Chapter Text
One week after the last O.W.L.s were done (the N.E.W.T.s had been finished the week before O.W.L.s), it was time for the End-of-Year feast. And of course, the Parliament of Pranks (as Arden and her coalition had named themselves) decided to go out with as loud a bang as Fred and George.
Remus didn’t blame them - many of them were Seventh Years, and this was their very last night at their beloved school. After boarding the train tomorrow morning, most of them would never set foot in Hogwarts again. Of course they would want to leave a lasting impression. And, as a former Marauder, he was rather proud of some of the spellcraft the students had displayed through their various tricks and jokes.
It began when they awoke that morning. It seemed that the P.O.P. (pronounced “pop”, Remus had learned) had devised a personalized yet harmless prank on every professor and staff member at Hogwarts.
Remus himself awoke to find all three sets of his work robes had been colour-changed to bright, neon shades of pink, orange, and green.
For a moment, he felt only shock, then amusement, and then a slight bit of annoyance. But he shrugged it off and selected the green one. It was the closest to his usual colour palette, after all.
At breakfast, he was pleased to see he hadn’t been the only victim of wardrobe malfunctions.
Dumbledore didn’t seem to mind at all that his beard had braided itself with ribbons and bows and plastic beads. He looked rather pleased, actually. Surely the Beauty of Magic Club had to have some part in that prank, Remus reasoned.
Minerva was far worse-off than Remus. Her hat seemed to change colours in a smooth transition through the rainbow, like the hair of a metamorphmagus. Speaking of which, as he sat down next to the Deputy Headmistress, Remus spotted Tonks across the hall, guarding the entrance of the Great Hall with Victoria. Perhaps in a bid to annoy Minerva further, the Auror was changing her hair to the same shades and at the same rate as Minerva’s hat.
Filius, on the other hand, had found himself in an entirely different situation, being followed around by his beloved bullfrog choir, which croaked a melody that vaguely reminded Remus of God Rest Ye Merry Hippogriff.
“I don’t think I’ll be including that one in next year’s concert,” Filius told Minerva.
“Perhaps you could go easy on teaching advanced colour-changing charms as well,” Minerva suggested.
Meanwhile, a nest of robins had taken up residence on Pomona’s head. Like Dumbledore, she did not seem to mind, and instead turned to Wilhelmina and inquired about proper feeding and care for her new charges.
Wilhelmina was struggling with her silverware, which flew out of her hand and dropped to the floor each time she picked one up, even when she asked to use someone else’s. Fork by fork and spoon by spoon, her frustration gradually rose until she gave up on societal norms altogether and picked up her sausage with her fingers.
Then there was the Potions Master, who appeared to be the only one unaffected by the slew of pranks from the P.O.P.
“Any ideas what they did to Severus?” Remus asked a very annoyed Aurora. The Astronomy teacher normally wore a robe that accurately depicted the constellations of the northern hemisphere at different times of the year. Today, the constellations had been changed to words - some sort of funny message that Remus hadn’t discerned yet thanks to the back of the chair blocking it.
“None,” Aurora replied. “But I’ll bet you anything he made sure to hide it. He was late to breakfast, arrived just before you. Quite unlike him.”
“It’s also unlike Danny,” said Charity Burbage. Her glasses had been transfigured into a flashier design akin to Rita Skeeter, but it appeared the prescription remained unaffected. It clashed with her modest brown robes, though they would have looked great with Remus’ neon green. “Have you heard from him, Aurora?”
Aurora shook her head, though she did nervously eye the doors where Tonks and Victoria stood sentry.
As if to answer Charity’s question, the doors swung open a moment later, revealing a young man with long dark hair pulled back in a braid and flowing, light blue robes. A five o’clock shadow covered his youthful, tired face.
“Oh dear,” Charity murmured, moving a seat away to open a spot between her and Aurora. “What do you think they did to him?”
Unfortunately for the latecomer, the Aurors stepped forward.
"Halt! State your name and business here,” Tonks declared loudly.
The entire Hall fell silent as the Magical Theory teacher hesitated. "Uh, Professor Hatter? I work here?”
Tonks raised her wand. "Nice try, but everyone knows Hatter wouldn't be caught dead without his hat."
“For Merlin’s sakes, I just want some coffee and crumpets,” said Daniel, pinching his nose.
The Auror narrowed her eyes. “Where’s. Your. Hat.”
Daniel crossed his arms. "My fashion choices are not my entire identity, Tonks."
"And just how do you know my name? Are you a stalker?" She took a step forward, and Daniel awkwardly took a step back. A few Ravenclaws behind him covered their mouths in an attempt to hold back their snickers.
“You think we should help him?” Remus whispered to Aurora.
“Let it play out,” said Aurora, mercilessly. She . “He ate my last bit of Honeydukes fudge last week.”
He raised his arms in surrender. "We went to Hogwarts together. I was Head Boy and gave you six detentions, remember?"
"A likely story... If we did go to school together, then what was my first detention for?"
"Uh... pasting the Gryffindor team's shoes to the ceiling of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom?"
"WRONG! It was Ravenclaw! Hands in the air, imposter!!" Tonks held her wand higher and stepped even closer.
Daniel stepped back further. "WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS?!" He glanced past Tonks at her partner. “Victoria? A little help here?”
Victoria tapped her chin in thought. “You know, I distinctly remember you giving me detention, too.”
Tonks gasped and turned to gape at her. “YOU got detention? For WHAT?”
And Daniel took the opportunity to bolt toward the teacher table.
“HEY!” Tonks yelled as she noticed his escape, though she didn’t lay chase or shoot off a spell. By now, none of the students or staff were holding back laughter, and the hall filled with giggles and chortles as one of their favorite teachers managed to reach freedom. Even Victoria cracked a smile as Tonks shook her fist furiously in a feigned threat.
As he reached Hagrid’s end of the table, he stopped to catch his breath before walking the rest of the way to his chair.
“Thanks for your help,” he said to the general vicinity as he sat down.
“It’s every professor for themself today,” Remus told him, to which the younger man smirked and rolled his eyes before pouring some fresh black coffee in a mug.
“What happened to your hats, dear?” asked Charity. “You told me you had a brand new one you were going to debut today.”
“They’ve all been… compromised,” Daniel said, taking a sip of his coffee. His eyes were scanning the crowd of students before them, as though attempting to locate a suspect for a heinous crime.
“Compromised?” Aurora repeated. “All 58 of them?”
“It’d be 59 now,” Charity corrected her.
Remus quirked a brow at that. Daniel Hatter was known for his fashionable and sometimes flashy hats, but the idea that one man could have more than five or ten hats was a little over the top. He gave his poor hatless colleague a sympathetic smile before turning back to Filius to theorize about how Snape had been pranked.
By midday, though, the pranks had worn off and all of the professors were able to return to their normal daywear in peace.
Well, apart from Pomona, who mourned the loss of the robin family that had apparently been transfigured baubles. Remus found her in the teacher’s lounge just before lunch with Minerva, Wilhelmina, Charity, a box of tissues, and the shattered remnants that had fallen from her hair after the spell had worn off.
“Farewell, little Robbie,” she told the shards in between sobs. “And Bobbie. And you, Little Baby Libbie. I can’t believe I won’t get to see your first birthday. I was going to build you your first birdhouse so you could move out and have your own-”
Remus made eye contact with Minerva, who he’d been looking for, and slowly backed out of the room. They could chat later.
Finally, it was time for the feast. The hall was decorated in Slytherin banners to celebrate their winning the House Cup. Some students in other houses grumbled over their loss, but that was nothing new.
Pomona pulled herself together somehow, and Daniel finally had a brand new tophat on his head that perfectly matched his light blue robes and silver accents. Remus had to admit, it was a lovely hat.
Before the feast began, Dumbledore stood and silence fell.
“What an eventful year it has been,” he began after congratulating Slytherin for their House Cup win. “Though we endured multiple changes in the past few months, I am certain all of you are as pleased as I am that our Hogwarts staff has been reassembled and various wrongs have been righted. And I must commend many of you for your acts of protest, and remaining steadfast in your convictions, even when you faced consequences for speaking up. You stood up for your fellow students, for your professors, and for yourselves.
“But though Hogwarts has faced unfortunate and unfair circumstances this year, it is outside Hogwarts that a new danger lurks in the shadows. The time is fast approaching that many of those same beliefs you have fought for will be challenged by others. I urge each and every one of you not to allow yourself to be swayed by empty promises of power.
“Your teachers have filled you with as much knowledge as they could this year, and now you must decide what is good and right and worth fighting for. Only you can make the choice for yourselves. And remember, should you need it, help will always come to those who ask for it. Enjoy your summer and keep yourselves safe.”
And with that, he sat down.
Normally, the hall would immediately fill with chatter as soon as Dumbledore’s speech ended. But this time, a deafening silence followed as everyone digested the Headmaster’s words.
After a long moment, whispers and murmurs here and there soon turned to a quiet roar of several hundred voices as the Hall returned to normal.
Remus caught Harry’s eye. There was a determination in those green eyes, and Remus felt his chest swell with pride. He and Sirius had raised a Gryffindor, no doubt about it.
**Things Fall Apart**
“Ugh, I wish the train would go faster,” Kitty groaned, checking the time on her watch. They were due to reach King’s Cross any minute now, and Kitty couldn’t help but feel exhausted. “Dinner’s going to be cold when we get home.”
“We could just use a warming spell,” Harry offered.
“It’s not the same,” Kitty complained, crossing her arms. She stared out the window, hoping they would enter London soon. “Mum said she had a surprise for me, too, and I just really want to know what it is.”
“Bet it’s an Alchemy set,” Ron suggested. “Since that’s what you want to do when you finish Hogwarts.”
Kitty thought about it. That would be brilliant, but… “I don’t think that would be a surprise, though. She’d probably just tell me or wait until I got home to say anything in the first place. No, this feels like something way bigger.”
“Maybe Viktor is finally visiting?” asked Draco. “You did invite him again for the summer, right?”
In the corner of her eye, Kitty could see Ron glare at her cousin. She decided to ignore it for now. Draco and Ron hadn’t been getting along since O.W.L.s and she was fairly certain it had to do with her. “Maybe. But wouldn’t Viktor just tell me he was coming? Why go through my mum?”
“Could be she got tickets to that Muggle film you wanted to see,” Harry theorized. “Or maybe it’s something to do with Uncle Finley?”
“Hmm…”
No one else seemed to have ideas, apart from Luna, who thought that Kitty’s parents might’ve won the all-expense paid trip to the Himalayas prize from a recent Quibbler contest. Kitty didn’t have the heart to tell her that no one in her house apart from Harry even subscribed to the Quibbler, let alone read it.
“We’re almost there!” Hermione exclaimed. Indeed, the streets of London flew past them as they wove their way to King’s Cross Station.
“Never seen you so excited to not be at Hogwarts,” Kitty noted.
Hermione shrugged. “Oh, well, it’s just that I’d like to get a headstart on our summer homework so I have it done before my family leaves for New York in a few weeks.”
“A few weeks?” Ron scoffed. “Hermione, knowing you, you’ll have your homework done in a few days.”
Draco frowned at Ron, opening his mouth to retort before wincing from Harry’s quick elbow to the rib. Draco and Harry exchanged a long, hard look, before Draco finally crossed his arms and turned away from Ron to watch the buildings go by.
Soon, they slowed down and Platform 9¾ came into view.
Kitty could see her family near the middle of the platform with the Weasleys, Longbottoms, Grangers, and Aunt Cissy.
Percy stood with his parents, a small smile on his face as he waited for his little brother and sister.
Remus waited happily in Sirius’ arms, looking more relaxed than he had in ages. Kitty was glad to see her other uncle, too. Not only because she had missed him, but also because he was the only way she’d be able to see her own house later.
Remus had privately explained the Fidelius Charm to her and Blaise when he’d returned to Hogwarts. Apparently, Sirius was the Secret Keeper, and that meant that only he could reveal the secret location of 12 Grimmauld Place to anyone.
Next to them was Grandpa Pollux, who looked just as regal perched in his enchanted chair as he had the day she’d first met him.
Her eyes got a little watery, knowing how special it was that her grandfather had been able to meet them at the station today.
But then, as the train came to a full stop, she turned her gaze to her parents. Daddy’s arm was around Mum, and Mum was holding up a sign, a big grin on both their faces.
“What does that say?” Kitty asked, squinting. “Welcome home… Big- NO WAY.”
She could hardly believe her eyes, but indeed the sign her mother held read:
WELCOME HOME, BIG SISTER-TO-BE!!
Kitty threw the window open and shouted. “MUM!! YOU’RE PREGNANT?!”