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Matt didn't return to the common room until Sunday afternoon. Albus and his friends had spent most of the weekend doing homework and playing rounds of Exploding Snap. Kaden made himself scarce and Albus hardly saw him at all. Albus vaguely wondered where he was, but he didn't really think about it much. All that mattered was that Kaden wasn't hanging around Albus anymore. Albus and his friends didn't get a chance to tell Matt about what Kaden told Malfoy while he was in the hospital wing because it had been very crowded that weekend. Apparently, quite a few students had decided to practice their dueling for the upcoming match while they were unsupervised in the corridor. This caused Madam Pomfrey to have an awful lot to do. She looked very frazzled when Albus and the others visited Matt on Saturday.

Albus was sitting in the common room with the others, doing homework, when Matt returned from the Hospital Wing. He still looked a bit tired and the cuts on his face weren't completely healed yet, but he looked much better than he had on Thursday. Albus closed his book and glanced at his friends when Matt came through the portrait hole.

"What's with you lot?" Matt asked, "You're awfully quiet."

"We've, er, got to tell you something," Albus replied quietly, "Let's go to the Room." Albus got up and left the common room. His friends all followed, not saying a word. Albus led them down the seventh floor corridor until they reached the painting of Barnabas the Barmy. Albus paced three times in front of it and opened the door that appeared. It looked just like it did whenever Albus or his friends asked for a place where they could be alone. There were a few squashy armchairs and couches, a fireplace, and it was decorated in scarlet and gold.

"Ok, so what's this all about?" Matt asked immediately, once the door was shut.

"Why don't you sit down?" Rose suggested.

Matt sat down on one of the couches and looked nervously at the others. "You look like my parents did when they told me I couldn't go to school in Australia."

"Well, we're obviously not going to tell you that," Albus gave a half-hearted laugh as he sat down on a chair. Rose, John, and Amanda sat down as well.

"Well, get on with it," Matt said.

"All right," Albus began, "You've probably noticed that Kaden isn't around."

"Yeah, I thought that was a bit odd," Matt commented, "What's he done now?"

Albus sighed, "I don't really know the best way to say this. Kaden, er, for some reason was talking to Scorpius Malfoy-"

"Malfoy?!" Matt interrupted with a look of shock on his face.

"It gets worse," Albus continued, "You know how I told Kaden that you get sick every once in a while, so he would shut up last month?"

"Yeah..."

"And I made him promise not to tell anyone," Albus said quickly, "But for some reason he told Malfoy."

Matt sank back into his chair and his face went chalk white. Albus was glad Rose told him to sit down, because if he hadn't have been sitting he probably would have fainted. Albus watched as Matt processed the information. After a few moments he asked very quietly, "What did he tell Malfoy?"

"That you've got some kind of wizard disease that Madam Pomfrey can't cure," Albus answered. "And Malfoy put two and two together and figured out that you don't visit your sick gran."

"Oh, no," Matt closed his eyes and started rubbing his head, "This isn't good. Malfoy can't find out, he just can't."

"We're going to try and make sure he doesn't," John said adamantly.

"But you can't really stop him! All he's got to do is a bit of research and he'll know everything," Matt moaned.

"Maybe he'll be too lazy to bother," Amanda suggested.

"There's another thing," Albus started, "Kaden may have also told him about the Whomping Willow."

"No, he can't have, he just can't," Matt whispered.

"We don't know for sure," Albus reminded him, "I'm watching the Marauder's Map and if we see Malfoy anywhere near the tree, we'll go hex him or something."

Matt nodded, "You know, if Malfoy finds out and tells anyone, chances are I'll have to leave."

"No, you won't," Rose assured him.

"How do you know?"

"Rose is right," Albus agreed, "When the Marauders were in school, Snape found out about Teddy's dad and he still got to stay in school. Dumbledore made him promise not to tell anyone. I'm sure Kendrick would do the same thing."

"I sure hope so," Matt sighed, "What about Kaden?"

"Rose had to stop me and John from hexing him," Albus explained, "But I yelled at him quite a bit. Haven't seen him much since and I don't really want to."

"But he's your cousin," Matt said.

"Doesn't matter," Albus assured him, "I hardly saw him at all until he started coming here. I told him not to tell anyone and he did, so I can't trust him anymore. And no one's going to convince me to apologize this time."

"All right," Matt replied. "Let's stay here for a while. I think if I saw Kaden right now I'd have to hex him."

Rose groaned, "What is with boys? Do you always have to hex people to solve your problems?"

"It's a proven fact that hexing works best when dealing with Slytherins," John grinned.

"Kaden's not a Slytherin," Rose commented.

"What he did was a pretty Slytherin thing to do," Albus replied. Nobody argued with that.

******

The weekend before Halloween was a very exciting one for the students at Hogwarts. There was the first Hogsmeade visit on Saturday, which the older students were very excited about. Albus, of course, wasn't allowed to go since he was a second year. James made sure to lord this over him at every moment possible during the week preceding the visit. James would be going on his first Hogsmeade visit, and Albus was sure that Hogwarts would be treated to a variety of pranks following. When James and his friends returned from Hogsmeade, they ran into the common room with their bags bulging with what could only be Weasley's products, and quickly stowed it all in their dormitory. Sure enough, at dinner that night, the student body was treated to a very entertaining meal. Somehow, James and his friends had managed to sneak a potion into the Slytherins' food that caused their hair and fingernails to turn scarlet and gold. The rest of the school laughed hysterically as the Slytherins tried to figure out how to turn their hair and nails back to normal.

"Nothing will change it," James informed the Gryffindor table in between fits of laughter, "Uncle George told me it will wear off within 24 hours, though."

"Too bad it's not permanent!" John laughed.

"I was going to save it for the day of the Quidditch match," James explained, "But I just couldn't wait."

"I can't blame you," Albus grinned. He looked up at the staff table and saw his dad trying to stifle his laughter, but he wasn't succeeding. The other members of the staff were smiling slightly, except for Slughorn, who was looking a bit distraught at the sight of his house decked out in Gryffindor colors.

The following day was the first dueling tournament for the junior dueling club. The older students had already had their first tournament the previous weekend. Albus's cousin Stanley's team had won. The tournament was to take place immediately following lunch, at one o'clock, and the second, third, and fourth years were filled with excitement about it.

"What if we have to duel each other?" Albus said worriedly at lunch. "I really don't want to duel you lot."

"I don't either," John agreed, "But we might have to. It'll be all right. None of us know any spells that could do any lasting damage. I'm just hoping I get to duel Malfoy."

"Me, too," Matt agreed.

"I almost wish first years could join the dueling club, so I could duel Kaden," Albus commented, "I wouldn't mind beating him in front of the entire school."

"I'm probably just going to lose, no matter who I duel," Amanda sighed, "The only thing I can do is disarm someone, and I'm not even that good at that."

"Sure you are," Albus assured her, "And if you duel a second year, or even a third year, you'll have a chance at winning. Fourth years, on the other hand, I'm not sure any of us have got a chance at winning a duel with one of them. They probably know all sorts of spells we don't."

"Albus," Rose began, "Remember that the teams have people from all years on them. I don't think any team has an advantage over another."

"I guess," Albus agreed, "But I still wish there were House teams. I don't like being on the same team with Malfoy."

"Me neither," Amanda said.

"We wind up practice dueling with each other every meeting," Albus explained, "And neither of us has really won any of them."

"You're both really good duelers," Amanda replied. "You're going to beat anyone you're up against, Albus."

"I'm not sure about that," Albus said.

"Attention!" Professor Kendrick stood up, "The junior dueling tournament will commence shortly. Please make your way to the dueling chamber."

Albus stood up, "Well, good luck everyone." Albus's friends all wished each other good luck as they got up and left the Great Hall. It was a bit odd being on separate teams, Albus thought. He wished his friends good luck, but he wanted his own team to win.

Albus and Amanda quickly lost the others in the sea of students filing into the dueling chamber near the Great Hall. They found Kate at one of the tables that had been set up for each team to wait at. Their team name, The Dueling Dragons, was written on a piece of parchment that was stuck to the table. There was a realistic looking dragon breathing fire drawn on it. Scorpius Malfoy was sitting scowling at one end of the table, his hair still bright scarlet and gold. Albus and Amanda stifled their laughter and sat down on the opposite end. A few minutes later, once everyone on their team had arrived, Kate began to speak.

"Attention!" she shouted and the table became quiet, "Thanks. The tournament will start in a couple minutes. I'm sure we'll do great. Everyone remember what you've learned within the past month and you'll do fine. Just do your best and even if you don't win today, there's still next time. I know this inter-house team thing is hard, but I think everyone here has really come together to work as a team, and I'm proud of all of you for that. So, with that, good luck!" Kate sat back down and started talking to one of the other fourth years on the team.

A minute later, Professor Kendrick stood up at the front of the room and raised his hands for quiet. The room fell silent and he began to speak. "Welcome to the first Dueling Tournament for the Juniors Dueling Club. This is the first of six qualifying tournaments of the year. At the end of the year, the top two teams will face off in a final tournament. There will be two duels going on simultaneously, with Professors Potter and Longbottom presiding over them. Every student will duel twice today. The winner of each duel will be awarded one point. At the end of the tournament, the team with the most points will be declared the winner. The points will role over to each tournament, after the sixth tournament, the two teams with the most points will face off in the final. Now, each captain was given a list of duels for today, so I will give you a few minutes to get organized and for the captains to inform their teams of the schedule. Good luck to all."

Kate quickly went over the schedule with her team. Albus's first duel was about halfway down the list and his second was the third to last. The only thing he could do now was wait until his turn came. Albus was growing steadily more nervous as time wore on. What if he lost? Malfoy would never let him live that down. Albus watched the first couple of duels while talking with Amanda. After a few duels, James's turn came and he lost to a Ravenclaw fourth year. Rose was up next and she easily beat her third year Slytherin opponent. Quite a few of Albus's teammates had dueled by now and most of them had won. Before long, Amanda's turn was up. Albus wished her luck and she went nervously to the dueling ring that Neville was watching over.

Amanda was up against a second year Hufflepuff and the first part of the duel consisted of each of them mostly dodging the spells sent towards them. Eventually, Amanda managed to disarm her opponent and won. She came back grinning ear to ear. Kate congratulated her as she sat back down next to Albus.

"Great job!" Albus smiled, "Told you you could do it."

"Thanks," Amanda grinned.

Matt was up next against a Slytherin fourth year. The duel hardly lasted two minutes before the Slytherin used an advanced spell that caused Matt to slam into the wall behind him. Harry quickly disarmed the Slytherin and disqualified him. Professor Cedonia took Matt to the hospital wing while Harry assigned the Slytherin a couple detentions.

"What a git," Albus growled, "I hope Matt's ok."

"He'll be fine," Amanda assured him, "I think he just cut his arm a bit."

"Yeah, but still," Albus continued, "That Slytherin knew he couldn't use spells like that."

"I could have blocked it," Malfoy announced.

"No you couldn't," Albus shot back. "And how's the hair?"

Malfoy scowled and turned away from Albus. A moment later his name was called and he was off to duel a fellow Slytherin. It was a very fast paced duel. Both of them were excellent duelers, but Malfoy won in the end. Albus was not sure whether to be happy about this or not. He didn't have long to dwell on it, though, because a minute later, he was called.

Albus walked nervously to the dueling ring where Neville was and he faced his Ravenclaw opponent. He was dueling Carter Eubert, a fellow second year.

"Both of you know the rules," Neville said to them, "You can start when I let out red sparks."

Albus and Carter bowed to each other and took a dueling stance. Neville's wand shot out red sparks and the duel began. Albus sent out a disarming spell, but Carter easily blocked it. Carter then sent one at Albus, but Albus was able to block it as well. This went on for five minutes, each of them sending spells that the other blocked. Eventually, Albus managed to hit Carter with a tickling hex that had him bent over in laughter. Albus took advantage of this and disarmed him easily. He had done it! He won!

"Point goes to Potter," Neville announced. Albus and Carter shook hands and went back to their teams.

"Good job, Albus!" Kate grinned as Albus sat down.

"Thanks," Albus replied.

"That was amazing dueling, Albus," Amanda greeted him, "Carter's good, too, but that tickling thing was great. He could hardly move."

"I'll have to remember that if I ever duel him again," Albus said.

The afternoon wore on and Albus found himself getting a bit bored with watching the dueling. It was taking all afternoon. John dueled Albus's cousin, Cedric, and lost. Albus wasn't surprised by this, as Cedric was an excellent dueler. Rose and Malfoy each won their second duels, while John and Amanda lost theirs. Matt returned from the hospital wing in time for his second duel, but wound up losing to his third year Ravenclaw opponent. Albus dueled a third year Gryffindor in his second duel and narrowly won. His opponent did not look happy about this. Malfoy also won his second duel, which was against a third or fourth year Hufflepuff; Albus wasn't sure which.

Eventually, all the duels finished and Professor Kendrick stood up once again. "Great dueling, everyone! You all did a wonderful job. Now, to announce the winner. I am pleased to announce that the Flying Phoenixes, captained by Barty Heath of Slytherin have come in first place with 23 points! Thank you, everyone. The next tournament will take place at the end of November or beginning of December. Your captains will be informed of the exact date as it comes closer."

"We'll win next time," Kate assured her team as they got up. "See everyone at practice on Wednesday."

Albus and Amanda made their way out of the room, but realized they would never find their friends in the crowd. "We'll meet them in the common room," Albus said as they started up the stairs.

When they got to the common room, it was already full with students rehashing parts of the duel. Albus noticed Kaden listening to James's account of his duels. James had won his second duel and appeared to be very proud of it. Albus and Amanda ignored Kaden and found John and Matt sitting at their usual table. Albus and Amanda sat down and a few moments later were joined by Rose, who was glowing.

"Congratulations!" Albus announced as his cousin sat down. The others echoed his word.

"Thanks," Rose replied, "I wasn't sure we were going to win. Heath isn't the greatest captain. I think we just have naturally good duelers on our team. Carter is amazing, although not as good as you, Albus."

"I'm just glad I beat him," Albus grinned, "Malfoy wouldn't have shut up about it otherwise."

"Glad I'm not on his team," John muttered, "Can't believe I lost both my duels."

"You'll do better next time," Albus assured him.

"At least you didn't wind up in the hospital wing," Matt commented, "I'm the only one that did. Figures."

John laughed a bit at this, "I think you've got some kind of attraction for that place."

"Oh shut it," Matt replied.

"That wasn't your fault, though," Rose pointed out, "That Slytherin wasn't supposed to use that hex on you."

"You're ok now, right?" Amanda asked.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," Matt assured him, "Madam Pomfrey healed my arm in an instant, but she was fretting over me as usual. Professor Cedonia convinced her to let me go back for my second duel."

"Good," Amanda said, "I like Professor Cedonia. She reminds me of the teachers I had in primary school."

"Me, too," Albus agreed, "She hardly ever gives detention."

"And no exams!" John grinned. Albus liked this as well. So far, the only grades they had in that class were from essays they had been assigned as homework. Cedonia had not given them a single in class test.

"I'm not sure I like that," Rose sighed. The four other students looked at her like she was mental.

"Are you mad?" Albus asked.

"How is she supposed to know if we've mastered the charms if she doesn't test us?"

"She watches us in class to see if we've improved," Albus replied.

"And those essays for homework," Matt commented.

"But those aren't at all what the O.W.L.s will be like," Rose reminded them, "We've got to get used to taking exams in charms."

"Those are three years away!" John sighed.

"Two and a half," Rose corrected him, "And it's better to start preparing early."

"All I know is that I've learned more charms this year than last year," Albus said.

"Well, I'm going to ask her about it on Tuesday," Rose replied.

"No!" Albus and the others shouted at the same time. Albus liked Cedonia's style of teaching and he didn't want her to start giving them exams like the other teachers did. Without charms exams, Albus had less to worry about. Hopefully, Cedonia would ignore Rose's pleas for exams and continue the way she had been.
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A/N: Thanks to my beta, Dancer_of_Starlight! Thanks as well to XDNLxtlz99, sinwillys822, potterfan89, Luke, Denas, ladymblack, and Moonylupin for their reviews!

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Disclaimer- I don't own Harry Potter.
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Albus was helping himself to some pumpkin juice when the post arrived on Tuesday morning. He looked up and noticed a small brown owl flying towards him. He immediately recognized it as Victoire's owl. "Victoire's sent me something," Albus announced as the owl landed next to his plate. Albus took the letter and gave the owl a piece of toast before it flew off.

"Look, it's addressed to all of us," Rose commented as she glanced at the letter.

Albus turned the envelope over, wondering what it could be about. Victoire had sent him a couple letters so far this year, most of them sent along with Amy's letters to Matt. These usually arrived a couple days after the full moon, as Amy always wanted to know how Matt was. Since the full moon had been a few weeks ago, Albus was curious as to what Victoire had to tell them. He opened the letter and began to read it. Rose, Matt, John, and Amanda read it over his shoulder.

Dear Albus, Matt, Rose, John, and Amanda,
How have you been? I hope you're enjoying classes and not making too
much trouble. Congratulations on your successes in the dueling tournament,
especially you, Rose. I hope there are many great victories to come. Good
luck in your first Quidditch match, Albus. We hope to be able to attend, but
it depends on work and healer training schedules.

Training has been going well. We've been attending classes in the morning
and training at St. Mungo's in the afternoon, like always. Teddy has been
very busy with Auror training as well.

By now you're probably wondering why we're writing to you now, as it's not
our usual time to write. We're not sure if you read the Prophet regularly,
which is why we're telling you this in a letter. Quinton Willinson was
spotted yesterday-

Albus immediately stopped reading the letter and glanced at his friends. As Albus fell back into his school routine, he had almost forgotten about Washburn and the Willinsons. He felt his fear come back as soon as he read that Willinson had been spotted. Albus returned his eyes to the letter without saying anything.

He was spotted in a Muggle village in Southern England, quite far from Hogwarts. The Aurors are already on his tail and are tracking him this very
minute. Teddy heard about it while he was at training, and we decided to
give you a heads up. Uncle Harry will probably tell you as well.

Don't worry about it too much. He can't get into Hogwarts and Uncle Harry
has it under control. Good luck with Quidditch, dueling, and classes, and we
hope to see you soon.

Love,
Victoire, Teddy, and Amy

"I'd nearly forgotten about Willinson," John said darkly after they'd finished reading the letter.

"Me, too," Albus agreed.

"It explains why Professor Potter isn't here," Matt commented.

Albus looked up at the staff table and noticed that his father was missing. "Guess so."

"Don't worry," Rose said, "I mean, it's kind of good that someone spotted him. Before they had no leads, and now they sort of know where he is."

"I suppose," Albus replied. He hadn't thought of that. But what about the other two? Were they with Quinton or had they parted ways? Albus just hoped his dad and the other Aurors managed to capture him.

"Could I see the Prophet?" Rose asked one of the older students who was sitting across from her. The girl nodded and handed her the paper. "Let's find the article." Rose scanned the front page and found a short article on the left side of the page. She read it aloud.

"'Eighteen-year-old Quinton Willinson was seen near the Muggle town, Hythe, in Southern England early yesterday morning. A wizard who prefers not to be named in this article saw him and immediately informed the Ministry. Willinson has been wanted by the Auror department since his attack on Head Auror and Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter, last Spring. Five underage Hogwarts students were also attacked. Willinson, along with his father, Jaret Willinson, and the former Charms professor, Jameson Washburn, attacked Potter and the five students on the grounds. Potter declined comment for this article. The Head Auror has informed the wizarding public that all three men are dangerous and not to attempt to fight them. If any of them are seen, people are requested to inform the Ministry immediately. Ministry Aurors responded to the sighting and are currently investigating.'"

"Wow," Rose said once she'd finished reading the article, "I hope they catch him soon."

"Me, too," Albus agreed, "I'm glad he's so far away, though."

"But they're going to come back," Rose sighed, "To find the, you-know-whats."

"Well, hopefully Professor Potter will catch them before they get the chance," Matt replied, "Anyway, I hope Amy and Victoire come to the Quidditch match. I haven't seen Amy in ages."

Albus looked over and saw that Matt was looking a bit sad. Albus knew he and Amy were very close, but hadn't really thought about how different it must be for Matt this year. Albus didn't think Matt had ever gone this long without seeing her. "They'll probably come," Albus assured him, "And if they can't, they'll visit when they can."

"Yeah," Matt gave a half-hearted smile.

"We'd better get to Charms," Rose announced. The five second years got up from the table and made their way out of the Great Hall. Albus noticed that Kaden was sitting next to James, talking animatedly about something. James didn't appear too happy about this and had the look of someone pretending to listen, but not really listening. Albus almost felt bad about James having to deal with Kaden, but not bad enough to make up with his cousin.

Professor Cedonia spent the first half of class teaching the charm for tying shoes, and during the second half, the class practiced. Unlike last year, Albus thoroughly enjoyed practical lessons in Charms. Professor Cedonia did not mind them talking with each other as they practiced, and although she watched their progress, she didn't hover like Washburn had done.

"Excuse me, Professor?" Rose announced shortly after she succeeded in charming her shoes to tie themselves.

"Rose, don't," Albus whispered. He knew she was about to ask if they were going to have any tests.

"Yes, Rose?" Cedonia walked over to her desk and immediately spotted her perfectly tied shoes. "Oh, wonderful job!"

"Thank you, Professor," Rose replied. "But I was just wondering, are we going to have any exams in this class?"

Everyone in the entire room stopped what they were doing and looked over at Rose. Most of them looked horrified, but a few appeared to also be wondering if they would have any exams. Since they had Charms with the Ravenclaws, this didn't really surprise Albus.

"Ah," Cedonia smiled, "I was wondering if anyone would ask. I, unlike the other teachers at this school, do not believe in testing students in the conventional way. I prefer to assign essays that are done outside of class, where you are free to use your books, to assess your knowledge of theory. As far as practical exams go, I prefer to assess your progress in class. If I have any belief that you are not mastering the task at hand, I will give you extra help until you can master it. However, in accordance with Hogwarts tradition, there will be a practical exam at the end of the semester. The theory exam will be an essay that you can complete using your book, in class."

"Oh," Rose said. She looked a bit stunned. "All right."

"If you'd like an exam, I will create one for you, but no one else will have to take it unless they want to," Cedonia announced.

"No, that's all right," Rose replied.

"Excellent. I assure you, Rose, that you will have a perfect understanding of second year Charms by the time the year is up, and you will be in excellent shape to move on to third year."

Rose nodded and Cedonia walked back to the front of the room. Albus turned to John and grinned. "Yes, no exams!" he said.

"Brilliant," John agreed, "I really thought Rose was going to convince her to test us."

"Well, I suppose she kind of is testing us," Matt explained, "Just in a different way. I've never had a teacher like her before."

"Me, neither," John said.

Albus nodded. All of his teachers in primary school had been like the ones at Hogwarts, with conventional exams and homework. "I went to a Muggle school and all of the teachers gave us exams. Rose went to the same one."

"Same here," John replied, "Normal Muggle school."

"Not me," Matt announced, "I was home-schooled. You can probably guess why. Amy went to Muggle school, though."

"All the teachers were like Cedonia at my school," Amanda turned around to talk to the boys. "We didn't have exams or grades or anything like that. It was fun. I really liked going to school. Except when I made strange stuff happen. People thought I was weird. Turns out I was, but in a good way," she laughed.

"I suppose this will work," Rose sighed, "She is assessing us, just in a different way. At least she's nice. Everyone seems to like her."

"We don't really have any mean teachers this year," Albus commented.

"I hadn't really thought about that," John said, "But you're right."

"Who knows about next year, though," Matt replied, "We'll start new subjects and who knows what those teachers will be like."

"Hagrid teaches Care of Magical Creatures and he's great," Albus told them.

"What kind of magical creatures?" John grinned at Matt.

"Don't even go there," Matt grinned back. "Amy says the Ancient Runes teacher is nice."

"Trelawney's kind of strange, but nice enough," Albus commented. "She teaches Divination."

"No way am I taking that," Matt announced, "I don't want to know what my future holds."

"Arithmancy sounds really interesting," Rose said, "And Georgia told me the teacher is strict, but not mean."

"Well, good," Albus replied, "But we've got months before we have to decide what new subjects we'll take."

"I wish I could take them all," Rose sighed.

"You could," Albus laughed, "But I don't think it would turn out well." Albus and Rose shared a laugh that the others didn't really understand. Albus saw their confused faces and decided to tell them about Hermione's third year schedule sometime soon.

******

Harry was back at Hogwarts in time for Albus's Defense class on Thursday. Harry called Albus up to his desk after class. Albus had been anxiously waiting the whole class to see if Harry managed to catch Quinton Willinson. Albus had a feeling he hadn't because there wasn't any mention of it in the Prophet that morning.

"Hi, Al," Harry gave Albus a hug once all the other students left. "I'm guessing you know why I left?"

"Yeah," Albus replied, "Victoire sent us a letter and I read it in the Prophet, too."

"Good," Harry sighed, "I'm glad Victoire told you before you read it in the Prophet. I had to leave very abruptly and was afraid you wouldn't know what happened."

"Well, did you catch him?" Albus asked. The suspense was killing him and he didn't want to wait any longer.

Harry sighed again and put his hand around his son's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Al. He got away. We got some more leads, though. Talked to a few Muggles and a wizard who were around when Quinton showed up. I still haven't heard anything about Quinton's father or Washburn. But we're still searching and it's only a matter of time."

Albus's face fell and he became more worried as he realized that not much progress had been made. He had been so sure that his dad would get Quinton this time. But he hadn't. Washburn and both Willinsons were still out there. How long would it be until they went back to Hogwarts? "What if they come back here?" he asked quietly.

"I'm not going to deny it. They probably will come back here. But there is a large amount of protection around the school. Last year, it was easy for them to be on the grounds since Washburn was a professor and Quinton was a student here. They don't have that going for them now. And I don't think any of them could step foot in Hogsmeade without someone alerting me or the Ministry."

Albus thought about this for a moment and felt a bit better. "All right. Are you leaving again?"

"Not unless one of them is seen," Harry explained, "The other Aurors have it under control."

"Good," Albus smiled. He felt a lot better knowing his dad was at the school.

"Well, we'd better head to the Great Hall," Harry gave Albus another hug.

"Yeah," Albus agreed, "If we don't hurry, John will eat all the food." Harry laughed and the two of them left the room together.

******

Albus wandered sleepily into the common room the next week completely tired out from Quidditch Practice. The first match, against Slytherin, was on Saturday and Georgia was having them practice every evening. It had been a drizzly evening and Albus's robes were soaked. He went up to his dormitory to put away his broom and change. Once he was done, he grabbed his books and went back to the common room to do his homework. When he got there, he couldn't find his friends anywhere. Albus sighed. Where could they be? They weren't in the dormitory, Albus had just been up there.

Albus squeezed his way through the crowded common room until he found Bilius and Ethan studying at a nearby table. "Have you seen John and Matt anywhere?" Albus asked.

"Oh, hi Albus," Ethan looked up from his book. "How's practice going? We're going to beat Slytherin, right?"

"'Course we are," Albus gave a tired grin, "They're pathetic."

"Excellent," Bilius replied, "I think John and Matt left an hour or so ago. I'm not sure where."

"Yeah," Ethan agreed, "Rose and Amanda were with them. Matt didn't look so good. Maybe they went to the hospital wing."

Oh, yeah! Albus had completely forgotten that the full moon was the next night. They must have gone to the Room of Requirement. Albus had also momentarily forgotten about the Room due to the fact that Kaden was always hanging around them, and they did not want him to know about the Room.

"Thanks," Albus replied, "I think I know where they are now." Albus waved to Bilius and Ethan and left the room.

Albus walked down the corridor as fast as he could without actually running. He slowed down as he reached the portrait of Barnabas the Barmy, as there was a prefect roaming nearby. Albus loitered until the prefect turned a corner and then he started pacing in front of the wall. Three paces later, the door appeared and Albus walked in.

"There you are!" Albus announced after he shut the door. "I thought you'd be in the common room."

Rose, John, and Amanda were all furiously scribbling on pieces of parchment and they looked up as Albus came in. Matt was sleeping on a nearby chair and didn't notice Albus.

"We were," Rose said, "But it was awfully loud in there. Plus, now that Kaden has left us alone we thought we'd start coming in here again."

"Sounds good," Albus agreed. He grabbed a chair and sat down next to John. "What are you lot working on?"

"Transfiguration," John groaned, "Eight inch essay due tomorrow. I've got four inches so far."

"History of Magic," Amanda said, "Also due tomorrow."

"I finished those a while ago," Rose commented, "Now I'm doing Herbology."

"I still have the History of Magic stuff to do," Albus said as he pulled out his history book. "How long has he been asleep?" Albus pointed to Matt.

"Since we got here," John answered. "Probably just as well since before that he was just rambling about how Malfoy's going to explore the Whomping Willow tomorrow night."

"Why would Malfoy do it at night?" Albus asked, "He'll get in more trouble if he's out past curfew."

"That's what we told him," Rose explained without looking up from her book. "I think he gets kind of delirious and doesn't think straight at this time of the month."

"You're probably right," Albus agreed, "But can you blame him?"

"No, not really," Rose sighed.

Albus started to leaf through his History of Magic book, but he couldn't concentrate. It wasn't past curfew now; what if Malfoy was exploring the tree right now? Albus closed his book and started rifling through his bag. He pulled out the Marauder's Map and set it down on the table.

"What are you doing?" Amanda asked.

"Looking for Malfoy," Albus replied. Everyone looked up from their work and watched Albus. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Albus pointed his wand at the map.

Albus searched the map for a few moments before his eyes rested on Malfoy's dot. He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw that Malfoy's dot was currently residing in the Slytherin common room. "He's in his common room."

"Oh, good," Rose smiled. "I really don't think he's going to investigate that tree."

"Why's that?" John asked skeptically.

"He'll get in big trouble if he gets caught," Rose reminded him.

"So? That probably wouldn't stop me," John laughed.

Albus was relieved that Malfoy wasn't currently trying to get into the Whomping Willow, but he did agree with John that Malfoy would eventually try. The thing was, what were the chances of it happening while Albus was looking at the map? Not very high. And what would Albus do if he did see Malfoy near the tree? Albus had no idea. He sighed as he whispered, "Mischief managed." Albus watched as all the ink disappeared from the map. He still didn't want to do his homework, but he had to. He started to put the map back in his bag, but the sight of a small mark on one of the corners made him stop.

Albus slowly lifted the map back out of his bag and stared at the corner. He had never seen any marks on the map after he wiped it clean before. But this mark was so small it could have easily been missed. He peered at the tiny marking until he noticed what it was. It was four paw prints. A wolf, dog, stag, and rat print. It obviously meant the Marauders. Albus knew he had seen it somewhere before, but where? He continued to stare at the paw prints, wracking his brain to try and remember why it seemed so familiar.

"Albus," Rose was watching him. "What are you doing?"

Albus looked up at the sound of her voice, "Oh, there's something on the map. I never noticed it before. It's a wolf, dog, stag, and rat foot print. Here, look."

Rose, John, and Amanda all leaned in to look at the mark. Rose furrowed her brow and tilted her head as she looked at it. "Why did the Marauders have this thing stay on the map? All the other ink disappears. Now it's just a random piece of parchment with these paw prints on it."

Suddenly, Albus remembered where he'd seen the paw prints before. The piece of parchment that fell out of the photo album in the attic of Grimmauld Place! Albus had completely forgotten about that during the course of the school year. The symbols were exactly the same. They must mean something, Albus thought. He jumped up from his seat. "I've seen it before! Remember when we were exploring the attic at my house, John?"

John nodded his head. "Yeah..."

"And the photo album we found in that box?" Albus continued, "And the piece of parchment that fell out of it?"

Realization dawned on John's face. "Oh! I'd forgotten about that! Do you still have it?"

"Yup!" Albus shouted excitedly, "In my trunk. I'll go get it!" Albus ran out of the room, leaving a very excited John and a thoroughly confused Rose and Amanda.
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A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger, but the next chapter is long and I had to split it up somewhere.

The idea for Cedonia's teaching style and the school Amanda used to go to came from a school that used to be near where I live. It recently closed due to lack of funding. But the students didn't have tests or receive grades. They also got to choose whatever they wanted to study. It was a really interesting idea and it worked well until it closed. I never went there, but I always thought it was neat.

Thanks to my beta, Dancer_of_Starlight as well as potterfan89, Denas, XDNLxtlz99, sinwillys822, Luke, and Moonylupin for their reviews!

Be on the lookout for my newest story, Life Is Good, which is a prequel to Secrets Within that chronicles how Albus, Rose, Matt, John, and Amanda received their Hogwarts letters. I'm hoping to post the first chapter sometime next week, as I have Spring Break.

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Disclaimer- I don't own Harry Potter.
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Albus ran all the way to the Gryffindor common room, narrowly avoiding another prefect. He went to his dormitory, dug through his trunk, and found the parchment. He was so glad he hadn't left it in the attic. He knew it meant something! Albus ran back through the common room, ignoring the strange stares he was receiving from his fellow classmates. When he got back to the Room, John was in the process of explaining to Rose and Amanda about what they had found in the attic. "I've got it!" Albus shouted. He ran back to the table and spread the parchment out on the table.

"You're right!" Rose grinned, "Exactly the same mark."

"But it's just a blank piece of parchment," Amanda reminded him.

"I know, but there's definitely something mysterious about it. Why would the Marauders put this symbol on it if it meant nothing?"

"I think you're right, Albus," John agreed, "I don't know much about the Marauders, but from what you've told me, there's no way this is just a random piece of parchment."

Rose looked from the map to the new piece of parchment and back. "Hmm, I wonder if this is like the map? Do you think we have to say something to get it to work? Maybe it's an extension of the map, Hogsmeade perhaps?"

Albus thought for a moment. That kind of made sense. The Marauders frequented Hogsmeade quite a bit, during their full moon jaunts. Maybe they wanted a map of the village as well. "There's only one way to find out," he grabbed his wand and tapped the piece of parchment, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Ink spread across the map and Albus's heart jumped. It had worked! Albus and the others leaned over the table and watched the ink. But there was something different about it. It wasn't forming a map, it was forming words. Once they were formed, Albus stared at them.

'Nice try. Mr. Padfoot would like to congratulate you, as you have obviously found the Marauder's Map and figured out how to use it. However, he assures you that the Marauders would not use the same incantation for this particular item.'
Albus and Rose burst out laughing. This piece of parchment was sort of like the map! There was something magical about it, but it obviously wasn't the same as the map. John smirked and shook his head.

Amanda stared wide-eyed at the parchment. "B-but, I thought h-he was dead? How can he be talking through parchment?" she stammered.

Albus grinned at her. He still often forgot that she was muggle-born. "It's magic. The marauders either found or invented some kind of charm that enabled the Marauder's Map to communicate with people who try to use it and they've done the same thing with this." Albus pulled the Marauder's Map in front of him and tapped his wand to it, "Watch this. I, Albus Severus Potter, demand you to show yourself."

Ink appeared across the map, but it wasn't the usual ink. John and Amanda stared in awe, as they had never seen the map do this before. Albus and Rose had done this on occasion and they thought it was extremely funny.

'Mr. Moony would like to would like to tell Mr. Potter to keep his dirty hands off the parchment.

Mr. Wormtail agrees with Mr. Moony and would like to add that despite the fact that Mr. Potter shares a first name with the headmaster, it does not give him the authority do what he pleases.

Mr. Padfoot agrees with Mr. Moony and Mr. Wormtail and would like to add that Mr. Potter's middle name has got to be the most disgraceful name he has ever heard.

Mr. Prongs agrees with Mr. Moony, Mr. Wormtail, and Mr. Prongs, and would like to be able to insult Mr. Potter's last name, but feels he is unable to do so.'
Amanda and John started laughing hysterically after they finished reading the map. "Does it do that to anyone?" John asked.

"Yup," Albus laughed.

"I didn't know Kendrick's first name was Albus," Amanda commented.

"It's not," Albus explained, "When the Marauders were in school, Albus Dumbledore was headmaster. And the Marauders hated Snape, so they always insult my name. Except my grandpa, he's never able to manage it."

"That's pretty impressive magic," John said.

"Yeah," Albus agreed.

"You know," Rose began, "If the Marauders didn't want anyone else reading that map, they would have just put a charm on it that prevented anyone except themselves to read it. I reckon they hoped someone would eventually find out how to read it."

Albus contemplated that for a moment. Rose was probably right. The Marauders were always pranksters, and they would probably want others to find the map and use it for mischief.

"But," Rose continued, "Do you think they might have wanted another item that only they could read?"

"What are you getting at?" Albus asked.

"That other piece of parchment. Maybe it's something that the Marauders didn't want anyone to be able to read."

"But then we couldn't read it," Albus sighed. It did kind of make sense that the Marauders wanted something to be private. But then why did they put the same mark on both parchments?

"There's got to be a way," John said adamantly.

"We don't even know if Rose is right," Amanda argued.

"Even if only the Marauders could read it, would they still have to say something to look at it?" Albus asked.

"I'm not sure," Rose replied, "I mean, there's probably some kind of magic that only enables a few people to read it. Kind of like a Fidelius Charm for books or something."

Albus grabbed the parchment and pointed his wand at it. The only way to find out if something would reveal it was to try. "Hmm, I am going to make trouble." Nothing happened. "I want to make mischief. I am going to pull a prank on someone. I promise I will make trouble." Albus tried many different variations on the incantation for the Marauder's Map, but nothing worked.

"It won't work, Albus," Rose said after a while, "You ought to just do your homework."

Albus didn't want to do his homework. He wanted to make the parchment work. Right now, he didn't care about anything else. "There's got to be something."

"If it's something only the Marauders can read, then you've got to be a Marauder to read it," John sighed.

"That's it!" Albus shouted. He had been thinking the incantation was like the Marauder's Map, but it must be something that would prove you're a Marauder. "I solemnly swear that I am a Marauder." Nothing happened. Albus sighed. He had been so sure that that would have worked.

"Maybe you have to say which Marauder you are," John suggested.

"Oh come off it!" Rose shouted, "There's going to be some sort of charm on it to see if he really is a Marauder. Just saying so isn't going to work."

Albus kind of agreed with Rose at this point, but he was willing to try anything. But which Marauder? Prongs. It had to be. Prongs was his grandfather. If this was going to work for anyone, it would work for him. He was related to one of the Marauders. Albus pointed his wand at the parchment with his heart beating fast. "I solemnly swear that I am Messr Prongs."

Albus held his breath as he watched the parchment. John, Rose, and Amanda watched as well. Albus's eyes bugged out as he saw ink appearing across the parchment. "It worked!" he whispered. His friends nodded, but didn't say anything. Albus began to read as the words formed completely.

'Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs welcome you to the Marauder's Map, Second Edition.'
"Second map?" John looked up, "I thought there was only one."

"So did I," Albus replied. He stared at the parchment as more words appeared across it. John, Rose, and Amanda all watched with him, no one saying a word.

'Mr. Prongs disagrees with you and insists that you are not Prongs.'
"Merlin," Albus sighed. It hadn't worked. The parchment could recognize different people.

"Wait," Rose pointed at the parchment. "It's not done."

'However, you could be the second Prongs.'
"What?!" Albus looked up in confusion. Was this some kind of joke? How could there be another Prongs? And how could Albus be that second Prongs?

"What is this parchment?" John asked curiously.

"Either it's a joke or a highly advanced magical object," Rose remarked. The four friends continued to watch as more writing appeared.

'When four boys, who are Gryffindors, are linked together through friendship and mischief, they may present themselves as the next generation of Marauders.'
"The what?" Albus stared at the parchment. The next generation of Marauders? What had his grandfather and his friends done?

"This is incredible," Rose whispered.

'These four friends must each represent one of the Marauders, for if even one is missing, this map will not work. Before this goes any further, you must prove that you know the secrets of the Marauders. Prove that you know, and you may continue along the path of discovery.'

'The path of discovery? I never knew you were so poetic, Mr. Prongs.'

'Oh, believe me, Mr. Padfoot, I am not. Mr. Moony came up with that whole thing.'

'Then I pay my compliments on the wording to Mr. Moony.'

'Mr. Moony advises that whomever is reading this ignore Mr. Prongs and Mr. Padfoot and start proving that they know the Marauders.'

'Mr. Padfoot agrees with Mr. Moony and also advises that if whomever is reading this has no idea who the Marauders are, that they quit while they're ahead.'

'The Marauders wish you good luck.'

The ink disappeared from the parchment and Albus looked up at his friends. "What in the name of Merlin is this?"

"I think it's something the Marauders invented to ensure that they would never be gone from this school," Rose said in awe, "It's amazing."

"I'll say," Amanda grinned, "Probably the best magical thing I've seen yet."

"And I don't think we've even discovered the most of it," Albus commented.

"How are we going to find out the rest?" John asked.

"Well, I think we've somehow got to prove that we know who the Marauders are and that we know their secrets," Albus explained.

"We already know their biggest secrets," Rose said, "But how would we prove it to a piece of parchment."

"I've got no idea," Albus told her, "I mean, I doubt we can just tell the parchment."

"Why couldn't we?" John asked.

"Seems too simple," Rose said.

"It's worth a try, though," John argued. "Albus?"

Albus didn't think it would work, but he didn't think it could really harm anything either. "Worth a shot." Albus picked up the parchment and stared at it. This seemed really silly when he thought about it. He was about to talk to a piece of parchment. "Here goes nothing. Let's see, Moony is a werewolf. Prongs, Padfoot, and Wormtail are all illegal animagi. Prongs is a stag, Padfoot is a dog, and Wormtail is a rat."

Albus and the others watched the parchment. A few words appeared on it. Could it have actually worked?

'Nice try.'
"I told you it wouldn't work," Rose smirked, "It's got to be more subtle than that."

"We'll just have to think on it," Albus replied. He had no idea how they were to prove to the new map that they knew the Marauders' secrets, but he had to find out. This parchment was perhaps even more interesting and magical than the Marauder's Map, and he was going to figure it out.

"What are you lot doing?" Matt sat up and was looking around with a confused look on his face. "What time is it?"

Albus looked up when he heard Matt's voice. Albus had practically forgotten that he was there during the excitement of the new map. "It's about 8:30. We've got a half hour until curfew. As for what we were doing, well, we've got a new mystery on our hands."

Albus, John, Rose, and Amanda spent the next few minutes explaining about the new map to Matt. They told him about how Albus had noticed the symbol on the Marauder's Map, how he had gotten the new map to show the writing, and how they had to prove that they knew the Marauders' secrets. Then they showed him the new map.

"That is brilliant," Matt commented.

"Yup. And we're going to figure out how to work it," Albus grinned. "Maybe we are the new Marauders."

"Well, I know what we can do while we're trying to figure it out how to prove we know the Marauders," John announced, "We've got to figure out who we're going to represent."

"Oh, yeah," Albus said, "I guess we each have to be one of the Marauders."

"I think it's obvious who I am," Matt said tiredly. "I'm definitely Moony."

"I'd say so," John laughed, "I'll be anyone except Wormtail."

"Me, too," Albus's face fell as he realized that someone was going to have to represent Wormtail. Nobody was going to want to be him.

"You're obviously Prongs," John replied, "I mean, you're his grandson. Plus, you're a chaser, just like he was."

"That makes sense," Albus agreed, "How about you?"

"He's Padfoot," Matt yawned, "He's got to be. He's loyal like a dog. Remember that detention last year in the trophy room, when he yelled at Washburn?"

John grinned sheepishly, "I could be Padfoot."

"Good," Albus agreed, "We've got Moony, Padfoot, and Prongs. But what about Wormtail?"

Everyone groaned. "I'm not going to be him," Rose said disgustedly.

"You don't have to," Albus told her, "The map clearly said four boys, four Gryffindor boys to be specific."

"So Amanda and I don't get to be involved?"

"Hey, it's not our fault the Marauders wanted it to be boys," Albus shrugged, "But you can help us figure the whole thing out."

"Right now, we've got to find a Wormtail," Amanda said. "Who else are you three good friends with?"

"No one, really. Just Bilius and Ethan," John explained, "And whomever is Wormtail is going to find out about Matt."

The friends all looked at Matt, whose face had paled at hearing this. Albus hadn't thought about that. He didn't want anyone who resembled Peter Pettigrew finding out about Matt. If that's what it took to find out the secrets of this map, then the map would just stay secret.

"We're not doing it," John said adamantly, "No one like Wormtail is going to find out that Matt is werewolf."

"And that's why you're Padfoot," Matt yawned. "Thanks."

"No problem," John smiled.

"You know," Rose began, "When this map was made, Wormtail hadn't betrayed Albus's grandparents. He was a Marauder. They trusted him. All we've got to do is find someone who you lot are friends with, not necessarily someone who was like the Wormtail we've heard of. We just need someone who is even slightly like Pettigrew."

Albus thought about this. It could work. But could they really find someone they could trust enough to reveal Matt's secret? Or, did they even have to reveal it? Was it possible to do this without telling the fourth person? "Let's just keep our eyes out for someone who is anything like Pettigrew and we'll think about it. Who knows, we might not even have to let them know about Matt, at least not for a while. Is that all right, Matt?"

Matt had fallen asleep again and jerked his head up when he heard his name. "Huh? Oh, yeah, that's all right."

"Sounds like a plan, then," John said.

"We'd better get back to the common room," Rose looked at her watch, "It's almost curfew."

Albus and the others left the Room and walked back to Gryffindor Tower. Albus thought about the new map and what it could possibly hold. It was obviously a more involved map than the Marauder's Map. Albus could only imagine what was actually on it. The prospect of finding out excited him, but he was wondering if they would even find out. What were the chances of them finding someone who would be willing to represent Wormtail? And if they did find that person, could they figure out the map without telling that person that Matt was a werewolf? Albus hoped so, but he doubted it.
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A/N: Thanks to my beta, Dancer_of_Starlight. Thanks as well to Luke, Moonylupin, TheAlbusPotterCritic, potterfan89, sinwillys822, Denas, and XDNLxtlz99 for their reviews!

The prequel to Secrets Within, Life Is Good, has been posted and the first chapter is up. I'll be updating it weekly, most likely on Tuesdays.

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Disclaimer- I don't own Harry Potter.
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Over the next few days, Albus constantly thought about the new map. He kept it in his bag all the time and found himself looking at it whenever he got the chance. He read the clues again and again, hoping to find something he missed before that would tell him how to prove that he knew the Marauders' secrets. Albus found that he couldn't really concentrate on anything else. He was sure he failed his Potions test on Friday because he had so much trouble settling down to study the night before.

His school work wasn't the only thing suffering, either. Albus was also having a difficult time paying attention during Quidditch practice. Seeing as the match against Slytherin was on Saturday, this couldn't have happened at a worse time. Georgia had to yell at him at least five times during practice on Friday, and he dropped the Quaffle quite a bit.

"Albus," Georgia said once practice was over and everyone was starting to go back to the castle, "Stay here for a second, I need to talk to you."

Albus trudged over to Georgia. She had a grim look on her face that made Albus feel awful. He knew he had played horrible during practice, but he just couldn't get the map out of his head. "What is it?" he asked, knowing perfectly well what Georgia wanted to talk to him about.

"Albus," Georgia began, "I know you're a terrific Chaser. That is why I chose you to be on the team. It was not because you are my cousin. If one of the other people who tried out played better than you, they would have gotten in. You know perfectly well that I do not play favorites."

This was true. Georgia was ruthless about Quidditch. She was even more so than Samantha Meyers, which was saying something. Albus knew full well that if he continued playing this badly, he would get kicked off the team.

"You play wonderfully with Fred and Heather, which is why I chose you. You've had experience working with them, and I thought that would help us. I think I know why your playing has declined over the past few days," Georgia softened her gaze, "You're nervous."

Albus glanced up when his cousin said this. To tell the truth, Albus hadn't even thought about being nervous. But he was more than willing to blame his awful playing on nerves. "Er, yeah, a bit."

"I understand that. I was extremely nervous during my first match as well. But you are going to do fine. We