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SIYE Time:1:58 on 29th March 2024
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Ginny Returns
By _kb_

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Category: Alternate Universe
Characters:Albus Dumbledore, Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Severus Snape, Sirius Black
Genres: Action/Adventure, Drama
Warnings: None
Story is Complete
Rating: PG-13
Reviews: 212
Summary: What if the war was over, but the only ones left were Ginny and a paralyzed friend? When Ginny finds a ritual that will send her back to an earlier point in the timeline, how will she change things to come out for the better?
Hitcount: Story Total: 84299; Chapter Total: 5935







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((A/N: Another longer chapter, but I suspect no one will mind. :-))




Chapter 11 - Serious Business

The morning after Scabbers, a.k.a. Peter Pettigrew, was forcibly taken from the Weasley home, three owls flew to The Burrow while all the children in the house were having breakfast. One flew to Harry, another to Ron, and the last came to Ginny. The envelope had the seal of Hogwarts on it.

“What’s this?” Ron asked as he looked at it, as if afraid that the envelope might be dangerous. “We got our exam results before we left school.”

“That would be your letter explaining about the extra classes and a form for you to complete indicating the ones you desire to take for the next three years,” Percy told them. “You must choose carefully as they will ultimately affect which careers you can choose. I would be happy to advise you.”

Ron rolled his eyes and Ginny almost giggled at their slightly stuffy brother. However, Harry looked interested and started tearing his envelope open. He pulled out three sheets and started reading. The other two opened their envelopes too. Ginny looked at her twin brothers and saw that they were in their own little world as they whispered to each other; that was probably for the best.

“You’ll also find your Hogsmeade permission forms in there,” Percy added as an afterthought.

“Percy, what is Arithmancy?” Harry asked.

“Harry, you don’t want to take that; take Divination instead. It will be a lot easier,” Ron told him. “I’m going to sign up for that.”

“That would be a waste of your time, Ron, as you have not shown any Divination abilities yet,” Percy told him. “Or have you had experiences of which you have not informed us?”

“Me? Of course not, but I figure you can just make stuff up. How’s the teacher to know if you had a vision or not?” Ron said with a grin.

“Utterly irresponsible,” Percy intoned. “Harry, to answer your question, Arithmancy is a maths-based discipline with several applications. In the beginning, you will learn numerology, which is similar to Divination but with numbers. If you pursue the subject into the NEWT level, you will start to learn the basis of spell crafting, as spells do have a basis in maths as well, at least if want to explain them. Generally, if you take Arithmancy, you’ll also want to take Ancient Runes, where you learn the writings of ancient languages. In the NEWT level of Ancient Runes, you’ll also learn the rune form of spells which are fundamental to spell crafting and warding, which goes hand in hand with Arithmancy.”

“That sounds interesting,” Harry remarked. He looked at the form. “I don’t need Muggle Studies, since I grew up in that world. What’s Care of Magical Creatures like?”

Percy smiled, probably in finding a willing and attentive listener, Ginny thought.

“In that class, you’ll study various creatures that are only known in the Wizarding world. You’ll learn about magical properties of the creatures, how to recognize them, and how to work with them. It can be a dangerous class too, especially at the NEWT level. Charlie could give you more information, as I have not taken the class.”

Harry nodded. “Thanks, Percy.”

“You’re most welcome, Harry,” Percy slowly nodded back. “If you’ll excuse me, I have other things to do.”

The twins were startled and brought out of their conversation when Percy got up. They got up and left for their room too.

Harry looked at the form again. “It says we are to take at least two, but no more than three.” He looked at Ron. “What are you taking?”

“Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. You’re going to take the same ones, right?” When Harry did not immediately answer, Ron started to beg. “Come on, Harry, you’ve got to join me, mate.”

Harry still did not answer. Instead, he turned to her. “What are you going to take, Ginny?”

She was happy that he was asking her, as well as happy that he was taking this more seriously than Ron. “I plan to take Ancient Runes and Arithmancy. I’m considering the Magical Creatures course, but I’m not sure yet. If you want to take it, I’ll take it too. If you don’t, I probably won’t.” She had taken all three courses in the old timeline. They would not be hard for her.

Harry looked thoughtful for a minute. “I think I’ll take Care of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, and Arithmancy. Sorry Ron, but if you want to take Divination, you’re on your own. I know I’m not a Seer.”

“Harry, you can’t do this to me. Come on, take the easier class; drop Arithmancy,” Ron argued, reaching out to him.

“Sorry, Ron. I’m not doing it. I’ve heard stories about the Divination teacher and I don’t want to take a class from her. Why don’t you take Arithmancy instead of Divination?”

“What? And have to do a lot of maths? I don’t think so.”

Harry shrugged. “As you wish. Ginny? Do you have a quill and some ink? I can mark this and we can all send ours back together.”

“Sure, Harry.” She got up to get something to write with. Her mother always kept a few downstairs.

“Harry…” Ron started to try to make him change his mind and Ginny tuned him out. She knew Harry and it was not going to work.

As she found a quill and some ink, she wondered if Hermione would try to take all five electives again. She started to devise a plan to make sure her friend did not have access to a time-turner, as classes was a stupid reason for such a powerful device, but then Hermione’s words came back to her. “You must resist playing God.” Was she really doing that here or protecting her friend? Then Flitwick’s words came back to her: “Allow Mr Potter to make mistakes.” Did she need to let Hermione do this, even if it was a mistake? She thought back to the other timeline. Was taking all of these classes and getting stressed important for Hermione’s development? Damn it! Foreknowledge was supposed to make things easier, not harder!

Ginny grabbed the quill and ink and returned to the dining room.

Harry was glaring at her brother. “I said, shut up! I’ve made up my mind and I’m not taking Divination. If you want to, fine, go ahead, but I’m not.”

That rocked Ginny’s world. She did not recall Harry ever acting like that to Ron, at least not until fourth year. On the other hand, her prediction of Harry not being swayed was correct.

Ron got up and glared back before he stomped from the room.

Harry looked and sounded upset. “What’s his problem? It’s just a class.”

Ginny sat back down and handed the writing materials to Harry. “I don’t know, but I’d guess he feels like he’s being abandoned in some way.” He handed the quill to her after he marked his three choices. She marked the same three on her form and signed it. “Don’t worry about it, he’ll come around eventually.”

Harry sat there and fumed.

“How about we go flying? You know, just enjoying the breeze through our hair. No balls to be thrown or chased, just fly for the fun of it?” It was one of his favorite things to do, so she hoped he took the suggestion and calmed down.

After a long moment, he quietly said, “Sure. If you’ll give me your form I’ll give it to Hedwig. Ron can send his form in later.”

Ginny smiled and handed hers over. A few minutes later, Harry’s owl was flying away and they were flying up into the sky on their brooms. Half an hour later after bumping into the other, chasing each other, some teasing, as well as some outright flirting on Ginny’s part, each of them was in a good mood.

---

By dinner time, Ron was back to normal as if nothing had happened. He did not say what classes he had decided to take, and no one asked. Ginny was almost certain she would never fully understand Ron.

Her father had his own small surprise. After their late dinner, he pulled Harry aside and took him for a walk around the back garden. Ginny stood at the window, watching and wondering. It was a very serious conversation based on the few facial expressions she could see. Ten minutes later, they came back in and her father left to go upstairs.

“Harry?”

He walked over.

“Is everything OK?” she asked.

He shrugged. “Fine I guess.” He looked down for a moment. “Your father said that Sirius Black, my godfather, is free now. It will be in the newspaper tomorrow.”

“That’s great, Harry.” She reached up and put one hand on his shoulder and squeezed. He became a little bashful for a moment.

“Your father,” Harry hesitated for a few seconds. “He also said Sirius wants to meet me and asked if I wanted to meet him.”

“And?” Ginny prompted when he did not go on.

“I told him I thought I would…”

“That’s great, Harry. I’m sure it will be wonderful having someone like that in your life.” She wanted to say more, but refrained in case others overheard.

A grin came over him. “Yeah, yeah I think it will. Can you imagine? I’ll have someone who really cares for me to watch over me.”

That tore at Ginny and she threw herself forward and gave him a hug. “He’s not the only one, Harry,” she whispered, “but I think it will be wonderful for you to have Sirius in your life.” Harry hugged her back and she enjoyed the moment, until a throat cleared behind her and she felt Harry freeze for a second and then jerk his hands back to himself. She slowly let go and turned. She was not surprised or upset with Harry, it was a natural reaction on his part at his age.

“Mum, did you hear? Harry is going to have a godfather again. Isn’t that great?”

Her mother’s suspicious look softened and turned to happiness. “Really? Oh, Harry, I’m so happy for you.” She rushed forward and gave Harry a hug too. Harry returned her hug and the happy look returned to his face. A happy Harry was always a great way to distract her mother. She almost giggled at the thought.




Much to Harry’s disappointment, it was nearly a week before he got to meet Sirius, due to the man’s need to physically recover from his ordeal in prison. He and Ginny had had a few private conversations out in the back garden, in which Ginny told him some more stories about his family, including some with Sirius in them. She also explained about the Marauders in detail, which led to stories about Remus Lupin as well. She hoped Lupin would be their Defense teacher for the year as he had been quite good in the other timeline.

She also had a difficult decision to make: What to do about the Marauder’s Map? The twins had given it to Harry in his third year, which he was about to start. She could just take it from the twins, but that would eventually come out and how would she explain how she knew about it? Similarly, if she went and asked them for it to give to Harry, again, how would she explain her knowledge of the map? She pondered that question as she helped her mother with the setup for Harry’s thirteenth birthday party, a party that would also be the time for Harry to meet his godfather. Could she use this to her -- and Harry’s -- advantage?

There was a knock on the door and everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at it, as they all knew that a visitor was expected. Ginny’s father got up and went to the back door to answer it.

“Hello, Arthur,” came a man’s voice through the screen door.

“Sirius,” her father jovially returned. “Do come in. We have a young man here who has been dying to meet you.”

In walked a thirty-something man in very well tailored robes and dark brown hair pulled back in a short pony-tail. He was reasonably nice looking, Ginny thought. Or at least nice-looking if you liked middle-aged men. Her favorite man had at least twenty years before he became that old, she thought with a mental giggle. Sirius looked a lot healthier than he had in his wanted poster. She watched the man smile as Harry walked up to him.

“I’m Harry.” He held out his hand.

Sirius shook his hand. “I’m Sirius Black.” He slowly pulled Harry to him and opened his arms. Harry stepped into the hug with a smile on his face. When they parted, Sirius put a hand on Harry’s shoulder and adopted a very solemn look. “Harry, I’m so happy to be here with you, but I believe I owe you a rather large apology. Nearly twelve years ago, I let my emotions get the better of me and went chasing a traitor, a traitor that you caught. Because of that, I was not there for you when you needed me most. I’m so sorry, Harry, and I promise you that I will never ever let that happen again. I was young and foolish, but that doesn’t excuse me for breaking my promise to your parents to watch over you if you had no one else. I hope you’ll forgive me and still love me anyway.”

Ginny saw tears come to Harry’s eyes and it was all she could do not to cry herself. She would have looked away to try and gather her emotions, but she was riveted by the scene in front of her.

“Of course,” was all Harry said before he threw himself at Sirius, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.

“Thank you, Harry, thank you,” Sirius hoarsely said, his voice filled with emotion as he patted the young man on the back.

When they finally separated, Sirius asked, “Harry, would you introduce me? While I’ve met Arthur before and gotten to know him better this week, I don’t believe I know anyone else.”

“Oh, sure.” Harry looked around. “These are the Weasleys, or at least most of them. Bill and Charlie are not here. Bill’s in Egypt and Charlie is in Romania. This is Mrs Weasley.” He held out his hand towards her.

“Molly,” Sirius intoned and stepped forward, “Arthur has spoken hightly of you.” When she held out her hand, he gently grabbed it and kissed the back of it, making her blush. “I’m sorry we’ve never met before, but family reunions were never something I enjoyed attending when I was younger.”

“Sirius. I met great-aunt Walburga once and I understand. I’m glad you’re here for Harry, not that we haven’t enjoyed every moment of his company, but every boy needs someone to look after him.”

“Truer words were never spoken,” he said with a grin and a glance at Harry as he released her hand. “Thank you for helping, Molly.” He looked at Harry fondly.

“This is Percy.” Harry indicated the oldest Weasley brother present.

“Percival Weasley at your service.”

Sirius shook the young man’s hand with a grin and a nod. “Percival.”

“These two are Fred and George, or maybe George and Fred, or as they like to be called,” Harry grinned madly, “Gred and Forge.”

Sirius chuckled. “Men after my own heart, it sounds like.” He shook both of their hands.

“This is one of my best friends, Ron.”

“Ron, I appreciate you helping Harry out. A friend is great, a best friend is golden.” Ron blushed as Sirius shook his hand.

“And this,” Harry place his hand on her shoulder as she was standing next to him, “is one of my other best friends, Ginny, or maybe Ginevra, depending on how she feels.” He said teasingly.

Sirius raised an eyebrow and grinned before he held out his hand.

Ginny gave Harry a quick glare before she held out her hand and watched Sirius take it and kiss the back of her hand as he had done to her mother. She blushed furiously. Ginny did not remember the other Sirius being like this. Sure, he had been charming a few times, but never like this. She suddenly realized this was the Sirius Black of Hogwarts and a Pureblood scion, something the fugitive Sirius had never been allowed to be.

“Miss Weasley, I also appreciate you helping Harry while I have been unable to do so.” His smile grew just slightly as his gaze flicked to Harry for a brief moment. “Perhaps we could talk later to discuss Harry’s social talents and standing. I suspect you would have a very different point of view than your brothers. As his godfather, I would be willing to entertain any, uh, suggestions you might have.”

He was a charmer and a tease! She glanced over to see if Harry was as red as she must be and she saw that his cheeks were flaming red as he examined his shoes.

Swallowing to try and find her voice, she finally said, “I -- I’d be delighted, Mr Black. I’m certain there are several things we should discuss. And please call me Ginny.”

“How delightful, Ginny. I look forward to our conversation.” He looked around with a big smile. “Now that we have been introduced and need not be formal, everyone, please call me Sirius.”

“Well, Sirius, why don’t you come to the dining room,” Molly invited him. “Lunch is ready. Cake and presents will be after that.” Sirius followed everyone and took a seat beside Harry. Ginny sat on the other side of Harry.

As they started eating, Sirius turned to his godson. “Harry, would you tell me how you caught Peter? I’ve heard several versions of the story, all slightly different. It seems the Aurors like to embellish parts of it. Were I to believe them, I would have to believe you were more amazing than Albus Dumbledore.” Then he added mostly under his breath, “Although that might not be too hard for me to believe at the moment.”

Harry grinned and told him the same story he had told the Aurors.

Sirius nodded. “That makes much more sense. Peter, or Wormtail as we used to call him,” the twins eyes went wide at that, “was very good at hiding, but he was never the fastest broom in the shed. Nevertheless, if he had enough time, he was a good planner.”

“Wormtail, you say?” Forge asked.

“Yes, that was his nickname in school,” Sirius answered. “To my everlasting regret, we invited him to become a Marauder.”

“Do you know who the Marauders were?” Gred asked with reverence.

Sirius let a barking laugh out. “Of course. Why?”

It was all Ginny could do not to laugh as well. She also considered that this might play right into her hands.

“We’ve wanted to meet them…”

“But we could never find out who they were.”

Ginny noticed that everyone we paying rapt attention to their guest, especially Harry.

“Well, you know of one now. He was really the weakest member of our group…” Sirius started before he was interrupted.

“Your group?!”

Sirius laughed again. “Yes. I’m Padfoot.”

Wide grins split Fred and George’s faces.

He put his hand on Harry’s shoulder. “This is the son of Prongs.” He looked down at Harry with a sad look. “I owe you a lot of stories, Harry. Your father was my best friend and your mother was very special too, to all of us.” He looked back at the twins with his own grin. “And I’ve heard a rumor that you’ll meet the last Marauder this coming year at school.”

“Moony?”

“Otherwise known as Remus Lupin. I’ve been told he’s been offered the job as the teacher for Defense Against the Dark Arts. If he takes it, you’ll have a very good teacher.”

“Did you know,” Gred said excitedly as Sirius tried to finish his lunch, “that you have a massive file in Filch’s office?”

Sirius almost spit out his food as he started laughing and had to hastily grab his napkin. “Yes.” He grinned at them and cast quick looks to their parents, who seemed amused. “Were you in his office for his pleasure or your business?”

The twins also glanced at their parents, who were paying close attention. Ginny had to work hard to hold her laughter in. Ron and Harry appeared to be the same way. Even Percy was smiling at the conversation.

“Well you know how it is,” one twin said, looking nervously to the other.

“There are so many good reasons to visit the caretaker.” The other twin returned the look and the conversation.

“There’s so much…useful information there.”

“Exactly. Like the banned list,” he started to relax a little.

“Right, my brother. Checking the list to make sure we don’t break the rules should be done often.”

Ginny could not help it; she started to giggle. That started Harry laughing and everyone else soon joined in, even her parents. The twins laughed too, although they were very red.

As everyone calmed down, Ginny took her chance. “Uh, haven’t I heard you say you have something of the Marauders?” she asked innocently.

The twins looked bashfully at one another while Sirius looked thoughtful.

“I’m not sure what would have survived, except for maybe…” Sirius looked at the twins. “Did you perchance find an old parchment with our names on it?” he asked very vaguely.

“Uh, yeah. We found one with your names on it.”

“Very clever.” George looked at Fred, who gave a nod. “We really don’t need it anymore. Would you like it back?”

A slow and very mischievous smile lit Sirius’s face. “I think you should give it to Harry, as he would appreciate something from his father.” The twins readily agreed and Harry looked very interested.

Her mother looked very curious to know what was being talked about, but since Sirius had handled the matter, she ignored it and stood. “It looks as if everyone is done. Fred, George, please clear the dishes. Ginny, please get the small plates and more forks. Everyone else, get the presents. Harry and Sirius, please stay seated.” Everyone did as they were told. Ginny could hardly wait to see Harry’s face when he saw what she had ordered for him. She had had to have it custom made.

A few minutes later, they were singing “Happy Birthday” to Harry and he blew out the candles on his chocolate cake. While her mother cut up the cake, presents were thrust upon him.

Harry got a nice watch from her parents. Fred and George gave him a book for Seekers, as did Ron. Percy gave Harry a book on Celtic Runes. A package was opened from Hermione, who had mailed it. Hermione gave him a book on studying for OWLs. Ginny almost choked on her laughter at that one. Harry then reached for the last present -- hers.

He found an oversized but thin leather book. Inside, he saw the word Potter, in large letters. He gave her a confused look.

“Go ahead, Harry, look at the next few pages,” she told him, watching him closely since she was sitting beside him.

Harry flipped the page and saw the Potter coat of arms as well as his family’s Tartan. The next page had a large tree of names and dates. He looked at her again, this time with watery eyes. Turning the page again, he saw names, dates, and descriptions.

“It not much, Harry, but that’s the best I could find about your family. I had someone put it together from the records at the Ministry. Since it was founded in 1383, there’s only information for the last six hundred years,” Ginny explained.

He put the book down on the table and turned to her and hugged her tightly. “Thank you, Ginny! This means so much to me. It’s the best present I’ve received.” Ginny almost cried she was so happy. Making Harry happy was the best thing in the world. She hated to let him go, but she had to. Harry wiped his eyes with the back of his hands.

As he composed himself, Sirius put a hand on his shoulder. “Harry, I’m sorry, but you’ll have to wait a week for your present from me. I don’t know if Arthur told you, but it’s taken me a week to recover enough strength to come see you like this, and I’m afraid I will have to leave soon today, as I’m not fully recovered. So getting you a present has been rather difficult.”

“You don’t need to get me anything,” Harry told him. “Just having a godfather again is enough of a present.”

Sirius pulled him into a hug. “I feel the same about you, Harry, but I still want to get you something as I have twelve years of birthdays and Christmases to make up for. Nevertheless, I can give you a promise now. By the time Christmas comes this year, I will have a house that we can live in, and I would very much like for you to come live with me anytime you’re not in school.”

“Really?!” Harry was very excited.

“Really.” Sirius ruffled his hair. “I’m staying in a room at the Leaky Cauldron for the next month while my family house is being cleaned and remodeled. They start tomorrow but won’t be done until after you leave for school. But how about you come visit me, say every Saturday for the rest of the summer. We’ll buy you school supplies and anything else you need. We’ll also spend time getting to know one another. How does that sound?”

“Great!” Harry was practically jumping for joy.

Ginny was happy for him and a look around table showed her that everyone else was too. However, she now had a concern.

“I hate to leave, Harry,” Sirius did look sad, “but I really must get some more rest -- healer’s orders.”

“I understand.” Harry looked sad as well.

“Chin up, Harry. I’ll see you in a week and I’ll be much stronger by then. We can go shopping for your present and spend most of the day together. I already know what to get you for your birthday present.”

“You really don’t have to,” Harry told him bashfully.

“And I told you that I do. Besides, I know you’ll love it,” Sirius told him teasingly and stood up, thanking Arthur and Molly for their hospitality.

Ginny quickly leaned over and whispered in Harry’s ear. “Offer to walk him to the Apparation point. When you’re alone, tell him to search for a heavy gold locket with a snake on it that’s probably in a display case in the dining room. Do not get rid of it and put it somewhere safe. Promise you’ll tell him why next time, but it is extremely important that locket is not lost or sold.”

Harry nodded. When his godfather looked down at him, he said, “Sirius? Ginny suggested that I walk you to the Apparation point. May I?”

“Of course.” He looked back at the family for a moment. “Good-bye, Weasleys!” They all chuckled and waved him off. Ginny watched them walk out the back.

It was almost fifteen minutes before Harry came back alone. He nodded to her before he sat down to play a game of chess with Ron. They were getting closer.




Over the next week, Harry spent a lot of time looking at his book about the Potter family. He read and memorized as much of his family’s history as possible, or so it seemed to Ginny. They also talked a little about how to tell Sirius her secret, but Harry had no ideas, not knowing the man. She confessed that this Sirius, while very familiar to her, was different than the other Sirius she knew. That worried Harry a little, but she told him she did not think it would matter in the end.

As the next Saturday rolled around, Ginny’s next problem reared its ugly head. Ginny could not get away to go with Harry on his trip. Her mother had shot the idea down completely. Even suggesting their entire family go and be nearby “in case Harry needed them” had been discarded. It appeared that Harry was going to have to explain things to Sirius on his own, and he was not comfortable about that.

There were two other options that she could think of. One, she could sneak away by Apparating to Diagon Alley, but her presence at home might be missed and she would be in big trouble in a way could not easily explain her way out of. Two, Harry could try to get Sirius to ask for her; her mother would probably not deny that. However, she suspected that Sirius would want to spend time with Harry only, at least on the first visit. It was maddening to Ginny how little things could be such big problems.

They finally decided that Harry would have to start the explanation, and then have Sirius call for Ginny when he wanted proof. They could use the cover of Sirius wanting to talk about Harry’s social standing, which embarrassed Harry, but it was the best excuse they could think of to give to her mother.

---

Saturday morning after breakfast, Harry dressed in his best “Dudley hand-me-downs” and used the Floo to get to the Leaky Cauldron. Ginny picked up Harry’s rune book and read in the living room, hoping a Floo Call for her would come soon.

An hour and a half after Harry had left there still had been no word. Ginny was getting very worried as she slowly went through the book, learning a rune set she had not seen in the other timeline.

“Hello?”

The voice from the fireplace made Ginny jump. She had not seen the flash of light that preceded a Floo call. Looking at the fireplace, she saw Sirius’s head. “Er, hi! Who do you need to talk to, Sirius?”

A slightly mischievous look came over him. “If you could fetch one of your parents, I would appreciate it.”

“Certainly.” Ginny ran to get her mother. Her father was working at the Ministry, handling some emergency. She got her mother from the kitchen.

“Sirius,” her mother greeted the man’s head in the fireplace. “Is there a problem?”

“Molly. I do hope it is not an inconvenience, but I was wondering if you could spare Ginny for the afternoon. I’ve been talking with Harry and apparently the two have some sort of business together, and I was hoping to get more details from your daughter.” His face suddenly became more charming looking as his smile grew. “I was also hoping she could tell me a few things about my godson with which he has been less the forthcoming. If I could watch them together, I might be able to guide Harry a little better.”

Her mother chuckled and Ginny blushed slightly. He was such a tease, Ginny thought.

“I don’t think that will be a problem as long as you are there.” Her mother turned and looked at her. “Why don’t you go get a better blouse on, dear? You should look more presentable if you’re to be out.”

Ginny rolled her eyes as she turned and sprinted for her room. She thought her present blouse was just fine and that her mother merely wanted her out of the room for a moment. As she peeled her shirt off, she glanced at her chest and noticed that changes were starting to happen. Perhaps one of those training bras her mother had recently given her would be in order. Strapping it on, she also considered that maybe this was why her mother had sent her up here. She slipped on a more feminine looking blouse and ran a brush through quickly through her hair before she rushed back downstairs. Her mother was joking with the man about how Ginny was so smart and did so well in school. If she was not about to share her secret with Sirius shortly, she would have felt a lot more nervous about that comment.

Her mother looked at her as she went over to the fireplace. “Ginny. Be sure you mind Sirius and I want you home by six. Harry should probably come with you as well.”

“Yes, Mum.” She looked at the fireplace. “Are you ready for me?”

“If you’ll wait about half a minute to step through, I’ll be waiting for you,” he told them. “Thank you, Molly. I appreciate this.” His head disappeared.

“Ginny,” her mother gently put a few strands of hair in place and then made small adjustments to her blouse to straighten it. “Please be on your best behavior this afternoon. It’s very important.”

That confused her. “Why, Mum? I’m just going to talk a little and spend some time with Harry and his godfather.”

Her mother finished fiddling with her blouse. “This time could be very important to your future.”

What was she alluding to, Ginny asked herself, giving a confused expression.

“I suppose what I’m trying to say is that Sirius may be considering you for a match for Harry, and I think that would be a very good match, for both of you, especially since I can tell that you like Harry and I think Harry likes you. While your father and I would never force you to marry anyone, this is an opportunity you shouldn’t ignore. So you need to make a good impression on him.”

Ginny could not believe what she was hearing. Even in the old timeline, her mother had never done anything like this, but then again, this kind of situation had never happened either. A “free” Sirius was having more of an effect on things than she had ever imagined.

“Sure Mum. I think that would be really great, but I don’t think you need to worry. If it’s meant to be, it will happen.”

“Of course, dear. Now, go and be the good little girl I know you are.” Her mother kissed her forehead and guided her to the fireplace.

Ginny threw the Floo powder in and said, “The Leaky Cauldron.” The last thing she saw as she left was a smiling yet hopeful look on her mother’s face. As she went through the Floo network, all she could think about was her mother must be losing her mind. She came out of the fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron to see a very formal looking, although smiling, Sirius Black. Harry was standing beside him looking very nervous. He gave her a nervous smile when she looked at him.

“Miss Weasley, thank you for coming. Since it is almost lunch time, I thought we could talk over lunch in my room. Would you join us?” Sirius was being very formal for some reason.

She nodded and said, “Of course, and it’s still Ginny.”

He guided the two to the bar area and retrieved two trays loaded with food and gave one to Harry and one to Ginny, while he grabbed a big bucket with ice and bottles of Butterbeer in it.

They started to go upstairs, with Harry in the lead and Sirius in the rear. “I haven’t forgotten, Miss Weasley, but I beg your indulgence for a few minutes. Once it is just the three of us and appearances are not so important, we can be more casual with each other.”

Harry stopped at a door and Sirius used his free hand to unlock it and swing it open. They all went in.

“You can put the tray on the table,” Sirius said as he closed the door and locked it.

Ginny had barely put the tray down and turned around before she was hit with a spell that had been silently cast. Her body froze and her limbs locked up. Harry had barely managed to put his own tray down and caught her as she started to fall.

“Sirius!” Harry shouted.

The man set the bucket down and pointed his drawn wand at the door and cast several privacy spells.

“Sirius! What the hell are you doing?!” Harry shouted again, sounding angry this time.

Sirius turned back around with a sad expression. “My apologies, Harry and Miss Weasley, but I need to take a few precautions before we get comfortable with each other.” He waved his wand again and she felt herself rise and float over to the bed in the room, before she softly was placed on it.

“Sirius…” Harry ground out angrily.

“Harry,” Black raised his voice a little. “Please be patient for a moment and I’ll explain.”

Harry shut up, but it was obvious he was very angry. Ginny was having trouble seeing both of them. It was not hard to guess what was happening and she really did not blame Sirius. The way he had made her carry the tray of food so that both her hands were busy was well done. He would have been a helpful addition in the war.

Sirius pulled a chair over to sit near the bed and directed Harry to do the same. With a wave of his wand, he released her head. “My apologies, Miss Weasley, but Harry has told me a most fantastic story, after swearing me to silence.” He looked to his godson. “It’s a prank worthy of a Marauder.”

“I told you it’s not a prank. She can prove it,” Harry said heatedly. “The locket should prove it too.”

Sirius paused for a moment. “That is a coincidence that’s very hard to explain, as it was exactly where she said it was. But it’s not hard to tell that it is filled with Dark Magic, which raises a few questions.”

“Did Harry tell you what Voldemort has done to keep himself alive?” Ginny asked.

“You mean about splitting his soul? Yes. But can you prove it?”

“Do a Homenum Revelio spell on it. It will come up positive. Also, I’m willing to make a magical oath that I’m telling the truth,” Ginny offered.

He stared at her for a moment before he got up and went to a bag on the table. A moment later, he returned holding a necklace chain with a heavy golden locket on it. “Homenum Revelio.” The locket glowed for a few seconds. He looked at her and then at Harry, then back again. “This is so fantastic as to be unbelievable.” He put the locket on the table and returned to his chair. “Harry, I see Ginny’s wand in a small pocket on the side of her jeans. Please pull it out and hand it to her.” He released her right hand only.

“What? Me?” He blushed slightly.

With a perfectly straight face, Sirius said, “I could, but I felt it would be more appropriate for you than for me. Besides, I’m suspect you might enjoy touching her wand. I’m sure she’d enjoy touching yours.”

Harry went bright red, as did Ginny. That was more of the Sirius she was used to. After a pause, Harry snatched her wand out of the pocket she kept it in and put it in her hand. It was done so fast he looked like he was trying to not get burned by it. Ginny noticed that Sirius was relaxed and his wand was pointing at the floor.

“Miss Weasley, your oath of truthfulness please. Assuming you still have your magic, I shall release you and we can have a conversation. If you feel it safer to refuse, I shall have to leave you here while I contact you parents to get you some help for your delusions.”

“Sirius! That was uncalled for!”

He sighed. “Harry…”

“Harry,” Ginny interrupted. “Sirius is right to take these precautions. If someone had come to us in the other timeline with a story like mine, we would have doing something similar.” We would have given them Veritaserum, she thought. Holding her wand tightly, she said, “I, Ginny Weasley, make this oath and swear on my magic that everything I say in this conversation will be the truth.” A white pulse of light came from her wand. “By the way, Sirius, you really need to be a little more paranoid.”

“Why?” he asked with a grin.

She let the wand spin ninety degrees in her hand as she thought “Chiroptera Mucosus.” Sirius had no chance to dodge or block the spell cast silently from three feet away. Miniature light green bats clawed their way out of his nose and started attacking his face. While he fought those off, she turned her wand again and hit herself with a “Finite Incantatum” to release the body bind. She looked at Harry and saw that he was laughing hard at his godfather.

It took Sirius a couple of minutes to knock them far away enough to dispel them before they could attack again. The other two sat and watched in amusement.

“Bloody hell, woman! What was that?” He sounded angry, but he was also grinning at her. He made it sound like a prank well done.

“That was my famous Bat Bogey hex. It’s not lethal, but it’s great for a distraction,” she told him, returning a grin as she sat on the edge of the bed.

“It is,” he agreed as he put his wand up. “Nice job on the soundless cast too. I’ve never seen any second or third-year who could do that.” Then he lost his grin. “So, everything Harry told me about a twenty-one year-old you coming back from the future to save us from Dumbledore’s mistakes in the war against Voldemort is the truth?”

“Yes, that’s true. Trust me, it was really bad and this was the only thing I could think to do. I’ve got most of the mission accomplished and with that locket you have, there is only one more Horcrux to find.”

Sirius because very pensive. “Harry also said that you said that there is a soul fragment in him too.”

She nodded. “I’m afraid so.”

“What do you plan to do about that?”

“He didn’t tell you?”

Sirius looked at Harry for a moment and then shook his head. “No, he wouldn’t.”

Ginny sighed and looked at her friend. “Thanks, Harry,” she said sarcastically. He looked a little embarrassed but did not say anything.

“We need you to buy some phoenix tears -- at least three and preferably five,” she explained.

“What? Do you know how expensive those are?” Sirius was shocked.

She ignored the outburst and continued. “Once we have those, I know where to get a basilisk fang. We’ll use that to stab his scar to remove the soul fragment, and once that is done, we’ll use the tears to combat the venom and heal him. His scar should mostly go away too.”

“I forbid it!” Sirius shouted. “There is no way I’m letting basilisk venom get into Harry. Do you know how, how toxic that is? What are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking,” Ginny said more firmly, “that I want to cure Harry and give him a more normal life without some idiot Dark Wizard trying to kill him.”

“With basilisk venom?” Sirius still sounded incredulous. “For Merlin’s sake…”

“And how would you propose to remove a soul fragment form him without killing him?” she asked innocently. Ginny looked at Harry and saw him struggling to hold in a chuckle over his godfather’s expression, despite the seriousness of the conversation.

Sirius sputtered for a moment. “I… Well you could… What about…” He stopped and threw up his hands. “I don’t know, I’ve only had a few minutes to think about this. There must be another way.”

“Fair enough,” she agreed. “Feel free to research it, without letting anyone else know what you’re researching. We can start a search for phoenix tears this afternoon and I will borrow a basilisk fang tonight. If you find a better way before we’re ready to destroy the soul fragment, then we can consider it. Besides, if we destroy the fragment in Harry before the others, it should guarantee his survival.”

“Why?” Sirius asked and Harry looked very interested too.

“Because part of the prophecy says ‘either must die at the hand of the other’. As long as Voldemort isn’t wielding the fang, Harry should survive, even if the fragment is not destroyed and we have to find some other way to take care of it,” she explained.

Sirius stared at her. “You’re risking a lot on that phrase being literal. And what if the soul fragment gets loose and kills him? That could be his hand.”

Ginny looked from one to the other. “Look, it’s the best solution I have, and I really do believe it will work. I’m open to other ideas, though.”

“Harry said you had originally planned to use a Dementor. Do you know how crazy that is or what that would do to him?” Sirius asked.

“Yes,” she quietly said, “I do.” She looked right at Harry and her heart went out to him. “He would feel like he would never be happy again while it was happening, and he would hear the fight over him from when he was a baby. He would remember the evil laugh and the Killing Curse as well as his mother’s screams.” Harry gulped and she looked at Sirius. “It would be a heavy price, but it would be the easiest thing to do and is bearable. I know it would work if we could get access to a Dementor.”

Sirius stared intently at her, as if judging her.

“I’m sure you’re thinking that I’m a cold-hearted bitch for even thinking of letting a Dementor get near Harry.” She saw Sirius look down, unable to hold her gaze. “Nothing could be further from the truth. I like the idea even less than you do, but the alternatives are worse. Do you want to allow Voldemort to get a new body and make Harry fight him? I’d do almost anything to prevent that as I can tell you the result would probably be a long drawn out war that destroys Wizarding Britain and leaves most of us dead.”

Sirius let out a long breath. “I’m sorry for judging you like that. You’re right. The alternatives are worse. We can not let the Dark Lord come back.” He looked back up at her.

She smiled at him to let him know that he was forgiven. “I really do understand.”

“So now what?” Harry asked.

Ginny smiled. “We’re getting close. I think we have lunch and then go see about placing an order for phoenix tears. After that, we can go to Gringotts and Sirus can try to take over Bella’s vault as her head of house. Or at least I hope he can.”

“There’s one in there?” the man asked.

“Yes. Last time, Harry had the help of a rogue goblin to break into the bank. It was not a pretty sight, I’m told.” She went to the table and re-warmed the food and they each started grabbing a plate and loading them up from the dishes of food. “I’m hoping to do this the easy way.”

“Good idea, but it won’t work. As long as Bella is alive, they won’t release control of her vault. To make matters worse, no only does she have to die, but her husband and his brother will need to go as well, and they will have to go before her. If she dies first, they will inherit whatever she has. You need her to be the last so there is no contest for where her possessions go,” Sirius told them.

Ginny nodded as she opened a Butterbeer. “I was afraid of that, but I have a solution. It will take me a few days, but I think I can arrange for the three of them to be moved out of Azkaban and have an accident on the way, with Bella departing last.”

Sirius opened his own drink. “I really don’t want to know how you’re going to do that, do I?”

She shook her head. “No, probably not. I’ll need to make some arrangements. I’m not proud of having to do this, but they deserve what they’re going to get.”

“Many times over,” Sirius quietly said.

She thought back to information Kingsley had once told her and look at Sirius carefully. “Did they move you from Azkaban from to the Ministry very early in the morning?” He nodded. “Good, then my information is probably still true. Still just to play it safe, I’ll need you to invite me and Harry over here Monday afternoon, say right after lunch and until about eight in the evening. The actual event should happen Tueday morning and you’ll read about it in the Prophet on Wednesday. Once you do, you can return to Gringotts to claim her vault.”

They all started eating, each being hungry from the excitement of the last hour.

“Sirius? Can you do a couple more things? They would be very helpful,” Ginny told him.

“Probably,” he told her before he took a drink and then grinned at her.

“I need you to play Head of the House of Black and visit a couple of cousins…”

“Andromeda would be one, wouldn’t she?” he asked.

“Yes. She really wanted to be part of the Black family and never got the chance before she died. I know it would mean a lot to her,” Ginny said.

“It was already on my list of things to do,” Sirius said with a nod. “Was the other thing with Narcissa or Bellatrix?”

“Narcissa. You probably haven’t heard, but when Lucius landed himself in Azkaban last September, all the fines he was required to pay emptied a most of the famed Malfoy vaults,” she said with an almost evil grin. Sirius laughed and Harry grinned along with her.

“Well done, Miss Weasley,” he congratulated her with gusto.

“Thank you,” she gave him a modified curtsy. “So Narcissa would probably be inclined to sell a few things to the right people, and as the head of her birth house, I think you can get her to agree.”

“Interesting. What did you have in mind?”

“Most importantly, offer to buy the Malfoy library, except for those books that describe the Malfoy family. The book you’re after is called ‘Wizards and Time’…”

“Which is where you got the information to come back in time, and you want to prevent that from falling into the wrong hands,” Sirius finished for her.

“Correct,” she told him with a big smile. “Please get an inventory and make sure that book is there. We can put it in a vault. While you’re there, also make an offer for a house-elf named Dobby, which used to be Lucius’s personal elf.”

Sirius gave her a questioning look. “Since the Black family elf died, a house-elf would be useful, but why?”

“Because in the other timeline, Dobby’s greatest desire was to be free of the Malfoys who abused him very badly.” Ginny looked sad and determined as she explained this. “Harry freed him in his second year in the other timeline. That did not happen this last year, but in order to get Dobby to help me do something in this timeline, I promised him I’d try to free him. He’s very powerful and extremely loyal. Beyond a few oddities, he’s really a wonderful person to have around.”

Sirius considered that. “If Narcissa is low on cash, getting Dobby should be very easy, as they probably have several house-elves. The library will be harder, but I’ll see what I can do.”

Ginny pushed her plate back and grabbed a biscuit. When Harry grabbed one too, she looked at Sirius. “There is one other thing you really need to do this afternoon, you know?”

“I do. We can take a short trip to Madam Malkin’s and another spot I’ve found that caters more to Muggle-borns.” He looked at his godson. “Chin up, Harry. I know it won’t be fun, but I’ll make it happen as fast as I can. Merlin knows I don’t like to do it either.”

“What?” Harry looked confused.

Sirius grinned. “Harry, your parents would not let you dress that way if they were here, and I will not let you do so either, not as my heir.”

“I’m your heir?” Harry asked in an amazed voice, almost breathing it.

“Of course you are,” Sirius said jauntily, “and you must dress the part. I’ll let you keep one set of those, those things, for working in the greenhouses and such, but otherwise, you must remember that you have an image to maintain.”

Harry struggled for a moment. “But, but that’s not me…”

“Harry,” Ginny got him to look at her now. “This is part of what I’ve been trying to tell you about the Wizarding World. This is part of why Draco makes fun of you, but cause you don’t fit the image you should have.”

“Wait, what’s Draco doing?” Sirius asked as he sat up attentively.

Ginny looked at Harry to see if he wanted to explain, but Harry waved at her to do it. “Besides being an insulting little berk, he’s probably the biggest bully at school, even going so far as to threaten some of the younger girls, whom I’ve had to rescue. I’ve managed to slap him down a few times and I’ve threatened him with dire consequences if he gets out of line, but that only seems to last a few months at best. I think that going home brings the worst parts out, and then he returns to school and I have to start all over again. He’s getting old enough that I may have to do something permanent to him. I will not allow him to become a new Dark Wizard trying to take over the country.”

Sirius looked upset as he listend. He then turned to his godson. “And part of his bullying includes you and your friends?”

Harry nodded and quietly said, “Any chance he can get away with it.”

A determined look came over the man and he coldly said, “Technically, Draco has an obligation to me with Lucius permanently unavailable. I shall speak to Narcissa about this too.” His expressioned softened and he looked fondly at Harry. “Don’t worry about Draco any more. If he continues on this way, please let me know and I will take care of it.”

“But…”

“Harry, this is why you have a godfather, and one who understands these types of things.” Sirius sighed. “I have so much to teach you.”

Ginny added her two Knuts worth. “Harry, please listen to him. This is what I’ve been trying to explain to you. Draco will respond to this, or as we discussed the other day, Fate will apply a correction. Wizarding families stand behind one another, but there are family expectations too. Draco’s mother knows this; she knows what it means to be a Black.”

Harry looked back an forth between the two, thinking about it. “OK, if you insist.”

Sirius grinned and slapped him on the shoulder. “I do. Now, let’s take the trays back downstairs and drop them off. I’ll take a quick trip home to put a certain locket in a safe place, and then we can spend some time in the shops.”

“Are you still feeling OK, Sirius?” Harry asked caringly.

“Yes, lad, I’m much better than a week ago. Let’s go.”

Downstairs, Sirius took a quick trip back to his house to put the locket in a safe place. There was no reason for it to be stolen while he stayed at the Leaky Cauldron, but no one wanted to take any chances on losing what they had found.

Once Sirius returned, the three of them walked around Diagon Alley. Harry wanted to buy a few things, so they headed to Gringotts. All three of them got into a cart and went down to Harry’s vault.

When they got to Harry’s vault, he got out after the goblin. As the door was opened, Sirius stayed in the cart, but Ginny got out to join him. “Harry, do you mind if I go with you? There is something I’ve always wondered about.” She looked at him and wondered if he would say yes or no. In the old timeline, she had never had the opportunity to go into his trust vault.

Harry shrugged. “If you want.”

Ginny could not help but notice the Weasleys’ family vault was one size smaller than Harry’s trust vault, and theirs was mostly empty when she had gone down with her parents last summer. She was not bothered by the difference, but the difference was hard to miss. Of course now, the profits from the basilisk parts made the vault not so empty.

There was a sizeable mound of gold in the middle, which Harry started taking from to fill his money bag. She walked towards the back and saw a low shelf running all the way across. In the very middle, which would be hidden from the door area by the mound of gold unless you walked around it, was a book. It so reminded her of Riddle’s diary that she shuddered. “Harry? Come look at this.”

A moment later, he joined her.

“I think you need to get that,” she whispered. “It may give you more information.”

Harry walked over and retrieved the book. Opening it up, he looked at the first page. A few seconds later, his head snapped up and he looked intently at her. “It my mother’s diary,” he said breathlessly.

She looked over his shoulder to read it with him. On the inside cover was the name “Lily Evans/Potter”. The “/Potter” had obviously been added later. Ginny continued to whisper. “This must be how you found the extra information about your family.”

“You mean in the other time?” He whispered too.

“Yeah.”

Harry flipped through the book. It was almost filled. Only a dozen or so pages in the back were blank. “Thanks Ginny!”

“Sure. I had wondered if there was anything else in here, but I really didn’t know. Come on, we better get going.” She returned to the cart.

Harry got back into the cart, cradling his new book. The goblin started them traveling up to the lobby.

“What do you have, Harry?” Sirius asked with curiosity showing.

“Ginny found a book in my vault I’ve never seen before. It seems to be my mother’s. I can’t wait to read it,” he said with a big smile on his face.

“Knowing your mother, I’m sure it will be interesting,” he said with a grin. “Did you know it was there, Ginny?”

“No, I didn’t. I had wondered if there was more than gold there and went in to see. I saw it in the back.” She shrugged, not sure what else to say, or could be said in front of the goblin in the cart.

When the cart arrived at the lobby, Harry held his new book tightly, as if afraid it would get lost. They walked around for a bit. Sirius pulled him into a shop that catered to Muggle-borns and those who liked the Muggle fashions. There, he bought Harry a number of sets of clothes, and told Harry to burn most of the things from the Dursleys, as his godson would wear the best. Ginny was happy to see Harry so happy. A stop to see Madam Malkin got him a few sets of robes that were of a higher quality than he had ever had before.

Their next stop was at Quality Quidditch Supplies. After hearing a sales person gush about the new Firebolt broom to a customer, Ginny could not help but smirk, when Sirius bought one for Harry for missing twelve years of Christmases and birthdays. Ron would probably burst something when he saw Harry’s new broom.

The afternoon was almost over when they returned to Sirius’s rented room. Since it was almost time for them to go home and Sirius was getting tired, Harry and Ginny left for The Burrow at half five.

When they got home, Ron did indeed go spare at Harry’s new broom. Ginny was pleased to see that her brother’s jealousy was very limited. Her mother also stopped her and raised an eyebrow in question.

Ginny smiled and said, “Everything’s fine, Mum, just fine.” She watched her mother smile and start to hum as she returned to the kitchen to finish making dinner. Ginny just knew her mother was planning a wedding now. She shook her head and walked outside to watch Harry try out his new broom.

They were getting closer finishing off Voldemort.




((A/N: I've tried to portray Sirius as being mostly normal, yet with some effects from staying in Azkaban for 12 years. Hopefully, that came across.))

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