The promotion I had got was supposed to make me feel better. Proud of myself. However, that was not what happened. To be honest, I was so terrified that as soon as I left the Headmaster's office, I quickly went to my room. Standing in front of the mirror, I critically looked at my own reflection.

"You look terrible," squeaked the mirror, which made me grimace slightly.

"Thanks," I replied sourly, then combed my hair with fingers, ignorring another comment my mirror had just made ("that's not going to help you, you red-head witch!"). Sometimes I wondered if it knew Snape; they both seemed to be competing over coming up with even newer ways to offend me.

The Head of the House! A couple of months before I would have never imagined that I could even become a teacher at Hogwarts... and now this. And honestly, I was greatly surprised by McGonagall's behaviour. I had not expected that she would be rooting for me so much. That she would be trying to lift my spirits. Something inside of me twitched slightly, when I thought about it, and I could not help but smile softly.

I wondered how the other Heads of Houses would react. I was certain that Neville would support me, just because it was Neville. But what with the others? Both Professor Summersby and Professor Snape were quite older from us two. Besides, I could not expect that Snape would support me doing anything. And I guess that it was his reaction that I was scared of the most.

After all, even though I had never been a genius on my Defence Against Dark Arts lessons, now taught by Ariadna Summersby, I was able to find a way to get along with this elder teacher. And even though we met extremely rarely, we were on good terms with each other.

But it was not so easy with Snape. I knew that now, he was going to be determined to destroy me. Or at least to discredit me in the eyes of my students. I was worried about that, because as long as only I knew about his taunts, I could pretend nothing was happening. I did not want, though, for the students to lose their respect towards me.

I had already managed to get used to the thought that I would stay there forever. Even as a teacher I had been getting more and more confident. But now, I once again started to be afraid I would lose my job. I did not want this man to destroy my whole life.

The news that starting in December I will be the Head of Ravenclaw spread across the school surprisingly quickly, even taking into account the fact that it was Hogwarts, and at Hogwarts information and gossip spread at an indescribable speed. It both scared me and motivated me as well. I could not let my students down, after all.

To my surprise, it turned out that the Ravenclaws had nothing against me becoming their Head. A couple of the older ones came to me after the class and congratulated me. There were also a few first- and second-years who started singing some song they had created to praise me. The more of such signs of cordiality I met, the more comfortable I felt, and at the end of the day, I actually realised that I was really glad I would be working with my fellow young Ravenclaws. Even with those who were not so positive about me.

"Darcie!" I heard when after all my classes I started collecting the books off the desk. That calling startled me a little, because usually no-one came to my classroom as long as it was not absolutely necessary.

"Oh... Neville," I smiled softly, glancing at him from over the desk. To be honest, I had not expected to see him there. He must have been running all the way there, since his breathing was heavy, and his cheeks quite pink. "Wait, take a bit of rest. I still need to get my things, after that we could go to the Great Hall together."

Neville nodded, then propped himself on the desk and leant slightly over the top. I noticed that he was looking at the titles of the books I had left. I knew he loved a good read, it fascinated him quite a lot.

"I have nothing about any magical plants," I said, slightly embarrassed, since I was aware of the fact that this subject was what interested him most. Besides, there were not many students that would truly find History of Magic captivating. Even I had happened to doze off during those classes, even though I simply adored getting to know more and more about the past.

"Well, some of the wizards have made history thanks to their discoveries in Herbology," responded Neville, laughing. "Besides, who's said that I only read about Herbology? Were it so, I would've already got bored of them."

I could not help but smile. I really liked Neville, and the more time I spent with him, the happier I was to be his colleague. He was so full of cordiality, and warmth, which I could only experience at home. I truly regretted that I had not got to know him better when we had still been at school. All this time seemed to be lost forever.

When I had finally collected my things and put them all into my bag, Neville and I together left the classroom and headed downstairs.

"I've never supposed you liked History of Magic," I continued after a while. "Hardly anyone actually likes this subject."

"I've always been sleeping during Binn's classes," Neville laughed. "If not for Hermione, I would have never been able to pass those classes. And even now I feel that it was a miracle I passed them all. But it's not the classes I'm talking about. The things you learn at Hogwarts and the things you learn just because you want to... are completely different cases. I, for instance, only after my graduation realised how much Charms interest me."

He was absolutely right. The classes were something like a compulsion. Even I had experienced that, despite the fact that as a Muggle-born I had really fancied getting to know the things that were completely new to me. This fascination had got back to me after every summer holidays, when for two long months I had been cut off from everything magical; it got weaker, the longer the semester lasted.

However, the life is not all about school. After I had graduated from Hogwarts, I had started yearning to know more about the world I belonged to. And it had nothing to do with cramming different formulas and definitions into my head.

"I didn't come just to talk about the books, Darcie, even though I wouldn't really mind that, honestly," he added after a while. "I guess you've broken the record! I don't think there's ever been a teacher who'd have become the Head so soon."

I glanced at him with hesitation, not quite sure what kind of answer he had been expecting.

"I didn't ask for that. Professor McGonagall offered me this job herself... Actually, I think it wouldn't be a lie to say that she's made this decision for me."

The blush upon Neville's face not only did not disappear – now, it got even darker. I was not certain whether it was because we were walking so fast, or I had just said something I should not have said.

"How are you feeling?" he asked all of sudden. "I still remember I felt sick to my stomach, when I got to know that I was about to become the Head. I'd just started my job... I still had got the harshness of McGonagall in my head. I knew I would be nothing like her."

I laughed quietly. It was good to know that Neville had experienced just the very same thing some time before, and now, he could understand me well.

"Blade was laughing at me. He said I should've rather become the Head of Hufflepuff, not Gryffindor, and he found it extremely funny. But I didn't pay much attention to that. Besides, he was the one who risked losing this office..."

I raised my brows in surprise.

"How's that?" I asked. I had never heard about it until now.

"Well... Blade was arguing from the very beginning that he should become the Head of Slytherin. You know, after Slughorn had retired, Slytherin was deprived of any Head, and the boy thought that if he had got the job of the Potions teacher after him, he would also become the Head. McGonagall soon made it clear that it didn't work like that, but it didn't change the fact that there was no-one to take care of the Slytherins. It was just at the same time when I started working here."

We had just reached the Great Hall. It was filled with hum of conversations, just like always during the meals, but fortunately no-one sitting at the High Table talked so loudly that it would make Neville's words incomprehensible. I had not even checked who of the teachers had already taken their place.

"The times were hard. You know, the chaos after the war... the majority of the teachers had resigned, just like Professor Sprout or Professor Slughorn, considering themselves too old for that. None of the Houses had their Head. McGonagall wasn't so sure if it wouldn't be good to dispose of the office of the Head itself, but when she tried it, it turned out that she had not even a moment to catch a breath. All the time she was bothered by different students and Prefects. It became obvious that she needed someone to take care of it. Quickly. That was when Dean Thomas became the Head of Gryffindor, he was the Transfiguration teacher back then, just as McGonagall had become the Headmistress."

I felt ashamed as I realised how little I knew about Hogwarts. How much it had changed since I had last been there... even though I still remembered the classes I had with Professor Thomas during the last years of my education. I had never really thought, though, that he would become the Head of Gryffindor. Back then, McGonagall had acted as if the fact that she had become the Headmistress would change nothing.

"The Hufflepuffs were almost immediately taken under Professor Summersby's wings. Just the Ravenclaws had Flitwick, just like they had before. But the Slytherins were left without anyone to take care of them. McGonagall did not want Blade to become their Head, but no-one really knows why it was so. Well, of course, there were different rumours, you know... that she was afraid that he would get completely crazy if he becomes one... but at last, she had to capitulate, because there were no other Slytherins amongst the teachers. At least the teachers of the basic subject. Because it would be hard to imagine for, for instance, Professor Vector, who knows only a part of the students, to take care of the whole House." Neville sighed, then took a sip of his juice. "So McGonagall agreed for Blade to take care of the Slytherins. But, you know..." A smile appeared upon Neville's round face. "McGonagall's predictions usually come true."

He was right. I had known the Headmistress long enough to have already seen that. I was not sure whether it was her experience, or maybe her inborn talent, but usually the same things she had predicted in fact came true.

"Then... then what had happened that McGonagall wanted to fire him?" I asked, not even able to hide curiosity in my voice.

"Blade forgot that it didn't make him omnipotent, even in the school. He really tried to help his students, but out of everyone McGonagall hates the ones breaking the rules the most." Neville smiled sourly. "And Blade started to give out the points his students did not deserve... You know yourself that if a teacher gives some points, it cannot be redone. He clearly favored the Slytherins, and more and more students went to complain to McGonagall. The moment when a couple of second-year girls got hysterical was the final straw. They stated that they were not going back to the Potions class as long as this man was going to teach them. Madam Pomfrey had to calm them down afterwards."

I raised my brows. The whole case seemed to be simply impossible; after all, the Blade I had met in September, had not resembled the one Neville had just described.

However, there was no reason for my colleague to lie. Besides, he had been telling me that with so much certainty in his voice that I could not even suspect him of any lies. Then there had to be something that had made Blade change since then.

"McGonagall threatened to fire him. I guess only the fact that there was no-one else to teach Potions saved Blade's job."

I understood everything now. If McGonagall had started to look for someone else to take Blade's place, he got scared. And there is no better lesson than fear. It was enough to scare him a little bit, and he had learnt that he should not break the rules.

"Since then, Blade has been trying his best not to tread on McGonagall's toes. At the same time, Dean got tired of the situation at school, and he got a better job in the Ministry, as well, so he left. That was when the old Buffbutter became the Transfiguration teacher, and I was offered the spot of the Head of Gryffindor."

When he had finished his story, he blushed even more. It was quite obvious that he was really proud of his achievements; and it was nothing to be surprised of. Even if as a student he had been considered pretty unperspicacious, now, he was simply loved by his students. He was generally regarded as one of the best teachers Hogwarts had ever had.

"A lot has changed since I finished school," I noticed, looking around. At four, long tables many young people laughed and chattered. It was hard to believe that a quarter of this crowd would soon depend on me.

"Oh, this is true," I heard an answer, but I realised in complete astpnishment that the voice was not Neville's. "Not everything for the better."

I turned my head and spotted Snape, standing right beside us. I was just opening my mouth to say something, but he was faster.

"Not so long ago, both Ravenclaw and Gryffindor had competent Heads."