Chapter 46
The Center of Attention
Even before they turned the last corner to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, Harry could hear the laughter. They worked their way through the crowded doorway to locate the source of all the fuss. The entire room had been draped with banners that announced ‘HUFFLEPUFF RULES’ and a flashing arrow pointing to the archway into Tonks’ office.
From the reaction of those around him, Harry could see that the commotion was centered at the foot of the truncated stone staircase that led up to the office door. Somehow, the stairs had been bewitched so that they retracted into a slide without the proper password. Those who had been denied entry were getting more and more creative with the password suggestions.
“It’s still relatively early in the evening,” Luna whispered. “As soon as someone figures it out, the information will spread like wildfire.”
“Unfortunately, I have no idea of the solution,” Harry whispered candidly.
“I’m up to the challenge,” Luna assured him. “It can’t have been that complicated if Professor Lupin didn’t give anyone a clue.”
Harry craned his neck a bit, then stood on a wooden desk chair so that he could see between the stone slats in the banister. Just as he suspected, the small door to Tonks’ rooms was open wide with another arrow above it. He confided to Luna that he could see flashes of movement beyond, indicating that other guests had already solved the puzzle.
“I think I have it,” she returned and pointed to the banner that hung on the stone banister itself. “Compare it with the other signs.”
Harry did as she commanded. In small print, the word ‘say’ had been added before the ‘Hufflepuff Rules’ on that banner alone.
“You think it could be that simple?”
“Let’s try it anyway! It’s a tribute to a famous work of literature,” Luna urged in an excited whisper. “As a variation of the Fidelius Charm, it should work.”
Casually they made their way to the foot of the stairs while the crowd parted effortlessly. From the titters that Harry heard in their wake, the consensus was that they would embarrass themselves.
With growing confidence, Harry whispered only loudly enough for the password to register and then calmly climbed the stairs. At the top of the landing, he allowed Luna to precede him into office and then turned to the abnormally silent crowd.
“Hufflepuff rules!” he intoned with vigor, raising his fist in a salute. If they couldn’t figure it out from that, they would just have to wait for someone else.
Luna waited for Harry before walking through the final door into Tonks’ chambers. The windows were facing the wrong direction to capture the sunset, but the view of the violet dusk accentuated by the softly falling snow was spectacular in its own right. Luna cooed and pointed to the high ceiling; it was strung with thousands of tiny yellow lights.
“She didn’t use faeries,” Luna commented in an awed tone. “Those are Muggle party lights!”
“I wonder why?” Harry whispered. “At the Yule Ball, they used faeries in the garden.”
“I remember,” Luna nodded. “I could see them from the window of the Ravenclaw common room. But when we contacted the faerie council on behalf of the Halloween Ball, they were not so agreeable.”
“Why was that, Luna?” Harry asked gamely.
“They’ve unionized,” she explained matter-of-factly. “The Quibbler reported that it had been on the table over a year ago. They wanted an exorbitant fee! The Halloween decorating committee decided that twinkling faeries weren’t really necessary for a spooky atmosphere, so that was that.”
“The faerie council is going to be up in arms if they find out about Tonks’ innovation then!” Harry laughed softly.
“Depends,” Luna intoned dreamily. “They may have decided that renting themselves for decorative purposes was demeaning in the first place.”
No doubt about it, Harry smiled to himself, Luna was entertaining in the extreme.
Lupin walked up and put his arm genially around Harry’s shoulder. “Glad you could make it,” he greeted them with a smile. “I see you brought a guest, too. Good to see you, Luna.”
“It’s a wonderful party, Professor.” Luna beamed. “Please relay my compliments to the hostess.”
“I will, but you should make a point of telling her yourself, if you can find a moment.”
Lupin nodded toward the small crowd that had already gathered in the far corner. From the laughter wafting from that direction, Harry concluded that Tonks must already be in the middle of a funny story.
Luna nodded sagely then offered, “Could I ask you about the charm on the stairs, Professor?”
“Of course, Luna. I confess that I helped with that one myself.”
“Did you use the Fidelius Charm and then have the banner at the foot of the stairs lettered by the Secret-Keeper?” she asked, all in one quick breath.
“Precisely.” Lupin smiled with a pleasantly surprised expression. “I didn’t realize that you were such an expert on the Fidelius Charm.”
“I’ve discussed it at length with Professor Flitwick “ he’s my Head of House “ so I guess I have a familiarity with it.”
“You should come by my office sometime, Luna. I’d love to have a longer discussion with you.” Lupin beamed. “Just stop me at the end of class sometime.”
Luna nodded happily in return.
“Nice choice,” Lupin whispered appreciatively in Harry’s ear.
Checking that Luna’s attention was occupied elsewhere, Harry dared to whisper back, “We’re just here as friends. It’s nothing serious.”
“Neither are Ginny and Robert,” Lupin replied knowingly.
“At least I had the decency to specify that up front,” Harry hissed.
“Absolutely,” Lupin granted. “Before you ask, I haven’t seen them yet.”
With a tight smile, Harry thanked Lupin.
Luna had only wandered as far as the food table so Harry found her almost immediately. Her eyes were glazing over in delight as she appraised all the different desserts that had been assembled. Belatedly, Harry realized that she and Tonks seemed to share the same passion for sweets. Speaking of passion, he searched in vain for the chocolate soufflé, but it was not among the offerings. Not that he’d really expected it to be since Tonks had specified that it had to be eaten immediately out of the oven. There was only so much that magic could accomplish, after all.
Having just eaten supper before collecting Luna, Harry’s eye was more drawn to the elaborate ice sculpture in the shape of an upright badger that was standing tall in the center of the punch bowl. He passed on the candied snakes that were being offered as garnishes.
“Make sure you try the flourless chocolate cake,” Luna raved as she offered Harry a bite from her own plate.
It was clearly the least elaborate item on the table, just a dark fudgy wedge garnished with powdered sugar ‘snow’. By its very richness on his tongue, Harry concluded that any other garnish would have just been overkill. True, it wasn’t as sensually satisfying as the soufflé, but it had the advantage of being able to be folded into a napkin for later consumption.
“Don’t let me leave without packing some of that away for later,” Harry breathed appreciatively in Luna’s ear.
“You’ll have to stand in line,” she returned.
They found a place on one of the sofas that had been pushed against the walls to finish their food. The room was beginning to fill up fast as the crowd outside had finally solved the puzzle. Harry spied Ron and Hermione arriving together with Neville who was, surprisingly, alone. Neville caught sight of Harry and snagged the empty seat beside him gratefully.
“Hi, Luna!” Neville waved from Harry’s other side. “Always a pleasure.”
Luna flashed him one of her beatific smiles but quickly returned her eyes to her plate.
“I didn’t expect to see you alone, Neville,” Harry commented. “Is Daphne meeting you here?”
Sadly, Neville shook his head. “She decided she couldn’t abandon the Slytherins without feeling like a traitor. She did invite me to join her at the consolation party later. Slughorn’s handing out black rosettes for everyone’s lapels.” Neville’s eye lit up briefly at the last remark.
“We would have forgiven you if you’d just gone to her party,” Harry offered in commiseration, thinking that Slughorn had a certain flair for entertaining.
“How could I?” Neville replied in an earnest tone. “My faculty advisor was involved in the planning of this event and invited me personally, followed by a personal invitation by my Head of House who happens to be married to the hostess. I had to at least make a nominal showing “ Daphne should have understood that. After all…”
“After all, you joined her in the Slytherin ranks at the match?” Harry supplied.
“Exactly.”
“Join her later, then,” Harry offered by way of a lame compromise.
The party was in full swing, the music cranked up rather loudly, the dance floor just beginning to fill up when Harry caught sight of Ginny and Robert. He’d come to the snack table to get a refill of punch and there they were on the other side of it, staring out onto the moonlit grounds from one of the floor-to-ceiling windows. Harry couldn’t deny that it was a uniquely beautiful scene now that the snow had stopped falling. The light from the three-quarters moon was amplified by the reflectent snow crystals to bathe the surroundings in a bluish glow.
“It’s an ideal night for a moonlit sleigh ride.” Robert’s deep voice was clearly audible against the other noises, even though Harry was not trying to overhear.
Ginny’s giggle felt like needles in Harry’s chest as she replied, “Don’t you remember that the entire school is still in lock-down mode? All the horses come from Professor Hooch’s farm which is off-limits.”
Harry turned away quickly but not fast enough to avoid seeing Robert’s arm snake its way around Ginny’s waist. He considered suggesting that they try hitching blast-ended skrewts to their sleigh instead, but decided Luna would probably be offended by that remark. She seemed to share a bit of Hagrid’s ability to find the cute and cuddly in the monstrous and grim. Probably explained why she’d agreed to accompany him tonight, Harry thought darkly.
He returned to his spot on the sofa, but both Luna and Neville were no longer sitting there. He caught sight of them waving to him happily from the dance floor and he waved back generously. Harry wandered over to where Lupin and Tonks were holding court but couldn’t really get close enough to join in with the conversation.
He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to face Hermione and Ron.
“Where’s Luna?” Ron asked.
Harry nodded towards the dance floor. “Neville’s here by himself.”
“Yeah, he filled us in on the way over,” Ron replied.
“Great spell on the stone stairs, don’t you think?” Hermione smiled anxiously. “Did they use the Fidelius Charm?”
“Lupin did.”
Giving up on side-stepping the obvious, Hermione added with narrowed eyes, “Have you noticed how the temperature drops when they walk into a room?”
“I’m fairly certain that’s a dementor.” Harry laughed half-heartedly. “But thanks for the vote of loyalty, anyway.”
“I was hoping Luna would take your mind off other things,” Hermione tried a different tack.
“She did; you have to pay close attention on that buggy ride.” Harry chuckled. “But she’s having a good time on the dance floor and who am I to curtail that? Hermione, look, I appreciate all your efforts, really I do, but I just can’t talk about this. I’ve been doing my utmost to simply stay away from them all term and that truly is the best course. Now, if you’ll excuse me…”
“You’re not going to leave Luna by herself, are you?” Hermione demanded.
“No, I will make my excuses and suggest that she is welcome to remain if she would like. I’m sure Neville will be glad to take over my duties, at least on a temporary basis. I have thought this through.” Harry turned away as he felt his words becoming harsher the more she pushed him.
“Harry…”
“Now you sound just like Ginny,” Harry hissed as he turned back around. “That’s not going to make me feel any better!”
Feeling the need to take out his frustration in some physical way, Harry walked to the other side of the room and stared at a different patch of snow from the one that Ginny was viewing. He really didn’t want to offend Lupin and Tonks by walking out of the party too early, but surely they didn’t expect him to stay to the bitter end. He pressed his forehead against the cold glass of the window to help distance himself from his angst. The contrast in temperature made his glasses fog up, but he didn’t care.
Not too much later, he felt a gentle hand on his arm, a touch so light and airy that it could only be Luna. He took a moment to wipe his glasses on his sleeve before facing her stoically.
“Are you all right, Harry?” she asked softly. “I saw Ginny and Robert by the window…”
It was no use lying to Luna. He nodded morosely and allowed himself to be engulfed in her arms, the warmth of her body providing a momentary comfort. He felt the unshed tears stop when they reached his eyelashes. Gently, he laid his cheek on top of Luna’s head.
After what seemed like an indecently long period of time, Harry stroked a long stand of Luna’s hair from her cheek and whispered, “You know, it would be so much simpler…” The words made his heart feel like it was being apart torn by beasts.
Luna looked up at him sadly and whispered, “Life doesn’t like to make things easy. I can’t pretend to something that isn’t there, either.”
“You’ll understand if I want to leave early then,” he whispered in her ear like a lover’s caress. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.”
“Neville looks like he might need a bit of comforting also,” she replied with an undeniable ring of hope.
“Thanks, Luna, you’re the best,” Harry breathed into her hair and then brushed his lips ever so lightly across her cheek. With regret, he disentangled himself from her arms, wishing he could have the luxury of imposing on her longer. He turned back at the door to the outer office and saw that she was already searching Neville out in the crowd. With a sense that at least that was as it should be, he left the party behind.
Harry muttered, “Hufflepuff rules,” as he started down the stone stairs just in case the spell worked backwards as well. Wouldn’t surprise him considering how well his evening was going. The Dark Arts classroom was deserted as everyone had finally made it into the party. He was almost half-way down the aisle when he heard a familiar voice behind him.
“Harry?”
He slowed his steps but didn’t turn, hoping that it was just his imagination. But then the word was repeated, even more woefully. With a sigh, he turned around.
“What is it, Ginny?”
She was standing about midway down the stone steps looking at him like a lost child. Not knowing what to expect, but being fairly certain he did not want it broadcast across a large classroom, Harry grimly walked back to the staircase. She waited for him on the lower step, but Harry approached from the other side, allowing the banister to form a barrier between them.
She hesitated as if she didn’t know where to begin, but Harry stood his ground, determined not to assist her in any way.
“That was a rather tender moment you shared with Luna,” she whispered softly.
Harry resisted the urge to lash out that it was none of her business and instead replied simply, “She was comforting me. There was nothing else to it.”
A thousand possibilities went through Harry’s mind as he waited for Ginny to take the conversation in tow. Inexplicably, she just stood there, calmly staring at him as if that had been her sole intent. Finding the feelings that stirred within him to be unbearable, Harry steeled himself to take action instead.
“I couldn’t help overhearing a portion of your conversation earlier, Ginny,” he ventured. “Please tell Robert that if he is hell-bent on a romantic sleigh ride, he should consider using one of Hagrid’s thestrals. And if he’s not already acquainted with death enough that he can see the ruddy beasts, tell him that I’d be glad to remedy that for him personally!”
To Harry’s surprise, Ginny covered her mouth with her hand to stifle an involuntary giggle.
“I couldn’t possibly tell him that and do it justice,” she admitted with a smile. “Are you sure you wouldn’t like to do it yourself?”
“Despite its appeal, it would be extremely rude to cause that kind of a furor at Tonks’ party,” Harry demurred. “Remember what Lupin told us about dueling in anger?”
“Are you certain that it would lead to a duel?” she countered with an undeniable twinkle.
“Absolutely.”
On that note, Harry turned and walked resolutely away. At the doorway, he turned to glance back and saw that Ginny had not moved from her spot. At that distance, he couldn’t tell whether her expression was truly forlorn or whether it was just wishful thinking on his part. It seemed like they stared at one another for an unusually long time before Robert poked his head out of the office doorway at the top of the stairs. Harry could not hear the words that he said to Ginny, but with one last look in Harry’s direction, she walked up the stairs and rejoined the party.
Harry’s steps had lost much of their temporary bounce by the time he reached the stone sconce in Gryffindor Tower. He prepared himself to spend another lonely evening, alone with nothing but the Horcrux study materials for company. He was surprised to find that Lupin was waiting for him in one of the armchairs by the fire.
“How did you get here so quickly?” Harry uttered in surprise.
“I knew a short-cut,” Lupin replied succinctly.
“I sort of wanted to be alone.”
“And do what? Stare at Ginny’s photo and follow her moving dot on the Marauder’s Map?” Lupin countered.
“Don’t forget the instant reply on the Omnioculars,” Harry offered meekly.
“Right. I have myself to blame for that bit, don’t I?” Lupin laughed ruefully.
“I really am pathetic, aren’t I?” Harry grinned in spite of himself.
“Not if I have anything to do with it.” Lupin smiled gently in return. “It’s a beautiful night, let’s go for a walk somewhere.”
“Won’t Tonks miss you at the party?”
“I’d like to think so, but she was the one who urged me to go after you.”
“Any chance of doing a bit of stargazing from the aerie?” Harry suggested hopefully as he allowed Lupin to lead him back out onto the tower staircase.
“Besides the possibility of ice, those narrow steps are absolutely deadly at night,” Lupin replied with a note of sadness. “It does seem like an ideal night to gaze into the heavens, though…”
“How about the Astronomy Tower?” Harry offered and then wished he hadn’t. He wasn’t sure he was ready to revisit the site of Dumbledore’s last stand.
“I have a better idea,” Lupin proposed in a conspiratorial tone. “And we won’t have to deal with the frigid temperatures, either.”
Due to the concurrent parties that evening, the castle hallways were deserted. It seemed like only moments before the two of them arrived at the stone gargoyle that led to the headmistress’ office.
“Royal Stewart,” Lupin whispered, giving the gargoyle a sly wink.
To Harry’s surprise, the stone statue seemed to wink back before moving aside to grant them entry. The headmistress’ office was totally dark except for the moonlight that entered through the large windows, lending the room a lavender luminescence.
Feeling like an interloper in McGonagall’s private enclave, Harry turned to Lupin, “Are you sure we should be here? What if the headmistress returns?”
“Minerva is otherwise occupied tonight,” Lupin volunteered with certainty. At Harry’s skeptical look, he added, “She’s keeping Horace company at the Slytherin party, to be sure he didn’t doze off while he was in charge.”
So that’s what happened that got him in such hot water the last time, Harry surmised.
Lupin confidently opened the doors into the semi-circular reading room and stood aside for Harry to pass. The gilded bookshelves maximized the abundant moonlight so that it seemed alive in the air around them. Harry turned to look at Lupin with new appreciation.
“You knew it would react like this?” he breathed reverently.
“Only in theory,” Lupin admitted. “It’s much more awe-inspiring than I could have imagined.”
The feeling that they had entered some sort of sacred cathedral was exemplified by the hushed tone of their voices. Although the lighting would not have been bright enough for reading, it was strangely soothing to their eyes as they gazed at the distant mountains. Lupin pulled up two chairs before the tall windows so that they had an unimpeded view.
“Unfortunately, the headmistress doesn’t allow any food or drink in this room,” Lupin observed. “Otherwise, I could see myself laying out a picnic blanket right here on a rare night like this.”
“I’m not really thirsty, thanks,” Harry responded graciously.
“What happened with Luna tonight?” Lupin asked gingerly. “I thought you two were getting along famously.”
“Ginny and Robert happened. I’ve spent so much time avoiding them this term that I wasn’t prepared for the impact that seeing them together would have on me. I over-reacted a bit.”
“So that’s why Luna threw you a lifeline.”
“She’s surprisingly intuitive when it comes to things like that,” Harry admitted. “I would have stayed in her arms forever if it had been up to me.”
“I suspect Ginny might have objected.”
“She made a point of telling me that she noticed,” Harry replied wryly, then recounted the rest of the conversation.
As he expected, Lupin laughed at the comment about the thestrals. “Great visual image,” he noted with a deep chuckle. “I take it that it wasn’t your intent to call Robert out?”
“Hardly, I was just letting off a bit of steam. It did make me feel better for a while,” Harry admitted, recalling Ginny’s amused giggle. “Tell me, Remus, what makes things so humorous in the retelling when they were so much more agonizing the first time around?”
Lupin thought a moment before replying, “It becomes farce in the retelling because we already know the outcome -- that things turned out all right in the end. Like that story you told me about Ron and the spiked chocolates; that was a true classic.”
“Sure, that story seemed funny in retrospect, but there was actually more to it that I omitted, mainly because the humor would have evaporated. Slughorn thought Ron looked overly pale after he administered the antidote, so he suggested a bit of honey mead as a ‘pick me up’. The mead was poisoned, Remus. It was one of Draco’s initial attempts to kill Dumbledore that had gone awry. Ron almost died that day; Slughorn wouldn’t have had enough time to prepare an antidote for the poisoned mead. By chance I had facetiously presented him with a bezoar as my solution to distilling an antidote and the professor had tossed it into his bag with a laugh. And I only knew about that because it was one of the notes scrawled in the Prince’s Potions book.”
“But a bezoar doesn’t work in all cases…” Lupin gasped.
“Ron was just lucky it did this time. Doubly lucky, when you consider that it was a rather fast-acting poison. We wouldn’t’ve had time to retrieve a bezoar from the Potions stores in the dungeons!”
“That’s a horrifying story when you put it in those terms, Harry.”
“True, Ron spent the rest of his birthday in the Hospital Wing, though his family arrived later in the day to be with him.” Harry paused briefly to consider, then added, “But looking back, I can see that it was also a turning point of sorts for the rest of us. Ginny and I spent hours analyzing and rehashing the poisoning from all different angles, trying to get some sort of perspective on it. I think that’s when I first realized how wonderfully pleasing I found the sound of her voice. Hermione, on the other hand, spent the time pacing and wringing her hands, not saying anything to anyone for hours on end, just keeping it all bottled up inside of her.”
“She reacted in the same manner that I would have, in other words.”
“Perhaps, but I’ve always thought the two of you were a lot alike,” Harry confessed. “She just doesn’t have your twisted sense of humor. As for Ron, he realized that he shouldn’t be so heartless about other people’s feelings. So he stopped trying to make Hermione jealous with his public snogging sessions with Lavender Brown.”
“Apparently, I missed a lot while I was away from Hogwarts,” Lupin noted wryly.
“But I digress, the point that I wanted to make, Remus, is that things spiral out of our control. The smallest things have unforeseen consequences due to factors we never considered. Take the incident with Ron: I could blame myself because the spiked chocolates were originally intended as a gift for me and I hadn’t exercised due care to keep them from falling into Ron’s hands; but I didn’t know how dangerous they were. If I’d just let the love potion wear itself off naturally instead of taking Ron to Slughorn for an antidote, then the poisoned mead would never have come into play. All unintended consequences of actions that I undertook directly.”
“But, Harry, you saved Ron’s life in the end. You would have felt differently if the bezoar hadn’t worked.”
“Perhaps. But even so, if I had blamed myself under those circumstances, regardless of the outcome, I would have been wrong. Was I to blame because I didn’t destroy the Vanishing Cabinet when I saw it discarded in the Room of Requirement? I had no idea how it figured into Draco’s dastardly plans. Or was it Draco’s fault for allowing the Death Eaters to infiltrate the school in that manner? I could have let these events cast a blight over the rest of my life unnecessarily, even though the actions of others were truly to blame. Instead, I took whatever actions I could to keep it from ever happening again.”
Seeing that he had Lupin’s undivided attention, Harry dived into the heart of the matter. “How long have you been doing the same thing with the events at Godric’s Hollow, Remus? How long have you been blaming yourself because you didn’t see that Pettigrew was rotten to the core? You blame yourself because he was a sneak and a liar and you were unable to crack his veneer like you do with others around you “ others who have no reason to hide their true intentions from you. Don’t you see? You have to let this go, Remus. The events were not your fault.”
“Who told you that Godric’s Hollow was my bête noir?” Lupin demanded sharply.
Harry allowed the tacit admission to fall by the wayside as he answered, “In large part, you did “ by your reactions when I first suggested I would like to go there. But I won’t deny that I was later warned away from the subject by another, by someone who felt that I was close enough to you that I should know about your obsession. But they told the wrong person, Remus, because I believe in facing your demons.”
“Just as I would’ve liked the option of facing Voldemort that night,” Lupin added with quiet fervor. “I could at least have come to James’ and Lily’s aid.”
“And accomplished what? Do you think one more body in the way would’ve acted as a deterrent to Voldemort? Once Pettigrew was selected as the Secret-Keeper, the die was cast “ and you were not involved in that decision. It was others who made the fatal mistake. The most you could’ve accomplished by attempting a rescue was to get yourself killed in the process.”
“You have no way to know that, Harry.”
“No? Can you logically envision another outcome? Because I can tell you this: if things had played out differently, we wouldn’t be sitting here having this discussion. Voldemort would have still found a way to come back, but you wouldn’t be leading the Order against him. As for me, I don’t think I would’ve come half as far in meeting that challenge without your guidance.”
“Harry, what makes you think I lead the Order?” Lupin asked, his voice barely a whisper.
He would pick up on that, Harry thought to himself, but had he really expected anything less? Aloud, he responded, “It’s just something I worked out based on my own observations.”
Lupin was silent for a long moment, before sighing softly. “Your reasoning is sound, but it’s not something that’s common knowledge, by any means.” His voice was so low that Harry had to strain to hear. “It would greatly compromise Minerva’s position as headmistress, as well as her standing with the Board of Governors, if word of this were to get out.”
That’s another point for Severus, Harry noted inwardly. “They won’t hear it from me, Remus. Your secret’s safe.”
They watched the slow ripples of the inky lake in silence, each lost in his own thoughts for several long moments, each perfectly at ease with the other.
“I didn’t expect you to give me so much to think about tonight, Harry,” Lupin confessed. “How long have you had that speech prepared?”
“The idea has been rattling around in my brain for a while, but I suppose it was the majestic surroundings that inspired me to put it into words.”
“Thanks.” Lupin’s small smile was not what Harry had expected.
“You’re not angry with me for grossly overstepping?”
“I think we left all those distinctions behind us long ago. Invisible lines are for people who wish to keep each other at arm’s length,” Lupin observed.
“I know exactly what you mean.” Harry smiled.
“I feel positively light-hearted.” Lupin grinned and pushed his chair back abruptly. “I believe it’s time we rejoined the party!”
“What about Ginny and Robert?” Harry asked, a bit of the old apprehension returning.
“If I can demonstrate that they’re no longer there, will you agree to return with me?” Lupin’s eyes twinkled mischievously.
“Deal.” Harry couldn’t help but fall in right behind when Lupin went into full Marauder mode.
With a sly smile, Lupin walked over to the far bookshelf and removed a book from the top corner. His grin widened as he placed the large volume on the nearest table. With a flourish of his wand, the inside cover started to transform itself into an abbreviated version of the Marauder’s Map.
“Is there an incantation that goes with that procedure?” Harry inquired.
“Yes, but I can’t share that with you. This is the headmistress’ private version of the Map.”
“Then, how can you…?” Harry could not believe the sheer audacity of the man.
“Don’t be so aghast,” Lupin scoffed. “Who do you think made the Map for her in the first place?”
Right, he should have known.
Lupin lit his wand tip to provide additional light as they located Tonks’ extended offices on the Map. The dots were still thickly interwoven in that area so it was not so clear who was where. Except for Neville and Luna, Harry noted; they were alone in a little alcove that Harry had not noticed before, just to the left of the main door. With a complicated series of movements, Lupin commanded the Map to show just the location of Ginny Weasley. She was not in Tonks’ offices. After a bit of searching, they found her in Slughorn’s offices, the site of the Slytherin celebration.
“I suspected she’d received an invitation to the other party as well,” Lupin observed. “Do you want me to also check for Robert?”
“No, thanks,” Harry replied philosophically. “I’d rather not know.”
“Wise decision,” Lupin agreed as he wiped the map face and returned the book to the shelf.
From the fleeting look he’d been allowed, Harry could already tell that this Map included a lot of extra detail. While many of those areas weren’t strictly off-limits to students with the proper invitation, they had not been common knowledge to the Marauders when the original Map had been created. He would love to have the luxury of comparing the two versions side-by-side, but doubted that would ever be allowed. ‘Headmistress’ private Map’ sort of said it all, didn’t it?
“Tell me, Remus,” Harry asked as casually as possible, “have there been any other sightings of Severus Snape? Has the headmistress reported anything herself since she’s had another version of the Map?”
Lupin hesitated slightly as if momentarily caught off-guard. Then he replied smoothly, “What makes you say that? Did you see anyone before today’s Quidditch match?”
“It slipped my mind to check,” Harry admitted. “But I checked when I returned to my room afterwards and there was no sign of him.”
It did not escape Harry’s notice that Lupin had side-stepped the question. Well, maybe not side-stepped entirely, as the fact that he had not answered it directly was an answer all in itself, wasn’t it?
As the gentle morning sunbeam caressed Harry’s cheek, he resisted the urge to climb out of bed as usual. Glancing at the clock, he quickly calculated that he needed at least two to three more hours before he had caught up on his sleep sufficiently to make up for Tonks’ party last night. He tried to roll over and doze a bit longer but it was hopeless. Once he heard the sounds of the others moving about in the common room, he had trouble blocking them out.
He found that Ron and Hermione were already in front of the fire, digging into some breakfast omelets that he was certain were not being served in the Great Hall below.
“Hi, Harry.” Hermione smiled in his direction as she swallowed hurriedly. “Would you like me to order some breakfast for you as well?”
“Sure, what you two are having looks great!”
“See if you can get some fried kippers as well. Will you, Hermione?” Ron suggested as he took a huge swig of pumpkin juice. “All that celebrating last night really wore me out!”
Neville poked his head out of his room and added, “So that’s the tantalizing aroma that woke me up from my dreams. Can I get some, too?”
Ron adjusted their plates on the low table in front of the fire so that Harry and Neville could join them. Hermione knotted her dressing gown more firmly around her waist as she sat down on the floor with the others.
“You sure were funny last night.” Neville grinned in Harry’s direction. “I never knew you had such a flair for improvisation.”
“Truly, sport,” Ron agreed through a mouthful of toast. “I expect you to join up with Tonks for a comedy tour of the coastal villages any day now.”
“So it wasn’t all a dream then?” Harry moaned, his face flushed with embarrassment. “I was hoping it had all been a figment of my imagination. I’ve never gotten up in front of a group like that.”
“Well, it was really only us,” Hermione soothed. “Plus Luna, Tonks and Lupin.”
“Don’t forget the pack of first-year Gryffindors that were out way past their usual bedtime,” Neville supplied.
“Oh, yeah, that was Leah and her followers,” Harry admitted with a small groan. “I’m never going to be able to look them in the eye again.”
“I wouldn’t say that,” Hermione comforted him. “They were laughing and giggling along with everyone else.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if you had a request for a command performance in the main common room this evening,” Ron added with a wink.
“Just kill me,” Harry grumbled. “It wouldn’t be the same without Tonks and Lupin to keep me off balance the whole time anyway.”
“We’ll help you out, Harry,” Hermione offered gamely. “I’m sure if we put our heads to it, we can come up with questions that are even more embarrassing!”
Harry shook his head in chagrin as he allowed his memory to replay the events of the previous evening, regretting once more that he had given in to Tonks’ stage directions. But no, he had gone along all right. Why, oh why, hadn’t he assumed some of Lupin’s dignity and stayed in the background?
It has seemed like an innocent enough suggestion at first. “Why don’t you tell us a bit about the Dark Arts classes you’ve been teaching, Harry?” Neville had asked.
“Oh, yes,” Luna urged. “Some of the Ravenclaw girls have been talking about nothing else since the start of term!”
“That’s going to make you the belle of the ball, Luna, considering who brought you to the party,” Ron remarked with a cheeky grin.
Harry could tell that Ron’s comment had made Luna self-conscious so he had taken up the narrative to divert attention from her. It wasn’t really like he had gotten up to stand in front of the lot of them, they had just gravitated to those roles as he had begun his tale.
But it had definitely been Tonks who had steered the conversation into dangerous ground with her seemingly innocent comment, “Harry’s really been a good sport about addressing all the questions that the younger students put before him “ even those that it would’ve been wiser to ignore.”
That was just the opening that Hermione needed to plop herself down on the nearest floor cushion and assume her best school girl imitation. “Oooh, Harry, is it true you have a hippogriff tattooed on your chest?”
Ron immediately sat down next to her and pretended he had shoulder length hair to swing coquettishly behind him. “I heard it was a Hungarian Horntail,” he crooned in dulcet tones. “That’s so much more manly!”
Harry recalled Luna and Neville joining the ‘class’ on the floor before him at this point while Tonks and Lupin eased themselves onto the sofa in the rear.
“Well, I did have to face the Horntail in the Triwizard contest…” Harry did his best flustered imitation to allow himself time to think. How exactly had the conversation with Ginny gone? He remembered she’d gotten a really good laugh out of it “ oh, yeah, it had been at Ron’s expense.
“Show us, Harry, please….” Hermione begged to much tittering laughter.
Harry clutched the front of his shirt through his jumper in mock horror and replied, “If you must know, it’s a Cornish Pixie…but I’m not telling you where!”
Ron and Lupin were laughing uproariously at this point. The merriment had alerted the others in the room to the entertainment and they had jointed the group on the floor to complete the illusion of a classroom setting.
Unable to resist any longer, Tonks started jumping up and down and whimpering in anticipation as she waved her hand about to capture his attention.
Harry recklessly nodded in her direction and offered, “Yes, the young lady in the back.”
Assuming a flirtatious manner that was straight out of Sarah’s handbook, Tonks batted her eyelashes copiously and then sighed dreamily. “Oh, Mr. Potter, sir, just how many girls have you snogged while at Hogwarts?”
Lupin pulled her down to sit next to him while the crowd went wild. Abruptly, all heads swiveled in Harry’s direction for his response.
“Err, could you define the term ‘snog’, please?” Harry requested in his most innocent manner.
Lupin caught his eye at this point and asked, “May I, please?”
“Be my guest.”
“Man, woman, your lips to any part of her body,” Lupin intoned rapidly in one breath. His expectant look seemed to taunt Harry.
Harry thought for a moment and then answered honestly, “Five.”
Harry’s candor caught Lupin unaware and he raised an inquisitive eyebrow in response.
“It was a broad definition,” Harry allowed with a shrug.
“Could you please name them alphabetically?” Neville demanded as the hilarity level escalated once again.
Embarrassed that his honesty had gotten him cornered with no easy response, Harry was stunned for a moment. Just like in a real classroom, he implored Tonks to come to his aid with his eyes.
Catching his import immediately, Tonks assumed her teacher persona and joined him in front of the group. “Now, children. Yes, that includes you, too, Remus,” she clarified to much giggling. “Class had already been dismissed. What are you waiting for?” She made shooing motions with her hands as Harry quickly escaped to join Lupin on the sofa.
There was a smattering of applause as he muttered to Lupin, “I’m never going to be able to convince anyone that I hate being the center of attention, am I?”
“Just wait until word of your debut gets out!” Tonks attested as she sat down on the arm of the sofa and ruffled the back of Harry’s hair affectionately.
“Especially when Ginny hears I used her material about the tattoos.”
“You never learn, do you?” Lupin noted with a sharp laugh.
As Harry thought back on those events the next morning, he was even more certain that he was going to regret the entire episode. Despite the complimentary group at breakfast, these sorts of things always seemed to have a feisty life of their own. Added to Luna’s comforting hug -- which was practically guaranteed to be misconstrued -- he was bound to be the Hogwarts’ gossip subject du jour.
“So what’s the word on the Hufflepuff Seeker?” Harry attempted to direct the conversation in another direction.
“Still in the Hospital Wing,” Ron replied.
“Word was that Madam Pomfrey was able to magically repair the torn ligaments in his kneecap but that he would still be in pain for a few days as the nerve endings realigned themselves,” Hermione explained.
“We’re hoping to visit him later this morning,” Ron announced. “Care to come along, anyone?”
Harry nodded his head to indicate that they could count on him. It seemed like a good way to ease into the day, thinking to himself that at least poor Arnie was not likely to have already heard about the events of the previous evening.
Arnold Furbisher, the Hufflepuff Seeker, was propped up on pillows when they arrived in the Hospital Wing. Hermione added the box of spinning marzipans that they had selected to the stack of get well gifts at the foot of the bed.
“That’s not any more flourless chocolate cake by any chance?” Arnie asked with a hopeful lift to his thick eyebrows.
“Sorry,” Hermione admitted with a small shrug. “It was really popular at the party last night, too.”
“So I heard.” Arnie sighed as he gazed longingly at the last crumbs remaining on a nearby plate. “Professor Sprout claimed she had to fight her way through a crowd to bring me the two pieces that she managed last night. I only now finished the second piece.”
“Tell me about the Quidditch match,” Ron suggested eagerly. “From the stands, you looked like you were being buffeted around like a kite.”
“Yeah, and every punch the Slytherin slimeball landed on me felt like a lightening bolt!”
They had an amicable conversation for a while; Ron and Harry nodding intently as Hermione listened with a polite, but genuine smile. As the late morning crowd swelled, though, it soon became clear that word of Harry’s celebrity status had spread. Not wanting to be the star attraction at the bedside of an injured athlete, Harry excused himself quietly to return to his room.
To his surprise he found Dobby, the house-elf, waiting for him inside the seventh year common room.
“You’re famous, Harry Potter, sir!” Dobby bowed in greeting.
“Good to see you, too, Dobby,” Harry replied politely. “I’d rather be a little less famous, if you don’t mind.”
“Fame can be fickle,” Dobby replied with such a knowing gaze that Harry couldn’t help but laugh outright.
“Is that supposed to cheer me up?”
“No, Harry Potter, sir, but this is!” From behind his back, Dobby brought out a sleek square box tied up with white string.
Harry reverently took the box from the elf’s outstretched hands and untied the string. Inside was a complete flourless chocolate cake already cut into narrow wedges.
“Dobby, would it be possible for you to deliver a few of these slices to Arnie Furbisher in the Hospital Wing?”
“The injured Quidditch player?” Dobby inquired. “Dobby will return with a smaller box, sir.”
With a quick snap of his fingers, Dobby Disapparated.
Harry took a quick bite of a fudgy wedge and settled back in the nearest chair to read the note that had been propped inside the box. He recognized Tonks’ trademark purple ink immediately.
Harry,
You were absolutely brilliant at last night’s party! Remus was still chuckling in his sleep, if you can believe it. Hope this makes up for the cake being all gone by the time you returned. Will we see you for supper tonight? My rooms at seven o’clock. Send regrets only.
P.S. My agent is already interested in meeting with you.
Harry laughed at Tonks’ outrageousness and fondly placed the note in his desk drawer for safe-keeping. Of course he’d be there.
With a loud pop, Dobby reappeared holding a spool of string, a small white box tucked under his arm. Deftly, he levitated four wedges of the cake that rearranged themselves in mid-air to the contours of the smaller box.
“Does Harry Potter wish to add a note?” Dobby asked with a smile.
“I’ll just scrawl something on the lid, if that’s all right,” Harry suggested.
Dobby nodded as he laid the box on the nearest tabletop. When Harry had finished, the elf waggled his fingers in the direction of the box and the string wrapped itself magically into a neat bow. The remaining spool hovered in mid-air but Dobby ignored it as he turned his huge eyes to look up at Harry directly.
“If Dobby may be so bold, sir…” he began hesitantly.
“Please say whatever’s on your mind, Dobby.” Harry smiled down at the elf in a reassuring manner. “We’ve been friends for a very long time.”
“It seems that Professor Tonks and Professor Lupin hold you in very high esteem, sir.”
“The feeling is mutual, Dobby.”
“They are always including you in their activities and meals and such.”
“I greatly enjoy their company.”
“Have you taken the opportunity to respond in kind, sir?”
“I’m not sure what you mean, Dobby,” Harry responded with all honesty.
“Do you take them a gift or any other token?”
“Actually, no. I haven’t had the opportunity to do any shopping on my own for months. Christmas was an absolute night--” With sudden insight, Harry looked at Dobby directly. “Did you have something in mind?”
Solemnly, Dobby nodded. “For Professor Tonks, anyway. There is a certain dinner wine that she prefers. We do not stock it in the cellars here and it must be specially ordered from France. Teachers are permitted to keep their own stores, but all acquisitions must be ordered by the case.”
“And Tonks hasn’t placed an order.”
“No, the cost seems rather prohibitive when twelve bottles must be ordered at once.”
Harry was surprised by the amount that Dobby quoted him. But after a moment’s hesitation, he returned with the necessary galleons to complete the transaction. After all, he’d had very few occasions to spend any of the coins he’d withdrawn at the start of the school year.
“Only, Dobby, please inform me when the order arrives so that I can take her a bottle personally.”
“Of course, sir, we will have it properly chilled as well.”
“Dobby, any ideas what might appeal to Professor Lupin? I’ve been wracking my brain and I cannot think of a thing.”
“He is much more difficult, sir. He is not materialistic in the slightest,” Dobby commiserated. The elf tilted his head in concentration. “Dobby can only conclude that after many years of loneliness, Professor Lupin must value friendship and companionship more than anything else.”
“Rather difficult to gift wrap.”
“Yes, sir, but not difficult to give.”
“Thank you, Dobby, your insight has been…remarkable.”
Dobby bowed graciously and intoned solemnly, “It is as Harry Potter said, we have been friends for a very long time.”
As his mid-week dueling session with Ginny approached, Harry tried to brace himself for any contingencies. He kept bolstering his confidence with Tonks’ glowing words: how his performance had not only effectively skewered himself but also the intrusiveness of the students who posed such embarrassing questions in the first place. By employing the snogging question in the improvisation, she assured him that it was no longer available for the students’ use. He fervently hoped she was right on all counts.
Ginny did not disappoint him after he insisted that they wait outside the Room of Requirement for Lupin’s arrival.
“I hear you were the life of the party on Saturday night,” she observed conversationally.
“Not until later,” Harry admitted. “I don’t seem to hit my stride until midnight.”
“I understand you helped yourself to some of my lines as well.”
“So have your agent call mine,” Harry replied flippantly. “Let them hash it out.”
To his surprise, she laughed appreciatively. “I see Tonks has been training you well. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there. We left after the Hufflepuff lads did their musical revue. I didn’t think anyone would be able to top that.”
“I’m not certain I did.” Although he had beaten Jennifer Tomlinson to the punch, Harry congratulated himself.
“According to Leah and her brood, you did,” Ginny answered with a small smile.
“Sorry you missed it then.”
Her gaze was very direct as she added, “I got the impression my presence wasn’t exactly welcome these days.”
“Not you, just Robert,” Harry responded honestly.
“Harry, that’s not fair.”
“Where does it say I have to be fair, Ginny? Please point that out in the fine print as I bloody-well missed it!”
Harry tried to stare at her defiantly but the resulting sparks in her eyes just made him feel like his resolve was on the verge of crumbling. He turned away and stared at the floor instead.
“I see you’re both warmed up for the practice session,” Lupin observed wryly as he commanded the door of the room to appear.
Very wisely, he did not have them dueling against one another that day.