Hey everyone,

just so you know:

vis magicus = Power of magic

Thanks to my wonderful Beta christyannb94 !

Enjoy!
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3

Rose watched silently as her best friend cried in the arms of her big brother.

Sure, she knew that they also were best friends – even two weeks longer than her and Ginny - but a tiny little bit of jealousy made its way to the surface.
Rose knew that none of them were the same person they left behind three years ago. She knew that when Ginny would got away from Dumbledore's spells that she and Harry would develop a much deeper relationship. Rose knew this would happen either way since the night before Harry's first year at Hogwarts.

Around two in the morning Rose made her way towards the kitchen to get something to drink. As she went to take the first step downstairs, she saw light coming from under Harry's door. She made her way towards the closed door and opened it gently.
The scene inside the room would change the way she saw her brother from that moment on.
There on the floor, sat not the confident and cheeky 11-year old boy she saw every day, but a lonely boy who was unsure of himself with a photo album in his lap.

"What if she realizes this year, that she doesn

't need me anymore?" Harry whispered, still bent over the photos, to his little sister.
Rose closed the door silently, sat down next to her brother on the floor in front of his bed, and wrapped her arms around his middle and watched the photos in his lap.

"Ay,ay,ay,ay...why in the name of Merlin

's shaggy pants should this happen?" she asked him back as a laughing Ginny dunked Harry under the water over and over again in the picture. Harry didn't answer.

"Ginny is your best friend since we can think back and this stupid year apart won

't change anything. Do you understand that? You're so much more important to her than that she could just not need you anymore. Oh, Merlin! You're thicker than I thought, dear brother of mine," Rose said, untangled her arms, and forced him to look at her with both her hands on his cheeks.

"I don

't know what I'll do without her. For all my life, we have spent nearly every day together, and now I have to spend ten months without seeing her at all," Harry said with his voice full of emotions.

"First of all, you

'll see her during the Christmas and Easter holidays. Secondly, you can write to each other all the time." Harry's expressions showed that these facts hadn't occurred to him.

"And won

't you miss your ickle little baby sister at least a bit?" she added with a mock hurt tone in her voice that brought a small smile to his lips.

"No, I think I need some time off from you after all these years." Harry played along, which earned him a hard punch against his shoulder.

"But you do realize that Ginny's fears are much more reasonable than yours, right?"

"What?"

"You didn

't think this wouldn't affect her too, did you? Maybe I shouldn't tell you, but she is so afraid that you and Ron will be making all these new friends at Hogwarts that you will forget about her at home," Rose said gently, reminding Harry a lot of his mother.

"And I think that

's more realistic than she forgetting you. With all those beautiful young witches there..."

"None of them could ever reach her!" Harry blurted out in shock at his sister's implication.

"I mean..."

"Yeah, yeah. I know what you mean and I think it

's really time for you to surrender to your feelings for her."

"I don

't have feelings for her!" Harry protested. Rose looked at him with a pointed look

"Well, sure, I feel things for her but not like this. I mean I

'm eleven. I can't have feelings like this for a girl."

"But she isn

't just a girl. She's Ginny," Rose said and enjoyed the uncomfortable situation she put her brother in.

"She

's your Gin and THAT changes everything, doesn't it?" She added more softly and saw a familiar blush creeping up Harry cheeks.
Oh, how she enjoyed her brother's weak spots. With that Rose stood up, offered her brother one last pat on the shoulder, and left the room again to get the drink she left her bed for earlier.

And immediately she felt bad.

Somehow she forgot that conversation and it hit her that his brother's fear came true and lost the person he couldn't stand to lose probably the most. That little jealousy faded quickly and was replaced by happiness for her brother and herself for getting at least a bit of her best friend back.
Lily charmed all the ingredients to chop themselves, getting into their bowls and walked to the still embracing teens.

"Come on, sweetheart. We'll have that talk I promised you earlier," she said as she laid a hand at the younger witches back and rubbed gently in circles.
They only response was Ginny's nod against Harry's neck.

"I'll get the others," Dora said and left the kitchen to find the men while Lily walked towards the living room followed by Harry still with his arm around Ginny and Rose slowly behind.

Harry sat down with Ginny on one of the chesterfields (the one with the view onto the back porch and ocean in the distance). Ginny, who came slowly to her senses again, scooted a bit away from him, but still held his right hand firmly in hers.

"I'll get us some tea," Lily said while she watched her son and her daughter in everything but blood.

"You know that she's still your best friend, right?" Lily asked her oldest daughter who stood in the doorway and watched the two teens back on the sofa and caressed her cheek with a smile on her lips.

Rose looked up to her mother with tears in her eyes, nodded her understanding and walked towards the sofa.
As she stepped closer and went to sit down across from them, Ginny held out her hand and looked into her eyes.
Chocolate brown eyes met hazelnut brown, and Rose knew that this girl was still her best friend, her sister in everything but blood, and the love of her brother's live.

"It's good to have you back," Rose said, her voice thick with emotion when she took Ginny's hand and sat down on her other side.
The reunited best friends sat there in silence until James, Dora, Remus, and Sirius walked into the living room.

"Well, they look cozy, don't they? As if nothing happened the last three years," Sirius said in his usual ironic tone.
Ginny stood up and within a second embraced him.

"I'm so glad to have you back, Red," Sirius mumbled into her ear.

"It definitely feels more like a lifetime rather than three years" she said sniffling as she embraced Dora and Remus with the same enthusiasm.

"Welcome back, gorgeous!" James greeted her and hearing him using his pet name for her she couldn't hold back the tears any longer when another wave of memories came crushing down on her.

A six-year old Ginny Weasley sat at the porch bank and looked out into the setting sun.

"What are you doing here at this lonely hour, m

' lady?" James asked when he sat down next to the little girl and draped his arm around her shoulder. Ginny wasn't his daughter, but she was as good as.

"Uncle Prongs, do you think that one day Harry will marry me? I heard you and daddy making fun of making a bet when we would get together," Ginny asked in all her childish naivety.
James was momentarily confused but smiled down gently at her.

"At least I can

't see why my son wouldn't be interested in you one day. He must be extremely blind or thick-headed to not recognize you when you two get older, especially with us Potter men and our thing for redheads. And for that bet, your daddy and I were just kidding. We both think that you would be extremely good for each other. That's just us dads wanting the best for our kids"

"But all those other girls are much prettier than me. Rose or Luna for example and I..."

"You stop right there." James interrupted her gently.

"You

're one of the most wonderful little witches I know, and the other one is my own daughter so that means a lot. You're smart, beautiful, funn,y and strong and you'll become a wonderful woman one day, gorgeous! Even if my dense son can't see it."

James helped her back to the sofa where Harry immediately wrapped her in his arms again until she calmed down. When she calmed down again, she dried her tears and looked around at all the faces she forgot about the last three years.

"So tell me: What happened to my memories?" she asked and looked from one to the other.

"Dumbledore took them away," Harry answered flatly next to her. "Mainly he took all your memories with anyone of us in it or related to us and put them behind a big wall in your mind. It was the easiest way for you not to notice it and, at the same time, the easiest way to break through. If you would have been away from The Burrow for a longer than six months or in contact with one of us for longer than a certain amount of time, the wall would have crumbled and your memories would have come back – just like it happened today." He explained and looked into her eyes.

"He added a kind of repelling charm on you so that whenever one of us would come near to you, we would suffer a major headache and would get sick from it. The Burrow worked as a kind of battery, you know those cube-things in your dad's shed. The Burrow recharges Dumbledore's spell, so he has to make sure that you all returned to The Burrow every six months." He looked to his father who smiled encouraging at his son.

"He did this to your whole family"

"But why did he do this and why are you all alright with me around right now?" Ginny asked confused and turned towards the others that were all seated on the other Chesterfield and armchairs.

"The moment you walked onto the property the spell broke bit by bit, thanks to very advanced wards. I used a numbing and pain killer charm when I saw you in the village," Lily explained. "A moment longer and I would've probably fainted"

"Why is he doing all of this?"

"For the greater good," Remus added in his matter of fact tone, which earned a more confused look from Ginny.

"He took you away from us for his own goals. To help Neville Longbottom, his golden boy, to destroy Tom Riddle. He was sure that with us in the picture you would never help Neville like you're supposed to in his master plan," James explained in more detail.

"And because our families were so close to each other, he had to keep you all away from us." He added and leaned backwards bringing Lily with him.

"But how should I be any help to destroy Riddle?"

"You remember what I told you earlier, that he believes you'll have power others don't have because..."

"I'm the seventh child and first girl in seven generations," Ginny interrupted Lily and recalled what she told her earlier.

"Exactly, so that's why you are important to him. Because he heard a prophecy eight years ago," Lily said taking Jame's hand and casting a quick side glance at Harry.

"What…what kind of prophecy?" asked Ginny a bit hesitant.
Harry sighed and raked through his hair.

"The one born as the seventh of seven in the seventh generation...will stand by her chosen one's side to vanquish the Dark Lord...the flame will get a vis magicus many know not about...together they enlace their powers to vanquish the Dark Lord and prove them wrong...born as a fire and full of colors..."

Harry recited the words he repeated so many times over the last year since he heard the prophecy for the first time.
The room fell silent a moment after that.

"I thought prophecies don't have to come true when no one mentioned by it acts on it. They just have to come true completely when a part of it is already fulfilled, but there is no 'chosen one'," Ginny broke the silent and looked helpless around.

"There isn't a chosen one, is there?" she repeated when no one answered.

"There was another prophecy sixteen-years ago, this one Riddle knows about" Harry answered her reluctantly without meeting her eyes.

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and he will be marked as his equal, but he will have powers the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."

"Then who is the cho..." Ginny wanted to ask but stopped. "It's Neville, isn't it?"

"Funny enough he isn't. See, the prophecy talked about a boy born at the end of July and his parents have fought against Riddle three times. Both fit Neville and Harry" James explained causing Ginny to gasp and to squeeze Harry's hand tightly.

"What nobody knows is that he came to our house that Halloween 1981, after he killed the Longbottoms, and left an unconscious Neville behind whom he probably thought to be dead. Nobody knows how Neville really survived it. Tom must have been in a hurry to finish us off this night too. But we fought him at our old house and he hit Harry with the killing curse. He just survived it because of a rather old and experimental piece of magic Lily worked on. The curse rebounded and Riddle was gone, at least his body was gone." He finished and his wife grasped his hand more tightly just as Ginny did with Harry's seconds before at the reminder of this horrible night and what it did to their family.

"Whatever happened to Neville that night, he wasn't marked by Riddle as the prophecy mentioned. He was just another victim who luckily survived and, for Dumbledore, became the boy-who-lived" Lily finished her husband's explanation.

"So, you're the 'chosen one'? You have to..." Ginny asked, turned to Harry again, and laced their fingers together.

"…kill Riddle, yeah" he finished and looked into her eyes with a sad look like he wanted to apologize to her for something but couldn't say it.
She just wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a fierce hug.

"We'll work this out. We have to do this together" Ginny whispered into his ear as she saw how his fate and hers were now completely intertwined.
After Ginny regained her composure again, she kept her head on Harry's shoulder and looked from one to the other.

"How is Dumbledore able to pull all of this off? I mean you're so many, people would believe you, wouldn't they?"

"That's the kind of tricky part, gorgeous. He knows things that nobody else can know about me and my family. Things that would put all of us in immediate danger and if there's one thing I'll do with all my heart, it's to protect my family." James explained with a hurt and at the same time angry expression in his eyes.

"I know you know the tale 'The Three Brothers', so I don't need to tell that again." He continued before she could even ask.

"The fact that, this tale is as much a tale as Remus turns into a pink rabbit once a month, is believed by many witches and wizards. And sadly they're right. Those mentioned 'Deathly Hallows', as they're called, really exist and one has been in the possession of the Potter family for many generations now and another one came into my possession just last year"

James pulled a familiar cloak out of his pocket and laid it on the table between them.
"That's my invisibility cloak and exactly the same cloak from this tale. A young witch with the name Iolanthe Peverell, who came from the village of Godric's Hollow, married Hardwin Potter a long time ago. She was the granddaughter of Ignotus Peverell. In the absence of male heirs, she, the eldest of her generation, had inherited her grandfather's invisibility cloak. It was a tradition in her family that the possession of this cloak remained a secret, and her new husband respected her wishes. From this time on, the cloak was handed down to the eldest in each new generation and made its way to me until I give it to Harry."

"Which won't happen, mister, until he is off age!" Lily reprimanded her husband with a stern look.

"Yes, darling!" he responded and gave her a kiss. He reached again into his pocket and laid a small black stone next to the cloak

"This is the resurrection stone. We found it a year ago and its history is another story to be told, much too long now and there are too many people involved than you need to know right now." James bent forward and rested his elbows on his knees.

"But there were three 'Deathly Hallows' mentioned in the tale" Ginny enquired.

"You're right, gorgeous. The third and last one is the elder wand. The most powerful wand ever seen on this earth. Almost every one of its owners died at the hand of another witch or wizard who wanted that ugly piece of wood. Technically I'm its owner, but it's not in my possession. Five years ago, at a time all of us believed and supported Dumbledore, he and I made a pact to secure the power of the wand. He would use the wand he won in the battle against Grindelwald but I would be its true master. So, one day I disarmed him and became its master but wouldn't use it. I'm just much more vulnerable than him. If anyone would have recognized the wand in my possession, my family and I would no longer be safe. But with the wand in Dumbledore's possession, nobody would even dare to look a second time at his wand or try to make a move for it. At the same time the wand would never be as powerful as it was meant to be, even for Dumbledore. If I would have done anything against his plans he put into action the past three years, he would reveal that I'm close to becoming the master of death and with that knowledge, none of us would be safe anywhere in the magical world. It hit home to us that he planned all of this a long time ago. So, I made the decision to protect my own family even if it meant to lose you and your family" James locked now eyes with her.

"And I'm so sorry that this happened to you, gorgeous. If I knew then what all of this would entail, I would have done things differently. I'm so sorry!" without answering him Ginny stood up, knelt in front of him and took his clasped hands in hers.

"What's done is done so let's work rather on a way to get our family out of that mess than dwell in the past, hm?" she said and smiled at James.

"That's our girl!" Dora exclaimed happily and brought a smile to the others' faces.

"I've got one last question though." Ginny said as she stood in the middle of the room and everyone looked at her expectantly.

"Why didn't you just destroy the stone? When one of the Hallows would be destroyed, nobody could be the 'Master of Death and Dumbledore wouldn't have anything against you."

"See, that's what I've been saying..." Harry declared and stood up abruptly.

"And we voted against you, 7 to 5!" James retorted exasperated.
Lily clutched his arm and tried to calm her husband down. "James…"

"No, this is through." He said and turned his gaze to Ginny who look totally confused.

"Sorry, gorgeous. But no, we can't just destroy it. It might be useful in the future." A dead silence followed.

"So Lils, now that we finished the unimportant topics, how about we start that lovely barbecue? I'm..."

"...famished!" Rose, Remus, and Dora finished Sirius' sentence and broke out laughing. Their laughter seemed to be contagious, the atmosphere slackened and the others joined in.

Harry loved her laughter. To hear her laughing made everything possible and brighter for him. In that moment their eyes met and everything in Harrys body screamed out to touch her and hold her to make sure he wouldn't lose her again, but his view was suddenly blocked by his sister who talked to Ginny, took her hand, and led her outside the living room before he could even react.

"Harry?" he was broken out of his thoughts when somebody called his name.

"Harry? I asked if you would help me with the twins? The others are taking care of the final preparations" James said and looked down at his son.
"Sure, dad" he answered and followed his father to the first floor where Daisy and Daniel's room was located (just like Rose's, his parents, his, and another room for when Daisy and Dan would get their own rooms)

"So, what will you do now?" James asked his oldest son as they stood in front of Daisy and Dan's crib and watched the two youngest Potters sleeping peacefully.

"Ehm...I'll wake them, change their diapers and then get them dressed." Harry answered confused at why his dad would ask something like that.

"I didn't mean THAT, you nit. I meant Ginny and you. You got not just your best friend back, but a really pretty and gorgeous girl, not that I never told you that before." He retorted and rolled his eyes.

"There's not much I can do, is there?" Harry said, let out a deep sigh and raked his hands through his hair.

"It would be selfish to start something with her or to give her hope for a future I probably will never be able to give her so..."

"You know that's not true. We're all working pretty hard to find a way and I think your mum and Remus found a rather promising piece of magic yesterday at Grimmauld Place." James said and lifted Daniel out of the crib.

"Oh, and sorry for downstairs but you know..." „

"Dad, please. Just forget it for today, it's okay. I just want us to be happy tonight and not to think about it." Harry said and made some funny faces at his awaking sister.

"And what about the life debt? You surely won't give her up just like that. You know that after the official records your life debt got priority over Neville's."

"Yeah, I know. But I can't just claim her, can I? It would make me somehow as bad as him." Harry said and carried Daisy over to the changing table.

"No, because you both would want it. You both would do it because you love each other." Harry didn't answer his father and rather vanished his sister's diapers silently, put a new one on and dressed her again.

"I can't tell you what you should do, but I can give you a fatherly advice and please think about it: Don't you think that she would rather have a month, a year or maybe ten years happily together with you than never to be loved like she deserves to be?" James asked his son as they both settled the twins on their hips and walked to the door.

"It would be more selfish to deny her being happy even for a short time, don't you think?"