Chapter 12
Back To The Burrow

Author's Note: This is almost a filler chapter, though it does have conversations mentioning storylines. Now for a Q&A regarding an error on my part. Important.

Q: Did you change Harry's wand on Purpose? In the book it's 11 in and made of Holly.

A: Oops, I may have made a mistake with that. I must have read something wrong when I was looking it up. Maybe what I used was one he was trying out in the book… err… yeah, that's a mistake. Definitely not on purpose. From now on, I will have it be the correct version. My sincere apologies, everyone.

Also, I have been getting a lot of early criticisms about certain things in-story. I can't comment on a lot of it, because most will be explained in-story, by the end of it. It will all work out, I promise. To those of you asking about the guardianship (Sirius or Weasleys?)… some of that will be questioned in this chapter and the following chapter, though it won't give the final answer to it just yet. Enjoy!

Almost an hour after Harry sat down with the Weasleys, the five were finished with their meal and Mr. Weasley was leading them all over to the fireplace on the other side of the large room.

"Now, Harry, if I am correct," Mr. Weasley said, "You have probably never traveled by Floo Powder, no?"

"No," Harry lied.

"That's all right," Mr. Weasley said, "Traveling by fireplace is very common in the wizarding world. Probably as common as Muggles travel by – what was that - bought-a-mobile?"

"Automobile?" Harry suggested.

"Ah, yes, that's it!" Mr. Weasley said, smiling. "Traveling this way sounds scary, and it can be for your first few times, sure, but I assure you that you'll be all right. As long as you speak very clearly. I will go first to lift the wards around the house, and then you can go, okay?"

Harry nodded. Mrs. Weasley took her bag of Floo Powder from her purse and offered it to her husband. He grabbed a handful and walked into the fireplace, then looked at Harry and winked.

"The Burrow!" he said, in a clear, strong voice, as he dropped the powder.

In a roar of fire, Mr. Weasley disappeared into the fireplace. Harry tried his best to look shocked, for show.

"Oh, don't worry," Mrs. Weasley said, catching Harry's expression, "Only looks scary, as my husband told you."

"I do it all the time!" Ginny said, chuckling.

Show-off, Harry said, with a mental smirk.

Prat, Ginny said, for a moment I was wondering why Ron was talking to me like this.

Harry decided to ignore Ginny for the moment and he took a handful of the powder from Mrs. Weasley's bag.

"Don't worry about your owl and trunk," Mrs. Weasley said, "They'll be at the Burrow safely in just a moment. Off you go. Speak very clearly now."

Harry nodded and stepped into the fireplace. Ginny smiled at him and gave him a thumbs-up motion.

"The Burrow!" he said, clearly, dropping the powder.

Soon, he was turning and spinning in the cramped space known as the Floo Network. Fireplaces roared past him in a blur and he closed his eyes and moved his arms inward to his body. After what seemed like a full minute, he landed on solid ground. He coughed and spluttered as he walked through smoke and ash. A moment later, and the smoke and ash disappeared in a whirl of wind. Mr. Weasley smiled at him from nearby.

"Ah, excellent!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed, "A successful first ride in the Floo Network, Harry. Did you like it?"

"Er… it was okay," Harry said; truthfully, he had always hated it.

He walked away from the fireplace and looked around, trying his best not to smile too much. He was looking at the living room of one of his favorite buildings in the world. This place was like home to him in the old timeline, outside of Hogwarts. And it was home to him for a good few months after the Second War ended, until he got the letter about Potter Manor. If things didn't work out with Sirius, he would be okay with being here for a few years.

He heard a hooting noise, and saw, as Mrs. Weasley promised, Hedwig in her cage; his trunk right beside it… both near the sofa.

"This is our home for now, Hedwig," he said, as he walked over to the cage.

He heard Mr. Weasley chuckle, followed by the whoosh of smoke and ash. A familiar grumbling noise told him Ron had arrived. Ron, too, wasn't fond of the Floo Network.

"Made it all right then, Harry?" Ron asked.

Harry nodded.

"It ain't much around here, I know," Ron said, "But it's home."

"I think it is brilliant," Harry said, smiling.

Ron's cheeks went very red.

A couple minutes later, Ginny and Mrs. Weasley had arrived as well.

"All right, Harry?" Mrs. Weasley asked, as she stepped away from the smoke and ash, and vacuumed it up with her wand, "How about I show you where you'll be staying?"

"Ooh, can I do it, Mum?" Ginny asked, "Please? I really like Harry's owl. I want her to get to know me. I can take her upstairs for Harry."

"Oh… well, okay, I guess, Ginny," Mrs. Weasley said, "Don't stay too long, though. Harry will probably want to get used to his new room. When you come back down, Harry, we'll give you a guided tour."

"Yeah, and maybe we'll go out to the field near the orchard!" Ron said, "I want to know if you can fly!"

"Ronald," Mrs. Weasley said, "I'm not so sure if that is a good idea at the moment."

"I'd like that, Ron," Harry said, "Maybe in a little while, yeah?"

"Yeah," Ron said, "Please, Mum?"

Mrs. Weasley frowned. Then she let out a sigh and nodded. "All right. You boys need to work off that lunch anyway. Tom's cooking is always a lot heavier than mine. Though we do need to build you up, Harry. You look rather skinny."

"Come on, Harry," Ginny said, "Charlie and Bill's room is up two levels past mine!"

Harry knew this, of course, but nodded anyway. Ginny took Hedwig's cage, and Harry took his trunk, and they started off up the steps.

I thought Ron might have challenged me to help you bring your stuff up here, Ginny said, as they walked up the stairs, You know how he is when it comes to me. Protective of his little sister around boys.

Maybe he doesn't see me as a threat like that yet, Harry suggested.

I dunno. Could go either way. It will either hit him hard when it comes, or he'll be so used to you, he'd see it coming and not care too much.

Harry and Ginny passed the first floor, which was Ginny's room on one side, and the bathroom on the other. He took a peek in Ginny's room as they passed and went up the stairs.

Did you ever change your room at all? It looks like it does ten years from now.

Prat! It's been that way since I was seven, and I like it. A few things changed. In the old timeline, I had some new things over the years. Gryffindor Lion banners later, when I became a student. I had a few posters of Gwenog Jones and the Harpies. Remember that poster with me in it I put up the month before we got married? Poster previewing the team for that year. And then there were pictures of friends… pictures of you...

How sweet, Harry teased, Even when you were with Michael and Dean?

I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of an answer to that, Potter.

Harry laughed. They then passed the second level, which had Percy's bedroom, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's bedroom. The floor was rather creaky here.

"Oh, yes, the creaky stair near the parents' bedroom," Harry said, laughing.

"That's all right," Ginny said, smiling wickedly, "If I get the desire to see you, I can just teleport. Silent, so Mum wouldn't hear a thing. And you know how good her hearing is."

"Sneaky girl," Harry said, with a smirk. "Of course, that will only work until our bond is revealed to your parents and Ron."

"Yeah… right," Ginny said, frowning.

"We're going to have to tell them sometime," Harry said.

Ginny nodded, though she didn't reply. They reached the third floor. This was where Bill and Charlie's room was, where Harry would be staying. Across the hall was Fred and George's room. Up the stairs was the attic where Ron's bedroom was.

"Great," Harry said, rolling his eyes, as he walked into his new bedroom, "I'll have to hear the bangs and booms in Fred and George's room first-hand."

"You could always silence the door," Ginny said, "Though you wouldn't hear Mum call you for breakfast, or others if they want to come into your room."

"True," Harry said.

He looked around the bedroom. The walls were painted in what appeared to be a mix between Egyptian stuff and dragons (on one of the walls, a dragon was flying over a pyramid). It had a bunk-bed on the left-hand side of the room, and two desks and a dresser were on the other side of the room. The summer before Harry's sixth year, in the old time-line, the room had changed a bit, when Bill started living in the house full-time until he would get married the following year. One large bed had replaced the bunk-bed, where Bill would sleep, where he would sometimes be accompanied by his then-fiancée, Fleur Delacour, when she was a guest in the house for a few weeks.

Harry put Hedwig's cage on the desk near the window.

"I'll let you out soon, Hedwig," he said.

Hedwig hooted in understanding. Harry then put his trunk near the beds. He pointed his wand at the bedroom door, set a Muffliato Charm, then looked at Ginny.

"Ginny, we need to talk about your family and this whole thing with us," Harry said, as he sat down on the bottom bunk, "I can understand if you don't want to tell your parents yet."

"Mum will have baby kneazles when she finds out," Ginny said, frowning, and sat next to him, "Even if she reacts okay to the whole time-travel thing, which she won't, I don't think she's going to like the concept of us being bonded one bit. I'm still her little girl in this timeline, Harry. She hasn't given me away yet, and doesn't want to for a good ten years or more if she had her way."

"Yeah, I know," Harry said, "Like I said, I can understand that. But Ron… well, there was three people I immediately decided I wanted to tell about the time-travel thing. Sirius, Ron and Hermione. Technically I don't know Hermione yet. I will have to work on that come September. But it is those three I can't keep this secret from. I don't know about Sirius… maybe he already knows Occlumency, but Ron and Hermione will have to learn it. And then there's the Soul-Bond thing. I really haven't given it a good thought since Ragnok told us about it today, but... it looks like I will want to tell those three that secret too."

"Even Ron?" Ginny asked, with a smirk, "You know how he is going to react to the Soul-Bond. Hermione might understand… I bet she'll look up everything on it. We can lend her the books Ragnok will give us. But Ron…"

"We'll make sure he understands it," Harry said. "But even then, it will be a while before we tell him. He's going to be a pain when it comes to Occlumency… learning about it, I mean."

"Yeah," Ginny said, laughing, "He will. Hermione will take right to it, I bet."

"Yeah, and Sirius might already know it," Harry said, "I never asked him in the old timeline. If so, he'll be the first I share our secret with. Maybe as soon as he gets out of Azkaban. Agree?"

"I told you earlier this week I agreed on that, Harry," Ginny said, "We're going to need him."

"Yeah," Harry said, "Right. You know… it is funny. We were feet from Bellatrix's Vault, and I didn't even think about that Horcrux in there at the time."

"Speaking of Horcruxes," Ginny said, "You're one… or your scar is… however that works out."

"Right," Harry said, nodding, "Parseltongue."

"How are you going to work with that one?" Ginny asked, "Please don't tell me you'll handle it same as last time…"

"I may have to," Harry said, "But if I do it exactly how I did last time, I'll come back and Voldemort will be mortal and I'll defeat him."

"That almost killed me last time, love," Ginny said, "You know I used to have nightmares about that – for weeks on end."

"I know," Harry said. "But that is four years from now. Over four years if the timeline goes right. Let's not think about it."

Ginny sighed and nodded.

"I better go before Mum gets suspicious," she said.

She looked at him, and her eyes traveled to his lips which she kissed very briefly.

"I missed you," she said, softly, "And I love you."

"You too, Mrs. Potter," he said, with a grin.

Ginny sighed and rolled her eyes at the name. Harry chuckled. He knew that even though she had been Mrs. Potter in the timeline for a few months before everything happened, she probably felt that as a nine-year old, going on ten year old little girl, even with the mind of a young woman, it might have to take some time getting used to. Ginny stood up and walked over to the door, then looked back at Harry.

"You know," she said, "we still don't know what Ragnok meant about some records showing my name change. How many records…?"

"Dunno," Harry said, ""I think we would have had more than just Dumbledore visiting us if it was too bad."

"I can't believe Dumbledore knows," Ginny said, "Why doesn't he just tell us he knows?"

"Who knows with him," Harry asked, rhetorically, "Tell your Mum I'll be down there shortly for the guided tour."

Ginny smiled, nodded and left the room. Harry walked over to the window and opened it, then opened Hedwig's cage.

"There you go," Harry said, "I'm sure there are some good mice out there in the field. Watch out for gnomes though."

Hedwig hooted and flew out the window. Harry smiled and walked back over to the bed. He opened his trunk and started taking out the bags of things from Diagon Alley. He had bought a few pairs of clothes to last him throughout the summer, though he knew he would need more for school. Madam Malkin had suggested he not try on school outfits until closer to September, which he had agreed to. That was one more trip back to Diagon Alley he would have to make. If he planned it right, he and Ginny could visit the Potter Family Vault again before he had to go to Hogwarts. Perhaps they could even visit Potter Manor…

This thought and others about his vault swept through his mind over the next ten minutes as he unpacked his shopping bags. This consisted of putting clothes in Bill and Charlie's old drawers, which had been empty before, as well as sorting through his books (those he would want to read now, and those he'd save for later on in the summer), and putting away his assortment of school supplies. Since he had no use for these until September, most of it went closer to the bottom of the trunk, though fragile things were sorted near the top.

When he finished, he left the room and headed back down to the first level of the house. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were sitting at the kitchen table, cups of tea in front of them. Ginny and Ron were nowhere to be seen.

I'm up at the empty field with Ron, love, Ginny said, when Harry questioned her about her location, Not on a broom though. I'm saving that surprise for Ron for when you get here.

He was about to respond, when he heard Mrs. Weasley speak up to her husband.

"… if we only knew, Arthur!" Mrs. Weasley said, in a deep concerned tone, "I never expected those relatives of his would do something like that. And he hasn't even told us everything, you know. But I can imagine – and – well, I just can't believe it. I never expected the sister of Lily Potter to be so – so –"

"I'm sure he'll tell us more when he wants to, Molly," Mr. Weasley said, "We shouldn't push him. He needs the love of a proper family."

"I'm not sure if we can give him that," Mrs. Weasley said, "You heard how excited he was at the idea of living with Sirius. I mean… I do hope it all works out for Sirius. With Pettigrew alive, things have changed – I mean, of course I had believed those stories back then. I shouldn't have… you know, Andromeda Tonks never really believed his guilt. We had at least one debate over it, I remember. Anyway… I'd hold no objections if Sirius wanted guardianship of the boy, but – well, the man's been in Azkaban for going on ten years. Having to be in a cell and be affected by those – those things."

She shuddered.

"That's going to have some side-effects when he gets out," she continued. "Mark my words. Sirius might not be the same for a while, and to have Harry live with him – does he even have a home?"

"I think he would inherit that place on Grimmauld Street," Mr. Weasley said, "The Blacks lived there for – well, forever."

"But it has been empty since Walburga Black died," Mrs. Weasley said, "Except for – say – if they had house-elves, and a family like that probably would have. Sirius was okay, but – well, I wasn't surprised when I heard Regulus died, nor when Walburga did. Dark Arts lovers, the lot of them, except Sirius, from the sound of it. That house has to be infested with Dark Arts stuff… I can't imagine Harry living there, can you?"

"Dunno," Mr. Weasley said, "I would sure like to take a look at some of the stuff in there if I get a chance. Could be a goldmine for my department."

"What if – Arthur, what if we convinced Sirius that we could be Harry's guardians?" Mrs. Weasley suggested, At least temporary. Harry is going to be our guest here, anyway, until things get settled with Pettigrew's case. Of course, we'd have to apply for guardianship, but that can't be too difficult, can it? No… course not. It would have to be what Harry wants though…"

"We'll figure it out later, Molly," Mr. Weasley said, "Let's give the young lad time to get used to this place and everything… going to be tough for him."

"He seems close to Ron and Ginny already," Mrs. Weasley said, smiling, "They seem to like him too, but you know how Ginny is. She heard stories about him since she was in booties. She's had a bit of an innocent fancy for him for about that long too."

Mr. Weasley chuckled and nodded. Harry decided this was the right time to walk into the kitchen. He cleared his throat and stepped inside. Mrs. Weasley turned toward him.

"Oh, Harry," she said, standing up, "Are you settled upstairs?"

"Yeah," Harry said, "Ginny was a big help. Showed me whose bedroom was whom, and the bathroom."

"Well, then, you know just about everything in here then," Mr. Weasley said, "Sitting room there for family time, which is always nice. Kitchen here of course. Small, but we make due. I think Ron and Ginny are near the old barn, where the make-shift Quidditch Pitch is. Not like your standard Pitch, mind, but good enough for a nice small family game from time to time. You'll have to catch a game when the whole family is around."

"Most of the boys play, except young Percy," Mrs. Weasley said, "I've seen Ginny fly around too, though she thinks I don't know about it. I worry about her, but she's a fair flier, it seems. The boys don't know she can fly… so I bet Ron is itching to get you to play. He hasn't had anyone to play with since Fred and George – that's our twins – are at Hogwarts at the moment."

"You know," Mr. Weasley said, "Your father was a Quidditch Player, Harry. Chaser on the Gryffindor team, if I remember correctly. Molly and I were both out of Hogwarts by the time he arrived, but we still heard some things. Maybe you'll be a flier like him."

"Maybe," Harry said.

"Go on then," Mr. Weasley said, "You won't know until you try. Ron can help you with that. Look for the barn, can't miss it."

Harry smiled and nodded, and headed off through the kitchen and outside. He started off across the plot and a few minutes later, arrived at the barn. Ron grinned when he saw him.

"Finally!" Ron said, "Now we can have some fun. I'm going to teach you to fly. Before too long, you'll play as good as me. I've been wanting a one-on-one for weeks now. But no one is around to play."

"What about Ginny?" Harry asked.

Ron laughed and Ginny scowled.

"Are you serious?" Ron asked, "She can't play…"

"We should let her try at least," Harry said, "Three heads are better than two."

Oh really? Ginny asked. Have you forgotten Fluffy?

Shush it or I'll stop defending you.

"Well," Ron said, looking at Ginny, "All right. I'll let you try. But if you get hurt, you better not whine to Mum about it being my fault."

"Same goes to you," Ginny said.

"Go get a broom," Ron said, "I only got two for me and Harry."

Ginny winked at Harry as she passed him and went into the barn.

"Sorry about her," Ron said, with a sigh. "Once she figures she's no Quidditch player, sky is ours. You'll use the Shooting Star and I'll use a Cleansweep. Well, I guess I should tell you more about Quidditch."

Yawn. Ginny said, as Ron started talking about the players and balls, Why did you have to tell him you didn't know too much about the sport?

Because if I let him tell me, it gave him the spotlight and he'd be my best mate?

Oh, right. While I'm the little girl who apparently is 'no Quidditch player'.

No, you're the girl I love. You can show him how good you fly, and then he'll stop making fun.

I can't wait.

"So," Ron said, when he finished, "What position sounds good for you?"

"Seeker," Harry said, easily, "They're usually small, right? I'm pretty small."

Right you are, midget.

Still taller than you, even in ten years.

Prat!

"Seekers have to be fast, Harry," Ginny said, as she walked up to Harry and Ron with another Shooting Star, "They're the players who usually win the game, since they have one goal and one goal only. Well, two goals. Catch the Snitch before the other Seeker does, and keep away from Bludgers and the other players who try to knock you off the broom."

"Sounds easy," Harry said.

"Wow, Ginny," Ron said, "I'm impressed."

"What can I say?" Ginny said, "I want to be a Chaser, but a Seeker could be good too."

"Right," Ron scoffed, "Okay, you two, drop the brooms on the ground."

Ginny rolled her eyes. She dropped the broom on the ground and said "Up!" It hovered in the air a few feet off the ground. Harry mimicked her and Ron raised his eyebrows.

"Good start," Ron said, "Brooms don't usually obey a person unless it can tell they're could-be Quidditch players."

"Hey, didn't your broom whack you in the nose the first few times you tried that?" Ginny asked.

Ron scowled. "Nose down, Ginny," he said, "Get on your brooms."

Harry and Ginny straddled their brooms and Ron did the same.

"It might be a bit uncomfortable," Ron said, "I think the cushioning charms on most of our brooms wore off ages ago."

"A pain in the arse, in other words," Ginny said.

"Dare you say that in front of Mum," Ron said.

Ginny stuck out her tongue, and Harry laughed.

"Okay," Ron said, "Watch me and try to mimic me when I finish."

Ron hovered in the air, then flew off about twenty-five feet up. Ginny looked at Harry and rolled her eyes then flew off into the air with ease and experience.

There's my favorite Harpy. Thought I lost her.

Ha-ha,, very funny Potter. Your turn.

"Whoa," Ron said, loudly, "How did you learn that fast, Ginny?"

"Sorry, Ron, I should have told you sooner," Ginny said, "I've been flying our brooms for a couple years now when you and the boys aren't looking."

"Right," Ron scoffed, "Very funny." Pause. "Wait, really?"

"No, I'm a fast learner," Ginny said, rolling her eyes.

"Nobody's that fast," Ron said.

Harry gave a smirk and took off into the air. Soon he was level with Ron and Ginny.

"Or… maybe I'm wrong," Ron said, looking utterly shocked, "Are you sure you lived with Muggles, Harry?"

"Yeah," Harry said.

"A natural, you are!" Ron said, excited, "Keep this up, and we'll have a blast against Fred and George! They're beaters, of course, but family games are usually just Chaser and Keeper. Rarely games for a Seeker, except for when Charlie's around. He's an excellent Seeker. Train up a bit and you could be good too."

Wait until I get my Nimbus and Firebolt.

True. These Shooting Stars ain't fancy.

Then why did you pick it over one of the twins' Cleansweeps?

Cause you're using one too.

Aw, thanks, love.

"Okay," Ron said, "Let's do a few laps, see what you can do, and then maybe we can toss the Quaffle around."

He sounds like Oliver Wood.

He sounds like you, oh former, and possibly, future Captain of mine.

You're going down for that one, Mrs. Potter!

Ginny snickered and started on her laps. Harry followed her around and heard Ron's whoops of surprise as he followed them. They spent a long time up in the air, doing laps, throwing the very worn Quaffle or just playing around, as Ron tested their limits.

"Hey, look!" Ron said, during one of their resting periods three hours later, "Hermes!"

Harry saw Hermes the owl flying through the sky toward the Burrow.

"Must have Percy's and the twins' letters," Ginny said.

"He isn't alone," Harry said, "Look."

Harry pointed at two more owls swooping toward the Burrow.

"One could be your owl, Harry," Ron said, "Coming back from a hunt."

"No," Harry said, squinting, "No snowy owls in that lot."

"Well, come on then, let's see!" Ginny said.

They put their brooms away and started off toward the Burrow, eager to see what the fuss was all about.

-
This isn't a cliffhanger, I promise. I just wanted to end it here. This chapter was getting long, and my plans would make it a lot longer. What post is from the other two owls? That will come next chapter!

As I said, this was just pretty much filler, with Harry's first few hours with the Weasleys. Though there was the conversations between Harry and Ginny (which I loved writing!), and the one between Mr. and Mrs. Weasley (loved that too).

Hope you enjoyed this one. More coming soon!