The Answer to Harry's idle musings came very soon before the break of dawn, when he was woken by Kreacher shouting. This was not entirely unusual; while he'd become much more well-adjusted thanks to Harry's company, Kreacher was still prone to fits of muttering and shouting to himself. What was unusual, that there was another voice responding to Kreacher's croaky shouts. It took Harry a moment to wake up and realize what he was hearing. By the time he'd become fully alert, Ginny was already sitting straight up, listening intently with her wand drawn at the ready.

"Stay here." Harry whispered, crawling out of bed and dressing himself as quickly as he could. "I'll go see what's going on."

She looked for a moment like she wanted to argue, but nodded slowly anyway. She kept her wand prepared all the same.

As Harry opened the bedroom door, Kreacher's shouts and the responding voice became clearer. Harry could now hear that it belonged to a woman, and a familiar one at that.

"You come crawling to Master Harry's house in disguise to steal secrets!" Kreacher screamed. Harry was grateful for the lack of neighbors immediately on either side of his house. "You cannot fool Kreacher, not with your insect disguises, nor with your lies!"

"Now, really." The woman's voice was dripping with flattery. "Such loyalty… Admirable even by Elf standards. But I'm an old friend, surely Harry wouldn't mind if you gave me a quick word?"

"NO!" Kreacher protested violently. "You will leave now, or Kreacher will have no choice but to remove you by force!"

The flattering quality immediately dropped from the woman's voice. "That's enough, Elf. I am a visitor to this house. You'll fetch me the master of this household right now.

"It's fine, Kreacher." Harry stepped down the last few stairs, into clear view of the front door. There stood Kreacher, arms spread wide to deny entry to the witch and wizard outside. Rita Skeeter stood on the threshold, her trademark acid green self-writing quill scratching away on a notepad that floated in midair next to her. She was accompanied by a rather short wizard, who Harry recognized as her photographer. Fortunately, the camera hung at his side for the moment.

"Master Harry! So sorry to wake you, but Kreacher caught these two snooping around the yard." Kreacher's eyes narrowed into a fierce glare. "The foul woman had disguised herself as a bug and tried to reach your window, and the dirty man tried to hide in the bushes. Until Kreacher forced them out into the open, of course…" Kreacher's tirade faded into mumbling that was unintelligible aside from the occasional curse word.

"Thanks, Kreacher." Harry said. "I'll handle things from here. You did good, now get some rest." Kreacher gave an enthusiastic nod before immediately falling over backwards. His snores were sounding off before he'd even hit the floor.

"Odd, little thing, isn't he?" Rita said. "But enough of that, I've been looking for a word for some time now. Can I come in? For old time's sake?"

"No." Harry said coldly. "You can't." While it was true that she'd written one very helpful piece at his behest in his fifth year, she'd only cooperated when Hermione had threatened to out her as an unregistered animagus. And aside from that one piece, Rita had printed a good deal of unfounded personal accusations and damaging falsehoods against Harry and many of his friends. Rita had an unfortunate

knack for finding out just enough of the truth to cause some damage, and then letting it run wild. "What do you want, Rita?"

"Oh, Harry, you're so much fiercer than you were as a boy! What's done it? Emotional trauma from your flight from The Dark Lord? Bottled up angst from the murder of your parents? Or maybe something as menial as a bout of lovesickness?"

Harry said nothing in response. He'd long since learned that any response given to Rita Skeeter would be used as kindling for whatever narrative she was attempting to create.

"No comment?" There was a very slight edge of disappointment in Rita's voice, but it passed quickly. "Alright, alright. To business, then. I think that it's about time for the readers of the Daily Prophet to know where you were in the year before The Dark Lord fell. Where was 'The Chosen One' when we needed him most? What could have possibly driven him into hiding while the rest of the world suffered?"

Harry had been dreading this moment for some time now. He, Ron, and Hermione had decided shortly after Voldemort's demise that their quest to destroy the shredded fragments of The Dark Lord's soul should remain a secret. Dumbledore had placed a firm ban on the discussion of Horcruxes during his time as Headmaster. If this ban had been effected earlier and more efficiently, Voldemort may have never been able to achieve his incredible longevity. In keeping with this spirit, the three of them had only told the full truth about the Hercules and the Deathly Hallows to Ginny, and their other close friends Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood. The rest of the world would have to settle for the version of events that Harry, Ron, and Hermione had cooked up in the aftermath of the Battle of Hogwarts.

"We were scouting." Harry said, trying not to sound overly rehearsed. "You know, looking for weaknesses in Voldemort's organization, gathering allies, practicing dueling techniques, you get the idea."

"I see." Said Rita, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "And what led you to reveal yourself at Hogwarts? What benefit could have possibly outweigh the countless young lives that you put at risk by attracting You-Know-Who to the school? Was it simple negligence, or was there something hidden at Hogwarts that you needed?"

Harry had no desire to answer the question, but he had a sneaking suspicion that Rita knew more than she was letting on, and she was uncomfortably close to the truth as is. "We just figured that the time was right to hit back. Hogwarts was the only place with the protection to give us time to rally our forces.. We knew that it'd also buy us enough time to evacuate the students. So, you see, we didn't really have many options."

"Right." Rita was had produced a second notepad, and was checking over notes that she'd written beforehand. "So that really just leaves one thing…" She flashed a nasty smirk. "What can you tell me about the Dark Lord's Horcruxes?"

Harry's stomach dropped. He tried to mask any sign of recognition at the word, but he knew he'd failed when he saw Rita's ugly smirk growing wider. "Pardon?" He said, trying to buy time and maybe figure out exactly how much she knew.

"Come now, Harry." Rita said. "I'm a journalist. What do you think I've been doing this past year while I waited for you to resurface? I've got two books in the works, one for You-Know-Who, and one for yourself. Of course I wanted to have them out sooner to capitalize on the mania when you first triumphed, but I think that I can make up for lost time. I won't disclose my sources, but I have very reliable information about the Dark Lord's seeming to be unnaturally protective of certain items and locations. This struck me as quite odd; I'm sure that you know as well as anybody that the Dark Lord wasn't known for his sentimentality. So I took this knowledge to one of my contacts with expertise in Dark Magic, and he told me about an interesting piece of old magic… A way to split the soul into pieces, and ensure that the creator can't be killed until all of the pieces are destroyed. Explains everything rather neatly, don't you think? Why the Dark Lord wasn't killed nineteen years ago when his killing curse rebounded off of you? What you and your little friends were up to when you went into hiding?"

Her self-satisfied smirk was really beginning to irritate Harry; if it hadn't been for the silent presence of the photographer, he would have been sorely tempted to jinx her.

"And of course," Rita continued, "He would have hidden a piece of his soul at Hogwarts. There would be nowhere safer, given that it was at the time his stronghold, guarded by his most trusted general in Severus Snape."

Harry knew that he'd been beaten. He could deny all he wanted, but she would publish anyway, and the damage would be done.

"You can't print that." Harry said firmly. "I know your secret, remember? You put that out, and I'll go public about you being an unregistered animagus."

Harry had expected Rita's smile to turn sour upon being threatened, but on the contrary it only grew brighter. "Oh, I take it you haven't heard the happy news, then?" She gleefully drank in Harry's puzzled expression. "I've registered myself. A bit restrictive, but well worth it to have my freedom to write as I please back. You have nothing to threaten me with now."

Harry let out a tired sigh. This put him in an uncomfortable position; the only recourse left would have been previously unthinkable, but here he was. "Please, Rita." Harry hated himself for groveling, but he had to try. "This is serious Dark Magic. Voldemort may be dead, but there are others out there who could abuse it. I'll do anything., just don't put that out."

Rita seemed slightly taken aback by his sudden change of tone, but pleased all the same. "Sorry, Harry. I've just had my one-on-one interview with 'The Chosen One.' That's all I really want from you right now. Besides, the people have a right to know. You don't decide what makes the papers and what sells books. I think it's high time that you learned that lesson, Potter. As your dear Professor Dumbledore used to say, it's 'for the greater good."

Harry's stomach turned at the phrase, but he was cut off before he could answer.

"Yeah, if the greater good means a couple of extra galleons in your pocket." Ginny said venomously from behind Harry. She must have been listening at the stairs and been unable to stay in hiding any longer. Rita's eyes bulged out of her skull, lingering on Ginny's brilliant red hair.

"You… You must be a Weasley! Arthur Weasley's only daughter?" She rounded on Harry, her smile more sickening than ever. "Really, Harry… Your best friend's sister? How delightfully borderline-incestuous! Don't just stand there Bozo!" She snapped at her photographer. "This is a cover story in itself, get moving!"

Harry had just enough time to throw up his hand to block his face and hopefully some of Ginny from the camera, but he wasn't sure how much good it would do once the picture was developed to be able to move.

"So, are we living together," Rita continued, "Or just a one night stand?"

"None of your business." Ginny's voice was icy. "Leave now, or I'll hex you."

"Oh, I like you, Girlie…" Rita snarled. "Just like him, y don't know when to quit. You and I are going to have fun, I can tell." She turned on her heel and gestured for the cameraman to follow. "But I have everything I need. I'll be seeing the both of you around, I'm sure."

Harry watched them head down the road towards the village and out of sight. "You should've let me handle her." Harry said quietly.

"Hmph." Ginny folded her arms. "I'm done hiding. I'd kind of hoped to keep things under wraps until Quidditch League contracts came out so I could be sure that I wasn't being brought on as 'The Chosen One's Girlfriend,' but so be it. I won't hide and let her talk to you like that. Whatever contract they send me, I'll just have to make sure that I earn it." The hard, determined look on her face reminded Harry of the first time that she'd kissed him.

Her expression softened as she continued. "Besides, it might be for the best. I think that it's about time people knew that you were taken. I'm getting sick of girls making eyes at you when we go out."

As they were both too worked up to even think about going back to sleep, they set about their day. As Kreacher was still passed out at the door, Harry carefully moved him to the couch and began frying up some eggs and toast while Ginny took some time to explore the layout of the house.

The morning post arrived as they chatted over breakfast. There were two packages stamped with the Ministry of Magic seal carried by a Great Grey Owl, one large box carried by a Tawny, and a rolled letter attached to a Barred Owl. Harry started by focusing on the Ministry boxes. There was one addressed to him, and one for Ginny. He tossed Ginny hers, and used his wand to slice his open. It contained a letter and a small silver badge that read:

Ministry of Magic Auror

Harry Potter

Authority 3

Harry looked over, to see Ginny turning a similar badge over in her hand; hers was nearly identical, except for the name. Not entirely sure what that could mean, he turned to the letter.

Mr. Harry Potter

Contained in this package is your badge of office. It is of the utmost importance that you do not allow anybody else to touch it. In order to prevent impersonation via Polyjuice Potion or other means, all Auror badges carry powerful curses that will afflict any individual not qualified to hold the badge. In order to allow you to best perform your duty, you have been granted third authority, which will allow you access to nearly all Ministry investigations and files. Please report to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement on the second level of Ministry Of Magic Headquarters two days from now for further orientation.

Sincerely,

Edgar Rowedder, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and Head Auror

"Woah, I wasn't expecting a badge or anything." Ginny said incredulously. "Luna's going to be miffed that she passed on taking one of these, she won't be able to get all the Ministry's classified info on Crumple-Horned Snorkacks."

Harry chuckled. "Yeah, probably for the best though. Can you imagine the havoc she could cause if she had access to everything the Ministry's ever done?"

"You're a fine one to talk." Ginny said. "Since when have you been one to care about keeping government secrets? Remember when you led a group of teenagers to break in and wreck the entire Department of Mysteries? I'm surprised that they even let you through the doors at this point."

"Fair enough." Harry said. "But that reminds me… I haven't heard from Luna in a bit. If she's not joining the Ministry, has she decided what she's doing yet?"

"She's thinking about taking up an Apprenticeship at Ollivander's." Ginny said. "After the last few years he's been thinking about retirement, not that I blame him. I expect he's looking for somebody to take over the business for him."

Harry nodded thoughtfully. Mr. Ollivander, the master wand craftsman who'd made Harry's own wand, had recently spent several years in Lord Voldemort's captivity where he underwent severe tortures at the hand of the Dark Lord himself. While trapped, he'd met Luna Lovegood, who he had seemed to have taken a shine to. While he wouldn't have predicted this turn of events, Harry had to admit that it made some sense. From what little he understood of Wandlore, it seemed to be a mix of unproven theory and intuition that would surely appeal to Luna Lovegood.

Harry moved onto the next package, also addressed to him. He cut it open like the first, and was surprised to see that it contained several boxes of chocolate frogs, and a letter.

"No way…" Ginny said, her jaw dropping. "It couldn't be… Go on, open one!"

Puzzled, Harry took one of the boxes and opened it. It looked like a perfectly normal chocolate frog to him.

"Not the frog, you tremendous prat!" Ginny groaned. "And they're going to send you out to catch Dark Wizards? Merlin's soggy bloomers, the card, check the card!" Harry did as she said and was surprised to see his own face grinning back at him. The blurb read:

Harry Potter

1980-Present

Know as the only survivor of the Killing Curse, and Vanquisher of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Noted Quidditch enthusiast.

"You lucky bastard…" Ginny mumbled enviously. "Wait, if you're here… Don't tell me…" She ripped another package opening, tossing the frog aside. "Oh no…" She groaned as she held out the enclosed card for harry to see. It showed a picture of Ron, grinning as widely as the first time Hermione had kissed him. "He's going to be insufferable… Well, even more than usual, anyway." Ginny groaned. "Is there one in there for Herm- ACK!"

Ginny shouted fell backwards off the stool she'd been sitting on as Ron appeared in the middle of the room with a loud crack.

"HARRY!" Ron bellowed. "DID YOU SEE THEM? AHA! This has got to be the happiest day of my life!" He was laughing like a madman, apparently not having noticed Ginny lying on the floor. Harry rushed over to help her up. She looked like she was about to tell him off, but before she could even open her mouth, the door flew front open with a crash.

"RONALD WEASLEY!" Hermione shouted from the door. She was panting as though she'd just sprinted down the street, and her already bushy was was frazzled and standing on end. The full effect was quite frightening, Harry thought. "YOU DO NOT APPARATE INSIDE OTHER PEOPLE'S HOUSES WITHOUT PERMISSION!" She continued screaming. "YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN, AND I WILL JINX- Oh, hello Ginny. Harry…" She blushed slightly, evidently just having noticed that they were there. "Lovely news about the cards, no?"

"Oh yeah, it's pretty cool." Harry said awkwardly.

"Pretty cool?" Ron said incredulously. "This is our crowning achievement, this is." Harry was quite sure that Ron would have kissed the card if he wasn't concerned about ruining the collector's value. "And they're self-updating too. It's all int he letter. They use a protean charm on the Master Card to update them if we do anything else, it's all in the letter. Neville's got one in there too. For standing up to You-Know-Who and killing his snake. Not that they know anything about it being a Horcrux, but it was still a pretty great moment."

"Well, they'll know pretty soon." Harry said darkly. He recounted his encounter with Rita Skeeter. By the time he'd finished, Ron looked considerably more somber.

"No way." He said. "After all that work we put in to hush it up, she's just going to blow the story up like that?"

"Yeah." Harry said. "I can't think of anything that'll stop her. We could go public about her learning to be an Animagus before she actually registered, but I doubt that the punishment'll be as harsh now that she's gone through the channels. And then we'll have to come clean that we've basically been covering for her so we could blackmail her. And to top it all off, it won't stop the story getting out in the end."

"This might cheer you up, Harry." Ginny had been opening the last letter. "It's from Andromeda Tonks. She's going to be in the area shopping later this afternoon, and she wants to know if you'd like Teddy for a couple of hours."

This did cheer Harry up a bit; Teddy Lupin was Harry's God-son, and the son of two of his close friends who'd been killed in Voldemort's last stand. Teddy currently lived with his maternal grandmother.

"That's great," Harry said. "I'll write back and let her know. We can do our errands and be back in time to take him."

"And we'll be going." Hermione said, seemingly more to Ron than anybody else. "Mrs. Weasley made a lovely breakfast that somebody apparated out on, and we'll have to make that up to her." Without another word, she turned and marched out the door. Ron followed, shrugging as if to apologize for her behavior.

"How do those two make it work?" Ginny said, sounding rather amused.

"Beats me." Harry said, gulping down the last of his pumpkin juice. "I'm always surprised that they're on speaking terms after all this time, so I guess that shows what I know. We'd better get going, we'll need to rent an owl at the post office.

Stowing the dishes in the sink, they set off into the village; the walk was just long enough to give them some privacy, but not long enough as to be unpleasant. They made the post office their first stop, ensuring that the letter confirming that they'd like to see Teddy would arrive in time, then set out to the rest of the village. They stopped in briefly to see the spot where George was building the second location of his joke shop, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. George appeared to be away; they did however see a sign promising an opening by the start of next term at Hogwarts.

After poking around picking up the various essentials and sundries that they'd be needing, Harry and Ginny made their way to Gaucher's Animal Inventory. Harry had been putting off replacing his faithful owl Hedwig for some time now, but he couldn't deny that he missed the company and convenience of having an owl handy. Once inside, Ginny instantly bonded herself to a small male burrowing owl who seemed to have a somewhat surly expression on his face at all times. She wasted no time at all in naming him Archibald (or Archie for short). Harry picked himself a rather regal looking great-horned owl, who he quickly named Priscilla before Ginny could pipe in with advice.

Happy with their selections, they made their way back home. Once they'd gotten their owls settled in and adjusted in the third bedroom, they sat down in the living room to read as they waited for Andromeda.

About an hour later, Mrs. Tonks arrived at the front door, Teddy in one arm and a large traveling bag in the other. "Thank you so much for taking him, I'll be back before dinner so we can catch the Knight Bus back. There's food in the bag. Don't mind if he tries to stand and falls down, he's been trying to walk, but he's a bit late. And fair warning, he's taken to changing his hair and face every ten minutes or so." Teddy was a metamorphmagus; a skill he'd inherited from his mother that allowed him to change his appearance with ease. He'd presently settled on a round chin and violently yellow hair. With a cheery wave, Andromeda handed Teddy off to Harry and set off to the village.

It was at precisely this moment that Harry realized that he'd never been alone in charge of a baby before. He looked awkwardly at Teddy for a moment before setting him down to sit on one of the armchairs. This turned out to be a tremendous mistake- the moment that he left Harry's arms, he began to shriek uncontrollably. Instantly, Ginny swooped out of nowhere to pick him up again. "Aw, did mean old Harry put you down?" She cooed. His tears began to fade almost as soon as she'd lifted him. "Here, you take him back." She said as she passed him to Harry. "I'm going to get the camera so we can have some pictures. She disappeared up the stairs, leaving Harry alone and feeling rather helpless.

Teddy seemed to catch Harry's eye- the two made eye contact for about a full moment before Teddy's face began to shift. It was a rather bizarre experience, watching the baby's hair growing outward and darken until-

Harry heard a sudden gasp from Ginny on the stairway, followed by a burst of laughter from both her and Teddy. Teddy had copied Harry's thin face and green eyes; he'd even gotten the scar and messy hair exactly right. Harry had the strange impression that he was looking into some kind of funhouse mirror.

"Turn him this way, I want a picture of this." Ginny said, still laughing. After she took the picture, she lowered the camera and walked closer to them until she was shoulder to shoulder with Harry. There was a rather curious expression on her face. She stood there silently for a moment before speaking.

"You know Harry…" She said slowly. "You look really good holding a baby. I really like it." She waited a moment for the look on Harry's face to show that he'd registered what she'd said, and quickly raised the camera to arm's length and snapped a picture of them, giggling mischievously. Harry pretended to sulk for the sake of his image, but he knew that as soon as he had an office at the Ministry, he'd be needing a copy of that picture to hang.