A/N: Thanks to the people who reviewed last chapter! : ) I hope you like this next installment.

Peeta stepped forward, smiling meekly. "Alright… you want me to?" He looked uncertain.

"You know what," Norman said, changing pace. "Perhaps not now." He met Stanley's eyes, speaking directly to him. "The boy's already told us once, Stan. Maybe we could do the honors of filling Harry and Ron in?"

Stanley sighed, nodding anyway. "That would be fine."

Realizing this meant he didn't have to tell them, Peeta stayed quiet and continued to smile. After a moment, Harry stepped forward.

"It's nice to meet you," he said, "I'm Harry Potter." He held out his hand, which Peeta shook gratefully.

"I'm Peeta Mellark. You're – you're the one they told me about." He glanced back at Norman. "Right?"

"Right," he answered, cheeks turning a ruddy color. They'd told Peeta a heap of stories about Voldemort and the war, all of which had given him quite the heroic impression of Harry. They'd told Peeta that Harry would be the one to save his District.

Harry stood uncomfortably for a moment, and then beckoned Ron over.

"Hullo," Ron said, sounding about as friendly as a metal spike. "I'm Ron Weasley." He cleared his throat, shuffling his feet impatiently. Clearly, his idea of a successful mission had not included a refugee.

A few more seconds slipped by, no one certain what to say. Stanley looked pained, the others merely uncomfortable. Finally, Ron broke the tension with his usual brusqueness.

"Don't mean to be rude," he muttered, rubbing his hand against his chin, "But er, what are we going to do exactly?" He eyes narrowed on Peeta, as if it were somehow up to him.

"Peeta's going to stay here with us," Norman replied calmly, "Until we figure out what our plan of attack is. Then we'll return with him, and help them sort things out."

"We're going to attack then?" Harry asked. He did want to help and everything, but his own life had calmed down so much that he wasn't sure if he could handle it. Besides, this was for a world that wasn't even their own – and he had his children to think of!

"Of course," Stanley replied roughly. "We can't leave them on their own, now can we? This is our future, as much as it is their present."

"Well, where is Peeta," Ron began, his emphasis suggesting mockery, "Going to stay?"

Harry shot a sidelong glance at his friend, hoping Ron would get the message and be little nicer. After all, it wasn't the boy's fault that their friends had decided to take him time traveling.

"I don't know," Stanley said, sticking his hands in his pockets. He seemed oblivious to Ron's snide tone. "I was thinking at the Burrow? With your mum and dad?" There was a long pause, as Ron's ears reddened and his mouth dropped into a gape. "Would that be alright?"

"I – Charlie's home," Ron mumbled, his eyes wide. "From Romania. But – I … I'll have to ask my mum." He looked at Peeta, whose own attention had changed to the floor, and then back at Harry.

Harry smiled, trying to be as helpful as possible. "If that's not alright, I'm sure he can stay with us."

Ron held his hands up, as if to say 'suit yourself'.

"He still has some injuries to be treated," Norman explained, "So I'm going to take him down to Mungos, alright? We'll meet you at the Burrow in about an hour."

"Is Robert coming?" Harry asked, concerned. Robert was a good friend of theirs as well, and the fact that he was tied up in St. Mungo's and being treated for shock didn't sound promising at all.

Stanley shook his head. "Poor bloke took what we saw too hard. He's going to go home to his family after they release him. Here, I'll come with you two to Ron's house."

"I've got to OWL Hermione first," Ron said, blinking.

"Oh right!" Stanley exclaimed, clapping a hand to his forehead. "I completely forgot she was off from work."

Ron scowled. His friend forgetting that his wife was pregnant did nothing to help his mood. Meanwhile, Harry was staring at Peeta, grappling for some idea of the boy's thoughts. Peeta stared right back, smiling and evidently unafraid, but quiet. Norman slung an arm around him, prodding him out the door.

"Come on lad, you'll talk to them later."

"Nice – nice to meet you," Peeta said kindly, waving as they exited the department of mysteries.

"Alright Stanley," Ron said at once, "What's going on?"

Stanley sighed. "I knew you were going to act this way. Alright, come on then. Upstairs, and we can talk about it on the way." The other two followed, Ron's feet dragging as he lagged behind. While it had been Harry was unready for the news about the mission, it was he who didn't like the idea of a boy from the future.

"We found him, because their government picked him up after the most recent round of Hunger Games –"

"What are those again?" Harry asked.

"The game where the children have to kill each other," Stanley said, trying to be matter-of-fact about it. "They're chosen, two a year, and they have to go. But they can volunteer if they want to." He shook his head. "There's more, but the details are all very hazy to me. Maybe Norman can explain it better." They started climbing the stairs. "Anyway, he and his girlfriend Katniss got called back a second time, which isn't supposed to happen. But it did, and then they got broken out of the arena by the rebellion, but then Peeta got found by the government –"

"And you found him," Harry interrupted. Stanley had been speaking at warp speed; it was miraculous that they'd heard him at all.

"Yes, we found him," Stanley said. "Any last questions before we apparate?"

"This girl," Harry said. "You said she's the one responsible for the, er, rebellion?"

"Yes, Katniss. Bloody hell, he loves her so much I feel like I know her." He gave a hearty laugh. "He's liked her since she was a little kid, he says, and their parents were friends. She volunteered to save her sister in the Games, when her sister got called. Again, there's more, but Norman can tell it better than I can. Or Peeta himself, if he's up to it."

"Up to it?" Ron asked. He snorted. "He was just here. He seemed fine to me."

"He's been through a lot in the last year, Ron. He lost his leg, he almost lost Katniss a few times. He almost died."

"Well, Harry and I had that happen to us a lot," Ron said hotly. "Stop acting as if he's special."

"Ron," Harry interrupted at last. "Why do you hate this boy so much?"

Ron seemed taken aback; he put his hand to his chin in thought. "I don't know, really. Reminds me of Malfoy, maybe?"

Harry laughed now. "Why, because he's blonde?"

"Dunno, really," Ron remarked. "Guess it's too late now, eh?"

"Seeing as we said the mission was a go," Harry replied. He shook his head, turning to Stanley. "Do you really expect us to go and save this place?"

There was a long pause, and it seemed Stanley was considering his answer. At last, he nodded. "Yes. Who knows, you still may meet the descendent of someone you know. And," he smiled, "Isn't that your job?"

A/N: That's all for now! : ) Don't worry, the next chapter will get more "fun", with Peeta meeting the rest of the Weasley family and an interesting family dinner. Thank you so much for reading; reviews would be much appreciated!