DISCLAIMER. All Harry Potter characters belong to J.K. Rowling, and probably others, but not me.

In this story, I am also using names of real people. I will state here that any ideas, words, thoughts or opinions expressed by them are mine and mine alone, and are not intended to represent those people in any way whatsoever. So please don't sue me. Thank you. Anyway, I haven't got any money. Now, on with the story.

Parallel

: Extending in the same direction, everywhere equidistant, and not meeting

: Similar, analogous, or interdependent in tendency or development

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

They never did find out how the fire started. It may have been as simple as an ember spitting out of the fireplace onto some discarded parchment. Whatever the cause, by the time it woke the children in the lower dormitories, the Gryffindor Common room was well ablaze.

On the girl's side, Katie Bell took immediate control, showing that Hogwarts had missed a trick in not making her Head Girl. She got the other 6th and 7th years onto the steps and using Aguamenti to make sure no flames penetrated the staircase. Hermione Granger showed them how to cast a bubble-head charm, which was of great assistance.

Surprisingly, perhaps, Lavender Brown also shone that night. She shepherded the younger girls upstairs, taking the very frightened 1st and 2nd years into her dormitory. Within five minutes she had calmed them down, convinced them they weren't about to die, and got them all singing "Brownies will be brave". Then she threw open her make-up box and told them to help themselves, which they did with more enthusiasm than skill. Most went down to breakfast the next day looking like delegates from a Streetwalker's Convention.

On the boy's side, it was Roddy Jackman who came to the fore. He also had the senior pupils keeping back the flames, though they didn't have anyone to show them the bubble charm with the result that Seamus Finnegan suffered a little from smoke inhalation.

Harry Potter accio'd his broom and used it to fly to the broom shed to collect as many others as he could in case they needed to use them for evacuation.

Cormac McClaggen cowered under his bed, alternately shouting out useless pieces of advice and calling for his mother.

Meanwhile, the teaching staff were attacking the fire from the other side and by about three o'clock everything was under control. Well, the fire was out anyway.

The following morning Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall were surveying the damage along with a very disgruntled Filch.

'Take days, this will' he grumbled. 'Days and days of 'ard work, and I suppose we can all guess who'll 'ave to do it. Meanwhile, what about the rest of the School, eh? Who'll look after that? Then all them kids rampaging through 'ere. Days and days of work.'

'Nonsense' said Dumbledore brightly. 'I'm sure a man of your calibre can cope, Argus. However, the lower dormitories are uninhabitable. I think we will have to send the senior pupils off-site until it is resolved. There is an old Manor House nearby, which has been converted into a hotel, who I'm sure can assist us.'

McGonagall looked at him over her glasses. 'Are you sure that is wise, Albus? Senior pupils they may be, but will they be "sensible"?'

Dumbledore chuckled. 'I'm sure such thoughts would never even cross their minds. However to calm you I shall send Professor Vector to chaperone them. I shall point out that any pupil found in an "inappropriate" room shall be spending a lot more time with their family, and that the bar is out-of–bounds. Trust them, Minerva. What could go wrong?'

McGonagall pursed her lips, but said nothing.

The pupils were duly gathered together and told of the plans. They would depart each evening after dinner in the carriages which would return for the children the next day after they had breakfasted at the hotel and getting them to school in time for first lesson. Hopefully, they could all be back in their own dorms in time for the weekend.

-o0o-

Hermione Granger had the novel experience of being woken by a ringing telephone. Surfacing rapidly she picked up the receiver to hear a recorded message saying "Good morning, this is your early morning alarm call", and then the line went dead. As she lay there, two thoughts crossed her mind.

Firstly, it was nice to have a room her herself, and a bit of quiet. Lavender and Parvati started talking and giggling even before their eyes were open.

Secondly, she didn't remember the phone being there last night. Obviously it had been but she must have missed it. Hauling herself from the bed, she headed off for a shower.

Coming back to her bedroom she pulled on the familiar Hogwarts uniform and set off to find some breakfast. Only Harry and Ron were there, up unusually early for them, and she waved to them as she crossed to the breakfast bar. She looked at the selection with some pleasure; it was certainly better than the usual fat fest they got at Hogwarts. Bowls of muesli and fresh fruit salad greeted her eye, along with pots of yoghurt, freshly brewed coffee and even herbal teas! There didn't appear to be any pumpkin juice, but grapefruit would make a nice change.

Helping herself, she made her way across to her two friends, still pleased that Lavender was no longer an item with "her" Ron. They weren't actually a pair yet, but things were moving along in the right direction. She hadn't had to set any canaries on him for weeks.

'Morning! Where are all the others?'

'I think it's just us this morning. The rest have got some time off, lucky so-and-sos,' replied Harry.

Hermione shrugged. Perhaps with the common room out of action they didn't want people at the school who had free periods. A smartly dressed young lady came into the dining room and smiled at them. 'The cars will be here in fifteen minutes.'

Ron eyed her appreciatively, which caused Hermione to cough rather pointedly. He grinned at her. 'You never know.'

She shook her head in despair. 'Come on, let's go.'

'Yep' said Harry, standing. He waved his hands by his head. 'It's showtime!' What was wrong with them today and why wasn't Harry wearing his glasses?

-o0o-

Emma Watson peeled her eyes open, feeling as if she hadn't slept at all. The interview in Manchester had dragged on, as these things tend to, and then there had been a problem on the motorway, meaning that she hadn't got back to their location hotel until nearly midnight.

Today she had a library scene to film with Dan and Rupert. She knew it would only last less than a minute on screen, but would involve maybe nine or ten hours of work on their part. There were a couple of tricky lines, and if their timing was out…

She looked at her watch. Seven o'clock! She bolted out of bed; where the hell was her alarm call? They had to leave by eight. In fact, where was the telephone? It must have developed a fault. That must be it; they'd taken it away and forgotten to bring a replacement. She would have words.

She quickly jumped into the shower and then came back to dress. When they were doing fairly standard scenes they often brought the costumes back with them as it saved time once they were on location. She pulled on her "school uniform" and headed down for breakfast.

There were quite a few people around, which surprised her. Maybe the second unit were doing a shoot. Judging by the people it was a Gryffindor Common Room scene; possibly the lead up to "Harry" and "Ginny's" first screen kiss. She smiled at the thought of what the press would make of it. No doubt the tabloids would work the word "wand" into it somewhere.

She groaned at the sight of the breakfast buffet. Normally she only took some fresh fruit and yoghurt, with maybe a cup of coffee. This looked a real mess though; lots of bacon, sausages, eggs and even black pudding. She helped herself to a couple of rolls, and a glass of what looked like carrot juice, and headed for a table.

Shefali Chowdhury and Jessie Cave had a spare seat at their table, so she went over to join them. She got on well with Jessie; aware of how difficult it must be for her coming into such a close knit team so late in the series, but she'd done well so far.

'Morning! I overslept a bit. Wouldn't do to be late, would it?'

'Did you?' said Jessie. 'What a disaster. Lucky you don't have to do anything with your hair, isn't it?' She tossed her long blond locks. 'If you'll excuse me.' With that she got up and walked from the room, leaving half of her breakfast behind.

'Pardon me for breathing' thought Emma. Shefali looked at her and shrugged.

An old man came into the room. 'Carriages will be here in fifteen minutes.' Most people ignored him.

As they made their way out to the front of the hotel about half an hour later Emma blinked in surprise. Standing there were not the usual people carriers, or even mini-buses, but the carriages they used during filming. It must be for some publicity shots, she thought to herself.

They all piled in and the carriages moved off. Emma had to smile; she knew they were meant to be pulled by "Thestrals" but these were obviously electric as there was no noise. Actually, it was a rather nice way to travel.

-o0o-

The carriages rolled through a set of cast iron gates, and Emma could see a castle in the distance.

'Wow! Look guys, it's Hogwarts!' These set designers really were something; it looked almost real.

'Oh, well done,' said Rupert. 'After six years you can recognise your school. No wonder they say you're the cleverest witch of your generation.'

They pulled up in front of the main entrance, where Dame Maggie Smith was already in costume and waiting for them. 'Good morning. I hope you slept well. We will be checking that everything thing is in order. Sixth year transfiguration, you may as well come with me now and we'll get started.'

Emma followed with Dan, Rupert and some of the others. They were talking to each other about homework and the spell they were working on at the moment. She sighed. The Director, David Yates, must have sprung an improvisation session on them; he occasionally did that to keep them "IC" or "in-character". He must have announced it last night, but she'd not received the message having got back so late.

When they got to the "classroom", some of the other were already inside. Tom Felton was sat with Jamie Waylett and Joshua Herdman, as Malfoy and his gang always did. She smiled at them 'Good Morning, this should be fun!'

'How dare you talk to me, you filthy little mudblood?' snarled back Tom. He was IC already, she thought.

So was Rupert, apparently, who lunged at Tom. Dan dragged him away. 'Don't be stupid, Ron, not in here.'

'Potter! Weasley! Why are you not at your desks?' "McGonagall's" voice rang through the room.

'Just getting there, Professor,' called back Dan.

Emma sat looking at Maggie in wonderment. One of the best things about her job was being able to work alongside some of the best actors and actresses in THE WORLD, and to receive all these Masterclasses. She even got paid for it!

Maggie was on top form today. She spoke for a full five minutes on "Cross Species Transfiguration" without once hesitating or referring to any notes. It all sounded so convincing as well, as if she really meant it. Superb! And that accent never once faltered. Emma knew Maggie actually had quite a strong London accent in real life, but when playing McGonagall it was pure Edinburgh.

'So, what is one of the precautions you must ensure whilst making the switch?' she asked.

The room went silent, and Emma felt eyes upon her. She winced; she was Hermione Granger, her hand should be in the air by now. Up it shot. 'Miss Granger?'

'DNA cross-contamination, Professor?' That wasn't bad!

Maggie looked at her over the top of her glasses. 'I hardly think so, Miss Granger. Anyone else?'

Tom put his hand up. 'Correct pronunciation,' he drawled, in his oily Malfoy voice.

'Correct, Mr Malfoy.' Maggie shot a glance at Emma. 'One point to Slytherin.'

It was down hill from there. Maggie asked five more questions, and each time Emma's hand shot up. Each time Maggie shook her head, and the rest of the room groaned; some even tittered.

Was this a set-up? One of those things that would appear on "You've been framed" at Christmas? Emma was starting to get a little fed up.

'Miss Granger, I honestly don't know what has got into you today. In future, I suggest you read up in advance, as Mr Malfoy clearly has, and you normally do.' Tom smirked at Emma, and she gave him a finger.

'Now' said Maggie, 'perhaps you will do better in the practical session. One from each pair to the front of the class to collect your rabbit.'

Emma had been sitting next to Rupert, and he went up returning with a real, live rabbit. She scowled; they didn't normally have live animals for something like this because of all the rules. Rupert put the rabbit on the table, and looked at her hopefully. 'OK, what now?' She sat there staring blankly, until Maggie's voice rang out again.

'Miss Granger, where is your wand?'

She'd definitely had enough. 'I haven't been down to "props" yet! Of course, no-one bothered to leave me a note last night saying what was going on today so I haven't got one.'

'Are you telling me you are wandless? Miss Granger, how can you be so foolish, and at a time like this? After all the warnings Professor Dumbledore has given…'

She could see Tom grinning at her, and that was the final straw. She looked him square in the eye. 'Oh, sod off!'

'MISS GRANGER! Never have I heard such a thing! Ten points from Gryffindor and see me after the lesson to arrange your detention!' All of the "Slytherins" were in hysterics.

Emma pulled herself back IC. 'I'm sorry, Professor, honestly I am.'

Rupert gave Dan a look that clearly said, 'Why did I get her today?'

To her he said, 'Come on, let's get on with it.' He waved his wand and said 'Transfiguro pullus'. A chicken stood on the table.

Emma laughed. 'Wow! OK, how did you do that? Is there a trap door in the desk?'

Rupert goggled at her. 'Come on, Hermione; pull yourself together, will you?'

'Sorry, "Ron", but come on, how did you do it?'

She tapped on the desk; there was no trapdoor. She became aware of a background clucking noise. Looking around the room, she saw a chicken on every desk. She looked at Rupert, and he saw the blood drain from her face.

There was a "thud" as she fainted and hit the floor.