A/N: I own nothing, JKR owns the characters and everything else but the
idea - so there.
A/N: Tell me your thoughts --- share with me. Back to the stupid workweek. Oh well.
A/N: Come one - I know you want to tell me what you're hoping will happen.
CH25 Puzzle Pieces
WHOMP
Harry knocked the werewolf off his feet just as the werewolf was coming down on top of his evening meal. Somehow Harry instinctively knew that he could defeat Lupin but he didn't like having Hermione this close to a werewolf. In an instant he decided on a course of action.
He got off Lupin and ran halfway to the Weasleys. He needed to get them and Hermione to safety but he couldn't take the chance that Lupin would run off in some other direction and attack someone else. Harry waited there hoping Lupin would follow. Apparently deciding that he had a better chance at getting prey elsewhere, the werewolf started to run in the other direction. Harry needed to think quickly.
"Hermione, conjure some raw meat over here. I need him to keep him close and near."
Hermione knew there weren't time for explanations and she knew Harry well enough to trust him, even if he was trying to keep the werewolf closer to them. She conjured the raw meat. At first it didn't get Lupin's attention but then Hermione sent it flying at him. She knew he could tell what it was because after it smacked him in the snout, she summoned the meat back towards them and he followed it back. Harry didn't move yet, he wanted to be sure that Lupin was going to come after them instead of running away. He was.
Harry ran with lightning speed toward the Weasleys who were just watching the bizarre yet scary ordeal unfold. He looked back once or twice to ensure that he was being followed by the werewolf. His plan was to see the Weasleys safely to their front door but that's not exactly what happened. When he was only a couple of feet from them, his instinct took over and he leapt at them.
Actually, he leapt over them. When he was in mid-jump, he barely had time to register the fact that his wings were flapping before he grabbed Mr and Mrs Weasley --- one was in the front left paw and the other in the front right.
"EEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKKKK!" Mrs Weasley was screaming and screaming and besides wishing it would stop, Harry was also thinking that her howlers didn't quite do her justice.
"Lily???" Was the first thing Mr Weasley asked. That question was closely followed by, "Hermione? What's going on here? Is this creature going to kill us or save us or save us now so it can kill us later?"
She couldn't really blame either adult for their reaction but she was trying to concentrate on keeping Lupin in sight. "Please, we'll explain later. Don't worry."
"Don't worry? DON'T WORRY???" Mrs Weasley had stopped screaming long enough to take issue with the fact that a fifteen year old was telling her not to worry that a creature sporting a dead woman's face had scooped them up and was flying off with them after they had been chased by a werewolf.
Harry, who knew that they weren't in very much danger, couldn't help but to laugh to himself. He smiled at Mrs Weasley but this seemed to unnerve her ever worse, if that was possible. Harry supposed she thought that he was going to eat them like the werewolf would have. He made a mental note to look at himself smiling in this form. The way Mrs Weasley was looking he thought that he might have bared his teeth at her.
He set them down in front of their front door. He turned to Hermione, "I hope you enjoyed the ride. I need all three of you to stay inside." Hermione got off and Harry ran back to face Lupin. Harry felt the danger was over. Hid friends were safely inside now and all Harry had to do was keep Lupin from eating anyone until the morning.
Hermione was wishing she could have stayed with Harry. She knew that he would have an easier time without her on his back --- literally. However she was very unsure what to say to the Weasleys. She didn't want to start talking to them without Harry. She certainly didn't want to tell them about Ron. And actually, she reasoned to herself, Professor McGonagall could have found him by now and there was point in worrying them for no reason. She needed to keep them from asking her questions.
Hermione decided to see if the Weasleys could help her get Lupin back to Hogsmeade so she and Harry could both talk to them. Even though Dumbledore never mentioned it specifically, she was sure that they were meant to somehow get him back to the shrieking shack. She went in to ask both the adults for their help.
"That was Harry???" Both the Weasleys asked at the same time. They had the same reaction when she told them who it was that almost killed them.
"That was Lupin???" They both said again. Hermione wanted their help getting back to Hogsmeade. She knew the exact place where Lupin should hole up for the duration of this moon phase. She was trying to explain this to the two adults when Mrs Weasley suddenly exclaimed, "Where's Ron?"
"Er --- well --- about that --- I'm not exactly sure." She answered truthfully.
"What do you mean that you don't know? You three are practically inseparable. Where did you --- ?"
"Please Mrs Weasley. The quicker we get Lupin to Hogsmeade, the quicker we can answer all of your questions. Harry has to be tired and if he accidentally transforms back, Lupin will kill him."
"She's right Molly. I'll transform and take Lupin back. We'll go straight inside the shrieking shack. You get her and Harry back to the outside of the shack and I'll meet you there."
"All right. Arthur, be careful." Hermione watched Mr Weasley transform into an owl and fly out of the house leaving the two ladies alone.
"Let's at least go outside dear. As soon as we see Arthur and Lupin disappear, I'll apparate the two of us to Harry and then I'll apparate the three of us outside the shack to meet Arthur." The two of them walked towards the three animals. They were keeping more than a safe distance away but they wanted to be able to tell for sure when the werewolf was gone.
It wasn't long before they saw the owl and the werewolf disappear. Mrs Weasley took Hermione by the hand and apparated over to Harry. POP "Harry, is that really you dear?" When the beautiful creature nodded its head, she continued. "Arthur took Lupin to the shrieking shack. We're going to meet him right outside of it." She reached out to touch Harry's torso and then apparated the three of them to Hogsmeade.
POP
They didn't have to wait long for Mr Weasley to join them. "All right, he's safe for the duration of the full moon. Now, would you two care to tell us what's going on?"
Harry tried to speak but he couldn't. He decided to go ahead and transform back into his usual form. Although he was able to transform back without much delay or difficulty, he found that once he was back to normal, he was exhausted. Judging from the looks on the three faces staring back at him, he must have shown his exhaustion.
"Harry, my goodness, dear are you feeling all right?"
"Yes. I'm fine. I'm just tired. We need to find Dumbledore and McGonagall and find out what's going on."
"Harry's right." Hermione agreed. "We need to pass by the two parks on the way back to the school. We have to find all the players and get the whole story."
"Molly, I don't really want to leave these two but at least one of us needs to meet the Hogwart Express. It should be pulling in any time now unless it's already there."
"Arthur, we can't be away that long. Not when so much is going on here. First the owl post says Ron is staying behind and now these two are saying they don't know where he is. Apparate to Percy's office and make him take them home. And make him stay with them until we get back."
"I'd rather we all stayed together but I guess you're right. I'll meet you all at the park closest to the school in five minutes."
POP
Harry and Hermione both knew that the Weasleys must be going crazy about Ron but they honestly didn't know what to tell them. Although neither of them really wanted to tell the story, either would have if they were sure that they would be telling the truth but it had been hours since they had seen Ron and McGonagall and honestly didn't know where he was. Not telling them anything would be better than telling them the truth which might worry them to death for no reason. For all they knew, Ron was safe and sound eating a pumpkin pasty back at school. Just by exchanging a glance, they both agreed to say as little as possible to the Weasleys.
Just like he said, Mr Weasley met them at the park. He found Percy without any trouble at all; he was in his office where, according to the twins, he practically lived. They found Hagrid in the park but no one else.
"Hey Hagrid. What are you doing here?"
"Well Harry, Dumbledore told me to wait for you here after I got all the students onto the train. He told me you might --- er --- need a little help with something. He said for me to get you safely to the shrieking shack with --- er --- your guest and then safely back to the school. I don't mind telling you though that I've been waiting quite a long time. I was starting to get a bit worried."
Mr Weasley quickly broke into the silence when Hagrid was done. "Well, let's all get going. I'm anxious to get everyone back to the school and find out a little more of what's happening. Besides, Harry and Hermione look like they could do with some food. And so could I for that matter."
"Arthur! How can you think of eating at a time like this? Honestly!"
"Molly dear; be reasonable. Just because I'm hungry doesn't mean that I'm not concerned. You know that I am. I'm just saying that I wouldn't mind discussing current events over an apple pasty."
"Arthur Weasley! You will not! You know the medi-wizard said that you need to lose at least --- "
"All right Molly."
And with that little exchange the conversation ended. Mrs Weasley was thinking about Ron and back to their second year when Ginny had gone missing. Everyone else was thinking about how they didn't want to be the one to set off Mrs Weasley next.
Harry was relieved to get back to Hogwarts. He was however surprised to find someone guarding the door.
"Poppy. What are you doing here?" Mr Weasley asked of the witch who seldom left the hospital wing.
"Arthur, it's been quite a night here. Dumbledore wanted someone to stand here and direct traffic. Seeing the shape that some people seem to be in tonight, I thought that I should be the one to stand here so I could screen everyone for injuries." She stopped talking long enough to size up the group. She finally seemed satisfied that they didn't require any immediate attention. "These two are to go to the Great Hall and you all should probably go with them."
Harry groaned audibly. "What's a matter?" Hermione whispered at him. She knew that it could one of many things that was troubling him.
"Nothing." He didn't like Madame Pomfrey feeling like she needed to screen everyone for injuries. All he could think about was what else could have happened tonight that made her think that. He was anxious to find Sirius.
They proceeded to the Great Hall quickly, and in silence. When they got there they saw that the tables had been rearranged. There were four tables, about one half the size they normally were, arranged into a square so everyone could see everyone else. In the middle of the tables was something Harry had never seen before.
He saw Sirius and Dumbledore and Dobby and "RON!" The newly arrived group from Hogsmeade ran over to Ron and embraced him tightly.
"GEROFF ME! I CAN'T BREATHE! GEROFF! MUM!" Ron was shouting. Mrs Weasley was crying. Mr Weasley, Hermione and Harry were all laughing. Ron was having questions pelted at him quicker that he could say "geroff". Eventually, Dumbledore came over to rescue Ron.
"I need everyone to take a seat please." Dumbledore announced to the growing crowd. Hagrid, Sirius, Harry, Dobby, Ron, Mr Weasley and Mrs Weasley took up almost one entire table. (Of course Hagrid took up more than one person's space.)
Somehow the seating arrangements worked out that one table remained completely empty. The other two tables were mostly taken up with Hogwarts professors.
"Sirius, what's that thing in the middle of the tables?" Harry asked.
"Harry, that's a portable interrogation kit. They were quite common back in the day. The suspect sits on the stool while he's answering questions. That gadget over there will record everything he says and does while he's in that area marked on the floor. That area also has special charms that prevent the person from apparating. You'll notice that when they're brought in or out at least two wizards will be touching him so if someone tries to break them out, the ministry wizards will go with them. Well they can't do that when he's being questioned so they charm the area. The stool is charmed so that the person can't get up unless he's helped out of it. Barty Crouch invented the portable kit. I hate to admit it but it's really very effective and much more practical than always going back to the ministry offices."
Dumbledore took a seat in the middle of one of the tables next to Harry's. "If I can have everyone's attention please." He paused until everyone quieted down and looked to the headmaster to continue.
"The fight against Voldemort is reaching its height, I think. Things have been happening all year but tonight showed that he is ready to make his move and many of his followers seem to be preparing to overtly support him. Tonight several things have happened and I do believe that it's time that all of us fighting on the same side share our information with each other."
"Here Here." Harry heard Mrs Weasley say from several seats away. Dumbledore glanced at her as he continued. "Before we go any further though, I think there is one individual that we must all here testimony from first."
Dumbledore nodded to Madame Pomfrey who was now standing over by the entrance to the Great Hall. She nodded back to him and left the room with every eye in the hall watching her go. Everyone was anxious to find out what she went to go do. Almost everyone was holding their breath as the doors opened again. She returned less than a minute later with four ministry security wizards. Harry couldn't believe who was standing in the middle of them.
A/N: So, what does everybody think? It's hard to keep writing w/o faithful reviewers like Moonlight encouraging you on. Heather, Kathleen and Alamarang have been good too - thanks everyone!
A/N: Tell me your thoughts --- share with me. Back to the stupid workweek. Oh well.
A/N: Come one - I know you want to tell me what you're hoping will happen.
CH25 Puzzle Pieces
WHOMP
Harry knocked the werewolf off his feet just as the werewolf was coming down on top of his evening meal. Somehow Harry instinctively knew that he could defeat Lupin but he didn't like having Hermione this close to a werewolf. In an instant he decided on a course of action.
He got off Lupin and ran halfway to the Weasleys. He needed to get them and Hermione to safety but he couldn't take the chance that Lupin would run off in some other direction and attack someone else. Harry waited there hoping Lupin would follow. Apparently deciding that he had a better chance at getting prey elsewhere, the werewolf started to run in the other direction. Harry needed to think quickly.
"Hermione, conjure some raw meat over here. I need him to keep him close and near."
Hermione knew there weren't time for explanations and she knew Harry well enough to trust him, even if he was trying to keep the werewolf closer to them. She conjured the raw meat. At first it didn't get Lupin's attention but then Hermione sent it flying at him. She knew he could tell what it was because after it smacked him in the snout, she summoned the meat back towards them and he followed it back. Harry didn't move yet, he wanted to be sure that Lupin was going to come after them instead of running away. He was.
Harry ran with lightning speed toward the Weasleys who were just watching the bizarre yet scary ordeal unfold. He looked back once or twice to ensure that he was being followed by the werewolf. His plan was to see the Weasleys safely to their front door but that's not exactly what happened. When he was only a couple of feet from them, his instinct took over and he leapt at them.
Actually, he leapt over them. When he was in mid-jump, he barely had time to register the fact that his wings were flapping before he grabbed Mr and Mrs Weasley --- one was in the front left paw and the other in the front right.
"EEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKKKK!" Mrs Weasley was screaming and screaming and besides wishing it would stop, Harry was also thinking that her howlers didn't quite do her justice.
"Lily???" Was the first thing Mr Weasley asked. That question was closely followed by, "Hermione? What's going on here? Is this creature going to kill us or save us or save us now so it can kill us later?"
She couldn't really blame either adult for their reaction but she was trying to concentrate on keeping Lupin in sight. "Please, we'll explain later. Don't worry."
"Don't worry? DON'T WORRY???" Mrs Weasley had stopped screaming long enough to take issue with the fact that a fifteen year old was telling her not to worry that a creature sporting a dead woman's face had scooped them up and was flying off with them after they had been chased by a werewolf.
Harry, who knew that they weren't in very much danger, couldn't help but to laugh to himself. He smiled at Mrs Weasley but this seemed to unnerve her ever worse, if that was possible. Harry supposed she thought that he was going to eat them like the werewolf would have. He made a mental note to look at himself smiling in this form. The way Mrs Weasley was looking he thought that he might have bared his teeth at her.
He set them down in front of their front door. He turned to Hermione, "I hope you enjoyed the ride. I need all three of you to stay inside." Hermione got off and Harry ran back to face Lupin. Harry felt the danger was over. Hid friends were safely inside now and all Harry had to do was keep Lupin from eating anyone until the morning.
Hermione was wishing she could have stayed with Harry. She knew that he would have an easier time without her on his back --- literally. However she was very unsure what to say to the Weasleys. She didn't want to start talking to them without Harry. She certainly didn't want to tell them about Ron. And actually, she reasoned to herself, Professor McGonagall could have found him by now and there was point in worrying them for no reason. She needed to keep them from asking her questions.
Hermione decided to see if the Weasleys could help her get Lupin back to Hogsmeade so she and Harry could both talk to them. Even though Dumbledore never mentioned it specifically, she was sure that they were meant to somehow get him back to the shrieking shack. She went in to ask both the adults for their help.
"That was Harry???" Both the Weasleys asked at the same time. They had the same reaction when she told them who it was that almost killed them.
"That was Lupin???" They both said again. Hermione wanted their help getting back to Hogsmeade. She knew the exact place where Lupin should hole up for the duration of this moon phase. She was trying to explain this to the two adults when Mrs Weasley suddenly exclaimed, "Where's Ron?"
"Er --- well --- about that --- I'm not exactly sure." She answered truthfully.
"What do you mean that you don't know? You three are practically inseparable. Where did you --- ?"
"Please Mrs Weasley. The quicker we get Lupin to Hogsmeade, the quicker we can answer all of your questions. Harry has to be tired and if he accidentally transforms back, Lupin will kill him."
"She's right Molly. I'll transform and take Lupin back. We'll go straight inside the shrieking shack. You get her and Harry back to the outside of the shack and I'll meet you there."
"All right. Arthur, be careful." Hermione watched Mr Weasley transform into an owl and fly out of the house leaving the two ladies alone.
"Let's at least go outside dear. As soon as we see Arthur and Lupin disappear, I'll apparate the two of us to Harry and then I'll apparate the three of us outside the shack to meet Arthur." The two of them walked towards the three animals. They were keeping more than a safe distance away but they wanted to be able to tell for sure when the werewolf was gone.
It wasn't long before they saw the owl and the werewolf disappear. Mrs Weasley took Hermione by the hand and apparated over to Harry. POP "Harry, is that really you dear?" When the beautiful creature nodded its head, she continued. "Arthur took Lupin to the shrieking shack. We're going to meet him right outside of it." She reached out to touch Harry's torso and then apparated the three of them to Hogsmeade.
POP
They didn't have to wait long for Mr Weasley to join them. "All right, he's safe for the duration of the full moon. Now, would you two care to tell us what's going on?"
Harry tried to speak but he couldn't. He decided to go ahead and transform back into his usual form. Although he was able to transform back without much delay or difficulty, he found that once he was back to normal, he was exhausted. Judging from the looks on the three faces staring back at him, he must have shown his exhaustion.
"Harry, my goodness, dear are you feeling all right?"
"Yes. I'm fine. I'm just tired. We need to find Dumbledore and McGonagall and find out what's going on."
"Harry's right." Hermione agreed. "We need to pass by the two parks on the way back to the school. We have to find all the players and get the whole story."
"Molly, I don't really want to leave these two but at least one of us needs to meet the Hogwart Express. It should be pulling in any time now unless it's already there."
"Arthur, we can't be away that long. Not when so much is going on here. First the owl post says Ron is staying behind and now these two are saying they don't know where he is. Apparate to Percy's office and make him take them home. And make him stay with them until we get back."
"I'd rather we all stayed together but I guess you're right. I'll meet you all at the park closest to the school in five minutes."
POP
Harry and Hermione both knew that the Weasleys must be going crazy about Ron but they honestly didn't know what to tell them. Although neither of them really wanted to tell the story, either would have if they were sure that they would be telling the truth but it had been hours since they had seen Ron and McGonagall and honestly didn't know where he was. Not telling them anything would be better than telling them the truth which might worry them to death for no reason. For all they knew, Ron was safe and sound eating a pumpkin pasty back at school. Just by exchanging a glance, they both agreed to say as little as possible to the Weasleys.
Just like he said, Mr Weasley met them at the park. He found Percy without any trouble at all; he was in his office where, according to the twins, he practically lived. They found Hagrid in the park but no one else.
"Hey Hagrid. What are you doing here?"
"Well Harry, Dumbledore told me to wait for you here after I got all the students onto the train. He told me you might --- er --- need a little help with something. He said for me to get you safely to the shrieking shack with --- er --- your guest and then safely back to the school. I don't mind telling you though that I've been waiting quite a long time. I was starting to get a bit worried."
Mr Weasley quickly broke into the silence when Hagrid was done. "Well, let's all get going. I'm anxious to get everyone back to the school and find out a little more of what's happening. Besides, Harry and Hermione look like they could do with some food. And so could I for that matter."
"Arthur! How can you think of eating at a time like this? Honestly!"
"Molly dear; be reasonable. Just because I'm hungry doesn't mean that I'm not concerned. You know that I am. I'm just saying that I wouldn't mind discussing current events over an apple pasty."
"Arthur Weasley! You will not! You know the medi-wizard said that you need to lose at least --- "
"All right Molly."
And with that little exchange the conversation ended. Mrs Weasley was thinking about Ron and back to their second year when Ginny had gone missing. Everyone else was thinking about how they didn't want to be the one to set off Mrs Weasley next.
Harry was relieved to get back to Hogwarts. He was however surprised to find someone guarding the door.
"Poppy. What are you doing here?" Mr Weasley asked of the witch who seldom left the hospital wing.
"Arthur, it's been quite a night here. Dumbledore wanted someone to stand here and direct traffic. Seeing the shape that some people seem to be in tonight, I thought that I should be the one to stand here so I could screen everyone for injuries." She stopped talking long enough to size up the group. She finally seemed satisfied that they didn't require any immediate attention. "These two are to go to the Great Hall and you all should probably go with them."
Harry groaned audibly. "What's a matter?" Hermione whispered at him. She knew that it could one of many things that was troubling him.
"Nothing." He didn't like Madame Pomfrey feeling like she needed to screen everyone for injuries. All he could think about was what else could have happened tonight that made her think that. He was anxious to find Sirius.
They proceeded to the Great Hall quickly, and in silence. When they got there they saw that the tables had been rearranged. There were four tables, about one half the size they normally were, arranged into a square so everyone could see everyone else. In the middle of the tables was something Harry had never seen before.
He saw Sirius and Dumbledore and Dobby and "RON!" The newly arrived group from Hogsmeade ran over to Ron and embraced him tightly.
"GEROFF ME! I CAN'T BREATHE! GEROFF! MUM!" Ron was shouting. Mrs Weasley was crying. Mr Weasley, Hermione and Harry were all laughing. Ron was having questions pelted at him quicker that he could say "geroff". Eventually, Dumbledore came over to rescue Ron.
"I need everyone to take a seat please." Dumbledore announced to the growing crowd. Hagrid, Sirius, Harry, Dobby, Ron, Mr Weasley and Mrs Weasley took up almost one entire table. (Of course Hagrid took up more than one person's space.)
Somehow the seating arrangements worked out that one table remained completely empty. The other two tables were mostly taken up with Hogwarts professors.
"Sirius, what's that thing in the middle of the tables?" Harry asked.
"Harry, that's a portable interrogation kit. They were quite common back in the day. The suspect sits on the stool while he's answering questions. That gadget over there will record everything he says and does while he's in that area marked on the floor. That area also has special charms that prevent the person from apparating. You'll notice that when they're brought in or out at least two wizards will be touching him so if someone tries to break them out, the ministry wizards will go with them. Well they can't do that when he's being questioned so they charm the area. The stool is charmed so that the person can't get up unless he's helped out of it. Barty Crouch invented the portable kit. I hate to admit it but it's really very effective and much more practical than always going back to the ministry offices."
Dumbledore took a seat in the middle of one of the tables next to Harry's. "If I can have everyone's attention please." He paused until everyone quieted down and looked to the headmaster to continue.
"The fight against Voldemort is reaching its height, I think. Things have been happening all year but tonight showed that he is ready to make his move and many of his followers seem to be preparing to overtly support him. Tonight several things have happened and I do believe that it's time that all of us fighting on the same side share our information with each other."
"Here Here." Harry heard Mrs Weasley say from several seats away. Dumbledore glanced at her as he continued. "Before we go any further though, I think there is one individual that we must all here testimony from first."
Dumbledore nodded to Madame Pomfrey who was now standing over by the entrance to the Great Hall. She nodded back to him and left the room with every eye in the hall watching her go. Everyone was anxious to find out what she went to go do. Almost everyone was holding their breath as the doors opened again. She returned less than a minute later with four ministry security wizards. Harry couldn't believe who was standing in the middle of them.
A/N: So, what does everybody think? It's hard to keep writing w/o faithful reviewers like Moonlight encouraging you on. Heather, Kathleen and Alamarang have been good too - thanks everyone!