The warmth of a fire was the thing that woke me from the despair that seemed to hang about over my head ever since I walked into this stupid castle. I tried hard to hold back the tears as I thought of everything I changed but they couldn't be stopped. Breathing harshly I let sob after sob escape my lips. It wasn't until I was drunk from exhaustion, once again, that I realized I had been clinging to Uncle Remus the entire time. He had rocked me back and forth as I sobbed and then tucked me back under the blanket as I drifted back into the darkness.
I found myself in the Great Hall sitting at the Ravenclaw table with my brothers across from me laughing at something. Their Slytherin robes had been replaced with muggle clothing which indicated it was a weekend at Hogwarts. As we talked about seemingly nothing the doors to the Great Hall opened.
In walked our parents. They looked exactly like they did when I left. It was uncanny how they just walked to the Gryffindor table and sat down like it was nothing. I got up and went over to say "hi" and to ask them why they didn't want to sit with their children.
"Hey," I said and they looked at me with a blank look in their eyes. "Mum, dad," I reached out to give them hugs but found myself on the receiving end of a wand.
"Who the hell are you?" My father's voice was strong and impatient. That is when I noticed that these weren't my parents. These people were the Harry and Hermione that I had come to know. They were the Harry and Hermione from 1997.
I turned to look back at the Ravenclaw table and found that my brothers had disappeared and two chattering girls had taken their place. Suddenly, I began to panic. They had gone missing and I had to find them. Had to save them from everything that could get them and at that thought I went running from the Great Hall.
As I flung the doors to the Great Hall open to exit the room I found myself back at home. Comfort and warmth spread through my body instantly calming me down. If my brothers were anywhere they were here. I started forth and came into the living room. The room was exactly how I left it which made me smile. Everything was the same as I remembered.
I don't know how long I stood there but the sound of footsteps made me jump. Turning I saw my dad. "Hey sweetie," he said casually as if I hadn't been away for months. "Your mother just called and is on her way home. We still have time to squeeze in that chess game," he gave me a wink as he started setting up the board that was sitting beside the mantel place.
"Dad you always lose so why do you insist on playing?" His face broke out into a grin and I couldn't stop a grin from forming on my own face. "Fine, we will play and I will win."
Walking over I went to settle in my favourite chair, but something stopped me. There was something different about this room. I didn't pin point it until I looked at the pictures that adorned the mantel. Mike and Adam weren't in any of them. Instead I was hugging two baby girls, or Daddy was teaching them how to ride their first brooms.
"Daddy," I said. "Daddy, daddy, daddy," he just kept setting up the chess board as if he couldn't hear me and I just kept yelling his name.
A pair of strong, yet gentle, hands grabbed my shoulders as I bolted up from the couch I had fallen asleep on. Gasping for air I looked up to see Aunt Tonks staring at me. "Oh my," I said. "Mike and Adam, this is just insane. It is too much. I need to do something."
"Jillie," her voice was soft and soothing which made me cautious as I suddenly remembered everything from my horrible dream.
"Aunt Tonks," she shook her head. "At least not the one you know and love," was her reply. "Remus told me everything the second you conked out on our couch. I'm sorry about everything Jillie."
"Yeah, me too." My throat was raw and I reached for the glass of water that sat on the coffee table across from the couch. "What day is it?"
"It is Tuesday," she said and I now knew that Ron was gone. Back to where ever he came from. It made me slightly sad to think about, but I pushed that feeling aside.
"A week and a half until the Hogsmead visit." I couldn't stop the sigh from escaping my prison like lips. "I need to be there. I have to get to Ernie at the right time for everything to go right. It is just that with everything that has changed I don't know when that time is anymore." Aunt Tonks let me talk to myself as she went and made us some tea.
"Well maybe I can help?" Aunt Tonks said as she set down two steaming mugs. I looked at her and thought it over for a second, and then nodded. After all every girl needs to hash out their plans with someone.
"Before I changed everything the Hogsmead Battle took place right before Christmas. Voldemort wanted to scare the parents into thinking their children would be safer at home with them and not at Hogwarts. It didn't work mostly because of Harry and Hermione and Ron. What it did convince was almost everyone went home for Christmas. Everyone but Hermione and Harry."
"Sweetie you can call them mum and dad around me," at this I hugged Aunt Tonks.
"Thank you," I fought back the tears that stung at my eyes before continuing. "Anyway at the Hogsmead Battle Voldemort's supporters happened to kill Ernie Macmillan who had successfully gotten all of the third, fourth, and fifth years up to the castle. But before he could get in a carriage he was killed because he jumped in front of a reductor curse that was meant for my mum, who was also helping get the children to safety. The curse was so powerful that it literally blew him up into tiny pieces that rained down on my mum. Everything that is except for his Head Boy badge, and that is when my mum realised what it was."
"A Horcrux?" Aunt Tonks asked, and I nodded. "How did she figure that out? I mean those things have been around since Rowena Ravenclaw made them."
"Exactly," I said at her observation. "Made by Ravenclaw, herself, something of the founders." And that is when it hit me. "Oh my god, I figured it out."
"Figured out what?"
"How they did it," my mind was buzzing as I figured it out. It took me a minute to remember that Aunt Tonks and I were suppose to be working on how to get the Horcrux away from the Death Eaters and back safely into the castle.
"The first time I was there and grabbed it before anyone saw me. I presented it to my mum the minute they got back from the battle. I said I found it among the rubble that when I was helping some town people get to safety and thought she could give it back to Ernie. She had no clue I knew that Ernie died."
"Well, Jillie, I wouldn't say you are going in blind…" at this Aunt Tonks pulled something out of her pocket. "I was told to give this to you by Ron. He said it would contain the answers to everything you would need, but you could only watch it once and then it would be gone forever." She gave me a vial which held in its crystal prison a silvery glowing substance. On top of it was a tiny note written by my mum it said…Follow me.
"I'm going to need a pensive."
"I know and that is why I told Headmistress McGonagall. Remus, me, you, and the Headmistress are going to watch this come Sunday morning." I knew that saying no would be impossible so I just nodded as I sunk back into the couch. Sunday could not come soon enough, I thought as the clock told me that it was only noon on Tuesday.
~*~*~*~*~*~
The black sparking sky was getting lighter and lighter as I finally gave up on sleeping. Crawling out of bed and on to the window seat I sat and watch the sky fade into a brilliant purple haze as the girls in the room slept without a care in the world. Over the course of the last few days I had started attending classes again. This time I sat in the back of every class, avoided all my classmates, and spent most of my free time staring out the windows in the library. Luna was the only one who dare approach me in the library. She sat at the table I occupied humming as she worked through her homework or reading her books. Sometimes she would say something a little off centre but mostly she just kept me company. It was her comforting presence and the mundaneness of classes that got me until Saturday.
Saturday I spent woke up early and went for a jog around the castle. I then spent the rest of the morning visiting Firenze and his classroom. It wasn't surprising to see Luna joined me halfway through the morning. She sat down and just stared up at the sky until I couldn't take it anymore.
"Why do you keep following me?"
"I know," she said in her dreamy voice.
"Isn't it funny how people tend to think that you, Luna, are clairvoyant? But you aren't. You, Luna, are just very observant, and heaven forbid if I forget smart. A true Ravenclaw."
"Did you think Hermione would figure it out first?"
"Sort of, but then again you have beaten Hermione before when it comes to knowledge. But you cover it up with those comments you make, and you would never try and hurt her by telling her she isn't the smartest witch after-all." Luna's face was still gazing at the sky. "When are you going to tell them?"
"Never, you know that already," her voice hardened for a slight second but them became dreamy again as she spoke.
"Yes I suppose I do…Thank you," I reached out and gave her a hug. She tensed up for a moment before she hugged me back.
"So what happens now?" her eyes held mine for the longest time.
"We fight for good…"
At dinner that night I sat at the Ravenclaw table as I told her all I could about what had happened and what I was meant to do in this time. She listened intently as I spoke and then brought up something I never thought of before. Luna told me that things had been different since last year. She didn't know what happened but something caused my parents and Ron to act completely out of character.
Now as I walked down to the Great Hall I wondered what had happened to my parents to change them so completely. Was it Sirius's dying? Was it Snape? Was it just the pressure of the war and not wanting to deal with it all anymore? Taking my seat at Gryffindor table I noticed I was not the first person up Ginny Weasley was also there.
"Hey," she said simply as I sat down.
"Is everything okay, Ginny?" the girl sitting across from me seemed a little withdrawn then the women I knew.
"Yes, well, no. Harry is going to Hogsmead with Hermione."
"I'm sure they are just going as friends," I piled some eggs on my plate. "Why do you think they are anything but friends?"
"No, well, yes, I don't know."
"Maybe you should stop worrying about it until they actually give you something to worry about. Plus I heard you and Harry broke up." Next I put on some potatoes and began looking around for the ketchup.
"We did, but I just like him so much."
"Well," I was starting to feel a little strange talking to Aunt Ginny about my father and mum. "If you like him, and he likes you as much as you like him then don't worry."
"Thanks Jillian," she smiled at me and went back to eating her toast. I couldn't help but feel sorry for Aunt Ginny now that I understood her better. She had liked Dad for so long and then it all came down to nothing in the end because Dad fell in love with Mum.
Breakfast couldn't have gotten over soon enough. But as I stood in front of the Pensive I felt like time had played tricks on me by making this moment come too quickly.
I looked about the room for a second. Aunt Tonks was standing right beside me. Her hair was a nice shade of blonde and she was sporting muggle clothing for the journey. I couldn't help but grin as Uncle Remus checked out her legs. It was gross and yet sweet at the same time. Plus he didn't think she noticed but judging by Aunt Tonks's little smirk she did. Uncle Remus was looking less haggard as he no longer had to bear the curse he had to for so long. Even though his hair was still greying his spirit was improving. It also seemed that not all quality of the wolf was gone for instance he still had amazing hearing and was agile when walking. Professor McGonagall had made a comment as I entered the room about making sure the hospital was ready for me seeing as how I couldn't go long without ending up there. I truly was my father's daughter.
As Fawkes let out a trill I brought the vial that held my mum's memory. "Okay so we follow my mum," I said as I emptied the memory into the pensive and we all held hands as we lowered our heads into the bowl.
*NOTES* Thought I would put the note at the end this time because it pertains to the next chapter. It will be the battle of Hogsmead. Also I've given you all the information you need if you want to figure out why Aunt Ginny hates young Jillian. Read and Review I love reading them.
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