AN:/ Hey guys, how's it hanging? Yeah… you're all pissed this took so long to get up, aren't you? (That's rhetorical, but you can spam me if it makes you feel better anyways). Regardless, this is the next chapter of "Harry Potter and the Day it All Changed" Hopefully it's not too confusing, and the names don't glitch out again, cause that really is an annoying thing. But, I digress that I will try—and most likely fail—to get faster and more proficient at updating! I make no promises though. Enough of me though, on with the chapter that you've all been so awesome about waiting for!

Disclaimer: No, I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters, locations, spells, etc, etc.

And all of a sudden Harry came to. No longer chocked by the locket, and no longer under the frigid waters, Harry gasped. He quickly inhaled oxygen into his lungs as even the bubble-head charm did nothing when you were strangled to aid that. After several long moments of gasping and coughing, Harry glanced around for his saviour. He came face to face with two large, green, tennis-ball like eyes and instantly knew his answer. "Dobby!" he exclaimed in shock.

"Oh great and wonderful Harry Potter! You're alive!" Dobby wailed, launching himself into Harry's arms, and balling into his chest.

Harry, uncertain what to do, slowly put his arms around the wailing elf, and replied, "It's okay Dobby, I'm alive…"he paused before everything that had just happened really sunk in and said with awe in his voice, "Dobby, you saved my life!"

He pulled back to look into Dobby's puffy eyes and said, "Dobby, I-I, thank-you. I thought I was going to die… but you, Dobby you saved me…!" With that Harry let out a relieved laugh and pulled Dobby into another brief hug. Several moments later Dobby was still blowing his nose in one of his socks.

"Oh great and wonderful Harry Potter, you mustn't thank Dobby for pulling you out! Dobby would never let anything happen to the great and wonderful Harry Potter if he could prevent it!" Dobby would have continued rambling but Harry cut him off.

"Dobby, please it's just Harry and thank-you truly." Harry smiled at the elf before continuing, "Not to change the subject, but Dobby… how did you save me exactly?" At this Dobby looked slightly confused.

"Dobby used his elf magiks to get Harry Potter out of the cold water and away from the dark one! Harry Potter musn't be angry with Dobby, but Dobby threw the nasty dark one over there…" looking thoroughly worried, Dobby shakily pointed towards where the locket lay on the ground, still twitching somehow.

Harry frowned at it before turning to Dobby, "I'm not angry, Dobby. How could I be? You saved my life!" Something else unusual about the circumstances then occurred to Harry. "Dobby, how did you know where I was?"

The hyperactive house elf was silent for a moment, looking away from Harry. "Oh great and wonderful Harry Potter, Dobby didn't mean to but when Harry Potter saved Dobby from his awful masters then-then Dobby's magiks tied themselves to Harry Potters…" the elf trailed off as Harry's eyes widened.

His first thought was 'Bugger. Hermione's going to kill me.' After which he looked at Dobby and said, "Dobby, I… I thought you liked being a free elf though?" he asked, unsure what to say.

Dobby turned a kind of darker colour Harry was fairly certain was a blush as the elf relied, "Dobby does like being a free elf Master Harry Potter sir, but Dobby can't be without a master…. His magiks would fade and Dobby would be dying then…" Harry was almost more startled by that fact than the fact he apparently had a house elf for the last five years without knowing it.

"Dobby," he began carefully. "Are you telling me that you need a master to survive? Is it like that for all house elves? Or did the Malfoys" Dobby winced at the mention of his previous masters' name but Harry pressed on. "Do something to you that made you need a master?"

Dobby shook his head feverently. "Oh no, master Harry Potter, sir! All house elves be needing magik from their ties to their masters to be living! Dobby thought all wizzys be knowing that…" the little elf trailed off clearly thinking about punishing himself for implying Harry didn't know something.

Harry took Dobby's thin arms into his hands and said, "Don't punish yourself Dobby!" Harry paused before deciding to try something, "Dobby? As your master I can give you orders, right?" he asked cautiously.

Dobby blinked before nodding. "Of course Master Harry Potter, sir, Dobby is being an elf and that is what elves do. We is following our masters orders."

Harry smiled a little, "Then I order you never to punish yourself. If you think you've done something that requires punishment then you are to come and find me and we'll talk about what is or is not justifiable punishment. Alright?"

Dobby seemed to hesitate for a moment, as though the mere idea was painful to consider before he nodded and then promptly leapt into Harry, bawling about how great and wonderful a wizard Harry Potter was. Harry's face instantly turned beat red.

Opting to try to move on, Harry stood slowly, and made his way over to the lake where the sword of Gryffindor lay. Glancing in, he saw its hilt glittering through the inky water. Harry shivered a little, but still knew he needed the sword. He didn't know why, but the sword of Gryffindor would always appear to a Gryffindor in need of it; that's what Dumbledore had told him, and Harry couldn't help but believe him.

Dobby had followed Harry over to the lake's surface and he spoke, "Master Harry Potter, sir, you mustn't be goings back into the dark place!" Dobby decreed voice high in alarm. Harry looked at Dobby and sighed.

"Dobby, I have to get the sword off the bottom of the lake…" he paused trying to think of how to elaborate. "I can't explain why exactly, I just… I know that I need it." He finished lamely. Dobby was regarding Harry in interest, before finally speaking his thoughts.

"Master Harry Potter, sir, if yous be needing the shiny stick, Dobby could be summoning it with elf magiks for him?" the elf suggested tentatively. Harry stared at the tiny elf thunderstruck.

"You can do that?!" Harry exclaimed. "Just summon the sword to you?" Dobby nodded as though this should be obvious, which made Harry slightly uneasy, but he pressed on regardless.

"Yes, sir, that is why Dobby being suggesting it." The house elf replied, large, green eyes staring up, unblinkingly at Harry. Harry felt rather stupid as he wondered why a summoning charm hadn't occurred to him. Forget asking Dobby to summon it, Harry couldn't believe he hadn't thought of the spell that had aided him so much in his fourth year.

Finally re-finding his voice Harry said, "If it's no trouble then, Dobby, would you summon the sword for me?" Dobby's mouth split into a wide grin as he replied in a happily, excited tone.

"Of course, Harry Potter, sir! It be being Dobby's pleasure, sir!" and, that said, Dobby simply snapped his fingers and the hilt of the sword flew to his thin hand.

Harry resisted the urge to groan at his own stupidity as Dobby extended the hilt to him. Thanking him, Harry took the sword and made his way over to the locket, still lying on the ground, twitching occasionally. It was time to see just what this thing could do.

(At Hogwarts)

Hermione Granger was NOT happy. She was stressing out beyond belief, and they still didn't have the first clue as to where Harry was! Hermione was beyond worried about him, she was bloody terrified! What if something happened or the death eaters caught him? Hermione could not fathom for the life of her, or for all her brilliance WHY the order made her, and Ron for that matter, return to Hogwarts! THEIR BEST FRIEND WAS MISSING AND THE ORDER EXPECTED THEM TO ATTEND CLASSES LIKE NORMAL?!

Hermione huffed to herself, once again trying and failing to think about anything else. Ever since Harry had left the Burrow all those months ago Hermione's thoughts had almost always gone back to him; her dreams plagued with nightmares of horrible things happening to him or memories of times she wished she'd done something different. 'Oh Harry,' she thought to herself helplessly. 'Where are you?'

Hermione's mood hadn't been helped any by Ron's seeming lack of concern for Harry's whereabouts. Logically she knew that Ron was worried about Harry, but the redhead was so emotionally dense, that he didn't recognize Hermione's anxiety, nor did he openly voice any worry of his own other than the occasional remark. Ron actually seemed to be taking their time at Hogwarts now as an opportunity to try to persuade Hermione to date him!

'Of all the ridiculous things,' Hermione thought to herself exasperated. 'He has to take interest in me only when Harry, our best friend is missing!' Honestly, she couldn't believe Ron was taking interest only now. Part of her wondered if it wasn't Harry's first letter that had given Ron the idea to be interested in her!

Looking out her dorm window at the snow covered grounds, Hermione shivered. The bright young witch couldn't believe how Hogwarts had fallen since Snape became headmasters. Torturing students! Never in her life had Hermione been so appalled, and she'd heard about the Dursleys! Having taken a leaf out of her raven-haired friend's book, Hermione was in no way holding back from voicing her opinions to the tyrants Snape called professors.

'Damn death eater bastards!' Hermione thought, hand unconsciously touching a cut on her right cheek—the handiwork of one of said 'professors'. Hermione wouldn't stop voicing her thoughts though. Not even when Ron tried to make her. She knew that it was what Harry would have wanted them to do, and it seemed Neville and Luna wanted the same. The usually quieter pair having been unusually bold in their opinions to the new 'professors'.

Hermione smiled a little thinking of how much Neville and Luna had grown and changed since even the previous year, but it soon turned melancholy. Luna, sweet, innocent, loving Luna, who had always been utterly unperturbed by the maliciousness of other students, was missing now… Forcibly, violently, taken away by the Death Eaters to God knew where… Hermione shuddered Neville had become even more resilient with Luna's disappearance.

The once nervous, quiet, bumbling young boy with round cheeks and an untidy appearance was now a strong, strapping young man. Neville's voice was unwavering as he stood up for the younger years, and his peers as well. He was now every bit the Gryffindor Hermione knew he could be, and Hermione would bet her edition of Hogwarts, A History that Harry knew it too.

Hermione felt sadness overcome her once more as her thoughts returned to Harry. Their brave, kind, loyal and modest to a fault Harry. He was out there all alone now… hunting for Horcruxes no one knew where and trying to save the whole world all on his own. A small sigh escaped Hermione's lips as she thought, 'It's just such a… a Harry thing to do. Taking all the responsibility on him even when he should know we would have gone with him!'

Hermione's brilliant mind became hazy as she remembered a time from years before. It had been a little less than three years now since the first time Harry had kissed her. He hadn't actually done it that many times—contrary to what the twins assumed—but each time had been special.

Honestly the first time Harry had kissed her that night on top of the astronomy tower…

Hermione was too shocked to even try and process what was happening. She recalled that she had been furious with her raven haired friend for taking her up so high, especially so late, but then Harry had kissed her and all at once her knees shook and the fact they were on the bloody astronomy tower left her mind entirely. Hermione remembered feeling her heart gallop faster than ever in her chest, and how the feel of his lips on hers had set her nerves ablaze.

A shiver ran up Hermione's spine at the memory. Harry had had such passion in his eyes that night. The beautiful utterly devoted kind of passion that is only read about in romance novels, and there it was in Harry's emerald eyes; directed at her. Hermione had been left breathless by those smoldering eyes before his lips even met hers. Those beautiful emeralds of his glittering in the pale, white moonlight, burning with a joie-de-vivre Hermione had rarely ever seen before.

Something about it had made her blood roar through her veins, and her heart hammer away like the beating of a drum. Hermione recalled how Harry's strong, nimble fingers entangling themselves in her bush of hair, and how her own hands had thrown themselves around his neck, independent of any thoughts she, herself, may have had.

He had tasted of spring and fresh air, but there was also something else… a fiery feel that drew Hermione in and made her forget herself for the moments they had been joined that way. When he had pulled away, the pair of them gasping for sorely needed oxygen, Hermione's head had been spinning. Hermione felt dizzy and intoxicated and as though as long as she had Harry beside her she would never need anything else.

Mind snapping back to reality, Hermione blushed, grateful no one was around. Honestly, it was bad enough when Neville or Ron caught her staring into space worrying about Harry, she didn't know what she would do if anyone caught her fantasizing about him! 'I can't believe he mentioned having kissed me in that letter!' she thought, embarrassedly happy.

Before she could continue that thought though, she heard a creak behind her and a gentle rap on the door. Whirling around Hermione saw Ron standing at the door, tall and gangly with an awkward look on his face as he asked rhetorically, "You're thinking about him again aren't you."

Hermione sighed softly as she returned her gaze to the window she had forgotten she was gazing out. It was growing darker out by the minute, and she could see how her breath had fogged the glass. "I can't help it," she began softly. "He's our best friend, and the Order is making us stay here when he's out there fighting for his life all alone…" Hermione trailed off unable to keep following that thought.

Ron, who had walked over to stand beside her, said nothing for several moments before replying, "He wouldn't want it, you know?" Ron caught her gaze as he continued, "Harry wouldn't want us to be worrying about him. He'd want us to be here keeping everyone, including us, safe from those bloody Death Eaters."

Hermione had no argument for that, logical or otherwise. There was no denying the truth in Ron's words, so—returning her gaze outside once more—she whispered brokenly as unshed tears collected in her brown orbs, "I know."

(With Luna):

Dilated blue orbs stared into the emptiness of the cell surrounding her. Her tangled, curly blonde hair matted with a variety of filths and grime, and her pale skin caked with similar dirt. Her clothes were filthy and worn; several points where threads were fraying out in all directions. Her eyes were surrounded by dark, bruise like circles from sleepless nights; her already tiny form made smaller from lack of proper food and clean water. Despite, or perhaps in spite of this, the petite girl sat up on the mockery of a chair, and smiled serenely looking about the same dimly lit room she'd been in for weeks now.

The man in the corner often made nonsense noises from where he was curled up, not that she paid him any mind, but she felt bad for him. 'The Nargles must be truly awful to him.' She thought idly to herself.

Luna Lovegood had been locked up in the dungeons of Malfoy Manor for three weeks now, but she was not afraid. When the Death Eaters came and rattled the door, or hurled un-aimed hexes and curses about, Luna did not so much as flinch. It irritated the hell out of many of the death eaters, but even when they hit her, the blonde had no outwardly visible reaction. Even the well feared Bellatrix Lestrange had been unable to yield any results from the whimsical girl held prisoner.

The reason for this fearlessness—unknown to anyone else save her late mother and her father—was that Luna was a seer. Not a particularly well versed or honed one, but a true seer. As a result of this, Luna was unafraid. Her visions had shown her that she would make it out alive—a hero come to save her. Luna did not know the identity of her saviour to be, but she knew that they would come, and that she would survive.

That was why Luna was able to wait so patiently for her hero. She knew she would make it out alive, and that these people would pay for their cruelty, and that was enough for her. Just knowing that she would live and get out somehow was enough for the young blonde who had suffered such harsh judgements in her short life.

A soft smile played on Luna's lips as she began to hum a tune to herself. She could here footsteps on the concrete stairs leading down to the dungeons, and recognized them to be the Malfoy heir's. This only caused her lips to twitch a tad more upwards as though this amused her. When the blonde haired boy, for he certainly couldn't be a man, arrived he was both unnerved and aggravated to see the younger Ravenclaw bloody smiling and humming! She was in a dungeon for Merlin's sake!

Deciding to release some of his agitation on her, Draco yelled, "What's wrong with you?! You're a filthy, dirty, mongrel of a girl, locked in a dungeon as bloody bait! No one at Hogwarts even cares that you're gone! And yet you sit here and hum? Even you can't be that mad!"

Luna did nothing, and gave no reply except for her smile to widen a little, much to Draco's irritation. What was it with these whack job friends of Potter's and being unable to realize there was something wrong with the picture?

Deciding to try a different route, Draco drawled, "They've caught him you know…" Draco gazed at his perfectly cut fingernails as he continued, "It's only a matter of time now before they start executing freaks like you. They might even start with your lot, being all friendly with Scar-head and all." Grey eyes glanced up as Draco looked for a reaction.

Nothing; Luna remained the same motionless statue she had been before, with that same eerily serene smile on her face… Like Luna was high on some type of potion or some such thing. It made Draco want to run away in fear, made him feel like an intruder in his own family's dungeon.

Giving up for now out of anger, he slammed his hands against the bars, eliciting a yelp from the dying old man curled up in the back, but nothing from the blonde on the chair. Not so much as a quiver. Turning on his heal, Draco stomped up the stairs. He would have to return to Hogwarts soon anyways.

Luna released the breath she'd been holding once Draco was out of ear shot, and allowed the tremble she'd been holding in to pass through her body. Luna was many things, wise, kind, unperturbed, peaceful, whimsical, and unwavering; however, even if they never saw it, Luna was still unable to completely remove the fear in her heart despite her prophetic knowledge. Not that the Death Eaters need know that, nor did Luna intend to let them see it.

(With Fleur and Tonks)

Fleur was silent to Tonks' surprise, which told the new mother everything she needed to know. Finally, Tonks shocked Fleur by chuckling in an amusedly exasperated way. "That boy…" Tonks muttered, running a hand through her now onyx hair.

Fleur's brow furrowed, leaving slight creases on her flawless skin as her blue eyes flashed her utter confusion. "You…"shaking her head, Fleur tried again, "You are not… angry zat 'e eez eenterested een me?" she asked, cursing her accent the whole time.

Tonks shook her head, "Harry's not mine anymore Fleur, I've known that since two years ago, and I admit it hurt watching Ginny throw herself at him, and it smarted a bit knowing Molly was so absolutely certain Ginny was the best thing for Harry… But this is different. Honestly? I feel bad for you." Fleur raised a delicate blonde eyebrow in misunderstanding.

Voicing her confusion Fleur questioned slowly, "You theenk that 'Arry eez zo… bad zat you feel bad for me?"

Tonks had snapped up, "No! No, no, no, no, no, no! That's not what I meant at all, Fleur! Harry's absolutely wonderful, loyal to a fault and a gentleman beyond belief—and he kisses like you wouldn't believe—" Tonks added coyly. "What I meant is that I feel bad for you, only finding out Harry loves you when he's gone off looking for Horcruxes, Merlin-knows-where-and-for-how-long; not to mention that you and Bill are engaged."

Fleur relaxed realizing her fault in comprehension. "Tonks… 'ow deed you get over eet? When 'Arry, 'ow you Eenglish say, 'broke eet off' with you, what did you do?" Fleur was genuinely curious, because at the moment, anything would help her in trying to understand the flailing hurricane of emotions in her heart.

Tonks was silent for several long moments, her hair and eyes unconsciously changing colour—much to the quarter-Veela's amusement—going from onyx hair and blue eyes to purple with grey eyes, blue with pink eyes, mahogany with green eyes, and so on until eventually it settled on Tonks' "usual" pink hair with grey eyes that contained flecks of violet within them. Tonks was apparently done thinking.

Tonks' pale pink lips pursed a little, before she finally spoke. Her voice was soft, but tinged with lingering pain and her eyes held hints of heartache in with their violet flecks, "I… I didn't actually get over it, Fleur. Not for a long time… Oh, bugger it," she muttered. "Honestly Fleur? I was heartbroken for months on end; I never even got to say my part in it, because Harry never gave me the chance to. I still haven't gotten to get my two galleons in. I was pretty pissed about that for a while too, that Harry didn't give me a chance to tell him my opinion, I mean. I knew, I still know, deep down that he was right, and that I do love Remus…"

Tonks shook her head and took a shuddering breathe before continuing, "It hurt so much though… I thought I was dying, I couldn't even properly morph for a few weeks—it was bad enough that Amelia, er, my boss gave me two weeks off— If it weren't for Remus, I honestly don't know how I would've made it through." Smiling slightly, Tonks looked down at her son still asleep in her arms, to which her smile turned loving. "If it weren't for Remus and now Teddy… I don't know Fleur. I honestly don't know what I would've done."

Well… that answer certainly hadn't been of much, if any, help to Fleur. Especially since Fleur couldn't tell Tonks that she was confused about her own feelings for Harry, even before his letter to her had come. Not with her wedding to Bill still on the horizon, or that Tonks had been Harry's previous girlfriend, and—if Harry and Tonks' stories were any indication—the pair had been quite in love.

Fleur gently grasped Tonks' hand nonetheless and smiled softly, "Thank-you, Tonks… I know this eez strange for you, but eet 'az been 'elping me a lot." For her part Tonks merely coloured slightly, before waving off Fleur's thanks as unnecessary.

(With Harry)

Apprehensively, Harry approached the locket where Dobby had thrown it on the ground. It was still thrashing and twitching randomly on the ground like something possessed in a horror movie, only this was real. Which only served to add to Harry's nerves; he hated this, this not knowing what was going to happen or whether the sword he now held in his hands would really help, but there was only one way to find out.

Given that it was the locket of Salazar-Bloody-Slytherin and made by He-Who-Has-the-Face-of-a-Snake Harry felt it was a fairly safe bet that Parseltongue would be required to open it. Taking that bet, Harry ordered Dobby to stay back no matter what happened, and took a sturdy, fighting stance.

Taking a deep, calming breath, Harry hissed in Parseltongue, "Open" And the locket did just that, before Harry could even think a huge whirl of smoky-mist erupted up from the Horcrux and began to change shape. Almost like a Boggart, the mist changed into an image Harry both resented and feared.

Before him were an extremely naked Fleur Delacour, and an equally naked William Weasley. The pair smiling at each other, Bill's smiles almost lecherous as he took in Fleur's form. And then Fleur's voice, a breathy quality to it Harry hadn't heard before, gasped out, "Oh Bille! You are zo much better zan zat leetle boy 'Arry will ever be. I mean who could want zomeone like 'im when I could 'ave you?!"

Bill smirked at Fleur, and started to kiss her passionately. All the while Harry felt pain and jealousy rage within him. Harry could feel his heart breaking, as though a hand were holding it and slowly closing into a fist. Squeezing the myogenic muscle until it was fit to burst but never quite letting Harry's misery end.

Harry wanted to look away, to tear his eyes away as Bill came down on Fleur and Fleur's gorgeous voice went higher as she begged him to go harder, but Harry couldn't. Something in him, or maybe around him, was preventing him from pulling his eyes away from the display. All the while Harry could feel the pain in his heart growing.

'How can she… Fleur, I love you, but you… How can you stand there and—right in front of me?!' all these questions began to filter about in Harry's mind, but suddenly something occurred to him. This wasn't real. Fleur and Bill weren't and could not possibly be really here. It was the Horcrux. This was just a sick, twisted, horrendous culmination of Voldemort's sick mind. Nothing more.

That in mind, Harry steadied himself, poised the sword of Gryffindor in a firm grip, and charged at the locket. An almost feral roar escaping his lips as he brought the deadly, sharp, gleaming blade down onto the spasming locket.

When contact was made, it was as though a small explosion occurred, sending Harry flying onto his backside several meters away. (1 m. = 3.2 ft.) Gasping in air, as his own had been thrown from his lungs on impact, Harry pulled himself up to sitting then standing to rush over and see the now smoking locket that had once been a Horcrux. No longer moving at all, the locket simply smoldered.

A grin broke onto Harry's face, and then a chuckle escaped his throat, growing into a laugh as it came. "I did it!" he gasped out, "I destroyed another one!" Doing a quick mental count, Harry was glad that this meant he had three Horcruxes destroyed, and he of course knew where he was… so that left finding three more; and since he had the sword now, which would destroy them the hunt had become slightly easier. Speaking of… Harry turned and saw the sword lying beside where he'd been thrown to.

As he walked over to it, Harry looked over to Dobby and grinned, picking up the locket by its chain. "One down Dobby!" he exclaimed relieved. Dobby's tennis-ball sized, green eyes widened impossibly, as a squeak of excitement escaped the elf.

"Oh, great and wonderful Harry Potter; you have triumphed again over the bad snake man!" Dobby chirped excitedly, looking completely star-struck.

Harry shook his head as he came to stand beside Dobby, "No Dobby, we destroyed the Horcrux and triumphed over Voldemort, together!"

Dobby's face lit up, and tears welled in his massive eyes as he launched himself at Harry once more, bawling happily. Utterly exhausted, Harry smiled and just hugged Dobby, glad to have a familiar face with him for once. Hunting more Horcruxes could wait until tomorrow, for now, Harry just wanted to sit with his friend.

(With Bill):

Bill Weasley frowned to himself as he returned home to Shell Cottage. It was quiet, but then again Fleur could be out or have flued over to her parents for an hour or so as she did occasionally. Bill shook his head happily; he still couldn't believe he'd ever gotten such a beautiful woman as his fiancé. He wouldn't change it for the world though; I mean how many blokes out there could only dream of having a girl like he did? And to top it all off, Fleur was not only beautiful on the outside, but she loved passionately too. One only had to watch her interactions with Gabrielle to see that.

Bill was worried about his lovely fiancé though. She hadn't been the same since July. Since Harry went missing, if he wanted to be exact. Bill was slightly worried by that because he was naturally protective of his woman, but Bill liked Harry and he knew that Harry wouldn't ever try and take his woman. Nor did he think Fleur would ever cheat on him with anyone, so Bill easily shoved those worries aside. What bothered Bill though was not so much his fiancés reaction, as it was his family's reactions to Harry at different points.

For someone who claimed to love Harry as her own son, Bill found his mum didn't seem too terribly worried with Harry—she was certainly worried, they all were—but she also seemed almost frustrated that Harry had left; annoyed, even. What bothered Bill more though, was an incident Fleur had brought up with him the other night, an incident from years ago when she had first met Harry.

Apparently, unknown to the rest of the Weasleys—and possibly to those that had still been at Hogwarts at the time—Bill's youngest brother, as well as several other boys from in Harry's dorm, had chucked Harry out. Not only chucked him out, but had done nothing to help Harry when the poor guy was being hexed, jinxed, cursed and pounded with rotten food. Bill had honestly felt nauseated when Fleur told him what his brother had been involved in.

Bill had decided he was going to have a serious talk about it with his family when he saw his parents, as well as Fred and George, this weekend. And it was not going to be pretty. Bill well and fully intended to bring not only Fleur, but Remus and Tonks along as well. And that meant that there would be at bare minimum four people on Harry's side in spite of the seemingly random behaviour his family had been exhibiting since Harry's departure.

Glancing around the living room, Bill noticed that Fleur had been looking through the photo album Harry had made for her again. Bill felt his lips twitch at the photo it was open to, in the photo, Fleur was fussing with his hair as his mum was puttering about, and his brothers were laughing at some joke on the other side of the table. His dad was there, asking Hermione something about some Muggle thing or another, and Ginny was looking at their father in exasperation.

'Back then everything was so much simpler… Happier too' Bill thought to himself wryly. He missed large family gatherings like that. Even more so the rare times that occurred now when Charlie was with them. It didn't matter now though, they were at war with You-Know-Who, and that meant that Bill had people to protect before they would have any more family get-togethers.

Bill jumped a little, and grasped his wand but then smiled as the fire crackled green and Fleur stepped out. Still deciding to air on the side of caution, Bill pointed his wand at her and asked, "What did you say the first time we met?"

Fleur—used to being questioned by this point in the war—replied simply, "Your 'air eez razzer long" Bill rolled his eyes but nodded. Fleur kept her wand trained on him though as she asked, "Where deed you propose to me?"

Bill smiled fondly at the memory, "At a quaint little restaurant called the Breakers a couple streets off Diagon Alley, after dinner but before dessert." He replied confidently, to which Fleur smiled and lowered her wand.

The pair embraced, and Bill murmured, "I missed you today. Where were you?"

Fleur replied simply, "Tonks' waz over earlier, I went back to zeir place weeth 'er to 'elp 'er get Teddy settled, because Remus eez 'aving 'iz "Furry-leetle-probleme" at zee moment." She made air quotes around the furry little problem bit with her fingers, having stepped back from Bill. Her antics never ceased to amuse Bill in that way, she was so responsible but still capable of such childishness.

As Fleur started to get food underway for dinner, Bill cleared his throat and said, "This weekend, when we go to mum and dad's… I was thinking maybe we should bring up what you were telling me about with Harry and the Triwizard tournament…?" he trailed off, letting the question hang in the air.

Fleur turned to face him, a look of surprise shining in her ocean blue eyes, "You would do zat?" she asked.

Bill gave her a crooked smile that she remembered had always made her flustered when they'd first started working together. "I would do it even if I didn't think you wanted me to, beautiful."

Fleur felt a tear coming to her eyes as she smiled at him, "Zank-you, Bill. I would appreciate eet very much eef you would do zat."

Bill nodded, "Consider it done then." He said, before stepping up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. Fleur tensed only a moment before relaxing into his familiar embrace. And yet, somehow having been thinking so much about Harry lately, and with the letter Harry had sent… Fleur couldn't help but feel guilty in her fiancés arms.

AN:/ So what'd you think? I hope it was good, because you guys seriously are amazing for sticking with this story so long and I hope you realize I appreciate you're not abandoning me despite my assholeishness. Anyways, as always flames, reviews, suggestions, questions, comments, favourites, alerts, etc. are always greatly appreciated! And I hope the grammar has been getting better but if not, seriously message me… but try not to be too cruel about it, cause my pride can only be killed so many times at once.

Next Time: Harry's still hunting, but is he going to find a Horcrux next or something—or someone—else entirely? Will Hermione, Neville and Ron manage to keep Hogwarts together? What about the other professors who aren't douche nozzels? Will Fleur talk to Bill about the letter from Harry? How will the dinner with the Weasley's play out? And a bunch of other stuff I haven't thought of yet!