Disclaimer: If I owned anything of it, would I be writing fanfiction about it? The answer is no.
A/n: Still a little confusing, with necessary transitions and explanations, not to mention fights. Which brings about the title of Chapter Six! Warning: Small amount of language. Mostly the word "bloody".
xXxXxXxXx
Ron Weasley put his head between his hands and tried not to scream like the hawk that was his Animagus form. There was a fluttering at his window and he lifted his head to see a white owl just landing there.
For a moment his heart leapt, because the owl reminded him of Hedwig. But it dropped again as he noticed this owl had different markings than Hedwig did. But he knew this owl's markings as well, almost better than Hedwig's…
"'Lo Starwing," he said dully. The owl looked at him with large, silvery gray eyes and shifted into Luna, who banged her heels against the wall beneath his windowsill.
"Hello Redwing." Luna said vaguely. "How are you?"
Ron eyed the blonde girl with both parts frustration and tolerance.
"Perfect," He snapped sarcastically, turning around so all she could see was his profile as he stared at the wall, "Absolutely dandy."
He spared a look at her out of the corner of his eye. She looked completely unaffected at his tone of voice. If anything, this angered him more until finally all the fear and anxiety snapped inside him.
"How can you be so effing calm?" He half-snarled at her, spinning around where he sat to glare. "Harry, Neenie, Meghan, DRACO" He had the satisfaction of seeing her flinch at the last name, "And now Neville and Ginny are GONE! HOW CAN YOU NOT EVEN CARE!"
Ron turned his head from her to the wall again.
There was a soft tap as she leapt lightly off the windowsill and pattered over to the side of his bed. Slowly he turned to look up at her and then had to physically stop himself from gulping.
With her standing and him sitting she was taller than him and he could see her hands clenching and unclenching. Her normally far-away eyes were focused solely on him and were narrowed into slits.
"Of course I care." She said angrily, almost hissing, "How could you ever accuse me of not caring? I just know and accept the fact that there's nothing I can do about it!" She cut herself off so suddenly that Ron was sure she was spacing out again. When he looked up he instead saw her silvery-gray eyes even sharper than usual, giving him the distinct impression she was looking through him. "It's okay to admit you're lonely, you know."
Ron flared red from his neck to his ears. "I'm not lonely." He said gruffly, crossing his arms.
"Now you're lonely and lying."
He whipped his neck around to glare at her and stopped. She was back to being her vague, not-all-there self, but a small smile danced around her mouth. He threw a pillow at her, the one with the phoenix Bill had sent last Christmas.
"Honestly Luna, I love you like a sister but…" He trailed off. Luna was no longer listening to him. It was actually hard to tell, as she never looked like she was listening to anyone, but eight years of knowing her had left its mark. He knew she wasn't listening. "Luna, what?"
She was holding his pillow, her fingers tracing the bright lines of the phoenix. Her eyes were even more out of focus than usual and had the look of someone trying to focus on reflections on a moving train window.
"Luna…" He shut up when she flapped a hand at him.
Suddenly her head jerked back and her eyes cleared back to their normal vagueness. "I know what to do." She said abruptly, throwing the pillow back.
He caught it without thinking. "You know what to do about what?" He asked, feeling mildly stupid.
"I know how to get to the Pride. Get dressed and leave a not for your Mum. I'll be right back." And with that a snowy owl took and place and flapped out the window.
Ron was still two steps behind, mentally. One sentence she had said, however, rang in his mind.
"I know how to get to the Pride."
Love her as he might, Luna was generally weird. But…she was also very right sometimes. His body was moving very quickly after that. He grabbed a jacket and stuffed his feet into shoes. He was just leaving a note for his Mum (Gone to find the Pride. Don't worry.) when Starwing swooped back in and changed into Luna.
"We'll probably need money too." She added, placing her own bag inside her jacket. Ron blew on the ink to dry it and nodded, tucking his money-bag into an inside pocket.
"Where are we going?" He asked finally.
"Hogwarts." She answered. He looked at her, confused.
"Are we Flooing?"
"No, we're flying."
"Flying!" He yelped. "We don't even know the way!"
"I do." She replied serenely.
"Well, fine. But do you know how far Hogwarts is?" Then he stopped as her body language sank in. "Were you taking the mickey out of me?"
She nodded, eyes dancing. He sighed and rolled his eyes, following her downstairs. His Mom was out shopping (she didn't know about Ginny, even) so no worries about getting caught. He contemplated what Luna had said before.
"Now you're lonely and lying."
Why had he been so adamant he wasn't lonely?
Because you are. A little voice in the back of his mind whispered. It sounded remarkably like Hermione.
He thought about denying it again but didn't. Because…well, because it was sort of true. He hated admitting it, but it was true. Since he was eight and, more specifically, twelve, he had never gone this long without his Pride.
He missed them. He missed the camaraderie, he missed Den-nights, he missed the closeness that put him on his feet again when the world set him on his side.
For a week after their disappearance (and both Dumbledore and the Founders refusing to say anything other than they were all right) he had managed to convince himself that he could do without them for a little while.
It was only after they had been gone for a week that Ron realized he was listening for their voices, and wondering if they were truly as okay as the Founders say. It was harder to figure things out without Neenie, harder to get a good round of training without Harry, harder to find a good bickering partner without Draco, and Ginny wasn't nearly as good at weaseling his problems out of him as Meghan was.
"Ron?" Luna's voice broke through his thoughts. "Floo powder?"
"Vase on the mantel."
She grabbed a pinch and threw it into the fire.
"Hogwarts Kitchens!" She shouted. He followed.
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Albus Dumbledore sensed a presence in his office without even looking up from his desk.
"Hello Maura." He said.
Maura Gryffindor smiled a little as she took a seat in front of him.
"Hello Albus. Getting wise in your old age, I see." She replied.
"If only to make up for my eccentricities, my dear." Dumbledore answered, eyes twinkling. Fawkes trilled quietly as Maura skillfully hid a grin.
"Ah, yes." Maura continued. "There is more to this visit. It would be beneficial to all parties for you to ask Fawkes to transport two particular birds that will be flying over the Forbidden Forest in a few moments to the place they need to be right now."
"Can you tell me why this is so?" He asked.
"I can not." She replied.
"Can not or should not?"
"Can not."
"Very well." Dumbledore said. He turned to Fawkes. "If you must go, go cautiously old friend. I would miss your companionship greatly."
Fawkes trilled and spread his wings, flying towards the forest. Maura blinked and then turned to Dumbledore.
"Two children have just entered through the kitchens."
"Oh?" A bushy eyebrow rose. "Can I assume they would be two of the four children that refused to come back September 1st without their friends?"
"You may so assume." Maura answered.
"But you can not tell me. Very well, it was a pleasure talking to you, Maura."
"And you, Albus." She nodded to him and when he blinked she was gone. He sighed.
This was one of those times he would have to let events fall as they would and then try his hardest to set things right when they were done. He had to accept the fact that Harry Potter and his family were getting home on their own and do what little he could to ease their way.
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Almost before they were out of the fire, Luna was running. Ron didn't question her, he just followed. They hit the marble stair that led down to the ground and Luna shifted into Starwing, immediately flying towards the Forbidden Forest. Ron shifted into the red hawk Redwing and followed.
As they flew over the actual forest Fawkes came down over them, touched both with a wingtip, and al three disappeared in a flash of fire.
xXxXxXxXx
Harry was standing behind Dumbledore, staring at the "visitors", absolutely livid. Before he could shout or pull his wand a flash of fire erupted in the room. Fawkes appeared inside it and dropped to birds into the middle of the floor before disappearing again.
The two birds were a hawk and an owl, and booth were obviously in distress. They were hooting and screeching (respectively) and flapping their wings without success.
Jane gasped and ran forwards, scooping up the hawk as Harry would never touch a predator bird. It stopped shrieking and blinked a her a moment before pillowing it's head against her chest and crying in a way that sounded a way that sounded almost affectionate. Gray was giving and receiving the same treatment from the owl.
Something inside Harry snapped. "THAT IS BLOODY IT!" He roared. "EVER SINCE YOU CAME HERE IT'S BEEN STRANGE THING AFTER STRANGE BLOODY THING! YOU FELL OUT OF THE BLOODY SKY! YOU KNOW MARAUDER HAND SIGNALS! YOU DISAPPEAR WITHOUT WARNING! YOUR EYES CHANGE INTO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT COLORS! YOU WON'T TELL ANYONE WHERE YOU'RE FROM! WHO THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU! COME BLASTING IN AND YOU DON'T EVEN LET US KNOW WHO THE HELL YOU ARE? YOU THINK WE'RE STUPID, NOT KNOWING SOMETHING IS DODGY ABOUT YOU LOT!" He pointed to Reynard. "YOU! I JUST DON'T LIKE YOU! I DON'T CARE WHO YOU SAY YOU ARE, YOU ARE A BLOODY GIT! YOU HAVEN'T ACTED LIKE IT BUT I KNOW YOU ARE!" He pointed to James. "AND YOU! YOU BLOODY ANNOY ME! I KNOW YOU'RE UNDER A GLAMOUR!" He spun around to face Jane. "YOU! WHY ARE YOU WET!"
Jane looked down at herself and cursed very softly under her breath. One of the adults rolled their eyes and dried her with a wave of their wand. Harry turned to the adults, more specifically John and Patrick. "AND WHY DO THE TWO OF YOU SEEM SO BLOOD FAMILIAR WHEN I'VE NEVER MET YOU BEFORE!"
Harry turned to Meghan. "AND YOU! WHAT ARE YOU DOING ALL WRAPPED UP WITH NEVILLE!" He had the satisfaction of seeing them both blush a little. He couldn't ponder, however, why Neville looked different. He shrugged it off and continued on.
"AND SPEAKING OF THAT!" He rounded back on James, who had a certain redhead practically on top of him. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"
James looked down at Ginny in his arms, and then back up at Harry. "Well, you see. There's a very good explanation for all of this."
Ginny looked surprised. "There is?"
"Yes. I'll tell you as soon as I think of it."
Harry could never remember being so mad in his life. He had known these people were dodgy and now here was the proof, but with it he had found Ginny - his Ginny - wrapped up in the arms of the enemy. He didn't even stop to think where the "his Ginny" part came from, he just went with it.
"Ginny, he's a liar, he's even fooled the Map, get away from him!"
Ginny lifted an eyebrow. "Make me."
"Are you quite finished yelling now?" Jane asked acidly, taking her hand away from where she had obviously been protecting the hawk's ears.
"NO I'M NOT DONE BLOODY YELLING!" He answered just to see the satisfaction of her wince. The hawk cried out in pain.
"You stupid, inconsiderate little -" What Jane thought was little about Harry was cut off as Mrs. Gray put her hand on Jane's arm and shook her head. Jane quieted, but did so very reluctantly.
"Harry," Something in Dumbledore's voice made Harry look at him right away. "You will stop this at once."
"But Headmaster -"
"Harry." Dumbledore repeated. He didn't have to say it again; Harry quieted as well.
Ron, however, was not done. "Ginny, get away from him now."
"I reiterate: make me."
Ron resembled a goldfish for a full minute, then his face hardened and he shrugged. "Fine." He stalked over and gripped Ginny's arm, tugging her away.
The hawk screeched angrily, which morphed into "Oy! Get your hands off my sister!"
Ron spun around. "She's my sister…" And nearly fainted. He was face to face with…himself.
"Heh." Mr. Black said finally. "This is awkward."
Mrs. Black sent a glare at her husband. "I think maybe we should just all sit down." When no one looked at her she sighed and went over to Ron, pushing him lightly so that he sat on one of the beds. "I really think you should sit down."
"And you," Jane glared at the other Ron - let's call him Weasley, "Are an idiot."
James scoffed. "What else is new?"
Weasley glared at James, then went to go sit on the opposite side of the room.
Harry wasn't through being mad at the world in general. He directed his scathing gaze at Reynard. "Is that a person too?" He indicated the owl.
"Yes, actually," Gray replied calmly. "But I don't think she should change back just now."
"Seconded." Meghan said, nodding to the owl.
"Would anyone care to explain this to us?" Harry asked testily, indicated the confused Hermione and Ron, who was still in a state of shock. Mrs. Gray sat down on one of the beds with a hard thump.
"For this, I think Aletha is right. Take a seat, everyone, because we have a lot of explaining to do." She looked at her husband, "Do you want to take this, love?"
For a moment Mr. Gray's eyes swirled with more brown, and when they returned to normal his wife glared at him and smacked his arm.
"Question number one," Harry began, "What was that? That thing with your eyes."
Mr. Gray looked Harry straight in the eye and his eyes swirled again. "That thing?" He asked. Harry nodded. "My wife and I have a mental connection. Our eyes changing color is simply an indication that we're talking like that."
"Can they talk like that?" Harry asked, indicating the twins.
"Yes, but that's part of long story."
Harry may be quick to fly off the handle, and he was certainly suspicious, but these people were acting well-spoken and polite, and seemed willing to answer any and all questions truthfully. "Who are you?"
"That is a longer story." Mr. Gray said with a slight twinkle that reminded Harry of Dumbledore. "And perhaps one that should be told with everyone present." When Harry began to glare at him he sighed, "Fine. You can relay the story later. Love?" He looked at Mrs. Gray.
"Have you three ever heard of parallel universes? Where other people just like you live, their lives greatly or slightly different?"
"That's just a theory." Hermione interrupted weakly.
"It's not, Ms. Granger," Dumbledore replied. "And the proof is standing right in front of you. But I agree with John, we should have three other parties present. Dobby?" The small house-elf appeared with a pop. "Would you tell Remus Lupin, Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood, and Neville Longbottom to come to the Hospital Wing at once?" Dobby nodded and vanished.
"But Ginny and Neville are right there!" Harry said in confusion. Dumbledore looked at him; the twinkle was back.
"No. They are not."
Harry sat down. "Oh," he said smartly.
xXxXxXxXx
Thirty minutes later everyone in the Hospital Wing that hadn't fallen out of the sky, been sent by supposedly dead Founders, flown in by a phoenix, or lived to be 150 years old were quietly shocked.
"So you're from an alternate universe? And you're here because Voldemort attacked?" Ron asked finally, in the tone of trying to sort everything out in his mind.
"The eight of them are here because of Voldemort." The Ginny from the other universe, whom they had been instructed to call Lynx, corrected. "Redwing, Starwing, Shade and I came to help."
Redwing was the other Ron. Shade was the other Neville. And Starwing seemed to be the owl.
"Questions, comments, snide remarks?" Wolf asked with a grin.
Wolf had turned out to be James Black. Jane Gray was now called Neenie. Reynard Gray was called Fox, and Meghan was still Meghan but was most often referred to as Pearl.
"You say you've lived in this…Pack…for your whole lives? How is that, when you said not all of you are related by blood?"
"Quick and short version," Mr. Gray began, "I fell in love with Danger," He indicated Mrs. Gray, "And we got married. Neenie is not our daughter, she is Danger's younger sister twenty years apart. Together with the help of Aletha," He pointed to Mrs. Black, "We helped Patrick out of a difficult situation." He shoved Mr. Black lightly as the latter snorted.
"We kidnapped Wolf from horrid relatives," Danger continued, "Took Neenie, and went into hiding because Patrick was supposedly a criminal. When those two were three a horrible man broke into our home and kidnapped us. His wife rebelled against him, turned them both into the authorities, poisoned herself, and gave us Fox to raise."
"And we've been a happy family ever since." Patrick said with a wry grin.
"You're not who you say you are." Every eye turned to Hermione, "You're wearing Glamours. We think we know who you are, but it'd be nice to see."
Harry wasn't about to admit that he had no idea what she was talking about. The Map and what it had showed had happened three days ago, and he was sure the Map had just been mistaken.
Dumbledore seemed to have a conversation with Mr. Gray that involved a lot a nodding or shaking of the head. Then he turned to Jane, grinning.
"Quite like your counter-part, aren't you Miss Granger-Lupin?"
Remus and Hermione both seemed to choke on air at the same time.
"Granger?" Hermione asked after a moment.
"LUPIN?" Remus finished.
"Put it all together, it's Granger-Lupin!" Fox quipped, to be cuffed by at least three people.
Jane pulled her wand and flicked a few spells, murmuring. In the end it revealed Hermione standing there.
"My name is Hermione Granger-Lupin." She said. "But you can call me Neenie, I suppose. Danger is my sister, Remus is my father, and Fox is my twin." She gave all of them a look that dared them to challenge her on any of the points. They didn't.
Everyone turned to look at Fox. He noticed.
"Do I have to?" He asked, just short of whining. Mr. Gray caught his eye and nodded. Fox sighed and removed his Glamour.
There was an uproar. Both Ron and Harry leapt from their seats. The Pack (the four adults and Wolf, Fox, Neenie, and Meghan) and the Pride (Wolf, Fox, Neenie, Meghan, Shade, Lynx, Starwing, and Redwing) followed suit.
Harry Potter could tolerate a lot of things. Draco Malfoy sitting casually in a chair not two feet away was not one of them.
"Malfoy!" Harry snarled, "I knew there was something I didn't like about you!"
"My name isn't Malfoy!" Malfoy argued, to be echoed by at least two other people.
"Then what is it?" Ron growled.
"Black. My name is Draco Black. I haven't been a Malfoy since I was four years old and I'm not going to start being one now!"
"How are you even twins with Neenie?" Hermione asked. She was equally mad, but more able to hide it.
Black turned to look at her. "When we were in third year my birth father got the crazy idea that the Pack-parents," That was their word for the four adults, "Had blood-bonded me with Neenie, taken my magic, and given it to her."
"Completely insane, you see." Neenie added seamlessly.
"Completely." Black agreed. "So he captured us and blood-bonded us. It's where we got these scars." He pointed to the scar under his left eye that ran vertically across his cheekbone. "So we really are twins. Blood and everything."
The revelations went quickly after that. The white owl Starwing turned out to be Luna. Mrs. Gray (who was actually Mrs. Granger-Lupin and instructed them to call her Danger) looked like an older version of Hermione. Mr. Gray turned out to be Remus Lupin (he told them to call him Moony) and the regular Remus couldn't move for about a minute.
Then finally there were two left. When they were revealed they instigated two very different reactions out of him.
When Mr. Black turned out to be Sirius, Harry felt tears prick his eyes. He had to look down for a moment, both to avoid curious stares from the otherworlders and to hide the fact from his friends. Once he got himself under control, he lifted his head to come eye to eye with himself.
Harry acted on instinct: He went for his wand and snapped it up to point at Wolf, who was the exact copy of himself.
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Wolf dove his hand into his pocket and gripped his wand when Lynx pierced him with a stare. He froze. Wolf had thought to himself on any number of occasions that Sangre had been entirely unnecessary in the whole Chamber of Secrets business; Ginny's Look could rival the sixty-foot-long basilisk's normally, but when combined with the hands on the hips…He let go of his wand and lifted his hands up slightly.
"Um…we come in peace?"
All of the Muggle-influenced people in the group either laughed or gave him barely tolerant glances, depending on mood and interest.
Redwing gave a shake of his head, "Next thing you know he'll be spouting Star Wars references."
Neenie gave him a look. "Honestly, we never should have shown you those movies! And your one to talk? Remember Scar Wars: Return of the Aurors?"
"Yes. I also remember what you guys did to me for writing it."
"And completely innocent casting on your part." Neenie replied with just a touch of sarcasm.
"Personally I think you look great in a metal bikini."
"You would."
Both Ron and Hermione, following the conversation with interest if not much comprehension, blushed red and determinedly did not look at each other.
"Now, if you children would excuse us and perhaps return to your illusion long enough to get back to your suite?" Dumbledore asked of the eight otherworld children.
"No need, Professor, if we're going back to the suite." Shade (otherworld Neville) said, "I can do something that will make us invisible. We'll just walk there."
Dumbledore nodded approvingly at the Pride and Harry and his friends, "Very good. Please go, if you would."
Shade began whispering something, his concentration completely in it. Harry felt something very tiny shift and then Shade looked up again, "No one will notice any one of us now until you guys get back to the Tower and we" he indicated the Pride "get back to the suite."
Sirius leaned over to ruffle Wolf's hair, at which the boy growled good-naturedly and gave him a shove, then a quick hug before they left. Something in Harry strained to break free.
They walked outside and a little ways down the corridor. It was just before they were about to break paths that it happened. Wolf laughed at something and that thing inside Harry snapped.
It wasn't FAIR! How come this otherworld Harry, this Wolf, got everything? He had great friends that seemed closer to each other than anyone had every met, he had a wonderfully loving family, he and Ginny were in love, he had siblings and parents, and he had SIRIUS!
That was the nub of the matter. Harry lunged forward, arm flailing, catching Wolf completely off guard.
Harry's fist connected with Wolf's nose and there was a sound of crushing cartilage as he broke it. Despite a streaming bloody nose Wolf growled like his Animagus form and tackled Harry to the ground, slamming him against the stone and punching him soundly in the jaw. The fight got very ugly, very quickly.
"Stop it!" Lynx (otherworld Ginny) roared. Both of them halted for a moment, Wolf's hand fisted around Harry's shirt. They looked at her, then went back to fighting. Hissing in frustration the redhead grabbed up her wand and pointed it at them "Immobilis!"
This time when the brawling figures stopped, they stayed stopped. Redwing and Ron grabbed Wolf and Harry, respectively, and dragged them apart. Harry ripped out of Ron's grip instantly and stormed all the way back to the Hospital Wing. He slammed the door when walking into it loud enough for all the adults to stare.
"I don't want to talk about it," he snarled, and went to Madam Pomfrey to get cleaned up.
xXxXxXxXx
"What did I do?" Wolf asked Ron and others as Meghan fixed him up. They shrugged and said goodbye, heading towards Gryffindor Tower.
Lynx came up and put her arm around Wolf. He grinned wryly at her.
"Well, that could have gone better."
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A/n: Ah, Wolf. The master of understatements. Alright everyone, hold on tight, because next chapter makes up for some boring parts in this one with Action! in next Update's episode: "Can This Get Any Worse?"