A/N: I'm not dead! I hit major writers block at the halfway point in this chapter, but I recently got back into it. Please let me know what you think.

Chapter 11: Operation: Spooky Season

The first few months of the children's Hogwarts education passed quickly, too quickly in Harry's opinion. While he wanted to get back home to Potter Manor and Sirius, he didn't want his time at school to fly by. Draco and James couldn't wait to leave for the Yule Holidays, as they were already tired of the homework. James could admit however that the homework wasn't that heavy. Yes, they had a paper for each class once a week, but they did have a lot of time to finish it. There were a lot of study sessions in the Greengrass Study Room with most of the first year Slytherin's in attendance, some even with Hermione.

Hermione had taken well to the group even though some of the members still refused to outright say they were friends with her. Draco had received a letter from his father that had told him to be careful around 'mudbloods of her sort' and Sebastian had been pulled aside by his father, but he was able to convince Lord Nott that she would be useful. So, she was quietly accepted. While her trouble with the Slytherins had ended, her 'know-it-all' personality and arrogance had rubbed several of the other Houses that wrong way, culminating in lowkey bullying. Most snipe remarks from Gryffindors but several from her own house. So that's how she ended up crying in the Girl's Bathroom on Halloween…

October 31st, 1991 – Hogwarts Great Hall

"Oooo ahhhh, floating Jack-O-Lanterns." Harry said with a disinterested look as he entered the Great Hall, flanked by James and Draco, "I swear, everyone acts like this is soooooo spectacular."

"I mean, it is cool…" James began as they took their seats for the Halloween feast, "But I guess it's no different from the floating candles normally here."

"Whatever, it doesn't matter. I just want to go to bed. I'm not interested in celebrating anything today," Harry said as he roughly plopped into his seat next to Draco and Daphne.

"What's got your panties… oh right," Daphne said to Harry as she slowly realized the occasion, "Your parents died today…" She finished sadly, getting a small nod from Harry. It had always been a somber affair when Harry was at home with Sirius but the fact that Hogwarts was having a feast really irked him. Whether it was just for the holiday itself or for the death of the Dark Lord, he cared not. He just wanted to get it over with and got to bed.

The children talked for a while before Dumbledore began speaking about the occasion and why it was important in Wizarding culture. "As Professor Nott has been explaining to you these last few weeks, Halloween is an important time of year for wizards and witches. Now I know you all have been listening to Professor Nott's lectures about this holiday, so I will not bore you with the details, however just remember that we celebrate this day for that reason." Dumbledore paused before subtly looking down the table of Slytherin students, finally resting on Harry, "It is also of great importance in British Wizarding History, it being of course the night of the Dark Lord Voldemort's defeat…" All the eyes in the Great Hall shifted to Harry, whose face seemed to be contorted into unbridled hatred. Before the Headmaster could continue with his speech, Harry stood up, sneered at the Headmaster before stalking out of the Hall. Suddenly, whispers abounded, and Dumbledore felt like he probably shouldn't have brought that up…

"Well, are you lot just going to sit there? He is our friend, go talk to him!" Daphne said hotly as she stood to follow Harry to the Dungeons. She too sneered that the heads table before running out of the Hall with Tracey Davis hot on her heels. Draco seemed to sigh as he stood, followed by James and Sebastian. Crabbe and Goyle stood as well, following the actions of their leader but Draco just told them to stay.

As the children exited the Hall, chasing their friend, only Sebastian noticed Professor Quirrell dash into the room and proceed to yell that there was a troll in the Dungeons, "Bloody Hell."

As Daphne and Tracey chased Harry, shouting at him to stop, Harry rounded the corner towards the stairs to the Dungeons. When they finally caught up with him and Daphne gently grabbed his shoulder, Harry stopped, and she and Tracey brought him into a hug. Harry's anger towards Dumbledore slowly faded and he began to sob into Daphne's shoulder, "Why did he have to bring it up?" Harry asked through the sobs and his sniffling.

"I don't know, Harry," Tracey responded, gently rubbing his back, "He's just an old man who doesn't think before speaking." As she spoke, the rest of their friends arrived, the boys seemingly out of breath.

"So Quirrell said there was a Troll in the dungeons, so I don't think we should go back to our dorms just yet," Sebastian said as he clasped his hand on Harry's shoulder. Suddenly, Dumbledore's comments about Voldemort were lost as the students realized the magnitude of the situation. As they all stood there, slightly frightened, they heard the lumbering footsteps and grunting noises approaching them.

"I think it's left the dungeons," James said quietly, eying the approaching beast. He quickly looked around the corridor for the nearest door and after seeing one, pulled his group of friends towards it, "Quick, everybody in here!"

"That's the girls bathroom, I don't want to go in… OUCH! DAPHNE!" Draco exclaimed as the blonde girl shoved Draco through the door.

"Shut it! It's coming this way!" Daphne said, obviously very frightened, "Oh no! We can't lock the door!"

"I've got it!" Sebastian said, running over to the door and casting a quick Colloportus spell which locked the door, "That should hold it."

As they stood and listened to the Troll try the door, grunt in confusion, and moved off, Hermione sniffled as she exited one of the stalls. As she stared at the assembled Slytherins, both confused why they all look scared and why boys were in the girl's bathroom, she spoke, "What's going on?"

"Hermione? What are you doing here?" Harry asked, surprised to see the bushy haired muggleborn, "I didn't see you follow us…"

"I was already in here…" Hermione said quietly before splashing warm water onto her face from the sink, "What are you doing in here?"

"Hiding from a Troll," James supplied matter-of-factly.

"I see. Is it gone?" Hermione asked, not sure if what James had said was entirely accurate.

"Yeah, I think so," Tracey said as she looked out the key hole into the corridor, "But I'm not going out there. Oh wait, here comes Professor Vector. Okay, I think we are safe!" She carefully unlocked the door and looked around the corridor before Professor Vector noticed her.

"Ah, Miss Davis! I have been looking for you! Have you seen your friends?" Vector asked before Tracey opened the door farther and revealed the rest of the first year Slytherins, "Ah, excellent! I am glad each of you found refuge in this bathroom." She scanned over the children, ensuring all of her missing students were present before noticing Hermione, "Miss Granger! Professor Flitwick is looking for you! I am glad you are safe as well! Come, the Slytherins are congregating in the Great Hall as the Headmaster searches for this Troll!"

November 1st, 1991 – Elsewhere…

"My Lord? How went your mission? Were you able to secure the Flamel's Stone from Hogwarts?" asked a cloaked figure as Professor Quirrell exited the Floo into the large parlor.

"No, it seems that Severus suspects Quirrell is up to something…" A raspy voice replied, "He was waiting when we went to the third-floor corridor."

"Are you sure Severus is still loyal, my lord?" a shorter figure asked, obviously having been with the other man before the Dark Lord's arrival, "I have seen him at Hogwarts and ever since Dumbledore said that he was a spy during the first war, I doubt his loyalty to the cause…"

"Severus was a fool if he believed that I fully trusted him, but I understand your sentiment, Lord Nott," Voldemort replied, "And I agree with it. The Headmaster would never use his influence to prevent one of us from being sent to Azkaban unless that person had done something to help the Light…"

"My beliefs exactly, my Lord," Lord Nott intoned, "What shall we do with the spy?"

"Leave him for now… We may have a use for him yet…"

"Of course, my Lord," the Lord bowed in reverence towards the Defense teacher, before the other Lord spoke once again.

"What of the traitor, Igor Karkaroff? He sold out Augustus Rookwood and William Nott… Augustus is still in Azkaban, rotting away with the others who weren't so lucky to escape prosecution."

"What of him?" Voldemort asked, "He is at Durmstrang, hundreds of miles from here. Perhaps, in due time, an opportunity will prevent itself that would allow us to make him pay for his treachery."

"As you say," replied both figures as Professor Quirrell and Voldemort took their leave back to Hogwarts.

"Are you certain retrieving the stone will give him back his body, Timothy?" the first cloaked figure asked, concerned about his master's plan.

"Only time will tell. However, I must leave as well. My absence will be noticed if I tarry too long," Timothy responded, looking towards the floo, "I will do some research on the stone and come up with an answer… Goodbye." The floo flared once again as Lord Nott returned to Hogwarts.

As the cloaked figure watched Lord Nott floo away, a small house elf popped into the room with a battered wizard bound with ropes, "Master, Molly is beings finding this wizard trying to sneak into yous Manor! Molly has captured him!" Molly triumphantly smiled at her Master, "Molly hears from other elves that this wizard is beings a Dumblydore spy!" Molly wacked the frightened wizard over his head with a pan she must have used to capture him.

"Excellent work, Molly. You may return to your duties," the figure said as the happy elf popped away, "George Thomas… *he shook his head in disgust* Still spying on us former Death Eaters? Anybody tell Dumbledore that we were acquitted?"

"No, no! I can help you! I can spy on Dumbledore! I won't tell him about anything I saw!" the homeless looking Thomas begged of the figure, what he failed to notice was there were also several other figures in the room.

"We cannot let 'im leave, Cygnus! 'E has zeen us!" A female voice called from behind him as Cygnus appraised the petty thief who seemed to be whimpering in fear. To George, the stare from the hooded Cygnus seemed to last forever however eventually the Lord spoke.

"Kill him. Dump his body in Knockturn Alley. Make it quick and don't dirty up my floor." The response from one of the other hooded figures was swift.

"Avada Kedavra!" a vivid green light filled the parlor of the Greengrass Manor before the body of an unlucky Mr. Thomas found itself unceremoniously dumped in the most dangerous part of Knockturn Alley.

"It seems the Leader of the Light is still keeping tabs on us. Watch yourselves. Make sure your wards are set to not allow anyone through without permission, something I failed to do…" Cygnus chuckled as several others laughed, "I'll call with the next meeting time. Lord Malfoy, stay a moment won't you?"

The figures waited until all the other Death Eaters had left before they began their conversation, "Lucius, tell me. How goes your research into Flamel's stone?"

"While the Elixir of Life will most definitely save an extremely injured or ill wizard from dying and heal them, I doubt it has the ability to provide a full body for our Lord." Lucius said as they exited the Manor onto the grounds to walk.

"I see…" Cygnus murmured, deep in thought, "What of the ritual Lord Nott spoke of last week, the one involving the 'blood of an enemy', I believe? Perhaps we could alter the ritual to use the Elixir?"

"That is most certainly an option, you are a Potions Master. It would not be outside of your ability to do so. Perhaps we begin brewing two potions? One to add the Elixir to and the other if the Dark Lord fails to retrieve the stone?" Lucius said as he ran his hand along the white marble hand railing of Lord Greengrass' deck.

"It would take several months to prepare such a potion, but it would be a simple enough ritual. Only problem would be 'flesh of the servant, willingly given'. I believe we could Imperio some hapless muggle for that task and just have him willingly cut off his own arm or something. However, I believe it would be better to just kidnap a wizard and do the same." Cygnus replied as he walked down the stairs toward his front gate with Lucius in tow.

"What of the blood of the enemy?" Lucius asked before realizing, "Never mind, any wizard or witch who celebrated our Lords fall could be considered an enemy."

"See Lucius, you don't need my help." Cygnus chuckled as he patted his friend on the back.

As they reached the gate where Lord Malfoy was to be departing from, Lucius thanked Cygnus for his hospitality and said, "We both know that without you being appointed the Dark Lords right hand, his forces would have scattered after his defeat. I most certainly do need your help to reign in some of the more zealous followers. Some say they might fear you more than the Dark Lord himself."

"They don't fear me. They fear the power and sway I hold over the Dark Lord." Lucius nodded at this and apparated away.

First Quidditch Match, November 1st, 1991 – Hogwarts

"You ready to smash some Gryffindorks in Quidditch today, Harry!?" James asked excitedly, happy for his friend and also pleased to watch some quidditch.

"Oh yeah, Dad said he is coming to watch!" Harry said eagerly as he put more butter on his toast, "Your Dad is coming too, right James?"

"Of course! He has to 'size up the competition' as he says. I think he is just trying to figure out how good the other players are so we can practice over the summer." James responded, piling more bacon onto his plate.

"That reminds me, my Dad said he would like everybody to come over during the summer for summer tutoring…" Daphne interjected into the conversation, "Even the mudblood Ravenclaw…" She whispered and didn't look to happy about this, but who would be.

"I take it that your father only mentioned this to you after he had cleared it with our parents?" Sebastian asked to which Daphne nodded in response, "Fun. Guess we have to go."

The children soon began conversing about the now upcoming tutoring, wondering about what they were going to learn or do over the summer now. Daphne suggested that maybe they would learn more interesting spells, which peaked James' interest. That hope was soon dashed by Draco who commented that they were too young to use anything more than basic spells. Their conversation however, was interrupted by the greasy potions professor who limped by…

"Good luck on your game today, Potter-Black. I hope you are as good as your biological father." Snape spat, "Maybe if spent as much time studying for my class as you spent practicing Quidditch, you would have a better grade?"

Harry just looked annoyed at the Professor. Sirius had told him that he still loved Lily Potter even after all these years and since he looked like James and Sirius that the greasy git would probably insult him. Draco came to Harrys defense however, "Maybe if you weren't so ugly, you could find someone to love besides a woman who never loved you?"

"Five points from Slytherin for your cheek, Malfoy." Snape replied before sulking off to wherever he came from. Harry and James just snickered to themselves at Draco's comments. To be honest, they were surprised he hadn't tried to involve his father.

"He has a limp." Tracey stated bluntly to the group after the Professor was gone, "I wonder why…"

"What is the only thing in the castle that could cause a limp?" Sebastian asked, rhetorically since he already knew the answer, "It's the Cerberus. Obviously, Snape was attempting to either enter the trapdoor or prevent someone else from entering." The children pondered this for a moment before Sebastian continued, "I already asked my father if he knew, but he was tight lipped about it. So, if we want to know, we have to investigate ourselves."

"I say we figure it out!" Daphne exclaimed, "I always like a good mystery!"

Draco looked at the blonde, he was shocked. How could she want to get into danger? "Are you sure we shouldn't just let this go? I mean, what would we get out of it. Whatever is down there obviously is worth enough to steal so I wouldn't be surprised if even if we figured it out, we couldn't keep it…"

James and Harry both rolled their eyes, "What happened to you? You are acting like a baby. First, you want to run away from the third-floor door before we even look inside, now you don't even want to investigate? Draco Malfoy, more like Baby Malfoy…" Harry said, laughing a little at his friend's expense.

"No, I just don't want to draw attention to ourselves…" Draco responded, seemingly not even a little bit offended at Harry's teasing.

"Harry, you got your broom for Quidditch today ready to go?" James asked, not so subtly changing the conversation. To be honest, he was sick of talking about the 'Corridor that Kills'. It was all anybody wanted to talk about and, being Hogwarts, everyone also knew there was a Cerberus in there. You can only speculate on what is hidden so many times before you get to the downright ridiculous.

"Yes sir, it's good to go. I polished and made sure the bristles were clean this morning. No problems there." Harry responded, exceedingly excited to play in his first real Quidditch game.

"Good. We can't start the year off losing to Gryffindor." Daphne said as she smiled at her raven-haired friend, "Alright, time to go meet everyone down there!"

November 1st, 1991 – Quidditch Pitch, Hogwarts

Harry stood at the entrance to the Slytherin Team tent, speaking to his friends for encouragement before he had to report to Flint. He was nervous, but luckily, he had played with James' dad before and that guy was hard to play against. Lord LeStrange had even played against Harry as a seeker and had knocked Harry off his broom several times, trying to build his grip and balance so he wouldn't fall off. That had sucked, but Harry now had excellent broom control and grip.

As his friends began to say their goodbyes and good lucks, Daphne waited. She wanted to catch him alone so she wouldn't get teased by the boys. When all the others had left, Daphne started, "I just want to say good luck Harry and I made you this," she handed him a small ribbon with the Greengrass Family Crest expertly sown into it, "It's called a Lady's Favor, I think. I want you to wear it under your uniform. I haven't done anything to it magically, I just wanted you to know I… I support you and I'm rooting for you." She kissed his cheek and ran off before he could respond.

Harry was dumbstruck by this. Never in a million years had he thought Daphne would give him something like this. He felt the fabric in his hand and laughed, Acromantula Silk. Expensive as hell. Harry wasn't surprised, Daphne wasn't one to do it halfway. Harry slid up his sleeve and tied it onto his forearm, almost feeling a burst of energy from the crest… Interesting… Harry's attention was brought to Marcus Flint as the older boy dragged him into the tent for the customary team meeting. It was fairly standard and soon they were preparing to walk out onto the pitch.

"Nervous Potter-Black?" Flint asked, looking down at the first year.

"No." Harry responded resolutely.

"Good. Don't worry about the fans or the school. Just focus on the tiny golden ball. Everything else comes second…" Flint retorted and soon Speirs took over from Lee Jordan to announce the Slytherin players. The school had decided to move to a more even announcing system as the previous year, Lee Jordan had called all Slytherins trash… One by one, the older students flew out from the tunnel to the cheering students.

"Finally, playing Seeker for the Slytherin Team is… The Boy-Who-Lived himself, HARRY POTTER!" The crowd erupted into cheers as Harry smiled approvingly at the stands. Harry flew out from the tunnel at breakneck speed on his brand-new Nimbus 2001. Lord LeStrange had used his contacts to get him a pre-production version a year before its release date and dang was it better than the current model. Harry sped over the Slytherin stands, subtly showing Daphne that he was indeed wearing her favor before taking his stop next to Flint.

"A First-year and Showboat? Let's see if he can stand up to this hype…" Speirs said over the speakers as Madame Hooch began talking to the players.

"I want a good, clean game from everyone." She shot a side glance at Flint who just smirked, "Ready? Begin!" She released the balls and blew her whistle, signaling the beginning of the game.

Harry shot to the middle of the pitch to scan for the fast snitch. He was followed by some no-name Gryffindork that Wood had found to replace his Seeker. Wood really didn't have any expectation that the guy could get the snitch before Harry, all he wanted was for the boy to delay him.

"Angelina Johnson passes the Quaffle to Katie Bell, who if I might say is available boys…" Lee Jordan said as Speirs cut him off.

"Ooooo, Bell is hit by a Bludger from the Slytherins, Quaffle falls into the hands Flint. He passes to Montague. He's going in on Wood. SCORE! Slytherin with the first score of the game! 10 – 0. Hard to watch, isn't it Jordan?"

Harry decided he was getting distracted by the game going on below him. He wasn't concerned about the snitch though either. It seemed the Gryffindor Seeker was just intent on watching him rather than looking for it. No problem. Harry began circling the pitch and weaving between the stands as the opposing seeker just followed him.

"You going to just stare at me the whole game? Isn't that a little creepy? I mean, I'm only eleven…" Harry mocked as he suddenly dived towards the pitch at speed, extending his hand as if to grab the snitch before pulling up at the last moment. The Gryff Seeker slammed into the ground and a sickening crunch was heard.

"Ooooo. Looks like Potter-Black just executed a well-timed Wronski Feint. Just lost your seeker, Jordan, any comment?" Speirs intoned over the stands in triumph, "Nothing? Well, looks like Slytherin has this match locked up. Might as well go home."

Harry shook his head at the Prefect and shot by him in a "buzz the box" move as it was called where you would pass by the announcer's box at highspeed. However, Harry was getting tired of showing off, so he climbed back up to a better position to see. Soon enough, he spotted the Snitch and dove after it. It only took a few minutes before Harry captured it within his grip!

"Potter-Black has the snitch. Slytherin wins! Suck it Lee!" Speirs said as the Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff areas erupted in cheers, however the last two were more polite clapping rather than celebrating, "That's if for this game. Catch you all next time. Back to you McGonagall."

Harry was hoisted above the older players as they celebrated, they were chanting his name and Harry felt as if he was on top of the world. "I could get used to this." Harry thought as he looked up towards the VIP and teacher's boxes. Professor Vector was clapping hard while talking excitedly to his Dad and Amelia, who also had decided to come. Lord LeStrange also looked excited and smiled at Harry when he saw him looking. It did escape Harry's attention that a certain turbaned Professor was clapping politely at the boy's success however…

November 8th, 1991 – Professor Nott's Classroom

"Good afternoon, children!" Professor Nott said as he walked in from his office, holding a seemingly unending pile of papers. He set most of them down in front of Pansy Parkinson, a Slytherin in Harry's year. Harry wasn't really friends with her, but she occasionally talked with Daphne and Tracey. "Pass these out please, Miss Parkinson." Pansy obeyed immediately and Professor Nott began writing on the board.

"Gellert Grindelwald." He said as he wrote the name on the board, "I know for a fact that Binns isn't teaching you anything beyond the Goblin Rebellions, which is a shame. There is so much more to Magical History… Anyway, we will be talking about Gellert Grindelwald, Magical Germany, and the psychology behind why 'Dark Lords' are able to acquire so much power."

Sebastian put his head down on the desk in frustration, he had heard this lecture countless times from his father. Draco and Harry just snickered to themselves as Nott began.

"Take a look at the reproduction newspaper I had Miss Parkinson hand out. Tell me what you see?" he asked, looking expectantly at the class. There was silence for a while before James raised his hand and was called on.

"While the front story is Grindelwald losing to Professor Dumbledore, there is a smaller article that mentions that a majority of his supporters have not been arrested and will likely remain at large…" James said sheepishly.

"Exactly! And on the first try, take ten points for Slytherin." Nott responded, a large grin on his face, "Can anyone speculate on why for five points?"

"Because Grindelwald's supporters were all evil and in Germany." Ron Weasley spat from his seat, not bothering to raise his hand.

"Partially, Mr. Weasley. Take two points for your effort, however try and raise your hand to be called on in the future," Nott replied, not showing any annoyance at the red-head, "Ms. Davis? Do you have an idea why, building off of Ronald's answer?"

Tracey bit her lip while she thought, "I think it has to do with how Germany was occupied after the war… I don't believe many of the supporters could be arrested. There were too many and we didn't have the manpower to occupy Magical Germany…"

"Right, take five points. From what I know, the Muggle Allies divided Germany into 4 zones which later turned into East and West Germany which is now reunified. However, the German Ministry of Magic was not divided. Basically, the muggle allies couldn't occupy the Magical Germany locations, like Ms. Davis said, and there weren't enough Wizards and Witches from Allied countries to occupy them. Nearly all of the government of Magical Germany believed and still believes that Grindelwald was correct in his ideas." Nott said as he began his lecture. He put up a slideshow of muggle Germany after the war compared the Magical Germany. The differences where stark.

"As you can see, Magical Germany was barely impacted by the war. Their buildings were warded and protected from allied bomber attacks and when the Russian or American troops rolled in, they were not able to see the hidden entrances. Essentially, Magical Germany was undefeated. Sure, their leader was captured but their resolve had not been broken. Another reason for this was that Magical Germany did not surrender unconditionally like their muggle counterparts. They signed what is called a 'White Peace', or a cessation of hostilities and return to the pre-war political situation. Thus, many, if not all, of the ranking officials remained in their positions. The only condition was that the ICW takes over Nurmengard prison and is able to use it to house the captured Grindelwald. Problem is that this basically destroyed any trust between the governments of the ICW and Magical Germany. You can also see this by how, even 50 years after the war, the ICW still runs the Nurmengard Prison that houses Grindelwald rather than Magical Germany. The ICW does not trust the German Ministry to not let him out." AS he finished for a moment, he noticed Harry's hand raised, "Mr. Potter?"

"So, you said that Magical Germany still supports Grindlelwald, right? *Professor Nott nodded in support for him to continue* Why? It came out after the war the Grindelwald had given Adolf Hitler so much power… Why would people still support him after so long?" Harry asked, genuinely curious. Sirius had always said that it was better to understand the motives and thoughts of people rather than just by their actions.

"Excellent question, and one I was going to talk about." Nott said as he smiled at the inquisitive boy, "He is a symbol to them now. Not just a man, but a myth. A symbol of how Magicals were meant to lord over muggles and as long as he lives, that dream will not fade. Sure, he is old, but there are many young magicals in Germany that still carry the Deathly Hallows symbol." Professor Nott switched to a slide showing the symbol being worn as a necklace of some random woman in Germany, "We also find his symbol on many Ministry buildings there as well. Many in the British Ministry believed and continue to believe that the Muggle Government of Germany is controlled by the Magical Government to this day…"

"Now, why am I lecturing you all about this? I wanted to give you a background before we delve into the psychology of how Dark Lords such as Grindelwald and, to a smaller extent You-Know-Who, are able to acquire mass numbers of followers while perceived to be evil…" Some of the Gryffindor students began whispering among themselves about You-Know-Who, "Children, up here. The problem with us viewing history is that we see it with our own eyes. There has always been a question posed by British magicals that I think sums this up well, 'What would you have done at that time period if you were around to see Morgan Le Fey rising to power?' Anyone want to answer that? Mr. Thomas?"

"I would stand against her. Tell people that she was evil!" Dean said, smiling at the Professor.

"Right, and many people would say that these days. But, if we look at the context of what was happening at that time period, her ideas were not radical or even viewed as evil. Many people believed she saved King Arthur and that created a grand following. History, however, was skewed against her, written by Merlin and those who fought against her. Granted, a lot of what that conflict was about has lost to time, but the core fact is that she said things that people agreed with at that time. Muggles were burning witches. Le Fay said that magicals should take the fight to the muggles… This is exactly what happened to magical Germany, many Germans believed that the muggles were gaining to much power and needed to be controlled. You-Know-Who is a more recent example. Many purebloods did and still do agree with what he said about needing to control muggle Britain and make sure that Muggleborn wizards or witches understand how the magical world works before they try to change it." Nott ended, as Daphne whispered in Harry's ear.

"The Dark Lord was right you know. Mudbloods are always trying to change everything…" She scoffed before turning back to the lecture. Harry was surprised by her comment. 'Daphne thinks that? I wonder what everyone else thinks? Does Sirius believe that?'

Nott continued to lecture on history, a subject he obviously enjoyed, for another thirty minutes before he finished the lecture and brought up pictures of the Blood War. Destroyed homes… Burnt shops… The last image surprised many of the children.

"This is a picture of You-Know-Who with his friends in the 40s or 50s at a party. I'm not sure exactly as this is my father's photo, but this is how a movement starts. Not by basement meetings or secret liaisons, but by conversations at the pub about how 'something needs to be done' or 'somebody needs to do something about that'. That's it for today. No homework, but I would encourage you to talk about this with your friends and classmates. I have given this lecture to all of the students at Hogwarts this week, so I hope everyone is talking about it."

Soon the class was shuffling out of the classroom deep in thought and conversation. As the Slytherins made their way through the halls to lunch, they stopped when they saw a frustrated Hermione Granger being accosted by four fourth year Ravenclaw students. They had stolen her books and were tossing them between them, laughing at the 'know-it-all' first-year. "Stop… Please just give them back…" Hermione implored before one of the students shoved her to the ground, causing the young girl to burst into tears.

"HEY!" Harry yelled before dropping his bag and bursting into a run, followed by James and Draco, who were also yelling for them to stop, "What do you think you are doing?" he spat as Draco and James helped the Ravenclaw from the floor.

"Just playing a bit, Potter-Black. Let us have our fun… She doesn't deserve magic." One of the boys said as he sneered at Hermione, who was now hiding behind the two who had helped her up.

"Oh really? I think you don't deserve magic. At least she is near the top in all of our year, what are you four? The bottom of fourth year? Hoping Daddy's money will set you up for life?" Daphne said as she came up behind him, spooking him, "Hermione has spent countless hours with us studying and trying to learn everything about our world. She's not a mudblood anymore. Leave. Her. Alone."

Harry, confused as to why studying with them had now changed her blood status somehow, continued the verbal attack on the boys, "You four are worthless scum. Picking on a first year like this. Go fight the Weasels or something… Come on, lets go Hermione…" As the group formed a circle around her and began walking to the Great Hall to get food, Sebastian turned around and offered his defense of Hermione.

"I declare Hermione Jean Granger as under the protection of the Ancient and Noble House of Nott. If anyone continues to bully her, a blood feud will have existed between our Houses."

All of the kids stopped in pure shock, causing Hermione to run into the back of Harry, "Are you sure that's a good idea, Seb?" James asked, "Your father might have to duel another students father to the death if its serious enough…"

"Yeah, I could have just mentioned it to my Dad and he could have taken care of it," Draco said, now concerned.

"Now they know I'm serious." Sebastian said as he grabbed Hermione's hand and led her into the great hall to sit next to him at the Slytherin table.

"Bloody insane." Tracey said to Daphne... All she could do was nod in agreement.

A/N: Please be aware that Professor Nott was NOT chosen by Dumbledore to be the Professor for that class. Similar to what happened with Umbridge, he was placed there by the Ministry and is not beholden to teach what Dumbledore wants. Also, since we know he IS a Death Eater and actively attempting to bring the Dark Lord back, he is basically using this as an opportunity to put a more positive light on the Dark Lord.

Also, I would also say that while some of the actions by Daphne or others may seem contradictory, the children have been drilled from a small age that you have your public opinions and private opinions. Daphne DOES believe privately that muggleborns are below her and other Purebloods, but she doesn't believe that they aren't real people who deserve to be treated kindly. Hermione has proven to her that she deserves magic and isn't going to try to attempt to change their ways.

Hermione will feature more in this story now as she is becoming disillusioned with her house. Thanks for reading!