June 28, 2019, Hogsmeade.
Every schoolchild has heard of Potter’s Eight, the team of eight wizards and witches, led by Harry Potter, who defeated the Dark Lord Voldemort over twenty years ago. But have you heard of Potter’s Pentagon?
Jordan Potter, Harriet-Lily Potter, Ivy Potter, Emma Weasley, and Theodore Lupin--fourth years at Hogwarts and all children of members of the Eight-- were responsible for Malfoy’s destruction last night at Hogwarts.
Apparently, Jordan, fifteen, a serious-looking boy with dark hair and startlingly green eyes, had been taking a late-night stroll when he quite literally ran into Malfoy. Faced with the choice of death or whatever popped into his head at the moment, he convinced Malfoy that he was a traitor to the Potter family and wanted to join him, in order to gain Malfoy’s trust.
Meanwhile, his twin sister, Harriet-Lily, fifteen, a petite and perky girl who strongly resembles her brother, spotted something moving in the forest from her dormitory, and, fearing that Malfoy had kidnapped her brother, led her friends down into the woods.
“She came up with a brilliant plan right there on the spot,” says Emma, aged fifteen and a half, a stunning young lady whose long red-tinged hair marks her as a member of the famous Weasley clan. ‘I don’t know how Haley did it. She and Ivy went into the forest, and I got Ted out of the Shrieking Shack.’
Ted, fourteen, a tall and lanky boy with shaggy light-brown hair, just so happens to be a werewolf. He says, ‘What I did last night was kind of strange, because I wasn’t really myself then. I was a wolf. I mean, I was myself, but not in my usual body… oh, you know what I mean!’
As he and Emma made their way toward the forest, Ivy and Haley (the latter of whom was concealed beneath an invisibility cloak) found Malfoy, and Ivy distracted him.
Ivy, fifteen, a bright-eyed girl who wears her blonde hair in a long braid, was in a particularly uncomfortable situation, because she is Malfoy’s biological daughter. (She was adopted by Harry and Ginny Potter earlier this year.) She had not seen Malfoy in over ten years, and she actually had a conversation (in which she informed him that what he was doing was wrong and why) before Haley and Emma came out from behind trees, ready to fight.
However, Malfoy had two Overseers with him. Or rather, one Overseer and one spy-- Jordan (the spy) and Malfoy’s own son, Ophidias Malfoy”as well as some Dementors.
Haley, who didn’t know that Jordan was not truly an Overseer, dueled with her brother as Emma took on Ophidias. They remained in a deadlock, until Malfoy began to edge toward the school. Instantly, Ted, in wolf form, ran out from his hiding place behind a tree, and chased Malfoy.
‘I had taken my Wolfsbane potion, so I was in control of what I was doing,’ Ted assured this reporter earlier today. ‘The trick was to try and get Malfoy to think that I wasn’t.’
Malfoy instructed Jordan to ‘attack‘, and he did-- only the subject of his attack was Malfoy, who was promptly kissed by one of his own dementors.
At that point, a team of Aurors, led by Harry Potter, arrived, having received double reports that Malfoy had been spotted near Hogsmeade and that Potter’s children weren’t to be found in their beds. Two Aurors, Ivars Dale and Octavian Farley, were sent to catch Ophidias, seventeen, who had escaped from the scene, which they did with almost no struggle.
As Ophidias is of age, he will be sent to Azkaban. However, his sentence will most likely be short, because he cooperated during his trial this morning and gave some very valuable information.
Apparently, the Overseers had planned to storm Hogwarts and murder Potter, his children, Hermione Granger, and her daughter. Although all exits to the school were guarded by prefects, Ophidias, a sixth year prefect who was assigned to guard the front door, was going to let them in. However, the Overseers didn’t know that Potter was at the Ministry of Magic, presenting a report.
As Malfoy is now without a soul and unable to survive on his own, he will be taken to St. Mungo’s to live on intravenous fluids in the permanent ward.
As for the five children who caught Malfoy, they will be honored tomorrow afternoon by the Minister of Magic himself in a special ceremony that will take place in Hogsmeade.
‘What they have done was very brave and very risky,‘ announced Minister of Magic Percival Weasley. ‘Potter’s Five should be considered national heroes.’”
The article was accompanied by a moving picture of the five of them. Seated in the middle of them all was Jordan, beaming as he never had beamed before. When he was smiling, he was barely recognizable-- he actually looked almost handsome.
On either side of him were his sisters, Haley with her hand on his shoulder, and Ivy with Ted’s arm around her. She looked very pretty, and was wearing her hair down for the second time. Though Ted was pale and tired-looking from his transformation the night before, he looked relaxed and happy. Emma stood grinning next to Haley. It was a very good picture of all of them, and it stared up from the front page of the Daily Prophet.
It was the last day of school, and the five friends were greeted by whoops and cheers whenever they walked by. Tyrone had somehow managed to charm the picture from his newspaper onto a t-shirt, and Haley could see her own image waving at her from Tyrone’s broad chest whenever he passed her in the hall.
She wanted to help her father pack his things, as she knew how many books and items he had in his office-- though that wasn’t the only reason. She’d been wanting to have a talk with him.
She reached his office door, and rapped on it three times. “Come in,” called Harry from inside.
Haley stepped inside. “Hi, Dad,” she greeted her father, who was throwing books into a trunk. “Want me to help you pack up?”
Harry shook his head. “It’s all right. I’m nearly done-- I got a head start this morning.” He looked his daughter in the eye. “But you can stay here for a bit if you want.”
Haley nodded, thinking that it was a little scary how her father always seemed to know what was going on in her head. She took a seat on a stool, one that was delightfully spinny, and spun herself around a few times, pushing off of her father’s desk to gain momentum. “Er, Dad…” she said tentatively as she spun around, “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about… about last night.”
Harry showed no sign of surprise, and Haley continued. “It’s Jordan… how do we know he’s not really an Overseer? He fooled Malfoy, and Malfoy is… was… one of the best Legilimens-es-es in the world.”
“Right, but Jordan’s an Occlumens,” Harry answered calmly, now stuffing a belt buckle that he never wore (it was shaped like a hippogriff and had been given to him as a gift) into his trunk.
Haley blinked.
“He’s been reading all about Occlumency for a long time now,” her father explained. “He’s probably quite good. And, no, I don’t think he’d ever really become an Overseer. Even if he managed to join, he would never be able to kill off Muggle-borns. He loves Muggles. No one who spends that much time on a Muggle invention like a computer would ever be an Overseer.” He packed a pair of gold hippogriff-patterned socks that matched the ugly belt buckle. “Don’t worry about him. It’s lucky that your killing curse didn’t work, isn’t it?”
“Mmmm,” replied Haley, though her lips tightened. This was the crux of the matter-- the real thing that had been plaguing her. “Dad,” she blurted. “Why didn’t the spell work? What went wrong? Did… am I…”
“You’re not weak, Haley,” Harry told her seriously, cramming the last of his books and a packet of pepper imps on top of the contents of his trunk. “An Unforgivable Curse requires a certain potential of hatred. Some of the best witches and wizards will never be able to cast one.” He sounded like he was teaching one of his Defence Against the Dark Arts classes.
Haley folded her arms. “I really doubt that,” she told her father. “Name one.”
Harry smiled mysteriously. “Well, if you want an example, let’s see…”
“You can’t think of any, can you?” Haley asked sharply. She almost never argued with her father, but she was beginning to feel annoyed.
Harry’s smile widened. “I can think of lots of people who can’t cast an Unforgivable Curse. I can’t.” Haley actually fell off of her spinny stool at this and landed with a resounding CRASH! “Are you okay?” asked Harry, helping her to her feet.
“Yeah,” gasped Haley. “But what do you mean, you can’t? You… you did in Voldemort, didn’t you? He’s dead, right?”
“There are other ways of killing besides with a simple curse,” Harry explained. That same weary, hardened look returned to his face, making him look as though he’d aged ten years in seconds. “It was a lot harder than that. But that’s another story.”
Haley nodded, and her father returned to his seat. “But Haley,” he said in a very serious tone. “I really want you to understand this: Unforgivable Curses are called that for a reason. If your spell had worked, you’d have had a life sentence in Azkaban-- and you wouldn’t have a brother anymore. The only people who are allowed to use an Unforgivable Curse are Aurors, and even then, only in unavoidable situations.” He pulled a flat green card out of his robes pocket. “This is my Auror license. This box right here, on the left corner, is marked ‘LTK.’ That stands for ‘License To Kill.’ But I doubt I’ll ever need to use it.”
Haley nodded again. “Um… I’ve got another question. What about Uncle Ron?”
“He’s killed three people over the course of his life: Severus Snape, in the final battle against Voldemort; Lucius Malfoy eleven years ago; then that same night, Fenrir Greyback. Lucius Malfoy and Greyback were part of a Death Eater revival that was planning on attacking me.”
Haley knew all about Greyback-- she had seen her uncle kill him right there on her front porch when she was three. It was why she could see thestrals.
“But he still feels guilty about using his LTK-- you can tell it bothers him. It really weighs on your mind,” he continued, his eyes darkening. Haley was frightened. Her father was usually so confident and secure, and now he looked sad and tired and… old. “Anyway, Ron didn’t use the Avada Kedavra on Snape, either. Actually, he didn’t even use his wand. What happened was, he--”
“Dad? I… I don’t think I’m really ready to talk about this yet,” Haley cut him off in a small voice.
Harry kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry,” he told her sincerely. “Why don’t you go back into your dormitory? Today is a happy day-- it’s not my place to go about depressing people.”
Haley left the room to return to her dormitory, but she couldn’t help but wonder madly as she had so many times before, “What happened the night Voldemort died? What did Dad do?”
A little bit later, everyone was boarding the Hogwarts Express to go home for the summer. Due to the five hundred points that Jordan, Haley, Emma, Ivy, and Ted had earned the previous night, Gryffindor had won the house cup, and Edwin Weasley and Tyrone Thomas had thrown a huge party in the Common Room.
While all of the Gryffindors were in high spirits, the Slytherins seemed rather diminished without Ophidias. Although he, like Edwin, was not one of the oldest house prefects, the Slytherins had always looked to him as a leader. A Slytherin girl in their year named Charybdis Nott appeared to be wearing a sandwich board that read, “FREE OPHIDIAS!”
As Emma walked by Charybdis, she asked sweetly, “Er, who on earth would want Ophidias, even if he was free? You should be paying people to take him off of your hands.” Charybdis looked confused, and Emma laughed and shook her head before walking off to board the Hogwarts Express.
They found a compartment on the train, but it was hardly a private place to sit. Nearly everyone who passed by, if they didn’t have the courage to actually enter the compartment and praise the five of them for their actions the previous night, would press their faces up to the door and goggle at them. Ivy couldn’t help but feel as though she was on display at a zoo.
A short while into the train ride, Haley came back from the bathroom with a piece of interesting news. “Hey, Edwin thinks he’s found a jar full of billywigs. Who wants to go check it out?”
Emma and Ted quickly stood up to follow Haley. “Are you two coming?” Ted asked.
Ivy shook her head. “I’m fine,” she told him.
“Me, too,” Jordan said flatly.
“If you’re sure,” Ted shrugged with one last glance toward Ivy, and he, Emma, and Haley traipsed off toward Edwin Weasley’s compartment, leaving Ivy and Jordan alone together.
For a bit, the siblings kept quiet, their noses in books. But Ivy couldn’t concentrate. She lowered her novel and said, “So how are you?”
“Fine,” Jordan answered. He didn’t elaborate.
“No, that’s not what I mean,” Ivy let him know. “I meant… about… Malfoy.”
Jordan sighed and slouched down even lower in his seat. “It’s really good and all,” he muttered, “I mean, with Malfoy gone and me being called a hero. But the thing is, I’m still not different. It’s just another way I’m like Dad. If Dad wasn’t already such a big hero, everyone would notice so much more. I feel like I… like nothing’s changed.”
Ivy blinked. “Jordan, if you hate it so much when people compare you to Dad, then why do you compare yourself to him? You couldn’t be Dad’s total opposite without being an Overseer-- mind you, you’re closer to that than any of the rest of us.”
Her brother frowned. “That’s another thing,” he stated. “Why… why did you believe that I was an Overseer? I’m far too intelligent to do anything that idiotic, and you know it.”
Ivy chose her words as carefully as one would Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. “Well… for one, that was some very good acting on your part. But, er, the thing is, you’ve been acting a bit… odd all year. We were all worried about you. And then, you said that you were on the Dark Side, and we figured that it made sense, that that was why you were always shutting yourself up alone in the dormitory and getting mad at us.” She spoke very softly-- she had a feeling that her brother would get offended and start shouting at her.
But Jordan did something peculiar. He blinked, then bowed his head. “You really thought I was on the Dark Side…” he breathed. “I know I wasn’t exactly nice this year, but… I must have been pretty awful. I’m sorry.”
Ivy was taken aback. Jordan rarely apologized for anything, and when he did, he never said, ‘I’m sorry.’ He would make a half apology or mutter, ‘I won’t do it again’ under his breath in an aggravated sort of way. “That’s okay,” Ivy said. She reopened her book. “Of course, you know what Dad would say?” she asked, not looking up from her page. “Just worry about being Jordan, not anybody else.”
“But everyone else thinks I should be… Potter Junior,” Jordan sighed. “Even Malfoy called me that.”
“People expect me to be Malfoy’s little girl,” Ivy replied. “And Malfoy also called me that.” She turned a page in her book, but Jordan reached out and snapped it shut.
Now Ivy was really stunned. Her brother never closed people’s books, as he hated it so much when other people did it to him. “What was that for?” she asked, more curiously than indignantly.
“Because I want to know what’s eating you,” Jordan answered. “I mean, it made sense when you were upset about Malfoy being on the loose, but he’s gone now.”
Ivy swept back her fringe. “Well… I’ve been thinking a lot about Malfoy,” she admitted. “The thing is, he was a really terrible person, he killed loads of Muggles and Muggle-borns, but when he saw me… it was like he was the dad I remembered from when I was little. They were like two different people: Draco Malfoy and The Dark Master. I just feel horrible about letting him get the Dementors’ kiss right there in front of me! After all, he was treating me like… like the prodigal son, you know?”
She was spilling everything out now. She hadn’t said this to anyone-- not her parents, not Haley and Emma, not even Ted. She didn’t know what was making her reveal it now. “I mean, think about it. I know you and Haley and Mum and Dad and Jonathan and Holly are my family now, but my birth mother and my biological brother are both in Azkaban. It doesn’t feel right. I feel like I did something wrong, not like I’m a hero.”
Jordan nodded gravely. “Me, too,” he told her. “After all, it was me who shot the spell at him. I know it was only a stunner, but because of my spell, he hasn’t got a soul anymore. It was like how Dad got rid of Voldemort. That was all luck as well-- luck and nerve. He didn’t have any plans or anything, it just… happened.”
Ivy’s pale eyes widened. “Wait, Dad told you how he killed Voldemort?” she asked in a hushed voice.
Jordan locked his fingers together and stared down at them, not meeting Ivy’s eyes. “Can you keep a secret?” he asked at last. Ivy nodded patiently. Jordan shifted in his seat and took a deep breath.
“All right, well, when I was ten years old, I went into Dad’s study to ask him a question, and he wasn’t in. But he did have his Pensieve on his desk-- only I didn’t know what it was back then, only that he told me not to touch it. But I was really curious, and, well, I looked into the Pensieve-- it was all an accident, I didn’t know what would happen-- and I… I saw it.”
“Saw what?” breathed Ivy.
“The final battle against Voldemort. I saw Dad defeat him. It was…really horrible.” He gulped. It would be so hard to relay his story to Ivy; he didn’t want to have to relive his memory, but somehow, telling her his story seemed to lift a heavy weight off of his chest.
“What happened was, Dad was over by the graveyard at Godric’s Hollow when--”
The train’s compartment door slid open, and Haley, Emma, and Ted walked inlooking slightly disappointed. “What a rip-off,” snarled Emma. “Those weren’t even billywigs, just stupid horseflies. The only thing that happened was I got a bite the size of a snitch on my arm.”
“Huh?” Ivy was momentarily confused.
“The billywigs,” explained Ted, looking at her closely. “Edwin thought he found a jar of them. Are you all right?”
“Yeah,” Ivy said quickly.
“Yeah, we’re just peachy,” muttered Jordan.
A few hours later, the Hogwarts Express pulled into Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. “Well, this is it!” announced Haley. “Just think, in a few short months, we’ll be fifth years, having to worry about OWLs testing and prefect stuff!”
“Thanks for reminding me, Haley,” Jordan moaned.
“Think any of us will make prefect?” Ted asked curiously.
“Jordan,” everyone else, including Jordan, answered in unison.
They all hefted their trunks down from the luggage rack and down the aisle of the train. Suddenly, five or six Slytherin second year boys stampeded out of their compartment, tripping Emma and separating her from her other four friends. “Watch where you’re going!” she yelled after them. The Slytherin boys didn’t even say ‘sorry’ as they trampled toward the door.
Emma rolled her eyes and picked up her trunk, which had been knocked over in the process. She then proceeded to drag it toward the door of the train, feeling vaguely irritated.
Tyrone was lounging by the door, leaning casually against the nearest seat. “Go on,” he offered silkily. “Age before beauty.”
Emma smirked. Typical Tyrone, managing to be arrogant even when he was doing her a favor. He knew as well as he did that she was only born two days before him. “Well, thanks. Hey, er, you know, if you want to write to me this summer, I wouldn’t mind. Just so you know-- in case you wanted to write,” she mentioned.
Tyrone nodded. “Yeah, I was thinking I might. You know, as a favour to you and all.” He ran a hand through his gelled curls.
Emma gave him a slight smile and began to descend the steps to the platform. “Bye, Tyrone! See you in September!”
“Wait, Emma!” Tyrone jumped down the three steps onto the platform all at once. “Hey, I was thinking, when we start school again next year, would you like to, you know, go out with me?”
Emma studied Tyrone. Despite his casual tone, she could tell he was sincere; his frame had a certain nervous rigidity to it that wasn’t normally there, his bright hazel eyes shone with anticipation, and his typical grin was eager and earnest. He wasn’t doing a very good job of pretending that this was no big deal to him. Looking into his face and remembering everything that had happened year, Emma knew what her answer would be.
“No,” she replied softly. Tyrone’s face fell, but he regained composure quickly, as he was apt to do. Emma picked up her trunk again and headed back toward where her friends were waiting with their families, but not until after she had looked back over her shoulder at Tyrone.
“Not yet,” she added.
“I don’t believe it, you turned down Tyrone Thomas again!” Haley exclaimed later that day. The girls were sitting in Haley’s bedroom, painting their toenails. “I just don’t get it. He likes you, and you know you like him.”
“Who says?” demanded Emma.
“Everyone!” responded Haley. “And why wouldn’t you? Come on, don’t you think he’s good-looking?”
“Erm… yeah…of course…” Emma admitted. “But that doesn’t mean””
“Do you think he’s funny?”
“Yeah, but...”
“Best darn Beater anywhere?”
“Yeah.”
“Got the prettiest speaking voice of any boy in the history of the world?”
“Yeah…”
“I knew it! Why won’t you go out with him?”
“Because it’s stupid! Besides, he doesn’t take that type of thing seriously! He’s a good friend now that I know him and all, but he could never just focus on dating one person.”
“Just like you,” Ivy put in quietly. Emma and Haley looked at her, totally bewildered.
“What do you mean? I’ve never had a boyfriend, and Tyrone’s gone out with like nine girls already!” Emma informed her indignantly.
“Exactly,” elaborated Ivy. “You’ve never gone out with anyone or taken a date to the Valentines’ Day Ball, even though you’ve been asked, because, in your own words, ‘it takes all the fun out of life.’ You don’t take that type of thing seriously, either. You just go about it in a different way.” Ivy was beginning to think that Ted’s talent for noticing things that no one else did was rubbing off on her.
Emma stared at her friend, totally at a loss for words. Instead, she muttered nonsense under her breath, words like ‘totally wrong’ and ‘doesn’t know what she’s talking about’.
“So, Ivy,” chirped Haley. “While we’re on the subject, what’s up with you and Ted?”
Ivy didn’t say anything at all, and there was an awkward silence. Finally, she commented loudly, “Soooo, how about those Chudley Cannons?”
The five of them didn’t exactly get a relaxing first day of summer holidays. They all woke at six in the morning to go to Hogsmeade for a special ceremony and press conference held by the Minister of Magic. They were all wearing their dress robes-- Haley in pink, Ivy in silver, Jordan in dark green, Ted in blue, and Emma in her brand new maroon robes.
“I don’t like those,” Ron grumbled as he passed by his daughter to pick up the pot of floo powder. (Everyone had gathered at Number Seven, Griffin Circle, to travel into Hogsmeade.)
Hermione laughed. “Oh, you’ve never liked maroon, Ron. It looks nice on Emma, though, even if it never was your colour.”
“I liked corned beef, too,” Emma put in lightly as they stepped, one by one, into the fireplace: Harry and Ginny (each carrying one of the baby twins), Jordan, Haley, and Ivy, Ron, Hermione, Emma, Remus, Tonks, Ted, and lastly Christina and Nathaniel Lupin, Ted’s fully-grown older siblings.
When they climbed out of the fireplace, they found themselves in a large theatre, full of plush purple seats and a stage where the Minister of Magic stood behind a podium, accompanied by several important-looking wizards and witches. The five seats nearest the podium were vacant, and a wizened old usher escorted the five friends onto the stage and into their seats.
The Minister of Magic cleared his throat. He was a tall, thin, neat-looking man with bright red hair and immaculate navy blue robes-- and he just so happened to be Percy Weasley. Percy was actually quite a good Minister of Magic, despite what some of his family members might have feared, and he had been the youngest wizard ever to be elected Minister of Magic when he first succeeded the position six years before.
“Welcome, everyone,” he announced, speaking to the huge crowd seated in the audience. “We’re gathered here for a very important ceremony-- to honor the five children who captured the Dark Master, Draco Malfoy. As Minister of Magic, it gives me great pleasure to present Mr. Jordan Potter, Miss Harriet-Lily Potter, Miss Ivy Potter, Miss Emma Weasley, and Mr. Theodore Lupin.” There was thunderous applause as the five of them got up from their seats and made their way toward the podium.
They were the longest six steps that Ted had ever taken. He felt as though somebody had put the jelly-legs jinx on him-- he couldn’t remember ever having so many eyes on him, even at his Sorting. There were news reporters, celebrities, and most of the Ministry of Magic, all staring at him.
Several Ministry workers scuttled over toward the five of them and looped heavy gold medals on bright purple and gold silk ribbons, around their necks. Ted looked at his medal; upon it was engraved, “THE ALBUS DUMBLEDORE AWARD FOR EXTRAORDINARY COURAGE IN THE FACE OF DANGER.” Reflected back in the shiny solid-gold pendant was his own face, wearing an expression of mingled joy, shock, nervousness, and pride. The face that looked up at him had changed almost beyond recognition since his third year-- more adult than child now, and thin and worn from his werewolf transformations, and he thought how much he had changed as a person as well.
“These medals,” announced the Minister of Magic, “are the Albus Dumbledore Award For Extraordinary Courage In The Face of Danger. This award was created in 1945 after the defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald by Albus Dumbledore, and has only been presented three times since then… until now. This, therefore, is a historical event. What these five children, who the newspapers are now calling ‘Potter’s Pentagon,’ or ‘The Five,’ have done required outstanding bravery and quick wits such that most fully-qualified wizards wouldn’t have been able to do the same. This is made even more special by the fact that the last recipients of the Albus Dumbledore Award were Potter’s Eight-- six of whom are the parents of these same children. I think now is the right time for any of The Five to say a few words on their behalf.”
Ted certainly didn’t want to make a speech; he hadn’t done much, simply chased Malfoy around like an attack dog. Any of the other four were more worthy. “How about you, Haley?” he whispered. He knew she was the most loquacious of his friends, and the least likely to get stage fright.
Haley shook her head. “I think it’s Jordan’s turn,” she whispered back.
Jordan looked startled. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped. “Wait, me?” he whispered. The other four nodded as one, and at this, he gave them a small smile and stumbled forward the podium, where Percy handed him his wand (which was bewitched with the Sonorous spell.)
“It feels absolutely incredible to be here today,” Jordan said. He had no idea what he was going to say in his speech; he hadn’t planned anything, deciding to just say anything that popped into his head. “But I also feel a bit guilty for accepting this award. My friends and I didn’t do anything that no one else would have in the same situation”well, except for Ted, of course. We just did what we had to, and we got lucky.
“And my friends do make a great team. Ted always stays cool when there’s a problem, and he never panics. Ivy’s got the most common sense. Emma’s incredibly brave, and she knows every jinx and hex imaginable. And Haley, well, I think I’d underestimated her. Even if school isn’t her forte, she thinks incredibly quickly and she’s literally a genius when it comes to coming up with plans and strategies. As for me… I didn’t think about how important a team was. I thought I was clever enough to do it all by myself, finish off Malfoy just like that. But I was wrong, and I learned a lot from what happened that night.
“People are comparing me to my dad now. People have been saying it to me for years, and all it ever did was make me angry, but I never really thought about it until I talked to my sister Ivy yesterday. The truth is, I’m not him. He’s absolutely brilliant at the actual action, coming up with ideas right there on the spot. He’s brave, and he’s an amazing wizard. And to be honest, I’d rather stay safe at home than actually fight a duel.
“And I’m not going to try to be Harry Potter anymore, because there can only be one Harry Potter. You can call us Potter’s Pentagon, but let’s be realistic, we’re not Potter’s Eight. Malfoy wasn’t Voldemort. And even my father needed help from his friends to defeat Voldemort. And a bunch of true friends is something that I definitely have.
“The biggest thing I’ve learned is to not overlook them, to appreciate them, because even though I hadn’t been a very good friend to them lately, they came to help me out when I was in danger... and if it wasn’t for them, we might not be here today. My friends stayed with me, no matter how much of a… a git I was, I suppose you can say. And… that’s all I have to say right now.”
Everyone applauded, and Jordan smiled a smile that was full of relief, relief that his speech had ended successfully and that he had managed to admit he had been wrong and thank his friends for what they’d done, something he hadn’t been able to bring himself to do before.
He had said everything that he’d been thinking for the last two days but couldn’t find the time to tell anyone, things that for the most part didn’t even have to do with the reason he was there: Malfoy’s defeat. But he had done it, and it took a huge weight off of his chest.
When he returned to where his friends were standing, the first thing he noticed was that Haley was crying. She was smiling, but her eyes were full of tears. Before Jordan knew what was happening, his twin sister had flung her arms around him and given him a big smooch on the cheek.
“You’re brilliant, Jordan!” she exclaimed, and the audience erupted into cheers.
Percy climbed back on top of his podium. “Also, I have another announcement to make,” he proclaimed. “I must admit my failings as Minister of Magic-- if I had placed tighter security on Azkaban prison and devised a better alert system, we might have never had to have this ceremony. I was wrong to trust the Dementors after we knew what happened with Lord Voldemort. Malfoy might never have gotten a chance to kill anyone. Therefore, I’m going to abdicate my position as Minister of Magic, and appoint someone who really understands Defense Against the Dark Arts and will implement his skills to prevent anything like this from ever happening again. For that reason I’ve chosen… the Head Auror, Harry Potter!”
The audience began to whisper, mumble, and cheer at this new as Harry got up from his seat and walked up to the stage. Jordan froze with disbelief. His father, the Minister of Magic? He’d be the son of the most powerful man in the wizarding world?
“Thank you, Minister,” Harry said calmly. “But with all due respect… I am choosing to decline the offer. You are an excellent Minister of Magic, and I know you’ll continue to do an excellent job. As for Malfoy’s escape, someone very wise once told me that the only way to succeed is to look into the future rather than dwelling in the past. So, if you’ll allow me, I choose not to accept the position.”
There was a collective gasp from the audience following this short speech. “You’re sure?” Percy asked, blinking. Harry nodded. “All right… then, I shall continue to do my best to fulfill my duties as Minister of Magic.”
“I know you will,” Harry told him softly.
After the ceremony, Ted, Jordan, Emma, Ivy, and Haley were walking through the streets of Hogsmeade, window-shopping and drinking butterbeer. They were accompanied by Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione (Ted’s family was buying a birthday present for Great-aunt Ethelfritha) and everyone was in an extremely good mood.
“Hey, if you don’t mind, I have some business to attend to down that way,” Ron informed him, jerking a thumb toward a nearby path.
“It’s all right, we’ll meet you back here in a bit,” Ginny told him. Ron nodded, and hurried down the side road.
“What’s down there?” Ivy asked curiously. “What’s he doing?”
Hermione shrugged. “I don’t know,” she mused. “As far as I know, all that’s down that road are a few robe shops, a barbershop, and Zonko’s. Knowing Ron, though, he likes to do his shopping as quickly as possible, so I expect he’ll be back soon. Maybe we should sit down here.”
They all took a seat on a bench. “Jordan, I’ve been meaning to tell you how good your speech was,” Harry told his son. “It was very touching.”
“Thank you,” Jordan answered, and it was a sincere ‘thank you.’ He didn’t mumble or use the normal flat, indifferent tone of voice that he favored, which was very unusual for him. He cocked his head to the side.
“Dad, why didn’t you want to be Minister of Magic? How could you not accept the offer? If you said ‘yes,’ you’d be the most powerful man in the wizarding world!”
Harry smiled and put his arms around Ginny and Haley, those on either side of him on his bench. “Because,” he replied, “I have everything I want here. I have a greatfamily, a job I love… and you said it yourself, that’s it’s good to be yourself. I don’t think I’m the Minister of Magic type, to tell you the truth. Too much desk work. And I get bored really easily… I think Haley got her ADHD from me, to be honest.”
“Hey, question. Now that Malfoy’s gone, is Ted’s dad going to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts again, or are you going to stay?” Haley wanted to know.
“Professor Lupin will take over again,” Harry informed her. “I think I make a better Auror than a teacher.”
“You were a great teacher, though!” Ted told him.
“Thanks, but I really miss my old job. And I also want my office back!” said Harry.
“With its spinny chair?” Haley asked eagerly.
“Yes, with its spinny chair,” Harry clarified. “Especially that.”
“Ron will be crushed,” Hermione remarked. “He really enjoyed getting to use your office. Now he’ll have to take down all of his Chudley Cannons posters, and all of his baby pictures of Emma!” At this, Emma moaned and buried her face in her hands.
Haley laughed. “Now that Malfoy isn’t on the loose anymore, we’ll actually be able to have a good year at Hogwarts when it starts up again,” she commented, changing the subject. “Jordan won’t be acting like such a git anymore--”
“Hey!” Jordan yelped.
“-- and Ivy won’t be a basket case all the time--”
“Hey!” Ivy exclaimed indignantly.
“-- and Emma will finally cave the next time Tyrone asks her out!” she finished up happily.
“Hey!” Emma growled.
Harry and Ginny exchanged glances. “Yeah, it’s definitely going to be an interesting fifth year…” Harry began.
“Harry,” Hermione warned, “you promised that you wouldn’t tell them!”
“We won’t tell them,” Ginny assured her.
“But if we did,” continued Harry, “It would be that Hogwarts is going to be hosting the Triwizard Tournament again for the first time in twenty-five years, and that the tasks are going to be less dangerous, so the cut-off age is fifteen, and…”
“HARRY!” Hermione screeched, but the damage was done.
The five friends grinned at each other. “Wicked,” breathed Emma.
“The Triwizard Tournament? That’s amazing!” gushed Ivy. “And we’ll get to see Marina!” Marina Weasley, their cousin and the daughter of Bill and Fleur Weasley, was a rising sixth year at Beauxbatons and quite a good friend of theirs.
They all continued to discuss the Triwizard Tournament for quite some time, until Ron’s long, lean frame reappeared. He didn’t appear to be carrying anything. “Hi,” he greeted them. “Well, what do you think?” He turned his head to the side, and everyone gasped. From the front, he looked the same as ever, the same slicked bright-red hair and long, buzzed sideburns-- but from this angle, a change was evident.
“Ron,” gasped Hermione. “You’ve cut off that ridiculous ponytail of yours!” And without warning, she burst out laughing. “You are so… so… something! I’ve been trying to get you to get rid of your stupid ponytail for the last seventeen years, and now you finally do it!” She kissed him lightly on the nose, standing on tiptoe to achieve such great altitude. “Well, you look quite handsome,” she told him.
“Why now, though?” Ginny wanted to know. “Why not, say, seventeen years ago?”
“I figured it wasn’t really my style,” Ron shrugged. “And also, any hairdo that Malfoy thinks looks good, isn’t good enough for me.” Everyone laughed; although Ron’s short, slicked ponytail had hardly resembled the long white-blond cascade of hair favored by Malfoy, this was a typical reason for Ron to get a haircut.
“Well, I’m starving,” declared Ron. “And it’s starting to drizzle. Let’s find a place to get lunch. Any suggestions?”
Ted pulled a crumpled menu out of his pocket. “I ate here once with my family. It’s a Chinese restaurant, down on First Street.”
“I didn’t know they had Chinese restaurants in Hogsmeade,” mentioned Emma.
“They have everything in Hogsmeade,” Jordan informed her. “Argh, the rain’s getting harder. Anyway, what’s the place called?”
“Hoo’s On First,” replied Ted. “I know, it’s a cheesy name--”
“I think it’s funny!” interjected Ron.
“--but they have really good chow mein,” Ted finished up. “Especially the beef.”
Haley cracked up in hysterical laughter, and everyone stopped walking to stare at her. “Sorry,” she giggled. “But, oh my gosh, Ted, that’s hilarious! You just reminded me of a song I know!” She began to sing rather loudly, turning the heads of passersby.
“I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand
Walking through the streets of Hogsmeade in the rain.
He was looking for a place called Hoo’s On First
Going to get himself a big dish of beef chow mein.
Awooo! Werewolves of London! Awooo!
If you hear him howling ‘round your kitchen door
Better not let him in.
That Malfoy almost got mutilated late last night.
Werewolves of London again!”
Everyone joined her in the chorus-- the tune was quite catchy. “Awooo! Werewolves of London! Awooo!” They didn’t care that people were looking at them-- even Jordan sang along with gusto, feeling as carefree as his sister.
Suddenly, Ted realized with some surprise that his voice was no longer cracking and squeaking haphazardly as it had for the past several months. It had settled down to a new, lower pitch sometime not too long before. He’d been so busy lately, he hadn’t even noticed.
The five friends were not normal children, even by wizarding standards. But today, they were having fun on summer vacation with their families, like any other kids in the world.
They might be The Five, now famous and well-known, and they might have all had problems of their own, but right now none of it seemed to matter. And they knew, as they dodged the rain drops now pelting down upon them, that things were looking up.
A/N; Well, that's it! Expect the second book (and yes, the second and third books really are "books," unlike this one) to come soon.
I'd really, really like everyone who reviews this chapter to tell me which of my original characters (sorry, I know you all wanted to vote for Zabini!) you like best and which one you like least. If you could do that for me, I would wuv you even more, you lovely reviewers, you!