Interviews

Courtney picked at her dinner that evening. All she could think about was Harry's letter. The things described in the letter had created horrible images in her head. Nor could she figure out her feelings about her teachers now. They had made a terrible mistake, a terrible misjudgment. She had not thought them capable of it. But then, neither had Harry. She realized that they were human. Wizards did not have all the answers. She wasn't surprised about that, but it infuriated her that they couldn't even properly use what gifts they had for the greater good. A simple five-minute questioning with a truth serum would have been all that was needed to exonerate Harry.

Luckily, Angela was deep into an argument with her cousin about the Quidditch cup and did not notice. As she listlessly sipped her pumpkin juice a shadow fell over her. Startled she looked up to find her Head of House behind her.

"Miss Barnes, would you please accompany me?"

Courtney silently followed her out of the still bustling Great Hall. They arrived at a Gargoyle in the hallway and the transfiguration professor said "Lemon Drops." The statue jumped aside and revealed a moving staircase. When they reached the top, McGonagall opened the door revealing a room with a large desk and a number of chairs and two people, the headmaster and Professor Weasley.

"Ah, thank you Minerva. Please, both of you have a seat. There are a number of things that we need to discuss. First, I understand you did not attend Charms today, Miss Barnes. Is there any particular reason?" Dumbledore peered at her benignly.

Courtney gulped and glanced at Professor Weasley. He raised his eyebrows at her.

"I opened a package and was reading a letter."

"A letter?" Bill Weasley said, "That is not a good excuse for skipping class."

"Was this letter from your…friend?" asked Dumbledore.

Courtney nodded.

"I see. What has he told you now?"

"Everything. This was the last letter of his story."

Dumbledore suddenly looked years older than he already was. He nodded and asked softly, "And what is your opinion of us now?"

Courtney sighed, "I am not sure. I'd like to believe that everything has changed, that you have learned your lesson, but how can I when you teach lies?"

"Miss Barnes!" Minerva was shocked at the way she was speaking to Albus.

Albus held up a hand. He turned to Bill, "Miss Barnes will have a detention with you tomorrow night at seven for her absence today. Now, would you two please allow Miss Barnes and I to discuss some things privately?"

Looking rather miffed, McGonagall followed Professor Weasley out the door. Dumbledore stood and looked out his window.

"When the board of governors and the ministry decreed that we could not teach the true history of Harry Potter and the Second Dark War, I fought them as hard as I could. I do not like lies. They blind us and limit us. But if I allow the truth to be taught, I will loose my position as Headmaster. This school is my stewardship, it is my duty to the future to give students a direction for their lives. I would leave it to hands of others, if I did not know that Draco Malfoy is slated to be the next headmaster. I cannot, in good conscience, leave the school in his hands. I was ready to leave my duties behind sixteen years ago, when I realized how I had utterly failed everybody. Then a conversation I had with Severus convinced me to stay. I stayed because I was needed. As long as the people need me to serve them, I will do so, despite my belief that I do not deserve their trust."

The Headmaster sighed and turned to look at Courtney.

"You are correct, we have not changed much. We are still narrow-minded and selfish, without the slightest idea of what our potential is. We are afraid of change and strike at anything that is different or new. Perhaps, if Harry had stayed we would have been able to change our ways. Seeing our mistake right in front of us, it might have forced us to change. But we chose the easy way, to forget, to pretend it didn't happen."

Courtney remained silent, she didn't know how to respond to this…confessional.

Dumbledore sat down behind the desk and looked Courtney in the eye, "Perhaps you have the courage to show us the error of our ways. Hermione came to me with a wonderful idea last month. She wants all of the first years to present their projects to the board of Governors, the rest of the students and to all the parents. The board of governors approved it last week. Invitations are being written up to invite all your parents for a week at Hogwarts when the term starts again in January. And you will present, to the entire assembly, the truth."

Courtney tossed and turned in her sleep that night. She was going to present her report to an audience of parents and Board Members, most of whom had been trying to cover up the information she would present for sixteen years.

She thought about Dumbledore's words, and wondered, not for the first time, why she was the first one to ask questions and find out the truth. That Harry wrote to her was not the major difference, the difference was that she wasn't going to sit back and listen to lies. If anyone else had paid attention to what they were told, or even tried to research Harry just a little bit, they too would have realized that they were being lied to. She realized that, to a point, Dumbledore was right, the wizarding community was narrow-minded and cowardly. They saw the lies there and were just content to leave them. They didn't care that an entire generation was growing up without the knowledge of who had made their peaceful existence possible.

Finally giving up on the prospect of sleep she quietly made her way out of the room and down the stairs to the common room where she started making some notes on what she might say in an oral presentation.

Halfway through her second sentence she dropped her quill as she realized that something Dumbledore said should not have been true.

He had mentioned that Draco Malfoy was slated to become the next Headmaster of Hogwarts if Dumbledore left. Thinking back she remembered Tiberius bragging that his father was on the school board.

But Draco Malfoy had been a Death Eater. Shouldn't he have been locked up?

She fell asleep half an hour later pondering the question.

The next morning she hurried down to breakfast and was glad to see Professor Dumbledore there already. She approached him at the high table.

"Miss Barnes, what can I do for you?" the headmaster smiled at her.

"Is there sometime when I could talk to you? I have a few questions."

Dumbledore thought for a moment and then answered, "Come to my office during lunch and we can talk then. Will that work?"

Courtney nodded and then walked over to sit next to Angela and Caleb. Or rather, to sit between Angela and Caleb. They were now refusing to speak to each other because Caleb had insulted (or rather Angela took it as an insult) the Chudley Cannons and it had escalated into a shouting match right before breakfast. Monica (their cousin who was a fifth year prefect) had taken five points from them and so now the two were just fuming. This, of course, made Courtney very uncomfortable so she ended up eating very quickly and hurrying out of the Great Hall.

On her way out, she saw Professor Granger in the hallway talking to someone at the door. She couldn't tell who it was because the light shining from the rising sun made it impossible to distinguish an identity. Hermione must have heard her footsteps because she turned around.

"Courtney, come here for a moment please," she called.

Courtney did so and found the other person, upon closer inspection, to be Ron Weasley. She greeted him then turned to Hermione, waiting for her to say why she had called her over there.

"Ron's team is having a game this weekend against the Kenmare Kestrels. The headmaster has given permission for Angela to attend with me, but we have a few extra tickets. Caleb will probably come, but I was also wondering if you would like to come."

Courtney's eyes widened in surprise. When a teacher asks to speak to you, it isn't normally an invitation to a Quidditch game, "I…I'd love to!"

Hermione grinned, "I'll talk to the Headmaster. You'll most likely spend Friday night with us and go to the game Saturday. Just don't spread the word around very far. Other students might get jealous." Courtney nodded in agreement, her mind already planning on asking Ron and Hermione a few questions Friday night if she could.

Now she just had to find a time to talk to Sirius. This wasn't a problem of course, as Defense was today, but she was now eager to ask questions of them, to find out their side of the story.

At lunch Courtney hurried up to the Headmaster's office. The door at the top of the stairs was open and Dumbledore was seated in a chair beside a low table upon which sat a tray of sandwiches and a pitcher of lemonade (which surprised Courtney, she had not seen that beverage since she had entered the Wizarding World.)

Dumbledore noticed her surprise and chuckled, ending with a small cough, "I have a liking for lemons. Now what would you like to talk about?" he asked as he invited her to eat.

Picking up a sandwich, she decided to address the Draco Malfoy issue first.

"You said that Draco Malfoy would become the next Headmaster if you left, right?"

He nodded, taking a sip on his lemonade.

"Why isn't Draco Malfoy in jail? Wasn't he a Death Eater?"

"There was never enough proof to put him behind bars."

Courtney looked at him in disbelief and blurted out the first thing that came to mind, "Since when does the wizarding world need proof?" Then, realizing what she had said, she slapped her hand over her mouth.

Dumbledore glanced at her amused and answered, "Perhaps I should rephrase my answer, he bought enough people off so that they didn't pursue what little proof there was. Even now, our Ministry is riddled with corruption and, in politics, money talks."

"Why was there never any proof?"

"Draco was not a Slytherin for nothing. During the war, he played both sides. He actually informed on Voldemort for our side a few times in an attempt to cultivate favor to cover his tracks should he ever get caught. It worked too. It also helps that there were never any actual witnesses to his crimes. Now many people know exactly what Draco was, but we have no ability to do anything about it."

Courtney thought for a moment and then said quietly, setting her cup down, "What if I could get proof of his crimes?"

Dumbledore, though he did not move, suddenly became more alert. "What do you mean by that?"

"In the last letter from Harry, he told me that Draco Malfoy was the one who kidnapped him and took him to the forest and took his wand."

Dumbledore's eyes widened, nobody had ever been sure exactly what had happened that night Harry had been arrested. "Miss Barnes, I doubt that it would be taken as conclusive evidence without personal testimony, however, I know a number of people who would be interested to know that fact. Although, with Draco on the Board of Governors, it might not be the best idea to share that piece of information in you oral presentation."

Courtney nodded and then took a deep breath ready to get to the hard part of this discussion.

"Professor, can you tell me why you believed Harry when he told you about the attack on Diagon Alley?"

Immediately the omnipresent twinkle dulled slightly as the headmaster pulled up the old memory. He sighed and looked at his watch, "I will be happy to answer your question, but it is time for you to get to class. Would you join me here for dinner?"

Courtney nodded, a bit disappointed that she would have to wait, but glad that she would find out. Perhaps she would tell Harry since he had never found out either.

In Defense that afternoon they learned about Mummies. They were working through a unit on the undead and they were almost done. They had covered vampires, Waking Skeletons, Zombies and a few others that had never made it into Muggle mythology. The Mummies were the last unit. Sirius had explained that, ghosts, though technically undead, resented being the subject matter for a lesson in Defense Against the Dark Arts.

As the class left the room to go out to Herbology Courtney hung back to talk to Sirius.

"Professor? Is there a time that I could talk to you some more about Harry?"

Sirius looked at her for a moment and then nodded, "Would you like to talk Sunday afternoon?"

Courtney nodded and quickly left.

Albus tiredly rubbed his aching head with both hands. Tonight he felt his age acutely. Courtney had just finished dinner with him and left to attend her detention with Professor Weasley. He sighed and sat back, recalling the words he had said in answer to her previous question.

"I have often relied on instinct, Courtney. That and stubborn will. I wanted to believe Harry was telling the truth. I had no evidence, but I guess…I wanted to believe that there was some redemption for Harry. I wanted to give him a chance to find salvation, to find a way to forgive himself or atone for what he had done. I wanted to believe that he was not completely evil and so I took his word. Of course, I found out soon after that that Harry had no need of redemption. That I had been a fool and that my instincts, however good they may have been that night Harry told me about the attack on Diagon Alley, I should have listened to them ten years before and none of it would have ever happened."

Albus sighed again. It took a lot out of him to tell those things to Courtney. Had he not known the truth about her father he probably would not have told her. It wasn't that he was too proud to admit his mistakes; it was just that there was no one to confess them to. Most of his friends would be uncomfortable if he were to confide in him the way they did in him. He was Albus Dumbledore and everyone, no matter how well they knew him, had expectations and him talking about his mistakes and failings was not one of them.

"It's what you get for the life you have lived, Albus, no one will listen to you," he chided himself aloud.

He stood from his desk, body aching from the stress of the day, but as he did a small smile graced his face as he recalled Courtney's parting statement.

"You know what you said yesterday, that the wizarding world was narrow-minded and selfish? I think you are mistaken to include yourself."

Courtney Barnes was a child, wise and mature beyond her years. She was clumsy and seemed to earn detentions quite frequently, and she was at times a silly child, but at the same time, she seemed older than her peers.

Harry, you and Kathryn did a wonderful job raising your daughter. I'm sure you are doing just as well with your son. But please, Harry, for your sake and her own, let her pursue her dreams and give her your support. Albus begged silently to whatever deity might be listening.

Slowly he made his way from his office to his rooms and fell asleep in exhaustion.

Kathryn and David had come to a comfortable point. David had kept his word and was playing the part of the perfect father for a muggle born. Kathryn wasn't sure how much was an act and how much was genuine, but she was glad for the relief that it brought, even if it was an act. David was, apparently, even getting excited about buying wizarding Christmas presents for the children. He had actually asked Megan Weasley what kinds of things to buy for magical children.

Megan and Kathryn were planning another outing to Diagon Alley and Kathryn even asked David if he would like to go. David declined, citing one of his newest patients as his reason, but suggested Michael might enjoy it. Kathryn was unsure as to why David automatically assumed Michael would be like his sister. She had never noticed any magic in either of them, and, according to Megan, it was uncommon for there to be two witches or wizards in a muggle family. However, she did not ask him, and instead she took it as another sign of his acceptance of Courtney's world.

Friday morning came with the sun trying to peek out of the gloomy cloud cover. It was sure to snow soon. A tap on the kitchen window alerted the occupants of the breakfast table to an owl. The owl was not Rex and as soon as Kathryn removed its letter, it flew back through the open window.

Kathryn turned it over and recognized the seal as that of Hogwarts. Opening it curiously, she read it out loud to her husband and son.

To the Family of Courtney Barnes

You are hereby invited to spend five days at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You are invited to attend presentations on historical figures in the Wizarding world given by the first year students. If you wish to accept this invitation for January 3-8 please R.S.V.P. as soon as possible and let us know. All parents of Muggleborn students will be given further instructions at a later time, detailing how they are to get to Hogwarts.

We look forward to seeing you.

Minerva McGonagall

Kathryn immediately brightened at the thought of being able to see the school that her daughter had come to love so much. She turned to David, "Well? Would you like to go?"

David silently picked up the letter and read it through again. Then he took out his calendar from his pocket and flipped to the beginning of January.

Then slowly he shook his head, "I can't. I have two surgeries scheduled for that week, plus I have one patient due to finish his current round of chemo that week. I could possibly rearrange some of those, but I also have an appointment on the calendar for Prashanth Siraj. There is no way I can ask his family to reschedule because they are traveling from India to see me."

Disappointed, but trying not to show it, Kathryn looked at him and asked, "If you could, would you go?"

David thought for a moment and then sighed, "I don't know."

Kathryn scowled, nodded sharply, and then hurried to get Michael ready for school.

Courtney could barely contain her excitement on Friday. As soon as classes ended for the day, she ran up to Professor Granger's office. When she arrived, she found Angela there as well as her three younger siblings. Courtney eagerly volunteered to occupy Mariah, while Angela attempted to keep Markus and Harry from killing each other with some very large history books. Hermione was finishing up some last moment things while she waited for Caleb to show up (apparently Caleb and Angela had forgotten all about their fight and were making rather outrageous bets as to who would win.)

When Caleb arrived (five minutes late) Hermione herded them all together and they started walking down to Hogsmeade. Ron was still at practice when they got home so the younger children entertained themselves while the three first years helped Hermione make dinner.

Ron came home exhausted, but pumped for the game the next morning. After dinner while Ron was putting the younger children to bed and Angela and Caleb were arguing about who-knows-what Courtney helped Hermione clean up.

As she cleared the table, she addressed her professor, "Is there sometime I could talk to you and your husband about Harry Potter?" she asked nervously.

Hermione hesitated in the doorway and then continued silently into the kitchen. Courtney thought she wasn't going to answer but then Hermione spoke, "Tonight would probably be best. Although Ron doesn't even know about your contact with Harry so it will be a shock. I…its hard to talk about Harry, so I am sorry if we can't answer some of your questions."

Courtney thought for a moment and then said, "Did you know that Angela hates Harry Potter?"

"What? Where did you get that idea?" Hermione stared at Courtney.

"From Angela. She doesn't like him in the slightest because she doesn't know the truth, all she knows is that him leaving the Wizarding World hurt you and your husband a lot and so she doesn't like him because of that."

Hermione was silent as she tried to understand this fact. How could Angela hate Harry Potter? There wasn't much you could hate about him. He had always helped others, he had always tried to please. Many times he was noble to a fault. How could Angela hate him?

Because she knows nothing about him. She doesn't know about him stopping Quirrell, slaying the basilisk, saving Buckbeak and Sirius, or anything about the Quidditch World Cup. She knows nothing about Harry Potter!

For the first time in sixteen years, Hermione actually realized what it meant to hide the truth. In her mind, she had known, but as it had not affected her, because she knew the truth, she had never understood the effect it had on those who didn't.

She put the cups in the sink and simply walked out of the kitchen. Courtney sighed and put her armload of dishes in the sink and went into the living room. A few moments later both Hermione and Ron came down the stairs.

"Sorry Courtney, I did not mean to be rude. I just…needed a moment. I think now would be the best time to talk. Although we'll have to explain to Ron."

Ron, looking very confused, turned his attention from his wife to his house-guest.

Courtney sighed, "For my famous wizard project, I chose Harry Potter."

Ron immediately frowned and turned to his wife, "We can't tell her anything!" he muttered, but Courtney could still hear him.

"Mr. Weasley, I researched as much as I could and found next to nothing about Harry. I figured out on my own that Azkaban was once guarded by Dementors and that they were the guards while Harry was there. I knew then that we were being lied to. I figured nobody in the wizarding world had the guts to tell the truth about what happened, so I would go straight to the source. I wrote to him."

Ron, not knowing what to expect simply raised his eyebrows questioning the wisdom of such an action, given what he knew of past attempts to contact Harry.

"Harry wrote me back and told me everything about himself. He told me how you two first met on the train, how you talked to Aragog in the forest your second year, how your leg was broken when Sirius dragged you to the Shrieking Shack, how your dress robes for the Yule Ball had lace frills, he told me everything."

Ron had stopped listening after her first four words and was staring openmouthed in shock.

"When the new term starts in January and we do our projects, I am going to present the truth, in its entirety, to everybody. The world will know what it owes Harry Potter. The younger generation will know to whom they owe their peace and prosperity." There was a fire of determination in Courtney's eyes that Hermione had never seen before.

Ron finally managed to say, "He wrote back to you?"

"More than that," Hermione spoke up, "He transferred all of his assets through WWW to Courtney. She now owns one-third of the company."

Ron shook himself, making sure this was real, while Hermione continued, "Courtney has asked if she can ask us a few things."

Ron simply looked at Courtney expectantly, waiting for her to ask. Courtney shifted in her seat. Then she simply sighed and took out a piece of parchment and a quill that Professor Dumbledore had provided her with. It would record the interview word for word so she could just talk.

"First I want to ask you, Mr. Weasley, to tell me about your friendship with Harry."

Ron sighed and launched into his tale.

"I grew up hearing the stories about Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived. In all that time I never once realized that he was the same age as me. I never thought that he would go to Hogwarts with me, much less that we would become friends. When Fred and George announced that Harry had been the kid to ask my Mum how to get onto the platform, I realized for the first time that Harry Potter was still a kid! I mean I had always known he wasn't a grown-up, but I had never consciously understood that that meant he was a kid.

"When I joined him in the train car, to tell you the truth, I was all jittery with nervousness. I mean, I was meeting the famous Harry Potter. I was simply flabbergasted when he started talking to me like a normal person. When he told off Malfoy for insulting me, up to that moment I had never felt more proud. We became fast friends.

"But I…" here Ron paused for a minute to gather his thoughts he continued speaking slower and softer, "I was never as good a friend as he deserved. I had a jealous streak Courtney and that was my problem. Fourth year, I got mad at him because Crouch Jr entered him into the TriWizard tournament. All I could think about was the fame and recognition. I was tired of being overshadowed by first my brothers and then Harry. I was never as good a friend to him as he was to me.

"I didn't fully realize what it meant to be Harry Potter until the beginning of fifth year. Harry had changed over the summer, he was more somber and more prone to withdrawing. Hermione kept me in line, kept me from blowing up at him in frustration. I was enlisted to get him to Madam Pomfrey when he didn't get enough sleep." Ron paused again and looked down at his hands giving a big sigh, "When he started confessing what he saw in his dreams, I sometimes wished he had not told us. It was awful, but I could see it helped him to talk about it and so I tried.

"When I saw who I thought was Harry kill Hagrid, I thought it had to be someone under Polyjuice potion, I did not believe it had been Harry. Then Dumbledore told me it had been Harry, I just wanted to die. I…I used to blame myself. I thought that because I had wished he would stop telling us what happened he had tried to find another avenue of release. I thought that I should have been more supportive and maybe things would have turned out differently."

Ron went silent and Courtney allowed him a moment before asking, "What was your reaction when Harry killed Voldemort and Dumbledore told everyone about his innocence?"

Ron looked at Courtney, "I felt like throwing up actually. I felt sick at the thought of Harry being innocent and in Azkaban. I knew very well his reaction to Dementors. I tried not to think about it too hard because I was the one who had to break the news to the rest of the family. I knew if I thought about it too much I wouldn't be able to talk about it.

"After I told everyone I became terrified of finding Harry. He would be angry, he would be furious; I didn't know what he would do. I knew I deserved whatever he dished out and so I put off meeting him for a few days. By the time I built up the courage…he was gone. I became obsessed with finding him so I could apologize. But he was gone and there was no way to reach him."

Hermione spoke up, telling her side of the story, "I broke down completely when Ron told me about what had happened in the battle, that Harry was innocent. I was just in shock. Then all I wanted to do was talk to him, plead with him. Beg his forgiveness. When Dumbledore told us that he was leaving the wizarding world, I was nearly hysterical. It...it was an awful time. When you find out you made a huge mistake, a very big misjudgment like that, especially about someone you care about...it hurts. It hurts a lot. And if I know I hurt that much, I can't even imagine how much Harry hurt."

Courtney looked at the couple in amazement and said in an exasperated voice, "Then why would you let lies be taught? You still feel guilty about it, that much is obvious. Do you think Harry would ever forgive you for teaching lies and hiding things? How can you forgive yourself if you continue denying the truth?" Courtney's disgust was easily distinguishable in her voice.

Ron and Hermione stared at her in shock. Immediately Courtney flushed in embarrassment and started stammering out an apology, "Sorry! I should be more respectful."

Hermione let out a deep sigh, "No, it's alright. You've come close to Harry and so you see things how he sees them. You're right. Courtney I...I've been ignoring the truth for sixteen years, I don't want to think about what I did!" the Hermione started crying.

Ron put his arm around his wife and looked at Courtney, "I...I guess I have simply pushed everything away. It seems like that was another lifetime, those memories almost seem like they belong to someone else. I guess I just moved on." Ron shrugged.

Courtney, however, could see that this was blatantly untrue. "Mr. Weasley, you haven't 'moved on' you have simply forced yourself not to think about it, you have not dealt with it." she stated quietly.

Hermione wiped her face, trying to reclaim her dignity, "I think it is time for bed."

Courtney packed up her quill and parchment and prepared to leave the living room, but then she turned around to look at her best friend's parents, "You two aren't the only ones who have buried all of this, refused to think about it."

"What do you mean?" asked Ron standing up from his seat on the couch.

"Harry never dealt with it either, he simply left it behind. He has ignored anything having to do with the wizarding world for sixteen years. His own wife does not know his past. But none of you are happier for it." Once again, Courtney turned to go, but Hermione's voice stopped her, "Harry's married?"

Courtney looked at her history teacher and nodded, "He's been married for probably fourteen years now. He has two children. They are probably slightly older than me by now."

"Do you...do you know anything else about his current life?" Ron asked, a desperate note in his voice. Courtney shook her head and went up to bed.

The next morning snow started falling. It was just a light snow, but it was a very cold day. As the Quidditch fans crowded onto the stands they held their cloaks and coats tight around them. Courtney, Angela and Caleb huddled together as Hermione took out her wand and cast warming charms over them (the three younger ones were with various aunts and uncles today). They sat down and chatted eagerly as they waited for the game to start.

Courtney glanced at Hermione. Both Hermione and Ron had been subdued. It wasn't so much that Caleb and Angela wondered what was going on, but it was noticeable to Courtney.

Cheers erupted as the commentator announced the entrance of the two teams. Courtney pushed aside all thought of her project and concentrated on the game.

Ten minutes into the game, Hermione tapped Courtney on the shoulder and, when she had her attention, pointed something out to her. Courtney squinted in the direction her teacher indicated and gasped in surprise at who she saw.

Her entire family was there. Including her father.

Courtney was practically jumping up and down with excitement as her family mounted the bleachers. She turned, grinning maniacally, to Hermione, "How?" she asked.

"Well, when I told Megan that I was taking you along with Angela and Caleb she thought of inviting your family. Megan and your mother have gotten to be good friends and she thought it might be a fun idea. She called them yesterday afternoon and asked them if they would like to come to the game."

By then the Barnes family were level with their daughter. Courtney picked her way past the few people sitting on the same riser and then ran along the bleacher to her parents and brother. A few feet from them she slipped on a patch of snow that had formed ice and bashed her shin into the lower bench, falling, none too gracefully into her father's arms.

He let out a small chuckle at his daughter's characteristic clumsiness. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I probably have a bruise though," she rubbed her shin in annoyance and embarrassment as grinned at her family. She immediately found herself in her father's arms as he planted a kiss on her forehead. Then her mother came forward and hugged her as well. Michael did not hug her but instead grinned and showed her where he had lost a tooth. They all made their way back to where the Weasleys sat.

Hermione was surprised to see David Barnes come. According to Sirius, Fred and Megan he was not interested in the wizarding world. She noticed that he purposely sat at the far end of the group, as far away from her as he could. She surmised that he still had no love for the wizarding world. Sighing in frustration at parents who wouldn't support their children, she turned her attention back to the game.

Kathryn had been surprised when Megan had called her on the phone and invited them to a Quidditch game that Courtney had been invited to as well. Kathryn and Michael had immediately agreed. David however, had refused to come. She knew he didn't have any appointments that day and really had nothing else to do so she had insisted that, unless he gave her a good reason why he shouldn't go he would come with him. He had frowned and looked angry for a moment and then Kathryn had simply said "Do you want to see Courtney?" He had simply acquiesced at that. So here he was, sitting at a Quidditch game.

Kathryn sat beside Angela and Caleb and Hermione sat on the other side of the two cousins. Michael sat next to his mother and Courtney was beside her father on Michael's other side. Kathryn watched her husband and daughter. Courtney was absorbed in the game, but David had his arm around her and was looking only at her.

She felt a rush of gratitude that David was here today. Courtney and David had always been close and David's attitude over the past few months had greatly hurt both Courtney and himself. It seemed now though that their relationship, though not quite like it was before, was healing.

The game ended unexpectedly in a tie. 200-200. The Kestrals had been down by 150 bu then had caught the snitch. Ron didn't look to happy with his players, but the crowd was pleased with the game overall and there was a contented murmur of voices as the spectators left the stadium. The Weasleys waited patiently while the Barneses said goodbye.

"Thank you for coming!" Courtney was still grinning.

"Why wouldn't we come, sweety? Of course we wanted to see you!" Kathryn laughed lightly, ignoring the voice in her head that pointed out that David had not wanted to come.

"When does your term end for Christmas?" David asked.

"Um, around the 16th I believe." Courtney looked around to confirm this with Hermione who nodded.

"Yeah, the sixteenth. I'll be riding the train back to King's Cross and I should be there about 6 PM."

"We'll see you then." David said and hugged Courtney once more, "I love you."

"Love you to, Dad." After receiving similar good-byes from Michael and Kathryn, Courtney followed the Weasleys and the Barnes family went in the opposite direction to where Fred Weasley was waiting to take them back home.

The rest of the day was lazy for Courtney. She didn't really have any homework to do that weekend, except for her project, which she was at a standstill on. She had all of Harry's information in report format and was now just waiting for the last interview with Sirius.

Sunday afternoon she walked to Professor Black's office. She knocked and entered when he invited her in.

"Right on time. I heard you went to the Quidditch game yesterday. How did you like your first professional match?"

Courtney grinned, "Well, I liked it a lot, but it was freezing cold. I think I prefer school games though, because I actually know the players and stuff."

Sirius smiled and motioned for her to sit down.

"So your parents and brother showed up?" Sirius said sitting down himself.

"Yeah! That was a complete surprise. I mean, especially that my Dad came."

"Well Courtney, he told you he would try and he obviously is trying."

"I guess so, but I don't think he watched a single bit of the game. I think he was watching me the entire time."

Sirius smiled and then sat back and said, "So what is it you wanted to ask me about Harry?"

"Well, first, just tell me about him from your perspective," Courtney said as she set out the parchment and quill.

"Well, I hardly remembered him before I saw the article in the Daily Prophet about the Weasleys winning that galleon draw and recognized Wormtail. The dementors sucked those memories of Harry out of me." Sirius' eyes lost something when he talked about Azkaban. "When I finally remembered about Harry, I didn't let myself forget. That is what gave me the...drive to escape. I watched him as best I could that year. When we finally met...it was not in the best situation as I am sure he told you. I was stunned that he opened up to me so fast and invited me into his life so completely, even more so when I discovered how little he trusted anybody. I was the only adult he ever turned to for a long time. What kind of a life did he have, it made me wonder, to guard himself so much and at the same time be so willing to trust someone who was almost an absolute stranger? But we still didn't know each other. Our longest conversation was probably when I got to talk to him on his fifteenth birthday and that wasn't more than two hours. I hardly knew him at all. He trusted me without knowing me but I couldn't trust him. That is one reason why I believed the lies. I had known and trusted Remus and Albus for decades but I didn't know my godson."

Ok, before anyone gets any strange ideas, let me explain. Angela and Caleb fight like siblings not like Ron and Hermione do in the books, where it is interpreted as romantic interest.
They are first cousins, and while that was once acceptable in the Muggle world (and presumably even longer in the magical world), it no longer is.