CH 18

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It took nearly the entirety of Harry's six year before the Headmaster had been able to find out from the Goblins at the Gringotts Bank that he was no longer permitted to access any account belonging to Harry Potter, one Boy-Who-Lived. He had been irked to find that out too late. The letter had been polite, much too polite, but it was also very clear that the boy was considered an adult in their eyes and any person or persons claiming to be the boy's magical guardian were going to be fined for such a false declaration.

The old man crumpled up the letter and tossed it into the fire in order to get rid of it. The still roaring fire in the office dealt with the unfortunate news by turning the information to ash. It might have been stifling to have such a fire at this time of year, but it was the only thing that successfully kept that awful odour down. The caretaker's help hadn't worked, so now there was a roaring fire with scented boughs of wood and scented candles lighting the gloomy spots of the room.

Fawkes had refused to return until the smell had been completely taken care of, but in the meantime he was quite enjoying the attentions he received in Severus' and Harry's rooms whenever he roosted in the Puzzle Trees. The house-elves adored, petted and fed him the best of foods, specially made for phoenixes. The fire bird was reluctant to leave such pleasant company, but did so every time the old man called him for Order business.

"Do any of you have suggestions with how to deal with Mr. Potter's reluctance to follow our plans for his training this summer," Albus asked his own 'inner-circle' of confidents.

"Perhaps you should let him be," Arthur said. "As a Journeyman in any field, he'd be far more advanced than the training you were planning for him. The Auror standard for Potions is far below that of a full Journeyman."

"He does have a point Albus," Kingsley Shacklebolt said. "It appears that Mr. Potter's self-education has raised his scholastic levels to exceed what we had planned for him. He's already taken the Ministry's N.E.W.T.s. exams in Potions and Defence Against the Dark Arts. He passed both with double Os."

"How could he have taken those Ministry exams in Advance," Albus asked, wondering if Minister Fudge was behind this mess.

"There are always Ministry tests set up around this time of year and the list is provided to whomever requesting it," Shacklebolt told him. "Hogwarts' Ministry exams are scheduled to take place at the school because of the Board of Governors' requirements and are set to take place around all the others set up by the Ministry. This is also because the Hogwarts' final year's exams are requested to happen on-site at the school, instead of having the students choose their scheduling date between now and the actual end of the Hogwarts' year."

"Do you mean that anyone wishing to be tested by the Ministry can show up on the dates set up by the Ministry whenever they want?" Arthur asked, curious because he suspected that his twins had been doing just that. "Since when was this allowed?"

"Yes and it's been that way for over seventy years now," the senior Auror said. "Anyone interested only has to send a notice of intention to attend and actually show up at the Ministry's testing site, on the proper date, in order to take the standard exams. They are the legal Ministry administered exams, so they take place at the Ministry. I suspect that not many people know about this. I, myself, was surprised when the information showed up in one of the Ministry's smaller departmental newsletters."

"How would young Mr. Potter be able to attend such an exam," Albus wondered out loud.

"Some are scheduled on a Saturday," Severus told everyone seated around the table. "If Mr. Potter was given permission to go elsewhere during a Hogsmeade week-end, then he effectively could have taken his N.E.W.T.s at that time."

"He'd have to have been accompanied by someone from the Order," Albus said, trying to recall a time when the young man had been given permission to leave the security of Hogwarts or its associated town.

"He was," Severus replied, causing many to look at him in shock. "I didn't know his true plans for going to the Ministry of Magic, but I escorted him there and back three weeks ago. While he was there, I was looking into the potions ingredient orders that I had placed with a few of the apothecaries in Diagon Alley. You gave us leave to go to the Ministry of Magic and it's even in Mr. Potter's file the day we left, where we went and the time we returned to the school."

Albus was confused, but vowed to look at the boy's school file in order to reassure himself that his Potions Master was telling the truth. "I believe that will be all for now," the old man said. "I will need to investigate this matter."

"I guess that means his summer training is not needed," Tonks observed. She was Kingsley's Auror partner, who refused to be known as anything other than just Tonks.

"Why wouldn't he need the training," Albus said.

"Double Os means he's already further ahead than our most basic recruit," Shacklebolt told him. "Most Witches or Wizards that come to the Auror branch don't even have an adequate O.W.L. or N.E.W.T.s grade in Defence. They learn as they are trained and then take the Ministry exams. The Auror core of the Ministry has never received candidates with Journeyman, let alone Master levels in Defence."

"I see," the Headmaster said. "That will change our plans, as I thought he'd need the training, but if he's too far advanced, perhaps I'll wait until he has returned for his seventh year in order to take his training further." He nodded to himself, not needing further input from his precious Order, and dismissed the others. "I suppose that Mr. Potter's training regimen will have to wait until we have more skilled instructors."

This statement caused a few around the table to bristle at being thought incompetent, but the old man had been slipping up in this manner for a while now. The Order of the Phoenix in general was still fine, but now his 'inner-circle' noticed and recognized that there was something going on with the Headmaster that they had never noticed before. However it was too late to bring the man to task for being overly interested in the Boy-Who-Lived's training or lack thereof.

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Harry was carefully packing his belongings for the end of his school year. He was separating out the things he needed versus the things that he wanted to bring. He had opened his travel tent to air it out and stock it with base essentials. He was filling some of the dresser drawers with packing material and storing some of his rarer potions ingredients. He didn't tell his compatriots about these and it didn't really matter for now.

They had come together and gotten tested in their N.E.W.T.s in Potions, while Harry did an additional N.E.W.T. exam in Defence, when the other boys were in Muggle London loading up on everything they needed for their net-books. They had made plans for taking vacations within vacations.

Ron had received a contract of employment with the Hatles Law Firm for one of his summer months, July. The letter accompanying the contract indicated that they had several candidates ever since they made internship queries in the local papers, so they had more applicants than they ever thought possible. The redhead had accepted their offer anyway because he wanted to learn more about the kind Law that they practiced. It still had an appeal for him and his mate was pushing him to do it.

"If you don't you might find yourself regretting this missed chance," Draco said. "I'm going to follow through and work in 'Apo the Carry's' store here in Hogsmeade. That way I'm close to the Forbidden Forest and will be able to collect ingredients at their different growth stages."

"What about our plans to visit the Elven dimension," Ron asked.

"I received a note via one of our magical jars," Harry said. "The watches exploded within them and then they vanished from the jars. The jar was fine and had no issues in transporting their note. They're doing well and have found the culprit. They still want us to visit, but I get the feeling that their time is slower and less time may have passed for them. We've been invited there for two weeks at the beginning of August, along with Henrik, his son Sinius and Severus, for a harvesting of potions ingredients and a general hunt. They were also interested in receiving a demonstration of Ron's alter-gift of dousing for minerals and gems."

Ron snorted and fully realized that the goblins had to have been bragging about their students or about the gifts that they had received. The other two had thoughts along the same lines. He then asked, "What are you going to do Harry?"

"I think that I'll go back to Spain and then maybe visit a few of the other properties that I inherited and that I haven't seen yet," Harry said. "I'll harvest as I go from country to country, but I'll be writing you guys frequently."

"What about the Dark Lord," Draco asked.

"I don't believe that he has plans to do more than what he usually does," Harry said. "There's not much that I can do about it right now, but I think that the Headmaster knows something about Tom that he still hasn't mentioned. I have a bad feeling that he's going to drop that bomb on me at the end of the school year."

"He seems to always do that doesn't he," Ron observed.

"True," Harry said. "I really hate it when he does that, but with this coming summer I will have a greater chance at studying and learning a few new tricks."

"How are you going to travel from country to country," Draco asked.

"I'm thinking of an old Western covered wagon," Harry said. "I was thinking of going through as a tinker of some kind, you know, maybe someone that can repair pots and pans on the fly. Make custom wands at low prices because I'm only a Journeyman in the making of them, but am allowed to sell what I make as long as I have a legal disclaimer. I'd have a few samples of various things to sell and trade. Plus I figure that someone travelling in that manner might have an easier time than someone that goes into a place and just pays their way through."

"You'll make a lot of contacts that way," Ron said with a nod. "That's a smart way to do it. You might even be able to see rarer magical sights by doing it that way."

"That's my thinking too," Harry said. "Of course I believe that I will have company for most of that time, as Severus has said that he'd be interested in the gathering of ingredients that I plan to harvest. However, before I travel I will map out my intended locations and stops. That way the two of you will be able to tell me anything you know of the place and you can ask me to pick up anything you like."

"All right then Potter," Draco said. "Do you think that your goblin friends could ward my place in Hogsmeade?"

"Your place," Ron asked.

"Our place," Draco corrected with a grin. "You're still planning to live with me?"

"You got it," Ron said. "I will have to let my folks know about it though, but you're coming with me to tell them about us."

"I wish the both of you luck," Harry said.

"Oh, you're not getting that easily," Ron said.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"You're coming too, to back us up," Draco said. "You need to be there to vouch for me."

"Nothing I say will do anything to influence your parents," Harry said. "They're your parent after all. You're going to have to be ones to convince them. Besides I believe that your parents are not going to chuck you out for loving a Malfoy, especially this one."

"Oi," Draco said, in a tone very much like that of his mate. It was clear that Ron had influenced the blonde when he had vocalized his objection. He then continued with, "What do you mean, especially this one? I'm the only one that counts."

"Sure you are," Harry said with a grin, yanking the blonde's chain with gentle teasing. He had to be careful sometimes because the Slytherin was still sensitive to his father's upbringing and being faced with the unwelcome comparison of being no good just because his father isn't good.

"I am," Draco said haughtily, sticking his nose in the air just like he used to do when younger. The two Gryffindors knew that he was fine when he this because there was also a small grin at the corner of the blonde's mouth. This was a sure sign that he wasn't offended or hurt by a particular comment.

Harry had to be careful on these occasions because Ron sometimes had a tendency to kiss his mate for extended periods of time. He had asked one time why he did it and the redhead explained that it was positive re-enforcement of his love for the blonde in all his uppity up-tight mannerisms. This time it was just a reassuring peck on the mouth, but the love between the two was clearly visible.

So the Boy-Who-Lived had one piece of advice for the two them for when they planned to take dinner with Ron's family. "Be yourselves," he said. "Act like you would around me in a casual manner because that will re-enforce the fact that this is not a new or recent infatuation. Your father already suspects something about our March holiday, so just be yourselves. Please?"

"I don't know how much of my 'socially acceptable' behaviour will come through," Draco said. "As I understand things, anytime in-laws meet, we'll learn more of each other, however we were not officially bonded, that could be something that your mother and father will not approve."

"Doesn't matter," Ron said. "We can formally bond whenever we want to. I will certainly be seeking their approval, but whether they give it to me or not won't matter. We've been magically bound for so long that it will be impossible to separate and I would never want to. I'll remind on our anniversary date from here on to forever."

"From here on to forever," Draco gave him an emotional sniff and a hug to hide his softer side.

Harry had moved into his bedroom to sort through his clothes, when it looked like the blonde needed a private moment to compose himself. He was smiling at the thought of the two of them and he watched with a fond grin, as Winky made a pile of 'not even for a dust-rag'.

"Youse be sitten' and makin' list of new clothes for summer and some for school," she said in her determined voice of do it or else. The Gryffindor never once regretted the bonds he had with his house-elves and he liked that they were pushy about some things. "Youse be makin' sure that youse prepare a list for standard school thins' so that Winky be getting them ready. You no be rushin' once you be getting your list for seventh year."

"I understand Winky," Harry said, pulling out a notebook that contained a few lists of things that he had written down. It was a list of things that he had run out of during some of the months and he'd had to rely on his house-elves to get them for him while he was in class. Although some of the things, like ink couldn't be purchased for the full year because it tended to dry out too soon in the bottles and sometimes the ink couldn't be reconstituted with just added water.

"Be sure to be listing what you and students need for youse first teaching class," Winky said.

"That's a separate list that I will give to Professor Snape to review," Harry said. "I have a list of a few books that the students will need as first years. He'll need to approve them first before I submit a syllabus to him, although I think that he might like our combined ideas."

Winky only nodded and then said, "You be makin' a list for Winky wants." He nodded, turned to a fresh page and wrote 'Winky's Wants' at the top. "New threads, wool, silks for weavin'. New cloth bolts for sewing, lotsa colours. Weave machines, small and big, like Winky had in compound."

"Ah," Harry paused and asked. "You've used up everything?"

"Winky be workin' on hobby and cleaning Master's rooms," she said. "Winky be needing to be busy at night when Harry travel. Dobby be gardening, Winky cleaning house, but be needin' more to do."

"I understand," Harry said, making notes on the page. They'd all had a healthy and full routine when they were in the compound. However, it was clear that the house-elves needed to keep a similar kind of routine now that they were about to leave the school. "We'll make a schedule of things that should be done and when for summer time. We'll add time for hobbies and leisure too."

He'd had to make sure that all the house-elves knew the difference between those two. Hobby time was a time when some kind of hobby was like work, but fun to do and therefore that satisfied all the house-elves because they were still working, in sense. Leisure time was do nothing, but what pleased you time. However he had to break it down to reading, learning something completely knew and unrelated to duties or hobbies and finally napping time. They didn't care about television and quite frankly he was kind of please to know that. It was still difficult to get them to relax, but if it's scheduled then they'll do it.

Harry finished part of his list and returned to his sitting room to note that the other two six years were no longer there. They had left behind a small note stating that they'd meet up late in the Room of Requirement to go over a few of their plans for next year's syllabus that Professor Snape had charged them with producing for the classes that they were going to take over. He grinned and took out another notebook where he was keeping track of interesting things to occupy the young minds of the students.

He had a few ideas that he was planning to bring forward and he hoped that the Potions Master of the school would be open to the idea of altering the first year syllabus to incorporate something new.

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The Room of Requirement had seen quite a lot of use during Harry's sixth year of Hogwarts. It had been subjected to intense use by many students who suddenly realized its usefulness only one could never make the room work as intended.

Hermione was irked beyond belief when her precious 'Top of Class' position in all classes, but Transfiguration, Arithmancy and Runes was replaced by Harry, Ron and Draco. In fact those three were completely removed from Potions the word 'Exempted' next to their names with the lists of the exam schedule. That came out on the common room announcement boards and the grand announcements boards next to the Great Hall's entrance.

Ron and Harry had done everything to avoid answering the girl as to why they were suddenly exempted from ever taking Potions at Hogwarts, when Draco, in full Slytherin mode told her. The students were loitering in the Great Hall waiting for the final exam schedule to be posted when he walked up to where they were standing, as she was nagging the two sixth years about the 'Exempted' notice next to their names.

"How is it possible for you, Ron, to be exempted, when you weren't even in Potions this year," Hermione nagged in a tone that was rising in volume. "And you, Harry, how could you be exempted when you missed all of the classes for the past month?"

"Weasley, Potter," he nodded and looked to see that he too had been 'Exempted' from taking the Ministry Potions exams. "Excellent, they recognize genius when they see it."

"You're not a genius in Potions, Malfoy," Hermione hissed out. "So don't stand there acting superior and smug about it." There was a good sized crowd of mixed houses gathering and it might have turned ugly, but they were in the Great Hall, so the Professors were keeping a close watch on the proceedings.

"Sure he is," Ron defended the blonde. The Slytherin looked at him sharply. The redhead looked back at him and stated, "What? It's true! You are a genius in Potions, why would I lie about something like that?" He turned to the irate girl and said, "It doesn't matter why we're exempted. Why care about that all of a sudden?"

"It's not all of a sudden," she groused. "I've been worried about you two."

"Really," Harry said crossing his arms defensively. "So you only now choose to voice your concern when it would have been too late to... what... help us out? Are you daft? Why would we accept your help when you sabotaged us for the past four years of school? We wouldn't have trusted you to help us."

Hermione's face turned beet red and she said, "How dare you accuse me..."

Harry stopped her rant by holding up his hand. He never knew why that move always seemed to work with her, but it did. "This is neither the time nor the place to discuss this. We're exempted and that's that. You don't need to be concerned about our study habits because quite frankly it's not your business."

He looked at the board and grinned slyly at the word 'Exempted' and then left the Great Hall. Ron and Draco nearly mimicked him and left the Hall too before anyone else could comment or try to butt into their business. They didn't care how it looked, as a Slytherin and Gryffindor pair famous for fighting left without even a glance at the other and without any derogatory comments to provoke fighting.

Whispers, mutters and murmurs rose in volume as the students in the Great Hall commented, gossiped, spoke and chatted about the Gryffindor Trio that seemed to have shifted down to one.

Hermione glared at anyone that approached her and she escaped scrutiny by trying to find out how those three became competent enough to be exempted from the Potions portion of their scholastic syllabus. Her only clue had been the Room of Requirement and that's why she was there getting more and more frustrated at its refusal to open up and display room from which the boys had used for learning potions.

Unfortunately for the poor girl the magic of the school could not show a room that didn't exist in normal Earth time. Therefore the school's magic was signalling to all Heads of House that something needed to be done.

Professor Snape was the first to arrive in that corridor and had chosen to hide until the Headmaster and the girl's Head of House appeared to calm the girl down. He still hadn't brought up the girl's underhanded methods of 'aiding' her fellow Gryffindors, but the opportunity was given to him by the comments that the Boy-Who-Lived voiced in the Great Hall.

Many of the students left behind, especially the Gryffindors were wondering what the girl had done, when they recalled the time she had been splashed in the face with her own red ink. They had already come forward on the matter and spoken about it with their Head of House and with the Potions Master of Hogwarts.

In this meantime the magic of the school was building up to a point, where it would have to do something to stop the girl from making further demands to reveal the room and location of the boys' training.

"Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall stepped forward with the Headmaster who was quickly followed by Madam Pomfrey the Medi-Witch of the school. "You will cease this unladylike display and calm down."

"I want the Room to show where the boys learned so much in so little time," Hermione said loudly with her short frizzed hair sticking up all around due to the magic in the air. "They need me. Let me in," she shouted at the blank wall that refused to reveal a door.

"They are not in there Miss Granger," Professor Dumbledore told the girl. "There's no one in the Room of Requirement at this time."

"Then why won't it open up," she asked. "I'm only asking for a room."

"What room are you asking for," Professor McGonagall asked.

"I want the same room that the boys trained in," she stated.

"That's not possible for the Room of Requirement to fulfill," Professor Snape stated.

"Why ever not," she replied. "They were always studying in here."

"Yes," he responded. "But never for the same subject or year."

Hermione blinked a few times in rapid succession and then asked, "What?"

"They were here, but never studied the same subject twice nor were the levels of study the same," Professor McGonagall explained. "The Room was always changed to their needs and therefore it was never just one room during their study sessions. You can't know the 'requirements' they had because each time they were in here they chose a different room."

The Headmaster nodded and said, "You see, child, the Room cannot produce all of those variations at the same time and that's why you can't get a door."

Hermione frowned, looked down to the floor and said, "Oh, I see. I don't suppose I could get a copy of their schedule, Professor McGonagall."

"I'm afraid not," the Head of Gryffindor said. "There's only three weeks left of school and most of that will be spent in exams and various tests. It's too late for you to help the boys, if that was your intention."

"I doubt it," Professor Snape said. "However, I believe that this discussion will have to take place after all exams are concluded and we have the time to review the information."

"Sir, would you mind telling me why Harry and Ron have been exempted from your classes," Hermione asked looking at the man, wondering if he'd tell her the truth.

"Their levels in Potions are currently listed with the International Potions and Alchemists Guild," the Head of Slytherin said. "However if you really want to know...?" The girl nodded, so he told her. "They have full Journeyman status in Potions and have already taken the UK Ministry of Magic's N.E.W.T.s level exams." He paused dramatically, looking at her wide-eyed and disbelieving expression on the Gryffindor's face. He drove the knife home, by saying, "They all passed with double Os, including Mr. Malfoy, and with the highest scores on record. They even beat my old score, which had beaten the previous highest score on Ministry record."

"That's not possible," Hermione said. "That's not true, it's not possible. They can't have passed at those levels. There's no way, that's just not possible."

She kept repeating herself and driving herself up in a fit of hysterics, but that is exactly what the Potions Master had planned. He wanted the girl to incriminate herself, so he withheld the Medi-Witch's need to dose the girl with a calming potion. After a minute of the girl getting more hysterical, he nodded to her Head of House to pose the pointed question as planned.

"Why do you believe that they'd never pass the N.E.W.T.s level exam," Professor McGonagall asked.

"They'd fail because they always boiled un-mashed black-eyed daisy roots and always mix up fennel seed and feed weed pods in every brewing process," she said with candour. "I always made sure that's the process they used and always changed their essays to reflect..." She stopped looked at the Potions Master and her Head of House with wide eyes. She gulped and then stammered, "I...I... mean that..."

"It no longer matter Miss Granger," Professor Snape said. "I've received statements and evidence that you were miss-informing your fellow students. If it were up to me, I'd see you expelled for such actions."

"Ah," Professor Dumbledore said, interrupting the anger that the Potions Master felt. "It is not up to you Severus." He turned to give Professor McGonagall a serious non-twinkling look.

The Head of Gryffindor House found her position in this matter distasteful and yet she had to prevent the girl from doing further damage. "Hermione Granger," she began calling forth some of her access to the school's magic. "You are forthwith stripped of your Prefect status," she said taking the magic pin off of the girl's robes. "You are charged with giving out false information to your fellow students and did so with an authority not handed to you by this school, therefore you're suspended from this school upon completion of your final exam and for the first month of your seventh year. You are prohibited from offering any form of assistance to 'any' student attending this school."

The school's magic whirled around the shocked girl and sank into her. The outcome of such magical working always affected the offender in various ways, but she won't know until the beginning of her next year at Hogwarts.

"Severus," Minerva said, as he allowed the Medi-Witch to take charge of the hysterically shocked girl. "Do you think you could administer her exam before the other students?"

"Only if she believes herself prepared to take it," the Potions Master said.

Hermione developed a gleam in her eye. She brushed off the Madam Pomfrey's assistance to calm her down. "I can take any exam that you give me, Professor Snape," she said with venom. "You tell me when and where and I'll be there."

Severus quirked an eyebrow up and he looked to the Headmaster who nodded. He looked quickly to the girl's Head of House who nodded her own agreement that there was a need to get the girl out of the school quickly before she did further damage. "Very well," he said turning back to the girl. "Tomorrow morning, immediately after breakfast, at 7:30 am, you will be in classroom, delta-five, next to the main potions classroom. You will begin with the written exam at the desk in the room and only once the written portion is complete will you attempt the potion listed on the board. Understood?"

She blanched a bit thinking that she'd have a day or two to study, but that was no longer the case. She stubbornly raised her chin and said, "Of course. I'll be there. Now, if you'll excuse me I have a few things to brush up on."

She walked away from her disappointed Head of House, the disappointed Headmaster and the somewhat vindictive, slightly happy, Head of Slytherin. You can't fault the man for enjoying the downfall of someone that consistently insisted that their answers were correct.

Minerva turned to the Potions Master and said, "Do you have the statements and proof?"

"I do," he said honestly. "Copies have been sent to bother of your offices this morning for the girl's scholastic and personal files."

"Thank you," she said with a sad sigh. "I'm going to need them in order to Owl the girl's parents regarding this matter."

"Will you be all right, my dear," the Headmaster asked. She nodded and so he patted her hand in commiseration at the distasteful outcome of the event and then he walked away from the Room of Requirements' corridor. He had a few pressing matters to take care of.

"Do you need a drink," Severus asked the two ladies still present.

"Please," Minerva said. Poppy nodded her agreement because this was the first that she had seen a Prefect lose their badge.

The man offered the ladies both arms and guided them to the currently empty staff room. He called forth one of his house-elves to fetch the better brew of Scotch that he kept on hand for such an occasion. One quick shot was swallowed for effect before the glasses were refilled for slow sipping. It allowed for the body to be shocked into relaxing and let the conversation in the flow in a slow contemplative manner.

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The magics of the school were very specific and flowed mostly along the same lines as those of someone in the medical profession. 'Do no harm', being the biggest condition. Still that didn't stop the girl from trashing up her dorm room and destroying many things that didn't belong to her.

The house-elves cleaned up her mess and mentioned it to the Head of Gryffindor House, but the woman only took action the following day after the girl had finished her final exam for the year. She met the girl coming out of the room, reeking cut up potions ingredients.

"Hermione Granger," Professor McGonagall said getting the girl's attention. "You have fifteen minutes wash up and to meet me at the entrance of the school. You need bother packing as the house-elves have done so for you, so your luggage is waiting for you."

Hermione had no choice. She walked quickly to the nearest loo in order to clean up as best she could before using the facilities. She'd need to do that now, as she was not certain how long she'd have to wait for the train to pick her up at Hogsmeade.

While washing up she was horrified to realize that she couldn't take out any books from the library for the summer, but she knew that she could write the Madam Pince for them. So it was with her head held up that she met her Head of House and was escorted, much to her shame directly to her parents house via Port-Key.

Professor McGonagall has sent an express Owl to her parents and they were both home waiting for their daughter to return.

Hermione gulped and sat down in one chair as her Head of House handed a scroll to her parents. Before leaving the quaint muggle home she said, "You've been suspended an additional two weeks from the beginning of the next year and you'll have to pray to Merlin that someone will be willing to lend you accurate notes in order to catch up to the other seventh years. See next September."

The haughty know-it-all girl then looked at her parents and there was a look of such disappointment in their eyes that she knew her summer would not be filled with trips to exotic locals this year.

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The end of the boys' sixth year was made more pleasant by the fact that they had solid summer plans. They were also pleased to be rid of Hermione and that the Headmaster's plans for Harry had fallen through the cracks.

They weren't certain about what would happen during the summer upon their visit to the Elven world, but they were all looking forward to it, even Severus Snape, who had elected to travel with Harry for most of the summer.

Ron and Draco had their own thoughts on that matter, but kept it to themselves. They knew that that situation would resolve itself in due course. They were looking forward to hearing about that whenever it chanced to happen.

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THE END