House: Gryffindor

Position: HoH

Category: Short

Prompt: Vault 394

Word Count: 1533

Betas: Tigger and Shiba

"I always wondered why Dumbledore had all of the members of the Order of the Phoenix pose for portraits," Fred said as he walked from frame to frame. "How're you doing Mad-Eye?"

Mad-Eye's magical eyeball scanned around the room, but Fred could have sworn he intentionally rolled his eye at him. "I'm dead, Weasley. How do you think I am?"

"Don't mind Mad-Eye," Sirius chimed in from a portrait across the way. He was in a heated card battle with his fellow fallen Marauders, Lily, and Tonks. "He's just grumpy that Dumbledore positioned his portrait next to Snivellus's. Thankfully, Old Greasy Hair chooses to spend most of his time in his portrait in the headmaster's office. He's hardly ever here."

"You can't expect Sev to want to spend time here with you all harassing him at every turn," Lily said.

"Where exactly is here?" asked Fred.

From what he could see, they were in a large room with stone walls. He couldn't actually feel the temperature of the air, but he was certain that it was cold. Dozens of portraits lined the walls. Some were occupied with various deceased Order members. Some were semi-illuminated showing that the portrait's subject was dead but currently occupying another frame. And some, thankfully, were inactive altogether.

Lily folded her cards and left the table. Walking towards Fred, she said, "We're deep inside Gringotts. Vault 394 to be precise." She gave him a warm hug in greeting.

"That's a random number choice," Fred commented.

"It's a werewolf reference actually," Remus chimed in. "Dumbledore thought it was funny."

"Hilarious. Really witty," Moody growled.

"What took you so long to come visit us?" Lily asked.

"I wanted to spend some time with my family; Mum had portraits of all of us made up at the Burrow, too. George is having a tough time, and I want to be there for him as best as I can. But it was time for me to walk away for awhile and let him heal on his own."

"Poor George," Lily said.

Fred shook his head to clear his thoughts. "At least it's finally over. I'm not saying that I'm happy I died, because let me tell you, I had plans." Fred waggled his eyebrows, mischievously. "But at least it's over and Harry came out on top."

Lily's eyes lit up. "How is Harry?"

"You don't know?" Fred asked.

She sadly shook her head. Pointing to two currently unoccupied portraits across the vault she said, "No. These are James and my only functional portraits. After we were killed, I'm told that many wizarding families hung pictures of us, but they aren't enchanted. James and I are stuck here."

Fred blinked rapidly. "What about Remus? Sirius? Surely you can leave?"

Sirius snorted. "My parents had portraits painted of me when I was a boy, but my darling mother made sure that they were all incinerated when she blasted me off of the family tapestry."

"Dumbledore had a hard enough time finding an artist willing to enchant this portrait for me. There's too much fear about werewolves for me to have another portrait to visit."

"So you're all just stuck here forever?" Fred asked.

"Not forever," a new voice said. Dumbledore walked into the frame. "It's good to see you, Mr. Weasley."

"I have to say, I didn't want the next time I saw you to be from within my own frame. But it is what it is."

"It shouldn't have had to be this way. You're even younger than we were," Lily said sadly.

"To have stopped Voldemort, I'd give my life over and over again." Fred glanced around the room. "I'm sure we all would."

"Hear, hear," the Marauders cheered.

"Those are brave and noble sentiments, Mr. Weasley."

"Cut the 'Mr. Weasley' crap, Albus!" Moody growled.

"Very well. Fred," Dumbledore said with a wink.

Fred could see a small twinkle in Dumbledore's oil-painted eye.

"Back to the subject at hand," Fred continued, "How is it that Lily and James don't know how Harry is doing? Surely someone from the Order must have talked to him."

Dumbledore removed his glasses and began to clean the lenses on his long sleeves. "I only have second hand knowledge from Minerva and Kingsley. They've passed on some news, but it's not the same as talking to the actual person. Harry has been in seclusion, I'm told. At—"

"—The Burrow," Fred whispered. "He's been staying at the Burrow. He talked to me."

James threw down his cards and ran to join Lily and Fred. "How is he?" he asked.

"Tell us anything you can," pleaded Lily.

"I won't lie to you, he's grieving. He's exhausted, suffering from panic attacks, and dealing with immense amounts of guilt."

Lily gripped James's hand. He squeezed back.

"Mum keeps trying to slip him sleeping draughts, but he says they make the nightmares worse. He only sleeps when he's too tired to stay awake a moment longer, and then it's only for a few hours."

"What else?" Lily asked with a thick voice.

"He came to visit me one night when everyone else was asleep. He tried to apologize for my death. He's under the mistaken impression that we all died for him."

"Oh, Harry," James said as a waterless tear dripped down his painted cheek.

"We had a good talk. I could tell that he felt a lot better to just let it out rather than keeping everything bottled up. He's got a lot of good support. My whole family is there for him. Ron and Hermione are his anchors as always. They sneak off to snog any chance they get, but they're there in an instant when he needs them. And then there's Ginny."

"Like father, like son. Going for the redhead," Sirius crowed. When Lily shot him a glare, he held up his hands in a motion of surrender. "Sorry, Lily."

"Harry and Ginny are good for each other," Fred added. "She's really the only other person who can understand what it's like to have Voldemort oozing through your mind and finally being free of him. Of course, Ginny was only possessed by a Horcrux for one year. Harry lived with that Horcrux inside him since he was a year old."

Dumbledore tented his hands. "Had I realized that Harry was a vessel for a Horcrux, I would have done things differently. I regret that."

"You regret not knowing he was a Horcrux, but seem to feel little remorse for using my son as a puppet," Lily snapped.

"I will never be able to express the enormous guilt I feel for the terrible pressures I placed upon Harry. I should have assisted Harry more and told him all I knew. He deserved more," Dumbledore said. "I wish I could talk to him and apologize. I wish I could tell him how brave he was. I wish I could thank him for all that he has sacrificed."

"Didn't you do that already?" Fred asked. When Dumbledore cocked his head in confusion, Fred continued, "Harry said that you came to see him after Voldemort killed him in the Forbidden Forest. He said that you explained that the Horcrux within him was now destroyed."

"How extraordinary," Dumbledore murmured. "Truly extraordinary."

Lily growled, "You better start explaining what's so extraordinary right now or so help me…"

"Ah, yes," Dumbledore said. "We all exist now only as oil paint and memory. I could not have visited Harry in that way."

"So you're saying that it wasn't real?" Fred asked.

"Why on Earth should that mean it's not real?"

"He said that you said that!" Fred exclaimed.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Merely a coincidence in this case. Harry must have imagined my presence as a way for his mind to process what was happening, but he was the one who figured everything out."

"Oh, my brilliant, brave boy," Lily said. "I wish I could see him to tell him that in person."

"That brings me back to my reason for popping by today," Dumbledore said. "When I wrote my last will and testament, I arranged for one last bequest. Today is August 11th. Fred, why is that date important?"

"It's Ginny's birthday."

"Her seventeenth birthday. She's now of age in the Wizarding World. And owl should have arrived at The Burrow transferring ownership of this vault to her. I included a personal letter asking her to bring Harry to the vault today."

Lily started crying. James attempted to comfort her but was just as overcome.

From out in the hall, Fred could hear voices echoing off the walls.

"I wonder what Dumbledore left you," Harry said.

"No idea," Ginny replied. "But his letter said that it was important that you come along when I open it up."

Fred watched with rapt attention as the mechanism in the vault door unlatched. The door slowly slid open to reveal Ginny and Harry standing in the dark corridor.

"Well go ahead," Harry said. "You know you want to use magic now that you're allowed."

"Lumos," Ginny said, casting the vault in a warm glow.

They gasped.

Fred watched Harry's eyes scan over the portraits before coming to an abrupt halt.

"Mum? Dad?"