A/N~ Oh good, now you all can see who the people are. How exciting! I’m just kidding; it’s not all that exciting. And I was a bit surprised that no one remembered something I had put in the story earlier that would have hinted at who the people are. Oh well, now you can find out. And then you can review, right? Right! By the way, I’m really sorry this took so long, again, but it wasn’t completely my fault this time. My computer was down for a while. Anyways, I’m done now, obviously, so you can read the next chapter. Enjoy! ~
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Everyone silently looked at each other for just a second before both Tonks and Ella said, “Hello.”
“I didn’t know you all were coming,” Sirius said, which made Tonks and Moody go rigid. The new arrivals had been Lupin, Kingsley, Tonks, and Moody, but Lupin and Kingsley had already seen Sirius of course. They glanced at each other, and both smiled at the look of fear on Tonks’s face, and the apprehensive look on Moody’s.
“Come here,” Moody growled, speaking to Sirius. Without a word, Sirius smiled at Harry as if this was a joke, and got up and walked over to Moody. Moody looked Sirius up and down, with both eyes, and then began walking in a circle around him.
“Don’t mean to be rude or anything, but what exactly are you doing?” Sirius asked.
Without answering the question, Moody asked the room, “Anyone have some Veritaserum on them by chance?”
“Oh, that’s what you’re doing,” Sirius said. “But I assume that Remus and Kingsley have already told you-"
“Yes, but we need to make sure it’s really you. Never can be too careful,” Moody growled. “Now, anyone have some Veritaserum?” he repeated. No one said anything, so Moody added, “Well we’ll just have to do it the old-fashioned way then.”
“But Mad- Eye, they already asked me, and I already gave evidence,’ Sirius said. “Besides, Death Eaters would need my hair to make the Polyjuice Potion, and they obviously couldn’t have gotten it. I already mentioned that also,” Sirius added.
“Yes, well, you could have gotten out of the veil, but then had gotten captured,” Moody said.
“You think of everything, don’t you?” Ron asked.
“Pretty much,” Moody replied, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Now, what creatures’ heads are mounted on the wall in the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix?”
“Oh, that’s a tough one,” Sirius said, very sarcastically. “I do believe its house elves’ heads, but I may be mistaken.” Ron, Harry, and Lupin laughed.
“Alright then, good to have you back,” Moody said very seriously. Sirius raised an eyebrow. He had expected a bit more of a welcome back from ‘the dead’. Then he looked over at Tonks, who was still rigid. Her hair was long, straight, and jet black today, but her face had gone very white. The black of her hair made her face look even paler. She gazed at Sirius as if she wasn’t really seeing him, but was thinking. Her expression remained rather scared looking.
“Tonks?” Sirius asked. “Are you okay?”
Then, very suddenly, Tonks ran at Sirius and threw her arms around him. “Oh my gosh, Sirius, it’s you! You’re alive! You’re okay! I thought it was partly my fault because I was fighting Bellatrix before she got to you, and if I had just finished her off all this never would have happened! Oh I’m so sorry, and I’ll never ever do anything like that ever again!”
Sirius’s eyes were very wide, and he burst out laughing. Everyone else in the room was silent, still very surprised at what had just occurred. When Sirius stopped laughing, he said, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t laugh. It’s just that that was completely unexpected. And I doubt you’ll ever be quite in that situation again, so I’m pretty sure you’ll never do it. And don’t apologize or I’ll jinx you. It was not, and is not, and is never going to be your fault that that happened,” Sirius added sternly. “It was my fault that I lost my guard.”
“It’s not your fault either, Sirius,” Lupin said. He walked over and put his arm around Tonks’s shoulders, and added, “It’s neither of your faults. It’s all Bellatrix’s fault.”
Sirius’s mouth had dropped slightly, and he said, “Are, are you two, er, together?” Lupin and Tonks both smiled. Sirius started beaming, and said to Lupin, “If you two get married, we’ll be related!”
Lupin laughed. “Not so fast Sirius. We’re taking things slowly right now.” Tonks nodded.
“Damn,” Sirius muttered under his breath. Harry and Ron were the only two that heard, and both started laughing. Lupin glanced at them questioningly, and they both stopped.
Then Harry glanced at Ginny, who hadn’t said anything since finding out it was Sirius. She was sitting cross-legged in an armchair, and looked distracted. Harry also noticed that she looked tired, but he didn’t know why that would be. “Ginny?” he said.
Everyone’s eyes turned to Harry as he spoke, but then to Ginny. Ginny shook her head, and then looked at Harry. “Huh?”
“You never said anything about Sirius. You didn’t really do anything, and you didn’t even recognize him. Is something wrong?” Harry asked.
“I don’t know,” Ginny said in a rather dreamy voice, sounding uncannily like Luna Lovegood. “I guess I didn’t recognize him because I was up all night last night thinking about-“ Ginny stopped, gasped, and clamped a hand over her mouth. “Never mind,” she said hurriedly.
“What?” Harry and Ron said simultaneously. Ginny sat silent, but then her head shot over towards the couch. Everyone else’s gaze followed hers. Hermione had just sat up, and was wide-eyed.
“I didn’t know you all were here,” she mumbled. “I feel rather strange. I don’t remember why I’m on the couch.” Hermione looked around at the others for an explanation, but her eyes rested on Sirius. “Oh,” she muttered in a very small voice. “I just recovered the memory of why I’m on the couch.”
Ginny, feeling this was the perfect moment to slip away unnoticed, slipped away unnoticed. Everyone was turning their attention to Hermione for the moment, so she went back up to her room. “That was close,” she thought to herself, referring to almost letting slip that she had been up all night thinking of a way to get to Godric’s Hollow. Then Ginny remembered why she had said that in the first place: as an excuse as to why she hadn’t recognized Sirius. Why hadn’t she recognized Sirius? And how was he here, alive and healthy? It didn’t make any sense at all.
As Ginny pondered all this upstairs in her room, Neville was just ‘awakening’ downstairs. “AAAARGH!” he yelled at the sight of four new faces in the room, especially Mad-Eye Moody, who could look quite scary when you’re not expecting him to be there.
“Calm yourself, Longbottom,” Moody said. “You’ll give yourself a heart attack.”
“I’m okay,” Neville said breathlessly.
“And get yourself up off the floor,” Moody added.
Neville stood up, and plopped himself down on the vacant chair that had been Ginny’s. This drew attention to the fact that Ginny wasn’t there, obviously. “Where’s Ginny?” Tonks asked to no one in particular.
“Dunno,” Ron said. “She was here a minute ago.”
“Does anyone else reckon there’s something wrong with her?” Harry asked. “She’s acting, er, strange. She didn’t even recognize Sirius.”
“Yeah, it was weird,” Ron agreed. “She just said he looked ‘familiar’.”
“But she did say she had been up late,” Tonks said.
“Yeah, but that was just an excuse, I’ll bet you anything,” Harry said. “Staying up late couldn’t make her not recognize Sirius when she had seen him only about a year ago. But that was strange too. Why didn’t she tell us what she was thinking about? I bet she actually was up late, because she looked really tired, but I doubt that was the real reason she didn’t know it was Sirius,” Harry added.
“I don’t know. She’s been like that lately. I went up to her room yesterday to see what she was doing, and she just attacked me,” Ron said. “She wouldn’t tell me anything.”
“That’s weird. Really weird,” Hermione said. She seemed to have accepted the fact that it was Sirius, and was now calmly sitting cross-legged on the couch, her hands clasped in her lap.
“Do you reckon-" Harry started, but was interrupted by a loud cracking sound. Mrs. Weasley had just Apparated into the kitchen. She had a bag in her hand, which she set down on the table. Then she turned to everyone else, a large smile on her face.
“Oh, I wondered if you’d be here yet,” Mrs. Weasley said to Lupin, Tonks, Moody, and Kingsley. “I’m going to start on the stew and spaghetti. And what else would you like, Harry, dear?” she added, turning to Harry.
“I don’t care. Anything’s fine,” Harry said. Then, quite suddenly changing his mind, he said, “On second thought, could you make treacle tart? It’s my favorite dessert.”
“Of course, Harry, dear,” Mrs. Weasley said, smiling at the request. “Would anyone else like anything different?”
“No, we’re all fine,” Kingsley said, speaking for the rest of the room.
“No, one of you, at least, must want something different,” Mrs. Weasley insisted, looking around at each person almost pleadingly. But then, as could be expected, her eyes rested on Sirius. Her face became a little alarmed at first, but then she quickly covered it up, saying, “Oh, hello. I…” Mrs. Weasley’s voice trailed off. It was clear to the rest of the room that Mrs. Weasley, unlike Ginny, recognized Sirius.
“Molly, sit down,” Lupin said calmly.
“No, I’m fine, it’s just…” again, Mrs. Weasley’s voice trailed off, and her eyes never left Sirius. A silence hung in the room, and Harry’s thoughts were racing. Would everyone act this way? All the people in the wizarding world, he expected, probably knew about Sirius Black, who had been incorrectly accused of murdering twelve people with a single curse, and was killed by a Death Eater, who just so happened to be his own cousin, in the Ministry of Magic. So again, Sirius may not be able to go out in public, at least for a while. Someone would have to warn people that he was alive, or everyone would go crazy at the sight of him. Some people may even still be afraid of him. For though the Ministry did mention after he ‘died’ that Sirius was innocent, seeing someone they had thought for years to be a mass murderer might be just a little intimidating.
Then Ron’s voice broke the silence. “He’s right Mum, you better sit down.”
“Oh, really, I’m perfectly fine,” Mrs. Weasley said, looking a bit flustered. “I just had a flashback, that’s all. I am getting on in my years, after all.”
“Mum, you are not. And, you weren’t having a flashback,” Ron said. “Sit. Then you won’t faint. At least, I don’t think so. Can people faint when they’re sitting down?”
“Yes, Ron, you great, stupid prat,” Fred said. Everyone’s eyes, Mrs. Weasley included, were now on he and George, who had just Apparated to the already-overly crowded living room with two loud cracks.
“Closed the shop for the day,” George announced. “Mum told us that you were here, Harry, and we took some time off for the wedding too. And Charlie and Bill dropped by earlier to say they were coming by around five for dinner,” he added, turning to Mrs. Weasley.
“Oh, yes, thank you boys,” Mrs. Weasley said, turning back to the stove. It was quite obvious that she was avoiding everyone’s eyes, and ignoring the fact that she knew perfectly well that Sirius Black was sitting in her living room.
“So how is everyone?” George said, sitting on the floor since there was no room anywhere on the couches or chairs.
Fred sat down next to George and said in a rather surprised voice, “Oh, hello, Sirius. Didn’t know you were coming. And I…” Fred’s voice trailed off just as Mrs. Weasley’s had. Fred and George both looked at Sirius curiously for a second, and then Fred burst out, “Blimey, I can’t believe I said that. Sorry, mate, you just look a lot like a, er, friend of ours. Don’t believe we’ve met,” he added, extending his hand to Sirius while still sitting on the floor.
Sirius shook Fred’s hand enthusiastically, beaming. He glanced at Harry, and both found this quite funny. In fact, Sirius could no longer hold back a laugh that sounded a lot like a bark, which made both Fred and George jump. Their eyes became extremely wide, and they glanced at each other before looking back at Sirius, clearly alarmed.
Ron was very happy at this point, because it was a rare occasion that he knew something that Fred and George didn’t. Harry knew this would be the case, and glanced at his best friend. Ron looked as if he was struggling to blurt out that it was Sirius, or to keep Fred and George in suspense even longer. He decided on the latter apparently, and sat with a large grin on his face.
“Be right back,” George muttered, and he and Fred got up and walked towards the stairs. They walked up to their rooms, which was clearly a sign of their shock since they usually Apparated every chance they got.
Then, quite suddenly, Mrs. Weasley flung around and ran at Sirius, crying frantically. She flung herself at him, and he patted her back. As she sobbed into Sirius’s shoulder, she managed to say, “Oh, Sirius, I thought it was you, but then I thought that it couldn’t be possible. And it still isn’t possible, but I’m sure it’s you. Your laugh just sounds so much like a bark, and I don’t know how it could possibly anyone else, and I’m just so confused…” It sounded as if she was still talking, but her words were too muffled to distinguish what she was saying. Sirius looked rather surprised, since she had said all of this in about a time span of ten seconds.
“Well, she didn’t faint,” Ron said to the rest of the room.
“Excuse me,” Ella said. She hadn’t spoken for a long time, and everyone else had sort of forgotten she was there. “I’m a little confused. I know that she’s Mrs. Weasley,” Ella said, nodding her head towards the still sobbing Mrs. Weasley. “And I know Ginny, and Ron, but who were those other two that left the room? Were they Fred and George? Ginny mentioned that two people named Fred and George were twins, and those two people seemed like twins. And didn’t Ginny also say that Charlie lives in Romania, but the twins said he was coming with Bill at five for dinner?”
“You have a good memory,” Ron said.
“Um, thanks,” Ella said.
“But yes, that was Fred and George. The one that called Ron a great stupid prat was Fred,” Hermione said, smiling at Ron. “And Charlie’s here right now because there’s a wedding very soon. Bill’s wedding.”
“Oh. Okay then,” Ella said, smiling. “Glad we got that straightened out.”
Mrs. Weasley broke away from Sirius, and looked at the others, her eyes looking very red and puffy. She sniffled, and said, “I’m sorry everyone. I- it’s just so-so hard to believe.” She sniffed, and then added, “How are you here Sirius?”
Sirius took a deep breath as everyone’s heads turned towards him with questioning looks on their faces. Then he got an idea. “How about I write the whole ordeal down so I won’t have to keep telling the story over and over again? Then you can all take turns reading it, and ask me any questions you might have after you’re done.” Sirius beamed around at them all.
“I think it’s a very good idea,” Hermione said approvingly.
“But I can’t read,” Ella said suddenly. Everyone stared at her, shocked. She laughed. “I’m just kidding.”
Then Sirius laughed. “I actually believed you, and I’m really not very gullible at all.” Ella laughed because she knew he was being serious. “Alright, I’m off to write my-er- memoir, I guess you could call it.” Sirius walked to the stairs and then turned around. “Molly? Is there a place that I wouldn’t be disturbed?”
“Oh, yes Sirius, there’s the backyard. I always go out there when I need to clear my head a bit. The fresh air will help you think too.” Then Mrs. Weasley paused, and looked as if she was debating whether to say something or not. “Sirius? Would you like some food to take out with you? You’re all skin and bones! You really must stuff yourself to get back to the way you used to be.”
“Are you saying I used to be fat?” Sirius asked sarcastically, knowing perfectly well what she had meant. She gave him a look that said she knew that he knew perfectly well what she had meant. “Actually, I would like some food if it’s not too much trouble,” he added.
“Oh not at all, Sirius. Don’t be silly,” Mrs. Weasley said as she hurried over the kitchen to fix him something. Harry smiled in spite of himself. Sirius being back was the greatest thing that had happened in a long time. He smiled warmly at his godfather, who returned the smile instantly.
All of a sudden, Fred and George came down the stairs, each grinning sheepishly. George announced, “We have concluded that you are indeed Sirius Black, although we have absolutely no idea how it came to be so.” Ella giggled at their beaming faces. Fred winked at her, which caused her to giggle even more.
“For once, it seems you have come to the right conclusion,” Moody said. His small beady eye rested on the twins, but his magical eye was focused on Sirius.
“You’ll find out everything you need to know when I’m done with- oh, I guess I should explain,” Sirius said to Fred and George. “Instead of explaining what happened to everyone, I’m going to write it all down. Then, once you’ve read it, you can ask me any questions that you may have. Any questions?” Sirius finished with a smile.
“Nope,” Fred and George said simultaneously.
“Good, because I’m not really in the mood to answer any at the moment,” Sirius said, grinning. Mrs. Weasley rushed over and handed Sirius a plate full of food. “Molly, I didn’t need a whole meal,” Sirius said, looking at the full plate in his hand. “You didn’t have to go to all the trouble.”
“Oh, it’s quite alright Sirius. You need nourishment.”
Sirius shrugged. He waved his wand, and there appeared parchment, a quill, a bottle of black ink, and a small desk floating in mid air. With another wave of his wand, the chair he had been sitting in and the plate of food were also in the air and floating slowly towards the back door with the other four items. Sirius smiled, and followed them. Once to the door, which was only a matter of seconds, Sirius opened the door, and all his floating objects floated through the door and out into the yard. He gave a sort of half-wave to the others, and walked out the door, closing it behind him with a soft ‘click.’
“I look forward to reading that story,” Tonks said, looking out the window at her cousin. Everyone else nodded, including Ron and Harry. Even though they already heard the full account of the story first-hand, they were both interested to see how Sirius would put it all into writing.
Just then, Ginny traipsed down the stairs, not looking at anyone except Mrs. Weasley. Harry noticed that she looked like a whole different person than she had before. Her hair was done up, she was wearing robes instead of jeans and a t-shirt, and she didn’t look nearly as tired. Harry guessed that was because she had make-up on, but he didn’t really know about that kind of thing, so it might have been something else for all he knew. “I’m going outside,” Ginny said simply. Without looking at the others still, she walked over to the door and let herself out before anyone could say anything.
Mrs. Weasley turned towards the living room. Everyone was silent, thinking. Mrs. Weasley seemed at a loss for words. She turned back around, and looked out the window; Ginny was walking towards the back of the house, where Sirius was. He was looking up at her, and saying something. Ginny sat on the ground next to him. Suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, she burst into tears.
Mrs. Weasley ran towards the door, but Lupin yelled, “Molly!” and she stopped. “Let her be. Sirius can handle it,” he added. Mrs. Weasley looked out of the window, and then walked back to the stove.
“I’ll be right back,” Harry said, breaking the silence. He gave a meaningful glance at Ron and Hermione, and then walked towards the stairs.
“Uh, I need to use the bathroom,” Ron said, and got up and followed Harry. Hermione just got up and followed the boys without saying anything.
When all three had reached Ron’s room, Hermione said, “It’s no use saying stuff as excuses. They all know what we’re doing.”
“Oh well,” Harry said, sitting on Ron’s bed. “What’s up with Ginny? There’s seriously something wrong with her.” Hermione and Ron looked back at him sadly; it was definitely true. Ginny was not acting normally.
Hermione walked over to the window. From there, Sirius and Ginny were on the other side of the house, so she wasn’t able to see them. “Maybe she’s afraid,” Hermione said at last. She turned to Harry. “You’re in a lot of danger, Harry, and she really cares about you. It might be coming down hard on her.”
Harry looked at Hermione’s sad face for a second, and then looked down at his feet. He didn’t want her to care about him, not the way she did. It wasn’t fair to her.
________________________________________________________________________A/N~ Well, that was pretty long. Was it worth the wait? I hope so. And again, I’m really sorry that it took so long. Please review, and give me ideas if you want to. I would appreciate it! ~