The Potter Manor Chronicles

Chapter Five

A Little Break From The Tension

"Here, Harry," said Ginny as she handed him a goblet of the potion Sirius had been making for him. Harry drank it thirstily, set the goblet down on the kitchen table, and buried his face in his hands. Ginny put her arms around him, pulled his head to her shoulder, and gently stroked his hair. Harry kept his eyes closed. He could feel the concerned gazes of Ron and Hermione.

"Wormtail, Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle," Harry muttered in response to their unspoken question.

"Huh?" said Ron.

"Voldemort was torturing them," said Harry. "That's what I saw when my scar was hurting." There was an awkward silence.

"They deserve it!" said Ron angrily.

"Ron!" said Hermione.

"I agree," Harry interrupted. "I just wish my scar didn't hurt for them." Ginny began to rock Harry back and forth. He allowed himself to relax a little. Comfort, Ginny was giving him comfort. Comfort was the most wonderful sensation. Before meeting Hagrid, Harry had lived without an ounce of comfort. He would spend his nights locked in the cupboard under the stairs crying himself to sleep after Dudley and his gang had been bullying him or his aunt and uncle had been telling him how useless he was.

Harry found himself embracing pain when there was someone there to offer comfort. His nightmare the previous night had been horrible, but somehow Sirius being there to comfort him had made things bearable. He was glad that Mrs. Lupin and Mrs. Black had come to bring comfort to their sons. Remus and Sirius had been through a great deal in their lives. If Harry couldn't have his own mother around to comfort him, at least he was glad that some of the people he cared about had their mothers. If Harry hadn't despised Wormtail so much, he may have pitied the pathetic little man for having the wrath of Tabitha Lupin and Agatha Black directed at him. In spite of himself, Harry felt a smile drift across his face.

"Er-Harry, you aren't cracking up, are you?" asked Ron nervously. Harry opened his eyes in time to see Hermione elbowing Ron in the ribs.

"No," said Harry lifting his head slightly off of Ginny's shoulder. "I was just relaxing a little and a thought crossed my mind."

"Oh?" asked Ron raising his eyebrows curiously.

"I was just thinking that I'd hate to be Wormtail when Tabitha and Agatha get their hands on him."

Harry's three friends just stared blankly at him for a moment then burst out laughing. It felt great to laugh again. Just then, Hedwig flew in the window with a letter tied to her leg. She landed in front of Harry and proudly held out her leg. There were two letters tied together. One was addressed to Harry and the other was addressed to Ron. Harry untied the parchment from Hedwig and handed Ron's letter to him. They both read and started laughing.

"So Fred and George have sent personalized Howlers to Fudge," said Ron.

"I shudder to think what one of Fred and George's personalized Howlers is like," said Harry with a grin.

"Well, if anyone deserves a personalized Howler from Fred and George, it's Fudge," said Hermione. Harry and Ron gawked at her. Ginny started laughing.

"I never thought I'd see the day when you condoned something Fred and George did," said Ron.

"Fudge has been allowing horrible things to happen because he's worried about his precious career," said Hermione. "The man could use a few good Howlers."

"I am so in love with you right now," said Ron absent-mindedly as he took Hermione's hand. He quickly realized that Harry and Ginny were watching. He looked at them and opened his mouth to say something, but no sound came out. All that happened was that his ears turned pink. Harry and Ginny burst out laughing. Ron had a tendency to put his foot in his mouth, but once in a while something good came out of it.

As his fit of laughter eased up, Harry reached out to stroke Hedwig and got and idea. "Let's owl Lucy," he said. "I'm eager to give her that exclusive interview."

"You're serious about that?" asked Ginny.

"What can I say, Gin, you had a brilliant idea when you suggested it," said Harry as he gave Ginny a soft kiss. As soon as he realized what he had done, Harry looked quickly at Ron who also burst out laughing. Hermione made an impatient noise and rolled her eyes at Ginny who was blushing furiously after being kissed in front of her older brother. Harry gave Ron, who was still laughing so hard he was unable to sit up, a quick kick under the table. Ron finally sat up and wiped a tear from his eyes. Harry stood up and walked to the counter to pick up a piece of parchment so he could write a letter to Lucy. Despite the ease of tension he was experiencing, Harry knew that Voldemort and his followers were still out there and he had to do something about it or he would go crazy.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Agatha watched her son wistfully as he sat quietly in his armchair staring blankly. Sirius had barely said two words since she had arrived. Agatha had hoped that if she was alone with Sirius he might say something, but he remained silent. Agatha despised Voldemort, his followers, and everyone who had allowed them to destroy the magical community for what they had done to her son and his friends. Sirius had always been very protective of the people he cared about and felt like a failure when one of them got hurt. Agatha had never really understood that about her son until the trial where his name was finally cleared. She remembered the look on Meridith Pettigrew's face upon learning that Peter was alive and the person responsible for Voldemort's resurrection and the deaths of Lily and James Potter and several others. Agatha let out a dry sob as she remembered farther back to the day Sirius had been taken to Azkaban.

Sirius was laughing like a madman as hit wizards dragged him to the boat that would take him to the island. Agatha was screaming while Rita Skeeter's Quick Quotes quill wrote furiously across a piece of parchment. There must have been some mistake. If they had just given Sirius a trial, they would have realized that. Meridith walked right up to Agatha and slapped her across the face. Bitch! Meridith spat. You always let your son get away with everything, didn't you? I'll bet You-Know-Who promised him all sorts of power if he just helped murder a few people!

Agatha remembered how the Ministry officials like Fudge had been extremely reluctant to clear Sirius' name because it meant admitting they had made a mistake. Barty Crouch had been a very powerful and influential person and his own hypocrisy had allowed Voldemort's most faithful servant to return to his service and deliver Harry to him. Peter had been awarded the Order of Merlin and proclaimed a hero, yet he had been Voldemort's spy and personal resurrector. If the Ministry didn't start owning up to their mistakes soon, they were likely to hand the Wizarding community to Voldemort on a silver platter.

Crookshanks entered the room and leapt into Sirius' lap. Agatha watched her son stroke the ginger cat absent-mindedly.

"That cat really seems to like you," she said.

"Mmmmm," said Sirius.

"Sirius," said Agatha gently as she put her hand on his. Sirius lifted his eyes to meet her concerned gaze: contact at last. "Please talk to me."

"First Harry, now Remus," said Sirius. "They both came so close to death. They were very lucky. It really scares me that I could lose anyone else. You know, before you and Tabitha came, I was talking to Remus and found myself just begging him not to die. He told me he was scared and suddenly got a fever and started to hallucinate. All of these random memories were coming to him. Annie said that Madam Pomfrey told her to expect that sort of episode. She seemed really shaken up though." Sirius stopped to catch his breath. Somehow, it was a relief to tell his mother about everything.

"Your father and I are very proud of you, you know," said Agatha giving Sirius' hand a squeeze.

"Huh?" said Sirius taken aback. Agatha laughed in spite of herself.

"You seem shocked," she said.

"I--well--Where is this coming from?"

"We're proud of the man you've become."

"A stupid git who manages to screw up everything for everyone else."

"No!" said Agatha firmly. "A man with integrity. You may not have always made the best choices, but your heart has always been in the right place. After everything you've been through, you've managed to become the sort of father Harry needs and you've been a good friend to Remus. I don't think you've ever done a selfish thing in your life!"

Sirius stared at the floor. At Remus' request, he had never told his parents about Snape and the Whomping Willow incident. Remus hadn't wanted to complicate matters further by bringing their parents into the situation.

"What's wrong?" asked Agatha.

"Nothing," Sirius lied. He set Crookshanks down and stood up. "Dudley was supposed to have his workout hours ago. I'd better find him and get started."

"Sirius, I'm sure it'll be alright if you skip a day. The last twenty-four hours have been really rough for you and your friends."

"Have you even seen Dudley, Mum? He's quite large I assure you. Skipping a day could really set his training back."

"Sirius--"

"I really have to get started, Mum." With that, Sirius gave Agatha a quick kiss on the cheek and left the room.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tabitha smoothed the covers on Remus' bed for the umpteenth time. Part of her wanted to wake him up just to be certain he was alive. The other part wanted to allow her son to get as much rest as possible. When he was feeling ill, it was extremely difficult to wake Remus. Tabitha had preferred it that way when Remus was a small child, but now that the effects of werewolf transformations were becoming physically apparent with the lines on his young face and the gray that streaked his light brown hair, it worried Tabitha. Even though he was a fully-grown man, Remus was still her youngest child. This fact as well as the fact that he had been attacked and nearly killed at a very young age and the fact that his life was constantly in danger for one reason or another because of that attack made her feel particularly protective of him.

Remus let out a small groan and turned on his side. Tabitha saw the burn marks on the back of his neck and winced. Remus winced at the same moment as the sheets chafed his sores. He opened his eyes to see his mother at his bedside. For a few seconds, Remus looked mildly disoriented. "Mum?" he finally said.

"Sssh, Darling, I'm here," Tabitha whispered as she took Remus' hand. Remus quickly sat up, grabbed his bathrobe from his nightstand and put it on.

"Derek told you what happened, didn't he?"

"No," said Tabitha. "When Peter Pettigrew is involved in something, it's difficult not to hear about it these days, no matter how much Fudge tries to cover it up. However, Derek should have told your father and I. I swear the two of you are too stubborn for your own good, and the fact that you're living in a house full of people who are just as stubborn as you are doesn't help matters."

In spite of himself, Remus smiled weakly. "So you don't approve of my friends?" he said with a raised eyebrow. Tabitha gave a small laugh.

"I don't think you could've found better friends."

"Neither do I, Mum. I just wish they'd realize that instead of constantly blaming themselves for everything that's out of their control." Remus leaned wistfully against his headboard and winced slightly as the sores on the back of his neck brushed the headboard. Tabitha's heart ached. For a brief moment her son had actually been smiling. Now he looked miserable again and she wanted the smile back so desperately. Remus had such a wonderful smile. Even if it was small, it reached his eyes.

"Sirius has been taking this whole ordeal pretty hard, hasn't he?" asked Tabitha. Remus nodded soberly not meeting his mother's concerned gaze.

"He's been taking everything hard since Lily and James died. Harry doesn't blame him for what happened. I know Lily and James wouldn't blame him. He just can't accept that."

"Agatha's really worried about him. He seemed really out of it when we got here."

"Agatha's here too?" asked Remus.

"Yes, she was really concerned about you when she heard about what had happened. She was with me when we went to confront Peter and we found out he and the others had escaped. Believe me, she wants to beat the shit out of Peter as much as I do, probably even more."

Remus' eyes widened at his mother's use of the word shit. After the initial shock wore off, he began to snicker. His mother had said shit!

Tabitha was glad to see her son smiling again and felt reluctant to ask her next question.

"Did Derek tell you about Dumbledore's offer?"

"Yes he did. And before you ask," Remus said holding up his hand. "I don't have any problems with it. Yes, I do miss teaching, but I'm glad that Harry and the others will have a proper teacher again."

"Alright," said Tabitha sighing. "There's just one more thing I have to ask..."

"Yes?" asked Remus cautiously.

"Why did you and Annie call off your engagement?"

"Do we really need to go over this again?"

"Neither of you has ever given me a straight answer. It's a mother's prerogative to find these things out," Tabitha asserted. Remus rolled his eyes.

"You're worse than Sirius, you know that?"

"And you're worse than Derek, now answer my question."

"Most of our closest friends had been murdered and we simply decided not to get married."

"Nobody, simply decides not to get married, Remus. I saw the way Annie reacted two years ago when her mother found out you were a werewolf and started speaking ill of you."

"Annie has a temper that rivals Sirius', Mum, and her mother really pushes her buttons sometimes." Remus did not appear as though he was going to lose this argument without a fight.

"Then how do you explain you staying at her place all the time since you broke off your engagement?" said Tabitha raising her eyebrows. "And you accepting the money she sends you when you won't accept a knut from your father and I?"

"I've been watching her place for her and looking after her plants and animals while she's away. In case you haven't noticed, Annie travels quite a bit for her Herbology research. As for the money, she's been sending me some of the royalties from her books because I've helped her sort out data."

"Wow, the two of you have a cover story for everything, don't you?" asked Tabitha sarcastically.

"We have simple facts, Mum. Now can we drop this for now?"

"Alright, Remus...for now."

Remus stood up, tied the belt of his bathrobe, and started to walk away from his bed.

"Where do you think you're going?" asked Tabitha jumping up from her chair.

"The bathroom, if you must know."

"Like hell you are! Your condition is very serious, you shouldn't even be standing."

"Well, I'll be damned if I'm going to use a bedpan. Besides, the bathroom is right here," said Remus pointing to his bathroom door. "I promise I won't get up for any other reason."

"Remus," said Tabitha quietly. "Annie and Sirius told me that you were hallucinating earlier." Remus went pale.

"I was?"

"Well, your friends have--interesting--senses of humour, but I doubt either of them would joke about something like this."

Remus sighed. "I promise, I'll take it easy, Mum. I just have a need to go to the bathroom by myself."

"I'll hold you to that," said Tabitha with a light smile. "If I see you overexerting yourself, I won't hesitate to get Poppy over here and I'm quite certain she won't hesitate to come."

----------------------------------------------------

Annie stood up to stretch after she finished planting her tubblesnip bulbs. She looked across the court to see Sirius making a very resistant Dudley try to do sit-ups. In spite of her melancholic state, Annie found herself laughing just a little. She only wished she could see Vernon attempting sit-ups as well.

Annie flicked her wand at her gardening tools and watched them march to the shed by the stables then glanced at the barrier on the veil to see two figures standing outside. Annie pulled out her foe glass and sneakoscope and walked up to the veil. As she reached the barrier, Annie recognized Neville Longbottom and his grandmother. They must have used a portkey, she thought. Neither the sneakoscope nor the foe glass reacted so Annie raised her wand and lifted the veil. As she was about to close it, Lucy Figg apparated.

"Hold on," said Annie as she took out her dark detectors once again. When they did not react, Annie gestured Lucy in. "Sorry, Lucy. Necessary precaution."

"Don't worry," said Lucy. "Mum's been doing the same thing."

"What brings you here?" asked Annie.

"Harry owled with a very interesting proposition so I figured I ought to come right over," Lucy said with a grin. Annie smiled back then turned to the Longbottoms.

"Mrs. Longbottom, we weren't expecting you so soon. Harry only owled you this morning."

"It's not a problem, is it?" asked Mrs. Longbottom sharply. Neville cowered slightly.

"No, no, not at all," said Annie. "I'm just a little surprised, that's all."

"Good," said Mrs. Longbottom. "The family is too busy these days to constantly watch this one--" she jerked her head at Neville who stared sheepishly at the ground. "--making sure he doesn't do anything foolish."

Annie and Lucy made efforts not to glare at Mrs. Longbottom. They both had known her son Frank and were quite certain that he would not have wanted his mother treating his son so poorly. After a few moments silence Mrs. Longbottom spoke again.

"Well, if there is nothing else, I shall be going now."

"Thank you for bringing him, Mrs. Longbottom," said Annie pleasantly. Mrs. Longbottom nodded, walked through the barrier, and disapparated. Neville almost looked relieved.

"Harry and the others are by the stables visiting Buckbeak," said Annie. "Would you like to go see them?" Neville shrugged and nodded slightly. Annie led Lucy and Neville back to Buckbeak's corral.

"Miss Spinnet?" asked Neville timidly speaking for the first time since his arrival.

"You can call me Annie, Neville," said Annie. "What is it?"

"W-well--Annie, I heard about Professor Lupin a-and I was just wondering--will he be alright?"

"Yes," said Lucy. "How is Remus? Mum's been really worried."

"He's not feeling too good at the moment, but he'll be fine after he's had a few days of rest," Annie said with a reassuring smile. Neville smiled slightly.

"Good," he said. "He was the only professor other than Professor Sprout I could talk to."

"Yes, Harry says that you're quite good at Herbology. It was my favourite subject too. Perhaps you could help me with my garden this summer. I've been collecting some plants from around the world and a lot of them need help to grow in a British climate," said Annie. Neville went slightly pink, but looked rather pleased.

"I have read your books," he said.

"So he's the one," Lucy teased. Annie elbowed her.

"Oi! Neville!" called Ron from Buckbeak's corral. He and Hermione waved the three of them over.

"Where's Harry?" asked Annie. Ron pointed up to where Harry and Ginny were flying on Buckbeak.

"Ginny wanted to learn how to ride a Hippogriff," said Ron.

"I really hope they're being careful," said Hermione anxiously.

"Don't worry," Ron snickered. "My sister doesn't share your fear of heights."

"Excuse me, I am not afraid of heights!" said Hermione huffily,

"Alright, alright, you're not afraid of heights, you just avoid them as much as possible," Ron teased. Hermione looked as though she was about to retort but Harry and Ginny landing Buckbeak a safe distance from the group interrupted her. Annie, Lucy, and Neville all bowed to the Hippogriff, careful not to blink. Buckbeak eyed them for a moment then bent one scaly knee. Hermione glared at a still amused Ron, walked up to Buckbeak and began stroking his feathery neck as Harry and Ginny dismounted.

"Hey, Neville," said Harry. "Glad you could come."

"Thanks, Harry," said Neville sheepishly.

"So, what how about that exclusive interview, Harry?" asked Lucy.

"Exclusive interview?" asked Annie.

"Yes," said Harry with his arm around Ginny's shoulders. "Ginny here thought that we needed someone to write our side of the story. You know, let people know the truth about the things Rita Skeeter and others have printed."

"I wonder what's happened to that woman," said Annie. "I don't think she's written anything since before the Third Task last year. Well, I think I saw an article she wrote yesterday, but there was nothing nasty in it. It was, I dunno...strange." Annie could have sworn that Hermione suddenly looked very pleased with herself.

"As long as she's not writing any more lies about decent people," said Lucy. "Honestly, that woman ought to be thrown into Azkaban after all the damage she's caused."

"Nothing's going to happen as long as people believe her crap," said Ron. "That's why we've called you here, Lucy."

"Yeah," said Harry. "We feel that clearing up a few things may help in the fight against Voldemort."

Ron looked stunned at the fact that Lucy didn't flinch. Neither did Neville, for that matter. Lucy seemed to notice Ron's surprise.

"What is it, Ron?" she asked.

"I well, I guess it never ceases to amaze me when someone doesn't flinch at You-Know-Who's name," said Ron. Lucy's face hardened, though not at Ron.

"Voldemort killed my father and grandfather," she said. "I'm not going to give him the satisfaction of being afraid of his name."

As Harry thought about Lucy's words, he knew that they were true. He had met a handful of people in the last few years who were not afraid to say Voldemort's name. All of them had either been right on the frontlines during the first war or had lost someone very close to them at the hands of Voldemort and his followers. There were his parents' friends; There was Sirius, Remus, and Annie who had lost most of their closest friends; Derek Lupin, who had lost his wife (Jerrod Lupin did not flinch at Voldemort's name either) Lucy; Abby Prewett, Veronica and Ben's daughter and Lucy's best friend; Ginny, who had been possessed by Tom Riddle, Dumbledore; and now there was Neville, whose parents had been tortured into madness by Death Eaters.

"Here, Neville," said Annie extending her hand. "I'll take your bags upstairs for you."

At that moment, Dobby appeared. "Here, sir," said Dobby to Neville. "Dobby will take your bags up for you."

"How did you know he was here?" asked Annie.

"Dobby was getting out the food to prepare dinner, Miss, and he sees Neville Longbottom out the window!"

"Oh," said Annie with a smile. "Very well."

Dobby took Neville's bag and vanished with a pop! Harry suddenly felt very nervous.

"What's wrong?" asked Ginny sensing Harry's uneasiness.

"Dobby just disapparated," said Harry. "He did the same thing at Hogwarts after I freed him from Lucius Malfoy."

"Yes," said Annie. "House elves have their own very powerful magic. They can apparate and disapparate in places where humans cannot. Dobby's here to guard against any house elves of Death Eaters apparating inside of the veil."

Harry let out a sigh of relief.

"S-speaking of Death Eaters," said Neville. "Did any of you read the Daily Prophet article about the Malfoys this morning?"

"Yeah," said Ron. "Narcissa Malfoy and Draco are claiming that they had no idea Lucius was involved in the dark arts. Load of dung if you ask me."

"Draco seemed to know exactly what his father was involved in when I saw them at Borgin's a few years back and when he threatened us on the train at the end of last year," said Harry.

"I wonder if Narcissa knows anything," said Hermione thoughtfully as she continued to stroke Buckbeak's feathery neck. "I mean we really don't know anything about her. We've only seen her once and she looked repulsed and didn't say anything."

"That's right," said Ginny. "She didn't say anything. Maybe she was repulsed with Lucius and Draco."

"Narcissa silent?" said Annie. "I guess she really has changed since she married Lucius. She never shut the hell up when we were kids."

"You knew her?" asked Harry.

"Yeah, your father, Sirius, and I lived in the same neighbourhood as her and Pansy Parkinson's mother, Daisy. Those two were always picking fights with your mum and me when we were at Hogwarts. I'll say one thing for Narcissa, though. She sure could fly. I reckon Draco inherited his talent from her because he certainly didn't get it from Lucius. He had to buy his position on the Quidditch team because he couldn't fly worth shit!" Everyone laughed at Annie's last sentence.

----------------------------------------------------------

Petunia paced irritably back and forth across the study. She simply had nothing else to do. Vernon was at work and her Duddykins was being exercised by a sociopath. She thought about going shopping, but didn't want to risk running in to any of her neighbours and having to answer any questions about where she'd been staying. A few days at the Potter Manor had felt like a few centuries to Petunia. She knew that something weird was happening, but couldn't get any answers from the...abnormal people. That Remus fellow had been brought home the other night looking like he'd been attacked by some wild animal. And then some sort of abnormal nurse had come to treat him. He'd been in bed ever since the whole thing had happened. Probably got himself mixed up in the same sort of rubbish Lily and her no good husband got themselves killed with, thought Petunia. And now my family is getting dragged into this nonsense too.

Petunia began to scan some of the bookshelves half-heartedly when something caught her eye. There was a small mahogany box with a note on it bearing Harry's name, but it wasn't Harry's name that caught her eye; it was the fact that Harry's name was written in her mother's handwriting. Mother did always favour the leech over my Duddy, Petunia thought bitterly as she reached for the box. She figured that she had every right to know what was in her mother's box. Petunia tried with all her might to open the box, but her effort did no good. Suddenly, she heard footsteps coming down the hall and put the box back where she found it. I'll make Annie tell me about this later. Mother must have left this in her care.

"I know he's a grown man, but I can't help fussing over him I'm his mother," said a voice from the hall.

"I know, Tabitha. Believe me, I understand completely. I can tell that there's something very specific bothering Sirius, but I just can't get him to open up to me--" The two women abruptly stopped talking as they entered the study and saw Petunia. "Oh, hello," said the dark-haired woman. "Petunia is it?"

"Yes," said Petunia shortly.

"Well, we haven't been properly introduced," said the dark-haired woman holding out her hand to shake Petunia's. "I'm Agatha Black and this is Tabitha Lupin."

Petunia took a step backward. She had always wanted nothing to with Lily's freak friends, let alone the freak women who had given birth to them. It was bad enough that she had been forced to look after Lily's freak son and even worse she had to live in a house with him and his freak friends. She certainly wasn't going to stoop to the level of shaking any of their hands. "I must be going," she said and darted out of the room.

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Wow, you guys," said Lucy as she attempted to organize her rolls of parchment. "You've given me so much information. I hope I can do it some justice when I write the story."

"You will," said Hermione confidently. "Rita Skeeter will rue the day she bought her Quick Quotes Quill."

"And Fudge will rue the day he denied Voldemort is back," added Harry. Just then, a rumbling sound came from the hall. Dudley ran into the kitchen clutching his massive bottom, stopped, glanced apprehensively at all of them, glanced back at the direction he had come from, and took off in the opposite direction still clutching his massive bottom. Harry saw that Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, and Lucy all shared his amused bewilderment.

"So you see, boys," Sirius' voice echoed in the hall. "Stink pellets can be combined with just about anything even without using magic."

"Wow!" Fred's voice echoed. "I wish I could have seen the look on that git's face!"*

Harry felt a huge grin spread across his face as Sirius entered the room followed by Fred, George, Angelina, and Alicia.

"Ronnikins!" exclaimed George. "Come here and give your big brother a hug!" Ron took a nervous step backward, but George seized him in a headlock and began scratching Ron's head with his knuckles.

"Aaarrrgh! George, cut it out!" Ron shouted as Hermione tried not to giggle.

"Where's your sense of family, Ron?" said George. "This is how American Muggles show affection."

"C'mon, George, that's enough," said Alicia grabbing George's arm.

"Whatever you say, my love," said George melodramatically as he released a very relieved Ron, seized Alicia and pulled her into a deep kissed. She quickly pulled away, blushing furiously and elbowed George.

"Do you have any shame at all, George Weasley?"

"None whatsoever," replied George trying to keep his face straight.

"Ginny!" said Fred approaching her with his arms open to their fullest extent.

"Don't-even-think-about-it!" said Ginny warningly, raising her hands in defense.

"What?" said Fred innocently. "I can't hug my darling sister whom I haven't seen in almost seventy-two hours?"

"Not Fred Weasley style," said Ginny with her hands on her hips in a manner that strongly reminded Harry of Mrs. Weasley. Fred pretended to cower in terror of his little sister's wrath.

"Where's my aunt?" asked Alicia.

"Probably taking care of Remus," Harry replied.

"Is he getting any better?" asked Angelina with concern. "We heard he was hurt pretty badly."

"Madam Pomfrey says he'll be fine after a few days rest," said Sirius.

"Is that why you guys came?" asked Ron.

"Partly," said George. "Do you think Moony is up to seeing a demonstration of some of our new products, Padfoot?"

Sirius grinned. Harry felt relieved and happy to see his godfather smiling again. "I'll go see if he's awake. If he is conscious, I'm quite certain he'll be up to seeing the latest Weasley's Wizard Weezes," said Sirius and he left the kitchen.

"Whoa," said George as he began reading through Lucy's notes. "Fudge and Rita Skeeter are really going to get it in the arse if anybody reads this stuff!"

"That's exactly what we're hoping for," said Lucy as she took the notes from George. "Now, if you will all excuse me, I have an article to write if it's going to appear in tomorrow's edition." Lucy gave the group a quick nod and left.

"What have you guys been up to?" asked Angelina with a crooked smile.

"Oh just exposing Fudge as the jellyfish he is and Rita Skeeter as the lying cow she is," said Hermione.

"Good," said Alicia. "It's about damn time somebody did that! If anyone deserves a few hundred howlers, it's those two." Harry laughed. Alicia definitely took after her aunt. Like Annie, Alicia was always the first person to volunteer her opinion or stand up for someone. In Harry's second year, she was the first person to shout at Malfoy for calling Hermione a Mudblood. Alicia had also been the person bold enough to speak against Wood during the match where Dobby had charmed the bludger to go after Harry because Dobby had been trying to save his life.

"I-I just hope that people start to care about what's happening," said Neville. As the group began discussing the article excitedly, Fred swung one arm around Harry.

"I need to talk to you for a moment, Harry," he whispered.

"Alright," said Harry uneasily.

"Fred!" said Ginny warningly.

"Don't worry, Gin," said Fred. "I'd never hurt the seeker who won the Quidditch cup for Gryffindor in my final year. I solemnly swear that your boyfriend shall be returned to you in one piece." Ginny still looked as though she didn't believe Fred.

"There's nothing to worry about, Ginny, honestly," said Angelina. Ginny looked at her with uncertainty for a moment then nodded.

"Right, then," said Fred pulling Harry aside as Ron was telling the others about Lucy's article.

"What is it, Fred?" whispered Harry. Fred pulled a velvet sack out of his pocket and pushed it into Harry's hand. Harry could feel that it was heavy with wizard gold.

"We had quite a successful grand opening," Fred explained. "This is your share of the profits." Harry felt his insides squirm. He didn't even want to think about how Ron would feel about Harry accepting money from Fred and George.

"I can't take this money," said Harry.

"You invested," said Fred. "That makes you our silent partner, so take the money or I'll hex you. I've learned some pretty good ones and I'm a fully qualified wizard."

"Alright, fine," said Harry not wanting to imagine what sort of hex Fred would think to put on him. "Did you close the shop when you came here?"

"No way!" said Fred. "Business is too good. In fact, we're thinking of opening a second store in Diagon Alley. Not every wizard shops in Hogsmeade. Lee and Katie are looking after things."

"Good news, everyone," said Sirius re-entering the kitchen. "Moony is awake and he is very curious about what Fred and George have been inventing." Fred and George looked as though Christmas had come early.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

* Sirius is referring to something that occurred in A Summer Visit, which is posted at Riddikulus.

Possible things to Come:

Fudge and Rita Skeeter will get it in the arse

Petunia will ask Annie questions. She will be rude. Annie will either answer the questions or tell Petunia to **** off.

Remus will start to feel better.

Fred and George will use Dudley as a Guinea Pig.