The Anger.

On the Wednesday afternoon before leaving the castle for Christmas, Dumbledore asked Harry to remain after DADA class. Daphne and Tracey also remained.

"Ah, Harry, I only needed to speak with you about this matter," said Dumbledore. "Your two lady companions may leave."

"Thank you, Albus," Harry simply replied, doing nothing else.

Neither Tracey nor Daphne so much as moved in their seats.

Dumbledore appeared to be waiting for them to leave, looking a little pleased. However, when neither girl moved, his face dropped into a frown.

"Ladies, you may go," he said.

"Thank you, Headmaster," they both said. And neither moved.

With his frown deepening, he said, "I am not accustomed to my instructions being ignored, ladies."

When neither said anything, he asked, "Why are you not leaving?"

"I, for one, Professor, am waiting for my betrothed," said Daphne.

"And, I am waiting for my friend," said Tracey.

"I wish to speak with Mister Potter in private, ladies," he scowled.

"That will never happen, Professor," replied Daphne flatly. "Either I will be present at all times, Professor Flitwick will be present as his Head of House, or we both will." Still scowling, he turned to Harry and asked, "Do you wish others to be present when I am discussing with you privatematters, Harry?"

"Always, Albus," replied Harry.

Scowling for a moment later, the old man tried his disappointed grandfather routine. "Very well," he said.

Looking back up at Harry he said, "I was surprised to discover you will not be staying in the castle over Christmas, Harry."

As it wasn't a question, just as with the girls before him, Harry didn't respond. He just adopted a mien of curiosity.

When Harry clearly wasn't going to respond, Dumbledore said, "I take it, then, you will be returning to stay with your family over the Christmas break?"

"Yes, Professor," he replied.

Surprised, Dumbledore said, "I find myself surprised, but quite pleased, you have forgiven your aunt enough to return to - her home."

Harry didn't bother to correct the old man. If he believed that, that was his problem.

When he realised he'd hear no further, Dumbledore sighed and said, "Very well, you may go."

Outside in the hallway, Tracey asked, "Why didn't you tell him you're not going back to that place?"

"He didn't ask if I was," replied Harry. "He assumed a falsehood. That's his problem."

"And it is not the business of the staff of Hogwarts where the students spend their Christmas break," said Daphne. "They only need to be aware that a student has left on the Express at the beginning of it, and returned on it when the break has concluded."

Harry stood waiting in the Entrance Hall with Hermione and Neville. They were waiting for Daphne, Tracey, Susan and Neville to join them from out of the dungeons.

"I'm soooo looking forward to seeing my parents, again," said Hermione. Looking at Harry, she asked, "I told you my parents and I are visiting Greengrass Estate, right?" "Yes, Hermione; you did," replied Harry. "Boxing Day," she said, as if she didn't hear. "We're coming over for a little while before we head to my grandma's place.

"I'm looking forward to meeting the rest of your family, Harry," she said. "My parents say Cygnus and Isabel are wonderfulpeople." "Yes, they are," he replied.

Turning to Neville she asked, "Are you visiting too, Neville?" "I would say so," he calmly replied.

A week earlier:

Ever since Neville was taken to Diagon Alley to purchase his own wand, the boy was coming out of his self-imposed shell of meekness. Having a wand that matched him - twelve inches of cherry wood with a unicorn hair core - had done wonders for his self-esteem. It also didn't hurt that the girls thought his new wand was 'gorgeous'.

Soon after returning, he met the others in the library where he showed it to them.

Harry said, "You've got me by an inch, Neville. Mine's holly with a phoenix feather core."

Hermione huffed, "Honestly! Boys and their wands!"

That had both boys blushing and sniggering, while the other four girls squealed with laughter. It took Hermione a few moments to realise the implications of what she said.

When she realised, she blushed profusely and covered her face with her hands. "Oh, sorry!" she said, mortified. In an effort to rescue Hermione, Susan said, "Well, I've heard from a friend that's friends with one of the boys in the Gryffindor First Year boy's dorm, who said Neville's supposed to be - and I quote here - 'hung like a hippogriff'!"

That had all the girls laughing.

Neville, blushing profusely, calmly replied, "Well, I am a Longbottom."

That had everyone laughing.

"I'm going to be running around madly tomorrow purchasing Christmas presents," said Hermione. "Honestly, the Christmas break should start at least a week earlier. I have no idea howI'm going to get everything done in time."

"I'm sure you'll manage," said Neville.

"Ah!" exclaimed Harry. "Here they are."

Looking in the same direction as Harry, Hermione and Neville saw the four girls walking up the stairs. Entering the Entrance Hall, they calmly walked over.

Stepping over to Daphne, Harry gently placed a kiss on her cheek. "I was getting worried you were going to be late," he said to her.

"Never going to happen, Potter," she said with a smile.

"Well, now that we're all here," said Neville, "How about we head out to find a carriage?"

"Lets!" said Tracey, talking him by the arm.

A little surprised, Neville dutifully cocked his elbow for her and escorted her outside and down the steps to where students were lined up waiting for carriages.

Harry offered his own elbow to Daphne who naturally placed her hand in it and chased after Neville. The three other girls followed behind.

Disembarking at the station they only had to wait a few moments for their trunks and pet carriers to appear before they collected them and found a compartment on the train. Harry had sent Hedwig to Greengrass Estate earlier so her cage was empty.

Finding a suitable compartment, Harry and Neville manhandled, with the use of Featherweight Charms and levitation, the trunks into the overhead racks. The pet carriers went on the floor under the seats.

With the compartment now considered full, Harry stepped outside and, using a Sticking Charm, stuck a large note to the outside of the door. Stepping back in he closed the door, locked it and cast the Colloportus Charm on the compartment door. "There. Now we shouldn't be bothered."

"What was that?" Notice-Me-Not?"

asked

Daphne.

"A

"No; the Door Sealing Charm, Colloportus," replied Harry. "The squelching sound you heard was the wood of the door binding with the wood of the frame. No First Year Unlock Door Charm is going to open that."

"That's quite an advanced Charm, Harry," said Hermione. "What if one of us needs to go to the toilet?"

"Just let me know," he said. "I want it there, for now, so we don't get any rude gits trying to get in here without knocking first."

"I doubt Malfoy will try anything, this trip," said Daphne, from where she was curled up on the seat snuggled into him. "Or Weasley."

"And the note you stuck to the outside of the door?" asked Tracey.

"It says, 'Try Knocking'," said Harry with a smirk.

The ride back was uneventful. If you don't count someone trying to wrench the door open no less than four times. At least for three of them the person then knocked.

Laughing each time, the Seven waited for the knocking. Each time they heard it, Harry removed the Door Sealing Charm and Neville opened it.

It was only during a period while Susan and Hannah disappeared together to go to the toilet did the door get wrenched open while the Sealing Charm was not in place. At that time it was a female Ravenclaw Prefect looking in to make sure everyone was okay.

"Alright," she began, "Who put that super-strong Locking Charm on the door when I came by earlier to check in?"

"I did," said Harry. "And it was a Door Sealing Charm, Colloportus to be exact."

Frowning at him she asked, "And how, in Merlin's name, does a First Year know how to cast the Door Sealing Charm?"

"Hey," said Harry, slightly offended. "Ravenclaw here, remember? I read about it and practiced it." "And just why would a First Year, even if they are a Ravenclaw, want to practice the Door Sealing Charm?" she asked suspiciously.

"So we don't get bothered while riding the Hogwarts Express, is one reason," he calmly replied.

She looked at him for a while more before she said, "Well, Prefects need to be able to check on the students while they're doing their patrols."

Daphne, getting a little miffed with the girl, snarkily asked, "See the note on the door?"

The girl pulled her head out for a moment and read the note before turning to look back in again. Understanding writ upon her face.

"Try that!" snapped Daphne.

"Watch your tongue," the girl, a little haughtily, said. "I'm still a Prefect."

As Harry was enjoying watching Daphne cut the girl down, Susan and Hannah returned from the loo.

"Excuse us!" said Susan, butting in.

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