Disclaimer: I certainly wish that I owned the rights to Labyrinth. Or to Harry Potter. I don't, though. And no matter how much my little heart might want to, I can't even try to lay claim to them. So since I'm not making any money on this, here's hoping that no one decides to do something extreme, like sue. I don't really have much that could be taken away as compensation, y'know? Just some trading cards and some plastic toys.

Lush red drapes parted just as the morning sun was striking the Hogwarts grounds. Having been to sleep before anyone else in the dormitory, Harry was now the first one awake. He stumbled through the morning routine, glad of the quiet. With luck, everything would be back to normal by lunch.

Normal... insomuch as the wizarding life could be called 'normal,' this year hadn't been so far. Harry had suffered the entire summer with his muggle relatives, this year without even the relief of a trip to Diagon Ally - Dumbledore had insisted he was safest not leaving Privat Drive. Harry had ended up owling the Weasleys to ask Ron's mum to take money out of his Gringott's account and buy his school things.

Then there had been the ride aboard the Hogwarts Express. Hermione had spent the entire ride buried in a book. She'd hardly spoken to them, and when it was suggested she was upset about not having been named a prefect, she had hotly denied it - even Ron had dropped the issue.

Still, things had been close to what passed for normal. And the first new potential mystery of the term - Toby Williams - seemed to be non-threatening enough. Of course, there was the now-familiar wondering about the DADA instructor. Every year the same, rumors would be flying as soon as the first class had been held - if they weren't already.

By the time he was headed down to breakfast with Ron and Hermione, it felt as though the old routine was on its way back. Toby appeared and sat with to them, wary of the other fifth-years, who he'd talked to even less then the intrepid three.

Harry smiled to himself as the groggy morning chitchat sounded around him. The smile broadened at the sounds of surprise from many first years, as the post owls came swooping into the room. A large, semi-official owl carrying Hermione's copy of the Daily Prophet. A frazzled looking screech owl coming to give Neville a fair-sized package from his Gran. And something... black? A dark, glistening bird amid the tawny, grey, and white mass of owls. As Harry watched, it swooped lower, and closer.

With a stately flutter of obsidian wings, the large raven settled itself on Toby's shoulder. Bobbing its head twice, the bird elegantly extended a leg, allowing Toby to untie the small scroll tied there.

Toby's face had lit up as the bird approached, and now his eyes sparkled as he began to detach message from messenger. "Good morning Gavin! Glad only to have come from London?" Gavin bobbed his head a few more times, then cocked it slightly to the side, observing the people who were staring at him. Still smiling, Toby held a strip of bacon up to the bird, who immediately began to munch contentedly at it.

"He's beautiful," exclaimed Hermione. "I've never seen anyone use a corvid for post before."

Ron too, seemed impressed. "'S because they're hard to work with. Usually too curious for their own good. How'd you train him, Toby?"

Toby reached up and smoothed the feathers on Gavin's back. "Well... he's more my sister's then mine. But he gets along with me OK, don't you Gavin?"

Having finished his bacon, Gavin seemed to bow, glanced around at the other receding post-birds, and suddenly took wing, following the flurry of student-owned owls out of the hall.

Harry, Ron and Hermione looked on as Toby now opened the scroll, which was in fact two pieces of parchment, rolled tightly together. He glanced at the second, set it aside as if of little importance, then began to read the letter. After he seemed to finish looking it over for a second time, Ron spoke.

"So, news from home then?"

Toby looked up. "Well, not quite news, and not quite from 'home,' but yeah. Just a letter from Sarah, and a written list of her usual 'sisterly advice,' complete with warnings that hardly make sense."

His new friends nodded. All of them thought briefly of the motherly lecture Mrs. Weasley had once again left them with as they'd prepared to board the train. The moment was broken as schedules were handed out, and the first small groups of people stood, ready to leave the hall.

"Good morning." Ginny had come over from farther down the table, where she'd been catching up with her friends. Now standing behind Ron, she scanned his schedule. "Looks like you guys get the first crack at figuring the new professor out." She pointed, and surely enough, their first class was Defense Against the Dark Arts, with Ravenclaw. "Speaking of, where is he?" The others looked between each other; now that she mentioned it, they hadn't seen him at the Staff table with the other professors as they arrived, and he certainly wasn't there now.

Hermione shrugged. "I'm sure we'll find out soon enough." Then she pointed at Toby. "Ginny, this is Toby. Toby, Ginny."

Ginny smiled, and shook hands. "I'm Ron's sister"

"Well, well," drawled a cool voice. "The Weasels, Buck-Tooth and Potty have started a babysitting service." At the scattered Slytherin chuckles that followed, the voice continued. "Didn't the Yank schools offer cheap enough daycare?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Shove off Malfoy."

For his part, Toby looked as though the only thing keeping him from rushing his apparent new adversary was the visage of the goons flanking him. That, and the restraining hands Ginny and Hermione had hurried to place on each of the boys.

"Just introducing myself, Potty. Don't burst your precious Scar - how ever would your adoring fans pick you out of a line then?" He turned to Toby. "Draco Malfoy, most assuredly not at your service." He sneered, and then left, cronies in tow.

"That," announced Ron, unnecessarily, "was a Malfoy."

Hermione picked up her bag. "Come on," she said. "We don't want to be late for the first class of the year."

~~~

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