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<div class="chap-title">
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38. Chapter 38
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</div>
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<div class="chap-text">
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<p><em>You guys have been ace at reviewing this week! What was I even worried about?
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Your reviews truly made my Christmas all the merrier. Thank you so much for that. And
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to the guests whom I can't reply to: I truly appreciate your comments as well. A big
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thank you to you as well.</em></p>
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<hr size="1" noshade="noshade"/>
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<p class='c1'><strong>Chapter 38</strong></p>
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<p class='c1'><em>Career day</em>.</p>
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<p>Harry sighed as he stood in front of the door that would lead to McGonagall's
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office. Chairs lined the walls on either side of the door. Some were occupied with
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students waiting their turn but most were empty. Harry didn't exactly want to sit
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down. He was more of a pacer. And sure, it might bug some people out of their
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stress-induced daze but Harry could care less.</p>
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<p>He glanced at the sign on the door again. Career day. The words did not change no
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matter how many times Harry looked at it and he couldn't help but chuckle. How often
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had he found himself here simply because he had been in trouble or in danger? It felt
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so very unreal to be here for something so very mundane and still feel more stressed
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about it then when he went after the Philosopher's stone in his first year.</p>
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<p>He knew that he was being ridiculous. He had chosen his path already and he was
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following that until he became a Master. But on the other hand, he couldn't help but
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wonder what he should do if Lovegood kept rejecting him. Would he turn to the path of
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an Auror after all? In truth, he didn't want to. He had seen more than his fair share
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of blood and pain and didn't desire any more of that. Professional Quidditch player
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then? Snape might just kill him if he told him that. Harry chuckled to himself,
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earning some glares from the surrounding students. He just rolled his eyes and kept
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pacing when a new applicant walked into the corridor.</p>
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<p>Harry frowned. "Draco?" he asked incredulously. "What are you doing here?"</p>
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<p>Draco looked at him as if he was entirely too stupid. "The same as you,
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dunderhead," he said. "Career day."</p>
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<p>"This is McGonagall's office though," Harry pointed out. "Don't you need to go
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find Snape?"</p>
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<p>Draco smirked. "Oh dear, didn't he tell you?" he asked.</p>
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<p>"Tell me what?" Harry asked in exasperation, not eager to play this game.</p>
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<p>"The heads of houses are teaming up," Draco explained. "Apparently this is a way
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to combat bias.<br/>
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They put Slytherin with Gryffindor and Hufflepuff with Ravenclaw."</p>
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<p>"What a splendid idea," Harry snorted. "Do you think they'll get through this day
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unscathed?"</p>
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<p>"I'm sure they will," Draco said dismissively. "Where are Ron and Hermione?"</p>
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<p>"They're scheduled in two hours," Harry explained. "And unfortunately McGonagall
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made it very clear that no one was to loiter in the hallways until half an hour
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before their scheduled appointment."</p>
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<p>Draco sat down into an empty chair and stretched his limbs, seemingly unbothered
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by being surrounded by Gryffindors.</p>
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<p>"Where are the other Slytherins?" Harry asked.</p>
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<p>"They were all scheduled later," Draco said. "I think they tried creating blocks
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of Slytherins and blocks of Gryffindors just to make sure that we don't hex each
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other's brains out."</p>
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<p>"A nice distracting duel sure would be fun," Harry sighed. Draco merely chuckled
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in response.</p>
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<p>The next thing they knew, the door opened and Dean Thomas came out looking
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surprisingly flustered and laden with a multitude of brochures. He quickly scampered
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out of the way, trying desperately not to drop anything and disappeared out of
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sight.</p>
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<p>"Harry Potter," McGonagall called unnecessarily seeing how Harry stood practically
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in front of her. She nodded at him and walked back inside. Harry followed closely
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behind and with one last glance at Draco – who looked positively bored – he closed
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the door.</p>
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<p>McGonagall appeared to have elongated her desk so it could comfortably fit both
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her and Snape who sat rigidly in his chair. The bored expression on his face matched
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Draco's and Harry couldn't help but snort, disguising it as a cough. Piles and piles
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of pamphlets and booklets lay in heaps behind McGonagall's desk and Harry curiously
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tried to sneak a peak but noticed that the lettering was too small to be legible from
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this distance. McGonagall locked the door magically and cast a silencing spell to
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boot – which Harry thought to be somewhat over the top – before taking her seat next
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to Snape.</p>
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<p>"Welcome Mr Potter," McGonagall said, addressing him formally. "As you are aware,
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Professor Snape and I are here to discuss your future with you."</p>
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<p>Harry nodded and felt a half-grin creep up his lip. "Yeah," he replied, "But I do
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believe that's pretty much taken care of."</p>
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<p>"Is it?" McGonagall asked. "If you don't mind my asking what <em>are</em> your
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plans for the future?"</p>
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<p>Harry blinked stupidly and glanced at Snape before replying. "I'm apprenticing to
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become a Potions Master," he explained. "That's what I'm doing and what I will be
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doing until I reach that goal."</p>
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<p>"That's all well and good, Mr Potter but what are you planning to do with that
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degree once you've attained it?"</p>
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<p>Harry opened his mouth to respond and was slightly taken aback when his words
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failed him. He hadn't really considered his options and truth be told, he really
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didn't know what options there were.</p>
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<p>"You clearly haven't given this too much thought just yet," Snape pointed out.
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"Which is precisely why we are here."</p>
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<p>Harry exhaled and leaned back in his seat, looking between his two teachers. "Very
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well," he said. "What are my options?"</p>
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<p>"One of them should be quite obvious," Snape explained evenly. "You could always
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find a teaching position at a school that is hiring. If not Hogwarts, there are
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others."</p>
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<p>"You could also become a healing brewer," McGonagall added. "It's a stressful job
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which means that hospitals like St Mungo's are always hiring. You would be working on
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cures, antidotes and your everyday healing potions."</p>
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<p>"You might decide to take the scientific route," Snape then said. "If you enjoy
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inventing potions, you could make your career out of it. Invent new recipes, patent
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them and sell them to the highest bidder or just sell them yourself."</p>
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<p>"Potioneers are always needed in alchemy, artefact creation, law enforcement…"
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McGonagall said.</p>
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<p>"Even at the ministry, a skilled brewer is very much sought after," Snape
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supplied. "And there as well, there is a multitude of branches you could
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explore."</p>
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<p>Harry's mind was reeling with all the new information he was getting. He never
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really thought about it all that much. He thought the career of a Potions Master
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would be rather straightforward but it turned out that it was far from it.</p>
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<p>"I know this is a lot to take in, Harry," Snape said. "Which is why we have a
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proposition for you."</p>
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<p>"What do you mean?" Harry asked.</p>
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<p>"As you are probably aware, there has been a massive outbreak among muggles
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causing St Mungo's to be flooded with patients. They are in dire need of assistance
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and have been asking the potions guild for journeyman brewers to accept an internship
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there."</p>
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<p>"An internship?" Harry repeated cautiously.</p>
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<p>"It would give you a look at another part of what being a Potions Master entails,"
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McGonagall told him matter-of-factly. "Not only that but in an environment like St
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Mungo's, you are sure to get a lot of experience. More so than you would get at
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Hogwarts."</p>
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<p>Harry contemplated this for a moment when Snape thrust a folder into his hands.
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Harry flipped it open to see the detailing of an internship as potioneer as well as
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some information about St Mungo's.</p>
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<p>"But when would I do this?" Harry asked. "I'm still studying."</p>
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<p>"It would have to wait until after your seventh year, of course," Snape said
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easily. "I still wish you to take your N.E.W.T's to the best of your abilities. But
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once this year is over, you would get started at St Mungo's."</p>
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<p>"At the start of the summer break?" Harry asked, not sure if he would like
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that.</p>
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<p>Snape sighed. "Apprenticeship or not, people are suffering," he said. "If you say
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yes to this offer, I will be wanting you to take it seriously. So yes. It will take
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most of your specialisation year including the summer break."</p>
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<p>Harry mulled this over in his mind when he saw his two teachers staring at
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him.</p>
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<p>"Do I have to decide now?" Harry asked.</p>
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<p>"Of course not," McGonagall said easily. "Feel free to take your time but don't
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wait too long. St Mungo's requires confirmation by the end of May at the latest."</p>
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<p>"In the meantime," Snape interjected, "Take these." He thrust an enormous stack of
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paperwork in Harry's arms and smirked as he watched the boy struggle. "They will help
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you explore your options. I'm sure Ms Granger will happily help you sort it out."</p>
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<p>"Right," Harry said, somewhat flabbergasted. "Thanks. And I'll think it over."</p>
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<p>"Make sure that you do," McGonagall said. "And inform Professor Snape of your
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decision."</p>
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<p>"As soon as I make it, I will," Harry said. McGonagall opened the door for him and
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he hurried off, only glancing momentarily at Draco who had raised an eyebrow at his
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suddenly flushed appearance.</p>
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<hr size="1" noshade="noshade"/>
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<p>A few hours later, Harry found himself sagging into one of the chairs in the great
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hall. It wasn't time for dinner yet, but at least here he could sit and talk to his
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friends without being hushed. Hermione, Ron and Draco joined him very soon. Silently,
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he wished that Luna could be there as well but she was in class.</p>
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<p>"That was highly informative," Hermione said excitedly.</p>
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<p>Harry groaned. "A bit too much so," he said.</p>
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<p>"There's no such thing as too informative," Hermione said exasperatedly.</p>
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<p>Draco snickered. "Are you sure about that?" he asked. "Would you care to listen to
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a detailed explanation of the night I've had with Ms Greengrass the other day?"</p>
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<p>"Ew no!" Hermione replied quickly. "And you know that's not what I meant."</p>
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<p>"What did they tell you, Ron?" Harry asked, trying desperately to steer away from
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the awkward conversation.</p>
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<p>Ron sighed. "Can you believe that McGonagall is still bugging me about becoming an
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Auror?" he said. "I'm no good at potions at all and I'm not exactly trying to get a
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N.E.W.T in it so why would she even bring that up?"</p>
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<p>"Surely you might be able to join one of your brothers in their careers," Hermione
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offered.</p>
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<p>"What, and be a curse-breaker?" Ron asked incredulously. "Or tame dragons? You're
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mental. That's not for me." Ron sighed and laid down his head on top of his arms.
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"Maybe I'll become a professional quidditch player."</p>
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<p>"What about you, Draco?" Hermione asked. "Do you still want to go in the artefact
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business?"</p>
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<p>"I don't see why not," Draco said. "Though I must admit that I hadn't looked at it
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well enough yet. It turns out that there are a lot of different paths I can take to
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achieve my goal." He sighed and ran a hand through his perfectly groomed hair. "I'll
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need to take some time to think about this."</p>
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<p>"I hear what you're saying," Harry sighed. "I never really thought what I would do
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with my life after I manage to become a Potions Master and it turns out that there's
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a whole lot of things I could do."</p>
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<p>"Like what?" Hermione asked, curiosity gleaming in her eyes.</p>
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<p>Harry slid his pamphlets across the table to the bushy-haired girl which she
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excitedly accepted. "As you can see," Harry said, "there are many options. Snape even
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told me to consider an internship at St Mungo's."</p>
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<p>"Harry, that's brilliant!" Hermione exclaimed. "You could gain so much experience
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over there. Especially now. Surely you accepted?"</p>
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<p>"Not yet," Harry admitted. "I told Snape that I would be thinking it over. I'm not
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sure if St Mungo's would be for me, you know."</p>
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<p>"But isn't Caratacus Lovegood the head of St Mungo's?" Draco pointed out.</p>
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<p>"He is," Harry replied. "What's your point?"</p>
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<p>Draco rolled his eyes and sneered at Harry. "Honestly!" he said. "You Gryffindors
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don't have an iota of cunning in your body, do you? Think, Harry. This would be your
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chance to show him what you're made of."</p>
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<p>"Oh!" Harry exclaimed, softly slapping the underside of his fist into his open
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palm. "I see what you're getting at. If I get him on my side, he might be able to
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convince the rest of the council to give me my mastery after all."</p>
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<p>Draco rolled his eyes. "Have you learned nothing from living with a Slytherin?" he
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sighed. "This is probably why Snape proposed it in the first place."</p>
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<p>"Either way, it sounds like a brilliant idea, Harry," Hermione said. "It will get
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you to brew in a professional setting to see what it's like. It would probably give
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you a better idea of what you want to become once you're done."</p>
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<p>Harry smiled, feeling a bit more reassured. "You're right," he said. "Thanks. I
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think I <em>will</em> accept."</p>
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<p>"There's a good boy," Draco mocked. "So anyway, Hermione. How did <em>your</em>
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appointment go?"</p>
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<p>Harry truly tried his very best to listen to the different careers had been
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suggested to Hermione but there were so many and they all sounded so boring to Harry
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that he ended up zoning out. His mind was whirring with anticipation, thinking about
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just what it would be like to be working at St Mungo's.</p>
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<hr size="1" noshade="noshade"/>
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<p>Maya was watching over Snape's shoulder as he attempted to decipher yet another
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page in the book the Weasley twins had secured for him. He had gotten halfway through
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it by now, not in small part thanks to the book he had gotten from Maya for
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Christmas, but it was still a long and arduous journey to get through it all.</p>
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<p>"I don't think that word is correct," Maya said, pointing at the word 'spear'
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Snape had just written down, smudging it in the process.</p>
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<p>Snape sighed, gently swatting her hand away. "Then what do <em>you</em> think it
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says?" he asked.</p>
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<p>"It clearly says 'staff," Maya told him. She sipped the tea she was holding and
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flopped down onto the couch next to him, folding her legs underneath her and leaning
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into Snape's shoulder. He absentmindedly put an arm around her shoulders while he
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kept staring at the pages.</p>
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<p>"Hm," he said. "I think you're right. That <em>would</em> make a lot more sense."
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He replaced the offending error and went back to reading the text.</p>
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<p>"Did you find anything interesting hidden in those pages yet?" Maya asked
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curiously.</p>
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<p>"A few potion recipes," Snape told her. "Some of which I've never heard of before
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and others that seem to be older versions of modern potion recipes."</p>
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<p>Maya snorted. "You're telling me that this book is full of potion recipes?" she
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asked. "And those Weasley twins just happened to find it for you?"</p>
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<p>"Absolutely not," Snape told her, grinning widely. "I told them to get this book
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for me in exchange for one of my more benign inventions. I <em>knew</em> that it
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would be full of recipes."</p>
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<p>"You're such a Slytherin," Maya sighed. She put her head on Snape's shoulder and
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allowed her eyes to droop. "Is there anything in there that isn't about potions?"</p>
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<p>"A few things," Snape said. "There are some personal accounts of historical
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events. Mostly muggle events though, so I doubt you'd find it all that
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informative."</p>
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<p>"Hm," came Maya's sleepy response.</p>
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<p>"And there's mention of a few artefacts. Though most of them seem to be either
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lost or simply mythological."</p>
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<p>"Meaning?" Maya asked.</p>
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<p>"Meaning that no such artefact ever existed and they were made up to scare the
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muggles or perhaps lure them into submission."</p>
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<p>Snape glanced at the brunette when she didn't respond anymore. Her breathing had
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evened out and she appeared to be soundly asleep. Snape sighed and flicked his wand
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to summon a blanket which he then clumsily draped across the sleeping form of the
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history Professor. He still didn't remove the arm he had draped around her.</p>
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<p>"Merlin save me from foolish dunderheads that insist on keeping my company," he
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whispered softly. He gently brushed a strand of hair out of Maya's face and tucked it
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behind her ear. He kissed her gently on the forehead and flicked his wand once more
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to dim the lights and the fire in the hearth. He then rested his chin on top of
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Maya's head and closed his eyes, relishing the sense of peace that overcame him. The
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book lay momentarily forgotten.</p>
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<hr size="1" noshade="noshade"/>
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<p>The next couple of months were dominated by a blissful sense of calm. There was no
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drama, no life-threatening circumstances and no potions that sought urgent
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completion. In fact, the peacefulness of the time leading up to the N.E.W.T. finals
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got tedious very fast and even though Harry could often find distraction in the
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brewing of potions both old and new, he was desperately looking forward to the day
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where he no longer needed to study transfiguration or charms.</p>
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|
<p>The Magic Muggle potion had been featured in 'The Practical Potioneer', courtesy
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of Snape, of course, and as a result, Harry had soon become flooded with either
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requests for permission to brew it or orders in which people offered an amount of
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galleons that was far higher than the potion ingredients it required.</p>
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|
<p>Snape had told Harry that he could try to sell the patent to the recipe for a
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|
large sum of money; accept any amount of orders for the potion he wanted or just
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ignore both types of letters. For now, Harry thought it better to brew the potion
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himself – since he was still fine-tuning his skills anyway – and perhaps sell the
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recipe at a later time. After all, he could probably ask for even more money once he
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had attained the title of Master.</p>
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|
<p>A large amount of Slytherins had been glaring at Harry menacingly once they caught
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|
wind of the Magic Muggle potion – probably due to the fact that they didn't want
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muggles to have anything to do with their world – but after a few weeks, they seemed
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to forget all about it and went back to their routine of ignoring Harry to the best
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of their abilities.</p>
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<p>Harry had been very pleased when he had walked into the N.E.W.T. exam for potions
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only to find out that he would be brewing the draught of living death for his
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examination. With a confident look on his face that was not shared by many other
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attendees, he had brewed the potion easily – ignoring the examiner every time she
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stepped near his cauldron – and completed it to what he knew was absolute
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perfection.</p>
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<p>Transfiguration was a different matter entirely. Harry had never fully gotten the
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hang of human transfiguration, despite having practised his skills for days. The
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blond test subject whose hair he was supposed to transfigure into a long, black,
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curly mane instead of his short bob still had streaks of yellow run through his hair
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which honestly looked quite fashionable but would no doubt be a cause for point
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deduction.</p>
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<p>Defence against the dark arts was – as was to be expected – a breeze as well. For
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this test, Harry was supposed to duel with his examiner. The man had obviously
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started out rather cautiously, firing spells of mid-level strength that Harry had
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blocked very easily. Once Harry had actually managed to get a few shots in, the
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examiner became rather serious and started duelling Harry in earnest. It was the most
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fun Harry had ever had in an exam and he had to admit that the man had been very
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good. After fifteen minutes, the man had called a halt to the exam, even though there
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had been no obvious victor. But Harry had seen the obvious smile that had graced the
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man's lips.</p>
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<p>Harry was semi-certain that he had managed to pass his exam for Herbology if only
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because of the help Neville had given him while studying. He thought he had managed
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to identify each plant correctly but had not been able to repot the Narcissistic Newt
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Vine without allowing it a glimpse of its own crystallized roots. Unfortunately, it
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started swooning as it became enamoured with itself and refused to be buried again
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without some forceful convincing on Harry's part. It left the poor plant heartbroken
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and no doubt earned Harry some bad marks.</p>
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<p>And last but not least, Harry had to struggle through his charms exam. It had been
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rather difficult to charm what Harry could only describe as a rabbit raccoon into
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submission but he thought he had done a pretty good job at it. He had calmed it down
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considerably and had even dared to pet the raccoon. Unfortunately, the racoon had
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bitten him in the end when his charm had worn off too quickly. Harry thought he would
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have flunked for sure. His only hope was the extra points he would have gotten for
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performing the spell non-verbally.</p>
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<p>Naturally, by the end of it all, Hermione was stressing about all of her subjects,
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worrying about the slightest errors while Ron was just happy to have it all behind
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him and took to leisurely lounging about the common room. He vowed to never set foot
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in the library again. Even Harry took a break after he was done with his N.E.W.T's
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and joined Ron in games of chess and flew around the quidditch pitch with both Draco
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– who was absolutely positive that he passed every subject – and Ron. With Luna, he
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spent many a peacefully casual moment in the confines of empty classrooms and
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forgotten clearings in the Forbidden Forest.</p>
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<p>And then – at last – the day had finally come for the seventh-years to receive
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their N.E.W.T. results. Unlike the OWL's, which were sent by owl post during the
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summer break – these results were announced on the very last day of school so the
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students would know just what steps they could take next.</p>
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<p>That's how Harry found himself in McGonagall's office once again, staring down
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into a very large cup – not unlike the house cup – in which a crystal blue concoction
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swirled, white wisps of cold smoke escaping its vortex.</p>
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<p>"Are you ready for this, Mr Potter?" McGonagall asked, a small smile tugging on
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her lips.</p>
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<p>Harry smiled nervously. "I don't suppose you can give me a hint?" he asked, only
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half-joking.</p>
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<p>"Even if I wanted to, I can't," McGonagall told him frankly. "I don't know the
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results myself, either." She handed Harry a piece of parchment with nothing but his
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name on it and gestured towards the cup. "Let's find out together, shall we? Just
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toss in your name, if you will."</p>
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<p>Harry chuckled. "I couldn't have just opened a letter or something, could I?" he
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said.</p>
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<p>McGonagall smiled at him. "The headmaster does like to add a bit of magic to every
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experience," she said fondly. "At least I've been able to stop him from charming the
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toilets to speak to their occupants."</p>
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<p>Harry laughed, more because of his nervousness than the joke but he appreciated
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McGonagall's attempt to distract him. He took one more deep breath and tossed in the
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piece of parchment. It dissolved quickly in the seemingly acidic liquid and the white
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|
wisps rose and changed to a golden colour as they formed words and letters.</p>
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<p>Potions: O<br/>
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Transfiguration: E<br/>
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Defence Against The Dark Arts: O<br/>
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Herbology: E<br/>
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Charms: A</p>
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<p>Harry grinned broadly as he took in his marks. He passed all five of his
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N.E.W.T.'s, even if he had been cutting it kind of close with charms. He glanced over
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at his head of house who was beaming at him brightly and felt oddly aware of the fact
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that she would no longer be in charge of him very soon.</p>
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<p>"Well done, Mr Potter," she told him fondly. "Though I must admit that I never had
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any doubt in your abilities."</p>
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<p>"Thank you, Professor," Harry replied proudly. "I couldn't have done it without
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your guidance."</p>
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<hr size="1" noshade="noshade"/>
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<p><em>And that's that. Are you happy with where this is headed, I wonder? Can you
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imagine what will happen next? Please don't forget to send a review my way. It will
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make me all the happier. As for tomorrow, I have another Christmas party that starts
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at a somewhat awkward time so I might be updating either a lot earlier or a lot later
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than usual. We'll see.</em></p>
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