What Have I Done Now?
Author: Ron Weasley 
Date:   06-21-10 23:58

Ron arrives at the Burrow by Floo, too tired to bother with apparating. Tired enough that he wasn't paying proper attention and nearly missed the Burrow's grate. That's something Ron is NEVER going to share with Fred and George. They might be a great deal more responsible and respectible these days with the branches of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and having families but they are still the twins who love to pick on their younger brother. And their older brothers. Sometimes Ginny but she still scares them somewhat.

Simultaneously stepping from the fireplace and calling out, "Hallo, Mum!" Ron almost immediately comes to a dead stop in his tracks at the loud screach from Molly at the sink. Just as immediately, Ron's moving again, rushing to his mother's side. "What is it, Mum?"

Molly uses the dish towel in her hand to slap at Ron. "DON'T SNEAK UP ON ME LIKE THAT, RONALD BILIUS WEASLEY!"

"But I didn't."

"Here I was keeping an ear out for you to the door," Molly says with a jerk of her head to the kitchen door. "I wasn't expecting you to come up behind me from the Floo."

"I'm sorry. I didn't scare you on purpose."

Molly visibly relaxes. "I'm sure you didn't, though at times you can be just as bad as Fred and George." Molly, her expression growing more serious again, steps closer to Ron, looking up at his face. Her eyes narrow and she reaches up to grasp Ron's chin with a grip that has him saying, "OW!" as Molly pulls him down to better scrutinize his face.

"You've got dark circles under your eyes."

"Just a little tired at the moment is all, Mum."

"More than a little tired. Shattered I'd say."

His chin released from Molly's vise-like grip, Ron shrugs as he rubs where her fingers had held on so tightly. "I'll admit I'm pretty knackered. Been working a case that has required some long hours."

"Still putting in time with Whizz Hard too? You know you don't need to work two jobs, Ron. Three if you count helping at both of the shoppes and Blossom's."

Ron thinks but doesn't say aloud, "Four, if you count taking up writing Aunt Aggie for the Daily Prophet's agony aunt column again."

"I know I don't NEED to work fo three jobs, Mum. Yeah, having the extra income is really nice, especially with some of the repairs and renovations I'm doing to the house, but I can't bring myself to fully quit Whizz Hard. I really like the work. As for the joke shoppes and Blossom's, all of us help out. Even Percy. He does the least but still... ."

As he'd been talking, Molly had taken hold of Ron's arm and directed him to sit at the table. He does, glad to be off his feet and has the sudden urge to excuse himself and go up to his old room to take a nap. The problem with that is climbing all those stairs when he's dead on his feet. Maybe the couch then, he thinks, leaning back slightly so he can see into the next room, looking yearningly at the couch.

Molly places steaming bowl of soup in front of Ron along with slices of freshly baked bread with gooey melted cheese and cut into soldiers. "I know it's summer and not really soup weather but there are times when nothing beats soup and cheese soldiers," Molly says. She places a glass of milk on the table then sits down opposte Ron.

He'd picked up one of the cheese soldiers and has it halfway to his mouth when he pauses to ask, "Anyone else coming? Aren't you eating?"

"It's just us and I'll eat in a moment. Ron, there's something I want to say to you. You just go on and eat. I'll do the talking."

Hot cheesy bread still poised halfway to his lips, Ron asks with a feeling of dread, "Have I done something wrong?"

"Yes. No. That is, it's more of what you haven't done."

Ron starts to ask what that is but Molly's barreling on. "Bill, Charlie, Fred, and George are happily settled. Percy is, well, Percy. Financially he's settled though to hear him talk you'd think he was on the verge of being penniless."

Ron arches an eyebrow at that statement, interjecting, "Good pun, Mum."

"What? Oh. Yes, yes. Penniless. That was not intentional. I do so hate that Penny and he are on the outs. Things were going so well between them after his ordeal. I had so hoped... but no, I won't get into that now. There's the matter of you."

"What have I done, Mum? Or not done?"

"You made some horrible, horrible mistakes but you've more than made up for them. Everything seems to be good between Hermione and you."

It is. Mum, just get to the point."

"Ron Weasley, you need to stop stringing Hermione along. Ask her to marry you or, I cannot believe I am saying this, at least ask her to move in with you. That would be a step in the right direction. It would show you are willing to make a commitment. Marriage is better but I'd settle for your living together for now."

"I have not been string Hermione along. I needed time to show her I'm not a bloody screw-up on everything. Hermione didn't need me pressuring her while she was getting back into her studies, trying to pick up where she'd been forced to leave off."

"You could have done all that and still popped the question. Hermione could just as easily have finished her studies with a ring on her finger. She's starting to wonder if you're truly serious."

"Yeah, well, it's not like she couldn't have asked me, you know. She's a very modern woman."

"Don't get cheeky with me right now, Ron. Take the next step. I'd be happy to give you advice on picking out a ring."

Ron stares down at his soup. "Already have a ring.

"Don't mumble."

Ron clears his throat and looks directly across at his mother. Speaking slowly and distinctly he informs her, "I already have a ring."

"Now, Ron, there's no need to fib just to shut me up for now."

"Not a fib. I've had a ring for awhile now. I've been working so hard to buy a house and to get Hermione a very nice ring."

Molly looks stunned. "You truly have a ring?"

"Yes, and I truly am going to ask Hermione. The time just never seems right."

"Maybe if you weren't working so much," Molly dryly comments.

"Yeah, I know, but she's always so busy too. One reason I do keep working so much is because she's always busy, first with finishing her studies and now with her training program."

"Make time because, Ron, it's far too easy to fall back on the never a right time excuse. Are you going to make me wait to see the ring until you do find the right time to actually put it on Hermione's finger?"

"No, I suppose you can see it before then. Tell me if you think she'll like it."

"Much as I'd love to see it right this second, you need to finish your lunch first and get some rest."

"I can eat lunch and you can see the ring right this second," Ron tells her. Ron fishes in a secured pocket, bringing out a small ring box. "I've been carrying it with me since the day I bought it."

This time the very loud, high pitch noise Molly makes it not a screach of fear but a giddy shriek of happiness.

(Kate) What?
Author: Bronwyn Dewhurst 
Date:   06-22-10 17:14

Professor Binns didn't seem to realize that class had ended, not even when his second year Hufflepuff and Gryffindor students began collecting their things and leaving the classroom. The ghost simply kept on lecturing, lost as he always seemed to be on whatever subject currently held his attention.

Kate slipped out of the History of Magic classroom behind the others and gradually made her way from the third floor of the castle to the ground floor, and then through the entrance hall to the front doors. She stepped outside into the sunshine and immediately rolled up the sleeves of her uniform. It wasn't too hot by any means but definitely warm enough not to want her arms completely covered.

No sooner had she done so that she met Gus coming towards the castle along with his fellow Slytherins Johanna and Felicia. The girls stopped and exchanged knowing glances. Kate had no idea what to make of that and instead turned to Gus.

"Just back from Herbology?" she asked.

"Yeah. We learned about some kind of grass today," Gus replied.

"Bear grass," Johanna reminded him. "Weren't you paying attention?"

Gus gave her a very pointed look and said, "It's hard to pay attention when it's so nice outside and summer is almost here."

"We do have finals next week," Kate said.

"Don't remind me!" Gus groaned.

Kate shook her head and turned to the girls again, both of whom were trying to hide their smiles.

"What?"

"Nothing," Felicia replied, grabbing Gus by the arm. "We're going to be late for class. Come on!"

Gus started to say "Who cares?" but he didn't get the words out of his mouth. Felicia and Johanna carted him away, leaving Kate alone to continue on her path to the greenhouses. Did she have something stuck in her teeth, she wondered? Or was her hair sticking up? She immediately smoothed it down but it had felt fine.

She ultimately shrugged her shoulders and continued on her way to class.

Proctoring Arithmancy & Divination
Author: Majandra 
Date:   06-22-10 18:36

On the large blackboard set about where the middle of the faculty dining table would be Majandra writes the time remaining for the Theory of Arithmancy & Divination portion of the Ordinary Wizarding Levels, better known as the OWLs, and of the Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests, commonly referred to as the NEWTs. 1 HOUR REMAINING now looms large in the vision of any looking up from their exams. Maj also announces this aloud, making sure to keep her voice at a well modulated pitch so as not to startle the test takers. Having concentration broken in the midst of answering a question can be bad enough under normal testing circumstances and the OWLs and NEWTS are hardly normal testing circumstances.

Normally on Wednesday afternoons Majandra teaches two classes of third years, the Gryffindors and the Slytherins from 1 pm to 2 pm and the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws from 2 pm to 3 pm. With proctoring the 5th and 7th years writing Theory of Arithmancy & Divination beginning at 2 pm this afternoon, Severus took both of her classes. She problaby could have taken the first one but felt it more important to be to the Great Hall early and the amount of time she would have had to shave off that class by ending it in plenty of time for her to be here early and to have the test takers with tests in hand and beginning writing at promptly 2 pm, it really was best for Severus to substitute. She is sure that by the time supper is over this evening she will have heard from a number of the third years who did not care to have Severus Snape be their substitute. Maj does feel a little bad about them being "traumatized" but not too badly as she always did like him more than her fellow students when she was a student and then afterwards. He did, afterall, encourage her to go into Potions as a career and gave her tips and advice and a number of excellent contacts.

Thinking about her third years having Severus as a substitute reminds Maj that those who were students at Hogwarts last term had Amycus Carrow for Potions. Anyone, including Severus, is going to seem far better, and nicer, than Amycus Carrow ever imagined being. The year before that, some had a woman Maj never knew, Augusta Spudmore, while others began the term with Severus but ended it with Amycus Carrow. Of those third years who were at Happy Haven or in hiding and didn't go to school elsewhere in the world and who would have otherwise been 4th years, they had Horace Slughorn their first term at Hogwarts.

The ever changing Potions professor is much like the new Defense of the Dark Arts professors she and her classmates had every year. She has really enjoyed teaching and she doesn't think Severus has any plans on leaving Hogwarts so hopefully the revolving door of Potions professors has come to an end.

Geoffrey Ludlow is waving his quill at her so Majandra picks up another from the stack of extra anti-cheating quills to take to him. As she passes other students on her way to Geoffrey, Maj can't help but notice yet again how tired and drawn they all appear. Some of them have a scant five hour break that includes eating dinner before their Astronomy practical tonight. Did she and her classmates ever look like this? Did George?

Thinking of George has Maj hoping he remembers he's to pick up Miranda and Georgie from Blossom's and come to the castle for supper tonight. Prior to the Potions OWL and NEWT on Monday, Maj had been staying extra hours at the castle and eating dinner there nightly to be on hand to help any of the 5th and 7th years who needed it. Severus is their professor but sometimes he's not available when a student is or is otherwise engaged with someone else. Having Maj available was particularly helpful to those who only had quick questions and didn't really need to stand around waiting for Severus to have the 30 seconds needed to answer the question.

Also, with final examinations fast approaching for the other years, Maj has been available to help as well as giving projects to a few students who are in need of bolstered grades. There have been exams to make out, assignments still to be graded, and the other various tasks to complete for end of term.

Walking back to her position near the blackboard, hourglass, and extra testing supplies, Maj thinks it a wonder she isn't looking and feeling drawn and tired as well between her work here at school, her children, and her husband.

Astronomy Practical
Author: Minerva McGonagall 
Date:   06-23-10 17:39

Professor McGonagall stood just within the stairwell of the Astronomy Tower and waited for the fifth years to finish their exams. The four Ministry of Magic examiners prowled the observation deck, keeping watchful eyes on their examinees.

When Professor Tofty called out, "Time!", Professor McGonagall immediately began shepherding the fifth years off of the deck and down the stairs. She paused at Professor Quigley's Astronomy classroom and had the waiting sixth years form a line at the door. Once the last fifth year student had past her by, Professor McGonagall had the sixth years go up to the observation deck and take their places at the telescopes.

All that remained in Professor Quigley's classroom were the seventh years, who stared up at the enchanted ceiling and tried to remember everything they had ever learned about Astronomy while they waited for their turn to go upstairs.

Once again, Professor McGonagall took her place just within the stairwell. It was a beautiful, clear night–-absolutely perfect for the Astronomy O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. examinations. In between gazing at the starry sky, Minerva watched the students as they listened to Professor Marchbanks go over the instructions for the exam. They basically had to fill out a star chart and label everything neatly.

When Professor Marchbanks finished speaking, the exam officially began and Minerva allowed herself to think about other things. With term's end rapidly approaching, there was much to do. Finals were next week, and after lengthy discussion with Professor Dumbledore and some of the other teachers, it was decided that the sixth years currently involved with the O.W.L.s should be exempt. After all, it hadn't been any fault of theirs that they were taking the O.W.L.s now instead of two years ago, when they'd been fifth years. All other sixth years would still have to take finals, though.

After finals, there would be the End of Term Feast and the announcement of who won the Quidditch and House Cups. Unfortunately, Minerva's own house hadn't won the Quidditch Cup this year. That honor had gone to Ravenclaw, who stood a very good chance of taking the House Cup as well.

And after the students went home for the summer, there would be much preparation in need of doing in anticipation of the new school year. Letters would have to go out: to new first years, to all students regarding supplies, and to the new prefects. It was enough to keep Professor McGonagall quite busy throughout the summer!