A/N: Did you notice I slowed the pace of posting? Figured I'd better stretch them out to give me more writing time and leave you in limbo a shorter period. Have a version of Ch. 13 I need to go over and proof, then that will be ready so I'm staying slightly ahead for the moment. But I'm running out of time! Only 15 more days til Book 6 comes out!

LET ME KNOW IF YOU FIND ANYTHING WEIRD IN THIS CHAPTER. FFN WAS BEING CRANKY WHEN I WOULD SAVE CHANGES.

Replies to reviewers:

Gee, whining really works! Thanks to the new reviewers that are letting me know they are reading, even if you don't have anything much to say, it's nice to know if you like it or don't like it.

Young Philosopher - "You must continue the story or i shall have to form a mob and find you." – Uh oh! Maybe I BETTER sneak back to Rohan! There they threaten to keep me, not hunt me down… Glad you are liking the story – thanks for dropping a line. I'm feeling much better about this now! (Now all I have to do is think of more to write – and fast!)

Julia – "I'm very psyched to hear that you are planning to write the Elfwine/Dariel story, and I have total faith in you to dream up enough mayhem." – Am I the only one who gets "the grass is always greener" syndrome (that's what I call it when I'm doing one thing and want to be doing another, but if I switch to the other then I want to be doing the first)? That's sort of what is happening with HP – I keep wanting to do LOTR and have to force myself to be good! Then when I finish HP and can go do LOTR, I bet I'll suddenly not want to do it! I guess that's where discipline comes in, something I'm not terribly good at…

Blue Eyes At Night - "The Weasley's see Snape all pathetically in love with Aury and they're like...hmm...this could be interesting...and they send him a Xmas present and its a kitten but it randomly turns into a maneating lion or a blast ended skewt?" – well, got to admit, that does sound like something F&G would do to Snape! As for the open-ended chapters – sorry, more of them are coming!

Tracey – "You do awkward so well, my dear Deandra. " – Thanks! I've had a lot of personal practice… Oh, and sorry about not telling you about "Choices". Glad you found it anyway.

Spaz – Thanks for letting me know you're out there! I think I'd have been better off if they didn't give us that hit counter! It just feels really strange to know that over a 1000 people have at least looked at 1 chapter but there are only 37 reviews total! I wasn't sure exactly what that meant!

Elwen of Lorien – "And the bit about the Weaslys." I like Fred and George, but never really have much I want to write about them, but it just sort of seemed to fit there.

Chapter 11

Arthur Weasley tumbled from the fireplace at Grimmauld Place, and hastened up the stairs without bothering to brush off his clothes. "Remus! Remus!" he called loudly, despite it being close to midnight.

His daughter, Ginny met him on the landing, rubbing her eyes. "Dad? What's going on?" she asked.

"No time, Ginny. Where's Remus?"

"I'm not sure. He went to the Leaky Cauldron to see Professor Watson. I don't know if he's back yet."

Her father was frowning with concern just as the door to another room opened and Harry joined them, putting on his glasses. "Mr. Weasley?"

At that moment, they heard the front door open downstairs. "Harry, wake Ron and all of you get dressed and gather your things. No time to lose!" He dashed back down the stairs as Harry and Ginny gave each other a confused look.

Harry was absent-mindedly rubbing at his scar and Ginny's eyes flicked there. "Is your scar bothering you?" she asked, dreading the answer.

"Sort of. But not painful. I think he's happy about something."

Ginny gave a gasp, "That isn't good!"

Harry stared at her a moment, and then realized what she meant. "Yeah, it's not. We'd better get dressed."

They each hurried back into their rooms, and within just a few minutes went with Ron to join their father and Remus downstairs in the kitchen. However, Mr. Weasley was not there, and Remus stood as soon as they entered.

"Arthur has gone to get Aurelia to take you back to Hogwarts. There have been some killings – both Muggles and two wizarding families. You'll be safest at the school while we sort this out," Remus explained.

Ron went very white. "Hermione! Is she okay? Her family…"

Remus put an arm around him. "She's safe, Ron. Your father went there first since he knew you were safe for the moment here. They are taking some precautions to protect her family since the Muggles who were attacked all had children at Hogwarts."

Harry swallowed hard. He had no real love for the Dursleys; he didn't even like them, but he didn't particularly want them killed by Voldemort. "Moony, what about…"

His question trailed off, but Remus shook his head. "They are safe. The same things that protect you while there will protect them, but more will likely be done now. Until Voldemort returned, you weren't in any great danger. Now he may target you and anyone close to you."

Harry nodded wearily at the response, but was grateful for Remus' honesty. It still came back to that – either he died or Voldemort did, and Voldemort would do everything he could to make sure it was Harry. He fought to hold back the tears of frustration pricking at his eyes, and then suddenly he felt a warm hand clasp his. Ginny moved in close and put an arm around him, but said nothing, and he appreciated her show of support.

A moment later, Arthur Weasley and Professor Watson stepped from the fire. "Dumbledore's expecting you," Arthur told them, and they each stepped to the fire to Floo to the Headmaster's office, Professor Watson last of all.

Arthur caught her arm before she could go and said quietly, "Keep a sharp eye out. No telling what You-Know-Who will try now. I'm sure you've guessed that part of the reason Dumbledore hired you was to have someone he trusted close to Harry."

She sighed and glanced at Remus. "Of course. That would make sense." Squaring her shoulders, she added, "If Voldemort shows up at Hogwarts, he'll find me in a very bad mood and hungry to avenge a lot of people."

Remus scowled. "Aurelia, just don't do anything foolish. You have to stay alive to mete out vengeance. You're no good to anyone if you act in haste and get yourself killed."

She smiled. "When was I ever the reckless one, Remus? Don't worry – I'll be careful, but dangerous all the same!"

The next instant she was gone.

The three teens were waiting with Dumbledore when she stepped from the fire. "Spend the night in Gryffindor tower with the students. I'll have the other Heads of Houses stay with anyone who remains in their houses as well. Minerva will be assisting me."

Aurelia nodded and gestured for the trio to lead the way, but Ron stopped abruptly. "Hermione? Where's Hermione?" he demanded.

"Do not be alarmed, Mr. Weasley. Miss Granger is already in the dormitory and Professor McGonagall is there until Professor Watson arrives. She is safe," Dumbledore assured him, smiling with understanding.

Ron looked greatly relieved and the three hurried out his office door, Professor Watson right behind them.

They moved in silence to the Gryffindor tower, after stopping briefly at Professor Watson's room so she could collect a few things.

Once inside, they found Hermione waiting and she rushed into Ron's arms, hugging him tightly. "You're safe! I've been worried," she told him. Professor McGonagall nodded to Professor Watson and left immediately. As soon as she was gone, Aurelia cast a spell on the entrance.

"What did you do?" asked Ginny. "The Fat Lady won't let anyone in without a password. And they'd have to know that was the entrance in the first place."

"True, but having seen the picture of Sirius' mother, I don't want to merely rely on a password for protecting us. If anyone gets past the Fat Lady, we'll still have a chance to see them coming."

Harry realized how reassuring it was to have the Defense teacher here with them. Not that any of them really thought the castle would be breached, but all the same she provided an extra line of defense.

"What do we do now?" asked Ron, keeping his arm firmly around Hermione.

"It's after midnight. We try to get some sleep. We're better off well rested whatever may come."

"Are you going to sleep with the girls?" Harry inquired.

She shook her head. "No, I'll flop here on the sofa. I want to know the instant anything comes through that portrait hole – friend or foe."

"Would it be all right if we slept down here, too?" Ginny suggested.

"If you wish," Aurelia answered, "but I still get dibs on the sofa by the fire!"

Their laughter eased the tension a bit before they headed off to the dorms, to change into some comfortable clothes for sleeping and fetch their pillows.

None of the other Gryffindors had stayed over the Christmas break, so it was the just four of them and they quickly settled into the sleeping bags Professor Watson conjured for them.

After a few minutes, Ron was snoring, but Harry lay awake thinking about what was happening. Ginny was curled close beside him, but he was pretty sure she wasn't asleep yet.

Turning his head, he could see in the dim light that Professor Watson was still awake also, and seemingly lost in thought. "Professor?" he called softly.

"Yes, Harry?"

"Did Professor Dumbledore tell you about the prophecy?"

She turned on her side to look at him. "Prophecy?"

He nodded. "I think maybe you need to know about it, and about what happened last spring." She didn't answer, waiting for him to continue.

Slowly he recounted the race to the Ministry of Magic to rescue Sirius, and keep Voldemort from getting some sort of weapon. Only later was it learned that what Voldemort was after was a prophecy made at the time of Harry's birth. In a toneless voice, he repeated the words that Dumbledore had told him. "I have to kill him. Apparently I'm the only one who can."

She was silent for a time, then asked, "How do you feel about that, Harry?"

He was surprised by the question; no one he had told had had that reaction. "I'm not sure. I hate him, and he deserves to die, but I don't know if I could kill anybody. And maybe I can't; maybe he'll be the one to kill me anyway. He's had time to think about why he failed before and maybe he'll be able to do it this time."

"I heard about the Chamber of Secrets. Why did you kill the basilisk?"

Harry was startled, wondering what that had to do with their discussion, but answered honestly, "Because I had to or it was going to kill me."

"And why did you use the basilisk's poison to destroy the memory of Tom Riddle?"

He was puzzled what her point was, but said, "It was the only way to save Ginny, and keep Voldemort from coming back."

"In other words, you killed the basilisk in self-defense. And, in effect, you tried to 'kill' Voldemort once already to save others. I think when it comes down to you or him, you'll fight to stay alive, whether you succeed or not. Don't worry about 'being able' to kill someone. You will do it, if you have no other choice."

Harry leaned back and considered that. He had never thought of it as 'killing' when he stopped Voldemort from returning, but he guessed maybe it was. He had even fought off Professor Quirrel and essentially 'killed' him when he tried to kill Harry for the Sorcerer's Stone. He realized he had been thinking of it in terms of killing an innocent person for no reason, but that wasn't the case here. And it made him feel better about what he had to do.

"Of more interest to me, Harry, is why Voldemort wasn't able to kill you as a baby. What went wrong? What protected you? I'm not sure he knows any more now than he did then about why it happened. And until he figures that out, figures out why you've escaped or defeated him repeatedly these past few years, he'll likely be hesitant to take you on."

"He hasn't hesitated up til now," Harry commented.

"No, but he probably thought it was a fluke when you were a baby. Likely he expected to finish what he started when you knew little magic to defend yourself, but however little you knew, you still came out ahead. That will worry him."

Harry considered that, but before he could respond, she continued, "And he won't like it that the longer he waits, the more you learn. Dumbledore said you can speak Parseltongue?"

Harry nodded. "I found out in my second year. Dumbledore thinks Voldemort transferred some of his power to me when he tried to kill me as a baby and failed."

She leaned back and looked up at the ceiling. "Interesting."

"And there's something else," Harry offered. "When Voldemort was reborn and he killed Cedric Diggory, I ended up fighting him. Both his wand and mine have the same core – a tail feather from the same Phoenix. They sort of stalemated each other when they were forced to duel. That's part of how I escaped." He elaborated on the details of what had happened, though it was painful to remember them, and she nodded pensively.

"Did Dumbledore tell you what he thought was the power you have that Voldemort knows not?" she asked.

"Not specifically, but he said it's what drove me to go to the Ministry to try and save Sirius, so I guess it's love."

She stared at him silently, then said, "Try to get some sleep, Harry. And thank you for telling me all this. I will think about what you've said and see if I can offer you any insight or helpful advice."

Harry nodded and rolled onto his back, not sure why he felt better about things. Ginny's hand slipped over and laid on his chest, and he realized she had been listening to the conversation. He caught it in his own hand and squeezed, grateful for her nearness.