Chapter 7
Dumbledore couldn't be happier. His grandchildren have finally reconciled. Seeing them together made his heart feel as if it were ready to burst. He actually felt complete. He couldn't wait to tell Minerva of the news, but whatever it was that made Harry summon him must be really important.
"Ahem!" Ron pretended to clear his throat but then wore a humongous smile on his face. His two best friends had reconciled and nothing made him happier at that moment. He couldn't tell to share the news with Lavender. "Sorry to interrupt your little reunion, but you said you had something to share with us?"
Harry and Hermione jumped apart as if they've just been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
"Er. Right!" Harry mumbled. "Just take my hand and hold on tight. I'll probably be a little weak at the end of the trip, so if I faint or anything just let me rest." He smiled. "Ready?"
They all nodded and Harry leapt them out of Hogwarts. True to his word, Harry was a bit weak and stumbled back when they arrived. Ron and Dumbledore were ready. Dumbledore levitated him and put him in a couch nearby.
It took Hermione a few seconds to recognize that Harry brought them to Avalon. She hadn't seen the manor since Harry left. She'd spend time at Godric's Hollow for a bit, her parents' place, the burrow and Hogwarts. She couldn't seem to go back to Avalon for some reason. She left Remus in charge of Avalon so she wasn't surprise to see his head pop in a few seconds after they arrived.
"It's good to see you again, Professor," Hermione said.
"I thought we'd decided not to call me Professor anymore Hermione," he told her and caught her in a hug. She smiled sheepishly at him. He shook hands with Dumbledore and Ron next.
"Remus, how had our guest faired?" Harry asked him. Dumbledore and Ron looked at him and then Hermione who was smiling at Harry.
"Well as expected. Finally got some meat back into his bony ar… I mean body, but he's still as stubborn as a mule." Harry smiled at Remus.
"Will you two stop talking in code already? What the bloody hell are we doing here?" Ron answered. He was as impatient as ever.
"Well, Ron," Came a voice by the doorway. "I think he wanted you to see me, if I'm not mistaken." Three heads turned to look towards the doorway.
Hermione already knew, but the reality of it slammed into her like a wrecking ball. She truly hoped that whoever it was that Harry found was Sirius and not another impostor as before. At first sight, however, there was no mistaking that the man who stood before her was indeed Harry's long lost godfather. Tears immediately gathered in her eyes. The beauty of seeing the next thing that Harry had for a father was amazing to her. She didn't have Harry's gift of empath, but for some reason she knew that the man was the real thing.
Ron was flabbergasted to say the least. He didn't have the same insight as Hermione did, and the reluctance to believe was very strong on his part. Then he saw the way Harry smiled and the way Hermione was reacting. He was at a lost for words. There was no doubt left in his mind that Sirius stood before him. No matter how much he wanted to play devil's advocate, he didn't want to hurt both of his friends' feelings by doubting their judgment.
Dumbledore was not as reluctant as Ron. He, who also had great insight, knew that Sirius was once again among them. He doubted he died that night at the ministry building, but proving it was beyond his scope of magic. He was glad that Harry was very gifted enough to find him. He knew how much it cost Harry to find his godfather, but it seemed that everything was worth the pain when he saw the way Hermione held on to Harry's hands. He knew that their lives would get back on track.
"Well, are you all just going to stand there, or are you going to come and give me a proper greeting?"
Immediately the three moved to Sirius and gave him a welcoming embrace. They all told him how glad they were to see him again and the barrage of questions began.
"Hang on, one at a time."
"Since I've already heard the story a million times, I'm going to find us a few refreshments. Maybe some tea and cookies?" No one seemed to be paying attention to Remus. He rolled his eyes heavenward and started for the kitchen.
Harry and Sirius re-told the story where one would fill in the details the other forgot. They had questions galore for them, and Harry and Sirius tried to answer their questions the best they could. Remus went in and served the tea and cookies without any interruption to the story being told. Even Remus offered some details and the two seemed to have forgotten a certain part.
Hermione was more in awe than when Harry told her earlier that day. She knew that Harry held some things back for her sake, but Sirius would not and she was glad for it. She wanted to know the whole thing. She wanted to feel as if she were there with them, even if it was through her imagination only.
Ron was speechless. He wasn't sure what Harry had gone through, but from the look of him when he first resurfaced, he looked as though he'd been through Hades and back at least twice. Not once had he thought of what type of dangers Harry could have been in. He was too confident in Harry's abilities to worry too much. Sometimes he just thought Harry was so infallible he forgot just how human Harry really was.
Dumbledore, on the other hand, was not too surprised. He felt some kind of connection with his grandson. He knew he was alive and that he was suffering somehow, but the extent of his suffering was not clear until now. There were times when he'd wanted to call Merlin for help to locate Harry, but then he'd stop himself and remind himself that the journey was for Harry's and Harry's alone. The journey was somehow part of his training as a wizard and part of learning to be a man. He knew that there were things that Harry had to face alone. He'd proven that much by facing Voldermort, but Dumbledore knew that was not the end of Harry's journey.
"Well, then. I am truly grateful to the powers that be that you are both safe and at home where you belong," Dumbledore told them after Sirius was done talking. "I must tell you however, that your return will surely create much havoc in the wizarding world as well as the muggle world. Even though you were exonerated of wrong doing to the murder charges, everyone thought you'd died. So when do you intend to make your public appearance."
"Well, Harry thought we should start with close friends and family first. However, that does not include the Malfoys or Lestranges," Sirius spat out with disgust.
"Er, you'll have to let the Malfoys know seeing as they're now part of our family," Ron told him with a little hesitation.
"What?" Sirius looked as if he was ready to explode. His face flushed and his eyes narrowed as he eyed Ron speculatively.
"Harry, didn't you tell Sirius about Draco's role in the defeat of the dark lord?" Hermione asked.
"Sorry, we didn't get to that part of the discussion. It's all right Sirius, Draco has proven himself time and again. He was one of the seven."
"I can't believe this. And what of my cousin Narcissa?"
"She's safe and well. She was being held prisoner. Lucius was using her to gain Draco's cooperation. But we were able to save her and defeat Voldemort. Your other cousins, however, had a different fate. They are in Azkaban being guarded by wards that were put in place by Harry, Dumbledore, Hermione and a few others. The dementors no longer have a place in Azkaban, instead they were given a place in which to roam freely. They were still called upon when the death penalty is given to a prisoner. A few of the dark lord's followers are still awaiting the kiss of death. They are scheduled to receive them soon, but only if the council has determined that the crimes they committed were heinous enough that require the kiss of death, or if they only have to be imprisoned for life."
"There seems to be a lot of changes since I've been away. I guess I have a lot to catch up with. I will start with the three of you and work my way out into the public eye. I will leave it to you for the explanations professor as the truth might be too much for others to actually believe. I have a difficult time believing it myself still and I lived through it. Thanks to Harry, I can remain at Avalon with Remus for as long as I want and at Grimmauld place of course."
"Oh, and I took it upon myself to transfer back everything you'd left me in your will, back into your bank account."
"You didn't have to do that Harry." He shook his head from side to side. "I'm your godfather and I'm supposed to be looking after you, not the other way around."
"Believe me Sirius, I still need people to watch my back. Especially people I can trust." He looked at Hermione, Ron, Dumbledore and Remus.
"You know we always have your back, Harry." Ron proudly stated. Dumbledore smiled at Harry. He was glad that Harry finally found what he'd been longing for. He knew from the look in Harry's face that Harry was finally content. He had Hermione, his children and his friends. What more could he ask for.
"Thank you all. Now, as I have taken up enough of everyone's time. I feel we should be going back to Hogwarts. The little ones are getting fussy."
"When will I meet the little ones? I want to meet my namesake especially. I hear he's a handful."
Dumbledore smiled. "They remind me a lot of you, Remus and James. It's like having the marauders back at Hogwarts."
Sirius, Ron, Hermione, Remus and Harry looked at Dumbledore with the `how did you know' look in their faces.
"Oh, come now. You didn't think I'd miss that little trick, did you? Your little map was actually ingenious if you ask me and it had helped Harry, Hermione and Ron a lot through the years. Who do you think put it in Filch's office when Fred and George had detention. I knew their minds were sharp and they'd figure it out and somehow pass the knowledge down to a worthy soul. I'm glad you all put it to good use. Let's just hope they stay with people who continue to use it for the good, eh?"
They all stared at Dumbledore, dumbfounded. They couldn't believe the headmaster of all people actually knew about what they thought was a well kept secret.
"Sir, how did you happen to know the Fred and George would eventually give it to me?"
"I had a little premonition." He smiled.
Harry realized that he has so many things yet to discover about his grandfather. He looked at him and smiled. He decided to spend more time with him, the kids and Hermione. He figured finding employment could wait a little while longer.
Hermione looked at Harry as if to ask `did you know?' but all she received was a shrug. Harry didn't know of course. He promised to block them out, so there was no way to ever know the whole truth about any one of them, unless of course they agree to open themselves up to him. Something Harry did not really want to do anyway. He had too much respect for other people's privacy and feelings to open his empath powers unless it was necessary.
"We'd better go. The kids are feeling more than fussy now. They feel irritated, angry and scared? Why would they feel scared? Madam Pomfrey usually looks in on them, right?" He saw the alarm in Hermione's eyes.
He took her hand in his, and Ron and Dumbledore followed suit. They promised Sirius they would visit soon with the boys and off they went. In a blink of an eye, they were once again in Hogwarts inside the nursery.
Panic flooded Hermione's head. She couldn't see her babies. They weren't napping in their cribs where she and Harry left them.
Harry could feel Hermione's panic and because his own panic had set in, it was doubled for him. Ron and Dumbledore took the cue and immediately started to fan out to conduct the search of Hogwarts grounds.
"Hermione, where is the marauder's map. I can't seem to feel them nearby. They seem so distant and they're still angry, hungry and scared."
Just then he heard Hermione scream. He rushed to her side only to find Madam Pomfrey lying still on the foot of the bed in Hermione's room. Harry reached them in no time at all. He crouched down to feel for pulse, then open himself up to feel her emotionally.
"She's okay. She seems to have drugged somehow. We'd better put her in your bed for now while we look for the boys."
"Harry, you don't have to pretend. They're not in Hogwarts, are they?"
"No, Hermione. I'm sorry. They feel too far away."
"Who would do this Harry? Who would take my babies away?" Tears fell freely from Hermione's eyes. She'd never been an emotional unstable person, but it seemed motherhood changed her a bit.
"I don't know love, but I will find them." He gathered her in his arms and kissed her forehead.
"You mean we'll find them. They're my kids too. I'm going with you."
Harry nodded as they both walked out the room hand in hand after Harry made sure Madam Pomfrey was okay.
A/N: Sorry once again. I know it took longer that I'd hoped, but I hope you like the latest chapter nonetheless. Enjoy.
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