Hey everyone,
So unfortunately I've been mostly busy with regular life, a few of my favorite games and a new story. And this time I am DETERMINED to finish the story before I post it, so you won't be seeing it here anytime soon.
However, because of that, I haven't really had the chance/time to get any writing done and so there might only be one or two chapters this month.
I do still have plenty of ideas of what I want to do with this story so it will probably reach chapter 60, maybe even 65 or 70 before I finish it.
Hope you enjoy,

Venquine1990


Chapter 53
Hogwarts And The Garden

9th of June 1996
Antechamber, Hogwarts
Dumbledore's POV

"Sirius, Remus!

Welcome back.

Oh, is young Harry not coming along?"

I ask, somewhat surprised when I realize that the two men are the only ones walking out of the shadowy corridor, one I would have associated with Tom and his Death Eaters only a year ago.

"He's in a meeting with Poppy. I'm sure Braig told you what happened to his magic before little Erethea was born?"

I nod at this answer, worrying over young Harry the same way I worried over the few rare – and yet also fortunate students who actually got pregnant while studying under my tenure as Headmaster these past 30 or so years.

"How are the new mother and child?"

Remus laughs at the question and answers: "I doubt it will surprise you to hear this, but Rhea is already quickly becoming the new favorite member of the entire community.

And, of course, both her parents, her grandfathers and her uncle/godfather are all very, very protective and constantly hover over anyone who wants to come and meet the little one."

The smile on my face, which had already been there since the two arrived, grows a bit larger as the man's words remind me of what life was like for the Order and others after a child like Ronald, Harry or young Neville was born.

Yet while their births usually symbolized the fact that there was still Light in the world and that our side still had something worth fighting for, I know that little Rhea's popularity is probably based on completely different facts.

Nonetheless it dearly warms my heart to hear this.

"Trunks, Albus?"

Sirius asks.

I nod and answer: "Everything that Snape destroyed and that the Unspeakables were able to restore.

I also took the liberty of placing the coffins of Lily and James inside, after ensuring that the Undetectable Extension charms were well-placed, of course, as I figured the sight of the coffins might upset young Harry.

And considering what Braig told me about his last stage of pregnancy, I wished to avoid that. And also, I admit, make up for the hardships I myself put the young lad through."

The two men nod, looks of grateful understanding on both their faces. What amazes me is that Sirius, while not quite resembling his 20 year old former self, hardly looks like the man he was only a mere few years ago.

The man's face is no longer gaunt, but healthy and even a little fuller than it has ever been. His eyes, which I had expected to cloud over with sorrow, are shining so brightly the grey in them almost resembles silver.

The biggest resemblance to his teenage self is his hair, which seems to have regained all the health and volume it had when he was the same age as his youngest son. Though upon closer inspection, I suddenly notice two differences.

The man no longer combs his fringe in such a way it covers his eyebrows. Instead, his fringe has been cut short, yet in an incredibly fashionable way that allows for a few strands to grow long enough he can tuck them behind his ears.

And the same difference is suddenly obviously visible in the rest of his hair as the hair on the left has been allowed to grow slightly longer than the hair on the right side of his head. And somehow this difference is length makes the man look more handsome than he did in his youth.

I turn from Sirius to Remus and again a sense of amazement overwhelms me.

Gone is the somewhat sickly and downtrodden looking man, who often talked more negatively about himself than the majority of the community did about his kind.

In its place is a man that could give Fenrir Greyback a run for his money and would make most other werewolves green with envy.

The man seems to have finally dyed the grey strands out of his light brown hair and has even dyed a few of them a lighter shade of brown and blonde. The new mix of lighter and darker brown, together with the man's healthier complexion, really gives a healthy sheen to the overall look.

And what surprises me even more is the man's posture. While he has often tried to portray himself as someone with at least some level of self-confidence, his inner demons were always visible to those who knew what to look for.

Yet now the man's shoulders are no longer drooping, he no longer tilts his head just slightly downward and his eyes aren't showing any signs of concerns, fears or worries.

The man stands tall and proud, yet the look on his face and the way he lets his upper body somewhat slightly rest on his lower still keeps the man from looking like an arrogant Pureblood or Blood Purist. The kind, gentle Remus Lupin of old – of England of the seventies, I suppose – seems to have become mixed with this new confident Remus Lupin of Radiant Garden.

The sight of these two men looking this healthy and strong fills me with very mixed emotions.

On the one hand, because they were so dear to me while they were still students and when we fought side by side against Voldemort, it truly brings the happiness of the smile on my face to the depth of my heart.

Yet at the same time, because of their past and because I watched over them as teenagers, all the way past the point of Lily and James' wedding – and even longer in Remus' case – I feel an irreprehensible sense of anger and jealousy.

Silently, within my own mind, I try to fight and squash this unfair emotion and at the same time I work my hardest not to let this show to the outside world. "Remus and Sirius don't deserve for me to be jealous at the fact that they found their happiness elsewhere." I reprimand my own heart.

Instead, I decide to distract myself and work on this troubled little bit of inner turmoil. "I have other news to share with you, gentlemen.

Just before the Unspeakables were able to finish their program, Snape did the impossible. He somehow managed to turn his own magic on himself.

A few months ago this statement would have saddened me, but seeing what he did, it fills me with nothing but satisfaction to inform you that Severus Snape has passed away."

I'm not sure if it's my apathy or the news itself that makes the men's eyes widen, but they widen nonetheless, before I continue:

"Thankfully, while Snape wasted most of his magic on ending his own life, Gerard was able to use the rest to restore James' body.

Apparently that was the reason Snape decided to take this drastic action. His revulsion for James made him so determined to try and get one over his rival, he decided to end himself before, in his belief, his magic could restore the damage it previously caused.

I won't deny it, gentlemen, a part of me wishes that his attempt had only partially succeeded and that the Unspeakables had killed him by draining him of the last of his magic, so he could watch the operation be successful in the end.

However, while Gerard's team checked to see if Snape had any organs that could be interested for their research, they threw the rest of him through the Veil of Death.

And the Ministry has also decided that the man, like many of the other criminals condemned for the Veil, wouldn't receive the honor of a grave.

I've also heard from Batsheda that she is writing a new version of Hogwarts a History and that she is currently busy interviewing as many of Snape's other victims as she can find.

Needless to say, the next edition will definitely show the man in all his horrible, selfish and delusional glory and he will only ever be remembered for these horrid crimes of his."

The men share a glance and then Sirius sighs and whispers three words: "Justice at last." The words make me smile at them both.

"One last thing that I wish to share with you before you return home, gentlemen.

On the day that I was contacted by Gerard and that Braig gave us the honor of meeting little Erethea through the call, I made sure to call Amelia and request a Wizengamot meeting.

It took some convincing, but she, Renée and a few others were able to convince the majority of the Wizengamot of something that some might call a drastic decision."

The two men look from each other to me and I ask if they know if any large and empty plot of land is available in the Garden.

Remus looks thoughtful while Sirius asks me why I'm asking this. I smile at the man and answer: "Because the Wizengamot agreed to allow you gentlemen to move all of the Potter graves to Radiant Garden, once space has been made available."

The two men gape at me and then Sirius asks: "But – but – the – the fire!"

I shake my head and explain: "It never reached the graveyard. The distance between it and Potter Manor was too great for Tom to be bothered with.

He more than probably would have cast the Fiendfyre curse on the place as well, but we of the Order arrived before he could get there.

And don't worry, Sirius, I understand your misunderstanding. I've been away from the Manor for so long, I grew to believe the same.

However, I went to the place shortly after Tom's death to – I guess – tell dear Charlus and Dorea that it was all finally over. I roamed through those horrible ruins and then, after I had managed to traverse that half-destroyed staircase to the first floor, I spotted the graveyard.

Needless to say, I instantly hurried there and tears leaked from my eyes when I realized my error in belief.

Afterwards I decided to wait for Gerard to keep me updated and when he informed me, I immediately took action.

The decision made at the meeting was, thankfully, the result. And now, the rest is up to you and the members of the Garden."

Sirius and Remus still seem awed and speechless by my explanation and Remus is the first to recover. He instantly tells me that he will discuss this with Master Ansem as soon as they've brought James and Lily and their treasures over.

I nod at the man, tell them I await their call, and bid them farewell as they levitate several trunks back through the corridor.


Okay, that happened,
And yeah, I guess I'm just going to make it part of my headcanon that, in his attempt to kill Charlus and Dorea, Voldemort also destroyed Potter Manor
Naturally that's not the case in To Read Into The Universe, but it's still a nice way to explain why Harry didn't have any grandparents growing up and why James and Lily lived in Godric's Hollow before they died.
So expect this storyline – or something similar – to pop up in other stories as well, probably both old and new stories alike.
You like?

Venquine1990