I do not own 'Harry Potter' nor any character or concept mentioned in the books. Why doesn't anyone believe me?

Night had fallen over Privet Drive. A tabby cat remained seated outside right in front of the house numbered '4,' while all of the people were fast asleep. It looked as if it was waiting for something, or someone. Then came what sounded like the flapping of wings, and a quack. A duck had flown out of the darkness, and landed neatly right in front of the house that the tabby was sitting in front of. The duck turned and noticed the cat. For a moment, the duck and the cat stared at each other. If someone walked past the two animals, a wry thought would occur to him or her that the duck and the cat seemed to know each other. Of course, that would be impossible. The duck's bill now seemed to curve, as if it was smiling. Of course, a passer-by would think that would be even more impossible. If the pedestrian had remained a little while longer, the most impossible thing of all would have occurred. Under a second the duck grew to the size of a man. At the same time its shape had become thinner, the brown feathers covering its body changing into clothes, the green around its face growing into its human face, the strangely coloured feathers on the top of the duck's head becoming hair, its bill shrinking into the figure's face. When it had finished changing, the duck was no longer a duck, but a man, a tall, blond-haired man with deep blue eyes, wearing a brown overcoat. The figure took out something from his right pocket. Holding it out, it looked like a silver cigarette lighter. He clicked it open, but instead of a flame appearing the twelve lights from the street lamps zoomed from their glass cases and into the lighter. It had now become pitch-black. The figure now turned its attention back to the tabby again and smiled.

"Fancy seeing you here Minerva."

The cat had also instantly changed shape. Like the duck it grew to the size of the person; its tail, ears and the fur covering its face shrunk into the body, the remaining fur being replaced by hair and clothes, glasses had grown out of its face, the limbs becoming more human-like. When it had finished changing, the cat had become a tall bespectacled woman, her black hair tied tightly in a bun. She wore an emerald-green cloak. She looked surprised.

"How did you know it was me?" she asked him.

The blond-haired man laughed.

"My dear colleague, the number of times I've seen you changed! Of course, I'm sure you recognised me as well."

"Well, yes," the woman named Minerva answered. She now looked at the cigarette lighter the man was still holding in his hand.

"Isn't that Professor Dumbledore's Out-Putter?" She asked him.

"Yes, Dumbledore lent it to me. Although I still don't think much of the name. He seriously needs to change it."

"To what?"

"To something that doesn't sound like it's out of a children's book."

He put the Out-Putter back into his pocket.

"Right, now that you've finished asking questions it's now my-"

"Wait a minute, wait a minute! I've haven't even begun asking questions!"

"Oh, sorry Minerva," He grinned, as though he was fully away that Minerva still had questions to ask, "What would you like to know?"

"Where to begin!" Minerva exasperated, throwing her hands aside in frustration, "What are you doing here of all places? Is Nargoa really gone? And-and-"

At this point her voice broke. You could tell that she had reached the most important question of all, the reason why she had waited all day at Privet Drive, the one she would not accept an answer from anyone but the man in front of her.

"People-are saying-well, rumours really-that James and Lily Potter-are-are-dead?"

The man's smile had vanished. His face had become instantly sober. Minerva read the worst from that expression.

"It's not true, is it?" she demanded, hoping against hope that he would tell her no, of course not, how could it be? "Darren, tell me it isn't true!"

Darren closed his eyes. Minerva swore she saw tears threatening to leek from his eyes. After a few seconds, he opened them again.

"I can't," he said.

Minerva gasped.

"No!" she cried. Now she was producing tears, her stern face collapsing.

"I- I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to believe it. Oh Darren!"

She broke down into Darren's arms. He hugged her tightly; tears too pouring down his face.

" I know Minnie," he told her, "I know."

She now pulled herself from Darren's embrace, looking at him straight in the eye. Her face had become stern again.

"I thought I told you to NEVER call me Minnie?"

Darren laughed in spite of the tears that remained on his face.

"Oh sorry Minerva! Slip of the tongue. Old habits die hard. All that jazz!"

Minerva of course knew he had only called her her old nickname just to lighten the mood. She allowed herself to smile.

"But that's not all," She added, "They say that when he found them, and after-after killing (she said this word quickly as if it would ease the pain of acknowledging it)- James and Lily-he tried to kill their little boy Harry too. But he couldn't do it. And now he's gone. After all the misery he brought us, how did Harry stop him?"

She looked at Darren. For a moment he just remained silent.

"I'm not completely sure how he survived," he eventually answered, "I have a good guess, though, that's all. Dumbledore's sure to know as well although he wouldn't tell anyone. That man likes his secrets, even beyond the point that keeping them makes sense. But I believe the only thing that could have saved a year old baby is that his mother tried to sacrifice herself in order to save him. Well, Lily did that, and her love left a powerful mark on her son, protecting him from any dark magic that Nargoa could have inflicted upon him. Not only that, but I think it deflected Nargoa's charm right back at him."

"So you think it's true then?" Minerva asked him, "That he's gone for good?"

"Well, he's gone for now, at least. For good? Well, we'll just have to wait and see."

"And how do you feel about it?"

Darren looked suprised.

"How do I feel? Well Minerva, I feel like any decent wizard does. I feel glad that he's gone, that the nightmare is over."

"You know what I mean."

Darren's face looked as if it was on the verge of anger.

"I feel nothing for Nargoa, Minerva. Even though he's my brother, there is no love between us.

"Well, that's two out of three questions you've asked me that I have now answered. I believe the other one was what I was doing here out of all places?" Darren raised an eyebrow at Minerva "A curious question indeed, since you already knew that I would be here. I presume Hagrid was the one who told you?"

"Yes. Though all he told me was that he was assigned by you to take the boy from the house in Godric's Hollow to Privet Drive. He didn't have time to tell me anything else. And I presumed that you'd be here as well and I-well-"

Minerva lost her voice for a moment.

"Anyway, what are you doing here? Are you dropping the boy here at one of these houses?" She gestured to several of them by waving her hand across, "Does a wizard or wizarding family live her? I don't understand. Why not give him to Sirius Black? He is his godfather after all, and James and Lily wanted him to raise Harry if anything happened to them."

At the mention of Sirius Black, Minerva thought she saw something that looked like annoyance flicker across Darren's face.

"Sirius can't protect him," He said, "Even though he's gone, Nargoa's followers are still at large, and they may want to harm Harry. And even if some are imprisoned, others will worm their way out of Azkaban, I am sure of it. And as I have mentioned before, I do not believe that Nargoa is gone forever."

Minerva wondered if Darren believed that Nargoa was not gone out of some remaining brotherly love within his heart, in the same way that she refused to believe that James and Lily were gone, but she dared not ask him that.

"If you are so concerned with protecting Harry," Minerva asked him, "Then why not raise him yourself? Or give him to Dumbledore, he'll be delighted to raise his-"

"Ah, but the most powerful protection that Harry could possibly have," Darren interrupted her, waving his hand across the house that they were standing in front of, "is within this very house we are standing outside of."

Minerva stared at the place, then snapped her head back to Darren and looked at him as if he was insane.

"Darren, you can't possibly be thinking of leaving him here?" She protested, "The family are muggles! What protection could they possibly give him that none of our kind can?"

"The most powerful there possibly is. So you have kept an eye on the Dursleys, eh? Tell me, have you noticed the wife and mother living here? Blond hair, long neck, prominent teeth, looks a bit like a horse?"

"Well-yes. Though I'm not too sure about the horse comparison-"

"She's Lily sister."

Minerva's eyes went wide.

"You're joking."

"Alas no."

"I mean, I knew that Lily had a muggle sister-even though she rarely talked about her-but-I got bad vibes from that woman. Plus she constantly peeped over in her neighbour's places as though to spy on them-"

"A lot like you were doing." Darren grinned.

Minerva frowned.

"It wasn't out of choice. I just happen to notice her. But this woman-"

"It was lily's sacrifice that saved Harry. Her blood is the most powerful protection that is accessible to him. And that very blood runs through her sister's veins. Trust me, Minerva, this is the safest place for him to stay. As long as he calls this place home, neither Nargoa nor his followers can touch him."

Minerva opened her mouth to speak, but then changed her mind and closed it. Darren brought up his arm and pulled his sleeve away from his wrist to look at his watch.

"Hagrid should be here by now," he said, "And speak of the devil, there he is!"

Darren saw a black shape in the sky. A loud rumbling sound seems to come with it. As it came closer, it turned out to be a motorcycle, being ridden by a man twice the size of an ordinary person. After landing, Darren grinned at the giant.

"You certainly took your sweet time, Hagrid!"

"Sorry, Professor," the man named Hagrid answered.

In his arms was a bundle of blankets. Within the blankets was a tiny black haired baby. Down his forehead was a peculiar lightning shaped scar.

"Is that where-?" Minerva began to ask.

"Yes," Darren answered her, "He will have that scar forever."

"Couldn't you do something about it, Professor?" Hagrid asked him, "Or maybe Professor Dumbledore-"

"There is nothing that can be done. Even if there was, I wouldn't dare touch that scar, and I'm sure Dumbledore would agree with me. Scars can be useful. I hear that the headmaster has one that's an exact map of London on his right knee. Give him to me, Hagrid."

The giant handed the bundle of blankets to the blond haired man. Hagrid then howled like a wounded animal.

"I'm sorry," he sobbed, "But it's all so terrible! James and Lily dead! And little Harry off to live with muggles!"

Darren's kind, cheerful face suddenly became hard, his eyes almost blazing.

"There is nothing wrong with muggles, Hagrid," he told him sternly, "Just because they don't have magic, doesn't mean they are like mud on our shoes."

Hagrid looked startled, no longer crying.

"I'm sorry, Professor, I didn' mean-"

"I know exactly what you meant," Darren snapped, "I expect that kind of attitude from the other side, I don't expect it from ours."

"Yes sir. Sorry sir."

"That is quite all right," Darren said, although his tone suggested that it was not quite all right at all. After placing Harry on the doorstep, Darren took something out of the depths of his overcoat and slipped it among Harry's blankets.

"What's that you're giving him, Darren?" Minerva asked.

"It's a letter that will explain everything to his aunt and uncle."

"A letter? Darren, you can't possibly believe that you can explain all this in a letter-"

"Well I've done the best I can."

He now stood up and turned to smile at his colleagues.

"Do not be so glum my fellow co-workers," he told him, "We shall see Harry Potter again. I'll send another letter to Lily's sister and try to convince her to come to the funeral, and take Harry with her. I think it's time we join the celebrations. I hear that Dumbledore has booked the Weird Sisters."

"I've got to return this to Sirius Black first."

Hagrid walked back to the motorbike, swung himself back on it, and rode off towards the moon. As Minerva started to walk away, she turned around to look at Darren.

"Aren't you coming?" she asked him.

"Just give me a minute, Minerva," he told her, "I need to restore the lights first."

"Okay. Will you be apparating?"

"I think I'll take the scenic route."

"Okay then."

Minerva walked away into the darkness and vanished. After restoring the lights, Darren turned around for a last look at the bundle of blankets. He smiled.

"Good luck, Harry."

He turned abruptly around and beginning to jump changed back into a duck. With a quack he flew away, away from Privet Drive and back into the darkness.