Well, time for an udpate. Thanks Wolf, for posting, . The next one is longer, and the reunion progresses...

Hope you like it


Many turns in the Slytherin Way


The Feast began at nine, but it took time before the guests all found their seats. Many former students hadn't seen each other for years, so, there were some cheerful reunions that needed to settle down before a semblance of order could fall on the Great Hall.
But finally, Harry and his year’s friends were all sitting at the Gryffindor table. Harry looked around him, completely astonished.
The Great Hall was four times larger than it once was, as it had been enhanced by magic, to offer enough room for everyone. He was sitting facing Ron and Hermione, while Neville, Seamus and Dean were sitting on his side of the table. Seamus was facing Lavender. Harry looked around for Parvati Patil, as she never was too far from Lavender at school, but there was no sign of her.
He was about to ask Lavender about her when the door of the Great hall opened one more time, to leave passage to some more guests who looked in a hurry and rather embarrassed to be late. And among them, Parvati made an entrance that didn't go unnoticed. Harry was suddenly struck by the vision she offered. She was walking with as much dignity as she could muster, while still trying to get to her seat quickly. Lavender waved at her and Parvati saw their group. She took her seat beside her and waved to everyone. She had been in touch with most of them since leaving Hogwarts, butHarry hadn't seen her in at least three years.
Ron snapped in front of Harry’s face.
“Are you okay, mate?” he asked, looking worried.
“What? Er... yeah; I’m fine,” he said.
He was still under some kind of shock. At one point he crossed eyes with Parvati, and she smiled at him. He found himself blushing before he could help it. He was feeling rather odd. And a thought was spinning in his mind.
He had forgotten that Parvati Patil was so beautiful.
Some memories rose in his mind. Dean muttering “I still can’t work out how you two got the best-looking girls in the year,” when Harry and Ron were taking the Patil twins to the Yule Ball in fourth year. He had to admit now that it was true. If He hadn’t been so obsessed with Cho Chang at the time, he would have seen how lucky he had been, and he wouldn’t have screwed all the evening up.
“What’s the matter, Harry?” asked Hermione.
“I was just thinking on how much you can be an idiot when you’re fourteen,” he said distractedly, still having his eyes riveted to Parvati’s face. She was explaining how her work at Hogsmeade made her so late.
Hermione followed his look and suddenly she seemed to understand. She had a twisted smile, which she refused to explain to Ron.
Harry went back to earth when the current students made their entry. They were looking around rather excited and impressed by the new look of the Hall. Some students passing before the famous wizards began to point out and whisper excitedly. Harry was relieved that he got as many fingers as the others Quidditch players. A lot of young wizards, at the Ravenclaw table, began a little fight to decide who would get the empty seat beside Cho Chang. She and Harry exchanged one long look. Harry winked and Cho chuckled a little. Then she pointed out to Parvati with a smile, which looked a lot like Hermione’s and Harry blushed again, realizing that his reaction could have been seen by everyone at the Ravenclaw table.
One student took his seat at the left side of Harry, looking a little impressed. He nodded humbly to the older people around him and then he saw who he was seating beside. His eyes seemed to pop out of his head, and he went rather pale, then red, then pale again.
“You... you’re Harry Potter!” he said, with an almost dead voice.
“i'm afraid I am,” said Harry, embarrassed by his shock.
His friends were all highly amused, apparently.
“You… you’re my hero!” the kid went on.
Harry smiled uncomfortably to the young boy. That was even worse than what he had feared. The idea that most of these kids would act like that with him made the week end look a lot less entertaining. Everybody around was looking at him, some sniggering at the thought he would be as embarrassed as the young boy, who seemed in his second year.
“I mean, you’re the greatest seeker of the Century!” said the boy, more excited than ever, as he found his voice again.
Harry eyes widened. His old reluctance to face his fame as the Boy who lived had been quick to resurface, and the boy only wanted to talk about Quiddtich!? Harry was so relieved he chuckled.
“I'm sure that's an exaggeration,” he said, smiling.
“Oh, I wish I had your card, so you could sign it!” said the boy.
“My card?” Harry said, turning to the others.
“You didn’t know?” Ron said, and he started to laugh.
“You were added in the Chocolate frogs Collection,” explained Hermione, as Ron was still hammering the table with his fist, laughing even louder at every second.
“I was WHAT?” Harry burst out loudly, drawing all the sights again.
Parvati looked at him with a smile, and when he crossed her eyes, she blushed! What on earth was going on? Harry had the feeling the situation was getting really out of hand. How could he deal both with a fan and his new impressions on Parvati?
“You think you could sign my card later?” asked the boy, shyly.
“Hum! Well, of course, If you like,” said Harry, getting a grip on himself, finally.
The boy seemed to be offered a wonderful Christmas present.
“Are you a Creevey?” asked Ron under his breath. But the second year caught it.
“No,” said the boy, without understanding. “I’m James McDonald. What’s a Creevay?”
Ron burst again into laughing and Hermione gave him a look that reminded Harry strongly of McGonagall.
“Doesn’t matter, boy,” said Ron, wiping tears from his eyes. “So, what do you want to do when you’re older?”
“Er… I’d like to become an Animagus. “My father is one the seven registered. He can change himself into an eagle. I’d love to do the same.”
“That’s a nice prospect,” said Hermione, smiling kindly at the wkid, while trying to kick her husband in the shins.. “Did you talk about Professor McGonagall about it? She’s an Animagus herself; she could tell how to become one.”
“Well, my father told me you had to be very good in transfiguration,” James said. “ And that it was very rare to become one in the school years, so I guess I'm not in a hurry.”
Harry thought about another James, who had achieved it.
“Honestly,” he said. “If you work hard enough, that is possible. I knew an animagus who became one in his third year in Hogwarts.”
“Really?” asked James, fascinated. “Who?”
“My father,” said Harry, refusing to think of Sirius now. “He was changing into a stag”.
“Cool!” said James.
Somehow, this conversation did a lot to show Harry that Voldemort’s days were gone for good. This young boy was more interested in becoming an Animagus than in becoming a Dark Wizard hunter. He knew Harry more for his exploits on the Quidditch pitch than for his battle against the Dark Lord. The wizarding world was getting back to normal. And that thought was really reassuring.


----------------

Dumbledore stood up suddenly and silence fell over the Hall. He seemed to clear his throat but nobody was able to hear him. He raised his wand, and pointed it to his throat.
“Sonorus!”
“Dear students and graduates. It’s a great pleasure to see you all gathered here for the first time. From now on, the tradition of the reunion will continue every seven years, so that every student here can have at least one chance to meet his predecessors.”
There was a huge cheer from all the tables.
“Now, before the feast begins, and since it is the first time we are gathered in such a number, I would like to take a moment to remember and pay homage to some people. I’d like all of you to give a toast with me to the memory of all the students of this school who aren’t with us tonight, not because they had more pressing things to do, but because of dark events, accidents and painful separations.”
He raised his goblet. Everyone stood up and raised their goblet as well. They drank silently. Harry thought of his parents, Sirius, Cedric, many of the people in the Order. Neville’s parents, still in St Mungo’s. He saw Ron and Ginny share a sad look with their family as they remembered Percy. Hermione had to think of Viktor Krum, Harry was sure. Harry also toasted the memory of the Bulgarian Seeker, dead fighting two Death Eaters to protect Hermione.
Dumbledore put his goblet down.
“But even darkest times have their share of hope and light. And thus, I’d like also to pay homage to all the members of the Order of the Phoenix that I see among us. Your fight has saved so many lives that nothing could express our gratitude properly.”

There was a huge roar of approval in the crowd and Alexander joined in.
Dumbledore raised his hands again, calling for silence.
“And more precisely, I’d like to give out a few names, and I apologize to their owners, for I know they don’t like to be praised too much. But if you can't single out people for their deeds in an evening like this, what is the point?”
There were some laughs in the Hall. Dumbledore tilted his head before to go on. He gave out a few names, cited a few families that had been involved directly in the war. And at some point, he spoke names that caught Alexander's attention.
“I’d like to pay homage to the Weasley Family, who has suffered many pains and loss in their fight against evil. Arthur, Molly, William, Charles, Frederic, George, Ronald and Ginevra. We owe you very much, my friends.”
Alexander could tell that all the red heads of the family were going even redder. He smiled.
“Then, I’d like to salute some close friends of mine, that attended studies here and that had been a huge support in these dark years we went through. Kinglsey Shacklebot, Alastor Moody, Minerva McGonagall, Remus Lupin, Severus Snape, Nymphadora Tonks, and all the members of Hogwarts' staff and faculty, whose modesty equals their bravery.”
The cheers went even higher.
“There is someone else I’d like to name, but I know he would call the thunder upon me if I did so, so I’d just like to say that he saved us from a great peril, even if very few people are aware of that.”
Alexander met his eyes and knew Dumbledore was referring to him. Professor McGonagall smiled approvingly. Alexander discreetly nodded to Dumbledore. Nobody apart for some friends of Alexander, seemed to understand what Dumbledore meant, but as it wasn’t unusual, they waited for the next part of the speech.
“Finally, I’d like also to give credit to maybe of the most extraordinary students I’ve met in my many years as Hogwarts Headmaster. I want to speak of Miss Luna Lovegood, Mister Neville Longbottom; Mrs Hermione Granger-Weasley, and of course, Mister Harry Potter.”
All the eyes went straight to Harry and his friends. Luna smiled dreamily at her Ravenclaw former classmates. Neville was red but couldn’t help a little smile. Hermione and Harry on the other hand were trying their best to disappear under the table.
Dumbledore began to clap his hands, and the entire Hall followed his example. This time Harry really disappeared under the table. But the Hall didn’t stop cheering and clapping for a long time.
“And now, let the feast begin!!!” said Dumbledore.
All the plates were suddenly full and everyone threw themselves at it.


After the feast, the tables disappeared and the Great Hall was turned into a reception hall, with seats all along the walls, tables with drinks and cakes. The evening was planned to go all the way until next morning, apparently. The students were now more relaxed to talk about careers with their famous predecessors.
Hermione had to answer a lot of question about her job at the ministry. Ron and Bill explained the career of Curse breaker and how it had evolved since the second war. Harry and his colleagues were solicited by young witches and wizards that wanted their autographs or simply wanted to know how to get to professional Quidditch. Harry met the enthusiastic Captain of the Gryffindor team who professed his admiration for his work with the Falcons.
But some other students were curious about Voldemort, of course, and Harry didn’t feel really easy to talk about it to young people like these. He found an unexpected help when a girl who seemed to be in her third year strode toward a group surrounding Harry and began to tell them off.
“Do you think he likes to talk about painful memories?” she told them. “You should be ashamed. You can get all the details you want in the papers!!!”
The young ones parted reluctantly, giving her grim looks. Harry smiled at her, however.
“Thanks a lot.”
“Oh, don’t mention that!” the girl said shyly. “I just thought you found them offending.”
She reminded him terribly of Hermione.
“Not offending, but this is a part of my life I’d rather forget.”
“I can understand that,” the girl said. “I lost my Dad in the Second War.”
“I’m sorry,” Harry said.
“Thank you,” she replied.
Her name was Janet Spencer, and she was really interested in the Auror career. Harry talked to her a long moment, before she was called by one of her friends. They parted friendly and Harry joined back Hermione and Ron.
“So, any interesting wannabe?” asked Ron.
“The Quidditch Captain reminds me of Wood,” Harry said with a smile. “And I just encountered a younger version of you, ‘Mione, except she was in Slytherin.”
Hermione asked how it was so, and protested when Harry explained that the telling off was almost identical, while Ron was laughing madly.
Harry caught a glimpse of Parvati and must have looked like an idiot for some time, because Hermione patted him on the head.
“Come back with us, or go talk to her!” she said.
“Yeah,” said Ron. “It's not like you need an introduction, do you?”
Harry had to admit it was true.
Suddenly, Ron stiffened. Harry wondered what came over him, but was only half-interested, as he couldn’t tear his eyes off Parvati. Hermione looked at Ron’s face, turned to follow his sight, and her mouth fell open.
“I don’t believe this!” exclaimed Ron.
“What?” Harry asked, turning to him.
“How dare he come back here?” Hermione said, her eyes narrowing with an unusual anger.
Harry followed their sights at last to see what they meant. And he felt suddenly very cold. His hands clenched violently into fists. His eyes must have seemed blazing, as Ginny looked suddenly a little worried. Harry couldn’t part his teeth anymore.
On the entrance of the Great Hall, looking as cocky as ever, stood a young man Harry had hoped never to see again.
Surrounded by a bunch of Slytherin wizards, wearing the colours of his former House, Draco Malfoy was smirking, glancing around with a contemptuous face.


---------------------------

“He can’t have been invited,” said Ron in disbelief. “He’s been banned from Hogwarts. You think Snape…”
“No way,” said Hermione. “Snape said that he wouldn’t have any business with any of the Malfoys.”
“But still he’s here,” said Ginny angrily.
They were joined by George and Fred, who looked positively outraged.
“Look at that little piece of scum, hanging out here like he’s home! Come on, Harry let’s get him!” said Fred.
Harry didn’t move. How on earth could Malfoy have come back here? Not after what has happened in their seventh year in Hogwarts.
Just after Christmas, Percy Weasley had uncovered a plot from a spy in Ministry. A plot of the Death eaters to take over control in Hogwarts. He had warned the twins (by unofficial ways), and the two of them had reached the school just in time to warn Harry and his friends. The plot involved a lot of Slytherin students, Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle at the lead. At the end of the exams, the rebellious students tried to jinx Professor McGonagall, and then to break into Dumbledore’s Tower, to allow a death eater to come inside the school. It had taken Harry’s intervention along with his friends and surprisingly Snape, to stop them. Dumbledore had been out of Hogwarts at the time, of course, which had been the reason they had attacked at this moment.
As a sanction, all the students involved had been banned from Hogwarts. The Slytherin rebellion had been the first event that had led to the final confrontation with Voldemort. For having uncovered the plot, Percy Weasley had been the first victim of the huge battle that ensued. He had been killed by the hand of the spy himself, a very close person to Fudge.
And now, Malfoy was entering the Hall, as if nothing happened. Who the hell did he think he was?
Everybody was looking at Harry, now, waiting to see what he’d do. And suddenly Harry moved. He walked straight at Malfoy.
“What do you think you're doing here? Get out of here! Now!” he spat between his clenched teeth.
Draco looked him up and down, still smirking. His eyes were full of disdain.
“Well, well, Potter,” he said. “There you are. I see you haven't learned any of the manners a proper wizard should have. And still hanging on with losers, as I see,” he added with a side look at Harry's friends. His own cronies had a snicker at what surely passed for a witty repartee for Malfoy. If Harry's eyes had been daggers, Draco would have dropped dead.
The rest of the gang joined them. Malfoy looked unbearably smug. He noticed Ron.
“And there you are, Weasley. I heard some stunning news about you. I heard you finally managed to get some gold for your family. I wonder if the shock has managed to kill some of them, actually. And of course, you married that”.
He pointed out Hermione with a nod of his head.
Hermione’s eyes blazed with anger. Ron clenched his fists.
“Be careful, Malfoy,” he said. “The time when you could act like the king of the place is way over. Don’t you dare speak ill of my wife.”
“I can handle myself, honey, thanks,” said Hermione, posing her hand on Ron’s arm. “What was that, Draco? I'm surprised you even consider messing with me after what went on between us. If I remember correctly, I pointedly proved it wasn't a good idea, back then, and not so far from here. We can always adjourn to the Entrance Hall, so I can waste your face again. You weren’t so proud when you were lying stunned in the Main Stairs.”
The duel between Malfoy and Hermione had been the climactic conclusion of the Slytherin rebellion, five years ago. And Hermione had dealt with the pale boy with such talent and flair that even Snape had congratulated her.
Malfoy eyes narrowed slightly.
“Don’t you dare talk to me, you little…”
“And who invited you, in the first place?” she cut him, her voice sharp as a razor. “I thought even Professor Snape didn’t want to hear anything from you”.
Malfoy was about to respond, when someone made his way through the crowd of guests. He was tall, had sand hair and clear blue eyes.
“I did,” he said. “Welcome, Draco. Glad you could make it. Why don’t you join me? I have a group of friends that want to meet you.”
He then turned to Hermione.
“Mrs Weasley,” he said with a little nod. “Pleasure to meet you again, of course.”
It was clear in his tone that he didn’t mean it at all. The look he was giving Hermione made Ron go even redder. Harry was fighting hard the urge to seize his wand at once.
“Mister Stiller,” answered Hermione with the same nod. “I didn’t know you had Malfoys in your acquaintances.”
In her tone, she made it clear that it wasn't something to be applauded. Stiller ignored her tone.
“I learned that Draco hadn’t been invited,” he said to Malfoy. “I thought I had to rectify this mistake.”
“There was no mistake. He has been banned from Hogwarts before he graduated. He has no business being here.”
Harry’s rage was clear in every single word he let out. Stiller turned and glanced at him.
“And you are…” he asked, feigning ignorance, on a very insulting tone.
“Mr Stiller, I'm certain you remember Harry Potter,” Hermione said.
She still looked at Malfoy with eyes that could kill. Devin Stiller exchanged a look with Malfoy, and then turned back to Harry.
“Oh, right, of course, how silly of me not to recognize you. I don’t believe we have met before. I remember you, though. I saw your arrival at Hogwarts. And your brave deeds, of course. I’m Devin Stiller.”
He held out a hand. Harry hesitated just two seconds before taking it. Hermione’s warning look was enough to sense that Devin was an important person.
Harry considered Devin for a moment. He looked as the typical Slytherin to him. Maybe a little less dark than Lucius Malfoy, and of course younger. He was only five years older than him. But there was something, in his attitude, that made Harry wish he could strangle him right now, in the middle of the Hall.
“As you speak of banishing, I don’t think such a decision was legal, at the time. As you may know, I’m pretty involved with Law myself. I realised that there was no reason whatsoever to forbid to Draco to come and visit the school. After all, no charges were called against him.”
Stiller’s voice was so contemptuous that Ron had to get a grip on himself not to explode.
“He tried to kill a teacher,” Harry said coldly.
“That never has been proved,” replied Devin.
“Of course no charges were called,” said Ron, harshly. “There were two kinds of people in the Ministry back then. The ones that were busy fighting Death Eaters and the ones who were... hiding.”
He had thrown such an intense look at Stiller as he finished his sentence that there was no mistake that comment was aimed at him.
“This was our dear Headmaster, I believe, who said that the time of fear and distrust was over now. Professor Dumbledore insisted on mending the wounds of the Dark Lord years. You’re not really following his mind, are you? In this same vein of idea, I offered Draco to join my office, now that I've entered my functions. I’m sorry, Mrs Weasley, I heard that my predecessor had considered you for the job, but…”
He looked anything but sorry. Draco smirked.
“As you see, Granger, I don’t need my family to make my way in life,” he said.
“That’s lucky for you, given where they are now,” Ron said in disgust.
“Don't get cocky, Weasley,” Draco said. “You may finally have made your family a little richer, but you still stay a loser. And now you married a mudblood. This is disgrace for ...”
Ron had his wand in his hand in a second, and so had Harry. But before they could do anything, and even before Draco could finish his sentence, the blond Slytherin was suddenly hurled to the air, his feet pointing to the ceiling. He tried to free himself, but couldn’t move. Harry could read pure panic in his eyes, as Malfoy was looking around to see where the attack had been coming from.
“I distinctly remember having told you once that it wouldn’t hurt you to be polite, Malfoy,” said a voice from behind Harry.
A tall, thin man was making his way through the crowd, which parted before him quite rapidly. Everybody around was looking straight at him and Malfoy. The man was walking with his hands buried in his pockets, like he was just strolling around. There was no sign of wand at all. Harry was amazed. The man stopped just after he passed before Harry. He stood still, facing Malfoy’s face upside down, with an expression that was almost comical.
He had brown hair, that was a little unkempt, and deep brown eyes that seemed to glow with an inner light, at the moment. He was wearing black robes, sewn in golden motives. On his heart, the Gryffindor lion was bright red and shining gold.
And suddenly, Harry knew him. He was the student who came to speak to him, at the end of his second year. The one who had known his father. He did remember his name was Alexander. He seemed to be the same age as Stiller.
“I see that you haven't learned anything, Malfoy,” said the wizard.
“Lockenburn!” protested Stiller. “How dare you…”
“Silence, you,” the man interrupted, with a finger lifted in front of Stiller's face, on a distracted tone, as he was observing Malfoy like a decoration of the room. “I’ll deal with you later, alright?”
“Wha…”
“I just told you to be silent, so SHUT UP!” the tall man suddenly roared. “Unless you want to join him,” he added, pointing at Malfoy, back to a friendly tone.
Without paying any further attention to Stiller, he turned again to Malfoy.
“I’m roughly a tolerant man, Malfoy, but there’s one thing I can’t endure,” he said, with an amusing wince. “And that’s the word Mudblood. It kinda hurts my ears, you know? It set my teeth on edge a little, you see what I mean? Especially on a young woman like her, coming from a degenerate like you. So you will apologize.”
The last sentence had been said on an icy tone, but Malfoy seemed to pick up his courage. He frowned.
“No way will I apologize to this…”
The man snapped his fingers casually and Malfoy was thrown three feet higher in the air, and back again, between the ticks of a second, which were punctuated by a squeaky scream. His face was so pale now he looked a lot like Nearly-Headless Nick.
“Let's try it again, shall we?” said “Lockenburn”. “So you will apologize.”
Malfoy mumbled a few words, which were lost to most people around.
The man sighed like a disappointed teacher and snapped again. A short trip back and forth to the ceiling was punctuated again by a squeal from Draco, who was shaking a little now.
“Once more, with feeling, this time,” encouraged the man.
It ended as a short “I’m sorry, Granger”.
The man turned to Hermione, with a doubtful face.
“I’m afraid this is the best we can get out of him,” said Lockenburn, looking at Hermione.
She had an amused smile and nodded. Lockenburn snapped a last time and Draco fell on the floor. He hit the stone with a loud “Wud!” and he stood up uneasily, nearly falling twice before to catch his balance. He glanced at Lockenburn, half furious, half terrified. Lockenburn didn’t pay any more attention to him. He turned to Stiller instead. The Slytherin Wizard seemed to shrink a little.
“Now you,” said Lockenburn. “What gives you the right to overthrow Dumbledore’s authority, by bringing this scumbag here? Your Slytherin solidarity is going a little far, this time.”
“No student can be banished from Hogwarts without the approval of the board,” Devin said between his teeth. “This exclusion was an outrage”.
“The very freedom of this one is an outrage,” countered Lockenburn. “After he tried to kill a Hogwarts teacher, he led a rebellion against the authority of the school. And I still don’t know what business you have in the school laws, anyway. As far as I know, Hogwarts has never been under your jurisdiction.”
“Things may change,” Stiller replied with haughtiness.
“Well, they haven’t, yet,” said Lockenburn. “Now, you pick up your trash and you get out of here.”
“Will you force me?” mocked Stiller.
Lockenburn’s eyes emitted a flash of blue light.
“Will you take the dare?” he asked with a smile that was relaxed, but somehow seemed very threatening to Harry.
Stiller clenched his teeth. Then he gestured to Malfoy, before leaving the Hall. They drained a whole chapter of cronies in their wake, so it caused quite a commotion. Malfoy followed, after a quick look at Harry, Ron and Hermione.
“One day, I’ll get you,” he said.
“You want to be careful, Malfoy,” Lockenburn said with a smile. “Messing with me may not be the safest activity in the world. Messing with Harry Potter is clearly a mistake in regards of your health... Unless you want to end up like Voldemort.”
Some people flinched a little at the name, including Malfoy. He strode out of the Hall, looking furious.
Lockenburn turned to Ron, who was still fuming. He had a weak smile.
“I'm deeply sorry if I meddle in your business, Weasley,” he said. “But I just overheard your conversation and I couldn’t stand the way he talked to her.”
“No problem,” Ron said. “But one day, I’ll make him swallow his bloody pride!”
“I'll make sure to buy first row seats for that,” Lockenburn said with a toothy smile. “You look more like Bill than Charlie, as I can see. And I remember all of you,” he said around, smiling to the twins, when they had a little wave. “And of course, I know you,” he said to Harry.
“I remember you, too,” said Harry. You’re Alexander, aren’t you?”
“That’s right,” Alexander said. “Alexander Lockenburn, at your service,” he added to Hermione with an old fashioned bow that made her laugh.
“Well thank you for defending my honour.”
“I don’t think your honour was at risk with those two with their wands in their hands.” He pointed to Harry and Ron.
“It’s been ages since we didn’t hear from you, Alex,” said Fred.
“I’ve been abroad,” said Alexander.
“No kidding!” George laughed. “He calls that being abroad!”
Alexander smiled again.
“Harry,” he said. “I think my parents would be glad to meet you, if that’s all right with you.”
Harry nodded and Alexander led the way through the crowd. The last thing he heard from his friends was Fred speaking loudly to Ron.
“What, you don’t’ know Alex? C’mon Ronnie, he’s the Entropist.”
Harry didn’t quite understand what that meant, but the name ringed a bell in his mind. Something he had read in the Daily Prophet maybe. But he couldn’t think about it any longer, because Alexander turned to him.
“As you could see, there are still many things even Voldemort’s doom hasn’t changed,” he said on a sad tone. “But I’m not surprised seeing Stiller taking sides with Malfoy.”
“Their families are close?” Harry asked, figuring that would explain this attitude Stiller had.
“On the contrary, Harry,” Alexander said. “The Stiller family was one of the first ones to oppose Voldemort. They had some losses, I can tell you.”
“They were Voldemort’s enemies?”
“And every one of them came out Slytherin,” said Alexander. “You’ll find out that there are many turns in the Slytherin way.”
“The Slytherin Way?”
“That’s how my family calls the path the Slytherins are taking in their life. There is a difference between safe ambition and thirst for Power. The Stiller were ambitious, but they knew what was right and what wasn’t. Devin got some connections in Hogwarts that made him comfortable with his own ideas of aristocracy of the pure blood families. But he did not dare to turn on Voldemort’s side. But I recall that when Malfoy arrived at Hogwarts, they became quite good friends, in spite of the detestation there was between his father and Lucius Malfoy. They’re both part of a bunch of students that shames even the Head of Slytherin. You’re well placed to know where Snape’s sympathies go.”
Harry nodded. Despite the hatred that still existed and would probably never fade between Snape and him, Harry couldn’t deny that the Potions Master was indeed a loyal supporter of the “good side.”
“Ha, here they are!” said Alexander suddenly. “Mum, Dad, there’s someone I want you to meet.”
They emerged from the crowd to face a very nice looking witch and a tall wizard, who had the same hair and eyes as Alexander. The minute they saw him, Harry could tell they were surprised. He was kind of waiting the look they would eventually give to his scar. Except this look didn’t come.
“It’s unbelievable!” said the witch. “How can he look so much like James?”
“Except the eyes,” said her husband. “But you must hear that all the time, Harry, don’t you?” he added with a smile. “I’m Damien Lockenburn. It’s a pleasure to meet you at last.”
He held out a hand, and Harry shook it. But the witch forgot all protocol and kissed him on the cheek.
“We were so worried about you,” she said. “When we heard for James and Lily, we even told Dumbledore you could live with us. But he said it was impossible. I’m so glad to see you at last!”
Harry was like thunderstruck. These people were so warm and friendly. They knew his parents! And suddenly, a memory arose in his mind. The wedding Picture of his parents. Just below it, there was a picture of his Dad with a tall man with brown hair, they were both dressed in Quidditch robes and they both held broomsticks. The man was exactly like Damien Lockenburn.
“You were playing Quidditch with my father,” he managed to say.
“That’s right,” said Damien with a smile. “In Gryffindor team. I was the Keeper. No wonder you don’t remember us. In fact, you never met us. But James was a real good friend of mine. Not as close as I’d like it to be, but... this is my wife, Chandralène. She knew your mother very well.”
“To be honest, I was more jealous than friendly to her, in our years here,” she said with an apology in her eyes. “But after we graduated, we became good friends. Especially after she married James.”
“What was all this commotion about?” Damien asked his son.
“Devin Stiller brought Draco Malfoy here,” replied Alexander.
“He didn’t!” exclaimed Chandra, scandalized.
“Malfoy insulted my best friend,” Harry said. “Alexander taught him a lesson about how to behave with a woman,” he added with a smile.
“I’m sure he did,” Damien said. “Alexander’s always been ticklish on the manners toward ladies.”
He winked at Alexander.
They began to talk about a lot of things. Damien told Harry that he had followed his Quidditch career, and that he was impressed by the job he had done with the Falcons. Bringing a team to the top of the league in less than one year was a great achievement. Chandra talked a lot of her memories of Hogwarts, comparing them to Harry’s. This was a really pleasant conversation.
For the first time in years, he had met people who didn’t want to talk with him about Voldemort. He had a nostalgic thought, wondering what would have been his life if he had come to live with the Lockenburn. But it was too late for regrets, now.
“Anyway, I’m so glad you turned out so well, Harry, Chandra said. As friends of your parents, you can’t imagine how proud we are of you. With a life like yours, you seemed to have achieved some happiness after all.”
Harry thought about it one second, and he nodded. She was right.
“Damien, Chandra!” a voice called from behind Harry.
Harry turned as he recognized the voice. Remus Lupin was making his way to them.
“Ah, Harry,” he said, with a smile. “I see you’ve met the Lockenburn. That’s great. How is it going for you, so far?” he asked Damien.
“Very well,” Damien said. “This party’s fantastic.”
Lupin smiled a little wider. His scar on his cheek formed a funny corner with his mouth, but he looked in a really good mood. Harry caught a glimpse of Hermione, waving to him. He excused himself and went toward her. Alexander waved at him a last time before he couldn’t be seen any more.



-----------------------

Harry was still under the surprise of such an encounter. It all had seemed so natural, meeting some old friend of his family. He was still smiling while walking toward Hermione and Ron.
Somehow, the memory of Malfoy had disappeared from his mind, wiped out by the kindness of the Lockenburn family. A short reminder of his presence passed before Harry’s eyes when he crossed path with Snape. The dark looking Professor saw him and they exchanged a long meaningful look. And after a long time Snape nodded to him. So did Harry. It was a mutual recognition in this gesture. No one forced him to like Snape, and Snape didn’t want to like Harry. But they had fought together against the same enemy, and they had to respect each other.
Alexander’s words rang in his head again.
Many turns in the Slytherin way.
Harry understood the truth of these words by looking at Snape. He was a Slytherin. But you could respect a Slytherin, as he was able to pick the right side on the right fight.
He joined Hermione and Ron in the crowd, and Hermione proposed to have a trip outside on the grounds. They all accepted, and soon, Harry, Hermione, Ron and his brothers, followed by Ginny, Jeb and Neville were on their way to the outside.
“What were you saying about Alexander, Fred?” asked Harry.
“He’s the Entropist,” said Fred.
“The what?"
“Entropist,” finished Hermione. “He’s been cited a lot by the Daily Prophet. Maybe if you read more than just the sports page, you would know it,” she added, with a feint scowl.
“Play nice with me 'Mione,” chuckled Harry.
“Anyway,” Hermione went on, “he’s a very powerful Wizard. And he poses some kind of a mystery to the public. He doesn’t answer to the Ministry in the strictest sense of the term. He basically does whatever he wants. He was involved with the Order after his graduation, but only marginally in England. He has played a large role in the Second War, but on another front. I think he’s got very special powers.”
Ginny seemed to be willing to add something. But before she could talk, Ron had given her an ankle in the ribs. Harry turned to see what he saw. Cho was walking toward him. Ron had a grin.
“We’ll see ya,” he said.
“I don’t see why,” Harry said, annoyed.
But before he could add anything more, he was alone facing Cho. He saw Hermione and Ginny protesting against Ron, who was dragging them behind him. He caught a curious look from Ginny. Was it worry he read in her eyes? She didn't need to worry about him.
Cho joined him and smiled. Harry gave back the grin and nodded his head at his friends, who were disappearing in the night. He rolled his eyes.
“Ron still believes that we need to be alone,” he said.
Cho chuckled lightly.
“Funny how one can get defined by what happened to them at school,” she said. “He doesn’t read papers?” she asked.
“Not this kind of news. You know Ron,” explained Harry. “How’s Jimmy?”
“Fine,” said Cho. “But he had a show, so he couldn’t make it.”
“Imagine the disappointment of all these young wizards, if you’d come here with your fiancé,” said Harry with a side-look at the bushes at their right.
A little group of wizards that seemed to be in their fourth year was spying on them, clearly to find a right time to get to talk to Cho. Harry was quite sure they weren’t here a minute before. Harry and Cho began to walk along the lake shore, talking about a lot of things but mainly about the World Cup.
“So I heard your British team picked up four of the ex-Gryffindor team. That’s great.’
“Hey, they picked Roger, too, didn’t they?” said Harry.
“They basically had to, he’s the best,” Cho said with a smile.
Harry nodded. Roger was one of the bests, if not the best Chaser of the League.
“I guess we’ll face each other twice this year,” he said. “Can’t wait to see that."
Cho smiled broadly.
“Well this time, I’ll try to get you at least once.”
“Yeah, you’ll try,” said Harry with an unbearable self satisfied voice and a wide grin on his face, which made Cho laugh.
“Don’t get so arrogant, Harry Potter,” she said with a fake determination. “And so you’re back on Parvati, aren’t you?”
Harry coughed, taken off-guard by the question.
“Back?"
“You went to the Yule Ball with her, didn’t you?” Cho said, surprised.
“Yes,” Harry replied. “Because you turned me down."
“Oh!” she winced. “Well, I thought…”
Cho was the one feeling uncomfortable now.
“I ruined the whole evening,” said Harry, to reassure her. “I was sneaking glances at you and Cedric. I ignored her the whole dinner, I didn't take her to dance. I blew it.”
For once, the name of Cedric didn’t cause him any pain, associated with happy memories.
“She got tired of waiting for my mood to improve so she went out with a guy from Beaubâtons,” he went on. “At least she ended the evening nicely, I think”.
Cho winced again and then chuckled.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t easy on you, the year after,” she said. “I must have been a pain in the…”
“You sure cried a lot,” said Harry with a smile. “And in sixth year, you got a little paranoid about Hermione. But you had your reasons, I guess. Well you were wrong on Hermione, but I’ve not been the easiest guy to date, honestly.”
“How come we never got along,” said Cho thoughtfully. “I mean I know I liked you a lot and that you…”
“I had a huge crush on you at the time,” Harry finished in her place.
She thanked him with a smile.
“I don’t know,” he said. “I think I just had no clue of what I was doing.”
“Well the fact is that I wasn't sure what I was doing, either,” said Cho. “After Cedric died, I think I got scared, so I went completely the wrong way. Too bad. But no regrets, huh?”
“No. None at all.”
“Well, you were a good kisser,” she admitted with a grin.
“Thanks, you do wonders for my ego.” Harry laughed.
They stood silent for a moment before Cho talked again.
“Well, you should talk to her,” she said. “Before you miss the occasion.”
“Now you’re giving me advice on my love life?” Harry asked, grinning.
“Harry, I've seen the kind of girl you've dated, these past years,” said Cho. “Honestly, you could use some advice. I don't say you're about to find true love, but at least she's got two brain cells to rub together. Honestly, you hit the all-time low with that stupid Sophie .”
Harry winced.
“I thought you liked Sophie,” he said.
“Harry, none of your friends liked her,” said Cho patiently. “But none of us also wanted to tell you that. We kind of figured you would realize she had the brain of a troll on your own. That was obvious, no matter how hot she was.”
Harry chuckled and kissed her on the cheek. That was what he liked about Cho. She didn't spare his pride or his feelings. When she thought something needed to be said, she did. She was right. At least he knew Parvati wasn't stupid.
“Thanks for that,” he said. “I think your admirers have picked up their courage at last. Don’t be too hard on them.”
The group of fourth years was now walking toward Cho, as if Harry’s kiss had reassured them. They finally seemed to take the dare to talk to the beautiful witch. Harry left her to look for his friends.
He wandered around the lake, checking any familiar place for any trace of them.
“Oi Harry, over here!” Ron shouted.
Harry spotted them on the stairs of the Castle. He picked up the pace to join them on the top of the stairs.
“What did she want?” asked Hermione.
“Well, to share some news,” said Harry.
“You’re sure it was all she wanted to share?” asked Ron.
“Yes, I’m sure,” said Harry. “I've grown out of that “share-my-saliva-with-Cho-all-the-time” phase, thank you very much.”
“See?” Hermione said, on a severe tone. “Besides, she's engaged. Harry may have a poor taste in dates, he's not indelicate enough to seduce a woman about to get married.”
“Oh, thanks, Hermione, that means so much to me that you hold me in such high esteem,” Harry sneered. “Is it Bash-Harry-day, or something?”
Laughing, they re-entered the Castle and were heading for the Great Hall. Jeb excused himself when he saw a group of former classmates. He had left after a kiss on Ginny's cheek, when a voice came from the main stairs.
“Hermione?”
Professor McGonagall was walking down to reach them. She nodded to everyone, smiled to Harry and then turned to Hermione.
“I was wondering if we could have this little chat, now, if you're not too busy,” she said.
“Of course, Professor,” said a beaming Hermione, as she followed her back up the stairs, after kissing her husband on the cheek. “Sorry if I couldn’t see you earlier…”
Her voice disappeared in the heights of the Castle.
“Well, she’s in for a long time, if you ask me,” said Fred. “She’ll find us when she’s done. What about another drink?”
They all got back in the Great Hall.
“We’ll try to find this Edmund Fireheart again,” said Fred waving to them. “He’s in sixth year.”
“Why do you want to find him?” asked Ron.
“He told us about some ideas he got on his own to lighten up the atmosphere in the school. Quite a few good jokes, too. We consider hiring him as soon as he’s out of Hogwarts,” George said.
Neville took his leave as well.
“I wanted to speak with Professor Sprout and I have to find Luna.”
That left Ron, Harry and Ginny who made their way to their drinks.
“So what did the Entropist want with you, anyway?” asked Ron.
“His father was a good friend of mine. He was Keeper in the Gryffindor team, while my Dad was a Chaser. So Hermione told me he did great things in the Second War. What makes him so famous?” he asked Ginny.
“He got his nickname by using forces of Chaos. He may be the only one wizard who can use truly powerful magic without a wand, in this Century. The Prophet tries to follow him for years. Five years ago, he chased a Death Eater named Morgenstein across all of Europe. Morgenstein was trying to open something called the Chaos Rift. Most people say it was for Voldemort, but some say that Morgenstein was after his own agenda. Anyway, if the Rift had been opened, it would have been a disaster. Alexander defeated Morgenstein and closed the rift before it expended. The prophet tried to make a hero out of Alexander when the public got tired of hearing your story over and over again.”
“Wow!” said Ron.
“Most people know his name, but still he’s very secret,” Ginny went on. “He’s always travelling all around the world. I think he doesn’t want to be famous. He could write a book, and yet most people don't even know what he looks like. But ask around if people have heard of the Entropist and you'll get a few people who will tell you complete sagas of his exploits.”
Harry was impressed. He tried to find Alexander’s face in the crowd. But someone patted his shoulder from behind. He turned around to find himself facing Parvati.
“Oh! Err... hi,” he said.
“Hello, Harry,” said Parvati with a nice smile. “Fred told me you wanted to speak to me.”
Ron elbowed Ginny firmly in the ribs, before she would begin to comment. He then dragged her away, leaving Harry completely alone, facing Parvati.
“Well, er…”
“I think I get it,” Parvati said. “You didn’t know you sent him, did you?”
Harry blushed. He wanted to say something both to agree and to deny it. But he definitely didn’t want her to go away. Parvati gave him a sweet smile.
“That’s okay, Harry,” she said.
“But in fact, I did want to talk to you,” Harry managed to let out.
Parvati’s eyes narrowed, and her smile widened.
“Really?”
“Yes... er… would you like to take a walk? I mean outside,” Harry offered.
“Are you always that eloquent?” Parvati said with an amused grin.
“Er… no,” Harry admitted with a wince. “I usually have better control over myself. I've been caught by surprise.”
Parvati chuckled. Harry was really grateful she didn’t start to giggle. He offered his arm and she took it. As they were walking out the Great Hall, Harry caught a sight of Fred making victory signs. He gave up on the choice between hugging him gratefully and strangling him right on the spot.


------------------------------

Alexander was amused to see Ron Weasley drag his younger sister through the crowd, apparently against her will.
“Why would you do that?” she was asking.
“I figured Harry needed some time alone with her,” said Ron
“Why?” protested Ginny. “I wanted to say hello, as well.”
“You haven't been eyeing her since the beginning of the feast,” said her brother.
“Really? Oh... I didn't see that one coming. Parvati? Isn't she a little...” began Ginny.
“She's still a lot smarter than all the brain dead bimbos Harry has dated since graduation,” said Ron.
“Yeah... I guess you're right,” said Ginny.
The y disappeared through the crowd. Alexander didn't know what this was about, but he could guess the core of it: They had just set up their friend with a girl. Typical of parties like this. Speaking of which, Alexander had been wandering the crowd in search for one face. He had pretended he had seen a friend to get rid of a clingy sixth year, who wanted to know everything you had to know about Chaos magic, as soon as he had been told Alexander's name. But now, he actually was looking for a specific person among the guests.
And finally he found her.
He caught a glimpse of red flaming curled hair. And he saw her face. She was speaking with an impressive young man, who was wearing Hufflepuff colours. And, as he always believed she would be, Phyllis McRoth was even more beautiful than in his memories. And she looked really bored.
Alexander made a beeline through the crowd to reach the Irish witch. She took notice of him and smiled. The Hufflepuff man seemed to believe this smile was for him, as he went on with his subject, whatever it was.
“Excuse me,” Alexander said, tapping on his shoulders. “Do you mind if I borrow this young lady from you?”
“Well yes!” was the rather shocked response.
At least he was honest. Phyllis had a twisted smile.
“How are you, Alexander?” she asked, greeting him warmly and kissing him on the cheek. “Excuse me, Gregor, but it’s been ages since I've seen my friend here. Come on, Alexander, my parents will love to see you.”
She took his arm and led the way anywhere far enough from “Gregor,” who didn’t seem too pleased about it.
“Did you need help, my young lady?” Alexander asked with a laugh when Phyllis sighed in relief.
“This was such a burden,” said Phyllis. “Thanks for the rescue.”
“Does he know your parents are Muggles?” Alexander asked with a grin.
She laughed with him.
“How’s your job doing?” Alexander asked.
“Aww, come on, Alexander! You disappeared from England ages ago and you want to know how my job’s doing?” said Phyllis. “It’s me who has questions! Where have you been all this time?”
“Here and there,” answered Alexander.
“Are the papers true on what you did?” Phyllis asked.
“Well, if you scratch from it all the stuff that glorifies me and all this heroic deeds I’m supposed to have achieved, that’s pretty accurate,” said Alexander.
“Always the modest one,” said Phyllis with a discouraged smile. “I’ve often wondered if I would ever see you again.”
“Well, apparently you will,” said Alexander, “as Professor McGonagall convinced me to stay a while in Hogwarts, in order to give a young first year some pointers on using Chaotic Magic.”
“Really? That’s wonderful! Did you know I work and live just over there in Hogsmeade?”
“Actually, I did.”
“You did?”
Phyllis looked astonished. Alexander nodded.
“You may have noticed it, but I’ve always been interested in you, you know. I’ve always managed to get some news of you by the others,” he told her.
She smiled as if the news flattered her a lot.
“As you will live around,” she said. “Do you think we could meet one of these nights, maybe in the three Broomsticks?”
Alexander felt a nice warmth in his heart, spreading to all his being.
“Yes, I’d love to,” he said.


-------------------

The moment they were outside, Harry felt a little less intimidated. Maybe it was because he now had so much space to run and hide, now.
“So what did you want to talk me about?” asked Parvati.
“Well, I remembered something during the feast,” Harry said. “Something about the Yule Ball. I wanted to apologize, even if that's seven years overdue.”
“Apologize? For what?” Parvati really seemed surprised.
“For having been the worst partner ever,” Harry said, with a wince.
Parvati laughed softly.
“To be honest, I think Ron’s been the worst partner. Padma was really upset. You had your worries at the time, so that excused things a little. Of course it took time for me to figure this out. I realised it when Voldemort returned.”
“My worries?” asked Harry.
“Well the Triwizard Tournament, for one thing. Your scar hurting, for another. And Cho going out with Cedric Diggory, last but not the least.”
Harry’s eyes must have popped out of his head because Parvati started to chuckle again.
“Come on, Harry. It was obvious. You were eyeing her like a dead fish since third year,” she said. “All the Gryffindors of our year knew it.”
“So I didn’t vex you or anything?”
“You did upset me much, at the time,” said Parvati. “But that really was no big deal. I think I’ve punished you enough, the rest of that year.”
Harry made a face at the memory. She had been rather cold with him after the ball. Parvati grinned.
“Since we are on the apology thing,” she said. ‘I’d like to apologize too, for all these times I’ve been pestering you about all these stupid omens of death you were supposed to carry on you. Hard to believe I was so stupid at the time.”
“I thought you really believed in Divination,” noted Harry, surprised.
“Oh I gave up on these things years ago mainly because of you, as a matter of fact,” she said, with a dismissive wave of hand.
“Me?” Harry repeated.
“Well, Professor Trelawney had predicted your death so many times that I would have sworn you would be dead before you got out of Hogwarts. And then you faced Voldemort again in seventh year. Remember that I tried to stop you?”
“Yeah,” Harry said.
“I was so worried about you,” Parvati said. “Hermione knew better. She told me off to be so negative. And then you survived. I began to think that real predictions are really rare. Just like this Prophecy on you. Funny that the only true prediction Trelawney made about you wasn’t that you would die. I gave up on this stuff.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” said Harry. “That makes one person less to whisper behind my back as if I would die in the next minute.”
He smiled to soften his remark. She gave it back to him. Harry was surprised to find that, now they were talking like normal persons, Parvati's company really did feel nice.
“I was wondering if I could make up to you for that Ball thing,” he said, picking up his courage.
He had faced the most dangerous Wizard of the Century, He could do that.
“Really? How?” Parvati asked.
“By taking you to dinner one of these times,” said Harry, mentally crossing his fingers.
“Oh! Mr Potter, are you asking me out?” she said with feint shyness.
“Well, er… yeah,” said Harry frankly.
Parvati’s smile grew wider, and she had sparkles in her eyes. Harry was praying she wouldn’t start to giggle. He really had developed a phobia for giggling. But she didn’t. Instead, she took his hand.
“Yes, I’d love to go out with you, Harry,” she said.
“Great,” Harry said. “Look, I’ve got a game in Hogsmeade Stadium, Thursday evening. What about we meet right after the game?”
“Who are you playing?" asked Parvati.
“Hentown.”
“Any chance you lose? I wouldn’t want having to comfort you all dinner,” she said with a cunning smile. “I do intend to have a good evening.”
“Well, I don’t want to show-off or sound over confident, but there’s very little chance we lose.”
She grinned. Harry chuckled a little. He did remember she could be really funny back in school, when she wasn't busy being all girly with Lavender and whispering behind his back about the signs of his impending doom.
“Am I the only one who thinks THIS is a really good evening?” he said.
“Well I share the feeling,” said Parvati, beaming.



--------------

Alright, that's it for now... next chapter, the action begins...
Don't hesitate to comment and review, constructive criticism is helping.

Harry and the Seal of Chaos © Entropist, September 2004, rewrite October 2011