Albus arrived back in Hogwarts just after Cornelius and Amelia had left. Not only did he miss speaking with them, it would seem he missed another opportunity to take a trip down into the Chamber of Secrets. He discovered this when the one person he actually wanted to miss deliberately sought him out, Rita Skeeter.
Rita had hung back, determined to have a little discrete nosey around the infirmary later. Spotting Dumbledore though was just too good a chance to pass up. "Headmaster Dumbledore, would you share your thoughts on the news Sirius Black, Harry Potter's godfather, is about to be given a trial he should have received all those years ago?"
Normally, hearing that would have set Albus off to try and rectify this potential disaster - but today wasn't normal. Discovering Harry had claimed his Lordship, and appointed a Steward to House Potter, meant that Sirius being free was irrelevant. Since he'd already secured Remus' promise that Harry would be on the express come September, Albus felt he could be generous here.
"I know that Harry is convinced his godfather is innocent and we can only hope that this trial proves that. Justice should, and always will, prevail."
Carefully writing that down, Rita couldn't believe the opening the old wizard had just presented her with. She didn't hesitate for a second. "Headmaster, Harry is also convinced Severus Snape is a Death Eater. Should there be another trial for Snape, one that looks at the facts rather than just having you vouch for the wizard?"
Albus looked over his half-moon glasses and bestowed his most piercing stare on the reporter. "Miss Skeeter, to win a war we sometimes have to do things that are rather distasteful. Without Severus Snape's assistance, I seriously doubt whether we would have defeated Lord Voldemort. That was why I vouched for the wizard, he played a vital part in the last war."
Rather than closing Rita down, that statement actually piqued her interest. Albus soon realised he'd said far too much, to entirely the wrong person, as he now faced a barrage of questions Albus Dumbledore didn't want anyone knowing the answers to. Today's revelations must have taken more out of him than he thought.
Quick as a flash, his wand was in his hand and Rita forgot all about meeting Albus Dumbledore. She also forgot her intention to 'bug' the infirmary, looking for some juicy gossip. Rita headed out of the castle, just as Albus had instructed her to do.
Walking away, Albus thought it was sometimes good to be one of the most powerful wizards in the world. It certainly helped him when taking care of problems - like Miss Skeeter.
Even with Remus' promise, Albus had another method for ensuring Harry Potter was in the castle next term. Though loath to use it, he had long ago resigned himself to do what needed to be done - no matter how distasteful it might be to others. Reaching his office, Albus then found three members of the school board waiting on him - with a load of questions of their own. Some days you just couldn't catch a break.
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At the Gryffindor table, Luna was now treated like visiting royalty by the Weasley twins. They had thought getting Colin to flood the school with pictures of the basilisk was a great prank - since Dumbledore clearly wanted the entire episode kept quiet.
Seeing those same pictures in a newspaper, with an accompanying story that gave Dumbledore a sharp kick up the arse, was simply brilliant in their book. Since Fred and George were becoming more and more responsible for setting the tone of their house's opinion, she was welcomed with open arms by the house of the lions.
Luna was easily having her best week ever inside Hogwarts. While Ron certainly kept an eye out to see no one was troubling her, Neville now spent every spare moment he had at Luna's side. She initially worried that Neville was taking Harry's request too seriously, to the detriment of his other friendships, until Luna made a couple of startling discoveries.
The first was rather baffling, as it seemed Neville didn't really have any other close friends. The second discovery though almost blew her mind, Neville apparently liked spending time with her.
To a very lonely girl, this was a real shock. The more she got to know Neville however, the more she began to understand. He too was a lonely person, someone searching for a good friend. Just the thought of having a good friend, and spending at least some of the summer together - with their other friends - had Luna smiling more than she ever had before.
Watching the little blonde sitting beside Neville wear a smile had Ron mentally nodding in satisfaction. Harry had asked that he keep an eye on Luna, Ron took some pride in the fact he and Neville were doing such a good job. His gaze moved further down the table and settled on his sister.
It must be hard for Ginny to see pictures of that beast all over the school, and now in a newspaper. The Weasley brothers at Hogwarts all knew they had let their sister down when she was a first year, that was a mistake that would never be repeated.
With Ginny though, the trick was always how to keep an eye on her without the youngest Weasley thinking you were checking up on her. Ginny might be the youngest and smallest Weasley but all her brothers were well aware that - when it came to temper - their sister had received an adult-sized dose. Having that temper focused on you was definitely something to be avoided.
Looking around from chatting to Colin, Ron suddenly realised that Ginny had caught him staring. Her slight smile told Ron he wasn't in any trouble so his attention turned back to the food on his plate. With his responsibilities taken care of, Ron set about devouring the wonderful meal before him.
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