Chapter Seven
SAGESSE BOM
Two days later, Dumbledore still hadn't offered Harry and Hermione any clues as to why Malfoy had returned. He hadn't even told them when they had to serve their detentions. He did, however, give them a stern lecture about doing what they were supposed to and being where they were supposed to be. Harry and Hermione had come up with a lot of theories as to why Malfoy was still at Hogwarts, but none of the seemed very likely.
Besides, they had other things to worry about. Ron still wasn't doing any better, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had arrived, for the second time that year, early Tuesday morning. The only time Harry had ever seen them so distraught was when Ginny had been taken into the Chamber of Secrets three years before. It was hard enough to see his best friend so helpless, but it was even worse to see his parents so in pain. Still, he and Hermione had to carry on with their normal schedules, which was getting harder and harder.
On Wednesday afternoon, Professor Trelawny was having a particularly good time predicting his demise, and Harry wasn't sure how much more of it he could take. In the last fifteen minutes, she had predicted he would find great love, but it would be taken from him almost immediately. At the end of last year, he had felt she might not be a complete fake, but he was feeling that way now. All she was capable of was annoying him.
They had moved on from crystal gazing and were now practicing reading tarot cards. Trelawny kept having different members of the class do readings for Harry, and he was getting quite sick of it. All of a sudden, the door to the classroom burst open. It was none other than Hermione.
"Harry!" she exclaimed, rushing into the classroom. "Come on, we have to go down to the hospital wing! Mrs. Weasley just pulled me out of class! Ron's woken up!"
* * *
The first thing Harry heard when he and Hermione slipped into the quiet hospital room was Ron's voice. He sounded tired and a little weak, but it was still music to both their ears. They exchanged a smile and walked quickly over to his bed. The entire Weasley family, minus Bill, Percy, and Charlie, was already gathered around him.
"Are you sure, honey?" Mrs. Weasley was asking. "I still think it would be best if you went home for a few days. I'm sure Dumbledore would allow it-"
"Mum, I'm fine!" protested Ron. "I don't want to leave school. I'll be back to normal in just a few days, and I'll want to be with my friends."
"Ron!" exclaimed Hermione. She obviously could hold it in any longer. The twins moved away so she could lean down and hug him. Harry was right behind her, and he noticed that Fred was looking better now that his little brother was awake. Harry knew he'd been overly consumed with guilt since the Quidditch match.
"It's good to see you, Ron," said Harry warmly, but he didn't hug Ron like Hermione did. "You scared us all."
"Scared us is right!" started Mrs. Weasley again. She patted Ron's arm, and gave a long look to the bandages still wrapped around his head, which made her pale. "I don't know if I like the idea of you playing Quidditch so much anymore-"
"Mum!" protested both the twins at the same time, as did Ron.
"Molly," said Mr. Weasley, "you know as well as I do that it wasn't Quidditch that hurt Ron. He would have been just fine if the brooms hadn't been cursed."
"That's exactly right, Dad!" exclaimed Ron. He turned to his mom. "See?"
Mrs. Weasley shook her head, but she didn't say anything.
"How long do you have to stay here, Ron?" asked Hermione. She was glancing around nervously, obviously remembering the seven weeks during which she called the same ward home.
"Not as long as you did, `Mione," said Ron with a grin. "Madam Pomfrey promised Mum that I'd be out of here by the end of the week."
"When is she going to take those off?" asked Ginny, pointing to the bandages wrapped around his head. She had been the last one, other than Harry and Hermione, to get there, and she hadn't heard everything yet.
"Ah, these?" said Ron, patting the bandages gently. "I think I might ask to keep them. Don't you like them? And I thought I looked good with a turban!"
"Worse than Quirrell," said Harry, grinning. "Say, are you sure it's not just an excuse to hide your hair?"
"Ron," said Mr. Weasley, pretending to be stern, "how many times do I have to tell you to respect the family hair color?"
Ron blushed, and Harry had to think that what Mr. Weasley said wasn't completely a joke. He was about to ask, but Madam Pomfrey came out of her office.
"Too many people!" she exclaimed. "He needs rest and relaxation! Out, out, out! One person at a time! One!"
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley shared looks, and Mrs. Weasley bent down to kiss her son's forehead.
"Ron," she said, "we'll be back later. Fred, George, back to class-you two can't afford to miss anymore of it. Same goes for you, Ginny, we have to be fair."
"Can Harry stay?" asked Ron. "No offense, Hermione," he added quickly.
"Sure," said Mr. Weasley, tapping Ron's head, causing him to grimace. "We'll come back later, like your mum already said."
His siblings had already filtered out the door, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley headed in that direction. Hermione leaned down and hugged him once more.
"Would you like me to go find Anna?" she asked. "I'm sure she'd be happy to know you're awake and well."
Ron nodded vigorously, and he grimaced again, touching his head. He had obviously forgotten the condition of his head. "If you wouldn't mind, Hermione." He smiled gratefully, and Hermione, too, was out the door. It was just Harry and Ron now.
"How are you doing?" asked Harry.
Ron leaned back against his pillows. "Well, I won't lie," he said. "I have been better."
"That's a given. How bad is it?"
Ron shrugged. "Madam Pomfrey changed the bandages right before she let Mum and Dad in, and the ones closest to my head were soaked with blood. Not exactly a reassuring sight, but I'll live," he said, noticing that Harry was fidgeting. "I know you know what happened. What was it? Why did the brooms start doing that? Someone's said cursed, haven't they?"
Harry sighed, but he quickly filled Ron in on what happened in Professor Lupin's class on Monday. When he finished, the expression on Ron's face was a cross between anger and confusion.
"Blimey, why would anyone want to do that?" said Ron. "I could see wanting to hurt you, someone always seems to want to hurt you, but me? I'm not nearly as important."
"That's not true!" exclaimed Harry. He looked at Ron seriously. "I don't think you'd be saying that if you'd seen how everyone's been acting the last few days. Fred's been kicking himself the entire time about messing up your broom this summer. Hermione says that Ginny keeps bursting into tears. Gryffindor's been really quiet, and everyone's been pulling for you. Some of the Slytherins have even asked how you were doing!"
"And Anna?" Ron wanted to know.
Harry gave him a lopsided grin. "We all-well, er, we kind of thought you'd died when Madam Pomfrey first let us in here. I thought that Anna was pass out when she saw you. She really cares about you, Ron."
"Poor Anna!" exclaimed Ron. Color was rushing to his cheeks, and he turned his head away. "I really care about her," he mumbled.
"Then you'll be glad to know everyone's started arranging dates for the Christmas Dance," informed Harry.
"They have?" asked Ron. Harry nodded. "Am I still even eligible?"
"You are. It's probably a good thing that you've been out of it for the last few days," teased Harry, "or you probably wouldn't be." He informed Ron about what had happened with Malfoy two days before. Ron was shaking his head when Harry finished.
"He's up to no good," said Ron, then he stopped. "What am I saying? He's always up to no good! He's probably the one that cursed our brooms."
The idea had occurred to Harry, too. "That's what I think, but I'm not so sure. We've been practicing the Belwit Curse in Defense, and it's not an easy curse. Hermione thinks it's too complicated for Malfoy, but you never know."
"Did you guys get in a lot of trouble?" asked Ron.
"Not really," shrugged Harry. "Hermione and I had a detention with Dumbledore, but all he made us do was sort a bunch of paperwork. It wasn't even anything interesting, just records of students from before I think even Dumbledore was alive."
Ron laughed. "Did he take away any points from either of you?"
"No," said Harry, "and neither did Professor McGonagall. It's probably a good thing. If I lose too many more, I won't get to go to the Christmas Dance."
"You seem pretty excited about it," sniggered Ron. "I wouldn't worry, if I were you. Dumbledore didn't say that you wouldn't be allowed to go if you lost more than sixty points, he only said might. He wouldn't not let you go."
"Do you think?" Harry hadn't caught the "might" part of Dumbledore's warning.
Ron nodded. "So tell me," he said, a sly smile on his face, "you seem pretty excited about the Christmas Dance. You don't already have a date, do you?"
"No," said Harry. "I don't. It's not like the Yule Ball last year, where I had to take someone."
"That's fortunate on your part," said Ron. "I'm going to take Anna. You could take Parvati again."
Harry shot Ron a look to kill, and Ron put up his hands in surrender, but he also couldn't stop laughing.
"Shut up," said Harry angrily. "It's not that funny. I could be telling you to take Padma."
"No, you couldn't," said Ron, smirking, "because I have a girlfriend. You don't. Get there faster, Harry."
"Whatever." Harry looked away, focusing his attention on a small spot on the opposite wall. "I was thinking about what Hermione said last year."
"What did Hermione say last year?" asked Ron. "I let a lot of what she says go in one ear and out the other."
"Ron!" exclaimed Harry, but he had to laugh. He could tell that his friend was really joking. His attention diverted back to the spot on the wall.
"Are you talking about the thing she said about choosing someone on personality, not looks?" questioned Ron. "Or the thing about us not asking her as a last resort?"
Harry scrunched up his nose. He looked back in Ron's direction, but his eyes went down to the floor. He sighed. "Both, I guess. Who do you think she'll go with?"
"Who? Hermione?" Ron pondered the question for a moment. "I don't know. Hermione's a girl. Girls are hard creatures to understand."
"Right about that," muttered Harry. He cleared his throat. "Do you-er, think she'd go with me if I asked her?" Harry paused, and then rushed on desperately. He didn't want Ron to start laughing hysterically again. "I mean, I don't want to end up with someone like Parvati again. Hermione and I are friends-"
"Go for it," Ron said with a grin, and Harry blushed. He could practically see the wheel's turning in his friend's head. Fortunately, the door to the hospital wing burst open again, and Anna made a beeline in Ron's direction. Ron gave Harry a final nod.
"I'll talk to you later," he whispered. "You've got a question to ask in the meantime."
Harry didn't respond; instead, he headed quietly for the door. He figured that Ron and Anna would want their privacy.
* * *
"Ron! We're not supposed to leave the castle this afternoon!" insisted Anna, but she let him lead her outside anyway. It had been almost two weeks since Ron had left the hospital, and they were well into the first week of December, and the Hogwarts grounds were already covered with snow.
"Shh!" ordered Ron, putting his finger up to his lips and reaching back to touch hers. "I can't take another minute in there, and I couldn't convince Harry and Hermione to sneak out here with me! Besides, you've never seen Hogwarts like this."
"Was your quiz in Potions that bad, Ron?" asked Anna slyly. Ron stopped in his tracks and gave her a quizzical look. "Don't look so surprised. I heard some of the fifth years in the house moaning about it at lunch today."
"It wasn't that bad-if you were Hermione Granger, it wasn't," grumbled Ron. "Harry and I walked out, sweating, and she had a big smile on her face. `Oh, I'm glad we've finally taken a test in there! I always find it so refreshing!' I like `Mione just fine, but I don't think I'll ever understand her."
Anna laughed. "So maybe your test was bad, but why not go up to your dorm room? I'm sure Harry would have given you some piece and quiet."
"You're not allowed in my dorm room," said Ron pointedly. "Nah, I just wanted to get out of there. Snape has a tendency to roam the halls with an evil smile on his face just after he's given a test. I was afraid I'd run into him if I stayed inside. I wouldn't have even bothered with magic-I would have just throttled him. Then I'd get expelled-"
"I think I get it," laughed Anna. "Too bad we were supposed to stay inside today, huh?"
Ron shrugged. "Do you see it stopping me?"
"No," said Anna, "Why couldn't we leave anyway?"
"I'm not sure," said Ron. Another shrug. "Maybe it's just me, but Dumbledore's being awfully secretive this year about everything."
"He is," said Anna. Ron stopped suddenly, causing her to bump into him. He turned around, apologizing under his breath. "Is something wrong?"
"Nah," said Ron. "I thought I heard something, but I didn't."
"Hmm, should I be worried now that you're hearing thing?" teased Anna. She threw her head back dramatically, the back of her hand against her forehead. "My poor Ron!" she moaned. "A broom took his mind from me!"
Ron was still facing her, and he playfully scowled. "What are you saying, Anna dear? Are you trying to tell me that my mind is no longer my own? That it's suddenly yours?"
"That's exactly what I'm trying to tell you," said Anna slyly. "You belong to me, Ronald Meredith, and don't you forget it."
"Oh," Ron glowered, "I'm going to have to get you for that."
"And what do you think you're going to-" Ron cut her off in mid sentence, grabbing her hands and giving her a mischievous shove. She had been standing on the slightest bit of ice, and she fell backward into the snow.
"Ron!" said Anna, but she was smiling. A few seconds later, she had grabbed his hands and pulled him down into the snow.
"Look what you've done!" said Ron, pretending to be angry. "My robes are all wet now, thanks to you."
"Oh, and mine aren't?" Anna giggled as he grabbed her arms to keep her from getting up. He leaned down, about to give her a quick kiss, when they were interrupted.
"What are the two of you doing out here? Oh dear, I thought Albus said all the students would be inside this afternoon. Perhaps you aren't students?" Ron and Anna looked up immediately. A short, stout man stood above them, a hopeful smile on his face. He was wearing a dark blue robe and cap, and he looked very pleasant.
"Umm," said Ron, searching his brain for some kind of excuse. He decided to dodge the man's first question. He scrambled up and offered Anna a hand. "We are Hogwarts students."
"Oh!" said the man, a grin spreading across my face. "I thought so. Are you supposed to be inside right now? I won't get you in any trouble if you are."
"We are," admitted Ron. He glanced down at Anna, who looked particularly terrified. She was actually very quiet around those that didn't know her, and she never got in trouble.
"Well, it's nice to see that I wasn't the only mischief maker this school has every seen. It's nice meeting you both," said the man. Ron stared at him, seeing if he was going to introduce himself. Almost on cue, the wizard's face lit up. "Oh! You don't know me, do you?"
"No sir," said Anna shyly.
He chuckled, and offered his hand in his direction. "I'm the Minister of Magic, Sagesse Bom. I'm here to meet with some students about recent events here."
Ron was dumbfounded. This man was the Minster? He was so astonished the Anna had to grab his hand and shove it in the direction of Minster Bom.
"Ron Weasley," he said finally, taking the Minister's hand, "and this is my girlfriend, Anna Clemens."
Bom gave them both a firm handshake, and then he reached up to adjust his glasses. Suddenly, his face lit up, almost like a light bulb had turned on in his head.
"Ronald Weasley?" he said almost questioningly, and Ron nodded. "Oh! It's fancy meeting you out here, then. I'm supposed to be meeting with you after dinner tonight."
"Really?" asked Ron, dumbfounded. The words were out of his mouth before he could stop. "Why would you want to meet with me?"
"Don't look so surprised!" declared Bom. "It's about your fall at the Quidditch match."
Ron blushed. Now that it was all said and done, he was slightly embarrassed about the whole ordeal. He hated being the only one that ended up injured. All the Slytherins had stopped feeling sympathetic for him the moment the news he was going to be okay got out, and they constantly jeered him, saying that it was sad he was the best Gryffindor could come up with for the team.
"Oh, that," he said finally. He, Anna, and Bom had begun walking back in the direction of the school. "What about it?"
"Well, Ron," said the Minister, "the Ministry is concerned about the safety of students here. With the formidable destructions of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, we can't afford to let anything else happen at Hogwarts. When I found there would be an investigation, I wanted to come here personally and see that it was done right."
"Anything else?" Anna couldn't help but asking.
"Well," the Minister said cheerfully, "I'm sure you know I was here before, back in September, and I wanted to come back after the incident on Halloween, but I couldn't get away from my office. I must admit, I have a keen interest in Hogwarts, since I was educated here, myself."
They had reached the doors to Hogwarts, but the Minister made no move to go in. He faced Ron and Anna, still chatting. Both of them shared a smile. He was hard not to like, with his enthusiastic smile. He also seemed to really care about everything going on and wasn't nearly as pompous as Fudge. Suddenly, however, he stopped mid sentence and took another long look at Ron.
"Why, I can't believe I didn't see it before!" exclaimed Bom. "There's no way you're not Arthur Weasley's son! Your father is a fine man, son. If it were up to me, I'd have put him in office before myself! He's just the sort of person the Ministry needs right now, someone passionate and willing."
Ron blushed, right to the tip of his ears. It wasn't often that his family was praised; there were quite a few people within the Ministry that didn't think highly of the Weasleys.
"Thank you, sir," he said.
"No need to thank me," said Bom, "for I'm only speaking the truth. Now-er, well, I probably shouldn't be asking you this, since it's classified information, but I figure you'll know soon enough, anyway. Do you know Harry Potter?"
"He's one of my best friends," said Ron honestly. "Hermione Granger is the other. And, well, Anna too."
Bom clapped excitedly. "He's the other student I'm to speak with tonight. Ah, Miss Granger? How is she doing? I was most concerned to hear someone had been injured with that awful Forveret Bursen! I personally wish they'd pass legislation against those kinds of potions! I was quite afraid when I heard about your friend-the last known person to be exposed to it died shortly after."
"Hermione's doing okay," said Ron. "She's tough."
"How long has it been since you went to school here?" asked Anna politely.
Bom looked skyward, scratching his head. "I'd have been a few years behind your father, Ron," he said at last. "I was two years ahead of James Potter and Remus Lupin and Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew, that lot. Probably the most famous group to come out of here in a long time, huh?"
Ron could have sworn Bom winked at him when he said Sirius's name. Did Bom realize Sirius was innocent? Ron knew he was in close contact with Dumbledore, so he figured he might. He shrugged it off.
"Oh dear, look at the time," said Bom suddenly. "Well, it's been a pleasure meeting you both, but I was supposed to meet with Albus five minutes ago. I'd better head to his office."
"Do you know where you're going?" Ron said politely.
Bom laughed, and this time, he did wink. "I think I remember the way," he chucked, "as I should, for the number of times I visited it!"
* * *
All Ron could talk about at dinner that night was his and Anna's meeting the Minister of Magic on their walk around the school grounds, but it was okay because Harry and Hermione were genuinely interested in what he was saying. They had managed to get seats at the end of the table, where people were least likely to sit around them and listen in.
"He mentioned your father," informed Ron through a mouthful of roll. Hermione shot him a disapproving look, but she didn't correct his manners. "He said he was two years ahead of him. He mentioned Sirius, too, and Pettigrew and Professor Lupin."
"All of them?" asked Harry, and Ron nodded. "Did he know them very well?"
"He didn't say," said Ron. "He was older, so I don't know. The only people I know that are older than us are Fred and George and their friends, so I doubt it."
"He said he knew Sirius?" asked Hermione cautiously. "Do you think he knows?"
Ron glanced around to make sure no one was watching. "I think he might," he said in a low voice. "When he said his name, I could have sworn he winked. He and Dumbledore are close, and I think that's the kind of thing Dumbledore would have let him in on."
"It seems odd that he would come to Hogwarts so often," said Hermione at last.
"Fudge was here a lot, too," said Harry. "He seemed to show up everything something happened."
Ron sniggered. "You know as well as I do that Fudge only showed up because it looked good on his part. My dad said before he and Mum left that Fudge was just a face for Dumbledore half the time."
"So he really is nice, Ron?" asked Hermione.
"He was," said Ron sincerely. "He kind of reminds me of Professor Lupin-you know, fairly quiet, nice, really helpful?"
"I can't wait to meet him," said Harry.
"You'll have to tell me all about it," said Hermione, a bit glumly. She took a bite of her salad and was suddenly very occupied with the act of chewing.
"Aw, Hermione," said Ron, "I'm sorry. I forgot you weren't going to be there."
Hermione shrugged. "I really wouldn't mind that much, but you've made him seem so nice that I want to see if it's true."
"I'll make sure Ron's not just full of it," assured Harry. "If he is, it's nice to know where he sleeps."
"Hey!" Ron protested, but he too started laughing.
"What's so funny?"
The three stopped laughing when they saw Dumbledore standing at the end of the table, his hands on the edge, a twinkle in his eye.
"Nothing," said Ron quickly. He remembered that he wasn't supposed to have met the Minister yet, and he wasn't supposed to have been wandering around outside in the first place. It would be one thing to get himself in trouble, but he didn't want to do anything against Anna.
Dumbledore gave him amused look. "There is a visitor here," he said, "and he has requested to meet with the three of you directly after dinner."
Hermione nearly choked, having just taken a drink of milk. She gave Ron a confused look. Harry and Ron also shared a baffled look. Hermione had a funny expression on her face, but Ron ignored it. It wasn't like he could explain why she was suddenly included in the meeting.
"I think you'll all be pleasantly surprised by who it is," said Dumbledore with a smile. "Whenever you finish with your meal, go ahead and dismiss yourselves to my office. I'll be up once I've finished myself."
"I thought you said this meeting was between you, Harry, and the Minister?" said Hermione, an amused expression on her face.
Ron shrugged. "Hey, I didn't know-and don't look at me like that! You just said you wanted to come too! Now hurry up and finish!"
* * *
Just as they had been surprised to hear Hermione would get to attend the meeting with the Minister, they were surprised when they opened the door to Dumbledore's office. Sure enough, Bom was sitting in there, ready to meet them, but he wasn't the only one. Sitting in the chair next to the Minister was none other than Sirius.
"Harry!" exclaimed Sirius. It had been a good six months since he had seen his godson. There was a hug and handshake for not only Harry, but Hermione and Ron as well. "It's good to see you!"
"You too," said Harry, a happy grin on his face. Even a meeting with the Minister couldn't top finally getting to see his godfather after so long. "What have you been doing?"
"Secret business for Dumbledore," said Sirius, still smiling. He sat down next to Bom again, and he conjured up three chairs for Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "It has to do with Voldemort. He was afraid the Ministry wouldn't get to work on tracking him until it was too later, but I'm not to discuss anymore of it with you. Besides, I'm not even who you're here to see."
"Don't say that, Sirius," said Bom, smiling warmly at the three of them, just as he had to Ron and Anna earlier that day. "It's nice to see you again, Mr. Weasley, and it's nice to finally meet you, Mr. Potter, Miss Granger. I'm sure your friend has informed you of our encounter this afternoon?"
Ron blushed, right to the tips of his ears. "I'm sorry, sir," he muttered.
"It's perfectly all right," said Bom, reaching out to shake Harry and Hermione's hands. "I expected you to do so after you told me they were your friends. Since you're all close, and since Sirius was able to join us at the last moment, I thought Miss Granger would feel left out if she couldn't join us."
Now it was Hermione who blushed. The Minister smiled at her. "Don't do that, dear," he advised. "I wanted to meet you. It's good to see you looking so well. The incident in your Potions class earlier this year had the Ministry in a bit of a worry."
"So what's this meeting all about exactly?" asked Harry bravely.
"Nothing in particular," said Bom with a grin. Ron was right; he was instantly likeable. "I'm here to talk to you about the Quidditch match a few weekends ago. I've read the official reports-several times, in fact-and I wanted to hear what happened from your point of view. We're still unsure what those events mean, so we're trying to gather as much information as possible."
Harry and Ron both told their stories, with Ron going first. Harry's ended up being a bit more in depth, since his didn't necessarily end when he reached the ground and start up again over three days later in the hospital. Bom listened intently, and when they finished, he asked the two a few questions about what had happened on Halloween night and about Hogwarts in general. When he finished, it was well over an hour after they'd first left dinner and entered Dumbledore's office. Dumbledore had slipped in partway through, simply listening in.
"Well," said Bom after he'd finished, "I'd love to stay, but I must catch my train back to the Ministry. They seem to frown on me being gone overnight. It also seems to annoy them when I refuse to have ten guards following me around, but I rather like to think I can handle myself by now."
He stood, offered his thanks, and shook hands with everyone in the room. Dumbledore escorted him out, leaving Sirius alone with Harry, Ron, and Hermione.
"What did you think of him?" asked Sirius first thing.
"I like him," said Harry.
"He actually seems to care about what he's doing," said Hermione.
"He doesn't talk down to us like Fudge did," added Ron.
Sirius smiled approvingly. "It's sad that so many people within the Ministry don't seem to like him. They don't think he stands for the right things; they don't like the way he bends the rules and refuses to follow their every order. He's a good person, and he hasn't let his power get to his head. He's also one of the strongest fighters against Voldemort our side has."
"Did you know him before he was the Minister?" asked Harry.
"Yes, he was just a few grades before me in school," said Sirius. "I think he told Ron that. We were both Gryffindors, and we knew each other from that. I didn't really get to know him until this summer, right before he was appointed. He was part of the old crowd."
Harry and Hermione and Ron exchanged looks. They'd heard about this `old crowd' many times before, but it had never been fully explained to them. Sirius seemed to catch their perplexed looks.
"The crowd is a secret well kept from almost everyone," said Sirius softly. "It's basically the term we use to describe those of us that fought against Voldemort the first time. There are so few of us left now. Some died, and others left. Your father, Harry, was one of the leaders. Had it not been for him, Voldemort have never lost his hold on the wizarding world."
His statement had only succeeded in confusing them even more, and Sirius seemed to realize it. "Never mind," he said quickly. "You will all know in due time. Basically, those of us that originally united to fight the Dark Arts have united once more. We're working for Dumbledore and Bom, but never for the Ministry. The majority of the people there have good intentions, but there are some that were on the side of Voldemort the first time, and they could just as easily go back to him now. Does that make sense?"
"Sort of," said Harry, and Hermione and Ron agreed with nods.
"Good kids," said Sirius sincerely. "Which brings me to why I am here tonight. I need to speak with Professor Lupin later about a matter in which he is highly educated, and I need to inform Dumbledore of everything we've found so far. Of course, I couldn't resist a chance to see my godson, either."
"Thanks for coming, then," said Harry. He smiled at Sirius.
"It might be a long time before I see you again," said Sirius sadly. "Trust me to be back if anything else out of the ordinary happens. I just hope you can finish the year without any more misfortunes. It seems as if it might be your turn, Harry, to take a fall, considering I think your friends have had their share of pain already."
"Are you going to be gone by tomorrow?" asked Harry.
Sirius nodded. "I wish I could make it longer, but it's impossible. I have something to give you, though." He walked back to the chair he was sitting in and pulled out a book-sized parcel wrapped in plain brown paper. He handed it to Harry. "I know Hagrid compiled a photo album of your parents for you, but I thought you might enjoy this, too. It's a collection of photos from our years at Hogwarts. I'm sure you'll find them-er, very amusing, probably."
Harry smiled, accepting the package. "Thank you."
"It's no problem," said Sirius. "Now, as for the two of you, I expect you to go through it with him. There are some wonderful pictures of Remus Lupin in there for you to make good use of."
Sirius hugged Harry once more. Before the young wizard could say anything else, his godfather had turned back into a shaggy black dog. It gave a great bark and curled up in front of Dumbledore's desk. There was nothing left to do for Harry, Hermione, or Ron, and they headed quietly out of the room.
* * *
Back in the Gryffindor tower, the three friends headed straight for the prefect common room. The hour was growing late, and a lot of students had moved from the common room to their dormitory, even though it was a Friday night. Sure enough, the prefect's common room was empty, and Harry, Hermione, and Ron all squeezed onto the couch together.
Harry was still smiling from their meeting with Sirius when he tore the paper off the photo album. Hermione and Ron were sitting on either side of him, both eager to see what was inside.
"What did you guys think of Bom?" Ron wanted to know, "I told you guys it was the truth!"
"Forget we ever doubted you," said Hermione. "I think it was even nicer with Sirius there."
"I wasn't expecting that," Harry replied. "Seriously, I doubted I'd see him at all this year."
"So what do you think of this `old crowd' stuff-" Ron didn't finish his question because he was in gales of laughter. The very first picture in the album was of Professor Lupin at age eleven, his long hair in a ponytail, a funny smile on his face. There were two other people in the picture, one of which was a younger Sirius and the other-
"He's identical to what you looked like when we first met," breathed Hermione. "No wonder everyone says you look like your father, Harry."
"You could pass for some kind of time-lapse twins," offered Ron.
Harry smiled as he flipped the pages. The pictures seemed to tell a story, even before they all started moving.
"Look at Sirius!" giggled Hermione. "He keeps scowling and trying to get out of the picture! Why doesn't it surprise me that he doesn't like to have his picture taken?"
"Who's that?" asked Ron suddenly. They pictures they were looking at had been taken during Harry's father's fourth year at Hogwarts. A young Professor Lupin had a very pretty blonde girl on his arm.
"I'm not sure who she is," said Harry.
A wicked smile appeared on Ron's face. "I'll bet anything these are the pictures Sirius thought we'd find funny!"
"Oh!" exclaimed Hermione, pointing suddenly to the background of one picture. "It's Professor McGonagall!"
"You're kidding!" said Ron, bending in to look at the same time Harry did. Both boys sat back with a start after bumping their heads together.
"Merlin, it is her!" said Harry laughing. "That would have been about twenty years ago."
They kept flipping pages, and soon they were in the middle of Harry's father's fifth year. Suddenly, there was a picture of a very pretty girl with red hair. They grew silent.
"That's your mum, isn't it?" asked Hermione softly.
Harry nodded. "Yeah, it's her."
"She was really pretty," said Hermione. She gently touched Harry's arm, and he smiled at her gratefully.
They went onto the next page, and the next. Harry's mother seemed to be a complete addition in the group, and before long, there was a slew of pictures with just James and Lily together. Harry and Hermione had started to laugh at a hairstyle Professor Lupin had tried, but something else caught Ron's eye.
Lily had a necklace on in almost all the pictures. He waited to look closer until Hermione and Harry weren't paying attention, and then he glanced at the necklace around Hermione's neck. Ron looked back down at the picture. It was the same necklace. He remembered Sirius awkward warning on Halloween night, and he remembered the shocked look on his face when he's seen Hermione's necklace. No wonder he had been so surprised.
Ron bit his lip, remembering how Sirius had told them all to look through the photo album together. Had he wanted Ron to see those particular pictures?
"I'm getting tired," said Ron abruptly, standing up. "I'll see you two in the morning, okay?"
"Okay," said Harry, sounding slightly perplexed, and Hermione called good night to him as he rushed down the stairs. Ron had too many thoughts in his head, and he needed to start figuring them out.
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