Posted: November 11, 2004

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Harry Potter and am not using this story for financial gain.

The Bonded

Chapter Six

"It's this sweetshop," said Ron, a dreamy look coming over his face, "where they've got everything – Pepper Imps – they make you smoke at the mouth – and great fat Chocoballs full of strawberry mousse and clotted cream, and really excellent sugar quills, which you can suck in class and just look like you're thinking what to write next –"

"But Hogsmeade's a very interesting place, isn't it?" Hermione pressed on eagerly. "In Sites of Historical Sorcery it says the inn was the headquarters for the 1612 goblin rebellion, and the Shrieking Shack's supposed to be the most severely haunted building in Britain –"

"– and massive sherbet balls that make you levitate a few inches off the ground while you're sucking them," said Ron, who was plainly not listening to a word Hermione was saying, much to her distress.

Harry smiled at his friends' antics. Ginny said that it was because they were starting to like one another and didn't know how to handle it but Harry had his doubts. The way those two fought and argued over the simplest things made Harry think that any type of a relationship between the two of them would lead to certain disaster. Even as simple friends they needed Harry there to buffer their disagreements. What would they do if Harry wasn't there?

Certainly, it was obvious to Harry that the rest of Gryffindor should bless the ground he walked on for dealing with Ron and Hermione. If it wasn't for him, the Gryffindor common room would be a vicious battle ground at least once a night. As it was, the fights only happened about once a week at the most.

It still gave Harry a headache sometimes though. He knew that it was unfair of him to wish that they would just grow up sometimes when he had several years of age on them but he found himself doing it sometimes anyway. These thoughts never lasted long though and in a few years the age difference wouldn't matter much. It was one benefits of being a mage that once you reach a certain age, the years, and sometimes decades, between friends weren't apparent. Harry and Dazna were perfect examples. Dazna was over two hundred years Harry's elder but neither cared or even noticed one bit.

As Hermione continued to talk about the history of Hogsmeade and Ron continued listing sweets, Harry looked at the other occupant of the train compartment they had acquired for the trip to Hogwarts. He was wearing very shabby robes that had been darned in several places. He looked ill and exhausted and though he appeared to be quite young, his light brown hair was flecked with grey. The case Hermione had pointed out earlier was small and battered. It was held together by a large quantity of neatly tied string and had his name stamped across one corner in peeling letters.

Professor Remus John Lupin, Harry mused as he studied the man. His mind floated to the information Sinistra had sent him via owl a few weeks ago. Taking the spot of Defense Against the Dark Arts, Remus was far more educated in that field than his predecessor. The fact that the new teacher was a werewolf did not concern Harry; there were ways to deal with werewolves after all. No…what concerned Harry was that the man that sat in front of him used to be best friends with his father and conversely, friends with one Sirius Black as well.

Sinistra had been the astronomy teacher during his parents' time at Hogwarts as well (under a different guise of course). According to her there were no greater friends than the infamous Marauders and within that group you could not separate James and Sirius. Best friends amongst a group of best friends…and Sirius betrayed that.

He betrayed Harry's parents to the evil Voldemort, who in turn had mercilessly killed his mother and father before attempting to kill Harry himself. Not satisfied with killing just his best friend, Sirius also did away with Peter Pettigrew and thirteen helpless muggles that had been in the wrong place at the wrong time. These actions ended him in a ten by ten cell in the wizard's prison Azkaban for the rest of his waking life. But Sirius had escaped…and it appeared that he was trying to finish the job his master could not. Harry had sworn not to go after Sirius but if the man ever showed his face, Harry would show him exactly why he was the Lord Phoenix.

Remus continued to sleep soundly, and though he was not great company, his presence had its uses. Mid-afternoon, just as it had started to rain, blurring the rolling hills outside the window, they heard footsteps in the corridor and their three least favorite people appeared in the door: Draco Malfoy, flanked by his cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle.

Draco Malfoy and Harry had been enemies ever since they had meet on their very first train ride to Hogwarts. Malfoy, who had a pale, pointed, sneering face, was in the Slytherin House; he played Seeker on the Slytherin Quidditch team, the same position that Harry played on the Gryffindor team. Crabbe and Goyle seemed to exist solely to do Malfoy's bidding. They were both wide and muscular; Crabbe was taller, with a pudding bowl haircut and a very thick neck; Goyle had short, bristly hair and long, gorilla-like arms.

"Well, look who it is," said Malfoy in his usual lazy drawl, pulling open the compartment door. "Potty and the Weasel." Crabbe and Goyle chuckled, sounding a lot like a pair of exceptionally stupid trolls. "I heard your father finally got his hands on some gold this summer, Weasley," said Malfoy. "Did your mother die of shock?"

Harry sighed to himself as he grabbed one edge of Ron's robes as the redheaded stood up quickly, knocking Crookshank's basket to the floor. Harry wondered if his friend would ever get that temper of his under control. They still had five more years of Malfoy to deal with for crying out loud. Professor Lupin gave a snort.

"Who's that?" said Malfoy, taking an automatic step backward as he spotted Lupin.

"New teacher," Harry said, keeping a firm grip on Ron's robes. "What were you saying Malfoy?"

Malfoy's pale eyes narrowed; he wasn't foolish enough to pick a fight right under a teacher's nose. "C'mon," he muttered resentfully to Crabbe and Goyle, and they disappeared. Ron sat back down, massaging his knuckles.

"I'm not going to take any crap from Malfoy this year," he said angrily. "I mean it. If he makes one more crack about my family, I'm going to get a hold of his head and –" Ron made a violent gesture in midair.

"Ron," hissed Hermione, pointing at Professor Lupin," Be careful…"

But Professor Lupin was still fast asleep. The rain thickened as the train sped yet farther north; the windows were now a solid, shimmering grey, which gradually darkened until lanterns flickered to life all along the corridors and over the luggage racks. The train rattled, the rain hammered, the wind roared, but still, Professor Lupin slept.

"We must be nearly there," said Ron, leaning foreword to look past the sleeping Professor. The words had hardly left his mouth when the train started to slow down. "Great," said Ron, getting up and walking carefully past Professor Lupin to try and see outside. "I'm starving. I want to get to the feast…"

"We can't be there yet," said Hermione checking her watch. Harry looked at his own watch and saw that Hermione was correct. There was still some time to go.

"So why're we stopping?" The train was getting slower and slower. As the noise of the pistons fell away, the wind and the rain sounded even louder against the windows. Harry, who was nearest to the door, got up to look into the corridor. All along the carriage, heads were sticking curiously out of their compartments. The train came to a stop with a jolt, and distant thuds and bangs told them that luggage had fallen out of the racks. Then, without warning, all the lamps went out and they were plunged into total darkness.

A few distant shrieks of surprise from the students sounded further foreword on the train. Harry positioned himself by the door and slowly built his energy up deep inside of him. He had to be careful with the professor in the same compartment and Hermione was also beginning to sense magical energies but with the current chaos he doubted that either would notice what he was doing.

"What's going on?" Ron's voice came from behind Harry.

"Ouch!" gasped Hermione. "Ron that was my foot!"

"D'you think we've broken down?"

"Dunno…"

There was a squeaking sound, and Harry saw the dim outline of Ron, whipping a patch clean on the window and peering out. "There's something moving out there," Ron said. "I think people are coming aboard…." The compartment door opened and someone rushed into Harry's back before falling in a heap to the floor.

"Sorry – d'you know what's going on? – Ouch – sorry –"

"Hello, Neville," said Harry, reaching down and helping the poor boy up off the floor.

"Harry? Is that you? What's happening?"

Harry grimaced as Neville kicked him in the shin. "No idea – sit down –"

"I'm going to go and ask the driver what's going on," came Hermione's voice. Harry felt her pass him and heard the door slide open again. He was about to warn her when a thud and two loud squeals of pain shot out from the door.

Harry winced, "Sorry, Ginny."

Hermione's voice spoke up, "Ginny? Is that you?"

"Hermione?"

Harry called out softly, "Both of you, come in here and sit down. It does no good to bumble about in the dark like this." The two girls made their way back in and sat down.

"Ouch!" Neville said. "Hermione, I'm already here!"

"Quiet!" said a hoarse voice suddenly. Professor Lupin seemed to have woken up at last. Harry could hear movements coming from his corner but nobody spoke. There was a soft, crackling noise, and a shivering light filled the compartment. Professor Lupin appeared to be holding a handful of flames. They illuminated his tired, grey face, but his eyes looked alert and wary. Harry noticed that Lupin was fueling the fire with his internal energies. It seemed that Lupin had quite a bit more mastery of his magic than Harry had originally thought. "Stay where you are," said Lupin in the same hoarse voice, and he got slowly to his feet with his handful of fire held in front of him. But the door slid slowly open before Lupin could reach it.

Standing in the doorway, illuminated by the shivering flames in Lupin's hand, was a cloaked figure that towered to the ceiling. Its face was completely hidden beneath its hood. Harry's eyes darted downward, and what he saw made his stomach contract. There was a hand protruding from the cloak and it was glistening, grayish, slimy-looking. And scabbed, like something dead that had decayed in water….

But it was visible for a split second only for as though the creature beneath the cloak sensed Harry's gaze, the hand was suddenly withdrawn into the folds of its black cloak. And then the thing beneath the cloak, whatever it was, drew in a long, slow, rattling breath, as though it were trying to suck something more than air from its surroundings.

An intense cold swept over them all and Harry felt Ginny take his hand in fear. Harry felt his own breath catch in his chest. The cold went deeper than skin, it was inside his chest, inside his very heart…. Harry's eyes rolled up in his head. He couldn't see. He was drowning in cold. The only thing he felt was Ginny's hand in his and there was a rushing in his ears as though of water. He was being dragged downward, the roaring growing louder….

And then, from far away, he heard screaming, terrible terrified, pleading screams. He wanted to help whoever it was, he tried to move his arms, but couldn't…a thick white fog was swirling around him, inside him –

"Harry! Harry! Are you all right?" Someone was slapping his face.

"W – what?" Harry opened his eyes; there were lanterns above him, and the floor was shaking – the Hogwarts Express was moving again and the lights had come back on. He seemed to have fallen to the floor. Ron and Hermione were kneeling next to him on one side and Ginny on the other, tears streaming down her face. Above them, Harry could see Neville and Professor Lupin watching. Harry felt very sick; when he put up his hand to push his glasses back on, he felt cold sweat on his face. Ron and Hermione heaved him back onto a seat.

"Are you okay?" Ron asked nervously.

"Yes," said Harry, looking quickly toward the door. The hooded creature had vanished. "What happened?" Where's that – that thing? Who screamed?" Harry's head was spinning a mile a minute.

"No one screamed," said Ron, more nervously still. Harry looked around the bright compartment. Ginny looked extremely pale and was shivering slightly. Harry gathered his love for her and sent it to her through their bond in an effort to calm her down. Watching her closely he could see her visibly relax and stop shivering. She gave him a warm smile, love in her eyes.

A loud snap made them all jump. Professor Lupin was breaking an enormous slab of chocolate into pieces. "Here," he said to Harry, handing him a particularly large piece. "Eat it. It'll help."

Harry took the chocolate but didn't eat it. "What was that thing?" he asked Lupin.

"A dementor," said Lupin, who was now giving chocolate to everyone else. "One of the dementors of Azkaban."

Harry and Ginny froze in their seats. Nobody had told them that dementors were going to be stationed at Hogwarts. It must have happened just recently else Sinistra would have warned them far in advance. Dementors could be a big problem with mages.

Not much was known about dementors. Their origin, their age, what they truly look like, it was all a mystery to the human population. The circumstances behind their creation were even a mystery, nobody knew if they were a natural magical creature or some ancient necromancer's experiment gone wrong. What little was known about the creatures was kept hidden from the public, classified under 'Eyes Only: Minister' files at the Ministry of Magic. Dementors were among the foulest creatures that walked the earth. They infested the darkest, filthiest places, they gloried in decay and despair, and they drained the peace, hope, and happiness out of the air around them.

Common belief was that dementors sucked out all the good feelings and happy memories from a person merely by close proximity. This was close to the truth but it was missing one important fact. Dementors didn't feed off of happy feelings but rather those of anguish and despair. They consciously directed a human's mind to the worst experiences in their life, their biggest fears, and then fed off those fears. A dementor would infiltrate your mind through one's magic, allowing them to sidestep all the barriers a person had. Simply flooding themselves with energy, as was procedure to stop a mind attack, wouldn't help a mage and in fact would allow the dementor much quicker access to their darkest memories.

As far as Harry could remember the only way to stop a dementor was through a Patronus. One of the few spells he had not mastered during his time on Phoenix Isle. If the dementors were going to be stationed at Hogwarts for the indefinite future he would have to remedy that situation. Harry could not afford to have that weakness while Sirius Black still lurked out in the world.

"Are you sure your okay, Harry?" said Hermione, watching Harry anxiously.

Harry nodded, "What happened?"

"Well – that thing – the dementor – stood there and looked around (I mean, I think it did, I couldn't see its face) – and you – you –"

"I thought you were having a fit or something," said Ron, who still looked scared. "You went sort of rigid and fell out of your seat and started twitching –"

"And Professor Lupin stepped over you, and walked toward the dementor, and pulled out his wand," said Hermione, "and he said, 'None of us is hiding Sirius Black under our cloaks. Go.' But the dementor didn't move, so Lupin muttered something, and a silvery thing shot out of his wand at it, and it turned around and sort of glided away…."

"It was horrible," said Neville, in a higher voice than usual. "Did you feel how cold it got when it came in?"

"I felt weird," said Ron, shifting his shoulders uncomfortably. "Like I'd never be cheerful again…."

Ginny, who was huddled in the corner, still looking nearly as bad as Harry felt despite his reassurances through their bond, gave a small sob; Harry scooted over next to her and wrapped her up in an embrace. Appearances be damned, she needed him now and he wouldn't let anything stop that. He looked at the others, "No one else fainted or anything…did they?"

"No," said Ron, looking anxiously at Harry again. "Ginny was shaking like mad though…." Harry tightened his embrace on his wife and made a silent vow to himself. He would master the Patronus spell and keep the dementors from hurting Ginny in anyway he can.

Harry watched with a smile on his face as Ginny blew out the candles on her birthday cake. Several people started singing Happy Birthday, all in a different key and many with added words, creating a large cacophony of noise. Gryffindors always celebrated every birthday they could, using the aging of one of their fellow comrades as an excuse to do what Gryffindors did best…party! It had been raging on for several hours now and was ending the same way they all did…with cake and presents. There was a fairly large turnout of people for Ginny's special day. Katie Bell sat to one side of Ginny, talking rapidly with her friend. Despite the fact that Katie was the designated bodyguard of Ginny, the two had become fast friends and quickly overstepped that boundary between charges and their protectors.

To her left sat Hermione. It hadn't taken Hermione long to realize that being best friends with two boys left you with no one to turn to for the girl talks that all females felt compelled to have every now and then. Harry personally believed that the imbalance in having two X chromosomes had something to do with the compulsion. Either way, Hermione had quickly befriended Katie and Ginny and the three could often be seen together as often as Harry and Ron were. Speaking of Ron…Harry spied the redhead pushing his way through the crowd with an armload of Ginny's presents. He stopped in front of Harry's beloved and dumped them unceremoniously in front of her.

"Presents!" he said, a large goofy grin on his face. He quickly snatched one of the wrapped items and held it out to Ginny proudly. "Here," he said beaming. "Open mine first."

Harry chuckled, no matter how much older his friend got, he still remained at the same maturity level he was at when Harry first met him. Ginny accepted Ron's gift with a smile and proceeded to open the package, careful not to tear the paper more than was necessary. Harry didn't know where his wife had picked up that particular quirk; she didn't even keep the wrapping paper or bows for later. Merely took care while unwrapping and then threw the paper away later. Though he didn't understand it, Harry knew that it was these little quirks that make us who and what we are. He loved Ginny with all his heart and would continue to do so no matter what little habits she had picked up here and there.

Ginny lifted the lid off the box and let out a small exclamation of delight. She reached in and pulled out a deep blue winter scarf holding it up for everybody to see. "Oh Ron, it's beautiful! Thank you so much." She leaned foreword and gave her youngest brother a kiss on the cheek as way of thanks. "I needed a new scarf too, how did you know?"

Ron waved it off, "It wasn't much, and Katie told me." He gave out a soft laugh, "It's getting harder and harder to shop for you each year and I was never very good at this shopping thing in the first place."

"Well, thank you for the effort and the scarf, Ron," said Ginny smiling. "I appreciate them both." Ginny went through her presents one by one, thanking each person for the gift before moving onto the next. Finally she opened the last gift from Katie and, after saying thanks for the gift, she looked around expectantly and raised an eyebrow at Harry. Harry smirked and removed himself from his position of leaning against the wall. He walked up to her slowly, watching as she almost bounced in anticipation of the present he was about to give her. When he stopped before her, he pulled the hand holding her birthday present around from behind his back and handed it to his lovely wife.

"Happy Birthday, Gin," Harry smiled, knowing full well what kind of reaction that would garner. And he wasn't disappointed. Hermione and Katie gave out soft gasps and quickly scooted away from Ginny on the couch. The twins dived behind two armchairs that happened to be nearby without hesitation and Ron stumbled back so quickly he fell over the coffee table, waving his arms in front of his face as if to ward off an incoming blow. It took all of Harry's willpower not to burst out laughing at the scared looks on the faces around the room.

Ginny gave her husband a meaningful look, knowing that he was just trying to create a scene but played along anyways. "Why thank you, Harry," she said accepting the offered present with a smile. Harry saw Fred and George peaking out from behind the armchairs, curious as to why Harry was still in the land of the living despite the fact that Harry had called Ginny by her most hated nickname. Ron sat up painfully from his position on the floor and Hermione and Katie relaxed slightly, all wondering about why Ginny had not blown up yet but not willing to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Removing the silver wrapping paper, Ginny looked at Harry's present to her. It was a small book – the outside had Ginny's name embroidered on it in gold thread but when she tried, she found she could not open it. Ginny looked up at her husband for an explanation.

Harry spoke softly, "It's a dairy." Ginny shuddered at the remembrance of last year. The guilt of allowing herself to be controlled by Tom so easily would never leave her but Harry knew that with help she would work through it. "It's keyed into your magical signature and no matter what you write in there, only you can read it. So feel free to write anything you want in there. To open it, just press the bottom corner there and it will open for you, no one else. It also has a paper extension charm on it so you can write in there for as long as you live and never run out of paper."

Ginny ran her hand over the diary before opening the diary and looking at the first page. Written in Harry's small, neat print was a note for her.

My darling wife,

May this diary help you through all the rough times we have ahead and the ones we have had before. Know that I have always and will always love you more than life itself. No matter what lies in my future, the happiest day of my life will always be the one where you said 'I do.' With all my love,

Harry

Ginny tried to speak but couldn't form the words in her mouth. She looked at her husband with tears in her eyes and launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his torso and burying her face in his chest. "Oh, Harry," she cried, her tears soaking his shirt. Harry wrapped his arms around Ginny's petite form and held her to him, letting her tears take their course. He shot a quick warning glance at Katie who took the hint and got the rest of the guests moving on to bed, the prefects agreeing and helping her. Harry ran his hand through her hair as held her close to him. Goddess, how he missed holding her like this. It was difficult to be so close, to see each other everyday and then have to act like nothing more than distant friends.

His redheaded beauty pulled away from him and smiled at him, "Thank you, Harry. I love it."

"I'm glad that you do." Harry looked over the party mess in the now empty common room and waved his hand once. In an instant, everything was clean and Ginny's presents tucked up neatly on the table. He turned to Ginny and gave her another hug and kissed the top of her head. "Night, Gin. Happy Birthday." Harry turned around and started to head to the boy's dormitories before a pair of slender arms wrapped around him from the back, his hands fell to cover hers at his waist.

"Harry," Ginny said, her voice muffled as she spoke into his back. "Stay with me…tonight, please…I-I want to be with you." Harry sighed; doing something like this in Hogwarts was risky business. The chances of getting caught were high even for them. But truth be told, he wanted to be with Ginny as much as she with him. "Please, Harry? I've missed you."

Any resolve that Harry had left was washed away by the pleading in her voice. He would never deny her anything as long as it was in his power to do so. He turned and gave her a sizzling kiss. Ginny returned it with just as much vigor and started to pull him to the couch that sat behind them. Harry stopped her and shook his head. He swept her up into his arms and walked over to the fireplace.

"What are you doing?" Harry just smiled and pushed a sequence of bricks next to the fireplace. A door appeared in the wall next to him and Harry carried her through it. The walked down a small tunnel at the end there was another door leading into a warmly lit room with a desk, drawers, and a comfortable looking bed on one side of the room. "Where are we, Harry?" she asked again.

"This, my love, is the Gryffindor Head Girl Room which is pleasantly unoccupied this year." He carried her over the bed and laid her down softly before they changed back to their real selves. Ginny grabbed his head in her hands and placed a soft lingering kiss on his lips. His hands roamed over her body, setting her skin on fire and she arched back as he kissed that tender spot on her neck that made her insides melt. Harry quickly relieved her of her shirt, the rest of their clothes following shortly. The night was too short for the both of them, as sweat glistened on their bodies and each calling out the other's name in the darkness.

Remus Lupin, werewolf and Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, watched as his friend's only son fought off a boggart-turned-dementor with all his strength. The elder man wished with all his might that Harry didn't have to deal with the events that were playing out before him but he knew that Harry would have to face the truth one day and as patient as he was, Remus believed in dealing with things sooner rather than later.

That didn't mean he would have to let Harry deal with them unprepared however which was why he found himself in the empty Defense classroom teaching The-Boy-Who-Lived how to produce a Patronus. It was a tricky bit of magic that most witches and wizards could not even do. Not only did it require a goodly amount of power, but it called for the caster to focus his or her entire being on driving away the foul beast. In effect, it was almost a battle of wills between the dementor and the spell castor with the dementor having a distinct advantage.

Yet here Remus was, watching a thirteen year old producing a patronus that would put most aurors to shame. And he wasn't just doing, he was doing it absolutely perfectly. Harry's back was straight but his knees bent slightly and his entire body was tensed so as to be ready to move any which way in the blink of an eye. His face was devoid of any emotion, showing absolutely no weakness even in the face of the personification of fear itself. He was a loaded weapon with the safety catch off. It was a stance and readiness that only those who were trained fighters possessed. Remus had seen it on many people during the war with Voldemort and knew that he too on occasion had adopted that deadly stance. Never before had he seen it on a child.

But what scared him to the very depths of his soul was that this stance…this aura of combat that surrounded Harry looked and felt as if it always belonged there. As if he wasn't fully Harry until he was fighting.

Regardless, Remus was extremely impressed with and very proud of Harry. Two weeks ago, Harry would have needed Remus' intervention by this point but now his patronus was successful repelling the dementor. With a quick cry of 'Riddikulus' and a large crack in the air, Harry had successfully banished the boggart back to the trunk. The young bespectacled boy turned and looked at Remus, face still devoid of any emotion.

Remus plastered a smile on his face and walked foreword, "Excellent job, Harry! I dare say that those dementors won't be giving you anymore trouble, especially if you keep practicing. How do you feel?"

"Better than last time, Professor," Harry replied softly. "I don't feel as drained as I did before."

"Excellent," Remus muttered, "Extremely excellent. Come back to my office and we'll have some tea." Remus turned and led the way to his office. Once inside he quickly conjured up some tea and poured two cups. He handed one to Harry and took a seat. "I must say, Harry," Remus said as he sipped from his cup. "That I am extremely impressed with the way you have progressed against the dementors. I could hardly expect better from any trained adult."

"Thank you, Professor," Harry said, taking a sip of his own tea. The two sat there for a while, drinking their tea and thinking their own thoughts. It was Harry that broke the silence. "What were they like?"

Remus sighed; he didn't need to ask Harry who he was talking about. He had been wondering how to handle all these questions ever sense Harry had found out that he was friends with his parents. It wasn't that he dreaded answering Harry's questions; it was just that they brought back memories of happier times; times when he wasn't the only faithful Marauder left. "They were some of the nicest people I knew." Remus spoke softly, knowing that Harry would pick up on every word. "Lily and James would never hesitate to help anyone that needed it, even the Slytherins. They were strong too; powerful fighters for the light side. I doubt that even ten of us going at them at once could have bested Lily and James when they worked together.

"I have never had the pleasure of having two greater friends than Lily and James and I doubt that I ever will. Your mother could even get Snape to smile once in a great while and that is no easy task." Remus smiled, "They never let him live it down either. James and Siri –" Remus cut off. Harry didn't ask for his Professor to finish and for that Remus was grateful.

"Why –" Harry tried again. "Why didn't you take me in? I mean…why was I sent to the Dursleys instead of you?"

Another large sigh escaped from the graying Professor, "That…is complicated, Harry. Believe me, I wanted to take you into my home and raise you but there were…issues preventing me from doing so."

"Is it because you're a werewolf?"

Remus gaped at his student, whom was calmly taking another drink of tea like there was nothing to be surprised of. "Ho-How do you…"

"How do I know?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow. "It really isn't that difficult to figure out if one pays attention to what goes on around them. I noticed the peculiar form the boggart took when you faced it and after doing a little checking, I noticed that you were always 'sick' during the full moon. It doesn't take a genius to put two and two together."

"And you don't mind?" Remus was stunned. Most people wouldn't be in the same room as a werewolf regardless the time of the month.

"Why should I?" Harry said calmly. "You're only a werewolf during the full moon and I would assume that with the Wolfsbane potion that Professor Snape has been supplying you with helps you keep from being the dangerous creature that most people would make you out to be. Despite what happened, you always were and always will be human first."

Remus could only stare in amazement at the young student in front of him who just preached the absolute and pure truth to him. It wasn't everyday that he meet someone as unprejudiced against were creatures as Harry was and it was taking him a second to adjust to the surprise. Harry simply let the man come to terms with what he just heard while waiting for an answer to his first question. Gradually, Remus overcame the shook and looked at Harry. "Yes, Ministry law states that no child may live with a dark creature on the premises and werewolves have been classified as 'dark' for many, many years now. If it was not for that, I would have taken you to my home in the matter of a heartbeat." Remus hung his head, it often bothered him that he could not have taken Harry into custody like Lily and James would have wanted. But people had been up in arms about their savior going to live with an evil being and Harry was left stuck in the horrible Dursley residence.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Professor," Harry said softly. "I don't blame you and I am certain that my parents wouldn't either. They would be proud of you for helping me overcome my weaknesses and being there now."

Remus smiled softly, feeling as if the customary roles had been reversed. Here he was the adult, eighteen years Harry's senior and he was the one being given advice. But Harry's words rang true and for some reason in that instant, Remus felt that Harry was far older and more experienced than he should be. He looked up and met Harry's sparkling green eyes. "So," he said jovially. "How'd you like to hear about the time we caused all the Slytherins to be dressed out in Gryffindor colors for an entire day?"

Harry smiled a small smile and sat his tea down, "I would like that very much."

It wasn't long after that when Harry first understood just how dangerous Sirius Black really could be. Harry had been wary certainty, but Black was just one man without help or a wand. Yet Black had escaped from Azkaban, a feat that had never been preformed before. If for nothing else, Harry was watchful because of that feat but the mage still felt that he and his wife were safe and secure inside the castle. After all, escaping Azkaban was one thing, entering Hogwarts on one's own and undetected was another.

Harry and Ginny were making their way to Gryffindor tower after lunch and were chatting amicably while Katie shadowed their movements from behind. Harry smiled and gave a small wave to Neville as they passed him in the hall and turned back to his conversation with Ginny, pitching his voice high and squeaking slightly, "'The Dementors send their love, Potter!' honestly is that the best Malfoy can come up with? I've heard better insults from a four year old."

Harry heard Katie guffaw behind him and Ginny chuckled. She turned and looked into a slight shadow that was formed between two suits of armor. "Katie," she said with laughter in her voice. "It's okay to walk with us; you don't have to protect us from back there."

If Harry hadn't been able to sense exactly where Katie was he might have thought that her voice was coming from the very walls themselves, "That wouldn't be proper, ma'am. I can protect you better from here than I can at your side."

Ginny had to fight back a smile. "Very well then," she spoke. "I order you to walk up here with us and have a good time."

Harry choked back his laughter as Katie emerged from the shadows, grumbling under her breath and frowning slightly. It may have looked like Katie didn't like it but Harry and Ginny knew better, Katie treasured all the time they spent together as friends, just as they did. Her father had died in the Dark War leaving her mother to raise Katie as best she could. It was hard for Katie growing up as her mother had to work most of the time in order to support the two of them but they made certain to spend at least two nights a week together, whether it be playing games, listening to the wireless, or simply talking.

Most of the time though, Katie had been alone and it wasn't until she found out that she was a mage that Katie first began to make friends. Harry and Ginny were quick to pick up on that fact when they first truly met her before leaving Phoenix Isle and befriended the shadow mage easily. Katie knew few people that she trusted utterly and they were proud to be among those few.

Harry paused as he waited for the staircase they were on to stop moving. It slowed and stopped with a low rumble and Harry stepped off the stairway, ignoring the friendly argument Ginny and Katie were having over where the best place to protect someone was. A few steps across the landing and up another staircase deposited Harry right in front of the portrait of the fat lady. He was about to speak the password when he got his first good look at the portrait. Harry stopped abruptly only to have Katie and Ginny run right into his back and fall down on the stone floor.

"Ouch," grumbled Ginny as she stood up rubbing her bum slightly. "What did you do that for, Harry? That hurt you know." She gave her husband a slight glare to make certain she was getting her point across but saw that Harry hadn't registered a word she said. She looked in the direction that Harry was staring and heard Katie draw in a hiss of breath. The Fat Lady had vanished from her portrait frame, which had been slashed so viciously that strips of canvas littered the floor; great chunks of it had been torn away completely.

Harry shook his head slightly and mumbled to himself, "Who could have done this?"

"Wouldn't you like to know!" said a cackling voice. It was Peeves the Poltergeist, bobbing up and down over the stairway and looking delighted, as he always did, at the sight of wreckage or worry.

"Peeves," Harry said calmly. "I have to know who did this. Did you see what happened?"

Peeves cackled some more and started doing loops in the air while singing, "Oh Potter you rotter…"

"Please Peeves," Harry said a little louder this time, "I must know…who did this?" But Peeves just continued to fly around and sing, making Harry grow more and more impatient with each passing moment. Finally, when Peeves was on the third verse of his song Harry snapped. "PEEVES!" he snarled allowing his power to rage and roar freely about him after making a magical sweep of the area to make sure they were alone. The flames of a golden phoenix expanded about him, flapping its wings with slow measure. The mark of the Lord Phoenix. He seemed to swell with power and each word he spoke was as implacable as the tide itself. "WHO. DID. THIS?" Beside him Katie and Ginny followed suit, letting their own magical auras loose and flow around their bodies. Each was powerful in their own right but still dwarfed by the raging inferno the Lord Phoenix was putting out.

Peeves 'meeped' and turned tail to run but Harry was having none of that. "I don't think so…" he muttered. Raising a hand, Harry spun his wrist in a little circle and pulled it back. Peeves' flight was interrupted and the poltergeist was pulled back as quickly as he left. "Now Peeves," Harry said calmly as his eyes bored into those of the ghost. "I command you to tell me who did this?"

It was clear that the Poltergeist was frightened. Any being of magical nature or knowledge understood what the phoenix aura stood for and who Harry was the moment he had let loose his power. This was no student that he was talking to but the Lord Phoenix. A person who not only ruled over all of magic kind but who was more than capable enough to destroy a ghost or poltergeist with a mere thought.

"W-Well, your Phoenix Lordship, S-sir," Peeves stuttered with a low bow. "He got very angry when she wouldn't let him in and so he slashed her all to pieces in a fit of rage…"

"Who," Harry pressed. "Who did it?"

"It was Sirius Black, milord. I'm sure of it."

Harry sat back stunned. The man that had escaped from Azkaban had somehow made his way here to Hogwarts and had successfully infiltrated the castle in the attempt to get at Harry. "Thank you, Peeves," Harry said. "The rest of the students will be coming out of class soon. I want you to forget that this ever happened and be yourself when the students arrive."

Peeves bowed low once again. "As you wish, My Lord Phoenix," He said before speeding off.

Harry turned to Ginny, "Ginny, I want you to go to Sinistra. Tell her what happened and then I want the both of you to make a full magical sweep of the castle. I want to know if that traitor is still on the grounds."

Ginny nodded, "Yes, dear." She gave Harry a peck on the cheek before hurrying off to the astronomy tower.

After she left, Harry looked at Katie who had a look of open shock on her face. Considering the usual expressionless mask that she wore, this was saying something. "Y-you're the Lord Phoenix?" she managed to whisper.

Harry sighed, "Yes, and we'll be having a talk about that later but for now, I want you and Cedric to alert the students you have been training and have them ready to fight. I doubt that we will need them but better safe the sorry. I am going to see if I can find the Fat Lady and get as much information from her as I can before Dumbledore locks down the school."

Katie's training took over and she snapped up in a salute. "Yes, Sir," she barked crisply before turning on her heel and striding down the hallway, looking for Cedric.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron all made their way up to the castle, having just finished their Defense against the Dark Arts exam and were chatting amongst themselves when they reached the front stairs. They stopped abruptly when they saw what greeted them at the top of the steps. Cornelius Fudge, sweating slightly in his pin stripped cloak, was standing there staring out at the grounds. He started at the sight of Harry.

"Hello there, Harry!" he said. "Just had an exam, I expect? Nearly finished?"

"Yes," said Harry. Hermione and Ron, not being on speaking terms with the Minister of Magic, hovered awkwardly in the background. Harry made a note of this and reminded himself that political training would be needed for both Hermione and Ron in the future. As long as they continued to remain friends with him, they would need to know politics, and how the game was played.

"Lovely day," said Fudge, casting an eye over the lake. "Pity…pity…" He sighed deeply and looked down at Harry. "I'm here on an unpleasant mission, Harry. The Committee for the Disposal of dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad hippogriff. As I needed to visit Hogwarts to check on the Black situation, I was asked to step in."

Harry sighed; he had been expecting something like this to happen. The Malfoys simply had too much power, too much pull of the current government. Buckbeak had been sentenced from day one.

"Does that mean the appeal's already happened?" Ron interrupted, stepping foreword. Harry winced, this had a large potential to get rather nasty.

"No, no, it's scheduled for this afternoon," said Fudge looking curiously at Ron

"Then you might not have to witness an execution at all!" said Ron stoutly. "The hippogriff might get off!"

Before Fudge could answer, two wizards came through the castle doors behind him. One was so ancient he appeared to be withering before their very eyes; the other was tall and strapping, with a thin black mustache. Harry gathered that they were the representatives from the committee as the very old wizard squinted towards Hagrid's cabin and said in a feeble voice, "Dear, dear, I'm getting too old for this…Two o'clock, isn't it, Fudge?"

The black mustached man was fingering something in his belt; Harry looked and saw that he was running one broad thumb along the blade of a shining axe. Harry felt the magical aura coming of this man and had to resist the urge to put the man down…hard. Harry could tell that the man know how to handle himself with that axe in a fight and had many hours of practice with it. The way the man moved, looked around, and stood all screamed out to Harry, yelling 'Killer!' And Harry could tell that the man enjoyed what he did, enjoyed taking the life of something or someone else.

Ron opened his mouth to say something, but Hermione nudged him hard in the ribs and jerked her head toward the entrance hall. Harry thanked the Goddess for Hermione's timely interruption. "Why'd you stop me?" said Ron angrily as they entered the Great Hall for lunch. "Did you see them? They've even got the axe ready! This isn't justice!"

"'Justice is incidental to law and order,'" Harry quipped. "And in this case, Ron, you must realize that Malfoy controls the strings of law and order…" Harry doubted that Ron would fully understand that but hopefully it would help him later down the line.

"Ron, your dad works for the Ministry," said Hermione, she looked slightly upset but was giving Harry sideways glances. She was smart enough to pick up on Harry's use of the quote and its meaning. "As long as Hagrid keeps his head this time, and argues his case properly, they can't possibly execute Buckbeak…." But Harry could tell Hermione didn't really believe what she was saying and he knew that she was right to believe that way. By the sun set that evening, Buckbeak would be irrevocably dead.

Harry's and Ron's last exam was Divination; Hermione's, Muggle Studies. They walked up the marble staircase together; Hermione left them on the first floor and Harry and Ron proceeded all the way up to the seventh, where many of their class were sitting on the spiral staircase to Professor Trelawney's classroom, trying to cram in a bit of last-minute studying.

"She's seeing us all separately," Neville informed them as they went to sit down next to him. He had his copy of Unfogging the Future open on his lap at the pages devoted to crystal gazing. "Have either if you seen anything in a crystal ball?" he asked them unhappily.

"Nope," said Ron in an offhand voice. He kept checking his watch; Harry knew that he was counting down the time until Buckbeak's appeal started. The line of people outside the classroom shortened very slowly. As each person climbed back down the silver ladder they were asked about what had happened but each refused to say.

"She says the crystal ball's told her that if I tell you, I'll have a horrible accident!" squeaked Neville as he clambered back down the ladder towards Harry and Ron, who had now reached the landing.

"That's convenient," snorted Ron. "You know, I'm starting to think Hermione was right about her" – he jabbed his thumb toward the trapdoor overhead – "she's a right old fraud."

Harry nodded his head in agreement. He hated divination with a passion. It was a jumble of magic grouped together under one category because no one could tell were the actual origin of the magic came from. It wasn't as if you could simply direct your magical energies into a crystal ball and then see the future. Only a very few people had ever been able to predict the future and only then through a broad view and prophecies that hardly anyone could decipher. Harry was a firm believer of being in control of your own fate.

"Harry Potter!"
The tower room was hotter than ever before; the curtains were closed, the fire was alight, and the usual sickly scent made Harry cough as he stumbled through the clutter of chairs and tables where Professor Trelawney sat waiting for him before a large crystal ball. "Good day, my dear," she said softly. "If you would kindly gaze into the Orb….Take your time now…then tell me what you see within it…." Harry bent over the crystal ball and stared, stared as hard as he could, willing it to show him something other than swirling white fog, but nothing happened. "Well?" Professor Trelawney prompted delicately. "What do you see?"

Oh, how he hated divination. "I see…a dark shape…"

"What does it resemble?" whispered the Professor. "Think, now…"

Harry cast his mind around and it landed on Buckbeak. "A hippogriff," he said firmly. He winced the moment the words were out of his mouth, now he was going to have to give some horrid details.

"Indeed!" whispered Professor Trelawney, scribbling keenly on the parchment perched upon her knees. "My boy, you may well be seeing the outcome of poor Hagrid's trouble with the Ministry of Magic! Look closer….Does the hippogriff appear to…have its head."

Harry was about to give a firm no, for the grade of course, when he got a feeling in his gut that told him otherwise. Harry almost groaned out loud. He always got this feeling right before something troubling happened. One of the last times was when Ginny tried to microwave some soup…while it was still in the can. Biting back his previous answer he simply sighed, "Yes."

"Are you sure?" Professor Trelawney urged him. "Are you quite sure, dear? You don't see it writhing on the ground, perhaps, and a shadowy figure raising an axe behind it?"

Harry looked at his teacher, wondering not for the first time if she had some sadist tendencies. "No."

"No blood? No weeping Hagrid?"

"No," Harry replied again, wanting nothing more than to get out of this smoke infested sickening room.

Professor Trelawney sighed. "Well, dear, I think we'll leave it there….A little disappointing…but I'm sure you did your best." Relieved, Harry got up, picked up his bag and turned to go, but then a loud, harsh voice spoke behind him. "IT WILL HAPPEN TONIGHT." Harry wheeled around. Professor Trelawney had gone rigid in her armchair; her eyes were unfocused and her mouth sagging.

"THE DARK LORD LIES ALONE AND FRIENDLESS, ABANDONED BY HIS FOLLOWERS. HIS SERVANT HAD BEEN CHAINED THESE TWELVE YEARS. TONIGHT, BEFORE MIDNIGHT…THE SERVENT WILL BREAK FREE AND SET OUT TO REJOIN HIS MASTER. THE DARK LORD WILL RISE AGAIN WITH HIS SERVENT'S AID, GREATER AND MORE TERRIBLE THAN EVER HE WAS. TONIGHT…BEFORE MIDNIGHT…THE SERVENT…WILL SET OUT…TO REJOIN…HIS MASTER…"

Professor Trelawney's head fell forward onto her chest. She made a grunting sort of noise. Harry sat there, staring at her, thinking a mile a minute. Then, quite suddenly, professor Trelawney's head snapped up again. "I'm so sorry dear boy," she said dreamily, "the heat of the day you know…I drifted off for a moment…." Harry stood still, staring at her. "Is there anything wrong, my dear?"

Harry shook his head and said, "No…everything's okay Professor. Good day." Harry turned and left by way of the silver staircase. Despite what he had told Trelawney, everything was most defiantly not all right. He knew a real prediction when he heard one and unfortunately that was Trelawney had just given. These type of prophecies almost always came true.

Mulling over her words, Harry realized that things would have to be done. There was only one Dark Lord in recent memory and he would be coming back to power sometime soon. Preparations would have to be made….Harry needed to talk to Ginny.

Harry and Ginny sat next to each other on the last morning of the year. Each nursing cups of coffee in their hands with their elbows propped up on the tables in identical postures. Even their clothing was slightly alike, both wearing overly large sweaters that ended up covering half of their hands. The pair looked so comparable that had the person who was sitting across from them, Ron, paused in his ritual gobbling of food…he might have taken notice at the similarities and questioned the young couple. As it was, his vision was blocked by egg and the occasion piece of toast.

Both of the Potters were not in the best of spirits that day. The last day of Hogwarts was hard on many people but for the two of them it signified the start of another lengthy separation. Not that the current situation of hiding their relationship from even Dumbledore was a great one. The occasional contact that they had was better than no contact at all, however, and now they would have to endure a two month separation unless Ron could convince his parents to let Harry visit again this summer.

Despite the most recent events, Harry looked back on the year and smiled slightly to himself. It had been fun and eventful, and full of good memories. His favorite by far, was scaring the metaphysical pants off of Peeves. It had meant revealing his status as the Lord Phoenix to Katie, but it was still worth it. Besides she had sworn not to tell anybody, even Cedric or Sinistra.

Harry wordlessly passed his wife some creamer at her unspoken request. He didn't believe in defiling his coffee with extra substances and drank it straight black. It was interesting to note that they had both picked up a taste for the Columbian brew while tea was the more prominent morning drink in Britain. The time they spent intermixing with other cultures on Phoenix Isle seemed to have passed on a few traits and with close consideration, an observing party could pick up on some of them.

It wasn't until Hermione came and joined them at breakfast that the silence was broken. "I've just been to see McGonagall," Hermione said as she sat down next to Ron, across from Ginny. "For goodness sake, Ron! Close your moth when you chew. Anyways…I'm dropping Muggle Studies."

Ron choked on some of his egg, "But you passed that exam with three hundred and twenty percent!"

"I know," sighed Hermione, "but I can't stand another year like this one. That Time-Turner, it was driving me mad. I've handed it in. Without Muggle Studies and Divination, I'll be able to have a normal schedule again."

Harry smiled into his coffee cup. Hermione had learned a big lesson in life this year and he was glad to see that she was taking it in stride. No matter how hard anyone tried, they couldn't do everything by themselves. There would always be three hours less in the day than what you needed. Hopefully with this she would realize the importance of asking for help when she needed it. Hermione was far too independent for her own good sometimes.

"I still can't believe you didn't tell us about it," said Ron grumpily. "We're supposed to be your friends."

Harry and Ginny smirked slightly. They had the look of someone who was very satisfied in the fact that they knew something someone else didn't. If you think that was a big secret, Harry though to himself. Than just wait till Ginny and I drop our bombshell on you. Harry felt Ginny's amusement and could tell that she felt the same way.

"I promised I wouldn't tell anyone," said Hermione severely. She started buttering some toast and looked across the table, noticing Harry and Ginny for the first time that morning. "Good morning Harry, Ginny," she said brightly.

"Morning Hermione," Ginny replied. Harry just nodded slightly. "Are you all packed and ready?"

Hermione nodded enthusiastically, "I can't wait to see my parents again. It's been a long time since I've last seen them and I miss them."

"Yeah, I can't wait to see Mum again either," Ron nodded in agreement. "Hogwarts food is good, but nothing beats Mum's home cooking."

Harry smiled, "That's the truth. Your mom keeps trying to stuff me like a turkey every time we meet. She keeps saying that I'm far too short and skinny for someone my age."

"Too right you are," Fred's voice popped up from behind him.

"Yeah," George's voice joined in on the other side. "You're still as short as you were the day you came here, Harry."

"I mean…even ickle Ronniekins and Hermione have grown a few inches. But you and wee Ginny here seem to be stuck in your midget phases."

"Leave him alone guys," Ron spoke up. "It's not his fault he's a short little midget."

Harry, Fred, George all gave Ron an incredulous look. "Boy, who needs enemies when you got friends like these, eh Harry?" said George.

Nodding slightly, Harry looked up into the grinning faces of the twins and motioned to the empty seats around them. "Fred, George…why don't you join us for some breakfast. We can discuss what I'm going to end up doing to Ron for that thoughtless comment of his." Beside him, Ginny giggled at the look of desperation that passed over Ron's face when he realized that he was now facing a teamed Harry and his brothers seeking retribution.

"Why thank you, Harry," Fred exclaimed. "We thought you'd never ask." He sat down at Harry's side and George sat next to Ginny. "So do you guy's have any plans for the summer?" He scooped some eggs onto his plate.

"Got to get in some Quidditch practice," Ron said hurriedly. "Wood's gone next year and I want to have a go at the keeper position." Fred and George looked Ron over.

"I reckon you just might have a shot," George said seriously. "Especially if we give you a hand in prepping."

"I could help too," Ginny spoke up. And George nodded in agreement. "In fact," she continued. "I bet if we get Dumbledore to agree, he'll let Harry come over and he could help you at as well."

Ron burst out, "Yeah, Mate! That would be bloody fantastic!"

Harry smiled at his friend's actions, "Yes that would be fun. We will have to see what the headmaster says." He set down his coffee cup. "I wouldn't mind getting away from the Dursleys again. They won't be very happy after last summer." The collective group chuckled at remembrance of Harry's adventures with Dobby and his Aunt Marge.

"Maybe not…" Hermione spoke up suddenly, a contemplative expression on her face.

"What are you thinking, Hermione?" Ginny asked.

"Well…Harry, do your relatives watch a lot of news?" Hermione asked. Harry nodded. "And if I remember correctly Sirius' name was plastered all over the news as an escaped convict, right?" She continued. Harry nodded once again, wondering where Hermione was going with this. "Well you just need to use Sirius' name to scare them. Drop a hint that if you aren't treated better that your escaped convict of a godfather will be by to take names." Hermione said triumphantly.

Harry blinked at her a few times before a large grin swept across his face. "Hermione you are the smartest, greatest, best witch I know! I can't wait to get back there now! This is going to be so much fun."

Hermione blushed under Harry's praise, "Well really…it wasn't much…"

"Don't deflate yourself, Hermione," Ginny spoke up. "You just made Harry's day; be proud."

Harry watched as the group lapsed back into normal conversation, a grin still plastered on his face. Needless to say…this summer was going to be fun.

Warden's Rants:

Website: Finally I have posted up my website for all of you to visit. It is rather plain right now but I will start adding more stuff as time goes on. Hopefully it will become a place where I can start posting messages in between chapters and the like, keeping everybody more up to date than FFnet allows me to. The site is wardens-watch(dot)com (Sorry but its a FFnet thing) . I hope you all take a look. For anybody that would like to submit some artwork and the like, e-mail it to me.

Questions: Yeah! I have some questions to answer! Keep them coming people.

- Molly and Arthur do know about Harry and Ginny being mages, and married as well. While Molly has sort of…taken it in stride, Arthur is still being protective of his daughter. She is, after all, 'Daddy's little girl,' but he is supportive of course and not belligerently against it.

- Harry and Ginny get some together but not much. Hogwarts is a crowded and close knit family so everybody keeps tabs on everybody else. Keeping any secret is hard and if Harry and Ginny were to sneak off all the time somebody would notice. Remember they are hiding it from everyone, including Dumbledore.

- Yes Harry is the top guy. The Lord Phoenix does not have some sort of compulsorily control over magical people…it is more like being a King. He has power, but only through the governments already in place.

- Phoenix time is extremely long (1 Hour : 1 Minute) but life on the Isle is much different. To the residents of Phoenix Isle, life on the outside goes at a ridiculously fast pace. While those on the outside think that everything takes entirely too long to do while on the Isle. It is much like comparing the life of an elder man to that of a young, growing child.

Tytianne's Rants

Hippogriff and Black: Yes, Buckbeak is still alive for those of you who are going to ask. The time turner events happened as they did in the book so don't freak out too bad. Remember, just 'cause something from the book isn't here doesn't mean it didn't happen. It just means that nothing about those scenes was changed from the original by Rowling. This plays right into the Disjointed Story theme. It may seem disjointed but really, who wants to reread the books in a fan fiction? Not me and apparently, not most of you readers either! Hehe.

Ginny Interaction: Some of you wanted more Ginny and you got it! I hope you like what Warden did with that as much as I did. Someone mentioned that they were confused as to why Arthur stood between Harry and Ginny in the last chapter. Well, if your only daughter showed up married and seven years older would you want them "messing around" anywhere that you could catch them? Remember, to Arthur, Ginny is still eleven.

Slow Beta: HEY! I'm not that slow! Well, not usually. This chapter took me some time though. I've been gone the last two weekends and I get to go to a funeral this coming Saturday. Do you suppose I could get away with wearing a Hawaiian print dress and carrying a coconut shell cup around? …..didn't think so. Bummer. And no, I'm not offended by any Slow Beta comments. I find them rather funny actually.