A/N: Hey. I know I just updated 2 chapters today but, well, I'm sure no one's going to complain about a 3rd in one day. :P So, here's Chapter 12. Don't forget to review. :]

"I have to answer this," Sirius said and took out his Communicator. "Accept."

"Sirius, I have to ask you something."

"This isn't a good time, kiddo."

"Sorry, it's quick. How do you open the door across from the tapestry room at number twelve?"

"I don't know. Ask Remus. I have to go. Bye, Harry," Sirius disconnected the call before Harry could say anything.

"As I was saying about him being a distraction," Crouch sneered. They all glared at him.

"All right, Crouch!" Sirius yelled, standing up. "I've been at this job for four years and everyday Harry has been on my mind! Harry's on everyone's mind in this department and in the magical creatures department! Not once has Harry being on my mind affected the way I work and it hasn't changed! It hasn't affected the way anyone in this department works! Hell, it might help us work!"

"If it helps, how come you've lost about twenty Aurors? Over half of them in one year, I might add."

"Because we're Aurors! Because we fight Death Eaters that sometimes beat us to the finish line! Because we're in a war! How you ever became the head of a department, I'll never know. People have been dying almost everyday since Voldemort came back two and a half years ago. Him returning started the Second War. This is nothing compared to what it's going to be. We're only a quarter of the way into this war. You have no idea how bad it's gonna get."

"Sirius," Tonks whispered.

"No. I hope Voldemort lives against Harry long enough to kill you. If he doesn't kill you, I will. Soon we'll be at the full height of this war and it won't matter who kills who. You're one of the first three people on my list," Sirius walked out of the room, slamming the door. He didn't even see Remus.

"Incoming call from Harry James Potter. Accept or decline call?"

"Bad timing, pup," Remus muttered and took out the Communicator. "Accept."

"Remus-" Harry began.

"This isn't a good time, pup. I'm busy."

"One quick question. How do you open the door across from the tapestry room at Grimmauld Place?" Harry asked.

"Try using-wait. Are you at Grimmauld Place?" Remus frowned.

"No," Harry answered too quickly.

"Harry Potter," Remus said in a warning tone.

"Don't use my full name. I hate that. Especially when you add 'James' into it," Harry glared.

"I will if you don't tell me."

"No, I can't say."

"Harry James Potter, tell me now."

"Okay, okay. We're at number twelve. Don't come after us, please. Just let us go. If you bring us back, we'll just leave again. You know we will. Remus, please," Harry looked at his uncle with puppy dog eyes.

"I won't come after you," Remus replied.

"Thank you," Harry smiled.

"Thanks!" Ron and Hermione yelled. Harry looked over his shoulder at his friends and laughed.

"They're both pulling and pushing on the door trying to get in. How do we open the door?" Harry asked again.

"Try using 'Bombardar'. It worked on Mrs. Black."

"Thanks. I have to go. We probably won't talk for a while. Bye. Love you," Harry smiled.

"Bye, pup. Love you too," Remus disconnected the call. Just as he put it away, Kingsley and Tonks walked out of the office.

"So, that went well., Kingsley stated. He put his hands up in defence as Remus and Tonks stared at him.

"He's not helping himself by threatening Crouch like that," Tonks added.

"We have to keep Sirius' mind off Crouch and keep Crouch from devising a plan to get Sirius fired," Remus said.

"How do we do that?" Tonks frowned.

"We need to keep Sirius busy," Kingsley stated.

"I can tell him about the Greyback case, but it won't work for long," Remus replied.

"A way to keep him busy is get something new on the Malfoy case," Tonks said.

"Then you better get something on that case and fast," Remus said. Tonks and Kingsley nodded and they all went different ways.

"All right. Try blasting it open with 'Bombardar'," Harry sighed, walking back to his friends.

"You do it, mate," Ron said.

"Fine," Harry took out his wand. "Bombardar!" he shouted. There was a loud crashing sound and bright light. When the light disappeared, they saw so had the door. "It worked. We're in." Harry grinned. He walked into the room with his friends.

"Whoa," they all whispered. The entire room was black but everything was covered in plastic. Everything that could open was locked with chains and padlocks. The few things that didn't possess chains, Harry guessed, had been locked with magic.

"This is weird," Ron said, breaking the silence.

"Who did this and why?" Hermione gazed around the room.

"I dunno. I've never been in here," Harry shrugged.

"Did Regulus die before Sirius' mother?" Hermione asked.

"I think so," Harry nodded.

"Maybe Mrs. Black did this. Maybe there are dangerous things in here she wanted to keep from Sirius."

"No way. Sirius' mother hated him. She would have loved to see him hurt or dead," Harry immediately dismissed the thought.

"Maybe Sirius did it," Ron guessed.

"But when? He ran away when he was sixteen and lived with my dad. That's when his mother blasted him off the tapestry wall-" Harry began to explain. He trailed off when he saw his friends staring at him with blank looks. "Come on," he lead them across the hall and through a door.

"Whoa," Ron and Hermione gasped.

"Over here," Harry said and they went to him. He pointed to a black scorch mark on the wall. "After Sirius went to live with my dad, his mother got rid of his name. He was a huge blood traitor to the Black family. Same with Andromeda. She's a Black. When she married Ted, Mrs. Black blasted her off as well. Major blood traitors to the Black family."

"What about Regulus?" Hermione asked.

"He wasn't a traitor like Sirius though they were close. Even though he was close to Sirius, Regulus still worshipped Voldemort and the Dark Side like the rest of the family. He was a Death Eater, but obviously not a loyal one or he'd still be alive. A little bit before the attack on Halloween, Regulus asked Sirius to visit. He did. That night, Regulus went into hiding. When he was found dead the nest day, Sirius left and never came back. Not since fifth year," Harry told them.

"What are all these ones though?" Ron pointed to about forty scorch marks on one wall.

"I just figured this out last year actually. I don't know why it took so long. One of these lines is the Lupin family, one is the Potter family, the other is the Weasley family," Harry smiled.

"Weasley? We're related?" Ron gaped at Harry.

"Yep. You're dad is Sirius' cousin once removed or something like that," Harry nodded.

"Wow."

"Continue, Harry," Hermione said.

"All right. So obviously all of us got blasted off. The Lupins for being blood traitors and allowing Remus to do everything, including live, while he was a werewolf. The Potters mostly for being blood traitors. Same with the Weasleys. These three," he pointed to three large scorch marks in the middle, "are me and my parents. The one directly below my mum is Remus, and the one above me is Ron. Sirius hated this room, especially this wall. He only told me about himself and Andromeda. He wouldn't talk about this wall." Harry responded.

"But why?" Ron frowned,

"Because he was forced to watch his mother blast everyone off this wall. She would have made him get rid of my dad and Remus if he could have done magic. He was fifteen."

"How did we all get on here though?"

"When someone new is added to the family, their name appears. Mrs. Black was still alive when my parents married and had me so she got rid of me and my mum. She died a couple months after I was born. Lucius Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange would have been the ones to get rid of anyone after she died," Harry stated.

"Wow," Hermione said. They all jumped when there was a knock at the door.

"Who the hell is that?" Ron frowned.

"Dunno," Harry moved slowly down the stairs and started for the door.

"Harry, no. It could be a Death Eater," Hermione stopped him.

"I was going to look first," Harry went to the door.

There was another knock. "Open the door, Harry," Remus' voice floated to them through the door.

"It could be a disguised Death Eater," Hermione whispered.

"If it's really you, what are the names of your two friends who got killed by Fenrir Greyback?" Harry asked.

"Kevin Baxter and Simon Gale," Remus answered.

Harry unlocked the door and flung it open. "What the hell are you doing here?" he hissed.

"I've missed you too," Remus raised an eyebrow, entering the house.

"You said you wouldn't come after us," Harry glared.

"I'm not here to bring you home, as much as I want to."

"Why are you here?" Harry gazed at his uncle. His eyes were filling up with tears. He hadn't realized how much he missed his uncles.

"Do I have to answer that?" Remus looked at Harry softly as the boy shook his head.

"I miss you," Harry muttered and hugged Remus tightly.

"I've missed you too, pup. So has Sirius. We miss you so much," Remus held his nephew close. "How are things going?" he released the teen, but Harry wouldn't let go.

"It's been all right. We've been here for a couple hours now," Ron informed.

"Harry, is that blood on your head?" Remus lightly touched Harry's wound. When he pulled his hand back, there was blood on his fingers. "Oh my God," he spun Harry around to look at his head.

"It's from when I fell. Hermione stitched it," Harry said as he faced Remus again.

"We have to fix that."

"Remus, no. We need to do things on our own. You won't be with us anymore," Harry shook his head.

"But I'm here now and I'm helping. Sit down," Remus replied. Harry sight and sat at the kitchen table. Remus came back with a wet cloth.

"OW!" Harry cringed in pain as the cloth connected with his wound.

"Sorry. It has to be cleaned," Remus dabbed it. He was worried. The cloth was already covered in blood. "Harry, I know you don't want to and don't want me to, but you need to lay down and rest. I'm also staying over night."

"No, I can't stop and you can't stay. I'm fine," Harry argued.

Remus dropped the cloth into Harry's hands. "And it's still bleeding. You have to take it easy for a few hours."

"But I need to look for the locket."

"Harry, rest. We'll look for a bit. Just do what Remus says," Hermione stated and she and Ron left.

"Let me get towels. Go into the living room," Remus said. Harry sat on the sofa. "Why is all this stuff still here?"

"In case we had to come back. Get a pillow and lay on your side, facing me," Remus instructed. Harry obeyed. When he was lying down, Remus put a towel under Harry's head. He also sat on the floor and held a towel on Harry's head.

"You thought we'd have to move back?" Harry answered.

"I had a feeling. We never did though," Remus nodded. He put a clean spot on the towel on the wound.

"You shouldn't be here. It's dangerous," Harry told Remus who pushed a piece of hair out of Harry's eyes.

"When has that ever stopped me or Sirius?"

"Remus."

"Harry."

"I'm not kidding. You shouldn't be here."

"I'm not kidding either. I knew you were hurt. Harry, you know me and Sirius would go through anything for you."

"You shouldn't."

"We've had this argument and you know how it ends. It's been thirteen years and it's never changed," Remus put a clean towel on Harry's head.

"I know. It's worse this time though. Now we're being followed and we're staying somewhere the Death Eaters can get to," Harry stated.

"You really do worry about more than you can handle," Remus smiled.

"What do you mean?"

"Harry, you worry about twenty different things all at the same time. A lot of those worries are things you can't control. It's a bad habit of yours."

"I have to."

"No, you don't. Why should you have to worry about everything that's completely out of your control?"

"Because of who I am and what I'm a part of," Harry said. He was exhausted. He was fighting to stay awake.

"That doesn't mean anything. What you worry about is up to you. It doesn't matter who you are."

"I know, but-I-the-me-" Harry was losing the battle to stay awake.

"Go to sleep, pup. I'll be right here," Remus whispered. As much as he wanted to stay awake, Harry let his eyes shut. He couldn't win.

"How is he?" Hermione asked, entering the room with Ron.

"Exhausted. How long have you three been awake?" Remus responded.

"Since four-thirty this morning. It's five-twenty. So, about seventeen hours," Hermione replied.

"Seventeen hours? You need to sleep. All of you," Remus said. "Here," he stood up and took out his wand. He muttered a spell and everything in the middle of the floor disappeared. He waved his wand and two mattresses appeared on the floor with pillows and blankets.

"What-" Ron began.

"Rest. Sleep for a few hours. You'll be safe. I'm not leaving," Remus told them.

"Thank you, Remus," Hermione smiled and laid down.

"Harry won't be happy when he wakes up," Ron pointed out.

"I'll deal with it. Go to sleep. I have to finish treating Harry's wound," Remus stated. It wasn't long before the other teens were also asleep.

When Harry woke up, it was seven in the morning. "Oh no!" he gasped, suddenly wide awake. He looked at the floor and saw his friends fast asleep. He had slept for thirteen and a half hours. Crap! He jumped up and picked up his bag from the doorway. He opened it and started digging around. He had a killer headache.

"Good morning," a voice came from the kitchen and Harry turned.

"Why are you still here?"

"I told you I was staying overnight," Remus replied.

"You need to leave," Harry said.

"I may have to but that doesn't mean you want me to," Remus said logically.

"What I want doesn't matter."

"It does to me. If you want me to go, I'll leave. I won't leave because you say I should," Remus watched as Harry sat across from him. Harry gazed at his uncle. "So?"

Harry didn't speak for several minutes. "You have to go," he finally answered.

Remus sensed the hesitation. "But?"

"But-" Harry looked to the table.

"But you don't want me to go," Remus finished. Harry slightly nodded. "Harry, I can stay. It's not that dangerous for me."

"You can't stay no matter how much I want you to. It's selfish to if I make you stay. It's stupid."

Remus frowned and went to sit beside the young wizard. "You wouldn't be making me do anything, Harry. I'm staying because we both want me to. It's not selfish at all. It's love. It's not stupid. I'd be the one being stupid be staying, not you. Staying is exactly what I'm doing though because you want me to and I love you."

"You can't stay here," Harry muttered.

"I can and I will. I'm not moving in. I'll leave when you three leave," Remus stated.

"Go back to the Ministry. I can't let you put yourself at risk by listening to what I want. I have to put everyone before myself."

"I'm not leaving. Putting everyone before yourself is all you've ever done. Nothing's ever about you."

"Go."

"No," Remus looked at Harry who looked back before going to the tapestry room and Regulus' bedroom.

"That went well," Ron said sarcastically. He and Hermione were standing in the living room doorway.

"Extremely," Remus answered, just as sarcastic.

"Maybe you should leave. I have nothing against you being here, but maybe if you left, Harry would calm down," Hermione stated.

"Maybe," Remus sighed and looked at his nephew's best friends. "Why are you three here anyways?" he asked.

"It was Harry's idea. We came for somewhere to stay. To figure stuff out. We're only here for a couple days," Ron answered.

"And the main reason is?"

"We think a Horcrux might be here," Hermione sighed.

"Really? Why?" Remus frowned.

"Because Regulus Black lived here before he died," Hermione said.

"Sirius' brother?"

"I think that's the only Regulus Black in the world," Ron nodded.

"I highly doubt there's a Horcrux here," Remus shook his head.

"Score one for Team Lupin," Harry's voice came. They looked at him. "We've done nothing less of ripping this house apart. There's nothing. If there was a horcrux here, it's gone now. Long gone," he turned back around and went back to the tapestry room.

"We'll be leaving soon then. We can't stay here with no purpose," Hermione told Remus. He nodded.

At four that evening, the trio began getting ready to leave Grimmauld Place.

"You've spent a lot of time in this room. Same with Regulus' bedroom," Remus told Harry who was in the tapestry room.

"We're missing something. Not the Horcrux itself. A clue. Something that will help. I feel it's in these rooms. I just can't find it," Harry replied.

"Maybe your mind's playing tricks."

"No. It's here. It's real. I know it is," Harry walked to one of the walls and knocked on the wood in a few places. In a couple spots, it was solid. In others, it had a hollow sound. "You don't care about this wall too much, do you? Or Sirius?" Harry asked, pulling out his wand.

"No."

"Good. Bombardar!" Harry shouted. "That seems to be the favourable spell lately," he stated when the dust cleared. There was a hole in the wall, but it was a secret compartment.

"Was that really necessary?" Remus raised an eyebrow.

"Of course it was. Everything I do has to be necessary, otherwise I'll mess up and something bad will happen," Harry nodded.

"What the hell is going on?" Ron and Hermione burst into the room.

"Just blowing some stuff up. The usual," Harry said casually.

"Haven't we blown up enough stuff in this house?" Hermione said.

"That was a door. That barely counts for blowing something up," Harry waved it off.

"So you blow up a wall instead?"

"It was fun and necessary."

"I highly doubt this was necessary," Hermione crossed her arms.

"In here is a clue," Harry stated.

"For what?" Ron frowned.

"Not for what, for who," Harry grinned.

"Can you cut to the chase, Harry? We have to get going," Hermione replied irritably.

Harry rolled his eyes and reached into the compartment. He pulled out a rolled up piece of parchment. "This is it."

"Parchment?" the other three said together.

"Yep. Here read it," Harry handed it to them.

I'm at a school,
Though not a human,
I'm a symbol,
And your next clue.
What am I?

"A riddle?" Hermione furrowed her eyebrows.

"I think if we solve this, we get one more clue and then we know where the locket is," Harry nodded.

"Why are we always solving riddles or anagrams or whatever?" Ron groaned.

A/N: So can anyone figure out the answer to the riddle? Leave a review with your guess. I'd love to hear what you think it might be. :]