Chapter 5: The ride back home.

The Knight Bus (Aug 13-1994)

Harry didn't stop until he had put a good few miles between their prison and themselves. Nor did he attempt to touch anything but the steering wheel and the two pedals which turned out to be the accelerator and the brake respectively. The result was that the Knight Bus moved like any other ordinary buses. It seemed that its special characteristics were entirely dependent upon its varied and incredibly confusing array of buttons and dials on the dashboard. When he was sure they were away from any immediate danger, he stamped the brakes on. The Knight Bus came to a screeching halt. Harry could see nothing but snow and darkness outside. They were in the middle of nowhere.

He turned to look at the others. He could see Stan under one of the beds, cowering. Fleur and Jasmin stood up from where they had been hiding. They seemed unhurt. Just to be sure, Harry asked- "Are you alright?" They nodded mutely.

Harry turned his attention to the body that lay next to the driver's seat. He bent down and turned Ernie's still form over. With a wave of relief, Harry saw that he was breathing, albeit with difficulty. "Hang on Ernie. I'm gonna get you help. Just hang on."

Silently glad there hadn't been any passengers in the bus, Harry turned to Stan. "Stan, can you get us to England?"

Stan shook his head, his face still a mask of horror. Harry couldn't blame him. One minute, he had been doing his job and the next, a madman was shooting curses at him. But Stan's help was of utmost importance now.

"Why not?"

"I don't know how to drive, do I? Ern was the driver."

"Yes, but you must have learned something from watching Ernie drive. He needs your help now, Stan. We have to get him help."

Stan seemed unsure. "Well…I know what some of those are for." He said indicating the glowing dials. "But I can't drive. The bus is hard to control when it is going fast, isn't it?"

Fleur joined the conversation. "England? Can't we go to Marseille? It's much closer and I'm sure my father could keep us safe. He'll find a way to get you back to England."

Harry didn't answer her immediately. He was staring at one particular dial on the dashboard. It was a map- a road map of Europe. Clearly, it was used by the Knight Bus drivers to navigate their way around. It was the only thing that made sense. Still trying to figure out how the dial worked, he answered- "It's not a question of distance. We can't go to your place. I'm sure he will have sent someone to watch the house." There was no doubt about who he was. Stan, meanwhile, had gone starry-eyed and was looking at Jasmin unblinkingly. "They'll snap us up the moment we get anywhere near there. Judging by the French ministry uniforms some of the guards who attacked us were wearing, I'd say Klein is pretty well connected in France. Which means our best chance of escaping is either through Italy or England. And I don't know anyone or anywhere in Italy."

Fleur still seemed unconvinced. Harry understood. France was her home and he was suggesting she leave it to remain safe. It was a battle between the mind and instinct- one Harry was all too familiar with. He looked to Jasmin for support. But she didn't even seem to be listening. She was sitting on one of the beds staring out into the darkness. Fleur noticed it too. She glided over, put an arm around her shoulders and crooned- "What is it, Adri?"

Jasmin gave a start and turned to see the other three occupants of the bus staring intently at her, two with concern and one with longing. "He apologized. Klein, I mean. Why? Why only to me and not to you two?" No one answered her. Harry was on the verge of suggesting they postpone that question for later, when Stan drew himself to his full height and proclaimed loudly to Jasmin- "Did you know I'm going to be the next English Minister of Magic? The youngest one ever."

On any other occasion, Jasmin would have cringed and backed away from him as fast as she could. But after everything they had been through in the past 48 hours, she found Stan's reaction to her allure quite comical indeed. It caused her to break into a fit of giggles. To Harry's amusement, Fleur joined in. He couldn't help staring at them a little. They really did look divine when they were happy.

Harry marched over to where Stan was standing, caught him by the back of his coat and dragged him towards the front of the bus. "Alright buddy. You come over here and help me identify as many of these dials as possible. I'm getting us back to England, one way or another."

Fleur, with difficulty it seemed, stopped laughing and looked over at Harry. The light inside the bus played beautifully on her face- "How'll we get to Britain?"

For an answer, Harry indicated the dial he had been staring at. "The same route by which the Knight Bus got into France."

-#-

Mt. Blanc, France-Italy (Aug 13-1994)

Fred Klein strode through what remained of his base of operations, his lackeys hurrying behind him. Gluant tried his best to stay in the background. He had never seen Klein like this before. In their years of association, Klein had never let his emotions affect the decisions he made. Hell, he'd never let his emotions show. Now though, his anger was palpable by everyone around and no one fancied being at the receiving end of it.

He reached his room, walked straight over to the map of France that was pinned to the wall and turned around. When he spoke, his voice was brisk and not a single word was wasted. "I want every single employee on my payroll called in. I don't care if it's their day off, if they're on vacation, if they're sick or on their death-bed. I want you to spread and search for them throughout France. Priority is Marseille. We have to find her before she contacts anyone from the ministry or the Dominic Delacour. "

Gluant managed to stutter his question out- "Y…You mean D…Delacour's daughter?"

The moment the words escaped his mouth, he regretted uttering them. When Klein turned to look at him, his eyes looked slightly unhinged. Coupled with his already eerie voice, it made for a very unsettling experience indeed. "No. Not Dominic's. I mean my daughter. Jasmin. I'm going to find her, one way or another."

Those who were in the room exited the room as quickly as possible. Nobody wanted to stay behind longer than was possible. Gluant was left standing alone in the room with Klein. He tried not to make any noise and stood still. Klein waited until everyone was out of the room before continuing- "Evacuate the building, and then destroy it. And make arrangements for our departure from France. If they manage to contact someone from the French Ministry, we can expect unwanted guests soon."

Gluant teetered on the edge of obeying silently, but couldn't bring himself not to ask the question. "But they're three children who escaped by an unfortunate combination of luck and chance? Surely we don't need to resort to such extreme measures?"

There was no doubt this time. Klein's eyes had an almost manic expression in them- "Those children" his mask breathed "just destroyed part of my headquarters and took out most of my forces here. I underestimated young Mr. Potter once. I will not make that same mistake again."

-#-

The Knight Bus, Switzerland (Aug 13-1994)

"Scream like this and you'll lose your voice." Harry said coolly over his shoulder as he made the Knight Bus squeeze between two heavy-looking dump-trucks at forty miles a minute.

From where she was hanging on for dear life, Fleur shot back- "Drive like this and we'll all lose our lives."

Harry was having the time of his life. This was the most fun Harry could remember having, discounting flying. The faster he tried to make it go, the harder it became to control the Knight Bus. Harry had taken Stan's advice and had pressed a few buttons so far. One had been an Invisibility booster that made it impossible for the Knight Bus to be seen and another made inanimate objects like lamp-posts, trees, etc., jump out of the way of the Knight Bus. However, they automatically stopped working the moment the Knight Bus came to a halt. This meant that Harry did not have the option of stopping the bus anywhere. A double-deckered, violently purple bus piloted by a fourteen-year old was bound to draw the attention of muggles. Keeping that in mind, Harry had so far tried to avoid the more crowded routes.

Harry consulted the dial that acted as a map to check their location. The blip on it told him that they had just entered Swiss territory and were headed directly towards Geneva. The increase in vehicular traffic certainly indicated that they were close to a major city. Harry had already made up his mind on the route he was going to take to London. If what Stan had said was true and he continued to maintain the same speed, they would be in England in less than twenty minutes. It was, of course, only one-fifth the actual speed of the Knight Bus, but Harry was having a hard enough time controlling the bus as it is.

Harry had made Stan sit next to him in case he needed him and the girls were seated directly behind Harry. Ernie had been carefully strapped to a bed to prevent him from moving as much as possible. As the huge cluster of lights that was Geneva came into view, the girls gasped behind him. It was magnificent. Fountains glittered in the night lights as the Swiss city dazzled in its splendor. A mild snow had started drifting down, scattering across the well-lit streets. Harry had to work hard to keep his eyes on the road. He slowed down as much as dared to. Since they were inside a major city, the traffic had become quite heavy. In one particular spot, the traffic had come to a standstill and Harry didn't notice it until the last moment. Even if he wanted to, it would have been too late to stop. Instead, Harry yanked the wheel as hard as he could to the left and directly at oncoming traffic. Harry fully expected to crash. But they didn't.

The vehicles kept heading directly towards the Knight Bus and just when Harry expected them to crash into the Knight Bus, they would miraculously slide to one side and let the Knight Bus pass. And yet, none of the vehicles seemed to waver from their path and neither did the Knight Bus. Harry turned around to see his amazement mirrored in the girls' faces. Only Stan seemed unperturbed. But he was too enamored by Fleur and Jasmin to have noticed even the world coming down around him. It must have been one of the buttons they had pressed, thought Harry. It had to be.

At last, the hustle and bustle of the city gave way to the highway that led them out of the Swiss capital and once again, into France. The sparkling waters of the river Rhone accompanied them for a short while as they left the bright lights behind and the city faded into the darkness. As they entered France, Harry knew that the most difficult phase of their flight to freedom was just ahead. He had no idea about Klein's resources, his knowledge or influence. But Klein had seen them escape in the Knight Bus and it would not be impossible for him to locate them, especially in France. In the end, Harry knew it wasn't a choice. This was the only way into England and the sooner they did it, the better their chances. He spoke over his shoulders- "Hold on" and stepped on the accelerator.

-#-

Calais, France (Aug 13-1994)

Dijon, Troyes, Paris had passed in a matter of minutes. After Geneva, Harry had stayed away from entering cities. Instead he had chosen the routes that were parallel to the highways. They had seen Paris glittering away in the distance, but hadn't entered. And now, they found themselves at the crest of France. Harry was almost relieved when the Knight Bus entered Calais without any incident. Every moment inside France was a risk, and with luck, these would be their last few.

Calais is a major ferry port in Northern France and overlooks the 'Straight of Dover' –the narrowest point in the English Channel. It is also the closest French town to England. Indeed, it is so close that on a clear day, the 'White cliffs of Dover' can be seen from Calais. Calais is a major port for ferries between France and England, and since May of 1994, the Channel Tunnel has linked nearby Coquelles to Folkestone (England) by rail.

The Channel Tunnel 31.4 mile rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent, in the United Kingdom, with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais, near Calais in northern France, beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is 75 m (250 ft) deep. At 23.5 miles, the tunnel has the longest undersea portion of any tunnel in the world. It had been inaugurated not more than three months ago. In normal operations shuttles use the south tunnel in the France – UK direction, and the north tunnel when travelling from the UK to France. However, what many of the muggles didn't know and the operators of the Knight Bus did, was that running 15m between the two rail tunnels was a service tunnel. It was closed to the public and was not made for heavy vehicles. It was also just big enough to take the Knight Bus. Until May of 1994, the Knight Bus had been strictly a British affair. But the opening of this tunnel meant that all of Europe was open to them. Harry had known this- he had read about it in 'The Daily Prophet'.

As they approached the entrance to the service tunnel, Fleur got up from her seat and looked out of the windshield. The doorway seemed big, but not big enough for the Knight Bus. She turned to Harry in alarm. "We'll never fit through there"- she said pointing at the tunnel entrance. As if in answer, the massive iron doors covering the entrance swung open and neither of the guards who were around seemed to take any notice of it. Harry made up his mind quickly enough- 'We won't know unless we try, will we?" He pressed down hard on the accelerator.

As the Knight Bus gathered speed and headed directly towards what seemed like an imminent crash, Fleur and Jasmin braced themselves. But just as in Geneva, the Knight Bus seemed to mold itself to the confines of the tunnel way. Instead of crashing, the Knight Bus slid into the tunnel and kept moving smoothly. The powerful beams of the Knight Bus headlights' led the way as they made their way towards England and away from France. The trip from Geneva to here had taken exactly fifteen minutes. Harry couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Everyone inside the bus cheered. Fleur was shaking her magnificent head in awe- "You're crazy."

Harry turned to wink at her. His boyish grin was quite infectious. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

For the first time in her life, Fleur felt something other than fear and revulsion for a boy.

-#-

St. Mungo's, London (Aug 13-1994)

The fourth-floor ward was deathly quiet. Dom sat next to the bed where his wife lay, weeping into her lap. Apolline, just recovering, held him and comforted him as best as she could. She couldn't ever remember Dom losing control of himself like this. It was the worst moment of both their lives. They had no clue whether their children were even alive or dead.

On the other side of her bed, Camille sat still. She hadn't moved or said a word since they had come back from Hyde Park. Her face was a mask, and it showed nothing but shock. She had seen a ghost tonight. The ghost of the man she had loved, the father of her child. It had to have been a ghost. There was no way he could still be alive. She had seen him die. She had felt him die.

Dumbledore and Rodin were there too. She had told them everything, to her credit. Rodin had set enquiries afoot in France and Dumbledore in England. But neither of them was very hopeful. It is not easy to find the whereabouts of a man last known to be dead. In his long years of service as an auror, Rodin had seen it all. But the broken family in front of him touched his heart. He wished he could do more.

There was a knock on the door and the heavily-scarred form of Moody limped in. He had agreed to stay and watch over Apolline, on Dumbledore's insistence. "There's someone here to see you, Mrs. Delacour". His face gave nothing away.

Dom looked up, wiping his eyes as he did. "It's a little early to have visitors, isn't it?"

"Oh, you'll want to see them. Believe me." He stepped in and held the door open. Fleur entered, followed by Jasmin.

Dom was the first to reach them, and then Camille. Even Apolline, with Rodin's help, managed to limp over. Disbelief and relief washed over everyone in the room. Dom clutched both of them like he was never planning to let go. All Camille could do was cry into Jasmin's shoulders and Apolline was too weak to do even that. None of their eyes were dry though. For a moment, Rodin almost felt sorry he didn't have a family of his own. The broken family he had seen a few minutes ago had been mended and it looked very beautiful. "Where did you find them?" he asked Moody.

"Ground Floor. They were having the chain removed."

Rodin looked puzzled. Dom, Camille and Apolline looked at Moody too. "What chain?"

At that precise moment, someone walked into the room-someone with long dark hair and a head-band covering his scar. Harry Potter simply nodded at the gathering of people before turning to face Dumbledore. Dumbledore hadn't given any indication of seeing Harry except his mouth had widened into a smile that only Harry saw. They stood staring at each other- the tall, ageing teacher and his young, dynamic prodigy. Everyone in the room was looking at the pair now, waiting for a reaction. Then Dumbledore spoke- "Nitwit! Blubber!..."

Harry's mouth curved into a smile. He completed the sentence- "….Oddment! Tweak!" Without warning, they both broke out chuckling. Everyone else in the room was looking at them strangely. "Well Harry, what do you have to say for yourself this time?"

"The usual, sir. I didn't go looking for trouble, trouble found me." Dumbledore's smile was more pronounced now. Harry, however, turned serious- "Did you find Anne?"

"The ministry workers did. She's is quite safe and happy. Reunited with her parents, I might add. She has no recollection of what happened of course." Harry nodded in satisfaction. It had been in the back of his mind for the past two days. Fleur was looking at them curiously- "Who's Anne?"

Dumbledore answered, his eyes twinkling mischievously at Harry- "Just another girl Harry managed to impress favorably."

Fleur got the joke. She decided to tease Harry a little- "Is this what you do on a daily basis? Save damsels in distress."

Harry muttered wryly- "You'd be surprised." That elicited laughter from Fleur and Jasmin. Their parents were looking at Harry curiously. They had never seen their daughters this comfortable around a boy. Dom couldn't help asking- "Will someone tell me what happened?"

Fleur launched into an explanation and it lasted for nearly five whole minutes. Camille's face lost all color when Fleur reached the part about Klein apologizing to Jasmin, but no one said anything. By the end, the adults were looking at Harry with something close to awe. Rodin, as difficult as he found it to believe, had to admit that Harry had done a great service to their nation. He would have to go back to his office immediately and start dealing with this, but there was something he had to do first. "From the side of the French Ministry, Mr. Potter, let me profusely thank you. I'm sure the Minister would want to thank you in person and reward you too." Harry just waved it off- the compliment and the reward. Dom didn't miss it.

He walked up to Harry and took one of his hands into both of his. "From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Only a father can understand what your actions mean to me. If ever you need anything, anything at all…" Once again Harry just smiled and said nothing. Dom was starting to find Harry's unassuming behavior really endearing.

"It's time to leave Harry." –said Dumbledore. "There are some things we need to discuss and I'm sure your friends would like to know you're safe."

Harry nodded heavily. He didn't want to say goodbye to Fleur and Jasmin. After everything they had been through together in the past two days, he would have liked to stay around them a little longer. He let go of Dom's hand, but Dom wasn't done. "You have done so much for me, Mr. Potter. Can I ask you one more favor?"

Harry didn't know what to say except- "Anything I can do."

"My daughters will be coming to Hogwarts this year. Can you please watch over them? Ensure they don't come to harm?"

Without his knowledge, a smile broke out on his face. "Why would they be coming to Hogwarts? Are you afraid something might happen to them if they stayed in France?" All the while, something inside him was singing.

Dom looked at Dumbledore, who in turn said to Harry- "I will explain everything in detail in a moment, Harry. But if I may be so bold, I would suggest you to accept it." Turning to Dom, he added- "Rest assured, I will keep an eye on them." Harry nodded too, without a clue about what was going on. All he cared was that he was going to be seeing Fleur and Jasmin again soon. Camille and Apolline thanked him once again and he promised to protect their daughters as best as he could.

Fleur was next. She took a deep breath and then extended her hand- "I'm sorry for not trusting you…arry." Something about the way she said his name made his head spin. He took her hand. "I'll see you soon, Fleur."

Jasmin seemed unsure what to do, before deciding to follow Fleur's example. "Thank you for everything, Harry." She genuinely meant it.

"See you in a few weeks…Adri." Jasmin was startled. Only Fleur ever called her that. But she wasn't offended. She was surprised to find she didn't mind Harry calling her that at all.

As they turned to leave, Dumbledore asked Harry- "So Harry how was your journey back?"

The last thing the people in the ward heard before the door shut was Harry's cheeky reply. "Let me put it this way sir. I know what I want to be when I grow up."

-#-

Ottery St. Catchpole, England (Aug 14-1994)

They apparated back to Stoadshead hill. Just as they did, the village's Church bell rang to indicate the arrival of midnight. Harry couldn't help looking around and taking in the view. It was no different than when he had left it with the Weasleys, barely two days ago. Next to him, Dumbledore was looking at him in concern. "Are you alright Harry? The sensation does take some getting used to."

Harry rubbed his ears before responding- "I'll take the Knight Bus over apparition any day sir."

Dumbledore chuckled but said no more. He started walking towards the village, glasses glinting in the light of the full moon. Harry kept up with him. "I don't suppose you apparated us this far from the Burrow so that we could enjoy a moonlit stroll professor."

Dumbledore didn't answer until they reached a mud path that led directly to the village. The bell had stopped ringing and everything was quiet. A few lights flickered here and there in the village, but not a sound was heard. They were surrounded by the night. "No Harry. I did not. Like I said, I wanted to discuss something with you."

"Is this about Klein sir? Do you know how he knew my father?" Harry had been thinking of asking Sirius, but decided to give it a shot with Dumbledore.

Dumbledore shook his head- "I'm sorry Harry. I have no idea." He cast a sideways look at Harry and continued- "However, there is something you should know about him Harry. He is Jasmin's father."

Harry stopped in his tracks. He couldn't understand. In a strange way, it seemed to make sense. It explained Klein's actions when they were trying to escape, his apology to Jasmin. But why would he kidnap his daughter in the first place. And when he did have her, why would he show such little interest in her. He articulated one of his questions into words. "Why would Klein kidnap his own daughter?"

Dumbledore stopped and turned to face him. A great sadness seemed to settle over his features. "Because he didn't know Jasmin was his daughter until he saw her mother a few hours ago Harry. He must have realized who Jasmin was and returned to see her, only he was too late. You managed to evade him and escape."

"But who is he?"

"I'm afraid no one knows Harry. Even Jasmin's mother doesn't know about his life before they had met. In fact, she was able to provide us with very little information that was of any real use." Dumbledore indicated they should keep walking. Harry fell into step beside him.

"Does Jasmin know?"

"I don't know Harry. It is up to the discretion of her mother to tell her or not. If her mother doesn't deem it appropriate to tell her now, I don't think we should." Harry nodded. Dumbledore had just politely asked him not to repeat any of this to Jasmin.

They continued walking in silence for a while before Dumbledore broke it again- "But enough about the past Harry. I promise I will let you know if anything of importance regarding this matter comes to my knowledge. For now, put it out of your mind and concentrate on the future."

"What do you mean sir?"

Dumbledore's face brightened and his benign eyes regained their twinkle. He seemed to quiver with a boyish enthusiasm. "We are in for some exciting times ahead dear boy. The entire magical world, in fact."

"You're talking in riddles again sir."

"Then allow me to explain in detail Harry and pray let me have your undivided attention." And off he went, explaining about the Triwizard tournament, the newly-added tournaments, and the much-anticipated arrival of the foreign schools for an entire year of mixed education. It was a first of its kind exercise, devised by the foreign ministries of the participating nations to achieve international understanding and integration. They had reached the other side of the village by the time he was done. "…and it's all happening at Hogwarts. What do you think of that?"

Harry remarked amusedly- "Well sir, no one can ever say it's a dull year at Hogwarts."

Dumbledore chuckled merrily. They were now walking on the path that led out of the village and towards the hill where 'The Burrow' was. Harry could almost imagine Ron and Hermione's reaction at seeing him. Mrs. Weasley was going to make quite a fuss over him and the twins would never let him hear the end of it for managing to get into trouble….without them. Dumbledore's next words, however, broke through his thoughts and brought him back sharply to earth.

"I want you to participate in the Triwizard tournament Harry."

For a second time that night, Harry stopped in his tracks because he thought he hadn't heard Dumbledore properly. His next question was very quiet. "Why?"

This time, Dumbledore didn't look at Harry. He stopped and looked upwards, at the full-moon. His voice was just as quiet as Harry's when he answered, but each word reverberated inside Harry's head. "The forces of darkness are rising again Harry, even though the ministry hasn't picked up on it yet. Voldemort is still out there Harry, and getting stronger by the day. The vision you had a few days ago indicated as much, didn't it?" Harry didn't know where this was going, but he had to agree with Dumbledore. Voldemort was still alive and he was plotting to kill him. Dumbledore's voice was laden with sadness when he spoke his next words. "There is a war coming Harry. A war that is going to change the very fabric of the magical society. The war that took place fourteen years ago is nothing, nothing compared to what we're facing. A lot of people are going to die, on both sides."

Dumbledore turned to look directly at Harry. His eyes weren't twinkling kindly anymore. For the first time, Harry understood why Dumbledore was the only person Voldemort had ever feared. There was strength in them that Harry had never seen. But those eyes also gave away the fondness he had for his most favorite pupil. His voice reflected the pride he felt at Harry- "I trained you Harry, because I believe that you will be the deciding factor in the upcoming war. But surviving alone will not win this war. For that, I will need you to be strong. I need you to be able to take the fight to our enemies, not just wait for them to strike."

A cool breeze ruffled Harry's long dark hair. The piece of cloth he tied around his head came undone and floated downwards. He caught it before it hit the ground. "And you want me to enter the tournament to prove my strength."

Dumbledore walked over to Harry and put both his arms on Harry's shoulders. "You don't have to prove anything to me Harry. I have known your strength since the day you vanquished Quirrell and Voldemort in your first year. I see it every day when you set aside your personal safety for the well-being of others. But this tournament is different. The entire world will be watching the tournament. I want you to be seen as the hero you are, so that, one day, you can lead the war against darkness."

Harry couldn't say anything. He just stood there, numb. Dumbledore had placed so much trust in him, in his abilities. His future had always contained Voldemort in it. He had had no illusions about that. As long as Voldemort was alive, there was no 'happily ever after' for him. And if this is what it took to destroy Voldemort, he would do it. But before Harry could say anything, Dumbledore had his last word. "As always Harry, you have a choice. I would never dream of forcing you to accept this path. If you choose to go down this path, there will be losses. Your life will never truly be your own. If you don't want any part of this, if you don't want to participate in the tournament, you are free to tell me so. I will not think any less of you for it. Take your time to decide Harry. For once you choose this path, there is no turning back." Dumbledore turned and started walking in the direction of the Burrow. Not another word was spoken by either of them until they reached the run-down, very crooked building that housed Harry's favorite family.

They entered the yard without making a noise. Harry could hear the chickens clucking in their coop, next to the garage. Dumbledore walked up to the door and pressed the bell three times. The door was thrown open seconds afterwards. Mrs. Weasley stood in the doorway and there was a hopeful look on her face. The moment her eyes fell on Harry, she let out a cry of relief and wrapped him in a tight hug.

"Harry! Oh thank god. Thank god you're okay. I was so worried. RON. FRED. GEORGE. HARRY'S HERE. Thank you Albus. I knew you would find him."

Dumbledore stepped into the house and said- "Not this time Molly. This time, it was the other way around. Harry found his way back to us." Footsteps and shouts were heard on the stairs and Ron was the first to come into view, followed by Hermione. They each let out a yell and a squeal respectively and leapt forwards. Hermione beat Ron to him. She threw herself at Harry and momentarily covered his face with bushy brown hair. Next down the steps were Fred and George. Ginny was there too, happy to see Harry. Last in line were Bill and Charlie who didn't seem to be sure if he was awake or asleep. It took a few minutes and some soothing words from Dumbledore to calm everybody down. At last, when there was silence and no one was trying to suffocate Harry, Dumbledore made his intentions quite clear. "Harry has been through a harrowing ordeal in the past two days. Right now, he needs some rest and relaxation. I don't want any of you questioning him for a while. Is that understood?" Everyone nodded solemnly, even Mrs. Weasley.

Dumbledore stepped for the door, turned around and winked at Harry. "I will see you on September 1st Harry. I hope you'll have a decision for me by then."

Everyone looked at Harry curiously. Harry stared calmly back at Dumbledore. "I've already made my decision sir. Like you said to me once, we can either choose to do what is easy or do what is right. You can always count on me do what is right."

-#-

A/N: Some of you might be wondering why I've left out the part about the investigation into the kidnapping, Klein's real identity and so on. Rest assured, it will be revealed much later as the story progresses. Also Sirius was not in Mungo's, in case you were wondering.

How did Harry and others reach St. Mungo's? Stan told them. And if you didn't infer it, they came to St. Mungo's to admit Ern.

For all of you who are pondering why it took this long to get back to England while it took the Knight Bus only a few minutes to get to France, it's because harry didn't want to go faster as he didn't know how to drive. Hopefully this chapter also cleared away your doubts about how the Knight Bus got into France.

Two important things you should know about this fic- the facts given will be genuine. For example, everything about Calais and Channel tunnel are accurate, including the date in which the Channel Tunnel was inaugurated and the service tunnel.

Secondly, if you're a Dumbledore hater, then I'm very sorry to disappoint you. I won't be bashing him in my story (In any of my future stories either). You see, I believe in keeping the personalities of people as close to canon as possible. Harry, however, is a different matter. He will not be as dependent on Dumbledore, but he will look to him for guidance.