The Ties That Bind

Chapter 54: Returning to the Living

It was late afternoon when Remus and Sirius got a chance to sit down at the kitchen table at Grimmauld Place and discuss Harry and Ginny, along with the situation concerning the elves.

Remus was looking particularly haggard and tired as he had stayed in Hogsmeade and helped with the clean up. He was very melancholy because they had found several more bodies in the wreckage.

They were nursing a couple of butterbeers and talking softly.

"Harry and Ginny looked good, don't you think?" Remus said.

Sirius, who was deep in thought, shook his head and asked, "What's that?"

"I said that I though Harry and Ginny looked good," Remus repeated.

"Yeah, they did," Sirius said. Then he grinned, "Did you notice how much they looked like James and Lily that time we found them asleep in the common room?"

Remus could help but chuckle. "Yeah they did, didn't they," he agreed.

"I hope that they are as happy as Lily and James were," Sirius said softly.

They fell silent for a couple of moments when suddenly Sirius sat up straighter with a shocked look on his face.

"What?" asked Remus.

"Uthur of the Dragon," Sirius said softly.

"What about it?" Remus asked.

"Do you think he meant Arthur Pendragon?" Sirius asked.

Remus' eyes lit up. "How could I have missed that?" he said with a groan.

"You and me both," Sirius replied.

"I wonder who else Dobby referred to?" Remus added. "That and what did he mean by them being Merlin's children."

Sirius got a very thoughtful look on his face, shaking his head he said, "I'm pretty sure that James wasn't a descendant of Merlin's. So you think that Ginny is?"

Remus shrugged, "I'm not sure, but I don't think so. I'm sure that the Weasley line is completely English, but I have no idea about the Prewetts."

"Me neither," said Sirius thoughtfully.

The two men were startled out of their thoughts by the flaring of the floo. Remus smiled when Tonks came stumbling out.

As she straightened herself and brushed the soot from her cloak, Remus' smile faded by the look on Tonks' face.

"What's wrong?" he asked in concern.

Tonks threw herself down in the chair next to him and said, "The Ministry is in turmoil. There is talk of a vote of no confidence in Fudge and he is doing just about anything to stall the vote."

Sirius looked like he would explode, "He doesn't deserve to keep his job after moving Peter."

"There are many at the Ministry that agree with you," Tonks said.

"I should hope so," Remus interjected.

"The problem is that there are almost as many that don't want things to change," Tonks said sadly.

Sirius' lips compressed into a thin line, "They like the Galleons that come their way," he said in disgust.

"Too true," Tonks agreed sadly.

"Even with the likes of Lucius Malfoy out of the picture, at least publicly, there are those who are willing to spread their wealth around to get what they want," Remus said.

Tonks took a deep breath and blew it out, "Should I get dinner started?" she asked, changing the subject.

Sirius glanced at the clock, "I was hoping that Jeanie would be joining us," he said lowly.

Tonks couldn't hide her smile, "She'll be here."

Sirius couldn't help but notice the smug look on her face and with a scowl he said, "Wipe that smirk off your face or I'll be forced to do something about it."

Tonks was about to laugh it off but then she caught the look on Remus' face and she could tell that there was something there that, well, didn't actually frighten him, but the concern was written all over his face.

"What?" she asked Remus quietly.

"It's best not to provoke a Marauder," he whispered back.

When Tonks gave him a dubious look, he gave he one back that clearly stated, "Be it on your own head if you do so."

She was just about to say something when the Floo flashed and Jeanie came stumbling out. As she righted herself, all could see that she was visibly upset, with tears streaking her face.

She looked at Sirius, flung herself at him, crying "Oh Sirius."

Sirius suddenly found himself holding the distraught woman, her shoulders shaking with her sobs. He looked at Tonks and Remus as if to say "What is going on?"

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Minerva McGonagall awoke and the memories of the previous day came flooding into her mind. Though she felt the pain of causing her friend's death, it was much more subdued than she would have expected and she found that it wasn't consuming her with guilt.

Sighing she was about to rise when a house elf popped into existence near her bed.

"Hows Mistress be feeling?" the elf asked softly.

With a thin smile, Minerva replied "As well as can be expected, I suppose."

"I is Alexandar, you's new elf," her said, introducing himself. "I has laid out your robes and will be having dinner ready for you."

"I'll be out in about 20 minutes," Minerva said softly.

"As Mistress wishes," Alexandar replied, with a small bow. He then disappeared with a small pop, leaving Minerva alone.

She got up and headed for the shower, amazed at how good she felt after the horrible day that she had the day before.

It was a much refreshed Headmistress that entered her office precisely 20 minutes later, where she found Alexandar just finishing placing her dinner on the small side table.

"I hope Mistress finds all to her liking," the elf said with a small smile.

Minerva looked over the spread set before her as she sat down. A finer dinner she couldn't have asked for, there were platters of Roast beast, broiled chicken, roasted and boiled potatoes along with several types of vegetables, along with flagons of pumpkin juice and butterbeer.

"Please stay and fill me in on what has been happening," she said to Alexandar.

The elf drew near the table and Minerva motioned to the chair opposite from her as she began to fill her plate. Alexandar gave her a smile as he sat down.

"The school is safe and secure," he began. "Though you's and the Deputy Headmaster were both indisposed, everything is fine,

Minerva gave him a nod as she continued to eat.

"All the students be safe," he said, with a bit of emphasis.

Minerva's eyes widened slightly but she said nothing.

"The large Auror has been looking for yous," Alexandar continued. "He will be most happy that yous is awake."

"I'm sure that he has a lot of questions," Minerva said. "The thing is, so do I."

Alexandar looked pensive and said, "There be many who has questions but few with answers."

Minerva looked questioningly at the elf, wondering about the way he had worded his response.

"Who has the answers?" she asked.

Alexandar gave her a funny little shrug and with an enigmatic smile, he replied "I not be knowing for sure, but the Lord and Lady woulds be the bestest ones to ask."

Minerva sighed, "Yes, the Lord and Lady. It seems that everything falls back to them."

Alexandar took on a grave look. "Yes, it be unfortunate but they be the ones who will bear the brunt of everything."

"Do you know how they are doing?" the Headmistress asked.

"They be healing and will be better soon," Alexandar replied.

"Were they injured severely? Minerva asked, concerned.

"No, they be having minor injuries. The biggest problem be the draining of their cores."

Minerva looked very concerned, the draining of ones magical core was a serious situation and could take months to remedy. "

As if he could read her mind, Alexandar said, "Fear not, they be recovering fine and will be better soon."

"So fast?" Minerva asked.

Alexandar nodded, "Yes, they be healing quickly."

"Were any of the staff or students hurt?" she asked, moving on to her other concerns.

"None were hurt severely," the elf replied.

Minerva finished her dinner in silence, trying to put order to all that she had learned. Though she still had questions she figured she could get them as she made her way around the school.

Alexandar rose, "If you's not be needing me, I will attend to other things."

Minerva gave him his leave and prepared to set off on her rounds.

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Jeanie sat at her desk in St. Mungo's, a stack of parchment before her and though she was trying hard to go through it, her mind kept drifting away, remembering that mornings events.

She had so wanted to get to talk to Sirius but had been called away to work early due to the fact they had so many injured from Hogsmeade needing attention.

She knew she probably shouldn't have stayed with him last night, but she wouldn't change it for anything in the whole world. Both of them had drank far too much alcohol, Sirius much more than her, but what had taken place far surpassed her dreams of being with the man.

There was just something about him that drew her in and made her want to spend more and more time with him. Easing both of their pain and giving them the joy that had been missing for so long.

Sighing, she sat the report before her back on the desk, knowing that in her current state she wouldn't make any heads of it.

Staring out the window, she let her mind drift back to the events leading up to her and Sirius spending the night together making love. She really hadn't meant to stay, but the look in his eyes as she had made to leave broke her heart and she had found herself laying down with him, giving him comfort when he obviously needed it.

They had finally fallen asleep, after she had held his shaking body as he struggled to accept that she was there for him. That thought brought a smile to her face and she realized that he was more vulnerable than he wanted to admit or acknowledge to himself and others.

She remembered waking to his thrashing about, and she had taken him in her arms, once more offering comfort to someone who needed it. She wasn't sure when things had changed, but somehow their lips had come together. Hesitantly at first, but then with growing passion until neither could control what happened.

She shuddered unconsciously as the feelings she had experienced washed over her, never in her few previous encounters had she felt anything like she had with Sirius. Where before it had always felt so awkward, so . . . wrong, as if something was missing, with Sirius it had been hot and passionate, feeling so right as if a part of her was now complete.

Smiling, she realized that it as because she loved the man with whom she had shared the most amazing night of her life and she wanted that to continue more than anything.

Glancing at the clock, she saw it was time to go and she couldn't wait to get back to him, something she had thought she'd never ever have with anyone. "I just hope he feels the same," she said to herself, trying hard to fight the insecurities that kept whispering from the back of her mind. With a sigh, she got up, planning on checking in on some of the injured children before she headed back to Grimmauld Place.

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Harry looked at Cassi, his mind turning to the Castle. "Where would Riddle have hidden a Horcrux that it wouldn't be found?" he asked, frowning. "I hope he didn't hide it down in the Chamber of Secrets," he said, his eyes darting over to Ginny.

Ginny's eyes flitted to Harry's and she couldn't help but smile at his desire to protect her. "Even if it is, Harry, the Chamber holds no terror for me anymore. Plus I'll be there with you. What possibly could go wrong?"

Harry looked at her wide-eyed. "Don't say such things!" he exclaimed. "The mind boggles at the possibilities."

Cassi looked at the pair, rolling her eyes. "Rest easy, the object you seek is not in the Chamber."

"Its not?" asked Ginny.

"Do you know where it's at?" Harry asked at the same time.

Cassi smiled at the pair. "If I'm not mistaken, and I rarely am, it resides in the Room of Requirement." she said calmly.

This did little to reassure Harry and Ginny.

"How does that help?" Ginny asked, deep in thought. "The Room probably has hundreds of different manifestations."

Cassi laughed lightly a most melodious sound. "More like thousands," she said humorously.

The young pair looked at her in shock.

"Thousands?" Ginny whispered softly.

"When you consider how long the school has been here and the number of students and faculty that have availed themselves of the Room, it shouldn't really come as a surprise," Cassi instructed kindly.

Ginny looked even more crestfallen but before she could voice her concerns, Cassi said "No matter, I'm sure if you ask the Room for the Room of Hidden Things, you will find it."

"The Room of Hidden Things?" Harry asked inquisitively.

"Think of it as the world's largest Lost and Found," Cassi replied with a smile. "Not only is it the repository of things that people wished to hide but everything that has been left at the school or lost by someone tends to end up there," Cassi explained.

Harry looked at her wide-eyed. "There must be thousands upon thousands of items there then," he exclaimed in dismay.

"At least," Cassi replied. "But neither of you should have any trouble in detecting such an evil object."

Ginny looked at Harry. "She's right you know. We have learned a lot."

Harry nodded. "You're right as usual," he sent humorously.

"And don't you forget it," Ginny sent with a laugh.

Harry smiled at her before returning his attention back to Cassi. "How will we be able to destroy them?" he asked her. "I destroyed the Diary with a fang from the Basilisk and they are rather hard to come by."

Cassi laughed once again. "That may be true, young warrior, but you can destroy them just like Dumbledore did when he destroyed the Ring that he recovered."

"How did he manage that?" Harry asked, looking deep in thought.

"He used Gryffindor's Sword," Cassi replied.

It was Ginny who understood the implication. "It only imbibes that which makes it stronger," she said softly.

"That's right," Cassi acknowledged. "You killed the Basilisk with it, Harry. It absorbed the venom when you did so."

Harry brightened as a smile formed on his face. "Well, that will make things easier," he said.

"Easier, yes. Easy, no," Cassi warned. "Do not become complacent or over confident. Horcruxes are extremely dangerous dark artefacts and will have their own protections. Remember Dumbledore's withered hand? It was the price he paid for a moments inattention when dealing with the Ring."

Harry nodded, the smile leaving his face.

"Just remember, forewarned is forearmed," Cassi said warmly.

Feeling slightly chastised, Harry and Ginny nodded in agreement.

XX HP + GW XX

Sirius had finally gotten Jeanie calmed down and they all looked at her expectantly.

She was slowly sipping a cup of tea, liberally doused with a Calming Draught. She still had a melancholy air about her but her crying had stopped.

"Feel like telling us what has you so upset?" Sirius asked tenderly, his eyes full of concern.

Though it seemed impossible, Jeanie's demeanour became more morose. With a deep sigh she looked at each one before speaking. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "It's just been a really bad day. One of the young children I was taking care of didn't make it," she said, a tear leaking out and running down her cheek.

"She was only five and was so beautiful. She had long silky blond hair and such beautiful blue eyes," Jeanie said softly, staring off into space. "She was really doped up on pain potions and . . . and she kept calling me her mum."

Her voice hitched. "I held her in my arms as she slipped away," she whispered.

Sirius rose and was at her side in an instant, wrapping his arms around her, offering what comfort that he could.

"Even with all the potions in her she was still in a great deal of pain," Jeanie sobbed. "She kept saying how much she didn't want to hurt anymore." She paused, closing her eyes, trying desperately to control her emotions, but failing miserably.

"I told her that she wasn't going to hurt anymore and she clung to me and it was as if she just went off to sleep."

Sirius looked at his companions, Dora was crying silently, tears streaming down her face. Remus' eyes were were glistening but for now the tears weren't falling.

"I'm going to take Jeanie upstairs to lay down," he said softly. He helped her to her feet and they disappeared.

Dora looked at Remus, blowing out a breath while shaking her head. "I don't know if I could have done that," she said softly, fighting her tears.

Remus reached out and covered her hand with his. "Yes you could have," he said tenderly.

Dora gave him a wan smile, appreciating his sentiment, hoping that he was right.

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The next several days passed quickly. Slowly things settled down and back to normal, as normal as things could be.

The Hospital Wing slowly emptied as people were healed enough to leave. Only the most seriously injured remained though all would eventually recover, no one had passed away for a couple of days.

Harry and Ginny were once more visiting with Cassi, all feeling that their time together was drawing to a close.

Cassi looked at Harry and Ginny. "It is time for you to return to the world above," she said a bit sadly.

Harry's and Ginny's demeanour mirrored Cassi's. "We'll miss our time with you," Ginny said emotionally.

"As will I," Cassi replied, smiling at the young couple.

Harry rose and hugged Cassi tightly, Ginny doing the same when Harry finally released her.

"Will we see you again?" Ginny asked.

Cassi eyed them cryptically. "While nothing is certain, I think that may be a possibility."

When Harry and Ginny looked at her questioningly, she smiled. "Something has changed. What, I'm not quite sure, but I feel closer to you two than ever has happened before. I think that because of our time together we are bound together in a way that is unique."

"What does that mean?" Ginny asked.

Cassi shrugged, "That remains to be seen."

Then in a move that surprised Harry and Ginny, Cassi bowed to them. "Fare you well, Lord and Lady Potter."

In the anteroom of the Sanctuary, Dobby looked at Donder with a smile. "Theys being awake!" he said gleefully.

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Minerva made her way tiredly back to her office. It had been a long day handling the myriad of problems associated with the aftermath of the battle. Thankfully most had been relativity easy to take care of. It was just that there were so many that she felt she hadn't had a chance to rest all day.

She was surprised to hear voices as she approached the door to her office. She wondered who had gained access while she had been out as it should have been impossible for any one to enter.

She stopped gobsmacked inside the door. There, talking to Dumbledore's portrait was Harry and Ginny.

As she entered, the couple turned toward her and smiled. "Hello Professor," Ginny said warmly.

"It's good to see you," Minerva said. "We were so worried about you."

She came the rest of the way into the office, looking intensely at the couple. "Not to be rude or anything, but how did you get in here?" she asked.

Harry gave a low laugh. "We needed to talk to Albus and, well, we have a special connect with Hogwarts so getting in was no problem."

Minerva nodded in contemplation. As she went to sit down she noticed something sitting on her desk. As she looked at it closely, her eyes widened in surprise.

"Is that . . ." she stammered.

Ginny smiled and nodded. "Yes, it's Ravenclaw's Diadem."

Minerva sat heavily into her chair. "Wherever did you find it?" she asked in shock.

"Here at Hogwarts," Harry replied with a grin.

Minerva's mouth dropped open, wide-eyed she looked between Harry and Ginny. Then with a shake of her head and a snort of disgust. "I assumed it was here at Hogwarts, I mean where did you find it in the Castle?" she asked exasperatedly.

Harry laughed deeply, his eyes meeting Ginny's who just gave him a smile in return. With a shake of her head she asked "Really, Harry?"

Still smiling, Harry shrugged his shoulders before turning to the Headmistress. "It was in the Room of Hidden Things," he explained.

Minerva cocked her head, a slight frown on her face. "The Room of Hidden Things?" she asked, questioningly.

Harry looked at her in surprise. "Yes. It's one of the manifestations of the Room of Requirement also known as the Come and Go Room."

The Headmistress looked at them slightly befuddled. "I've never heard of such a place," she stated.

Harry gave another small shrug. "Not many know of it and it's probably better that way."

"Well, no matter," McGonagall said offhandedly. "I'm sure Filius will be pleased to have it so it can be displayed in the Ravenclaw Common Room."

Harry grimaced. "About that," he drawled. "That can't happen for a while."

"Why not?" Minerva asked pointedly.

"Tommy Boy can't find out that we've found it," Ginny said seriously, eyeing Minerva.

Tommy Boy?" Minerva asked in confusion.

Harry gave a harsh chuckle. "Tom Marvolo Riddle, aka, Lord Voldemort. We like to think of him as Tommy Boy."

"Yes," Ginny jumped in. "He's nothing but a spoiled, petulant brat who is acting out because he didn't have a mummy and daddy to raise him."

McGonagall looked back and forth from one to the other, looking totally lost.

Harry let Ginny give the Headmistress a condensed version of Riddle's life while he made his way over to one of the bookshelves at the back of the office. He pulled out a large ancient tome, reached back in where it had rested. There was a soft click and a hidden compartment opened on the one side.

Harry swung the smallish door open and pulled out a drawer. He stared into it for several moments. Reaching in he withdrew a rather crudely made ring and a certain black book with a hole burnt through it. He stared at them for several moments before he sighed and replaced them back in the drawer.

"Okay, love?" Ginny sent, feeling his melancholy.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Harry replied. "It's just a little hard to take seeing the ring that Dumbledore sacrificed so much for."

Harry then went and retrieved the Diadem from McGonagall's desk and placed it in the drawer with the Ring and the Diary. With one last look, he closed the secret compartment.

Minerva started in surprise, just noticing what Harry was doing. With a shake of her head she said "I didn't even know that was there."

Harry returned to Ginny's side, sat down and took her hand. "Albus told us about it when we came in to talk to him," he explained.

Minerva eyed them with a frown. "Obviously there is something special about the Diadem," she said tersely. "Care to explain what that is?"

Harry sighed and looked at Ginny. He said nothing to her, just looked at her to draw comfort from her as he contemplated whether or not to tell McGonagall about the Horcruxes.

Ginny squeezed his hand and just offered her love and support.

Harry finally came to a decision. He squeezed Ginny's hand in reply before turning his attention back to the Headmistress.

"Ever hear the term Horcrux?" he asked softly.

With a frown, Minerva replied "No, I haven't."

Dumbledore's portrait gasped in surprise. "Do you think that it's wise to tell her?" he asked in shock. Harry could tell by his expression that Albus was set against sharing that knowledge.

Harry looked at Albus defiantly. "Yes, Albus. I feel it is necessary to let a select few know. Keeping it a secret will benefit no one."

Dumbledore looked unhappy, but he knew he couldn't do anything to change Harry's mind.

Harry explained to Minerva about the Horcruxes. As he did so, Minerva paled at what she was hearing. By the time Harry had finished she thought she would be sick. She could hardly believe the depths of evil Voldemort had descended to.

"So now you know," Harry concluded. "Before we can hope to finish Tom permanently we must track down the remaining Horcruxes."

Minerva closed her eyes and shook her head, contemplating the monumental task. "I don't envy you in that endeavour," she said lowly.

Harry just shrugged. "It must be done and so we'll do it."

"At least we have some ideas of what to look for and where to look," Ginny added.

When Minerva looked at her questioningly Ginny explained "It was one of the things we needed to talk to Albus about, plus we had help from another source."

Harry smiled, remembering their time spent with Cassi.

Harry and Ginny rose. "We'll leave you to your business," Harry said. "Even though we just woke up, we are still tired and want to rest. We'll see everyone tomorrow."

Minerva smiled at them. "I won't tell a soul I've seen you."

Ginny laughed. "Thanks for that. I'm sure we wouldn't get a moments rest if people found out we were up and about."

Harry glanced up at Dumbledore's portrait. "Thanks for the use of the sword," he stated.

Dumbledore nodded. "By rights it is yours now. You should consider taking it with you," he said with a smile.

"I think I'll leave it where it is for now," Harry replied with a shrug.

"As you wish," the old wizard replied in resignation.

Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry's neck. Harry looked at McGonagall with a mischievous glint in eye and silently cast "Teleportus".

Minerva looked on in shock as the pair silently disappeared from her office. Shaking her head, she rubbed her temples. "Godric, I wish I knew how they did that," she muttered. Getting up she poured herself a rather large Scotch before she returned to the mountain of parchments on her desk.

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Harry and Ginny appeared in their sitting room and found Donder and Dixie setting the table for dinner.

"Yous must eat," Donder said reprovingly.

"And we shall," Ginny said warmly.

Wasting no time, Harry and Ginny sat down and began to eat with gusto. It had been a long time since they had eaten anything.

Ginny laughed mentally as she saw Donder watched them eat.

"He looks like my mum," she sent to Harry.

Harry glanced at the elf and chuckled too. "Yeah he does," he replied. "Godric forbid if they ever get together."

Almost as if he knew what they were saying, Donder said "Someones must be watching out for yous."

Then as if he was satisfied with how much they were eating, Donder nodded and disappeared with a crack.

Dixie looked at the couple sheepishly. "Hes be worrying about yous," she said softly.

"We appreciate it very much," Ginny replied between mouthfuls.

Dixie gave them a shy smile, curtsied and followed Donder.

Harry and Ginny finished eating and once satisfied, made their way over to the couch in front of the fire.

"It's good to see you looking well," Godric said to them.

"It's good to be back," Harry replied with a smile.

Ginny tucked into Harry's side and sighed contentedly, allowing Harry to talk to Godric for now.

"Do you mind if I ask you about what happened?" the Founder asked.

"Not at all," Harry replied.

For the next several hours Harry and Godric talked about what had happened since their training had been interrupted by the attack on Hogsmeade. Nothing was left out including their time in the Sanctuary and about the Horcruxes.

Godric was suitably horrified by what Riddle had done, though he really wasn't all that surprised.

"So you met Lady Hogwarts," Godric said with a smile.

"Yes," replied Harry. "She was very helpful and not just in healing us. She was the one that told us about the Horcruxes."

Godric was cut off from replying by Ginny sitting up, startling Harry who though she had fallen asleep.

"Come on Harry," she said, rising. "Time for bed."

Godric chuckled. "Best listen to her," he said humorously. "We'll talk again tomorrow."

Harry nodded and let Ginny pull him to his feet and lead him into their bedroom. Once inside and the door was closed, she began to unbutton Harry's shirt.

"It's been ages since we've made love," she said seductively.

Harry smiled and began to undress his wife, seeing no reason to complain.

XX HP + GW XX

A/N: Finally an update, I hope it was worth the wait. Sorry for taking so long. I promise the next one won't take as long. Harry and Ginny have returned and now know about the Horcruxes, adding to the tasks that they must contend with.

As always, your reviews are greatly appreciated.