Author's Note: Wow, I can't believe that we've already made it this far! With the Prisoner of Azkaban coming to an end, so is this story, but don't worry! I still have plenty more up my sleeve that I've been working on ... I hope you guys enjoy this! - S.G.

Disclaimer: Once again I must stress that I do not own Harry Potter. J.K has been the inspiration for this story but I am nowhere near as talented as she is.

Another Summoning

"Ah, Bethany, your timing as always, is impeccable," smiled Professor Dumbledore as I stumbled out of the fireplace into the Headmaster's office in a whirl of green smoke: Merlin, how I hated travelling by Floo.

"Yeah, well you didn't exactly give me much notice, sir," I replied, dusting soot off my jeans until I realised that I clearly wasn't the only person who had been summoned to Hogwarts out of the blue …

"Tonks?" I blinked.

"Wotcher, Bethany!" grinned the auror, as she wrung out her wet lilac hair.

I frowned, "But I thought you'd just been sent abroad for another mission …"

"So did I," Nymphadora Tonks replied, looking uncharacteristically peevish. "At first, I thought that I'd somehow managed to botch up my Portkey when I landed in the middle of the Black Lake instead of the safe-house in Brazil," she gestured to her dripping, wet clothes, "But apparently it was all intentional."

She shot an accusing glare in the Headmaster's direction as she shook out her sleeves.

"I'm afraid so," admitted the Professor, drying the witch's clothes with a wave of his wand. "Though I must admit that I did not anticipate that you would break away from the Portkey before you reached the school grounds …"

"Huh, funny that," she retorted, "Lucky thing that I happened to pack some Gillyweed with me, otherwise I'd have never made it out," Tonks shuddered at the thought.

"Would you care for lemon sherbet?" asked the Headmaster conversationally, "They might be a muggle confectionary but I personally find them positively delightful."

Tonks cocked her head to the side, "So, you called us here to talk about … sherbet?"

"Lemon sherbet," Dumbledore corrected her, "They really are quite good …"

"Something's happened recently, hasn't it?" I deduced tentatively, "I noticed the lack of Dementors outside," I added quickly.

Tonks paled, "Wait, does that mean that they …" her voice began to tremble as she trailed off and I suddenly realised why she'd lost all the colour in her face …

"On the contrary, Miss Tonks," replied the Headmaster, "It seems that Sirius Black managed to … slip through the Ministry's hands once again, on the back of a Hippogriff that had been sentenced to be executed earlier today."

I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when he said that.

"So they're both alive?" I asked, "And the Ministry?"

"Has sent the Dementors back to Azkaban," replied Dumbledore cheerfully, "It seems that, with Black's escape they need not stay any longer at Hogwarts. But that is not why I called you to my office …"

He gestured for us to take a chair in front of his desk, and we did, waiting with bated breath for the Headmaster to elaborate.

"I asked you both here to apologise, for not believing either of you so many years ago."

"So, what are you saying? Are you saying that I was right?" grinned Tonks excitedly, "He's innocent?"

"It would appear so, Miss Tonks," Dumbledore inclined his head, before he continued, "Now, what I'm about to tell the two of you must never leave this room …"

"So yeh heard!" a very drunk Hagrid beamed from ear-to-ear as soon as Tonks and I approached his hut.

"Um … yeah," Tonks stammered, "We heard that …"
"Buckbeak escaped!" he said, swaying slightly on his feet with a bottle of whiskey in hand.

"Right, that!" I replied as the two of us shared an inward sigh of relief.

"Don't know 'ow he did it," continued Hagrid happily, "Must 've pulled himself loose or somethin', clever boy. I mean it's rotten dat Black got 'way too, but I've gotta admit I'm just so happy that Buckbeak's free …"

"We're happy too, Hagrid," I smiled, gripping his forearm when he stumbled a bit.

"' Pose that's why you're 'ere innit? Ministry sent you out teh look for 'im?"

"For Buckbeak? Err, something like that, yeah," lied Tonks unconvincingly, "But we're just going to tell the Ministry that there's no sight of him … he's um … flown the coop."

"Yeah," I nodded quickly, "And I was just here to congratulate you on the good news."

"I wonder where he is though," said the giant, "Don't reckon he'd come back 'ere any time soon would he?"

"He's probably found himself a nice empty meadow full of ferrets somewhere," Tonks said.

"'Ope so, well, I better turn meself in fer the night," replied Hagrid, "Big day it's been today."

"Good idea," I agreed, tugging Tonks back along the pathway, "Goodnight, Hagrid."

"Night," he yawned, still looking as if he were walking on clouds as he made his way back to his hut.

"That was close," whispered Tonks, "Lucky thing you remembered about Buckbeak …"

I nodded, "Hopefully, the two of them are somewhere far away from here."

I came stumbling through the fireplace connected to the Cursebreakers department before I rushed into the corridor, my shoes slapping against the marble floors until I reached the one painting that depicted the leering face of Patricia Rakepick.

"You knew," I replied, my voice shaking with anger as I clenched my fists and I rounded up on her portrait, "All this time you knew and you said nothing?"
The witch didn't respond, regarding me with a simpering raise of her eyebrow.

"If you don't answer me in five seconds I am going to start burning your canvas," I warned.

Madam Rakepick let out a snort, "And what would that achieve?"

I glared, sparks flying from the tip of my wand as I raised it threateningly before she sighed.

"Always so dramatic. Fine, if you must know I only discovered that Pettigrew was alive when I saw his name on the Marauders' Map. You do recall the map don't you?"

I nodded, "But that still doesn't explain why you didn't say anything about it."

Rakepick rolled her eyes, "And how would that have benefited me?"
I shook my head with disbelief, "You're unbelievable. Even as a portrait you still only ever think about yourself don't you? Bitch." I spat out those last words before I lowered my wand and stalked off.

"Did you hear the news?" asked Penny, "Apparently Sirius Black has escaped again …"
"Again? Last I heard, he was sighted on Hogwarts school ground," frowned Rowan.

"Really?" exclaimed Andre, "But Hogwarts is literally a ruddy fortress! The place is bloody impossible to just slip out of …"

"Clearly, it's not as impenetrable as we thought," mused Penny as she took another sip of her Butterbeer, "Look, it says here in the Daily Prophet."

"Blimey," Andre shook his head as she showed him the article, "I honestly don't know whether to be scared or impressed right now."

"Either way, if the rumours are true then Hogwarts would be the last place that Black would go," Rowan pointed out, "Meaning …"

"… No more dementors? Smashing!" Andre beamed from ear-to-ear.

I raised an eyebrow, "Since when did you ever use the word 'smashing', Andre?"

"He's been spending a lot of time hanging out with Skye Parkin," supplied Penny.

"Has he now?" I grinned, "Any new developments that I should be aware of?"

"Oh, shove off, Cursebreaker," Andre replied, cheeks burning crimson.

"Aw," teased Tonks in a singsong voice, "Egwu's got a girlfriend!"

"I do not!" snapped the Quidditch Player, flushing beetroot as he averted his gaze, "It seems that your fashion sense isn't the only thing that needs improving, Tonks – your sense of humour is positively atrocious as well."

"Aw, don't be like that," I replied, slinging my arm around his shoulder, "You know we're only teasing."

"Though, can you imagine what their babies would be like?" chimed Tonks, "Oof … Perfect reflexes and fashion!"

Andre shook his head, "You guys are awful."
"What are you moaning about this time, Andre?"
"Charlie, over here!" I smiled, waving him over, "I thought you were going back to Romania tonight …"

"I am," he replied as I shuffled over to make room for him to sit beside me, "but Bill insisted that it'd be rude to just leave without dropping by the Leaky Cauldron at least once."

"Just admit it," snorted Andre, "The only reason you're here is 'cause Bill told you that Bethany was here."

Charlie blinked, "That's not … you still haven't answered my question, Egwu," he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, quickly changing the subject.

We were in such close quarters that our shoulders couldn't help but brush against one another.

"Oh that," laughed Tonks, "We were just discussing the fact that Mister Quidditch Star over here has a crush on Sk-mmmph!"

Andre clamped his hand over her mouth to stop her mid-sentence.

"Nope, nope, nope, we are not going over this again," he replied, before quickly retracting his hand with disgust, "Urgh, did you just lick me?"

Tonks shrugged, "Well, it's not like you gave me much of a choice …"

"You're disgusting you know that, right?"
"And suddenly I understand why you so desperately want to get back to Romania," I sighed as the two began to bicker amongst themselves.

Charlie smirked, shuffling in closer so that he could wrap an arm around my shoulder. I felt his hot breath tickle my cheek as he chuckled lightly.

"Yeah, well I'm not going back right this second …"

"Before I leave, there's something that I wanted to ask you."

It may have been a trick of the light but I could've sworn that the tips of his ears flushed pink as he quietly pulled me aside.

"Sure, what's up?"

"You know how the Quidditch World Cup's started recently?"
I nodded.

He rubbed the back of his neck, "Well, I managed to get these …" He took a pair of tickets from his jacket and showed them to me.

"They're to the next match," he explained quickly, "England vs. Transylvania … so …"
"Charles Weasley, are you asking me out?" I teased.

Charlie stopped, "What? No! I mean, yeah … I guess? If … you want to that is …"

He was definitely blushing now, his freckled cheeks burning crimson as he ducked his head.

"Of course, I'd love to go with you."

Charlie blinked, his eyes snapping back to mine. "So … that's a yes?"
I nodded.

"As in yes, you'll go on a date with me? Or yes you'd like to go to the game …"

"It means yes, I'd like to go on a date with you," I replied, smiling.

"Brilliant," he beamed, grinning from ear-to-ear as he ran a hand through his hair, "I'll see you later then?"

I nodded, heart still hammering as I watched him make his way out to leave before I called him back.

"Hey, Charlie?"
"Yeah?" he turned back, eyebrows raised as I came over to him and smiled.

"Just one more thing before you go."

I reached up to touch his cheek, then, ever so gently, brushed my lips against his.

There was a slight pause before he kissed me back, his fingers grazing the skin of my hip beneath the hem of my shirt as he held me close.

We stayed like that for a few heated moments before he drew away with the same tender look in his eyes that reminded me of our time together in Cairo.

"Till next time?"
"Till next time."

Finally, it's about time that happened hey? I do have to wonder what Bill said to prompt Charlie to finally do it ...

Anyway, I hope that you all enjoyed this story as much as I did writing it. It's been shorter fanfiction but perhaps that's because the chapters were longer? I'm not sure.

Don't forget to follow, favourite and review! And who knows? Maybe you might see another chapter or I dare say another story coming soon? I won't spoil it though.

Yours truly,

Sword Gold.