Number 12, Grimmauld Place

Harry stared miserably at the maps in front of him. He had been studying them for days now, but he couldn't seem to figure it out.

He was in his office at the Ministry, trying to discover where the poison-dart-shooters were heading next. He pointed his wand at one of the larger maps and muttered a spell. A few streets curved over each other, but nothing else happened.

Harry groaned.

He was trying to make himself believe that the only reason he couldn't concentrate was because of all the trouble that was going on in the magical world. In the past week, two more muggles along with a wizard had died because of the poison darts; a group of death eaters who still strongly believed that Voldemort would someday return had killed an auror during a vicious two-minute battle. It had been seven death eaters against one auror and Harry blamed himself for not being there to help the auror.

"No one blames you, Harry," Margaret had said, trying to soothe him. "People don't expect you to be able to save everyone in the world."

In addition to that, a couple of dark wizards had escaped from Azkaban (it was now guarded by highly trained aurors - they couldn't keep in the prisoners as well as dementors, but who were much more trustworthy).

So Harry was having a couple of bad weeks. But he couldn't completely convince himself that that was the reason why he couldn't concentrate. He still felt guilty about what he had said to Ginny, and he wanted to apologize, but he couldn't bring himself to go talk to her. He hadn't even scheduled a second auror lesson with her, and Ginny hadn't bothered to try to schedule one herself. Not that Harry blamed her, seeing as she'd basically said she didn't want anything to do with him. Harry couldn't understand why this bothered him so much. It's not like he liked her. After all, he had only just met her. … And could he completely trust her? He barely even remembered her.

Harry's thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

Margaret entered the office, carrying a few stacks of parchment.

"Here are the things you asked for, and – whoa!" She had almost tripped on a long roll of parchment on the floor, and it was only then that she noticed the boxes and rolls of parchment stacked up in the office, obscuring most of the room from view.

"What's going on here?" Margaret asked, picking up the stacks of parchment she had dropped on the floor.

"I'm doing a little research," Harry muttered glumly.

"Oh. For your next lesson with Ginny?" Margaret asked excitedly.

"Er…"

"Oh, right," Margaret said happily. "I suppose you don't want to talk to me about that, right?"

"Uh…"

"But I daresay, Harry," Margaret started, looking around the room. "I really don't think you should invite Ginny here with all this stuff here. Maybe – "

"I'm going to take the day off if that's all right with you," Harry told Margaret.

"You, Harry?" Margaret asked surprised. "I never thought I'd see another day when Harry Potter asked for a day off! Are you going somewhere with Ginny?"

Margaret was looking excited again, and Harry wanted to get away before she began talking about Ginny again.

"Bye, Harry," Margaret said as Harry turned to apparate. "Tell me all about it when you come back!"

-----

Harry was in front of number twelve, Grimmauld Place. He watched as the house materialized in front of him and pushed number thirteen and number eleven aside to make room for itself.

Harry stuck his hand in the inside of his cloak pocket and took out a key. He stuck in the door of number twelve, and the door clicked open.

Harry walked into the house. It was quiet and dark, but it was free of dust, as if someone had been cleaning it.

It had been about a year since Harry went to number twelve, and he didn't know what had compelled him to go now. This house was where Sirius had lived, and Harry didn't want to remember that horrible night at the Ministry when he had died.

Harry closed the door behind him, and slipped carefully past the hallway. He didn't want to wake anything.

He climbed the stairs of number twelve up to Sirius's old room. Some boxes were stacked around here and there. Harry grabbed one of them and sat on the bed. He opened the box to find many of Sirius's old things. At the top was that old two-way mirror, a few pocketknives, and a few explosives.

You'd think Mrs. Weasley would have gotten rid of these immediately, Harry thought to himself, grinning.

Wait a minute – Where did that come from? Harry asked himself. Mrs. Weasley didn't even know Sirius, did she? I'm going mad…

Harry shook his head and tried to clear his mind. He stuck his hand in the bottom of the box. He touched something that felt kind of cold, and was very heavy. Harry lifted it out of the box, knocking most of the other objects out of the box. An old lamp shattered on the floor, but Harry was too busy looking at the photo album in his hands to notice it, or even the screaming woman downstairs.

The first picture was one of four people Harry remembered well. At the left was a pretty woman with beautiful green eyes holding a baby in her arms. She was laughing and looking happily at the man who had one arm around her shoulders. The man looked like a little older version of Harry without glasses or a scar. He had black, messy hair that fell over his eyes, a handsome face, and a slim but muscled body. He had his other arm around the shoulders of another man who looked more alive than ever. The other man had dark hair that rested neatly on his head, and he, like his friend, was very handsome.

Harry stared at his mother and father and godfather and his baby self. He wished his mother and the two marauders were there with him.

Now all the marauders are dead, Harry remembered sadly. No, said another voice in his head. There's still one left.

For the second time that day, Harry wondered if he was going crazy. Of course all the marauders were dead. They had all died because of Voldemort. Padfoot, Prongs, and Wormtail. Voldemort, who had been furious of Wormtail for deliberately allowing Harry to escape him, had killed Wormtail. Dumbledore did tell me that Wormtail owed his life to me, Harry thought.

There's still one more marauder left… huh – I'm definitely going mad.

-----

Snape walked into number twelve Grimmauld Place, followed by Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, and Fleur, who held an infant boy with silvery hair in her arms.

"And if you had been seen!" Mrs. Weasley told Snape sternly. "Hasn't Dumbledore told you to stay in the house? If you go out one more time – I swear you are completely like Sirius…"

Snape seemed to take this as an insult, because got that dark evil look over his face, but didn't say anything.

"So I guess you know how Sirius felt when he was locked up here," Ginny smirked at Snape.

Snape shot her a filthy look. "You better watch what you say, Weasley. I am surprised Dumbledore is actually considering letting you join the order. You can't even – "

"Now, now," Fleur interrupted, closing the door behind her. "Dumbledore won't want you to argue. You're on the same side now, remember? Besides, you're setting a bad example for Gabriel here."

Mrs. Weasley nodded. "Absolutely right…"

Mrs. Weasley headed down the stairs to the kitchen, her green cloak billowing behind her. Fleur followed her with Gabriel still in her arms.

"Well," Ginny said to Snape, wrapping her dark blue cloak around herself. "I'm going to go explore."

"What – " Snape was interrupted by a sudden CRASH upstairs.

Ginny looked up, startled, and then looked at Snape, who didn't know what had happened either. Down the hallway, Sirius's mother could now be heard screaming "FILTHY BLOOD! I WANT THEM OUT OF MY HOUSE! CONTAMINATING THE MOST ANCIENT HOUSE OF BLACK! …"

Mrs. Weasley ran back up the stairs. "What was that?"

"I think someone's in the house!" Ginny answered.

"I'll go check it out," Snape replied, looking completely non-excited, as usual.

"I'm coming with you," Ginny said, ready for something to do that actually required more than moving her feet or mouth.

"Absolutely not!" Mrs. Weasley protested. "You don't know what's up there!"

Fleur appeared at the top of the stairs, with Gabriel now wrapped protectively in her pink robes.

"But mum…" Ginny argued. But Snape was already up the stairs.

-----

Harry wiped some dust away from the picture. He sighed, and then made to put the picture back in the box.

Over the screaming voice downstairs that he finally noticed, Harry heard a soft shuffle. He turned around quickly to face the bedroom door, his wand ready in front of him.

"Potter!" Snape stepped out of the shadows, he, too, with his wand ready in front of himself.

"What are you doing here?" Harry asked, just slightly lowering his wand.

"I would ask you the same thing."

"This, for your information, is my house," Harry said matter-of-factly.

"Yes, well," Snape said, a little annoyed. "I was under the impression that this was still the headquarters of the Order."

"Dumbledore's still using it as headquarters?" Harry asked, surprised.

"No, Potter," Snape said sarcastically. "I suppose this isn't the headquarters, all though I just said it was."

Harry scowled. "Why are you here then? Nobody else was here."

"That's because I just got back here, and Dumbledore wants me to stay here, by the way."

"Why?"

"I thought you were smarter than this, Potter, having destroyed the Dark Lord, but apparently I was wrong – there is no brain under that skull of yours. Obviously the entire wizarding world thinks I killed Dumbledore."

"Why do you have to stay here? In Sirius's house?" Harry looked at him accusingly. "Couldn't Dumbledore find a safer place?"

"Dumbledore wants me to stay as close to the Order as possible. And he seems to think this house is safe enough." Snape looked disgusted to even be in the house.

"What were you doing out?"

"That," Snape said, "is none of your business, Potter."

Harry looked at him hatefully. "I would think Dumbledore would want you to stay inside."

"So does Mrs. Weasley. Otherwise, why would I be back in this filthy house?"

"Is she in the Order? Is she here?" Harry asked.

Snape looked at Harry like he was a complete idiot. "Today there's a meeting for the Order, Potter. Now I suggest you go downstairs. I expect the Weasleys will be wondering what's taking so long."

Snape retreated back toward the hallway downstairs, and Harry followed him, thinking that he'd have the perfect shot to perform a jinx on Snape. He smiled.

-----

Mrs. Weasley and Fleur waited anxiously for Snape to return. Ginny however, was simply miffed that she didn't get the chance to tackle whoever or whatever it was that had gotten in the house.

"Urgh!" Ginny screamed, barely audible over Mrs. Black's screams of dirty blood. "Why's it taking so long! I told you I should have been there, Mother. Now Snape's probably gone and gotten himself killed. Not that that would be such a big loss…"

"Ginevra Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley yelled. "Don't you ever let me hear you say something like that again! And don't be silly. Severus can handle himself. "

"Oh!" Fleur cried. "Here he comes now!" She wrapped her cloak tighter against Gabriel and Ginny looked at her weirdly, wondering what she expected.

Snape descended the steps and went down to the kitchen muttering under his breath.

"Well?" Ginny said expectantly.

"Well what, Weasley?" Snape asked mockingly.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "What was it?"

"The most horrible sight that ever met my eyes," Snape said seriously. He went off to try to quiet Mrs. Black.

Ginny stomped her foot and yelled "Urgh!" in annoyance. Just then, Harry clomped down the stairs. Fleur, thinking it was something awful, wrapped her cloak tighter around Gabriel, and whimpered.

Mrs. Weasley took out her wand, but when she saw it was Harry, she cried in delight and relief, "Harry, dear!"

She went to meet Harry and gave him a motherly hug. "I didn't know you'd be here!"

"Neither did I," Harry said truthfully.

Fleur loosened her grip on Gabriel and went of to give Harry a hug as well. Ginny just stared at Harry awkwardly.

Mrs. Weasley and Fleur went down into the kitchen, calling Harry after them.

Ginny left the house, muttering about how she needed some fresh air.

Harry went after Snape, who was having a difficult time closing the curtains on Mrs. Black's portrait.

"You need some help?" Harry called to Snape over the woman's howls.

"Not yours, Potter!" Snape screamed at Harry, desperately trying to pull the curtains together.

"Fine!" Harry yelled. He stomped out of the house, slamming the door behind him

It was dark out, and the air was nice and cool. Harry stuck his hands in his pant pockets and walked around with his head down. He walked to the park that was a few blocks away from number twelve. It was deserted.

Harry walked around the park a couple of times until he noticed Ginny sitting on a bench. He walked over to her, thinking that this was the best time as any to apologize for what he had said to her.

"Uh... hi," Harry said.

Ginny looked at him, startled. "Oh… hey. What if someone sees you like that?"

"Huh?" Harry looked down at himself, realizing what Ginny meant. He still had his cloak on. He noticed for the first time that Ginny just had just her jeans on and a blue spaghetti strap. "Oh. It's dark out. I don't think anybody will be out around now."

Harry sat down on the bench next to Ginny. Neither of them talked for a few awkward seconds.

"Uh…" Harry started, finally breaking the silence. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry about how you know… I yelled at you a couple of weeks ago… I mean, it's not your fault…"

"Oh, it's okay," Ginny said. "I can't totally blame you for what you said. I know how you don't really get along with Snape, and you have to admit, he's a git."

Harry smiled at Ginny.

"Did you know," Ginny said, "Dumbledore's considering letting me into the Order. I just found out a couple of days ago. Mum was furious."

Harry laughed. "Well, I guess we'd better have more auror lessons."

"Yeah, I guess," Ginny, said, smiling as well.

They sat in silence for a while, both staring at the ground, until Ginny said, " What I want to know is how come you remember Snape but you don't remember me, or Ron, or Hermione…"