"Ron?" Luna asked as he came to the top of the stairs, "Are they okay? She seemed quite distraught."
He had watched his two best friends leave. Not a word was spoken, they just vanished. "I'm certain they'll be fine, this trunk must have brought some deep memories. They'll let us know when they'll ready.
"You mean when she's ready. I swear she has him wrapped around her finger."
He stared at her for that last comment, he knew what they had shared and lost together and was certain what she said wasn't true. He was about to say something in reply when a startling alarm sounded.
"Damn, there's an emergency, sweetie, I have to go to the Ministry, something's happened." He pulled her to his chest in a trademark Weasley hug, gave her a deep good-bye-and-I'll-be-home-soon kiss, and left for his office in the Ministry. The Floo was the quickest way there and he soon found himself walking crisply down the corridor to his desk.
He and Harry had always shared a wall that divided their cubicles; his desk had the perpetual clutter that plagued him as far back as their time at school. Harry's desk was equally cluttered, but somehow it always seemed like an organized clutter. Hermione's picture from their last anniversary sat next to the name plate on Harry's desk. Ron had a picture of Luna and their son on his desk, next to an old forth year picture of the three of them that was taken just after Harry rescued them all from the lake.
He sat as Amelia Bones rounded the corner and from the state of her solemn features and also since his sister and the Minister himself was close behind, he knew this wasn't good.
"Oy, Gin, what's happened? Minister? Director?"
"Ron," Ginny started as they reached his desk, there's been a break-in in the ministry, someone apparated directly inside."
"Who'd be stupid enough to do that? And where's Harry? He should be here to work this case."
"That is the problem, Auror Weasly," Minister Dumbledore answered. He never addressed him by title unless the situation was grave. "The magical signature was from one of our most prominent citizens, and it was directly in the Death Chamber itself. That signature vanished before anyone could arrive there."
"Who would be crazy enough to go there, unless they didn't intend to leave?" Ron asked. "And who's signature was detected?"
"Mrs. Potter, and we suspect he was with her."
"But, they left the Burrow only a short while ago; we found a trunk that contained some items that seemed to give her a start. There was an old wand and cloak, and a bundle of papers she took with her."
"Is that all? Did she say anything?" Amelia asked.
"She said something strange that Merlin gave her a wand, and James' son gave her some cloak. But that would be Harry?"
"I'm afraid this adds to the mystery, of why she would end her life this way."
Ron stood there silent. He just said 'end her life', he was talking about Hermione. He shook his head in disbelief and frustration. "No. that's not possible, she'd…"
"Never do such a thing? She did. The wards in the veil that warn us if someone goes through were triggered, twice."
"Twice? But who…" he asked nearing full shock.
"Harry's missing too. He must have followed her."
"Director Malfoy is correct in her assessment; they both seem to have wanted to end their lives."
Ron slumped into his chair in a state of shock.
Gone.
They were both gone. He lost the two people he loved above all others, as much as he loved Luna and was happy with her, he was closer to Harry and Hermione. He put his face in his hands and began to morn them.
"We will search for them, of course, but with the evidence as clear as it is, that search may be short. We will plan a memorial for them once the findings have been confirmed, and I know they would want you to deliver it."
"Yes… sir. I c-can't think about that, not now."
"Of course, Ronald, we'll give them a week to appear somewhere, he was famous for taking her off when he knew she was depressed. Maybe this is another occurrence."
Ginny ignored protocol and knelt at her brother's seat, and pulled him into a needed embrace. She felt his tears on her shoulder.
Darkness.
Silence.
Nothing.
He screamed her name. He knew she was near, he imagined he could still smell the fragrance in her hair, the same strawberry and chocolate that she knew drove him mad with passion. It was just in front of him. She was nearby.
There was no floor, no walls, nothing but emptiness. This was what Sirius experienced. This is what she is experiencing. He reached out in front of him, hoping for any sensation, any tactile response.
Nothing.
There was nothing there.
It was as if death was simply a void.
Nothing.
He imagined his heart pound inside his chest, but if this was death, that was impossible. The fragrance grew stronger; it was all he had. The void was complete, no light escaped no sound was heard.
Nothing.
Time.
Time passed.
Still nothing.
He wanted to touch her hand, just a touch.
He longed to hold her again. They promised to love each other ' in life and beyond, where we shall meet, remember, and love again.' Here was the beyond, and he was alone.
He still loves her.
He covered his face, wanting to just cry. He had no tears.
When he removed his hands, he could feel the flapping of cloth, the veil fluttered in his face. He opened his eyes to find himself just on the other side of the gateway, as if he stepped through a door. Sitting on the floor in front of him was Hermione, as if she had fallen on her bottom. She had the tears he couldn't find. She apparently never heard him. In her lap she still held the pages she held when she fell.
"Mione?"
She looked up, startled; she never expected to see him again. She let a smile escape. It was his special smile, the one she had when she was glad to see him, whether it was when they woke in the morning or if he had been away on a mission with Ron for days or weeks. It was his smile.
"Harry? You followed me?"
"I had to." He knelt before her. "You have something of mine." With that took her hand and placed it to his chest. "See, it's gone."
She smiled sadly this time, and her other hand found its way to caress his cheek.
"I'm so sorry, please forgive me." She laced her hands around him and held him fast; as long as she held him none of this was real.
"We're still in the Department of Mysteries. I thought we would be dead."
"Harry, if we did just go to the other side of the gateway, why didn't we see Sirius pass through? Why hasn't he tried to find us?"
"First thing's first. I want you to promise me, now and forever to never be afraid to talk to me again. Ok?"
She nodded her head. She finally relaxed her hold, slipped back to a sitting position while he picked up the sheets and sat next to her, and together they read about her adventure. They remained in the pit with the crumbling stone archway before them. They sat there in a room that held death and read about her adventures saving life. Every word sparked memories, and as the memories mounted, she told him the missing bits from the journal. By the time they finished reading, she had nearly full recollection of those few days she spend in time, those memories erased the five weeks he spent at her side caring for her while others mourned for her.
He still had the two sheets she handed him and tucked them in the folds of the crude book she held. One sheet she had not noticed contained a series of cryptic lines began to fad in and out, and they held it together, as if a message had been lost.
The tunic he still wore now had a fresh meaning to him; vague comments from the past now had new meaning for them both. They marveled at the full extent of her actions, from protecting her own family, no matter how distant to triggering another family to become part of their world and ultimately become part of her family. Her quick thinking in a fight saved a life and a memory of a mistake saved his life and helped defeat their greatest foe.
They wondered at the fact she had tea with the greatest wizard that ever lived. Her last thoughts that she wouldn't share were of the paradox she created. If she had not gone to the past, she never would have existed. Harry never would have existed. Tom Riddle may have gained the power he lusted for and may well have ruled the wizarding world. All the people they knew and loved may never have existed, since her trip was back far enough in history. They both let a shudder at the though and with a shared look, each knew they were safe as long as they were together. They survived the Veil because they were together. They survived because he loved her enough to follow her.
He pulled out his Auror ID since they were in the Ministry and affixed it to the tunic he still wore; he was seldom with out his badge, as he had been called in at most unusual times in the past.
"Mione, let's get out of here, I want to go home and forget about all this." He stood and helped his wife to her feet, and while still holding her hand turned with her toward the door. They could have apparated home, but they were both tired and he decided a quick portkey home would be better. He maintained a couple prearranged portkeys in his desk for times when he was too tired for other means of transportation.
They walked up the steps of the pit that held the archway, and passed through the door to the room. For the first time in their lives, everything seemed normal. Everything had, with the disclosure of the document she still held, finally made sense and everything seemed to have a purpose.
They left the room, hoping to never return, and passed the Hall of Prophecies. The chain wrapped around the doorknobs at first seemed overkill when he noticed that detail, but assumed Ginny had a reason to secure the room. They passed the other rooms on the floor, and entered the lift in the hallway to go to the second level. The Auror's offices on that floor had not changed over the years, with the exception of the engraved names on the desks.
The next thing he noticed, was the lack of clutter on Ron's desk, which was on the opposite cubicle wall from his desk. They turned the corner and he plopped in his chair, obviously tired. Last night's beach experience, although pleasant, had not been a restful night; it was a night of shared passion. Helping in the attic also was not that straining, but the fall through the veil did seem to drain all energy from them.
He pulled the drawer open to retrieve one of his pre-arranged portkeys home, but it was locked. After a few tugs, Hermione rolled her eyes and pushed him aside and pulled her wand.
"Alohomora." She said, as the drawer slid open.
He peered inside to retrieve one of his portkeys, but the drawer only held rows of files, packed tight.
"Don't even know which desk is yours?" she teased.
He smirked at her cheek, and pointed to the desk itself. "I should know my own desk, there's your picture." He commented as he pointed to a picture on the desk. Instead of her, there was a picture of an obviously plump Pansy Parkensen, next to the name 'Victor Crabbe".
"Funny, Potter, real funny." She slapped his shoulder expecting him to smirk back.
Instead, his face became stone-like and his body stiffened, as if he expected some trouble.
"Come on, we need to get out of here, NOW." He commanded as he pulled her by the arm toward the exit.
"Why? What's wrong?"
"Crabbe was murdered eleven years ago. This can only be some kind of cryptic message. We need to find Ron."
"But I thought he…"
"Yeah, everyone did. The rumor was he and Goyle went into hiding and after Voldemort was defeated they disappeared to the darker regions to avoid paying for Cho's murder."
She stopped still in her tracks, "why did you keep this a secret from me?" She demanded.
"It was Ministry business, labeled highly confidential, her murder was the first thing I researched, on my own since it was a dead case. They found most of Crabbe and Goyle's bodies much the same way they found that diver friend of Jake's, their flesh was stripped from them and major organs were missing. Goyle's entire rib cage was also gone."
She grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the exit, now she couldn't wait to escape from this building. Her face showed more then a passing anxiety at that news. "They had two cases in healer training, to show what a dark wizard is capable of. They hid their faces, but the bodies appeared to be surgically dissected while they were alive. Harry, I think it was them."
They stopped at the lift doors, and the dial overhead slowly rotated from one level to the next, and then the next, approaching the second level.
"They must know we're here, we must have tripped a ward." He muttered. Harry quickly pulled her by her arms, more frantic now, and looked deep into her eyes, "Ready?" he said more then asked as he waved his hand. They vanished just as the lift doors opened with four burly men, wands drawn and pointed to the door. They held the spells when they could see the hallway was now empty.
When Harry and Hermione reappeared, they were standing in a familiar glen, where they spent a quiet picnic with several close friends only two days ago. The oak tree was still there, but it was missing the memorial to Sirius. It looked un-kept and overgrown with weeds. The cool and soothing stream that ran nearby was dry and dead.
They crouched low, in a defensive position as they approached the ancient home of the Weasleys. Hermione kept looking of a friendly sign; she waited to see Luna run out chasing their son.
That never happened.
They rounded the corner of the field adjacent to the building, and the sight was more devastating then any they've seen. The building stood in ruins, mostly from an explosion, but a major portion had been burned, used as a bonfire. They stood in silence, at this view. He saw it before she did, but wasn't quick enough to prevent her from seeing the scorched patch in the front of the ruins, several piles of bones lay as silent tribute to the irreverence paid to this family. The ruins and remains were far from new, it was mostly overgrown with scrub brush, vines and weeds. The spot that had been the funeral pyre refused any growth, reminiscent of a patch near the Whomping Willow.
She turned into his shoulder and he could feel her grief, he vowed to return one day and give his friends a proper burial. First they had to find out how all this happened in a matter of an hour. It was only an hour ago she rushed from the attic at finding that trunk. It was only an hour ago she discovered she had altered history.
"Harry, I need to see our home, I must know." She sobbed into his shoulder.
He nodded and held her tight as he repeated the spell that whisked them home. Again, they stayed just out of view. They were on the far side of the field where a familiar well manicured patch no longed stood, the three sets of graves were not there, the fence around the cemetery was gone. This lack of vision drove her hand under her blouse, she needed to know she was still who she thought she was, the scar was still there. Harry always noticed this sub-conscious action, and knew its meaning. He too reached his hand to his forehead and found his scar, too, still existed.
In a cautious whisper, he begged her to remain calm, to let him deal with this until they could find a safe refuge. They again crouched toward their home, to the small cottage hoping beyond hope something in this twisted world would welcome them. Hermione knew deep down that if there was as major a change here, it would affect Harry more. Loosing his family home was almost more then either wanted to imagine.
"Love, please wait here, I need to see if it's clear first. After the Burrow…" he couldn't finish the thought,
"No. I'll be at your side, where I belong. I'll be fine."
A reassuring squeeze of his hand by hers was all he needed to know his strength was there with him, and not lost in self-doubt.
Harry smiled and hand in hand they came to where the cottage should have been. Instead, the remains of a plowed field lay before them; it was overgrown with weeds and had not been cultivated in many years. A rough built shack stood in the tree line some distance from where their home should have been.
After the sight of at the Burrow, this wasn't unexpected. They cautiously crossed the field, noticing only a small patch was still maintained, a small vegetable patch. They walked closer to the shack, and the light from inside was quickly extinguished, evidence they were seen.
"Hermione, they must know we're here. Please be careful."
Before they took another step, the ground at their feet exploded, he had just managed to push her aside as he rolled away from the blast. He raised a hand, and she could tell he hurled a series of stunning spells at the shack. The first struck the door, shattering it from the hinges, the next found a mark as they heard a muffled groan.
Before she regained her feet, Harry glanced to his side to see a familiar figure in an unfamiliar stance, a fairly large black shaggy dog had its teeth bared and was about to rip into her as she laid on the ground.
"SIRIUS, NO!" He lunged at his Godfather in his canine form, ignoring the flashing teeth, and with a glow from his hands; the dog fell stunned to the ground. Harry fell to her side, relieved she was unhurt, just in shock at the source of the attack. Sirius had morphed back into his human form once he was unconscious.
With one stunned inside and one outside, the remaining defender cautiously looked out the glassless window and watched as the two attackers carried his unconscious compatriot back to the house, as they approached, he could see neither held a wand.
"Just put'em down and back away." The stranger barked.
"Look, friend, we don't mean harm, we seem to be confused, this was our home."
The man pointed his wand at the fallen man and from inside they heard him say " Ennervate" and Sirius stood and stepped back.
"Who are you?" He demanded. "How did you know who I was?"
"Sirius, how could I forget you, I've missed you these past twelve years." Harry blurted out. "Ever since Bellatrix hit you and you fell beyond the veil…"
"Bella? Veil? Look, mister, you'd better make up a better story." He backed up to the shack while looking at the younger man in front of him, and blinked hard.
"Sirius? Have you forgotten us?" Hermione asked, her pleading drew his attention for a moment.
"Padfoot, leave them." The man inside shouted, "Get off my land you two."
"Please, sir. We seem to be lost. May we come in?"
"Prongs, watch them, this one's tricky, and he's hidden his wand."
"P-P-Prongs?" Harry stammered.
"James? James Potter?" Hermione asked.
"Who wants to know?"
"My name's Hermione Potter and this is my husband, Harry, your son."
"I have no son." He shouted.
"Dad? Is mum there?"
"Go away, or are you playing me for a fool?"
"Please. Give us a few minutes." She pleaded again.
"James, give 'em a chance. Let's hear them out." Another voice inside added.
"Remus? Remus Lupin? Moony?" Harry shouted enthusiastically.
Cautiously the group outside walked to the small shack, and the sight inside was almost more then either of the two could handle. The inside was as barren as a barracks, un-kept and disorganized. Instead of beds, a group of crude mats and worn blankets cluttered the far side of the cabin. A table built without much benefit of modern tools sat in the center with chairs made more from sections of trees then lumber. There was a counter and shelves with supplies near the opposite side, and for all appearances this cabin could have been a hunter's cabin used for short periods instead of a main home for three men.
For the first time, Sirius Black got a good look at the couple that attacked him. The woman was unfamiliar, but he could tell she had a power no one had seen before, but the man, he was a nearly exact duplicate of James, all but his eyes, and a scar on his forehead.
"Dad!" he exclaimed as he tried to embrace the elder Potter.
"Keep back, who ever you are." A battered wand pointed at Harry's throat.
"Prongs, he's you, twenty years ago. It's uncanny."
"Moony, you've gone nutters. You know I never had a son."
"Harry, wait, Mr. Potter, do you know a Lily Evans?" Hermione interrupted.
"No. I've never met anyone by that name."
"What d'you mean 'No'? hang on dad... you must know Lily, you must..."
"Harry, Harry listen, it's useless." She said as she pulled on his arm.
"But, it's him, he's alive." He began to scream.
"Harry stop, are you listening to me? Your desk and Ron's desk at the Ministry, the Burrow... the field outside, the cemetery, they're all gone. This is another reality Harry!"
He shook his head in refusal, "No, it's not, it's real!" He began to ramble; the suddenness took him by surprise that they didn't belong here. She could feel her palm sting from the icy cold when he was scared; her early warning to his emotions had been dormant since their last shared funeral. She pulled his face to hers and forced him to listen.
"Stop it! Listen to me Harry! It IS real; this is another reality, but not ours. This man might be James Potter, but he's no more your dad more than my father was, or Albus. He's NOT your father Harry. We're not home."
"What d'you mean another reality?" Sirius asked.
"Yes, I'm afraid so... it scares me to death thinking about it, but that's what it must be. We went through the Veil in the Ministry, actually I went in it, he followed me." She paused in reflection. "The Veil is not death. The veil is a portal to another reality. It's an easy way to pass off the Ministry's problems."
Dumbfounded, all four wizards stood and listened to her, none of them believed her explanation, and one refused to believe he had a grown son.
"Sirius, Remus, please believe me we're not mad. James, in another reality you met Lily Evans and had a son, Harry. Pettigrew betrayed you and Voldemort killed you two, but couldn't kill Harry. Remus, Albus brought you back to Hogwarts in our third year as our Professor, but when people found out you are a werewolf you left."
"Hogwarts was destroyed by Ministry orders thirty years ago. None of that could have happened." James commented. "And how could Pettigrew betray us? That little rat was part of Snape's gang. We were lucky just to make it through those first years."
"And what's this about a werewolf?" Moony asked slightly confused.
"Dad, um, James, what happened to the Weasleys?"
"Anyone that stood in the Dark Lord's way were killed, their families erased from existence. Any mixed blood wizards were killed, to purify the natural order."
Hermione and Harry listened to this complication to this reality; anyone that wasn't a pureblood was dead.
"The muggles, what happened to them?" she asked with a shaky voice. She was afraid her parents were killed here because they bore a witch.
"During the last great war in '43, the Germans defeated Britain when Grindelwald joined with that madman. Hitler ruled all of Europe and left it in ruins; the United Stated sat out and was cut off. That was the last place of pure freedom, until the Germans perfected a weapon that destroyed their culture. That was back around '50 or '51. Voldmort's power began to grow about that time, and came into the confidence of the two dictators until he finally had them killed. That was in '57. He's ruled both wizards and muggles with a bloody hand since. He has a power no one can match."
After James' brief history lesson, the stress of the reality showed clearly in her face, it would have been clearer to the older three, had she not buried her face in Harry's shoulder.
"Now, exactly where did you two come from? You say you're my son, ok. I can see the family resemblances, except for you eyes. What about her?"
"Her story is a little more complicated. Her parents lived as muggles, her father came from a pureblood line, but because of the Lost Witch curse and legend, they lost that power. Dad, you said all none-pure bloods were killed? We're both technically half bloods."
That comment raised a level of concern. "Harry, you both have to leave, they'll find you. There's a series of detection wards to look for half bloods. I'm surprised they haven't come after you yet."
"This 'Lost Witch' thing," Remus asked, "you said that like it concerned her." He added as he pointed to Hermione.
"She is the legendary Lost Witch; it dates back 500 years ago." He pulled the sheets of her diary and placed them on the crude table they sat at. The three older wizards stared at the pages; confused until it dawned on Harry they were unable to read them. He picked then up and began to translate the story. He continued to fill them in on the details of the world they lived in, explicit details of their life together, and also shared the pain of the losses they shared. James listened more intently then the others, and felt more then a passing thought of how things could have been.
The three Marauders looked at each other, the years of depending on one another evident. A simple glance or change of expression between them spoke volumes, but just as the sheets in front of them were legible to only two people, so were these cryptic signals. The shared body language mirrored the same actions Harry and Hermione shared with Ron, even after ten years, it was something Luna still couldn't mimic.
Remus was the first to stand. He left the group, shaking his head in disbelief. "Such a tale was meant for bedtime fiction." He muttered on the way out. Sirius also sat shaking his head in disbelief, only James sat motionless.
"So we're in the presence of wizard royalty." Sirius laughed and he too stood. "All hail the King and Queen!" His laughter could still be heard outside the shack as he left to assist Moony in whatever task he had begun.
"Sirius doesn't mean it; you both must understand how grim life here has been. And now you two show up with this 'story' as if your first claims of being my son weren't enough." He stood and began to pace the room, his hands pulled through his hair, as tangled and wild as Harry's.
"Dad, I know this is truly unbelievable, but every word is the truth. This transcript is identical to the ones we found eleven years ago. And the manuscript change, there's no other explanation how that was changed before Voldemort got it. If she didn't change it, I would be dead right now and he would have killed you and mum too."
"I want to believe you, I really do, but so far there's nothing to prove any of this. Hell, you two might even be clever plants to smoke us out, or to see if there are any others in hiding. Although, I almost believe you two, but Remus and Sirius I'm afraid don't see any of it."
"Dad, I can prove this, there are things I can do, things that no one else can do easily." He held his hands together over the table, as if forming a snowball. When he opened them, a blue sphere appeared, exactly as when he and Hermione first began to practice that spell. It hovered over the table.
"Try and destroy it." Hermione prompted.
Prongs produced his wand and waved it over the sphere. He tried a couple simple ones first, with no effect. Each
spell he tried seemed to feed it more energy, making it grow larger. A smug grin grew over a younger wizard as he
watched his own father try and fail.
"Added something to it I see," she commented. The last time the spells bounce off, and now they are absorbed
to add more power.
He gave a smug grin and watched the sphere glow and grow with each attempt to destroy it.
"Have the others try, go on, dad. Call them back."
"MOONY, PADFOOT Get your scrawny arses back in here. Look at what the kid can do!" James shouted.
Remus and Sirius hurried back, carrying parcels from a hidden supply shed. Sirius carried a large jug, and Remus had another bundle. They were quickly deposited on a counter on the far side of the one room shack, and watched the growing orb.
"Go ahead, try and break it. You can't."
They all tried in turn and collectively to destroy Harry's practice orb until he had to stop them before it grew too large for the room. He gave a wave and slammed his hands together, more for effect, and the orb collapsed upon itself until it vanished in a brilliant point of energy.
"Is that proof enough? That's how I killed Voldemort in my world. Hermione tried that spell once and it knocked her cold for three days."
Awestruck, the Marauders gave each other a silent message between each other, leaving James to deliver that message.
"Looks like the Marauders now number five," he paused thoughtfully then grinned. "We'll have to think up suitable names for our 'Royal Guests'gentlemen."
"I believe Sirius has already answered that, I give you 'Prince' and 'Queenie', welcome to the club." Remus bowed deeply as if announcing the royal couple.
"Just to keep it clear is she 'Prince' or 'Queenie'?" Harry joked.
"Queenie? Are you daft? That's the most ridiculous name I've heard. No, try again." She huffed.
"Beauty?" Harry offered sweetly.
"Ugg… I liked 'Queenie' better." She winced in disgust.
"She's a live one, Harry; she's got a helluva spirit." Sirius commented.
"Spirit, it fits her." Remus said.
"Umm... not Prince... I'm no Snape." Harry rejected his name after he thought it over.
"Besides, Prince doesn't fit Harry," Hermione added, "Sorry, love, but I've never held that much respect for the royals, ever since," she paused momentarily, "oh, it's not important."
"Hmm, you're not an animagus, are you?"
"No, but…"
"What's your patronus? You can perform the charm, I hope." James asked.
"You... er, prongs... er... a stag" Harry stammered.
"Stag, I like that." Hermione thought out loud.
"Stag and Spirit, so be it." James announced.
The details of the lives of these two and the exhibition of Harry's power moved the three to forge a plan, the tyranny must end, and it seems, Harry was the one to stop the madness.