Hello to all my readers! I'm trying to update whenever I can, and I appreciate everyone still with me on this story! Once again just a disclaimer that I do not own any of these characters, they all belong to JKR. Hope everyone enjoys this chapter :)

Sixth year at Hogwarts was rough to say the very least. Harry had known the pressure of his courses having taken his OWL's last year but things were different this year for several reasons. He had his private lessons with Dumbledore, and while they didn't take place often for the headmaster spent so much time away, they still were important. Maybe the most important thing in fact, Dumbledore was gearing him up to find the Horcruxes.

Hogwarts had changed since everyone knew Voldemort was indeed back now. Other students had family members that were missing, or already confirmed dead. Some students had been pulled out of their courses and whisked away without another word. While courses were important in theory for a career later in his life, Harry knew the future held bigger things for him. Things that involved Voldemort, and the prophecy bounding them to face off again. The Horcruxes were the pieces to the puzzle that could end it all for good this time.

Harry sat in the chair nearest the fire in the Gryffindor common room. The flames danced around warming his skin. The common room was full of Gryffindor's of every year, piled over pieces of homework they were trying to finish before supper in the great hall. Looking around Harry realized one more thing that was lacking from this year, and that was the presence of the Weasley twins, Fred and George.

The room didn't have the life it once did when Fred and George still roamed around it. People would be laughing more right now if they were here. Skiving snack boxes would be available for sale, and Hermione would be chasing them around trying to put a stop to it. Hermione and the twins seemed to be at odds, but they worked in the end because they were both bloody brilliant. They just used their brilliance for different things. He couldn't help but feel a small bit of comfort when thinking of their shop in Diagon Alley. It was there at their at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, that their work lived on.

"You're doing it again, Harry." Hermione's voice said snapping him back to reality. She was staring him down with her eyebrows raised and concern in her eyes.

"Ah yeah, sorry about that." Harry said hastily siting up in his chair and stretching. He looked at the watch on his arm and saw that it was almost time to head down to the great hall. Hermione was still watching him and he knew why, because she saw him as a ticking time bomb. A time bomb that could blow at any moment and do something reckless.

It had been a day and half now since Lupin and Embry had taken off in pursuit of Sirius at Malfoy Manor. Sunday had passed with no word, and now they were finished with their Monday classes and no word had reached Harry still. It was excruciating not knowing what was going on. And without his cloak, even though he had no immediate use for it, he felt more vulnerable and empty than ever.

"I'm sure everything is fine mate." Ron said absentmindedly, while bent over a particularly tricky piece of homework assigned by Snape on curses.

"It's only been a day, you'll hear something soon." Hermione said in a gentler voice, she'd finished the piece of homework in an hour last night and could focus more on him. He didn't want her sympathy though, it only made him feel worse.

"I'm going to head up to the owlery before dinner, to check on Hedwig." Harry said shortly and stood up heading for the portrait of the fat lady. He didn't look back to see his friend's expressions, he didn't want to see their pity or sadness. He fantasied about the day he'd maybe get the chance to take out Voldemort, how he could live a life where pity wasn't the key look people gave him.

Trudging up the castle towards the owlery he bitterly had to admit that he understood why Hermione was coddling him. She was just worried about him, and how could she not be after the trouble they'd been in after he'd thought something similar had happened to Sirius last year. It was a miracle that Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, and himself had even survived the ordeal.

Walking around the corner to the staircase that led to the Owlery, he didn't take into consideration that someone else might be heading the same way, only down the stairs instead of up. He slammed into someone and knocked them over. He looked down and saw a mess of red hair spilling onto a flustered girl's face.

"Ginny! Hey, I'm really sorry. I'm a little distracted to be honest." He said quickly extending an arm in which she took. He felt a flutter in his chest as her hand was placed in his own, she smiled at him as he pulled her to her feet. He couldn't help but notice just how pretty she was even in such an embarrassing moment.

"What's on your mind?" She asked casually as he handed her two books that she had dropped when he knocked her to the ground on accident.

"Ah just stuff with Sirius still." He said hastily, but she didn't look at him with pity or sadness. Instead anger flashed in her big eyes taking him by surprise.

"I heard about your fight with Malfoy. I hope that family gets what is coming to them." She hissed in a low voice in case anyone else was nearby. Harry liked this about Ginny, she never was pitying, she just had a fierceness to her that he admired greatly in times like these.

"Yeah well turns out he was right. Embry and Lupin are trying to sort it out, that is pretty much the reason I was so caught up I knocked you over." He said noticing how Ginny's mouth fell open when he mentioned Embry. Quickly and quietly he began to tell her about everything he had found out since he last talked to her about this on holiday.

"I knew it!" She said victoriously and this time it was himself who gave her the puzzled look. She laughed out loud, and Harry felt a flutter again at the sound.

"I overheard Mum and Dad arguing about it right before we left for school. I knew Sirius had a thing for her, Fred and George bet me a galleon it was just a silly rumor."

"Your mum and dad were fighting over it?" Harry asked curiously, and Ginny nodded.

"Yeah Mum has always been a bit critical of Sirius and his techniques as your guardian. Dad thinks she's a bit rough on him, he's fonder of Sirius himself. I imagine he particularity is because of that muggle motorcycle Sirius rigged into flying. Two in the same with that one, right?" She said playfully and for Harry laughed out loud at this. It felt good to laugh, to be able to talk about Sirius and have it not been a terrible experience.

"You're probably right on that one." He said and she beamed up at him.

"I know you've had a rough year. It's nice to see you smile." She said and Harry felt that familiar flutter once more. He looked down at Ginny and admired her. She was so different from the shy little girl he'd met on platform nine and three quarters his first year.

"Thanks Ginny, I really appreciate talking to you." He said and she tucked her books under her arm and leaned forward, embracing him into a hug. Harry held her back, her hair brushed his cheek and smelled of vanilla.

"Want to head down to the great hall for supper, I imagine everyone is heading that way." She suggested pulling away. Harry nodded casually, he wished that hug didn't have to end. He wanted to stand there and hold her, until he forgot of all his troubles. But he left those thoughts behind him as they strolled back down the corridor together towards the great hall.

"Did I ever tell you how I met Sirius?" She asked and Harry shook his head, he suspected someone must have clued her in but he had never known.

"Well Mum and Dad were so busy with work for the Order that they forgot to tell me about that bit. Then all my brothers were a bunch of gits and didn't think to clue me in either Well Fred admits he let it slip on purpose. I knew we were headed to a safe house, which turned out to be Grimmauld place, but that was it." She started to explain and Harry let out a laugh already imaging where this was going. He remembered faintly when he Mrs. Weasley had found out about Sirius in the hospital wing after the tournament and let out a shriek. Ginny elbowed him playfully and continued her tale.

"Well I walked in and shortly I was face to face with who I thought was a damn convicted murder out to kill people. I'm really good at this jinx you see.."

"The bat Boogey hex?" Harry asked interrupting her and she nodded her head with a devious smirk and Harry let out a laugh. He imagined Sirius getting hexed by a small but fierce red headed girl he'd never met before.

"Something funny, Potter?" a cold voice asked suddenly from behind them. Both he and Ginny spun around to see Draco Malfoy standing there. He looked pale and tired, but more than anything anger shown through on his boney face. Hardly unsurprisingly, standing behind him with their wands already drawn, were Crabbe and Goyle.

"Shove off Malfoy." Harry said shortly, grabbing Ginny's arm and turning them both back around to walk away. He was already angry, he'd hardly forgotten Malfoy taunting him over Sirius just a couple days back. Madam Pomfrey had cleaned him up well, but under his eye he still displayed a small bruise from where Harry had hit him.

"You and your girlfriend aren't getting off that easy!" He called out and before Harry had time to react a curse flew right past him and hit Ginny and she was knocked to the ground. Anger engulfed Harry as he reached for his wand, but this time the three Slytherin's were more prepared.

"Expelliarmus!" Crabbe called and Harry's wand shot out of his hand. Harry looked up at a smug Malfoy glaring at him as he advanced forward.

"What do you want now?" Harry asked, his teeth gritted and hands balled into fists at his sides.

"I wanted to have a chat with you, about your filthy friends from the Order of The Phoenix breaking into my parents' house." Malfoy spat out vehemently. Whatever Harry had been expecting, it sure wasn't that.

"What?" Harry asked in complete shock, but in that moment of surprise that had let Harry's guard down, Malfoy had taken the chance. He advanced on him and punched him hard in the face.

"You heard me Potter!" Malfoy cried out in anger. Another fist hit Harry but this time it was a much larger and stronger Goyle who punched him. Blood gushed from his nose as he hit the floor from the impact.

"Stop it!" Ginny cried out but it was too late, Crabbe took his chance and hit him hard as well. Harry didn't stand a chance with no wand and already having been knocked to the ground. He took the punches and felt things around him getting fuzzy. His glasses smashed hard against the bridge of his nose before toppling off and onto the stone floor. Now he couldn't even see what was going on at all.

"STOP!" Another voice screeched, this one familiar too. Whoever was on top of Harry quickly backed off. His vision was blurry but he heard footsteps rushing toward him, someone was at his side already holding his arm. He breathed in the smell of vanilla and saw a blur of red hair falling around him and knew it was Ginny.

"100 points from Slytherin!" The voice shrieked again and this time he recognized who it was, and that was his head of house professor Mcgonagall.

"Professor, that's not fair! Potter did…" Malfoy started to say but Mcgonagall was strict and he should have known better than to even try with her.

"100 points, each! And I will be talking to Professor Snape about this. Back to your common room, I will have food sent up to you, but there is no way you'll be attending the feast tonight after that stunt." She cried out, her voice full of anger as she tore into them.

"Harry are you okay?" a new voice asked, this time it was Hermione. His Glasses were placed in his hands and he slid them on his face. Hermione, Ginny, and Ron all were kneeling beside him. Ginny and Ron wore similar looks of fury, while Hermione simply looked concerned.

"Here is your wand, Mate. What happened?" Ron said his voice full of anger as he stared in the direction were Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were headed.

"Never mind that now, I've been looking for you Potter. Now if you could help him up Mr. Weasley, I must request you to accompany me to my office Mr. Potter." She said, sounding flustered and angry still as she too watched Malfoy and the other two stalking off towards the dungeons with her sharp eyes. Ron pulled him to his feet, catching him as he swayed a bit at first.

"Why, what's happened?" Harry asked quickly, remembering what Malfoy had said. He was dizzy and confused still, blood stained his sleeves as he tried to stop it from flowing from his nose. That didn't matter anymore though, his mind was running wild now with hope and fear all in the same.

"I've got word on your godfather, please follow me."