Albus Potter and the Secrets Within

[DucksRMagical]

I have changed the title! I just didn't like the other one. When I first set out to write this, I thought I'd be doing more Harry POV chapters. Thus, Harry was 'Back at Hogwarts'. But as I wrote, I found the story revolved around Albus more than Harry.

Chapter 31: Spying

Albus woke up late the next morning, but he was still up before John or Matt were. Bilius and Ethan's beds were empty, so they were already up. Albus was surprised that John wasn't up yet. He rarely ever missed Breakfast, even on the weekends. The Quidditch match wasn't for another two hours, so Albus quietly got dressed and read a bit of his Quidditch in the Twentieth Century book. He had been reading for a half hour when he heard someone come into the room.

"Albus?" a voice called out, "Aren't you up yet?"

Albus looked up from his book, "Oh, hi Rose, Amanda. I've been up for a while, but those two are still asleep." He jerked his head towards John and Matt's beds.

"I don't think I've ever seen John miss breakfast before," Rose commented while looking at his sleeping form.

"Me neither. But we did stay up pretty late last night," Albus said.

"Yeah. We've been up for a while, doing homework," Rose responded.

"Still have loads more to do, though," Amanda sighed, "I haven't made much progress on my phases of the moon essay for Astronomy."

"Bet Matt could have that done in fifteen minutes," Albus commented, "He could probably help you."

"Good idea, I'll ask him after the match," Amanda decided, "We should probably get them up, though."

Albus agreed and pulled back the curtains on Matt's bed while Rose and Amanda prodded John awake. Albus looked down at Matt, who was sleeping soundly. Albus almost felt bad waking him up, but he knew Matt wanted to watch the match and would be mad if no one woke him up in time. Albus pulled back the blankets and gently poked his arm.

"Wha's going on?" Matt mumbled. He sat up and rubbed his eyes.

"We almost slept through Quidditch," John replied sleepily as he got up out of bed and headed to the bathroom.

"Oh, right!" Matt yawned and got up immediately.

Fifteen minutes later, Albus headed down to the Great Hall with his friends to have lunch before the match. The usual excitement that accompanied a Quidditch match was in the air when they walked into the room. Harry had been right when he said that Quidditch would take people's minds off Rita Skeeter's article. Albus hadn't heard anyone mention it in days. It seemed as if everyone had finally forgotten about it.

"Why can't the conditions be like this when we play?" James groaned as he sat down next to Albus.

The weather was unusually good. It was still bitterly cold, but it was relatively sunny.

"Well, it doesn't matter, because our team can play in any weather!" Samantha Meyers announced. "The Hufflepuffs on the other hand...."

"They're better than the Slytherins this year," James commented.

"True, but the Slytherins haven't totally lost the Cup yet. Ravenclaw only beat them by 30 points in their match. Now, if they lose to Hufflepuff in the next match, they'll be out of the running," Samantha explained.

After lunch, everyone made their way to the Quidditch pitch. Albus and his friends managed to get good seats, but none of them really knew which team to root for. The match lasted almost two hours before the Ravenclaw Seeker finally caught the Snitch. Both Seekers spent most of the match hovering above the other players, neither of them managing to see the Snitch. James was sitting a few seats down from Albus and Albus heard him shouting to the Seekers on numerous occasions because he had seen the Snitch. In the end, the Ravenclaw Seeker saw it hovering near the Hufflepuff goal posts, caught it and won the game.

Albus and his friends spent the remainder of the day working on their homework. Matt was able to help Amanda finish her essay, and everyone helped him catch up on all the work he had missed the previous week.

******

"Fifteen minutes left!" Professor Slughorn announced during double potions one March afternoon, a few weeks later. "Bring a sample of your potion up to my desk for grading and clean up, please!"

Albus poured a bit of his boil-cure potion into a vial and took it up to Professor Slughorn while John cleaned out their cauldron.

"Albus, m'boy!" Slughorn grinned at him and took his potion. He held it up to the light and shook it. "Near perfect, I think! Could have done with a few more porcupine quills, but very good.

"Now, I am planning on having another little meeting this Sunday evening," Slughorn went on, as he put Albus's potion on his desk with the others. "I was hoping you and Miss Weasley would be able to attend."

Albus inwardly groaned. He did not want to go to another Slug Club meeting. The thought of being that close to Quinton Willinson again made him shudder. "Er, well, actually, I've got lessons with my Aunt Hermione every Sunday. Rose does, too."

"Oh, what a shame," Slughorn replied, "Maybe next time, then?"

"Er, maybe," Albus shifted nervously. He had no intentions of ever going to another Slug Club meeting. At least not while Willinson was still at Hogwarts.

Albus went back to his table, got his bag, and left the room with his friends. As they walked up the stairs to the Entrance Hall, Albus told them about the Slug Club meeting.

"You're not going, are you, Albus?" John questioned.

"Definitely not," Albus replied adamantly, "Plus, I've got Occlumency that night anyway."

"I'm glad he made the meeting for a Sunday, then," Rose commented.

"Yeah, me too. But he won't do it again, though. Now that he knows we have lessons that night. I guess next time I'll just have to say I've got too much homework or something," Albus said.

"Or use a Puking Pastille or Fever Fudge or something," John suggested.

"That could work," Albus replied as they emerged into the Entrance Hall. They started to cross towards the Great Hall when Albus noticed someone walking towards them. He grabbed the backs of Rose and Matt's robes and stopped them.

"What?" Matt turned around and looked quizzically at Albus.

"Shush!" Albus whispered, "Come here." Albus lead them over to a broom cupboard and pulled them inside it.

"What are we doing in here?" John asked loudly.

"Shush!" Albus said again and opened the door a crack. "Look at that man. He's who I saw arguing with Washburn!"

Rose, John, Matt, and Amanda each took a turn peering out the door to look at the wizard. "Are you sure?" Rose asked.

"Positive," Albus replied.

"Wait, you saw him arguing with Washburn?" Matt asked.

"Oh, right, you were in the Hospital Wing then," Albus remembered. He quickly rehashed what he had overheard while doing detention for Washburn.

"So Washburn's doing some kind of job for that wizard?"

"Yeah," Albus said, "And I think they're up to something. I say we follow him."

"But it's time for supper!" John whined.

"Exactly. Which means no one will be around to wonder what we're up to," Albus reasoned. "Plus, we'll get supper after."

John sighed, "Fine. Where do you think they went?"

"Probably Washburn's office."

Rose opened the door. "Let's go then."

Albus followed Rose out the door and they crept up the stairs towards Washburn's office, with John, Matt, and Amanda following. The corridors were empty since everyone was in the Great Hall. They reached the Charms classroom and Albus peeked inside. Washburn and the other wizard were standing near his desk, arguing in hushed voices. Albus motioned for his friends to move closer and the five of them huddled near the open door, being careful not to make too much noise.

"You haven't done it yet," the strange man hissed, "Why haven't you done it?"

"I'm sorry!" Washburn replied, "I haven't been able to yet!"

"Well, why not? It doesn't seem that difficult to me."

"It's harder than you'd think! I don't know where they are!" Washburn answered.

"I've told you how to find out!"

"I know and I've been trying. I have, really!" Washburn moaned.

Albus looked quizzically at his friends. He had never seen Washburn like this before. Usually, it was Washburn who was doing the bullying, not the other way around. But this man was obviously angry that Washburn hadn't finished whatever he wanted him to do.

"Well, hurry up then. Try harder!" the strange wizard insisted.

"I will, I will."

"You know we cannot proceed without them. I'm positive I know where one of them is, but it will prove very difficult to get. Once we find out where the others are, we'll do them first. They're the more important ones anyway. So, you must do it soon. Just find out where they are. I'll retrieve them. You've obviously had difficulties with even doing the simple task of finding them, let alone retrieve them," the wizard growled.

"Yes, I know. I will try harder, I will. It's just...," Washburn trailed off.

"What?!" the wizard demanded.

Albus leaned his head closer to the doorway, but Washburn remained silent. Then Albus felt a wet object collide with his head. "Argh!" he screamed and turned around.

"Ickle firsties!" Peeves was bobbing up and down in the air, cackling madly. "Spying on teachers? Very naughty!

"Peeves!" Rose shouted as the poltergeist heaved a water balloon at her head. Peeves cackled and threw another water balloon at Albus.

"What is going on out here?!" Washburn appeared in the doorway, his voice returning to the usual rage that Albus was used to.

"Firsties spying on your meeting, Professor, Sir!" Peeves saluted Washburn and flew down the hallway, laughing hysterically.

"Potter!" Washburn spat, glaring at Albus. Albus stood trembling and soaking wet, waiting for whatever was coming next. At the time, spying on Washburn seemed like a great idea. But now that he thought about it, it was inevitable that they would be caught.

The strange wizard came sauntering out of the room with a smug look on his face. "I think that concludes our discussion. I shall be speaking with you shortly." He walked down the corridor and disappeared around a corner.

Washburn watched him leave and once he was gone, Washburn turned back to Albus. "Just what, do you lot, think you were doing?" he seethed.

Albus stood still, but said nothing. Rose, John, Matt, and Amanda remained silent as well. Washburn looked at each of them in turn and returned his gaze to Albus. "100 points from Gryffindor. And detention, this Monday at 7 pm, all of you. I'll have you polishing the trophies," he spat.

Albus nodded. 100 points, that was the most Washburn had ever taken from them before. The detention was no big deal, but the points would set Gryffindor quite a ways back in the running for the House Cup.

"Um, Professor," Matt whispered, "Is there any chance we could do it this weekend, maybe, instead of Monday?"

Washburn turned to glare at Matt, looking livid. "NO! I've got other detentions scheduled for the weekend! You'll meet me in the Trophy Room at 7 pm on Monday, or I'll report you to the Headmaster!" He gave Matt one more piercing stare and went back into his room, slamming the door behind him.

Albus turned and looked at his friends. They all had shocked expressions on their faces and Matt looked quite worried. Rose's hair was dripping with water.

"Told you we should have gone to supper instead," John commented, as they started walking down the corridor.

"Shut it," Albus replied, "We may have gotten detention, but we did hear some useful information."

"He's got a point," Rose said, "Washburn's definitely up to something. That man wants him to find something out, find out where something is, and then they're going to try to steal it."

"I guess, but we don't even know what they're trying to find out. We can't really do anything about it," John responded.

"And Washburn's even more angry with us," Matt said dryly.

"Yeah, but he already hates me so much that it doesn't matter," Albus pointed out, "By the way, why did you want the detention switched? That's not the, you know, is it?" Albus asked, not wanting to say 'full moon' out loud, in case anyone was lurking around.

"No," Matt whispered, "But it's two nights after the detention, so I'll already be feeling miserable."

"Oh," Albus said, remembering how tired Matt always was in the days preceding the full moon. "Maybe you could talk to my dad or Professor Longbottom? They'd make Washburn switch it."

"I know they would, but then word would get around to Malfoy. The last thing I need is him wondering why I can choose when I have my detentions. You know Washburn would somehow mention it in class."

"Yeah, he would," Albus said darkly.

"We'll just polish your trophies for you," John assured him, "Just make it look like you're doing something and we'll cover for you."

Matt smiled weakly, "Thanks."

"So, we going to go eat supper or not?" John turned towards the stairs.

"You guys go ahead," Albus answered, "I've got to go change out of these wet robes." He gave Rose a meaningful glance.

"I've got to change, too," Rose told them and gestured to her soaking robes.

"All right," John said, and started down the stairs with Matt and Amanda.

Albus and Rose set off for Gryffindor Tower. Once they entered the deserted common room, Rose turned to look at Albus. "You thought of the Hallows when you heard Washburn talking, didn't you?"

"Yeah," Albus said, "Did you?"

Rose nodded, "It does seem suspicious."

"It's got to be him. It fits. That's why he hates me. He thought I'd know where the Hallows are, but I don't."

"I dunno. I mean, it does fit, but still, Washburn's a teacher."

"So what? Teachers can be Dark wizards, too."

"I know, but we don't have any proof! We didn't even hear him say 'Hallows'," Rose reasoned.

"I know, so I don't think we should tell my dad yet, we can't get him in trouble, but it's a start. And we learned more about the Hallows," Albus pointed out, "They already know where one of them is, but it's going to be hard to get. Maybe it's heavily guarded?"

"Probably. Anyway, I think we'll probably have to take Dumbledore's advice and talk to John, Matt, and Amanda about it. We've got to find out what they are."

"Yeah, we should. We'll do it soon," Albus assured her.

"Albus, do you think that Washburn, or whoever is trying to get the Hallows, will be able to bring back Voldemort?" Rose asked quietly.

"I don't think so. I mean, he's dead, right? So how could he come back? Plus, in my dream, the wizard said he was going to bring about Voldemort's 'ideals'."

"Well, his 'ideals' are pretty scary," Rose shuddered, "And the idea of a second Voldemort's almost as scary as the first one."

"Yeah," Albus agreed, "Which is why we've got to keep Washburn from getting the Hallows."

[DucksRMagical]

I've realized that I contradicted myself a few times in this story. I'll be doing a good bit of editing now that I've finished writing it. If any of the edits are really significant to the plot, I'll let you know. Anyway, here's the next chapter, I hope you like it. It's pretty long.

Also, I want to know if anyone is actually reading this. I know Fawkes and youknowwho are. So if you're reading it, could you either post or PM me? Thanks.

Chapter 32: Detention and Decisions

Word spread like wildfire that a group of first years had lost Gryffindor 100 points in one night. Quite a few older students were very angry about this, especially since the loss of points placed them below both Slytherin and Hufflepuff in the running for the House Cup. After classes the next day, Albus and his friends were bombarded by a couple fifth years, including his cousins Georgia and Gabriella, demanding to know why the points were taking away. Albus quickly explained what had happened with Washburn, and silence fell around the common room. After a few moments, someone started clapping. Soon after, a couple more people joined in and eventually the entire common room was cheering and slapping Albus and his friends on the back. Albus stared quizzically at everyone, wondering why they were all cheering that he had lost them so many points.

"Why's everyone clapping?" Albus asked James.

James grinned, "Because you made Washburn so angry! Everyone hates him! No one's had the nerve to spy on him before. It's brilliant, really. I've heard people have been trying to get him to quit since he first started teaching when Victoire was a first year. You've done so much stuff to him this year. First you set him on fire-"

"That was a complete accident!"

"Doesn't matter, the point is, he's horrible to everyone, except the Slytherins. And you're rebelling against him. Honestly, you've got more nerve than I thought," James stared in awe at his brother.

"Thanks," Albus smiled at James. Albus had felt horrible about losing so many points, but if the other Gryffindors weren't going to care, than maybe it wasn't so bad after all.

For the next few days, whenever Albus and his friends were in the common room, the other Gryffindors would ask Albus for help in planning pranks to pull on Washburn. Apparently, the other Gryffindors saw Albus's spying as inspiration to figure out their own ways to drive the Charms professor crazy. Albus, however, wanted nothing to do with it. He was far too worried about the idea of Washburn and that other wizard trying to find the Hallows and use them to complete Voldemort's plans. He spent the weekend trying to do homework, but always wound up thinking about the Hallows and trying to think of something that was heavily guarded that could be used to gain power.

By the time Monday arrived, Albus had exhausted every possible powerful object and couldn't think of anymore. Monday meant that it was time for their detention with Washburn. After dinner, Albus and his friends walked slowly to the trophy room. Albus was not looking forward to being in close vicinity with the person who was most likely performing Legilimency on him.

"Are you all right, Matt?" Rose asked, jolting Albus out of his thoughts. He turned around to look at Matt, who was lagging behind the rest of them, even though they were all walking slow.

"Yeah," Matt yawned, "Just tired, no big deal."

"You should go to Madam Pomfrey. She'll make Washburn reschedule the detention," Rose suggested.

"And have Malfoy find out? No. Plus, if I do it another time, I'll have to do it alone," Matt shuddered at the thought of being alone with Washburn.

No one said another word the rest of the way to the trophy room. When they got there, Washburn was already there, looking murderous, and standing next to a large bucket of cleaning supplies.

"It's 7:05. You're late," he growled.

"Sorry, sir," Matt mumbled, "It was my fault."

"I don't care who's fault it was. It just means you'll be here later," Washburn barked, "You'll be staying until every one of these trophies is spotless. No magic, of course."

Washburn strode over to a large armchair that was sitting near the door, sat down in it, and started his usual glaring. Albus picked up a bottle of polish and a rag and wandered over to a trophy for the Gobstones Club. John and Matt started polishing trophies on either side of Albus, while Rose and Amanda started on the other side of the room. The trophy room was quite large and Albus guessed it would take them at least two hours, perhaps more, to polish all the trophies and cases. They polished in silence for a half hour, moving along the wall of trophies as they went on. Albus was polishing a Wizard's Chess Championship trophy from 1922 when he felt a sharp poke in his side. He turned to his right and saw John, who had stopped polishing his trophy. "What?" Albus whispered.

John silently pointed to Albus's other side and Albus turned to look. Matt was standing with his head slumped up against the trophy case. He was fast asleep. Albus glanced nervously back at John. Albus didn't want to know what Washburn would do to Matt if he discovered that he wasn't awake.

"Matt," Albus prodded his friend gently, "Wake up."

Matt groaned a little and lifted his head off the glass. Albus glanced nervously at Washburn. Luckily he was currently pointing out a spot of dirt that Rose had missed on a Quidditch trophy. Albus poked Matt again, a little harder this time.

"Ouch!" Matt winced and opened his eyes. He glanced around with a confused look on his face.

"Shush!" Albus whispered. "You fell asleep. Keep polishing."

"Oh, right," Matt picked up his rag that had fallen on the floor when he drifted off and went back to polishing.

The three boys continued polishing in silence for the next hour. Occasionally, either Albus or John would have to wake Matt up. Matt was not getting a whole lot of polishing done, but since he was working right next to Albus and John, Washburn didn't seem to notice.

"Albus," John whispered a while later.

"What?" Albus looked over at John. John pointed at the trophy he was polishing. Albus looked at it and saw that it was a plaque of everyone who received an award for special services to the school.

John pointed at two names on it, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. "What did they do?" he whispered.

"Saved my mum from Voldemort and a basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets," Albus whispered back. "And discovered that it was Voldemort attacking students in the first place. He possessed my mum through a diary he wrote when he was 16."

John stared wide-eyed at Albus. "Whoa. I think I remember my parents telling me about that. They weren't in Hogwarts yet when that happened."

"Quiet back there," Washburn growled.

Matt jerked awake at the sound of Washburn's voice. "Wha's going on?" he said a little too loudly.

"Oh, wake up, Eckerton! It's only 9 pm!" Washburn shouted, "The sooner you finish, the sooner you can go to bed."

"Sorry, sir," Matt replied and went back to polishing a trophy.

As Albus continued polishing, he thought about the award his dad had gotten all those years ago. He had been a hero every year he had been in school. He still was a hero. 'Will I ever do anything like that?' Albus thought. 'Will I ever live up to what people think I will do? Everyone thinks I'll do great things just because my dad did, but what if I can't?' Albus doubted that he would ever get an award for special services to the school.

"Eckerton!" Washburn shouted, causing Albus to come out of his thoughts. "Why can't you stay awake?! Get up!"

Albus looked over at Matt. He was slumped yet again on one of the glass display cases, looking very pale. He opened his eyes and started slowly dragging his rag along the glass with his eyes drooping.

"Why don't you lay off him already?" John shouted disgustedly. "You know perfectly well why he's tired."

Washburn got up from his chair and started towards John. Albus glanced nervously from one to the other. Rose and Amanda both stopped polishing and were paying close attention. Matt had fallen asleep on the glass again. "What did you say?" Washburn spat once he was within two feet of John.

John stared at him, not breaking eye contact. "I said, why don't you leave him alone? You knew he'd be tired today and you still made him do detention! Just let him sleep and we'll finish the cleaning. We're almost done anyway."

Washburn's face turned a shade of purple that Albus had only seen on his Great-Uncle Vernon. He stepped closer to John, but John didn't look away. "50 more points from Gryffindor for talking back. And another detention, I think. Tomorrow night. Lines. My office. But just you. Sleeping Beauty will be even worse tomorrow and as much as I'd love to give more detention to Potter, Weasley, and Tagger, they haven't done anything. This was all you. Go on, get out of here!" He shouted stormed out of the room.

Albus stared in shock as he left. He glanced around at John, who was still glaring at the door, his face as red with anger as Rose's hair. "C'mon, let's go," he said quietly as he prodded Matt awake.

"Huh?" Matt mumbled.

"Detention's over," Albus told him as he walked towards the door.

"Oh, ok," Matt yawned and followed the rest of them out of the door.

"He's kept us past curfew," Rose commented as they made their way through the corridors.

"Figures," John grunted.

"That was brilliant, by the way," Albus said.

"What was brilliant?" Matt asked.

"John flipped out on Washburn while you were asleep," Albus told him.

"What did you do?" Matt asked John in an astonished voice. "Why do I always miss the good stuff?"

John was still too angry to say much, so Albus explained. "He told Washburn off for yelling at you. It was after Washburn woke you up that second time. And you had just fallen asleep again. John started yelling at him about how he shouldn't have shouted at you when he knew why you were tired and how he shouldn't have assigned you detention for today."

"What?!" Matt shouted, "Are you mad? What did he do to you?"

"Detention tomorrow night. And fifty points lost," John replied.

"You are mad," Matt said quietly, "You didn't have to do that. I don't want you getting in trouble for me."

"Yes, I did," John said, "It's not fair what he did. He should have made the detention over the weekend, like you suggested. He's deliberately trying to run you down. It's just not fair."

"Yeah, well, life's not fair. I found that out six years ago," Matt said bluntly.

"Yeah, but it doesn't mean it's okay for people to treat you like dung," John replied softly.

******

By the time John trudged back into the common room after his detention the next night, most of the rest of the Gryffindors had gone to bed. There were a few fifth years huddled up at one table, studying for their O.W.L.s, and Victoire and Amy were up talking quietly while studying for their N.E.W.T.s. Albus and his friends had managed to get the good armchairs near the fire once the fourth years occupying them had gone to bed. Rose was reading a book while Albus and Amanda played gobstones. Matt was sound asleep in his chair.

"How'd it go?" Albus asked as John collapsed in one of the chairs.

"It was bloody miserable," John groaned, "He stared at me the whole time. Had me write 'I will respect my elders and not talk back' about 300 times."

"Yeah, that's what he does. I've gotten used to it, but it drove me mad during the first few detentions," Albus told him.

"He's an evil git," John growled.

"I know," Albus agreed.

"Well, I don't want to talk about him anymore. I just spent two hours with him. Anyway, what have you been up to?" John asked.

"Not much. We finished all our homework a while ago. We've just been sitting around waiting for you," Albus said.

"When did he fall asleep?" John jerked his head towards Matt.

"About an hour ago," Amanda answered.

John sighed, "You know, it's almost like he expects everyone to be rude to him."

"I'm pretty sure he does," Albus whispered.

"Well, it's probably because most people have," Rose commented, "I mean, most people aren't exactly nice to, well, people like him."

"I know, but he shouldn't just accept it. I'm going to stick up for him," John said.

"We will, too," Rose agreed, "But he's just not used to it."

"I guess, but I'm not going to let anyone treat him badly. Especially not someone like Washburn," John replied.

"Me neither," Albus said.

"Definitely," Amanda replied.

"We should probably go to bed," Albus said after glancing at his watch, "We've got Astronomy tomorrow."

Amanda groaned, "Oh, yeah. Should be a miserable night."

"Yours won't be as miserable as his will be," John pointed to Matt.

******

The next day went by fast for Albus. Charms was thoroughly miserable for Albus and all his friends. John had made it onto the list of people Washburn clearly disliked more than the others. Now, the only one of Albus's friends who wasn't, was Amanda. However, Washburn did dislike her more than the other Gryffindors, just because she was friends with Albus. Washburn spent the whole class lecturing and shouting at Matt whenever he fell asleep. Albus could tell that John was trying hard to behave himself whenever this happened. It didn't help that Malfoy spent the whole class with a smug look on his face, clearly enjoying that Washburn was shouting at Matt every five minutes.

"Evil git. We ought to sneak a few puking pastilles in his pumpkin juice," John muttered under his breath after Washburn woke Matt up for the fourth time.

"What did you say, Brickston?" Washburn shouted.

"Nothing, sir," John answered.

"Didn't sound like nothing," Washburn growled, "Ten points from Gryffindor."

Matt wound up skipping Potions because he couldn't face a second class with Malfoy that day. Malfoy interrogated Albus again as to where Matt was, and Albus told him that Matt had left after lunch to visit his sick gran.

After dinner, Albus and his friends decided to see if Matt was in the Room of Requirement. He never showed up at dinner. When they arrived in the Room, Amy was already there, trying to wake Matt up.

"Hey, Amy," Albus said quietly.

Amy turned around, "Oh, hi, Albus."

"Are you going to the Hospital Wing now?" Rose asked.

"Yeah, I'll see you guys tomorrow, I guess," Matt yawned as Amy helped him out of the bed.

"All right," Albus replied.

"Bye," John, Rose, and Amanda said quietly.

"Bye," Matt winced as he followed his sister out of the room.

Albus and his friends spent the rest of the evening in the Room, working on their homework. After a few hours, in which Albus managed to get the latest Potions homework done, it was time for Astronomy.

Professor Polo announced that they would be finishing their March star charts that night. Albus, John, Rose, and Amanda set up their telescopes and got to work.

"This is the first full moon on a Wednesday, isn't it?" Albus whispered to Rose after a few minutes.

"Yeah, I think so," Rose said, "I'm just glad we don't have this with the Slytherins.

"Where's your friend, Matt?" Jackie Pierce, the Hufflepuff on Albus's other side asked.

"He's visiting his sick gran," Albus said automatically.

"Oh, I hope she's better soon," Jackie replied.

Albus focused his telescope and marked down a few stars. He moved his telescope and pointed it towards the moon. He sighed as he thought about how something as beautiful as the moon could control someone's life as much as it controlled Matt's.

Albus managed to finish his star chart just as the class was ending. John and Rose were able to finish theirs as well.

"I hope he doesn't take off a whole lot of points for not getting all the stars," Amanda sighed as they climbed into the portrait hole.

"If you only forgot a couple, I don't think you'll loose that many points," Rose assured her.

Albus sat down in one of the armchairs in front of the empty fireplace. "Are any of you tired?"

John sat down next to Albus, "No, not really."

Rose and Amanda shook their heads and sat down. "Let's stay up. We can go see Matt in the morning," Rose suggested.

"Good idea," Albus agreed. The friends spent much of the night playing numerous games of chess, Exploding Snap, and Gobstones. Eventually, the sun started to rise and morning came.

"Should we go, then?" John asked once they finished their game of Exploding Snap.

"Yeah, it's probably a good time," Rose said. "But maybe you should go get the map, Albus. I don't fancy running into Filch."

Albus agreed and ran up to James's dormitory. James and the rest of the second year boys were all sound asleep. Albus ran to James's trunk and rummaged around in it until he found the Marauder's Map. He left a quick note to James telling him that he took the map, quickly left the room, and went back to the common room.

Albus spread the map out on the floor and tapped it with his wand, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

"Blimey, that is brilliant!," John grinned as the writing appeared on the map. Albus had told his friends about the map before, but he had never showed it to them.

"Wow!" Amanda stared in awe at the map. "That is awesome."

"Let's see," Albus scanned the map, "Filch is still in his office."

"What about Washburn?" John asked.

"Hmm," Albus looked back at the map.

"There he is!" Rose pointed at the map, "He's in his office, too."

"Good," John said in a relieved voice, "Oh, and there's Madam Pomfrey. She's walking through the Entrance Hall."

"Let's go, then," Albus stood up, "Mischief Managed." He stuffed the map into his robe pocket and left the room, with Rose, John, and Amanda following.

When they arrived at the Hospital Wing, it was completely deserted. Albus and his friends settled themselves on the bed next to the one Matt usually stayed in. The door opened a few minutes later, but it wasn't Madam Pomfrey who came through. It was Amy, followed by Victoire.

"What are you doing here?" Amy asked when she saw Albus and the others.

"We had Astronomy last night and weren't tired, so we just stayed up and figured we'd come see Matt," Albus told her.

"Oh, all right," Amy replied. She walked over to the bed where Albus and his friends were sitting and Victoire followed. "I told her," Amy said to Albus, "about Matt."

"I still can't believe you kept this from me all these years," Victoire said.

"You're not mad, are you?" Amy asked quietly.

"No, of course not," Victoire assured her and sat down next to Rose on the bed. "It just must have been so hard to keep that a secret."

Amy sat down next to Victoire, "It was. But I didn't really have a choice. My parents forbade me from telling anyone."

"Well, I'm glad you told me now. Your parents aren't going to be mad, are they?"

"No, I asked them a couple weeks ago and they said it would be all right if I told you," Amy answered.

"Good," Victoire said and turned to Albus, "How long have you guys known?"

"Since January. Well, Rose put the clues together in November, but we didn't know for sure until January. But we didn't talk to Matt about it until last month," Albus responded.

The group sat in silence for a few moments, before Victoire asked, "When's he coming back?"

"Should be any time," Amy stood up and glanced at the door. "But just to let you guys know, he's not going to be in any shape to talk to you."

"We know, we just want to be here for him," John replied.

"I honestly don't even know if he's going to want you here. He never likes anyone seeing him right after a transformation."

"We don't care what he looks like," John said adamantly.

"I know you don't, but I think he's still afraid you're going to abandon him. He's never had such supportive friends before. The few friends he had went running in the other direction once they found out," Amy explained.

"Gits," John muttered under his breath.

The door to the Hospital Wing opened and Albus looked up. Madam Pomfrey came bustling through while using her wand to float a stretcher through the door. Matt was laying upon it, covered in a thick green blanket. Amy immediately rushed over to them. "How is he?" she asked anxiously.

"Not that bad, actually," Madam Pomfrey replied, "A few broken bones and a fair bit of cuts and bruises, but not as bad as past months."

"Oh, good," Amy replied.

Madam Pomfrey directed the stretcher towards the bed next to the one Albus and his friends were sitting on. "What are you lot doing here?" she asked briskly once she noticed them.

"We, er, just wanted to see if Matt was okay," Albus answered nervously. He suddenly wasn't sure if they should have gone to the Hospital Wing after all.

"He knows you know, then?" Madam Pomfrey asked.

"Yeah, and he explained everything last month," Albus told her.

"And you know, too?" Madam Pomfrey gestured to Victoire.

"Yes, I do," Victoire answered.

Madam Pomfrey smiled, "Good. It's about time he had some loyal friends. Now, I've got to heal him up a bit and then if he's awake, you can see him." She pulled the curtains closed behind her and Amy. A minute later, she came out, went to her office, and came back with numerous potions and bandages. Albus watched as she went back through the curtains and listened to the various healing spells she was performing.

Victoire, Albus, and his friends all sat on the bed, no one saying a word. Albus was still a bit worried about Matt's reaction to them being there. He hadn't thought about it before, but now he realized that Amy was right and Matt probably didn't want them to see him like this. He glanced at his friends, who were also looking a bit nervous. They didn't have long to dwell on it, though, because a little while later, Madam Pomfrey and Amy appeared from behind the curtains.

"He's awake," Madam Pomfrey told them, "You can see him for a few minutes, but not very long. He needs rest."

Albus glanced at his friends and they stood up. He walked through the curtains, with Rose, John, and Amanda following. Matt was laying on the bed, looking thoroughly miserable. His face was covered in cuts and there was a large bruise on his left cheek. Both of his arms were heavily bandaged and he looked very tired.

"What are you guys doing here?" he asked hoarsely when he saw Albus and the others.

"We wanted to come see you. Are you all right?" Albus asked.

"I've been better," Matt answered bluntly.

"I hope you don't mind that we came," Rose said softly.

"It's all right," Matt sighed, "I just thought you wouldn't have wanted to."

"'Course we do," John said, "You're our friend."

Matt grinned tiredly at them. "Oh, did you tell Victoire?" he asked Amy, who had just come back through the curtains with Victoire.

"Yeah, I told her this morning," Amy replied.

"And it doesn't bother me in the least," Victoire assured him. Matt yawned and smiled at her.

Madam Pomfrey came back with another steaming potion in a goblet. "Time for you lot to go," she told them, "He needs to sleep."

"Ok," Albus said, "Bye, Matt. Hope you feel better."

"We'll come see you tonight," Rose told him.

"Ok, have fun in class," Matt yawned. John and Amanda waved as the group left. Amy and Victoire followed behind them, whispering to each other.

Albus walked to the Great Hall for breakfast with his friends. He was feeling quite tired after staying up the whole night. Albus was glad that Matt didn't seem to mind them coming to see him so soon after the full moon, but he could tell that Matt still wasn't completely comfortable with them knowing his secret. Albus figured that after a couple weeks or so Matt would gradually relax about it. Now, all Albus had to do was decide when to tell his friends about the Hallows. He had been putting it off, but decided to take Dumbledore's advice and see if they knew anything about them. It was the only clue he had, and if he was going to stop Washburn from getting the Hallows, he he had to use it.

[*Riley*]

I am, stick with ya till the start and will keep on going !!

[Phoenix in the Ashes]

I skim read it and have a general idea of what's happening, though I don't know its intricacies.

[DucksRMagical]

Thanks for reading, Riley and PITA! This chapter's a bit shorter, but the last one was really long.

New Disclaimer: I don't own The Tales of Beedle the Bard, The Tale of the Three Brothers, or any of the other Beedle stories.

Chapter 33: The Hallows

Albus did not have a chance to ask John, Matt, and Amanda about the Hallows until after the Easter holiday. Matt spent the rest of the week in the Hospital Wing, and Albus didn't want to talk about the Hallows there. He preferred to do it in private. The Easter holiday began the day after Matt left the Hospital Wing. Neither Albus nor his friends stayed at the castle over the holiday. Albus quite enjoyed the break and spent much of it playing Quidditch with James. Rose and her family came to stay for a few days, but Albus didn't see the rest of his extended family. Albus, Rose, and James did spend a bit of time sneaking around Grimmauld Place, looking for clues that would lead them to finding out what the Hallows were, but they didn't find anything useful.

By the time Albus was back at Hogwarts, the snow had melted and it was relatively warm. April was upon them, which meant that the end of term exams were only two months away. The teachers made sure to remind them of this during every class. Albus had not thought it possible, but they were being assigned even more homework than before. Of course, no one was feeling the pressure more than the fifth and seventh years, who were preparing for their O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s. All of them could be seen studying in the common room and library until late at night. A few of them were already cracking under the pressure. Albus was glad that his O.W.L.s were still four years away, but he was not looking forward to them. Even Victoire was becoming nervous about the exams and had started threatening younger students with detentions if they were too loud in the common room. Usually Victoire was very level headed and not much bothered her, but she was afraid she wouldn't have enough N.E.W.T.s to get her into the Healer program.

"I am not looking forward to my O.W.L.s," John sighed as he watched as a fifth year nodded off while reading her notes.

"Me neither," Matt agreed.

"You'll be fine if you study," Rose assured them.

"That's the part I'm not looking forward to," John laughed, "I'm having enough trouble studying for this year's exams."

"Have you finished your Herbology?" Albus asked John.

"I'm working on it now," John told him.

"I haven't even started it," Amanda commented. Matt was helping her finish this week's Astronomy assignment.

"Well, it's not due until day after tomorrow," Albus told them.

"Good thing!" John shouted and threw down his quill, "I need a break from all this!"

"Shush!" Victoire came storming over to their table. She looked very tired. "This is study time!"

"Sorry, Victoire," John said, "I'm just sick of studying."

"Just wait until seventh year..." Victoire muttered as she went back to the table she was sharing with Amy.

"Want to go to the Room?" Albus whispered.

"Yeah, let's go," Matt replied and got up. Albus, Rose, Amanda, and John all picked up their books and followed Matt out of the common room. They walked to the Room and Matt paced three times in front of it. The door appeared and they all walked inside. The Room looked just as it did when Matt told them about the night he was bit.

Albus walked inside and sat down on one of the chairs. His friends followed and they all resumed their studying, except for John, who was wandering around the Room.

"I've got to tell you guys something," Albus said quietly after a few minutes. Everyone looked up from their books and John came over to the fire and sat down on the couch next to Matt.

"Are you going to tell us where you disappear to with Rose and your brother?" John asked.

"Er, yeah, you noticed that?" Albus asked nervously.

"Yes, we all did," Amanda told him.

"Well, I'm going to tell you why," Albus said. "I guess first I've got to tell you that this past summer, I thought my dad had told me everything about the defeat of Voldemort."

"You mean, he didn't?" John asked.

"No, I don't think he did," Albus replied quietly, "Over Christmas, Rose, James, and I, and a couple of our cousins, overheard mine and Rose's parents whispering about something in the kitchen. They were talking about whether or not to tell us something, something they've been hiding from us. I don't know what it was. I just heard them say one word, 'Hallows'. James, Rose, and I researched in the library to try and find out what 'Hallows' were. But we didn't find anything. The only thing we had to go on was the fact that I heard the word 'Hallows' in those Legilimency dreams I have. Someone wants to find the Hallows and steal them, whatever they are.

"Rose came up with the idea that I should talk to Dumbledore's portrait about it. We figured that the Hallows had something to do with Voldemort's downfall because they seem to be something just our parents know about. Since Dumbledore told my dad about the Horcruxes, we figured he'd know something about the Hallows. So, Rose came up with the whole idea to set off a firework in Washburn's class in order to get me into the Headmaster's office so I could talk to Dumbledore."

"Wait, you did that on purpose?" John asked in awe.

"Yeah, we did," Rose grinned.

"That's, that's brilliant, but stupid!" John laughed.

"We know," Albus said grimly, "It could have gone much worse. Anyway, Dumbledore did know about the Hallows, but he wouldn't tell us about them. He said it was something my dad had to tell me. But he did give me a clue. He told me to ask you about them," Albus said.

"He thinks we'd know what they are?" Amanda asked.

"Well, yeah, that's what he said. He said to specifically ask John and Matt about them," Albus replied.

"He got that right, I've never heard of Hallows before," Amanda responded.

"You haven't heard of them, have you?" Albus turned to John and Matt.

John and Matt looked at each other and then glanced at Albus. "Well, I've never heard of them," John said.

"I have, my dad told me about them once," Matt commented.

"You know what they are?" Albus asked in shock. He looked at Rose. She looked as clueless as Albus did.

"Yeah, I do," Matt repeated, "Haven't you two ever heard The Tales of Beedle the Bard?"

"Of course," Albus nodded.

"The what?" Amanda looked quizzically at Matt.

"The Tales of Beedle the Bard," he repeated, "A book of Wizard fairy tales. The Warlock's Hairy Heart, Babbity Rabbity and Her Cackling Stump, The Wizard and the Hopping Pot, The Fountain of Fair Fortune-"

"My parents read me those when I was little. Mum's actually got the original copy!" Rose interrupted excitedly.

"Does she really?" Matt stared at her in awe.

"Yeah, Dumbledore left it to her in his will," Rose told him. "But what do a bunch of fairy tales have to do with 'Hallows'?"

"You didn't let me finish. There's one more. The Tale of the Three Brothers," Matt told them. "And that has everything to do with the Hallows."

Albus and Rose glanced at each other. Like Rose, Albus had been read those fairy tales when he was little, and he remembered The Tale of the Three Brothers. He remembered his Aunt Hermione reading it to him from the original copy. He hadn't been able to read a word of it, since it was written in Runes, but he definitely remembered the story.

"But I don't remember anything about any Hallows in that story," Rose commented.

"You wouldn't," Matt told her, "The story doesn't mention the word Hallows, but the story itself is about the Hallows."

"That doesn't make sense," John announced.

"Could someone explain this story, please?" Amanda asked with a look of confusion on her face.

"Sure," Matt leaned back on the couch and gazed around the room. "This would be easier if I had the book. I haven't heard it in ages." Matt got up from the couch and walked over to a book shelf that was behind Albus's chair. "Perfect! Here's one," Matt picked a book up off the shelf, walked back over to the couch and sat down.

"'There were once three brothers who were traveling along a lonely, winding road at twilight,"* Matt began. He read the whole story straight through. It was just as Albus remembered, with no mention of the word Hallows.

"'And then he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, and, as equals, they departed this life.'"* Matt looked up at Amanda and closed the book. "That's the story."

Amanda stared at him, "That's quite a bit different than Muggle fairy tales. Although I'm still confused."

"So am I. What's that got anything to do with 'Hallows'?" Albus asked.

"Everything," Matt sighed, "Just let me explain it. The Hallows, or the Deathly Hallows as they're really known as, are the Invisibility Cloak, the Resurrection Stone, and the Elder Wand. Some people believe that the story tells of the creation of the Deathly Hallows, but most people think it's just a story.

"My dad told me about it ages ago. He's one of the few people who think they actually exist. When he was younger, before he got married, he actually tried to find them. Looked in loads of books all over the world, trying to trace where they might be. It's how he met my mum. The two of them were in a library in France. He was searching for information about the Hallows and she was doing research for something, I don't remember what. He gave up his search once they got married and Mum got pregnant with Amy. He never did find out anything about the Hallows that would tell him where they were."

"You mean, those three objects actually exist?" Rose asked skeptically.

"I dunno," Matt replied, "My dad seems to think so. And he's met a few other people who think so."

"But if they don't exist, why would my dad want to keep me from knowing about them?" Albus asked quietly. Albus was not sure what to think about what Matt had said about the Hallows. It was a far-fetched idea, but there was one thing Albus knew might prove their existence. His father's Invisibility Cloak. Albus had not really connected The Tale of the Three Brothers to his dad's Cloak, but now that he thought about it, the connection made sense.

"Oh, come on, Albus, you can't honestly be thinking that they exist?" Rose said exasperatingly.

"We already know one of them exists!" Albus told her, "What about Dad's Invisibility Cloak?"

"Your dad's got an Invisibility Cloak?" Matt asked. "Really?"

"Yeah," Albus told him.

"But that doesn't mean it's the one from the story," John said, "I mean, there are loads of Invisibility Cloaks out there. One of my uncles used to have one. But it wore out and he never got another."

"Exactly!," Albus said excitedly, "My dad's Cloak is different from all other Invisibility Cloaks. It doesn't wear out!. I know most Invisibility Cloaks just have a charm or something put on them and it wears off eventually. That must have been the kind your uncle had, John. But my grandpa had that cloak before my dad did, and my dad still has it. It still works as good now as it ever has."

"Whoa," Matt stared at Albus with a glint of excitement in his eyes, "Then that could be the Cloak from the story!"

"But what about the other Hallows?" Rose asked. "I don't think they exist."

"They might," John said, "I know I've heard of super wands being passed from wizard to wizard centuries ago."

"Ok," Rose began, "Say there is a 'super wand' out there, and Uncle Harry's cloak is 'The Invisibility Cloak'. But how on earth would a 'Resurrection Stone' work?"

Albus couldn't answer that, but he did think that the Deathly Hallows existed. Why else would his dad have kept all this secret? The Deathly Hallows had something to do with Voldemort's downfall, and Albus was going to find out what. "Well, if these three objects are the 'Hallows' that I heard mentioned in my dream, than someone is trying to find them," Albus realized.

"That can't be good," John said, "Whoever's been doing that Legilimency wants to continue what Voldemort was doing, right?"

"Right," Albus confirmed, "Do you know if anything special happens if you've got all three Hallows?"

"Dad said that if one person unites all three, they will be the Master of Death," Matt answered.

"Master of Death?" Albus repeated, "Well, I can imagine that Voldemort would have loved to have them, then. Especially that wand."

"That's a scary thought," John said, "Voldemort with an unbeatable wand."

Albus silently agreed. "Anyone evil with that wand would be scary. Remember that time we spied on Washburn?"

Matt shuddered, "How could I not? That resulted in one of the worst detentions ever."

"I know, and I'm sorry about that," Albus said quietly. He still felt a bit guilty about causing all his friends to end up in detention with Washburn. "But that strange wizard was yelling at Washburn because he hadn't found out where something was."

"And we didn't even hear what it was he had to find," Matt interrupted.

"But I think I know what it is. I think that Washburn is trying to find out where the Hallows are," Albus told them.

"What?!" John shouted, "I know he's horrible, but you think he is trying to unite the Hallows and continue what Voldemort wanted to do?"

"Er, yeah," Albus said.

"I told him it was ridiculous," Rose sighed, "But he still thinks it's Washburn."

"It makes sense, Rose!" Albus shouted.

"It does fit, but still, he's a teacher," Rose replied.

"So what? He makes it clear that he hates me and James, and you, and Matt. He's been giving Matt a hard time since the beginning of the year! And now he hates John, too."

"I know, but maybe he just doesn't like Gryffindors. He was a Slytherin, you know," Rose commented.

"Yeah, I know that. But what if he hates us because he was on Voldemort's side?" Albus suggested.

"But do you really think he'd do this right under your dad's nose, Albus? I mean, come on! Your dad's head Auror!" John argued.

Albus shrugged. He really hadn't thought of that. "Dunno. Maybe he's just stupid? Or maybe that bloke he was arguing with is threatening him or something and he hasn't got a choice?"

"Well, I suppose it could be that, but still..." John replied.

"Ok, so what if it is Washburn?" Matt said, "What do we do about it?"

"I dunno. I don't think we have enough proof to tell anyone," Albus answered. "We've just got to hope that he doesn't find out where the Hallows are. I only know where the Invisibility Cloak is, Dad's got it in his office somewhere, and Washburn probably already knows where that is, if he's the one doing the Legilimency."

"All right," Matt replied, "But this is mad, I never thought I'd actually find out the Hallows existed, let alone know where they are! Do you think you could show me the Cloak sometime?"

"Sure," Albus told him, "But please don't tell your dad about this. Not yet. I know he'd want to know, but I think you ought to wait until after my dad tells me their significance in the war."

"All right," Matt sighed, "I won't tell him yet."

"Swear you won't?"

"I swear," Matt said, "I'll keep it secret. I've got years of experience keeping things secret. Don't worry."

*Borrowed from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, U.S. edition, by the brilliant J.K. Rowling

[DucksRMagical]

I have re-written chapter 1 yet again. It's not crucial to the plot, but I just wanted to let everyone know. I'm also planning on combining chapters 2 & 3 soon because they're both so short. This will obviously change all the chapters numbers.

Chapter 34: Washburn's Plot

Over the next few weeks, Albus thought a lot about the Hallows. He found it hard to concentrate on his homework, and Rose would often scold him for not spending enough time studying. He continued having his strange dreams almost every night, but he didn't think that Washburn had found out anything new about the Hallows. Washburn continued to yell at Albus during every Charms class and give him at least a detention a week. With detention, homework, and Occlumency lessons, Albus had hardly any time for anything else. Life at Hogwarts was just as chaotic as ever. Albus did manage to find time to tell James about what Matt had told him about the Hallows, but James didn't have any ideas as to where the other Hallows could be either. He did agree with Albus that it was highly possible that Washburn was the one trying to unite them.

Before Albus knew it, exams were upon them. The night before they began was very tense. Almost all the Gryffindors were either in the common room, studying, or in the library doing the same. Albus and his friends were studying at a table next to the one Victoire and Amy were at. Both the seventh year girls were extremely nervous, and Victoire insisted on absolute quiet in the common room. Albus did not mind this, because he needed to study anyway. Their first exam was Charms, and Albus was particularly nervous about this exam.

"I'm not sure I've passed," Albus groaned as he walked out of the room with Rose, John, Matt, and Amanda after the Charms exam.

"I'm sure I've failed," Matt replied, "Washburn was breathing down my neck during half of it."

"I hate when teachers do that," John said.

"Me, too," Amanda agreed.

"Well, I think I passed, but-" Rose started.

"Of course you passed," John interrupted, "You've been preparing for exams since September."

Albus thought the rest of the exams went fairly well. He thought he at least passed Potions. Herbology and DADA went extremely well, and Albus thought he got decent marks in Astronomy, Transfiguration, and History of Magic. However, even though exams were over, O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s were still going on, and Victoire was still mandating a quiet common room in the evening. The night of their last exam, Albus and his friends decided to just go to the Room of Requirement and celebrate.

"What a relief!" John shouted as he flopped down onto the couch, "No more exams until next year!"

"Yep, a study free summer!" Matt grinned as he pulled a chocolate frog out of his pocket.

"You've got homework, you know," Rose laughed.

"I know, but I'll save it for the last minute," Matt replied, "So, anyone got plans for the summer?"

"I'm going to Ireland with my family," Amanda told them, "For two weeks. I can't wait!"

"Are you going on an airplane?" John asked, excitedly.

Amanda laughed, "Yeah."

"Brilliant!" John shouted, "Maybe I can convince my parents to take us on an airplane."

"It's not that great," Matt commented. "Are you doing anything?"

"Erm, not sure. We usually visit all my cousins," John said.

"Well, you've all got to come stay at my house," Albus told them. "Rose and I always have a big birthday party at the Burrow."

"My birthday's at the end of August and Albus's is the end of this month," Rose said. "So we always have a party together. But usually it's just our family. And our parents' friends and their kids."

"'Course I'll come!" John smiled, "I want to see your house and the Burrow."

"My parents should let me come. We're not going to Ireland until the middle of August," Amanda answered, "As long as they meet your parents first."

"They can meet at King's Cross," Rose replied.

"Can you come, Matt?" Albus asked.

"Er, I dunno," Matt said slowly, "My parents have never let me stay over at someone's house before. Not that anyone would has ever wanted me to stay over at their house before. Do you know when it will be?"

Albus looked at Rose, who shrugged. "I'm not sure. I don't think our parents have planned it yet. But we'll make sure it's not around the full moon."

"Then I might be able to go," Matt smiled.

"Great!" Albus said, "We'll have loads of fun! We can play Quidditch."

"I can't believe this year is almost over," Rose began.

"Yeah, I mean, a year ago, I didn't even know I was a witch," Amanda laughed, "Going to be strange to go back home."

"And last year, I never even knew about the Hallows, and now Washburn's trying to steal them," Albus said quietly.

"Well, at least over the summer you won't be anywhere near Washburn," Rose said, "And maybe Uncle Harry will tell us the whole story."

"And then you can tell it to us!" John replied. "And to stay on topic, this time last year, I was about the same as I am now." Everyone laughed.

"Well, this time last year, I didn't have any friends," Matt said quietly.

"But you do now," John pointed out.

Matt grinned, "Yeah, I do. Never thought I would, though. It's been a great year."

"I haven't showed you the Marauder's Map, have I?" Albus asked Matt.

"No, I don't think so," Matt answered.

"It's brilliant," John grinned, "Saw it a couple months ago."

"Yeah, you were in the Hospital Wing," Albus remembered, "But I've got it now." Albus pulled the Map out of his robe pocket.

"You haven't given it back to James yet?" Rose asked.

"Nope," Albus laughed, "I don't really want to give it back. Maybe we'll just share it." Albus got up from his chair and set the Map down on the table.

"Looks just like a regular piece of parchment," Matt commented.

"That's what's so great about it!" Albus grinned, "Anyway, this is the map that my grandpa, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, and of course, Teddy's dad made, when they were at Hogwarts."

"Yeah, I remember you telling me that," Matt replied.

"Here it is," Albus tapped his wand on the parchment and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Ink spread across the map while Matt stared in awe at it. "That's brilliant!" He stared at the map and all the labeled dots milling around it. His eyes stopped on the Whomping Willow. "This shows the passageway to the Shrieking Shack?" he asked nervously.

"Sure does," Albus said, "It shows all the passageways out of the school. But don't worry, hardly anyone knows about the Map. Just us, James, my parents, Rose's parents, my Uncle George, and probably some of my cousins. But none of them, except my parents and Rose's parents, know how to get in the tunnel."

"Do you know how to get into the tunnel?" Matt asked.

"Nope," Albus answered. Harry had told him all about the passageways, but hadn't told him how to get into them. Harry had told Albus that he didn't want to ruin all the fun of discovering things for himself.

"Good," Matt breathed a sigh of relief and went back to inspecting the map. "Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs," he murmured. "Are those, their nicknames?"

"Yup," Albus confirmed, "Moony was-"

"Teddy's dad, I figured that one out," Matt said, "But what about the others?"

"Wormtail was Pettigrew, he was a rat in more ways than one," Albus said grimly, "And Padfoot was Sirius, because he was a big shaggy dog. And Prongs was my grandpa because he was a stag."

"Wow," Matt said softly, "This is amazing."

"See?" Albus began, "Moony had awesome friends, well most of them were," Albus said, thinking of Pettigrew. "And they didn't dessert him. We won't dessert you."

"Yeah, you're our Moony," John agreed.

Matt smiled at them, "Thanks, guys. I know you won't, now."

The group quietly watched the map for a few minutes, noting that all the fifth and seventh years were still cooped up in the library, studying for their exams. "Who's that?" Albus pointed to a dot that was lingering near the forest.

Rose leaned in closer and read, "Jarett Willinson. Never heard of him."

"Willinson. Do you think he's related to Quinton Willinson?" Albus asked.

"Probably," John said, "But Quinton doesn't have any siblings at school."

"What's that guy doing here, then?" Albus wondered.

"Look!" Matt pointed at a dot that was traveling from the castle towards Jarret Willinson. "It's Washburn!"

Albus looked at the dot, and sure enough, it was Washburn. He was heading towards Jarett Willinson. "What are they doing?"

"I dunno," Matt answered.

"What if they're going to try and find the Hallows?" Albus asked. "We should go see what they're up to."

"What?!" Matt shouted, "Last time we went to see what Washburn was up to, we wound up in detention."

"But what if he is trying to steal the Hallows? If he is, then we won't get in trouble from him. He'll get fired," Albus pointed out.

Matt sighed, "I guess. Let's go before they leave."

"Are you coming, Rose?" Albus asked.

"I suppose," Rose said. She looked at Amanda and the two of them stood up.

"Let's go, then!" John grinned, he was clearly excited about spying on Washburn again.

Albus and his friends left the room and set off towards the front doors. They saw hardly anyone on their way down the stairs. Peeves was lurking on the second floor corridor, but luckily he didn't notice the first years sneaking off.

"Are they still there?" Rose whispered as they walked onto the grounds.

Albus checked the map. "Yeah, they're there. They must be talking or something."

"You ought to wipe it clean before we meet up with them," Rose suggested.

"Good idea," Albus agreed, "Mischief managed."

Albus walked slowly towards the edge of the forest, where he could just make out two cloaked figures. The sun was setting and it was nearly dark. Once Albus was a couple feet away from the two wizards, he recognized who Jarret Willinson was, and stopped abruptly.

"Ouch!" Amanda shouted as she ran into Albus.

"Shush!" Albus whispered, and he pulled his friends behind a tree.

"What is it?" Rose asked.

"That wizard! Jarett Willinson! He's the guy that was arguing with Washburn when we spied on him! And the time I had detention and they argued in Washburn's study. I'm sure of it."

"That means-" Rose replied.

"That they're going after the Hallows. Remember, when we spied on them, that Jarett Willinson told Washburn that he would come and they would steal the Hallows together," Albus said.

"We've got to stop them," John replied.

"Yeah," Albus agreed, "Let's go." Albus walked out from behind the tree, with his friends following. They slowly approached Washburn and Jarett Willinson. They were soon close enough to hear what the two wizards were saying.

"You've discovered the location of one of the Hallows?" Jarett asked.

"I believe so. Potter finally cracked. I've heard that his Occlumency skills were abysmal, but I didn't think it would take me this long. The two kids don't know a thing about the Hallows," Washburn stated.

Jarett laughed, "They will soon. Which one did you discover?"

"The Resurrection Stone," Washburn said.

"Perfect. And where is it?"

"In here," Washburn pointed to the forest. "But I don't know where."

"How are we supposed to find it?!" Jarett shouted angrily.

"Don't ask me!" Washburn shouted back.

"It was your job to find out where it is," Jarett said icily and took a step closer to Washburn. "And you haven't found the exact place."

"Sorry, but Potter didn't know either," Washburn answered nervously. "Shouldn't we just start searching?"

"We will, but I've told Quinton he could come with us, and he's not here yet," Jarett answered. "And we've got another job to do tonight, anyway."

"And what is that?" Washburn asked.

"Kill Potter," Jarett said.

Albus let out a gasp. They were going to kill his dad? But why? Albus turned around and looked at his friends. They were all standing stock still and wearing looks of utter fear on their faces.

"I don't think we're alone anymore," Washburn informed Jarett and a grin appeared across his face.

Albus turned back around to face the two wizards and backed up. Jarett and Washburn turned towards Albus and started walking towards him and his friends.

"I believe you are right," Jarett responded, "Mr. Potter, how nice of you to join us."

"What are we going to do with them?" Washburn asked while glaring at the five fist years.

"Oh, I don't know, what do you think?" Jarett replied.

"Well, Potter seems incapable of doing the simplest charms. The Weasley girl is a right know-it-all. Eckerton is asleep half the time, so I doubt he's capable of doing much magic. Brickston doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut. And the other girl doesn't seem too bright either," Washburn said, "I say we just let them hang around and if they interfere, I'll take care of them." He stared Albus in the eye, with a look of complete loathing.

"Very well," Jarett agreed, "You know them better than I do. Now, let's get back to business."

"Right. Now, why do we have to kill Potter? Isn't he the one who knows where all the Hallows are?" Washburn asked.

"I know that!" Jarett shouted, "But he's the one who's got the Elder Wand! And if we want it, we've got to kill him."

"Oh, right," Washburn responded.

Albus watched the two wizards and glanced nervously at his friends. He had no idea what he was going to do next. Albus had been right, Washburn and this other wizard were after the Hallows. Albus heard footsteps behind him and turned around, pulling out his wand at the same time.

"Quinton," Jarett said, "You're late."

"Sorry, Father," Quinton mumbled, "Filch was lurking around. I had to wait for him to leave."

Jarett Willinson was Quinton's dad. As Albus watched them, he only hoped that Jarett was as hopeless at dueling as his son was.

"Put your wand away, Potter!" Washburn growled at Albus.

"Leave it out, Al," a voice said from behind Albus. Albus turned around and saw his dad pulling off the Invisibility Cloak. Albus let out a sigh of relief. His dad was there, everything would be okay.

[DucksRMagical]

Chapter 35: Bit of a Nasty Duel

"Nice of you to join us, Potter," Jarett stepped towards Harry. "How did you find us?"

Harry drew his wand and stared at Jarett. "Followed your son. Students aren't supposed to be out of their common rooms after hours."

"I don't think it matters what he does now," Jarett replied icily. "Once we have the Hallows, we will have power you know nothing of."

"So it's you," Harry said, "You've been after the Hallows. And you've been doing the Legilimency, Washburn?"

"Yes, I have," Washburn confirmed. "Only your sons don't know anything about the Hallows, so it proved pointless. You, however, provided us with a great deal of information."

"No, I haven't told them about the Hallows yet. But I suppose I'll have to after tonight," Harry said.

"I don't think you'll have the chance, Potter," Jarett growled.

"You've found out where the Hallows are, then?" Harry asked.

Washburn nodded, "The Resurrection Stone is in the forest. I managed to break through your pathetic Occlumency. The Invisibility Cloak is in your hand. And you've got the Elder Wand, we already knew that."

Harry held up his wand, "I'm afraid I don't."

"What?!" Jarett shouted and looked at Harry's wand, "But you had it! That's how you defeated Voldemort!"

"Maybe so," Harry began, "But I haven't got it now, do I?"

"You've got it somewhere!" Jarett growled. "Enough talk! Give me the Cloak!"

"Don't think so," Harry shoved the Cloak into his pocket and raised his wand higher. "We'll duel if you want, but if you come with me now, you'll have less time in Azkaban."

"I don't care about Azkaban!" Jarett shouted. "Crucio!"

"Protego!" Harry shouted at the same time. A shield formed in front of Harry, protecting him, Albus, and Albus's friends from Jarett's spell.

Washburn and Quinton ran from behind Jarett, holding their wands out. Harry stepped towards Jarett and Jarett stepped closer to Harry. Albus watched them, his heart beating fast. Jarett sent more spells towards Harry, but Harry blocked each of them. Albus smiled a little as he saw how much better at dueling his dad was than Jarett.

Jets of light flew out of both Harry and Jarett's wand, lighting up the night around them. Harry sent a spell towards Jarett and he flew back and landed on the ground. Jarett stumbled back to his feet and sent a stunning spell at Harry.

"Just tell me where the wand is!" Jarett shouted, as he dodged Harry's curse.

"No!" Harry shouted back and leaped out of the way of another stunner. The two wizards continued dueling, each one sending spells and curses towards the other. Albus stared at them. He had never seen dueling like this before. Neither wizard seemed to be slowing down. Harry was noticeably faster and dodged spells more easily than Jarett, but Jarett didn't appear to be giving up anytime soon.

"What do we do?" Rose whispered to Albus.

Albus turned away from the duel. "I dunno!" Albus heard footsteps behind him again and turned to see Quinton standing with his wand facing Albus.

"So, we duel again, Potter," Quinton smirked. "Impedimenta!"

Albus dodged the spell easily, but didn't know what to do next. He hadn't learned many dueling spells yet. He held his wand up higher and watched Quinton.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Quinton shouted. Albus jumped to the side and dodged the new spell.

"Ahh!" someone screamed behind Albus. He turned around and saw John, Rose, and Matt standing around Amanda, who was laying rigid on the ground. The spell meant for Albus had hit Amanda square in the chest.

Quinton laughed. "One down, four to go!"

"Watch out!" Albus shouted to his friends. They held up their wands and stood next to Albus.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Quinton shouted again. Albus and his friends darted to one side and Quinton's spell hit a nearby bush.

Albus regained his balance and turned to Quinton. He raised his wand and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

Quinton dodged the spell and smirked at Albus, "Think that'll work again? Petrificus Totalus!"

Albus and his friends dodged the spell yet again. "Don't you know any other spells?" John laughed.

"Shut it!" Quinton shouted, breathing heavily.

Albus whispered to Rose, "We'll all disarm him at once. On the count of three. Tell them." Albus waited until Rose had passed the word on to John and Matt and began to count. "One..."

"What are you doing?" Quinton asked nervously.

"Two...Three!" Albus shouted.

"Expelliarmus!" All four first years screamed the spell before Quinton realized what was going on. He was knocked off his feet and his wand flew out of his hand and sailed through the air, landing near Matt. Matt picked it up and stowed it in his robe.

"Urgh," Quinton picked his head up off the ground.

"Let me take it from here," Washburn stormed over to where Quinton was laying. "Pathetic..."

Albus's heart started beating even faster. He had never seen Washburn duel before. It would surely be a whole lot harder to disarm him than it was to disarm Quinton. Albus had no desire whatsoever to start dueling with one of his teachers.

"So you four, well five, if you count Tagger," Washburn began, "Decided to find out what I was doing. Thought that it was a good idea to meddle in my business?"

"Er," Albus mumbled.

"Don't deny it, Potter!" Washburn shouted. "You came here tonight! You spied on me months ago!"

"If you're going to kill my dad, than it is my business!" Albus shouted.

"You could see it that way, if you'd like. But if it's your business, and you get in the way, we'll kill you, too," Washburn growled at Albus.

Albus's stomach churned with fear and he looked over to where Harry was dueling Jarett. Harry had just sent a spell at Jarett that had completely knocked him off his feet. Harry looked over to Albus while Jarett was trying to get up. "Don't do anything to my son, Washburn!" Harry shouted. "Protego!" He sent a shield charm in between where Albus and Washburn were standing. "You'll regret it!"

"I don't think I will, Potter!" Washburn shouted back, aimed his wand at Harry, and sent a silent curse towards him. Harry easily dodged it.

"Crucio!" Jarett had regained his balance and was pointing his wand at Harry. Harry turned back and ran out of the way of the unforgivable curse just in time. He returned to his duel with Jarett, sending more jets of light at him.

"Are you Death Eaters?" John asked once Washburn returned his gaze to the group of first years.

Washburn smirked at John. "You still haven't learned to shut your mouth, have you? No, we're not Death Eaters. Although Jarett's father was. He's in Azkaban now. Albus's bloody father captured him!"

"So, what are you going to do? If you were planning on killing us, you would've done it by now," John replied.

Washburn stepped closer to John, "Maybe I like to drag it out. But enough of that. Potter!" He looked at Albus and pointed his wand at Albus's chest. "I don't suppose you know if your father has any spare wands laying around? One that might be the Elder Wand?"

"I dunno," Albus whispered, "I don't think so."

"'Course not," Washburn growled, "And you probably wouldn't tell me if you did."

"Don't think so," Albus said.

"Now, I think you four would be a whole lot easier to deal with if you didn't have your wands," Washburn seethed. "Expelliarmus!" he pointed his wand at Matt. Harry's shield charm had worn off and disappeared moments before.

Albus looked over to where Matt was. Matt collapsed to the ground when the spell hit his chest, and his wand flew through the air, landing next to Washburn. Albus darted over to where Matt was laying to see if he was ok.

"Expelliarmus!" Albus shouted at Washburn after he realized that Matt was knocked out cold. "What did you do to him?!"

Washburn deflected the spell and picked up Matt's wand. "I just disarmed him, that usually doesn't knock you out unless there are multiple people casting it. Always knew he was weak," Washburn sneared.

"Shut it!" John shouted as he bent down to try and wake Matt up, "Why don't you ever leave him alone?!"

"Ahh, looks like you'll be next," Washburn pointed his wand at John, "Expelliarmus!" John's wand sailed out of his hand and Washburn caught it. "Now for the Weasley girl. Expelliarmus!" Rose's wand left her hand and landed in between Washburn and Albus.

Albus ran forward to pick up Rose's wand. "I don't think so, Potter," Washburn reached the wand first and picked it up. "You're next. Expelliarmus!"

Albus felt his wand leave his hand and saw Washburn catch it. He glanced nervously at his friends. They weren't doing too well. No wands, and two of them were unconscious. Albus looked at Washburn, who had started pacing in a circle around them.

"Defenseless students," he smirked, "I think you'll be much more willing to do what I say now. Time to go into the forest, we're going on a little scavenger hunt."

"No," Albus told him, "We're not."

"You're not in a position to negotiate, Potter. You'll help me find the Resurrection Stone," Washburn barked, "Now, follow me!" Washburn started to walk towards the forest, but Albus did not follow. "Let's go, Potter!"

"We're not going," Rose said, crossing her arms across her chest.

"You'll regret that," Washburn said icily. He walked back to where Albus, Rose, and John were standing. "Crucio!" he shouted at Rose.

Rose screamed and jumped to the side, just missing the curse. Washburn started sending curses towards all three of them. Albus jumped behind a tree to avoid a jinx that wound up hitting the tree. He looked over to where Harry and Jarett were dueling. As far as Albus could tell, Harry was winning. Jarett appeared to be slowing down, but Albus noticed that his dad was limping a bit as he dodged Jarett's spells.

"What are we going to do?" Rose asked anxiously.

"I don't know!" Albus shouted back. He peeked his head out from behind the tree and saw John running towards them. Washburn pointed his wand at John's back and hit him with a Trip Jinx. John fell forward and he landed on the ground with a sickening crunch. "John!" Albus shouted and ran out from behind the tree.

"Just you and the Weasley girl now, Potter," Washburn growled. "Sectumsempra!" he shouted at Rose.

"No!" Albus shouted as the curse hit one of her arms. She sank down onto the ground, screaming in pain. Albus could see blood seeping out of her robes. "Stop it!" Albus shouted again. Albus glanced over to his dad again. Both of the wizards were slowing down. Willinson was definitely the worse off, he was leaning against a tree, trying to hold up his wand with a broken arm. "Dad! Help!"

Harry turned away from his duel and came limping over when he heard Albus's shout. "Expelliarmus!" he shouted at Washburn, and all five wands the Charms teacher was holding sailed out of his hands. Washburn turned away from Rose and looked at Harry. "Don't go near my niece," Harry growled at Washburn.

"Let's go," Washburn lifted Quinton onto his feet, "You all right?"

"Fine," Quinton grunted. The two of them took one look at Harry and ran off into the night. Albus saw them disapparate just as they left the Hogwarts grounds.

Albus glanced over to where Jarett had been moments before. He was gone. "Aren't you going to go after them, Dad?"

"Can't," Harry lifted his robe and revealed a nasty cut on his leg, "Took all my strength to get over here and save you." Harry sank down onto the ground, breathing heavily. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Albus sat down next to his dad and leaned up against him. "But I want to know the whole story about the Hallows."

"I know, and I will tell you," Harry sighed, "After we get back to the castle."

"Ok," Albus whispered. He looked over to where Rose had collapsed and saw her getting up. She walked slowly over to Albus and Harry and sank down on Harry's other side.

"Uncle Harry? Can we go back to the castle now?" she asked quietly. Her voice was shaking. She was holding one of her hands down over her arm, stopping the bleeding that Washburn's curse had caused.

"I think that would be a good idea," Harry replied.

"Harry?" a new voice said from behind them. "What happened?"

Albus, Harry, and Rose turned around. Neville was standing behind them. "Bit of a nasty duel," Harry answered, and went on to explain the entire evening.

Neville shook his head, "Blimey, Washburn's always been a little cold, but I'd never have expected that. What was he after?"

"I'll explain that later," Harry said, while trying to stand up, "But right now we've got to get back to the castle."

"Right," Neville agreed, "Give me your hand." Harry extended his arm and Neville helped him up. Albus and Rose got up after him.

Harry leaned on Neville and Neville helped him walk over to where John was laying. Neville conjured a stretcher and with a flick of his wand, John was laying upon it. He did the same with Matt and Amanda. "What happened to them?" Harry asked quietly.

"John got hit by a trip jinx and hit his head on a rock, Amanda got a full-body-bind curse, and Matt just got hit by Expelliarmus," Albus explained.

"That's nothing Madam Pomfrey can't fix, then," Harry replied. "Let's go."

The group slowly made their way back to the castle. It took them quite a while. Albus was fine, except for a few cuts and being completely worn out. The bleeding on Rose's arm seemed to have slowed down, but it would need to be magically healed or else it would surely open up again. Harry was walking quite slowly, and Albus could tell by the way he winced every time they went up the stairs, that he was in a great deal of pain. Eventually, they made it up to the Hospital Wing. When they got into the ward, Madam Pomfrey was already bustling around, and when she saw them come in, she immediately descended upon them.

"There you are, Harry!" the nurse shouted, "I've been trying to contact you all evening. James got into a nasty duel with a couple Slytherins and he's been unconscious ever since." She gestured to one of the beds at the far end of the room and looked back at Harry. She gazed upon the group and her mouth fell open. "What in the name of Merlin happened to you lot?"

"Quinton Willinson's father, Jarett Willinson, tried to kill me," Harry said simply. "Had quite the duel with him down near the forest. Him, along with Quinton, plus Professor Washburn."

Madam Pomfrey's eyes became large with shock. "Professor Washburn? And where are they now?" she asked quietly.

"They took off, disapparated once they left the grounds," Harry told her, "I couldn't catch them with this nasty cut on my leg."

"Well, come on, then," the nurse said, "Harry, you go in bed one, since it's closest. Albus, bed two, and Rose, bed three." Madam Pomfrey gestured to the beds and then approached the stretchers that Neville was holding up with his wand. "And let's see, Neville, take them to beds four, five, and seven, since James is in bed six."

Neville nodded and directed the stretchers to the empty beds. Albus walked over to the second bed and lay down. He stared at the ceiling, thinking about what had happened. Washburn thought Harry had the Elder Wand, but Harry didn't. Where was it? Who had it? And why did Washburn think that Harry had it? At least Harry said that he would tell Albus everything. It was only a matter of time before Albus knew the whole story about the Hallows.

Madam Pomfrey came bustling over to Albus's bed. "Here, drink this," she handed him a potion. "Dreamless sleep." Madam Pomfrey turned away from Albus and strode across the room to one of her cabinets. She rummaged around inside. "All the Potters in the Hospital Wing at once, it was bound to happen sooner or later..." she muttered.

Albus gratefully took the potion, and a few minutes later, he fell into a restful sleep.

[DucksRMagical]

First chapter on Olympus! I'd like to thank Fawkes for helping me come up with the title.

Chapter 36: The Truth

When Albus woke up the sun was shining into the window next to his bed. He sat up and peered at the clock on the wall. It was two o'clock. Albus looked over at Rose's bed; she was still asleep.

Madam Pomfrey came out from behind the curtains around one of the beds. She walked over to Albus once she noticed he was awake. "How are you, dear?"

"I'm fine," Albus told her, while trying to peek at the other beds, to see how everyone else was.

"Are you sure?" Madam Pomfrey asked, "Nothing hurts?"

"No, I'm fine," Albus answered truthfully, "But what about everyone else? Where's my dad?"

"They're all fine, too," Madam Pomfrey assured him, "They're asleep. And your dad left a few hours ago. He had to take care of some things at the Ministry. He said he'd be back later. Now, do you want something to eat?"

"Sure," Albus said, suddenly realizing how hungry he was. Madam Pomfrey left the room for a few minutes and came back with a tray filled with sandwiches and pumpkin juice. She set it down on Albus's bedside table and Albus started eating. Rose and James woke up a few minutes later, and they joined Albus in his lunch. James immediately asked them what had happened last night. Albus and Rose explained the whole thing.

"Blimey," James said quietly, once they had finished, "I always knew Washburn was evil."

"Explains why he hates us so much," Albus replied, "We knew nothing about the Hallows, and he thought he'd be able to find out where they were by reading our minds."

"Guess so," James agreed. "So, Dad said he'd tell us about the Hallows?"

"Yeah, he did," Albus told him, "I guess he will when he gets back from the Ministry."

John, Matt, and Amanda woke up an hour later, and Albus and Rose told them the rest of what had happened the previous night. They were all happy that Washburn, Jarett, and Quinton hadn't gotten any of the Hallows, but were worried that they had gotten away. They spent much of the afternoon discussing what would happen next.

Albus was sure that, somehow, the rest of the school already knew what had happened the night before. They had no idea what Washburn, Quinton, and Jarett were after, but they knew about the duel that had taken place on the grounds. Madam Pomfrey spent a lot of time keeping curious students out of the Hospital Wing, and eventually she locked the door. Victoire and Amy were the first ones to visit Albus and the others in the Hospital Wing, followed by the rest of Albus's cousins. They all wanted to know what went on, and Albus told them most of the story. He left out the part about the Hallows, since none of Albus's cousins knew about them. Amanda, John, and Matt's parents showed up for a few hours each and were all relieved that their kids were ok.

Once evening arrived, Madam Pomfrey made all of Albus's cousins and Amy leave, and she gave Albus and the others a large platter of food for their dinner. After they finished eating, Albus heard someone trying to get into the room.

"Bloody hell, I think she locked it!" a voice shouted out.

"Oh, Ron, honestly. Just knock," a female voice said. Albus heard a loud knock, and Madam Pomfrey came running out of her office. She flung the door open and Ron and Hermione came running in. "Rose!" Hermione shouted and descended upon her daughter. She wrapped Rose in a big hug. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, Mum," Rose hugged Hermione back. Ron sat down on the bed and wrapped his arms around Rose as well.

"Where's Harry?" Madam Pomfrey asked, "I thought he was coming with you?"

"He was behind us," Ron glanced at the door.

"I'm here," Harry appeared in the doorway and limped over to Albus's bed. He sank down on it and gave Albus a hug.

"I told you not to walk on that leg yet," Madam Pomfrey scolded.

"Didn't have much of a choice. I had to alert the Ministry. I've got Aurors looking for Washburn and both Willinsons right now," Harry explained.

"Good," Madam Pomfrey handed Harry a goblet of potion, "Drink that."

Harry took the potion and downed it in one mouthful. "Disgusting."

"Dad?" Albus asked tentatively, "Are you going to tell us about the Hallows now?"

Harry sighed, "I suppose."

"You've got to let John, Matt, and Amanda listen to," Albus insisted.

"I know, they've got to know what happened, too," Harry agreed, "We just need some place private."

"How about the Room of Requirement?" Albus suggested.

"You've found that already?" Harry grinned.

"Well, Matt showed it to us," Albus explained.

"Oh," Harry replied, "Well, that would be the perfect place." Harry stood up. "Poppy, I've got a bit of explaining to do to the kids."

"Can't you do it here?" Madam Pomfrey asked, "It really would be best for them all to stay here a while longer."

"I promise we'll all come back once I'm done," Harry said.

"Really, Harry, they need rest!" Madam Pomfrey insisted.

"I owe them an explanation, Poppy," Harry said quietly.

"Oh, fine!" Madam Pomfrey threw her hands up in disgust, "But don't have them out too long."

Harry grinned. Albus got up out of the bed. James, Rose, John, Matt, and Amanda all got up as well. They followed Harry, Ron, and Hermione to the door.

"I'm getting too old for this," Madam Pomfrey muttered as they left.

"You're not leaving, are you?" Matt asked nervously.

Madam Pomfrey smiled, "Of course not, dear. Don't you worry."

The group made their way slowly to the seventh floor. Once they reached the portrait of Barnabas the Barmy, Harry started pacing. After a few moments, a door appeared where it hadn't been previously. Harry opened it and everyone followed him inside. The room looked a lot like it did when Matt asked for it. The only noticeable difference was that this time there were more armchairs and another couch.

Harry sat down on one of the couches. Albus and James sat on either side of him. Ron, Hermione, and Rose took the other couch, while John, Matt, and Amanda took the chairs.

"Dad," Albus began, "We already know about the Hallows."

"You do?" Harry asked.

"Er, yeah, we know about the connection to Tale of the Three Brothers, and we know that the Deathly Hallows are the Elder Wand, Resurrection Stone, and the Invisibility Cloak. We just don't know why you've kept it a secret."

Harry sighed, "How long have you known?"

"A few months now. Since April. Matt told us about them."

"Really?" Harry looked at Matt, "You knew about them?"

"Yeah, my dad told me," Matt answered, "But I wasn't sure if I believed they existed or not, until Albus told me about the Cloak."

"Not many people think they're real," Harry replied, "I first heard the Tale of the Three Brothers when I was 17. It was the year that Ron, Hermione, and I were hunting Horcruxes. When Dumbledore was killed, he left each of us something in his will. You already know that he left Hermione the original copy of 'The Tales of Beedle the Bard', written completely in ancient runes. Ron got the Deluminator, and I got the first Snitch I ever caught.

"Hermione decoded the runes and noticed a symbol in a drawing that went with the Tale of the Three Brothers." Harry pulled a piece of parchment and a quill out of his pocket. He drew a triangle, with a circle inside it, and a line connecting the top of the triangle to the bottom. "This was the symbol. We recognized it because at Bill and Fleur's wedding, Xenophilius Lovegood was wearing it on his robes. Viktor Krum approached him about it because this symbol is also Grindelwald's symbol."

"Grindelwald, that evil wizard Dumbledore defeated?" Matt asked.

"Yes," Harry continued, "But at one point, Dumbledore and Grindelwald were friends-"

"What?!" Matt shouted.

"They were," Harry said. Albus already knew this part of the story, but it must have relevance to the Hallows, if Harry was telling it again. "They were friends, who were obsessed with uniting the Hallows. That symbol is the symbol of the Hallows. The triangle is the Cloak, the circle, the Stone, and the line, the Elder Wand. Grindelwald and Dumbledore's friendship fell apart after Dumbledore's sister was killed. Eventually, Dumbledore had to confront Grindelwald and defeat him. Grindelwald had the Elder Wand, and when Dumbledore defeated him, the Wand changed its allegiance, and Dumbledore became the new master."

"Dumbledore had the Elder Wand?" Albus asked.

"Yes, he did," Harry said, "Now, after Hermione decoded the story, we went to see Xenophilius Lovegood, and he explained the Hallows to us. We were skeptical, but we knew that the Cloak existed. You may have already guessed this, but Voldemort found out about the Elder Wand and he wanted to get it, because he believed it would enable him to kill me. That is why he wanted someone to kill Dumbledore. However, before Snape killed Dumbledore, Draco Malfoy disarmed him. The Wand changed allegiance once again. You see, the Elder Wand doesn't change allegiance when a wizard kills the wizard it belongs to. That wizard just needs to be defeated. Defeat doesn't always equal death. Since Snape killed Dumbledore, Voldemort assumed that the wand had shifted its allegiance to Snape, but in actuality, it belonged to Draco.

"When we got captured and taken to the Malfoy Manor, I disarmed Draco. I defeated him. Even though he did not have the Elder Wand in his possession at the time, it was still his wand. But when I disarmed him, it became mine. The Elder Wand had been buried with Dumbledore, but Voldemort stole it. Voldemort assumed that the wand had allegiance to Snape, so Voldemort used his snake to kill Snape.

"After Snape died, I viewed his memories in the Pensieve, and found out that I was a Horcrux and I would have to die in order for Voldemort to die. As I was walking into the forest, I tried once again to open the Snitch that had failed to open earlier in the year. It opened, and inside was the Resurrection Stone. In the forest, Voldemort tried once again to kill me, but he only succeeded in killing the Horcrux inside me. When I came back, Voldemort and I had one final duel. He had the Elder Wand, but it's allegiance belonged to me. He tried to kill me with a wand that was mine. A wand will not work properly against its rightful owner. So, when we dueled, Voldemort's killing curse bounced off my disarming spell, and hit him."

Albus stared at his dad, "But what about the fact that Voldemort used your blood to come back to life? Isn't that why you survived?"

"That's part of it, Al," Harry told him.

Albus didn't know what to say. He finally had the answers he had been looking for. This was why no one else knew about them. The Hallows did have to do with Voldemort's downfall, a big part.

"Where's the Elder Wand now?" James asked, "Do you have it?"

"No," Harry answered, "That wand is too much trouble. It's back with Dumbledore. And if I die a natural death, it will have no allegiance."

"Oh," James replied, "Would've been cool, though, having an unbeatable wand."

"And the Stone?" Albus asked, "Is it really somewhere in the forest?"

"Yes," Harry answered, "And I have no idea where. The only Hallow I've got is the Invisibility Cloak."

"But you did unite them, the Hallows?" Albus asked.

"For a little while, yes," Harry said. "I was the Master of Death."

"That's what Washburn and the Willinsons wanted to do, right?"

"Yes, that was their plan," Harry answered. "But they did not succeed."

"Do you think they'll try again?" Albus asked quietly.

"Yes, Albus, they probably will," Harry replied, "But I'm hoping that they will be in Azkaban soon. There are Aurors looking for them right now."

"I hope they're caught," Albus said.

"Me, too," Harry agreed, "I'll do everything I can to make sure that they are."

Albus sat quietly, thinking about everything his dad had said. Harry had united the Hallows, he had been the 'Master of Death'. Albus was relieved that he finally knew the whole story, but he still had more questions. Had his dad ever used the Resurrection Stone? How did it wind up in the forest? But Albus decided to ask the question that had been pulling at him since he first heard 'Hallows' mentioned months ago. "Dad, why didn't you tell us?"

Harry sighed, "It was a mistake not telling you sooner. I want you to know that. I should have told you last summer, when I told you everything else. But at the same time, I didn't want you to tell anyone about it. I wanted to wait until you were older and more mature."

"So you didn't trust me?" Albus asked. He hated it when people told him he wasn't old enough to do something, or know about something.

"Not exactly. I didn't want you to be tempted to tell people about the Hallows. If word got out that there is an unbeatable wand out there, especially one that is on the Hogwarts grounds, the result could be bad. Look at what Washburn and the two Willinsons did. And they are just three people. Imagine if half the school was going after that wand? I'm not saying everyone would want to use the wand for evil, but if everyone was going after it we could have a disaster on our hands. The idea of power, whether one is going to use it for good or evil, does crazy things to people. And that is why I didn't tell you. I didn't want a lot of people to know about it. But that didn't work at all. Now, more people than just you and James and Rose know about it.

"Which brings me to my next point," Harry said in a more serious tone, "None of you can tell anyone anything I have told you tonight. You can't tell anyone that the Hallows exist, and that they are all currently residing somewhere in or around Hogwarts. A lot of people know about my Cloak, but without knowledge of the Resurrection Stone or the Elder Wand, they won't think anything of it."

"I can't even tell our cousins?" James asked.

"No, I'm sorry, but you can't," Harry replied

"I won't tell," Albus assured Harry. Rose, John, and Amanda all nodded.

"Wish I could tell my dad," Matt said, "He'd love to hear about it."

"Is he interested in the Hallows?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, he was. He went all over the world researching them when he was younger. Never found out where they were. Gave up after he got married and my mum got pregnant, though. He still believes they exist," Matt replied.

"Maybe I'll tell him, someday," Harry answered, "But for now, please don't tell him."

"All right," Matt agreed.

"Well, then, I think we ought to get back to the Hospital Wing," Harry stood up, "Madam Pomfrey will have my head if I keep you up much later."

******

Madam Pomfrey let Albus and the others leave the Hospital Wing two days later. Albus was quite happy about this, as he was getting bored with the Hospital Wing. Albus and his friends spent much of the days following talking or playing games in the common room or on the grounds. Shortly after they were released, O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s finished, and the common room returned to its usual noisy state. A few students asked Albus and his friends about what had happened with Washburn and the Willinsons, but Albus didn't tell them anything. The students' attention was soon turned towards the Quidditch final. Just as Albus and Harry had predicted a few months prior, it would be Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw.

[DucksRMagical]

Chapter 37: The Surprise Visitor

"You're going to be fine, James," Albus assured his brother at breakfast a few mornings later. James was sitting across from him, but wasn't eating anything. With the exception of James, everyone else at the Gryffindor table was in high spirits. Exams were over, and it was the last Quidditch match of the year. The only one besides James who wasn't eating anything was Matt, and considering that the full moon was that night, it wasn't surprising.

"James, you've got to eat something," Samantha Meyers had appeared behind James and was pouring him a glass of pumpkin juice, "At least drink this." James nodded and took the goblet, but he only drank a few sips. He glanced nervously at Albus, and then looked up at the staff table.

Albus turned and looked as well. Harry wasn't there. The past few days, Harry had been away from Hogwarts more than he had been there. He had been spending a lot of time at the Ministry, organizing the search for Washburn and both Willinsons. "He'll be there, James. He said he would. You know he wouldn't miss the match for the world."

"Ok, team, let's go!" Samantha stood up and beckoned her team to follow her. James followed the rest of the team, with one last glance at the staff table. As they left, the entire Gryffindor table stood up and cheered.

A few minutes later, Albus and his friends walked down to the pitch. "Last Quidditch match of the year," Albus sighed.

"Yeah, just hope we win!" John shouted.

"Hope so, too. But Ravenclaw will be hard to beat. They've got a good team," Albus replied.

"At least the weather's good," John pointed out, "I don't think we've played in better conditions than this the whole year." John was right about that. It was warm, hardly windy at all, and there was just enough cloud cover to mask the glare from the sun.

"I hope it's a quick match," Matt yawned as they climbed into the stands.

"It probably won't be," Albus said, "We're pretty evenly matched with Ravenclaw."

Matt groaned, "Maybe James will spot the Snitch early."

"Wouldn't count on it," Albus responded, "James told me that in order to win the Cup, we've got to be at least 40 points up before he catches the Snitch. Otherwise, we'll win the match, but Ravenclaw will get the Cup. And Samantha has made it clear she wants the Cup. It's her only chance. She's only been captain for this year. Before her, it was Teddy."

"Maybe you should've stayed in the castle," Rose said sympathetically.

"And miss Quidditch?" Matt stared at her like she had three heads.

Rose sighed. "I don't know what's with you guys and Quidditch," she muttered.

"It's a good game!" Amanda grinned, "Way better than football."

"Doesn't take much for something to be more interesting than football," John laughed, "I mean, honestly, what were the Muggles thinking? How can a game be exciting with one ball?"

Albus laughed. He had to agree. He had been to one football match before. It was a community league, and Harry had taken him and James to see if they had been interesting in playing it. Throughout the whole match, both Albus and James had commented on how much better Quidditch was.

Albus watched the stands fill up, hoping to catch a glimpse of his dad. He looked at the part of the stands where the staff sat, but the seat next to Neville that Harry usually occupied during Quidditch matches remained empty. Where was he? The match was about to start. He promised James that he would be there.

"Welcome, Hogwarts students and staff to the Quidditch Final!" Todd Smith's voice boomed over the crowd. "Today's match is between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw! And here come the teams!

"First is Ravenclaw. Captain Tyler Pike, followed by Dan Burke, Natalie Cable, Allie Davies, Damien Waverly, Kate Waverly, and Zack Valentino!" Seven players in blue robes walked out onto the field, with their brooms over their shoulders.

"Next we have Gryffindor! Captain Samantha Meyers, followed by Ryan O'Malley, James Potter, Bradley Weasley, Fred Weasley, Georgia Weasley, and Heather Weasley!" The Gryffindor team marched onto the field and stopped in front of the Ravneclaws.

"Professor Oteski steps onto the field. Captains Meyers and Pike shake hands, and the teams are off!"

Albus watched as both teams soared into the air. Heather immediately took control of the Quaffle, passing it back and forth between Fred and Samantha. They flew down the pitch, dodging Bludgers sent by Valentino and Davies.

"Gryffindor scores the first goal of the game!" Todd shouted out, once Heather managed to get the Quaffle past Kate Waverly. "Ravenclaw in possession now. Waverly passes to Burke, and then back to Waverly."

"Hi, Al."

Albus turned around at the sound of his name. Harry had appeared behind him and was climbing over the seats in order to sit down. Albus moved over so Harry could sit in between him and Matt. "Dad, you made it!"

"'Course I did! I said I would," Harry replied as he sat down, "Did I miss anything?"

"Heather just scored the first goal of the game," Albus grinned.

"Awesome! She's got some arm, let me tell you. Even as a baby. I remember once, she threw one of her toys at me. Gave me a black eye," Harry laughed.

"Why are you sitting here?" Albus asked, "You usually sit with the rest of the staff."

"To be honest, it's more fun sitting here," Harry grinned, "I don't have to control my excitement when Gryffindor scores."

At that moment, Samantha scored a goal, and all the Gryffindors jumped up, screaming and hollering with joy. Harry screamed the loudest of them all.

"See what I mean?" Harry grinned, "The staff always has to contain their excitement, in order not to play favorites."

For the next hour, the game continued with both Gryffindor and Ravenclaw scoring goal after goal. After the first initial goals, Ravenclaw caught up quickly and tied the match. Both teams showed exceptional skill, and there had still not been any glimpse of the Snitch.

"Now, this is Quidditch," Harry grinned and looked at Albus. "This could be another for the record books."

Albus agreed, "Yeah, we've just got to hope that we can somehow get 40 points ahead."

"That could take a while," Harry said.

"Cable of Ravenclaw has scored!" Todd shouted, "110-100 Ravenclaw!"

"Merlin!" Albus shouted. Albus looked out over the pitch. Heather was in possession of the Quaffle again. Valentino was flying directly behind her and hit a Bludger towards her head. Luckily, she ducked at that very moment and the Bludger wound up hitting Damien Waverly instead. Waverly slipped off his broom, but managed to hold on with one hand. He got back on the broom and sent a nasty look towards Valentino. In the meantime, Heather managed to score another goal.

It became clear within the next half hour of the game, that the Damien Waverly had been injured by the Bludger. His coordination was all off, and he was having problems catching the Quaffle. This, of course, worked to Gryffindor's advantage, and soon enough the score was 120-150 Gryffindor.

"Just one more goal," Albus said, "One more and James can catch the Snitch."

"It'll be hard to keep up that 40 point lead, though," Harry pointed out. "He'll have to find the Snitch soon after the goal is scored."

"I hope he does," Rose said, "I don't think Matt can take much more of this."

Albus looked over at his friend and felt bad that he had become so absorbed in the game, that he hadn't noticed how bad Matt looked. Matt appeared to have fallen asleep and was leaning his head on Harry's shoulder. He was wincing every once and a while, much like he had been during the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin game. Why did they always schedule Quidditch matches around the full moon?

Harry nudged Matt gently until he woke up, "Wha's going on?" Matt asked sleepily.

"You fell asleep," Harry said gently, "You're welcome to lean on me, but I wasn't sure if you wanted to miss the match."

"I don't, thanks," Matt replied, blushing a little, "It's bad enough having Malfoy see me fall asleep in class, but during Quidditch...."

"I don't think he can see you here," Albus said quietly, "He's on the other side of the stands."

"Good," Matt responded. "But I still don't want to miss the match."

Albus turned his attention back to the match. It seemed to be getting harder and harder for Ravenclaw to to score goals with only two chasers. Damien Waverly was flying more erratically by the minute and his teammates had long since stopped trying to throw him the Quaffle. However, despite the difficulties, Ravenclaw was putting up a good fight. Their other two chasers were superb.

"Burke scores!" Todd shouted out over the crowd, "Making the score 130-150 Gryffindor! C'mon, you can do it, Gryffindor! Just two more goals and catch the Snitch!"

"Darn," Albus sighed, "So much for one more goal."

"It's all right, Al, two goals won't be hard," Harry shifted awkwardly to turn towards his son. Matt had fallen asleep on his shoulder again. "Madam Pomfrey didn't even want him to go to the match," Harry gestured to Matt. "But I convinced her to let him."

"Thanks," Albus smiled, "He didn't want to miss it, even if he is asleep during half of it."

"Well, Madam Pomfrey worries a lot," Harry told him, "Frankly, she wasn't too keen on James playing, either. Said he'd just recovered from his duel with those Slytherins and he ought to be resting. But I insisted that he could play."

"He seems to be doing fine," Albus said as he glanced out over the pitch. James was currently circling above the rest of the players. The Ravenclaw Seeker, Tyler Pike, was doing the same.

"He is," Harry agreed, "Staying out of the way, that's the best strategy for a Seeker."

"Gryffindor scores!" Todd exclaimed, "Captain Meyers has scored!"

"See, Al, now it's just one more goal, again," Harry said.

The game was now entering it's third hour. There was still no sign of the Snitch, which was good for Gryffindor, since they still needed to score one more goal before James could catch it. About ten minutes after Samantha scored, Heather managed to score as well.

"Yes!" Albus jumped up in his seat and shouted out in excitement. Now, James could catch the Snitch.

"As long as Gryffindor can keep their forty point lead, and catch the Snitch, they will win the Cup!" Todd shouted.

Albus watched as James started picking up speed and fly around the pitch, looking for the Snitch. But in the meantime, Dan Burke was once again storming up the pitch with the Quaffle. He flew straight towards the Gryffindor goals and managed to score another goal.

"Damn!" Todd shouted.

"Language, Smith!" Patil shouted next to him.

"Sorry, Professor," Todd said, "Now, Gryffindor must score another goal in order to gain back the forty point lead. And they might be doing that now! Fred Weasley has gained possession of the Quaffle. He passes to Meyers and then Meyers passes it back. Fred aims the Quaffle, and score! Gryffindor has the forty point lead again!"

The Gryffindors were all on their feet now, shouting in excitement and chanting 'Go, James, go! All of them except Matt and Harry. Somehow, Matt was managing to sleep through everything, and Harry continued to let him lean on his shoulder. Luckily, no one seemed to notice, besides Albus, John, Rose, and Amanda. They kept glancing worried looks at Matt, but eventually, they got sucked up into the emotion of the game and watched James's search for the Snitch.

"And I think he's seen it!" Todd screamed, "Yes, Potter has seen the Snitch! He's flying directly towards the ground. Pike has noticed it as well, but he is all the way at the other end of the pitch. I don't think he'll get there in time. No, he definitely won't!"

Albus watched as James flew closer and closer to the ground. Albus was sure he would crash into it, and watched nervously as James finally pulled out of the dive, just in time. He flew back up a few feet, holding the struggling Snitch in his hand. Albus turned to his dad. "We've won! We've got the Cup!"

"Gryffindor wins! With 320 points, Gryffindor has not only won the match, but they've won the Cup as well! Congratulations, Gryffindor!" Todd's voice rang out over the crowd.

"Matt, wake up!" John nudged his friend awake, "We've won, wake up!"

"Wha'?" Matt slowly lifted his head off Harry's shoulder and looked at all the excitement around him. "Oh, right. Awesome!"

Harry stood up, grinning, "I'm going to go congratulate James. I'll see you later. I'll probably stop by the common room, for the party."

Albus gave his dad a hug before he left, "All right. See you later."

"Let's get back to the common room," Rose suggested as she watched Matt rub his head, "We'll see James there."

"Ok," Albus agreed. He knew Matt had no desire to join the mob of Gryffindors currently storming the pitch.

Despite their slow walk back to the castle and up to the seventh floor, Albus and his friends made it back to the common room before most of the other Gryffindors. In fact, the only other people there were a few older students Albus didn't know, Amy, Victoire, and someone Albus definitely didn't expect to see.

"Teddy!" Albus shouted as he spotted Teddy sitting next to Victoire on one of the couches. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to see the match. James did brilliantly! They can't have found a better Seeker to replace me," he grinned, "And came to see Vicky's graduation, of course." He smiled at Victoire and giggled.

"Oh, right," Albus grinned, "Glad you came!"

"Yeah, it's great to be back here," Teddy grinned, "Well, I think I might go to Hogsmeade and pick up some supplies for the party."

"Great!" Albus said, "See you in a bit."

"You, too," Teddy stood up. He gave Victoire a quick kiss and exited the common room. It was really starting to fill up now, although the team had yet to arrive.

"Are you going to stay for the party?" Albus quietly asked Matt.

"I don't think so," Matt yawned, "Think I might take a nap."

"Ok," Albus responded. Matt left the group and made his way through the crowd to the dormitories.

"It's so unfair," Rose said softly as he left. Albus, John, and Amanda nodded in agreement, but no one said anything else on the subject.

The group found seats at their usual table and shortly after they sat down, James and the rest of the team came into the room.

"We've got it!" Samantha Meyers was the first to burst into the room, holding the Quidditch Cup above her head. "We did it!" She was positively beaming. The rest of the team climbed in behind her, all of them grinning from ear to ear. The entire common room burst into applause as soon as they were all inside.

"Thank you, everyone!" Samantha shouted over the crowd, "I just want to say a few words." She waited until everyone was silent. "First, I just want to thank the whole team. We couldn't have done this without any of you. We've got a fantastic team here, and I'm definitely going to miss all of you next year. I especially want to congratulate James," she turned to James, who was clearly basking in the glory, "You have done an outstanding job this whole year. Coming in as Seeker, right after Teddy Lupin, who was one of the best Seekers this house has ever had. That, and being expected to live up to your dad's reputation. Well, all I can say is you have lived up to that expectation. And I think you are definitely going to rival Teddy as far as seeking skill goes-"

"Ah, Samantha!" Teddy came bursting back into the common room, "Am I missing you rambling on about my brilliance on the Quidditch pitch?"

"Actually, no, Teddy," Samantha laughed, "I was just saying how James could give you a run for your money when it comes to seeking."

"Well, that's no surprise, since it was Yours Truly who trained him," Teddy joked.

"Oh, shut it, Teddy!" Samantha replied.

"And I get no credit at all?" Harry had come into the common room and was standing behind Teddy.

"Harry!" Teddy turned around, grinning, "Glad you could come to the party! I've just gotten back from getting supplies."

"Good," Samantha grinned, grabbing one of the bags and pulling out Butterbeers, "Then let's get this party started!"

The party proceeded much like the one following the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin match had, only even more boisterous. Teddy had not only bought stuff from Honeydukes, but from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes as well. Teddy treated everyone to a display of Everlasting Fireworks, which took the shape of Gryffindor lions, Snitches, and broomsticks. Albus and his friends quite enjoyed it, and they also played round after round of Exploding Snap. Just like the previous party, no one left for dinner. Teddy had bought enough food that no one needed to. Even Harry stayed well into the evening.

"You know, Rose," John said after what must have been their tenth game of Exploding Snap, "I don't think I've ever seen you without a book before."

Albus looked over at Rose, who was indeed without any sort of book. "Well, exams are over now," Rose laughed, "I do take a break from studying every once and a while."

"It's just sort of shocking," John grinned, "Rose without a book."

"Don't worry," Albus laughed, "I guarantee you she'll be back to studying within two weeks of going back home."

"Oh, shut it, Albus," Rose grinned.

"Hey, guys," James was standing next to their table, his grin still as big as when he first came into the room.

"Oh, hi, James!" Albus replied, "Congratulations on the match! You did brilliantly."

"Yeah, it was awesome!" John agreed.

"Great job!" Amanda said.

"It was great!," Rose said.

"Thanks," James replied, "You're trying out next year, right Albus?"

"Yeah, definitely," Albus answered, "But I don't know if I'll make it. I mean, the only position open will be Samantha's."

"I'm sure you'll make it," James assured him, "You're a great Chaser."

"Thanks," Albus said quietly, his cheeks turning a bit crimson.

"Great party, huh?" James said, "But where's Matt?"

"He, er, doesn't feel good. He's in the dormitory, sleeping," Albus answered.

"Oh, I hope he feels better soon. He didn't look too good this morning," James responded, "Well, I'd better get back to the team. See you later."

Albus waved as James left and was absorbed back into the huge crowd in the room. It seemed as if every Gryffindor was in the common room. With Harry and Teddy there as well, there was hardly room to move. Albus kind of liked it though. He wasn't a huge fan of large crowds of people, but as long as everyone wasn't focusing on him, he was ok with it. And now, the attention was definitely on James and the rest of the Quidditch team. Albus glanced around the room and saw that the entire team was right at the center of things, along with Teddy and Harry.

"Oh, hi, Matt," Rose said quietly. Albus turned his head away from the Quidditch team and saw that Matt had come down from the dormitory. He was leaning on the table and looking very tired.

"Hi," he mumbled quietly, "I've got to go now. I'll see you tomorrow, probably."

"Yeah, tomorrow," Albus agreed. During the past few months, Albus and the others had started visiting Matt the day after every full moon. Ever since the first time they had done that, Matt had started getting more and more comfortable with the idea of his friends seeing him so soon after a transformation. But Albus and the others had not visited him so early in the morning since. They now visited in the late afternoon, after classes were done for the day.

"Want me to go with you?" John asked.

"No, it's ok, Amy's going to," Matt replied

"Ready?" Amy appeared next to Matt.

"Yeah, I guess, let's go," Matt turned and started to walk towards the portrait hole. Amy followed closely behind.

"Last one here, until September," Rose commented after they'd left.

"Wonder what it's like at home?" John mused.

"Dunno, but I don't think we should ask," Albus said quietly.

"No, probably not," John agreed.

Albus and his friends stayed up late into the night, playing games of chess and Exploding Snap. Harry spent most of the evening in the common room, but he left around 9 pm. However, the party continued well into the wee hours of the morning. It probably would have lasted much longer, but Neville came in around 1 am, and told them they had to go to bed. Apparently, the noise had carried into other parts of the castle and some of the other professors wanted to get some sleep. After Neville left, Albus dragged himself up to his dormitory. He was completely exhausted from staying up so late and fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

[FawkesthePhoenix]

ooh, great chapter, although, there's already a chapter called gryffindor vs. ravenclaw in the third book.

[DucksRMagical]

Thanks, Fawkes! I realize that now. I'm going to change it to 'The Surprise Visitor'. i.e. Teddy.
This is the second to last chapter, just to let everyone know.

Chapter 38: Graduation

"May I have your attention, please," Professor Kendrick stood up and announced at the End of Year Feast the a couple days later. Albus stopped talking to John and turned to face the Headmaster.

"Thank you," Kendrick continued once the Great Hall was quiet, "What a year, what a year. It is hard to believe that it is now June. The year has ended with quite a shock. I know that you all know by now what transpired on the grounds this past week."

Albus glanced around at his fellow students and saw that they were all turning to stare at him. He sunk down in his seat a little bit and tried to avoid their gaze.

"I want to assure you all that the Aurors are looking for both Professor Washburn and Jarett Willinson, as well as Quinton Willinson. Whether this was an isolated attack, I am not sure. But whether there are more attacks to come, I am sure we will all stand strong, and stand as one. Whatever is coming, we will deal with it. We have dealt with evil in the past and chances are we will deal with it in the future." Professor Kendrick paused and looked out at his students. Everyone had returned their gaze to him, and were no longer staring at Albus and his friends.

"Now, onto lighter matters. I have a few announcements, then the House Cup needs awarding. First, O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. results will be mailed partway through the summer, like usual. Second, the graduation ceremony will take place tomorrow, at ten o'clock. And lastly, as usual, I must remind you of the fact that using magic is prohibited while you are not in school over the summer.

"And now, the House Cup. In last place, Hufflepuff with 376 points." Kendrick announced. Albus clapped politely along with everyone else in the Hall. "Next, Gryffindor with 413 points." Albus groaned, as did everyone else sitting at the Gryffindor table. No doubt that the many points Washburn took from all of them helped assure that they did not get the House Cup. "In second place, with 452 points, Slytherin." There was a bit more polite applause, but none of it from the Gryffindor table. "And in first place, Ravenclaw with 563 points! Congratulations, Ravenclaw!" Kendrick waved his wand and the decorations transformed from their usual Hogwarts colors into the Ravenclaw blue.

Albus clapped his hands, while looking glumly at his plate. Oh, well, there was always next year. At least they'd gotten the Quidditch Cup.

"I think that is all that needs to be announced," Kendrick said once the applause died down, "And with that, enjoy the feast!" Kendrick waved his wand once again and food appeared on all the plates.

"We'll win it next year," John announced as he heaped his plate high with chicken, "But you know what, I'm going to miss this food over the summer...."

"'Course we'll win it next year," Albus agreed, "Washburn won't be here anymore to take off unfair points."

"You don't know who Kendrick'll get to replace him, though," Rose warned.

"Good point," Matt said as he buttered a piece of bread. He was still recovering from the full moon and wasn't that hungry. Normally, he wouldn't even be out of the Hospital Wing yet, but he had convinced Madam Pomfrey to let him attend the feast. "Do you know if your dad will be teaching DADA again next year?"

"Dunno," Albus shrugged. He hadn't really thought about it before, but Harry had come to teach DADA at a moment's notice, and maybe Kendrick really didn't have time to get anyone else. But now he'd have the whole summer.

"Hope he does," Matt replied, "Otherwise, we'll be getting two new teachers, and what are the chances that both of them will be nice?"

"Not high," Rose said. "I like having Uncle Harry teach here. I hope he comes back."

"Me, too," Albus agreed. John and Amanda nodded.

"Just hope our next Charms teacher is nicer," Amanda said, "Of course, it won't take much, will it?"

"Nope," Rose replied, "Won't take much at all."

******

Albus awoke the next morning with just enough time to catch a quick breakfast in the Great Hall before making his way to the grounds for the graduation.

"We'll see you after, when we're getting on the train," Rose said to John and Amanda as she got up from the table.

"Bye," John mumbled, his mouth full of toast.

"Have fun," Amanda waved.

Albus and Matt waved as they followed Rose out of the room. "Good thing it's sunny today," Albus commented, "Remember Teddy's? Last year?"

Rose laughed, "Oh, yeah, how could I forget that?"

"What happened?" Matt asked.

"Worst thunderstorm of the whole year," Albus grinned, "It's funny looking back on it, but it wasn't then. We got soaked, despite the tents Kendrick put up. Not to mention the wind, thunder, and lightning. Scared Lily out of her mind. Mum had to take her into the castle partway through."

"Glad it's not like that this year," Matt agreed. The three of them walked onto the grounds and over towards the chairs that had been set up by the lake. People were already milling about and finding seats. Albus spotted his parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, all taking up practically half the seats.

"There's my mum and dad," Matt pointed to two people sitting down near where Albus's Aunt Fleur and Uncle Bill were, "Want to meet them?"

"Sure," Albus said and Rose nodded.

Matt started walking towards them, but once they noticed him, they came running towards the three of them and met them halfway. "Oh, Matthew! How are you? Are you feeling ok?" A short blond woman with an Australian accent enveloped Matt in a tight hug.

"Mum!" Matt said, his cheeks turning red, "I'm fine! Really, I am."

"Are you sure? You look a bit pale. Did you sleep well last night?" the blond woman asked anxiously, with her arms still wrapped around her son.

"I'm sure! I slept fine, really," Matt assured her.

"Julie, I think he's fine." The man, who Albus guessed was Matt's dad, pulled the woman off of Matt. He also had an Australian accent and was tall, with graying hair.

"Oh, all right," the woman sighed, "I just worry."

"I know, so do I," the man said quietly, then turned to Matt, "How was the end of term?"

"Great, really. Well, with the exception of what happened with Washburn," Matt told them.

"And you wonder why I worry so much," the woman said to the man, "I'm glad everything else was fine."

"Oh, these are my friends," Matt gestured to Albus and Rose, "Well, two of them anyway. Albus Potter and Rose Weasley. They're both Victoire's cousins, like I told you in my letters. Albus, Rose, this is my mum and dad."

"Pleased to meet you," Rose smiled and shook their hands.

"Hi," Albus shook their hands after Rose.

"Hello, dears," the woman gave them a warm smile.

"So you're the ones who set off fireworks in Professor Washburn's class?" Mr. Eckerton asked.

"Er, yeah," Albus answered nervously.

Matt's dad just laughed, "That sounds like something I'd have done in school. Of course, I did plenty of other stuff...." Mrs. Eckerton gave him a stern look. "Not that I'm saying you should pull pranks like that, of course. You should behave yourself in school, son," Mr. Eckerton said quickly to Matt.

Albus stifled a laugh and noticed his own parents, followed by his Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione walking over towards him. "Hi, Mum and Dad!"

Rose grinned and greeted her parents as well, "Hello, Mum, Dad."

"Albus!" Ginny let go of Lily's hand and wrapped her son in a big hug.

"Hi, Mum," Albus replied and rolled his eyes and Ginny finally let him go. He looked over and saw that Rose's parents were doing the same thing with her.

Albus gestured to Matt and his parents, "This is our friend, Matt. Well, you already know him, Dad," Albus laughed, "But anyway, these are his parents. And Matt, Mr. Eckerton, Mrs. Eckerton, those are my parents, and my Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, who are Rose's parents. And my little sister Lily and Rose's little brother, Hugo."

"Nice to meet you," Matt's dad stuck out his hand. "Walter Eckerton. And my wife, Julie." The adults spent a few minutes exchanging hand shakes and pleasantries, while Albus and Rose introduced Matt to Lily and Hugo.

"How'd you get those cuts?" Hugo asked Matt loudly, gesturing to the partially healed cuts on Matt's arm. Since the full moon was only a couple days ago, they still hadn't completely healed. "Didja get 'em from that duel with Professor Washburn?" Hugo said excitedly, "'Cause that was awesome. Wish I'd been there. I woulda blasted him all the way from here to Hagrid's Hut!"

"Er, yeah, they're from the duel," Matt replied quickly.

"Wicked!" Hugo grinned. "Can't wait until I can come here."

"Just another year, Hugo," Albus smiled at his cousin. "But don't count on getting to duel with evil teachers. I'd rather not have had to do that."

"Me and Lily acted out the duel, didn't we, Lily?" Hugo told them. Lily nodded her head. Hugo continued, "I got to be Washburn, only I won. Lily ran away."

"Did not!" Lily shouted.

"Did too!" Hugo shouted back.

"Kids, calm down," Ginny said sternly.

"Mum, can Matt come stay with us over the summer? John, too, but he's in the castle. They can come for mine and Rose's birthday party," Albus asked.

"I don't see why not," Ginny smiled, "As long as it's ok with his parents."

"Can I go stay with Albus?" Matt asked his parents, "Please?"

"I don't know..." Mrs. Eckerton looked worriedly at her husband.

Mr. Eckerton glanced at his wife and replied, "We'll have to think about it."

"Oh, come on! Please?" Matt pleaded, "I'll be fine. Albus even said they'd have the party at, a, good time."

Harry seemed to catch onto what the Eckertons were worried about and gave them a meaningful gaze, "I understand your worry, but I'm sure Matt will be fine if he stays with us for a few days. And we will schedule the party at a good time."

The Eckertons still didn't look convinced, but Matt's dad said, "He probably will, but I'd still like to talk it over with Julie. We'll get back to you, all right?"

"That's fine," Harry replied.

Matt groaned, "You worry too much."

"Sometimes we have to worry," Matt's mum told him, "You know that."

"I know," Matt sighed.

"I think the ceremony's starting now," Harry announced. "We'll be in touch with the details of the party."

"Sounds good," Mrs. Eckerton replied.

"See you after, Matt," Albus waved. He and Rose followed their families to the chairs that were set up on the lawn. Albus sat down next to Rose and Harry and waited for the ceremony to begin.

There was a large stage set up in front of the chairs, with a tall podium embossed with the Hogwarts crest. Next to the podium was a table piled with Hogwarts diplomas. All the seventh years sat in the first few rows of chairs, dressed in their black Hogwarts robes and a wizard's hat.

After a few minutes, in which everyone who had been milling around and talking came and sat down, Professor Kendrick strode up to the podium and began talking. "Welcome, friends and family, to the graduation ceremony of the Hogwarts Class of 2017. I remember the first time these students stepped foot into Hogwarts. Many were excited and just as many were scared and nervous. Some thought they knew all of Hogwarts's secrets, and others hardly knew anything about the Wizarding World at all. But that did not matter. Because now, they all stand as one, equally prepared to take on the world around them. I believe that great things will happen to the people in this class and that they will do great things.

"This class is a special one to me. Every class at Hogwarts is special, but the year I became Headmaster was the year this class came to Hogwarts. I think that I was just as nervous as they were, if not more so." Kendrick paused as the audience laughed. "And I remember each one of their sortings. I remember Tyler Pike tripping over his own feet as he made his way to the stool. He's certainly come a long way from that, becoming captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. I also remember Olivia Kaden's smile as she was sorted into Hufflepuff and ran to join her sister at that table. And who could forget the loud shout of glee from Teddy Lupin as Victoire Weasley was sorted into Gryffindor."

Professor Kendrick continued his speech for another ten minutes. After he was done, each of the Heads of House went up to the podium and gave a speech as well. Albus liked Neville's speech the best. He talked about how proud he was of each and every Gryffindor that was graduating that day, and what made them special. Albus found it a bit difficult to pay attention to Professor Patil's speech about the Ravenclaws because she used such big words that Albus hardly knew what she was saying. He assumed it all meant that Professor Patil knew that all the Ravenclaws would wind up making great contributions to the Wizarding World in the discoveries of various things. Professor Polo gave a good speech about the Hufflepuffs, and then Slughorn gave one, but it didn't focus much on the Slytherins. His speech mainly consisted of listing who he had taught at Hogwarts, and how famous they are now. He spent a good portion of it talking about how he had taught Harry. Albus saw his dad grimace as Slughorn mentioned what a marvelous potions brewer he had been. Albus had to stifle a laugh at that, because he knew the story of Snape's potions book and how Harry had wound up with it in his sixth year.

Professor Kendrick took the podium once Slughorn had finished, "Thank you, Professors Longbottom, Patil, Polo, and Slughorn. Now, two outstanding students shall speak on behalf of their class. First, Head Boy Tyler Pike. And then, Head Girl Victoire Weasley."

Tyler Pike took the podium and began his speech. It was a long-winded speech full of more words Albus didn't understand, much like Professor Patil's had been. Must be a Ravenclaw thing, he thought. Albus glanced at Rose and noticed she was paying rapt attention. Maybe she should have been in Ravenclaw.

Once Tyler concluded his speech, Victoire stepped up to the podium. She waited for the crowd to stop their applause for Tyler's speech and then she began. "Wow, what a crazy seven years it's been!" she paused and smiled at the audience. "I remember our first day here. I was scared, we were all scared. Short first years, lost in a sea of older students, and now we're at the top. Over the past seven years we have not only gotten an education that will serve us throughout our entire lives, but we have forged friendships and memories that will last a lifetime. Memories. In the end, that's all we've got. I know I speak for us all in saying that the memories we've made here at Hogwarts are some of the best we have. It hasn't always been easy and not all the memories are good ones. We've all lost the House Cup at least once in the past seven years, we've lost Quidditch matches, failed tests, and had fights with friends. But now isn't the time to dwell on those memories. Right now we should remember the good times. The times we did win the House Cup, the spectacular wins in Quidditch, the tests we've aced, and the fact that our friendships are strong enough to withstand a few rows.

"I'm sure we all have mixed feelings about leaving Hogwarts. I know I do. This castle has been our home away from home for the past seven years. A good portion of our lives have been spent here. It will be sad to leave Hogwarts behind, but this moment is what we've been working towards ever since we stepped off the train when we were 11. Hogwarts has prepared us, not only academically, but socially, for the world before us. We are ready, we can go into the world and make something of ourselves. When you look out at the class behind me, don't just look at us as the Hogwarts Class of 2017. Look at us as the future Healers, Aurors, researchers, and who knows, maybe even the future Minister of Magic. So, in conclusion, we are ready to face the world. Whatever it has in store for us, we will be able to take it on. Using our different talents, we as a group will be able to take whatever the world has to throw at us."

The audience broke out into loud applause. Albus clapped along with them. He thought Victoire's speech had been much better than Tyler's and judging by the applause, everyone else thought so, too. The applause died down as Victoire went back to her seat and Kendrick took up the podium once again.

"Thank you, Tyler and Victoire," he nodded his head in their direction, "Now it is time to present the diplomas." Kendrick waved his wand and the podium moved to the side, while the table with the diplomas moved to the center of the stage. The four heads of houses got up and stood next to the table. Kendrick stood on the other side and picked up the first diploma. "Katelyn Isabelle Asterly," he called out.

A tall, red haired Hufflepuff stood up and walked over to the headmaster. She took her diploma and shook Kendrick's hand. Then she shook all the heads of houses' hands and walked off the stage. She walked the short distance to the lake. Albus watched her and noticed that Hagrid was standing there. The boats they had crossed the lake on earlier in the year were sitting on the calm water.

The headmaster continued to call off names. Albus recognized a few of them, but most of them were people he had just seen occasionally.

"Amy Marie Eckerton," Kendrick called out a short while later. Albus and Rose clapped loudly as Matt's sister accepted her diploma and walked over to the growing group of seventh years near the lake.

Albus watched as Kendrick called out more names. He recognized the two Slytherins that had hexed him earlier in the year. Neither he or Rose clapped for them. They politely clapped for everyone else. Albus also recognized the Quidditch captain, Samantha Meyers and clapped a bit louder for her.

The crowd of seventh years on the stage diminished until there were only two left. "Victoire Fleur Weasley," Kendrick announced. Albus and Rose clapped louder than they had for anyone else as their cousin shook Kendrick's hand. Albus heard Teddy whistle and give a loud shout of 'Go Victoire!' as she shook Neville's hand. Professor Patil shot him a stern look and he quieted down. Albus had to stifle a laugh. Even after you graduate, you still have to listen to the professors, he thought.

"Cameron Alexander Zabino," Kendrick called once Victoire had crossed the stage. A burly looking Slytherin accepted his diploma and joined his class by the lake.

Kendrick waved his wand and the table disappeared. The podium moved back to the center of the stage and Kendrick stood behind it. "In the past seven years, the students in this class have learned a great deal about magic and life in general. These skills will help them as they pursue the careers and dreams of their choosing. It is time for them to journey from Hogwarts, on the same boats they arrived her on seven years ago. The first time they crossed this lake, they were both excited and scared about what Hogwarts had in store for them. As they cross the lake once more, they are more confident, but still excited and a bit scared about what the world has in store for them. I know I speak for us all when I say I'm sure they will do great things."

Kendrick nodded his head towards the group of seventh years. The students climbed into the boats and Hagrid got into the one in front. He brandished his pink umbrella and bellowed, "Forward!" The boats all started moving, taking the seventh years away from Hogwarts and towards the new adventures that awaited them as adults.

[DucksRMagical]

Here it is! The last chapter. It's kind of bittersweet. I've been working on this since the end of September, and now it's over. I'll be continuing to edit it throughout the next few months. I'm planning on combining a few of the shorter chapters. I've started posting this on harrypotterfanfiction.com, so I'm sure I'll find more stuff to edit as I read through it while posting there. So far, I've posted the 1st chapter and the 2nd is waiting to be validated.

I am working on a sequel. I hope you liked it enough to want to read a sequel. The sequel has a very different plot than this one, and a few new characters. It takes place during Albus's second year at Hogwarts, so it pretty much picks up where this one leaves off. I've written 9 chapters so far. I'm not sure when I'll start posting it. It may not happen until the semester's over, which is in 3 weeks.

I am also working on a totally different fic called 'What the Future Holds'. Hence my new avatar. It's about the Adirondack Academy of Magic, in NYS. I've only written a few chapters and I've put it on hold until after the semester's over, so I won't start posting for at least another month. It's mostly my own characters, but there will be a few familiar HP faces in it.

So, after that very long bit of Author's Notes, here is the final chapter of 'Albus Potter and the Secrets Within'.

Chapter 39: Home Again

The audience stood up and applauded as the boats left. A few people cheered and whistled. Albus could hear Teddy's cheering over everyone else's. After a few minutes, people started to leave.

Albus and Rose said a quick goodbye to their families before heading off to the horseless carriages that would take them to Hogsmeade Station. They got into a carriage with Matt and the carriage lurched forwards to take them to the train.

"John and Amanda must already be on," Albus said as they walked down the corridor in the train.

"Probably, we're some of the last ones on," Rose pointed out. They continued to look into the compartments before they found the one that their friends were in.

"How was the graduation?" John asked once the compartment door was shut once again.

"Really good," Rose said.

"Yeah, Teddy kept shouting and whistling and Professor Patil was glaring at him," Albus laughed.

"And Victoire's speech was really good," Matt told them, "Much better than Tyler Pike's speech."

"I could hardly understand a word of it," Albus commented.

"I thought it was a good speech," Rose responded, "It was all about how the class needs to use their talents and skills to further advance the Wizarding World."

"Well, he could have just said that," Albus huffed, "He didn't have to make it so bloody confusing."

"I got told off by him once, I couldn't understand anything he was telling me," John laughed.

"He's just got a big vocabulary," Rose insisted, "Anyway, the graduation was really good."

"Yeah, but it'll be weird next year when Victoire's gone. She's starting training to be a Healer next year," Albus told them and turned to Matt, "What's Amy doing?"

"She's going to be a Healer, too," Matt told them, "She's going to work with Healer Sterling this summer, actually. She, er, wants to get involved with the study I'm in and stuff."

"Oh, is that the Healer who's in charge of it? He's the one who Albus saw in the Hospital Wing a couple months ago?" John asked.

"Yeah," Matt told them, "Amy's wanted to be a Healer and work on the Wolfsbane Potion ever since she saw me after the full moon for the first time," he said quietly.

"That's good," Amanda said, "Maybe she'll actually find a cure?"

"Maybe, but probably not," Matt replied sullenly.

"So, what are you doing in Ireland, Amanda?" Rose asked after a moment of awkward silence.

"Mainly just sight seeing and stuff," Amanda answered, "It's going to be really fun. I've always wanted to go there."

"There's all kinds of history there," Rose told her, "There's a bunch of wizarding villages there, too. I'd love to go and visit them."

"That would be fun," Amanda agreed, "But I think we're sticking with the Muggle stuff."

"Oh, right," Rose said, "Well, if I ever go to Ireland, you can come with me and we'll look around all the wizarding villages."

"I wish I was going to Ireland over the summer," John announced, "We're not doing anything. Just staying home."

"Us, too," Albus said, "Last year we went to France."

"That was loads of fun!" Rose grinned, "I want to go back."

"The funniest part was watching James try and speak French to all the French people," Albus laughed. "But this year we're just staying home."

"We never go anywhere," Matt told them. "Well, we did go see my uncle in America a couple years ago. I was nine. But we haven't been back since. It's really expensive to ride on Muggle airplanes, and we always go to Australia every Christmas," he sighed. "I'd rather just visit my uncle than my grandparents."

"I've never been to America," John told him, "What's it like?"

"Different. The Muggles drive on the wrong side of the road," Matt said, "But it was loads of fun when we went. I think we might be going next year."

"Well, you can all come visit me and Rose for a little while," Albus told them, "We usually have our birthday party at the Burrow, but you can come stay at my house before it."

"That would be awesome!" John grinned, "I'll just Floo to your place."

"Yeah, that would work," Albus agreed, "And hopefully your parents will let you come, Matt."

"I think they will," Matt responded, "But we're not connected to the Floo Network."

"You're not?" Albus asked, "Why?"

"Basically, because of what happened in Australia with the Ministry and everyone finding out about me. My parents just want to lay low here, and if we're not on the Network, that's one less way of the Ministry tracking us down. Of course, my dad works for the Ministry, so I'm not exactly sure what my parents' logic is."

"Oh," Albus said, "Do you just Apparate everywhere?"

"Pretty much. Well, I Side-Along Apparate, of course. But that works to get where we're going. My parents will just Apparate me to your house," Matt told them.

"That'll work."

"And you can come stay at my house," Rose told Amanda.

"Ok, but I can't do any kind of Apparition or Floo," Amanda said.

"It's all right, my parents can drive. We'll come get you," Rose assured her.

"Great. I can't wait to see your house. I bet it's a lot different from mine. I've never been in a wizard house before," Amanda said.

"So, is your whole family going to be at the Burrow?" John asked.

"Pretty much. We usually have a few parties there during the summer. A few of our cousins have summer birthdays, too, so there are a few other birthday parties. Rose and me always have a shared one, though, since we're the same age. Samantha and Lindy's birthday is in the beginning of July, so they get a party. Fred, Bradley, and Gabriella are all born in August, like Rose, so they all have parties, too. But theirs are usually at their own houses. Then there's the end of summer party, that's always at the end of August," Albus told him.

"Excellent. There'll be some awesome Quidditch matches, then!" John grinned.

"Oh, yeah, Quidditch can get pretty exciting during the summer," Albus responded, "There's usually so many people that we can get a real tournament going."

"That'll be loads of fun, then. And my dad said he'd get me a broom this year," John told them.

"Great! You can bring it with you. I'm asking for one for my birthday," Albus said.

"I've got a broom at home," Matt said, "I'll bring it, too."

"I obviously don't have one," Amanda sighed, "Maybe I can convince my parents to get me one, but I doubt it. As much as they've grown accustomed to magic, the idea of flying still freaks them out."

"It's all right," Rose said, "There are plenty of brooms in our family, someone will let you borrow theirs."

"Speaking of Quidditch, I think the Chudley Cannons are going to make a real come-back next season," Matt grinned.

"Ugh!" Albus groaned, "You're kidding, right? There's no way they could ever make a come back!"

"Yeah they can!" Matt insisted, "And someday, they'll make it to the Cup and I'll go and support them!"

"The day the Chudley Cannons make it to the Cup is the day Gryffindors and Slytherins get along," John laughed.

"You'll see, they'll get to the Cup. And then they'll win it!" Matt said excitedly, "I want to go to the next Cup, even if the Cannons aren't in it, though."

"Me, too," Albus agreed.

"I've been to one once," Matt went on, "When I was four. I can hardly remember it, but Amy says we had really good seats. It was in Australia, I think it's one of the only times it's been there. It was the New Zealand Kiwis versus France. France won."

"That must have been awesome," John grinned.

"Yeah, I've been to regular matches, but not the Cup," Albus said.

"Well, I hardly remember any of it. I mostly remember France's celebrating afterwards," Matt said, "Just like I'll be celebrating when the Cannons win."

Everyone else groaned. The group kept talking about Quidditch for a while, and they all agreed that they wanted to go to the next Cup. No one knew where it would be, but they wanted to go even if it was far away.

Once they'd exhausted the topic of Quidditch, they played a couple rounds of Wizard's Chess and Exploding Snap. Rose won all the games of chess and while they each won at least one round of Exploding Snap, John won most of them. When the trolley came around, they bought a bit of everything and had fun eating Bertie Botts Beans and trading Chocolate Frog cards. Albus had most of the cards by now, but he was still didn't have McGonagall.

Towards the end of the trip, everyone quieted down a bit. Rose dug out a book and started reading, Amanda doodled on a piece of parchment, John and Albus started up the Quidditch discussion again, and Matt fell asleep. Albus and John were just beginning to discuss the chances of Puddlemere United making it into the next Cup when the compartment door opened. Victoire and Amy walked into the compartment, both sporting huge grins.

"So, how's it feel to have graduated?" Rose asked, putting down here book.

"Brilliant!" Victoire said, "We've been celebrating with everyone else, but thought we'd come see you. What have you been up to?"

"Not much, just talking about Quidditch," Albus said.

Victoire sat down next to Rose and Amy sat down next to her sleeping brother. "Of course. That's one thing I'll definitely miss next year," Victoire sighed, "I've never been very good at Quidditch, but I love watching it."

"You can come back to watch," Albus told her, "You've got to. I'm going to try out for Chaser next year and if I make it, I want you to come to the matches."

"I will, at least some of them," Victoire assured him, "But I'll be pretty busy next year. Healer training is pretty intense."

"You'll be good at it, though," Rose said, "Both of you will be."

"I hope so," Amy said quietly as she looked at Matt, "It'd be great to discover a better version of that potion...."

"If anyone can do it, you can," Victoire told her, "You've always been the best at Potions in our year. I've just barely squeaked by. I really hope I got at least an E on my N.E.W.T. If not, I can't become a Healer."

Amy blushed, "Well, I'm not that great at it. I'm sure you got an E on your N.E.W.T."

"Where do you train to be a Healer?" Amanda asked, "Is there a university or something?"

"There are some classes, of course, but it's not like a Muggle university. And there's less schooling than Muggle doctors need. We do a couple years of classes and interning at St. Mungo's," Amy told her.

"Yeah, we're going to get a flat in London sometime this summer and split the rent during the training," Victoire added.

"Can I go visit you? I want to see your flat," Albus asked.

Victoire laughed, "Of course you can."

Amy stretched her arms and got up, "Well, we're almost there, so I think I'll go get my stuff ready. You coming, Victoire?"

"Sure, we could probably get in a bit more celebrating before we're in London," Victoire grinned. "See you guys in a little while."

Albus waved as his cousin and Amy left the compartment. The remainder of the journey was uneventful. Albus played another round of Exploding Snap with John and Amanda and then he dozed off for a bit. The next thing he knew, John was shaking him awake when they were in London. Albus yawned and started putting all his things back in his bag. He joined the crowd of students heading out of the train and walked onto the platform with his friends.

"There's my parents," Matt pointed to the left and Albus saw the Eckertons talking to his Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur, "I guess I'll probably see you guys this summer, if my parents let me come."

"They will," Albus said adamantly.

"They'd better," John laughed.

"I hope so," Matt responded quietly, "Well, I'll let you know if I can, Albus. See you soon, I hope."

"Definitely, this summer will be awesome!" Albus grinned, "Bye, Matt!" John, Rose, and Amanda all said goodbye as well.

"Bye, guys!" Matt waved and walked over to his parents. Albus watched as Mrs. Eckerton pulled him into a tight hug. She reminded Albus a lot of his grandmother.

"You should find your parents so they can meet ours," Albus told John and Amanda.

"Good idea," John looked out among the crowd, "Oh, they're over there. Hey, Mum! Dad!" he shouted.

A man and woman walked over to John, the woman shaking her head and the man laughing. Three little girls followed them. "Must you be so loud, dear?" the woman asked.

"Mum, what a way to greet me after you haven't seen me in months," John grinned.

"Oh, come here, Johnny," the woman smiled and wrapped John in a hug.

"Mum!" John's cheeks reddened and he pulled away. "Hi, Dad."

"Hello, John, how was the rest of term?"

"Great!"

"Albus! Rose!" Harry said from behind Albus.

Albus turned around, "Hey, Dad! Hi, Mum, Lily, Hugo, Aunt Hermione, Uncle Ron." Albus and Rose exchanged greetings with their parents and siblings while John continued to tell his parents about school. Lily and Hugo seemed to hit it off with one of John's sisters and they were running around the platform, trying to get each other to eat the disgusting flavors of Bertie Bott's.

Amanda had meanwhile found her parents and brought them over to the group. They both looked a bit uncomfortable among all the witches and wizards, but seemed to want to meet Albus and the others.

Rose seemed to take charge of all the introductions. "Ok, Mum, Dad. These are mine and Albus's friends, John and Amanda." The next few minutes were spent with all the adults shaking hands and introducing themselves. Rose and Albus told John and Amanda's parents about their birthday party and it seemed like both John and Amanda would be able to go. After a few minutes of discussing details, John, Amanda, and their families said goodbye to the Potters and the Weasleys and headed back into London.

"Ready to go, James?" Harry shouted to his oldest son who was standing a few meters away, talking to Nathan.

"Yeah, Dad, just a second," James shouted back. He said something else to Nathan and then walked over to his family.

Albus and the rest of the Potters walked back out of the station with Rose and her family. Albus was tired from the journey home and did not say much. He was thinking about the past year. It had been great. Sure, the whole altercation with Washburn had been scary, but that was over now, and his dad was taking care of that at the Ministry. He was happy he had made a few good friends and was very glad that Matt trusted them with his secret. Albus was looking forward to the summer and having John and Matt visit him at Grimmauld Place, but in all honesty, he was looking forward about going back in September. He had only been at Hogwarts for a year, but it already felt like a second home to Albus.

**Fin**

Ok, so what did everyone think of the whole thing? Like it? Hate it? Anyone catch any contradictions, grammar, spelling, or anything else that needs fixing? Well, I know there's a lot of spelling mistakes that will be fixed as I edit.

[Phoenix in the Ashes]

Now that it's done I'm going to go back and read the whole thing properly.

But I have read quite a lot of it, and from what I've been seeing it's brilliant.

[FawkesthePhoenix]

quite good, although it could use with more description and narration here and there....... but over all good work its very nice

[Obladi3713]

That was quite good. I cannot say I didn't enjoy Chapter 35's duel.