A/N: New multi-chap time (yaaaaay!) This will be my only disclaimer for this story: I don't own Harry Potter; I only own the plot and anything unfamiliar. This story is just for fun and for non-profit.

I know there were quite a few requests for a sequel to Two Weeks, which this story is not. Sorry, it's just that this idea was buzzing around in my head before I even started writing T.W; at the time it was just a matter of picking one and doing the other later. HOWEVER; that doesn't mean a sequel won't ever happen... AND like some of you requested, this one is another romantic dramedy like Two Weeks was.

Moving on... This story is a 7th year AU. Basically Voldemort was destroyed in the Dept. of Mysteries, which means Draco never became a Death Eater and tried to murder Dumbledore and almost murdered Katie Bell etc. The Ron/Lavender thing happened as it did in the books, as did everything leading up to the 5th book.

Hello to those who know me, but for those who don't - welcome! I just want to let you know that like in Two Weeks, I always try and work around any clichés in an original way, and I like to have an original plot so any clichés won't seem as bad (I hope this idea is original anyway xD)!

Sorry, I know long A/N's suck but the others won't be this long.

And let us begin...

1

:. The Letter .:

Hermione sat on the warm grass on the orchard's boundaries with a book in her hands. Crookshanks was rolling around at her side on his back batting at flies and grumbling to himself.

She scratched her cat's ears affectionately, but was pulled from her reverie when a triumphant shout erupted from the orchard in front of her, where the Weasleys (and Harry) were playing Quidditch. By the manic way Ron was waving at her she guessed that he had just saved a goal; one of Ginny's judging by her sulky expression.

Hermione plastered a smile on her face, even though she didn't much care for Quidditch, and waved back. It was just the same as every other summer she had spent at The Burrow, except for one detail: she and Ron were something of a couple. That in itself was quite a big change… and yet everything was still the same. Nothing was different, at all, and Hermione was yet to decide if this was a good thing or not.

A half hour later the match ended with Harry catching the Snitch - which was really a charmed table tennis ball from Mr Weasley's Muggle collection since the family didn't own a set of proper Quidditch balls – and the six players swooped down to earth and dismounted their brooms. Charlie and the twins proceeded to remove the spells from all of the 'balls', the most challenging of which appeared to be the 'Bludgers', (really a pair of gnomes that had been roaming the gardens.)

Hermione caught Fred's eye as he shoved the rather dis-orientated creatures to the side and shot him a disapproving glance.

"Aw come on, Hermione," Fred pouted. "They make perfect Bludgers; they're grumpy and ugly and it gives you real satisfaction when you thwack 'em with a bat," he grinned.

"That's barbaric. They still have feelings, you know?" she huffed.

"Aw bloody hell, don't tell me you've got her started off on gnome rights as well as house-elf ones!" Ron sighed as he approached Hermione, running a hand through his hair, which was damp with sweat.

"You know Ron, that's not such a bad idea…" Hermione teased as she pretended to consider it.

"Crap, why did I say anything?" Ron laughed nervously.

Hermione put down her book and stood up. "I'm joking!" she said.

"Thank Merlin for that!" Ron sighed before pulling Hermione into a hug and pressing his lips against hers in a chaste kiss, which Hermione stiffly returned. Yeah, everything is still the same, all right, she sighed sadly, which Ron apparently mistook as a sigh of contentment.

Hermione couldn't help but feel relieved when they parted. It wasn't that it was a bad kiss, hell Ron was actually a nice kisser, but there was something missing. Yes, it gave Hermione butterflies in her stomach and yes, it made her heart thump a little louder in her chest but she didn't get that intense rush that Ginny had so often described in regards to kissing Harry.

She told herself that she was just being silly, and that her expectations must have been too high after harbouring a crush for Ron for so long. Harry, meanwhile, liked to think that she was simply having a hard time adjusting to the new dynamics of her relationship with him, and making that age-old transition from friends to something more.

Still, as she looked up at Ron, and saw the affection and happiness reflected in his blue eyes her gut instinct kicked in, and she knew deep down that there was a reason why everything felt the same to her.

"Look Ron…" she began as a quick glance around confirmed that everyone else was now out of earshot and heading around the front of the house to put their brooms away. She had attempted to tell him this many a time, and every time she did so she had made the mistake of looking into those eyes. How could she tell him that she wanted to end something that had barely started when he was so oblivious to her reservations? She didn't want to hurt him.

"Yeah?" he responded. Hermione opened her mouth to take the plunge, having decided that the longer she went along with this, the more hurt he was going to be in the long run. But then he shot her that dopey lop-sided smile of his and she just couldn't bring herself to do it. Not yet.

She was going to take Harry's advice and just wait it out a little longer, but the truth was that in her heart or hearts, Hermione knew that friends were all she and Ron could ever be.

But then she would remember their sixth year at Hogwarts and how seeing Lavender Brown with Ron, touching him, kissing him, affected her.

There must be something there… something worth trying for…

"Nothing, it doesn't matter," Hermione sighed.

Just then Harry came running up to them.

"Guys," he panted. "Hogwa… Hogwarts letters… for us," he thrust an envelope into Hermione and Ron's hands. "Arrived… just now."

"For a Seeker you sure get out of breath easily," Hermione joked as she broke the wax seal on her letter.

"Running is kind of different from flying, Mione," Ron said. "I mean, take Andrea Alvey who was on the Ravenclaw team last year: she was a brilliant player but her broom constantly looked as if it was going to snap -."

"Come now, Ron, she wasn't that fat!" Hermione replied absently as her eyes scanned the contents of her letter. "Oh!" she gasped as she reached the end.

"How bloody fast do you read?" Harry blinked, having only just broken into his own envelope.

"Just hurry up and read your letters!" she squealed. "I'm pretty sure it would be along the same lines as mine! I mean what else could it be if they're writing to us halfway through the holidays?"

"What are you on about?" Ron asked, still yet to remove the parchment from the envelope.

As she waited for her friends to catch up to the news she had just received, Hermione decided to read her letter again, just to make sure it was real if anything else.

'Dear Ms Granger,

I am pleased to inform you that you have been nominated to become Head Girl of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the school year 1997 – 1998.

Due to recent developments in the Wizarding World, the headmaster is keen to test out a new 'selection system' for the roles of Head Boy and Head Girl, in the hopes that it would be the beginnings of a new Hogwarts, whereby inter-house unity will set the foundation for a happier and more harmonious atmosphere amongst the students.

This will be the first year the system will be put to use; therefore it is unknown exactly how long this would take. I realise that it isn't ideal to carry out such an event during the summer holidays, but the very purpose of the system requires a firm outcome by the time term begins.

Please report to Hogwarts on August 1st, where further details about the new system will be given to you. The apparition shields will be taken down between noon and two pm for those of you with a license, and Portkeys will be arranged for those who don't.

It is likely that all nominees will be required to stay at the school until the start of term, but you will all be permitted to return home as frequently as the schedule will allow.

Please send a return owl explaining if you require a Portkey, or if you are unable to participate due to a family holiday or commitment. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

Professor M. McGonagall.'

"'Inter-house unity'?" Ron scoffed. "I'd hate to say it but I think Dumbedore's lost his marbles if he thinks some 'new system' is going to make us play all nicey-nice with the Slytherins." He paused, "Wait. Does that mean we're the guinea pigs for this?"

"Looks like it," Harry confirmed.

"Personally I think the idea is genius," Hermione said. "Voldemort was destroyed in the Department of Mysteries in our fifth year and the same old divisions between houses and blood status' are still there. It's like we're all still letting him win even though he's gone!"

"Hate to burst your bubble, Mione, but those divides were there long before Voldemort," Ron said.

"I know but he made it so much worse, don't you think?" Hermione replied, suddenly feeling incredibly passionate about the notion of their headmaster. "Besides why aren't you focusing on what's really important here? We're all up for Head Boy and Girl!"

Ron's dubious expression suddenly lightened. "Blimey – Head Boy! Wait 'til mum hears about this!"

Harry, meanwhile, didn't look so pleased at the news.

"Aren't you excited, Harry?" Hermione frowned.

He blinked behind his glasses. "'Course I am. I'm flattered, but I was just kind of hoping for a quiet year, y'know? The whole 'downfall of Voldemort' thing has only just started to settle down so I think being made Head Boy is just going to draw focus back to me again, and I don't want that."

"Does that mean you aren't going to come with us?" Hermione asked, chewing her lip. Of course she would miss having him there, even if it was only for a month and they could visit him whenever they wanted, but being there with Ron without him made her nervous. Who else could she rely on for a second opinion if her doubts continued through the summer?

She would never admit it, but this was a rare occasion where Harry knew more than she did about something. He had gone through the friendship-to-relationship stage with Ginny, and they'd been together for a few months now, whilst Hermione was completely new to this, and it scared her. Scared her that she'd do the wrong thing.

"I am going to come," Harry nodded. "There's a really good chance they won't pick me anyway depending on how many other people got letters. Plus I'm very interested to know how they're going to go about testing us. I'll just need to owl McGonagall about needing a Portkey."

"Unless you take your apparition test beforehand?" Hermione suggested.

Harry's eyebrows shot up beneath his messy black fringe. "How can I? I've only had a handful of lessons, and even those were from the twins when they visited in sixth year! I can't take the test until my birthday anyway, and that's the bloody day before we need to be at Hogwarts. I'll only have one chance, then I'm screwed if I don't tell McGonagall I need a Portkey."

"Bloody hell," Ron chuckled. "Are you feeling alright, mate? This is you, isn't it?"

"'Course it is," Harry said. "Why?"

"Since when have you not taken a chance, Harry?" Hermione laughed. "One would think you'd be more reckless now that Voldemort's gone instead of being more cautious."

Harry considered her words for a moment. "You know what, I think I will go for it. I've always hated the feeling of travelling by Porkey," he said with a shudder.

Ron and Hermione mumbled in agreement.

"Well then you'd better get some last minute practice in, mate," said Ron. "You reckon you'll be ready in a week?"

"I hope so."

"I can always ask Fred and George if they can give you a couple more lessons if you want. I'm sure they won't mind."

Harry pursed his lips and adjusted his glasses. "Er, I think I'll pass to be honest. Every time the twins have taught me I always leave both of my eyebrows behind. I think they've jinxed me somehow."

Hermione laughed at the mental image of Harry without eyebrows. "I'm sure you'll be fine, Harry. If you really think you need the extra preparation then I can help you. Oh wait!" she gasped. "You won't be able to have any lessons now; you aren't of age yet. I'll just have to wake you up bright and early on your birthday so you can get a lot of practice in before your test."

"Thanks," Harry said uncertainly. "Well shall we go back inside and tell everyone the good news, then?"

"Yeah," Ron grinned. "Have fun telling Ginny, by the way. I'm sure she'll be thrilled to know that you're going to be away for a month."

"She can't be too disappointed, can she?" Harry winced. "McGonagall said that we can leave the grounds whenever we can."

"Still," Hermione said as the three of them walked around to the front of The Burrow with Crookshanks padding behind them. "With every day you aren't here that's a lot of vital snogging time lost in Ginny's book."

She smiled when she saw a blush colour Harry's cheeks, "She er, talks to you about that kind of stuff?"

"Mm-hmm," Hermione said slowly and suggestively. In fact, she and Ginny had only ever engaged in a full-on 'girl talk' session one or two times before, and even then the conversations were about five minutes long, but she found it quite endearing how coy Harry was about it.

"Oh…brilliant," Harry said dryly, making a point to avoid making eye contact.

"She doesn't say anything bad though," she said quickly, afraid that he might have gotten the wrong idea. Harry expelled a sigh of relief.

It was then that Hermione noticed Ron had wandered a few paces away from them.

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked.

"Have you two changed the subject yet?" he asked.

She rolled her eyes. "Come on Ron, don't tell me you're still annoyed at Ginny and Harry?"

"I'm not," he retorted. "I've made my peace with the idea of them as a couple, but is it really too much to ask to keep snogging out of conversation topic?"

"So you don't like hearing about Harry and Ginny kissing, and yet you so freely kiss me when your siblings are around?"

"That's different," Ron defended stubbornly with a weak smile. "Ginny's my little sister."

Hermione and Harry exchanged glances. They always seemed to go around in circles whenever this subject was brought up; neither of them could convince Ron to back down, because he always used the same old trump card that made any further arguments from them moot.

"Both of you are only-children," Ron said, right on cue. "You wouldn't understand."

"We know," Harry and Hermione chorused in unison with a sigh.

Pleasantly stuffed from the overly extravagant celebratory meal Molly had prepared for them at the news from Hogwarts, Hermione collapsed onto her bed and grabbed a book from her nightstand.

"Come in," she called when there was a knock at the door. She already knew it was Ron before he poked his head through the gap.

"Hey," he said, walking over to her and sitting on the bed beside her. Hermione was very wary of his close proximity but pretended to be engrossed in her book.

"What'cha reading?" Ron asked, wrapping his arms around Hermione's waist and putting his head on her shoulder. She squirmed; she always hated it when people read over her shoulder. It made her lose concentration.

"Just something Ginny leant me," she said, promptly shutting it. She didn't want Ron to know that she was really reading an old issue of Witch Weekly that she had charmed to look like an old textbook.

Yes, she was that desperate. She needed an unbiased outsider's opinion, and if that opinion came from a trashy, cheap magazine, then so be it. Any advice after almost a month of changing her mind again and again was useful.

"I just came in to tell you that I won't be able to take you to lunch tomorrow like we arranged," Ron said apologetically. "Mum's insisting that she take me to Quality Quidditch Supplies to get me a new broom as a reward for being nominated for Head Boy. Or at least, look for one."

So Ron was effectively cancelling on her for a Quidditch-related outing, and Hermione… didn't feel that disappointed.

"That's fine. I'll see you when you get back anyway," she replied.

"Thanks for being so understanding, Mione," Ron kissed her cheek, and she felt her body tense. This time, he noticed.

"Are you okay?"

Hermione bit her lip, indicating to Ron that something was wrong. She knew that she couldn't lie to him now that he knew something was on her mind.

"Not really… I mean, personally, yes I'm fine, but," she paused. "I don't know how to explain it but I just don't know if this," she pointed between Ron and herself, "I mean, we – us – is working out."

"I can re-arrange with Mum if you want, Mione," Ron laughed, apparently missing the point.

"No it's not that," Hermione scratched her head and conceded that the best way to get her point across to Ron was to be blunt. "I sometimes think that maybe we would be better off as friends... Just friends."

She held her breath and felt Ron's arms release her body. Immediately, that area of her waist felt cold, and she almost wished for them to be wrapped around her again.

Next, she felt the mattress rise as Ron got up and walked around to the other side, sitting back down again so he was facing her. He was frowning in confusion, causing a shadow to fall over his eyes.

"What do you mean? I thought we both wanted this," he said numbly.

"I did, I mean I do," Hermione said, doing her best to maintain eye contact. "But something doesn't feel right, I suppose. It's difficult to explain, but since we got together nothing has changed."

"Well that's good isn't it? You didn't expect that we'd become different people just because I asked you out, did you?"

Hermione bit her lip again. "Of course not, but I expected something to change between us. Think about it, Ron. We do the same things together as we've done every other summer I've stayed here. We go to the same places, talk about the same things-."

"Because we've been friends for years, Mione," Ron said, reaching across and touching her hand. There was immediate warmth and comforting feeling at the touch, but there was no rushing spark of electricity Ginny had spoken of. Hermione was beginning to wonder if the witch had been over-exaggerating this whole time, and she was making a big deal out of nothing.

"And maybe that's the problem," she sighed, pulling her hand away gently. "Maybe I've grown too used to you as a friend, so much so that I can't think of you as anything more, no matter how much I want to."

Ron scoffed and rose from the bed again in a flash. "I don't believe this," he muttered as he began pacing the room. "How do you explain last year then?"

"Last year?"

"When you used to get upset whenever I was with Lavender."

"Well excuse me for feeling upset because you were purposefully trying to make me jealous," Hermione replied stiffly after releasing a long breath of relief, rising from the bed too and crossing her arms.

"Oh and I suppose your feelings for McLaggen were legit, were they?" Ron countered.

The fight was drained from Hermione at that comment. "I was just trying to make you see how you were making me feel," she said quietly.

Ron's eyes met hers and he took a deep breath before speaking. "I'm sorry for snapping, but can't you see why this doesn't make sense to me? You must feel something more than friendship for me if me being with Lavender bothered you."

"Don't you think I already considered that?" Hermione laughed humourlessly. "This is why I haven't said anything to you before now; there are things that tell me I must feel something whilst others suggest that we can only ever be friends," she sat on the bed and started thinking aloud to herself. "Unless I felt jealous of Lavender because I thought being your girlfriend is what I wanted but now it's happened I know we can't work…"

"Mione?"

"Yes?" she shook the thoughts away and looked up at Ron, who was staring at her with an expression that seemed simultaneously amused and curious.

"Has it ever crossed your mind that since you thought that it couldn't work between us that maybe you've been purposefully looking for reasons that back up your argument?"

"Why would I go looking for reasons-?"

Ron shook his head. "I didn't mean intentionally," he said, sitting beside her. "When I was four, Fred and George planted the idea in my mind that I must be a Squib, because all of my brothers' magic first came about when they were two or three. After that, whenever I felt really angry or sad I'd get paranoid that I hadn't accidentally made something blow up or what-have-you. The thought that I could be a Squib was always in the back of my mind."

"Where are you going with this?" Hermione didn't know why she asked, she already knew deep down.

"I'm saying that I could have saved myself a lot of temper-tantrums if I'd just let things play out naturally without over-thinking it."

"I sense some kind of suggestion heading towards this conversation," Hermione smiled.

"Merlin I hate it when you can tell what I'm thinking," Ron smiled back. "You need to stop over-thinking this 'us' thing Mione. I know it probably didn't help that I asked you out almost straight after I broke up with Lavender so it might have confused you even more or caught you off guard."

"Okay," Hermione nodded along.

"But how about this: what if we ended this temporarily? We'll spend the rest of the summer as friends – no relationship – and get this bloody system thing over with, and then when term starts you can tell me if you'd like to give it another go or if you think there really is nothing here," he gestured between them. "That way it will give you more time to get used to the idea, and you wouldn't be able to overthink it too much because we'll have this Head Boy/ Girl stuff to worry about."

Ron smiled triumphantly in the way he always did when he felt especially proud about something.

"I don't like that idea, Ron," Hermione sighed. "I'd feel like I was leading you on. What if by September I realise that a relationship definitely isn't what I want and then you start to resent me for giving you false hope or something? I don't want to lose you as a friend."

"You're over-thinking it again," Ron raised his eyebrows at her and laughed.

"Shut up," she said, giving him a playful shove.

"We'd be single, Hermione. It's not like I'd be pining for you the whole time."

Hermione raised her eyebrows at that.

"Okay maybe I will to some degree," Ron said. "But honestly, whatever happens, I'd never hate you."

"But Ron-."

"Just do this one thing for me," he said. "If you tell me that you don't want to be with me in September, I won't push it, and I wouldn't stop being your friend. I promise. You can't get rid of me that easily."

Hermione chewed her lip again. She was still very reluctant about this but she had to admit that maybe he had been right about getting together too quickly after Lavender; maybe some time would clear her head.

"Okay, Ron," she nodded.

He gave her a melancholic smile and squeezed her hand before he got up and walked towards the door.

"Night, Mione," he said as he reached it.

"Night," she smiled as he walked out and closed the door.

After a four-hour apparition boot-camp lesson on Harry's birthday, Hermione dubbed him as being prepared enough to take his test: at least, he could now apparate without leaving his eyebrows behind. He returned to The Burrow after taking it with a grin on his face and his new apparition license in hand.

It was really quite nice that his birthday happened to fall on the day before he, Ron and Hermione were returning to Hogwarts; his party almost doubled as a second congratulatory event for all three of them, but Ron and Hermione were keen not to take the focus off Harry, because he was now officially of age. Needless to say, he had taken full advantage of getting his own back for the countless pranks that had been played on him over the summer where he couldn't retaliate using magic.

Hermione was thrilled that there had been no awkward tension between her and Ron over the last week like she first feared there would be. The other Weasleys and Harry were a little disappointed at the news; Molly had been trying fruitlessly to 'talk some sense' into Hermione over the last few days, but she reluctantly backed down when Ron jumped in and explained that the trial split was his idea. Overall, it had been a pleasant evening.

The next morning, Hermione rose bright and early, knowing full well that the boys would have left all of their packing until the last minute. She knocked on their door, but when there was no answer after two minutes she decided to let herself in.

She sighed when she took in the abundance of chocolate frog wrappers; Bertie Botts jelly beans, books and clothes that were scattered about the floor. She walked over to the window and drew the curtains.

"Rise and shine!" she trilled as daylight flooded the room.

Ron stirred first. He squinted when he opened his eyes and wriggled further down into his duvet.

"Whatimeizzit?" he mumbled sleepily.

"Eight-thirty," Hermione replied, giving him a shove as his eyes fell shut again.

"Gerroff," Ron said. "I'm awake, I swear…" and a second later he was snoring.

Hermione rolled her eyes and crossed the room, hoping to have more success in rousing Harry, who was still fast asleep judging by the way he was curled around under the covers, with only a few tufts of black hair sticking out.

"Harry," Hermione said, gently rocking his shoulder.

"Oh sure you're nice to him," Ron grumbled from the other side of the room.

"Awake now are you?" Hermione arched an eyebrow as she turned around.

Ron just grunted, sitting up in bed and stretching.

Hermione felt the covers shift under her hand, which still rested on Harry's shoulder. He rolled over and blindly fumbled around on the nightstand to get his glasses, knocking his wand off in the process. It hit the floor with a loud thud, and Harry winced.

"What's the matter?" asked Hermione.

"I dunno," Harry said hoarsely. "I feel like my head's just been trampled by a Hippogriff."

"For goodness sake, Harry, I told you to go easy on the Butterbeers last night, didn't I?"

Harry blushed. "You did," he said sheepishly.

The boys packed decisively slowly one they had woken up, sluggishly wandering around the room like trolls and picking up random items of clothing and throwing them idly into their trunks. In the end Hermione gave in and did the majority of their packing for them, not that Harry and Ron minded.

By half past twelve they were all ready to leave. The exchange of goodbyes was a clumsy affair, with the three of them and the rest of the Weasleys reaching over one another to hug or shake hands with everyone else. After that was done, Harry, Ron and Hermione stood beside their luggage and apparated one at a time into the school's Entrance Hall. Because Harry was still not feeling his best, he over-shot his target and ended up half way up one of the moving staircases, resulting him in almost toppling over at the unexpectedly uneven ground.

"That was a good start," he said dryly as he joined Ron and Hermione at the bottom.

"Good afternoon Mr Potter, Miss Granger, Mr Weasley," the kind voice of Professor Dumbledore greeted them.

"Good afternoon, Professor," Hermione smiled, spinning around to face the headmaster. She looked around the Entrance Hall and peered into the empty Great Hall. "Are we the first ones to arrive?"

Ron groaned. "I told you there was no bloody need to rush so much."

Dumbledore chuckled. "On the contrary, Mr Weasley, quite a few other Head Boy and Girl candidates arrived a few minutes ago. I must say the turn-out for this process is most admirable."

"Oh," Ron said, trying to avoid making eye contact with Hermione.

"Where are they?" she asked.

"In the living quarters in the west wing of the castle. There are some quite spacious dormitories and a common room there that was used to home the Durmstrang students from a previous occasion where Hogwarts hosted the Triwizard Tournament," explained Dumbledore. "You see, there were very serious weather conditions that year, so even with the use of magic their ship would have been too dangerous to utilise."

"How come we aren't staying in our usual dormitories?" Ron asked, visibly put out by the prospect of having to live in close proximity to the Slytherins for a month. He often complained that them being in the Dungeons was still too close for comfort when they were in Gryffindor Tower.

"Ah, well only four names from each house were put forward for consideration, so there would be little point in keeping you all so far apart when so few of you would be in each dorm. It was agreed amongst the staff that a communal area for everyone would be ideal, given the reason why you are all here."

"Eh?" Ron frowned.

"I think he's saying that it'll be good practice for us to get used to living with each other since the Heads get their own shared common room," Hermione said.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "Exactly right, Miss Granger. It will be the first and longest running 'test', if you will, for it was explained on the letter that this is about inter-house unity; the Heads will not be from the same house."

All three of them gulped.

"Er Professor?" Harry asked. "What kind of other 'tests' will this process include?"

The older wizard smiled; Hermione didn't really like the mischievous glint in his eye. "All will be explained when everyone is present, which should be in a little over an hour. In the meantime I suggest you settle yourselves into your temporary dormitories."

"Sorry sir, if I may ask one last question before we go?" said Hermione.

"My, I'd forgotten how inquisitive you all are. The others simply went on their way as soon as I explained about the living arrangements without question," Dumbledore said. "Ask away, Miss Granger."

"Well, if you wanted to promote inter-house unity this way, then why not just pick two people from different houses to be the Heads instead of using this 'new system'? Forgive me, but it seems a little far-fetched in comparison."

She didn't want to offend the headmaster since the system was his idea, but she was curious.

"Once again, your question will be answered when everyone is here: I've already received one or twenty owls from parents questioning the same thing. It was to be expected; I realise that the summer holidays isn't exactly ideal for everyone. If that is everything you'd like to know for now then you may go to your dorms."

"Thank you sir," said Hermione.

"Oh, and one last thing," Dumbledore called after them as they turned to leave. "Any one of you will be permitted to alter the password every two days over the course of this process."

The friends exchanged bemused glances. "Why do we need a password if we're the only students who are going to be here?" Harry asked for all three of them.

"To be a suitable candidate for Head Boy or Girl, a certain amount of teamwork, compromise and communication will be required. I trust you will reach a consensus if you are indeed, suitable." Dumbledore said cryptically before walking away from them.

"Can someone please translate?" Ron broke the confused silence.

"It's another test," Hermione sighed. "Presumably to see who would be the best choices." And with that, she realised that she now knew the answer to her earlier question. Dumbledore wanted to make sure the Heads were wholly right for the roles, and that they would both work well together; after all, what could be better for promoting inter-house unity than having a harmonious Head Boy and Girl pairing?

"Bloody hell," Ron said as they finally set off to the dormitories. "To me it seems like this is all for a laugh. He must know that anyone being able to change the password to whatever they like is never going to end well, even if it can only be changed every two days."

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "And judging by the two 'tests' that we already know about, I get the feeling the ones that are to come are going to be just as mental."

"Maybe so but Dumbledore must know what he's doing. He'll have a reason for these tests, no matter how strange or pointless they seem," Hermione said confidently.

"I've already suggested what this 'reason' could be: he's lost his bloody marbles," Ron said.

To be continued…

A/N: I wanted to get at least to the Slytherins' entrance here but everything took up more words than I was anticipating, and well, this was a convenient place to stop. (It's funny that this is what I'd consider a 'long' chapter in TW - hehe!)

So... what did you think? Let me know, and thank you very much for reading :D