The 7th Child

A/N: I'M BACK!

Right so I'm sorry this is so so late, but I've been moving into my uni flat and have had next to no inspiration so writing has not come easily. I'm trying to figure out sort of how year 3 should go before going any further, but if anyone has any ideas, please let me know, because I'm really struggling for inspiration.

Cos I've been gone so long, I've tried to write a longer chapter! Please review!

- Eve x

Chapter 5: The Locket.

"EXPELLIARMUS" Ginny bellowed as she ducked under a curse Sirius had sent her way. It was only a mild one (they were only practising after all), but still, it would have been rather annoying to get hit. She glanced up, only to see that Sirius had spun out of the way of the charm with far more grace than she had ever expected of the callous individual. Gritting her teeth, Ginny quickly made a mental inventory of all the spells in her arsenal. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a sudden light come streaming towards her. Rolling to her left, Ginny came up and yelled the first hex that came to mind.

Bats came streaming out of Sirius' nose and, taking advantage of his sudden distraction, Ginny sent the spell she'd been attempting to land for what felt like years. Sirius' wand was propelled out of his hand, and Ginny let a slow smirk spread across her face.

"I WON!" Ginny's scream of excitement caused Sirius to smile through the swarm of bats, before he began gesturing frantically at his nose, in an attempt to get Ginny to stop the hex. Through her giggles, Ginny finally managed to choke out a "Finite Incantatem", thus freeing Sirius from his torment.

"Well, that was very well done Ginny, very well done." Sirius got to his feet and smiled indulgently at the young girl before him. "So, how about some lunch?"

- The 7th Child -

Sirius looked on in mild horror as Kreacher dolloped what could only be described as badly flavoured water into some soup bowls. Glancing to his left, he saw that Ginny looked just as horrified, but was steeling herself to eat the dubious concoction. 'This must be part of her misguided attempt to make Kreacher lighten up' Sirius thought, as he swallowed back bile at the lumps that plopped from the saucepan into the bowl. Looking back at Ginny, he noticed she'd gone a little bit green; he didn't blame her considering the last time they'd eaten this bad had been in Azkaban. Actually, thinking about that point, Sirius realised that Kreacher had suddenly regressed to how he had been when they first moved in, a shock considering how much more tolerable he'd been thanks to Ginny's constant efforts to humanise the little beast.

"Everything alright Kreacher?" Sirius asked, his voice cracking slightly over the name. Ginny looked at him, shocked that he actually used the elf's name, as opposed to the usual taunt. Witheringly, Kreacher looked at Sirius before turning back to the questionable meal he was making, all the while muttering about blood traitors. Ginny and Sirius exchanged a glance, before Sirius motioned with his head that Ginny should join him in the corridor. Quietly, they both slipped out of the kitchen.

"What the hell happened to him? I thought he was actually getting better!" Sirius exclaimed in a hushed whisper as him and Ginny huddled in the narrow, dark hallway.

"I have no clue, nothing out of the ordinary happened yesterday that might have caused this to happen! The only thing that happened that was different was that he slept in his old cupboard, as opposed to the little room I set up." Ginny responded, her brow furrowed as she attempted to puzzle the situation out.

"Then maybe there's something in the cupboard that caused it?" Sirius wondered. "Could be another delightful portrait of my mother but without any curtains to stop her god-awful wailing."

"We might as well check."

"Okay then, take the lead kiddo!"

Stealthily creeping back into the kitchen, Ginny and Sirius looked over at Kreacher, who was now just staring at the pan, muttering all sorts of terrible things.

"Maybe he's finally lost it." Sirius hissed in Ginny's ear, causing her to stifle a snort before Kreacher heard them. They then shuffled to Kreacher's cupboard, and slowly opened the door, only breathing when it didn't creak like they thought it would. Glancing at each other, the two escapees looked in, and, after some jostling, Ginny was made to search through the filthy cloths that substituted as a bed.

Ginny was about to give up on her search when her hand closed around something metal and cool. Pulling her hand out the pile of blankets, Ginny unveiled a locket, with a green snake encrusted onto the front. Instantly, Ginny felt a feeling not too dissimilar to the one that had preluded the events that had put her in this situation. Like she had been branded, she dropped the locket and pushed herself as far back as she could go, fear restricting her breathing.

Sirius spun around in alarm and knelt in front of the girl, who, for the first time since he had met her, looked her age - a mere 12 years. "Ginny, what's wrong? What happened?"

"The… the… locket, it f-feels like the d-d-d-diary" Ginny gasped out, tears welling up in her normally fiery brown eyes. Sirius gathered the young girl in a hug, and attempted to soothe her by saying they would destroy that foul thing that lay gleaming in the cupboard.

The commotion alerted Kreacher, who moved over to them faster than Sirius had ever seen him move. The old house elf took in the scene, waited a beat, and then let out one of the worst noises Sirius had heard. The shriek/wail that Kreacher was emitting gradually transformed into words (something about Regulus?) as the elf charged towards the locket with the intent to grab it. Sirius shot up like a bullet and grabbed the elf, ready to interrogate him as to what actually lay in the dirty old cupboard.

"KREACHER! What in merlin's name is that thing? And why do you have it?" Sirius growled in the elf's face, his anger made worse by the fact that Ginny remained on the floor, pale and shaking. "I COMMAND YOU TO ANSWER ME!"

Looking up at Sirius with hate in his eyes, Kreacher began to explain. Sirius listened with growing horror to Kreacher's tale, as the elf recounted what he remembered about the cave, the lake and what Voldemort had made him do. As the elf spoke of Regulus' sacrifice, tears of pride and sorrow slipped down Sirius' cheeks, as he realised his brother was much braver than he had ever given him credit for. Grasping the elf by the shoulders firmly, Sirius looked into Kreacher's eyes.

"We will destroy it." For the first time in Sirius' life, Kreacher looked at him with gratitude, and admiration.

"You will?" The elf breathed out.

Looking at Ginny, who had been watching the whole interaction, Sirius felt his resolve harden.

"We will."

- The 7th Child -

Albus Dumbledore was concerned. Harry had caused his aunt to swell up, and had fled Privet Drive, although he had at least had the sense to go to the Leaky Cauldron. To add to Dumbledore's concern, that bumbling fool Fudge had decided to pay Harry a visit, as well as Neville Longbottom and Hermione Granger. If what he suspected was actually happening, Dumbledore knew he was going to be in for an uphill battle. And may end up fighting more enemies than he had initially planned…

Dumbledore suppressed that line of thought before he began dwelling on things that may not have happened. His priority was to find Sirius and Ginny, and to offer his help, and ask for theirs. He could feel that something bad was coming in his bones, and he wanted to have as many allies as possible before that happened. Luckily for the great wizard, after observing Diagon Alley since the escape, and he believed he had a lead. Two distinguishable individuals had gone to Ollivanders on Ginny Weasley's birthday, and left in possession of two unusual wands. Dumbledore had tracked their magical auras across London, and now had a rough idea of where they were. Not an exact one, but it was something. Dumbledore planned to follow that lead once term started, he first needed to assess whether or not Harry and his friends had been affected by the ministry's schemes.

- The 7th Child -

Harry Potter was descending the stairs of the Leaky Cauldron when he spotted a familiar head of red hair. Grinning widely, the black-haired boy ran up behind his best friend and yelled.

Ron Weasley jumped out of his skin, before turning round and grabbing Harry into some manly hug. The two friends grinned at each other and began to catch up, just as the Weasleys all came over the greet Harry. The exuberant group of people all went and sat down ready for lunch, with the fact that a member of the family was missing being ignored by all.

Once all had had their fill, the conversations began to dwindle off, although the twins kept messing around, attracting the attention of many of the patrons of the pub. Ron had turned his attention to Scabbers, explaining to Harry that the rat had been unwell the last few weeks, and he needed some tonic from the Magical Menagerie. It was in this lull that Mr Weasley asked to speak with Harry.

"I need to tell you something Harry, its about Sirius Black." The older man spoke in hushed tones, his expression graver than Harry had ever seen it.

"What?" Harry looked around confused, why did he need to know about the mass murderer? Its not like this man was after him.

"Sirius Black is a death eater, and the worst sort at that. He killed a lot of muggles after you defeated Voldemort, and he may be coming after you to try and avenge he-who-must-not-be-named. You have to be careful this year Harry, do you understand?"

Harry nodded still trying to process this information.

"Ginny is also with him, which confirms that the minister was telling the truth - she is a death eater. I know you thought she was innocent Harry, but do you see now that she couldn't possibly have been?"

Harry looked up. "Yes Mr Weasley, I get that now. The minister explained everything that Dumbledore hadn't told me, I know the truth now. She's… evil." Harry looked down after he finished speaking, his eyes following the lines in the stones floor.

Mr Weasley sighed, and nodded his agreement. "We mustn't blame Dumbledore too much, the man just likes to see the good in everyone. Well, thank you for listening to me son, I'll see you in the Alley later." Smiling warmly at Harry, the eldest Weasley left to go help his wife prepare their children for shopping.

Harry watched as they left, his eyes following the troop of redheads out of the door. He couldn't help but note, that for the first time, he had lied to the Weasleys.