to giggle insanely as well.

Harry and Ron exchanged another look. "Well, what is it? What's so funny?" Ron asked impatiently, looking at his sister and Hermione.

"Picture!" Ginny managed to gasp out. "Picture... of... Rita Skeeter... wrote... article... picture of..." she giggled.

"Picture of what?" Ron said. He looked at Harry. "Rita Skeeter? Brace yourself, mate." He grabbed the magazine from Ginny. He and Harry promptly screamed in horror.

"Turn the page, mate!" Ron said. "Turn it! Quickly! I can't see! I've gone blind... my eyes! My poor eyes! Not Malfoy in the changing rooms!"

"I can't, you git!" Harry said. "You're holding the magazine!"

Ron held one hand over his eyes, and used the other hand to turn the page. He tentatively peeked over his hand, and threw the magazine at Harry, screaming. Harry looked at it, his eyes widening. Finally, he said, "What is this? Hogwarts Quidditch Captains: In Various States of Undress?"

Ginny said softly, "No, it's The Swimsuit Edition."

Harry sighed. "Trust Rita Skeeter to come up with something as sick as that. Who took these pictures, anyway?" He looked at the corner of the picture. "I am going to kill him, blast him into twenty thousand pieces, and stick them on London Bridge," Harry gritted out slowly. "Colin Creevey is so dead."

He stormed out of the compartment. "Hey, wait, I'm coming too! That git almost blinded me with his pictures!" Ron said.

Zacharias Smith was already in the compartment Colin was sharing with his brother Dennis and a few of the other fourth years. "Harry!" Colin called. "You're here to help me, aren't you?"

"No," Ron snarled. "He's here to kill you, blast you into twenty thousand pieces, and stick them on London Bridge. And I'm here to help him."

"Oh," Colin said, shaking in his seat.

"Bugger off, Potter," Zacharias said. "I got here first, so I get to kill him." Colin began to shake even more.

"No, I do," came a new, cold, and horribly familiar voice voice. Harry nearly turned and whipped his wand out, but relaxed when he saw it was only Draco Malfoy, and not Lucius Malfoy. "What do you say, Creevey? How does the Cruciatus Curse and disembowelment ... oh, and I suppose a bit of dunking in the lake sound?"

"Funny, Malfoy," Terry Boot, the Ravenclaw captain, said as he came into the compartment. "I was going to say that, except you forgot hanging by the neck until almost dead, and then the loss of treasured parts."

Colin was now a pale green, and the fourth years were standing, petrified against the wall. "So, Creevey, are you going to tell us why you had to take pictures of us for Rita Skeeter's swimsuit edition?" Harry said.

"Shut up, Potter, and let's just kill him," Malfoy said impatiently.

"Potter's right. I want to know why. My girlfriend's not too happy about this," Terry Boot said.

"Shut up, Boot. I agree with Malfoy. Who cares?" Smith said. Malfoy scowled at the Hufflepuff.

"I don't need a Hufflepuff to back me up," he sneered.

Smith's eyes narrowed. "I'd watch it if I were you, Malfoy," he spat.

"Why should I care? You're a Mudblood, Smith. Add that to a Hufflepuff. You're even worse than Granger. At least she's a Gryffindor and not in the most stupid of houses," Malfoy said, smirking.

Ron turned red. Smith leapt on Malfoy. "STOP IT! STOP IT, NOW!" shouted a voice from the corridor. Joe Wood came running into the compartment, breathing heavily. He noticed Malfoy.

"You must be Draco," Joe said good-naturedly. "Tonks sometimes talks about her mother's side of the family, you know." Harry wondered why Tonks would ever talk about that family.

"Yeah," Malfoy said coldly. "Excuse me," he added, brushing past Joe's outstretched hand and into the corridor.

Harry took the opportunity to leave. He walked back to the compartment the girls and Ron were in, and sat down. Ginny giggled. "Poor you," she said. "Got in the way of a pregnant woman."

"What are the Aurors here for?" Harry asked.

"Probably for protection. They were here last time, too, but they didn't come out to meet with us," Hermione said. "I wonder why Tonks was here. She probably came aboard, even though the Aurors already let her go."

"Creevey got away this time," Ron growled.

"Oh, Ron, stop it," Ginny said. "No need for you and Harry to kill him."

"Yes there is," Harry said.

***

"Do you see Hagrid?" Harry asked Hermione in the Great Hall.

"No," Hermione said. "We'll ask him after Care of Magical Creatures tomorrow. Today, we can study for the N.E.W.T.s."

Ron spat out his pudding. "What?" he said.

"Study for our N.E.W.T.s," Hermione said. "I don't know what has gotten into me. It's April, almost May, and exams are in one month! We should have started months ago!"

"Hermione," Ron groaned. "I had almost forgotten about the bloody N.E.W.T.s. Do you know why they're called Nasty Exhausting Wizarding Tests?"

"That's exactly why you didn't get more O.W.L.s, Ron!" Hermione said shrilly. "Come on, you two, I can't believe I'm actually cramming! One month! Only one month!" She ran all the way to the Common Room, where some Gryffindors were already sitting in. Parvati and Lavender watched as Hermione sprinted up the centre staircase to her room, which had appeared next to Harry's, and came back down with study questions she had created that summer.

"I think it's best we start at the first year," Hermione said, handing Harry and Ron question sheets. Harry and Ron looked at each other.

"Er... okay," Ron said, taking out a quill.

"Whatever we get wrong here, we'll review in detail. That's the plan. Oh, I can't believe I only just started studying now! Most Ravenclaws have been studying since Christmas!" Hermione said.

"What is the incantation to turn a match into a needle?" Harry read to himself. "There is no incantation?" he wrote. He couldn't think of anything.

Next to him, Ron was nearly tearing out his hair in frustration. However, Hermione was coolly answering all of the questions, even describing the theory.

"Boil-curing potion..." Harry thought. He remembered their first potions lesson, where Neville had added the porcupine quills before turning the fire off, and smiled. Next to 'What is the primary ingredient of a boil-curing potion' he wrote 'porcupine quills'.

An hour later, Hermione had finished correcting the study sheets. "Ron, it's swish and flick for Wingardium Leviosa, not flick and swish."

"Well, who bloody remembers that? Most people just do the motion without thinking!" Ron argued.

"Ron, it's theory. Theory helps in accuracy and skill," Hermione said. "With theory, you have more power."

"Who cares about theory?" Ron said. "It could be unconscious theory, where you don't think about what you're doing... you just do it."

Hermione sighed. "Here's an example. Apparation. Both of you Apparate with loud cracks, right? Mark of a powerful wizard. But you don't know the theory behind Apparation, while other very powerful wizards do. And those wizards, like Dumbledore, can Apparate silently. That's even more powerful. Some wizards and witches can make their loud cracks like pops, sort of like those who are not so powerful. McGonagall can do that. But only a few can do silent Apparation."

"But that hardly makes sense," Ron said. "If you're powerful, wouldn't it mean that you should be silent?"

"No. You should be loud. It's how the magic works. But in theory, those who are truly powerful can disguise their sound, mask it, or soften it. Some say it has to do with wizarding genetics. It's like this. In each cell, there are forty-six chromosomes. But wizards and witches have a forty-seventh. Unlike the others, every forty-seventh chromosome is the same in each cell, so everything turned on is on in every cell. It's the magical chromosome, and there are genes for every power. There's one for magic, at the top. Squibs have the chromosome, but the gene is turned off. There's one for wandless magic, which is never on at birth, and one for things like Parseltongue and other animal languages. There's one special gene in the middle that can be partially turned on, and that determines our power. It's like a second magic gene. The more it's turned on, the more powerful you are. Apparation messes with that gene, and so the cracking or popping is the sound the magic makes when it goes through that gene. In theory, you can block out that gene so the magic won't go through it," Hermione said.

"I didn't get that," Ron said.

Hermione sighed. "Think of it this way. When you do a spell, a different kind of magic comes from that first magic gene at the top, and goes into your wand, which directs the spell. Most people can't do wandless magic, since they need the wand to collect the magic together and direct it. So if you do Wingardium Leviosa, that magic is released, and it goes through all the genes in the chromosome. But when you Apparate, that particular magic somehow reacts with the power gene, sort of like a magical instrument. It makes a sound, depending on how much it is turned on. Small instruments make small sounds, large ones make big sounds. Get it? Some people can direct the magic past that gene so it doesn't go through it."

"Er... all right, whatever you say, Hermione," Ron said. "Er... can we do the second year questions now?"

***

"Where's Hagrid?" Ron asked. "He's not here." The entire group of seventh years were milling about in Hagrid's front garden, bored. Malfoy was talking to a group of Slytherins, sneering. Icicle took Ancient Runes at that time.

"You don't think Malfoy did anything, do you?" Hermione said worriedly.

"No. I'll check his cabin," Harry said. He walked into Hagrid's cabin, and found it empty. There was a note on the table, dated from the first day of the Easter holidays.

"What is it?" Hermione said.

"Hagrid's doing something. So he wants us to teach this class of Care of Magical Creatures. He says he's got the things out back." Harry gulped. "Ron, you go check what's back there. I'll go... er... teach."

The class was still leaning on the fence, chatting. "Er... Hagrid's not here today," Harry said lamely.

"We can see, Potter," Malfoy said. Crabbe and Goyle were still with him, having passed the O.W.L. Nott stood behind, sneering. Pansy simpered, but Malfoy paid her no attention.

"You can see, Malfoy, but Hagrid left us in charge," Harry said. "Not you."

"Ah, but see, Potter, Hagrid the giant oaf can't control us. Who said you can?" Malfoy smirked.

"Not so brave when Icicle's around, are you?" Harry said. "When you're with your girlfriend, you can't insult anyone properly."

Malfoy turned pink. "Watch it, Potter," he said coldly. "Don't even mention Isidora right now. We're not here to talk about her."

Ron came running out from the back. "He's left us Skrewts again, Harry!" he yelled.

Harry paled. "Don't let them out, Ron."

Ron turned green. "Er... mate, I sort of already have." A horde of Blast-Ended Skrewts flew out of the back.

"Oh, not them again," Malfoy complained. He swore. Harry silently agreed.

"Impedimenta!" Hermione said, freezing one of the still-small skrewts. She levitated it back into one of the crates the horde had dragged out behind them. "Quickly! Get them all back into the crates!"

"Petrificus Totalus!" Neville bellowed as a skrewt came towards him. Harry was happy. Neville was now very good at spells when he wanted to be.

The air was soon full of students shouting curses at the skrewts, and levitating shelled grey lumps. Harry got burned by one of the skrewts, and nearly blasted it all the way to its crate in anger. Malfoy was torturing one of the skrewts with fire, because it had scorched his hair.

"Put it into the crate, Malfoy!" Hermione yelled. "And Harry, use Wingardium Leviosa! The skrewt nearly hit Parvati in the head when you blasted it! Ron, swish and flick, not flick and swish!"

Parvati screamed as a skrewt attached itself to her bottom. "Someone likes your arse!" Seamus called. Parvati slapped him, and cursed the skrewt off.

"Ouch!" Ernie McMillan said as a skrewt stung him after tripping him. "Bloody little bastard! Get over here! Stupefy!" None of the others noticed the usually pompous and proper Hufflepuff swearing, as they were all busy with their skrewts.

And no one noticed Fudge and McGonagall walking over with a few of the governors and some guests, who had come to view the students at work. Harry's grandmother was among them.

"Bloody buggering hell, you're going to pay for that!" Malfoy screamed madly at a skrewt who had singed his robes. He glared at it murderously, as if ready to torture it.

Narcissa Malfoy, who hadn't been convicted with her husband, and had also come to view the students, looked furious and said to a nervous-looking Fudge, "What are these things they're working with?" She examined the skrewts, and jumped backwards when one let out a burst of flames out of its backside. "Are these safe?" she asked accusingly. "I was almost burned just now!"

"Burned?" Cornelius Fudge said. "This is a N.E.W.T. class, right? Where's Hagrid?"

"Er..." Harry said. "He... he had to bring a student to the Hospital Wing," he lied. "Er... we're working with defending ourselves against dragons. These things are our, quote, unquote, dragons," he said, plastering a grin on his face. "Er... we're having lots of fun, but it'd be nice if you could all leave. They're a bit dangerous."

Grandmother frowned at him from the back for such a blatant lie, but said nothing. Harry assumed she was under the name of Nora Weasley. "So, er... have a good day, Mr. Fudge," Harry said nervously.

"Well, then," Fudge said pompously. "We have the Head Boy's word. Shall we move on, then?" The group walked on, back to the castle. McGonagall nodded once for approval at Harry before leaving with the rest of the group. Malfoy watched the group darkly before turning back to removing the skrewts.

The class finally was able to stuff the last skrewt in the crates at the end of the lesson. Hermione and Ron came up to Harry, both sweating and breathing heavily. "I am going to kill Hagrid!" Ron said viciously. "Bloody skrewts! Flobberworms would have been better! At least they can't burn, sting, and suck all at once! I'd rather have handled a manticore!"

Hermione gave him a look that clearly said, "No, you wouldn't."

Ron rolled his eyes. "All right, not a manticore, but if he had left hippogriffs, that would have been better. At least Malfoy could have insulted one, and then it could slash him again, like last time! Think of the possibilities..." he said dreamily. Hermione looked at Harry and rolled her eyes, scowling.

"Come on," Harry said. "We can keep an eye out for Hagrid. Let's get to the Great Hall. I'm starving." He led the way to the castle, with Ron listing all the possibilities of what hippogriffs could do to Malfoy, and Hermione looking miffed.

***

Hagrid didn't appear in time for the next lesson either. Instead, Professor Grubbly-Plank was waiting for them, bouncing on the balls of her feet like always. "What's wrong with Hagrid?" Hermione whispered worriedly as Grubbly-Plank led them to the lake.

"Welcome," Grubbly-Plank said. "Each of you is going to go with a partner to the bottom of the lake to find a merperson, and to talk to them. You are to use Bubble-Head Charms, which I will check before you go in. Make sure your wands are out. The partners are as follows: Weasley, Parkinson; Granger, Su; Potter, Malfoy..."

Why am I always with Malfoy? Harry thought. He and Malfoy scowled, and moved together. Ron seemed ill as he walked to Pansy, and Hermione started chatting with an Asian girl in Ravenclaw their age, who Harry remembered Cho telling him was named Li. "She keeps her name the Chinese way," Cho had explained.

"Well, Potter, it looks like we're stuck together again," Malfoy drawled.

"Keep your robes on," Grubbly-Plank called as Crabbe leered and looked at his partner, Hannah Abbott. Ernie glared at Crabbe.

Harry and Malfoy stood ankle-deep in the lake, along with the others. "Your bubble-head charms are in place?" Grubbly-Plank said. "Good. Go when you're ready."

"So..." Malfoy said. "Who's going first?"

Harry scowled, and delivered a swift kick to Malfoy's knees. They collapsed, and Malfoy fell face-forward into the water. He got up, sputtering. "Why you little..." Malfoy said.

"Go," Harry said. "You're wet already."

Malfoy scowled darkly, and jumped into the deeper water. Harry followed. "Why do we need our wands?" Malfoy said. Nothing except bubbles came out of his mouth, but Harry could hear him.

"Because there are Lethifolds and Dementors in here," Harry said sarcastically. "Grindylows, you idiot."

"Let's just go to that merpeople village you went to," Malfoy said in a bored voice. "I don't feel like searching."

"Fine," Harry said. "This way." He led them through the dark water, holding his wand in front of him to light the way. They came upon the village. A few mermaids were standing around the statue of the merperson, giggling about something.

"They're ugly," Malfoy said. "Nothing like that painting in the Prefects bathroom."

"Those are sea mermaids," Harry said dully. "Not lake mermaids." He approached the leader of the merpeople, who was sitting on a large, gilded throne, watching the square.

"You are from Dumbledore's school," the mermaid said, more of a statement than a question. "From Hogwarts, as a lesson?"

"Yes," Malfoy said. "All right, Potter, we talked to one. Let's go."

He turned to leave. However, the leader was looking at something near Harry's neckline. "Put that away, Harry Potter," she said quietly. "It holds great power." Harry looked down, and saw that the necklace was drifting up from underneath his shirt. Quickly, he stuffed it back in, and mouthed a thank-you to the mermaid.

He and Malfoy didn't meet any grindylows, but many of the other students had, as was evident when they returned to shore. It was extremely cold when they reached land, and Hermione quickly put a Drying Charm on Harry.

"Thanks," he said.

"Where did you two go?" Hermione said. "Li and I found this old hermit merman, and we had a very interesting discussion on spells underwater."

"We went to the leader of merpeople," Harry said. "Said hi, and goodbye. She seemed to recognise the necklace, though, when it floated out."

"Really?" Hermione said. She didn't sound too surprised. "Merpeople are Druids, Harry. They're immortal, banished from the land. The sea Merpeople are different. They were born from the sea. But lake Merpeople were originally witches and wizards who revolted against the top Druids early on. I would think the leader would recognise the necklace. It's a surprise they let you in. They usually ignore humans. I suppose the leader remembered you, though."

"Maybe we should ask her," Harry said.

"No, I don't think she would know everything," Hermione said. "She wasn't a top Druid. She would probably only know that it's a Druid amulet, and that it goes with a certain place. She wouldn't know what it does."

"I suppose not," Harry said. "Where's Ron?"

"He's right there, arguing with Pansy Parkinson," Hermione said, sighing. "I think Pansy lost the mermaid they found at first, and so they had to find another one."

***

By the beginning of May, Hermione had pushed Harry and Ron through everything from first year material to midway through fourth year material. Hagrid still hadn't returned. And Harry and Ron now had rigorous Quidditch practices to get Gryffindor ready for the Quidditch Cup match in June against Slytherin.

"Go on, Ginny, pass it!" David called to Ginny. Ginny smirked, and threw it as hard as she could at Mark, who was nearly bowled over by the force of it.

"That isn't the point, Gin!" Harry called. He landed on the ground, and sighed. "Do you want to win against Slytherin or not?"

"Hello, Harry," a voice said from behind him.

Harry turned to face Jenna Zikira. "Oh, hi. Are you looking for Reginald?" he said.

"I was. Is he here? He likes to watch Quidditch sometimes," Jenna said, craning her neck, trying to see over Harry's shoulder.

"No, I but I haven't been looking around in the stands," Harry said. "Sorry. Maybe you should ask Malfoy. He's right there," he added, pointing at the Slytherin team, who was coming for their practice session. "OI!" he called to the Slytherins. "You don't have the pitch until an hour from now!"

"Snape gave us permission, Potter!" Malfoy said. "Dire circumstances, see, Crabbe just got back from the Hospital Wing, so we need to make sure his arm works." He smirked. "So learn to share, Potter!" he added.

"Where's your cousin?" Harry called.

"Cousin? As in Amber?" Malfoy called back. Harry rolled his eyes. Only Malfoy would call his cousin by his last name. Malfoy and Dudley.

"Yeah. Where is he? I've got a first year here, looking for him. Where is he, Malfoy?" Harry said.

"Detention with McGonagall," Malfoy replied.

"Oh," Jenna said. "I-I... I was supposed to be in detention with him, Harry! Do... do you think you could come with me, so McGonagall won't be too mad?"

"What are you in detention for?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hermione Granger gave Reggie and me detention for wandering around after hours," Jenna said bitterly. "But she was wandering around with Ron Weasley." Harry fought back a laugh as he nodded.

"Come on, then," he said. They had reached the gargoyle to the office already when Harry realised he didn't know the password. McGonagall had undoubtedly changed the password again. "Er... Drooble's Best Blowing Gum," he said, trying the password from before. Nothing happened. "Flying Whizzbees?" he tried. "Sugar Quill? Flying Fancy? Skivving Snackboxes? Turkish Delight?" he tried.

The gargoyle moved on 'Turkish Delight'. "Turkish Delight?" Harry muttered to himself. "That's a Muggle sweet."

There were voices in the office. Harry knocked, and the door was opened by Reginald Amber. "Jenna!" he whispered. "You're here!"

"Sorry," Jenna whispered. "I forgot we had detention today."

"Mr. Amber, who is at the door?" McGonagall asked.

"Harry Potter and Jenna Zikira, Professor," Reginald said, letting them in. Harry was surprised to see Grandmother in the chair near the fire, but supposed it was because she was visiting a friend. However, Mr. Weasley was standing near the desk, and Mrs. Weasley was in a chair. Snape seemed to be ladling a potion from a cauldron near one of the bookshelves.

"Hello, dear," Grandmother said softly as Snape moved to Mrs. Weasley. "Severus may have discovered the cure for Munzer's, and the Weasleys were willing to try." Harry nodded, and stood behind his grandmother's chair. Reginald handed Jenna a broom, and they began sweeping a powder off the floor.

Mrs. Weasley swallowed the potion. Nothing happened. Her eyes remained blank, and Snape walked away, shaking his head. Harry walked over to Mrs. Weasley. "Mrs. Weasley?" he said tentatively.

Mrs. Weasley turned to look at him. "James, dear, I'm only your former babysitter. You can call me Molly like you always do." Harry looked at Grandmother, who nodded.

So Mrs. Weasley had been his father's babysitter when he was young. Harry looked sadly at Mrs. Weasley. Mr. Weasley gave Harry a weak smile as he helped Mrs. Weasley to the fireplace, and used the Floo Powder to leave.

Harry walked back to his grandmother. "You just came from Quidditch practice?" Grandmother said, looking at Harry's Quidditch robes. Harry nodded, and suddenly remembered. He stuck his glasses on his face.

"No, darling, you don't have to be James for me," Grandmother whispered. "You're Harry. I've gotten over it." Harry gulped and nodded. He removed the glasses. "You look more like Lily and myself without those glasses," Grandmother mused. "And you can see a bit of Edward there now, too."

Reginald and Jenna walked out the door after saying goodbye to McGonagall. Jenna flashed a smile in Harry's direction, in thanks, and left happily with Reginald. "Anne, are you all right?" McGonagall said. Grandmother nodded, looking into the fire. Harry looked at her. There had been a picture in his photo album, of a young, beautiful woman staring into a fire, a young man with brown hair and happy eyes behind her. Until now, Harry had not known they were his grandparents. He could see that Grandmother had barely changed throughout the years. She could have passed for a forty-year-old.

McGonagall stepped up to Grandmother, near the fire, and Harry was suddenly reminded of a picture in the Head Boy book. The small, black-and-white picture on Tom Riddle's page, which Harry hadn't paid much attention to, had a pretty girl with dark hair next to the familiar Tom. Harry realised it had been McGonagall in the picture. He wondered why Tom had cared enough to put a picture of two people in it. He surely had other pictures.

"Mr. Potter, you may go," McGonagall said.

Harry nodded, and left. He started down the corridor, until he was stopped by none other than Myrtle. "What are you doing out of your bathroom?" Harry asked.

Myrtle smiled. "Oh, I travel about sometimes. I don't stay in the pipes all the time, like people like to think." Harry found this highly suspicious. Myrtle never smiled.

"What do you want, Myrtle?" he asked impatiently. "I have to go back to my team."

"Quidditch?" Myrtle asked. "That's nice. You were just with my best friend Annie, right?"

"Yes," Harry said, wondering what this could lead up to. "She's my grandmother. I have a right to see her, Myrtle."

Myrtle giggled. "Patience, Harry, patience," she whispered. "One of the first thing a Hufflepuff learns is patience." She grew serious. "I wanted to warn you," she said in a cold voice.

"About what?" Harry said, narrowing his eyes.

Myrtle leaned closer to Harry's ear, and he shivered from the cold. She whispered, her icy breath entering Harry's ear, "You will hurt Annie more than Edward or James did when it is your turn to leave her alone for the last time. And your death will be her last straw. You will cause her unimaginable pain... more than the pain I felt when I died, more than the Cruciatus Curse Tom warned me about... when this Lord Voldemort defeats you. And Harry, you in your heart know he will."

Harry backed away from her, his green eyes flashing. "I don't need you to tell me Voldemort will kill me," he said coldly. "However you heard the prophecy, I don't care. You don't have any business telling me what to do, Myrtle."

Myrtle giggled. "I see I have succeeded. The seed has been planted."

"Why did you tell me that?" Harry demanded.

"It's simple," Myrtle said. "I don't care how, I want my best friend back." She laughed, and zoomed up one of the pipes.

***

Harry sat, staring into the fireplace in the Gryffindor Common Room. Ron and Hermione were outside in the castle somewhere, supposedly snogging, and Harry, naturally, had no desire to join them. He had no idea where Ginny was, but supposed she was with her newest boyfriend. She had started going out with a different boy every week after the February Hogsmeade visit, where they had almost kissed. Ron hadn't been too happy about the many boys.

The flames continued to consume the logs in the fireplace. Harry stared at them, not hearing the explosions from the third years' game of Exploding Snap, or the triumphant calls of the boy who was winning the chess game against his friend. He didn't hear Dean swear vehemently as his study guide was soaked by Seamus' bottle of butterbeer, which had toppled over.

All he heard was the voice of Myrtle, repeating over and over again, "You will cause her unimaginable pain..." It started out as just Grandmother, but when Harry thought about it, it started extending to Ron and Hermione, and Ginny, and the ghost of Sirius, if he ever heard. Harry was glad for once that he had refused to see Sirius; it was most likely that he would never know if Harry was defeated. It would spare him.

"Harry!" Ginny said. "Harry, I've been calling you for the last minute!"

Harry turned. "Oh, hi, Gin. Where were you?"

Ginny looked at him, then sat down in the chair across from him. "With Norman. We broke up."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Surprise, surprise," he said sarcastically. "Well, I bet Ron's going to be happy. Besides, the bloke's name was Norman."

Ginny giggled. "Stop it, Harry," she said. "Norman's a perfectly good name. Besides, it's not the name. I'd go out with a boy named Elizabeth if he was nice."

Harry looked at her, and grinned. "How would you introduce him?" He put on a falsetto. "Ron, I broke up with Norman. I'm now going out with Elizabeth. He'd think you're... you know..."

"Lesbian?" Ginny said. "I'm not, obviously. But Harry, just say it. You don't have to be like an eleven year old trying to say 'sex'."

"I know," Harry said. He looked at Ginny, who was now watching him.

"You know, Harry, I wouldn't have to go out with boys named Norman or Elizabeth if I could have who I wanted," Ginny said softly, looking at Harry.

"We went over this, Ginny. Number one, Ron. That would ruin our friendship. Number two, I'm extremely busy. You notice I haven't gone out with anyone since the fake one with Icicle. Number three, it's the end of the year, and I'm off to Auror school beginning of July."

Ginny's face brightened. "You got in?" she said.

Harry nodded. "Yeah. I got the letter a few days ago. As long as I get my N.E.W.T.s, I'm in. Ron didn't tell you?"

"No, he's been too busy snogging Hermione," Ginny said, laughing. Harry grinned and shook his head.

"I told him to tell you," he said. "Hermione must be sucking his brains out every time they snog or something..."

Ginny laughed. "If he had any brains to begin with," she said. She became serious. "Look, Harry, forget our earlier conversation. Friends?"

"Friends," Harry agreed.

Ginny grinned evilly. "So if we're friends, you won't feel awkward at all if... if I do this?" she said, getting up and sitting on Harry's lap.

Harry's jaw dropped. "Off my lap!" he said. Ginny laughed as he pushed her off playfully. "What if Ron saw us?"

"Who cares? We'd just say we're friends," Ginny said, howling with laughter. Dean and Seamus, who had seen the whole thing, shook their heads and returned to their notes, smiling.

Ron came back, smiling with a stupid look on his face. He slumped down on the armchair across from Harry, staring stupidly and happily into the fire.

"I suppose you got what you wanted?" Harry said, grinning.

"Oh, yeah," Ron said dreamily. "Very red bra... I mean," he said, turning red. "Very nice." Harry and Ginny turned to look at each other and snickered. Ginny winked, and climbed on top of Harry's lap.

The happy look on Ron's face dissipated as he stared wide-eyed at them. "What- Ginny, wh- Harry?" he spluttered.

"What?" Ginny said. "Friends do this all the time." She and Harry collapsed into fits of laughter.

"What? Wh- so f- what?" Ron spluttered unintelligibly.

"Private joke of theirs, mate," Seamus said. "Don't even try to try to understand it. I saw it meself, and I didn't understand it."

Ginny got off Harry, and gave him another look. She nodded faintly at Ron. Harry smirked, got up, and sat down on Ron, making spectators roar with laughter. "Mmm... comfortable," Harry said, propping his legs on the table in front and closing his eyes. The Gryffindors laughed harder.

"Geroff!" Ron yelled, his voice slightly muffled. He sniffed. "Are you wearing cologne, Harry? Get off! I don't want your smell to mix with my smell!"

"You smell, Ron?" Ginny said, laughing.

"You know what I mean!" Ron said.

"I'm taking a picture, Harry!" Mark warned, stepping up on a table. Harry opened one eye.

"Don't you dare, Evans," he said, grinning. "Or I'll stick you in front of Dudley's gang."

"Oooh! Let me join!" Ginny said in mock excitement. Harry coughed as Ginny launched herself on top of Harry and Ron.

"Oh, that's not right!" Dean said. Nothing of Ron could be seen except for his legs and his waving arms.

"Mmmfff! Mmmfff!" he shouted.

Ginny was lying on top of Harry. Harry grinned as one intelligible phrase was heard from Ron. "No snog!" Ron yelled.

"Ginny! Get off of Harry! Harry get off of... who's that under there?" Hermione said, coming through the portrait hole.

"Ron," Harry said. He suddenly caught a whiff of Ginny's hair. The strawberry scent was faint, but it was there. He sneezed.

Ginny's jaw dropped. "Sorry!" she said. "I forgot!" Harry nodded, and sneezed again.

"Ouch!" Ron said. "That... ouch!" he said as Harry sneezed again.

"Get off, Ginny," Harry said, before sneezing. Ginny climbed off, followed by Harry. Ron was left, his face flaming, wearing a frown.

"That was not funny!" he said as the Gryffindors turned back to their work. Harry sneezed.

"Now that you're all separate," Hermione said, frowning, "I wanted to say that Hagrid's back."