Never Again

Part 10: The Reunion of the Houses

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Luna folded her cloak neatly and placed it inside her trunk. Grabbing her spellbooks and parchment, she shoved them into her bag, ready for the next day. She was about to head off to dinner when she noticed something at the edge of her bed.

"What's this?" she picked up a flat parcel wrapped in silver paper. Tearing it open, she found a simple sheet of parchment.

"Most people say you're not the one... Just so quirky and strange..." she read aloud, amused. When she reached the end of the poem, she smiled, folded it into quarters and tucked it into the front pocket of her bag. She wondered who wrote it. It was a funny idea that someone would ever send a love poem to her. What a strange way to confess.

Her mind reeled the entire way downstairs as she approached the Great Hall. It was so strange that someone would ever be in love with her. She first thought of Neville. She sometimes caught him staring at her when he thought she wasn't looking, but he didn't seem like the type to write a poem. But she wasn't an expert on love.

Who else could it be then?

It could be Draco. Her mind whispered. You hang around with him a lot. Even Neville says he could fancy you.

She pushed the idea away. It wasn't Draco. It could just be the Ravenclaws playing a clever prank on her. That had to be it. Nothing more.

She entered the Great Hall and took a seat. A plate of mashed potatoes popped up, and she reached out to grab some. To her surprise, Professor McGonagall stood up. She wondered what was going on now.

The moment everybody saw the headmistress, the conversation died down immediately. It must be an important announcement.

Professor McGonagall smiled thinly. "Thank you for your attention. Tonight, a few other professors and I would like to introduce a new sort of celebration.

"As most of you know, when He Who Must Not Be Named was around, Hogwarts was in a mess. The school was run under Severus Snape, who at that time was believed a Death Eater. The two teachers that were Death Eaters punished the students cruelly. Only the Slytherins were left untouched.

"But then came the war, and a chance for all the houses to work together came. Now, the war is over. All the houses worked hard, and contributed a lot to the battle - yes, even the Slytherins," she said, many groans came from the other house tables. "Not all Slytherins are evil, may I remind you. Many became Death Eaters, but some still remained on our side. Take Professor Slughorn for example."

Slughorn beamed from under his mustache.

"This year, we want to acknowledge this contribution. Let the houses all live in harmony again. Of course, some relations will still be irremovable, take Gryffindor and Slytherin." her glasses glinted. "So we will be hosting a ball here in the Great Hall in a few weeks time. You may pick partners with whomever you wish. All students may attend if they wish. All houses may attend. We suggest that you pick partners from other houses to support the cause.

"This new celebration will be called the Reunion of the Houses. It will happen once a year in January. We hope that this can strengthen the bond between the houses. If you want to learn more, check the notices on the boards or contact the head of your house."

Professor McGonagall took a seat, and the entire hall burst into chatter. It certainly was an interesting thing to suggest. A dance between all the houses. It would be very crowded if everyone was going, thought Luna as she forked a piece of steak.

"Do you think you'll go, Luna?" Terry Boot asked her.

Luna tilted her head sideways in consideration. "Yes, I think so. It would be interesting to go, although I'm not sure I'll dance a lot. I don't really like it."