Chapter Twenty Nine
George woke up the morning of his wedding, wondering why someone had hit him over the head with a Bludger repeatedly the night before. He looked around the room and promptly rushed into the bathroom to throw up.
"What the bloody hell happened last night?" he moaned to himself as he walked back into the bedroom.
"Don't you remember?" said Harry in a far too cheerful voice.
"Please tell me I didn't do anything bad," replied George, looking nervous. By this time, most of the other boys had woken up from their stupor.
"Well, it depends how you look at it," said Harry.
George suddenly looked very nervous and worried. "What the bloody hell does that mean?"
"Well, I am sure the Veela you were with last night would say you didn't do too badly at all. However I have a feeling that Katie may see it rather differently," said Harry very seriously.
"Merlin's pants, what did I do?" said George quietly.
Harry sat there for several minutes, looking down trying to stop himself from laughing. It didn't help that Ginny had collapsed in their room in fits of laughter, once she realized what Harry had done.
"Come on, Potter, you can't just say that," pleaded George.
"Nothing, but the look on your face was priceless," said Harry before he himself collapsed from laughter with the rest of the guys in the room.
'That was mean, Potter,' said Ginny as she slowly recovered.
'Sorry, baby,' replied Harry.
'Next time, make sure I am there before you do it. I would have loved to see that expression firsthand,' replied Ginny happily.
'Yes, dear,' replied Harry.
"I am going to kill you, Potter," shouted George as he launched towards him. Unfortunately for George, Harry flashed out of the way so he missed and landed in a very compromising position on top of Neville. To make matters worse, Harry had reappeared in the room with a camera and taken a picture.
"This should make for some interesting 'blackmail'," Harry said as he left the room laughing.
The others slowly started moving back to their rooms to prepare for the wedding, each vowing never to drink that much again.
Just before the wedding, Neville approached Harry and asked if he could talk to him in private.
"What's wrong?" asked Harry when they were in his study.
"I was thinking about what happened just before Christmas and I never apologised for my behaviour that night. You have been a great friend and I betrayed you," Neville said without looking up.
"Neville, I will admit when I first saw what happened, I was very angry with both of you. However, when I saw the memories from Ginny's perspective, I knew that you pushed her away," replied Harry calmly.
Harry could tell that Neville was still upset by his behaviour, but that he was also hiding something.
"There's something else, isn't there?"
Neville knew he would have to tell Harry everything. He was just worried what his reaction would be.
"I wasn't totally innocent in what happened!" exclaimed Neville sadly.
"What do you mean?" asked Harry, getting up from his desk and pacing.
"I knew she was very drunk, but continued to give her drinks when she asked for them," replied Neville.
"For a minute, I thought that you were implying there was more to the kiss?"
"No, but it wouldn't have happened if I hadn't allowed her to have so many drinks," replied Neville, feeling slightly less nervous.
"Maybe, but there were plenty of other people, including myself in the room that could have stopped her and we didn't either. As far as I am concerned, this whole incident is over and done with."
"Thank you," replied Neville before taking his leave.
Harry sat contemplating what Neville had said. He was pleased that his friend had made the effort to apologise, even if it wasn't really necessary.
Everyone was gathered in the main ballroom for the wedding. The room had been transformed to look just like the Great Hall had at last year's Yule Ball. Katie had fallen in love with the room as soon as she saw it and knew then that she would want her wedding in a similar setting.
Albus Dumbledore was standing on the main platform at the front of the room, his robes matching with the décor of the room. To Dumbledore's left stood a very nervous George with his best man and twin, Fred.
Everyone else was seated, waiting for Hermione and Katie to walk in. Harry had once again invited the house elves to join in the wedding.
The music started and Hermione walked down the aisle wearing a long flowing yellow dress that looked stunning on her. Fred couldn't take his eyes off her as she walked down toward them. 'This will be us one day', he thought to himself before smiling.
As Hermione took her place on the platform, all eyes returned to the back of the room as Katie walked in on the arm of Arthur. She had a beautiful white dress that flowed behind her as she walked; the veil that once belonged to Molly completed the stunning outfit.
Katie was sitting in her room, having just finished the final fitting of her dress when Molly walked in.
"Katie, I know things haven't been easy for you since the summer because of everything that happened with your parents. I know that you love George very much and he loves you the same way.
"I know that I haven't known you very long, but I already think of you as one of my own children and in a few days we will be officially related. I know that traditionally your mum would give you the veil. I hope you won't think I am overstepping my boundaries by giving you this," Molly said as she presented Katie with her own veil.
Katie was in tears and looked lovingly at the veil. Molly had been kinder to her in the last few months than her own mother had for many years. It warmed her heart to know that Molly felt that way about her.
"Thank you, Molly. I can't express just how much this means to me.. Everyone has been so kind to me since I came here in the summer. I know it isn't just because of what happened with my parents as you were all kind before you even found out. Molly, I would be honoured to wear this for the wedding," Katie told her before hugging her.
"Do you mind if I asked a large favour?" Katie asked.
"Anything, dear," replied Molly.
"Would Mr. Weasley walk me down the aisle?" she asked hopefully.
"I am certain that he will. I'll ask him and let you know," replied Molly before giving her another hug.
Katie arrived at the platform and thanked Arthur for escorting her. She then took George's hand as they turned towards Dumbledore.
"Today it is my great pleasure to preside over the wedding of Katie Bell and George Weasley," Dumbledore stated as he addressed those gathered.
"Katie Bell, do you take George Weasley to be your husband? Do you promise to love him, honour him, to work together to resolve any conflicts, and do you promise to stay loyal to only him for so long as you both live?" asked Dumbledore.
"I do," replied Katie.
"George Weasley, do you take Katie Bell to be your wife? Do you promise to love her, honour her, to work together to resolve any conflicts, and do you promise to stay loyal to only her for so long as you both live?"
"I do," replied George.
"They have written their own vows," announced Dumbledore.
"George, you have become my best friend, lover, and a constant companion. You accepted me for who I am and even when I didn't share with you what had happened with my parents, you were there for me and supported me through it. I give you this ring as a token of the love that I have for you," Katie said confidently as she slid the ring on his finger.
"Katie, you are also my best friend and lover. You too have accepted me and all my quirks and have made me a better man. I give you this ring as a token of the love I have for you," George said just as confidently as he too slid the ring on her finger.
"Katie and George, please lift your wands," announced Dumbledore.
"With the exchanging of vows and rings, Katie and George have demonstrated before us their love for each other and their promise to be faithful to each other. These two wands are now united together, never to be used to bring harm to the other so long as they both remain faithful," added Dumbledore before waving his wand over them.
"You may kiss your bride."
George lifted Katie and kissed her deeply, before turning toward everyone else.
"It gives me great pleasure to present to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Katie Bell," announced Dumbledore.
Dumbledore's eyes were dancing with delight that he had finally been able to pull a prank on one of the twins. Everyone fell about laughing, which got stronger when Katie announced that she quite liked the sound of that.
George took it in stride as he flicked his wand and Dumbledore's beard and hair suddenly changed to Weasley red.
Minerva turned to him, "Looks good on you. I think you should keep it."
Harry quickly escorted everyone, including Ginny, out of the ballroom while it was re-arranged for the reception. Unknown to anyone else, he had arranged for the Weird Sisters to play. They would only be able to stay in the main ballroom for security reasons and had no clue where they were. Once they were setup, Harry allowed everyone back into the ballroom and was soon attacked by an ecstatic Ginny.
The reception lasted long into the evening with the Weird Sisters playing a large selection of songs. Ginny had spent most of the evening talking with them and had even been invited to attend one of their live concerts. She told them that she would love to come, but didn't think anything could beat this.
'Should I be worried?' asked Harry a little later.
'Maybe he is quite handsome, you know,' replied Ginny playfully.
'Yes, he is. Maybe I will run off with him instead.'
'Ewww,' replied Ginny in mock disgust.
'It's almost time to end the evening. Would you care for one more dance?' asked Harry.
'Always,' replied Ginny as they approached each other. The band were playing a few slow numbers to close out the evening. Harry took Ginny by the hand and led her to the dance floor where they held each other close and swayed to the music.
'Thank you for inviting them, Harry,' Ginny said as they continued to move around the dance floor.
'I knew you would approve and I knew Katie was a big fan too,' replied Harry as he leaned down to kiss her.
'Your mum looks so happy,' Harry said a little later.
'Yes, after the attack she was so worried about all of us. This Christmas has been very good for her,' Ginny said.
'It must be so weird for her. Last Christmas she gained a son-in-law. This Christmas a daughter-in-law and in a few months another one. She'll be putting pressure on the other boys soon if they are not careful.'
As the evening drew to a close, Katie and George thanked Harry for everything, especially arranging for the band.
"You're welcome, Mr. Bell," replied Harry with a laugh.
"Watch it, Mr. Weasley," stated George, which brought several laughs from those around them.
The young couple left the ballroom after Katie threw the bouquet, which Hermione caught much to the delight of Molly and shock of Fred. They made their way up to their suite. George and Katie's old rooms had been transformed into a suite, which resembled the master suite that Harry and Ginny had, but wasn't as big. Harry had just told them that the castle itself took care of these things and that he just let it.
Harry finished the evening by transporting the Weird Sisters and their equipment back to their studio.
When Harry returned, he found Albus waiting for him in his study.
"Evening, Albus. I am surprised you are still here," stated Harry as he sat down.
"I have some troubling news, Harry."
"What's wrong?"
"It appears that someone reported the incident between Ginny and Miss Chang to the Board of Governors. They have reviewed it and the evidence provided and have made a decision."
"What did they decide?" asked Harry.
"Ginny has been suspended from Hogwarts effective immediately and the case has been referred to the Wizengamot for a formal hearing to determine if any charges should be brought. They stated that because she is now an adult in the Wizarding World that she needed to face the consequences for her actions as anyone else would," replied Albus.
Harry was very grateful that Ginny was currently sleeping. Otherwise he was certain the explosion would have been heard across England.
"I don't understand how they can do that. Surely if Cho's own parents decided that no charges were needed, how can the Governors pursue it?"
"They have used a loophole in the school rules, regarding the status of adult students," stated Albus. "Whoever presented the information to the Governors did their homework."
"Thank you for letting me know," Harry said as he considered how he was going to tell Ginny she could not return to school.
"Now, of course, they cannot stop Ginny from actually being in the school. She just cannot attend any lessons," Albus stated, realizing what Harry was most likely thinking.
Harry had arranged for George and Katie to spend a couple of days at Potter Cottage in Godric's Hollow, which had been repaired after the fateful day when his parents died.
The cottage was almost as secure as Potter Castle since it had been repaired, so there was no danger of them being found. Maxim had sent one of the house-elves to work in the house while they stayed there.
The rest of the occupants of Potter Castle enjoyed a lazy morning after the wedding. They didn't have any practice sessions before returning to Hogwarts, so just enjoyed the time.
Ginny knew immediately when she woke up that something was wrong.
"What happened?"
"Gin, someone reported the incident with Cho to the Board of Governors. You have been suspended from school, pending a formal hearing in the Wizengamot," stated Harry quietly.
Ginny didn't say anything for several minutes, which worried Harry a little. "I should have known that wasn't the end of it. When is the hearing?"
"They haven't set a date yet. Whatever happens, we'll get through this together," Harry told her as he pulled her into his arms and comforted her.
A while later, they decided to go adventuring in their Phoenix forms. As they left the castle, they were joined by Xavier and Fawkes. They flew for several hours around the forest watching as animals dug for food or attempted to find somewhere warm to sleep. With their Phoenix abilities, they could see far more than any human would have been able to see and marveled at how amazing the world truly was.
'I think it is time to step up your Phoenix training,' Xavier told them as they flew back towards the castle.
'I thought we had learned most of the stuff now?' Harry questioned.
'Not everything. There were some things that were beyond your abilities until recently,' replied Xavier.
'Oh, what changed that allowed us to access them now?' asked Ginny.
'When you consummated your marriage recently, you also achieved a full Phoenix bond,' explained Xavier as they landed on the largest tower of the castle.
'Yes, Harry. That means that you are now the King and Queen with Archimedes and Amelia,' added Xavier.
'Since you have now mated, you have completed your bonding at the Phoenix level. Phoenixes mate for life and form an unbreakable bond. Even if someone was able to break your human bond, there is no way of breaking a Phoenix bond.'
'So what does that mean for us?' asked Ginny, still stunned by what they had learned.
'Once a Phoenix bond has been completed, the bonded pair have additional abilities. The most important of these is a heightened sense of what is happening around you; the stronger the bond, the larger the area that will be covered,' Xavier explained.
'How does that work?' asked Ginny.
'If you reach out with your senses now, you will be able to determine what is happening around the castle at the moment,' explained Xavier.
Both of them reached out as instructed. It wasn't long before they could tell exactly what was happening. The largest concentration of activity was from the Potions lab where the elves were busy working.
As they ended their training for the day, Harry and Ginny realized just how important this ability could be. They decided to spend time each day before going to bed practicing so that they could refine it further.
The rest of the Christmas Holiday passed very quickly for everyone at Potter Castle.
Harry and Ginny spent their time reviewing additional memories from Merlin and in Phoenix training with Xavier. They still had not received a date for Ginny's hearing, but had decided to return together to Hogwarts, even if Ginny had to stay in the Founder's Study most of the time.
The New Marauders spent most of their time working on their sword fighting skills. Since they had unrestricted access to the training room and their mentors, they had progressed much further than anyone had expected. Harry and Ginny were able to duel with wands and swords for close to two hours before they felt it draining their magic at all.
They still trained hard because they knew that when they finally faced Tom, they would need all their strength. They were not going to underestimate him and since the incident with the Merlin shield failing, they made sure they had other ways to protect themselves in the future, just in case something happened.
Albus and Kingsley Shacklebolt spent a lot of time with the group drilling them and pushing them as hard as they could.
The day before they were due to return to Hogwarts, Kingsley addressed them. "Each of you has demonstrated your abilities under pressure and has excelled in the training that we have given you. I am pleased to present you with Auror badges. You have passed all the qualifications to become Aurors and with special permission from the Minister have been assigned to a top secret group."
Each of them came forward and accepted the badge from Kingsley.
"With the exception of the Minister and everyone in this room, no one else is aware of this group and it will remain that way. These badges also act as two-way communicators directly to me. If you are ever in trouble, activate the badge and assistance will be sent immediately."
Kingsley spent the rest of the afternoon explaining to them the finer details of the new position and what was expected of them. As they were still students at Hogwarts, the majority of their responsibility revolved around protecting Hogwarts and its students.
Later that evening, Remus and Tonks announced that they were engaged and planned to get married soon. Once again everyone at Potter Castle spent the evening celebrating the news.
It wasn't until later that Harry and Ginny realized there was more to it than just wanting to get married. They had a quiet word with Tonks afterwards and confirmed that she was pregnant. She asked them not to say anything yet as Remus was still worried about the werewolf issue.
Harry and Ginny told her not to worry. Using their Phoenix senses, they could see that the baby did not have any werewolf DNA in his body. They congratulated them and told them if they needed anything to just ask.
Remus was extremely pleased when he heard the news. He finally relaxed and accepted that he was going to be a father. It had scared him to death, but he knew that with the new Potion and others around him he didn't have to worry.
Harry and Ginny had not told either of them that they were expecting a boy. They wanted it to be a surprise for them. As they slowly made their way back to their suite, Harry and Ginny pondered everything that had happened recently. It was amazing to them that, despite the war, their families were moving on with life.
'It's good to see them happy,' Ginny said.
'Yes, I am surprised that Remus and Tonks are expecting. You would think with everything that is going on that they would want to not have that worry,' Harry said as they walked around the castle.
'Maybe they realized that life is too short to allow those types of worries to influence them,' stated Ginny.
'Maybe, well as long as I am alive, I will do everything I can to make sure they are all safe,' Harry said as they walked down a long corridor. It was then that they realized they didn't have a clue where they were.
'I don't remember seeing this part of the castle before,' added Harry, once he got his bearings.
'Me neither. I thought we had explored the whole castle already.'
As they were exploring, they found several new rooms had been added to the castle. They soon realized that the castle was adapting to the changing circumstances and was providing a living area for Remus and Tonks and their future child. One of the rooms was reinforced, just in case Remus ever forgot his potion before a full moon.
Harry asked Maxim to show the rooms to Remus in the morning and decorate them however they wanted.
Once they had finished exploring, they made their way to their suite to finish packing for school the next morning.
On the train back to Hogwarts, Pansy Parkinson and her gang, including a reluctant Malcolm Baddock, walked in on Harry and Ginny kissing.
"How much does she pay you, Potter?" asked Parkinson.
"Not everyone is like you, Parkinson," mocked Harry.
"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked angrily.
"That not everyone has to pay their 'boyfriend' to kiss them," replied Harry.
"It's not surprising that Malfoy spent so much time with Crabbe and Goyle," added Ginny. "If that was what I had to kiss, I would turn probably want to be gay, too."
They knew they were stirring a boiling cauldron at the moment, but really didn't care.
"Don't talk about Draco like that, you bitch," Pansy responded before raising her wand towards Ginny and firing off a cutting curse. Unfortunately for Parkinson, Harry and Ginny chose to use the reflective mode of their shield so the curse slammed straight into her wand causing it to explode taking most of her hand with it.
"Well that was rather careless," said Angelina Johnson from the door.
"He attacked me," shouted Parkinson, while waving her hand around, causing the blood to splatter on her four friends.
"Actually, Miss Parkinson, you attacked yourself," replied Angelina.
"Should have known you would take his side," spat Parkinson.
"I am not taking any sides, Parkinson. I saw what happened and am telling the truth. Now I suggest that you stand still so we can take a look at your hand," Angelina stated. "She needs to go to the Infirmary," Angelina said after examining her hand for a few minutes.
Harry summoned Xavier and asked him to flash Parkinson directly to the infirmary. He then dispatched his Patronus to the school with a message for Dumbledore and Pomfrey, explaining what had happened.
By the time everyone else had arrived at Hogwarts, Parkinson's hand had been patched up, but would never fully heal. She was also told, in no uncertain terms, that she would not be allowed to leave the school to get a new wand and so would have to wait until one arrived.
Before dinner, Harry, Ginny and Angelina went to the Headmaster's office so they could share with him what happened. Harry showed Dumbledore the memory of the confrontation and Angelina confirmed that is exactly what happened.
"Why did you choose to use the shield in reflective mode?" asked Dumbledore.
"Because we are so tired of their constant attacks," replied Harry.
"But now they could report this back to Tom," stated Dumbledore.
"That won't be a problem, Sir," Harry said looking amused.
"What do you mean?" asked Dumbledore.
"He will find out eventually anyway. There is nothing he can do about the shield, so it doesn't matter if he knows," replied Harry.
"Don't underestimate him. The more he thinks he knows, the more dangerous he will become," Albus stated.
"We won't. He already knows we can stop the Unforgivables so it isn't too much of a surprise that we can reflect them too," replied Harry.
"Very well, Harry. Now I believe it is time for our wonderful feast," Dumbledore announced as he got up and headed to the door.
When they arrived in the Great Hall, they could see a number of people crowded around Parkinson, asking about the injury.
They quickly took their seats and were soon enjoying the food.
"Good evening," Professor Dumbledore said when they finished eating.
"I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas. I have one special announcement to make. On New Year's Day, it was my great pleasure to perform the marriage ceremony for two young people at the school. It is my pleasure to introduce to you Mr. and Mrs. George Weasley, more commonly known to their friends as Mr. and Mrs. Katie Bell."
Cheers and laughter rang out around the hall. A large number of people from all the houses congratulated the couple as they left the hall after the announcement. The only group that didn't say anything was Parkinson and her gang.
The couple made their way up to their new rooms and quickly settled in.
Two days after returning, Dumbledore's Army had their first meeting of the New Year. Sirius had told the New Marauders that one of them would be asked to lead so that they could evaluate them. Sirius had asked Harry not to attend so that the others would not look to him to help them. Ginny had been allowed to attend the session, but was not to help either.
Neville explained that they would again be practicing in the scenarios so that they could test their skills in more realistic settings. He went around and randomly assigned numbers to each person in the group.
"Right, this evening we are going to do it differently. I have assigned each of you a number. When I call your number, come forward. I will then explain the scenario to you. You will then have ten minutes to confer with the other members of your group before entering. Remember the objective is to complete the mission without losing anyone. There is no set time limit, but the faster you complete it, the better," Neville told them all.
"Professor Dumbledore and Professor Black will be evaluating each team at the end. Don't be afraid if you make mistakes. It is better that you do it here and learn from it than if we were in a real fight," continued Neville.
They all acknowledged what he had told them and started seeking out other members of their team.
"Team One, please come forward," called Neville again.
They quickly moved to the front and he explained that they would need to rescue the hostage from the tower in the middle. Once they were inside, they had to leave the tower without being detected.
The team quickly reviewed the information and determined that someone would scout ahead and find out what they had to face. The others would approach slowly and deal with them.
Three hours later, each of the teams had completed their missions. Only one team had been able to get out of the tower undetected, but all of them made a good effort.
"Congratulations all of you. As I said at the start, these are training missions. While the aim should be to complete them successfully, it isn't as critical as it would be in real life," Neville told them before dismissing them all.
'How did it go?' Harry asked over the bond as they walked separately back to the Study.
'It went well. Neville did a great job,' replied Ginny.
'That's good. I thought he would,' replied Harry.
As Ginny continued to walk, she could sense that someone was following her. She reached out with her Phoenix senses and could see Parkinson and her gang preparing a surprise attack.
'Will they never learn?' Harry said angrily.
'It would appear not,' replied Ginny.
As they were talking, Harry flashed directly behind them and waited patiently.
'Let me deal with them,' Ginny said.
'You spoil all my fun,' pouted Harry as he watched.
'I will make it up to you later,' Ginny promised with a smile.
As Ginny walked around the next corner, the five of them jumped out with their wands pointing directly at her.
"I see you have a new wand, Parkinson," Ginny stated with a smile.
"And I see that you don't have one with you, Weaslette," replied Parkinson.
"Looks can be deceiving, Parkinson, as I am sure all your boyfriends have found out when you remove the numerous Glamours you have covering your body," replied Ginny.
She could tell that none of the others knew about the Glamours and made a note to reverse them one day while they were all in the Great Hall so that everyone could see what she really looked like.
"Shut up, you stupid bitch," screamed Parkinson. "Your precious boyfriend isn't here to protect you now. As you can see, we outnumber you."
"Oh, I'm quaking in my boots," laughed Ginny.
"Maybe I will let the boys have some fun with you before we dispose of you properly," declared Parkinson as she moved closer.
"I think they would rather have fun with each other," Ginny replied, while watching them all closely.
She could see that it took several seconds for Crabbe, Goyle and Baddock to realize what she had implied by her comment.
"Just get this over with," shouted Baddock.
"We have plenty of time. By the time anyone finds her, it will be too late anyway," replied Parkinson, who quickly sent a Stunner at Ginny.
Ginny rolled to the floor while releasing both of her wands from their holsters and fired off four Stunners before any of the others even realized she had moved. Parkinson looked around to see that all her friends were out cold and no longer able to help.
"Well, it seems the odds are even now," mocked Ginny as she stood before Parkinson.
"You're still no match for me," replied Parkinson.
"That sounds like a challenge to me. What do you think, Harry?" asked Ginny, without taking her eyes off Parkinson.
"I am not going to fall for that," Parkinson stated, looking slightly unsettled.
"I agree!" said Harry loudly from behind Parkinson.
As Parkinson spun round, Ginny fired a Stunner at her and took her out.
"We need to teach them a lesson they won't forget," stated Ginny, having summoned all their wands.
"What did you have in mind?" asked Harry.
"Complete humiliation," Ginny said as she flashed an image to Harry.
"Ewww, do we really have to see that?" replied Harry, who now felt sick.
Without saying another word, Ginny snapped each of their wands. She then wandlessly Banished all their clothing. Remembering to remove all the Glamour Charms on Parkinson so everyone could see what she really looked like, Ginny then took several pictures, which she planned to use at some point in the future. They then left the group to make their way back to their common room.
To maximize their embarrassment, Ginny caused a loud gong to sound in the Slytherin common room. Causing everyone to wake up and gather in the common room. Unfortunately for them, no one seemed to know where the gonging sound was coming from and couldn't do anything to stop it, so they all sat in the common room angrily.
'Now I believe you promised to make it up to me,' Harry said as he pulled her into a passionate kiss.
'I believe I did, Mr. Potter,' Ginny replied before she flashed them to their room in the Founder's Study and then proceeded to reward him for not interfering.
"Rockwood, what is happening with the Prophecy?" asked Voldemort in anger.
"I am not able to retrieve it. The Prophecies can only be retrieved by the person or people referenced in the actual Prophecy. I have attempted to get around this, but nothing has worked so far," replied Rockwood.
"And when were you planning to tell me this?"
"I was trying to find a way around it before reporting back, my Lord," replied Rockwood, looking very worried.
"Crucio," screamed Tom.
"Just be thankful that you were at least trying to find a solution. Otherwise you would have joined Lucius."
"Yes, my Lord."
"Take me to the Prophecy so that I can retrieve it and end the reign of the Dumbledore-loving fool," Tom ordered.
Immediately Rockwood Apparated with Tom from the throne room to just outside the Department of Mysteries.
"Why are we out here?" asked Tom.
"There are strong anti-Apparition wards protecting the main room. This is as close as we can get without setting off the alarms and alerting the Aurors," explained Rockwood.
"Very well, you have proven useful once again," replied Tom with a sneer. "Now lead the way before I tire of you."
Rockwood led Tom through several doors until they arrived in the vast expanse of the Prophecy room. Once inside they walked for another fifteen minutes before they reached the right shelf.
"Finally, we will know the truth," smirked Tom as he grabbed the orb. Immediately numerous alarms sounded throughout the building.
"You idiot," screamed Tom, "I hope, for your sake, you have a way out of here."
"Yes, my Lord, follow me."
Rockwood lead Tom through various doors until they reached a seldom used lift, which would take them back to the Atrium.
"You have failed me once again. and will be punished," Tom told Rockwood as the lift travelled upwards.
"I'm sorry, my Lord. I was not aware of the alarms. I watched carefully and others have retrieved orbs without an alarm going off," replied Rockwood, hoping it would buy him some relief.
"That Muggle loving fool must have put the alarm on the orb," spat Tom as they exited the lift.
"Tom, I knew you would come eventually," announced Albus as he stood in the Atrium, blocking the exit.
"Dumbledore, you have failed. I have the prophecy and soon you will be dead. Nothing will stand in my way this time," replied Tom before throwing a Killing Curse directly at Albus.
Albus immediately moved out of the way before engaging Tom in battle.
"You are weak, old man," sneered Tom as he threw curse after curse at Albus.
"Not as weak as you hope," replied Albus before throwing a curse that knocked Tom into the wall behind him.
"You cannot win, Dumbledore. It is only a matter of time before I have defeated you and the Potter brat," shouted Tom as he again threw curses at Dumbledore.
"You didn't beat Harry last time. In fact, if I recall correctly, you had to be carried from the battlefield by your Death Eaters," replied Dumbledore smugly, knowing it would anger Tom.
Dumbledore knew Tom well enough to know that he was careless when very angry and would leave himself open for attack.
"YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT! IF IT HADN'T BEEN FOR THAT TRAITOR SNAPE, YOU WOULD BE DEAD!" screamed Tom as he lunged forward while throwing multiple curses towards Albus.
"Now," shouted Albus as he dove out of the way of the curses.
Suddenly a dozen Goblin Warriors appeared and threw Cutting Curses directly at Tom severing his right arm, badly cutting his torso and left leg. Tom collapsed to the ground in agony and looked around quickly to see if there was any escape route, but realized he was trapped.
Just as Albus spun around to attack again, he spotted Rockwood racing across the Atrium, having just collapsed the anti-Portkey wards. Rockwood dove under a volley of curses from the Goblins and seconds later disappeared with Tom.
"Sorry, Albus. They managed to collapse the anti-Portkey wards," one of the Goblin warriors announced.
"No problem," replied Albus calmly before checking that everyone else was okay and disappearing with Fawkes.
Rockwood and Tom landed heavily in the throne room and Rockwood immediately summoned the remaining Death Eaters. While they were waiting, Rockwood began healing the injuries. There was nothing they could do about the arm as that was left behind.
Rockwood cauterized the severed arm so that it would stop bleeding and then helped Tom onto his throne. Moments later the other Death Eaters appeared in the room.
"Friends, as you can see, I have been injured once again. The Goblins and Dumbledore are responsible for this attack and must be punished. However that can wait as we finally have the Prophecy and the means to destroy Harry Potter once and for all," announced Tom with a rare smile.
Tom placed the Prophecy Orb on the desk in front of him and tapped it twice so that the playback would begin.
A strange voice filled the room and began to speak, "The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, Born as the seventh month dies... the Dark Lord shall know his supporters but none will be satisfied... He shall share his seed with them but none shall succeed... The Dark Lord shall meet the same fate as those he has known… The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."
The Death Eaters all looked at each other in confusion.
"What does it mean?" asked Tom.
When none of them answered, Tom stood to his full height. "Don't just stand there! Find out what it means!"
The Death Eaters immediately disappeared from the room, rather than risk the wrath of their Lord for delaying.
Tom walked around the throne room, contemplating the words of the Prophecy, unaware that two people were still present with him and trying hard not to laugh.
Albus arrived back at Hogwarts and found Minerva pacing in his office, "What happened?"
"Tom took the Prophecy. Everything went as planned," replied Albus before kissing her.
"Does he suspect anything?"
"No, we forced him to fight his way out of the Atrium and he was badly injured. He will believe that he has the real thing and I am sure will spend a lot of time researching it.
"We also managed to capture his arm, which may help us determine what else he has done to himself," explained Albus.
"We should know soon what else happened. Harry and Ginny disappeared shortly after you left," added Minerva.
"I suspected they would."
"So did you have anything else to do while we wait?" asked Albus with a mischievous twinkle.
"I am not doing that, you dirty old man. I told you when we got together that I wanted a ring on my finger before anything happened," replied Minerva before slapping him.
"Well that can be arranged," Albus said before conjuring a beautiful solid platinum engagement ring with a half carat diamond.
"I know we haven't been together for long, but we have danced around each other for many years. Will you do me the honour of being my wife?"
"Yes, I will, but that still doesn't mean you can have your wicked way with me just yet," replied Minerva before kissing him deeply.
"As much as we are happy to see you finally get together, please, please don't ever talk about that where others can hear you," stated Harry who had arrived in the room a moment earlier.
"Well, Mr. Potter, if you would learn to knock before entering a room, you wouldn't have to hear that," replied Albus with a smile.
"Congratulations to both of you," Ginny said as she hugged them.
"Thank you," replied Minerva, who was still smiling.
"What happened?" asked Albus once they had settled down.
"As we expected none of the Death Eaters responded when Tom asked what it meant. Now that could mean they don't know or actually have enough intelligence to not say anything," announced Ginny.
"He had sent them all off to research it. He was pacing his throne room thinking about it when we left," added Harry.
"Were you able to determine anything else?"
"Yes, unfortunately the trace we put on the ring didn't work. We were not able to reach any of the Death Eaters through the Dark Marks," replied Harry.
"Well we knew it might not work, but at least we had a chance to try and more importantly Tom doesn't know it wasn't really a Horcrux they used," replied Albus.
"There is something else. The connection with Tom has changed. We didn't say anything before because we didn't understand it and to be honest we still don't. We learned from Xavier it was a result of my anger recently. The link is still there as we learned tonight, but we are worried about what this could mean."
Albus looked worried, but didn't know any better what it could mean. "We have to be careful. If Tom knows about the link, it could cause a lot of problems for you in the future."
"We will be cautious and only enter his mind if really necessary. I suggest that we need to find another way to keep a watch on Tom, just in case," replied Harry.
"That may not be easy, but I will see what we can do."
"We also learned that he wants to get revenge for what happened when he escaped. He blames the Goblins."
"That is to be expected," replied Albus without concern.
A/N: As I am sure that some questions will be raised by the wedding. I wanted to just say that they are both sixteen, but marriage is allowed if approval is provided by the parents. Because Katie has been abandoned, it falls to someone who has guardianship to approve in this case Dumbledore. As with Harry and Ginny, they are both now classed as adults in the Wizarding World.
