Nineteen Years Later

Monday morning came around sooner than anyone would have liked. Al, who had been unable to fall asleep before midnight due to thoughts of Neville and the office, was reluctant to wake up. The persistent rays from the sun badgered his eyelids until he eventually stirred only to find the rest of the boys already up and gone. Hit by a rush of adrenaline, Al dove into his trunk and changed at a record pace. It wasn't until he was groping wildly for his wand did he hear a laugh from behind the drawn curtains of Dalton's bed. Furrowing his brow, he marched over to the bed and yanked the curtains back to see Dalton doubled over in laughter.

"I have never seen anyone move that fast," he admitted, slowly regaining composure.

"Yeah, well," Al began, crossing his arms. "I didn't want to be late," he finished huffily.

"You won't be. We might not have as much time to eat breakfast but you'll be okay," Dalton assured him, springing out of the bed and drawing his own wand from his pocket.

"I told you, don't put your wand there," Al reprimanded as they made their way down to the common room.

"Al, have you ever known anyone who had gotten their buttocks blown off?" Dalton raised his eyebrows curiously.

"No, but my dad told me not to," Al remained firm in his belief. It seemed that this was enough for Dalton as he didn't return his wand to his back pocket. "So we have potions today, huh?" Al moped, walking rapidly down the stairs.

"Yeah," Dalton scrunched his face up. "I don't know about Professor Milhelm. I've heard a lot about him but..."

"Well, let's give him a chance. You know, my dad hated his potions professor and he ended up saving my dad's life," Al confided.

Dalton, who had heard that myth before, widened his eyes, having received confirmation of this rumor from a reliable source. "Well, maybe Professor Milhelm'll be a good guy," Dalton finally said grudgingly.

"That's the spirit," Al smiled as they entered the Great Hall and sat down next to Rose and James.

"You know, next time you go, you should take me. I have as much right to be down there as you lot," Rose was arguing grumpily when they sat down. Al assumed James had just told her about their visit to the Greenhouses.

"Yeah but you got to bond with Nat and Abby," James offered, grinning charmingly.

"James Potter, we're related. That stupid grin won't work on me," Rose huffed. It looked as though she were considering what James had said. "Yeah, they were pretty nice," she finally muttered.

"Wait, you were talking to Nat and Abby?" Al inquired, biting into a muffin.

"Yeah. They were looking for James while you two were out," she shot, "and they couldn't find Daemian either so we just talked and went back to the Common Room. I found out some interesting things," she nodded, giving James a knowing look.

"What sort of interesting things?" James demanded, looking suddenly intense.

"Oh, things you don't know about. But you don't worry your charming little head about it," Rose said sarcastically. Then she let out a giggle.

James looked deeply disconcerted. "What sort of things, Rose?" James pressed, sounding more and more vulnerable. Al shook his head. It was hilarious how much of a troublemaker people at Hogwarts thought his brother to be. At home, James was often the one pranked, thanks to the geniuses that were Lily and Hugo. He really did love his brother, but he couldn't help but laugh at the situation.

"Oi, Potter! Are you going to come sit with us or not?" Daemian called from the end of the table.

"Here, we'll talk about it later," Rose promised and James ran off, running his hand through his hair and acting as though he hadn't almost broken down into tears.

Dalton, who had been silent the entire time, looked utterly perplexed.

Al considered the situation for a moment before deciding to tell Dalton what had happened. If he had learned anything from his parents it was that secrets should not be kept from friends. "A couple of nights ago, James was looking on the Marauder's Map..." Dalton gasped. "And he saw Professor Longbottom in McGonagall's office all night. So we went to go ask him why but he wouldn't answer us. Said if it was anything important, our dad would have told us and then we left," James explained. Rose, who had already heard the story, was picking apart a banana thoughtfully.

"I can't think of why he wouldn't have told you. I'm sure he would have if it were important," Rose concluded, placing the banana peel on the table and standing up. "We'll talk about it on the way to Potions. If we don't get going, we're going to be late."

"Don't want to give Professor Milhelm a reason to hate us," Dalton added and all three hustled out of the Hall.

"Oh, Professor Milhelm isn't going to hate you," Rose countered. "You two are both so paranoid. No one's going to hate anyone and Neville isn't hiding some grand secret."

Both Al and Dalton exchanged dubious looks. When they had finally arrived at the dungeons, Al, Dalton and Rose sat at one table, waiting for Professor Milhelm to appear.

"I'm actually excited about starting Potions.... I mean, I know it's going to be hard but I think it's going to be fun as well as useful..." Rose said as she pulled out a quill and parchment, a preemptive move.

"You know, you couldn't sound more like Aunt Hermione if you tried," Al observed in an amused tone.

A sudden silence washed over the classroom and Al instantly shut his mouth. Professor Milhelm made his way quietly to the front of the class and without any introduction, pointed his wand at the board where words began to write themselves. Rose began scribbling them down like mad, one of the very few in the class to do so. Al shifted in his seat awkwardly, unsure of what to do with himself.

Without any sort of warning, Milhelm began calling out names. The first student, Alhorn, Susette, seemed quite startled by the sound of her name, which was now echoing off the cavernous walls, that instead of saying here, she dropped her quill. "I suppose that's as good a sign as any that you are present," Milhelm uttered disgustedly, making a mark on his parchment. Al listened attentively, so to not miss his name and make a bad first impression on Milhelm. The professor rattled on a list of forgettable names before coming to one that sounded familiar... "Malfoy, Scorpius."

"Here, Professor." Al craned his neck, looking around for the boy who had spoken. He wasn't hard to find. Two tables to his left sat Scorpius Malfoy, blonde hair gleaming in the dim light and his features wearing an unmistakably haughty smirk. Al was so intent on looking at the boy that he had realized his fear of forgetting to answer to his name. "I don't care if your father saved the entire Wizarding World, this will be the last time I call your name Potter," Milhelm whispered.

"Present," Al muttered, entirely mortified. Dalton gave him a sympathetic smile. Al couldn't bring himself to smile back.

"Don't worry, Al, it was just a one time thing, it doesn't mean he hates you," Rose whispered so softly that Al had to strain his hearing to pick it up. Al nodded but didn't believe her. Well, if he had already gotten in trouble, there was no use crying over spilled butterbeer. Instead, he made a mental note to speak with Rose and James about the Malfoy boy, see if he was as much trouble as his dad had been.

***********

Victoire Weasley was using her free period to write a letter to Teddy. She knew it was perhaps not a scholastically savvy move, but she figured she could do her Charms essay later that night. Dear Teddy, she began, frowning at the way it sounded. She hadn't written to Teddy all summer and now it felt uncomfortable to do so. After all, Teddy had spent the majority of his life over the summer at Harry's house and Victoire had been able to apparate there whenever she wished. Now she was going to have to write to him without the luxury of seeing him in person.

How have you been? I hope you're having a great time training to be an Auror. I know that's what you always wanted to do... The quill paused. Victoire was examining the letter uneasily. She was proud of Teddy for becoming an Auror, he had worked extremely hard to become one, but she still worried. Being an Auror was so dangerous, even now when there was no war to be fought. It made her a tad bit uneasy, not knowing if he was safe or in danger. But it was his choice and she wasn't going to stand in his way. After all, she was pretty sure she loved him.... Love was a strong word, she knew it. But she also knew that it was the only word to encompass what she felt. They just fit together, sort of like all her uncles and aunts and even her grandparents. There was a comfort she got just by thinking about him, one that she hadn't experienced before. Being part-Veela, Victoire had never had problems getting boyfriends. Up until her sixth year, she went through about five a year and yet she had grown bored with every single one of them. That wasn't the case with Teddy... she could never see herself running out of things to say to him... well, most of the time anyway. Sometimes, he just left her at a loss for words. There were things about him that she just didn't... couldn't... understand. Those were the things she knew he confided in Harry. There had been so much pain he had gone through growing up without either of his parents, who had died in the same war her Uncle Fred had died in. Victoire nodded her pale blonde head, pushing the thoughts from her mind. She didn't need to bring that up in her letter to Teddy.

Things at Hogwarts have been like they always are. Raegan Jordon made head girl.... you remember her, Lee Jordan's daughter? She's fun to be around though and she's doing a good job. Head boy went to some bloke from Ravenclaw... but I don't know his name. You know how terrible I am with names. The Quidditch team is going to suffer this year without you as their amazing keeper but we'll get by. We have tryouts for my co-Chasers sometime next week. James is already making trouble, he was caught by Seamus while he was wandering around with the Map and the Cloak. He seems to think that there's some sort of conspiracy going on between McGonagall and Neville but I'm not too sure. He harassed Neville about it today... I wish I could have been there just because I can't imagine how funny it must have been. You know how charming James fancies himself. I think he might have a point, ridiculous child he is, and I may go speak to Neville myself. Anyway, Al and Rose are doing quite well here, Rose is going to be just like Aunt Hermione and Al.... well, Al reminds me a lot of Uncle Harry.

You know what I found out? Do you remember Darielle Cadogan? She keeps a picture of Uncle Harry under her pillow... terrifying, non? But all in all, I think it'll be a quiet year... she hesitated for a moment. I miss you. It's going to be strange not having you around this year but we'll keep in touch through letters. Are you planning on celebrating Christmas with us again this year? I hope so but if not, I might stop by to visit. Victoire thought about anything else she might have to say. She had recounted her stories about James, Al, Darielle and Quidditch. She had told him how much she would miss him and that she hoped to see him soon. She couldn't think of much else to say. Feeling slightly guilty about ending the letter so quickly, she signed it and sealed it, making her way to the Owlery to send it on its way.

She made her way out of the Common Room and ran into a familiar face. "Al, what's wrong?" she asked, seeing a very disheartened Albus Potter making his way to the Common Room.

"He had a bad Potions lesson," Rose explained carefully.

Victoire wrinkled her delicate nose. "Milhelm," she said with great dislike.

"Who you writing to?" Rose asked conversationally, pointing to the letter Victoire had forgotten to address.

"Teddy," Victoire answered after a moment, turning a pale pink. Rose giggled but didn't press the subject.

"Well, me, Al and Dalton are going to get our books together for our next class. See you at dinner!" she cried cheerfully and the trio scampered off behind the portrait hole.

Victoire pulled a quill out of her bag and holding the envelope up to one of the stone walls, wrote the name in flowery letters- Teddy Lupin. She felt her heart skip a beat. 'You only wrote his name. It's not like you kissed him or anything,' she mentally reprimanded herself. However, thoughts of him seeing her off at King's Cross flooded her mind and she wandered to the Owlery with a dazed expression on her face.

***********************

"I hate Mondays," Ron complained, filing away a sheet of paper. "Even when they're almost over."

Harry laughed. "So do I but it's all worth it," he said, stretching himself out in the chair. After long years of devotion to the new, revolutionized Ministry, Harry had risen to the head of the Auror department. Ron had the adjacent office and Ginny was down the Hall. Hermione had opted to go into the Department of Magical Law Enforcements and the only time she swung by was either before or after lunch, when the memos hadn't yet reached her office.

"I agree with you on that one, mate. Aurors," he said impressively, as though that hadn't been their job title for almost twenty years.

Just as Harry had opened his mouth to speak, a paper airplane memo zoomed into his office, hitting a dartboard Harry had hung up for that sole purpose. He examined how close it had come to hitting the center before pulling it out, scanning it quickly. "Come with me," he announced firmly. Ron knew better than to ask questions right away.

They were on the lift before Harry bothered to explain anything. "Hermione wants to talk with us about Minister of Magic candidates."

"I don't see why we have to have elections. Shacklebolt's doing a fine job if you ask me," Ron retorted grumpily. "You think it's a good idea to have this discussion in the Ministry of Magic?" Ron asked curiously as they stepped out of the lift.

"Hermione's smart. If she wants to tell us here, I'm sure she has good reason," Harry said loyally though he was having the same doubts. Hermione's office wasn't hard to find. The books were practically falling into the hallway.

"You summoned us?" Ron asked dramatically, walking into the office. Hermione smiled warmly at the two of them.

"Yes. Look," she asked, flashing an old Daily Prophet at them.

"We know Malfoy's running for Minister. Isn't there other things you need to be worried about as Head and all?" Harry asked politely.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I just researched it and all candidates for Minister are supposed to be announced at the same time. Do you think that this article about Malfoy just happened to show up in the paper without him having a hand in it?"

"Why is it such a big...."

"We don't even know who the other candidates are yet, Ron! It's a one man race. Furthermore, it's an illegality that we can't overlook."

"So you're kicking him out of the race?" Ron asked hopefully.

"We can't," Hermione explained patiently.

"So basically, Malfoy's trying to get a leg-up on the competition but he's always done anything to win... why'd you have to tell us here?" Harry questioned.

"Because of this." This seemed to be the sole reason for Hermione having called them in there. It was a length piece of parchment with print from beginning to end. "It's bewitched so that it can't leave the Ministry, my office to be exact. It's all of the things Malfoy's sworn to reform. Apparently, it was supposed to be printed alongside this article but the Prophet cut it. If he wins, everything he'll do is a regression of the Ministry. He wants to implement Half-Breed Tagging so that we know where they are and what they're doing the whole time. He's saying Fenrir attacked him and that another werewolf who shall remain unnamed participated in the battle for Hogwarts alongside Greyback!" Hermione was doing her best not to screech.

"No one's going to buy that. Lupin went down in History books," Ron said defensively.

"Yes I know but Malfoy's still lying, trying to scare people into supporting him So basically, he's the only one running now, the only one the public knows about, he's got a correspondent for the Prophet and if he wins because of all this publicity he's getting..." All three of them cringed.

"But the only part that's illegal is the fact he made it known he was in the race before he was supposed to."

"Yes but we can't catch him for it because he claimed he had no prior knowledge," Hermione huffed.

"Do you think that all this extra publicity will help him any?" Ron asked gently.

Hermione was on the edge of losing her mind, or so it seemed, as she pulled out a bag. "All sympathy letters for Malfoy, praising him for his reform."

"How'd you get a hold of 'em?" Ron asked, gawking at the bag.

"I used logic to get them in my possession."

"Well, do you think he's reformed?" Harry asked tentatively, feeling the anger swirl up inside him again.

"I'm not sure. But if that wasn't enough, look...." Hermione trailed off, drawing one letter out. "Recol Sundsrick. Sounds like a suspicious character and he's expressed an interest in running. Says he has a job in the Ministry and is high up in command."

"But there are no Recol Sundsricks working in the Ministry, are there?"

Hermione shook her head. She lowered her voice. "The main reason we're not pursuing Malfoy is because... well.... because he's about to be put under Auror protection. Sundsricks says that Malfoy doesn't have what it takes to implement everything he says he will. He's not officially in the race, seeing as how we don't know his true identity but.... he says if we don't chase Malfoy for in a round a bout way, illegally, announcing his intention to run, we'd be hypocrites and he'd see to it that... that anyone who had a hand in it would vanish along with Malfoy himself."

"Why can't the Wizarding World be at peace for two seconds?" Ron cried, shaking his head.

Harry rubbed his eyes wearily. "Well, I can promise you one thing. I'm almost a hundred percent sure that, while this may take some work, he can't be as bad as Voldemort."