The Spiteful Sorting Hat

Hall of portraits

Harry felt like gagging at the prospect of spending his precious holiday with Malfoy, but he was spared the indecency of having to respond to Malfoy's request. Blaise and Millie were both making their way through the door, and they were just in time to hear Malfoy's comments to Harry.

"What in Sauron's name are you talking about, Draco?" Blaise said theatrically, "Harry's coming to my house for Christmas!"

Malfoy and Harry both looked at Blaise in shock. "What?" they asked in unison.

Blaise grinned and demonstrated a letter he held between his middle and index finger, "I just got permission from my mum. She says you're welcome to spend Christmas with us this year. That is, if you want to."
"Yeah!" said Harry, feeling his heart swell with excitement, "Yeah! I want to! But... I already signed up to stay at Hogwarts..."

"It's alright. Mum said she'll write to Dumbledore. She'll get it sorted out."

Blaise and Harry grinned at each other. Malfoy looked on jealously. Millie rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of her male friends, and wandered off to the girls' dormitories to prepare for her own trip home.

It felt odd to be climbing aboard the Hogwarts Express again so soon after his first arrival. There was the same feeling of excitement among the students, only now everyone was abuzz with discussing Christmas plans. Harry recalled that the last time he had been aboard the train, he'd been on his way to school, sharing a compartment with Ron Weasley. He felt the usual pang of regret that they hadn't become friends after all, though the feeling was less intense than it had been at the beginning of the year, and it lasted a much shorter time.

Harry, Blaise, and Millie managed to nab a compartment to themselves for the return trip. Harry had been concerned that Malfoy would try to weasel his way into their party, but luckily he kept away during the whole trip. The trio were able to pass the time together pleasantly enough, and soon the conversation drifted to their favorite topic – the mysterious artifact and the identify of Nicolas Flamel.

"You don't think Snape will manage to steal it over break while we're gone?" Harry asked.

"I don't think he'll have a chance to," Millie replied. "With the student's gone, there's less distraction. Dumbledore might catch him if he tries anything."

Blaise nodded in agreement, "Plus, remember what Hagrid said? He said that Snape was one of the teachers guarding the artifact. That means Dumbledore has more than one obstacle in Snape's way. You saw what happened on Halloween. He wasn't expecting Fluffy. I'll bet he'll want to figure out what the other teachers have done before he tries anything again."

"What do we know about Flamel?" asked Millie.

"I never found anything in the library," Harry said sadly.

"I could ask my mum," said Blaise helpfully, "I'll tell her it's for a school project. I mean, the artifact is hidden in the school, so it's not really a lie, is it?"

"I'll ask my parents, too," said Millie. "I doubt they'll know anything, but it's worth a shot."

The scarlet steam engine rolled up to the platform amid cheers of welcome from waiting family and friends. Blaise craned his neck out the window of their compartment in eager anticipation of catching a glimpse of his mother.

"You'll like her, Harry," he said as he scanned the crowd, "She's not like other moms. She's cool."

"I wouldn't know," said Harry quietly. He hadn't really meant to say anything, and he regretted the comment instantly. Luckily, Blaise didn't appear to have heard him over the sound of the train and conversation. Millie, however, looked at Harry with an expression of surprise and sudden interest. Harry saw her eyes flash toward his lightning scar and he flushed with embarrassment.