"Blah" Talking
'Blah' Thinking
"Blah" Parseltongue/Notes/Different languages
Blah Dreams/Flashbacks/Anything and Everything else
Author's Notes: My update pace really sucks, doesn't it? Happy Holidays and New Years!
Sirius wasn't sure if he wanted to kill Draco Malfoy or shake his hand. On the one hand, his soon to be son-in-law was obviously head over heels in love with the boy. This made him a good kid, as he made Harry happy. However, Sirius couldn't help but remember seeing the two of them wrapped around each other in a corridor at Hogwarts, and that made Sirius mad, as was his right as Harry's soon-to-be father. Lily would have welcomed the boy with open arms; James would have had a heart attack.
'But James and Lily aren't here anymore. Only you and Remus are.' So, what was Sirius to do? Accept the boy because Harry needed someone in his life, or detest the boy because he might hurt Harry later on down the road? And Sirius had seen the pictures of Harry's cross-dressing endeavor - there was a small article about it in the Daily Prophet. Harry had obviously done that to show that he didn't care that Malfoy was a Slytherin; it was a show of support. Which meant that Harry was really serious about this – it wasn't a crush.
So, what to do?
"Black, still up?" Lucius Malfoy came into the kitchen, looking immaculate – which was unusual considering it was four in the morning.
"I just woke up, what are you doing up? Don't you usually sleep 'till nine?" It was true, the elder Malfoy usually slept until exactly nine on the dot unless he was needed up for an emergency.
"Draco is coming home – well, here – for the holidays." He spoke as if it was the most obvious explanation in the world.
"So, you got up at four in the morning?" Sirius asked incredulously. Malfoy got out bread, peanut butter, and an apple.
"I haven't done Christmas shopping; I usually do it the day he comes back, that way I'm already in London when the train comes." He opened the peanut butter and located a spreading knife.
"So, you got up at four in the morning to go shopping?" It sounded ridiculous to Sirius; why would you want to wake up that early to go shopping of all things? Malfoy bit into his sandwich as he came to sit across from Sirius.
"I do hope you've eaten already as you're coming with me, Cousin." Sirius stared.
A child's lifeless eyes stared, the child's body mangled and broken. In the distance, a raven screamed.
A house was burning, screams from the occupants still ringing in the air. The full moon shone merrily above, mocking the sight underneath it.
Harry awoke with a start as the train lurched.
"All right, Harry?" The twins asked. Harry shook his head and yawned.
"Are we there?"
"Nah, we still have a ways to go." Harry blinked as he looked around the compartment.
He was sitting next to the window, using Draco's shoulder as a pillow, who was sitting next to Ron. Across from Ron was Hermione, and next to her, Fred and George. It was a rather tight fit. All six of them were going to spend their Christmas holidays at Grimmauld Place. Neville, Seamus, and Dean were all going to Neville's for the holiday, and Ginny and Luna were going to Russia with Luna's father – the Lovegood family had a cottage up that way, they learned. And little Eleanor was going home for the holiday.
'Though why I insist on calling her "little Eleanor" when she's the same age as Luna and Ginny is completely beyond me…'
"So… do you think Sirius is actually going to be on the platform?" Hermione asked.
There was mist above the Forbidden Forest, far enough away from the castle grounds that Albus didn't send Hagrid to investigate its cause. Besides, Albus already knew what was causing it. For once the Daily Prophet wasn't making up falsities: Dementors really were in the forest. Albus wasn't sure what to make of it – had Tom sent them here or were they trying to extend a hand in friendship? They hadn't come near the castle or Hogsmeade, after all.
'Well, I'll have to deal with them if they come too close. Perhaps when term restarts I'll have a better grasp at what their intentions are. As the wards stand, they can't get onto the grounds, so that counts for something…' He had been furious when the Minister had told him that because of Sirius' escape from Azkaban that the soul-sucking creatures would be let lose on his students. He had to adjust the wards to allow it, but the second that school year had been over he put the wards back as they were supposed to be.
The Hogwarts wards were some of the most extensive in modern history. Apparition was impossible, portkeys could only be made by the Headmaster, tracking spells couldn't penetrate the wards, fighting triggered alarms in the Headmaster's office and their personal quarters, and Dark Creatures could not gain access. The Dark Creatures the wards dealt with were not the creatures that the Ministry defined as "Dark", but the creatures that truly were Dark. They were the things that caused man to fear the night – creatures that ate and didn't do much else; creatures that most of history had forgotten, eager to dismiss them as myths. Wild and untamable, creatures that ate soul, flesh, and bone alike. Creatures that delighted in pain and suffering, smiled as they ripped their food apart.
Albus shuddered. Dementors would be the least of his worries if the wards were breached and one of those came to lunch.
"Headmaster sir, none of the house-elves has seen poltergeist Peeves." Dippy, a house-elf that had served Albus for most of its life, said before it popped out.
That was also worrying. Ms. Granger had been right; Peeves was nowhere to be found.
"Albus, this is a problem. Why, when I was a teacher here, Peeves was here!"
"Peeves has never been absent from Hogwarts, Albus! There is something gravely wrong!"
The portraits of the late Headmasters and Headmistress were all talking at once, clearly distressed. Albus sat down, sighing and removing his glasses.
"If he has never left, then how do we know if that's good or bad?" Gasps of outrage followed.
"Young man, if you are implying that we don't know what we're talking about –"
"Even you aren't so stupid as to –"
"Are you willing to compromise the childrens' safety –"
He sent off sparks from his wand to quiet them.
"What I meant was: there is no use in assuming the worse, when we don't even know all the details. If we –" He was cut off again.
"Peeves is a poltergeist. The first set of students here started his making, and every year since has just added to him, he is tied just to these students, by a very complicated spell that Salazar Slytherin and Godric Gryffindor designed specifically for Hogwarts. Do you want to imagine what this school would be like if all the students had to keep their anger, jealously, resentment, and stress to themselves? There is a reason why Hogwarts' suicide rate is almost none existent, why bullying so seldom escalates to violence, and why this school can count its teenage pregnancy cases with two five-fingered hands."
Albus massaged his temples. That was true, something he never gave much thought to if he were honest with himself. But, what in the world could have happened to Peeves? Did he leave? Was he… eaten?
That thought caused his eyes to snap open – what if Peeves was eaten? That would mean that the wards had been compromised. But, if that were the case, Albus would have known – he would have noticed. He was, after all, tied to the wards, given that he was Headmaster.
'But, you've been awfully busy lately… stressed. Perhaps you missed something…' A part of his mind whispered, sounding remarkably like a younger Gellert Grindelwald. He firmly pushed all thoughts of Gellert back where they belonged, in the dark recesses of his mind, locked away.
He needed a second opinion.
"You cannot be serious, Draco." Lucius sounded stern, and not even slightly bemused. Severus wisely decided to pretend that he had gone deaf, staying out of the current discussion between father and son.
"I am serious, father." A part of Draco cringed at calling Lucius by that title, as if the very idea was ridiculous.
"I've known Harry for almost five years now – "
"And you've only been together for a few months! And before that, you hated each other." Lucius was going to continue, but Draco started laughing.
"Oh for the love of… Father, are you really so blind that you thought I really hated him all these years? I've been obsessed with him since the very first time I laid my eyes on him. You of all people should know that – just look at my behavior towards him! Looking back, it's embarrassing how I acted around him; constantly wanting his attention on me and only me, throwing tantrums when I didn't get enough of it. If anything, this change in our relationship is something that was in the making since we first met. It makes sense!" Draco stopped, because if he went on he'd start talking about his memories and he didn't want to tell his father about those just yet. Not now.
"Draco, you cannot expect your father to shell out so much money on just a whim of yours. Sure, you like him now, but what about next year? You've only been together for a few months." Severus had apparently decided to stop pretending he was deaf. The accusation made Draco's blood boil.
'We've been together far longer than a few months! I've wanted him since the first time I saw him in that damn robe shop, just putting a different name on it. I don't even have all of my memories, but just from the ones I have, there is an ache for him that borders on painful. But I can't very well tell you both that, I just can't! There's too much I don't know…'
"Good to know you think so little of me, Severus. You act as if I'm asking father to buy me an engagement ring for Harry." Technically, what he was asking for wasn't that far from an engagement ring, but this particular tradition was so out of date that his father would undoubtedly never guess what the message behind the gift was. Harry, however, would know immediately.
"I've been studying the old traditions as of late. That is why I will not allow you to give Harry this particular gift – you may not be giving him an engagement ring, but you might as well be asking him to save a spot on his ring finger for you. You do not know that, of course, but I'm sure Harry does and I will not have you give that boy the wrong impression – "
'So much for father not understanding the message…'
"Actually, I do know that," He cut his father off, suddenly feeling awkward. This wasn't how he imagined this conversation going. "That's why I want to give him this, because I do know what it means and I know he does, too." He could suddenly understand what Harry must have been feeling when Sirius Black had caught them together at Hogwarts.
His father stared at him as if he had never seen him. Severus was looking back and forth between them, no doubt lost as to what exactly was going on. Lucius must have noticed his lover's confusion, because the next thing he said was addressed not to Draco, but to Severus.
"Draco wants to give Harry a diamond bracelet. Diamond jewelry – rings, hairpieces, necklaces, bracelets, anything you can wear – used to carry the meaning of asking permission to eventually pursue marriage, especially in the wizarding world where our wedding bands are made primarily of sapphires as opposed to diamonds. It's a pre-engagement declaration meant only for the couple, thus no asking of blessings or permissions needed. Likewise, there are no engagement announcements." Severus looked at Draco with a strange blend of bemusement and incredulity.
"You cannot be serious." Severus whispered his voice tinted with disbelief. "You have been dating this boy for just a few short months and you think yourself in love with him? Is that what is prompting this madness? Draco, you are both only 15, you cannot possibly know if you want to spent the rest of your life together, or even just move your relationship further. You don't understand what you're doing – "
"No, I understand perfectly what I'm doing." Draco cut in coldly. "Do you remember when Harry was in a coma during the summer? Do you know what that was like for me? Every night I would be pulled into his own personal limbo to talk with him, that's why I was researching about limbo and bonds – I wanted to know why I was being pulled there. Harry said that I was there because I wanted to be, and at the time that made no sense to me. But, he was right. I did want to be there. And since he has been awake, I've made sure that every little thing I remembered from those "dreams" was also remembered by Harry, just to prove that it all wasn't just wishful thinking or something. It wasn't, I really was in his limbo. I understand perfectly what I'm doing. And knowing that will you still deny me the right to give Harry this gift?"
Dear Draco,
Sometimes, I think I am the only one out of the two of us with any sense at all, at least in regards to your safety. The wards on your room here at Hogwarts have been taken down; I'm sure some of your furniture has been cursed in some manner or another. Before you step foot in it come January, you are to have your godfather (Is he still your godfather or your other father now? I know your dad and he haven't gotten married, but does that really matter? Mom told me about your father and Snape, so don't worry about it being common knowledge or anything...) go over every nook and cranny or possibly just get you new furniture. I'm serious, Draco, I'm sure some of the Slytherins have set something horrible up.
Oh, and Witch Weekly is going on about how you have "found love" with Granger or some such nonsense. Seriously, you're lucky that most people are completely hopeless at observation, or they would have noticed that you keep shooting gooey, love looks at Potter.
Yes, I've noticed that. I don't think anyone else has. After all, I spend an inordinate amount of time watching you and your environs for any possible danger; it's only natural that I'd notice you sending him looks. I can't fault you for your taste, that's for sure. I mean, yum! And I'm not even gay! (Though, in defense of myself, Potter really does make a fuckable hot girl. If only he really were one…oh well, more for you, no?)
I'm serious about your room, Draco.
Blaise
Blaise sighed as he sent his letter off with an owl. He wondered if there was anything more he could do for Draco, they'd always been close. Practically best friends from the moment they meet, back when they were either five or six. The Malfoys and Zabinis had been families that had a good, long history.
As the Malfoy Knight family, the Zabinis were very accustomed to watching out for their Lords. It was a duty that was entrusted to them long ago and now generations later it seemed to be built into them. Blaise protected Draco because Draco was a Malfoy and thus that was his duty, his right.
He'd cut down anyone that dared to try and harm Draco, and they'd never even realize what had hit them.
Luna's dad was easy going and a bit eccentric. He didn't seem the type of person who took the Dark Mark, but Ginny had seen it peeking out from beneath his sleeve. At least that explained why Luna was allowed over at Headquarters over the summer – her father was a spy.
The door to the room Ginny was staying opened. Luna skipped in, a smile on her lips and clothed in a bathrobe.
"I'm going to take a bath, do you want to come?" Ginny stared at her for a moment.
"Errr… would your dad be okay with that?" Because Ginny was a hundred percent sure her mother wouldn't be.
"Of course, what's wrong with us taking a bath together?" Luna looked somewhat confused, but judging from the small blush in her checks she knew the implications.
"Well, I am somewhat cold…" Ginny said as she got up.
The paperwork was signed and filed. It was official: Sirius Black was the adopted father of Harry Potter. Harry still kept his last name and all of the Potter assets, but Sirius was his father now, legally. He ran his fingers over the document again.
He had a dad.
He looked up at Sirius, who had a huge smile that lit up his whole face. Remus was sitting next to him, looking the happiest Harry had ever seen him.
"So… who's who?" Harry asked quietly. The smile slipped a little from Sirius' face, and Remus blinked a few times. Harry bit his lip, hoping he didn't ruin the moment.
"Technically, I'm not really a part of your family. I'm not allowed – "
"I don't care if you're legally allowed to call yourself my parent or not. You're with Sirius, which makes you my family." Harry really didn't want to hear about how the Ministry was full of bigots. Remus didn't look offended at having been cut off.
"Well, obviously, Remus is the mother." Sirius said casually flinging an arm around said man. Remus laughed.
"What's this 'obviously'? You're the only one with legal rights; therefore you should be the mother!"
"But, you're the one that's fussy like a mother!"
"Your mother was fussy? Well, that's news to me." Remus got out as he was laughing. Harry laughed.
"Well, Sirius, your hair is longer then Remus', so I guess that makes you the mother." Harry teased.
"Hah! Even he's on my side!" They all laughed. Harry threw himself into Sirius' arms, holding on tightly.
"You love me?" Harry murmured into Sirius' robes.
"Yes, I love you." Sirius pressed a kiss to Harry's temple. Harry could feel himself trembling, trying to hold his tears inside.
"Even though I was raped?" Sirius' arms tightened around him, and he could feel Remus' fingers card through his hair.
"Yes."
"Even though I gave birth to a dead baby?" A sob broke out from his lips at that admission – he had never told anyone about her, his beautiful would-be daughter.
"Yes, though I think maybe you should talk to someone about that." Harry closed his eyes; his stillbirth might not have bothered him so much if he didn't know from past lives just what he was missing. Children were a sore point for him; after all, he was used to being a mother.
"I don't want to talk about that." Harry tightened his arms around Sirius. He wasn't an idiot; he knew that the second he tried talking to someone about his stillbirth he'd just collapse in on himself. At least now, maybe he'd be able to talk about it later. Maybe.
"Alright, you don't have to talk about it now, then." And they were very quiet for a while afterward.
Hermione thought that this year's Christmas was going rather well. The opening of presents had ended already, after Draco woke everybody up at some ungodly hour.
'Who knew Draco was so excitable?' Hermione thought with a smile.
Ron had given her a new book series, Wizarding Fiction, a series about the different ways muggles portray magic. He bought her the whole set, which included four books. The gift was actually from Ginny and Ron both, as they both helped to pay for it, but it was Ron's idea. The Twins got her a bag of quills that not only turned her hand different colors when she used them, but were also edible. Neville had sent a picture book of different plants that was interesting to look at and Eleanor sent a very nice card, sparkles and fireworks shooting off of it. Harry had gotten her earrings and a book on the use of jewelry in ancient rituals. Luna and Draco had conspired together to get her a scrapbook. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had gotten her what she had taken to calling "the Weasley Christmas kit" – a Weasley sweater, chocolate of some kind, and a few extra quills.
The highlight of the morning was also the most understated. While most everyone was distracted by the Twins giving a demonstration of their newest invention – household firecrackers that chuckled with each spark of fire – Draco had given Harry a gift. A small gift - Hermione didn't see what it was- but when Harry opened it he looked very happy, happy enough to kiss Draco with no regard to the other people in the room. She really wondered what it was that Draco gave him.
"Hey, Hermione, have you seen Harry or Draco at all since present opening?" Ron stuck his head into the bedroom – since Ginny was staying with Luna, Hermione was all alone in the room.
"No, did you need them for something or are you just wondering where they got to?" Ron came to sit next to her on the floor. Scattered around her were different photos she had gathered through the last five years, there were quite a few.
"I was just wondering. Come to think of it, they're probably in Draco's room." He picked up a photo of Hermione's parents eating breakfast one morning.
"Did you get anything from your parents? I didn't see you open anything from them." Ron looked a bit worried, no doubt realizing that if she didn't get anything from them she might not want to talk about that.
"Oh, my parents are Jewish, I never get anything from them. I get everyone gifts because Christmas for the wizarding world is actually just the continuation of the Winter Solstice celebrations – you all just call it 'Christmas'." She picked up the Daily Prophet clipping from when the Weasleys won all that money and went to Egypt to put in her scrapbook, under a caption that read "Ron's Family".
"Why does it matter that they're Jewish?" Ron asked, genuinely confused.
"Christmas, in the Muggle world, is a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. And, since my parents are Jewish, they don't celebrate it."
"Oh." Ron blinked, digesting the information. Hermione picked up a family portrait her parents had taken over the summer, just a few days after the end of fourth year. What she told Ron wasn't the complete truth. Her parents had bought and wrapped gifts to give her for as long as she could remember – but when she got her Hogwarts letter that all changed. Hermione liked to tell herself that it wasn't her Hogwarts letter that caused it; no, it was her age. Her parents were always going to stop celebrating Christmas when she turned eleven, because by then she might not have been teased for not celebrating it. It had nothing to do with her getting her letter.
A few tears dropped onto the picture she was holding.
'Oh, really, Hermione! You're being silly!'
"What's wrong, why are you crying?" Ron asked with a note of urgency in his voice. He pulled her down so she was resting against his chest.
"No-nothing's w-wrong." She sobbed out. She told herself that she was being silly, that there was nothing to be upset about, but the tears didn't stop.
'Stop crying! Honestly, crying over presents, how old are you?!' She berated herself silently. Ron ran his fingers through her hair, no doubt wondering what was wrong with her. And she was glad he didn't ask, because she wasn't sure what she would have said.
There was nothing left.
The house was in shambles, the street ripped apart and fire seemed to be everywhere. The air smelt of burnt flesh, charred wood, and singed hair. The muggles had gotten there first; they were claiming that a gas pipe had exploded. It wasn't completely untrue – a gas pipe did indeed explode, but the Dark Mark above the ruined street spoke another story.
The Ministry -but more specifically, the Unspeakables- had already modified the memories of the muggles so they hadn't remembered seeing the Dark Mark, and all that was left was for the Order to get rid of the damn thing. Molly Weasley was already working alongside a few other Aurors to unravel it, with the rest of the Order trying their best to clean everything up. It was a lucky thing that the fire had already burnt all the bodies and surrounding structures to ash; it meant there was less for the Order to do.
Albus stared down at a pile of ash, an identification spell lingered around it, and a little card placed near it said: 'Marietta Edgecombe, Hogwarts Student – Ravenclaw, 16 years of age'. A few feet away there was another pile, the little card reading 'Carlotta Edgecombe, 8 years of age'. Two children dead.
This was the hardest part of fighting a war, seeing children sacrificed to such hate and violence.
"Albus, there isn't much else left to do. The whole family was wiped out, so there isn't anyone we need to inform of this… all that's left is for the Ministry to write death certificates and record the event itself." Severus spoke quietly and matter-of-factly.
"Did you see anything from Miss Edgecombe to suggest that she was frightened for her life, Severus?"
"No. I only saw her in class and at meal times though, so it's hard to say if she or her family had been threatened…"He trailed off. Albus nodded – he knew that. He wasn't sure why he felt the need to ask such a thing.
The full moon above them seemed out of place. With two innocent children dead, the moon should be hidden behind rain or clouds, not merrily shedding light down on the place. But, alas, this wasn't a novel or fairy tale. This was real life, and in real life horrible things happened at any time of day and in any weather.
"Albus, the Dark Mark has been removed. There really isn't anything more we can do." Molly Weasley said, leaning on her husband. Albus nodded.
'There isn't anything more we can do… Yes, I'm rather starting to feel that way about a lot of things.'
"And this is the Neva River, where Grigori Rasputin was dumped after being poisoned, shot, beaten, and castrated. The muggles believe that he drowned, and their memories were modified to support that theory as well, but he was admitted to St. Pavel after some passing Healers stumbled upon him. Oh, St. Pavel is basically Russia's St. Mungo's. No one really knows what happened after he was released, perhaps a krokelbar got him?" Luna prattled on as she led Ginny by the hand over a bridge. Luna's father had let them go sight-seeing today, so here they were, wandering the countryside. Luckily, passing through customs also had the added bonus of negating the "no magic during holidays" law in Britain.
In Russia, the law was "don't do magic in obvious places." Here it was more about keeping magic to yourself then keeping it away from the muggles. Of course, that probably had a lot more to do with the fact that the muggle/wizard ratio in Russia was almost 50/50 then anything, but it was nice. It was also the reason the two girls were wandering by themselves, with only a portkey each for safety.
The two girls came to what was obviously a warehouse once upon a time, most likely used for storage back in the day. An old gate archway marked its entrance and with a sign beside it. To Ginny, it looked like nothing more then strange symbols. Luna pulled her to it, looking down at the sign as if it held the secrets to the universe. Then, she turned to Ginny, smiled and pulled her through the archway.
And then, they were somewhere else.
Shops and cafes littered the yellow cobblestone road they were on. All the signs were in Russian, but it was obvious that it was a magic alley they had stepped into. People were milling about, merchants were shouting in Russian – no doubt trying to sell something or attract attention to their shops. Some older women were sitting around a cafe table chatting away in Russian. A group of teenagers were crowded around a shop window, no doubt discussing whatever it was they were looking at. Luna pulled her down the street at a sedate pace, the two girls stopping to look in windows or look at things on display outside.
An hour later, they were still looking around. The alley had twisted several times and seemed to be heading downhill. The end of the alley didn't seem to be in near sight.
"Oh, Radies!" An elderly voice croaked out. The mostly correct English made Ginny turn sharply.
It was an old woman. She looked like she had often wore a strict frown in her youth, so much that the expression had left lines behind. Her gray hair hung about her, strands of it falling out of a bun. She was wearing very out-of-date robes that looked as if they had seen better days. In front of her was a table with various knick knacks arranged on top of it.
"Come! See." She pointed at her table.
'English is obviously not a language she actually studied…'Ginny thought. She was amused by the woman's attempts.
Her table was loaded with antiques: mirrors, sashes, skirts, corsets, hairpieces, gloves, ribbons, jewelry, paintings, old childrens' toys, silverware, and even some old books. It reminded her of her father's shed – tons of junk that meant nothing to her, but obviously were important to her father. The jewelry was the only things that didn't look like they belonged in her great-grandmother's time period.
"Pretty, yes?" The old woman had obviously caught onto Ginny's interest in the sparkling jewelry. Ginny smiled and nodded, wishing she could afford one of the rings, or perhaps a necklace.
'Yeah, good luck with that. These are obviously old and most likely expensive.' Ginny was disappointed, but there was no harm in looking. Luna picked up a ruby embedded hairpiece – it looked like a red Chinese dragon. It seemed like something her brother Charlie would give to a girlfriend, if he had one. Its wings were the clips, while its body was the decoration. The body was embedded with either imitation rubies or the real things, she couldn't tell. It looked beautiful, but the red would no doubt clash horribly with her hair. She wondered if it would look good in Luna's hair.
"This, see." Ginny's attention was brought back to the woman who was holding a ring out for Ginny to look at. It was gold and slender with a black gem of some sort held in the center. It was beautiful, but there was no way in blazing blue hell that Ginny would have been able to afford it.
"Pretty, yes?"
"Yes, pretty. But, I don't think I can afford it." Ginny very much doubted that this woman could even understand what she was saying.
"Was granddaughters', makes me sad. Any amount." Ginny blinked in shock.
'What? Any amount?!' Her shock changed into suspicion. 'It might be cursed. Shit, play it cool, play it cool.'
"No, I couldn't." Luna shot her a sharp look. Apparently she wasn't that great at "playing it cool".
'Honestly, you're a Blood Traitor and a friend of Harry Potter's! What, did you think the Dark Lord would let country borders stop him from killing or kidnapping people?! The mere fact that this woman can speak English is in itself suspicious – most foreigners don't bother with languages outside of their own! Stupid, stupid!'
"Luna, we're expected home, aren't we?" Luna made a noncommittal sound while slipping her hand into Ginny's easily, as if she wasn't giving Ginny an easier way to get them both to safety. An instant later, they were whisked away to safety.
Later on, when Ginny was getting ready for bed, she noticed the same ring the old woman had tried to sell her earlier.
"Now where in the world did that come from?" She asked herself. She picked it up, trying to remember why it looked familiar. When she could think of nothing, she mentally dismissed it and went to bed.
Fred yawned. He was all for learning new and cool bits of magic, but these lectures were going to kill him. Sure, the content was very interesting and if he went without them he could inadvertently end up killing himself or someone else, but it didn't make listening to them any better.
"Okay, this first half of the lesson is going to be dinner, because I'm starving and it's eleven in the evening. So, while we eat pizza, you're going to listen to me talk about magical bonds. There are two types of magical bonds, and they're named very originally – natural and artificial."
'At least he's attempting to lesson the boredom by jokes, even if they're cheesy.'
"The bonds formed during today's marriage ceremonies are artificial bonds, the bonds between adopted children and parents are artificial bonds. The bonds between parents and children, and magical creatures and their mates are natural. The bonds between friends and lovers can be both; any idea why that is?"
"Destiny and all that rot." Seamus said around a piece of pizza.
"Yes, basically." Harry grabbed a slice of pizza. "Some of us were meant to find each other. Some of us that fall in love are destined for one special person. These bonds are natural. That isn't to say that just because two people are bonded naturally that they'll get together. Maybe they were born during different time periods, maybe they were born on two different contents, or maybe their blood relations were too close. All this means is that the bonds between them would be natural as opposed to artificial. Natural bonds aren't just limited to bonds of love either – bonds of friendship, duty, and hate can also be natural bonds. Natural bonds aren't always good things; there are some bonds that can lead to some pretty tragic ends. One that comes to mind is the Somni de Malson. That is a bond of love that brings to the surface passionate, all consuming, mind numbing, and obsessive love. There are lots of figures in literature and history that had this bond: Romeo and Juliet; Lady Guinevere, Lancelot, and King Arthur; etc. We all know how those romances turned out. The Dumbledore family recently just had two people born with this bond – which is very rare. Ariana and Albus – Ariana has been dead for quite some time but her older brother Albus is obviously still alive."
"Oh, eww! Insest!" Ron looked rather disgusted. Harry blinked before laughing.
"Oh, no, I didn't specify that well enough, sorry. They weren't connected to each other. Ariana was connected to someone who died shortly after she was born. Albus was connected to a young man named Gellert, Gellert Grindelwald to be specific."
"No way!" Dean dropped a piece of pizza out of his mouth.
"That's disgusting, Dean!" Eleanor smacked his shoulder.
"Yep, it's true. Shocking and rather tragic. None of you are to mention this outside this room, for the simple fact that it could ruin Albus Dumbledore. It would be very cruel to remind him of his lost love."
"Lost? For heaven's sake, the guy's not dead – he's in prison. Or so we've been told, if Albus had a thing for him…" Seamus trailed off meaningfully. The kid had a good point.
"Albus had to make a choice. He choose to end the Dark Lord's reign, even at great personal cost to himself. It probably hurt a lot more then any of you can imagine. Do not bring it up again." Fred was always rather amazed at how Harry could make his voice sound hard and cold.
"Now, with dinner over we're going to move onto dueling practice."
'Great, we move form boring lecture to muscle killing training. I'm seeing what he meant by us wanting him dead some weeks.'
The cathedral was burning, along with the immediate buildings around it. The smell of sulfur and burned flesh filled the air. Adding to the horrendous smell was decay from the few Inferi that still remained.
The fire had started from a stray curse that was intended for the damned things, but the aim was off and whoosh! The cathedral burned, the ancient wards around it feeding the inferno. Then the surrounding buildings had started to catch, and now it looked like the whole of Bordeaux was on fire. It wasn't of course, the French Ministry had created a water bubble around the huge inferno to contain the damage, the muggles inside were already dead or close to it. The muggles outside the burning section were under the impression that their government was handling the crisis.
Death Eaters, Order members, and French Aurors were furiously fighting while trying to put the fire out. It wasn't an easy task.
Arthur leaped to the side as a curse flew past him. Between the fighting and the heat from the fire he was sweating buckets; the flame-freezing charm could only do so much and had to be renewed. It was exhausting, but adrenaline did wonders for magical abilities, just as it did wonders for physical strength.
There was no place to hide here; it was duel or die. There was no stealth to be found, not when the majority of the surroundings were on fire. It was as much a disadvantage as it was an advantage; there was no hiding, for anyone or their opponent. Arthur cast a leg locking charm on the Death Eater he was dueling with and they fell sideways into a burning bush. Their screams made him shudder, but he had no time to feel remorse as another opponent came at him.
This one was obviously a female, a young girl just out of schooling if he wasn't mistaken. As he volleyed spells back and fourth he couldn't help but feel as if he recognized her voice. He wasn't quick enough to dodge the last spell and screamed in pain as the skin from his arm peeled off. He shot a medical spell back, essentially an adrenaline charm. It was supposed to be used to keep patients alive when their heart was giving out, but if used on a perfectly healthy person it could cause the muscle to either explode or cause a heart attack.
The Death Eater gave a gasped breath, lurched forward just enough to cause her mask to fall off her face, and then fell over, quite dead. His shock at the face overcame the pain he was in – he knew this child, had her in his home frequently over the years: Penelope Clearwater, Percy's girlfriend.
As if in a fog, he placed a numbing spell on his arm. It might get infected, but he was in the middle of a battle; he couldn't afford to take the time to properly heal it.
"PENNY!" And all thought processes halted. He knew that voice, knew it very well.
'No. No, this isn't happening.' A Death Eater ran for him, cutting people down left and right in his hast to get to his fallen comrade. The mask was flung away as the Death Eater fell to his knees to gather the body in his arms. And Arthur did nothing, just stood there staring as if they were alone. As if the city around them wasn't burning; as if they weren't in the middle of a battle; as if the rest of the world halted to give them a moment alone.
'This isn't happening.' The distraught Death Eater raised tear streaked and rage filled eyes to him.
"I'll kill you." The young man rose, wand outstretched a manic, crazy glint in his eyes. "You'll pay for hurting her, and when she wakes up we'll have so much fun with you."
'This isn't happening.'
The casting of the killing curse spurred Arthur's body, lunging to the side on autopilot. His body moved, his lips cast shields and hexes, but his mind was elsewhere.
"Dad, Dad! Look what I did!" His son held up a picture of the Burrow, and in front of it was himself, Bill, Charlie, Percy, and Molly. Molly looked so much wider then any of them because she was currently pregnant and Percy felt it prudent to draw that fact in.
'This isn't happening.'
"Percy, you have to be really patient with Fred and George, they're your little brothers." He said sternly. His son pouted.
'This isn't happening.'
"Dad! Mom! Look, an owl, an owl just for ME!" He looked at his son in amusement.
"Well, go on, open it!" Molly urged. Percy's smile lit up his whole face. He broke the Hogwarts seal and started to read his acceptance letter out loud, pride and excitement filling his voice.
He dodged the Cruciatus Curse.
He was so proud of his son – a Prefect! What an honor. He knew Perce must be ecstatic. Fred and George were giving him a hard time, as usual, but that wasn't anything too new. He mentally calculated this month's wages…he should have enough to squeeze in a congratulatory gift for him, maybe the new shoes Percy had been taken with last month.
He summoned a mirror and threw it in front of him. He watched in stunned horror as instead of it shattering into a million pieces, the spell rebounded off of it and hit the Death Eater square in the chest.
'This isn't happening.'
"Percy, you've let your own ambitions blind you to reason! This isn't about your job, or even mine, it's about the families safety! Fudge is just using you and if Death Eaters - "
"Oh, yes, Death Eaters! The Dark Lord is GONE, father! Potter's full of crap, he's just an attention-seeking brat! Can't you see that he's lying to you?!"
The Death Eater was lifted off his feet by the force of the impact.
"Percy, if you cannot see how much danger you could be putting your family into, I cannot allow you back here. Fred, George, Ginny, Ron, and Harry are still all in school; their safety is the priority, as they are still children."
"Oh, of course, Fred and George," Percy sneered. "You're just jealous that I have a job that can actually give me a steady income! I'M not going to become just some idiot messing around with useless muggle objects. I'LL actually have a purpose in life!"
"If that's what you think, then fine. But I have to ask you to leave, Percy. I will not let your actions endanger the rest of the family." It killed him to say these words. But, the rest of the family could not be put in danger just because Percy was too young to understand that this wasn't a game or an exercise. He'd come around, eventually.
Percy fell to the ground dead.
'This isn't happening.'
Author's Notes: I'm SO sorry that this update was so long and all you got was 17 pages. I'm sorry, but I got Writer's Fatigue. It's when you have the ideas to write, but no drive to write them. So, onto some actual notes on the chapter…
Wedding Bands. Traditionally, wedding bands are made with diamonds because diamonds carry the meaning "forever" or "everlasting". In the Wizarding World, people don't use diamonds because they know that marriages aren't forever. They last until you die, then in another life a married couple might be siblings or might not even know each other. Thus, they don't use diamonds. So, why use diamonds for pre-engagements? Because diamonds also carry the meaning of money, giving diamond jewelry carries the meaning of "you're just as important and precious to me as this diamond". It's a sentimental thing to be sure, but it also had practical uses: poorer families often use the pre-engagement jewelry to pay for the wedding costs.
Hermione's Parents. They aren't horrible, prejudiced people. What they're doing to Hermione is completely subconscious. They've convinced themselves that they aren't treating her any different because of her magic, but because of her age. Subconsciously, they know that Hermione will one day have to choose between the worlds, and because they love her, they don't want her to feel pressured in any way. So, they're trying to make the break easier on everyone by emotionally distancing themselves. That way, when she abandons the muggle world, it won't hurt everyone as much as it would if they were all still so close. They're not being deliberately cruel, they're being stupid. And on that note, why did I make them Jewish? Because there's no proof in canon that they're not. People celebrate Christmas even if they aren't Catholic/Christian. They just exchange gifts and call it good.
Ron not understanding religion. This isn't because Ron's stupid, it's because religion is different between the Wizarding World and the muggle one. In the Wizarding World, the New Testament is strictly muggle. Thus, the religion of "the One God" isn't split up. As we've already seen Thantos and Hades, the Greek Gods exist.
Fun Triva: The old hag seen in Russia used every word of English she knew talking to Ginny.