Awakening
Chapter Sixteen: Let Freedom Ring
By Stardust
A/N: SUMMARY: Chapter Fifteen was a long one. After Voldemort died and the castle crumbled all the death eaters experienced searing pain and bleeding and all that and lots of arrests were made. Draco's dad was arrested and yeah, that's important later. Um…let's see, Sirius and Kirsten and Ginny are all OK. By the way, Sirius was knocked in the head with a boulder (if that was unclear to anyone). The Founders rings have returned to ordinary metal and seem to have lost their power. Kirsten is NOT possessed, rather Zirconia is still out there some where. (Just think of the end of the first Harry Potter movie and that scene should make more sense.) Arnold Peasegood, Obliviator, obliviated Josh and he made a settlement with Angie. Angie made this settlement of course, because Sirius, in their precious few minutes that they were allowed to see each other made her promise to settle with Josh. He also made an interesting quidditch prediction which is pretty much irrelevant. Harry is having dreams about 'Apollo'. Angie is the SOLE person who knows that she is pregnant with Sirius' child, still. There was a trial where Peter Pettigrew incriminated himself and Sirius was about to be set free. During the trial Josh found out his marriage may not have been legal and he has no children and the world heard Angie and Sirius' complicated story. Angie finally knows Remus is a werewolf and everyone discovered that Remus was three-timing, and also that Remus and Holly are engaged. Needless to say Remus, Sierra, and Angie lost most of their credibility at the trial, I have no clue how they expect to teach to those students who were at the trial…We find out that Fudge has high blood pressure, that Sirius has more money than most countries and that Josh is known to "visit" Parisian women. And we also now know that Snape's middle name is Sparticus. Of course, those are only the important things…you know, besides the fact that Elizabeth Hoffenmeijer is a total and complete nut and she screamed Avada Kedavra at the end of the chapter rather than see Sirius go free. So, more on all that, because I'm sure you're all just bursting to see how this all resolves itself.
OK, it with a fair amount of apprehension and an even larger amount of guilt that I begin this chapter. Luckily I left myself a little summary (see above) and so I am not hopelessly lost (and I hope you aren't either.) I have to admit that I have lost interest a bit mostly because the story is coming to a close. Not that it is less interesting now, but I know exactly what comes next and I've known it for a very long time. Things are all going to finally come together and it's like the end of an era and I'm sorry to be babbling. I know that I'm just being silly but so many things are ending this year I've been putting this off. Subconsciously I think I've been doing it on purpose because I love this story and these characters and all of fanfiction and I don't really want that to end. (There is actually another book that comes after this and I already have I don't know…about forty pages of it written, but it is SO not the same as this story.) So, sorry about all of this. I'm going to try my best to write my best, but I don't make any promises. This chapter isn't going to be one of my best or my favorites but I think the audience will like it a lot. The audience, what the hell am I saying, this isn't a play, the reader! I say this because several things will resolve themselves and hopefully I can relieve some frustration. (Of course, I'll have to think of something brilliant to rekindle that frustration for the ending of this chapter…damn, I hadn't thought that far ahead yet! This chapter really has no end and the next one has no beginning. Well shit…I'll get back to you on that one…)
The green flash blinded his eyes but not his senses. With both feet he hit the floor and gave a furious push. His convenient swivel chair on wheels went flying across the floor just in time as the deadly curse angrily ripped through the air.
Peter Pettigrew hadn't had time to react before he caught the full brunt of the curse in the chest. Just a momentary widening of the eyes as realization hit him only a split second before his doom did.
Chaos, naturally ensued. People were screaming and trampling each other. Elizabeth, eyes blazing, yelled an exasperated curse word before disappearing with a blast of smoke. Several bewildered aurors stumbled over themselves attempting to grab at Elizabeth who, in fact, had disappeared.
The minister's personal guards were trying to smother him in their frantic attempts to get him out of the hall. Dumbledore was shouting orders, but his voice was lost in the mass confusion.
The whole event had only taken seconds. It wasn't until much later that everyone fully realized all the implications of everyone's actions.
Angie was lying on her back in her room staring at the ceiling and trying to regulate her breathing. Everything had happened several hours ago but it was still a whirl to her.
Everything had been so confused. And then, Dumbledore had emitted a powerful spell. The ceiling, which was enchanted to look like the sky, suddenly turned stormy and he literally hit himself with a lightning bolt. Well, sort of. He didn't hit himself with an actual lightning bolt, that is to say, it didn't hurt him. But it created quite a visual.
He had ordered everyone to freeze and to be absolutely quiet. Then, he quickly dismissed several Aurors and IAA members to go out and search for Elizabeth. Next, he ordered Fudge to officially pardon Sirius and clear him of all charges. Then they were shuffled into a small room off the Great Hall to sign all the necessary paper work. Fudge was very annoyed, to say the least, but Dumbledore wanted to make absolutely certain Sirius was cleared before anything else happened.
Dumbledore sent all the professors around to calm the students and treat any injuries that may have occurred during the initial confusion. Several Ministry of Magic officials were still hanging about questioning people and a new unit arrived from London to clear away Peter's body.
The afternoon was long and agonizing and no one was allowed to leave the Great Hall until after dinner. Later, Remus told the kids and Angie that Sirius had been taken back to the Ministry of Magic for further questioning on the matter.
"Further questioning?" Angie said angrily. "About what? She tried to kill HIM."
"I understand, Angela," Remus reminded her. "I imagine they are trying to understand her motive for wanting him dead, among other things. I wouldn't worry too much. He'll be back soon."
"Hello Mr. Black, may I call you Mr. Black?" The overworked Magical Law Enforcement agent, Brian Nelson questioned Sirius sleepily.
"What…oh call me Sirius," He replied distractedly.
"All right, Sirius. I'm just going to ask you a few questions about what happened today. Now, point blank, do you have any idea why Elizabeth Hoffenmeijer might want you dead?"
"No," Sirius said flatly.
"Any idea why she might not want you to be pardoned?"
"No," Sirius replied, getting the sneaking suspicion that that was the same damn question he had just answered.
"Now, Peter Pettigrew, did you have him in custody long before your trial today?"
"Yes."
"How long?"
"Jesus, I don't know…since the day I ended up in the hospital, however long ago that was…"
"Have you been in contact with Ms. Hoffenmeijer recently?"
"What? Of course not. I was running from the law, not having meetings with It," Sirius replied hotly.
"Uh-huh…" Brian replied, scribbling for, what seemed, an unnecessarily long length of time. "And who kept Pettigrew while you were detained in the hospital?"
"You mean prison," Sirius muttered under his breath. "Albus Dumbledore," He replied, in a regular voice.
"Ah, I see, and has Dumbledore recently been in contact with Elizabeth Hoffenmeijer?"
"It's possible," Sirius replied slowly, not liking the implications surrounding this line of questioning.
"What might they have been discussing?"
"How the bloody hell should I know?"
"Elizabeth Hoffenmeijer attended school with you, did she not?"
Sirius raised his eyebrows. "Yes, sir," He replied.
"And she was one of your friends, was she not?"
"She was."
"And Peter Pettigrew was one of your friends, was he not?"
"He was," Sirius replied through slightly gritted teeth.
"Then it stands to reason that Peter Pettigrew was one of Elizabeth Hoffenmeijer's friends, was he not?"
Sirius felt like rolling his eyes. This was a very annoying question and answer session. "He was."
"When you discovered that Peter Pettigrew had murdered your friends, Lily and James Potter, how did that make you feel?" Brian asked in a bored tone. His eyes hadn't left his notes, but Sirius fixed him with quite a gaze. He was quickly losing his temper. That last question really was a stupid one.
"How the bloody hell do you think it made me feel?" Brian's eyes flickered up for a moment and then he scribbled again on his piece of parchment.
"Right. Understandable, of course," He replied sounding rather unconvincing. "It stands to reason that Elizabeth, upon finding out the truth, might have felt the same way, doesn't it?"
Sirius suddenly slammed his fists on the table and leapt from his chair. "Are you trying to tell me that Elizabeth and I were trying to kill Peter? Is that what you're telling me?"
"Sit down, Mr. Black," Brian Nelson said sternly.
"You people don't quit!" Sirius shouted. "For thirteen years you kept an innocent man in prison! And now you're accusing me of his murder, AGAIN? Why don't you leave me the hell alone? I'm going to go home tonight and I'm going to have to live with the fact that Peter Pettigrew was a traitor not only to his friends but to his own country. And you know what else I'm going to have to live with? I'm going to have to live with the fact that one of my other friends tried to kill me today. And you, you're going to have to go home and figure out how to live with yourself for being part of an organization that keeps innocent men in prison, ruins their lives, and then accuses them of murder…again! You people disgust me.
"We're done here," Sirius informed him, kicking the chair on his way out.
Everything was so unbelievable. Everything was so bloody confused. This was supposed to be the happiest day of his life. He'd just been pardoned. He'd been given his life back.
He'd been given his freedom…
Sirius wandered around the dark streets, his mind not really focusing on any one thought. He had never felt such emptiness…loneliness.
Kirsten sat by the window that night, just waiting. She couldn't understand what she might be waiting for but there seemed to be nothing else to do. Ron sat with her too, absently running his fingers through her hair. Hermione, a small distance apart from them had long abandoned her book. She couldn't keep her mind focused. Too much had been happening lately. Much too much.
Most of the other Gryffindors had retired to their rooms almost as soon as they returned to the common room that night. No one was in any sort of condition for socializing after such an ordeal and most had opted for the seclusion of their beds.
Hermione turned her head abruptly when she heard the portrait hole open. Harry had returned. She tried to get to her feet but realized too late that her legs had fallen asleep. Stumbling, she grabbed at the back of the chair for support.
"Any news?" She asked Harry. Her voice sounded small and anxious.
"They've determined that Hoffenmeijer disappeared using some sort of primitive magic. Whatever it was, it was extremely potent and they aren't familiar with it. And also…Sirius disappeared from the Ministry of Magic several hours ago…"
"Disappeared?" Ron questioned, his eye brow raised. Harry nodded.
"He walked out and no one has seen him or heard from him since."
"What does that mean?" Kirsten asked, tearing her eyes away from the window. They looked sad and deadened.
Harry shrugged. "He'll turn up…"
'I hope' He added in the own privacy of his mind.
Angie was tired of lying awake, so she got up. Finding nothing else to occupy herself she started grading papers—something she generally avoided at all costs. It wasn't as if she disliked teaching, she was just a born procrastinator, and few teachers claimed that grading was the best part of their job. The results were disastrous grades, disastrous enough to distract her, which was a godsend, really.
She was bent over trying to literally decipher hieroglyphics when she was startled by a soft knock at her door. Instantly her mind leapt to Sirius and her feet carried her to the door. She was more than a little disappointed when she saw Sierra standing awkwardly in the hallway.
"Hi," She said, giving her a nervous smile. "I was sort of hoping you felt like talking…Not only for your own sake, but for mine too."
"Sure," Angie said, welcoming her friend into her dimly lit room. "Is Sirius back yet?"
Sierra tensed immediately and her heart rate skyrocketed. It was as if Angie knew there was bad news about Sirius. Sierra hoped her face hadn't contorted too horribly and alarmed Angie. Though, her words had that effect anyway. "Sirius left the ministry of magic several hours ago…No one has seen him since."
For a minute Angie didn't speak. "He left unaccompanied…?"
"Yes."
"Well…I'm sure he's just out walking around somewhere…or at the house."
"Not at the house," Sierra said. "I checked there. But…you're right. I'm sure there's no reason to be concerned. He'll turn up before the night advances too far…"
"He probably went to Paris…" Angie mumbled, returning to her desk and her stack of parchment.
"That doesn't seem likely," Sierra replied, half amused that Angie would mention it. Angie gave her a look. "There is nothing between Sirius and Nicolette," Sierra assured Angie.
"That's not why…never mind…Would you like some tea?" Angie said, suddenly remembering her manners.
"Tea would be fabulous," Sierra replied. "Let me help you…"
"So, any particular reason you dropped by?" Angie asked, hoping she didn't sound rude. She really wasn't in the mood for a friendly chat and was hoping Sierra would go away.
"I just thought you might want to talk. This afternoon was…a conversation-maker, at the very least." Angie had to agree with the statement even though she did not want to talk to Sierra.
"There really isn't anything to say…" She said thinking of Elizabeth, and Peter's sudden death.
"Nothing to say? For Christ's sake Kirsten is Sirius' daughter!" Sierra shouted, unintentionally losing her cool. Angie stared at her for a minute and wondered how exactly she should respond. She wanted to downplay the situation, but the revelation wasn't one that should be downplayed. It was a big deal.
"Um…surprise?" She replied, with a fake smile feeling as if she were about to be sick to her stomach.
"Surprise? That's all you can say after seventeen years of such an astounding secret?"
"What the hell do you want me to say, Sierra? Oh, and by the way, surprise you're dating Bill Weasley. Oh, and surprise you were dating Remus while I was dating Remus."
"No, no, no. You were dating him while I was dating him. Wait… It doesn't matter. We went on like three whole dates, OK? And what about your sister?"
"Where do you get off calling Holly Mischel my SISTER?" Angie shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Sierra.
"She is your sister!" Sierra cried.
"We're missing the point here…" Angie replied wearily. "Remus was dating the three of us at the same time and he obviously knew he was doing it. And how the hell did I not know he was a werewolf? That is one hell of a secret!"
"You should know," Sierra snapped.
"I could explain to you my intricate and logical reasoning but I fail to see any point and I'm tired. So, why don't you just lay off?"
Their ears were met with a pounding of fists on the door. "Sirius!" Angie cried running to the door which she was all too eager to open. She was terribly disappointed to find, not Sirius, but Joshua Thompson hovering just on the other side of her door. She had been so sure that it was Sirius that she let out a little squeak of surprise to see Josh.
Josh forcefully pushed the door the rest of the way open and with a hateful look walked inside. "I suppose I owe you an apology," Angie said hastily and insincerely. "I'm sorry. Now leave."
"An apology?" Josh asked with disbelief. "You owe me a hell of a lot more than an apology."
"You got exactly what you deserved!" Angie shouted at him.
"How did I deserve this?" Josh shouted back. "I've never met someone who uses people so ruthlessly as you! You parade around for all these years like Kirsten is my daughter when you knew good and well that she wasn't! Sirius would have been no help to you so you used me. You got me to marry you and support you. I saved your life, Angela! And now, when you knew the trial was coming and you knew everything was about to come out you settled the case. Well, this is not over. I'm coming after everything Sirius has! You both owe me a lifetime of child support and emotional damages. I can't believe how much of my life I wasted on you!"
Angie just stood calmly in front of him while he shouted and carried on. "And now you've wasted your breath," She replied when he finished somewhat breathlessly. The color in his face deepened and he no doubt was trying to suppress a new surge of rage. He clenched his fist.
"You are unbearable!" He screamed.
"Josh, I would hate for you to ruin your case by doing something stupid," Angie said, motioning to his clenched fists.
"It would be worth it," He growled and then left the room, angrily slamming the door.
Angie stood in silence, furiously chewing her lip. Sierra watched her trembling hands and wondered how long it would take for her to go to the liquor cabinet. To Sierra's surprise it never happened. Angie shook herself and returned to normal.
"There was a time when he was so sweet…" She said softly, her distant gaze shifting slowly back into focus. "Do you believe it?" She asked Sierra.
She shrugged. "He saved your life didn't he?"
"That wasn't sweet," Angie said, rolling her eyes. "I liked him when we were here, I mean, on this side of the ocean. When it was refreshing because he wasn't Sirius. But…I never loved him…because he wasn't Sirius..." She ended with a frown as if she knew her statement didn't make complete sense.
"It doesn't matter anymore," Sierra reminded her.
"You're right." Angie smiled. "I just wish Sirius were here to…well…he's the one who told me I should make a settlement with Josh…and…well I just wish he were here," She said, her eyes flickering toward the door as if she expected him to suddenly appear.
"Come on Angie," Sierra said. "Have a seat and we'll try to keep our minds occupied while we wait, OK?"
"Ok…" She replied with a reluctant smile. "Thanks, Sierra."
The hour was very late, probably close to four in the morning before the thought of danger entered Sirius' head. Things like that were funny. When he was on the run, hiding out, he never thought about being alone, late at night, no matter if he was in the country our the city. It never mattered to him. He was safer on the streets than in Azkaban. But now…now he could worry about details such as getting mugged or jumped or…raped. He had a good reason to not want those things to happen. He was a free man and life wouldn't be nearly so enjoyable if he were injured.
He didn't have much money and he was dead tired. Not only was his body exhausted but mentally he was beat. He crashed at the nearest motel and slept hard. It was his first sleep after being free. Though his mind was hardly at rest now, he still slept like a free man.
Late in the afternoon the next day he wandered to Diagon Alley and made appointments and several business calls. Sirius Black, the free man, had a lot of catching up to do.
Between Angie's second and third period class she half-walked, half-sprinted down to the dungeons and back. Snape swept her into his office without a word and handed her, her potion, stiff-lipped.
"You ought to stop," He said to her.
"I can't. Not just yet," She told him. "I have to talk to certain people first before I'm ready to go off this potion," She put the cup to her lips and started to swallow.
"You haven't told the father yet?" Snape asked, one eyebrow slowly creeping skyward. "It's Him…isn't it?" He asked, concluding correctly, after witnessing the trial that the baby must be Sirius'. Angie, at least, had the benefit of being mid-drink and was unable to respond in any way until the statement had settled.
After finishing, she fixed Snape with a Look. "He was on the run, I knew nothing of his innocence until very recently, and that is NOT your business," She replied quickly and coolly. "Thank you, Professor." She added, as she turned to leave.
"He resurfaced in London, by the way. Did you know? He's been making social calls."
"Good for him," Angie replied, careful not to hesitate or miss a step on her way out. The news had been comforting. Snape's conclusion and confrontation had not.
Several days had past since Sirius started paying people visits in London. He was a very busy man these days with thousands of affairs to settle. No one at Hogwarts had directly spoken with him since the trial and everyone was still buzzing with the news of Hoffenmeijer's outburst.
But life at Hogwarts was continuing at its normal pace. It seemed as if nothing could shatter the routine.
The N.E.W.T.s were on Friday and all the seventh years were getting snappy that Sunday afternoon. Hermione had already lectured the boys on the importance of studying and for once they seemed to take her advice to heart. Ron was rocking slightly as he poured over a voluminous textbook. Harry kept shifting piles of parchment in his attempt to study his History of Magic notes. Kirsten was seated at a table neatly writing.
Hermione was restless.
"I'm going to the library," She mumbled, in case anyone wondered what she was doing. No one, of course, did. She had actual intentions of going to the library, figuring she would be more likely to concentrate there. However, she was distracted along the way by the sunshine and soon found herself outdoors.
Without a thought in her mind she meandered toward Hogsmeade. (Which was not technically allowed.) With vague thoughts of stopping by her house she wandered in that general direction until she was obstructed by a great ruckus in the street.
A large variety of objects such as furniture and boxes littered the yard and all manner of people seemed to be scurrying around tripping over themselves and various household objects. The effect was chaos.
She watched the house and the confusion for a while trying to remember if that house had been empty before. Someone shouted and three people from the porch joined the first. She glanced at the numbers round the door and read the name printed in neat block letters. Did that say…?
Suddenly her head exploded in thought! She ran up the yard and narrowly avoided a couch carried by two men. She arrived eye level with the name Mr. S. Black, in shining freshly painted letters.
The door was standing slightly ajar so she gave it a push and shouted. "Sirius!" Atop the impressive staircase she could see several people rushing about. To her right a large living room unfolded and was filled with half unpacked boxes. None of these people paid her any notice and she admired the chandelier and the large Persian rug.
"Apollo!" She yelled.
"Hermione?" A voice came from behind her. Whirling around she saw Sirius' headappearing out of a large wood-paneled door.
"Sirius!" She exclaimed delightedly. "You didn't tell me you bought a house." She said as she carefully avoided someone rushing past with a vase full of fresh fragrant flowers.
"I'm renting it," He corrected. "Come on in," He said, gesturing into his library/study. It was in a state of disarray but it appeared to be more under control than the rest of the house. Most of the things had been unpacked and the boxes were grouped in a corner.
"Wow…" Hermione said as she glanced around the ridiculously large room.
"You missed the excitement," He said, taking a seat in a handsome leather armchair. "I just had to fight of the third Daily Prophet reporter. Apparently I've become front page news."
"Sirius," Hermione reminded him. "You've always been front page news."
"Well…yes, but I've never been interviewed before." Hermione just laughed and shook her head.
"I didn't know it was a Hogsmeade weekend," Sirius said, giving her a look.
"Oh yeah…last minute thing…" Hermione said with a grin.
"Not only are you going to get yourself into to trouble; you're going to get me into trouble too," Sirius said. "Hermione, I'm a law abiding citizen now," He warned in mock seriousness.
"I had to escape," She said desperately. "It's becoming like a prison!"
"I know that feeling," Sirius replied. "It won't be long now."
"I know," Hermione said biting her lip. "N.E.W.T.s are on Friday!"
"And you're not studying?" Sirius asked.
"I just can't do it anymore, Sirius!" She whined. "I mean, I've just survived an encounter with the Dark Lord and some ancient evil spirit. Why the hell do I have to go to class and take tests?"
"I commiserate. More than you may know, however, you just have to look at it as one last 'hurrah' before the end. Then, you'll never have to do it again. Besides Hermione, at this point I have full confidence that you could get high marks with your eyes closed. And, seeing as you'll have your eyes fully opened the entire time you're taking the tests you will receive excellent marks and be offered a job by virtually everyone in the world. Just suffer through like everyone else and get the hell out."
Hermione was silent for quite a while. "It seems so strange. Hogwarts is my life and has been for seven years. Even more so these last couple. And now what? I know there is a whole world of wonderful opportunity and I can do absolutely anything I want to do. But, everything is going to be so suddenly different. My friends will change…everything will change."
"I advise you to not dwell on it much. You are experiencing the same thoughts millions of people before you have experienced when faced with graduation. Not to downplay the last seven years or anything but just let things happen and everything will turn out great. Unless, of course, you're me and you end up in Azkaban…but even so, I had a few years before all that."
"Even so," Hermione said. "I don't want my relationship with Harry to end up being with a newspaper or magazine article. What if I don't see him after this summer? What about Kirsten and Ron and you?"
"Don't worry, you couldn't get rid of me if you tried. Or the rest of them. You'll still see all of us. Not on a daily basis probably, but you'll all still be friends. You've lived through too much not to be."
"What should I do about Harry?" She asked sighing, the real reason she wanted to talk to Sirius.
"That loser still hasn't made a move?"
"Oh; he made a move all right," Hermione replied, causing Sirius' eyes to bulge in surprise. "But now what? Sirius…it's been weeks since he kissed me—"
"Time-out," Sirius said, waving his hand in the air. "I missed that. What happened?"
"You were there, you were just unconscious at the time," Hermione explained, as if this would trigger a memory. "In the midst of the castle crumbling and a battle ending…and another one about to begin…and you bleeding and Kirsten collapsed…and, I'm sure other dramatic things were happening at the time," Hermione continued as Sirius was moving to the edge of his seat. "When Harry realized what he had to do. When he realized he had to go back to Hogwarts to get help and he had to take Pettigrew with him. And I was the only sane and competent person at the time. When he realized he was going to have to go and I was going to have to stay behind and protect the rest of you and try and save the injured people he kissed me."
"Je-sus," Sirius replied. "He couldn't have picked a more novel-worthy moment if he tried!"
"Damn it, Sirius!" Hermione replied. "That's the problem. The timing was misleading."
"I don't follow…"
"Consider this," Hermione said. "You've only just barley pulled off living; now two of the people near and dear to you may die, and another most important person may escape and/or try to kill you if you don't do something. And, you've no other choice but to leave us practically defenseless until you return. There's a possibility somebody will die. Is this a I-should-have-told-you-how-I-feel-sooner, moment or a I-think-one-or-both-of-us-might-die-so-what-the-hell, moment?"
"Well…when you put it that way," Sirius replied, "that is a tough question to answer. I mean, what goes in the head of Harry Potter?"
"That's what I would like to know," Hermione said. "And you see, I really, really, think that it was a what-the-hell? moment because he hasn't said a word about it since then. I mean, it is like it never happened. What if he doesn't even remember?"
"That's not possible," Sirius replied swiftly. "Listen, maybe he is just not sure what to do next. Maybe you should talk to him about this, instead of me."
"Sirius," Hermione said, frustrated. "It isn't that simple."
"Yes, I assure you, it really is."
"Not."
"Listen, babe, I can't help you more than that. To his credit, he made the first move. He's probably just waiting for you to respond."
Hermione sighed.
"Damn."
"All right, shut up!" Ron Weasley shouted to the group of prefects gathered in the conference room. "Ready Ginny? This meeting is now called to order." Ron, being Head Boy, had called the meeting and would be conducting it. About half way through the year he had made his sister secretary because he tired to Draco and Ginny screwing around when he was trying to take of business. Ginny was extremely annoyed at her brother for the unwanted appointment, and for the unwanted job of taking down the minutes of the meetings. Just to spite him she kept record of every tiny detail in several bright colors just so that Ron would have a more difficult time if he needed to go back and consult them.
Ginny nodded and recorded the time and their meeting officially began. Hermione was sitting at the opposite end of the table from Ron who was at the Head. Harry was on her right. Harry was always fascinated by the way Ron became so serious when he conducted Prefect meetings. Sometimes he had flashbacks of Percy, but he wouldn't dare mention that detail to Ron.
Ron had a rather lengthy agenda for this meeting because he intended for it to be one the last meetings of the year, if not the last. He started with a lengthy description of graduation proceedings. Hermione was absently scrawling on her parchment. She never really took notes at these meetings because she'd already discussed every thing with Ron before. She only took note of any changes. Harry wasn't really paying attention either. Ron had a tendency to become wordy if given the chance. Usually Draco would stop him before it became unbearable.
"You already said that Weasley," Draco cut in as Ron started to 're-cap'. With a nasty look Ron fell silent for a moment.
"Right, fine. Any questions?" He asked. He was, of course, met with several blank stares. Ginny was furiously writing: 'Absolutely no questions due to the fact that Ron used about every word in the dictionary during his incredibly boring and Professor Binn-esque explanation of graduation.'
"OK then…" He said, glancing down at his notes. "Oh, before I forget. Filch has asked us to make a sign announcing the fact that the bathrooms near the Great Hall will be temporarily out of use for the next three days…"
Suddenly Harry scribbled something with a passion on his parchment and slid it to Hermione who was slightly shocked. Ignoring Ron she wrinkled up her brow and peered at the words scrawled across the parchment.
"Hermione, who is Apollo?" Harry had written.
"What? Have you been reading my mail?" She demanded in heavy black ink.
"Answer the question." Harry replied.
"Now? Do we have to have this conversation right here, right NOW?"
"Stop putting me off, Hermione. Who is Apollo?" Harry had just started to angrily shove the parchment back at Hermione when someone lifted it out his hands. Both of them looked up guiltily at Ron. He had been about to speak when he stopped short seeing the words written on the paper. His expression changed into a grin-which he promptly suppressed.
"Must you have this conversation right now?" He demanded. Harry and Hermione averted their eyes and said nothing.
"He started it," Hermione blurted out. Ron looked from one to the other for a moment collecting his thoughts.
"Fine. Leave. Go continue in the hall since this is obviously more important than anything I have to say," Ron said contemptuously.
"But!" Hermione sputtered, her face turning red with anger and with embarrassment. Ron's expression was enough reply to silence her protests. With a dark look at Harry she snatched the parchment from Ron and stormed out the door. Harry followed cautiously.
Draco had been positively about to burst with laughter throughout the entire exchange. He now leaned across the table and instructed Ginny to record the episode in the minutes. Ron continued precisely where he'd left off without hesitation.
Out in the hall Hermione was too enraged to speak. Harry disliked the silence so much so that he spoke, knowing Hermione would have an outburst. "You might as well answer my question," He pointed out.
"HARRY!" Hermione shouted at him. "Why the hell did you have to bring this up NOW? In the middle of a meeting? I have NEVER been thrown out of a meeting before in my entire life. I'm the Head Girl. I shouldn't get thrown out of my own meeting!"
"You act as if I get thrown out of meetings all the time," Harry snapped defensively. "Ginny is taking the minutes, I'm sure we can get her to eliminate any mention of it and all things will be fine."
"That's not good enough!"
"You act as if you were enjoying the meeting. I saw you doodling."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "That doesn't mean you start passing notes! Especially not about this!" She said, brandishing the parchment at him.
"I have to know Hermione! Who the hell is Apollo?"
"Have you been reading my mail?"
"Quit answering me with questions!" Harry shouted.
"Why won't you answer MY question?" She demanded.
"I asked you first!" Harry pointed out.
"My question is more important. And another thing, why do you care? Why is it so important that you had to bring it up in the middle of a meeting?"
"I wasn't reading your mail. You've just left a couple of letters out and I happened to see a line or two. Who is he? Your boyfriend?"
"Oh my God; you have NO idea what you're saying."
"Well is he?"
"What does it matter to you, Harry?"
"Well I don't know. I'd just like to know what's going on in your life, I guess. I mean, wouldn't you want to know if I had a secret girlfriend?"
"You don't have a secret girlfriend Harry! And Apollo is not secret and he's NOT my boyfriend! No, don't interrupt! I can't, for the life of me, understand what you find so difficult in talking to me. But let me remind you that you are the one who started all this. YOU are the one who kissed ME!"
Hermione felt her heart stop as she heard someone gasp behind her. A flush of color warmed her cheeks. She turned to see Ron standing just outside the doorway and several others close behind him. The meeting had just adjourned and they were all STARING. Draco whispered something to Ginny who was barely able to keep herself from laughing aloud.
Silently, Harry put his hand firmly on Hermione's shoulder and steered her in the opposite direction of their peers. Slowly the chatter of the group restored behind them but Hermione only walked faster. First she had been thrown out of a meeting for passing notes, now she had been shouting about Harry kissing her…this was undoubtedly the most embarrassing day of her life.
Without question Harry matched Hermione's quick pace and followed her lead to the owlrey. Patiently, he waited for Hermione to scribble a hasty note. Wordlessly he raised his eyebrows at her. With a nasty look on her face she shoved the note at Harry who read.
"Dear Apollo,
Come immediately. You know where.
Love,
Hermione"
"He instantly replies to your every whim?" Harry asked, absently tying the note to Hedwig's leg and sending her out the window.
"Oh yes," Hermione replied nastily. "He's wonderfully considerate of my feelings unlike CERTAIN people."
"I do not understand why you are so worked up? You are the one who is keeping things from ME."
Hermione gave him a blank stare for a moment. "You have absolutely NO understanding of women…do you?"
"Obviously not," He mumbled.
"Whatever," Hermione said. "Let's go meet Apollo so you can shut up and realize how infantile you're being."
"Hermione wait," He said, throwing out his arm to stop her. "I didn't mean to imply that I don't trust you." Hermione interrupted by rolling her eyes.
"Harry just stop while you're still behind."
Walking across the grounds the wind was rather chilly. "God Harry, you had to pick the coldest evening in May…" Harry opened his mouth to protest but realized the futility of it all before starting.
As they approached the woods they could see a thin line of smoke and smelling burning leaves. Conveniently, Hermione thought, Sirius had their back to them as they approached. He heard them coming near and turned suddenly. "Jesus Hermione, could you have picked a more inconveniently cold time in May?" She shot Harry a Look. He avoided making eye contact.
"Hi Sirius, how are you?" Harry asked pleasantly. "Not that we wouldn't love to stay and chat but Hermione and I have some business to attend to." Sirius' expression altered dramatically but Hermione quickly responded.
"No Harry, you don't understand." The muscles in Harry's body went rigid and he quickly became agitated.
"Hermione!" He shouted. "I'm tired of you screwing around. I have the right to know what the hell is going on!"
Her eyes widened in shock. "You see what I have to put up with?" Hermione said, sounding a little screechy and at her wits end.
"Cool it, kids," Sirius said half-serious and half-amused. "What seems to be the misunderstanding because I was under my own delusion that you, Hermione, had summoned me out in the cold for some emergency."
"Summoned you," Harry said, turning to face Sirius. "But she wrote that note to…I mean…I sent it!" His voice squeaked toward the end as his expression changed to extreme confusion.
Hermione folded her arms and waited for the situation to dawn on Harry. Slowly the idea occurred to him and he began to feel more and more like a stupid, tiny little bug. He started to look from Sirius to Hermione who were both waiting patiently for his mental processes. "You are…Apollo?" Harry asked weakly. "Oh…hell," He finished lamely.
He ran his fingers through his hair and started pacing--hating himself more and more by the minute. Hermione just watched him and shook her head.
"Harry," Hermione said eventually, reaching out her hand.
He pushed it away. "No, never mind. I'm sorry Hermione…" He said and started to walk away angrily, his head down and his hands in his pockets.
She looked at Sirius for help. "Go after him!" Sirius urged. She bit her lip and hesitated, but only for a moment.
"HARRY!" She called, running after him. His head still down and his hands in his pockets he did condescend to stop walking, at least.
Sirius kicked dirt on the small fire and turned to go. With a last glance at the two though, he couldn't bring himself to leave.
"Harry," She said again, breathlessly, when she had caught him up. "I'm sorry too. I should have told you right away instead of making you feel stupid. I know, I overreacted and got upset over nothing. I do that, Harry. You KNOW I do that."
"Yeah," He agreed, still not taking his hands out of his pockets. "I just…" Words seemed to fail him for a moment and then he broke into a smile and shook his head. "Nothing. It's nothing," He repeated, taking his hands out of his pockets. "I just can't believe that all this time you and Sirius were communicating like that. What's all the crap about a little black dress?"
Hermione smiled. "That's just Sirius being Sirius," She said and they two started walking again. "But seriously, why were you reading my mail?"
"You left it out, and Ron and Kirsten encouraged the rumors that you and Apollo were an item. Now that I think of it, everything is so simple. Sirius Apollo Black. I'm such a blockhead."
"But a cute one," Hermione said, ruffling his hair.
"I suppose that has to count for something…"
"Yes!" Sirius exclaimed punching the air with his fist as he watched the two get over their fight. Feeling slightly embarrassed because he'd been spying he pulled his cloak tighter and turned toward home.
"Harry," Hermione said turning serious again. "We need to talk about a few things."
"A few things…?" He repeated somewhat apprehensively.
"Actually, just one thing," Hermione admitted.
"Oh THAT thing," Harry agreed.
"Right."
"But couldn't we just—"
"No."
"Damn." Silence. "Don't get me wrong. It's not as if I…well…It's just a bit awkward."
"Sort of like now?" Hermione asked.
"A lot like now," Harry agreed.
"We can't avoid it forever," Hermione said, stopping suddenly and turning toward him.
"It's just that we're such good friends, Hermione," Harry said, the words seemed to sort of gush forth all at once. "And, I'm such a jerk…ask Kirsten…" He added. "This really changes things is all."
"That's true. But I don't see how we can go back."
"Unfortunately, there is such truth to that statement. I just want to do this right."
"Harry, you're not perfect. I understand that. I'm not either…I'm just always right." Harry looked up suddenly but realized by her smile she was only teasing him.
"I just want you to know up front that I'm the kind of person who is going to constantly be getting you into trouble like this afternoon at the meeting."
"Harry, it's OK," Hermione assured him. The chill wind made a loud whooshing sound past their ears and whipped Hermione's hair around her face.
"It is bloody cold out here," Harry agreed, looking at the sky suddenly. Hermione imitated his pointless action. "Let's get inside before we both catch cold," He said, putting his arm around her and drawing her near for warmth.
As they made their way back to the castle Hermione giggled. "You should have seen the look on your face…"
The N.E.W.T.s, true to their name, were nastily exhausting. Therefore, everyone was overly thrilled to receive very formal looking invitations to a party hosted by Sirius at his new rental home. The party was Friday night. The entire Alliance was invited, the people you would expect from Hogwarts, and Snape also, simply out of common courtesy since he testified on Sirius' behalf, Griphook, Brandon Fishwick, and a whole host of other so called friends and associates were invited to the party. As a matter of fact, many people in attendance were not the sort of people who would have been expected at a party for and by Sirius Black. For example, several people from the Ministry of Magic were in attendance. Not the sort of crowd Sirius was known for. But more on the guest list when the night of the party arrives.
There was still time. Still a week. One agonizing week where the seventh years replayed that one question in their heads over and over…what if I would have considered it this way…I should have picked frog guts…not beetle skins…if only I would have finished reading that chapter on common afflictions of the ancient goat-herding magicians…the list was endless and everyone was restless.
On Saturday morning at precisely 11:11 AM Professor McGonagall was going to hang the job offer list in the Gryffindor common room. And every seventh year would be there waiting, holding their breaths.
Once the N.E.W.T.s were scored it wouldn't take long for the scores to get around. An offer for an interview was all important and very competitive. Especially for positions in the Ministry and in the IAA.
Friday was going to be a BIG night, followed by a BIG Saturday morning.
Angie paced back and forth across her room nervously. It was Thursday night and so far the week had past without event. She had not heard from Sirius, though she had certainly heard about him.
He made front page news every day in some way or another. Sirius had bought back his father's company, Black & Black Cauldrons, and had re-opened the factory for business. They were introducing a new line of cauldrons as soon as possible and he was hiring a whole new staff of people. The jobs, the money, the power; the media ate it all up.
There were other things too. Like the fact that Sirius had his chocolate frog card collection appraised and discovered it was worth 480,000 galleons! The collection, of course, was donated to charity and there was a large photo of Sirius shaking hands with the President of "Quidditch for the Underprivileged"; which was an organization that built quidditch pitches and training facilities and offered their services free to underprivileged witches and wizards who wanted something to do in the summertime. Naturally Sirius landed himself a large color photo on the front of Quidditch Weekly, also.
This ridiculousness, however, was not the source of her consternation. Angie was more concerned about the invitation and hastily scribbled note she had just received after finding it tucked in her front door in Hogsmeade. The invitation was, of course, one of his formal, glitzy, invites to his big 'Freedom Bash' tomorrow night. Inside he had scribbled the words "Sorry I've been busy lately. Sirius" as if that would explain why he hadn't even tried to contact her since his release.
There was no question, she needed to have a serious and lengthy conversation with Sirius Black, but going to his party wouldn't really present an opportunity for that. She couldn't tell him during his party. That wouldn't be fair to ruin the occasion. On the other hand she REALLY wanted to see him...but what would she WEAR?
"Angie!" Sierra called to her friend over heads of students all jostling in the hallways, Friday afternoon. "You want to grab lunch in my room?" Angie nodded and they met a few minutes later in a much less crowded area.
The two crouched over Sierra's broken down little table in her room and picked at their lunches. "Have you thought about what you might get Kirsten as a graduation present?" Sierra asked and Angie nearly choked.
"Um…no," She replied honestly. She didn't have the money or the forethought to provide Kirsten with anything meaningful or useful. And graduation was practically here! They would get the results of their tests tomorrow. Tomorrow they would get job offers! They were growing up so quickly…
"I have no IDEA what to get Hermione," Sierra admitted. "And Harry…what does that boy NEED? Nothing…"
"Oh God…" Angie said holding her head. "I don't even have anything of his parents that might have sentimental value. I should get something for Ron too," Angie said, becoming more distraught. "He is Kirsten's boyfriend and I really like him," Angie said.
"Yeah, Ron is a good kid," Sierra agreed. "He has the perfect degree of seriousness and humor. Plus, he's nearly my brother-in-law."
Angie spilled her water and started sputtering. "I wasn't trying to suggest anything!" Sierra shouted quickly. "I'm just saying that I am dating Bill. That's all. We're just dating."
"Oh good," Angie said, relief washing over her as she carefully righted her cup.
"Are you excited about tonight?" Sierra asked, eager to change the subject.
"Um, tonight?" Angie asked, shoving a bite in her mouth, trying to stall for time.
"Well yeah. If there is one thing Sirius knows how to do, it's how to party," Sierra pointed out.
"Oh…well, I was thinking I had better get caught up on my grading since grades will have to be in soon. And, I should finish my translation of this ancient Nubian text that I've been working on for a few weeks." Sierra just stared disbelievingly as Angie continued with excuse after excuse.
"Did you and Sirius have an argument?" Sierra interrupted.
"No," Angie replied.
"Well, I don't understand…" Sierra stammered. "Are you mad at him?"
"Slightly," Angie said, becoming a little defensive.
"Why?" Angie gave her a look.
"I can be mad at him without you having to know about it, OK?"
"OK, sure," Sierra admitted, trying to swallow this. "I was just surprised."
"Well Sierra can you blame me?" Angie snapped. "For months he's been hanging around. But the second he gets pardoned he's gone. Typical Sirius. Over the past week I've got a total of six words, written, from him. I have to read about him in the newspaper! Sierra," She said, leaning dangerously across the shaky table. "I haven't seen him up close and in person since I was allowed five minutes with him in the hospital. How many weeks ago has that been?" She had to stop and catch her breath at this point. Her eyes were slightly moist.
"Angie, I honestly had no idea," Sierra replied. "I'm sorry. But, do you really think that the best course of action is to ignore him?"
"An eye for an eye," Angie snapped bitterly. "I don't want to see him just now."
"I'm sure he'll be disappointed."
"Look," Angie said, "I'll talk to him. We'll work it out. Just let him have his party. There is no sense in me ruining his plans for tonight." Sierra opened her mouth to protest but then thought better of it.
"Ok Angie, if you say so."
Holly dropped by the castle Friday evening and Holly, Sierra, and Remus made their way to Hogsmeade to see Sirius' new digs. "This party of his is the talk of…of everyone!" Holly exclaimed, as they were winding their way through the streets. "At the ministry its practically an insult not to have received an invitation. The whole place will be taking vacation time to come to the party."
"Well, that's comforting," Sierra said sarcastically. "We'll be completely unprotected."
"No, WE won't," Remus said. "All the aurors and officials will be at the party. It's the rest of the poor innocent populous that has to worry."
"Well whatever," Holly said. "I'm just excited. He's been making news all week!" Remus chuckled softly and his hand slipped around her waist. Sierra raised an eyebrow and trailed behind the couple.
Further behind them others were having a similar conversation. Dumbledore, Snape, and McGonagall were all invited and they made their own little traveling group. Harry, Hermione, Kirsten and Ron were also honored guests. As a matter of fact, so was Ginny. All of the Weasleys had managed to warrant an invitation.
It was rumored that the Minister of Magic was going to make an appearance and so was the real Head of the Government, Jack Taylor, Head of the Department of Mysteries. Very few people actually knew what this man looked like, actually, so it would be very difficult to know if he actually showed at the party or not.
At any rate, when everyone arrived the house was opened and completely lit. Sirius had a complete staff that was highly trained and greeting everyone at the door. The place was decorated in a stunning display. Hermione could feel her fingertips tingle with excitement as they stepped inside.
For a good forty-five minutes the kids never saw Sirius. They met an entire host of people though, many of whom had claimed to have known Harry's parents. Then suddenly they heard his laugh. All four of them looked around wildly but were unable to locate him through the dense crowd of people.
A few moments later, quite unexpectedly he descended upon them. "Kirsten!" He shouted, and as she turned she was immediately smothered by a huge bear of a hug. "Where is your mother?" He murmured into her ear.
"I don't know," She said, pulling away from her father.
"I hope she got the invitation," Sirius said, a very concerned look on his face.
"Oh she did," Kirsten assured him. "She asked me about it this morning. Maybe she'll show up later," She said with a shrug. Sirius frowned and took a long pull from his glass.
"OK," He replied, finally. And then his mood changed rapidly as he seemed to notice that there was still a party going on around him.
He heartily slapped Ron on the back and then hugged Harry in a similar fashion as he had done to Kirsten. "Ah Hermione," He said, his face lighting with excitement as he turned to her last. "I have something for you."
Before she could respond a well dressed servant of some sort appeared with a very pretty looking box. "Open it," Sirius prompted as she looked from him to the gift speechlessly.
Hermione carefully slid the velvet ribbon from around the box and tore the heavy paper. Cautiously she lifted the lid ever so slightly. Ron, Kirsten, and Harry were paying close attention. She squinted for a second and then looked at Sirius who seemed to confirm her thoughts. Her eyes widened in shock.
All at once her face turned bright red and she slammed the box shut again. "Oh my God," She muttered as he howled with laughter and pulled her into a hug.
"No more excuses," He told her and then gave her a wink. In an instant he melted into the crowd of people around them and was instantly unreachable. "What—" Harry started to ask, putting out a hand toward the box.
"None of your business!" She snapped, pulling the box from his reach. Her face brightened again. Kirsten and Ron exchanged frowns. Wisely, Ron suggested that they dance and some of the focus was taken off the mysterious package.
About an hour later Sirius stumbled across their path again. "No Angie?" He asked his daughter who shook her head. He sighed heavily and downed an entire glass of champagne. He was slightly drunk by this time but who could criticize; it was his party. He thrust glasses into all their hands. Kirsten and Harry gladly said cheers and Hermione reluctantly sipped at hers. Curiously Ron discarded his glass and watched his friends slowly lose their wits.
When Harry was conveniently distracted by yet another important person who thought they were important enough to monopolize the legendary Harry Potter's time Hermione pulled Ron and Kirsten off into the hallway.
"Are we going to get to find out what's in that box?" Kirsten asked excitedly. Hermione nodded.
"Your father has a peculiar sense of humor," She replied, pulling the black fabric out of the box and holding it up in front of them.
"Is that what I think it is?" Ron asked, pointing and staring.
"Yes, Ron. Sirius actually got me a little black dress." Ron's sides nearly split as he doubled over laughing.
"Put it on!" Kirsten squeaked excitedly.
"Are you kidding?" Hermione asked. "I'm not putting it on here. In front of my mother and everyone!"
"I can't…I can't believe it!" Ron managed to say between laughs. Kirsten just shook her head at him and Hermione hastily shoved it back in the box and went to have the doorman check it in with her traveling cloak.
"Alone at last," Ron said, with a playful smile. "This moment could be so romantic," He continued. "Should I get down on one knee and start spouting poetry?"
"Do you know any poetry?" Kirsten questioned, as Ron dropped down to his knee.
"Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear," He cried dramatically. "Fuzzy Wuzzy had…NO HAIR!"
"Ron, get up you idiot," Kirsten said, laughing.
"I'm not finished yet!" He snapped. Just as he was about to continue a door to their left opened up and the two most unlikely couple exited Sirius' study.
Sirius Black and Josh Thompson. And both were looking very pleased. Sirius was actually laughing and he reached over and lit an enormous cigar that he had just handed Josh.
Ron and Kirsten were paralyzed with shock when suddenly Sirius and Josh caught the scene across from them. They, naturally, stopped dead. For several seconds nobody moved.
"Get up, you idiot," Kirsten snapped out of the corner of her mouth. Quickly Ron stood and made sure there was plenty of space between him and Kirsten.
"Well," Josh said briskly turning back to Sirius. "A pleasure doing business with you. I'll you handle this one, Pops," He said, and turned on his heel.
At the exact same moment Kirsten and Sirius exploded. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" Sirius blinked in surprise but Kirsten was undeterred.
"What business do you have with that man?" She spat. "He's scum, he's worse than scum…he's something MUCH WORSE THAN SCUM!" She cried. "What were you two doing?"
"I was taking care of him Kirsten," Sirius said, a little shaken. He had never been interrogated by Kirsten in this manner before and he was slightly taken aback. He glanced at Ron for support. "I have his personal guarantee that we will never see him again. And if he breaks his promise he stands to lose an awful lot."
"I don't understand," Kirsten stammered.
"I paid him off. Don't get upset, it was the only way and it doesn't matter anyway," Sirius explained very quickly. "It was the best and surefire way. We will not have to worry about him ever again."
"Well…OK," She said eventually.
Sirius seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. He glanced from Ron to Kirsten and mentally decided that if he didn't speak of what he thought he just saw in the hallway then it really hadn't happened. Ron wasn't down on one knee in front of his daughter. No, he had made that up. Suddenly he was smiling and nodding without realization and Kirsten was giving him a strange look.
Ron grabbed her arm and gave her a violent tug into the other room and AWAY from Sirius.
By midnight over half of the guests had disappeared but the real party was just starting. Most of the people were quite drunk at this point and therefore everyone was a having a merry time. Ron had been sitting watching chess games for the past two hours. He was fascinated by the skill this one man possessed. He was very well groomed with an immaculate beard and moustache and short gray hair. His eyes were black and cunning and hid behind very small round glasses in designer frames. He had the most excellent poker face on the planet. The man was an absolute stone and his moves were well calculated. He could win a game with a few moves. At one point Ron actually flinched when he check-mated his opponent wordlessly.
The last man had been too drunk to really play the game properly. He kept accidentally knocking the pieces over. Startlingly the man spoke to Ron after this latest disaster. He had barley spoken a complete sentence in two hours. To hear his voice now was strange.
"You've watched enough to become an expert. Why not give me some real competition?" He offered in a sinister sort of way. There was no question this man gave Ron the chills. And he definitely wanted to beat him.
After Sierra watched Sirius take another serious drink she wondered if something wasn't wrong with him. He seemed to be becoming more and more nervous and his smiles were getting tighter. Carefully she sidled up to him. "How does it feel to be free?" She asked.
"It has its ups and downs," He replied, not looking at her.
"I take it this is a down?" He nodded slowly. "Angie?" She questioned. He turned to face her for the first time.
"She didn't even make an appearance. I was going to…" He started to tell her something and then trailed off, his gaze focused beyond her. "I'm such an idiot," He concluded, his eyes coming back to hers.
"You're not an idiot, Sirius," Sierra assured him. "She's just feeling a little put out lately. I'm sure that she's been sulking in her room all night and will be ready to talk tomorrow or sometime soon."
"I thought that—"
"What Sirius?" Sierra cut in sharply. "That suddenly everything would be perfect and happily ever after? You've been cut off from reality for too long," She continued harshly. "Angie is still Angie. You two will always have to put a little work into making things work."
"I know, Sierra," Sirius replied with a sharpness she hadn't expected. "I planned to tell her that tonight. I wanted to tell her that we would forget everything and start over. That I wanted to spend the rest of my life trying to become happily ever after." He stopped and took a deep breath. "What the hell…" He said, his tone changing. "I've just been pardoned, it's a party. Let's celebrate," he said, pouring each of them a new glass.
"Cheers."
After over an hour of play there were no spectators. At one point Harry, Hermione and Kirsten had showed up but they were all much too giggly from all the alcohol to hold interest in an intense game of chess.
Ron was in a rather tight spot by 2:15 AM. In some of the most gripping few minutes of his life he was able to successfully maneuver his way out of danger. His opponent leaned back in his chair. His face was of course completely unreadable. But his eyes were wildly dancing back and forth.
The next few plays yielded nothing interesting until his opponent quietly said "Check." His eyes, his fathomless black eyes, met Ron's and his whole body shivered.
Then suddenly, without too much thought or realization really, Ron said, "Check-mate," And kicked over the King. A very slight, nearly unnoticeable tremor passed over the man's face. It may have been the first time this man had ever been defeated at a game of chess.
He slightly inclined his head toward Ron and briefly lowered his eyes. "Congratulations, Mr. Weasley," He said. "This has been most enjoyable."
Before Ron had a chance to even say anything the man disapparated.
Ron blinked.
"Oy! Sirius!" He shouted.
Sirius bumbled over. "Oy!" He replied.
"Who was that man I was playing chess with?"
"Don't you know him?" Sirius asked, disbelief in his voice. "That was Jack Taylor, you know who that is."
"Sirius, another round!" George Weasley shouted and Sirius staggered off.
Ron sat stunned in his chair. He had just played chess with the Head of the Department of Mysteries. He had just BEAT the Head of the Department of Mysteries. 'Oh my God' he thought to himself. 'What if I wake up tomorrow as a hamster?'
Remus, Holly, Bill, Sierra, and Sirius were all sitting around a table, sipping their drinks and having pleasant conversation. "Life is good," Sirius declared.
"Here, here!" Remus cried, leaning over and giving Holly a kiss. Sirius rolled his eyes.
"Are you two back together again?" Sirius asked. "Honestly you guys are worse than me and Angie."
"Not quite," Bill pointed out. "You and Angie are married."
"So are me and Remus," Holly said before she could stop herself.
"So are you what?" Sirius cried.
"We're married," Remus replied. "We weren't sure how to break the news to you," Remus admitted.
"Well, damn," Sirius said, leaning back in his chair. "It seems like I should have something to say but I just can't think of anything," He admitted laughing.
Bill nudged Sierra who was staring with her mouth open. "When?" She questioned.
"Two nights ago," Holly said.
"Oh my God."
"It's not a big deal," Remus said, to Sierra.
"Yes it is!" Sierra cried.
"No it's not," Holly assured her.
"A toast to the happily married couple!" Sirius roared interrupting the others.
The trip back to Hogwarts was nearly unbearable for Ron who was completely sober. Kirsten, Harry, and even Hermione was quite drunk and Ron feared they would never make it back to the dorms. Eventually they did, however, even though Kirsten never actually made it to her bed. Ron dumped her on the couch and held Hermione's arm while she made her way up the stairs.
He didn't really blame them for having a good time. They could celebrate their own freedom too! They had taken their N.E.W.T.s, they were free too.
Today was SO the day. Today was the beginning of the rest of their lives. Today was the day when Hogwarts would really seem like it was over and the world would just begin. As 11:11 approached the seventh years nervously milled around the common room. Their conversations were briefed and forced. Their smiles tense.
For Harry, Hermione, and Kirsten their heads were pounding.
With a deep inhalation the students took their turns scanning the offers. Most students names appeared more than once as several organizations wanted them. Most of the retail organizations in Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade had listed every student who had passed their tests. The Ministry of Magic also had a fairly long list since they had so many departments.
Some students ran their fingers down the lists and turned away, disappointed. Others saw what they were hoping for a gave a loud cheer. The noise level intensified as everyone began excitedly discussing their futures.
Kirsten had been offered a position in several different departments of the Ministry of Magic. This pleased her immensely as she hoped to get a chance to use her skills as a linguist.
Harry's name was on every last list. The only one he was interested in, however, and the only one he was truly shocked by, was the offer to play Quidditch for England. Feeling light-headed and on top of the world he couldn't have been more speechless.
Hermione had been listed on nearly every list as well. Even Hogwarts had offered her a teaching position. But, in her heart, Hermione knew she would someone end up in Magical Law Enforcement or Intelligence. She'd had too many close calls with evil people in her short life. And she had this burning desire to keep seeking justice for the brutal murder of her parents and other innocent victims. She was well pleased with her prospects.
Ron was the last person standing in front of the lists. Everyone else was congratulating each other or slapping a stunned Harry on the back. Ron however was staring blankly. His name wasn't anywhere.
Not one place had printed his name. Not a single place. Not even a stupid shop in Hogsmeade.
Nowhere.
A/N: Well, that's an interesting place to leave you. A couple of important notices.
NOTICE: The chapter seventeen will be the last chapter of Awakening! And I promise it will be worth the wait and worth reading. The ending is killer.
NOTICE: Just a reminder that even though another Harry Potter official book is coming out, this will not in any way change THIS fanfiction. I will continue as planned.
NOTICE: I swear to finish this story by August 13th and you have my word in print on that one.
Stardust