The Truth Behind Major Events

Chapter 6: Personalized Beginnings

July 5: 1 hour before that time

Harry was nervous. He had no idea what to expect. His written correspondence with Ginny had gone well over the past few weeks, but how would that translate into real life interaction?

Pacing around the kitchen of Grimmauld Place (the only room large enough to pace in where there wasn't a high likely-hood of running into some strange object) worrying about what was to come. Would Ginny freeze and things be awkward around them? Would she even show up in the first place? Would he get tongue tied? Would she believe that Sirius was innocent? And most importantly, how would she respond to the letter he was too scared to send?

Finally, 15 minutes before the top of the hour Harry said goodbye to Sirius and started the trek 8 houses down to the lone bench on the street. He saw a person with long, red hair sitting their and he smiled. At least one of his questions had been answered positively.

Ginny looked up as he approached and gave a small smile. "Hey."

Harry noticed that she looked exhausted. She had bags under her eyes and she had lost the care free look in her eyes and body language that both of the preteens should still have. Damn Voldemort and his perpetual evil affecting both of them so young.

Harry finally spoke when he was right in front of Ginny. "Hi. I hope you haven't been here too long."

"It's fine. At least I escaped Aunt Muriel's critiques of anything and everything."

The conversation was slightly uncomfortable, but not horribly so. It was reminiscent of two friends who were just reintroduced after a long time apart.

"Um, well. Do you want to walk with me a bit, Ginny? I know a place where we can talk without being out in the open."

"Of course."

"Sorry that I couldn't just give you the address of the place. It's kind of complicated and I didn't want to write it down. Hedwig is great and all, but still. Anyways, the house is under the Fidelius Charm. Do you know what that is?" Harry realized that he was rambling, but he could hardly bring himself to care.

"Yeah," Ginny paused slightly before continuing. "Bill is a curse breaker and whenever he came home he would show me his books. Quite interesting actually."

"Good. Just learned about it myself to be honest, and I doubt I could give an accurate explanation." Harry stepped back slightly for Ginny to stand up. Then, he leaned closer and whispered, "Sirius Black lives at Number 12 Grimlaud Place. Please trust me."

Ginny's eyes widened at this and the two wandered down the road in an amicable silence.

Once outside of Grimmauld Place Harry turned to Ginny. "Be quiet when entering. There's this portrait that rivals any Weasley temper out there." Ginny smiled and gave a soft laugh while Harry opened the door and led her into the kitchen area.

Once seated, Harry asked, "So, do you want to talk first or should I?"

Ginny raised an eyebrow and then responded, "Well, since I'm sitting in the house of a supposed mass murderer, I think you should go first."

Harry gave a small smile before describing what had changed with his life over the last couple of weeks. He explained Sirius's circumstances and what Harry had began to dub the abduction. He talked about the horrible first few weeks and leaving his relatives. He told Ginny all about his training and reading he had mentioned in his letters, plus the strong wards around Grimmauld Place that blocked the Trace.

To say the least, Ginny was shocked by all of the changes she could see in Harry. He seemed slightly more optimistic than normal, not just about his living arrangements and having a parental figure he was beginning to trust, but also about himself in general. Ginny wondered, and so she asked.

Harry nervously ran a hand through his hair. He had been completely honest with her today and her actions bolstered his reasons to trust her, but this was personal for both of them. Sighing, Harry started talking again. "To be honest Ginny, seeing you in the chamber helped me realize something. I know we weren't the best of friends at the time. Hell. We were acquaintances at best, but the thought of you dying terrified me. A few weeks later I reasoned that people must feel the same about me."

For a moment, Ginny just looked at Harry, who was fidgeting slightly. "You know what. I think I like that perspective." Harry looked at her after this and smiled. Ginny, however, had one more question. "What are you going to do when Dumbledore finds out you aren't with your relatives anymore? Many people might pitch a fit."

"I've been thinking about that. I have very few people close enough to me that I would personally worry them. I might just send a letter saying I am safe and be done with it. NIp the problem in the bud, if you know what I mean."

"That seems smart. Plus, it should prevent a lot of drama in the long run."

"So, I told you about my summer. Can you tell me a little about yours?" Harry hesitated briefly before quickly adding, "I mean, you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to. I understand not wanting to talk completely, especially about things so personal. Please don't feel pressured."

Ginny cut him off before he could continue rambling. "Harry! It's completely fine. I mean, what decent friendship doesn't go both ways. I might not be able to tell you everything right now, but I'll try to summarize it. Sorry, it‒it's just been a tough few weeks for me." At Harry's supportive smile, she began. She talked about coming home and not feeling like the same little girl she went off to Hogwarts as. She talked about the long looks from her parents and the sometimes hostile looks from select brothers. SHe told Harry about the nightmares and the changes in attitudes of her family members.

By the end of it, Ginny had teared up. Harry reached out and placed his hand over hers from across the table. "It'll all be alright, Gin. We can make it through this." She smiled. It felt good to talk to someone who would not judge her. She also didn't mine him calling her Gin, despite the aversion she had to the nickname in the past.

Harry glanced up at the clock on the wall, and was shocked to see that it was already ten. "Well, since you are already here, do you want a tour of the house? There's only four rooms I'm allowed to go in unsupervised, but mine as well show them to you."

"Sure, why not?"

Harry and Ginny stood up and made their way to the doors. The two quietly made their way to the stairs, trying their best not to disturb the dreadful portrait of Mrs. Black. On their way out, they saw Sirius concentrating on some weird objects in the parlor. Harry smiled, but figured Ginny should have some time to think before meeting Sirius.

Harry led Ginny through his bedroom, the bathroom, and they peeked into Sirius's old room. The story behind the muggle posters brought a smile to Ginny's face. Finally, Harry showed Ginny the home gym Sirius and he had made in order to help with his training. All in all, the tour was really nice, and the dynamic of the conversations had transformed into one between two close friends.

-The Truth Behind Major Events-

Sirius, being the Marauder that he was, had not actually been working on de-evilizing the house during the past two hours. Instead, he had been standing near the doors of the kitchen, trying not to completely give away that he was eavesdropping on the duo.

He had seen them walk in, and both looked way too old for 11 and 12. From the first words they had spoken, he was shocked by their maturity. This conversation was not one between two kids, but one between two warriors who had to fight to be where they are today. Who have to fight for their sanity. .

It saddened Sirius how much they had both gone through, and when he was sure both were okay, he retreated to the Parlor to think. Nobody should have to go through what those two kids had. He knew the gist of both of their stories from what he had gathered from Harry over the previous week.

However, the events of the day further inspired Sirius to help not only Harry, but Ginny as well to become the best they could be so that they had the chance to survive. He knew Voldemort wasn't dead, and he had found some notes of his brothers cleaning the day before to know that Voldemort could come back. Furthermore, Lily and James had told him the prophecy.

Harry and Ginny would be ready. Sirius would do all he could to make sure they lived a better life than he had so far. However, the summer was turning around for all three of them.

WOW! I actually updated. Sorry that this has taken forever, but I hope that this has helped. Please enjoy this lovely chapter and addition to TTBME. Hopefully I'll update soon, but we will see.

~SS

Also, whoever reviewed about the letter, (lschierer) it has been added, and it will be read in the next chapter. Thanks for reading everyone!