On the morning of the last day of term, as everyone was leaving the castle for the summer, Harry and Ginny paused in the common room to draw their wands and cast the Wand-Lighting Charm.

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked. "It's not dark in here."

"You didn't tell her yet?" Ginny asked Harry.

"I thought you were going to."

"I thought you already had. Did you tell Ron?"

"I meant to. He won't be as excited as Hermione anyway."

Ron said, "It's got to be more exciting than this debate."

Harry said, "Fair point. Let's have a chat."

The group found a private corner, and Harry and Ginny gave a quick summary of their talk with Lupin about wandless magic and the Trace, along with the list of precautions he'd impressed upon them.

Ron asked, "Don't you have to be almost at Dumbledore's level to do anything useful with wandless magic?"

"It's hard, but not that hard," Harry said. "At least according to how Lupin explained it."

Ginny admitted, "Lupin thinks I might have an advantage because of my thing with setting accidental fires before I got control of it. We should all at least try, though."

Ron shrugged and drew his wand. "Lumos."

Meanwhile, Hermione had been listening in silence the whole time.

Ginny turned to her and asked, "Alright, Hermione?"

"I can do magic over the summer?" she asked, her eyes wide.

"Well, you can at least try."

Hermione lunged forward and grabbed Harry and Ginny in a crushing hug. "Thank you so much for sharing this with me!"

"Oof," Ginny said. "Love you too, but we still need to show you the wanded version of the Summoning Spell, so you can get a feel for it. And you need to cast some other spell with your wand, in case anyone checks."

"Oh! Right." Hermione let go of them and drew her wand to briefly light up its tip. After taking care of that, she told them, "I already know the Summoning Spell though."

"What? Since when?" Harry asked.

"We had a whole week between taking our last exam and getting our grades. What was I supposed to do, just sit around worrying how I did? I chose to use my time productively, by getting started on next year's curriculum."

"Of course you did."

They showed Ron how to cast the Summoning Spell, then headed down to the carriages which would take them to Hogsmeade Station.

Ginny had her arm looped through Harry's. Her habit of leaning against him, keeping a hand on his arm, or making contact in other ways had grown more pronounced as the school year drew to a close. Despite what she'd told him down by the lake, he could tell she wasn't looking forward to them spending the summer apart.

Harry realized how much he would miss the contact himself. What started as a way for Ginny to ground herself in reality as she recovered from Riddle's mind games had become something he relied upon as well.

Soon after they boarded the train, a tiny gray owl flew in through the window with a letter for Harry. This turned out to be a message from Sirius letting Harry know he'd see him soon. The letter also said Ron could keep the owl as a replacement pet.

Ron picked up the bird in the palm of his hand and looked at it skeptically. He held it out to Crookshanks, and asked, "Is this thing actually a wizard in hiding, or secretly evil in any other way I should know about?"

The owl fluttered nervous wings as the cat sniffed it, but didn't try to fly away. Crookshanks signaled his approval–or at least indifference–by lying down at Hermione's feet and curling up for a nap.

Harry said, "I guess no attack means all clear? By the way, the letter says he doesn't have a name yet."

Ginny said, "He looks like he should be called–"

"Oy!" Ron objected. "I'll name my own bloody owl."

"Sorry. Jeez. What are you going to call him then?"

Ron lifted the owl for a closer inspection. He told the bird, "Your name is 'Wronski'."

Wronski fluttered his wings in acknowledgment.

"What in the world is a Wronski?" Hermione asked, prompting the other three to tell her all she could ever want to know and more about the famous Seeker, and the diversionary maneuver named after him.

While on the subject of Quidditch, Ron said he thought his father could get tickets to the Quidditch World Cup. He suggested Harry and Hermione should go to the Cup with them, then stay at the Burrow until the start of school. When Harry reminded Ron of his plans to spend August with Sirius and Lupin, Ron hesitated, but agreed to see if his dad could get two extra tickets.

As the train got underway, Harry tried to view the upcoming summer in a positive light. Thanks to Ginny, his time with the Dursleys would be tolerable if not pleasant, and he at least had things to look forward to in August–assuming nothing else changed.

~*~

As the train pulled into King's Cross Station, Hermione urged everyone to keep up their Occlumency practice over the summer. Harry and Ron were less than enthusiastic, but Ginny backed her up on the importance of continuing to practice.

They disembarked, said their goodbyes, and crossed over to the Muggle side of the station with their luggage. Harry spotted his Uncle Vernon and started towards him.

Vernon greeted him with a glare and a gruff order to hurry up and get moving.

Harry found himself wishing it could be Sirius meeting him there instead, and sighed. He thought he'd gotten over such useless thoughts years ago, but then Sirius had to show up with all his promises.

Vernon began to complain about how infernally hot the station was.

Harry thought the temperature was fine, but Vernon had turned red and started to sweat. This was his uncle's typical reaction to any form of exertion, but he'd just been standing still waiting for Harry. Actually, now that Harry looked again, not so much standing still as swaying unsteadily on his feet.

Harry glanced back at his friends. While none of them had friendly looks for Vernon, Ginny had a distinctly focused look, and her lips were moving. She seemed to be getting started right away on her wandless magic practice.

He wasn't sure how far she might take whatever she was doing, or if even she'd know until after she'd already done it. Part of him was curious to find out, but he didn't think letting her murder someone in the middle of a train station full of witnesses was a good idea. Vernon wasn't the picture of health on his best day, so it might not take much.

Harry suggested to his uncle that it might be cooler outside, and tried to hurry him along as best he could while also dealing with his luggage. He took one last look back and waved to his friends before they disappeared from view.

Vernon made a quick recovery after escaping from Ginny's sight, and in no time at all was feeling well enough to yell at Harry for telling him what to do.

The Dursleys were their usual charming selves during the car ride to Privet Drive. They gave him an earful over having to make a special trip just to pick him up, though he could see by the heaps of bags filling the car that in reality they'd spent the day shopping.

Harry made a casual mention of his godfather who'd escaped from prison, which helped quiet them down, but he hoped they'd demand he make them cups of tea as soon as they got home. Ginny had come through with a new supply of Draught of Peace, and he intended to put it to good use at the first opportunity.

~*~

As Ron watched Harry disappear from sight with his foul uncle, Ginny made a sudden movement next to him. He looked over to see she'd grabbed the amulet Bill had given her and was clutching it, her eyes closed, as she began to take slow, deep breaths.

"Alright there, Gin?" he asked.

"Give me a minute, will you? This trunk is bloody heavy."

He waited for her breathing to level out, then said, "Sure seems like you've been dealing with something heavy. Have been for a while now."

She opened her eyes to glare at him.

"Harry's uncle wasn't looking so good," he remarked.

"Yeah, I noticed that."

"I almost said he wasn't looking so hot, but that wouldn't quite be true, would it?"

"It'd be a real shame if he just keeled over."

"You know that won't get Harry out of there. It's his mum's family that–"

"I know!" she snapped. "Let's go."

She gave the station trolley bearing her trunk an impatient shove to get it rolling–which took no great effort on her part, Ron noted, despite her earlier complaints about its heaviness–then hurried off to catch up with the rest of their family.

Ron followed her, wondering if he'd put off talking to her for too long.

He'd told Fred and George what she'd tried to do to Pettigrew, soon after it happened, but the three of them agreed to wait until they got home to bring it up with her.

Ron knew he couldn't handle this on his own, but he'd put a fair amount of thought into who he could tell. Ginny would be livid if he brought their parents into it. Their dad was one thing, but Ginny and their mum could set each other off over far smaller issues than whatever this was.

And of course going to their parents would be the first thing Percy would do, which was just one of the reasons to cross him off the list.

Ron had filled in the whole family on everything he'd learned about Pettigrew, figuring they all had a right to know what sort of wizard had been secretly living in their house for years. But aside from telling Fred and George, he'd kept his mouth shut about what Ginny had tried to do to Pettigrew before Hermione pushed her wand down.

If only Bill were around. Or even Charlie, if you could get him to come in from the woods long enough to have an actual conversation. But Fred and George were what he had to work with, and to be fair, they'd given him good advice on putting things right with Hermione.

To think he'd almost lost a friend like Hermione over a rat that turned out to be a Death Eater. Maybe Ginny had the right idea after all. But no, this wasn't about what Pettigrew deserved. What mattered was making sure Ginny was okay.

He knew Hermione and Harry had both talked to Ginny about that night, but neither of them truly understood the lingering effects Dark magic could have on someone. They hadn't grown up hearing about people–relatives even–who fell into darkness, and wound up in Azkaban or worse. Although a Dark wizard had wrecked Harry's family, Harry didn't find out the truth until years later, which didn't seem quite the same.

For that matter, Ron's mum was sure to have plenty to say about Harry spending time with Sirius Black. The man hadn't belonged in Azkaban, but that much exposure to Dementors had to do a number on anyone's head, guilty or innocent.

Ron had his own reservations, not that he could say anything to Harry, with all the hopes his friend had pinned on his godfather. But Ron remembered Black standing over his bed, slashing a knife around in the middle of the night. And on a later night, the way he'd acted towards Pettigrew.

Then again, Lupin and Hagrid had been scary that night too, in ways Ron never would have expected. As had his own sister.

He didn't blame Ginny for hating Pettigrew. He felt the same way, and thought the rest of the family did too, for the way he'd invaded their lives, not to mention his past crimes. But the way she'd been so ruthless in acting on it seemed like one more ominous sign of how much anger she'd brought back from the Chamber with her.

His family had no shortage of people with a temper, but usually you yelled at each other and then walked away, and the anger would burn itself out, more or less. Then you'd have a period of time when you weren't sure if you were still meant to be angry or not, but you didn't want to back down first, because that would be like admitting you were wrong all along, which would give the other person an opening to yell at you some more if they were still sore about it. But in the end you found a way to smooth things over, and everything would go back to normal. That's how things were supposed to work at least.

That's not what Ginny was doing. She acted like she was clinging to her anger, hording it like a dragon with her gold. Though he was pretty sure Charlie once told him real dragons don't actually do that, so maybe more like she was saving up fuel to build a huge fire.

Their mother picked them up at the station, complaining about their father getting called into work on a Saturday because of some screw-up with arrangements for the Quidditch World Cup, which required everybody at the Ministry to pull extra shifts.

When they arrived home, Percy tried to convince their mother he should Floo over to the Ministry to lend his assistance, though he hadn't even started his job there yet. She wouldn't hear of it, not when she'd just got him home again.

While they were arguing, Ginny slipped away to the stairs. Ron exchanged a significant look with Fred and George, and the three of them followed her up to her room.

She turned and shot them a questioning look as they filed in behind her and shut the door.

Fred began with, "Ginny, we want to talk to you about what happened with Pettigrew that night."

Out of habit, she looked to George for his follow-up, but all he added was a nod of agreement.

"Must be important," she said, "if the two of you are getting to the point this quick."

Ron said, "We need to talk about what you wanted to do to him."

"And what was that?"

"You're going to make me say it?"

"Looks like."

"You were going to kill him."

"I can't believe you ratted me out."

"Let's leave rats out of it," Ron said with a grimace. "I only told these two. I haven't told mum and dad–so far. If you talk to us, maybe I won't have to."

"Ron was right to come to us," Fred said. "We let you down last year, by not paying attention to what was happening to you. We're not going to let that happen again."

Ginny said, "Don't worry. I'm not possessed again. When I pointed my wand at Pettigrew and started to cast that spell to roast him, that was all me. Thanks, guys. Good talk."

"Ginny–" George began, but she cut him off.

"I'm not about to go on a killing spree against innocent people or anything, but I'm not staying out of the fight, even if it gets bloody. I don't think any of us have much choice anyway–not with how Riddle keeps finding his way into Hogwarts. Not to mention who knows how many followers he still has out there. Harry certainly doesn't have a choice, and I'm not abandoning him."

"No one is talking about abandoning Harry," Fred said. "You don't abandon family, which Harry pretty much is by this point. But the fact you just don't do that is also why we're not letting you out of having this conversation."

"What are you talking about then?"

The three brothers exchanged looks. Ron answered, "Just don't… drift away from us again."

"I won't. I know what I'm fighting for. Who I'm fighting for."

George said, "And if you feel like you need to set someone on fire, at least get advice from your family and friends first. Merlin, there's a sentence I never expected to say to my little sister."

Ron said, "You never would have had to, before the Chamber."

Ginny said, "Maybe I am different since I came back from that Chamber, but I'm still your sister. If anything, I have a better understanding now of what that means."

"Which is?"

"It means you stop anyone who threatens your family or friends, no matter what it takes. It doesn't mean I'm going Dark, or whatever you're all worried about. I'm hardly the first member of our family to go to war with Riddle."

Fred said, "Uncle Fabian and Uncle Gideon were adults, and it didn't exactly work out well for them. You just finished second year."

"I know, and I'm not going to go looking for a fight with Death Eaters, let alone Riddle. But if any of them show up at Hogwarts again, or right here in our own home for that matter, I mean to be ready to make them regret it."

The brothers looked around at each other. Fred said, "I guess that's as reassured as we're going to get."

"I guess," George agreed. "Group hug?"

"I'll grab Ron. You get Ginny."

"Sure, stick me with the harder job," George complained, already moving towards her.

The twins snatched their younger siblings up off their feet before they could dodge away, and brought them together in the middle of the room, ignoring their sputtered protests.

Fred and George hugged Ron and Ginny between them in a brief embrace, rubbing their heads to muss up their hair. Despite Ginny's complaints and (non-magical) cursing, she couldn't have minded too much, as no one caught on fire.

At that point, they realized they'd been out of sight for too long. Their mother would be wondering what they were up to, so the four of them made their way down to the kitchen to show their faces.

~*~

When Harry and the Dursleys reached Privet Drive and entered the living room–Harry weighed down with as many shopping bags as he could manage in his first trip in from the car, the others with their hands empty–they stopped short at the sight of a man in finely-tailored robes lounging comfortably on the sofa, his dragon-skin boots propped up on the coffee table, a wand in his hand.

Harry was as surprised as the others. "Sirius!"

"Hey, kiddo. Told you I'd see you soon."

"How dare you?" Vernon bellowed. "You're one of those freaks!"

Sirius waved his wand and Vernon fell silent, though his mouth continued to move as he tried to shout his way through the spell.

Sirius brought his feet to the floor and stood. Harry dropped the shopping bags and crossed the room to greet him, as Sirius stepped around the table to put his hand on Harry's shoulder.

Sirius met his eyes and explained, "I told Dumbledore the only way I'd agree to you staying here was if I could visit. I've decided to interpret that agreement rather broadly. I'm moving in."

Harry stared at him. "You want to live… here? With them?"

"Wouldn't be my first choice, but I promised you could live with me. That means if you have to live here, then I'm joining you. I've had worse accommodations. Speaking of which, is there a spare bedroom for me, or do we need to have another room magically stuck on somewhere?"

Petunia made an odd squawking noise at this, but Sirius shot her a look, and she fell silent.

Harry said, "There's a guest room. I have a feeling Aunt Marge won't be visiting this summer."

"It's settled then. But I've been terribly rude in failing to introduce myself."

Sirius turned his cool grey eyes to the Dursleys, and gestured to himself. "Sirius Black–dangerous wizard, escaped maniac, and Harry's proud godfather. No part of that description bodes well for you, if you step out of line with either of us."

"You," Petunia spat. "I remember you now. You were a friend of that James Potter. It's no wonder you wound up on the wrong side of the law."

"Petunia. Charming as ever. Since you brought it up, let's establish a few basic facts, so we can avoid any unpleasant misunderstandings. I've settled my… difference of opinion with the magical authorities, and they've seen to it that the Muggle authorities are no longer interested in me either.

"That means there's no one you can appeal to, to try to get rid of me. I suppose you might cause me some minor annoyance, if you really set your unimaginative little minds to it. That would go poorly for you. I tend to hold a grudge, and I promise I can be a much greater source of trouble for you than you could ever hope to be for me."

Sirius focused on Vernon. "I expect things would go the worst for you. The magic that protects Harry while he's here is bound to his mother's bloodline. Your blood has no value, so it will be no great loss if a great deal of it should happen to get spilled all over these ugly carpets."

Petunia made a soft whimpering noise, and Vernon's mouth stopped its silent motion and snapped shut. Dudley had been staring at Sirius, but chose that moment to turn to Harry. Incredibly, he seemed to expect Harry to step in to help them. Harry looked away from him.

Sirius went on, "But it needn't come to that. Harry and I will be going out a lot, so we won't even be seeing much of each other. I think if I had to stay cooped up here, I'd go absolutely mad, and no one wants that. Trust me."

He paused to study them.

"I suppose I should offer a carrot to go with the stick," he said, waving his wand for emphasis, causing the Dursleys to flinch. "Here's what I'll do for you, as a token of good will. When Harry and I are coming and going, we'll generally Apparate in and out. But if I do need to step outside, I'll use a disguise to avoid awkward questions from any neighbors who might recognize me from your newspapers and such."

He grinned. "Want to see my disguise? Watch closely now. I'll show you a trick."

Sirius shifted his form with practiced smoothness, and in moments an enormous black dog was taking up a startling amount of the room's available space. The Dursleys cried out and stumbled back into the far wall.

The massive beast lunged at them, barking and snarling and snapping.

Sirius shifted back into human form, and laughed. "Ah, the looks on your faces."

He turned to Harry. "Glad we got that sorted. Want to show me my room? Then we're going out. Anywhere you want to go. This is going to be an awesome summer."