Disclaimer – Harry Potter is not ours. We just let our imagination play in JK Rowlings world.

2nd Disclaimer – Our imagination ran dry on house elf/goblin names. We've started borrowing names from a book we have by Vonda N McIntyre which is based on a screenplay by Harve Bennett. Any guesses on the movie?

Chapter 12 Christmas Eve

Ginny wrote out a letter to Percy asking him to come to the Burrow. They figured that even if the owl were intercepted, it wouldn't be that unusual for a family member to want to see another. Ron reluctantly added his signature.

"Are you sure about this Harry? You'd be trusting him with information about how to contact you. He'll know that we know."

Harry looked seriously at Ron. "I'd be trusting him with a whole lot more than that and he'd be trusting me. If he's willing to do this, willing to steal a toad from the Minister, do you think he'd be able to go back to work afterwards, or even to his home? He'd have to stay here, too."

"I hadn't thought about that. Do you reckon that he would even try then? He's not been too fond of you, ya know."

Harry had to laugh. Ron had a way of pointing things out that was so understated sometimes. "I know. But we have to ask."

Ginny went and got Pig to send the message to Percy. When she returned they all sat around a table to plot how they were going to approach him. They decided when Percy came, they would bring him to Ginny's room and Harry would talk to him there. They would feel him about a little before showing the secret of their trunks and Harry wanted to stay near the exit in case anyone should approach the Burrow from the Ministry.

At noon, Harry's friends decided they'd better return to the Burrow and show up for the noon meal. They told Harry that one of them would come down to the trunk to let Harry know when to come.

Harry added Percy to the recognition list for people allowed to enter his home then Harry spent the rest of the day in the Library looking for the toad he'd seen in Umbridge's office. He could find no trace of any orange toads like he saw. He was getting frustrated. He spent some time with Justina explaining that they thought they might have a lead on the amphibian used for the poison and were working on a way to acquire one. She just hoped it would be soon.

Sunday morning came and finally Fossa came to tell Harry his presence was requested in the trunk. Harry quickly made his way down and then followed Hermione back up to the Weasley side. It felt strange coming into Ginny's bedroom. He'd never been in Ginny's room before. There was a second bed added which Harry assumed Hermione was using. As there were no chairs to sit on he sat on the closed trunk. It didn't feel right to sit on one of their beds. Hermione sat on one, though. Harry kept shooting nervous glances at the window. He hoped no one out there had a magical eye like Moody's. If they did, he would be in trouble.

Hermione also seemed tense. They would occasionally make eye contact but made no conversation. Finally they heard footsteps approaching the bedroom.

"Harry, maybe you'd better cast a wandless silencing charm as soon as he's in. You might want to stay out of sight until it's done."

Harry thought that was probably a good idea and got up to stand on the blind side of the door. The door opened and Ginny came in pulling Percy behind her with Ron pushing from the rear. Harry cast the charm and the door closed.

"Hello, Percy." Percy whirled around. His expression showed relief, then panic, and finally anger.

"Harry! What are you doing here? Do you know that they're watching this place? If you're hiding here, you're putting my whole family in danger. What are you thinking and what are they thinking to let you?"

Percy's face started to flush red, but Ron's got redder. "Now just a minute!"

"It's okay, Ron. Percy I'm not staying here. I'm only here to talk to you for a very short time. I'm not any happier to be here than you are to see me here under these circumstances. So calm down! Oh, and thank you for trying to warn me. It saved my life, or at least my sanity."

"So what's happening? Why did you want to talk to me?" Percy had calmed down, but he still was suspicious.

"As you suspected the Minister, Cornelius Fudge had been poisoned. Umbridge tried to poison me, too, but I was able to fake it and get both of us away. I've been taking care of him with some help. The problem was that they had been poisoning him for so long that he goes through withdrawal and without the detoxifying potion could go into shock and die. Now the potion could be made last week with the remains of the poisoned tea I had hidden, but now that's gone and without the diluted poison the detoxifying potion is no good. We need to get more poison. That's where you come in."

"It was in the tea? I almost poured you poisoned tea?" Percy had gone pale.

"Yeah. Luckily she's not very creative. She had tried to spike my tea last year so I already suspected that was how she'd do it again. But that doesn't matter. What matters is that we need more of the poison or the Minister could die. Our best plan to acquire it needs your help. We need a toad from her office. Are you willing to help?"

"Of course I want to help the Minister, but I can't steal from Madam Umbridge!"

Ginny softly suggested, "Maybe he should see the Minister now."

Harry nodded and Ginny opened the trunk. She climbed down first, then Harry, Percy, Ron and Hermione. Percy barely looked around and didn't ask any questions. Ginny then led the way to Harry's bedroom. She sat on his bed while waiting for everyone to get out of the trunk. Harry just shook head and marveled at how different she was from him. She just made herself right at home.

Harry led the way down the hall to the Minister's room. He gave a soft knock at the door. Justina came and let them in. "He's getting restless again. The withdrawal symptoms are starting to increase. Percy Weasley! I didn't expect to see you here!"

"Justina Bosworth? I haven't seen you since we left Hogwarts. Why are you here?" Percy seemed quite interested in Justina. Ginny raised her eyebrows at Harry in silent comment. Harry shrugged back.

"I am a Healer-in-Training at St. Mungo's. I worked in the Long Term Care ward and helped care for the Minister and Harry."

"You gave them their medications?" Percy seemed to be appalled at the idea. Harry was glad for that.

"Oh, no. Healer Blythefield was the only one allowed access for that. I took care of more personal needs, like eating and…things."

Percy glanced at Harry and Harry knew he was blushing again. Ron sniggered. Hermione elbowed him. Ginny's eyes were laughing as she tried to hold her laughter in.

"You could have knocked me over with a flobberworm when Harry up and started talking like a sane person. Then he gave me the poisoned tea and asked if I could figure out what was in it so we could try to help Minister Fudge. Then he was discovered and had to make a run for it with the Minister. When I found that the poison was highly addictive I was able to get word to Harry and made arrangements to pass on the detoxifier potion. Unfortunately I also was discovered and was brought here. I've been here ever since and probably will be until we can get the Minister well enough to testify against Madam Umbridge."

"Can't Harry testify?"

Harry spoke, "They're calling me delusional with a persecution complex. Do you think I'd be believed by myself?" Percy looked uncomfortable, as he was one who helped promote last year's reports of him being delusional.

Minister Fudge moaned from the bed. Justina went to his side to give what limited relief she could. Percy looked at his bedridden former idol. He seemed surprised and somewhat shocked at the condition Fudge was in. He spoke softly, "I tried to warn him, you know. I could tell Umbridge was unstable. I told him she needed help. He refused to listen."

Harry softly responded, "I know something about him refusing to listen. He's very stubborn."

Percy looked sadly at Harry. "You were telling the truth all along, weren't you." It was a statement. Not a question.

"Yes. But only Dumbledore and a few others believed me because the Minister didn't want to believe it himself. I love your family and I would do anything for them. They believed me when most of the wizarding world didn't. And because they believed the truth they took a stand to try to stop what was coming, even when the Ministry refused to do so. Do you still think they were wrong?"

Percy looked over at the stubborn Minister who refused to listen to him and so suffered the consequences. Harry could see the realization hit Percy of how much bigger the Minister's refusal to believe in You-Know-Who's return was.

He closed his eyes in pain and said, "They weren't wrong. I was."

After a moment Hermione started to tug on their arms to get them to leave the room and allow Justina privacy to work with the Minister. She led them to the little breakfast area and they took seats around the table. Once again the table filled with scones and fresh fruit.

Percy poured himself a cup of tea and stared at it for a minute. Finally he asked, "So what exactly do you need me to do?"

Harry had thought that whole part of the conversation had gone right over his head. "Justina determined that it's an amphibian poison. We," He made a general sweeping motion to include himself and the others, "believe that the poison comes from the toads that Umbridge keeps in her office. We need to get one to finish the potion. We were wondering if you would be willing to steal one for us." Harry held his breath. This was the big moment. Would law-abiding, never-break-a-rule Percy be willing to go completely against it all to help them?

Ron broke in, "You have access to her office. You could get in and out with no problem. Then you could meet up with us and we could use the toad to heal the Minister and everything could be all right again."

Harry knew it wouldn't be that easy and apparently so did Percy. "You really want me to steal a toad from Umbridge?"

"Yes. But it's a little more complicated than that. They're poisonous somehow. We're not sure how yet, but you should wear dragonhide gloves when handling them and we'd need some type of container to safely keep them in." Harry paused. "I seem to remember there were several toads in there. I don't know if she would miss one or not. I think, to be safe, after you would get it you should plan on staying here until this is over. Would you be willing to?"

Percy snorted. "Willing to stay here? Or willing to do any of this?"

"Either one."

Percy closed his eyes. He slowly took a deep breath and let it go. "I'll do both. Madam Umbridge doesn't get there until 9:00. I'll go in at 8:00. You know they're watching the Burrow, don't you? They'll know when I leave today and they'll know when I come tomorrow."

Harry turned to Ginny. "Do you know if they follow you when you leave or do they only log who comes and goes?"

"I don't think they follow us, but I'm not positive."

Harry closed his eyes and rake a hand through his hair. "How about you leave today as normal, Percy, but Ginny will meet you tomorrow somewhere in Ottery St. Catchpole. I'll loan Ginny my cloak. Ginny, after you leave the house and get past the checkpoint, put it on to lose anyone who might be following you. Bring your trunk along and Percy can come straight here. I'll meet you down here and you can leave the cloak and walk back. They should never know what happened."

Percy had an odd look on his face. "Good plan. You know, I've always wondered what it must be like to be in on one of your adventures. It's rather strange. I hope everything goes well."

"So do I."

Harry had a lot of nervous energy to work off the next morning. He had eaten a quick breakfast and decided to wait in the trunk for Percy. The Minister's health was declining quickly. He needed the potion and soon. Harry took out the Spellseye and shot a few rounds to keep him distracted. He tried to see how quickly he could shoot ten in a row without a miss. With a wand he was at level 14 now; without a wand at level 10. It was just easier with a wand, but he was proud of how he was doing without. His level without was higher than Remus' level with a wand.

Finally the door opened at the top and Ginny's voice floated down. "Harry!" He went to stand underneath and looked up. Ginny grinned at him and threw his cloak down. Harry caught it and then Percy was coming down the ladder. He had a small pack on his back.

When he reached the bottom, Harry nodded to him. "Hey, Percy. Glad to see you. Shall we go? Justina's waiting."

As they were climbing up the ladder, Percy told Harry, "Remind me to ask about these trunks later." As they went out through the bedroom and down the flights of stairs, Percy added, "And the house." Harry just grinned at him.

Harry led him into the Game/Weapons room and to the door that led to the tunnels. Percy's eyes were wide the entire time. Now that he wasn't in such shock, what he was seeing was finally sinking in.

Justina was already in the their make-shift lab. She looked up when they arrived and smiled. "Were you able to get the specimen?"

Percy took the pack off his back and put it on an empty part of the worktable. He gently lifted out a glass case in which there was a blue toad. It was the exact match of his robes.

Harry was astonished. "It's blue now. It was orange when I was in her office! Are you sure it's the same toad?"

Percy nodded. "Yes. They change color to match whatever the 'owner' is wearing. When I took him he changed to blue."

"Well, no wonder I couldn't find a picture of him in any of the books. Most people wouldn't wear that awful shade of orange."

Justina was setting up some of the additional equipment she had asked Harry to order when she realized they might need to collect the poison from the source. She started a small fire and used some tongs to remove the toad from its glass case. She placed the toad in a rounded cup and placed a wire mesh over the top so it couldn't escape, but could breathe. She placed the rounded cup on a stand over the fire.

"Er…Justina, you know the toad is going to roast if you leave him there." Even as Harry watched, the toad started to sweat.

"I won't keep him there. We don't need a lot of his secretions so we won't hold him here long. In fact, that's most likely enough for now. You see, when the toad panics, it lets out the poisonous secretions from its body. At least that's how it works with most poisonous frogs. I was hoping it would be the same with this toad." She put dragonhide gloves on and removed the toad with the tongs and replaced it in the glass container. "Now I need to test how potent this is." She removed the rounded cup. She paused, then looked up and added, "Do either of you know how to care for this thing? We may need more later. We need to keep it healthy."

Percy shook his head and Harry had no clue. Harry thought for a minute. "I can send a note with one of the house elves to Neville. He has a toad. He can let me know some basics of how to care for it."

Percy seemed to want to stay and help Justina, so Harry left to head back up to write a note to Neville. After he'd written his request he called Tubow to him. Tubow came with a pop. Harry asked if he could find a house elf that had time and could bring his note to Neville Longbottom and then wait for a reply. Tubow gave a bow, took the note and then popped away.

Harry decided to check on how the potion brewing was going. He met Justina and Percy on their way back up. Justina was talking excitedly to Percy about the results of her testing and was carrying a dosage with her. She noticed Harry. "Harry! Without the tea interfering, I think the detoxifier solution will work much better. The results I received from my tests are very encouraging. I'm going to give the Minister his dose now. I think this could speed things up dramatically." Her voice dropped to a whisper, almost as if she didn't dare say it aloud, "And, I'm not sure, but there might be a link with this poison/detoxifier that could help some of my other long-term patients." Her voice got louder again. "Much more research would be needed of course, but just think…."

Harry followed them to the Minister's room. He was still in obvious pain and his body was beginning to twitch. Justina hurried to his side and administered the dosage. Instantly the Minister's body relaxed, but his eyes didn't immediately cloud over as they did before. They retained a spark of awareness.

His eyes roamed the room, briefly landing on the Healer and Harry before moving on to Percy. With his voice rough, he said, "Weasley,"

Percy stepped forward. "Yes, Minister?"

"You were right." That seemed to be all he could manage for now. His body was tired from fighting the pain and he surrendered to the sleep that beckoned him.

Justina was bubbling with joy. She tucked Fudge in and shooed Harry and Percy out of the room. They went down the hall to the breakfast area. She couldn't seem to hold it in anymore and reached over to hug Percy. Harry was amused to see Percy quite willingly return the hug.

Finally they broke apart. Justina gave a satisfied sigh and sank into a seat. Harry and Percy took seats as well. The table started to fill with different brunch foods and drinks. "I have no doubts he'll have a full recovery now. He actually spoke and was coherent! I was afraid they had caused permanent damage."

Harry hadn't known that part. If the Minister had permanent damage, what would that have done to Harry's credibility? He was actually relieved Justina hadn't shared that information before. Harry was feeling stressed enough throughout this Christmas Break. He guessed now that the first priority was taken care of he should find out what Percy's plans were.

"Percy? How are you feeling about this? Do you think it would be safe for you to go back or do you want to stay here with us for now until this can be cleared up?"

Percy looked at Justina with consideration. She smiled at him. "No one would really miss me out there, but I didn't bring any clothes with me."

"Clothes are no problem. There are tons of trunks full in the attics and the house elves can adjust them to fit." Harry didn't think it was true that Percy wouldn't be missed. If Mrs. Weasley found out he was missing she would lose it for sure. Harry bet she would love to know that Percy wasn't being such a prat anymore, especially as Christmas was only in two days time….

"Then I think I will stay if it is not a problem. As I was leaving this morning, I told Eric the Guard that I wasn't feeling well, which I wasn't as I'd just stolen a poisonous toad! Maybe I could get a message sent with Hermes that I'm taking the next week off. That way if I'm not suspected it wouldn't make it suspicious that I'm suddenly not showing up. There are not many who work over the Christmas holidays anyway."

Just then a house elf popped into the room. With a snap of his fingers a large glass terrarium filled with books and supplies appeared at his feet. Harry didn't remember this one's name.

"Thank you very much for bringing this. What is your name again?"

"Grissom, Mast…Harry Potter, sir."

Now Harry remembered. This was one of the three he just initiated. "That's right. You help Gilly and Terran outdoors, right? How's it going?"

The house elf looked startled. "It be going good, Mas…sir. Mostly I's helps Terran in the Greenhouses until the snows leaves. Gilly's being suspicious of help yet, but I's ready when he's wanting some."

"Good. Gilly comes first."

"Yes, sir. Grissom listens for Gilly's call."

Harry smiled at him. "Would you be able to do one more thing for me?"

Grissom looked at Harry strangely. "Of course, Mas…sir."

Harry asked him to make himself available to Percy for delivering a note for Hermes to take to the Ministry. He was then to tell Hermes to return to Percy instead of the apartment. Harry also needed to make Hermes acceptable to come through the wards. The little elf agreed and said he would listen for Percy's call as well. Harry thanked him again and he popped away.

Percy was looking strangely at Harry while Justina was looking amused. She had seen him interact with the house elves before. Finally Percy had to ask, "So what is this place?"

"It was my grandparents place. It belongs to me now." Harry went on to explain about the house elves and the trunks.

Justina wanted to get back to the lab. Harry told her to order any more equipment she thought she might need to do the additional testing she was so excited about. Harry decided that when this was over, he'd give all the equipment to Justina as a thank you gift. Harry got some parchment and ink for Percy to write his letter. After Percy sent it off with Grissom, Harry escorted him to pick out a room. Harry was becoming glad his home was so large. It was filling up fast. Harry shook his head. He never would have imagined his first guests would be a Minister who disliked him, a Healer and the one Weasley who warned his brother away from him. Talk about irony! And all of them were in hiding with him.

Harry looked through the stuff that Neville had sent. Neville had included detailed instructions of how to care for their new pet. Percy came over after he got settled. Fossa had helped Percy acquire several changes of robes and outfits. He felt comfortable with his quarters so he had decided to explore a bit. Harry looked up when Percy entered the room.

"Do you mind if I poke around?"

"No. Feel free. There are no deep secrets here except its location."

Percy looked over his shoulder at Neville's letter. "Where were you thinking of keeping the toad?"

"I thought Justina would like Delores close to hand so she could run whatever experiments she wanted, so I thought it should stay down in the tunnels. Neville says the terrarium is charmed for temperature control and he sent a supply of insects. We just have to remember to feed Delores regularly."

Percy cracked a smile. "Delores? I like it. I could take care of her for you. I won't have much to do this week. Maybe I could be an extra set of hands for Justina as well."

Harry glanced up at him with a small smile. "You know Justina well?"

Percy blushed. "She was in my year at Hogwarts and in Ravenclaw with Penelope. I was dating Penelope pretty heavily back then, but even so I noticed Justina. I certainly wouldn't mind renewing the acquaintance." Percy was a little stiff in his reply. He looked guardedly at Harry. "There's nothing between you, is there?"

Harry shook his head and smiled wider. "No. She just helped me out at St. Mungo's. She believed me enough to double check my story about Umbridge and Blythefield. That sort of thing means a lot to me. But nothing like what you mean. Shall we bring this down to Delores?"

"Sure. I'll give you a hand." Percy took out his wand and cast Wingardium Leviosa. The terrarium rose into the air and floated by his side. Harry had been about to do it wandlessly before Percy had jumped in. On second thought, he supposed it was a good thing that Percy had interrupted him. The house didn't have secrets, but Harry had quite a few and he supposed he should keep several of them secret a while longer.

Harry and Percy introduced Delores to her new home. Then Harry watched as Percy joined Justina. She was explaining to him what she wanted to do.

Tubow was suddenly by Harry's side. Harry looked at him questioningly.

"Sir, Mr. Weasley's owl has arrived. There was a slight problem, but it has been taken care of."

Percy perked up. "What was the problem?" His concern for his owl was evident.

"The owl is fine, Mr. Weasley. There had been a tracking charm placed on her. Farrendahl was able to remove the charm and the estate's natural defense would re-direct any tracing that was accomplished. I just thought you should know that someone has been trying to find Mr. Weasley."

"Well, Percy, I'd say you were suspected. Thank you, Tubow, and please thank Farrendahl for me as well."

"Yes, Mr. Potter." Tubow left.

Percy excused himself to go check on Hermes. Harry gave directions to the attics where the owls were kept. After he left, Harry turned to Justina. "So, Percy seems quite willing to help you if you want him. What do you think?"

Justina avoided his eyes for a moment. "I think it could be a good thing to have him helping. I have Tiz keeping an eye on the Minister, but there will be times I need to see to him when the timing of a test here would be critical. Percy could be my hands here while I tend to the Minister. Minister Fudge still has to be my first priority." She paused. "I remember him from Hogwarts. He seemed a bit full of himself back then, but he's settled down some now, I believe." Harry smiled. He didn't tell her the settling down was a very recent event.

After lunch Harry did some thinking. He was concerned that he still had not heard a word from Remus or Professor Dumbledore. He knew Mrs. Weasley would be going crazy when she learned of Percy's disappearance and she was sure to find out. She never missed delivering a Christmas jumper, even if Percy refused it. He wanted to do something to thank Neville for all his help and he thought about Umbridge's words of how she was afraid Harry would talk to the press as he did with the Quibbler the year before. Harry thought about holding a Christmas dinner and inviting them all. The problem was how to get them all here without letting the Ministry know.

The Weasley's and Grangers could come through the trunk. He remembered how the house elves were able to transport him earlier in the summer. He wondered if they would be able to transport, Neville and his Gran and the Lovegoods. He'd have to figure out Dumbledore and Remus later when he knew more of their situation. Harry decided to hold a conference with his house elves.

Harry called Tubow and asked him to gather all the house elves together. When they were all assembled Harry started. "It's Christmas on Wednesday and I have a lot to be thankful for. I would like to invite some people to a dinner. There would be somewhere around twenty people in all. What I need to know is would this be too much for you to arrange?"

Tubow looked at the others and answered for them all. "No, sir. We would be most happy to serve you and your guests." The others nodded vigorously.

"Great. Now the second problem I have is how to get them here. Earlier this year I traveled with a house elf. How many of you can still transport a witch or wizard? There are probably four people who may have a problem getting here without knowing where it is."

Tubow looked around. "Tiz, Fossa, Kreelo, Saavik and Grissom would have no problems."

Harry smiled. That would be plenty. "I don't know if everyone will be able to come. I wanted to make sure it would be possible first. You have all pulled together so well. I'm so impressed. Thank you."

Tubow bowed his head. "It is our pleasure to serve you, Harry Potter, sir."

Harry spent the rest of the day making invitations. He thought if he could arrange the transportations for 6:00, dinner could be at 7 pm. He delivered the invitation for the Weasleys and Grangers by going through the trunk and placing it on Ginny's bed.

He asked Grissom to deliver the ones to the Lovegoods and Longbottoms. He asked him to wait for replies. He decided to ask Percy for what he knew about Remus and Dumbledore. It was late now though. He would do it in the morning.

Harry met Justina and Percy for breakfast the morning of Christmas Eve. There was a wide selection of foods and as always, plenty of bacon for Harry. The Minister was having a breakfast in bed. He was more alert for longer periods of time and could feed himself now.

Harry started his questions by stating what he wanted to do. "I want to invite some people for dinner tomorrow night. Your family, the Grangers, the Longbottoms, the Lovegoods and Remus and Professor Dumbledore. I know where all of them are except Professor Dumbledore and Remus. Do you know anything about them? Ron had said that they were being watched closely."

Percy shifted uncomfortably. "The Headmaster has basically been put under house arrest. He has a two auror guard at all times. If he goes anywhere, they need to go as well."

"So I guess it will depend on who his guard is." Percy looked puzzled. Harry was quiet the rest of the meal thinking of how he could find out who the Professor's guard would be.

Harry decided a short trip to Hogwarts as Flame would help him see if there was any way possible to invite the Headmaster. Chances were very good he may have to leave him out.

Before he left, Fossa told him of visitors in the trunk. Harry went down and found his friends. He was greeted by Ron with, "Are you nutters?"

Harry laughed. "I don't think so. The Ministry won't know because they'll think you're just having a family dinner. I'm going to have house elves transport the Lovegoods and Longbottoms, too. Has your Mum found out about Percy yet?"

"She left to deliver his jumper just before we came down here. We tried to talk her out of it, but it was a no go. She was bound and determined to make the delivery even if he would refuse it again, the git."

Harry deadpanned, "I hope you're talking about Percy and not your mother."

Ron looked panicked for a moment. "Of course I'm talking about Percy! I would never call my mother…." Finally he caught on when Ginny couldn't hold her laughter in any longer. He gave a shove to Harry. "You're a git!"

Harry grinned back at him then turned more serious. "Don't you think your Mum's going to be upset about Percy missing? I think it'd be one of the best presents she could get if she could have a Christmas dinner with him. We do know that the Ministry is looking for him, too, so he can't come to the Burrow."

"I reckon you're right. It was just kinda nice having this just to ourselves."

Ginny stated, "It's not like it's been a total secret for some time. Dumbledore and Professor Lupin both know about it. Mum might like to see her brothers portraits, too."

Hermione shrugged. "My parents won't care."

"All right. I reckon it could work. Maybe she'll cut us a break about having more time to spend down here. It's not like we could get into too much trouble at your place with 'Prefect Percy' staying there." He spoke with derision.

Hermione gave him a strange look. "You do realize that you're a Prefect, too, right?"

Ron squirmed a little uncomfortably. "I forgot."

The friends all laughed again.

Harry's friends left promising to let the rest of the family in on the secret of the trunks the next evening. Harry decided to grab some lunch and then continue to Hogwarts. He wanted to check it out before cornering Percy for more information on Remus. He suspected Dumbledore would be more difficult to contact than Remus. He gave himself a time limit though because he knew there was a full moon tonight. He could only spend an hour or so scouting Hogwarts. Remus might not feel up to spending time with others, but Harry wanted to invite him.

After eating, Harry went to his room just in case Percy was around and changed to Flame. He visualized just outside the main entrance and felt a wash of fire tingle through him. He liked this form of travel.

He found himself on the front steps of Hogwarts. He decided he would fly up to the Headmaster's tower and see if he could tell who was with him. He tried to figure out where it would be from the outside. He took flight and hovered just below the window. Slowly he raised his head above the sill's ledge. The office seemed empty. Harry huffed in frustration.

/Who's out there/

Harry, startled, forgot to flap his wings and dropped down several feet before he recovered himself and flew back to the ledge. He looked around carefully inside the office and saw no one. No one except Fawkes looking right back at him.

/Fawkes? Was that you/

/Fledgling! Albus has been worried about you./

Harry tried to fly through the window, but it was solid. Fawkes gave a laughing trill and flew over. He positioned himself halfway through the window and Harry found he could enter now. Harry settled on the chair in front of the Headmaster's desk. Fawkes landed on the back of the Headmaster's chair. /So where have you been, Fledgling? You are looking the best I have ever seen you, if I do say so myself./

/I've been staying at my grandparents place. Do you know where that is/ Harry was amazed that he was able to hold a conversation with the old bird. Then he remembered when Voldemort said that Wormtail found out from other rats where Voldemort had been hiding in Albania. Maybe communication was something that came with taking on an animal form.

/Yes. I've been there before, but not for many years. The Headmaster is down below having a meal. Did you want to see him/

/I would, but not in this form. Fawkes? Do you know which people he trusts? I was told he always needs to have two people keeping guard on him./

Fawkes seemed somewhat offended. /Of course I know which belong to his flock! Those 'guarding' him today are not part of it./

Harry gave a nervous jerk and look to the door. /Then I really don't want to be caught here today. I'd like him to come to dinner tomorrow, but he can only come if those with him are 'part of his flock'. I thought people could start arriving at 6 pm. Do you think you could bring them if it is safe? The guards would need to come, too. I'm told their orders are to go wherever he goes. Can you transport three/

/Of course I could. The only question is should I? Transporting others, especially multiple others over some distance shortens the time between burnings. I really hate burning days. It takes so long to recover and I can't protect Albus while I recover." Fawkes looked intently at Harry. "But because I know how concerned he is for you, I will do it./

/That's great, Fawkes. Thank you. But only if he has members of his flock with him. If he doesn't, maybe you could bring him some other time when he does/

Fawkes looked at him with fond exasperation. /I do understand, Fledgling. I'll be seeing you later. Remember not to tire yourself out too much or you'll bring on a burning day/

Harry thanked him again and flashed back home. He'd just have to wait and see if Dumbledore showed up or not. Harry turned back into himself and set off in search of Percy again. The afternoon was passing quicker than he thought and he wanted to get to Remus soon.

He tracked Percy down in the lab. He was feeding some fire ants to Delores. Justina was not there. "Percy, can I talk to you for a minute?"

Percy turned reluctantly. Harry had the feeling he didn't really want to have a conversation with him but was resigned to. "What did you want to talk about?"

"This morning you told me about Professor Dumbledore, but what about Professor Lupin?"

Percy closed his eyes. "You don't want to know."

"What do you mean, 'I don't want to know'? Of course, I want to know! Have you seen Remus at all? I haven't heard from him since I escaped St. Mungo's." Harry was actually getting quite worried. He knew how Umbridge hated werewolves and the last bit he'd heard from Remus sounded like he was being detained.

"He's being held at the Ministry."

"WHAT! Do they know it's a full moon tonight? Are they giving him wolfsbane potion?"

"Somehow I doubt it. Madam Umbridge has issued a decree allowing aurors to bring werewolves in without giving a reason. Most registered werewolves have fled the area, but I know they have a few in a holding cell. He's one of them. It's also been speculated that the bars wouldn't hold a fully grown werewolf and the personnel have been trained on how to use the Silver Dart spell."

Harry looked at Percy with horror in his eyes. Remus had taught Harry that spell himself when Harry had started staying at Grimmauld Place. Since Remus stayed there himself locked in a room as a werewolf he wanted Harry to be prepared 'just in case'. He had told him that if the wolfsbane potion ever failed and the charms on the door failed, Harry would need to know how to defend himself against a werewolf. Harry had asked about the reaction he would have with the silver. Remus had hesitated but admitted it was usually fatal, but he would prefer that to the alternative of attacking Harry. Remus tried to emphasize that the werewolf could not be trusted at all. The only reason Moony didn't attack his friends when they were animals was because they had formed pack bonds as humans and some of that transferred. A werewolf didn't seriously attack their own pack, but that wouldn't carry over if one of them were in human form. Remus told Harry he would rather be killed with the silver dart because he couldn't survive knowing he'd attacked another person, especially Harry.

Harry came out of his memories. "But that could kill them! Why don't they just let them go? I'm sure they all have emergency plans of what to do and know somewhere safe for them to be where they wouldn't hurt anybody." Percy didn't say anything and Harry realized that they didn't want to let them go. They wanted them to escape so they could shoot them with the deadly silver. "But that's murder!"

Harry's blood started to boil. Madman Umbridge had gone too far. Harry's eyes narrowed. "Excuse me, Percy. I need to do something."

Harry left the room and went to his bedroom. He looked at his watch. It was 3 p.m. It was already getting dark since it was winter. Harry didn't know how much longer he had before Remus transformed. He changed to Flame and concentrated on being wherever Remus was. He felt the warm tingle of fire wash over him and found himself in a holding cell with seven men pacing around. He was right behind Remus. He gave a trill to get his attention.

Remus was startled by the noise and turned with a scowl. Harry could see the wolf tendencies were already beginning to take over in his more emotional and stressed behavior. "Fawkes! What are you doing here?"

Harry turned his back to him and shook his tail feathers, inviting him to take one.

"You want me to grab hold?"

Harry turned his head back around and bobbed.

"Do you think you could take the others as well?"

Fawkes didn't seem to think taking multiple people was a problem so Harry spread the tail feathers wide. They were quite long. There was plenty of room for others to grab hold. Remus turned to face the other imprisoned men. "Hey, guys! I think we have a way out. Come grab hold of a feather."

One of the other men started to grumble. "I'm not grabbing hold of any strange bird. I'll probably end up eating it in an hour anyway. I wish they'd given us some food today. It's always worse when it's hungry."

"I think they know that. This is a phoenix. He can get us out of here. Look around! You know what they're planning! If you want to live, this is our only chance!"

The other man was still reluctant. Harry knew they were running out of time. He started to pipe his eerie music. All the men stilled, their restlessness calmed for a moment. Finally the man approached.

When all had hold of some part of his tail feathers, Harry visualized taking them all to the Shrieking Shack. The feathers warmed and a tingle washed over Harry. Suddenly they were in the main room at the Shrieking Shack. Harry looked around. All present and accounted for.

One of the men was looking curiously at his surroundings. "What is this place? It's obviously been used before."

Remus said, "It's someplace that should be safe for tonight. Now if we can just survive each other…" There were murmurs of agreement. Remus turned back to 'Fawkes'. "Thanks for your help. You'd better leave now and return to Dumbledore. Even you will be in danger here."

Suddenly each man started to stiffen painfully. Their faces started to lengthen and hands curled into claws. The transformations had started. It was awful to watch. Harry flew up high on top of a curtain rod that had long ago had its curtains torn to shreds. As the werewolves finished transforming, howls filled the room. Then the fight started.

Harry had never seen anything like it before. Some of the werewolves had glanced his way, but there were closer targets to vent their frustration on. They started attacking each other. The noise grew to a tremendous level; yelps of pain, snarls of aggression. They bit and clawed each other mercilessly. Blood flew everywhere. Harry was beginning to understand Remus' comment about 'surviving each other'. If this kept up, none of them would last the night.

Harry thought he'd try to calm them down through his phoenix song. He started his unearthly music. They did stop what they were doing to each other. They each seemed to flinch and turned to eye Harry. Then, almost as one, they tried to attack him. Harry quickly decided that the phoenix song, while it worked somewhat when they were human, definitely did not work on the werewolf. They were leaping for him. One grabbed hold of a tail feather that hung down a ways and Harry was knocked off balance. He recovered and flew high before he flash away.

He reappeared outside of the Shrieking Shack. He could hear the noises start up as they again attacked each other. There must be some way to calm them down enough so they didn't kill each other. There must!

Maybe food. One of the men said they hadn't eaten and that always made the wolf worse. If they were biting on some type of meat, they wouldn't be biting on each other, right?

Harry transformed into himself. He was about to call for Kreelo when he heard a sudden stillness inside the Shack. Then there was frantic scrabbling against the wall that Harry was on the other side of. They must be able to smell him. Harry turned back into Flame. The scrabbling stopped and soon they were fighting each other again. Harry decided to go home to ask Kreelo himself.

Kreelo was startled when a sudden ball of flames appeared in his kitchen. Then there was a beautiful bird standing where the fire had been burning. Then it changed again into his master who strangely preferred not to be called 'master'. "Harry Potter, sir!" That was all the Kreelo could get out. He couldn't quite think of what to say to his strangely kind but different master who could apparently turn into birds and catch on fire without burning up himself.

"Kreelo, I need to know how much raw meat we have available."

Okaaay. Kreelo's was not to ask why, he was just to answer his master's strange questions. "Kreelo had not be expecting Harry Potter, sir, or guests, but we's enough for tomorrow's feast and more's coming soon."

His master put his hands into his messy hair and started to rake it back. Kreelo wanted to tell him that was not making it any neater, but stopped himself. His master started pacing back and forth. Suddenly he looked up. "Winky?"

"Harry Potter, sir!" Another house elf popped in. She was young and very pretty. She obviously also worked for his master but must be at another residence. Kreelo thought about making himself more known to her, but the way she was clothed made it obvious she was way above his station. Even so, he was way above his station now with this new master. He had never had such a nice uniform before.

"How much raw meat is at Grimmauld Place?" Must be the other residence.

"The freezer is being full, sir." Such a lovely squeak in her voice. She didn't talk like head house elves he'd heard before. Elves like Tubow talked just the way wizards talked. This Winky still spoke more like a normal house elf. Maybe he would have a chance with her.

"Winky, Kreelo, I need all the raw meat you have, thawed and on this table so I can take it away."

Kreelo couldn't help himself. "But…." His menus! No meat in the house at all? What about tomorrow's feast? His master looked at him. He was in for it now! So long, job.

"All of it. We can eat porridge or whatever else is on hand until more supplies come. Please. It really is urgent." He still had his job. His master let his balking pass. Kreelo's relief was immense. Suddenly he snapped upright. "Yes, sir! Right away."

Winky popped away, too. But she was back a moment later. Kreelo got to work thawing the frozen meat. His master still seemed somewhat distressed. "I don't think that will be enough."

"What is you needing it for?" She was a very brave house elf. Too bad she now would be without a position. First rule of house elves was you never ask your master questions.

"I've got seven hungry werewolves that I want to feed so they don't eat each other tonight." Werewolves! Was his master crazy? Well, he knew he was a little crazy with his strange ideas about house elf enslavement, but a good house elf never talks about that. But didn't he know werewolves could eat HIM! He shouldn't go anywhere near them! And he was willing to give up his meat to feed to a bunch of beasts that would never even remember eating it!

Suddenly Winky's eyes brightened and Kreelo saw something come alive in them. "Maybe's Dobby could help sir! Dobby's got good ideas." So much for his chance with her. She was obviously taken with this Dobby.

His master's eyes also brightened at the name. "Of course. Dobby?"

A very strange house elf appeared. It was the one who had found Kreelo and brought him here. He wore all sorts of odd clothes. He obviously didn't have a regular master but seemed proud of it. Very strange indeed.

"Dobby, I need a whole lot of raw meat. I need to be able to feed seven hungry werewolves. Do you think the Hogwarts kitchens could loan us some meat? I'll pay it back later."

"Of course, Harry Potter, sir! Dobby will be getting it right away!" The strange house elf disappeared with a loud crack. Winky seemed about to burst with pleasure that her suggestion helped her master. Dobby reappeared soon and another large amount of frozen meat in big slabs appeared on the table. Kreelo started thawing out this additional meat.

There was so much now that the large table was groaning under the weight. "Can we put some sort of large wrapper around it all so it will stay together?" Winky snapped her fingers and it was all wrapped in a very large burlap sack with a Potter crest on it.

"Thank you all so much." The other two elves left, beaming from the thanks from his master. Kreelo was undecided. He had seen his master let a lot of things pass that normal masters would give clothing for, but what was bothering Kreelo would be a lot worse than what he'd heard so far, but….Kreelo screwed up his courage to say the hardest words he had ever said.

"Master, you…you cannot be going. You needs to stay here. It not be safe for you to be by werewolves. They eat you or worse!" His master looked surprised for a moment. Kreelo cringed, waiting for the blow or kick that was sure to come. When nothing happened he opened his eyes a crack to see his master…smiling at him?

His master knelt down on the floor to be equal to Kreelo's height. He put a hand on his shoulder. "I have to go. I have a friend that might not survive if I don't. But thank you for caring, Kreelo. That means a lot to me. I'll be careful. Don't worry. I'll be back in the morning. Do you think you could make me a treacle tart? We could have it with dinner tomorrow night. All right?"

Kreelo nodded. His master got back up and took a step back. In a moment he turned into the bird again and flew to the top of the burlap sack. The sack was about ten times the size of the bird and Kreelo knew that he'd never be able to lift it, but to Kreelo's surprise it lifted up into the air and then disappeared with the bird in another flash of fire. He turned back to his kitchen and started to pull out ingredients for his master's dessert tomorrow. He tried to focus on what steps needed to be done next instead of worrying about his master, but it was hard. He never even noticed his plain uniform had just become a lot more detailed.

Harry knew he'd have to time this very carefully. He appeared high in the living room and dropped his package on top of the snarling mass of furry bodies. By the time they stopped in surprise, he had flown to the top of the curtain rod again, making sure his tail feathers were not dangling low.

The werewolves paid him no mind but started to tear into the burlap bag. Harry was thankful that six of the pieces were about the size of a half cow because as some of the werewolves would grab a section, they'd drag it to an unused part of the house. Three of the wolves stayed in the living room. Two each with a large slab and the third eating all the smaller roasts and pork chops left in the middle of the room. They didn't seem to have a problem with each other, just the other four. Harry guessed that they were mates in human form. That gave Harry an idea. He flew high to where the other werewolves had gone. One was in the kitchen. It was a big, black one; one of the meaner ones. He looked up at Harry and growled. The Shrieking Shack still had doors and most of them worked. Unfortunately, the kitchen one didn't. That one might be a problem. He flew back out and up the stairs. He found Moony in a bedroom eating his big slab of meat. He also growled at Harry, but Harry ignored him and flew against the door. He was able to make this door close and Moony was trapped in the room. At least for now. Harry wasn't sure if it would hold if he became enraged, but it was the best he could do. He flashed back to the hallway and found the other two werewolves in separate rooms with working doors as well. One was in a loo in the shower of all places eating his meat. At least he would be easy to clean up after.

Things stayed somewhat peaceful for the next half hour while they ate. Harry stayed in the living room watching the three, more peaceful werewolves. They threw suspicious glances his way from time to time, but made no move to attack while they were eating. Harry had a feeling that would change once they were done. They didn't seem to want to attack each other, but they would gladly go for Harry.

The moment Harry was waiting for finally arrived. The big, black werewolf entered the room. He started snarling at the other three and they snarled back. Harry quickly dived and grabbed an uneaten roast in his golden talons and quickly flew past the black werewolf. The werewolf was still focused on the other three. Harry flew back and taunted him with the meat, dipping low to stick it in his face. That got his attention and he jumped up to take a swipe at Harry with his powerful claws. Harry flew up the stairs with the werewolf in hot pursuit. He flew into the only other room bigger than a closet with a working door and landed on the single bed with the meat. Then he flashed himself right behind the door. The werewolf had pounced on the bed and was ripping into the roast. Harry managed to close the door then he flashed back to Remus' room.

He was tired. He now had three werewolves who seemed content to stay in the living room and four unhappy werewolves trapped in small rooms on the upper floor; one in a bathroom and three in small bedrooms. He settled himself on top of a tall armoire. He lay down and stared down at Moony.

Moony had been throwing himself against the door as he could hear three others doing, but when Harry appeared above the armoire, he paused and looked at him. Harry thought he looked with more curiosity than aggression. Harry hoped that it meant that he recognized Harry somehow as being part of his pack now that he wasn't so hungry, but he wasn't going to put his trust in it far enough to let his guard down all the way. Moony walked away from the door and circled a spot near the foot of the armoire and lay down. Harry watched him carefully. He made sure not to make a sound as he didn't know if that would inflame the werewolf again.

Harry could hear only quiet coming from the first floor, but the second floor was alive with noise. The three angry werewolves had given up on the doors and were turning upon themselves. Harry knew there was nothing he could do for them. Remus had talked of how when there was nothing else to scratch or bite, he would bite and scratch himself. Thankfully Moony was just lying relaxed on the floor, curled in a small ball. Harry didn't think he could stand to see him going through that. He was already beat up enough from battling the other werewolves before Harry brought the meat. It was going to be a long night.

Harry woke slowly. Someone was petting him. He untucked his head from beneath his wing and blinked in the morning light. He couldn't believe he'd fallen asleep. He looked down at a very battered Remus. He had cuts on his face and his cloak had several spots where the rips were sticking to his skin because of the blood. He looked the worst Harry had ever seen him.

"I can't believe you stayed last night Fawkes. And even fell asleep! That was very dangerous. You could have been seriously injured. I still don't understand why I didn't…" Remus broke off, not seeming to want to finish that sentence. He looked at Harry closely and gave a startled laugh. "Some of your feathers are sticking up on your head. Not as refined as usual Fawkes…." He broke off as if something just struck him. He looked closer at the phoenix body in front of him. "You're not Fawkes, are you?" Then his eyes traveled to the green ones gazing back at him and his finger started tracing the twisted feathers on the small head. "Oh, Harry, what have you done?" It was said very softly, but with some wonder.

Harry gave a small chirp. Movement was heard in the hall. The other men were leaving their rooms. Remus looked over to Harry. "Stay how you are." He walked over to the door and opened it. If Harry had thought Remus had looked bad it was nothing to the other three that had attacked themselves all night long. They barely seemed to be able to drag themselves upright. Each was leaning against the wall looking around in confusion. Three others joined them from below. They looked to be in the same condition as Remus; slightly beat up but definitely better off than the three trapped by themselves.

One of the badly hurt seemed in a panic. Harry thought he might have been the big, black werewolf. "I ate something last night! Is everyone here?"

Realization seemed to go through the upstairs crowd as each realized that they, too, had eaten something. Remus turned to look at Harry with a questioning panic. One of the men from downstairs cut in. "Relax. We found some meat wrappers downstairs along with shreds of a burlap bag with some crest on it. I think we had take out."

The seven made their way down the steps. The four relatively uninjured helping the three more heavily injured. Harry glided down after them at a slight distance. Remus found the bit of burlap that had the crest on it and recognition lit his face. He looked up and his eyes met Harry's. One of the other men noticed where he was looking.

"Hey, there's that bird of Dumbledore's again. He's back. Do you think he's come to take us out of here?"

Remus was still staring at Harry, but answered the other man. "Do you know where you could go where you'll be safe?"

"I'd been told of a place near Frankfort where some others were heading. It would get us out of England for a while. I was just going to start making the apparition jumps when the aurors came. You all are welcome to come along." He looked at the more beat up of them. "Do you think you could make nine apparition jumps? That's how many it would take to get that far from London. You guys have anywhere else to go?"

They shook their heads. "Not where wouldn't be picked right back up while we recover."

Remus asked softly to Harry, "Could you make it that far with so many?" Harry focused inwardly to see if he could sense what his instincts told him. Then he focused back on Remus and bobbed his head. He had never been to Germany before, but he'd seen some pictures of the countryside and had been able to get to Remus when he hadn't known for sure where he was. He believed he could do it. Harry spread his tail feathers wide.

"Everyone grab hold of a feather." The men looked startled but did so without argument.

Harry concentrated on what he pictured the countryside outside of Frankfurt was like. His feathers started to heat and he felt a wash of fire tingle through him. When he looked around again, he saw they were near a small country lane. The small group started walking down the road. It didn't take too long before they came to a resident. One of the group spoke German and asked for directions. The man was a little hesitant about speaking to such a strangely dressed and obviously injured group, but the others hung back, Harry hiding behind Remus, and the muggle told him what he wanted to know. The man thanked him politely and returned to the bedraggled group. He looked at Harry a little strangely.

"We're on the outskirts of Berlin. The bird was a little off, but it should be an easy jump to get to Frankfort now. I think we can all make it. No offense, but I've had enough travel by bird."

Harry thought he would be blushing if he could as a phoenix. Remus looked at him with amusement. "You all go ahead. I think I'll stay with the bird."

The six started to move off a ways. The one who knew the way put his hands on the shoulders of each man on either side of him. The others crowded near and put a hand on him, too. Then with a countdown, they all apparated away.

Remus turned back to Harry. "Care to bring me back with you?" Harry bobbed and Remus grabbed a feather. Harry focused on his home and they were gone.

Harry brought them to the front entrance hall. Once Remus let go, Harry transformed back into himself.

Remus looked at him in shock. "I knew it was you. I just knew it, but I couldn't believe it." He reached across and pulled Harry into a hug. Finally the emotions seemed to run their course and Remus pushed him away slightly, still hanging onto his shoulders. "You've got some explaining to do, young man!"

"Just following a family tradition. Not only my father, but my great-grandfather was an animagus. He was a magical creature, too. A tebo." Harry turned serious. "We thought it could come in handy as a means to escape if nothing else. Turns out we were right. It's how I got out of the St. Mungo's with Fudge."

"We? You mean Ron and Hermione are animagi, too?"

"Not yet. We were all going to go through it at the same time, but after I got my 'invitation' from Madman Umbridge, we decided I should try earlier."

"Madman? Appropriate." Remus finally looked around. "Where are we? Wait….I've been here once with James. This was his parents place. How did you find it?" Harry wasn't quite sure how to answer so he was happy when Remus kept talking it out himself. "Gringotts. It was listed as a property on your Gringotts statement, wasn't it?"

"Yes." Yes, it had been. It was just that Harry had already known about it. But if that belief would cause him less trouble, he'd let Remus believe it.

At that moment, a sound was heard behind him. Kreelo was standing in the doorway to the dining room. "You is back, Master! Kreelo is so relieved."

Harry smiled. "I told you I'd be back. Try to call me 'Harry', all right? This is my friend, Remus Lupin. He's going to be staying with us for a while." As he said this he turned back to Remus with a questioning look. Remus nodded his head.

"Ah, good, Harry Potter, sir! Kreelo let Tubow know. Breakfast be ready in half an hour." A moment later Kreelo popped away and soon after Tubow appeared.

Harry explained that Remus would be staying a while and Tubow left to prepare a room. Harry started to give an abbreviated grand tour. He pointed out the major rooms as he led Remus up to the bedroom level. Tubow was there and guided them to a room near Harry's. Harry left him to get cleaned up and called for Winky. She came and Harry asked her to get some of Remus' belongings as he was going to stay here for a while. Winky complied and soon Remus was changed into some fresh clothes and looked a lot better. "Not a bad place to hide out if you have to."

Harry led him to the breakfast area. He found Percy and Justina there chatting over some fresh fruit and toast. As soon as Harry appeared the table filled with eggs and pancakes.

Percy looked up in surprise. "Professor Lupin! Glad to see you survived last night. When did they let you go?"

"Er…Thank you, Percy. They…ah…didn't let us go. We escaped." He gave a quick look to Harry.

The look wasn't missed by Percy. He looked suspicious but kept his suspicions to himself. He took a deep breath and looked around the table. "No bacon or sausage?"

"Er…no. We'll be getting more meat in a few days. Until then we eat vegetarian style."

Remus seemed to want to be able to help. "There's quite a bit at the other place. We could call Winky to bring some…" He trailed off as he saw Harry start to shake his head.

"No. There's no more left there either. We can survive a few days without meat."

Remus finally started to realize where the 'take out' had come from. He said softly, "You didn't have to do that."

Harry answered back, just as softly, "You were tearing each other apart. I had to do something." His lips quirked into a lopsided grin. "Hogwarts is running low, too."

Remus raised an eyebrow. "I'm impressed. No wonder I'm still full." Remus hadn't taken much food on his plate.

The other two at the table weren't sure what conversation was going on, but realized that it was something private between the Harry and Remus. Finally Justina said, "You really should have some of those cuts and bites looked at. I'm a Healer. Maybe I could take a look after breakfast?"

"Sure. I'd appreciate it."

Harry looked up and said, "By the way, Happy Christmas."