Disclaimer: Really? We don't own this? Are you sure? Darn, must have been a dream then.

A/N: Well, it's been a while since we last posted, and for that we apologize, but life in general hasn't given us much rest. However, we have found the time to write a bit more, yay! And here it is. Hope you all enjoy it :).

Part 25: Recovery

Albus opened his eyes, feeling rested for the first time in what seemed like years. He stared at the infirmary ceiling for awhile, sorting events in his mind and making sure there wasn't anything he was supposed to do. He couldn't think of anything, however, except to see how Harry was doing. He turned his head to one side, noting that his body didn't ache nearly as much as he expected.

Harry was sitting in a chair reading the newspaper, his short legs swinging back and forth. "Morning, Papa," he said with a smile. "Do you feel better?"

"Much," Albus answered. He could even feel the old twinkle coming back. He pulled himself into a sitting position against the headboard of the hospital bed. Though tired from the exertion, the pain he had anticipated was not present. He looked around, but all he could sense was Harry's magic.

"I put up a privacy ward," Harry explained. Albus could tell without even looking that he was proud of himself.

"Really?" Albus questioned in surprise. "How did you manage that?"

"Well," Harry began thoughtfully, "I just asked the voice."

"The voice that helped me out of my body?" Albus clarified. That had been the strangest part of this whole venture. Though he and Harry had discussed it, they still didn't know who or what the voice belonged to. At first, they had thought that perhaps it was Harry's magic gaining consciousness. However, the feminine sound of the voice spoke against that, at least, they thought it did. After all, why would Harry's magic be feminine? If it was gaining some form of consciousness, shouldn't it be male? It was still possible, but less likely.

"The voice sounded very familiar," Albus admitted. It wasn't quite like any voice they were used to hearing, but it reminded them of someone they knew.

Harry nodded. "I thought so too, and I was thinking back to when our bond was formed. Jess was the one to form it, intentionally or not. I think some of her magic must have entered as well, and the voice we hear is hers."

Albus thought it over for a moment. Now that Harry had given him a possibility, it seemed highly plausible. Jess' magic was chaotic; who was he to say it couldn't develop a sort of sentience? All magic, given enough time, had the ability to gain a form of consciousness. It was why Hogwarts, in a way, was alive. "So you can talk to it at any time now?" he questioned.

"No, at least, it's not responding anymore," Harry answered. "It said that it was staying around to make sure we were ok. When I asked about privacy wards, it put one up, then announced that it was satisfied and went back to wherever it was before all this."

"Perhaps it will only manifest when you are in dire need," Albus suggested. Harry nodded as if he had been thinking the same thing. Putting it out of his mind for now, Albus thought about the other things that had happened. "What about the diary? Were they able to secure it?"

Harry wrinkled his brow in consternation. "I don't know. When I woke up, the Unspeakables were gone. Nicholas said that Jess stayed until she was certain we were stable."

Albus told Harry about waking and telling them about the diary. He was sure that at least Anna had left then, but other than that, he didn't have any information. There was a brief interlude of silence as Albus pondered what might have happened.

"Papa," Harry hesitantly said, "I can't feel Voldemort anymore."

Albus' first reaction was elation. Wonderful news this was! Now Voldemort wouldn't be able to use Harry's scar to spy on them, and Harry wouldn't be hurt by it. Of course, the opposite was true; they would no longer be able to see what Tom was up to. Overall, though, he'd rather Harry be safe, even if it left them at more of a disadvantage than before. "That's good news," he replied.

"The horcrux is gone," Harry added. "I'm not sure exactly how it happened, or why the bloody thing attacked me when it had never done that before, but it's definitely out of me. The only thing that seems to still be there is parseltongue. It's not as easy, though, I really have to be thinking about it to speak it."

Albus remembered fighting against the horcrux, but he knew other things had been happening as well. Those specific events were somewhat fuzzy, but the result was not. "I am delighted that horrid thing is finally gone," he said. Harry nodded in agreement. He had been preparing for the horcrux removal, but both of them had been iffy on entrusting it to fiendfyre like the Unspeakables wished to do. Now, apparently, that was no longer necessary. "What else happened?" Albus asked.

"Well, I've been examining our bond while you've been sleeping, and it's changed somewhat. I actually think we can turn it on low, control the volume of it now, so to speak," Harry answered. "Which is kind of nice, since we've been crammed into one body for awhile." Albus could feel the longing in him.

After getting over his shock that such a thing was possible, Albus could see the benefits. Even though they had leaned on the bond as a comfort, something unchanging in this world, there were definitely times they wished it could be cut, or at the very least muffled. Such as now, when silence was so appealing.

Feeling Albus' consent, Harry slowly lowered the strength of the bond, and, after Albus' first ingrained reaction of fear, he rather enjoyed having his emotions all to himself. It was also good to know that he could quiet or strengthen the connection of the bond from his end whenever he wished.

"There wasn't any mention of Voldemort being back in the Prophet," Harry said with a frown. "But I guess the Ministry just doesn't know yet."

"Were there any mention of an attack?" Albus asked.

Harry flipped through the paper. "Yeah, but it's on page four and didn't mention Voldemort at all. Apparently some muggles were tortured but not killed. The only reasons I think it might have been him is that it was in Little Hangleton, and we felt him through the scar."

Albus was a bit confused by this, but decided to move on. He would be able to talk to people who knew what was really going on soon. He idly wondered what the Prophet did have on the front page.

"We were in the Prophet, too," Harry added after a moment of companionable silence.

"Really?" Albus said, rather curious. "What did the Prophet have to say?"

"Just that both of us are well, despite the attacks, and that you owe your health to Severus and Nicholas," Harry answered. "There's not much else about what happened, which is good. It also doesn't say how you were cured, just that you were."

"Well, I shall have to speak with Nicholas and Severus later," Albus said, his eyes twinkling.

Harry smiled knowingly, his eyes gaining a twinkle of their own. "I already did."

"What did they have to say?" Albus asked.

"Severus had the breakthrough," Harry announced. "He figured out that he could use phoenix ash in the antidote."

Albus smiled. "That's my boy."

"They wouldn't tell me exactly what was in it." Harry looked a little put out by that. "However, after they cured your body, they put the rune network that I made for you back on the bed. That was what caused the bridge for you to return to your own body."

"I'm glad you took such an interest in Runes," Albus said warmly.

Harry shrugged sheepishly. "Well, not being able to use a wand . . . and I like crayons."

Albus chuckled. "Well done, my boy."

O o O o O

Severus Snape woke up on one of the beds in the infirmary. He and Nicholas had both been exhausted by the time Albus was cured, even though most of the time they worked in shifts. Now, he stretched and sat up, ready in case he was needed again. His pride swelled as he remembered that it had been his idea to use phoenix ash in the antidote. Master Flamel had praised him, saying that he had surpassed most of even Nicholas' peers in the field of potions.

That praise meant more than any other recognition.

Severus noticed movement just beyond the curtains and stood silently, palming his wand. Though he didn't expect an attack in the infirmary, it was best to be prepared. He whipped aside the curtains, wand up.

The werewolf stood on the other side, obviously nervous. However, he didn't startle, probably due to his enhanced beast senses. "Hello, Severus," he greeted.

"Lupin," Snape bit off. However, instead of starting the insults, he waited. Working for Master Flamel had ground the virtue of patience into him. If Lupin began hurling slights, he would of course retaliate.

"I wanted to thank you for what you did for Albus and Harry," Lupin began.

Snape did not allow any surprise to cross his face, but internally, he was taken aback. One of his eternal foes thanking him? It was unheard of!

"I also wished to apologize for the way we treated you in school. Though we were children, and animosity was on both sides, I should have known better."

Severus was impressed. Lupin had in one statement spread blame on everyone involved and taken blame himself. He gave a valid excuse, then shot it down as a valid excuse. Severus was now compelled to answer in like manner. "I was also childish then. I accept your apology and offer my own." Strangely, he felt lighter after making such a declaration. After all, everyone involved, except for the two of them, were dead.

There was no reason to hold a grudge against the dead. Studying under Master Flamel was giving him recognition that the self-proclaimed 'Marauders' would never have.

Remus breathed out in relief. There was a moment of awkward silence, then Remus spoke. "I am glad that we can put this behind us." He waited for Severus to speak, but when he only received a curt nod in return, he turned around and walked back to where Albus was resting.

Severus went back to the temporary potion room and began cleaning up.

O o O o O

Narcissa gnashed her teeth in frustration. She had tried to step through to Anna's house, but the wards stopped her. Now she'd have to go the long way. However, the Dark Lord was on his way to pick up the book, the one Anna had made off with! And her son, her precious son, was lost, taken by a madwoman. Narcissa felt tears coursing down her face at the thought. If she only had the book, this meeting would be quick, letting her chase after her son, but now, it promised to be long and painful. She was tempted to rush after Draco, despite the Dark Lord, but something restrained her.

She vowed to get her precious baby back.

After what seemed an excruciatingly long time, the floo flared. The Dark Lord entered.

"Ah, Narcissa," his charismatic voice issued, "what a pleasure."

"The pleasure is mine," Narcissa answered with a nervous curtsy. The Dark Lord picked up her hand and gave it a kiss, a very traditional greeting. Part of her wanted to believe that he did this for more than just tradition and the fact that she had given him a body. Such thoughts could wait, however. Right now, she had to get out of this mess, and the Dark Lord would not be pleased.

"Now," he began, letting go of her hand and looking around in curiosity, "where is it?"

Narcissa knew exactly what he was referring to, and it would do her no good to pretend she didn't. "My Lord," she bowed her head in a show of reverence, "I am afraid it is no longer here." Before he could respond with rage, she added, "It was taken by my cousin, Anna Malfoy."

Even without looking at him, she felt the waves of hatred and anger flowing from him. His voice was cold, a sure sign that he was furious. "And why, pray tell, was someone so small in levels of power that I have never heard of her able to get this item?"

Narcissa cringed, still unwilling to lift her face. "It was on a table in preparation for your arrival," she lied smoothly. "My cousin came in unexpected and for some reason thought it would bring about the destruction of our family."

"Really," the Dark Lord questioned, his even voice barely controlling his rage. "Now why would she think that? Perhaps you were showing off a power you don't fully understand?"

Narcissa raised her head, confident that her mental shields would hide what had happened. "Not at all, my Lord. She simply caught me off guard. Of course I plan on retrieving it from her, but with you coming in at any moment, I did not wish to leave." She hoped he would take the hint and let her chase her cousin.

His handsome face turned into an ugly snarl as he whipped out his wand and cast a curse. Narcissa felt as if a whip had come down on her back and fell with a startled scream. Another whip, and another. She felt blood seeping through her robes. When finally the whipping ceased, the Dark Lord walked up and leaned over her prone body.

Narcissa was terrified.

"If it were not for your loyal service thus far," he spat, "I would kill you now. However, with this artifact stolen, you might be integral in retrieving it. Therefore, you will be able to work yourself back into my graces by reclaiming it."

Narcissa let the relief she was feeling bleed into her voice. "Of course, my Lord. Thank you for this opportunity." She struggled to move into a more dignified position, bowing before him.

After a moment of silence, the Dark Lord spoke. "You will also bring me Hufflepuff's cup. I know you have possession of the Gringotts vault in which it is kept. I will return tomorrow. See that you do not disappoint me again." With a whoosh of flame, he was gone. Narcissa quickly cast healing spells on her back and scourgified her robes. Anna would pay.

O o O o O

The Unspeakables sat in their conference room, ready to debrief on the latest occurrences. Colin rocked back in his chair, fiddling with a small gadget that displayed previously stored data. He scrolled to the most recently gathered data on the Dumbledores. Jess and Anna had just told them about Albus' recovery, and he looked over the notes he had taken to see if he had any questions. The whole thing was just bizarre. The fact that Albus had left his body and entered that of a child's was mind boggling.

"Do you know how Albus knew about the attack in Little Hangleton?" Curt asked.

"Anna and I assumed he learned it from Harry's horcrux before it was destroyed," Jess answered. "But Anna also said something about a voice that she heard inside Harry's consciousness. It was helping them fight the horcrux. Depending on what it actually is, the voice may have told Albus about the attack."

"So Magic is speaking with Harry, perhaps?" Seth asked.

Anna shrugged. "All I know is that it sounded an awful lot like Jess. The next time they come up for tests and training, we can ask about it."

Colin noted the new information on his notepad and rescanned it. Ah, here was something that hadn't yet been addressed. "What's going to be done about the vampires?"

Jess answered. "The Hunters are looking into it, but vampires are very hard to track down, since they can turn into a mist and don't have a blood smell that animals can track. They're working on finding a pattern to the attacks, but it's going to take a long time."

"The Hunters?" Rita questioned from his left.

"They're a group of Unspeakables responsible for any hunting or assassinations that the ministry needs done," Colin answered. "Don used to be one. There aren't that many of them, but they specialize in tracking down criminals."

Rita looked to Don. "Really? An assassin?" Colin could see the journalist's hunger for truth in her eyes.

Don glowered at Colin.

"What? It's open knowledge for us," Colin protested.

"What's that like? Have you ever personally assassinated anyone?" Rita continued.

"I can't answer that," Don said. "And you're not allowed to write anything about it for the newspaper, either."

Rita sighed dramatically. "All of the good stuff is off limits."

"Yes, well, we have other news," Jess said calmly. Colin had never seen her lose her center, not even over the bickering of the group. "Anna found another horcrux."

Colin whipped around to look at Anna. She did look a bit harried and tired. "Which one did you find?" he questioned.

"The diary," Anna answered as she gestured to the small book in front of her.

"How did you get it?" Seth asked.

"Narcissa Malfoy had it, and I went over to talk to her. She's under the influence of the necklace horcrux, which I wasn't able to get. Anyway, she pulled out her wand and tried to AK me. It almost hit Draco, her son. I couldn't leave him there, so I grabbed him and the diary and high-tailed it out of there," Anna answered tiredly.

"Are you all right?" David asked. "Where's Draco?"

"I'm fine," Anna answered. "Draco's over at Seth's taking a nap. His house elf is keeping an eye on him."

Since the conference room was under a time spell, to Draco it would seem as if a few minutes went by while a few hours passed for the Unspeakables. Seth's house was probably the safest place, since it was here in the office. "Was the necklace possessing her?" Colin asked.

"Yes, apparently they can do that," Jess answered. "We also think she has Hufflepuff's cup."

"So what are we going to do about it?" Colin asked. He was pretty sure she'd let him destroy it, but wanted to make sure. It was rare that he was allowed to manipulate fiendfyre in the building.

"Well, until we get the other horcruxes, the only thing we can do is destroy this one," Jess answered matter-of-factly. "Colin, you can do the honors after the meeting."

"Sweet!" Colin exclaimed with a laugh.

O o O o O

Rita watched through the two way mirror of the small testing room. Colin had set the diary horcrux on the ground and was currently looking up and scratching his chin, as if trying to remember something. She couldn't hear anything through the speakers yet, but had been told that this was worth seeing and hearing.

The rest of the Unspeakables were with her, but they had given her a front row seat. Suddenly, a look of determination and gratitude came over Colin's face, and he raised his wand and his off hand. Rita had seen similar stances in orchestral conductors.

With a sudden downward slash, music began. First a throbbing bass, then with a gesture from his off hand, a sudden, ear-splitting bright brass. As the music continued, she saw flames dancing from Colin's wand. They seemed to obey the sound of the music, first darting one way, then the other. With a quiet marimba sound and dizzying strings, the fire began to swirl and grow.

And grow.

And grow.

Soon, it was hard to see through the flames that were swirling around the room. Then, after a sudden silence, the fire seemed to grow features, an almost reptilian face leading a long arc of fire. Feindfyre. The fire continued to swirl, rising to the top of the room and gathering, facing the diary.

With five slashes of Colin's wand, the fiendfyre attacked the diary again and again.

Suddenly, a black smoke rose from the book, and the music stopped. The fire turned to Colin. Rita feared for his life. She gasped as the fire seemed to bow, and Colin bowed back, then held out his wand.

With a loud WOOSH, his wand sucked up the fiendfyre. Colin crossed himself and used his wand to sweep the pile of ash from the diary into a conjured dustpan. The other Unspeakables clapped. She couldn't even move.

Rita had never seen something so amazing.

O o O o O

Harry happily followed Hagrid outside onto the grounds. It felt so good to be outside in the open air, away from the constricting infirmary.

"'Arry, what do yeh think about helpin' me feed my new Shrooms?" Hagrid asked, Harry having to jog beside him to keep up.

"Shrooms?"Harry asked.

"They're like little mushrooms that can move."

"Like Devil's Snare?"

"Well, sorta, but Shrooms are much nicer."

"That's good," Harry said.

Harry knew Remus and Provo were following them, but he didn't mind. He knew Remus wanted to be productive, and making sure Harry was safe was fulfilling that desire. Harry only wished they had not had that falling out, of sorts. He knew Remus felt bad about not having believed him, and Harry felt bad about what that had led to, but there was nothing else Harry could have really done in that situation. Ordering Remus out of the room had been the best option, as he had been having serious trouble controlling his emotions and his magic, and having Remus telling him what he knew to be true was wrong had not helped matters. Harry sighed. He didn't like the fact that the last Marauder was now avoiding him.

"Alright, 'ere Harry?" Hagrid asked, turning toward him.

Harry nodded, turning his eyes to the case that Hagrid was now holding.

"Aww, they're adorable," Harry said, unable to stop himself.

They were really really cute. They reminded Harry of the little mushrooms on the Super Mario game he had seen Dudley play once. They were the size of pennies, hoping all around in the case, leaping on each other to get a good look at Harry.

Harry came closer, reaching out his own hand. They happily leapt onto his hand before dancing around and bouncing up his arm, onto his shoulder and onto the top of his head. Harry giggled, the little Shrooms making short squeaks along the way.

O o O

Remus smiled as Harry's giggles made it to his ears.

"You're being an idiot, you know," Provo said, stepping up beside him. Remus sighed.

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Oh, I don't know, go up to him and ask if he could show you the Shrooms," Provo answered sarcastically.

"Easy for you to say," Remus grumbled.

"Remus, he's a kid. He'd probably rather play with you than hate you. Besides, kids don't hold grudges," Provo stated blandly.

Remus sighed, but he couldn't argue with his mentor. Harry was just a kid. Well, maybe not 'just', but he was a child. Now, if only he could find a way to talk with Harry.

O o O o O

"Our heir has been kidnapped?" Abraxus Malfoy asked incredulously. One perfectly sculpted eyebrow rose as he spoke to Narcissa. He leaned forward in his carved mahogany chair, his frame outlined by the dark wood throughout his office. He was a daunting figure.

"Yes, My Lord," Narcissa answered with a bowed head. She wrung a handkerchief in her hands, the only outward sign of her grief and anxiety. After trying to find Lucius' cousin herself, she went to the current head of the Malfoy family, Lucius' father. Surely he would be able to convince Anna to give back her son.

"By one of our own," Abraxus continued. He placed his elbows on the desk in front of him and intertwined his fingers. "I assume you have evidence to back this up, for although the woman's pursuits do not always follow the way of thought of our family, she has never done something to harm us."

Narcissa was prepared for this argument. "My Lord, she seemed to believe that taking my son was for the good of the family. She does have a history of mental instability." Two tears ran down her cheeks as she reaffirmed that her baby was in the hands of a madwoman.

He frowned. "One that was caused by your sister, Bellatrix. We overlooked it because your family and ours wished to form an alliance," he reprimanded.

Narcissa swallowed, trying to keep calm. She had never been reminded in this way of what her sister had done to Anna at a young age. It showed that Abraxus was truly angry with her. Even so, she had to stress this point. Otherwise, Anna could tell him everything and he would believe her. "I apologize on my sister's behalf."

He interrupted her, "It is no stain upon yourself. The Black family and the Malfoy family have prospered from their alliance, and you have been an excellent addition to our family."

Narcissa took it as the compliment it was meant to be. "Thank you, sir. I simply brought it up to make a point. Anna wasn't making sense when she spoke to me. She accused me of terrible things, things I would never think of doing. I do not know if this is related to what happened that day or not, but I wanted to remind you of her past. I," she stopped, her tears beginning to get the best of her, "I just want my son back, my baby. Please help me."

"I will speak to her myself," Abraxus answered, taking one of his delicate hands and placing it on hers. "Rest assured that the Malfoy heir will not be harmed." He stood. "You said she was not at her home, but I have other ways of contacting her. I will find her, and Draco."

Narcissa bowed deeply, showing her respect. "Thank you My Lord." If anyone could make her cousin see sense, it was Abraxus. He had the authority to do whatever it took to bring Draco back. She left his office and apparated home. There she let the tears flow. The Dark Lord could wait a bit for his cup. This was important.

O o O o O

Harry couldn't take it anymore. Really, he couldn't. He could practically feel Remus' eyes drilling a hole into the side of his head. Really? Did Remus think he couldn't see him? Didn't notice the man attempting, and failing spectacularly, to subtly follow and watch him from a distance? It was just pathetic.

Putting down the Shrooms, he slowly turned to face Remus. To let him know he knew he was there, and that he knew he was looking at him.

O o O

Provo chuckled, "You've been caught."

"Shut up," Remus muttered.

"So, you might as well go apologize or whatever."

Remus sighed, defeated. "Yeah, I suppose you're right," he said as Harry glanced over at Provo.

O o O

Harry fought back a smirk. Hmm, how should he approach this? As an innocent, oblivious child or as an observant, intelligent one?

Well, he couldn't really go back on who he was, so. . . .

Remus came to a stop at the edge of what Harry deemed as Hagrid's property. It was about twenty feet from Hagrid's hut, and fifteen feet away from him. Remus looked anxious, even though he was trying to appear at ease and friendly.

"Oh, hello, Remus," Hagrid said. Evidently, he hadn't noticed him until he was right there.

"Hello, Hagrid, Harry," Remus greeted.

"Why do you think you have to protect me from way over there?" Harry asked while motioning to where Provo still was.

Provo crossed his arms and moved to lean against a tree, but he missed and nearly fell. However, he quickly righted himself and resumed a dignified position. Harry was positive he heard the man say something like, "Damned gravity."

He giggled before continuing his serious discussion with Remus. "I mean, I don't really like having to have a security detail, but since I can't do anything about that, I'd rather avoid being stalked on top of that."

"Er. . ." Remus didn't know what to say to that.

Harry narrowed his eyes, as if studying Remus, before smirking.

"Are you afraid of Shrooms?" he suddenly asked, amused.

"What? No!" Remus said, slightly affronted by the accusation that he was afraid of such harmless and adorable creatures.

"Then why are you standing so far from me and them, then?" Harry asked, quickly bending down to scoop a few Shrooms up.

Remus beamed, taking that as a silent invitation to move forward and pick up a few Shrooms for himself. Harry was more than happy tell him their names (which he had given) and what they liked to do the most (like hop, wiggle, or roll). Remus played along, Hagrid and Provo watching them in amusement.

They played with the Shrooms for a bit longer, Hagrid going into his hut to tuck in some creature Remus and Harry weren't keen on asking about.

Remus cleared his throat, a few Shrooms jumping off his hand onto Harry's. He swallowed, glancing at Harry uncertainly. Harry didn't give any hint to noticing.

"Harry," Remus began.

Harry looked up, knowingly. Remus met his eyes, searching for anything that might reveal what Harry was thinking, or if he held any sort of grudge against him. He found nothing of the sort, but strange understanding and unimaginable patience.

"Yeah?" Harry asked.

"I'm sorry."

Remus was both relieved and worried when Harry didn't show confusion or surprise.

"I know."

Remus blinked, before continuing. "Do you know what I'm sorry for?"

Harry nodded, now inwardly becoming unsure how to proceed. He looked down for a moment, before looking back up. "You're sorry for not believing me. You're afraid that I won't trust you again, and that that will cause you to lose the chance to get to know me."

Remus swallowed thickly. "Yes."

Harry tilted his head, growing very serious. "I forgive you."

O o O o O

Albus looked around the kitchen table at Harry's parent's house in Godric's Hollow. Since the 'future' meeting place for the Order of the Phoenix was in the hands of Narcissa Malfoy, they had decided to meet here. After all, the house belonged to Harry, and they were able to place a fidelus charm on it with Albus as the secret keeper, just as they had for Grimauld Place. Albus and a few of the Hogwarts house elves had spent time clearing it out and rebuilding. When Harry was old enough, if he wished, he could return and live in this place quite comfortably. The disrepair it had fallen to in the former timeline was just wrong, and this was a wrong that Albus had known how to right. The house looked like any other small house in the area, if you were privileged enough to be let in by the secret keeper.

"To those of you who were present for this past war, thank you for returning," he began. He inclined his head to Minerva, Severus, Hagrid, Remus, the Longbottoms, the Weasleys, Alastor, Arabella Figg, Dedalus Diggle, Eliphias Doge, Sturgis Podmore, Emmeline Vance, and Aberforth. Albus made sure to make eye contact with each. "To new members, welcome," he continued, looking at Hestia Jones, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Filius Flitwick, Michael Bear, Nicholas Flamel, Bill Weasley, Jessica Kringle, and Curt Bishop.

Albus had everyone introduce themselves and say what their area of expertise was. For most, it was their job (most were aurors). However, for Jess and Curt, they could not reveal where they worked, not even for the Order. Instead, Jess introduced herself as an expert on chaotic magic, and Curt said he was a gatherer of information and a wards expert.

Originally, he had wanted all of the Unspeakables to be a part of the Order, but Jess had said that would be against their rules. She could speak for them, however, so she came. Curt had been asked separately, since he was the reason Albus and Harry had been able to come to this timeline. Of course, Curt didn't know that.

"I am happy to inform you that both Harry and I are recovering from the attack," Albus said, in order to officially begin. In order to keep appearances, Harry was staying at Hogwarts with the Lovegoods. Neville was also there. Harry had been put out that he had to stay away, but understood, especially since Albus promised to tell him everything of importance.

"Do you know why the vampires attacked you?" Alice Longbottom asked.

Albus thought over what had happened and how to tell it. "I believe they are in some way allied with Voldemort," he answered. That was safe knowledge. "This is substantiated by the fact that they made sure to get Harry's blood, and now Voldemort has claimed a body." That was not so safe knowledge, but it was something they needed to know.

"How do you know that?" Alastor Moody asked.

"Harry's scar was connected to Voldemort, and he saw the whole thing," Albus answered. "After the attack, my body was ravaged by poison. Due to some mystery of magic, I found myself sharing young Harry's body. It was a strange sensation to say the least. However, while I was there, I experienced everything he did. So together, we saw Tom Riddle's resurrection."

"Poor thing," Molly Weasley murmured.

"How do you know it was more than a dream?" Severus asked. "You were under duress."

"I have known for some time that Voldemort was coming back, that he wasn't as dead as we had hoped," Albus answered. "I knew Harry had a connection with him, because the boy had described scenes, accurate scenes that he could not have seen any other way. Trust me when I say that Tom is back."

Most of them nodded, completely trusting him, others simply accepted his explanation for now.

"Do you know where he is?" Alastor Moody asked. Albus could see him planning, planning to storm Voldemort's hiding place.

"Unfortunately, no," Albus answered. "Harry's connection with Tom has been broken, and the last place we knew him to be near was Little Hangleton. What with the aurors investigating that area, I'm sure by now he's someplace else."

"Right, then what do we know?" Dedalus Diggle asked.

"We know Tom has a body again, and is allied with some vampires," Albus answered. "We also know that he has at least some wizards working for him, perhaps former death eaters, perhaps new members. We know he has split his soul into horcruxes," at this, the few members that knew what those were gasped, "and we know some of those have been destroyed."

"What is a horcrux?" Arabella Figg asked.

"It's a soul container," Jess answered. "Until all horcruxes are destroyed, we can't kill Voldemort."

Albus nodded in agreement. Now those who hadn't known before looked worried.

"You're saying that until we find these things, Voldemort is pretty much immortal?" Arthur Weasley asked with a furrowed brow.

"More or less," Albus admitted. "However, we know what the horcruxes are, and as I said before, some have been destroyed. There are just two left, a cup and a locket. We know the location of the locket, and are fairly sure of the location of the cup."

"Well where are they, and why haven't we gone after them already?" Alastor Moody demanded.

"Because the cup is in Gringotts," Albus answered. "The other is in the hands of a prominent member of wizarding society. Someone tried to get a hold of it, but the owner was possessed by the bit of soul in the locket and thwarted the attempt."

"I see," Alastor said, rubbing his chin. "So what have you done about security up in that old castle?"

"Hogwarts' wards were updated recently," Albus answered. "The professors and myself have been looking into wards that specifically guard against vampires, however, just to be safe."

"Constant vigilance," Alastor agreed.

"Um, actually," Bill Weasley spoke up, "I could ask my new employers about them. The goblins specialize in wards. I'm sure for a fee they'd be able to come up with something."

Albus had not yet thought of that, and he was glad Bill had. "I will most definitely ask them, Bill, thank you."

Bill grinned.

"Does anyone else have questions?" Albus asked.

"How is poor Harry doing?" Molly Weasley asked. "What with all of the attacks and sharing a body."

"He's doing well, thank you for asking," Albus answered.

"If there's ever anything we can do for him or you, let us know," Molly said, squeezing Arthur's hand. "We'd be happy to have him over sometime."

"Thank you again," Albus said. He knew Harry missed Ron and Hermione. At least here was a way to connect to the Ron of this timeline without seeming odd. He looked around the table. No one else had any questions. "Well, that is everything I wished to discuss. If there are no further questions, then I believe we should adjourn for the evening. This will allow everyone time to process the information and determine what would be helpful for the future."

With that, refreshments were passed out and people sat and talked or left for their own places.

O o O o O

Finally! A successful venture!

He held Hufflepuff's cup, imbued with a bit of his own soul, in his hand. The Malfoy woman had failed to retrieve the diary, but he let her live after receiving this item. After all, he might need her. Surely she could help by other means, as a sort of penance. After two weeks of studying the cup and various books related to magical injuries, he had determined a cure for his instability. Though he couldn't find any documented case like his, with enough educated guessing, he figured out his problem.

The Potter child. The boy had been protected by his mother, some ancient form of magic that Voldemort didn't quite understand. After that, he had been raised by Albus Dumbledore, leader of light. The brat's magic had been steeped in the Light. In fact, his magic was probably the exact opposite of Voldemort's, save for strength.

Thus when Voldemort used it to bring about a new body, the Light warred with the Dark inherent in his own magic. He had created an imbalance, and it seemed to favor Light. However, he had discovered an obscure little ritual by which he could re-absorb a horcrux.

It had been created by a wizard who wished to atone for his deeds, but Voldemort saw no reason it couldn't work for him. It would, in theory, bring more of his own magic to bear in his body and eradicate the light. In the process, he would lose some of the brat's magic, but retain his body and repair his magic.

That was the theory anyway.

For the most part, Voldemort was anxious to begin right away. The sooner he recovered from any side effects that might occur from this ritual, the sooner he could be back striking fear in the hearts of mudbloods and traitors alike. However, he knew enough to be cautious, which was why he was staring at the horcrux instead of acting. On the other hand, doing nothing could be worse. What if this condition persisted and grew worse?

His decision was made. The ritual must be performed. With that, he apparated to the front of a cave, the cave where he had originally stored the locket horcrux. Voldemort would have cursed the traitor Regulus for removing the locket if it had not worked so well for him. After all, if Regulus hadn't stolen the horcrux and passed it on to Narcissa Malfoy, Voldemort may have waited a lot longer before someone discovered how to bring back his body.

With that happy thought, he killed a small lizard and spread the blood on the hidden doorway. It opened and he walked purposefully into the chamber where the horcrux had once been kept. Standing on the shore and ignoring the inferi infested waters, he pulled out a small piece of chalk. This chalk was specially formulated for rituals; magic flowed easily through it.

He gently set the precious cup down on the rock floor and drew a perfect circle around it. Around the circle, he carefully drew runes, each one representing bringing together what had been torn asunder. Around that, he drew another circle, then began inscribing runes meaning remorse. Nowhere in the description of the ritual had he read that he had to feel remorse. After drawing the runic array, he pocketed the chalk and concentrated, gathering his magic.

"Permissum quis eram scindo fio universes," he said with authority as he cut his right index finger and traced another rune on the inside of the cup. This rune meant 'to bind.' He kept his cut finger pressed against the rune.

After a few moments, the blood began to bubble around his finger, as the book had said it would. The blood turned black and a wail came from the cup, which was now vibrating. Through the blood, something greenish-black crawled out of the cup and up Voldemort's arm. Voldemort knew this was the piece of his soul which had been sealed inside.

The soul wrapped around his wrist and seeped under his skin. He felt it crawling around inside until it came into contact with his magic.

Pain! Agony! From his very core, he felt as if he were being shattered into millions of pieces. It was worse than Nagini's death had been, worse than making his first horcrux, and nearly as bad as when he had been ripped from his body after the killing curse had rebounded off of the Potter brat. In spite of the pain, he felt his magic rejoicing as the 'voice' that had interfered before was silenced, smothered.

He tried to laugh triumphantly, but all that escaped his mouth was an anguished moan just before he succumbed to unconsciousness.

A/N: Thanks for all of your reviews, ^^.

Also, the piece Colin was controlling his fiendfyre to was called the Firebird Suite - Danse Infernale, if any of you desired to know exactly what it sounded like.

Coming soon: Advance