My apologies for being gone for so long, things have been tough. I hope you're all doing well. Here's the next chapter.

"Finally coming to terms with Fathers Day. I blow as a Dad. I get it. No, I'm not an evil, abusive Father, it's just that while all my intentions and thoughts have been out of love for my kids, my actions and behaviour never measured up." - Geoffrey Hill

Chapter Fifty-Four - The Silver Egg

In the days that followed, Kreacher's behaviour towards her was marginally acceptable. Ankaa had, by no means, forgotten the part he played in fooling Harry and bringing the Order to the Ministry, but it was like Ankaa told the Boy Who Lived—if you want to start blaming someone, soon you'll be pointing fingers everywhere.

Kreacher tolerated her presence better than most, it seemed, when he did not insult her the moment she looked to him. Sirius and Zara, on the other hand, received no such treatment. If anything, Kreacher was hell-bent on being more insufferable than ever, pointedly going out of his way to find a loophole in an order, or purposely placing a glass of lemonade near Zara's homework and giving it a little nudge.

"I guess with Harry gone, I'm his preferred target," Zara muttered sullenly one day, frowning at her textbook. Somehow it had 'accidentally' fallen into the fireplace while Kreacher had been cleaning.

Sirius gave a quick wave of his wand and repaired the book, frowning at the copy of Advanced Potion Making before handing it back to the Ravenclaw girl. "What're you doing spending your summer studying before you've even started school?"

"There's nothing wrong with reading ahead," Zara defended, turning slightly pink. "I just wanted to get a jump on things."

"You don't even know if you passed your O. yet."

Both girls gave him a look.

"Right, forgot who I was speaking to for a moment." Sirius deposited himself on the couch beside Ankaa, lazily wiping away some of the grease on his hands. "I suppose neither of you wants to help me fix up my bike?"

"I don't know anything about them, sorry."

"Why are you fixing that thing up anyway?" Ankaa asked, turning to stare at him. "I thought Hagrid ended up keeping it after… well, you know."

"He did. But I've missed it, so I'm building a new one for myself. Arthur was kind enough to pass along some of the parts the Ministry had seized." He shot a loathing glare at his surroundings. "It gives me something to do while I'm locked up in here."

"It's for your safety, you know," Ankaa could not help but point out. "Your trial isn't for another two weeks. You're still a guilty man in the eye of some."

Sirius huffed like a child, crossing his arms and slinking back in his seat to glare at the dark ceiling above them. "Yes, I'm aware. You wouldn't know what it's like being locked up in this house for almost a year."

"It's better than being dead."

"No one's going to try to kill me if I leave the house," Sirius retorted. "They've got worse things to worry about. Besides, I can fend for myself. I'm an adult."

"Obviously not if you're under house arrest." Ankaa gave him a mocking smile. "Almost like being grounded isn't it? Did Grandpa Dumbledore not like the way you were behaving?"

Sirius' look of pure hatred turned towards her, and Ankaa could tell his irritation was flaring up. On a good day, she might've let it go, but being cooped up in the same house with him for the last week hadn't been any good for either of them.

"It's not forever, Sirius," said Zara, her voice placating and soothing the ire between the father and daughter. "It's only until news about the Ministry has died down. Besides, the Ministry's still debating whether or not to even give you a trial. Dumbledore's right to keep you out of sight—one wrong move and they could remind their generosity."

"Generosity? They kept an innocent man in prison for thirteen years!"

"Well, yes—"

"There's nothing generous about those cowards," spat Sirius, sitting upright now. "The fact that Dumbledore has to beg Scrimgeour to consider a trial is appalling—"

"Whatever the case, Sirius," Ankaa interrupted her father. "The fact remains that you're in no position to argue. It'd be in your best interest to stay inside so everyone can swing the trial in your favour—otherwise it's permanent house arrest until this whole war is over."

Sirius was not deterred. His lips turned downward in a scowl as he glared at his daughter. "If Dumbledore wants to get on the Ministry's good side, there's no better way to do it than with me being out and about. Besides, I went with you to Gringotts, didn't I?"

"That's different."

Sirius spluttered, but Ankaa held up her hand to stop him before he could argue.

"You being out right now is not the same as you going for a leisurely stroll through Diagon Alley a few months ago. Fudge is no longer Minister, which means Scrimgeour is not only looking to repair a damaged cabinet in the Ministry but also to sway public opinion of the Ministry. The only way to do that is through Harry Potter."

"Through Harry?"

"It makes sense," Zara nodded, pulling one of the copies of the Prophet from between her school books. "They're trying to convince everyone to trust the Ministry again. The only way to do that is to align with what Harry had been saying months ago. And since Dumbledore won't let anyone near Harry…"

"They'll try to use you." Ankaa took the copy of the newspaper from Zara, holding it out to her father. "They know how valuable you are as a source to get to Harry. That's why your trial isn't just about proving your innocence, it's about proving that the Ministry is just and fair so that people will trust them again."

"This still doesn't explain why I can't be out," Sirius grumbled over the Prophet. "Wouldn't people seeing me around put more pressure on the Ministry?"

"I don't think Dumbledore's concerned with the Ministry as a whole," Ankaa offered. "It's just Scrimgeour. He's the one in charge, after all. If Scrimgeour tries to use you as leverage against Harry—let's say by illegally moving evidence in hopes of painting you guilty—what will you do then? It'll force Harry to go along with whatever the Ministry wants."

"Sirius, you also don't have any credible evidence on your side," said Zara. "Since you don't have Pettigrew as a witness, it's all circumstantial. Dumbledore knows that."

"And look," Ankaa pointed to one particular heading on the Prophet. "They're debating whether Harry and I are allowed as witnesses, too."

Sirius looked down at the paper in his hands, eyes roving over the article.

WIZENGAMOT DEBATES CHARACTER WITNESSES

FOR SIRIUS BLACK'S TRIAL

Sirius Orion Black has recently launched an appeal against the Ministry of Magic to revisit the case that landed him in Azkaban nearly fifteen years ago. In light of recent events, many speculate Black of being wrongly convicted and imprisoned in the death of Peter Pettigrew, a former classmate from Hogwarts, and thirteen Muggles.

Albus Dumbledore has allegedly spoken with Minister Scrimgeour on the matter, but the specificities of their conversation remain unknown.

"They were gettin' quite heated, wasn't they," remarked one Ministry official who wishes to remain anonymous. "Dumbledore was sayin' somethin' about nae lettin' any more innocent people suffer 'n all, but other than tha' I did'nae hear much."

The Wizengamot has accepted the request for the appeal and has begun preparations for the trial demanding a list of new witnesses and evidence to be included. As of the publication of this article, Sirius Black has listed only two primary witnesses; Harry Potter, and Ankaa Rhyther.

There were several objections by the Wizengamot about the witnesses, as they are both related to Black (as godson and daughter), and are thus considered inadmissible in the trial.

One official, who shall remain unnamed, has remarked on the matter. "It's a load of bollocks, innit? They're trying to find faults in every witness so Black don't have a case. The man's gonna have no one left to speak for him! His wife's dead, his family's gone… It's absolute shite."

As of now, whether or not Harry Potter and Ankaa Rhyther will be called to testify in the trial remains a mystery, but the Ministry is set to announce their decision on Friday, the 7th of July, a week before the trial.

"You see why you need to lay low?"

Grudgingly, Sirius nodded. "I guess," he muttered. "Who's going to be a witness if they won't let you or Harry talk?"

Ankaa could only offer him a helpless shrug. Sirius balled the copy up in his hands before tossing it into the fire carelessly as he stood and walked out of the room, muttering something about 'getting back to work since that's all I can do'. Ankaa watched him go for a moment before turning back to her friend and offering up a shrug in response to her questioning look.

"Sometimes I worry who the adult is," Zara smiled. "He really does act on his emotions, doesn't he? I wonder how your mother kept him in check."

Ankaa thought about it for a moment. "No idea," she finally said. "Maybe she found that endearing."

Maybe, Ankaa thought, but I'll never know for sure.

"You never really got time to spend with them as a family, did you?" asked Zara, her voice taking the tone of pity Ankaa had been hearing every time she brought up her mother. "Do you think that's why Sirius is so adamant on insisting everything is alright?"

"I don't know what goes on in his head," Ankaa grumbled in return, mood souring at the turn of the conversation. "I've got bigger things to worry about right now than his psychology."

Zara frowned, as if let down, but did not comment on the matter anymore. The girls sat in silence, listening to the crackling fireplace and the shuffling upstairs. Ankaa leaned against the arm of the couch and let the heat of the fire lull her into a brief sleep.

Her dream was strange, but not wholly unpleasant. She was back in Rhyther Manor, sitting by the fireplace in the living room, watching Ceph place his favourite ornaments on the tree.

Ankaa stood up and made her way beside him, taking a moment to marvel at his figure. It had been so long since she had seen him.

"You want to put one on, too?" Ceph asked, offering her the star he had been holding. "It's one of my favourites—it shoots across the tree every so often."

Ankaa gingerly took it from his hands, placing it right above the enchanted picture of their family. As dreams were often strange, this family picture was comprised of the siblings standing before Sirius, Maya, and Henry, but at least all of them were smiling blissfully.

"Ah, that looks so good!" said her mother's voice.

Ankaa turned to find her mother descending the stairs, skipping happily along the marble floor until she came to a stop beside the siblings.

"Is that the new one we picked out?" Maya eyed the twinkling golden star above the picture. "It looks beautiful! Have you both put your presents under the tree yet?"

"Ye—Oh, look! A shooting star!" Ceph pointed to the twinkling star that rose above the needles and shot up the tree, winding its way to the topper before exploding in a shower of sparks. "Make a wish!"

"Wake up."

Ankaa jolted out of her sleep, sitting upright and taking a deep breath, she turned to find Zara staring at her.

"Are you alright?" she asked, giving Ankaa a worried once over.

"How long was I asleep?"

"About twenty minutes. Not too long."

Ankaa fell back with a groan, sinking into the couch cushions with a mewl. "You should've let me sleep. We're not supposed to head to Diagon Alley for another—" she glanced at the watch on the mantle, "—half an hour."

"I didn't wake you, stupid," Zara shut her book. "You just spasmed and almost threw yourself off the couch. What were you dreaming of anyway?"

"Nothing."

"Sure? Because you looked like you were tearing up when you woke up."

"Can't remember my dream," Ankaa lied before pulling herself upright. Sleep was no longer an option. "Why've you got to head back, anyway? Can't you just stay here?"

"Family stuff—Dad wants to visit his sister in Kent. He refuses to listen to me when I say we should stay put. But I suppose Muggle London is a lot safer… at least for the time being."

"Right," Ankaa mumbled. "Maybe you should talk to Dumbledore about getting protection for your house."

Zara snorted in amusement. "There's a lot of muggleborn students at Hogwarts… I doubt Dumbledore would give me any protection. I'm no one special."

Ankaa was inclined to disagree, but a resounding crash from the upper floors startled both the girls. There was a brief moment of silence before one of the doors upstairs was thrown open and Sirius was bellowing at the top of his lungs.

"KREACHER! DAMN YOU! GET HERE RIGHT NOW!"

Both girls shot out of their chairs and into the main hallway, staring up the bannister to Sirius stomping down the staircase and onto the main landing. He was covered entirely in grease, dripping unknown black liquid onto the carpet.

With a pop, Kreacher arrived on the landing, bowing his head at the sight of his master.

"Master has had an accident," Kreacher remarked slyly, lips quirking ever so slightly at the sight of Sirius' expression. "Shall Kreacher clean the room—"

"You stay out of that room!" Sirius thundered. "Don't touch anything else in that room, you hear me! I've had it with your meddling."

"Kreacher has only been trying to help." Kreacher did not sound at all admonished. In fact, Ankaa could detect a sort of pride in his voice.

"I don't want your help! You are to go to Hogwarts, where you will work in the kitchens along with the other house-elves."

At this, Kreacher looked up, surprised.

Sirius looked almost pleased at the house-elf's expression. Looking entirely too self-confident, Sirius looked down his nose at the seething Kreacher before continuing.

"Sirius—"

He held up his hand to silence Ankaa, giving her a warning look before glaring down at Kreacher. "You will speak to no one about what has been going on with the Order or with Harry or Ankaa. You will not Apparate out of Hogwarts unless it is to come to Grimmauld Place by my bidding and by bidding alone."

Ankaa avoided his pointed glare, looking down at Kreacher with something resembling pity before the house-elf growled and turned on the spot, disappearing with a loud pop.

Zara muttered a quiet, "I'll let you two talk," before making her way past Sirius and up the stairs to Ankaa's bedroom.

"I know you snuck out with Kreacher, I'm not stupid." Sirius glared at her, "What did you two get up to? Where did you go?"

"I have no idea," Ankaa leaned against the railing, looking to one of the portraits that was pointedly ignoring her stare and hiding behind the basket of fruits on the table. "I guess he wanted to mourn… Took me to a grave."

Sirius' eyes went to the empty spot on the wall where his mother's portrait had once hung. "Didn't think he had it in him," he frowned. His sour mood did not dissipate still, as he turned back to her with a fierce glower. "Why didn't you just tell me?"

"As if you would've said yes!" Ankaa retorted hotly, now turning her eyes towards him. "Did you forget that you're the one who ordered him in the house? For someone who was complaining about being under house arrest, you sure have a hard time understanding his feelings—"

"—I don't care about his feelings. He's the one that got my wife killed." There was a serious edge to his tone, his eyes clouded with an emotion that Ankaa could not place. "I know you care for him—"

"—don't be stupid, I feel sorry for him. There's a difference."

"Whatever the case, I don't appreciate you going behind my back and against my orders. I've known Kreacher since I was a little boy, he doesn't care for sentiment."

"How do you know that? You've never shown him anything other than complete disdain."

"Because I know how he is!" Sirius roared. "He's not someone who's going to appreciate your kindness—look what he did with Maya! All she did was show him kindness and he went and turned everyone over to Voldemort. She's dead because of him!"

"She's dead because of Alice and no one else." Ankaa stood up straight, staring up at her father. "Besides, I don't see you blaming Harry or me, for that matter, for our part in all this. Harry was the one that brought you all to the Ministry, and Mom wouldn't be dead if it weren't for her taking my place."

"That's different."

"It isn't—"

"It is!" Sirius took a deep breath, trying (and failing) to calm himself. "Harry wouldn't have gone to the Ministry if—"

"If he used his own brain and listened to what everyone told him? I agree. I don't see you taking your frustration out on him."

"Harry only went to the Ministry because Kreacher lied to him and let him think I was being held and tortured there."

"Right, and I bet he just glossed over the part where I volunteered to Apparate to Grimmauld and check-in you to see if that was actually true? Because if he had just waited as I told him to, this whole ordeal at the Ministry would've never happened." Ankaa could not help the mirthless chuckle slip out of her. "But I suppose you cherry-pick the people you like and don't like, it's not surprising. "

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Ankaa did not answer him, instead choosing to return his heated glare with one of her own. "If you want to start blaming people, maybe you should blame yourself too. You knew what was going to happen at the Ministry—why did you let mom go?"

Sirius' chest was rising and falling in deep, laboured breaths. Ankaa was sure if she stared closely, she might be able to see steam pouring out of his ears.

"No answer? Why's that? You sure were agreeing with Fred when he left me in the shop to go off to the Ministry—you said it was all about protection then, wasn't it? Why didn't you do that with mom if you knew what she had seen—"

"BECAUSE I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT SHE HAD SEEN!"

His voice boomed around the hall, startling some of the portraits enough to topple over their chairs and duck out of their frames.

"Don't you think I would've wanted to keep her safe?" Sirius growled. "But she never told me what she had seen. All I knew was that you were the one meant to be there, and we had to stop that. I didn't think she'd take your place!"

"If you knew someone was meant to die, why are you taking your frustration out on Kreacher?" Sirius did not answer her. His glare had turned from her towards the portrait on the wall, where the woman squawked and disappeared from the frame entirely. "Sounds to me like you're just annoyed at being locked up in this house—"

"How would you feel if everyone around you kept you out of the loop?" Sirius demanded hotly, turning to her once more, hands clenching at his sides. "My own wife didn't feel the need to tell me that she'd be taking your place in the Battle at the Ministry, or that she had apparently seen something to do with you and Alice. And then you come back with that bloody silver egg of yours that Henry went to great lengths to hide—or your mother's journals that he got to keep a hold of? What else do I think if not the fact that your mother didn't trust me with any of this?"

"Why the hell didn't you just use Annabelle's Time-Turner to go ask her that in person?"

"Because I know why she didn't." Sirius shook his head peevishly. "She would've told me all this if she trusted me. She told Henry."

"Great well, if you know maybe you should stop grumbling about it like a child and move on. So what if Mom didn't tell you what she was up to—have you ever thought that it was for a good reason?"

"What reason could there possibly—"

"The fact that you act like an actual child sometimes, I'd say. You're temperamental and volatile, and it takes maybe half a second to blow your fuse. Maybe that's why she didn't tell you because she didn't want you messing things up."

"Messing things up? That's what you think I do while I'm locked up in this house? I don't even get to do anything, much less mess it up!"

"Good job, let's get you a reward for doing the bare minimum," Ankaa sassed, moving past him to go up the stairs. "And while we're on the topic, perhaps I should remind you that Maya never told me what she had seen either. Or Harry or even Remus, for that matter. If you think that means she didn't trust or love us… maybe you didn't know your wife all that well."

Sirius' expression was indecipherable as he looked up at her. Something passed behind his eyes and his expression changed to something resembling dejection before he turned on the spot and Disapparated with a pop. He Apparated to one of the rooms upstairs, where he had been working on his bike, before there were the sounds of things being thrown about and shattering against the walls.

"Well, that sounds like it went well."

Ankaa looked up to find Zara leaning over the bannister, giving her a sympathizing look.

"If an adult throwing a temper tantrum means things are going well, I'm not sure I'd like to see your definition of a bad talk."

Zara snickered, descending the stairs with her little book bag by her side. "I didn't mean to overhear but I could hear you both even through my music." She held up her little Walkman contraption. When another particularly deafening crash sounded from Sirius' room, Zara glanced up, as if expecting the debris to start falling down the stairs. "I can somewhat understand his rage. It must be frustrating to have to pick up the pieces blindly, knowing that your mother could've made things a lot easier for him if she had just told him what she was up to."

"I really hope you're not taking his side," Ankaa grumbled, pulling on her sneakers as the two ventured towards the main door. "I don't feel like arguing anymore."

"I'm not taking sides!" The two were now making their way out of Grimmauld and towards one of the less crowded alleys. "I'm just thinking of what he must be feeling," Zara explained. "He must be feeling left out and helpless. It almost seems like Maya only told Henry what to do and what she had seen. Do we even know what her vision was about?"

Ankaa shook her head. "The only thing I saw in Annabelle's memories was my mother telling Alice that she's seen what I'll become. Other than that, I don't know much else."

"Doesn't that frustrate you?"

"Not really. Sometimes it's better not knowing, I think." Ankaa did not tell Zara of how the expectations of keeping tabs on the future was weighing on her. Especially with the looming war, it seemed the Order was waiting for her to tell them whatever she saw.

"Don't worry about Sirius," Zara told her as they walked along, trying to find a deserted street. "He's just concerned about you. He has a weird way of showing it."

"Don't I know it."

Zara chuckled, linking her arms with the Slytherin girl as they navigated a particularly crowded Muggle street. "Cut him some slack," she suggested. "The kind of growth that comes with fatherhood… well, he never got to experience that, did he? It's like he got out of Azkaban and all of a sudden he had two children, all grown up and their own people. It's kind of hard to get into the swing of things."

"That doesn't explain why he's throwing tantrums about being on house arrest."

"I think the house arrest is just putting this into perspective for him," Zara surmised, ever the wise Ravenclaw. "It must be forcing him to think of everything since he's got loads of time now. That's probably when he realized that his family was keeping him out of the loop too."

"Hardly enough reason to take it out on Kreacher."

Zara agreed. "People only crackdown on those they consider inferior. He wouldn't have done that with anyone else."

Ankaa knew that to be true. Sirius had always held Kreacher with the greatest contempt. Whatever is reasons were, as Ankaa was sure he had some justifiable ones, Ankaa did not care to know. But after Kreacher's little trip, she could not deny that she felt almost sorry for him. After all, wasn't he on house arrest all these years as well?

Zara took her hand and the two of them disapparated out of the alley and close to the Leaky Cauldron.

"Why is it you need to head to Diagon Alley, again?" Ankaa asked as the two of them navigated through the empty pub and towards the back, where the brick wall gave way with a few taps of her wand. "I thought you were ready to go home."

"I wanted to check out George and Fred's shop. My cousins are a menace, so I figure some good ol' tricks would work well to keep them in check, seeing as I can't do magic just yet."

Ankaa shared a smile with her as they stepped into Diagon Alley. It was no longer the same alley as before, and although they had been here not two weeks ago, it had become almost unrecognizable. Half the shops were boarded up and some were closing up shop early, witches and wizards huddling together and glancing around suspiciously as they left for the safety of their own homes.

In the midst of this gloomy setting sat Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, filled to the brim with people and bright flashing lights and muted laughter.

"Wow, they're really popular," Zara remarked as she reached for the door and stepped in first. She ducked as something whizzed over her head, smacking into the doorframe behind her before falling at Ankaa's feet.

Ankaa reached down and got a hold of the little pixie. The moment her fingers wrapped around it, the pixie transformed into a simple figurine in her hands, laying limp. Ankaa deposited the little figurine in the box by the door labelled PESKY PIXIE - Need a little pixie pick me up? Wind up this little pixie for two whole minutes of pesky pixie shenanigans.

P.S; Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes is not liable for any damage incurred by the PESKY PIXIE. Wind up responsibly!

"You have to hand it to them," Zara marvelled, glancing around at the shop and the multitude of gadgets and gizmos whizzing about. There was no corner left unused, and each was filled with an interesting creation. "They sure didn't spare any expense."

They certainly hadn't. No matter where she turned, Ankaa was immediately assaulted by some new invention the twins had come up with. The shop was so crowded that Ankaa and Zara had to roughly shove their way past people to make it up the stairs and to the first landing. Somewhere in the shop, there was a small explosion and the smell of gunpowder overwhelmed her senses before Ankaa saw Verity spring forward and dissipate the smoke with a wave of her wand. She swiftly descended on the little first year and swooped them up, carrying them away to another area while muttering, "Shouldn't have touched that then, it's clearly labelled fifteen plus, young sir!"

Upon spotting Ankaa, who stepped out of her way as she guided the shocked and disgruntled boy to the back of the shop, Verity smiled widely. "Miss. Rhyther!"

Ankaa and Zara shared a glance before the Slytherin girl turned back to the assistant. "Just Ankaa is alright, Verity. Did we catch you at a bad time?"

"No, not at all Miss—Ankaa." Verity's cheeks were tinged pink. "Sorry, a force of habit. Mr. and Mr. Weasley always insist on titles."

"Do they?" Zara smirked at the assistant before glancing upward, where she had one of the twins leaning over the bannister. "All of a sudden they're sticklers for rules, are they?"

Ankaa spotted George at the top, now grinning down at the group before he waved at them and disappeared. In the next second, he had ambled down the stairs and to the spot right next to them, scooping Ankaa and Zara up in a hug. He stepped away with a jovial smile before turning to the young boy, who was still covered in soot and shuffling on his feet uncomfortably at being surrounded by the older kids.

"Right well, what's this then?"

"He got into a bit of the Mini Dragonbombs, even though the sign specifically said for ages fifteen and over."

George narrowed his eyes at the kid who was trembling so hard Verity had to hold him up by the belt.

"You're lucky you've still got your eyebrows on you, kid," George shook his head. "Don't let me catch you messing with those again—though if you can mess with those without me catching you, I'd be impressed—" Zara cleared her throat pointedly while Ankaa snickered at the scene, completely ignoring Verity's scandalized expression, "—right, let's get you cleaned up then!"

The boy, now considerably happier at George's 'admonishment' (if one could even call it that), let Verity vanish the soot before mumbling a quick thank you and vanishing back into the crowd. Verity soon scrambled away, mumbling something about keeping an eye on the teenagers by the love potions, and left the three of them all alone.

"Love potions?" Zara questioned, glancing over the bannister onto the ground floor where the bubbling potions had been placed into an obnoxiously pink fountain that was suspiciously surrounded by some interested teenagers. "Isn't that a bit dangerous?"

"Depends," George raised a brow, glancing over at her interestedly. "Do you find love dangerous?"

Zara flushed, but before she could respond, Ankaa reached over and sharply elbowed George in the ribs. "Don't flirt with my friends," she hissed as he doubled over, clutching his side. "Where's that idiot twin of yours?"

"Upstairs," George wheezed. "I was just being friendly. You're going to be busy canoodling—"

"Can-whooing?"

"—the least I can do is keep your friend some company while you're busy. I'm just being friendly!"

"Go be friendly somewhere else," Ankaa muttered, but her eyes held no malice.

George shook his head as he stood upright, fixing his blazer and shirt before giving them a particularly affronted look. "To set the record straight, Zara didn't seem to mind my flirting all that much—"

"Is that what that was?" Zara gave her friend a mischievous look. "You've got a lot of work to do still."

"You," Ankaa pointed to her grinning friend, "stop encouraging him." She turned back to George, who was reciprocating Zara's goading grin, and smacked his arm, "And you—she's messing with you, stop falling for it!"

George snickered before turning and offering Zara his hand. "My Lady, if you would like to accompany me to the next floor where I may show you the brand new, the absolutely genius, Handheld Lightning Storms."

Zara took his hand with a small quirk of her lips and let him lead her away. "See you in a bit, Ankaa! Enjoy your canoodling!"

Ankaa's fingers twitched at her side, itching to reach for her wand and shoot something particularly nasty at the parting duo, but she withheld. She was glad none of the other people around them seemed to be paying the trio any attention, seemingly too absorbed by one of the many interesting things around the shop (idly, Ankaa noticed someone had accidentally freed one of the Pesky Pixies, and the pixie was busy terrorizing a group of girls and pulling at their hair). Ankaa ducked out of the way quickly, hurrying up the stairs and to where the boys had set up their makeshift office before the pixie could fixate on her.

Inside, Fred was sitting hunched over a bubbling cauldron, pouring a few tablespoons of red powder into the mix before stirring it six times counter-clockwise. His face was fixed onto the potion, lips curled in irritation and eyes narrowed as it bubbled for a few more seconds before settling down into a gentle simmer, changing colours from murky green to soft lilac.

"What're you making?"

Fred startled the sound of her voice before closing the container of mysterious red powder and placing it on the shelf by his right, amongst the various other supplies.

"It's a new potion George and I thought of," he explained as he turned off the flame at the base of the cauldron. "It makes you fluent in a language… At least until the effects wear off."

Ankaa peeked over the rim of the cauldron interestedly. "Not much like the other things in your shop, is it? You usually aim or more menace with your items than a simple translation effect."

"Technically, it's not for our shop." He exchanged a meaningful glance with her before stepping away from the table. "Dumbledore's asked us for a few things. Sirius and Remus came by a few days ago and Remus reckons something like this would be useful for whatever it is Dumbledore's got him doing."

"Did he tell you where he was going?"

Fred shook his head.

"Me neither." Ankaa slowly made her way over to his side, leaning against the edge of the table where he rested so the two were shoulder to shoulder. "I wonder if Sirius knows. He must… if he came by here with Remus."

"Most likely," Fred conceded, turning his head to look at her. "But the two of them were pretty hush-hush about it. Now that I think about it, I reckon Sirius looked a little pissed."

"When doesn't he?"

Fred snorted shortly. "I think that's just with you, love," he answered. "Sirius' been by here a couple of times and he always seems to enjoy what George and I are up to. He's even helped us with a few things."

"Of course he has," Ankaa could not hold the distaste back. "He does everything except stay in the house."

Fred chuckled and stood upright. "Come on, we've gotta let the potion sit for a bit. We're going to be testing it out later tonight."

"There really has to be a better way than to test potions on yourself… That seems a lot more dangerous than the Headless Hats."

Fred turned to her as the two made their way out of the office, giving her a cheeky smile as he lingered in the doorway, staring down at her as she made to pass him.

"It's so adorable when you're worried about me," he cajoled. "But, you don't need to worry. I never said that it was George and I testing the potion out."

Ankaa gave him a sidelong glance as she stepped past him. "Ronald then?"

Fred's face split in a wide grin. "Dear old Ronald has been at the Burrow with Fleur, and as I hear it from Ginny, he's been practicing some Français to impress the woman. If the potion works, he'll impress her and if it doesn't… well, she was out of his league anyway."

"Not to mention she's your brother's fiancée."

Fred shrugged casually, reaching for her hand as he pulled her further up the stairs and to the entrance that led into Fred and George's apartment. "Fleur would never give him the time of day anyway, even if he spoke French. Ginny says she only ever talks about Bill."

Even during the Triwizard Tournament, Ankaa had not spoken to Fleur much, steering clear of the woman and her gaggle of friends. The most lingering memory Ankaa had of the Frenchwoman was the sound of her high-pitched screaming when Harry Potter had appeared at the base of the stands, clutching Ceph's body.

Ankaa shook her head roughly, dispelling the shrill sound of Fleur's scream from her mind. Fred must have recognized the look on her face because he immediately pulled her through the door and into their apartment, putting the kettle on for her.

"Are you allowed to take a break in the middle of a busy workday?"

Fred looked at her over his shoulder as he put down two mugs. "George and Verity can handle things for a little while."

"Not too sure about that," Ankaa muttered. "George seemed too busy flirting with Zara to pay any attention to anyone else."

The redhead laughed loudly before coming to sit on the couch by Ankaa's side. "He's just teasing you. Besides, George's a little too into the muggle girl at the bar by the Burrow."

"Is that so?"

Fred only nodded before cozying up on the couch next to her, leaning his head on her shoulder and wrapping her hand in both of his own. "How have you been?"

Ankaa shrugged her other shoulder, trying her best not to jostle his head. Gingerly, she reached for the copy of the Prophet that was resting on the coffee table in front of them, flipped open to an article from a few days ago.

DISGRACED MALFOY FAMILY LEAVES TRIAL

Narcissa Malfoy (nêe Black) and her son Draco Malfoy left the Ministry following the trial of Lucius Malfoy, a now convinced Death Eater. Lucious Malfoy and eleventh other Death Eaters were captured and arrested following the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, and the week-long trial that followed included several witness testimonies and compelling evidence to indict the Death Eaters to life in Azkaban. Former Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, was included in the trial witnesses as he was among those to arrive on the scene along with the Order of the Phoenix.

Draco Malfoy, a student at Hogwarts, neglected to give a statement to the Prophet following his father's sentencing. Neither member of the disgraced family has elected to comment on the Ministry's decision to imprison—

Fred's hand reached for the parchment and he gently took it from her hands, knowing that she had read the article over and over already.

"I know you're worried for him," he said softly, "but reading it over and over again won't make anything go differently."

"I know," came the reluctant confession, but she could not put Draco entirely out of her mind. Especially since she knew what he must have had to put up with at home. If Ankaa's Christmas at Malfoy Manor was anything to go by, Draco was probably having a worse time than she had.

In an effort to distract her, Fred asked, "How is your practice with the visions coming along?" He could not help but grin when he saw Ankaa's irritated frown.

"Dumbledore gave me some tips." Ankaa cleared her throat before schooling her expression into one the Headmaster wore most often in her presence, her voice sounding like a close approximation of the Headmaster as she said, "Clear your mind and let your thoughts drift away."

"That should be easy for you to do."

Ankaa gave Fred a sidelong glance. "Are you forgetting who you're talking to? One of the brightest witches of her age? I've even got Hermione beat."

"I don't doubt that," Fred smiled, staring intently at her. He shifted in his seat slightly, his gaze flittering between the discarded copy of the Prophet and Ankaa's eyes. He took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak his mind when the shrill whistle of the kettle made the two of them jump apart.

"Sorry," Fred mumbled, turning an uncharacteristic shade of red before jumping up and heading to the kitchen to prepare two mugs of tea.

Ankaa watched him go with narrowed eyes, trying to discern what he might have wanted to say. For a moment, the vision of Fred standing at the marquis of Bill and Fleur's wedding swam to the forefront of her mind, but Ankaa shook it away just as quickly.

You're not there yet, she told herself. Besides, just because she had seen it happen didn't mean that the vision was concrete. Fred and her were just teenagers who had barely begun dating (if they could even call it that, given that they had spent more time arguing and fighting than actually bonding), marriage wasn't an option right now.

Right now?

Ankaa shook the thoughts of her mind, physically shaking her head left to right vigorously as a reminder to dispel the vision. She was lucky Fred had not seen the way her cheeks flushed a light shade of red, or he would waste no time in teasing her and trying to get her to spill.

"Here you are," said the boy as he placed a cup on the coaster. At her amused look, Fred huffed, "All George's doing. He insists on using coasters. I forgot to use one the other day—mind you, I had only rested the bottle on the island for two whole seconds—and he nearly lit my hair on fire. Something about the cup rings really gets to him."

Ankaa laughed softly, taking the cup from the table and nestling it securely within her fingers. "I'm surprised the two of you are surviving, no less thriving, being on your own. How'd your mum take the news?"

Fred gave an easy shrug. "I think seeing the place helped her a bit. Besides, with Bill and Fleur's engagement, she's been more preoccupied with those two than us."

"She's not a fan of Fleur then?"

"Now, what makes you think that?"

Ankaa gave him a deadpan look, which made him laugh boisterously.

"Nah," he snorted into his cup of tea, "I think she's just worried for Bill. I think she's worried Fleur might not be… committed? No, wait that's not the right way to put it." He pursed his lips, brows furrowing in concentration as he tried to string his sentence together. "I think Mum's worried Fleur'll break Bill's heart-they're not exactly in the same league, according to her."

"And do you believe that?" It was easy for Ankaa to ask this, as she had seen Bill and Fleur on their wedding day in the undetermined future. If the present Bill and Fleur were anything like the ones Ankaa had seen in her vision, she was sure they were every bit in love with one another now and then as well.

"Nope," Fred answered solidly. "I don't believe in the league nonsense. I think you like who you like, and no one has the right to tell you otherwise." His eyes flickered in her direction before he shiftily glanced away to the side table.

"Oh wait!" He launched up from the couch, nearly spilling his cup of scalding tea in his rush to get over to the side table. Ankaa took the cup from him and gently placed it on the coaster, her own alongside it, as he brought over a few books and shuffled through a few of them.

"I went to Flourish and Blotts the other day to see if we could find something about that silver egg you found in your dad's study." Fred eagerly flipped to one of the pages he had bookmarked, holding it open to let Ankaa skim the information. "I think it's an Occamy egg. They're incredibly rare around these parts, but when you showed George and I the egg, we knew it was pure silver—don't ask, I've been handling potions ingredients for years, I just know—but anyway, we don't know much else about the Occamy, since they're so reclusive, but look here—" He pointed to a specific section of the text he had marked up.

In recent years, the number of Occamy seen in the wild has dwindled to a few hundred due to excessive hunting. Occamy feathers make for incredibly rare wand cores, rumoured to give their possessor an incredible link to the art of Divination. For this reason, the Occamy were hunted to near extinction near the twelfth century by back-alley wandmakers.

"It was absolutely preposterous," says Garrick Ollivander, whose own family petitioned quite extensively against the illegal hunt for Occamy. "Any Wandmaker worth a galleon knows that Occamy feathers don't take to wand-wood unless they are willingly given."

Despite the insistence of expert wandmakers, the hunt for Occamy continued. Experts argue that this contributed to the evolutionary trait of possessiveness within Occamy populations to guard their silver eggs and protect their young in colonies. Precious little remains known about the Occamy, and the last Occamy colony to be discovered was at the hands of Karina Shafiq, who demanded their location be kept secret and off the books in an effort to protect the last of their kind.

Fred then flipped to another page further down the book. "Look here," he pointed, "Occamy eggs could take years to be ready. It's quite possible your dad found out about this years ago and left this for you in hopes that by the time the egg reached you, it would be ready."

"But that still doesn't make sense," Ankaa frowned, her fingertips glossing over the paragraphs. "If it's so precious and rare, why not hide it in the family vault? And why did he never mention it to me all these years, especially if he wanted me to have it? Not to mention the note that he left with it—Bide your time."

"Maybe it just meant you might have to wait before the egg is ready to hatch."

"Yeah," Ankaa was reluctant to accept that, however. "Besides, even if we know what it is, we have no idea where the last of this colony is, or how long exactly it might take for this to hatch."

Fred deflated slightly, his shoulder drooping as he took the book from her hands and closed it softly. "You're right," he muttered, taking the books and putting them together. "It's not much in terms of useful information, but I thought I could help you. Since you've been busy with Sirius' trial and all—"

Ankaa grasped his hand securely and pulled him closer, pressing a soft kiss against his cheek. "It's perfect," she whispered, "if it wasn't for you, I would've had no idea that it's an Occamy egg. At least we've got a lead now."

"Not a very useful one," Fred pouted, but the way his eyes shone with great mischief, Ankaa could tell he was just pretending to be miffed.

"Still better than nothing."

"If you say so," Fred hummed softly. "Though, I think I would feel loads better if I got a few more kisses." He pointed turned his head the other way, holding out his other cheek so Ankaa could press a kiss to his cheek, and then his temple, and then his nose, before finally taking his face between her hands and planting a kiss, just as soft as the others, against his lips.

She had no idea how she ended up flat on the couch after, or how long it had been since Fred was hovering over her, pressing eager kisses to her lips, but the thundering of footsteps had the two of them splitting apart a mere centimetre as they listened to the sound. In the next second, George and Zara had thrown the door open and rushed inside.

"Sirius—Mum—knows—"

The fireplace in the living room roared to life, and out of the emerald flames stepped Sirius Black, smiling deviously at the two on the couch, as he helped a baffled-looking Mrs. Weasley out of the fireplace. Ankaa blinked at the sight of her father, noticing the irritated tick in his eyebrow when he took in their position, and rushed to push Fred off and stand upright.

Ankaa was aware of Zara snickering at the scene, doing an awful job of keeping it quiet, but the sight of her father's narrowed eyes had pinned Ankaa's feet to the floor, at least twelve feet away from where Fred stood next to his twin, acting as if the two of them had never even met one another, much less been pressed together on the couch mere seconds ago.

"George told me that the two of you were… canoodling."

Fred shot a hateful look to his twin, who shrugged apologetically. "I said it as a joke, I had no idea you two were actually—"

"We weren't doing anything!" Both Fred and Ankaa shouted simultaneously.

"Merlin, this is so embarrassing," Ankaa muttered to herself, trying to will the ground to open up and swallow her whole, spitting her out on the other side of the globe where she could start a new life as an anonymous citizen.

Mrs. Weasley's expression was indecipherable. She did nothing other than offer Ankaa a smile before she turned to Fred and George, who had both frozen at the sight of the smile on her face, their faces now pale as they pointedly ignored their mother's imploring eyes.

"Frederick Gideon Weasley—" oh no, his full name, "What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing?"

Fred mumbled something Ankaa could not hear, but George and Zara snickered at his side, biting their lips to keep the chuckles from slipping out. Once Mrs. Weasley turned her glare onto the two of them, they immediately stood upright and at attention. George might have even saluted.

"Nothing Mum," Fred groaned. "We were just… catching up."

"Is that how you catch up with all your friends?"

Ankaa glanced out the window, trying to see if she might survive the fall if she took a swan dive out of the second floor in an effort to avoid Mrs. Weasley's intense eyes. Sirius, ever the man-child, seemed entirely too amused at the situation; he stood slightly behind Mrs. Weasley, looking between Ankaa and Fred with a gleeful expression as the two of them continued turning various shades of red before Mrs. Weasley.

Mrs. Weasley asked George and Zara to step outside for a moment so that she could talk to the two of them alone. Ankaa watched Zara and George leave with baleful eyes, hoping she could follow along and no one would notice. Mrs. Weasley headed over to Fred's room, gesturing him with a none-too-subtle glare to follow. Fred dared to squeeze Ankaa's hand as he walked past her and into the hallway, gently closing the door to his room so that he could speak to his mother privately.

With a contented sigh, Sirius settled himself into the armchair across the couch before gesturing for Ankaa to sit.

"Is this what you get up to when you leave the house?"

"What exactly are you insinuating? That I go around canoodling—" Ankaa spat the word, the whole cause of this mess, with great distaste, "—any boy I met while I leave the house or that I take any and every opportunity to canoodle with Fred?"

"That's not what I'm saying at all." Sirius held his hands up, noting the defensive tone of her voice. "I just thought you'd be preoccupied with the trial or the thing you found in Henry's library—"

"You think I don't have a life outside of the mess that Mom and Dad left behind for me? That I don't want to do normal teenager things because I'm too worried solving stupid puzzles that I didn't ask to be involved in?"

"That's not what I—"

"—Meant, yes, I got that part. You seem to say a lot of things other than what you mean. I wonder when you'll learn. Frankly, I don't understand why you had do to this at all—don't forget that you and mom were expecting Ceph by the time you were eighteen. All Fred and I are trying to do is spend some time together in between all this nonsense with Old Voldy and his gang."

Sirius' mouth twitched, but his expression was back to being serious. "I didn't think I'd actually catch you two in such a compromising position," he admitted, his hand coming up to scratch at his eyebrow so that he could avoid looking her in the eyes. "I thought I'd have a bit of a laugh at your expense when Molly found out you two were dating."

Ankaa blinked at him, feeling her shoulders droop in exhaustion. "What is your problem? Why can't you act like an adult?"

Sirius bristled at that. "What does that mean? Do you think I'm not adult enough to be your father? That I'm not allowed to be protective over my own daughter? I had every right to bring Molly here and see what you and Fred were doing. Maybe I'm not as laidback as Henry was—"

"Oh, please," Ankas snorted, crossing her arms. "You waste no opportunity to start comparing yourself with dad. Since we're on the topic, yeah, you're right. Henry would've never done this. Do you know why? Because he trusted me."

"I do t—"

"Obviously not if you felt the need to drag Mrs. Weasley here in an effort to stop whatever it is Fred and I were up to. Whether you did it cause you were protective or because you wanted to enjoy yourself at my expense, I'm not sure, but I know that doesn't show that you trust me at all. It's quite the opposite."

"As your father—"

"You can't pick and choose when you want to be my father. Sometimes you act like my father and insert yourself into every aspect of my life or you act like my friend and joke around. And sometimes," Ankaa took a deep breath to steady herself, "you treat me like a stranger because you're too taken by the fact that I'm such a Slytherin."

"THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THAT!" Sirius boomed, "I've never once made you feel lesser than because of your house!"

"Maybe not consciously, but don't think I haven't noticed the way you prefer Potter over me."

"That has nothing to do with you being a Slytherin."

"So you do prefer him over me then?" Sirius didn't answer immediately, but it was enough for Ankaa as she stood and ventured over to the door, wrenching it open and ignoring George and Zara who lingered in the doorway.

Turning to Sirius, who sat stiffly on the armchair still, Ankaa said one last thing, "As much as you might've wanted Potter, unfortunately for you Sirius, you're stuck with me. Let me also save you a bit of trouble and make things clear for you; you're never going to replace my dad, so why don't I make it easy for you and tell you to stop while you're ahead."

With that, she turned and ventured down the staircase, past George and Zara and the patrons at the shop, and into Diagon Alley, where she swiftly turned on the spot and Disapparated.

Notes:

Sirius and Ankaa have reached a very important point in their relationship. I think we all knew this was going to happen soon, with tensions running high between the both of them due to their recent loss. While the two of them are very similar in their emotions, the way they've learned to channel that energy is very different, and this is the way it manifests for both of them.

Here are the replies to your reviews from the last chapter:

Guest: LOL I hope you're back here five minutes after my update to read this one again. I'm really hoping you like it - it won't make you cry, I'm sure. It's kinda sweet, even.

CrackHeadBlonde: I think Kreacher's such an interesting character, so I'm definitely going to be exploring that a little bit more while he's at Hogwarts/in the next book.

19irene96: Ah, poor Harry. I think he's certainly apologetic but he's not really sure how else to show it. Since we know he blames himself, he can't help but get defensive when Ankaa is calling him out on his nonsense, sort of as a mechanism to protect what little sanity he has left. I do believe he's learned his lesson though, cause otherwise Ankaa's gonna throw him off the Astronomy Tower herself lol

As for Sirius - I'm convinced you'll like this chapter! Sirius and Ankaa's argument is entirely based on her belief that he favours Harry over her. I tried to make it as realistic as possible because sometimes kids notice these things and internalize them instead of bringing them up unless it's in a moment of a heated argument or in a swell of emotions.

Guest: Yeah :( That was poor Reggie's grave. Man, Regulus' story really breaks my heart sometimes.

Guest: You've put everything into words so eloquently - it's exactly what I thought of when I wrote this chapter and what I wanted to accomplish with Ankaa and Sirius' familial dynamic. Sometimes parents think kids don't remember or notice the small things, but I truly believe children end up internalizing things like that. Ankaa's not completely over the fact that Harry's been the cause of her entire family's death/disappearance, and the sad fact is that as much as we want Sirius to be there as a father for her, he's neither got the experience as a father to step into the role, nor the right to take Henry's place. It's a tough position to be in, and it puts a lot of strain on their relationship, and as an extension the relationship between Harry and Ankaa. We'll see a lot more of that in the next chapter, so stay tuned! I'd love to hear your insights on that too!

As for Ankaa forgiving Harry - I don't think Ankaa's "forgiven" him in the sense that she's completely okay with what he's done - she's acknowledged that he played a part in it (and how big that part is, he knows it himself), but I think at this point Ankaa also has experienced Death enough to understand that she can't do anything to bring her mother back, so her focus is on restoring her resourced in an effort to find her father.

monkeybaby: Thank you! I hope you liked this chapter too!

Raven that flies at night: Yeah, Kreacher's no the worst but I don't think he's ready to help any of them out anytime soon lol Poor Sirius and Ankaa have a lot of fine-tuning to do before they get to the point of having a nice relationship.

heartshapedbruises: Man... I love when people review about Ceph as they're reading early on in the story lol you also didn't review again, which makes me think that you got to chapter 26 and cried a bit but... I hope you read on loool

Pamela Hutchins: Thank you! I saw that you came back to see if I had updated - I promise you I'm gonna be updating more frequently from now on, so don't worry. come back every Monday for updates lol

Xiumin825: If I could print this review out and frame it, I definitely would. You don't understand how much your words mean to me. Don't worry, I'll definitely finish this story! I promised myself I would, so I definitely will not abandon it.

I think Ankaa definitely considered staying vengeful, but you're right, she's definitely grown a lot. I think her focus is more on saving those she can and cherishing those that are with her. And yes! We'll definitely be seeing more of Draco. hint: he owes Ankaa a favour from their third year... so I'll leave you with that.

babybel: REGULUS INDEED

GUEESTTTT: Thank you so much! Ankaa's definitely on her own journey - she's even going to be going on her own "hunt" in the Deathly Hallows (a lil' hint for the future).

Toastiestmouse: Thank you!

FalloutPlayer1998: Thank you!

marauderspromise: Thank you!

My apologies also for the late update - I had written this story on scrivener (as I am also working on an original novel at the moment), and when I decided to transfer it here as individual chapters and corrupted the files. Hence, I've had to write chapters 54-66 over (roughly till the end of the HBP), and I lost some of my motivation since I just felt it wasn't as good as my first draft.

Thank you to those of you who have reviewed, favourite, and followed the story in my absence. Thank you to Bailieinabottle, Metis Liddell, RedLovesBlack, DozerDog, Ramiell, Nina Hana Winchester, PosionPen19, Mischief Managed1991, AliasGrace625, Zimtzicke23, Melody1818, MissDawsonHadleyRivers, heartshapedbruises, Pamela Hutchins, beigarciaaa, chattyxx, Milikika, SymmetricalGirl8DeathTheKid, Depressive, Amy Brown1, mbates12, FalloutPlayer1998, GirlMachinist, myhistoryisinfinite, Lauralatns, Makaila Horinek, Redfrog5, Lalyh17, SuzieQ267, suga1993, NamikazeMia, Annandi, FandomGirl2000, Nulip2001, Edward Cullen's Girl, geek84, Madhatter6991, Lhama00, laylacqua, erica126, Candycanelover98, Adrestowa, Xiumin825, emolilchild, Darkmoondancing, kesiacristina39, Lionluck, CaityJoy, Serienqueen2004, and trollaar!

Please review and let me know what you thought of this chapter, it'll really help me keep going! As always, you're welcome to speak to me on Tumblr if you want to ask for updates or have discussions about scenes.

- E

P.S: Largely unedited draft :) Updates every Monday now that I've managed to recover my documents and outlines :)