Echoes of Time (Harry Potter)

May 4, 1943

Sunday Evening

"Bit basic, isn't it?" Aster said to Reinhard, the former boy not at all impressed with the suit the latter would be wearing to Slughorn's final party.

"No more so than the one you wore last year," Reinhard answered, his eyes narrowing at the smaller boy.

Harry rolled his eyes, expecting bickering or a stupid argument to ensue. It wouldn't be the first time the two friends got into it over something so simple, nor would it be the last, he suspected. Yet it wasn't to be this time, as much to Harry's amazement, Aster withdrew a Gringotts coin pouch similar to the one in his possession and began removing coin after coin.

When he looked back to Reinhard to see how the larger boy reacted, it was with a smug, satisfied look on his face.

"I won," Reinhard offered up as his explanation, though it was far from one.

Ever the helper, Corene appeared at his side, her conversation with Elaine apparently over. "Every year, the two of them wager who'll dress worse - it's a way of proving who's the braver of the two without any risk… I imagine the embarrassment the worst-dressed receives is a factor too."

"How does that require bravery?" Harry asked quietly as the two boys ahead of them devolved into laughter.

Corene turned to look at him, an eyebrow partially raised and her typical small smile on her face. "Reputations for families as old as their's take a dent when Heirs act foolishly. If you'd think they'd do something with any real risk, I'd remind you that neither of them was sorted into Gryffindor for a reason, Harry."

She raised a good point. At the end of the day, neither boy seemed involved with anything that risked failure or punishment; they pranked others, yes, and many knew it was them, but no evidence would be found by Professors when they looked.

If they looked at all, it was a seldom thing, Professors getting involved in the happenings outside of their classes. Drama, as rare as it was in this time, was still left to the dealings of those involved or the more courageous Prefects.

"Harry, Corene" Elaine called from her position at the front. "Come."

With Daphne already beside her and more than a dozen of her other followers trailing them, the two called for would need to push their way past a good few people. Once they found themselves close to Elaine, they'd have to walk four wide, which ate up more than half the hallway - in other words, the guests from other houses would have that amount of space between the three of them.

It wasn't surprising why the others so often thought of Slytherins as arrogant and self-centred. Harry didn't mind it all that much, the opinion of him from the other houses was greater than any other person in Slytherin robes. That wasn't to mention the hostilities between the houses weren't nearly as bad as they'd been in his time, if anything, it was more a stance of ignoring than conflict.

For the most part… Marcus and Veronica did seem like they'd escalate that at times. Perhaps they'd been the cause or a portion of what led to the rise in tensions, he mused.

"Guests of importance will be at this final celebration," Elaine began, her voice carrying to the others behind them as her eyes focused on the three beside her. "Many of them from the Ministry, few from foreign delegations and fewer still from all manners of large-scale businesses. I needn't remind any of you how important this is, and I expect each of you upper years to come away with an assured position upon graduation - else, those of the new stances will continue their pushes."

Those final words of hers were met with no small amount of grumbling and whispers from those trailing after them. Harry found himself agreeing for a moment too, only for a moment. He realised belatedly what she meant in her final sentence, and again, he wondered how far along she was on her path to becoming him .

Nearly ten minutes later and with the Slytherin students all having arrived together, Harry found himself seated with the three he'd entered with; Elaine, Corene and Daphne.

Two others had joined them too, two with whom he was very well acquainted; Cade and Druella.

As was often the case with Slytherin students and contrary to the belief of most, they arrived before a great many of their peers or the guests had. Fashionably late, as it was called, didn't take precedence over the advantage a good seat and better company gave.

Slughorn's blatant favouritism to those of Slytherin had assisted them too, as their tables were closest to the ones meant for guests and to the ones piled high with food or wines. One, in particular, caught Harry's eyes too, that of the Greek one Elaine so often enjoyed - that Sarah would later be in attendance hadn't been lost on him either.

"How goes your practise?" Cade asked when Harry's attention was back on the table.

Harry took a cursory glance around the table again to see who was listening, and when he saw Daphne deep in conversation with Corene, it set him more at ease. Daphne's words and attitude was most often something negative, so to have her far from minding him was pleasing.

"Well," Harry started, as his solo sessions had in fact gone successfully thus far. "You have my thanks for them too, I already feel leaps and bounds ahead of where I'd previously been," Harry flicked his eyes between Cade and Druella both, hoping each would receive his thanks warmly.

"Cade makes for a good instructor," Elaine said, her face calm and tone neutral despite the fact Harry could feel a touch of spite flowing from her - he'd knew where to look and how to more easily feel it ever since they'd touched in Slytherin's quarters, it was as if a new eye had opened. "I look forward to duelling him again, before the end of our year comes."

Cade dipped his head in acknowledgement and respect. Harry saw a hint of challenge and eagerness in the other boy's faces too as if he hated that they'd tied as much as Elaine seemed to. Before anything could come of his look or the annoyance bubbling up in Elaine, Druella spoke.

"You're crafty, Harry," She said with a light-hearted smile on her face. "You come to me for lessons, to Cade for lessons and as I've witnessed firsthand, to Elaine for lessons. Am I to assume Corene is next for her subterfuge?"

Cade chuckled. "It's a smart move, one which I took years earlier with the friends of my cousins. Always do what'll find you ahead of others, lest you remain permanently behind."

Elaine didn't seem nearly as impressed or playful, her hand that snaked its way into his tightened to a near painful extent. "Learning from as many sources as possible is beneficial, but you shouldn't overburden yourself. Isn't that right, Druella?"

Druella's face took on a concerned nature, albeit one with her sternness still present. "If it comes to that, there're ways to ease the stress that piles on. As you said, the easiest of them is to ensure you're not overworked."

Cade laughed. "Harry would know his limits better than the three of us, let him do as he likes."

No further words were spoken before the great set of doors opened with Slughorn front and centre. Behind the great big man seemed a sea of people, though the small nature of the room in which they'd come from could've equally played to make it seem as if more were present than there really were. Regardless of how many there were, it seemed to match the four dozen or so students in attendance.

"A round of applause, please, for the numerous guests who've made the trek to Hogwarts for the end of our festivities," Slughorn said, his voice carrying through the entire room as if he were speaking from a position beside you.

Elaine, of course, had begun to clap before the final syllable had finished reverberating around the room. All others of Hogwarts origin followed after her, the most enthusiastic being those from Slytherin.

With that done as it was, the true festivities for the evening had finally begun.

"Harry Peverell, it's good to see you again," Senior Auror, or was it Chief Auror McMacson greeted, the man having immediately sought him out.

"And you as well, Auror McMacson," Harry said with a nod of his head, one that hopefully made up for his lack of formalities with the man's rank.

"Please, McMacson is fine - my first name would be better but I dare not have you use it lest the snobs here think you're too familiar," McMacson sent a withering look at the room by in large, one that Harry noticed lingered especially long on some of the Ministry staff. "Most of them seek only glory, riches and power, you know. I say this to you not as a means of dissuading you from other courses, though I dare continue my hope you'll be an Auror come the time of your graduation's one year anniversary. Those who do my job are those I've learned are most honest, most of the time."

Harry was intrigued by the man's words, incredibly so. Not many spoke their mind - assuming that's what he was doing and not simply speaking ear service - and fewer still did so with a Hogwarts student. It made Harry wonder if he'd left such a good first impression or if the man was drunk… ulterior motives could very well be a factor too, considering it was Elaine who'd introduced them.

Then again, as Harry looked at the young man before him, he wondered if he could be one of the few good ones; one who sought the betterment for all at the cost of none. Spitefully, he thought that Dumbledore would know the answer… but the man was too changed from his time to speak with him, the first encounter still fresh in his mind.

"I've run into a few snobs previously," Harry said in a polite, light manner. "No problem about dissuading me from other careers either, I've only a couple that I'm interested in, to begin with, and becoming an Auror is definitely the highest on the list. Politicians who turn it into a career for life, well, that isn't me even if I'd like to have a few years helping change a few things around," Harry finished and kept his eyes on McMacson's face, he hoped by offering a tidbit of information he could decipher at least partially what the man's motives were.

When he saw a happy smile and heard the laugh that followed, he was thrown for a loop once more. To Harry, it almost seemed as if the man was as good as he made himself out to be… he'd certainly be a fool if he believed that though - all too often the people who seemed the best could be very deceiving.

Elaine was proof enough of that, especially with how many people were wrapped around those cold fingers of hers.

"Career politicians, especially those of the Wizengamot with hereditary seats, Merlin… the issues they cause," McMacson shook his head and grabbed two glasses of champagne as a servant passed. "If only Aurors could do everything, but I suppose those best suited to hunting the bad guys aren't the ones you want leading a country, not least of all in times of peace that'll soon come to the world."

"Quite right, lad," said a new voice as its owner joined them at the table. "Auror McMacson, Peverell, I hope the evening finds the both of you well."

"And you as well, Master Slughorn," McMacson said with as good a bow as one could give from a seat.

Harry had only just turned to the right to see who had joined them when the Auror spoke. When he saw and heard who it was, that being Professor Slughorn's father, he recalled the last meeting they'd had. One in which he'd learned of the man's dislike for Elaine and a sense of jealousy towards his son… the latter part wasn't something he was too sure of, however, it was simply something he'd picked up on.

"Hello again, Mister Slughorn," Harry said in turn, earning himself an approving nod from the older man.

"Auror McMacson, you were to speak with my son, were you not?" Slughorn Senior said, a grey bushy eyebrow raised.

Harry took that to mean the man was dismissed, and McMacson seemed to understand that as well. "Of course, Master Slughorn - good evening," McMacson then turned his attention to Harry. "Until we meet again, Harry."

"Until then," Harry said respectfully, he then looked to Slughorn Senior as the man eased himself into a chair. "Mister Slughorn, how've you been since we last spoke? Has everything been going well for you?"

"I am and will continue to be, well, Harry Peverell. Now, let us skip these pleasantries, yes?" Slughorn took a long draw from his pipe, the smoke hazing the nearby air. "I would hear how Hogwarts has been, tell me of Elaine, my son, the Deputy-Headmaster and whatever else you may think I'd find interesting."

Harry tilted his head. "What do you mean? There's not much that's happened recently… are you looking for something specific?"

"Specifics, no… no, I think not. I suppose if you are unable to think of anything, then there's not been anything of note, how droll," Slughorn took another long sip of his wine, his bushy beard pushing around the entirety of his glass. "Let us speak of tales then, that's something you'll surely know of with your being a Peverell, or am I assuming too much once more?"

"No, no I can do that," Harry assured, not wanting to deny Slughorn Senior twice over. "Would you like that I start, or did you have one in mind?"

"I will tell a tale passed down from our family, then one of yours will go," Slughorn took out his wand and cast a spell, a privacy one more than likely. "Very nearly, did I think to explain the origins of house-elves and their kin - I would think something that's of more interest to you, however, is the art of false life. Necromancy, as it's called. Most would step down from this topic I'd imagine, your family the primary reason, but why back down when it's but words passed from the lips of family across millennia?" Slughorn laughed, his cheeks red and his beard dripping a few dollops of wine.

Harry gave an amused chuckle and soft smile. Slughorn's father was definitely more controversial than the man himself was, and for some reason, it made him more endearing. If Harry appreciated one thing, it was the ability for one to speak the truth and bluntly. Slughorn Senior definitely did so, be it his quick dismissal of the company previously with them or the crude words with a jab at the Peverell past.

Had Harry been a Peverell, a true one, he would've likely taken offence. Then again, mayhaps not, the magic of false life or necromancy was something he'd seldom heard of. Only Inferi were spoken of, really, and not but once was a class taught in regards to them.

Whether the information regarding them was in Hogwarts' restricted section or locked away entirely, he doubted he would ever know.

"As much of magic is and will continue to be, the spell which I mention in this tale was found by mistake. You see, our family once wished to further extend their lives past that of which magic did for them. Decades turned to centuries, and all progress had slowed to but a step for every year that passed," Slughorn Senior's eyes took on a faraway quality as if the tale he was recounting was something he'd witnessed. "Older and older, those who worked on the spell would get. Their experience would be lost, as would portions of their knowledge not yet written down. One day, or rather a night should you place so much faith into the tale, an ancestor stricken by grief cast the spell on his fallen father… what arose, and make no mistake, rise something did, was a mockery of life. No food could be eaten nor drink taken to quench a bottomless thirst, the rotting of their body would not cease, and yet, the intelligence persisted - Inferi and other creatures of darkness were drawn to them, but it ended, as all things did."

Harry waited for Slughorn to continue speaking, so lost was he in the story that his eyes had focused on nothing while his mind grasped at every word. As the seconds ticked by, and a minute had nearly passed, Harry finally looked towards Slughorn Senior once more.

He, the old man who'd opened up more than he previously had, was closed off again. Slughorn Senior's expression was half a sneer and half loathing as he looked at a gathering of folk at a table a good distance from theirs. "As I recall, you and Riddle are together, would that be right?"

"Yes, Mister Slughorn," Harry said, the question pricking at the back of his mind too strong to resist. "How… how did it end? You said other creatures were drawn to it. Was the spell cancelled? Did it get stored away?"

Slughorn Senior rose from his seat, his soured expression turning worse as his eyes remained on Elaine. When he finally gave an answer to Harry, it was given quickly and without the same element of story-telling that the previous words had held. "As I said, it was ended as all things are - in death, for a second time. That spell could not be cancelled, the very essence of it filled the body with a false light that would work barely to hold together the fallen," Slughorn downed the last of his glass and looked at Harry, a touch of amusement on his face that went at odds with his narrowed eyes. "That is to say, one must believe in the tale to take interest in how it ends. The Spell, should it have existed, is lost to time the same as much of the world is. Good evening, Harry Peverell, I await the tale which you'll tell me upon our next meeting."

Slughorn Senior didn't say anything more, nor could Harry, as the man all but vanished into thin air as he took another few steps.

It would seem he still had a fair few tricks up his ridiculously long sleeves. Harry was reminded of Dumbledore so very heavily in that instance.

"… icle, nearly lost my bollocks to that, I did!" Aster's voice carried to Harry's ears, the loudness so deafening that it felt like the boy was shouting directly into his ear.

Oh, Harry thought when he turned towards the source of his friend's voice, he was.

"What're you doing Aster?" Harry asked, blinking at his friend who was hobbling about.

Reinhard answered for him, the boy directly across from Harry after having just exited a crowd. "Your friend that you were speaking with had more than a privacy spell cast around the two of you. There was a jinx and another spell mixed within too, the former was especially hostile, as Aster luckily found out before I tried to enter as he did."

"Slughorn's father is a right prick, isn't he?" Aster groaned as he took a seat, an annoyed look on his face. "What were you even speaking with him about anyhow? Last I remember, he withdrew from public life in large part, isn't that right Reinhard?"

"It is, the guy was right paranoid and started disliking most of those he'd cared for," Reinhard said, nodding his head at Aster.

"Uhuh," Harry said, only partially believing his mates. As far as he'd seen, Slughorn Senior hadn't been too bad, not at all. "What'd you two want to come over for if you think the man is that crazy?"

"Didn't say crazy, just that he's a right prick. It's always good to pick his brain, used to be a brilliant Potioneer and relatively good with his history. Too bad he only leaves his house but a dozen times a year," Aster's voice held a serious tone for a bit, but as he always did, he devolved into a more comedic manner. "Forget it, he's gone! We wanted to tell you about the news regarding Dumbledore!"

"Grindelwald too," Reinhard piped up, an early copy of the Prophet in his meaty right hand.

"Give it here then," Harry said, rolling his eyes and holding out his hands.

Reinhard shook his head and gestured shortly thereafter over Harry's shoulders. "Not with your back to more of the room than mine is, we don't want people knowing what we have here before it becomes public knowledge. I'll share the gist of i-"

"Grindelwald raided a muggle resistance base in Belgium, the dutch-speaking bit, I think. Killed a few dozen Muggles and the two wizards posing as 'em, he wasn't with him from all accounts," Aster didn't need to relay who 'he' was referencing, as Harry easily guessed it meant Yaxley.

Ever since it was reported that he was with Grindelwald's forces, the lot of them kept tabs on the news in case he was spotted. As much as they hoped he wasn't, a majority of them figured it was only a matter of time.

"And Dumbledore? What of him?" Harry asked, not sure how the Grindelwald news related to his former mentor.

"Bit trickier, that," Reinhard said with a shrug and pull at his chin hair. "From what I hear, and this comes mostly from Corene mind you, he's done."

"Done in every meaning of the word… so long as it relates to Professing as a Professor at Hogwarts," Aster added, a raised finger and alcohol heavy breath hitting Harry. "He's taken the rest of the year off, could end up taking next year off too. Apparently, that illness of his is acting up again, though I'm not sure what it is - don't think anybody is."

Harry couldn't recall for the life of him what the illness was. He hadn't been the greatest student of history, not in the slightest, but he knew the basics well enough. As much as he could recall of said basics, that being Dumbledore's defeating of Grindelwald, there'd been no mention of an illness.

Had the times diverged so much already? Could Dumbledore of this time defeat the Grindelwald that matched him?

He couldn't think of anybody else who could if Dumbledore couldn't, the end of the world as they knew it was a very close thing until Grindelwald's defeat. Should Dumbledore fail or be ill-fitted to the task, then it truly would be done. Especially with Harry focused on Elaine, not that she'd have the chance to rise up with Grindelwald ruling over them.

"Harry, my boy! Come, come, we've a photo to be taken with the others in thirty minutes!" Slughorn's voice, the Professor that was, greeted Harry's ears in sync with his large hand that guided him over to a back table.

"Thirty minutes? That's some time," Harry commented as he all but fell into a chair as it was pulled out for him.

"Hello, boyfriend," Elaine cooed from his left, the older girl already pulling him close to her as Slughorn hurried himself over to a chair across from them.

"Hi Elaine," Harry said, ignoring the fawning and placing a chaste kiss on her left cheek. "Professor Slughorn, I spoke with your father earlier this evening, he seems a very nice man, sir."

"Yes, yes, my father's well known for his manners… you'd surely know if he didn't like you!" Slughorn laughed, his large belly jiggling as he did so - Elaine and Harry joined him in the laughter, for manner's sake. "I could tell you many a story from his days of Professing at Hogwarts, though I dare not do so lest I ruin your opinion of him! Merlin knows he'd like nothing more than a reason to hex me as he did in the days of old."

Slughorn shook his head in a manner that was half grimace and half fondness. Harry imagined memories from the man's childhood were sweet by in large, excluding the jinxing that made him think of those days.

"I believe you wished to speak to Harry about something, Horace?" Elaine asked, her gentle tone and the smile she shot the man the picture of innocence as she changed the course of the conversation.

Unlike Harry, Elaine wasn't one for pointless conversations. He didn't mind them, oftentimes he'd learned with careful listening across the months he'd been back in time as he was that people seemed to reveal information should they speak long enough. Yaxley had done so, the special case that he was, Veronica and Marcus had too. Aster and Reinhard didn't do it nearly as often, though those two still did so every now and then. Corene, Daphne and Elaine had seldom done something as careless as that.

Harry wasn't nearly as foolish enough to think Elaine could be caught out or messed up in her wording, no, when she said something it was the epitome of deliberate. Any action she took was like that, from her graceful walks, intimate touches and soothing whispers, rarely had he pushed her to her back foot.

"Yes, I believe I did - thank you, Miss Riddle," Slughorn tipped his rather outrageously-sized hat to Elaine before he turned his attention over to Harry. "Word has reached me that you wish to be an Auror in addition to holding your Wizengamot seat, and while that is seldom done, a certain acquaintance of mine has begun laying the infrastructure for you - the Chief Advisor to the Minister, I believe you could recall. I dare say with him and those who are currently pushing for your families restoration joint efforts that it should be ready far earlier than expected."

"How much earlier?" Elaine asked for Harry, her right hand stroking his left one as he listened very intently.

As beneficial as it was, he didn't want to be indebted to anybody, least of all those who he'd rarely spoken with or were already in Elaine's camp. Should they do too much for him and others see it, the chances of keeping people such as Aster or Reinhard looking to him would decrease - they'd see him as an extension to Elaine rather than something of his own.

On the other hand, so long as he didn't use her connections or the good Professor's too often, he could get himself stronger as they toiled for him. That was most assuredly an attractive deal. Elaine ceasing her full effort on working towards her goals to instead work towards his would see her machinations, few as they seemed to be, further off.

Slughorn smiled wide, his chubby cheeks raised high. "Peverell here could find himself with an internship this summer, should he wish it. Should that fail to materialise, the next year would prove far enough out for him to take up the mantle of Wizengamot member as well as Junior Auror, or my name isn't Horace Slughorn."

Harry clocked Elaine's left hand from the corner of his eyes, it moved and worked on something, though the specific action couldn't be seen.

"Thank you, sir," Harry said to the Professor, the man dipping his head once with an expectant look on his face.

He wasn't so foolish to think this was done without hopes of 'furthering' their friendship. Slughorn hadn't forgotten Harry's mention of a visit to Peverell mansion, nobody would forget that. If anything, the recent burst of assistance he was given by the man was in further hopes of viewing the ancient Peverell holding.

When Harry eventually went through with it - after he ensured everything was accounted for and safe - he had no doubt that news of the visit would be to the Prophet within hours of Slughorn's departure. Merlin, the man would probably request a photo within the home too, for further proof in addition to upping his renown. Corene's family hadn't been quite as bad, and they were more than willing to secure the friendship by contracts too.

Maybe Harry should do as much with Slughorn, lest the man was further still in Elaine's pocket than Harry thought him to be.

"It's nothing lad, a trifle really. I doubt the day is too far off that you'll be in my shoes, with all who you wish to know as acquaintances and those who you dislike nought be a worry of the past," Slughorn laughed and inclined his head towards Elaine. "Especially if you remain as close together as the pair of you are - if it's not too forward of this old man to say, together, I should think the pair of you unbeatable. That's what Elaine tells me too," Slughorn finished and did the same as his father had during their conversation; he took a long, greedy gulp of wine.

As the man was doing that, Harry heard Elaine mutter something to herself. It sounded an awful lot like she hadn't been too happy with the man's final sentence, but Harry hadn't been foolish enough to think he'd escaped coming up in their conversations. Elaine looked to Slughorn as a mentor at times, and a tool too, to think they'd spoken of him wasn't nearly as worrying as it would've been had that come up months in the past.

"You're cute when you're flustered," Harry commented, taking in Elaine's flushed cheeks, the red tip of her nose and the spreading blush that went down her neck.

Elaine raised an eyebrow at him, her gaze shifted from the table she'd been muttering at. "Aren't I the one that teases you whilst you look away or otherwise act embarrassed?"

Harry saw that her blush was starting to recede, and so he used what little time that it remained to whisper something to her that would appear loving to those who looked at them. "Hogsmeade is coming up… would you like to go with me?"

It wasn't a smooth line or something romantic, rather, it was the first type that he'd asked her out on a 'date' as most would see it. To him, it was more of him keeping an eye on her so that nothing nefarious could come of her free time at Hogsmeade… there was only a small bit of him that thought anything romantic of the gesture. They probably would've gone together anyhow, she'd eaten up nearly every Hogsmeade trip they had, after all.

When he looked up from her flushed neck, towards her face, he saw that the previously receding blush had come back in full force - it seemed to do so against her will too, as the look of cute annoyance on her face conveyed. "You're asking me to Hogsmeade after teasing me whilst we sit across from our Professor, is that right, darling ?" Elaine's voice dripped with sweetness, the tone completely at odds with her embarrassed visual.

Harry smiled smugly and kissed her cheek, he wasn't sure where the boldness had come from, but he'd be damned if he let it pass him by. "Yeah, that's right."

He went in to place a second kiss on her cheek, but this time, she snapped her head to catch his lips with hers. As usual, her lips were soft and the taste familiar - the wine only added to his enjoyment of their spontaneous kissing. Her hands, previously idle from their stroking and other activities, sought out his face to better control his head lest he tries to remove himself from the situation he started.

If the cough from Slughorn hadn't snapped Elaine back to alertness, he reckoned that they'd have made an escape before the photo could be taken.

That as it was, it still took her a few seconds before she withdrew. Elaine did so slowly too, as often she seemed to have a one-track mind when it came to physical displays of affection. It reminded him of his mates back in Gryffindor and how often they'd speak of their adventures with the witch of the week. He wondered if she was starved for that sort of attention or if the 'link' felt far stronger to her than it did to him.

Whatever the cause, he would postpone any further plays against her whilst in too official a setting if this evening was anything to go off of. Neither of them needed a steamy snogging session should they attend a meeting together with a Ministry official or somebody else of importance. As it was, they were lucky it was Slughorn across from them.

Still, it was good to know he could distract her by imitating the aggressive nature she so often held.

"What say the two of you assist me this coming year?" Slughorn inquired, himself looking a bit embarrassed with the kissing they'd done so carelessly across from him. He shook his head to clear said embarrassment and restored his jovial looks as his gaze shifted between them. "Potions proves incredibly helpful as I'm sure the pair of you know, Harry especially could benefit from assisting with the classroom considering his future line of work - I would be grateful should either of you join me in working with our younger years."

"Is that allowed?" Harry inquired, not having seen it done before.

"Oh yes, yes," Slughorn assured in that charismatic manner of his, one that Harry identified early on but still found himself semi put-at-ease by. "The Headmaster allows some Professors of renown and experience to take on students with the free time to assist us in class, the Ministry could nudge him as needed too - I doubt that'll be something we need worry about, not with Headmaster Dippet around. So, what do the pair of you say? It'd certainly be very helpful and I'm sure something beneficial could come of it," Slughorn withdrew too small vials of a liquid unknown from his coat pocket, and from the look on Elaine's face, the item was very worth it.

"I would be very pleased to work with you in teaching the younger students, Horace," Elaine said with a smile and raising of her glass.

Harry hadn't wanted to, but if Elaine would do so, he needed to as well - even if they taught different classes, he couldn't allow her to build followers from those of younger age groups without doing the same. If he did, she would only grow stronger while he kept working towards the same few people he currently was; Aster, Corene, Reinhard, Sarah, Marcus and Veronica.

"I'd be honoured sir, so long as you can help me with extra lessons," Harry said, his lack of potions expertise a clear limiting factor should he take on the assistant position.

"I can do that," Elaine said, leaning in to place a peck near his ear, it was then she whispered something more, "My sweet boy."

"Wonderful! Now that's settled, why don't we get to taking that group photo?" Slughorn heaved himself up from his seat and called loudly to the guests he deemed important enough for a photo.

Ten minutes later, and after that one was taken, Slughorn had one taken with only his favourite pair of students; Elaine and Harry.

Her parting words following that were very… intriguing and most assuredly worrying.

'I can't wait for Hogsmeade, Harry, we'll have a lovely day - you'll have the time of your life.'