Chapter 14: The Plan
Classes didn't start for another day, arriving on Saturday had its advantages. Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny spent the day visiting with the people they had missed over the summer. They had spent the morning with Hagrid, and they were headed back to the castle to have lunch and spend the afternoon with Sirius and Remus.
As they sat down at the Gryffindor table, Professor McGonagall came up behind Harry. "Mr. Potter, Miss. Weasley, the Headmaster would like to see you in his office directly after lunch," she told them. She turned toward the staff table and continued forward, stopping occasionally to speak to other students.
"Harry, what was that all about?" Ron asked.
Harry shrugged his shoulders, "He said that he had a plan to protect Ginny and I, maybe he's going to have to find something else. We'll know after lunch." He and Ginny ate their lunches quickly and headed for Dumbledore's office.
Remus and Sirius were waiting for them at the bottom of the spiral staircase. They stood on the stairs and waited for them to reach the top. Remus and Sirius led them into the Headmaster's office. Dumbledore looked p, his blue eyes twinkling, "Sirius, if you would be so kind as to go back to the bottom of the steps and escort Mr. Weasley and Miss. Granger up here. It will save Harry and Virginia from having to repeat what is said," he said with a smile.
Once Sirius had returned with Ron and Hermione, Dumbledore waved his wand at the door. "Now that we will not be disturbed or overheard, I will tell you what we are going to do to protect the two of you," he motioned to Harry and Ginny. He nodded his head toward Sirius. Sirius walked over to the fireplace and threw in some floo powder, "The burrow!" he shouted and stuck his head into the green flames. The room waited in silence until he pulled his head free, "They'll be here in just a few." He stepped away from the fireplace just as the flames turned green again, and out stepped Molly Weasley, quickly followed by her husband.
"Molly, Arthur, please have a seat," Dumbledore told them, he conjured up two more chairs and began to speak. "As we all know, after the attack in Diagon Alley, Voldemort has decided to use Miss. Weasley to get to Harry. I do not want to leave these two students in danger, so I have come up with a plan to keep them safely out of his reach until the end of the school year. While they are away, I will be improving on the wards and protections at the burrow so that it will be safe for them during the summer, and improving the wards at Hogwarts to make it safe for them next year," he paused and looked over at Mr. and Mrs.Weasley. "Arthur, Molly, I will need your help with this. I am intending to send Harry and Virginia back to Sirius and Remus' sixth year,"
Mrs.Weasley looked shocked, "But Albus, You-know-who is in that time too, how will that keep them safe?" she asked.
"The Voldemort of that time is not searching for them, and I have discussed it at length with Sirius and Remus, and my younger self. I have created a porthole in time for contact with where I will be sending them. My younger self has called Remus, Sirius and James and asked them if they would be willing to help protect someone from their future. They have not been told who they are, or their importance, but they have willingly agreed to keep them safe from Halloween until the end of the year," he said. "I want to keep them together, so I have arranged for Miss. Weasley to sit for her O.W.L.S. It will be much easier for the three Marauders to keep them in site if they are in the same year." He looked over at Hermione, "Miss. Granger, will you assist Miss. Weasley in preparing for the O.W.L.S.?" he asked.
"Of course Professor," Hermione answered.
"Thank you, Miss. Granger," he looked around the room. "I have also arranged for small trunks, big enough for one of your wonderful Weasley sweaters, Molly, to carry all messages from our two travelers to the people in this room. "This must be kept secret, no one is to know where they are. I have informed my younger self to remind Remus, Sirius and James to not let Peter in on the secret. To him they will just be students that were transferred from another school. Here the story will be that they have gone into hiding, my brother Aberforth will be traveling with a two people for the rest of the year, so every now and then, there will be a sighting of the two of you with my brother. We will be needing some hair from both of you," he said.
"Are you sure that this is the only way, Albus?" Arthur asked.
Dumbledore sighed, "I wish that I could keep them here, but we do not want to risk either of their lives. They are too important."
***********************************
After Molly and Arthur had left, Dumbledore looked at the two teens that would be going back to the past. "I will need you both to be prepared for anything," he said. "Please expand the inside of your trunks to be sure that you have enough room for the packages that Fred and George will be sending you, it's more stupefy stickies, and items like that. Harry I will also need for you to give me your Gringotts key, I must go to get you enough money so that you will have enough funds for the year."
Harry looked over at Ron and Ginny, "Take enough out for both of us, it's my fault that we have to do this, so I'll pay for everything," he told the headmaster. "And no arguments from either of you, I have enough money to do this, and I don't want to hear anything about it." They stayed for another half and hour, discussing delivery of the small trunks and the items from Fred and George. Harry allowed Ron, Hermione and Ginny to leave the room before he stood up. "Professor Dumbledore, couldn't this change our time? I mean us going back and knowing what goes wrong, couldn't it change things?" he asked.
"It is quite possible that some things will change, Harry. But it is a chance that we must take for the safety of both of you," he answered. Harry turned and left the office.
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Professor Dumbledore was sitting in his office, alone except for the large Phoenix sitting on a perch behind his desk. He walked over to one of the shelves, pulled down a small sphere, and returned to his seat. He tapped the sphere with his wand and a smoky figure emerged. It began to speak:
In his sixth year, the Phoenix will endanger the Unicorn just by knowing her. For protection they must return to the way things were, changing the way that things have become. The Unicorn will be the center of the storm, and the Phoenix will find his love for her. Together they will defeat the darkness, bringing light to all. Together they will change what is wrong, and make peace. The Phoenix and the Unicorn will be forever bound, merging their lives.
He returned the sphere to the shelf and debated the other on the shelf, then walked out of the office.
Classes didn't start for another day, arriving on Saturday had its advantages. Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny spent the day visiting with the people they had missed over the summer. They had spent the morning with Hagrid, and they were headed back to the castle to have lunch and spend the afternoon with Sirius and Remus.
As they sat down at the Gryffindor table, Professor McGonagall came up behind Harry. "Mr. Potter, Miss. Weasley, the Headmaster would like to see you in his office directly after lunch," she told them. She turned toward the staff table and continued forward, stopping occasionally to speak to other students.
"Harry, what was that all about?" Ron asked.
Harry shrugged his shoulders, "He said that he had a plan to protect Ginny and I, maybe he's going to have to find something else. We'll know after lunch." He and Ginny ate their lunches quickly and headed for Dumbledore's office.
Remus and Sirius were waiting for them at the bottom of the spiral staircase. They stood on the stairs and waited for them to reach the top. Remus and Sirius led them into the Headmaster's office. Dumbledore looked p, his blue eyes twinkling, "Sirius, if you would be so kind as to go back to the bottom of the steps and escort Mr. Weasley and Miss. Granger up here. It will save Harry and Virginia from having to repeat what is said," he said with a smile.
Once Sirius had returned with Ron and Hermione, Dumbledore waved his wand at the door. "Now that we will not be disturbed or overheard, I will tell you what we are going to do to protect the two of you," he motioned to Harry and Ginny. He nodded his head toward Sirius. Sirius walked over to the fireplace and threw in some floo powder, "The burrow!" he shouted and stuck his head into the green flames. The room waited in silence until he pulled his head free, "They'll be here in just a few." He stepped away from the fireplace just as the flames turned green again, and out stepped Molly Weasley, quickly followed by her husband.
"Molly, Arthur, please have a seat," Dumbledore told them, he conjured up two more chairs and began to speak. "As we all know, after the attack in Diagon Alley, Voldemort has decided to use Miss. Weasley to get to Harry. I do not want to leave these two students in danger, so I have come up with a plan to keep them safely out of his reach until the end of the school year. While they are away, I will be improving on the wards and protections at the burrow so that it will be safe for them during the summer, and improving the wards at Hogwarts to make it safe for them next year," he paused and looked over at Mr. and Mrs.Weasley. "Arthur, Molly, I will need your help with this. I am intending to send Harry and Virginia back to Sirius and Remus' sixth year,"
Mrs.Weasley looked shocked, "But Albus, You-know-who is in that time too, how will that keep them safe?" she asked.
"The Voldemort of that time is not searching for them, and I have discussed it at length with Sirius and Remus, and my younger self. I have created a porthole in time for contact with where I will be sending them. My younger self has called Remus, Sirius and James and asked them if they would be willing to help protect someone from their future. They have not been told who they are, or their importance, but they have willingly agreed to keep them safe from Halloween until the end of the year," he said. "I want to keep them together, so I have arranged for Miss. Weasley to sit for her O.W.L.S. It will be much easier for the three Marauders to keep them in site if they are in the same year." He looked over at Hermione, "Miss. Granger, will you assist Miss. Weasley in preparing for the O.W.L.S.?" he asked.
"Of course Professor," Hermione answered.
"Thank you, Miss. Granger," he looked around the room. "I have also arranged for small trunks, big enough for one of your wonderful Weasley sweaters, Molly, to carry all messages from our two travelers to the people in this room. "This must be kept secret, no one is to know where they are. I have informed my younger self to remind Remus, Sirius and James to not let Peter in on the secret. To him they will just be students that were transferred from another school. Here the story will be that they have gone into hiding, my brother Aberforth will be traveling with a two people for the rest of the year, so every now and then, there will be a sighting of the two of you with my brother. We will be needing some hair from both of you," he said.
"Are you sure that this is the only way, Albus?" Arthur asked.
Dumbledore sighed, "I wish that I could keep them here, but we do not want to risk either of their lives. They are too important."
***********************************
After Molly and Arthur had left, Dumbledore looked at the two teens that would be going back to the past. "I will need you both to be prepared for anything," he said. "Please expand the inside of your trunks to be sure that you have enough room for the packages that Fred and George will be sending you, it's more stupefy stickies, and items like that. Harry I will also need for you to give me your Gringotts key, I must go to get you enough money so that you will have enough funds for the year."
Harry looked over at Ron and Ginny, "Take enough out for both of us, it's my fault that we have to do this, so I'll pay for everything," he told the headmaster. "And no arguments from either of you, I have enough money to do this, and I don't want to hear anything about it." They stayed for another half and hour, discussing delivery of the small trunks and the items from Fred and George. Harry allowed Ron, Hermione and Ginny to leave the room before he stood up. "Professor Dumbledore, couldn't this change our time? I mean us going back and knowing what goes wrong, couldn't it change things?" he asked.
"It is quite possible that some things will change, Harry. But it is a chance that we must take for the safety of both of you," he answered. Harry turned and left the office.
********************************
Professor Dumbledore was sitting in his office, alone except for the large Phoenix sitting on a perch behind his desk. He walked over to one of the shelves, pulled down a small sphere, and returned to his seat. He tapped the sphere with his wand and a smoky figure emerged. It began to speak:
In his sixth year, the Phoenix will endanger the Unicorn just by knowing her. For protection they must return to the way things were, changing the way that things have become. The Unicorn will be the center of the storm, and the Phoenix will find his love for her. Together they will defeat the darkness, bringing light to all. Together they will change what is wrong, and make peace. The Phoenix and the Unicorn will be forever bound, merging their lives.
He returned the sphere to the shelf and debated the other on the shelf, then walked out of the office.