Okay, ninth chapter! There's quite a few scenes in this one, and it's long, but I'm really happy with how it turned out, especially since I made up each scene myself. This isn't one of those it-had-to-happen scenes from the book so it's all just me. Please read and review!


The summer seemed to fly by as Harry spent time with Sirius, Remus, and the Weasleys. Some days Ron and Ginny would floo to Crystal Cottage to spend time with Harry, and the three of them would explore the woods surrounding the house. They were forbidden to go near the waterfall, the only way in or out of Crescent Valley.

The first day they explored the area, they found a clearing large enough to play a small game of Quidditch. Upon hearing this, Sirius fashioned a tall hoop from a fallen tree, a project that took him nearly a day to complete. Once it was complete, Ron, Harry, and Ginny could play a free-for-all game together.

Most days, though, Harry would go to the Burrow, because Sirius had Auror training at the Ministry, and Remus had missions for the Order. He was often gone for days at a time, though he returned before the full moon.

Once, he came home covered from head to toe in bruises and scratches, but refused to explain how he'd gotten them. They were healed fairly quickly by Madam Pomfrey's potions, though, so Sirius and Harry didn't push the matter. Werewolf or vampire wounds wouldn't heal so easily.

Hermione spent every other weekend at the Burrow, which sometimes included visits to Crystal Cottage, which she fell in love with the moment she laid eyes on it. She milked every last detail about the history of the valley from Remus, and almost begged the others to go exploring, even though they'd trod down every path already without her. They obliged, even though they wanted to play two-on-two Quidditch instead, something they couldn't do without Hermione.

Although their days were full of fun and laughter, Harry knew the wizarding world's wasn't. Every morning, the Daily Prophet delivered new reports of deaths and people going missing. Fudge had been sacked, and replaced with a man named Rufus Scrimgeour, a hard man who was the Head of the Auror Department.

He led the Ministry in a military-like way, and was willing to work with the Order of the Phoenix in the war against Voldemort. The day after his appointment as Minister, pamphlets titled "Protecting Your Home And Family Against Dark Forces".

Sirius tried to keep Harry away from these things, but Harry still noticed things, such as the grave look Sirius had whenever he returned home from a day's work at the Ministry. It disappeared the moment Sirius would lay eyes on Harry, however, and his godfather didn't speak a word of things happening at the Ministry to him.

It was about a week before Harry's birthday that the Burrow received a visitor. It was raining outside, so Ron, Harry, Hermione, and Ginny were upstairs in Ron's room, playing Exploding Snap. Ron's hair was slightly singed, and Hermione was about to recite a spell to fix it, when they heard a shrill shriek below them.

The four teenagers jumped up and, wands at the ready, dashed down the stairs to the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley, the source of the scream, was sobbing now, and squeezing the life out of a rather tall young man with the same flaming red hair as all the other Weasleys. They all recognized him immediately.

"Percy." Ron said. They lowered their wands, but didn't put them away.

"Oh, you're back! I've been waiting… hoping… I always thought… Oh, Percy!" Mrs. Weasley finally released her son, who stared down at the floor.

"Mother… I'm…" Percy began. "I… Mum, I'm so sorry!" He pulled her into another embrace, which she gladly returned, and sobbed into her shoulder. "I was so stupid… and arrogant… you were right the whole time… all of you."

"Percy." Everyone jumped at the new voice. Arthur, who they hadn't noticed next to the sink, stepped forward. Bill, who'd been staying at the Burrow, stood behind him. Molly let go of Percy and Arthur reached out for him, holding him close. "We were never angry with you. Disappointed, maybe, but we love you and we are glad to have you back."

"Thanks, Dad. Thanks, Mum." Percy sniffed, and his mother handed him a handkerchief.

"Welcome home, Perce." Ron said, in a surprisingly gracious manner. Percy smiled widely at his two youngest siblings and the three of them hugged as well. Bill gave him a bear hug, before introducing him to Fleur Delacour, his fianceé, known to Ginny and Hermione as "Phlegm."

Finally, Percy took a step towards Harry. Harry wasn't sure what to do. He'd never received a hug from Percy before, so he held out his hand. But the third Weasley child seemed to have changed a bit, as he wrapped his arms around Harry for a moment, and then let go. He did the same with Hermione, before looking back at his parents.

"So, um… where have you been living?" Arthur asked, motioning for everyone to take a seat at the table. Everyone but Molly sat. She put some tea on and started to fix up some biscuits.

"I've got a flat in Diagon Alley, over on the East side. It's not very big, but it suits my needs." Percy said. "Where are Fred and George?"

"Erm… they've bought themselves a shop in Diagon Alley. It's got an apartment upstairs for the two of them." said Arthur.

Molly huffed. "They didn't even finish Hogwarts."

"Oh, come on, Mum. Everyone wanted to quit last year." Ron said.

"Well, maybe not quit completely…" Hermione said. "But Fred and George nearly finished the year. They just didn't the year."

"But a joke shop, honestly. They left to open a joke shop. Where did they even get the money?" Molly went on.

"Mum, Fred and George are clever." Percy said. "Consider all the times they managed to play pranks on all of us, without anyone ever knowing until it was too late. That takes some creativity."

Everyone stared at him for a moment. Finally, Molly sighed.

"I suppose I don't give them enough credit, do I?" Molly said.

"Percy's right." Arthur said. "Truth be told, I have a feeling they've been preparing to open a joke shop their entire lives."

"Remember when we went to Egypt, and they put beetles in Bill's soup?" Ron asked.

"I do." Percy said. "That sneakoscope you bought for Harry kept droning on. Not sure if you noticed, but Charlie actually took my book from me to try and smash it. It was driving him mad."

Everyone laughed.

"I didn't know that." said Ron. "He never mentioned."

"I saw it. Charlie only stopped when Percy said it was for Harry." Ginny said.

"And now we know…" Arthur said quietly. "Why it kept spinning."

Everyone froze, except Percy.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"You don't know?" Ron cried.

Percy stared at him.

"Percy, I can't believe we never told you this…" Molly said.

"It's Scabbers…" Arthur said. "You see, your old pet rat, that you gave to Ron, was Peter Pettigrew."

Percy stared, his eyes wide with shock.

"Pettigrew is an animagus." Molly said quietly. "He takes the form of a rat. All those years everyone thought he was dead, and he was here all along."

There was silence for a moment as they waited for Percy to react.

He finally spoke. "Scabbers was… And I… I let him sleep in my bed and he was a… I gave my brother a murderer?!"

"Percy, it's not your fault." Arthur said, reaching across the table and grabbing his son's hand. Percy looked as though he might start hyperventilating.

"That's why the sneakoscope was going. Because Pettigrew was there, and he's untrustworhy." Percy said, making sense of things in his head. "But why us? Why did he have to live here?"

"He just wanted to find a wizard family." Harry said, speaking for the first time. "So he could keep up with the magical news and such."

"And he's… this man… is the reason Sirius went to Azkaban?" Percy ran a hand through his hair.

"Percy, no one but Pettigrew is at fault here. He wasn't a registered Animagus. Nobody, not even the Ministry, knew he could do it." Harry said.

Percy met his eyes, and, seeing that Harry wasn't angry or upset, he finally relaxed.

It did not help when a screaming sound came from the fire. Percy fell out of his chair at the noise.

"Oh! The tea's done." Molly bustled over to the pot and sent it to the counter to pour tea into seven mismatched teacups, which then floated over to the table.

"Thanks, Mum." Percy said, picking up his chair and sitting down again. Before taking a sip, he pulled out his wand and cooled his tea slightly. Seeing this, the underage witches and wizards in the room stared at him enviously.

He glanced at them, and with a wave of his wand, did the same to their teacups as well. They smiled at him, and he smiled back.

Several hours later, Sirius arrived to take Harry home, and they flooed back to Crystal Cottage.


Harry woke early on Saturday morning. He stretched and made his way downstairs to the kitchen, where Remus and Sirius were making breakfast. Sirius had finally mastered the toaster, and toast had become his main contribution to breakfast. Harry pulled down some plates, glasses, and silverware to set the table. He then poured orange juice into each glass. This had become their morning routine, and Harry quite liked it.

Remus sent eggs and bacon to their plates, while Sirius gave everyone toast. The three of them sat down and enjoyed the meal together.

"So, Harry," said Sirius. "What were you planning on doing today?"

"Homework."

Sirius nearly choked on his bacon. "Homework? Are you really James' son?"

"He's also Lily's, Sirius." Remus reminded him.

"Ron and Ginny have to clean the house with their mum, and Hermione's spending the weekend with her parents in Dublin. We just cleaned yesterday here, so I've got nothing else to do. Not as bad as usual, though. I don't have to do Snape's essay because I'm not taking Potions next year."

"Why not?" Remus asked, surprised.

"Because Snape requires an 'Outstanding' on the O.W.L.'s to continue into N.E.W.T.'s and I definitely didn't get that."

"Don't count your cockatrices before they hatch, Harry. You haven't gotten your scores yet." Sirius said.

"Sirius, I'm rubbish at potions." Harry assured him.

"Oh, come now. You can't be as bad as Remus." said Sirius.

Remus glared at him. "No need to be so frank about it." To Harry, he admitted, "It was the only subject I couldn't grasp. With Lily's help, however, I managed to pass both my O.W.L.'s and my N.E.W.T.'s."

"Go ahead and do your Potions essay." Sirius said. "If you don't need it in the end, well, at least you tried."

"If you need to do any research, there's tons of books in the study." said Remus.

Harry sighed. "Alright, I'll do it. But don't be surprised when I get 'Troll' on my O.W.L."

He stood up and cleared his plate, then headed upstairs to retrieve his books and notes, taking up Remus' offer to use the study.

He heard Remus behind him, "They should reconsider the scoring words. They're rather demeaning."


Harry leaned back in the surprisingly comfortable desk chair. He'd been in the study since breakfast, and no one had bothered him. This was a bit strange, considering both Remus and Sirius had the day off.

Normally, they'd have checked in on him a dozen times by now, offered him a snack or drink, asked if he needed help with anything, and Harry would have trouble getting rid of them. But today, he'd already finished his homework for Charms, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts (which Professor Dumbledore had asked Remus to write up before the school year ended).

Harry glanced at the grandfather clock next to the door. It was nearly eleven o'clock, and he was a bit thirsty, so he decided to take a break. He got up and took hold of the doorknob, twisting it.

But it didn't budge. He twisted harder. Still nothing. He tried to turn it the other way, but it did not move. He pulled and pushed at the door but it refused to yield. Realizing he'd left his wand upstairs, and couldn't magic his way out, Harry scanned the room for another way out.

There was a circular window opposite the door, but it was too small for a person. But not for an owl. Hedwig, he thought, might still be in the owlery with Yoren. If he could send a note to Sirius or Remus, and they could help him get open the door.

Harry climbed up onto the table underneath the window, unlocked it, and pushed it open. He silently thanked Merlin as he prepared to whistle to Hedwig.

But at that moment, the study door swung open and Sirius appeared. Upon seeing Harry at the window, he raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Harry clambered off of the table. "The door was locked."

"And you thought you could fit through the window?"

"No, I was going to call Hedwig."

"Oh, is she a locksmith?"

"No, I - Hey, how did you get the door open anyway?" Harry asked.

Sirius said nothing, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed, as though waiting for Harry to figure it out.

"You locked me in!" Harry said in disbelief. "Why?"

"So Remus and I could get everything ready." Sirius said. "Harry, don't you know what day it is?"

Harry thought for a moment, and then he remembered.

Sirius smiled and held out a hand. "Come outside with me, Prongslet. I've been waiting 15 years to do this for you."

Harry followed his godfather out the door, a little surprised at Sirius' sudden use of the petname 'Prongslet'. He'd never called him that before… or had he?

Sirius covered Harry's eyes with his hands and led him through the back door into the back garden.

As soon as his eyes were uncovered, Harry was bombarded by a great noise.

"SURPRISE!"

Harry's smile could not have been wider as he looked around at all the party guests. All of the Weasleys, Bill, Charlie, and Percy, were there. Fleur was there with Bill. Ginny and Mrs. Weasley looked none too happy about this. Hermione was the first one to hug Harry, wishing him a happy birthday and then stepping to the side for Mrs. Weasley. Hagrid stood off to the side, waving and a little teary-eyed. Tonks was next to Remus, who looked nervous.

"Wotcher! Happy birthday, Harry!" Tonks said, squeezing Harry a little too hard. Harry noticed she was much happier than she'd been at Games Day.

"Fred, George, you leave your brother alone!" Molly shouted.

Everyone turned to see a rather pale Percy backed up against a table, and the twins glaring at him.

"Brother? He abandoned us, Mum!" said Fred.

"He doesn't deserve to be here." asked George.

Arthur stepped in. "Enough. I will not have three of my adult sons fighting. Especially not here. This is Harry's day, and you want to ruin it for him? Percy is your brother, and he already feels bad enough for what happened. You're not going to make him feel worse."

The twins, however, did not look very forgiving at that moment.

"Did you know Percy defended the two of you against your mother?" Harry asked, and everyone looked at him. "Mrs. Weasley wasn't too thrilled about your choice in jobs, but Percy defended you. He said you were both talented and had a real chance with your joke shop."

Fred and George turned to Percy.

"You really said that?" asked George.

Percy nodded.

"Perce, we didn't think-"

"Yeah, we were-"

"We're sorry." They said together.

"So am I." said Percy.

The three of them embraced and Molly cried tears of happiness, apologizing profusely. Remus handed her his handkerchief.

"So…" Charlie said. "We were having a party, right?"

Everyone laughed.

An hour later, after some delicious cake topped with a snowy owl figurine, Harry sat in a chair surrounded by gifts of every shape and size.

One by one, he opened the parcels.

Ron's gift was a Chudley Cannons scarf, which Harry put on for five minutes before it got too hot in the summer heat. Hermione gave him a book about advanced offensive and defensive spells. From Ginny, he received a coffee mug with a moving Quidditch player on it, and a jar of specialty owl treats for Hedwig.

Fred and George gave him a Skiving Snackbox. ("It'll be useful next year, with N.E.W.T.'s and all.") Tonks gave him a small magical camera, which would print moving pictures. Harry tried it out, snapping a photo of Sirius eating cake, followed by a photo of Sirius completely outraged. Harry quickly passed the photos to Remus, who slid them into his coat pocket. Sirius sat back, obviously plotting his revenge on his friend and godson.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley bought him an alarm clock in the shape of a Snitch. Charlie gave him a miniature Hungarian Horntail, and Harry wondered if it was the one he'd pulled out of the bag in his fourth year. Bill and Fleur gave him an Egyptian ankh that was supposed to bring good luck.

Hagrid's gift, thankfully, was not rock cakes or monster books, but a magical speedometer for his broomstick.

It was Percy's gift that surprised him the most. It was a small, square box. Harry opened the lid and was surprised to see a beautiful white gold ring, with an emerald in the center.

Harry looked up at Percy, who still looked a bit nervous.

"Perce, is there something you're not telling us?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, that looks like an engagement ring." said George.

"No, that's not-"

"Where did you find this?" Sirius asked. He held out his hand, and Harry passed the ring to him.

"That ring looks exactly like..." asked Remus.

"It's the engagement ring that Harry's father gave to his mother." Percy said. "I saw her wearing it in an old photo in one of Mum's photo albums, and I thought Harry would like to have it. So I got permission from the Minister to go to your parent's house. It's been kept in the state it was in after they died, and I was able to find the ring in a jewelry box upstairs."

"Thank you, Percy." Harry said, as Sirius, who had watery eyes, returned the ring to him. "This means a lot."

Sirius and Remus then gave him their gift: a photo album of the Marauders throughout Hogwarts.

"I know Hagrid gave you one of your parents, but we made this one of all the fun times we had in school." Remus said. "You're grandparents are in here as well, on your father's side, at least."

Harry hugged them both. It was a wonderful gift. Everything was. The party, the cake, the gifts. Harry knew he would never forget a second of today.


See, Perce? I told you I would make it up to you. You're back and happy again with your family.

I know Percy isn't supposed to be back for almost another two years but like I've said before, I really really liked Percy in the books and felt he deserved something a little more than dramatically joining the Battle of Hogwarts just in time to see one of his brothers die, laughing at his joke. Seriously, who believes Percy doesn't blame himself for that? No one ever talks about how much that probably affected Percy. I couldn't do that to him, so he came back a little early.

And yes, Percy found the engagement ring James gave to Lily. I know it didn't happen in the book, but that's not important. It was just something he did to sort of apologize to Harry. It won't be important for a long time, but don't forget about it.