"Ginny Weasley...?"

The laugh was hard and scornful. "Oh well done Harry. I'm flattered. And after all these years. Imagine the great and powerful Harry Potter remembering insignificant little Ginny Weasley."

She'd changed, Harry thought. Always slender and athletic, she was older, thinner, harder. Her hair was the same stunning shade of Weasley-red, but shorter, expensively styled. Everything about her from her knee boots to her hair reeked of money. But who's money? Did she know who she was working for or was she someone else's puppet? Either way, she was strung out as tightly as a bow-string. Harry watched her wand warily. She glanced back toward the cave entrance, her vigilance not wavering for a moment.

"Bring her in"

Harry looked over her shoulder and closed his eyes for a moment, breathing deeply, jaw clenched, trying to dispel the red mist of rage that the sight of Natasha being dragged in, battered and bruised, clothes torn and hands shackled tightly in front of her had provoked.

Seeing his expression, Ginny smirked. "Really Harry, nothing changes does it. I see you still have a thing for redheads..."

Harry ignored her… "Tash. Are you alright?"

Pinned between Donnelly and Mason, elbows held so tight her feet barely touched the floor, she looked up at him, squinting through swollen eyes, in the dim light.

"Peachy"

"You're not going to get away with this Ginny. You do know that don't you?"

Another curse shot past his ear, and he winced - it had passed so close that the heat had scorched his cheek. No stunner this time, and she had meant him to realise this - to know that she meant business. Her voice when she spoke again was almost sickeningly sweet. "Well Harry, this little reunion has been very pleasant, but enough with the small talk. If you want your little girlfriend back in anything other than very small pieces I believe you have something to retrieve for me."

Harry cast a nervous glance back over his shoulder at the pulsing green light... he'd got this far on his mission, and couldn't stop now, but jumping into mysterious magical green lights was not an attractive prospect. "Ginny..."

"Now Harry - Impedimenta!"

"Finite!" As Ginny's spell pushed Harry back towards the fissure he felt it. Like apparition, the sudden irresistible tug at his diaphragm as he plummeted backwards the cave wall dissolving into mist, tumbling helplessly into nothing. The cave spun around him in a swirl of green and grey magic. He had just enough time to catch Natasha's wide-eyed, horrified gaze, before he was dragged backwards, falling into space. Echoing in his ears as he fell were the sounds of ricocheting spells – it appeared that his finite had worked - Draco had managed to get free of Ginny's hex.

Well done mate… thought Harry blearily before everything went black.

ooo0ooo

"Blimey Harry, that was some fall…. you alright?"

Harry tried to open his eyes, but the fall had knocked the breath out of him, and nothing seemed to be working properly. Giving up for a moment, he retreated back into the darkness, trying to assess his situation.

He was lying on his back, the ache in every bone testifying to the bruising force with which he had landed. But where had he landed? Not in the… he tried to recall the circumstances of his fall, but those memories seemed curiously muted, and difficult to reach. He was lying on warm grass, he could feel it under his cheek and his fingertips, but not under his palms.

Was he wearing gloves?

"Harry can you hear me mate?"

Male… he thought. Young too, and achingly familiar.

It sounded like…. Ron? No – not Ron. Squinting, Harry took a deep breath and tried again. This time he was rewarded by bright sunshine, strong enough to make him wince. The sky above him was the bright blue of a flawless summer day. He was warm – taking a deep breath he could smell fruit, an un-nameable sweetness. Warm grass and leather.

Leather?

Hand to his head, Harry tried desperately to focus on the cluster of faces looking down on him.

"What the fuck happened…?"

"Language young man! You'll be alright in a minute, just take your time. That was quite a fall you took" That voice was unmistakeable. He had heard it in dreams and nightmares, and once in the dark forest at the end of the world…

"Mum?"

Harry sat carefully up, aware of a number of hands and arms supporting him. Finally bringing his sight into focus, he looked around. And every rational thought fled…

"Oh my God…"

His parents were there. This wasn't a dream or hallucination brought on by the fall. They were really there, crouched in front of him. The first shock was how young they looked. Of course, they had only been in their twenties when…. but that thought slid away from him like mist in the sun, as he looked around in disbelief.

Sirius, Remus Lupin, George… no Fred, Cedric Diggory, like his Dad they were all clustered anxiously around him, and like him they were all dressed for Quidditch. Looking down Harry recognised with a pang of familiarity the leather gear he had worn after he had left school, on the odd occasion he had had time for a game.

His Mum's hands were carefully checking him for injuries. "Take it easy sweetheart. Come on. Come and sit on the side with me for a while, until you feel better" Numerous hands pulled him to his feet, enabling him to look around for the first time.

Harry blinked. Where was he? Lightly wooded grassland stretched as far as the eye could see, reaching snow tipped mountains at the farthest horizon. It looked like….

What did it look like?

Shaking his head Harry obediently followed his Mother back to the shade of the trees, allowing her to coax him down on the grass beside her, his head on her lap, her fingers carding gently through his hair.

"How do you feel now darling? Do you remember what happened?"

Mutely he shook his head, watching his father, Cedric, Sirius and Fred throwing a Quaffle back and forth through the leaves above him.

Lupin's voice answered, and Harry realised that he must have followed them to the shade. He looked so young, Harry thought. Not as he remembered him, greying, scarred and weary. Harry was very tired, warm and relaxed, and his Mum's fingers in his hair were very soothing. As he dozed, he listened to Lupin talking about how he, Harry had been playing Seeker, reaching for the snitch, he had over extended and fallen.

Rookie mistake thought Harry sleepily. Hardly surprising as he was so out of practice.

Why was he out of practice?

Harry frowned, watching the pattern of light and shadows playing over his Mum's hair, striking gold from the red. It reminded him of something. The scent of herbs and the sound of running water…

It was just a dream. What did dreams matter when he was Home.

Harry slept.

ooo0ooo

When Harry awoke his head was pillowed on what felt like a folded cloak. He frowned, still half asleep. Surely his Mum had been there. Had he been dreaming?

"Welcome back Harry. You've been asleep for ages, it's nearly supper time. His father's voice… Harry opened his eyes and smiled. "Hi Dad" He sat up, looking around. Aside from a few figures in the distance, the countryside around him was deserted. Sirius was seated beside his Father, while Remus was propped casually against the same trunk. Harry smiled. "Sirius, Remus… where's Mum?"

Remus held out a hand to haul him to his feet. "She's gone ahead, asked us to watch you till you woke up. Come on or we'll be late for supper."

It never dawned on Harry to question him. Chatting and laughing the four young men strode across the grass, following the tantalising scent of cooking food, and a flicker of firelight through the trees.

This was how it was always meant to be… thought Harry as he joined the throng of familiar faces seated at the long tables. They were seated in the open air, in a large clearing surrounded by towering trees. Somewhere he could hear music, pipes – or some kind of flute maybe, and drums. Perhaps later there would be singing he thought happily, reaching for bread. Further down the table he could see Ted Tonks, teasing his daughter and son in law, with Dobby beyond them.

"Wine Harry?"

Harry turned back to find Sirius still beside him, jug in hand.

"Yes please"

From the other side of the great fire, he could smell the tantalising smell of cooking meat… it stirred a memory in his mind. Another table, another red haired woman.

"No, normal is good. I don't get much practice with normal"

The firelight reflected in the red wine in front of him. Harry closed his eyes, food forgotten, chasing the memory that seemed too important to lose through the fog that seemed to obscure it.

Tash?

Eyes wide he looked up to find his mother's eyes watching him warily.

"Mum… What's going on?"

"Nothing sweetheart. Why should anything be going on?"

"Mum?"

With a reluctant sigh, she rose from the table. "Walk with me Harry"

Taking his hand, she led him to the edge of the glade, where they could speak in private. She had changed her dress, Harry thought inconsequentially. Earlier she had been wearing muggle jeans and a shirt. Now she was wearing a gown similar to the one that Tash had worn on….

The fog cleared just a little. "Natasha. How could I…? Mum. What is this place?"

She smiled sadly. "It goes by many names sweetheart. Tir Na Nog, the Otherworld, the Land of Eternal Youth, Valhalla."

"Heaven?"

"One place, many names darling."

"So am I dead?"

She was silent for what seemed like a very long time, watching his father joking with his friends as they ate in the firelight. Then she reluctantly shook her head.

"No Harry. No sweetheart, you're not dead. This is not your place yet – unless you want it to be."

Harry rubbed his forehead, confused… "So why am I here… and what do you mean – if I want it to be?"

"You can stay if you want sweetheart. We love you… we want you to stay – if it's what you want. No one could question your right to be here darling. You can stay here with us… forever."

He was tempted, so very tempted. His memories of his life before this place were fuzzy and indistinct – becoming more distant with every moment that passed. He could stay here, with his Mum and Dad, Sirius, Remus, Tonks, Fred. There would be no more fighting, no more bad guys… no more boy who lived.

He could stay here, in peace, and just be Harry for the first time in his life.

But there was… a girl… a woman and a man with pale hair. They were in danger, they needed him.

Tash … and Draco.

He shook his head. "There's a girl Mum? And bad guys… and all that shit… sorry rubbish"

She touched his cheek, eyes warm and loving. It made Harry's chest ache with a longing for all the time they hadn't had. "You like this girl" It wasn't a question.

"I… yes I think I do. You'd like her Mum. She's lethal with knives, guns or her bare hands, but she's really bright, kind – and funny when she puts her mind to it. Oh and she's a redhead too."

Lilly sniffed. "Oh yes. I've heard about your thing for redheads from Fred Weasley. You've been saving the world long enough sweetheart. You always have a choice you know - you don't have anything to atone for. You have a right to live your own life"

"I know Mum… I do. But I do have one more job to do first…." Bending he kissed her on the cheek. "I'm sorry. Say goodbye to everyone for me"

"Good luck sweetheart. And take care of yourself. I don't want to see you back here any time soon OK."

Stepping away from her, Harry closed his eyes, focusing his power, allowing it to build slowly within him, feeling it boiling through his veins.

This is not real. I do not belong here. The book the staff… Natasha, battered and bruised held hard by a man and a woman.

It hurt… he could feel the pull of their love, all those he had lost, and was losing again. The urge to return to them, to rest with them quiet and safe tore at him.

But this was not yet his time or his place.

Around him the Otherworld faded and he was falling once again.

ooo0ooo

"My congratulations Harry Potter. You have done well" The woman's voice was not his mother's.

Harry opened his eyes slowly, looking around. The Otherworld, the trees, the fire, his family and friends were gone and his mind was finally clear. He stood in a vast cave, with a roof so high that it was lost in the darkness. Around the walls were a number of torches which cast just enough light to illuminate the woman's figure standing at the other end.

There was no way in or out.

Harry had been caught in smaller spaces than this, but the absence of any kind of exit unnerved him. Particularly when he had no idea where he was, or if it was even possible to apparate out.

"Who are you?" He was pleased that he sounded more self-assured than he felt.

The figure walked slowly forward out of the shadows. She was dressed in a simple gown of what looked like unbleached wool. Tall and slender her black hair hung in a single braid down her back. As she approached, the torchlight flickered over a small, strongly boned face, softened somewhat by large long lashed eyes and a wide mobile mouth. "You are welcome Harry Potter. I am Vivianne, guardian of this place and that which it protects. In the long centuries of my guardianship, you are not the first to find the sea cave, and the way that it conceals, but none have succeeded in passing through the Otherworld. You are to be congratulated."

Hearing her name, Harry's face was suddenly wary. "Vivianne. The Vivianne - of the legends?"

She inclined her head. "I believe I may be yes"

"The stories don't show you as a friend to Merlin. The tales tell of how you imprisoned him in…" he paused and looked around wide eyed. "… in a cave. Is he here?"

"Alas no. I have waited here through the centuries alone. The resting place of… King Arthur as you would know him, and my Lord Merlin is lost in the darkness of history. I did attempt, in my pride and foolishness to trap my Lord in my youth, but powerful though I am, I could never had succeeded. This vigil that you see is my penance for that betrayal of one who was as a father to me."

"So you knew Caron…. sorry Alun"

Her face softened. "Indeed. For as long as I served and trained under my Lord, Alun was there at his right hand…"

"….. and when the time came it was Alun that brought Merlin's greatest treasures to your care."

"Indeed. And now the time has come for me to pass them to other hands. But beware Harry Potter. The treasure I pass to your care is a source of tremendous magical power. Whatever befalls, you must prevent it falling into the hands of those who would use its power for evil. Do you understand?"

Harry's face was sombre. "You do realise that those very evil doers are in the sea cave as we speak. Given the option, I would prefer to leave the staff and book here under your care, or failing that, to take it to the Isle of Avalon, where it can be safe in the care of the Lady Branwen, but the one that is looking for is both clever, resourceful and magically skilled. I cannot assume that, should she follow me through the portal, she will not find her way through the Otherworld to this place…. Therefore I have to remove it, even though that will also put it at risk."

Vivianne nodded gravely. "Even here Harry Potter, your name and reputation speak of your courage and your honour. This is not a trust to be passed lightly – but I pass it to you with a clear mind. Do with it as you will."

Harry bowed. "Thank you Lady Vivianne. Now if you will excuse me, time is pressing. I have already delayed far too long. On the other side of the portal my best friend and my…" he remembered Draco's words that morning and smiled "… and my lady fair are battling our enemies. If I may take the treasures, I must return to them." He looked around the cave, but even in the torchlight he was unable to see anything that could be described as a book and wizard's staff. "err… where?"

She smiled, seeing his confusion. "The treasure may not be carried between realms, to do so would destroy you. Instead it will be released by your passage through the portal."

Harry nodded tersely. "Thank you."

"Good luck Harry Potter, and may the blessings of the Goddess go with you" With a wave of her hand an area of the cave close to them shimmered a bright green/gold, completely different to the writhing darker green in the sea cave.

Harry gave a final bow. "Goodbye Lady Vivianne, and thank you again"

Hefting his wand, Harry Potter took a moment to gather himself, before squaring his shoulders and stepping through the portal.

ooo0ooo

He crash landed into a scene of utter chaos. He had only a split seconds to register Donnelly sprawled across the floor, nose and mouth blooded, eyes blank and empty. Close to the entrance of the cave Tash, hands still chained was slugging it out with Mason, who clearly had a skillset all her own if the Russian's multiple brand new injuries were to be believed.

Draco was having a worse time of it having clearly been hit several times by Ginny's curses. Scarlet and green light illuminated the entire cave as both of them struggled for dominance, but Draco was clearly weakening, sinking to his knees, wand hand shaking visibly, blood streaming from his ears and nose. He was a powerful wizard remembered Harry but his experiences in the War had weakened his reserves significantly. Stepping forward, Harry blocked Ginny's spell easily

"I've got you Draco."

Draco could barely summon a nod of gratitude before collapsing, barely conscious. Curses flew between Harry and Ginny as they circled one another. Harry spared only a moment's concern for Natasha. She was, as he had said so often, the most lethal woman he'd ever met, she didn't need his help. His job now was to ensure he finished this with Ginny – one way or the other.

"Come on Ginny…" he circled around her, drawing her attention away from Draco "… you know there's no way this is going to end well for you don't you"

Ginny laughed, a hard taunting sound, nothing like the girl he remembered. "The great Harry Potter… How can poor little Ginny Weasley beat the great Harry Potter, the boy who lived, the saviour of the wizarding world…?"

"How did this happen Ginny? Tell me, how the girl that fought against Voldemort ended up as HYDRA's pet witch? How are HYDRA any better than the bastards that killed one of your brothers and scarred another for life? How would George feel about the organisation you've whored your soul and your powers to? How did Ginny Weasley of Dumbledore's Army become HYDRA's Araposa? What does it even mean?" The curse that whistled past his ear would have finished him if he hadn't managed to avoid it, Harry thought. She was faster than he remembered, and stronger, but she was also desperate and angry, which made her careless. This could work in his favour, but it also made her as dangerous as a cornered cobra.

Ginny rolled her eyes but the stream of spells never broke or even hesitated for a moment, in spite of Harry's best attempts to probe her defences, looking for a weakness.

"Portuguese Harry dear, a raposa is the fox in Portuguese. Would it kill you to attempt to learn another language at some point in your illustrious career?"

"Oh of course. Your rich boyfriend... let me guess... who worked for HYDRA... was Portuguese. I suppose that was your pet name. How sweet."

Ginny shook her head, glittering grief clearly visible in her eyes. "No. Agostinho was Portuguese, but he wasn't HYDRA. I met Sunil when he came to stay at our villa on the Algarve, and fell in love. It was Sunil who recruited me into HYDRA. He was fascinated by me... had never seen anyone quite like me…"

Behind her, Natasha choked back a laugh as she landed her trademark roundhouse kick to Mason's jaw, sending her reeling backwards into the rock wall, amused in spite of their dire circumstances. "Oh God no... You're one of Bakshi's women…"

Ginny whirled, white with fury, Harry forgotten, light flashing from her wand, ripping a gash in Natasha's already battered face. "I am not one of Bakshi's women… He was mine… I loved him and he loved me." The Russian winced as the blood ran down her face and into her eye, but made no sound, refusing to give her the satisfaction. Behind her, Mason stirred slowly, spitting teeth and blood with a groan. With barely a glance, Natasha smashed her manacles into the side of the Englishwoman's head and she collapsed limply back against the wall of the cave deeply unconscious.

Oh well done Tash…. With Ginny's fury entirely focused on spitting fire and fury at Natasha, Harry saw his moment. But intense magical combat, following on from his trips between the portals had taken more out of him than he had anticipated. Breathing heavily, he took a moment to gather himself first - and nearly left it too late. Behind Ginny the crack in the wall that had housed the portal was now glowing with a curious silver light. Outlined in the light he could see the book and staff. Oblivious, Tash was busy distracting Ginny to give him time, but Harry knew that even her strength wouldn't last much longer.

"Don't flatter yourself sweetheart." Natasha gasped, wearily. " He was young, charming and handsome and HYDRA made use of that shamelessly for recruiting purposes. He was also their leading expert on brainwashing. Don't forget that brainwashing takes many forms, and not all involve torture, drugs or even mind control spells."

"I was not brainwashed….tricked…" sparks flew uncontrollably from Ginny's wand, and red-gold light flickered strangely around her, as though her magic was leaking out of the pores of her skin. Her voice was now shrill and shaking slightly with fury "… nor was I under a spell. I am an agent of HYDRA and I did it for HIM. SHIELD killed him… and now, finally I'm going to... Avada Ke…"

There was a flash and the light went out in Ginny's eyes. Over her shoulder Natasha saw Harry leaning wearily against the wall, wand in shaking hand. Before his horrified eyes Ginny's lifeless body lurched backwards, straight into the silver glow that emitted from the crevasse.

With an ear splitting roar, the crevasse exploded.

This was becoming a habit thought Harry sourly as he squinted to open his eyes, head throbbing agonisingly. As the dust settled, ears bleeding, head spinning he finally manage to lurch to his feet, seeing with relief that Tash and Draco were also beginning to rise. Ginny lay against the opposite wall of the cave, the streak of thick bright blood down the rock and her sightless eyes told their own tale. Harry closed his eyes for a moment, remembering the girl with the blazing look in her eyes, kissing him in the middle of the Gryffindor common room, the day they won the Quidditch Cup. I'm sorry Ginny...

Above his head, something creaked ominously jolting him abruptly back to his present situation.

The book and staff…. he had to secure them.

Legs shaking uncontrollably, almost too tired to put one foot in front of the other, Harry dragged himself back to the now much wider crevasse where the book and staff were still visible through the silvery smoke.

The floor of the cave shifted sickeningly beneath his feet and Harry froze in horror as above him, the roof of the cave started to collapse….