Chapter 59

Soon all the Hogwarts students and most of the teachers were back at school. The volunteers of Phoenix House who'd come were Aurors as well, so they were helping arrest the death eaters. The werewolves were going to help take Lawrence to St. Mungo's. A few moments after the battle had ended Fudge and several of his Ministry officials had arrived, and Dumbledore had needed to explain things to them. Harry, Remus, and Sirius were in Dumbledore's office. Naturally there were many questions everyone wanted to be answered, and the two Marauders weren't willing to leave Harry for even a second. Remus had his face in his hands and Sirius looked like he was on the verge of a stress attack. Harry knew they were thinking of what had almost happened.

"I'm fine," Harry reminded them, putting a hand on each of their shoulders. "I'm right here. I'm alive. I know what it must have looked like, but I'm not hurt at all."

Remus nodded, then asked "Harry what were you thinking? You could have died. You almost did."

Harry did feel guilty about worrying them, but there hadn't really been a choice.

"I couldn't just stay safe at Hogwarts and let someone I love get hurt, maybe die. I've already lost one family and I wasn't going to lose another. And after you left I had another vision. I saw that Voldemort was sure everything would go his way. He was ready for whoever came. After I saw that, there was no way I wasn't going to help."

"What exactly were you planning on doing, anyway?" Sirius asked. "I know you're exceptionally skilled for your age, Harry, but it was still too dangerous for you. You were the one Voldemort was after."

Harry looked down a moment. "Well, I was kindve planning on using that. I thought I could help even the odds, but if that didn't work I knew Voldemort wanted to kill me more than he wanted to kill you so I thought-"

"Don't say you'd have given yourself up to save us, Harry," Remus told him. "I couldn't have stood that if you had. I don't know how you survived again, but if you'd died I don't think I'd have been able to face that."

"That's why when I had the choice, I came back. I couldn't leave you," Harry said before remembering nobody else knew what exactly had happened when the curse had hit him.

"What do you mean you had a choice?" Remus asked.

Harry was thinking about how to phrase his answer when Dumbledore came in.

"Before we get talking, I should let Mila and the others know we're all fine," Remus said. They might be talking for some time and he didn't want Mila worrying any longer than she had to. He cast the messenger patronus.

"Someday I'm going to have to have you show me that. The DA would love to know how to make their patronuses talk."

"The DA?" Sirius asked.

"Their patronuses?" Remus asked.

"Oops."

Seeing the looks on their faces he decided to answer.

"Well, I just showd some of the others a few things. We weren't learning anything from Umbridge and somebody had to teach them how to defend themselves. Hermione nominated me I guess you could say."

"And one of the things you taught them was to cast a patronus?" Remus asked, amazed. Harry didn't think he'd ever seen him that surp

"Not as well as you taught me," Harry said. "I didn't have a boggart for them to practice on, so I don't know how strong their patronuses would be if they had to face a dementor. Colin and Dennis still struggle a bit with it and it's one of the few spells Hermione has a little trouble with."

"Colin and Dennis? The Creevy brothers?" Remus asked. "But Dennis is only a second year."

"Well, I was a third year when I learned."

Remus was looking at him a bit openmouthed. Sirius looked just as stunned as Remus did. Even Dumbledore was surprised.

"Which shouldn't have even been possible for you," Remus said. "Being able to teach someone that young something that advanced at all-" Remus smiled proudly. "Severuas is right. You do make a habit out of doing the impossible."

"Speaking of which," Dumbledore said. "What exactly happened tonight, Harry?"

So Harry told the whole story of how the curse had hit him and how he'd seen Lily and James. At that point his guardians wondered if they needed to rush Harry to St. Mungo's to be treated for a head injury, but when he talked about being a horcrux, they knew there was no way he could have known that otherwise. They did look guilty about his knowing though.

"We didn't tell you Harry, because-"

"I know," Harry said. "If it had been me and I'd thought one of you had to die I would have done the same thing. I did wonder why you kept looking at me the way Trelawny does every time she predicts my death though." He paused. "I never would have thought it would be a good thing thatVoldemort used my blood or that-" He turned to Dumbledore. "Why did Voldemort thing that wand was unbeatable?"

Now it was Dumbledore's turn to tell what he knew, about how the wand was the wand from the stories, the Elder wand.

"I don't want it then," Harry said immediately. "I don't want to be unbeatableBesides, if the stories are true, that wand only attracts trouble."

Dumbledore was impressed by Harry's decision. He was not tempted by the Hallows, wanting to master them the way so many did, including Dumbledore himself. SO it was decided that the wand would be locked away for safe keeping. If Harry was never defeated, the wand's power would die with him. That was for the best.

After that was agreed on, the talk turned to what had happened after they'd left for Hogwarts.

"All the death eaters who were there were captured then?" Sirius asked.

"Except one," Dumbledore answered. "A former friend of yours."

"Wormtail," Sirius said, a growl in his voice.

As if on que, a squeeking started outside the door. A terrified squeek, followed by a hissing and yowling. It reminded Harry of of when Crookshanks had tried to get at Wormtail all those times. Apparently the others thought it sounded like a cat catching a rat too because they all hurried to look. Sure enough, there was Crookshanks tossing a rat into the air- a rat with a silver paw.

"Good Crookshanks," Sirius praised. "Bring the little traitor here."

"Sirius-" Dumbledore said in warning.

"I know. I know. I won't kill him."

Crookshanks dropped Wormtail at Sirius' feet, and the rat's heaving sides were the only part of him that moved. With a wave of Dumbledore's wand he returned to human form, looking as though a lion had mauled him.

"I suppose we'd better get him to Poppy," Remus prompted. Sirius was reluctant to help. Actually judging by his expression he'd have loved to have given Wormtail a good kick.

"He will die without help," Dumbledore said. "And would merely knowing he's dead satisfy you?"

Sirius knew Dumbledore was right. There were things worse than death. That and knowing Harry had been right that James wouldn't have wanted his friends to kill Wormtail, or let him die if he didn't have to, finally convinced him. Wormtail was going to have the fate he'd almost doomed Sirius to, a lifetime in Azkaban.

Once Wormtail was up to talking, they started to question him. They learned his mission was to kidnap Harry if he hadn't have left Hogwarts.

"Wouldn't- have- done- it- though-" he gasped.

"You already got Lily and James killed and almost got Harry killed- again," Sirius told him in a dangerous voice.

"Harry saved his life that night in the Shrieking Shack," Dumbledore explained. "He is in debt to Harry."

There wasn't much else they could learn from Wormtail. In fact it was doubtful Voldemort had really planned on Wormtail kidnapping Harry. He never expected Harry not to come, and he certainly didn't expect him to survive . Most likely he'd only sent Wormtail to get him caught. There was nothing left to do except make sure Peter didn't escape before the Aurors came.

There was alot to be taken care of the next day. Witness testimony was needed against the death eaters. (Sirius muttered about how when the Ministry had actual death eaters they needed testimony and a trial, but when they had an innocent man they simply threw him in Azkaban.)

Later, they went to visit Lawrence at St. Mungo's. Harry was given permission to leave Hogwarts early since all the classes and tests were finished for the year anyway, and Tonks wanted to thank Lawrence personally. He was doing fairly well. Except for the bandage on his head there was no signhe'd been hurt. And they weren't Lawrence's only visitors. A pretty blond girl was there, and it wasn't hard to guess who she was even before Lawrence introduced her.

"This is Gewn Conliffe," he said. "Soon to be Gwen Talbot." He looked the happiest any of them had ever seen him when he said that, though Gwen scolded him a little.

"I shouldn't have agreed to marry you at all after you just ran off like that, leaving me not knowing if you were alive or dead or what was going on. If I hadn't finally decided to check here again I never would have found you."

Lawrence looked down. "I didn't think you'd exactly want to run away with a-"

"With a good man?" Gwen asked gently. "You were bitten trying to save someone else, and you were hurt this time saving someone again. And being bitten doesn't change who you are. You know the old poem. 'Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night-'"

"May become a wolf when the wolfsbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright," Remus finished. Lawrence rolled his eyes.

"Where did you here that one?"

"It was in an old muggle horror movie Sirius made me watch once," Remus answered. "Not a bad movie actually. First one I ever saw that showed the werewolf as the good guy."

Lawrence chuckled. "I'll have to see that one some day."

They stayed for a few hours, and it was good to see Lawrence was on the mend, both physically and emotionally. Gwen would help him and loved him, werewolf or not.

Voldemort being dead did not necessarily mean Harry was going to have a peaceful summer. It was hard to go anywhere without being mobbed by reporters. It was all the adults could do to make sure Harry got a little privacy. Finally though Harry agreed to see one person he'd rather not have met. He hoped by meeting Scrimgeour, he could use his influence for a little good. If he had to be famous, he might as well make the best of it. Scrimgeour had been an emergency appointment to the office after Fudge had been removed. After his cover up attempts, his connection to Umbridge, and employing several death eaters at the Ministry, just about everyone was demanding he be fired. But that didn't mean Scrimgeour was the best choice, and the new Minister was looking to Harry for support.

"I'm not going to make any speeches or anything saying I'm glad you're Minister," Harry told him boldly when they met at the Leaky Cauldron. "I haven't had any good experience with Ministry members in the past, and if you want my support, you'll have to earn it."

"And what exactly would I have to do?"

"To start with, you can undo the anti- werewolf legislation Umbridge pushed through," Harry said. "In fact you can try to make laws protecting werewolves from discrimination."

Scrimgeour paled. "But the way people feel about them- impossible. Nobody would stand for a Minister with pro- werewolf leanings."

The looks on Remus and Sirius' faces quieted him.

"You sound exactly like Fudge," Harry said in disgust. "Fudge loved his job so much he forgot to actually do his job. Shouldn't being Minister mean you make sure people have justice and safety? And the werewolves have earned that. I'm sure you know by now that Mr. Talbot was injured protecting Tonks, and the others who are friends of my dad's helped as much as they could."

There had been no way to hide the fact that so many werewolves had been at the Ministry, so they had acted like they were merely friends to keep Phoenix House a secret. Of course, Scrimgeour knew who the werewolves were since he had access to the registry.

"Without them," Harry continued, "Who knows how many death eaters would have escaped? They could easily have turned their backs on our side after the way they've been treated, but they didn't."

Scrimgeour sighed. "Anything else?"

"Yes. You can make sure dementors are never used by the Ministry again. They've caused enough trouble. And you can make sure what happened to Sirius never happens to anyone else. If someone's going to Azkaban, you'd better be sure they deserve it."

Scrimgeour finally said he'd see what he could do. Harry hoped he'd be true to his word.

Sirius and Alex wanted everybody to be there at their wedding, but that would be difficult once the school year started again and three months over the summer wasn't much chance to plan, so it was settled that the wedding would be the following summer. Alex teased Sirius that he wanted time to get out of itand everyone joked about the way he'd ended up proposing. They were all looking forward to seeing him settle down though. When Sirius heard that he said "Who said I'm settling down? I'm getting married."

Andromeda happily agreed to help with the wedding preparations. Remus of course would be the best man and Tonks the maid of honor. Soon though it looked like they would be in more than one wedding.

One day while Tonks was on duty and Harry was visiting Ron for the day, Mila asked "So, now that you're my dad and Tonks is my mum, I was wondering something."

"Yes?"

"Well, you really should be getting married soon shouldn't you, so we'll really be all one family?"

Remus choked into the tea he'd been drinking. Sirius laughed, and Mila winked at the man she now thought of as her uncle. So she'd been planning this. She wanted Remus and Tonks to be together just as much if not more than everyone else did.

"What's wrong, Dad? You love her, don't you?"

Coughing once more, Remus answered. "Mila, marraige is something people should think about carefully and be sure of.'

"So you're not sure about being with Mum?"

"Well, of course I am. But marraige would be something she'd have to agree to."

"Have you asked her?"

Remus shot Sirius a look, clearly wondering if his best friend was being a bad influence on his daughter. He couldn't help smiling though.

"We'll have to see about that."

AN: Thanks to all my reviewers for the last two chapters and thanks as always to Paddyandmoont. Hope I can keep meeting everyone's expectations.

The poem in this chapter is from the Wolfman, which as I've said is where Larry comes from. My little inside joke to include that.