AN: So it occurred to me a little while ago I should start writing this chapter, I've been so busy I don't understand this, I'm usually rather free in October.

The Department of Ministries

After flying over the Hogwarts grounds, over mountains, valley's, bodies of water and various towns the thestrals touched down upon pavement and before they knew they had even landed Ron toppled off the thestral and to the ground like he was going to be sick. He mumbled something and tried to stand up again only to walk into the back of his thestral since he could not see it. Remus and Hermione touched down beside him and after Remus got off, he loaned Hermione a hand since she could not see the horse either, she was grateful for the help.

Ginny laughed at her brother's trouble as she slid off with much more grace than he did. Luna and Sirius came down next along with Neville who jumped off shaking from head to toe.

"Where do we go from here, then?" Luna asked looking around and then settling her eyes on Harry.

"Over here," Harry said after giving his horse a pet, he led them all over to the beat up telephone box and he opened the door for them all. "Come on!" He said ushering them all inside.

After Ron and Ginny entered Hermione, Neville and Luna followed, Sirius surveyed the box wondering how on earth they would all fit before allowing the other Marauders to go first and getting himself in as well, he hoped magic would do its job and make small things more roomy than they appeared.

"Come on, Harry," he said good naturedly. "It's rather cozy in here."

Harry took one last look at the thestrals and forced himself in beside Sirius. "Whoever's nearest the receiver dial six, two, four, four, two!" He cried out to anyone who was listening who happen to be Ron who reached to the box and dialed the numbers at a bizarre angle.

A voice rang out around them. "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business."

"Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Ginny Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Si –"

"Orion Black, John Lupin, Peter Poliakoff, James Evans." James said just in case, he didn't know what would happen if they said Sirius Black, Harry obviously wasn't thinking. At least it may take a while for them to notice that half the names were fake ones, as Orion Black and John Lupin were actual people.

"We're here to save someone, unless the Ministry can do it first!" Harry said just as James finished rattling off their names.

"Thank you, visitors please take the badges and attach them to the front of your robes." The voice said and ten badges popped out of the coin return slot. Hermione scooped them up and disposed them to the group, having to resort to throwing some of them over others heads since she could not reach.

Sirius looked at his badge and then stole a glance at Harry's to see if it said the same thing, he did the same to James and Luna. He would have snorted a laugh if the situation wasn't so dire. "Look at that, we're on a rescue mission." He said reading the badge. "The Ministry got something right."

"Visitor to the Ministry," the voice said over the speakers. "You are required to submit to a search and present your wand for registration at the security desk, which is located at the far end of the Atrium."

"Fine!" Harry screamed. "Now can we move!?"

The telephone box moved and everyone jolted slightly. They all simultaneously gripped their wands just in case there was an ambush waiting for them when the doors opened. However when they peered through the glass on the door there seemed to be no one there, even the fires were doused, which was odd usually the Ministry was full of life.

"The Ministry of Magic wishes you a present evening." The feminine voice said.

Sirius scoffed. "Doubt that." He said just as the doors opened and the group was released from the tight confides of the box.

They took a moment to gaze around the Atrium before Harry began to press forward. "Come on," he said to his friends before breaking into a run. They passed by the fountain, the desk, through the halls and through the golden gates which lead to the elevator. Harry pushed the down button and the doors slid open immediately seeing as there was no one else in need of using it.

After they all piled in Harry pushed another button, he seemed to know his way around the ministry surprisingly well. The feminine voice spoke again, this time saying "Department of Ministries" as the lift came to a halt. The doors opened and still the corridor was emptied, the only thing that moved were the torches along the walls unlike in the Atrium these were lit.

Harry looked to the others and with and of his head said, "Let's go," he said and proceeded to run down the hall with his friends behind him, but as he approached the door he turned and gazed at them. "Okay, listen, maybe… maybe a couple of us should stay here as a… as a lookout and –"

Ginny scoffed and rolled her eyes. "And how are we going to alert you if someone's coming? You could be miles away."

"We're coming with you Harry," Neville said, even he sounding tired of the charade.

"Do I have to deck you again?" Sirius asked rocking on his heels.

"Let's get on with it," Ron said firmly.

Harry chewed on his lip and sighed turning back to face the door, it opened for it just like it did in his dream and he stepped into a large circular room with the rest of the group sticking close to him. It looks like a void of nothingness, even the odd looking candles burned and eerie blue color illuminating the room.

"Someone shut the door," Harry murmured.

Neville obeyed the order and shut the door behind them taking away all light from the hallway and leaving only the unearthly blue ones. Harry knew what he had to do for it was how he did it in every dream he had, so he took a step forward into the blackness and he would have kept going toward the doors on the opposite of the room but then the walls began to creak around them dizzily, Hermione grabbed hold of him.

The doors continued to whirl around them, the blue flames becoming one in the spinning. Everyone had to take a moment to compose themselves from the intense spinning and once they had found their footing James was the first one to speak.

"What the bloody hell was that?" He whispered.

Ginny opened her mouth and closed it a few times before speaking. "I think it was to stop us from knowing what door we came in from."

Neville shuffled. "Well, how are we going to get out?"

"Well, that doesn't matter now!" Harry snapped rubbing his eyes and clutching his wand. "We won't need to get out until we've found Sirius."

"Don't go calling for him though!" Hermione interrupted as quietly but as urgently as she could.

Harry already knew this and did nothing but nod a short response.

Sirius walked a few steps so he was even with Harry, he looked around to the doors and sighed. "So, where do we go from here?"

Harry was at a loss, he didn't know what to say and found himself stuttering for a few seconds. "I don't… in the dreams I went through the door at the end of the corridor from the lifts into a dark room – that's this one - and then I went through another door into a room that kind of… glitters. We should try a few doors," he said hastily. "I'll know the right way when I see it, c'mon."

"Wait!" Remus said grabbing his shoulder. "We can't just go barging into doors, we have no idea what's behind them."

"Do you have a better plan?" Harry asked and shrugged him off.

When Harry reached the first door he lifted his wand and pushed the door open with the other, if had no handle and swung easily. The room was empty of people but it was well lit compared to the room they were currently in, it held some desks and in the center there was a tank large enough for all of them to get in, perhaps not comfortably but large enough. Inside the tank there were white objects drifting around lazily.

"What're those things?" Ron asked.

"Maybe we should just close the door," Peter squeaked not liking the looks of things in this room.

"Are they fish?" Gunny asked almost amazed by them.

Luna's face brightened. "Aquavirus Maggots! Dad said the Ministry was breeding –"

"No," Hermione said taking a tentative step toward the objects, she looked odd and didn't scoff like she normally did when Luna said something that sounded absurd to her. "They're brains."

Luna was shocked. "Brains!?"

"Yes," she said as she approached the tank and peered into it. "I wonder what they're doing with them."

As Harry joined her at the tank Remus remained by the door. "Not really in the mood to find out," he said fidgeting slightly. "We should go before something bad happens."

"I'd have to agree with Moony on this one," James said furrowing his brow at the brains in the tank. "This isn't right, it's too... odd."

"You're right," Harry agreed backing away from the tank. "Let's get out of here, we need to try another door."

Ron pointed. "There are doors here too." He said.

Harry shook his head. "In my dream I went through that dark room into the second one, I think we should go back."

"Your dream didn't say anything about spinning rooms or swimming brains did it?" Remus asked as they headed back toward the door. "Maybe your dream was wrong, Harry, maybe Sirius is okay," Harry turned on him angrily. "No, I'm not saying you were wrong, just that it's not going along like it did in your dream, maybe things are different."

"Of course they're different," Harry said. "I didn't have a group of people with me in my dream."

"Wait," Hermione said and pointed her wand toward the door as they stepped out. "Flagrate!" There was now a red X mark across the door, she gave a smirk as she pocketed her wand and the door swung shut.

The doors once again began to spin wildly but now there was a reddish gold blur among the eerie blue light. When the doors stopped the fiery cross remained don the door, Harry gave her a nod of approval. "Good thinking, okay, lets try this one."

Harry walked toward the nearest door and pushed it open, this one was much larger then the one with the brains thought it was less illuminated and rectangular and the center was sunken making a large pit, it looked like an amphitheatre. In the center of the lowest portion there was a stone archway that looked as old as time, the group was surprised it still stood, by all rights it shouldn't have been. Over top the archway there was a thin black veil blowing in the non existent wind.

"Who's there?" Harry cried with his wand ready as he jumped down to the next step, the flutter of the veil made him think they were not alone in the room.

"Careful!" Hermione warned.

"I have a really bad feeling about this place," Sirius said backing away towards the door. "Can we leave now, like, right now and not come back?" He wondered anxiously.

But Harry didn't listen, he continued to scramble down the steps until he reached the lowest one with the archway and veil. "Sirius?" He asked and the Sirius currently in the room knew he wasn't speaking to him, but to his older self who may or may not have been in the room, either way the teenage Sirius did not like the feeling the room was giving him, especially the veil.

"Let's go," Hermione pleaded from the top in a meek frightened voice. "This isn't right Harry, come on, let's go…"

"Please, Harry," James continued as Hermione's breathing became more irritated. "We have to go."

"Okay," Harry said but he didn't move, he thought he heard something.

"We're not leaving you behind, Harry," Remus said knowing they were at each others throat this evening but all the same they were friends, good friends he would like to think, and being so close he knew he couldn't leave him here. "So come along, there's nothing here, we'll try another room."

"What are you saying?" Harry asked as he circled the archway and the benches.

Remus was confused. "What? You heard me –"

"Not you," Harry clarified, by now Ron has made his way down and was looking around with Harry. "Something else, don't you hear it?"

"No ones talking, Harry," Hermione said as she stepped closer to him.

"Someone's whispering behind there," he said moving away from her. "Is that you, Ron?"

"I'm here, mate," Ron said from the other end.

"Can't anyone else hear it?" Harry asked for the voices were growing louder and louder.

"I can hear them too," Luna announced in a breathy voice as she joined the group around the archway, only the Marauders were left standing in the doorway on account of Sirius who looked as though he was about to have a panic attack in the room. "There are people in there!" She exclaimed.

"What do you mean in there?" Inquired Hermione as she joined them at the bottom of the room beside the veil. "There isn't any in there, its just an archway, there's no room for anybody to be there – Harry stop it, come away –" She reached out for him but he pulled away. "Harry, we're supposed to be here for Sirius!"

"Please!" Sirius shouted from the top. "Can't we just go?"

"Sirius…" Harry murmured still staring at the veil in a trance like state. "Yeah…" Then it was like something clicked in his brain and he snapped out of his stare and looked away. "Let's go." He said.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "That's what I've been trying to – well come on then!" She cried as she lead the way back to the top of the room however Ginny and Neville were stuck in its trance as well as Hermione and Harry took care of them the Marauders remained at the top as far away from the veil as they could get.

"Sirius," James whispered to his friend. "Padfoot, mate, what's up with you? You're acting off, this isn't like you. Normally you'd be down there and climbing all over the bloody thing."

"I don't know," Sirius moaned staring into the veil, bit not in a trance, more like he didn't trust himself to look away from it in fear it might do something. "I don't like that thing, I just want to leave this room."

"And we're leaving," James said patting him on the shoulder. "We just need to wait for them, the door might close behind us and get us separated, and we can't afford that now."

They left the room and immediately Sirius cooled, he no longer felt anxious or like his heard was ready to explode. Hermione marked the door and the room once again spun around them insanely. When it stopped Harry walked to the nearest door again and pushed, it didn't move.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked.

"It's… locked…" Harry said pushing on the door once more.

Ron became jittery. "This it is, then, isn't it?" He asked as he began helping Harry with the door. "Bound to be."

"How is it locked?" Ginny wondered. "There's no doorknob."

"Get out of the way," Hermione said sharply pushing the boys away and whipping out her wand. "Alohamora!" She cried with her wand pointing to the door, but nothing happened and she seemed shocked.

"That requires an actual lock to work, yes?" Sirius asked.

"Sirius's knife!" Harry cried reaching into his robes to pull out the all too familiar knife to the Marauders and slid it between the wall and the door. Sirius smirked to the others and pulled his own knife out about half way, they had a short lived chuckle about it.

"Won't work," Sirius said as Harry tried the door again. "Like I said, same deal with the spell needs a lock to work, sorry." He said looking at the melted handle of the knife.

"Right," Hermione said slapping her hands to her sides. "We're leaving that room."

"But what if that's the one?" Ron asked still staring at the door in longing.

Hermione shook her head, "It can't be, Harry got through all the doors in his dream," she said as she marked the spot with another X.

"You know what could be in there?" Luna asked excitedly as she watched the walls spin again.

"Something blibbering no doubt," Hermione murmured and Neville gave a little laugh, out of nervousness most likely.

The second the walls stopped Harry ran forward and flung open the first door he saw, the other had to run to catch up with him. When he opened the door he stood there for a few seconds in awe, "This is it." He said and before anyone had time to register what was happening he began rushing forward. "This way!"

The gang followed him closely behind as he whirled through the narrow spaces between the many desks in the room. After not long of running they saw a brilliant light coming from the crystal bell jar which was sitting on a desk. Inside the jar looked like a snow storm of glitter and shimmering wind.

"Oh look!" Ginny said pointing to the center of the jar which held a tiny glowing egg that was slowly rising in the jar. It cracked open after a few seconds and a hummingbird emerged from it but just as quickly as it had become a bird it turned back into an egg at the bottom of the jar.

"Keep going," Harry snapped as Ginny watched the jar in amazement.

She snorted. "You dawdled by that old arch!" She said crossly but following him anyway stealing one last glance at the bell jar.

"This is it," Harry said once more as the excitement in his chest grew. "It's through here…" He said looking to the others and seeing that they were now prepared with their wands out and at the ready. With that he turned back towards the door and swung it open.

"Oh Merlin…" Remus moaned as he took in the incredible sight of the hundreds of shelves with the thousands of glass orbs covering them. He let out a shaky breath the cold room as he absorbed the blue flamed torches and the high chapel like ceiling.

Harry led the group in short shuffling steps, he examined the various halls and corners, there was nothing there. No one, not even the slightest movement, there was no one else here.

"You said it was row ninety seven." Hermione said.

"Yeah…" he said looking up at the numbers of the shelves.

"Then we need to go right." Remus said looking at the numbers on all the rows they could see. "Yeah right, defiantly."

"Keep your wands out," Harry said softly though he really didn't need to tell them, they already had their wands out and ready.

They didn't rush down the hallway in fear of disturbing the tranquility of the room, but they did move with quiet haste. After what seemed like ages they reached the correct number which no one would have noticed if Hermione hadn't announced it. They all hovered at the end of the row and gazed down it, it seemed just like any other row.

"He's down at the end," Harry said swallowing the lump in his throat. "You can't see it properly from here." He mused before leading them down the row of shelves with glass balls shimmering all around them. "He should be near here…" He said as they advanced down the row further. "Anywhere here… really close…"

"Harry?" Hermione asked.

"Somewhere about… here…"

They had reached the end of the hall and come to the conclusion that there was no one there. There was nothing but dust and the echoing of their own voices and footsteps bouncing off the walls of the high ceilinged room.

Harry took another look around. "He might be… or maybe…" He began franticly looking down the neighboring corridors and into every corner of the surrounding area.

"Harry?" Hermione pressed.

He flung around to face her. "What?"

"I… I don't think Sirius is here."

Harry apparently didn't want to listen he ran away and continued to search for any sign of his Godfather but everyone was thinking the same thing, Harry's dream had been wrong. Sirius wasn't here and he wasn't in trouble the rotten little house elf had lied to them and they had come all the way here for nothing.

"Harry?" Ron called from the row.

Harry sighed. "What?" He asked not wanting to hear anymore of it.

"Have you seen this?" He asked pointing to something.

"What?" Harry repeated and headed over to where Ron stood and where the others were slowing gravitating toward. "What?" He said again.

"It's got your name on it," James said reaching up above his head to whip the little yellow label with his finger to remove any dust so they could see it better. "Right here, look at that."

"My name?" Harry said looking to where Ron was looking above their heads.

They read the label and Harry gasped slightly at it.

"What does that mean? What's S.P.T to A.P.W.B.D? What's what mean?" Sirius asked. "No one else is here, where are we?"

"There are hundreds of shelves," James reminded. "And keep in mind we aren't exactly the same age as Harry, not by a long shot."

"Harry maybe you shouldn't touch it," Remus said as Harry began reaching up to touch the glowing orb.

"Why not? It's got something to do with me, doesn't it?"

"Don't Harry," Neville added looking like he couldn't take much more of this.

"It's got my name on it," Harry defended.

"Doesn't mean you should go touching it." Remus said. "It's probably not the best idea."

Harry wasn't listening to any of them, he reached up and wrapped his fingers around the glowing dusty orb. It was warm and smooth to the touch, part of him expected something exciting to happen while the others expected the room to start shaking and crumbling down a lot them because Harry touched the orb but nothing happened, nothing whatsoever.

But Remus who had been biting his lip the whole time furrowed his brow and took a sniff in the air. He turned around in curiosity and gasped at the figure he saw standing before him and his friends.