Was and Will Be

Was and Will be

Title: Was and will be (08)

Author name: Rosali

Author's email: ciliotta@yahoo.com

Category: Action/Adventure

Sub Category: Romance

Keywords: Warlocks, Heirs, Mugglich, H/Hr, D/G

Rating: R

Spoilers: SS/PS, CoS, PoA, GoF, FB, QTTA, OoTP

Summary: Now they know the way, but it is clouded and unsure. There's only one path to end it, and that is adventuring themselves into that uncertain tunnel that leads to the future… or to their doom. We see some feelings that have been repressed blossom and be prepared, cause someone will die.

DISCLAIMER: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

CHAPTER VIII

It is Never Enough

Maybe there's a God above

And all I ever learned from love

Was how to shoot at someone

Who outdrew you

And it's not a cry you can hear at night

It's not somebody who's seen the light

It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah

(.- Hallellujah - Rufus Weinwright)

***

A/N: Receiving early inheritance + a new job + trying to sell your house + a terribly frustrating writers block + other stuff can make you take very long to post a new chapter but here you go. A lot of action and some humour ahead *wink* Happy reading!

After Ch.8, there are three more to go and I hope it's so good so far :D Please R&R, and thanks again for taking the time to read such a long story.

***

Part One - Swaying Tambo

None of the inhabitants of Old Europe knew what had hit them; all they knew that out of nowhere everything had come off balance and seriously terrifying things and creatures had emerged from the depths of earth to bring darkness and fear to all of their hearts.

The only place that could be considered safe was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Hogsmaede, the small town that had been founded near the school not too long ago. The three founders left had put up many wards around so that their former best friend and partner couldn't come as close as ten miles from both places.

It had been almost a year ever since he'd left them and the circle they had considered sacred and unbreakable was gone now. The void he had left on each their hearts had been too deep to be ever filled, so they had concentrated in taking care of Helga and her new-born baby and of the wards that would keep a small population of witches and wizards safe from the wrath of the symbio.

Various times, Godric had vainly tried to reach out for that person that had been part of his life and almost all of his life for as long as he could remember. His heart was full of desolation and all that kept him from a deep depression was the love of his wife and his godson… Salazar's son.

There were nights in which, if you heard closely, you could hear small cries from Hufflepuff's top alcove… sobs of a broken heart, sobs of an uncertain future, whose present was only held up by sheer will and unconditional love and support from her friends. She had named their baby Samuel Scaleno Slytherin; they had both though Samuel would be a fine name, and she decided to name him with Salazar's middle name because they hadn't agreed on a middle name… just to make sure none (of them Samuel or Helga) forgot whose son he was.

Rowena had been in a vegetative state for a very long time after Salazar's attack, but now she was back with them, and she felt her task was to be the strong one for the other two… her husband and her best friend. She had deliberately pushed away her own feelings so she wouldn't fall apart and let them all fall to pieces. Sometimes, she would lock herself in the Conference room with Fawkes and just listen to his soothing song so that she wouldn't lose her mind, and most of the time it worked and she was able to play the strong one for the other three; her husband, her friend and her godson.

He was so much like Salazar it was scary; the only thing different were the eyes… Samuel definitely had his mother's dark green kind eyes, not Salazar's complicated ones. His soft skin was as pale as his father's, and his hair was jet black… so intense just to look at. Samuel was a very loved and powerful baby; even at his young age he already performed some magic. And sometimes, if you looked deep into his eyes, you could see an unknown knowledge that his father was missing and in a lot of pain.

Salazar had tried to go back home in the very few moments he was himself, whenever the Symbio had performed a specially powerful piece of magic and needed to rest.

Whenever he'd tried to enter the new village or go near the castle -apart from the core of the Forbidden Forest, which was the Symbio's territory-, it had thrown him away, rejecting him with very powerful magical walls. He knew this was probably the wisest his friends had done because that little space was all they'd managed to do to keep wizards from the Symbio's madness. With all this, being himself was so painful, most of the time, he wished he would just be banished into the Shadow Realm and never be able to feel so much pain again.

He had seen Samuel, his son. The Symbio had been specially “kind” on letting him “out” and staring into a magical fountain when Helga had his baby and named him, and when they all took him in. It had also let him see how they all dealt with him being gone, and despite all of the pain, he was the least reassured they still loved him.

***

She had locked herself in her room, away from her grandfather, away from The Dark Lord and his minions, away from what inevitably awaited her in the near future. Agnese paced up and down, she was wearing the Wardens dress robes; she was supposed to be out in the main dining room at eight and it was ten past eight… Nonno hated when anyone was late to a meeting, especially his heir, for he very seldom called for gatherings.

The sandy coloured robes she wore were mostly simple, she only had one distinguishing mark saying she was the heir to the guardianship of the Chest and one distinctive mark that she was the only woman in the whole gathering. Both her shoulders and down her sides to the waist, the robes were decorated with a dark orange pyramidal, lightning-bolt patch and in the centre of her chest, was what seemed a triangle mounted over a cross; the Canepa Family's simplified symbol... The Warden's symbol. Instead of straight and loose, her robes were slightly dress shaped so that her body was clearly seen as a woman's.

'If I hadn't known them, I would be siding with him, blindly willing to protect the chest… but things are different now, I know they won't use it. But how to make him see the truth about them, they are not at all like The Dark Lord, not even the dragon, the living heir'

She kept arguing with herself about how she should proceed now, she had tried everything to make him understand but it was all useless. She paced up and down in her room and every once in a while she would look at her watch and feel the pressure that she would have to go out soon and try to defend her case… their case. The worst part was that she knew that if she lost, she would have to agree to kill them!

Finally she stopped and took a deep calming breath. She stepped forward and placed a hand on the doorknob, ready for whatever was to come. At opening the door, she faced what used to be a large living room, now turned into a big conference room. She took another breath and walked to the table with all the dignity she could muster, given the conditions she was in.

Nonno looked at her disapprovingly, but only the both shared that glare. She tried to shrug it away and take her place, to the right of him. Staring at each of the twelve on the table, she nodded in recognition at each and could somehow make out the ones she would be able to convince.

Her gaze fell upon the man who was sitting to the left of Nonno, he was his most trusted, but somehow, she didn't feel comfortable around him at all. Maybe it was the way his hair fell to his forehead, maybe it was his demeanour, but there was something that felt wrong about him. She shrugged it away and looked at Nonno, bowing slightly to him.

'Excuse my taking so long,' she said humbly, that was what the tradition dictated, complete submission to the current Warden, even if she was the heir.

'Let's proceed. Marik?' he started the meeting, looking at the blond man next to him.

'Reports say that The Dark Lord already knows how to get there and that he's finding a way to get there first, but not before he gets their blood'

He frowned. 'Do you have anything not obvious to report?' he said dangerously.

Marik shrunk away a little at the powerful man in front of him and his eyes travelled to the ring on his left little finger and shuddered at the power it held. It had a blue-black gem, and in the centre of it, the Warden's symbol was engraved in sparkling silver. Even if Nonno wasn't a full wizard, his Warden position gave him enormous power when it was necessary and he didn't quite feel like getting some of The Warden's rage, so he let his head fall down to his chest. 'I am sorry Nonno,' he apologised with an Austrian accent.

Nonno sighed. 'Then we have no choice but to nullify them or eliminate them,' he stated. This last phrase had broken whispers around the large table; some were of approval, some weren't. Nonno cleared his throat, 'these kids cannot get to The Power of Shikeon, we don't want history to repeat itself once again. We all know that the Earth wouldn't be able to take another unbalance like that again; it would probably collapse upon itself'

'Isn't there another way, they are innocents after all,' a elderly man started, his tired eyes not meeting Nonno's, for it wasn't allowed to look the Warden in the eye while disagreeing with him.

'I would say the only one we need to annul is The Dark Lord, the one that is after the Power,' another man, younger then the first one spoke.

'I know the situation is extreme, but there must be a way around it, there is always one'

Nonno raised a hand with his palm open to stop the talking. 'My question is this, fellows. Can we take that risk?'

The three men that had opposed to Nonno's saying seemed to start rethinking their biasation. Agnese saw the indecision on their faces and decided to speak up now; it was her last chance to maybe save the four heirs.

She stood from her seat. 'May I have a word in this?' she asked, more to Nonno than to the others. Nonno glared at her, but he knew she did have the right to speak up, being the future Warden she was.

Agnese took the silence as an approval of her speaking and continued. 'A thousand years ago, we were entrusted with a power greater than us, greater than possibly all the wizards in this world.' Her hand went instinctively to the necklace with the Warden's symbol, the one that gave her power almost as big as Nonno's. 'A thousand years ago, an ambitious soul tasted the limits of reason and power and nearly destroyed the equilibrium of the world forever, that was why the founders sealed the Power of Shikeon out of reach for any other ambitious soul; that's why they chose my family,' she stated. Putting down her hands, she stood at her full height -which wasn't more than 5' 5"- to give more emphasis to her speech.

She looked at everyone and then continued her defence. 'But hear me out. Despite that fate has brought back that greedy spirit, it is not living. There is a living heir that indeed carries that tainted blood, but as we all know, there is a much greater power that backs him up and keeps him away from the detour we all fear. He might be the answer to this curse. With their help, the power of Mother Earth can go back to where it belongs. And it won't gather like that again, for the situation in which it happened will not be repeated,' she finished and let out the breath she didn't know she'd been holding, sitting back down.

After a moment of silence, a broad shouldered man spoke up for the first time. 'Young Warden, how do you know that The Power of Shikeon won't gather in one place again?' he inquired.

'Last time, it came out to preserve the balance, which was being threatened by vile creatures, ones that nearly killed one of the responsibles for most of the reality today. The Power of Shikeon came out and acted through Salazar Slytherin in order to save Rowena Ravenclaw's life, without whom a lot of things that happened afterwards wouldn't have been possible'

'But still, I don't believe we can afford to take that chance,' argued another man.

'They will just liberate the Power and then try to move on with their lives'

'They will be tempted'

'No, they are not as ambitious'

'What about the Warlocks? Especially the dragon—'

'They have each other. Love can do great things…'

'And why didn't it save Slytherin?'

'Because it wasn't just him'

'Even so, he sought for it in the first place, that indeed shows us something about the blood that flows through his veins'

Agnese was seeing defeat, her eyes travelled to her grandfather, who had been silent the whole debate and now he looked quite pleased about himself, which angered her more. 'It is different…' she said lamely.

'How is it different?'

'I just know it'

'Right. So all we have to do is trust the fate of the world, which has been trusted to you, in these kids, knowing they won't use Shikeon just because you know it? That is not good enough for me to jeopardise the whole existence of the planet my lass, I am sorry'

She sagged and closed her eyes, fighting tears back and sitting back down.

Nonno looked at her and a flash of sympathy went through his light eyes, but then they turned cold once again. 'So it is unanimous that we shall meet them before they get to the portkey and neutralise or kill them?' he asked, they all nodded. He looked at Agnese for a moment, waiting for her to nod her head as well.

She stood and looked at Nonno straight in the eyes, daring in hers. 'No, I won't accept it. It is not fair!' she told him in the Mugglich language they very seldom used; no one else understood what was being said.

'You will accept it Agnese, and that is a fact. The vote is unanimous and we'll do as we must,' Nonno said in a commanding voice that quieted even the bravest.

But right now, Agnese was speaking with word much braver than she felt. She walked to him and they were face to face. 'Nonno, you know I love you, but these are four innocent lives that could do great things, just like their ancestors did. We were commended with this power to fulfil a mission of balance for the Earth, and killing them will not do any good to that mission. The power must be freed eventually, and we stand a better chance with them'

'Listen to me, my child. I've told you before, and I will say it once more,' he said as patiently as he could. 'We can't risk the world, it is a sacrifice that must be made,' he told her, putting his hands on her arms.

She pulled away abruptly. 'I will not take part of this, that's what you taight me and I'm sticking with it!' she snatched the necklace with such force that her fingers left traces of red along her neck. She looked at him once more and threw it to the ground, walking away to her room.

Nonno was astounded at this outburst and he kneeled to pick up the delicate necklace, which vanished in his palm. 'You can't walk away from your destiny Agnese,' he called as he watched her leave.

After a moment, he sighed and turned to the bewildered wizards sitting at the table. Acquiring his high profile again, he continued in English. 'We will proceed with what we agreed.' A man started to protest, but Nonno cut him off. 'She will come round eventually, she cannot fight what she is.' They all stayed silent and they Nonno dismissed the meeting.

When she closed the door to her room, tears were running freely down her cheeks and she did her best to wipe them away, for crying was weakness, and she was anything but weak. A few seconds later, she felt a weight on her neck and looked down. With a gasp, she recognised the piece of jewellery she had just thrown at her grandfather and squeezed her eyes shut, accepting the imminent.

As much as she hated it, she was bound by an oath, and she knew there was no way to escape, no way to convince them; therefore, she didn't see any way to save the four heirs. Finally, with her heart aching and not looking up, she went back out to nod her head at Nonno, even if there was barely anyone left.

He smiled a sad smile and cleaned her tear-stricken face with a thumb. Although he didn't like having her in such a position, he was sure this was the best way to carry on with it.

***

Days turned to weeks and all that was seen of Harry, Hermione, Draco and Neville was dinnertime. Every once in a while, they came out of the Library to pick some fresh air or a small Quidditch match. It was more than just mist and mirrors now, it was real and approaching. Mid-February was onto them and so far, they had found out about the tasks set to protect the Chest, and the Warden, and the reason why Voldemort had been so quiet lately.

Ginny was kept up to date by regular owls from her friends; as much as she would've wanted to drop out of school and help the others, Dumbledore or her mother wouldn't let her; imminently, she had to obey.

Each of them had created their small working space in the huge Library. Neville had cast a long couch with a folding table he used every now and then, when he took notes. Hermione had pretty much made a studio out of a small bookshelf, a dark wooden desk and a laptop she'd enchanted to work around magic.

Harry, on the other hand, had just taken property of an overstuffed couch (a lot like the one he used for studying at school) in front of the fireplace and chose to pile the books he considered useful to the left of his "workspace"; every once in a while, he would produce out of thin air a roll of parchment and take notes, but apart from that, he just read and read. Knowing Harry, that just levelled up his already enormous reserve of energy, which made him shift positions only about a hundred times per session.

Draco's workspace couldn't have been more different from Harry's. He cast a large desk of polished wood that had a lot of drawers which he had turned into file-holders. Each one had a certain theme inside and Hermione was quite impressed at the organisation of the boy. How on earth did Harry beat him for Head Boy? She would never know.

When Harry started to get too hyperactive and anxious, they would go to a room Dumbledore had created specially so they would be able to practice their magic since they couldn't do it outside or at Hogwarts for that matter because it would've been suspicious and they didn't want anymore attention drawn to them.

During the practice sessions, Harry and Draco worked in their Warlock abilities in trails Remus and Dumbledore had designed (Hermione and Neville also practiced there, but not as much, for they knew which place each had).

To cultivate her own ability, Hermione had started to study Riddles not even a riddler could make out by Cassandra Gont and some other books Mr. Weasley had got for her from none less than the biggest and oldest Library in the Wizardring World; the Ministry's Library.

While his friends took care of their own business and prepared for the ultimate battle, Neville had decided that he would, at any cost, be able to control the Protector's powers, just like the founders had told him. He had been working restlessly on trying to channel and use the Protector's powers with little success, for none of the Warlocks was in danger.

***

As the clock ticked closer to midnight, Harry couldn't sleep. He kept rolling on bed, trying to empty his mind, but it was useless; there were too many things to think about in regards of the whole situation. Neville still not being able to channel the Protector's powers, the second solstice of the year -something that only happened once every hundred years-, what the Founders had told them, what they had found by themselves and whatever expected them on that day.

Finally he gave up on trying to sleep and did the only thing -apart from talking to Draco- that could calm him down and clear his head. He went to his chest of drawers and opened the top one. He took out all the clothes that were inside and opened a second bottom, where he kept his most precious possessions; his parents photo album (the one Hagrid had given him back in first year, the one he'd given Draco for Christmas), most of the gifts from Ron, some gifts from Hermione… and the mirror.

He took it and faced his reflection. 'Sirius Black,' he ordered the object and its surface rippled for a moment to reveal a handsome man, with grey eyes and black hair.

'Harry! It is so good to see you! I thought you'd forgot about me!' he said half-jokingly.

Harry couldn't help but grin at the sight of his godfather. Even if he couldn't physically be with him, he could always reach him whenever he wanted through the mirror. He knew that was a little selfish of him, but it was better than feel terrible for not being able to bring him back. 'Hullo, Sirius! It's good to see you too,' he said honestly.

'So, how's everything in the world of the living?' he asked rather bitterly, with the smile still on his face.

'Don't joke with that, Sirius. It's not funny'

'Might I remind you that it is me who is stuck here?'

Harry rolled his eyes and decided not to push that matter further. 'Everything's been going good. Ginny's about to finish school, we've been doing some research and practising as well,' he informed.

'Ah, good, good. Any news on this Chest, or the Prism, or Voldemort?'

'Well, we know that Voldemort is also Slytherin's heir. There should only be one heir at each time, but since dear ol' Voldemort cast so many charms in himself, he leads a non-dead life and has the same attributes as Draco in regards of that'

'Oh man. That picture isn't very encouraging, is it?'

'Tell me about it'

'And what about the Chest?'

'It can only be opened—'

'By the Moribius spell and with the help of the Prism of Odeon, which conveniently is in his hands,' Sirius provided.

'But we also have to get through some dangerous tasks, and the Chest can ultimately be opened only by the heirs' blood,' Harry complemented.

'So that's why he hasn't done anything to you,' Sirius said matter-of-factly. 'And right now, he's prolly been weaving a way to make you get there, open the chest and then kill you. Am I right?'

'Pretty much, yeah,' Harry said with a resigned shrug.

'He's so predictable'

'He is, isn't he?' Harry agreed with a chuckle. If there was one person in the whole world that could make the worst situation seem at least a little bit funny, that was Sirius Black.

'What about the Protector, or Neville?' he asked. Right after the conversation they'd had with the Founders, Harry had contacted him and told him everything they had learned that day about the whole business of the Chest.

'That's what I need you for, I have no idea!'

'Gee! Thanks, Harry. It's good to know that it's love for the pig and not for the bacon,' he said sarcastically.

Harry let out a breath. 'Aw, come on, Sirius. You know that's not true!' he tried.

'Hmph,' was all he got in response.

'I know you're dying for me to tell you about it…' he pressed with a smirk. 'But, oh well! Guess I better get some rest since you'd rather stay silent…'

Sirius narrowed his eyes. 'You're a cheap prat, you know that?'

'Yeah, learned from the best,' Harry retorted with a wink.

'Who, Malfoy?'

'Yeah, right!'

'All right! Now speak!' Sirius ordered with a sneer.

Harry rolled his eyes and started telling Sirius what was worrying him. 'See, Neville's been trying to get out the Protector's powers but it's virtually impossible for him to do it because a Warlock… me or Malfoy, must be in danger for the Protector to come out'

'Well, you know what me or your dad would do, why do you ask?'

'Because, Sirius! When the Protector takes his body, Neville's somewhat put to sleep or something. When he's gone, Nev has no memory whatsoever of what happened'

'Ah, that might be a problem'

'Duh?'

Sirius rolled his eyes at Harry and went deep in thought for a couple of minutes. His face brightened and his grey eyes sparkled as he focused back on Harry. 'Will Strengthening Potion!'

'What?' Harry asked puzzled.

'A potion that strengthens his soul or whatever is put to sleep of him while the Protector acts,' Sirius explained.

'Hermione's already looked it up. No such potion'

Sirius' face darkened, and he spoke without looking at Harry in the eyes. 'Ask Snape,' he muttered barely audible.

'I beg your pardon?' Harry leaned closer to the mirror.

Sirius looked up at him with rage. 'Ask Snivellus! He'll most definitely know how to brew that potion,' he said as if every single word cost him a million galleons to get out.

'Snape? No way!'

'There's no other choice. The only other person I know would be able to create such a potion would be Nicholas Flamel, but you told me he died almost a year ago'

'But—But I don't want to!' he protested lamely.

'Harry…' Sirius said in that tone fathers usually use when they know they're right and know that their kids are just too thick to accept it.

He slumped and opened his mouths a couple of times to argue back, but no words came out. 'I would've never imagined—'

'I know. And I will never accept it, if you ask me,' he said with a small wink, enlightening the mood.

Harry sighed. 'I'll see to it…' he said, defeated.

'He has to help you. Besides, you're part of the Order now and he's not your teacher anymore, so he has to be at least civil to you.' He tried to be encouraging.

He smiled weakly and took a breath. 'Thank heavens I don't have to stand him in class anymore!' Harry accepted. 'It's rather late, I should get some sleep. I will tell you how it turned out soon, all right?'

Sirius nodded a little sadly. It was very lonely in the World of Dead, especially since you were the only one alive there, but he was at least happy that he could talk to Harry or he would've lost his marbles long time ago.

***

The next day, Harry awoke very early to tell the others the marvellous idea Sirius had given him the previous night.

'Malfoy! Wake up! I think I know just what we need!' A soft grumble followed Harry's wake up call. 'Malfoy!'

'What?' Harry heard in his head, Draco wasn't much of a morning person.

'I said I think I know what we need to do'

'Kill good ol' Voldy, then chop him to pieces and throw the pieces to the fire just to be sure? I already knew that' he replied, somehow unintelligibly.

Harry chuckled to himself. 'No, I talked to Sirius last night'

'So Sirius is going to kill him, chop him and burn him? That'll save us a lot of trouble'

'UP, NOW!' Harry "yelled" in Draco's head and felt a jolt. 'All right now, Malfoy?'

'What the hell would you do that for?' he asked sulkily.

'I talked to Sirius last night, and he told me what we could do to help Neville'

'Ok, let me have my cup of coffee and then you can bombard me with whatever crazy ideas your dead godfather has fed you, all right?'

Harry rolled his eyes and got off bed. 'Tell you about it after breakfast, along with Mione and Nev'

'Whatever'

Harry almost swallowed his breakfast complete and then ushered the rest so they would go to the Library and he could tell them about it. He just hoped Draco would agree.

***

Finally, after a lot of reluctance, mostly from Draco, they had decided that in spite of the cost, they needed Neville to be able to dominate the hidden abilities of the being inside him. Draco and Harry would put themselves in mortal peril every once in a while so Neville—the Protector could save them; and Neville, awake inside the Protector, would try to take control after the danger had passed.

As much as Harry hated it (much to Draco's pleasure), they had to ask Snape for help, and they brought it up in the next Order meeting. They were usually quiet and listening in all the inner circle meetings, but now they needed to do the talking.

Harry cleared his throat, and much to his surprise, even Dumbledore fell quiet. After a moment hesitation, he spoke; at first in a shaky voice, but then he gained confidence.

'To continue with this, we must have all the weapons we can in our advantage. We know Voldemort (a couple of flinches followed the name; Harry couldn't believe that after all this time, that still happened) wants this power. We know that only us, the heirs, can open it, and we know that Voldemort is also Slytherin's heir,' he started, puzzled looks followed his last statement and Hermione continued.

'The centaurs called Draco, here, "The Living Heir" less than a year ago. If there's a living heir—'

'Then there is another one,' Dumbledore picked up Hermione's line of thinking and smiled at her brightly.

'Exactly! And we know that the Chamber of Secrets can only be open by the heir of Slytherin, and last two times it was opened by—'

'None less than Voldemort,' Remus finally got it and nodded with a chuckle. 'You really are the brightest witch your age,' he said proudly.

Hermione's grin widened and then she continued. 'Anyway, we need all the help we can get or we'll be lost…' she said and after a pause, she finished. 'And so will the world, if Voldemort gets his hands on Shikeon'

It was Harry's turn to speak. 'Neville here is our Protector, but he only comes out when even me or Malfoy are in danger. But the founders said he could manage to channel the Protector's powers and use them at will'

'But to do that, I must be awake inside the Protector so I can try and do it,' Neville stated.

'We've decided that we'll put ourselves in danger in purpose so the Protector can come out, but—' Harry looked at Snape and hesitated; it was harder than he'd thought.

Draco picked the hint an decided to put the chap out of his misery. 'But we need a potion, Prof—Severus, to allow Neville, here, to be awake.'

'I'll put that one on your account of I-owe-Draco's'

'Shut it Malfoy,' Harry replied and glared at his friend, to which Draco only chuckled.

'We've looked into it and there's no potion for that, but we are sure that if anyone can do it, it's you,' Hermione half-pleaded.

Snape looked at the four youngsters standing in front of him and his expression was unreadable, then his eyes landed on Harry. 'Potter, why is it that your friends have to ask things for you? Are you not their leader?' he asked in that obnoxious voice Harry couldn't stand.

His insides boiled with anger. 'Unbelievable! Even after I've left school, he won't stop tormenting me!' Harry whined in Draco's head.

Draco made his best effort to not laugh out loud, but these things were becoming harder as he spent more time with "the goody Gryffindors", as he called Harry, Hermione, Ginny and Neville . He managed to clear his throat instead of laughing, but couldn't help the smirk on his face. 'Shit happens,' was all he replied back.

Harry's lips tightened and he glared at his friend, then he placed intense green eyes into beetle, empty black ones. 'I am not their leader, and I believe they explained what we need very clearly, no need for me to do it again, now is there?' he replied in a forcibly calm voice. He now knew how Sirius had felt back in fifth year.

Snape laughed and shook his head. 'Typical,' he just said, much to Harry's annoyance. 'I will work on that potion and you'll have it by the end of next week,' he stated. 'Now, if you'd excuse me, I've got work to do,' he said and apparated away.

The rest of the Inner Circle had remained quiet at the whole exchange of looks between Draco and Harry and of words between Harry and Snape. None would ever admit it, but having the rows between those two were rather amusing for all of them.

***

The door to Helga's room knocked and she looked up from Samuel's crib. She waved her hand and it opened to reveal her best friend, who was looking exceptionally pale lately. Helga took a finger top her mouth, telling Rowena to keep quiet, for the baby was taking a nap.

She smiled and nodded. Slowly, she walked to the crib and stared at the vivid image of the man she had once love and brushed a strand of black hair from his face with gentle touch and a longing sensation in her steady eyes.

Helga frowned and came closer to her friend. 'What's the matter dear? Are you sure you're feeling all right? You are very pale,' she said and touched her cheek.

Rowena turned to Helga and smiled again, but her eyes were welled up with tears.

Helga flinched. 'What happened?' she asked, a bit alarmed. Rowena very seldom cried and it definitely took one by surprise when seeing those eyes full of strength in such a vulnerable state.

'I—I'm ok, but I think I may be…' she trailed off.

Helga gave a squeak of joy when figuring out what she was trying to say. 'Ro, that is wonderful! Have you told Godric? He'll be thrilled!'

She shook her head, the tears striking her face like diamond drops. 'No, Helga. It's not wonderful at all! Have you any idea in what world will I be bringing this child?' she said, taking a hand to her still flat belly. For the first time, she had dropped the mask in front of her friend, she had stopped being the one to hold them up and she had let herself fall… at least for a moment.

Helga's face dropped and was filled with sadness. She looked down at her own baby, barely over a year old and understood exactly what her friend felt. She looked up again and sighed. 'Rowena—' she started but found herself at a lack of words.

'All e have around is pain and war… how would I raise a child while trying to keep the whole world safe. HOW, HELGA!' she cried desperately.

All she could do was gather Rowena into a tight hug, patting her back soothingly. 'I know… remember I have a child too?' she said kindly in her ear and pulled back. 'Indeed, it will be hard, knowing that we're pretty much the only ones able to face that task, but you are forgetting the most important things, my dear'

Rowena stared at her, puzzled and Helga smiled. 'You are forgetting one thing he cannot take away from us. That which has got us through all this… we have each other. And if we have that and hold on to it, we can get through anything and I am sure that your baby and mine will be the happiest in the world if we give them that,' she said softly.

Her face relaxed a little at Helga's words and slowly, her lips curled into a small smile as she brushed the tears away. 'But—what will Godric say?' she asked helplessly.

'He will be worried, that is true. But he will most definitely be extremely happy at the news. He's wanted a child ever since you two were married'

'You're right—he will, won't he?'

'Of course! Have absolutely no doubt about it!'

Rowena's smile turned to a grin. 'He will, we will all love this baby as much as we love Samuel,' she said happily, finally happy for the new baby's come. They hugged for a long moment and then Rowena pulled back abruptly.

'What's the matter?'

'Nothing. I just remembered why I came here on the first place,' she laughed. 'I found a way…'

Helga was speechless. 'You did? Wow, that's—wonderful!' she exclaimed a little hesitantly.

'Why aren't you happy?'

'I am! I really am'

'Because we can finally put an end to all this'

'Yes, I know. But it will also mean—'

Rowena sighed. 'Yes, maybe. It is a possible outcome, but it's not definite'

'We can't expel the being from him'

'No, but with the spell, we'll get him back for a short period. There's almost no way of the Symbio gaining control back… at least for that period of time'

'Will it hurt?'

'Yes, possibly,' she said after a moment.

Helga took a deep breath. 'One hour? Would that give him time to—'

'If we do the spell correctly on the first shot, yes'

Helga's eyes filled with tears; she let out a scream of excitement and gathered Rowena in a tight hug. 'I'll have him back again. I know that it's only going to be an hour, but it'll be enough… I hope,' she said and focused her eyes on her friend. 'Thank you, Ro,' she said quietly. 'When does Godric finish his classes?' she asked.

'About an hour. We'll have a moment before dinner'

'Wonderful! And how long till the second Solstice?'

'Five days'

***

The potion was ready; Snape had successfully created it and assured it was going to work. They were to try it after breakfast that day, see if it work or killed the poor boy. But as they gathered strength for the session, a small tawny owl came flying through the window of Grimmauld Place. It zoomed around wildly until Harry recognised it as Pigwidgeon; Ron's owl.

A lump of the old grieve raised in his chest and fell to his stomach at the sight of the tiny pet his best friend had been reluctantly fond of. Ron was still a forbidden subject for all of them, except maybe for Draco, but he got the message as well.

Harry didn't know if they had just got over it and moved on and he was the only one lingering in the memory, or they just wouldn't talk about it. Deep inside, he knew the second was the most likely, but didn't dare go into such dangerous waters.

He looked at Hermione and saw the same sad look on her face and couldn't help but feel relieved and terribly worried at the same time. He could sometimes hear Mrs. Weasley crying at nights and Mr. Weasley comforting her; and whenever he saw Ginny, he still saw the sadness and the void the departure of her brother had left.

Harry let himself fall apart every once in a while for the sake of his own mental health and usually he got over it and put that mask on again, or Draco would be there for him. But not Hermione; not anymore. And he missed her; he missed his best friend, he missed the woman he loved, he missed the trust they had always had, not hiding anything from the other.

Now it was different; Hermione wouldn't grief at all, and except from those little flashes he caught, there was no sign in her that her best friend had been killed. She usually didn't hold things for herself like that… not from him. She would put the same strong mask Harry wore in front of the others and then take it off when she was with him; but now that had changed and Harry didn't know if to admire her courage or worry… If she was keeping it all for herself, the glass was bound to fill entirely and spill, with probably catastrophic consequences.

He was brought out of his ramblings by Neville's voice. 'It's from Ginny, Luna's at St. Mungos, in labour,' he said as panic crept into his voice.

Harry shook his head and took in what he had just been told. Ron's baby was about to be born! 'Let's get to the Hospital right now!' he roared and they all apparated out.

When the waiting room materialised in front of them, they made out the slender form of Ginny sitting in one of the chairs, her face cradled between her hands. They all hurried and she looked up at the steps.

'Harry! Hermione! I'm so glad you're here!' She stood and hugged both her friends. 'We were just going to Charms and she let out a scream, and I saw the floor, it was wet, and she fainted, and—'

Hermione didn't let go off her as she spoke. 'Shhhh, Shhhh. It'll be all right sweetheart,' she said soothingly, stroking her hair gently.

After a moment of sobs, Ginny pulled back and took a deep breath. 'I'm sorry, I just—didn't know what to do, I was so scared'

'She'll be fine, the medi-wizards are the best here,' Draco put in helpfully and came closer, putting a hand on her arm. 'They will both be fine'

'But she's so small and—'

'She's strong,' Neville assured with a smile.

Luna entered the delivery room at one in the afternoon, after they had stabilised her, she stayed there all afternoon and most of the night. The five stayed in the waiting room all the time, receiving and calming relatives and friends. Luna's father was pretty upset as well, but luckily he really loved that baby.

***

It was one of the hardest deliveries Dr. Allrhydo had performed in his whole career. It was a seventeen year old, with a thin form and very weak compositions. She had barely dilated over the past hours, and the spells they normally used in these cases didn't seem to work, Merlin knows why!

Finally, she had dilated enough for the baby's head to come through, so he cast an awakening spell on Luna, being careful not to retrieve the pain killer spells. 'Mrs. Lovegood, can you hear me?'

'It's Mrs. Weasley now, and yes,' she said, a little dizzy from all the pain killer spells and potions; she didn't think she had ever felt so much pain in her life.

'All right, that's good. Now, I need you to push hard so your little guy will come out, all right?'

'I hope the inquisition is happy with the amount of pain this can cause, they should've only made woman give birth when punishing them,' she said and started to push.

Dr. Allrhydo was a little more than puzzled at this last statement, and chose to blame it on the pain killers. 'Uh… ok, just keep pushing and we'll get him out,' he encouraged.

After pushing for a long while, the head of the baby started to show. The room started to fill with a sparkling light that for the first time drove the Dr.'s attention from the birth in process. He looked around with wide eyes and wasn't brought back to reality until he heard another of Luna's screams.

'Get him out, for crying out loud!'

He shook his head and helped Luna to bring the baby to the world while the light became brighter and brighter; almost blindingly bright. A loud cry filled the room; the Dr. smiled. 'Congratulations Mrs. Weasley, you have a healthy baby boy'

Luna looked at him and saw Ron in his hair and rosy-pale skin; she smiled as she held her baby. Moments later, darkness' veil fell upon her eyes.

At midnight, when most of the people had cleared, only the five and Luna's father were left. Dr. Allrhydo came out and cleared his throat; they all jumped and opened their eyes. 'The baby is all right, he's in the maternity unit right now'

The statement was followed by relieved breaths. 'What about Luna? Is my baby girl all right?'

The Dr. sighed. 'She had some complications; it was a most peculiar birth. She is unconscious now,' he said heavily. 'She gave a good fight there in spite of everything, she's very strong and we trust she'll be all right,' he added quickly. 'She'll just need a couple weeks rest and constant attention'

Luna's father let out a breath and intertwined his hands in front of his mouth. 'Can I see her?'

'Sure you can, just be quiet, she's resting'

Ted Lovegood nodded and walked to the room he'd been directed to. Harry, Ginny, Hermione, Neville and Draco followed. He entered the room and the rest stayed at the door, watching them.

'It is so sad,' Hermione was saying in a hushed voice.

'To think he'll grow up without a father,' Ginny put in, in a broken voice.

'We'll be there,' Harry said encouragingly, but the sadness was easily made out.

'Yes, she won't be alone,' Neville assured.

'She'll get through, and so will the baby,' Draco added much to the others' surprise.

After a moment of silence, Hermione stood. 'We should go now, we can see her tomorrow'

'Yes, we need some rest as well,' Harry agreed and they all went to the apparating zone of the hospital with one last glance inside the room, where Ted sat next to Luna's bed. 'Ron will be proud,' Harry murmured before dissapparating.

Draco was the last one to do so and he sighed at Harry's last phrase. 'From one shadow to the other…' he muttered and disappeared too.

***

Finally, after helping Luna and the still unnamed new-born baby boy to settle at Grimmauld Place, they were able to get a moment to try the potion and start the training. Luna would have special permission to come and go from school, and while she was in class or taking an exam, the inhabitants of Grimmauld Place would take care of the baby.

When they managed to get the time, they tried it and it worked wonderfully, despite that the mental effort made by Neville left him like a rag after each session. But as tiring as it was for him; he was willing and even happy to be completely drained thrice a week, the least. And as much as Harry hated to admit it; most of it was thanks to Snape who had invented the potion for Neville's "soul" to be alert while the Protector was "in charge".

After a very long three-hour practice, the bell inside the training room echoed, announcing dinner. Hermione lost concentration for a moment to look up. Unfortunately, she was in the middle of the lap they'd created. They had boggarts, thorns, hex throwing dummies, jumps, apparently endless pits in which you only stopped falling when saying the counter-spell. She looked at her train-mates and smiled, only to remember a moment too late to grab the pole. She let out a scream and fell to the ground with a loud THUMP!

Neville, with the Protector's powers, and Draco were in the middle of a duel, while Harry was aiming at another dummy a couple meters from the duel. They all stopped what they were doing and watched as Hermione fell in slow motion.

She let out a moan and winced in pain, her eyes watering. They looked at her and the worried glances, quickly turned to amused ones (after they were sure she hadn't broken anything), and a moment later, the three young men were in fits of laughter.

'Stop it! You lot! It's not funny, I think I broke something,' Hermione protested indignant.

'No you didn't, you would be yelling in pain,' Harry said between laughs.

'What makes you think I'm not only playing brave?'

'Because if you had broken something you wouldn't be arguing if you did,' Draco provided, trying his best to sober up.

'Fine! Laugh at my pain!' she said stubbornly and crossed her arms with a pout.

'She looks great when angry,' Harry thought in Draco's head as he watched her.

'And pouting,' he added.

Neville came to her, still laughing a little. 'No, we're not laughing at you. We're laughing with you,' he tried and winked at the other two boys.

Harry sobered a little and came closer, to help her up. 'Right, not at you—'

'Or your pain,' Draco added.

'Sure you're all right?' Harry asked.

Hermione sighed and took his hand. 'Guess so…' she said, making a face to the three. She walked out of the room, swinging her hips with haughtiness, trying to show she didn't need them.

The three teenagers watched as she left with hormones at the order of the day. 'She is hot,' Neville said, his mouth hanging open a little.

'When she wants to, you would be surprised,' Harry assured.

'Definitely,' Draco added, earning a stern look from Harry, who still refused to wrap his brain around the fact that Malfoy and Hermione might have got close in the time they were together.

When they came down for dinner, Hermione was holding her wand against her bum, muttering a cooling spell. Luna stared at her with amusement, the baby in her arms. After a week, she was now able to walk around the house and do things, although every time she had to go to school, she was very reluctant of letting go off her baby.

As dinner was finished, Luna stood, having put the baby in his crib. 'I have an announcement to make.' They all turned their attention to the new inhabitant of the old house. 'It was pretty obvious from the moment he was conceived, who his godparents would be, but I still wanted to give it a thought. Ronald would have wanted it this way, and I'm sure you'll do a wonderful job if anything was to happen to me,' she stated. Ever since the baby had been born, Luna had occasionally dropped her old dreamy self to talk and act as an almost grown-up.

'Nothing will happen to you, we wouldn't let it,' Harry told Luna.

'I know you wouldn't want it. But last week, that proved to not be enough,' she said matter-of-factly and Harry sighed. 'Anyway, Harry, Hermione, would you do me the honour of being my child—Ron's child's godparents?'

Hermione was startled and her eyes started to well up with tears. With everything that had been going on and all she'd been thinking about, she hadn't stopped to think who the baby's godparents would be. 'It would be my pleasure,' she said softly.

'I would be delighted,' Harry said honestly.

Just then, Mrs. Weasley stood with a jump. 'Oh, that is just brilliant, dear Luna! We have a Wickening to prepare then!' she clapped her hands together excitedly and a moment later, her face fell and she sighed. Mrs. Weasley closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again, with a gentle smile. 'I'm glad you're part of the family,' she admitted and gathered Luna into a breath taking hug.

'Hold on, how do you plan on doing a Wickening if the brat doesn't have a name yet?' Draco asked, interrupting the moment.

Hermione rolled her eyes. 'Must you be so delicate?' she said boredly.

'The brat still hasn't got a name,' he shrugged.

'Don't call him that!' she argued back.

'Fine. Weasley's son doesn't have a name. Is that all right?' he asked Hermione, making a face.

'I know he hasn't got a name, I have been thinking it very much. Of course his middle name will be Ronald, but what about his first name?' she asked.

'What about Daniel?' Hermione put in after a moment.

Luna stared at her with blue dreamy eyes and seemed to consider it for a moment. The baby looked at his mother with his father's eyes and apparently he liked the name, for he let out a small happy noise. She looked at the baby and up at Hermione again. 'I believe he likes it,' she said gleefully.

'It has a meaning after all…' Draco mused out loud.

'So Daniel it is!' Luna exclaimed and kissed Daniel's head.

Harry looked at his friend's face in the baby's. A nostalgic feeling took him over as the clear blue eyes stared at him. 'Only Luna's hair…' he said softly and looked up at the others in the room. He particularly noted Draco's expression, but didn't give it a second thought. A moment later, he cracked a smile. 'Daniel Ronald—'

'Weasley… he's a Weasley,' Luna complemented and Harry smiled at her.

***

A/N: Note that this is ONLY PART ONE. I'm having some trouble with Part Two, but I have it halfway done for what it's worth… Hope you enjoyed. Please R&R and if you want. You can join us at the yahoogroup BrainstormQuill. Thanks very much for taking the time to read such a long story. After CH.8, there are three more to go and I'm planning on a sequel, but it's in a very rough outline to be honest. Anyway, I'll do my best to have part two up soon! Cheers!