As always thanks to my excellent betas without whom there would be no story for you to enjoy. Thanks to JK Rowling for the original story. Thanks to those who reviewed.
Please remember that characters will progressively act more out of character with canon. this is an alternate timeline/reality/universe story after all.
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Dumbledore’s Biggest Mistake | ||||||
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Category: Pre-OotP, Post-OotP, Alternate Universe Characters:Albus Dumbledore, Albus Dumbledore, Harry/Ginny, Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Luna Lovegood, Minerva McGonagall, Minerva McGonagall, Neville Longbottom, Neville Longbottom, Nymphadora Tonks, Remus Lupin, Remus Lupin, Ron Weasley, R Genres: Action/Adventure, General Warnings: Death, Extreme Language, Intimate Sexual Situations, Mild Language, Violence Rating: R Reviews: 85 Summary: A second Prophecy is discovered, which details the requirements of victory. Only one little problem... it was found too late. Now Harry must decide whether or not return to the past in an attempt fulfil this prophecy. If he does, then when should he return, and how will he go about fulfilling the prophecy . I am reposting the first 3 chapters after they are being reviewed by some new betas who are helping me with the rewriting of these chapters. Please continue to enjoy this story. Hitcount: Story Total: 60934; Chapter Total: 5591 Author's Notes: |
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It took about fifteen minutes for the two of them to reach the gargoyle which guarded the doorway to the Headmaster’s office. Not really in the mood to argue with an animated stone statue, he simply said, “I am here to see Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall. Please inform them that Harry Potter is at the door and requests permission to enter.” Ginny turned to leave not expecting the statue to listen to a boy or girl without the password; she was surprised when the gargoyle stepped aside and allowed them into the stairwell. She saw a staircase that wound around a central pole and was wide enough for three people to stand abreast. What really fascinated her though was that the stairs were moving upwards! This would make going up a lot of fun, but what about when it was time to go back down again? Would they have to run? Harry placed his arm around her shoulders in a comforting gesture and they stepped onto the stairs together. The ride took less than a minute, but to her it seemed to take forever. With her arms wrapped around his neck, she was holding him close for comfort. “Now I know what it feels like to be facing an executioner. I just know I am about to be expelled, and I have wanted nothing more than to come to Hogwarts since I was old enough to know where Bill and Charlie went every September,” Ginny whimpered as she thought of them snapping her wand. The shame she had brought on her family; the pain she had caused everyone. These things kept running through her mind, and she buried her head in his shoulder. Harry hugged Ginny tightly and on a whim kissed her on the cheek and then whispered, “I swear to you on my honour as a wizard; they are not going to expel you from Hogwarts. I can’t guarantee that you won’t get a detention, but the twins would celebrate their sister taking after them if that were to happen. Now please calm down. “Tom truly had no idea how well he chose the bait for that trap. You are a treasure which can never be measured in monetary value. Please trust me when I say that nothing will happen that I can’t fix.” Ginny’s facial expressions made him briefly chuckle before the seriousness of the situation resettled on his shoulders. Knocking on the door to the office and being told to enter, he opened the door and asked, “Professor McGonagall, can you step out here please and help solve a little problem?” He stepped back and allowed the woman out, but closed the door when everyone else tried to exit also. As he did, he said, “I’ll explain everything in just a few minutes. Please be patient.” He and Ginny quickly explained about her clothes being wet, and asked the professor if she could dry them. McGonagall quickly cast a drying charm, and then did something very out of character for her; she wrapped Ginny in a very tight hug, and whispered, “Thank Merlin you are safe; we were all so worried about you.” Then turning to Harry, she continued, “And you young man have a lot of explaining to do.” They made themselves as presentable as possible, entered the office, and were immediately choked almost into unconsciousness by Molly Weasley hugging them so tightly that they could not breathe. Arthur, the boys, Dumbledore, and McGonagall all tried to get her to relax her grip. Arthur was finally able to encourage her to do so by pointing out that the two children’s faces were turning blue, and it would be a shame to have survived the Chamber of Secrets only to be loved to death by an overenthusiastic mother. The first thing Harry did upon being released was to approach the desk where Dumbledore again sat. He nodded slightly and began to lay the items he had brought with him on the desk. First was the sword, then the Basilisk fang, the diary, and finally the hat. Looking directly at Dumbledore, he said, “After the story of the Chamber, dimple-chin.” He then moved to stand by the window and relax for a moment while everyone else was still worrying over Ginny. With a lot of encouragement from her father and mother, Ginny began to tell what had happened that year, of how she had first found a friend in that diary, and of how she had trusted him when no one else seemed to want her around. She told of how she had tried to get rid of the diary and accidentally found out that Harry had it, and of how she had stolen it back from him in order to keep him from finding out about what she had written about him. Harry snorted at that moment and they glanced at him. “Sorry, Ginny, Tom took great pleasure in mocking me about your feelings and how you perceived my failure to return them. He told me most of what you wrote, and I am pretty sure some things that you didn’t. However, we can discuss that later. I hate being lied to.” His apologetic smile told her that she had little to fear about him. Ginny told of trying to confess to Harry that morning at breakfast and of how Percy had arrived and frightened her away. Then she didn’t remember any more, until she had awakened in the Chamber of Secrets. Ron, the twins, and Mrs. Weasley had immediately slapped Percy on the back of the head causing Harry to laugh. He then took over the narration of events. He told about he and Ron wanting to go and see Hermione, about seeing the new message, and being sent back to the common room. Then he told them about sneaking out to follow Professor McGonagall to find out who had been taken, and learn if anyone was missing besides Ginny. He explained about trying to get Professor Lockhart to help him rescue Ginny and the response he received. He left out what he had done to the pathetic excuse for a man. Finally he talked about figuring out the clues he had gotten from others during the school year, and deciding to ask Myrtle if she was the girl that had died in the toilet the last time that the Chamber had been opened. After confirming his suspicions, she had shown him the sink that served as the door to the tunnel leading to the Chamber. “Luckily I’m a Parseltongue, which apparently is the only way to open the door,” he commented, deciding it was best to avoid hiding his talent from those who still might not know. Molly and Arthur shared a glance and silently agreed that since it was Harry, they could not fault him for it. He continued, “It was strange to come across evidence of an intelligent Dark wizard. I had thought that intelligence and practicing Dark arts were mutually exclusive. “Well back to the story, I took the pipe leading down to the Chamber and found the area littered with the bones of little animals. Mostly rats and mice, but maybe a few of them were of larger rodents. I made my way down the corridor and found a large door similar to the kind that Gringotts would use. It also required speaking Parseltongue to open it. Once it was, I entered the Chamber itself.” He paused in his narrative, and took a deep steadying breath. He looked at everyone present and his gaze lingered longest on Ginny. The terror he had felt and the sense of near loss were heavy on his shoulders. He had almost lost her before having truly gotten to know her. “At the end of the Chamber was a statue on a man, which reached from floor to ceiling; it represented Salazar Slytherin, and at the base of it was Ginny lying in a puddle of water, very near death.” Ginny’s brothers began to grumble, except for Ron who had a bewildered look on his face. Harry proceeded to explain how he had met Tom Riddle, learned the name that he had used later in life, and managed to defeat the Basilisk with a large amount of help from Fawkes. The tale slowed down as he told of first stabbing the diary with the fang, and then cutting it into two pieces with the sword. Finally he concluded his tale with, “Once Riddle was dealt with; I assumed that Ginny would simply wake up. She didn’t, and I tried for about ten minutes to figure out what to do. Then I remembered a story one of my teachers had read to the class at the Muggle Primary School I attended. In that story, a beautiful princess had been put into an enchanted sleep, and the only way to awaken her was with a kiss.” Ginny blushed and buried her face in her mother’s shoulder, while her brothers all made grumbling noises under their breath. “I guess there is a bit of truth in that story; because, only a second after our lips touched, Ginny awoke. We talked for a few minutes, and when she had calmed down, we returned to the toilet that serves as the entrance to the Chamber. I noticed the message on the wall had changed before we came here.” Harry turned to the phoenix. “Thank you again, Fawkes, without you we would have never made it out of the Chamber.” Harry leaned back and waited for Dumbledore or McGonagall to say anything, but Molly was the first to speak. She gently smiled and said, “See Ginny, it’s just like I told you, be patient, and he will notice you. Or in this case, kiss you.” The girl’s face was so red that it would have been possible to start a fire with the heat that was being given off, and a whine of, “Mum, please stop embarrassing me,” was Ginny’s only reply. Most of the room laughed, but the twins had a calculating look about them, and Harry took note of this for future reference. Dumbledore cleared his throat and said quietly, “Miss Weasley, I am pleased that you are safe, but the fact remains that your actions however unintentionally endangered the students and staff of this school…” McGonagall interrupted. “Albus, surely this young student has suffered enough for her lack of judgement, what more can you do to punish her? Certainly you don’t mean to expel her!” Her voice rose as she spoke. “No, Professor McGonagall, I am not going to expel Miss Weasley. However, her actions do call for some type of punishment. Perhaps a few detentions to give her time to consider what price others have had to pay for her not taking that book to her father or a teacher as soon as she realized that it wasn’t an ordinary diary.” Harry spoke up, “Sir, I think it would be best if Ginny went to see Madam Pomfrey while you consider your decision. It was cold in the Chamber and Ginny was lying in a pool of water for at least an hour before I arrived. Perhaps Mr Weasley can stay to speak on her behalf if it were necessary?” Harry nodded toward Arthur as he said this. McGonagall nodded her agreement and said, “That sounds like a good plan to me also.” “Very well, Molly. If you and your sons would escort young Ginevra to the hospital wing, I will have Arthur escort Mr. Potter there in a short while.” Dumbledore dismissed them and waited as they left the office. Percy had lifted Ginny from his mother’s lap and carried her out, with Molly and the other three brothers following. Dumbledore then said, “Arthur, I assume that you and Molly have taught your children to be careful with magical objects especially when they don’t know where they may have come from.” “Of course Albus, I have always told them that if you can’t see where something keeps its brain, then don’t trust it. She must have forgotten that simple saying,” Arthur answered. “Perhaps that would be a good detention, writing that saying down repeatedly so that she will always remember it.” “What are we going to tell everyone, Albus?” said McGonagall. “Ah, Minerva, I think we should have a feast to celebrate the end of this danger. Perhaps you will inform the house-elves of the need to prepare? And as a school treat, I believe that I will cancel final exams this year, except for the OWLs and NEWTs of course,” Dumbledore replied. McGonagall nodded an affirmative and left the office herself. When she had, Harry said, “Professor Dumbledore, Mr. Weasley, now that we are alone, I need to tell you a few things before Lucius Malfoy makes his appearance.” Both of them glanced at each other. Arthur because he didn’t know what to think; Dumbledore because he was worried about others finding out what the future would hold. Arthur spoke first and said, “What is it that you need to say, Harry?” “First, sir, are you aware of any law that would allow the Ministry to search, and if necessary seize Dark Artefacts from a vault in Gringotts? If so, then there may be one or more of those items in the high security vaults. Riddle bragged about planning to make six of what ever those things were, and he quite likely succeeded. It may also be necessary to arrange to have such a law passed allowing the vaults of all known Voldemort supporters to be searched. Other than Hogwarts, that is the um… best secured location in the wizarding world.” “I see,” said Arthur. “No sir, you don’t, but you soon will. Professor, you need to tell Mr Weasley the complete prophecy concerning Voldemort and me. Then he will be better able to understand what I am about to say.” Dumbledore looked askance at Harry, and then, considering he was about to get some of the answers he wanted, stood and walked to a cabinet. He opened the doors and gathered a stone basin, which he placed on his desk. Then placed the tip of his wand to his temple and withdrew a strand of silvery substance which he dropped into the basin. Finally he looked at the two in front of him and said, “This is a Pensieve; I am assuming that you are aware of the properties of this device.” Both nodded an affirmative and Dumbledore continued, “The memory I am about to show you is from a time not long before Harry’s birth. I was interviewing an applicant for the Divination position, and during the interview I witnessed the following prophecy.” The ghostly form of Sybil Trelawney rose from the basin and began to recite the first prophecy. About halfway through, Dumbledore stopped it and said, “At that point, a Death Eater was discovered eavesdropping, and was removed before he could hear the second part.” The rest of the memory continued and Harry flinched when they heard the ending phrase. Arthur pondered what he had just heard for a minute or two and then said, “So he isn’t dead?” Dumbledore quickly replied, “No Arthur, he isn’t dead.” “He isn’t alive either; well, not yet at least,” Harry put in. He then studied the two men and continued, “In December, after the attack at Godric’s Hollow, a second prophecy was given concerning Tom, I, and a flame-haired girl that I would apparently ‘save from the Serpent King. She would own my heart and to me must be wed.’” “When did you discover this prophecy?” Arthur asked. Harry responded, “I personally learned it about two weeks ago, but the person who told me about it learned it on the fourth of January, 1997.” Arthur just sat and stared; it took him a minute to gather his thoughts before he said, “How can that be possible? No one is supposed to be able to travel through time.” “There is a way, but it comes at extreme risk. A distant relative of mine was a Chronomancer, and he documented everything that was needed for the time ritual they used.” “But it is illegal…” Harry cut him off, “…without strict Ministry permission. However, the Minister himself along with Professor Dumbledore helped guard the doors to the school in order to allow it to succeed.” Both men seemed to be waiting for him to finish his story so he continued. “As I was saying, they did not find out about the second prophecy until it was too late to fulfil the requirements. The older Harry and Ginny still got married, but not until March seventh of that year.” Harry glanced slowly from Dumbledore to Mr. Weasley trying to gauge their reactions. He then repeated the second prophecy for them, and concluded by saying, “The part ‘By the new Dawn of his sixteenth year,’ was determined to mean New Year’s Eve at midnight of my sixteenth year. Yes, Mr. Weasley, it means that Ginny and I have to get married in order for me to defeat Tom for once and for all.” “But that would mean that Ginny will only be fifteen; she would be too young to get married. Molly would never want to approve it. And I’m sure I can’t either,” Arthur said. “There is more, sirs,” Harry replied. “That time’s Ginny and Harry were married when the time ritual was performed to send him… me back. He and I are slowly merging, and I will have most of his memories and abilities. For now though, I need you to help me solve another problem. Tom intentionally made six things called Horcruxes. That diary was one of them, and the others are: a ring, a locket, a cup, something of Rowena Ravenclaw, and that is all for now. He never managed to make the last one, but will make it in a few years when he restores himself to life.” Dumbledore and Mr Weasley exchanged glances, and nodded. Dumbledore then said, “What do you need help with?” Harry looked at the two men and said, “Simple; my older self has the impression that Tom would have trusted the Horcruxes to his most loyal supporters, like Lucius Malfoy, or perhaps Bellatrix Lestrange. I know that Mr. Weasley has been taking part in the raids of suspected Dark wizards’ homes. But has anyone gone to Gringotts and checked the vaults of convicted Death Eaters? Hagrid told me when he first took me there that Gringotts was the second most secure place in the wizarding world. Could one or more of Tom’s followers have hidden the remaining Horcruxes there?” Both men paled quickly, they had never thought of that situation, and now were considering the requirements needed to change the law enough to approve raiding vaults. “That is truly a monumental task, but it can be done,” Dumbledore said. And Arthur nodded an affirmative. Just then there was a knock at the door and Lucius Malfoy entered. From there, everything was the same as in older Harry’s memory. After Malfoy left, Harry grabbed the pieces of the diary and said, “I should return this to him, sir.” His grin was wide as he left the office to do just that. “Mr. Malfoy, you forgot something,” Harry called as he stepped off the moving stair. He ran the short length of the hall and as the man turned held out the remains of the diary. “Sorry about it being in two pieces, but it was the only way to dispose of Tom permanently.” The two pieces of the book were bound together with two of Harry’s old socks that he had worn in the Chamber. They were covered in filth from sliding down the sewer pipe to get there. Malfoy took the item and carelessly handed it to Dobby, not taking notice of what was binding it. Then with a sneer he said, “Better be more careful Potter, or you will meet the same sticky end as your parents.” Turning to go he said, “Come, Dobby.” Dobby did not follow, and when Lucius turned to see why the elf said, “Master has given Dobby socks, Dobby is free.” Malfoy immediately drew his wand and shouted, “You have cost me my servant, and you will pay for that! Avada…” he was cut off by a blinding white light that struck him in the face. It was accompanied by the softly uttered words, “Imprimis Memoria Eradico.” Moments later Lucius Malfoy stood leaning against the wall for support having lost his balance and said, “Excuse me but what am I doing here, and who are you?” Harry responded, “You don’t remember sir? You were leaving the Headmaster’s office and said you felt ill. And that you were going home to have a rest. As for who I am, the name is Harry Potter and I am a student here at Hogwarts. I am in the same year as your son, sir. Do you need assistance? I could summon Madam Pomfrey or one of the staff to help you.” “No need for that, I just felt dizzy for a moment, and really think I should be getting home now, my wife had something she wished to discuss with me. Good evening Mr. Potter.” With that he turned and retreated toward the front doors. Harry turned his attention to Dobby and said, “If you are interested, I have a job available for you.” Dobby interrupted him with a squeal of joy. “Oh, Dobby would be most honoured to serve the one who defeated the Dark lord. Most honoured indeed,” he said repeatedly as he jumped up and down. “Okay,” Harry said while trying to calm Dobby down. “We can discuss the details tomorrow. For now, go and gather any of your personal belongings from the Malfoys that you can. And return to Dumbledore’s office in five minutes.” Dobby nodded enthusiastically and said, “Yes, sir, master Harry,” and vanished before Harry could correct him. “I hate when elves call me that,” Harry muttered as he returned to the head’s office. He entered to find Mr. Weasley in a discussion with Dumbledore. They finished quickly and turned their attention back to Harry. He said, “The next point I need to discuss involves the Chamber of Secrets. The door there was made of gold and jewels. If it were removed and melted down it would undoubtedly provide quite a sum of money.” “But you told us that you sealed it forever,” Arthur Weasley said. “How could it be retrieved?” “Only that doorway was sealed. There is good reason to believe that more than one entrance exists, or more people would have been petrified, or possibly even killed. We, meaning you and me, professor, will have to carefully search the areas around the attack sites. That should lead to an alternate opening, and if it doesn’t I might be able to reopen that sealed door for a short time,” Harry said as both men stared at him. “Very well, Harry. And when do you suggest that we do this search?” Dumbledore asked. “I would have to return after the students have all left for the summer holidays. The search shouldn’t take more than one day. As there are only four alternate sites we need to check,” was the reply. With a pop, Dobby arrived and said, “Dobby has returned as you requested, Master Harry. How is Dobby to be serving you?” “Thank you for coming back so quickly, Dobby. If you would be so kind, please remain here at the castle and help out as needed. Professor Dumbledore, I will need to have him stay here for the next month. I will pay him of course, but Dobby is needed to help with what is coming.” “That is unusual, but not unheard of. Thank you for your help this year Dobby. I am assuming that you have been in part responsible for the attempts to protect Harry this last year?” Dumbledore said. Dobby stood fidgeting and acting very nervous. All three noted this and Harry said, “Dobby, whatever is troubling you, if you truly accept me as your master, then I must ask you to speak of it honestly. If that is not a strong enough directive, then you can consider it to be an order.” His reply was, “Dobby is being honoured to work here at Hogwarts, but I is not wanting payment from you, Master Harry, sir. Dobby is only wanting to work for you.” Arthur chuckled softly but otherwise remained silent. Harry glanced at him with a mumbled comment of, “Very funny,” then he said louder to Dobby, “I can’t have you serving the house of Potter without any type of compensation, but if you don’t want monetary payment, then will you accept being able to obtain money from my vault to pay for any of your needs?” Dobby calmed, considered this offer, and said, “I is having few needs, but this is being acceptable.” Then turning to Dumbledore, he said, “How is I best able to be helping, Great Dumbledore, sir?” “We are arranging a feast to celebrate the end of the danger from the Basilisk. You may work in the kitchen, and as needed, in cleaning around the castle. You can go with Harry when he needs you to.” Dobby gave a slight hop of joy, and popped to the kitchen. “Is there anything else you need to discuss with us?” Dumbledore asked Harry one last time. “I have two more simple things. The first is an idea for Ginny’s detention. Rather than have her waste time writing lines, have her sit the final exams for the year. This would help me because I need to build a friendship with her before either of us should consider the thought of marriage. It would be easier to get to know her as a friend if we had the same classes. So would it be possible for her to sit the second year exams as well?” “Why would it be easier?” Arthur asked. “The main reason is that Ron would have fewer objections to my including her in everything we do. She would then have a chance to discover the real me, and not the childhood hero she is infatuated with.” Harry blushed as he said this. “Harry, please understand that Arthur and Molly will have to be consulted and make the decision if Ginny will be in with the third years next year. If she can pass the exams, then neither the Board of Governors nor I will have a problem with her advancing to third year,” Dumbledore explained. “I understand that, sir. However, you will need to set the exams as her punishment or detention as you called it,” Harry said. He then turned to Arthur and said, “Mr. Weasley, the second thing I need to ask is that Ginny not be told of the prophecy. Her older self felt that if she found out about it, we would be unable to develop a proper relationship. If you feel that you must tell Mrs Weasley, please do so only if you can be certain that neither Ginny nor any of the boys can overhear you.” “Harry, this is definitely something that I will have to tell Molly about. It involves some decisions that I will not be making by myself. You do understand that she won’t be pleased with this. But I think that I can persuade her to allow the wedding when the time arrives. Until then…” Mr. Weasley left the thought unfinished. Harry nodded and said, “I understand the need to share this with her, sir. I merely want Ginny to not be told so that her decision is just that, her decision. Also, it would be helpful if the boys weren’t told. At least until we are closer to the designated date. I am sorry to ask this of you sir; however, the only alternative would have been for me to leave Ginny in the Chamber to die, and allow Tom Riddle to return to his younger body. And for me, that was just not an option.” The look he shared with the two men was one of profound determination mixed with the fear of possibly losing Ginny. “Mr. Weasley, if Ginny can prove that she is capable of doing the required work, will you allow her to advance to third year with Ron, Hermione, and me?” Harry asked, wary of the answer. After pausing for a minute to consider his answer, Arthur Weasley nodded and said, “Headmaster, please schedule the exams. If Ginny can pass them, then I know Molly and I will be pleased to have her move ahead to third year. I will inform her of what you decided when I escort Harry to the hospital wing.” As they rose, Harry said to Dumbledore, “Sir, we will need four or five skilled curse breakers; I detected some spells I could not understand on that door. It is massive and appears to be made of gold and platinum covered with jewels and gemstones. All the money from selling that door should be placed in a fund to help the parents of Muggle-born students pay for their education. I am certain Salazar Slytherin would approve of deserving students receiving an education at his expense. Oh, and a knowledgeable Gringotts goblin to do the paperwork establishing the account without the ministry finding out would also be useful.” He laughed and was joined quickly by Dumbledore and Mr. Weasley. “Yes Harry that would truly be a good use for that money. Have a good evening both of you,” Dumbledore said. Harry could only nod as he and Arthur left the office, both still laughing. Once they had left, Dumbledore sat back at his desk, and took a few minutes to review what he had learned from Harry. “I knew Tom Riddle was foolish, but I never dreamed he would be to that extent. Also, Harry was careful to include the possibility of an unintentional Horcrux, without saying it overtly. I will need to talk with him more about his scar later,” he said to himself after a few minutes. As they descended the spiralling steps from the head’s office to the hallway, they managed to get their laughter under control and Mr. Weasley said, “Harry, I am truly grateful for you risking your life to save Ginny, but I have to ask you if there is any way you could have avoided triggering this prophecy having to be fulfilled?” “I’m not sure, sir. The only memories I have of that other timeline tell me it would have been impossible to do so unless she had been left in the Chamber to die. Being the only person left in the school who could have opened the doors, even if I had simply taught someone else what to say, it would have counted as assisting in the rescue, and the prophecy would still be in effect,” Harry responded. He considered the best words to use before continuing. “My older self has begun to give me his memories, but he has only allowed me access to a limited amount of them so far. I don't know all the answers to every question but when the time comes for me to know I will remember what did or didn’t work before. You see, although he is going to give me all of his memories, I won’t be able to access them until the time is right. That means anytime from a few days to hours or only minutes before, depending on the danger present.” “What is the purpose of that? Why not have all of the memories at once?” “Well, the main purpose is to prevent me from changing too much too soon. Apparently, there are things that need to happen at certain times, while others can happen whenever the opportunity arises,” Harry answered both questions at the same time. “Such as…” Arthur prompted. “One event that can happen anytime is Ron and Hermione getting together. They finally stopped dancing around each other just days before the end, and both made older Harry promise that he would arrange it for them to become a couple as soon as… I could. There is no real change from that point, besides perhaps Ron being more mature in his actions.” “I have no problem with that. How are you supposed to get them to start dating?” “They may have been joking, but the older Ron and Hermione both suggested locking them in a broom cupboard, starkers. But only if nothing else works,” Harry answered while he snickered. Mr. Weasley on the other hand looked unhappy with that comment. He said, “I do have a problem with that, though. Surely you have other plans to help them?” “Yes, sir. I do. But they are going to require the help of certain individuals, some of whom I haven’t met yet, in this time line. Three of them are well known to you.” Harry smiled up at his future father-in-law with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Fred, George, and Ginny, right,” he asked as much as stated. Just as they reached the hospital wing, Harry said, “Ginny, yes; Fred and George, no. I am thinking of the two I haven’t met yet.” “You are talking about Bill and Charlie?” Arthur asked. “I am. I’ll be sending each of them letters explaining what I need them to do, and asking for their help. Hopefully they will be willing to do so.” “I’m sure they will,” Arthur said. “My only real worry, is that they are two of the most stubborn people I have every met. I am afraid they will leave me no other choice but using that broom closet trick. I hope my other plan works, because the promise was that I would not let them get out of third year without being a couple.” Harry said as they were approaching the hospital wing. They approached the doors to the wing and pushed them open, and they entered to find the place in complete chaos. In one corner waiting outside the privacy curtain stood Fred, George, and Percy; they were waiting for Ginny to change into some pyjamas and get settled. On the opposite side of the hall, the people who had been petrified were stirring, some of them sitting and talking, others asking what had happened, and one being cradled by the only person to miss her. Arthur nodded to Harry before they separated; he to wait for the chance to see his daughter, and his future son-in-law to visit his friends. Ron sat on the edge of Hermione’s bed telling her what had happened. He whined about Harry not including him in the rescue mission. Hermione saw their friend approach and started to say something when Harry put his finger to his lips indicating she should let him remain unnoticed. Ron muttered softly, “Sometimes I feel so useless. You figured out what the monster was, Harry defeated it while rescuing Ginny, and all I did was sit and listen to my mum and others cry and worry about everything that has happened this year. Why can’t I just once be the hero?” Standing behind Ron, Harry motioned for Hermione to hug Ron, and moved a second later to encircle both of them. After that, he sat beside Hermione facing Ron and placed a hand on each of their shoulders. Before saying, “Ron, whether you realize it or not, you have been a hero to me from the day you asked if you could sit with me on the train. You even once saved my life, remember the troll?” "Well then why didn't you bring me along to help rescue Ginny then, or did you think I was too useless?" he said. Then, not meeting either of their gazes, he added, "Couldn't you have trusted me just a little?" Hermione looked from Ron to Harry at a loss to explain the changes she saw in her two closest friends. Harry put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed gently before saying to Ron, “I did trust you. Not only with my life but with all the lives of people we both care about. Mate, you helped me immensely tonight by keeping everyone else calm. If it weren’t for you doing that, there is no telling how many people might have died facing that monster. We will thankfully never have to know how many lives you saved by letting me do what I needed to do. “You are a hero in your own right, Ronald Weasley, so stop trying to compete with others and live up to your potential. No one has ever come close to beating you at chess, and you have probably forgotten more than Oliver Wood has ever known about Quidditch strategy. Or even strategy in general.” Hermione spoke up, not really sure why but feeling that she had to say something, “Ron, Harry is right. You are best at strategy, I am best at learning, and Harry is best at finding trouble. Of the three, yours will probably lead to the best paying job.” “Yeah, is it any wonder Hermione is trying to make you the best choice for her future husband? I mean, surely you have noticed that she spends all her time badgering you about getting good grades, and only helps me occasionally?” Harry’s comments brought vehement denials from both of them, but the shared blush told the truth about their true feelings. To which, Harry chuckled softly. I know they will take some time to get together, but now the seed thought has been planted and they will think about it occasionally when they are alone. It should help draw them together sooner, he thought as he watched his two closest friends trying to avoid eye contact. The conversation continued for another five minutes before Ron went to visit with Ginny before curfew, and they needed to get back to the dorm. When he left, Hermione asked quietly, “Harry, am I really that obvious? I thought neither of you would ever notice I was a girl; you have made him both notice me and given him the idea that he and I should be a couple.” “Yes, it is that obvious. I did give him that idea, and if you will be patient, it will work its way into that thick skull of his. And as for me not noticing your being a girl, little brothers should not be thinking about their big sisters like that.” His teasing grin could rival that of the Cheshire cat. “Si… sis… sister, is that how you think of me? You want me for your sister?” her eyes filled with tears, which started to roll down her cheeks before she hugged him to rival Mrs. Weasley. When she finally released him, Harry teased her by saying, “If I knew you would try to squeeze me to death, I wouldn’t have said anything.” She paused for a moment not sure how he meant it and then realizing that he was joking, at least partially, slapped him on the shoulder and said, “Why do little brothers always have to be such prats?” “I don’t know, but I overheard Ginny Weasley saying the same thing about older brothers. Maybe that is just part of being a brother.” He laughed softly for a few seconds and then quickly sobered. “Speaking of Ginny, you need to know that she was being possessed. Nothing that happened was of her free will. She is being given a chance to earn a reward at the same time she is being punished for not going to an adult for help. She will need our help for the next few weeks. Her punishment for failing to turn in that diary will be taking end of year exams. While the rest of the first thru fourth and sixth years are exempted as a school treat.” “I can certainly see the usefulness in that. Although, I wish we could all take them.” Harry’s only reply was, “You would.” He then surprised Hermione by kissing her on the cheek and going to see about everyone else. After checking on everyone and assuring them the danger was over, he pulled Madam Pomfrey aside and told her what had happened. He allowed her to check him over and clean the wound on his arm. However, he asked her not to heal it completely saying, “One more scar would not matter, and this one I will not mind being famous for because I have truly earned it.” After assuring the matron he was going to stay out of trouble for the rest of the year, if possible, she released him to return to Gryffindor Tower. On his way, he collected Ron, the twins and Percy, saying that it was nearly curfew and they needed to get in bed. He paused as they were standing to leave and said, “Darn, forgot to tell the Headmaster about Lockhart.” “What about him?” asked Mrs Weasley. “I went to him for help in rescuing Ginny. That worthless git told me that he didn’t care what happened to her; he had not done anything he had written about in his books, and was leaving while he still could,” he responded She then asked. “What did you do to him?” “After telling me that all witches are nothing but whores, he tried to remove or change my memories. I disarmed him, and then punched him in the face. I finally pushed him into a closet, in his own office, and left him there out of the way for later. What really worried me was that he seemed to think that women are nothing but playthings for his amusement, because he kept talking about how easy it was to find them enjoyable whether they are old or ‘not so old.’” Turning to McGonagall who had arrived during his explanation he asked, “Do you think he may have had inappropriate relations with some of the girls here at school?” Both adult women paled at that thought. McGonagall said in her stern voice, “I certainly hope not, Mr Potter. However, that will be discovered when he is questioned by Professor Dumbledore. Since he confessed this to you, you will need to come with me to the Headmaster’s office. He will undoubtedly have questions for you.” The trip back to the head’s office went quickly, and when they had arrived, they found Dumbledore in conversation with the Minister and two Aurors about Hagrid’s release from Azkaban. She politely interrupted and said, “Headmaster there is another matter which needs your immediate attention. It seems that before Mr. Potter here went to rescue Miss Weasley, he went to offer Gilderoy Lockhart information he and his friends had gathered. When he arrived Lockhart was preparing to leave and confessed to stealing all of the stories he wrote, and then modifying the memories of the people involved.” Harry took up the narration by saying, “After he told me about doing that, he tried to erase my memory of the whole event. He also bragged about other things as well. I don’t know if that is true, but I, for one, would feel a lot safer if he were at least questioned about it.” “Where is he now?” asked Minister Fudge. “When he drew his wand, I disarmed him, used the Full-body bind on him, bound his hands and feet, along with gagging him, and finally stuffed him in the wardrobe of his office. I really did not want that pretender of a professor to get away.” Harry grinned sheepishly at the stares he received. Dumbledore summoned a house-elf to retrieve Lockhart. When they returned, the Headmaster freed him and ordered him to sit. Harry subtly palmed his wand and, realizing that an adult was more likely to be believed than a twelve year old child, faked loosing his balance and fell onto the chair where Lockhart was seated. When his wand tip touched the slimy idiot, Harry muttered, “Verita.” He was taking no chances and wanted everyone else to know what had happened this year at Hogwarts. Harry recovered his balance and stood back to allow the others to question Lockhart, who confessed to things which were considered crimes in both the wizarding and Muggle worlds. These included impersonation of a competent teacher, altering or destroying the memory of many people in order to hide his criminal activities, and reckless endangerment of children in his care. He was the Defence Against the Dark Arts Teacher after all. Harry was angry that anyone was hurt by this pathetic excuse for a man, but he was thankful that it was not someone he associated with. Then, Lockhart made the comment which almost caused Harry to lose control, when the ponce laughingly said that he cared nothing for the people whose memories he had erased, or the lives he had destroyed. Harry had to be physically restrained by three of the Aurors as he tried to attack the fool. “How dare you harm all of those innocent people for your own pleasure? You miserable, worthless…!” At that point he was hit by three silencing charm as the adults realised they did not want to hear what might come out of his mouth next. After a few moments, Harry calmed down and the questioning continued. Lockhart bragged about the crimes he had committed, and how he had avoided prosecution because he was famous. This lasted for over an hour, and the former Professor and author dug himself a very deep grave. He was taken away by two of the four Aurors, and the other two began the unpleasant task of informing his victims about the situation. One week passed before Lockhart’s trial, who denied everything claiming he had been framed by a bunch of lying students who were jealous of his fame. When it was revealed he had not only admitted everything himself, but had bragged about doing those horrible things, his support vanished, and all of the witches that had followed him so faithfully had to be removed from the court room in order to keep him alive until his sentence was pronounced. When it was finally announced, he received seven sentences of, “Life in Azkaban, with no possibility of parole.” The contents of his Gringotts vault and all material wealth were confiscated and divided between the people he had harmed; healers and therapists were provided for those who wanted to see them. Harry, Hermione, Ron, and surprisingly Neville all worked to help Ginny prepare for the exams she would be taking. They were often assisted by Percy, Fred, and George. There was one bigger surprise for the group. They were joined by Luna Lovegood who wanted to stay in the same year as her only real friend. Dumbledore and the board approved it, and her father agreed. Harry thought of the great influence Neville had on her in the previous life once the group had gotten together. This togetherness spread over into the other areas of their life, as the six friends all struggled to help Ginny and Luna learn the exam material. After the exams had passed, they began to spend their time with shared activities. On one occasion, Ron had protested. “Ginny is too young to play Chaser in a pick-up game of Quidditch,” he said, but after she had scored seven quick goals in just fifteen minutes, he merely whispered in awe, “Bloody hell, where did she learn to fly like that?” Standing beside him, Harry could only smile and cheer for her. Harry did keep two things secret from his friends. One was the training and continual merging of his two selves. The second was a necklace he was making for Ginny which had charms that would defend her against most spells, nightmares, and even possession, but it would take a few more weeks and not be ready until after the summer holidays began. One night just before the summer holidays were to begin, both Harrys sat in the comfortable room they had built in younger Harry’s mind, which they used as a kind of classroom for him to learn and practice what he needed to know. They were discussing the coming school vacation. “I really wish that I had somewhere else to go instead of the Dursleys',” younger Harry said. “I understand, I truly do," his older self replied. However, in spite of everything they do to you, that horrid place is safer than even Dumbledore thought it would be. At least against Dark wizards, but we know that Muggles are another story.” The almost bitter laugh from younger Harry made his thoughts on that matter obvious. “As if that makes all the pain worth it,” was his only comment. “Well, we can’t do much about that yet, but you need to go see Professor Dumbledore in the morning, and arrange to be allowed to come to the school over the holidays most afternoons. We will need to use the Room of Requirement, or the ‘come and go' room as the house elves call it. Almost time to wake up, time for you to rest,” older Harry concluded. Harry awoke the next morning, and after eating breakfast, arranged to meet with Dumbledore to discuss the summer training. He also needed help with his gift for Ginny. The last week of the school year went just as the previous few had. And the small group grew a little closer together. Ginny and Luna received their exam reports, but refused to tell the others if they had passed or failed. The train ride home had no surprises for them, and they discussed trying to get together later in the summer. Harry enjoyed being with his friends, and took the opportunity to play a prank on the twins. Poor Fred and George had no idea what happened, but they spent the whole ride with signs on their backs saying, “Amateur Prankster, approach with caution!” Arriving at Kings Cross station, they each said good-bye, and went their separate ways promising to meet up again as soon as possible. Harry hugged his friends then turned to where the Dursleys were waiting. As he followed them out to the car park, he thought, Well, another summer in hell coming up. I’m just glad I will be training during part of that time. |
| Reviews 85 |
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