Echoes of Time (Harry Potter)

November 14, 1943

Saturday Morning

Once he'd arrived and Sarah had finished the current topic at hand, she'd told her friends to go about the day without her on account of prior obligations. Reluctantly, the girls she'd been spending time with did as instructed and made their way from the centre table where they'd been sitting, bidding goodbyes to Harry and Sarah both - some more flirtatiously than others.

He'd not had a chance to say anything from his newly taken seat before Sarah questioned him about Yule, asking, "Would you have any range of preferred items, Harry? They need not be nature-based, we're not that purist."

Harry laughed when she did, assuming the joke was funnier to those who celebrated the holiday than those who only knew of it.

"Anything's fine that you get for me, though I'll ask the same question; is there anything you'd prefer to get over Yule?"

Sarah tutted at him, "You certainly have a preference… but don't worry, I won't press you for it. I'll ask your friends instead," she smirked at him and stuck out her tongue, "As for my preferences? I've always found having the nicest Yule tree to be very rewarding."

"For your family?" Harry wasn't sure if the girl meant a personal tree, or one for her family… he didn't recall hearing Yule involved bringing a tree in your house to decorate as Christmas did.

"No, our family tree is just outside the main entrance to our home; my parents have my siblings and I each decorate our own tree for Yule, the one with the most effort while remaining respectful earns a special treat on the final day of celebrations," Sarah looked at him strangely, "It probably escaped my mind, but I'd forgotten to ask; you don't mind dancing bared to the elements around a candle-lit Yule Altar, right?"

Harry sputtered in response, though it only lasted seconds, for that was all the time in which Sarah could keep her laughter in.

Sighing, Harry watched the giggling girl and rolled his eyes, "Yeah yeah, you had me."

His resignation only made her giggling continue all the longer, only finally ending when a sharp glance from the librarian was sent towards the two of them. Even then, Sarah still had little bouts of laughs while wiping at her eyes.

"Don't worry Harry, we don't stick to the oldest of traditions as some of the hardline families do," Sarah used her eyes to point towards a set of girls in the far corner of the library - he'd not spoken with the two Ravenclaw witches she'd gestured towards, but he imagined it was her way of pointing out who did celebrate in the oldest of ways, "If you'd like I could tell you about my families, as well as most others in our political block, traditions in regards to Yule celebrations."

Harry briefly debated accepting the offer, but he decided against it; as much as he wanted to learn more about the old-style nature celebration where people meditated and lit candles, learning about politics as well as the people made prominent from them was more important.

"I'll have to take you up on that some time, but I was thinking about something different to discuss with you if that's alright?" He didn't want Sarah to assume he was brushing off something that seemed important to her or her family, the girl had already been more than graceful when picking up their friendship after almost a month with very limited interactions earlier on in the year.

"Of course, Harry! Whatever you'd like to speak with me about - well, almost whatever you'd like!" Sarah backtracked immediately, though her smile hadn't faltered.

"I was hoping I could learn a bit more about some of our peers from you, it doesn't need to be anything personal, just enough that won't always have me on the back foot in discussions," Harry needed to know who was dark and light; grey could be useful too, but more importantly he needed to know who Riddle's prime targets would be, both for recruitment and removal.

"Ah, finally getting more into politics then? My parents will be extremely pleased to speak with you about any subject upon your visit!" Sarah's words brought her parents' letters to the forefront of his mind; they'd shown an intense curiosity with where he fell on the political spectrum, some of their questions bordering on too personal.

"We'll see about politics, really it's just so I can know more about some of my housemates as well as some other peers of ours that I've spoken with recently," Harry figured he could play on her friendliness and met her wide smile with one of his own, "I'd not want to accidentally insult anyone based on their beliefs, especially with how new I still am; could you imagine what my parents would say if they learned I'd started a feud?"

Sarah laughed and patted the back of his outstretched hand, "In fact, I could! It happened with one of our cousins a few years back; he spouted something off about Christmas and one of the light families had overheard him… thankfully my father had been close by," Sarah made a sour face for all of a few seconds before it once more returned to her friendly visage, "I'll help you with whoever you'd like to learn about so long as it isn't anything too personal, a girl has to keep her trade secrets just that, after all."

Harry beamed at her.

"Thank you, Sarah."

She winked at him and leaned forward, resting her head on an arm that itself was resting on the table.

"Who're we starting with? Walburga maybe? Our Head Girl, Daphne?"

He shook his head in the negative, then paused and cocked it to one side in an imitation of one of Riddle's favourite mannerisms.

"Err, all of them?"

Sarah looked confused, "Walburga and Daphne's families instead of just the two of them?"

Harry shook his head, "All of the one's in Riddle's group, Marcus' too if it isn't too much to ask."

Sarah's eyebrows shot upward, and a second later, her head almost slipped from her hand holding it up.

"I hope you planned on spending the weekend solely with me then!" her head then snapped in the direction of the librarian, and wincing at the loudness she'd just used, Sarah apologized to the older woman.

Harry held in his laughter when he responded.

"Close, I planned on spending a great deal of today with you so long as you don't mind doing that."

"No, that'll be fine - it'll give me a chance to see you past mealtime or the minor conversations we have in the halls and classrooms."

Feeling a mixture of awkward and apologetic, Harry made to express regret with the lack of time they'd had with one another in recent times. Sarah quickly brushed it aside and assured him that she understood, at least he'd gotten swarmed a month or so after his reintroduction rather than his first week back.

After her saying that and Harry apologising regardless of what his friend said, she asked who he wished to start with; reminding him that while she'd help, she wouldn't share anything that could be used against anyone.

Harry had many options to choose from.

There were the obvious ones like Aster, Daphne, Reinhard or Yaxley, the former most one especially was important considering the closeness they shared and his disregarding of Elaine's warning. Truthfully speaking, Harry only knew of the boy's parents' extreme disliking of anything Muggle and his fondness for travel; well, if you discounted his obsession with Wizarding Chess.

Corene wouldn't be a horrible choice, nor would Marcus or Veronica.

Abraxas and Walburga he ruled out, for the time being, considering that she'd not share anything too personal and everything he wanted to know about the pair was just that… maybe he could pay her? Better not though, considering what he'd said earlier on.

"Marcus… I know I'd mentioned housemates of mine initially, but I'm very curious about Marcus, he's not what I'd have expected after hearing tales in the common room," Harry truthfully heard very little about Marcus from his fellow Slytherins, but it wasn't as if he could say 'Marcus? Yeah, he's my relative from a few generations before myself, would be great getting to know why he hadn't visited when I was rotting under a staircase'.

"I suppose I could tell you a bit about him," Sarah acquiesced, "Marcus' father is Lord Potter, though you can probably guess by now that he isn't the Heir - his brother, Fleamont, takes that mantle. His politics are aligned firmly with the well-established stances of House Potter, as are his brothers, once you'll learn about them you can be sure they won't change with his generation. Marcus' hobbies are Riddle-watching, studying ward schemes and trying to knock his brother from his broom when he continuously flies around his balcony at Potter Manor. I'll include that he's far more spoiled than Fleamont is, hence the occasional attitude you'll receive; don't take it personally when it happens."

That wasn't a poor start at all, Harry hadn't suspected she'd be so willing to speak about somebody close to her with personal information as she had.

"I didn't know he had a brother… or that he liked ward schemes," Harry figured either Marcus or his brother would've ended up being his grandfather, he just didn't know which. Regardless of which it'd been, it still didn't explain their absence during his life unless something horrible had occurred.

Sarah shrugged, "Fleamont and Marcus argue a lot, Fleamont moved out of Potter Manor once he'd graduated to partially solve that issue - the whole family has a stressed relationship, extended included, if I'm honest with you."

"I thought you weren't going to be telling me anything too personal?" Harry didn't want to offend her, but he also didn't want to offend Marcus by knowing more than he should about his private life.

"Pfft, that's not personal, it's public knowledge," Sarah then continued on, but her voice faded when his attention shifted to two familiar girls entering in; Daphne and Ophelia.

Ophelia noticed him before Daphne, her expression going from bored to sly as she nudged the girl beside her and directed her attention towards him. It'd happened so fast that he hadn't even had the chance to silently plead for her silence.

When Daphne glanced in his direction and saw who he was seated with, alone, she sneered and shook her head - he had no doubt Riddle would be hearing about this later, and because of that, he'd likely have his meeting with Sarah cut short. Why his 'family' couldn't leave his matters well enough alone was beyond him, as Daphne had only mentioned that he was 'playing' Riddle.

"Harry, it's very rude to get distracted by two witches when you're already sitting with one," Sarah sounded peeved, her words joined by a persistent prodding at his face.

Turning his attention back to the Goldhorn girl, he smiled.

"Sorry, I was just… sorry," he didn't want to say that Daphne had caused him trouble again, the word game the two girls had engaged in before had been threatening enough.

Sarah huffed and looked past him, "If our Head Girl bugs you any more than she already has, do feel free to let me know - I'll handle her for you," he nodded at her words and she raised her chin at his confirmation, "Back to what I was saying then; personal information would be discussing the sordid details of Marcus and Veronica's exploits when the-"

Harry's eyes opened wide as he rushed to shush the girl.

Hearing it explained what others got up to in their private time was awkward enough, throw in the fact that it was an as of yet unknown relative to Harry and with a family that he considered… family, it made him sick.

Sarah giggled at the blush on his face and the attempts he made to have her quiet down.

"My, you're squeamish when it comes to romance, aren't you?"

"Yes! No! Not really? You just caught me off guard… is that true?" Harry's response was as jumbled as his brain was.

Looking as if she'd break into more laughter if she spoke, Sarah shook her head 'no' as her face blushed and a tear rolled down her eye.

Good that, Harry said inwardly, some information simply wasn't needed when pursuing allies.

"There's not too much else to say about Marcus, he's one of the most boring people I know - should I continue with Veronica since she's already come up?" Sarah finished after catching her composure, and when Harry nodded at her suggestion, she switched to the Weasley girl, "Veronica has one sibling and a few cousins across varying branches, most have already graduated from Hogwarts, including her brother Septimus. Last I recall, she was being courted by Wilber Longbottom - you've seen him from time to time in our group - and another boy from Hufflepuff, Simon Chestersin. Septimus is already married to Cedrella Black too," she stopped when Harry looked ready to ask a question.

"Simon Chestersin?" Harry hadn't heard of the bloke, and while he wasn't Elaine, he liked to think he'd at least recognise the name.

"He graduated last year, three years ahead of us; Halfblood that came across a fortune from his mother, she was the last of a line," Sarah looked a bit put out when she'd said that, Harry assumed she'd known the mother or seen the fall of the family in her lifetime.

"Ah, alright, thanks."

Sarah smiled and picked up from where she'd left off, "Moving on from their romantic lives, Veronica's family is firmly entrenched with the light side in which Professor Dumbledore is a prominent figure; a lot of other people consider him too off, mostly those you'd classify as 'dark' or somewhere in between the two. Aside from that, her family is moderately wealthy - thought that's begun to decline as of lately - and relatively inactive in political matters unless they're needed to push forward a motion. I will say with a somewhat biased opinion that her family is one of the kindest in all of Britain, even if they don't keep to the old ways."

Harry smiled when thinking that the Weasley's were as kind as they were during his time; he supposed that was something that was passed down from generation to generation and rightfully so. It'd certainly earned them a position in his heart with all the times they'd allowed him over and provided some manner of aid for him.

Sarah's disliking of Dumbledore was something that stuck out to him, she'd said his name with the same infliction before and it made him wonder if there was something more to it than simply disliking a Professor. He wouldn't ask though, especially not now when she was helping him learn about people who were so prominent in his new time at Hogwarts.

Figuring he'd lighten the mood considering her earlier remark towards the two girls near them in the library that did keep to the 'old ways', Harry nudged Sarah with a smirk on his face.

Her questioning look was met with him nodding in the two aforementioned girls' direction before looking back at Sarah, "Aren't they the ones who keep to the oldest ways?"

Sarah rolled her eyes and flicked his nose, "Don't try and poke holes in my disliking of Christmas you dolt."

Harry rubbed at his nose while leaning away from her, "That was wholly unnecessary."

They both laughed and Sarah finally made the decision to move them towards the backmost portion of the room; it was the furthest away from the grouchy librarian who'd begun getting up from her seat behind the counter.

"This is more enjoyable than I'd have thought - who's next on your list of persons? Your girlfriend Elaine maybe?" Sarah stuck out her tongue when Harry simply tilted his head at her second question.

"I'm sure I wouldn't need to ask anybody besides her, she's always shown a willingness to answer any question I have, very in-depth too," Elaine was a masterful instructor with Ancient Runes and Arithmancy, as well as the occasional question he'd have when going off-topic. It was incredibly intimidating whenever he thought deeper about his circumstances; most importantly the fact that he had to beat her if the world was to be saved from future massacres.

"Oh?" Sarah looked around to see if anybody was nearby, and Harry took that chance to use the first spell he'd learned from Slytherin's private journal, 'Ne audirent'. He spoke the incantation quietly while jabbing his wand in the direction of Sarah under the table, the girl too caught up in looking around to pay attention to someone she'd called a friend.

She turned to face him a second after he'd said the words under his breath, "What was that, Harry?"

He looked at her questioningly; had the spell done something other than what its intended usage was? Did Slytherin's journal lie to him with the very first spell in whi-

"I didn't hear what you'd said, could you repeat it?" Sarah shrugged sheepishly when his eyes refocused on her, "Sorry!"

Smiling at her for more than one reason, he responded.

"No problem, I was saying that Elaine's always been very forward with most anything."

Sarah scoffed, "Maybe to you she has been, I can barely get anything informative from her! It makes gossip impossibly hard!"

Harry snickered at Sarah's actual frustration over something that seemed so unimportant, but then again, her whole gimmick was charging her peers for the wealth of knowledge within her head.

"You just have to spend more time around her, I'm sure she'll eventually speak more openly once you do," Getting her 'interested' in you would help too, but I can't help you with that; truth be told Harry still didn't understand why she'd spent as much time near him as possible even still. Her usage of the word 'interest' only made his mind run wild with trashy romance novels he'd spotted Hermione or other girls reading in their earlier years.

"As if," Sarah replied off-handedly, "Still, who's next?"

"Yaxley?" Harry hadn't learned all that much about his dormmate, in fact, their only interactions were usually pleasantries or warnings about Elaine.

"Cliff's as good a choice as any, though I'd say he's beside Daphne in terms of secrecy," Sarah looked thoughtful at her comparison while Harry knew immediately where he'd go next; that information he'd learned about Daphne's family while with Corene only pushed him harder.

"Say, Sarah, could I ask what you'd charge to tell me as much about House Yaxley as you know?" Harry wouldn't pay some exorbitant amount unless it was worth it, which created a paradox, considering he'd not hear the information unless he'd already paid for it… unless Sarah would make an exception for a friend.

Sarah eyed him with a teasing smile, "He's the one you're willing to spend Galleons on? Didn't you say you wouldn't be doing this earlier too?"

"I did say that, didn't I?" Harry shrugged with his question, smirking lazily as he leaned backwards in his seat while winking at the Hufflepuff girl.

"Don't try playing sly with me, Harry Peverell - I'll not be getting a visit from Elaine because of your playfulness being seen or heard," Sarah's words sounded serious, but her face still looked teasing; she was right though, it didn't take a Professor to realise how possessive Elaine was.

Harry went back to the position he'd been in before and rolled his neck around, cracking it much to the visual displeasure of Sarah.

"Would that be fine though? I totally understand if not, I'm just curious what the deal with him is considering how short he's been recently," He felt horrible for lying straight to Sarah's face, that feeling only deepened when she looked sympathetic to his cause - it meant he'd pulled off the lie to a person he considered towards the top of his new friends.

"I suppose I could try and recall what I know about Cliff, but only him. Usually, I'd speak with my parents or bring a journal with information that's pertaining to the person requested."

Harry, trying to move on from the negative feeling that'd taken hold, attempted a moment of light-heartedness.

"Don't have one on me do you?"

Sarah made an awkward face at his playful question, "Uh… of course not?"

"You do!" Harry couldn't believe it!

He also didn't blame her; he was Heir Peverell after all.

"Yaxley then! I'll throw up a spell around us, I'm not the greatest with it though - ten Galleons too, I promise it's worth it," Sarah hastily changed the topic to the one that he'd wanted, tapping a spot on the table when she'd said the amount.

Harry grabbed the Gringotts pouch that connected directly to his bank and withdrew the amount, sliding it across to Sarah who winked at him when collecting it. Why'd he have it on his person? Foresight was the easier answer, it was also only partially true. In whole, he knew nobody unrelated could make withdrawals using the pouch attuned to House Peverell, he also knew magic was magic and he didn't trust the unknown, of which there was far too much.

"Splendid!" Sarah clasped her hands together as her face scrunched up, very visually deep in thought, "Yaxley has one half-sister, Madison Yaxley; his mother died during childbirth and a few years later, his father met with the current Lady Yaxley. Other than Lord Yaxley and Cliff's sister, the only other Yaxley's left in Britain is his uncle's family - it's not very big either, they only had one child before stopping for an unknown reason,"

Harry spoke when she'd paused for a breath.

"I've never heard him mention his sister or his parents, is he just that private or…"

Sarah picked up from his trailing off, "I've never heard anything other than unconfirmed rumours suggesting any sort of bad relations within the Yaxley household. That isn't to say they don't have their fair share of problems as every family does," Sarah paused and looked to her right, Harry trailing after her to see a vaguely familiar pair of faces wearing the colours from his own house, "Prewett boys, they never know when enough's enough."

Had he missed something?

"What?"

She shook her head, "You'll see before we leave, now back to what you'd paid for; Yaxley's family keeps to themselves even with houses that have been aligned with them for decades. While I can't say much about their reasons, I can say that they adhere to more than a few of the 'oldest' ways as you'd called it earlier," Harry was hoping she'd stop so he could ask her to elaborate, but he needn't worry about that, "They'd had a case dropped on the Wizengamot floor due to tampered evidence by the DMLE - involved a few muggles, an altar and a goblin-made dagger; no that isn't a poorly told joke either."

Harry swallowed at the implications, the gesture not going unnoticed by Sarah though she continued with more information.

"Apart from their allegedly brutal family traditions, most recently House Yaxley - almost solely Cliff - gave Elaine a small home for her setting of Hogwarts records with her OWL examinations. Abraxas, Daphne and the others provided a large sum of galleons for renovations, as well as some sort of compensation, though not nearly enough to cover the cost of a whole home."

That confused Harry to a major extent.

Why would a boy who'd so adamantly warned him away from Elaine, provide for her a building where she could be far away from public purview?

"Is the reason you told me the widely accepted one, or the one known for certain?"

Sarah smiled at him, "That's a great question Harry, and truthfully, I've seen enough for arguments to be made in either direction. Anyhow, I'll tell you the last thing of note with confirmation on it; Yaxley's changed drastically from the boy he'd been upon during his first year. I don't mean his looks before you ask that question, I mean his personality and general way of thinking - it's gotten darker ever since his group changed from that of the Quidditch team to that of Elaine's circle."

Harry noticed the careful way she'd said that along with the expectant look on her face, she likely imagined he'd rebuke her for implicating Elaine. Little did she know that her implication was entirely spot on, or at least he assumed it was considering who he knew Elaine to be. Still, Harry didn't know exactly what the boy had been like before and figured based on the reminiscent tone of Sarah, she did.

"What changed, er, rather how'd it change?"

Sarah sighed and began tapping the table, "You've seen what most of your housemates are like, right?"

He nodded in response; they were all careful with what they'd say, formal to the point of being bothersome and politically-minded more than people his age should be regardless of the climate.

"Good - have you seen the differences in the Quidditch players?"

Harry shook his head to indicate 'no' after a moment's hesitation, he'd only heard much about them during the first week or so at Hogwarts. If his memory wasn't betraying him as it still seemed to be in regards to that meeting with the being, Harry swore Yaxley had discussed it with him. Should that be true though, what would the point of Sarah's asking about the Slytherin team be?

Sarah watched Harry as he'd descended into thought and only got his attention back by way of waving her hand a few inches from his eyes.

"Thinking that deeply means you did notice something, you've just not realised it."

Well that's wonderfully cryptic, isn't it? Harry fought the urge to scoff and dove back into his memories, hoping to come upon anything that reminded him of the Quidditch players; but the more he tried, the more he'd failed.

They were never found lounging around the Common Room until late at night when most of their housemates were off to bed, and even then they'd keep to themselves. Riddle's group had Yaxley that played, Walburga's had nobody that he knew of, and all the splinter groups in between didn't seem to have any of them either… how in the bloody hell was he supposed to know so- it cliqued.

"How do you know they keep to themselves?" Harry supposed it wasn't obvious to see it in public, but learning of it in private was a whole nother thing considering the secrecy and house solidarity that Slytherin had.

Sticking her tongue out at Harry, Sarah's response was something he'd not expected.

"My grandmother, one of my uncles and two of my aunts were all Slytherin's, I even have a cousin who visits every summer holiday who's in your house. You've probably met her - Florence Bertrand, she's in her sixth year."

Harry recognised the name, the girl was one of the two he'd met with Ophelia Greengrass shortly after Riddle allowed the rest of the house to communicate with him.

"Yeah, I've talked with her once before… you're her cousin?" Harry hadn't meant to be rude, it was just that neither girl looked anything alike and he'd never seen them so much as glance at one another.

Sarah nodded enthusiastically and chirped a "Yup," before furrowing her brows cutely and flicking his nose, "Stop getting us off topic and let me finish up about Yaxley!" Harry raised his hands and in response, Sarah narrowed her eyes, but continued, "I had drawn attention to the Slytherin Quidditch team thinking you'd already known about their neutrality, disinterest or disliking of politics, and other actions closely related. Yaxley, like all potential Quidditch players with friends on the team, was much the same. From his sorting into Slytherin up to the ending of his third year, he'd been as equally content as any of them to avoid anything that could potentially draw him into house conflicts - if, on the off chance any member of the team was targeted, their mates would seek retribution in a more ruthless way than other groups, considering they didn't care all that much for 'alliances' or 'the game'."

Taking a pause to breathe and think, Sarah motioned for him to speak when he'd raised his hand as if he'd been in a classroom.

"That's more than I'd thought they'd do, it makes sense too, it's just… Yaxley seems to get along well with the crowd that you'd make it sound like he disliked."

"From all appearances, he's fully integrated with both Elaine's and the Quidditch players - certainly makes for a problem if you provoked him, huh?" Sarah jested while once more looking off towards the area the Prewett twins were in.

"Yeah, I could see the trouble," Harry chuckled, "You said his personality changed too; I take that to mean more than his circle of friends and a potential political stance reversal?"

"While the reversal is stranger simply due to it being so rare, yes, he'd changed from a less-biased and more care-free individual to a person of weariness, bigotry and other traits most often seen in your house; unfortunate as it is," Sarah shook her head disappointedly before looking him in the eyes, "If only all us magicals could get along; I imagine your family could tell some grand tales back when our kind didn't need to hide."

Harry nodded along with her, "I'm sure you'd find a lot of interesting stories in the Peverell library," I'm sure I could too.

Sarah's eyes gleamed with interest as the girl leaned forward in her seat, "Maybe one day you'll let me visit? We could compare familial libraries if that'd interest you - though I'm sure a house as revered and old as your own will dwarf mine in comparison."

Taking a page out of her book, Harry narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "You'd have to promise never to reveal any of what you see, the question is, could you do that?"

Nodding emphatically, Sarah responded with a 'yes' while at the furthest most edge of her seat.

Harry's response? He copied her again and stuck out his tongue, not at all believing a girl who made trades involving knowledge would turn down the potential fortune for diming on him.

"You're lucky I don't have my wand out either - taking my tongue thing, the nerve of you!"

He laughed in response, "I thought I pulled it off rather well."

Sarah made a 'humph' like sound and crossed her arms, "I'm far cuter when I do it, believe me, I've looked in the mirror while I was practising it."

Harry gave a fully bellied laugh in response to her words with Sarah joining in a second after, his infectious laughter the reason for her joining.

With how light the conversation had gotten, Harry assumed they were done with the seriousness, but Sarah surprised him again.

"I'm surprised you hadn't spent galleons on Abraxas instead; Daphne wouldn't have been a bad idea either, Merlin knows I'd give you a discount if it meant you'd act against the bint," Sarah's eyes fluttered about their surroundings as if she'd only just realised who she'd put down in so public an area. Harry probably could've told her about the spell he'd used earlier too, but her nerves were amusing to him. Once she'd finished her cursory glance around the room and came to the conclusion she'd not been overheard, she finished her thoughts. "Even Aster, Corene or that other larger boy - Reinhard I think his name is - would've been people I'd expect you to ask about."

He shrugged in response, "I'd thought about it, but honestly, I spend so much time with them that I'm sure I'll eventually learn more as time progresses. I suppose I was more worried about Marcus and Veronica, though I think I'd missed something I was meaning to ask you."

Cocking her head curiously, Sarah gave him the go-ahead to ask what he'd not.

Smiling at her manners, Harry spoke, "I wanted to see who you'd suggest getting to know," seeing her confusion at being asked such a question, he elaborated, "Truthfully speaking, I consider you one of my best friends even if the time I spend with you isn't as high as I'd like it to be. You've been welcoming, helpful, kind, so much so of that last quality that you've invited me for a few days over Yule so I can experience what it's like with such a large family," he knew he laid it on thick, and while he meant it, he'd hoped flattery would work enough for legitimate aid.

It did.

Sarah looked around the room as she'd done when worried about Daphne, and once again confirming nobody was near them in the corner chosen, darted around to hug him. Her hugs were altogether more enjoyable than the Weasley Matriarch's; they were less squeezing and more intimate, though not in a sexual way.

Sarah's cooing all sorts of words in his ears while wrapped around him only raised his enjoyment, and it was at this moment he'd realised he felt a more familial bond towards her rather than anything romantic - in some ways, she reminded him of Hermione.

When they finally broke apart and Sarah back off enough that looking directly at her didn't have their lips almost touching, she told him she'd help him at no cost other than his time… maybe an occasional Hogsmeade trip too.

Maybe the Hogsmeade trip would be a bit rough, but the list she'd promised to provide of people 'worth Heir Peverell's time' would be very beneficial.

November 14, 1943

Saturday Evening

"Harry Peverell, my dear boy! Welcome, welcome, do come on in!" Professeur Slughorn greeted him as soon as he'd made it around the corner of the hall - the entrance to his room being only a dozen feet or so away.

"Good evening, Professeur," Harry dipped his head respectfully in return as the older man ushered him inside where roughly half of the expectant invitees - Elaine included - were seated or standing; he'd overheard as much when the Professeur asked one of the two boys at the door.

"Good evening indeed!" Slughorn returned to Harry before turning to his right and calling to a younger boy in a suit, "Take Heir Peverell to his seat lad, he's beside our lovely Miss Riddle for this evening."

Harry rolled his eyes at the revelation of his seat, likely knowing it was another of Riddle's machinations considering the man seemed so invested in her. Nonetheless, he let the younger boy with a patchy face and shaggy blonde hair escort him over to his chair, learning during that time he was a fourth-year from Hufflepuff named Astin.

Elaine smirked when she saw him coming towards her seat, and once he arrived, looked up at him with that dazzlingly beautiful smile she kept hidden a majority of the time.

"Hello oh boyfriend of mine."

Sighing at the attention she garnered from those words, Harry returned a much simpler greeting.

"Hi Elaine, you look as great as always," he'd said that more so to avoid a moment if she'd risk starting one over a dissatisfying answer, but it wasn't false; simply put she looked beautiful no matter what she wore, but that fact was only accentuated when put in any degree of effort.

He took his seat after saying that, and once he had, Elaine leaned over to kiss him softly on the cheek.

"That flattery was wonderful - you look ever so handsome this evening too."

Harry felt his cheeks colour when she said that, but rather than look away due to embarrassment he kept up the eye contact she'd initiated. He'd already shown more than enough subservience earlier on in his getting to know her, and considering her romantic interest in him, he felt more than safe enough to put an end to it.

"Thank you, I'm glad you approve," Harry expected a snort or some other manner of action in which his words would be taken out of context, but he'd forgotten the only person likely to do so had been removed from the guest list; Walburga hadn't been very smart when she'd finally stepped away from Elaine's group had she?

"Oh I'll always approve of your dressing up," Elaine ran her hand from his shoulder all the way down to his hand, grasping it when she got to it, "Shall we dance, drink or speak with some of the guests?"

Elaine was deferring to him… while seated at a table with others nearby?

Looking at her oddly, Harry shrugged his shoulders, "Isn't there some form of plan to follow for the evening?" Harry imagined that other than tonight being a 'right corker' as Marcus had said, Professeur Slughorn would have some sort of schedule for them.

"Not this time, I believe the Professor wished to make amends for such inactivity in recent times by allowing us to do as we please in an environment with only the best in attendance," Elaine's eyes roamed around the room for a few seconds before settling back on him, her face then slid into a smirk as she lifted her nose, "I stand corrected - almost nothing but the best. There are some here who shouldn't be, though I suppose as a Professeur he can't discriminate too much lest he gets called out for it."

Harry hadn't caught the specific people she'd looked at, but he still smiled awkwardly at her words and tried to push the subject along, "Right, let's drink some-" he looked to the table and saw an assortment of fine wines, no butterbeer or hard alcohols were present, "Duais Cuantail?"

Elaine's wide smile and shaking of her head told Harry all he needed to know in regards to his attempt at the pronunciation. Still, she motioned towards one of the student-servants to pour it for them and while the boy went about doing that, she asked him a question that he knew was for show.

"I think I'd like to spend our next Hogsmeade trip alone, perhaps make a weekend of it rather than one day," she twirled a finger in her long, brown hair, "We could plan a good portion of it out during our next study session tomorrow, or the day after; anytime works so long as you don't delay it too often."

"We could do that," Harry answered the first half of what she'd said, thanking the boy when he'd then interrupted by placing the two glasses in front of them and asking if that'd be all. After saying yes and motioning for the boy to make his exit on account of Elaine's stare for his lack of manners, Harry responded to the latter half of her speaking, "I won't cause any delay. If anything, it'd be waiting for you considering how busy you so often are."

Elaine waved away his concern while taking a sip of her wine, responding once she'd swallowed and swiped her lips to gather the remnants, "You should know by now that I'd make time for you whenever requested."

"Hear that, Wilber?" Veronica Weasley's voice, filled with displeasure, said from further down the table - Harry double-checked to ensure he wasn't hearing things considering her lack of an invite.

"Yes," Wilber Longbottom, the boy Sarah had told him was attempting to court the Weasley girl, responded.

Harry looked back towards Elaine to see if she found it as amusing as he did, her slight sneer told him the answer was a resounding no.

"Here," was all Harry said as he withdrew his wand, "I'll tak-"

Elaine's wand was in her hand faster than he could comprehend, the girl already looking smugly at him before he could finish what he'd been saying.

"It's taken care of," her eyes still looked past Harry with a sharpness meant for the two who'd been listening in, "Listening in on a conversation so unimportant - no manners these days."

"You're fast with your wand," he quipped, only partially having meant to say it aloud.

Elaine brought her eyes back to his, "I could teach you," she swiped her tongue again, only this time there weren't any stray traces of wine on them, "or show you…"

Harry could swear her eyes got darker as her words and actions entranced two very specific portions of his body. It was moments like these where the duality within himself was most obvious; one half wanting to take the girl he'd inadvertently started a relationship with to the closest broom cupboard for exploration while the other wouldn't let him forget the atrocities still to come if he didn't stop them.

But, for a change, it was the former that one this time around.

Harry had slowly begun warming up to the idea that she wasn't Voldemort… at least not yet, and hopefully, not ever. Maybe he could thwart any further violence and make her stick to political means if not altogether killing her ambitions or her . Very quickly Harry shook his head as the more sinister part of him added on something he desperately didn't wish to think about.

Smiling at the beautiful, dangerous woman in front of him, Harry nodded once, "I think I'd like to take you up on that."

Surprise was openly visible on Elaine's face for a split-second at the most, but that brief moment of catching her off guard was the largest victory he could've felt - it meant she wasn't perfect as she so often seemed.

Inhaling deeply at his words, Elaine looked even happier than when he'd complimented her only moments earlier.

"Every day I think my interest in you only grows, especially in moments like these," she exhaled, standing up from her seat after doing so, "Finish your drink if you'd like, I have some particular guests in mind that'd be very pleased with meeting you," her eyes instantly went towards an older man with a great big moustache as she waited for Harry to act.

Shrugging and figuring he'd need the added courage the alcohol would provide, Harry downed the glass of incredibly sweet-tasting wine before getting up beside his slight- Elaine was taller than usual. Looking down, he spotted her shoes were the culprit, adding another couple inches to her already taller than his height.

It didn't bother him too much considering there was an age gap, but still, Aster or blokes like him would probably poke fun for no other reason than hoping to find something that got to him.

"Alright, Elaine," he slid his arm through her waiting one, Elaine using that as an excuse to push herself ever closer to Harry - not that he minded - while he followed his statement up with a question, "Who're we speaking to?"

"Who're we speaking to first, is the correct question, my darling," Elaine ran a soft hand down his cheek as she corrected him, "And the answer to that is not a single one of the other students in attendance, as I hope you concluded as soon as you walked in."

Harry truthfully had assumed as much once he'd seen all the older witches and wizards in attendance; all of them wearing astronomically expensive clothing and jewellery if his eyes didn't betray him.

Elaine moved them a little ways away from the table where a decent portion of the guests had been sitting before finally answering his question, "Who we'll be speaking with first is the Minister's main advisor, Brian Joffre, he's the man I'd pointed out to you earlier for reference. His political power is unmatched by any save the Minister himself, and luckily for you, he's quite keen on meeting the Heir to House Peverell. In addition to him, we'll be speaking with a famed Spellcrafter by the name of Anna Colchester-Woodbury, a witch who's credited with creating twenty-two spells during her long life and the current Chief Warlock, Lochlann Treasach."

"Do you plan on us just walking up to them, or have you already been planning this for some time?" Harry didn't quite understand how she could declare that they'd be speaking with three such prominent members of society unless his latter guess was right; it wouldn't be too surprising if it were.

"Please, as amusing and simple as it'd be to walk up to them for a discussion, we'll not ever be doing something so informal," Elaine sniffed, holding her nose high, "I've had these discussions planned for some time, even the room in which we'll be speaking with the three of them was carefully decorated and stocked for the occasion."

"You didn't tell me any of this in advance why?" Harry felt annoyed at her lack of inclusion considering she'd planned on bringing him along for these discussions, especially ones with such important people that the Professeur had undoubtedly pulled strings to set up.

Elaine cocked her head at him and faked a pout, "I'm sorry, boyfriend, " she'd said it in such a way that made him cringe, considering he'd done exactly what he'd just complained about, "I didn't think it prudent to tell you considering I've not planned too extensively over topics of conversation, truthfully speaking I'm still not sure how much time we'll have with them considering just who they are."

Harry rolled his eyes; she was obviously lying so he'd not feel too angry with her.

"Sure, when are we supposed to be speaking with Mister Joffre?"

Elaine cast her eyes over to a large, ornate clock that took up almost a three by three-foot space towards the centre of the room's ceiling.

"In three minutes is when he'll be entering into our meeting room," she pulled on his arm, almost causing him to trip as she started hustling the two of them towards the back-right corner of the room where a curtain hid what was behind it, "We'll be arriving first and placing our wands with the Aurors standing outside the entrance."

"Why would Aurors be at Hogwarts? They can't possibly think anyone would try anything."

Elaine tutted at him and called him naive while continuing their quick movement through the curtain where a small hallway had been tucked away, that hallway containing entrances to seven rooms with the one furthest in the back having two large men standing out front of it.

Without a care in the world, nor having paused in their walking, Elaine dragged Harry with her until they were standing directly in front of the two Aurors.

"We're here for a meeting with Advisor to the Minister, Joffre," she followed it up by holding out her wand without a hint of reluctance, the move being odd to him considering how important most treated it.

"You too lad, we'll be needing your wand," the man that spoke had a gravelly voice and ignored Elaine entirely in favour of looking at Harry, his wand already in his hand while he waited for Harry's action.

Only a second's hesitation was had on Harry's part - he handed his wand over, the men gave them an obligatory warning and with a cursory check, motioned them inwards.

Harry wouldn't be exaggerating when he said the room they'd entered could quite possibly be the fanciest thing he'd ever seen.

"Marvelous, isn't it?" Elaine questioned him as she strolled in without a care, making her way over to a small loveseat rather than the larger couch near it.

"Yes, it's certainly something," Harry agreed as he followed her lead towards a comfortable chair beside her.

"None of that now, darling," Elaine said as she hooked him around the waist when he made to pass her, pulling him down beside her and going in for a lengthy kiss once she'd secured her prize.

"What if he'd have walked in?" Harry sputtered when she'd released him, his cheeks incredibly red while she looked more than pleased with what they'd just done.

Elaine shrugged in response with a satisfied smirk on her face as the door opened.