average human’s Reviews > Expecto Patronum > Status Update

“He’s fighting with Mavis,” Theodore smirked. “If Mavis appears with a bunch of pizzas and tarts then you know Harry lost.”

A few people snickered at Theodore’s description. And, when Harry stormed out the back door of his house a few minutes later, his house-elf following behind him with a levitated stack of pizzas and desserts, most of the students broke out in full on laughter.

“Shut up,” Harry snapped, throwing himself in his chair. “Rule one for meetings, no fuckin’ laughing.”

Remus shared a look with Sirius and they both bit their lips to prevent laughing at that. Harry was the leader of their odd group, but he was also still a teenager with an unfortunate penchant for foul language and anger.

“Yes sir,” Johnathan Abbott gave Harry a sarcastic salute.

“I thought rule one was no food allowed at the meeting table?” Luna asked. If it had been anyone aside from Luna who asked in such a sweetly innocent tone Remus doubted if Harry wouldn’t have cursed them. As it was he did narrow his eyes at Luna and flatten his lips disdainfully. Luna continued smiling sweetly at Harry while everyone accepted slices of pizza and pieces of tarts until Harry finally gave in.

“You’re on thin ice,” he warned Luna with no real heat to his voice. In fact, Remus thought Harry never really looked as affectionately at anyone as he did Luna, even when she had been purposefully taunting him a bit.

“May we begin?” Hermione asked.

Harry nodded and shuffled the papers in front of him. “Go ahead Mione.”

Hermione sat up straight and smiled over at Harry before facing the rest of the table with a Minerva-like look of seriousness.

“We have a few new people,” she said primly. “When I say your name please stand so the rest of the group knows who you are. Johnathan Abbott.”

Johnathan stood up and raised his hand in a lazy wave. “Johnny,” he drawled.

Remus briefly wondered how Johnathan had gotten the job at the DMLE. Last he knew they were rather stringent about pre-employment testing for illicit substances and the blonde haired young man across the table smelled like he always had when Remus was his professor, like marijuana with a faint scent of whiskey.

Though, the sly grins shared between Amelia Bones’ niece and Johnathan may have something to do with it.

“Thank you,” Hermione told him. “Fleur Delacour.”

“Bonjour,” Fleur stood and smiled across the table. “Zank you for ‘aving me.”

Harry positively beamed at Fleur, leaving no doubt that she was a much welcomed addition.

“Blue Ritters?”

The grim faced Hit Wizard seated next to Bartemius stood up stiffly. He was average height, a bit thinner than Remus had seen in most Hit Wizards, and had topaz eyes that were much harder than his youthful face appeared to support.

“He’s Johnny’s partner in the DMLE,” Sirius whispered to Remus. “Harry says he swore in when Tonks did.”

“Here,” Blue said in a deep voice.

“Is Blue your real name?” Blaise leant forward to raise a curious brow at the Wizard.

“Is Zabini yours?” Blue asked drily.

“Touché.” Blaise leaned back in his chair and smiled politely at Hermione. “Apologies. Go ahead.”

“Nymphadora Tonks.”

“Wotcher!” Nymphadora leapt to her feet eagerly, knocking her chair over in the process, drawing a chuckle from Neville and an exasperated sigh from Narcissa.

Nymphadora glanced towards the end of the table where Narcissa was seated and Remus was surprised to see a faint blush stain her cheeks. “Just Tonks,” she said as she rightened her chair and resumed her seat.

“That’s it for the new members,” Hermione continued along gracefully, not drawing attention to ‘just Tonks’’ clumsiness. “And we’re only missing Juliana Zabini-“

“Who sends her love and assurance that she’s ready to come help you kill Timmy the moment you’re ready,” Blaise told Harry.

“-and Viktor Krum,” Hermione gave Blaise an unimpressed look at his interruption.

“Viktor eez in Lagos for a Quidditch match,” Fleur said, drawing the word quidditch out slowly as she pronounced it. “‘E says ‘e will return ‘ere eef ‘Arry tells him to.”

“Okay great.” Hermione looked down at a paper Harry slid to her, then over at Harry, before rolling her eyes. “The first thing on our agenda just says ‘wolf’ so I’m guessing that means you Professor Lupin.”

Sirius snorted, either amused by Harry’s list or by Hermione’s title for Remus. Either way, Remus felt nervous as everyone turned their attention on him.

Students in a classroom watching him during a lecture or demonstration? No problem. 18 people looking curiously at Remus for an explanation on his recent meeting with a werewolf pack during an alliance meeting discussing war tactics? Stressful.

Don’t choke, he told himself firmly as he sat up straight, suddenly wishing he had worn something nicer than his old cardigan.

“You can call me Remus,” Remus told Hermione with a small smile. “But okay... wolves...” Sirius nudged Remus’ foot with his, encouraging him silently. “Well I found one pack, like we talked about last time,” Remus said. “And there’s about nine adults, four children, and one infant-“

“Zere eez a werewolf babe?” Fleur gasped.

“No, no,” Remus shook his head hastily with a frown. “Or at least they don’t know yet. Both parents are inflicted, so nobody knows what the baby will be like.”

Remus had spent the weekend with the werewolf pack as they moved in to Moon Lodge. He and Sirius took their time getting to know them and ensuring they were comfortable and provided for. Remus felt nothing but respect for Ricardo once he revealed that he voluntarily turned after his son was attacked. ‘My son still needed a father’, he had said.

Remus wondered how different his life may have been if he had a father who loved him that much. A father who built a pack to ensure his son was surrounded by those of similar ‘culture’. Ricardo and his family didn’t view their infliction as a disease, they only saw it as a hardship to be overcome. It was admirable and Remus envied them for their optimism.

But despite his adoration of baby Gizelle, and his blossoming friendship with her parents, Remus was still horrified that Hector and Suzette risked having her. For her birth wasn’t an accident as he had initially thought it may have been. It was Remus’ worst fear, to father children who could be inflicted as he was. Thankfully Sirius never expressed any interest in children and they would have to adopt, or use a surrogate, if he ever did.

“Ooh, apologies,” Fleur smiled brightly at Remus. “Go ahead.”

“Well, like I said, there’s fourteen all together settled in the house because the nine adults all agreed to not join Albus or ‘Timmy’,” Remus felt ridiculous using the nickname Harry gave Voldemort but he knew Harry would just correct him if he said anything different anyway. At the news of the complete neutrality Susan Bones let out a quiet but victorious whoop and Harry smirked smugly, quite pleased with themselves.

“And how many agreed to my terms?” Severus asked. Remus saw as Harry’s attention snapped across the long table to his guardian, his head tilted as he studied Severus with a now blank face that must be masking his confusion.

“Your terms?” Harry asked him. “What are you talking about?”

“I instructed the Wolf to present the idea to the ‘pack’,” Severus sneered the word, “of joining your alliance.”

“A galleon that Harry says gang,” Ronald whispered quietly to Blaise, Blaise and Remus being the only two to hear him.

“It’s a gang,” Harry corrected him, Remus heard a small sigh and Ronald was grinning at betting correctly.

“What did you offer them in return?” Susan asked Severus. Remus was happy that the two of them were now looking at Severus with their inquisitive faces and wary eyes. He hadn’t known that Severus never told Harry of his offer.

“I simply told them I would provide the Wolfsbane Potion to any that swear to your cause,” Severus inspected his nails as he spoke nonchalantly. As if it wasn’t an incredibly kind thing of him to offer. “How many accepted the offer Lupin?”

“Seven,” Remus said. “I only offered it to the nine legal adults-“ though the teenage girl Sky had been entirely prepared to join and fight if he had allowed it, “-and one of the adults, the pack leaders wife, isn’t inflicted but she swore on anyway.”

“You’re giving them Wolfsbane?” Harry asked Severus.

“I am.”

Remus thought it was nothing less than Severus deserved as Harry looked across at him with respect glowing in his green eyes.

It was Nymphadora who replied to Severus’ kindness first though.

“That’s amazing!” she said, turning a bright smile down the table to Severus. “I don’t know anyone who would do something like that. And to think that some people think you hate everyone.”

“I do,” Severus scowled.

Nymphadora just laughed, as if entertained by the mere notion of Severus hating people, which Remus was certain was nothing less than the absolute truth. If Harry were not a key target of Voldemort’s, Remus was sure that Severus would never have made such an offer. Even if it was unprecedentedly kind, it wasn’t without (understandable) underlying motives.

“You’re brill Sev,” Harry cut in happily before Nymphadora could speak again. Remus wondered how Harry evaded Gryffindor when Severus bared his teeth at the nickname. “I’d like to see Timmy try and fight us with seven fully grown werewolves on our side.”

“The Dark Lord has recruited werewolves as well,” Lucius Malfoy said slowly, causing Harry to abruptly lose his smile. “Though not that many.”

“That brings us to our next topic then; ‘spy reports’,” Hermione cut off Lucius with a decisive nod. “Please tell us what all you have learned this summer Mister Malfoy.”

If Remus lived to be a thousand years old he would always remember this day. Lucius Malfoy being interrupted, then bossed around, by a bushy haired, petite, fifteen year old, muggleborn witch. A muggleborn witch who Remus just noticed was wearing a Ravenclaw prefect badge pinned to her blouse.

He smiled at that as he had a fond memory of refusing to take off his own prefect badge from the moment he got it to the moment Sirius tried to hide it from him on their first night of fifth year.

“Very well,” Lucius sniffed and adopted a haughty tone as he spoke. “The Dark Lord- I must call him that lest I slip up and call him ‘Timmy’ to his face-“ he hissed at Harry who had opened his mouth to undoubtedly correct him. “-is entirely focused on obtaining the prophecy and getting an understanding of Mister Potter. He is quite unsettled by the events that unraveled in May.”

“What exactly did happen in May?” Blue cut in. “I’d like to hear the truth now that I’ve sworn in.”

Eighteen heads swiveled to Harry, most of them looking blatantly curious; though Severus looked bored and Fred stared down at the table instead.

“Timmy came back to life, we dueled, then we left.” Harry shrugged after that downplayed explanation. “Nothing crazy.”

Severus and Sirius both snorted, then both appeared similarly mortified at their simultaneous responses.

“You also taunted him in Parsletongue, wielded an unholy amount of wandless and silent power, and overall have driven him to further madness,” Lucius drawled to Harry. “And thus he is obsessed with understanding you and he believes the prophecy may hold the answers.”

“Pft,” Harry scoffed as his friends snickered. “Well let’s let him waste his time with that, yeah? We can just focus on killing him.”

“Which we do how?” Theodore asked.

“I’m not sure,” Bartemius said slowly. “He... he’s unable to die.”

Remus suddenly, and uncomfortably, remembered that up until a few months ago, Bartemius had been an active Death Eater.

“Everyone can be killed,” Johnathan smirked. “You’ve just gotta figure out how. Right Harry?”

Harry smiled sharply at his friend and raised one shoulder, “I suppose so. Nobody’s ever really tried to kill me though.”

Everyone, and Remus means everyone, gave Harry an incredulous look.

“Quirrell...” Susan said.

“Basilisk...” Ronald said.

“Lestrange...” Draco said.

“Black...” Neville said.

“Oi! I was not trying to kill him!” Sirius protested.

“Ze dragon...” Fleur said.

“Timmy...” Theo said.

“...twice...” Hermione said.

“Harry doesn’t count those,” Luna said.

“Why not?” Fred asked quietly, keeping his eyes on the table as he spoke up for the first time that afternoon.

“Because they weren’t very good attempts, were they?” Harry grinned cockily, causing Lucius, Sirius, Severus, and Remus to all either groan or scoff.

“Can we stay on task?” Severus asked. “Or would we rather take a charming trip down memory lane and rehash the many different attempts on Harry’s life?”

“Stay on task,” Susan said. “Sirius and Tonks next, what’s up with Dumbledore’s Order?”

“Same thing,” Sirius said with a shrug. “He’s focused on the prophecy, but...” Sirius hesitated for a moment. “But Albus asked me if I thought Harry would be willing to meet with him this year. I said he’d have to ask Harry that, but I think it seems like he’s looking to bring you to the Order.”

“He can fuckin’ try,” Harry snarled, his eyes flashing with genuine hatred.

“He’s also mad because Fudge is hiring the defense teacher this year,” Nymphadora said, eager to share some sort of relevant information. “He said he couldn’t find one because of the curse on the position.”

“You mean Harry,” Blaise smirked.

“Harry is not a curse,” Narcissa said gently. “He is a blessing.”

Sirius snorted, then covered it with a cough, and when Harry looked unconvinced by his cough he just laughed.

“Sorry Pup,” he grinned at his godson with a teasing sparkle in his grey eyes. “I think you’re a gift for sure though.”

“Piss off,” Susan glowered at Sirius.

“I already knew that about Fudge hiring someone,” Harry waved off Sirius and Susan, as used to their bickering as Remus now was. “He’s bringing in his Undersecretary so she can try and find a way to fire Dumbledore.”

As much as Remus knew that Harry disliked Albus, for good reasons, he still felt uncomfortable with the idea of Hogwarts without him. It was like imagining chocolate without sugar.

“Anything else on the agenda?” Theo asked Hermione while everyone tried to wrap their minds around Dumbledore being removed from Hogwarts. Hermione flicked through her parchments and shook her head.

“That’s all we had for today,” she said.

“So- we need to find out how to kill Timmy, we’ve got a pack on our side, and everyone else is worried about a dumb prophecy, am I forgetting anything?” Nobody said anything for a moment so Harry nodded. “Brill. If Timmy’s still alive in March then let’s meet over Easter Break. Everyone bring some ideas on how to start killing him and his followers, yeah?”

Nobody argued with that so Hermione spoke quickly about people’s ‘assignments’. Apparently Remus was in charge of keeping the werewolf pack happy, Sirius was meant to continue spying on the Order, Lucius on Voldemort, and the DMLE employees on their fellow workers.

Bartemius was given the impossible task of deciphering a way to kill Voldemort while Severus was told to ‘just keep up the good work’.

Harry then dismissed everyone with a cheery dismissal that Remus thought was a bit out of place given the situation.

At the dismissal Remus saw as Harry slumped in his seat, his expression relaxing. During the meeting Harry had appeared years older than simply fifteen. Nobody questioned Harry’s right to lead the meetings as he sat at the head of the table and looked on with a war-hardened gaze in a battle-hardened face. Now that he relaxed, even just slightly, Remus could see the weariness he wore in the smudges beneath his eyes and the lines around his mouth.

Just as Remus didn’t think being Harry Potter’s guardian was all that many thought it would be, he also didn’t think being Harry Potter must be very conducive to relaxation either.

“I’m gonna go talk to Harry, are you coming?” Sirius asked as the two of them got to their feet.

“No,” Remus waved him off. “I need to speak with Severus.”

“Have fun then,” Sirius winked before transforming in to a dog and bounding off towards Harry.

Remus watched as Sirius leapt up on Harry, putting his massive paws on him, before jumping back down again and wagging his tail as Harry laughed. Remus wished that he could develop a relationship with Harry that was that light and relaxed, instead he had the ongoing job of counseling Harry. A task he really had no idea how hard it would be, how reticent Harry was, when he accepted it.

Remus shook off his envy and moved towards the backdoor where Severus was speaking in low tones with Bartemius.

“You have the list?” Severus demanded once he spotted Remus, leaving no time for a pleasant greeting.

“Here it is,” Remus barely withheld the urge to roll his eyes. As much as they had grown and matured, Severus still seemed able to bring up Remus’ more juvenile reactions. “The six adult werewolves who swore in and the three inflicted cubs.” Remus included the information on Baby Gizelle on the list, though her parents said she had no further reaction during the full moons than incessantly crying according to Marietta who watched over her.

Severus glanced over Remus’ meticulous list, Bartemius reading curiously over his shoulder.

“Very well,” he pocketed the parchment. “I will have their potions delivered to the address Harry gave me before the next full moon.”

Severus turned his back to Remus, obviously intent on ending the conversation, just as Nymphadora came jogging up to the three of them.

“Hello,” she grinned at Remus before turning to Severus and Bartemius. “Tonks.” She held a hand out that Bartemius accepted easily, though Severus simply raised both brows.

“You might not remember me but I was in your class,” Nymphadora told Severus.

“It would be difficult to forget the blue haired bringer of chaos,” Severus said drily. “As I believe you knocked over my shelves of ingredients at least twice a month.”

Nymphadora shrugged, Severus’ contempt rolling right off her. “I’m a bit clumsy,” she admitted. “But I’ve gotten better.” Severus raised a questioning brow at that, clearly remembering how she had knocked over her chair earlier.

“Indeed,” was all said though.

“I’m much better at brewing too,” Nymphadora said quickly. “And I was going to see if you wanted an assistant.”

All three men gaped at her. Well, Remus and Bartemius gaped while Severus looked scornful.

“No.”

“I’m just gonna go...” Remus trailed off to think of an excuse to leave the conversation, then realized nobody was listening anyway so he shrugged and just walked away.

“Why not?” He heard Nymphadora ask Severus as he hastened over by the broomshed.

“Why not what?” Severus sighed.

Remus had no idea what house Nymphadora had been in, but she must be incredibly brave, or very dim, to continue pressing the issue. He leaned against the broomshed and watched as he shamelessly utilized his enhanced hearing to eavesdrop.

“Why don’t you want an assistant? It must be difficult to do all that brewing on your own. Lonely too,” Nymphadora said. Remus could see that she was giving Severus an odd half-smile, her eyes never wavering from his.

“I prefer to brew alone. Loneliness is better than dealing with incompetence,” Severus said coolly. “If you’ll ex-“

“What do you prefer to do not alone?”

Remus choked on his own saliva at Nymphadora’s coy tone and suddenly he saw what he had missed until now.

Nymphadora had not been looking at Narcissa when she was embarrassed by knocking over her chair, nor had she been flirting with Remus earlier. Remus misunderstood her. She said ‘you’re both young and good-looking.’

Remus watched with unabashed amusement as Severus looked increasingly confused by the attention he was receiving from Nymphadora while he waited for Sirius to finish talking with Harry and Susan.

Remus saw that Bartemius had slyly backed away from Severus and Nymphadora and was also watching with an amused light in his blue eyes.

“What’s so funny?” Sirius asked when he eventually came back to Remus’ side.

“Nothing,” Remus said hastily. Sirius may have gotten over his petty feud with Severus-

’Well it’s not like I’m going to curse the guy who cares so much for Harry,’ Sirius huffed after Severus delivered their monthly potions. ‘He’s doing us both a big favor with these potions too. Even if he is still a stuck up arsehole.’

-but he wouldn’t test this newfound civility by pointing out his cousin was making eyes and taking passes at Severus.

Sirius glanced over to where Nymphadora was laughing merrily at something (incredibly sarcastic and scornful) that Severus must have said while Severus raised a single brow at the witch.

Remus waited as Sirius cocked his head and watched for a moment as Nymphadora put a hand on Severus’ arm and said something indecipherable in a low tone.

“Let’s go home Moony,” Sirius finally said, shaking his head and wrinkling his forehead in thought.

***

19%

AHHH I LOVE ALL THE NEW RELATIONSHIPS/ CRUSHES BLOOMING

“I love you,” Draco said instead. He gave his mother a tight hug, a bit desperately as he worried about her safety since they left the manor. “You’ll be in the same place as before?” he asked her cryptically.

“Of course.” Draco’s mother caressed his cheek for a moment before giving him a gentle push towards the train. “Go now Dragon, go find your friends. I love you.”

Draco gave his mother a last smile before he slowly sauntered towards the train. He wanted to run, pushing between the crowd, as many other students did. But ‘traitor’ or not, Draco would never disappoint his father with such behavior.

Though he did yell once he spotted a group of redheads, “Weasley!”

Ron, and his brothers, all three turned around. Only Ron smiled over at his friend though.

“Hey mate,” he slung an awkwardly long arm over Draco’s shoulders. “You miss me?” he joked.

“Like an infected wound,” Draco said drily. Truthfully, he had missed Ron rather more than he had expected. But as the adults in the Weasley family were cozying up to Dumbledore in the Black family home, get togethers hadn’t been possible much this past summer.

“Ready to go then?” Ron asked. “Blaise, Luna, and Nev just went to find us a compartment. I haven’t seen Theo, Hermione, Susan, or Harry yet.” One of the Twins, Fred probably, picked his head up and looked around the platform with dopey hope in his eyes at Harry’s name.

“I’m sure they’re together, wherever they are.” Draco rolled his eyes at Fred, not that he saw as he was probably looking for Harry.

It was pathetic.

“You look ridiculous,” he told him. “Harry’s never going to take you back if you keep acting so heartbroken.”

“He is heartbroken you arse,” the other twin, George, snapped. “Lay off.”

“Fine.” Draco turned his head and scoffed. “Feel free to keep looking so pathetic, I’m sure Harry will love it.” He turned on his heel and strode off to the train, Ron slinking up beside him.

“You didn’t have to be so hateful,” he muttered. “Fred’s having a rough go.”

“And it’s only going to be rougher if he doesn’t get it together,” Draco said. “Think about it; do you think Harry wants to see him looking so sad all the time? No. If Fred ever wants to win Harry back, he has to do it however he did it the first time.”

Which, in Draco’s opinion, must have been an absolute miracle. Because Harry was powerful, brilliant, cunning, and destined to kill a Dark Lord.

Fred was...

Well, Draco wasn’t sure what Harry saw in Fred. He certainly wasn’t Draco’s type. Not like...

“Hello boys.”

Draco valiantly fought down the blush that wanted to appear in his pale cheeks as Luna stuck her head out of a compartment and smiled merrily at them.

“Hey Luna,” Ron smiled back at the younger witch. “Anyone ever find the rest of the gang?”

“Hermione, Susan, and Harry had to go to a prefects meeting,” she said. “But I did find Theo, I think he’s a bit traumatized at losing Hermione.”

“I am not,” Theo denied hotly as Ron and Draco entered the compartment. “And she’s not ‘lost’ Lue, she’s at a meeting. It’s fine.”

“He’s jealous,” Luna sang softly in Draco’s ear.

Normally, Draco would love to jump in on teasing Theo, who did actually look jealous, with Luna. But he was mad at Luna. So he wouldn’t.

“How was your summer?” he asked Theo, turning his back to Luna.

“Terrible,” Theo sighed and slumped down. “I really think Harry might accidentally kill me next summer.”

Ron and Blaise laughed, but Draco and Neville gave Theo sympathetic looks.

Draco had no idea how Luna responded because he was not speaking to her. Or looking at her. If she didn’t want to answer his letter, then he could pretend she was merely a ghost.

“You could come stay with us in Italy if you’d like,” Draco offered Theo. He thought Harry was a bit mad, so if Theo was worried about his safety, it probably wasn’t without due cause. “It’s beautiful there.”

“I’m not moving,” Theo scowled. “I’m just saying maybe you could tell your father not to keep buying Harry weapons. Did you know he has a bloody king cobra snake now?!”

Draco did not know that. But now that he did, he looked around the compartment eagerly for a sign of it. Harry probably had it on him though... Draco would if he had such a unique and powerful pet.

“Did he bring it?” Neville asked, his eyes wide and worried. “Snape’s going to kill him.”

“Snape told him he couldn’t bring it unless he found a good way to hide it, and last I saw it was still in our room. But you know Harry,” Theo crossed his arms and furrowed his brows in irritation. “It’ll probably be our new dorm mate by the end of term.”

“You think he’ll put it in our room?” Ron gulped.

“Ooh, I hope so.” Draco felt a bit wistful at the idea of the fifth year boys having such an amazing creature nearby to study. “And Harry can translate our conversations! We could actually talk to a snake!”

Ron, Blaise, and Theo did not share Draco’s enthusiasm. Which was fine. Because Luna would.

“Luna-“ Draco cut himself off as he spun in his seat to pull Luna in to the conversation.

In his momentary excitement about the snake, he nearly forgot that he wasn’t speaking to Luna.

“Nevermind then,” Draco scowled. “Neville how was your summer?”

The six of them settled comfortably as they talked, and laughed, and discussed their summers. It was different without part of their group, particularly without Harry being there, but not in a bad way. Just different. Perhaps a bit quieter? Or calmer?

At a minimum, wen the trolley lady stopped by, with Harry being at his meeting still, they were able to purchase candies for the first time ever. The trolley lady looked around their compartment suspiciously before she offered it to them though, which Draco found to be rude and Neville thought was hilarious.

Ron and Blaise were in the middle of a contest to see who could land the most beans in Neville’s open mouth (Blaise was winning) when the new prefects finally returned.

“She sold you guys candy?” Harry asked incredulously, his eyes on the pile of sweets they still had.

“They didn’t threaten her at wand point first year,” Susan said. She sat down on the floor beside Luna and immediately grabbed a pumpkin pastry.

“Merlin, she holds a grudge, doesn’t she?” Harry laughed and moved to the same seat he’s rode in every year so far.

“Well! Tell us about the meeting!” Blaise cried with a blinding smile. “Prefects Potter, Bones, and Granger.”

“And tell us how Susan and Harry got the badges,” Ron smirked. “Worst troublemakers in the school they are.”

“Me?” Harry blinked at Ron innocently. “Harry Potter? The Boy Who Lived? Special Services Award holder? Triwizard Champion? Order of Merlin Second Class? Can’t imagine what you mean by ‘troublemaker’.”

“You, Harry Potter, Boy Who Lived, who broke in to a chamber to stab a basilisk with a sword, who got in a contest despite being too young, who killed a man in a graveyard and stole his knife. Yes, you,” Hermione ticked off each of Harry’s counter-actions and their gang laughed as Harry conceded the point with a shrug and a snatch of a chocolate frog.

“Who else got it?” Theo asked Hermione. Draco turned his head as the two of them snuggled on the bench. He wished they would show a little bit more class, their whole ‘terrifically in love’ bit could be exhausting. Unfortunately, when he turned his head away from Theo and Hermione, he saw Luna.

Who he was no longer speaking to.

“Harry and Daphne Greengrass for Slytherin, me and Anthony Goldstein for Ravenclaw, Susan and Ernie Macmillan-“

“Ugh, not that git,” Ron groaned.

“I know,” Harry rolled his eyes. “But he won’t even talk around me, will he? You should have seen his face when I walked in.” The rest of them chuckled and then Hermione finished her list.

“And Dean Thomas and Lavender Brown for Gryffindor.”

“Why couldn’t McGonagall have picked Neville?” Draco scowled. “Thomas is an idiot.”

“Dumbledore picked,” Theo said quietly.

“No, the heads of houses did,” Harry told him.

Theo didn’t argue, but Draco had a feeling that perhaps Theo knew more than Harry did.