Chapter 12

With Christmas nearing, London had gone through its usual transformation. The ancient capital was drizzled all over with snow. People were in a more festive mood, looking towards a relaxing holidays; with streets being decorated with lights and ornaments as the population impatiently waited to enjoy the celebrations. However, 12 Grimmauld Place in London did not share in the festivities this time of year, nor were the occupants in a joyous mood as they stayed preoccupied with more important matters.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this plan?" a worried Remus spoke to his best friend.

"We both know there's no better alternative. We've got the address from Fred and George, and its best done while the muggle school year is still in session. Otherwise, we'll have to wait till January," Sirius replied adamantly from across the dining table at 12 Grimmauld Place.

"I understand that time is of the essence, but what if you get spotted. Even the muggle government was notified of your escape and people may know what you look like," Remus replied, casting his doubts again.

"It's a risk we'll have to take, and plus we'll be altering our appearances." Speaking again before Remus replied, he continued, "Moony we're leaving in an hour and that's it. Don't worry about me."

Sighing before he spoke, "You're right. Harry's needs come before my worries. We've got to do this."

Sirius nodded in agreement. Harry's needs came before anything right now.

Their plan was a simple but effective one. Two days after they sent their letter to the twins, they had received a reply back telling them the address and a promise from the twins not to let Harry know they were contacted by Remus and Sirius. Really, the plan had mostly been Remus' who knew far more about the muggle world than Sirius did.

They decided to do it on a Friday morning because as Remus had told Sirius, muggle schools were still going through their term so that would mean their son wouldn't be around. They also knew that there was a high chance Vernon was at work too which just left one person to deal with. Sirius suggested stunning her while they examined the house and then obliviating her memory, but it was too risky a chance in case someone saw the spell being cast through the window. There came in Remus' bright muggle idea that would help them get in without too much hassle - but they would have to be quick about it.

"Right, so here's the mirror," Sirius said, handing him the old marauder use of communication.

"Well let me change your appearance then," Remus said, sticking the mirror in his pocket. Pointing his wand at Sirius, he shortened the man's hair, and changed the colour from a dark black to a lighter brown. He rotated his wand to make Sirius have a slightly chubbier face rather than the sallow malnourished look he still had. Most importantly he changed the colour of his eyes to a dark brown instead of the dead giveaway of his stormy grey colour.

Sirius returned the favour to Remus, and soon neither marauder looked anything like their usual selves. Nodding to each other briefly, Sirius cast a disillusionment charm on himself, wishing he had James' old invisibility cloak with them which would have hid him far better, and apparated to his respective locations. Remus didn't need to disillusion himself just yet, and apparated to a different location. They knew there was no need to disillusion themselves since they changed their appearance, but Remus still made sure they did it to cover all bases.

Apparating with a crack, Sirius landed at Wisteria walk a street away, and made the short walk to the front of 4 Privet Drive. Making sure there was no one around, he pulled out his mirror and spoke to it, "Remus."

His friend's face appeared in the mirror. "Remus, I can see dear Petunia inside from the front window. From the looks of it she's cleaning the living room with some kind of muggle contraption. It looks absolutely bizarre," Sirius said looking at the machine in amazement.

Remus chuckled in reply, "Think that's a vacuum cleaner Padfoot. I'm going to make the call now."

"You've got this," Sirius said, before putting his mirror away. A few miles away, Remus repeated the action.

Remus' side of the plan was simple, and all it involved was using muggle technology and he thanked the fact that being a half blood helped in this situation. Upon receiving the reply of Fred and George, their only worry was how they would handle Petunia being there. All Sirius plans seemed to be slightly violent and more confrontational, but Remus believed his idea worked best.

The day after receiving the letter, Remus had gone and bought himself a phonebook. After numerous explanations of the technology to Sirius, Remus had convinced him his plan would be better than attacking the woman. He took out the page he had ripped from the phonebook and walked into a telephone booth. Dialling the number, he begged that it was correct and waited for a few nerve-racking seconds, before he heard the receiver being picked up.

"Hello?" the voice of Petunia Dursley said, and Remus had to keep himself from shouting in excitement that it was her.

"Hello is this Petunia Dursley?" Remus replied, changing his accent slightly.

"Yes, what may I do for you?" Petunia replied, sounding wary.

"I'm Mr Roberts and I am calling from your son, Dudley's school," Remus replied smoothly, thankful he remembered the name of her son after all those years when Lily had first spoken about him. "I'm sorry to have to contact you like this, but Dudley has had an accident in school and is currently with the heal- nurse," Remus added, cursing himself silently for making such a mistake.

However, thankfully Petunia was too distracted by the thought of her son being hurt to have noticed. "What happened to my Dudley!" Petunia replied, her voice on the edge of a screech. Remus was thankful to his years of pranking in school that allowed him not to laugh at the tone of her voice.

"The nurse tells me he had a nasty fall, and it would be appreciated if you would come by and pick him up."

"I'll be there right away!" Petunia almost shouted as the receiver was banged down. Remus hung up the phone and couldn't help but laugh at the thought of a deranged Petunia turning up to her school to ask for her injured son and wanting to speak to a Mr Roberts, only for her to find out none of it was true.

Picking up his communication mirror he called Sirius back.

"Merlin, what did you say to the poor woman?" Sirius whispered in laughter.

"I'm guessing it worked?"

"It did indeed, she frantically ran up the stairs and she's just come back down… and she's leaving," Sirius replied as he watched Petunia lock her door and go to her car. Talk about an obsessive mother. His mother would have probably been glad if Hogwarts had called saying he was injured.

"She's just left Moony. Quickly disillusion yourself and get over here now!"

A few minutes later, and the disillusioned form of Remus appeared next to Sirius. "We've got to get this done quickly," Remus urged. "We have no idea how far her son's school is from here and we don't have time to waste."

Sirius nodded in reply and the two walked towards the house. Remus quickly looked around, once again making sure they were alone before pulling out his wand and taking a diagnosis of the wards.

"Well it doesn't seem Dumbledore put anything except the blood protection for any that want to cause Harry harm, but then again this is Dumbledore and there could be more subtle wards I can't detect," Remus sighed. "You sure you still want to go through with this?"

"Positive," Sirius replied, quickly sending out a short-lasting muggle repelling charm to ensure there would be no disruptions while they were in the house.

The two walked to the front door, and Sirius kept a lookout as Remus whispered a quick alohomora, and the two were soon in.

"Jeez, Petunia really does keep a neat house. Kreacher could learn a thing or two," Sirius spoke aloud as they closed the door behind them. Remus chuckled in response.

"There are two floors. I'll go upstairs, you stay down here. We've got to move fast," Remus spoke, getting a nod of confirmation from Sirius in reply.

Walking upstairs, Remus tried to get his bearings. He walked to the room nearest to the stairs and opened it. This must have been their son's room he gauged looking at all the muggle technology inside, and the posters strewn across the walls. Having worked in the muggle world for quite a long time due to his werewolf affliction, he understood that the Dursley's really spent money on their son. Everything in the room looked top of the line, and it was obvious Dudley didn't really treat his materials well, with many expensive items cast on the floor with disregard. Opening the closet, he confirmed another suspicion. The clothes here were high quality – it was obvious just from this what the Dursley's thought of Harry giving him the worst possible castoffs for him to wear. Closing it in disgust, he left quickly.

The next room was Vernon's and Petunia's, and he closed it quickly, finding no need to go into it. Finally, he reached the last door, knowing this would be Harry's.

"What in Merlin's name is this," he said out loud, his voice filled with rage as he saw a cat flap installed on the door. Do the Dursley's feed him food through this? The thought of Harry being treated like an animal, brought a rage he had not felt in a long time, and his eyes tinted with a feral glint he only got when the full moon was around. He opened the door, and walked in. The contrast between Dudley and Harry's room couldn't have been greater. There was light layer of dust across the room - obviously Petunia saw no need in cleaning this room while Harry was away. The room was tiny compared to the others, and the furniture was beyond repair. The desk had only three legs, with Harry using muggle books to keep it propped up. The bed had a flimsy mattress that looked older than him, while the duvet was so thin there was no way it kept him warm during the winter.

Looking under the bed he spotted a loose wooden plank. Propping it open he found nothing. However, smelling the remnant smell, having a much stronger sense of smell than the average human, told him that Harry hid sweets here, probably so he could eat more food when the Dursley's didn't give him enough. Noticing something on the window he walked towards it. There had obviously been fittings on it, but they seemed to be ripped out pretty crudely. Who would put fittings in such a fashion? Remus thought to himself. The only answer he could think of was that the Dursley's had blockaded it in some way – probably because they knew Harry could receive mail by owl.

His anger washed away into guilt as he thought of the tribunals the Dursley's must have put Harry through. His reverie was knocking out by loud footsteps stomping up the stairs. "Moony!" Sirius called, his voice in disarray.

Rushing out the room, he replied, "What is it?"

"Just come downstairs, now," he seethed.

Remus followed his friend, knowing only something very bad could have put his friend in this state. But from what he had saw upstairs, he didn't think he could be surprised anymore – how wrong he was.

"What is it Padfoot?" Remus asked as he got downstairs.

"I have no words," was the only reply he got, as Sirius pointed to the cupboard under the stairs. His blood turned cold at the thought of what Sirius meant, as he bent down and propped himself into the cupboard.

The cupboard couldn't have been more than two metres wide. A mixture of sawdust and spiderwebs covered the majority of the tiny area. There was a tiny mattress stuffed inside filled with holes and a small shelf at the head of the mattress filled with small broken figurines.

"What is this?" Remus turned around to face Sirius. Had Sirius not been disillusioned, Remus would have seen the tears that had formed in his eyes.

"Look at the inscription under the shelf," Sirius spoke quietly, a maelstrom of emotions in his voice.

Looking in the room once again, his eyes focused on the shelf, where there was writing – "Harry's room" and another one next to it, "Happy Birthday Harry," with a tally inscribed underneath it amounting to ten.

"Are you saying –" Remus spoke, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Yes… until he was ten years old, Harry lived here," Sirius said, continuing Remus' thought.

"I'll kill them," Remus snarled, as vicious thoughts of murdering the Dursley's came to his head.

"I must say… I find myself utterly surprised," a new voice came from behind undoing the disillusionment of the two wizards, causing Remus and Sirius to turn in a flurry and point their wands at the sound.

"Dumbledore!" Sirius scoffed as he looked upon the aged headmaster. "What the hell are you doing here?" Sirius seethed; his voice filled with pure venom.

"Shouldn't the question be why are you here?" Dumbledore replied warily as he heard the tone of his voice.

"I should curse you where you stand," Sirius replied gruffly, all traces of the funny marauder gone, replaced by a man who had spent twelve years wrongfully imprisoned.

"Stop Padfoot," Remus said intervening; however, his voice was laced with the same anger projected towards the headmaster. "Just look inside Albus," he finished, looking at the headmaster, shock adorning his aged face as he tried to understand the reason for Sirius's anger.

Dumbledore nodded in response, knowing it was wise to not reply anything for the time being. Looking inside the cupboard, his face replicated the emotions of both Sirius and Remus when they had first looked inside. The guilt he felt strangled him, his breathing shallow at the thought of what had happened in this house.

Pulling himself out the cupboard, he faced the two individuals: feeling the rage permeating of them. "It would be better if we talked elsewhere. It would not be wise for Petunia to walk in on us."

"That's probably for the best," Remus snipped. "You know where to find us," he said apparating away with Sirius. Dumbledore sighed, preparing himself for a confrontation he wholeheartedly deserved and apparated to 12 Grimmauld Place.

Dumbledore walked into the dusty dining room, to find Remus and Sirius already seated, a bottle of firewhisky between them. From the looks of it, Sirius had already gulped down a glass. They had changed their appearance back to normal, and Sirius looked at him with pure malice as he stepped in. Taking the seat at the head of table, he stayed silent, not knowing what to say first.

Thankfully, for Dumbledore, Sirius was in no mood to play games and started speaking, "First off, how did you know we were at the Dursleys?"

Dumbledore conjured a glass for himself and poured in a healthy amount. Taking a sip, he replied, "When I first made the decision to place Harry at his aunt and uncle's, I had promised them both that I would make sure that no magical folk disturbed them. This included me, but I knew that it was a vital condition for them to agree in letting Harry stay them, but in hindsight I should have realised that condition could have told me enough about their treatment towards him. At the same time, I refused to leave him completely away from any supervision, and convinced Arabella Figg to move in close by where she could have some contact with the boy and keep a watch if anyone came to search for him."

"The squib from the order?" Remus asked confusingly, remembering the old cat lover.

Dumbledore nodded, taking another drink from his glass. "As you know her husband was a wizard but died in the first war and she was destitute," he said sadly. "So, I promised to pay her rent for a few years until she settled in and in return I chose where she stayed, and she agreed. Today when the two of you apparated to Wisteria Walk she heard the tell-tale noise of apparition and flooed me immediately. I was not worried however, because the wards wouldn't allow anyone of ill intent and Harry is at school. However, when my more obscure ward altered me someone entered the house, I rushed there, and we all know the rest…"

"That's all you fucking did," Sirius spat, his temper finally reaching a boiling point. "Left a squib to look after Harry – well a damn good job she did," he replied sardonically. "How could you!" he said banging his hand on the table. "You knew… you damn well knew what Lily's sister was like… and you left him there as a child to fend for himself, not understanding why his cousin was loved but he was treated like filth," he finished loudly, silence following his words.

"I do not disagree with you," Dumbledore said finally. It was obviously not what Remus or Sirius expected as a response, thinking he would state what he had done was best. "I know what I did was wrong, and I will carry this grievance to my grave, but please see it in your hearts to let me explain why I did it."

Both stayed silent for long, both seemingly trying to assess the sincerity of the headmaster. "Fine," Remus replied softly, his voice still filled with rage.

"The Halloween night of 81' had been a terrible ordeal for me. Not had Harry just become orphaned, but two of my favourite students had been murdered. Of course, Britain celebrated, but when I visited the remnants of the house, I knew he had not truly been killed. To be honest it had been obvious, there was no body found, however the ministry were tired of fighting the war and called it a celebration. This callous behaviour of theirs was also the reason you never got your trial, and no one was the any wiser," Dumbledore looked at Sirius poignantly.

"I of course still bear that burden onto myself, thinking at the time the Ministry would at least uphold justice and give you the trial, especially as you were a pureblood, but I was not Chief Warlock at the time, but I digress. Now, with you gone, Harry's godfather was gone, and the best chance of his home had gone too. Of course, I did think of Remus being James' best friend, but the truth was you were also unsuitable," Dumbledore said, waving off Remus' protest.

"Let me explain… while I know you would have also been an amazing guardian for Harry, you would have raised him in the magical world, and once truth got out it was a werewolf who was the guardian of the saviour of Britain, both your lives would be in danger, and you know this is true as much as we all hate the prejudice against you."

Remus nodded in agreement, knowing as angry as he was with the headmaster, he couldn't refute his words knowing it was the truth. Taking a side glance at Sirius, he saw his friend looking intently at the headmaster, his eyes still showing his anger.

"Therefore, what do I do in this situation? Sirius was gone, Remus was gone, and while I had considered other magical families, the situation was too dire. The Longbottom's had been murdered, and the next few weeks many of Voldemort's top death eaters got off scot free blaming the Imperius. At that point, I had believed myself right in putting Harry with his aunt and uncle because none of Voldemort's followers knew enough about the muggle world to venture into it for revenge. Then there was also because of the protection of his mother being the most important factor, and there was only one living person who shared Lily's blood."

"Petunia," Sirius scoffed.

"Exactly… and now I had put him there, knowing that while it was a shame he was away from the magical world, he was also safe from it. However, I had never thought a baby, an innocent child could be treated in such a manner. I believed while Petunia disliked magic, she wouldn't treat an innocent child with such malice. Alas, perhaps it was also the influence of Vernon on her, but I will not know. But I have lived a long long life and trust me when I say I have regrets. But, learning what I have today, this is my biggest one," Dumbledore finished, gulping down the remaining of his drink.

The silence remained for a long time, as both marauders processed the words. "I understand your reasoning…" Sirius started, "…but I will not forgive it. You could have checked up on him at least once or sent someone a bit more intelligent than Figg. You could have seen how thin he was and the state of his clothes when he first came into Hogwarts. Lily's protection might have saved him from death eaters and whatnot, but it didn't save him from the inside. You have lost my respect today Dumbledore."

"And that's not all Albus," Remus added. "What you and Sirius saw was his life until he was ten, but it doesn't get any better," Remus said explaining what he had saw upstairs.

"A cat flap and a blockade," Sirius said weakly, tears once again forming in his eyes, something that was mirrored in Dumbledore's blue orbs as they listened to Remus.

"You were a man I've always held in high regard Albus – you gave me an education when most would not and I will never forget that, but I can't forgive you either."

"I don't expect either of you to forgive me when even I can't forgive myself," Dumbledore replied, wiping the tears from his eyes. "But I vow to earn it back, and not just yours but Harry's as well, and it is time I use my power to help."

"What do you mean?" Remus replied.

"It is obvious to me, why you two were there. You need Sirius' freedom," knowing he was correct as both nodded to him. "Well I shall help, and with no offence to either of you, I am the best one for getting you free," he answered.

"I can't argue with that," Sirius replied scathingly, his ire at the headmaster still there. "But how do we do it? Find Wormtail?"

"No that would be highly improbable. From what Harry's dream told me; if you want to find Peter, then you'd have to also find Voldemort and you will not find him. I have an idea of how we can do it without Peter, but I need some time to formulate a plan that will use all my political acumen to succeed."

"I guess you're right," Remus replied, a nod of agreement with Sirius. "We won't find the rat, but you'll need to keep us updated."

"You will be notified as soon as I have a more concrete idea," Dumbledore vowed, standing up. "I shall make my leave now. I am truly sorry, and I hope we can work towards a better relationship," he said finally, leaving.

Both marauders were silent for a moment, before Remus spoke up, "So what do you think?"

"The fact is, he's right," Sirius replied unwillingly. "At this moment in time, Dumbledore is the only one with enough power and leverage who could get me my freedom."

"I guess you're right."

"It doesn't mean I forgive him though, and who know if there's more he's hiding from us. I do believe deep down he is a good man, but he is too set in his ways, and only time can tell if I could ever trust him again."

Daphne looked in the mirror as she adjusted the strap of her dress, making sure she wasn't being too revealing with her outfit even though it was a pretty modest dress. She checked her makeup one more time, even though she had put very little, never having to douse herself in the stuff like her roommate Pansy.

"Ready?" Tracey's voice came from behind her. Daphne nodded, turning around to face her best friend.

"Someone's pulled out all the stops," Daphne said, giving Tracey an approving smile at her outfit.

"Well how often do we get to dress up at Hogwarts. You don't look too bad yourself," Tracey replied with an over-dramatic saucy wink.

Daphne just smiled in return, an action she hadn't done much in recent weeks. It had all started with Harry asking her out to the ball. She had wanted to say yes, she was so close, but then thoughts of her sister and Tracey came crashing into that reality. She wouldn't make the lives of her sister and friends difficult because she went out with a Gryffindor.

It would have been the same for anyone in her house. Merlin knows what would happen to Tracey if she was seen with a Gryffindor. She was already treated badly because she was a half-blood, something like this would completely ruin her life. Thankfully, Tracey was going with some fourth year Ravenclaw Kevin Entwhistle, who seemed like a nice bloke. She had just wished she could say the same for herself.

It had been hard for her after that night in the room of requirement. She felt terrible about it, but she knew he didn't deserve the hardship either. But it was tough not seeing him at all. The few passing comments they made in potions was strained and kept strictly to work. She missed him, she knew that much, but he was just a friend. But she knew now that the training she had done with him had only been so fun, because of him. She also missed educating him about the wizarding world, even though they only had one lesson. It was fun for her to be the teacher this time around, when usually it was him helping her with spells.

She had known in the end that she would still need to get a date for the ball, but no matter how many times a boy asked her, her mind would automatically compare them to Harry and they always seemed to fall short. She hated herself for showing so much weakness for just one boy, but she couldn't help herself. It had been hard for her. Hard when Tracey had informed her that Harry had asked out Susan Bones which had spread through the Hogwarts gossip mill in a few hours. Of course, she knew Susan. The Bones were a pureblood family after all, and at any high ranking Wizengamot party she had been to, the Bones family were usually there, so she did have a somewhat friendly relationship with the Hufflepuff. While it had stung, she knew Harry had to get a date being a champion, and it was all the incentive she needed to just say yes to a boy.

She had ended up agreeing to go with a Durmstrang boy - Ilya. You could call him handsome she guessed, and he had an alright smile… there was just something missing. She knew nothing would come of tonight anyway, and one of the reasons she agreed was that he was from Durmstrang and would leave at the end of the year anyway. Pushing these thoughts away, she looked into the mirror one last time before leaving the dormitory with Tracey.

"Is Kevin coming to the dungeons to pick you up?" Daphne asked Tracey as they reached the common room.

"No, didn't want to scare the poor boy by coming down here. Plus, the dungeon lighting is very unflattering for my looks," she joked, prompting a laugh from Daphne.

"What about Ilya?" Tracey inquired.

"Told him to just meet by outside the Great Hall. He probably doesn't know the layout of the castle very well anyway."

They walked to the Great Hall. Kevin was already waiting outside looking slightly nervous as he saw Tracey.

"Wow… you look very nice… I mean great… I mean," he stammered. Daphne tried to stifle a giggle, getting a glare from Tracey.

"Thanks Kevin. You look quite nice and great too," she joked, making Kevin laugh.

"Shall we?" he replied, holding out his hand.

"I'll see you later Daphne," Tracey smiled, while Daphne waved a goodbye.

"You look very beautiful," a deeply accented voice came from behind her.

Daphne turned around to see her date for her evening.

"I got you this," he continued, holding out a rose.

"It's beautiful," Daphne replied with a smile and accepted the rose. She shrunk it and kept it away so she wouldn't have to keep holding.

"I think ve need to go inside before the champions come," Ilya said, holding out his arm for her.

She intwined her hand in his, looking around the corridor subtly to see if she could see Harry before she went inside the hall. She shook her head internally. I have a date, and Harry is with his.

"You ready Harry?" Neville asked Harry.

"I guess so," was Harry's reply as he foolishly tried to tame his unruly hair.

"I still can't believe you're going with Hannah Abbott," Seamus retorted as he fixed his own robes. "I understand how Harry got one of the hottest girls in the year – I mean he's a damn champion… there've been seventh years who have wanted to go with him. But how have you Neville Longbottom managed to snag Hannah Abbott?"

"You sound slightly jealous there Seamus," Dean added in causing Harry to laugh.

"Honest answer to your question Seamus is I don't know. Just sort of happened," Neville answered.

"Shouldn't you be focused on your own date Seamus? Heard you were going with Lavender," Harry asked, finally giving up on his hair.

"I am indeed," the Irish boy huffed proudly. "Dean here is going with Parvati… so proud of him," he said wiping a mock tear of his face.

"What about Ron?" Neville asked, noticing their last roommate wasn't with them.

Harry's head perked up, interested to see who Ron's date was even though they were no longer friends. "Padma," actually Seamus replied. "Those two were too nervous to do it alone, so they went together."

Harry and Neville shared a small smile knowing they had done the same. "Well we better go Harry. Need to pick them up outside their common room."

"Where is their common room actually?" Harry asked as the two walked out of the common room, realising he had never thought where the Hufflepuffs resided.

"Well Hannah told me to go downstairs from the Great Hall and take a right and they'll meet us there,"

"That's right next to the kitchen isn't it?"

"I don't know actually. You know where the kitchen is?" Neville asked surprised.

Harry just nodded and told him how Fred and George had showed him where they were.

"The painting is actually right there," Harry said as they got to the required location. "You just tickle the pear and in you go. The house elves are super nice, and they're always eager to get you anything."

Neville nodded emphatically excited by the prospect. "Here they come," he said.

Harry had to admit Susan was an incredibly attractive witch. She was wearing a black strapless dress, the colour matching well with her dark red hair which was tied up in an elegant knot. He definitely understood what Seamus had meant when making crude comments about the girls in their year – Susan definitely had a larger cleavage than most girls in his year – probably the only reason Seamus didn't stop talking about her. Once again it hit him how much their school robes hid.

Hannah went straight to Neville giving him a small hug, before intwining her arms with his and moved forward. Susan was more restrained giving him a bright smile as they walked behind Neville and Hannah, who were already talking animatedly with each other.

Harry had met her a couple times after he asked her out in the library because she had known how to dance, and he wasn't really attracted to the idea of Professor McGonagall as his dance partner. He was happy Susan was patient with the amount of times he had stepped on her during their practices in abandoned classrooms, but in the end, he persevered until Susan was happy he wouldn't make a fool of himself.

"You okay there?" Susan asked.

"Just hoping that I don't somehow trip and fall onto the floor during the first dance while everyone is watching," he admitted prompting Susan to giggle.

"I'm sure you'll be fine. I made sure you were up to standard," she said, playfully nudging him. They waved goodbye to Hannah and Neville as they walked into the Great Hall. Harry had been notified few days prior that the champions had to meet in the classroom next to the hall beforehand.

They walked in, smiling politely at all the champions who had already arrived. Professor McGonagall quickly ushered them in. "Mr Potter, I believe I should have lived by my promise of turning you into a pocket watch during your first transfiguration lesson."

"Sorry for being late," Harry said sheepishly, although a light smile was on his face.

"Well we do not have time to waste. Now we'll be doing this from youngest champion to oldest. So, Mr Potter can you and Ms Bones stand near the door. Ms Delacour and Mr Davies, you two go behind them. Mr Diggory and Ms Chang third. Finally, Mr Krum you and Ms Granger at the back."

Harry's neck snapped as he turned to look at the back. He couldn't believe he hadn't noticed Hermione, but at the same time it wasn't entirely his fault – it was the first time he had even seen her with straight hair. They made eye contact for a second, Hermione raising her eyebrow challengingly. Harry just smiled at her knowing that would infuriate her and turned back around.

"Now follow me," the transfiguration professor said opening the door and leading the four champions and their dates towards the Great Hall. The doors had been closed -probably so they could create a grand entrance.

Professor McGonagall stood to the side before waving her wand, the doors opening in front of them as Harry let out a breath of nervousness before walking in. The Great Hall had been expanded greatly. In the centre of the room there was a large empty rectangular space, obviously where the dancing would occur, with numerous circular tables on either side. Where the professors usually sat had been replaced by a stage where a band had started playing, as the students around them gave a pleasant applause.

Harry put one hand on Susan's waist as he had learned, and the other held her hand before they proceeded. He didn't find it too bad to be honest, happy that he hadn't stepped on her feet and had remembered the moves well. He looked around at the audience who were watching them spotting a few familiar faces. He stifled a smile as he saw Ron looking murderous as he saw Hermione dance with Krum, a massive smile on her face. He spotted the twins who gave him a wink, and overzealously pointing proudly towards their dates. He continued looking around, until his breath hitched in his throat. He saw Daphne in the crowd. She radiated beauty even from afar. She hadn't tied up her hair like most of the girls in the hall, preferring to leave it down, which she had curled slightly. Her dress was a dark red that clung to her figure in the most perfect of ways, her blue eyes sparkling, make everything seem dimmer compared to them.

His reverie was knocked out by Dumbledore, who with the rest of the students joined onto the dance floor. "Well I'm proud of you," Susan said amusedly as they continued dancing into the next song. "You didn't make a fool of yourself, although you did stumble for a second," she continued with a small smirk on her face that made Harry think she knew more than she was letting on.

"Yeah sorry about that," Harry replied. "I'm just glad I didn't embarrass you."

"Don't think you did, although I don't think I have been stared at this much before," she chuckled.

"You kind of get used to it after a while," Harry answered with a smirk. The two danced for a couple more songs, Harry wanting to be a good date knowing how much Susan liked to dance. However, at the same time he couldn't stop himself from looking to where Daphne was with her date ever few minutes. He didn't recognise the boy, so he was probably from another school, Durmstrang he was guessing. He couldn't help comparing the boy to himself, slightly jealous that he got to dance with her. Each time he had to shake himself off from openly staring at her, and focus on his own date, a curious smile on her face as she danced around with him.

Soon dinner was announced, and they headed from the dance floor to the table they were made to sit at with the other champions and heads of school. He found himself squeezed in between Susan and Dumbledore and was pretty sure he heard a loud grumble from Ron a couple tables away who complained there was no food on the table. Dumbledore promptly picked up his menu and chose a meal aloud before it instantaneously appeared on his plate, leading to an array of voices around the hall as each student called for their food.

"So, what's your favourite subject?" Harry asked starting up a conversation, still feeling guilty that while they danced, he kept trying to peek at Daphne.

"Probably arithmancy," Susan answered, taking a bite out of her lambchop. "It's definitely one of the more interesting subjects I do."

"What do you guys actually do in it?" Harry asked genuinely curious.

"It's essentially how spells are created in a way. Wizards and witches don't just magically say a few words and then spells are created. We have to do complex numerical calculations to figure out the foundations of magic in a broad explanation."

"That actually sounds amazing," Harry replied with interest.

"It truly is a devastatingly interesting subject," the headmaster added, who must have heard Susan's explanation. "In fact, if I remember correctly Ms Bones, your aunt was quite brilliant at the subject."

"She truly is," Susan replied, a fond smile on her face as she thought of her aunt. Looking to the headmaster she continued. "What about you sir? What was your favourite subject?" Even Harry was quite interested in the answer, and from the corner of his eye saw a jealous look on Hermione's face as they conversed with the headmaster.

"Ahh, as a boy I truly loved transfiguration. So much in fact, when I was older, I took up the teaching post here for the subject."

"Transfiguration? I always guessed…" Susan started.

"That I had taught defence against the dark arts?" At Susan's nod he continued. Harry had actually already known he was the transfiguration professor from the memory he witnessed in Tom Riddle's diary. "Yes, a common misconception – it probably came from me defeating Grindelwald all those years ago, but it always transfiguration where my true passion lied, and I was quite regretful when I had to leave it."

Dinner continued for another hour, Harry spending most of his time speaking with Susan. He had enjoyed the date with her more than he thought he would, but to him Susan was nothing more than a friend. He did think she was attractive, and she was interesting but somehow, he just could't think of her as more than a friend. When dinner finished, many adjourned to the dance floor once again, but for now Harry was content to sit and talk with his date.

Finally, Dumbledore left with the other heads, making his parting words as he looked at both the teenagers. "It was an honour to talk to both of you tonight. I hope you enjoy the rest of the ball." Harry almost believed that the headmaster was just staring at him, with an apologetic gaze, and a depth of sadness burrowed in his blue orbs, before taking his leave.

"Well we're finally alone without any prying ears," Susan said with a smirk.

"I guess," Harry replied wary of the look she was giving him.

"So, who's the girl?" she said suddenly, propping her elbows on the table.

"The girl…" Harry stammered. "What girl?"

"I mean it was pretty obvious that your gaze has been somewhere else tonight," she continued, the smirk still plastered on her face. "Don't you even think about lying to me."

"I'm so sorry, you must feel terribl-" however, his apology got cut off with a small laugh from Susan.

"Harry, I knew when you asked me, I wasn't your first choice to go to the ball with," she said.

"So why did you agree to come with me?" Harry asked confused.

Sighing, the redheaded witch gave him a sad smile, "because you weren't my first choice either," she replied, pointing towards a dancing couple. He spotted the pompous Hufflepuff Ernie MacMillan dancing with his date, who he realised was another Hufflepuff girl in his year.

"I'm sorry about that," Harry said sincerely.

"It's fine. Not everything works out the way you want it to, and I guess you knew that too since you're not with the girl you keep looking at. So, who is it?"

"Daphne Greengrass," Harry replied, giving her the same amount of trust, she had showed him.

"I didn't know you knew her. You really are an enigma, aren't you? Never pegged you as a guy who would want to go out with a Slytherin," she spoke.

"If you told me that a few months ago I would have readily agreed with you, but then I realised I literally had the same view as Malfoy, thinking all of them were bad. Probably majorly influenced by Ron as well who had told me in the first few minutes, I met him that all Slytherins were evil."

"So, what happened between you two? Did someone ask her before you could?"

Harry sighed and told her the whole story, expressing his mixed emotions, and how he had been feeling since he asked her, hoping as a girl she would have a better perspective to his problems.

When he finished, he was surprised to see Susan laugh. "Oh, you have got it bad," she said in-between giggles. At his confused face, she broke out laughing even more. "You obviously like her you idiot."

"I don't know about that-" Harry started.

"Let's just get all the facts out here," Susan said, cutting him off. "You asked her out to the Yule Ball, you stopped talking to her when it happened, and you've probably stared at her more than you have at me this entire date. Face it, you like the girl."

"Well even if I do, nothing can come of it, and I'm not going to be selfish and risk making the lives of her friends and family difficult."

"I still think that's a dumb reason," the redheaded witch replied. She continued speaking before Harry protested. "I get what you're saying, that the older Slytherins may make her life more difficult, but I'd say that would be more worrisome if you were any other Gryffindor. But you're not, and you have to face the fact that you're Harry Potter. What person would try and mess with Daphne after that performance in the first task. Merlin, you decapitated a dragon, and who exactly wants to put themselves against a person like that."

"I get your point, but I'm still not sure, and the dragon was a one off…" he started, once again being cut off by a large sigh by Susan.

"You really can't take credit for accomplishments can you. Go talk to the girl," she said.

"What now?" Harry asked surprised.

"Yeah, why not?"

"Because we're on a date, and I'd feel horrible if I left you," Harry answered.

"It may be a date, but we're friends, and I'm glad to help you as a friend. Now don't you worry about me, I'm going to go find my friends and dance with them," she said giving him a pat on his arm as she stood up.

"I'm really thankful to have you as a friend too, but I also can't just disturb Daphne from her date," Harry replied.

Susan smirked once again, "I guess you haven't been looking out at the dance floor for a while," she said pointing to the middle of the great hall. "Her date has been dancing with some other girl for the last ten minutes."

Harry followed her hand, and saw the Durmstrang boy, but in his arms wasn't Daphne. "Where'd she go?"

"I can't help you with everything," Susan said with a laugh. "Time for you to do it yourself," she said with a wave before she went and joined her friends on the dance floor.

Harry looked around for a few more moments, still not spotting Daphne anywhere in the Great Hall. However, he spotted someone who could help him. Making his way to the dance floor he spotted Tracey dancing with a Ravenclaw in their year.

"Tracey," he said quickly not wanting to draw attention to himself. "Where's-"

"She took a walk to the gardens about twenty minutes ago," she said with a smile, as she continued dancing with her date.

"How did you know I was asking about-"

"Intuition," she said with a smirk, before turning to focus on her partner.

Harry quickly thanked her before walking out the Great Hall and outside in the courtyard. Even this had been elegantly decorated for the ball and had taken Professor Sprout the better part of three days to do it with magic. There were rose bushes all around him, small romantic lights strung on lines above, and benches littered around the area. Obviously, the professors had thought this may be a place where dates could take a walk or talk outside the Great Hall, but it was clear all they were up to were complete teenage activities. Harry walked the path spotting at least a dozen people in comprising situations, who obviously didn't seem to care other people may spot them.

Finally, he saw her sitting on a bench alone, twirling a rose between her fingers as she looked at it.

"So, what are you doing out here alone?" Harry asked, taking a seat on the bench next to her.

She almost dropped the rose in surprise at hearing a voice so close next to her, before gathering her wits. She turned to see a boy she had not talked properly to in weeks. "I guess I could ask the same for you? She replied, her face impassive.

Harry seemed to stop for a second, a small smile on his face before he answered. "I came looking for you," he said.

If she had expected anything, that was not it. The sincerity in his voice and eyes, told her he was telling him the truth, and without warning a small smile broke out on her face too. "What about your date?"

"Susan? I think we both know she wasn't the person I really wanted to go with. She's a good friend and she agrees with that assessment too, but there's nothing more than that," he said. With a nervous smile he continued, "But, I came to find you now because she made me realise how much I've missed you these past few weeks."

That was the breaking point, the stoicism in her face morphed into one of a genuine smile. The tingling in her stomach that she felt at odd times with him came into full force as she gazed into the depths of his emerald pools. "You missed me?" she stammered; fully aware they had both inched closer to each other.

"A lot," Harry replied genuinely. "I don't think I could have gone through this year without your help, and just your support when almost everyone else couldn't believe me."

Once again, their bodies moved closer to each other on the bench, their eyes never moving from each other as their heads tilted in… "Move away Igor!" the voice of Severus Snape exclaimed as he came from the other side of the bushes with the Durmstrang headmaster, startling the two teens who moved onto the opposite side of the bench.

Once again Harry saw that Snape pulled his sleeve down as quickly as possible, while Karkaroff stalked off. He noticed Harry, and his face immediately turned into a sneer. "Potter what exactly are you doing here," spotting Daphne on the bench as well he spoke again, "are you harassing Ms Greengrass here Potter? Just like your father you…"

"Sir, we were just talking," Daphne interrupted. "Ha- Potter just came to say a quick hi, seeing that we are potion partners and all that," she said quickly.

Snape glared at Harry for a moment longer, before giving Daphne a curt nod and walking away.

Harry remained quiet as the potions professor walked away. Looking back at Daphne he realised what they were going to do, before being interrupted. As if she read his mind, she spoke up.

"What we were about to do… that would have been a mistake," Daphne stammered a moment later, breaking her heart as she saw the crushed look in his eyes. Averting his gaze, she stood up, and walked away as fast as she could, leaving a devastated Harry behind.

The next day hundreds of bleary-eyed students walked into the Great Hall for breakfast. It was the last day of term and the Hogwarts Express was primed and waiting at the Hogsmeade station to whisk students back to their parents and home. However, many at the moment were cursing said train for making them wake up so early right after the Yule Ball. Others were rushing all their packing into the last minute, most notable ones being the Weasley's of course.

Daphne had already packed the day before, mostly because she knew Tracey was even worse than her when it came to packing and she'd have to end up helping her as well.

"You're an idiot," Tracey blurted out once again as she folded up the last remaining clothes in her wardrobe.

"Yes, I heard you the first time, and I heard it twenty times after that as well," Daphne sighed as she scrounged around the dorm looking for any stray belongings.

"There you are… about to kiss a boy you most definitely like, and you end up running away like a coward," Tracey said.

"You know I can't lead him on like that. There is no way we could possibly have any future with a positive outcome," Daphne reiterated once again, annoyance clear in her voice.

"I know your reasoning, and while I'm flattered you're so worried about me, I can take care of myself-"

"Could we please just drop it," Daphne said, her tone final.

Tracey huffed, but didn't say anything more, and the two continued the packing in silence. They decided to go and grab a quick breakfast with the train leaving in an hour, their luggage levitating next to them as they walked. As they neared the entrance, to the Great Hall, they were halted by a voice.

"Daphne wait!" a voice came from behind her. She turned to see Susan Bones jogging away from her friend Hannah to catch up with them.

"Hi Susan," Daphne replied, sighing internally as she knew what this conversation was going to be about.

"I think I'll leave you two while I get breakfast," Tracey said, not even bothering to conceal her large smirk as she looked towards the interaction.

"So how did it go?" Susan asked, a small excitement in her voice. "I didn't see you or Harry after he went to see you in the gardens, so I guess that's a good sign-"

"Nothing happened Susan," Daphne replied.

"You don't like him back?" Susan asked, her tone immediately becoming sombre.

"I do… I mean no… I don't know. Look it doesn't matter what I feel, but even though I don't have to explain myself to you, I can tell you that him and me just couldn't work," Daphne sighed, repeating her argument once again to another person.

"Merlin, and I thought Harry was dumb," Susan said unabashedly. "Let me explain to you what I had to explain to him," Susan continued, before proceeding to tell her about her talk with Harry the last night.

"… seriously you two are toddlers when it comes to this," Susan spoke finally, hopeful that her point had gotten across to Daphne.

"I've got to go," Daphne said. "Tell Tracey to take my stuff with her to the train," she quickly told Susan before rushing up the stairs.

Finally, Susan sighed.

Dummy after dummy was torn apart in the room of requirement as Harry shot spell after spell with reckless abandonment. If someone had told him months ago that he would be able to send spells with such dazzling speeds he would have never believed them. However, the last three months he had pushed himself almost everyday and the results could be seen in front of him. He knew he had a long way to go of course, he had barely scratched the surface, and he was sure he still wouldn't be able to take on fully educated death eaters, but he was definitely making clear progress.

He wasn't egotistical, but he knew that even most seventh years at this point would struggle to win against him in a fight. His spell knowledge at the start of term had been pathetic to be blunt, but he had a much larger arsenal now, that was mixed in with complex charms and transfiguration and even some darker spells.

He wasn't training today though. He had hoped wasting all his energy on blasting the room apart would make him forget about his problems, but he still felt hollow inside. She was so close… she wanted to kiss me; I know she did. He sat down on the floor, a small bead of sweat falling down from his air. He quickly looked at the time, realising it was still early morning. He hadn't been able to sleep at all last night, so had gone out of bed before the sun had even risen and went to burn off steam in the room. The sound of the door materialising, and opening in front of him, made him stand up as he looked towards the occupant.

"Daphne?" he said stunned. "What are you doing here, don't you have the train to catch now?"

She however didn't seem to listen to him. She kept walking towards him, determination in her eyes with other emotions he couldn't completely decipher.

"I missed you too Harry," was all she said, putting her arms around his neck as she got close, and pressed her lips to his.

Well that's a happy ending for now. Still many more trials and tribunals for them to go through in the future.

Once again thanks for all the support – this is probably my longest chapter written now, and we're nearing 80k words. Please continue to follow, favourite and most importantly review.

Hope you enjoyed the latest one.