A New Definition of Family
Chapter 18: Halloween
Disclaimer: I do not own any of JK Rowling’s characters or any portion of the Harry Potter universe. I just like to manipulate them, like a puppeteer. Any characters, places, situations, or spells/hexes that you don’t find in her fabulous books, well now, those are mine… mine, mine, all mine, bwa ha ha!
Shout out: My Beta, Lorett, is the BEST! (And I love her to infinity and beyond!)
On the evening of Friday, the 30th of October, the entire population of Hogwarts students was assembled at the top of the lawns which afforded an unhindered view of the grounds and the lake. Rinna could feel the thrum of excitement as countless bodies struggled to keep still in anticipation of the arrival of the groups from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. Rinna herself was impressed at the arrival of the huge Beauxbatons carriage, and with the sudden appearance of the Durmstrang ship in the lake. She was sure her grin was as wide as any enthusiastic first year’s there.
However, the smile slid off her face faster than wax dripped from a candle at the sight of the man leading the Durmstrang students to the castle. A voice hissed in her ear: “What do you make of that?”
She whirled to find Mad-Eye Moody at her left side, squinting grimly at Igor Karkaroff. She unceremoniously grabbed the man’s elbow and pulled him in the castle doors and to a shadowy corner of the entrance hall. “Karkaroff was sent to Azkaban,” she insisted in a low voice.
“Ah, but later he made a deal with the Ministry. He named names…” Moody informed her dourly. “He bought his freedom.”
Rinna looked incredulous. “And he was allowed to become the Headmaster of Durmstrang? I know the school has a reputation for Dark Arts, but would its Board of Governors hire a known Death Eater?”
“Says he’s reformed from his Death Eater ways,” Moody’s voice was drenched in bitterness.
Her face was creased with skepticism. “I suppose it could be true…” she said slowly.
Moody brusquely cut in. “Arinna, do you honestly believe that people change their ways?” He eyed her as if she was a naïve little girl.
She studied him keenly. She and Moody had not agreed over much all those years ago. Some things didn’t change, it seemed. But… Rinna thought about Severus Snape, who’d apparently defected from the Death Eaters during the war, and conversely, she remembered with no small amount of sorrow Peter Pettigrew, who’d given himself over to darkness. “I do believe that people can change their ways…if they choose to do so,” she said softly. Moody snorted. “We all have free will, after all, Moody.”
The ring of the footsteps of the Durmstrang delegation on the stone floor of the entrance hall interrupted them, and they stood quietly in the shadows as the group passed by, Karkaroff in the lead, heading into the Great Hall. The Hogwarts students began to stream in noisily, so Rinna had to lean in very close to Moody to add, “But that doesn’t mean that I won’t be keeping a close eye on Karkaroff.”
Moody grunted. “Good. For a moment there, I thought you’d traded in your shrewd smarts for touchy-feely sensibility.”
Rinna frowned as she entered the Great Hall and followed Moody to the head table. There was something slightly off the mark about the conversation she’d just had with the old Auror, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it… However, the feast and the subsequent opening of the Triwizard Tournament pushed the niggling thought out of her mind.
Halloween night found Rinna at the edge of her seat at the staff table, barely able to eat as she waited in anticipation for the presentation of the Triwizard Champions. She had spent the morning quietly observing in the entrance hall as students began to place their names in the Goblet of Fire. All of the Hogwarts students who entered were in her sixth or seventh year D.A.D.A. classes. (Several of them who had defied Dumbledore’s age line went to the hospital wing with beards, much to the amusement of those watching.) Privately, Rinna ranked each applicant as they nervously stepped forward, but in the end, she was glad it wasn’t she who was making the decision; there were just too many capable and talented students to choose from. And soon, she would know which of her students would represent the school. She couldn’t believe that she could be this wound up over a contest. Not just any contest, silly. These champions will be facing real danger, and you are going to be biting your nails over them until the end of the tournament. In the short time she’d been teaching, she reflected, she’d become rather fond of the student body of Hogwarts. Most of the time.
The cheering and applause at the announcement of Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff as Hogwarts’ Champion was deafening. Rinna grinned and clapped enthusiastically. Cedric was a fine choice, in her opinion. He was an excellent and talented student, and besides, she thought, it is high time the Badgers got some of the glory. The handsome young man made his way to the room behind the staff table, a huge smile on his face.
The joyful enthusiasm that filled the Great Hall was short-lived, however, for something strange was transpiring. The Goblet of Fire turned red a fourth time, shooting out an arm of flame with a fourth slip of paper, and Rinna was seized by a cold frisson of apprehension. This was not supposed to happen. Her eyes, along with every one else’s, were riveted to Dumbledore as he stared at the slip in his hand for what seemed an interminable amount of time. Rinna truly was not prepared to hear him read the name on the slip: “Harry Potter.”
For a moment, the only sound to be heard in the Great Hall was the rustle of hundreds of heads whipping around to stare at the boy at the Gryffindor table. Rinna’s mouth was open in stunned surprise as she watched Harry turn to his friends blankly. Minerva had rushed down to Dumbledore and was muttering to him fiercely, and still, Rinna could not move; she felt as if she’d been struck by the Lead-Limb Hex. Dumbledore called Harry forward, and the bewildered boy made his way up the long tables. Rinna watched the scene unfold like one of those slow-motion sequences in a Muggle film while the low-pitched drone of angry and astounded whispers seemed to distort and fade, as if she was under water. By all the moons of Jupiter, how could this have happened? She wanted to jump up and protest, but the strange lassitude held her to her seat.
Rinna could only watch in shock as Dumbledore prompted Harry to move through the door behind the staff table and join the other Triwizard Champions. Then suddenly Harry was passing by her and the sound of the whispering students rushed back to her ears as the room returned to normal speed. She schooled her features to something that she hoped was reassuring, because he looked absolutely stunned; like a bunny before a hungry hippogriff.
She watched the door, waiting for her opportunity to slip into it, because the Godmother part of her was hysterically demanding that she get her sorry arse in there this instant and do something, for the love of Merlin! Ludo Bagman went through the door, and was soon followed by Dumbledore, Maxime, Karkaroff, Barty Crouch, McGonagall and Snape. The door closed behind them, and the buzzing of amazed chatter grew louder. Now that attention was away from the Head Table, Rinna rose and unobtrusively made her way to the door, opened it and slipped in stealthily.
She crept into the room unnoticed, and, preferring not to draw attention to her presence, she took up residence standing just beyond the ring of light to observe. Karkaroff was ranting about the age line, but Severus broke in, “It’s no one’s fault but Potter’s, Karkaroff. Don’t go blaming Professor Dumbledore for Potter’s determination to break the rules. He has been crossing lines ever since he arrived here…” Snape’s words were drenched in bitterness and malice. (*)
Dumbledore had turned to question Harry, and Rinna was relieved to see that Harry looked the Headmaster right in the eye, and vehemently denied putting his name in or asking an older student to do it for him. During the heated argument among the adults that followed, Rinna observed her godson with concern. He still had that wide-eyed stunned expression for the most part, but seemed a bit perturbed that he was being accused of lying. She spun around when she heard the door open behind her. Alastor Moody merely looked at her and grunted as he brushed past her into the room.
Harry was trying to devote his attention to what was being said by the grown-ups, figuring that they weren’t likely to censor their words when they were all worked up like that. He hoped to find out something useful to help him figure out exactly what had just happened. He felt an odd feeling, like someone was watching him, and his eyes swept around the room. The other students were glued to the argument that all the adults were having. His eyes caught a shape, standing closest to the door, just beyond the penumbra of light cast by the lanterns. He inhaled sharply. It was his godmother; she was watching him intently with a rather impenetrable expression on her face.
For one fraction of a second, Harry thought that it was Rinna who had put his name in the Goblet of Fire. Moody was ranting that it had to have been some skilled witch or wizard who put Harry’s name in the Goblet with the intention of having him killed. But the moment Harry saw the look of fear and maternal horror that crossed Rinna’s features, he immediately dismissed the idea. She was every inch the concerned godmother. He started to mouth something to her, but she shook her head, touched her finger to her lips, and then cupped her ear, indicating she wanted to concentrate on what was being said.
Harry had to return his attention to Mr. Crouch to hear his instructions, so he missed seeing the color drain from Rinna’s face when the students were told they were not allowed to ask for or receive help from their teachers. Damn it, she thought to herself, he’s too young. He hasn’t learned enough yet to make it through these tasks! How in the hell can I keep him safe if they tie my hands like this?
Rinna painted on an impassive expression as Barty Crouch left, and Madame Maxime and her protégé swept by, followed by Karkaroff and Viktor Krum. Karkaroff fixed her with a dark glare, to which she merely raised her eyebrow.
Dumbledore directed Harry and Cedric Diggory to return to their respective common rooms, suggesting that their Houses should not be deprived of a chance to celebrate. Harry hesitated slightly, until Dumbledore added, “Arinna, would you be kind enough to remain here a few moments?” He would have to talk to his godmother tomorrow it seemed.
When the boys had left, McGonagall rounded on Rinna with a slightly outraged expression. “What are you doing here, Arinna?” she demanded.
Rinna crossed her arms and scowled. “Isn’t it obvious, Minerva?” she snapped. “I was eavesdropping. Although, I don’t think that it can technically be called ‘eavesdropping’ if I was standing in plain sight. ‘Observing,’ perhaps?”
Dumbledore smoothly intervened. “Ludo, my good man, would you mind terribly waiting in the Great Hall for a few moments? I should like to have a word with my staff here.”
“Of course not,” replied a rather jovial (annoyingly and inappropriately jovial, in Rinna’s opinion) Ludo Bagman as he stepped out of the room.
Rinna moved closer to Dumbledore, her green eyes snapping in anger. “Please tell me you are not serious about letting Harry compete in this Tournament! Since when do you lead lambs to the slaughter, Albus?”
Dumbledore looked at his youngest teacher with concern. “Now Arinna,” he said gently, “I know you are worried about young Harry, but you heard what Barty said. As soon as his name came out of the Goblet, Harry was bound to compete. I’m afraid there is nothing I can do.” Dumbledore’s eyes dropped to the floor, fatigue and worry lining his face.
“Bound to compete…” she sputtered, “But… each student entered into a binding magical contract only if he or she put his or her own name on the paper! The contract can’t possibly be binding if someone else put a champion’s name in the Goblet! Please tell me there was some provision made for that possibility, Albus!” Once again, Rinna’s mouth dropped open in horror as she saw by the looks on Dumbledore’s and McGonagall’s faces that, indeed, no such stipulation had been made. “Sweet mother of Merlin!” she whispered, before she steeled her voice and said louder, “Harry Potter did NOT put his name in that Goblet!”
Snape made a sound of disbelief causing Rinna to whip around and fix him with a dangerous look. The Potions professor was markedly reminded of a dragon ready to protect its clutch. His eyes narrowed in speculation.
“I’m sorry, Arinna, but there is nothing I can do,” Dumbledore repeated quietly.
Rinna’s anger had been ignited by fear for her godson, but Dumbledore’s apparent reticence seemed to fuel it further. She looked back to him and retorted, “Well, you could have at least protested that ridiculous rule that champions can not accept help from a teacher…”
Snape gave a derisive snort. “Apparently you still hold rules in contempt then, Arinna? You have much in common with young Potter. But then, you had much in common with the elder Potter and his cronies back in school, didn’t you?”
Rinna ground her teeth. Snape was never going to let go of that old hatred, was he? It was blinding him now to seeing how unfair it was to ask a mere fourteen-year-old to compete against students who had twice as much training. Well, she wasn’t afraid to raise holy hell to the roof of the Great Hall if she had to. “I’m just saying,” she said through a clenched jaw, “that the rule puts Harry at an unfair disadvantage. He’s had only half the education the others have…”
Minerva interrupted. “She’s right, Albus. Something has to be done.”
Snape threw up his hands in exasperation and glared balefully at the two women. “Don’t you understand? There is nothing that can be done. The Tournament has started. It must be allowed to play out to the end.” He glanced at Dumbledore, who still looked haggard. “And if any solution to this most distressing turn of events is to be found, be assured that our esteemed Headmaster will be the one to find it. But not if you insist on yammering at him like harpies!”
McGonagall pulled her chin up in a huff. “Well!”
Rinna shot Snape her best killing glare. She hated it, but he was right, damn it. The greasy git. She took a deep breath, and exhaled, forcing herself to calm down. She turned to the Headmaster, her heart breaking a little to see him so worn with care. “Forgive me, Albus, for losing my temper. I’m afraid I’m not able to be very objective right now,” she said humbly.
“It is completely understandable that you are apprehensive for Harry, Arinna. I assure you that I respect the maternal instinct that prompted your behavior here tonight.” He looked at her seriously. “I will do my best to not fail you, or him.”
Rinna’s voice broke a little. “Of course you will. I would never believe otherwise.” She turned to nod at the others, and Moody cast her an inscrutable look. She left in a swirl of robes.
She was halfway through the now-empty Great Hall before she heard her name called. She turned abruptly around to face the brooding figure of the Potions professor. “What do you want?” she gritted out. Hadn’t he been insufferable enough for one evening?
He studied her with a shuttered expression. “Do you know that you are developing quite a reputation among the students for being fair, for not showing favoritism among the Houses? Why, most of them cannot even figure out what House you belonged to when you went to Hogwarts.”
She looked at him sourly. “And your point is?”
“My point is… that gives you a measure of power that I, or McGonagall, or any of the others really, will never have. It would be a shame, and I think I know you well enough to say it would go against your nature as well, to give away that power now.” He raised a hand to forestall her retort. “I should have realized that you would favor Harry Potter. In fact, I don’t know why it should surprise me that you would.”
“Of course I would. He’s my…” Rinna looked at Severus Snape’s cold black eyes and remembered the malice that had riddled his diatribe about Harry earlier. She would not give Snape more ammunition against Harry. She modified what she was about to say. “He’s my dearest friend’s son. I cannot just stand by and do nothing while he is put in mortal danger.”
“Certainly. I just hate to see positions of power compromised for the sake of mere sentimentality.”
She looked at him icily. “Forgive me, Severus, if your definition of ‘sentimentality’ seems to coincide with my definition of ‘loyalty and friendship.’”
Snape considered her a moment and nodded curtly. “I see that young Potter is yet another subject on which we must agree to disagree,” he said impassively.
“Apparently,” she replied scathingly before stalking out of the Great Hall.
----- -----
Rinna promptly exited the castle and began walking toward the lake, the thoughts and anxieties that had been neither nullified nor appeased by the confrontation with Dumbledore seething in her mind. How could she help Harry? How could she obtain information about the first task? How could this have happened? She stopped at the edge of the lake and shook her fists in frustration. A fine job you did of taking care of Harry, Rinna! If only she’d been paying better attention, watching the Goblet for tampering. If only she had anticipated that something like this would happen. If only”
A rather loud splash broke into the ugly cycle of her thoughts, causing Rinna to jump. She huffed out a rueful little laugh at the sight of several large sucker-covered tentacles lifting out of the lake and slapping playfully on the water surface in succession. At least the giant squid had shaken her from her pointless musings. She’d learned from experience that playing the “if only game” was a useless endeavor. To be sure, she could not have predicted any of these happenings. But now, she needed to think, needed to sort things out. There was no way she was letting Harry face this alone, Tournament rules be damned.
She sat down on a rock by the edge of the water and let out a growl of aggravation. She was annoyed with herself for tipping her hand to Snape. He’d surely be watching for any signs of her helping Harry now, and would take great delight in declaring Harry a cheat. Damn him! And damn his childhood grudges that he just couldn’t seem to let go of. And this line of thinking was just another fast train to nowhere… Think, Rinna, think! You need some way of getting information, and passing it to Harry that cannot be traced back to you. You need some cunning, sneaky, crafty, ingenious plan…
Cunning. Crafty. Sneaky. Ingenious…
Rinna snapped her fingers. “This sounds like a job for a Marauder,” she said out loud. And it was a damn good thing she knew just where to find some…
She almost laughed out loud in relief. Remus and Sirius would help, she had no doubt. But she quickly sobered when she realized that she would need to be careful when she told them what happened. Sirius was likely to floo right into Hogwarts and do something drastic when he heard what kind of danger Harry was in. She somehow had to redirect Sirius, for everyone’s sake. And to be fair to Dumbledore; after all, he’d already dealt with one angry godparent tonight.
A large wet splash was so close that she felt droplets of cold water on her face. She let out a little involuntary shriek and scrambled to higher ground. The squid was playing again. Well, she told herself, at least someone was enjoying himself (herself?) this wretched night. This night… A memory whispered on the edge of her already frayed mind. This night… Halloween… thirteen years… She stood stock-still.
“Oh, Lily,” Rinna whispered, stricken. “I’m so sorry. How could I have forgotten?”
“This year will be different, Padfoot,” Remus said as he set out the glasses. “This year, you will join in a venerable tradition instead of spending Halloween alone.”
Sirius looked skeptical. “How long have you and Rinna had this ‘tradition’?” he queried.
“For the last two years.”
“Two years. If it’s only two years, Moony, how can it be a ‘venerable tradition’? Don’t traditions take decades to even become traditions?” Sirius crossed his arms and scowled. He knew what Remus was trying to do, but he’d marked the last twelve anniversaries on his own, immersed in bitterness and grief. He didn’t think some little ritual was going to make him feel any better.
“Don’t bother me with trifles, Padfoot. I think it is my prerogative to call it a tradition if I want to.” Remus said testily as he opened the decanter.
Sirius stared glumly at the glass on the coffee table in front of him as Remus filled it, and waited until Remus had topped off his own glass before taking it in hand. He swirled the amber liquid thoughtfully, then lifted his eyes to look at his friend. “There’s only half now, Moony,” he said hoarsely.
Remus drew his brows together in confusion, thinking Sirius was referring to the firewhiskey. “What do you mean, half?”
“Half… as in, half!” Sirius said impatiently, frustrated when Remus didn’t follow his explanation. “Half of the Marauders…” Sirius was relieved to see Remus’ eyes widen in comprehension. “And… half of the Reds.”
It was Remus’ turn to swirl and contemplate his drink as he smiled wistfully, remembering the appellation that Sirius had assigned to Rinna and Lily in Fourth Year. He’d dubbed them “The Reds” much to the girls’ annoyance, and the nickname had stuck. Of course, it hadn’t been meant to be an endearment, but more of a taunt. So when the annoyance-factor had worn off a bit by some time in Fifth Year, and the need to differentiate which Red was being talked about or teased arose, Sirius simply added “Rose” to Lily’s name, keeping in theme with flowers, and “Rose-Red” was born. Lily merely laughed and suggested he’d ripped it off from some Muggle fairy-tale book by the Brothers Grimm.
Remus remembered that it had taken much longer for Sirius to come up with a name for Rinna; he’d been rather stumped, unable to find anything fitting until one day, in some verbal skirmish that the two of them always seemed engaged in, Sirius had told Rinna she had a heart of stone. And, voila! She became “Ruby-Red” and Remus was quite sure that that was the moment when Sirius had unwittingly started to fall for her…
“…wish she was here,” Remus heard Sirius mumble. “She shouldn’t be alone this night.”
Remus pulled himself out of his reverie. “She’s got the excitement of the Tournament to keep her occupied. She’ll at least be distracted tonight… Wish we had something to take our minds off of it, though.”
“I thought that’s what this is for,” Sirius held up the decanter of Ogden’s Old Firewhiskey and clinked it against Remus’ glass.
Remus almost had the glass to his mouth when a loud whoosh from the fireplace startled him into splashing some of the firewhiskey on himself. And there before them was Rinna, as if their conversation had conjured her, picking herself up and dusting off her best teachers robes. “Starting without me, were you?” she admonished lightly.
Both men rose hastily to their feet. “We weren’t expecting you, Rinna,” Remus said quietly.
Sirius crossed to the fireplace and took Rinna’s arm rather formally. “Why aren’t you at Hogwarts? I thought it was a big night.”
“Oh, it was,” she was pleased she was able to keep the irony out of her voice. “But this night… I’d rather spend it with people who… who remember them the way I do, you know?”
Sirius walked her to the couch while Remus summoned another glass. Rinna shrugged out of her robes, and Sirius solicitously took them and laid them carefully on the back of a chair. Rinna sat and patted the couch next to her, indicating Sirius should sit with her. She gently placed her hand on his knee; she was glad he was here. Remus resumed his seat across the table in the armchair, and filled a glass for the latecomer.
A long silence filled the room as each person held their glass, as if by not saying anything, they could keep the anniversary at bay. “Look,” Rinna finally said softly. “We have to acknowledge it; that thirteen years ago we lost our best friends. Because if we don’t, it doesn’t make it any less true. It doesn’t stop the anniversary from passing.”
Remus smiled slightly. “Isn’t that what I said last year?”
“Yes,” she replied. “At the time I thought is was bullocks.”
“Oh, thanks so much”“
She interrupted him, “But now, I realize it was very wise, and very accurate.”
“So what do we do?” Sirius asked.
Remus answered, “We each make a toast to their memory.” He raised his glass. “To James and Lily; two of the finest people I have ever known. You were taken from us too soon, and because of that, there is a void in our lives that will never be filled.” Three glasses went from outstretched arms to lips.
Sirius cleared his throat. He knew that he could be eloquent, but not tonight. This “tradition” was too new, and too emotional for him. “To Prongs and Rosie,” he said roughly, lifting his glass. “Merlin, I miss you.”
“To my dearest Lil and Jamesy,” Rinna felt her throat start to close. “Not a day goes by that I don’t think of you…” Her voice became choked with tears. Sirius squeezed her knee comfortingly. “…and how I should have been there.” She heard Remus make a small noise of protest. She knew what he would say, and he’d be right, but it didn’t stop her from feeling that she’d failed her friends somehow. She took some shuddering deep breaths and sniffed. “But I swear that if it is in my power to do so,” her voice hardened to steel, “I will not fail you again.”
Three heads tilted back as the mourning friends knocked down the rest of their drinks, and the coffee table quivered with the impact of three glasses slammed to its surface. Rinna remained slumped forward, her elbows resting on her knees, as she studied her empty glass. Remus tried to catch her eye.
“What was that all about, Rin?” Remus asked softly. “What’s wrong?”
Rinna sighed and looked at her friend. “I’ll tell you in a minute, Remy.”
Sirius felt a little pang of jealousy that Remus knew her well enough to read her like that, and he did not anymore. But then Rinna leaned back and put her head on his shoulder, and his arms automatically went around her, and she sighed again. Sirius held her and rubbed her shoulder soothingly until she finally lifted her chin and said softly to him, “Thanks.” She used to do that, in the old days; lean into him as if to absorb some comfort or strength before facing some unpleasant task. A feeling of happiness, completely at odds with the current situation, passed through Sirius.
Rinna rose, and circled around the room once, acting as if she was pacing but really she was unobtrusively sealing the wards to the house, before she turned to the two men and said, “Gentlemen, I’m afraid that Harry is in need of our help.” And she proceeded to relate the events of the entire evening.
----- -----
It was much, much later and cooler heads were finally prevailing, thanks in no small part to the seals on the wards preventing any sudden departures, before Rinna lowered herself to the couch and stretched out, her head on the armrest. She was emotionally and physically exhausted. She listened as Remus and Sirius schemed and plotted ways to get information to Harry, but their voices began to grow faint, and her eyes felt so heavy…
She woke to Sirius’ gentle shaking. “C’mon, Ruby,” he smiled fondly at her, “let’s get you to bed.” He swung her up in his arms and carried her down the hall to her room. He set her gently in the bed and removed her shoes before tucking the covers around her and leaning down to kiss her softly. “Goodnight, love. Leave it to us, and get some rest.”
“Knew I could. Leave it to you two, I mean,” she mumbled. “Needed the Marauder mentality.”
He chuckled, and stood up to leave. She caught his hand. “Aren’t you staying?” she asked hopefully.
“I didn’t want to presume,” he told her honestly. “Despite what happened last weekend…”
“Stay with me tonight,” she squeezed his hand. “Please?”
He smiled at her, and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll be back soon,” he promised. “Let me just finish helping Remus clean up.”
“Mmmm,” was her reply, and Sirius was quite sure she was asleep before he even left the room.
----- -----
Rinna woke as the first hint of dawn threatened to overtake the skies. She groaned and lifted her head off of Sirius’ chest to look at the clock. His arms tightened reflexively around her to keep her close. “Do you have to go so soon?” he murmured.
“I want to be back in time for breakfast, so I can talk to Harry,” she whispered.
Sirius peeled open one eye in order to cock an eyebrow at her. “Don’t they still serve breakfast later on Sundays at Hogwarts?” Rinna nodded. “So I’ll ask you again: do you have to leave so soon?” He wiggled the eyebrow suggestively as a slow grin crept across his face.
She smiled. “Well, I don’t have to leave just yet,” she admitted coyly.
“Good,” he declared, and he pulled her mouth down to his. The sensation of his lips moving on hers and the patterns his hands made as he traced her curves over her rumpled clothing rather effectively pushed any concerns over her possibly hideous morning-breath right out of her head. In fact, the only things she was truly able to focus her mind on at that moment were the heart-stopping look of desire in his eyes, and the obvious evidence of his arousal pressed against her.
“You are making me sorry that I didn’t stay awake last night,” she whispered in his ear.
His smoldering eyes crinkled at the corners as he grinned at her. “I’ll make sure you aren’t the least bit sorry this morning,” he informed her with an engaging leer.
----- -----
Sunlight was slipping through the break in the curtains and throwing tendrils of light on the fine dusting of hair on Sirius chest when Rinna propped up on one elbow to look at her lover. “A knut for your thoughts?” she asked playfully.
His smile was rueful. “I’m thinking of how to apologize for my behavior last night.”
She eyed him a moment. “Oh, I think you just did,” she smirked. He opened his mouth, but she laid her fingers on his lips to forestall his words. “I figured you would react like you did, but I knew you would come to your senses, for Harry’s sake.”
He took her hand from his mouth and placed it over his heart with a gentle squeeze as he caught her gaze and held it. He reached up and caressed her face. “We can do this, you know.”
“Do what?” She was confused.
“We’re going to get Harry through this, Rinna, I promise you.” His eyes never wavered from hers. “We can be Harry’s godparents. Finish raising him. Finally keep our promise to Lily and James.” He watched her eyes widen.
Rinna twined her fingers in his. “Together?”
“Together, love. As long as I have breath in my body.” Anything else he was going to say was swallowed by her passionate kiss.
“Damn it, Blackie, I hate to leave you, but this is borrowed time,” she finally whispered, reluctantly getting up to get dressed. She stood for a moment, admiring the sight of him stretched out luxuriously on her bed, before kissing him soundly on the lips. “I love you, Marauder-boy.”
He grinned cockily. “I know.”
She slapped his shoulder lightly. “Pompous git!”
He seized her hand and brought it to his lips. “Your pompous git,” he corrected, looking at her with smoky blue eyes.
She pulled her hand away. “Lucky me,” she said and turned for the door to leave before her resolve to get back to Hogwarts broke.
The problem was: Harry was not at breakfast that following morning. Neither was Hermione, so Rinna was surprised to see Ron there, and she noted the sullen look on his face. By dinnertime, she had learned through the information pipeline that worked so efficiently at Hogwarts that Harry and Ron were no longer on speaking terms. The Godmother was having conniption fits in her mind trying to ascertain how that could have possibly come about, alternating between deep concern for Harry’s state of mind and frustration at not knowing the details of the two friends’ falling out. She simply had to talk to him, tonight.
Rinna strategically placed herself where she would see Harry as he exited the Great Hall. She smiled and returned greetings from many of the students passing by before she spotted him with Hermione. “Mr. Potter, may I have a word?” she asked in her pleasant-professor-voice.
Harry glanced at Hermione. “Miss Granger is welcome to join us if you wish,” Rinna added, knowing that anything she said to Harry would be repeated to his friends… er, well, at least to Hermione.
Hermione gave him a “well, what do you want me to do?” look and shrugged her shoulders. Harry looked from her to Rinna and back. “Nah, it’s okay. You don’t have to stay, Mione. I’ll meet up with you in the library?”
“Sure,” Hermione answered before turning away to the library. She shot Rinna a disgruntled look as she left.
Harry followed Rinna to the windowed portion of the second floor corridor. She stopped in front of a window that looked out onto the grounds, giving a good view of the lake, and the Durmstrang ship rocking slightly as the students returning from dinner boarded.
Rinna looked Harry over. There was no need for preamble; they both knew what was on Rinna’s mind. “How are you holding up?” she asked with concern.
“I’ve been better,” he answered honestly, looking into her worried eyes.
“Harry, I want you to know that I believe you; I don’t think you put your name in the Goblet of Fire.”
“Well, that would put you in the minority then,” Harry replied, bitterness evident in his tone. “Even Ron thinks I did.”
“I’m sorry,” she told him.
Harry shrugged glumly. He knew there was nothing Rinna could do about Ron’s attitude. It wasn’t as if she was a fairy godmother or anything. “Hermione says that he’s just jealous that I’m getting all the attention, again.” Rinna was impressed with Hermione’s intuitive assessment, and privately agreed with her. “Well, I never asked for any attention, ever,” Harry declared ferociously. “And I certainly don’t want it now.”
“I know,” her soft voice was soothing and sympathetic. “It’s not fair to you, really, to have this all thrust upon you.”
“Rinna,” Harry looked at her with something like panic in his face, “what am I going to do?”
She knew he was talking not just about his rift with Ron, but about the whole Tournament debacle. “Let’s walk,” she suggested. “I need to tell you something.” Harry fell into step with her. “I want you to know that you will have help with all of this.”
Harry frowned. “I thought that you weren’t…”
“I have engaged the services of Messrs. Moony and Padfoot,” she interjected. She smiled at him as she saw comprehension bloom on his face.
“Really?” he asked eagerly. “I just owled Si”uh, Mister Padfoot this morning, to tell him what happened.”
Rinna looked pleased. “He’ll be really happy you did, Harry.”
“So what are they…”
Rinna held up a hand. “I’m not privy to their plans, I’m afraid. You will have to wait until they contact you.”
“All right.” Harry stopped and chewed on his lip thoughtfully. “Rinna, do you have any idea who would put my name in the Goblet of Fire, or why?”
“I dunno, Harry. But that is what I am going to be working to find out.”
“Do you really think someone wants me dead, like Professor Moody said?” Harry asked quietly.
She gazed at him seriously. “We already know there is one person who wants you dead, Harry,” she said softly. “Whether there are any others we can add to the list next to the Dark Lord’s name, I don’t know. But I’ll tell you this,” her face grew hard as steel, “they will have to go through me first.”
Harry was startled by her words and her vehemence. “My mum gave her life trying to save me,” he said softly.
“Yes,” Rinna said steadily, despite the fresh wave of grief his words brought.
“And you’re saying you’d do the same?” he asked incredulously.
“Yes,” she whispered fiercely.
“Why?” Harry breathed.
It was a good question. From the moment Dumbledore had read out Harry’s name, and Rinna had been paralyzed in her seat, a whole gamut of emotions had been running through her, not the least of which was a sudden intense possessiveness of Harry. There was no way to explain how just a few months of knowing the boy could engender such feeling in her, unless it was the knowledge that this was the same person as the infant who’d stolen her heart just moments after he was born. She closed her eyes and remembered that day, the weight of him in her arms, and the sudden crazy feeling of needing to kill anyone who would even think about harming the little baby she held. What had Dumbledore called it? Maternal instinct.
What would she do for Harry? Just about anything, she realized; he was Lily’s son, after all. Just let someone try to rip him away from me! A stiletto blade of pain and grief sliced through her heart as she wondered if that had been what Lily had been thinking when she had died. She opened her eyes and looked at the scruffy kid who had been the downfall of her stonewalled heart.
“Because, Harry, Lily entrusted you to me, and expected me to treat you like you were my own son.” Green eyes locked with green. “It’s time I fulfilled her wishes, don’t you think?”
Author Note: The quote marked by an asterisk (*) where Snape is ranting about Harry’s disregard for rules is from JK Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 17 “The Four Champions.”
Please review and let me know what you thought! Did you know that if the review-levels in my bloodstream drop too low, that I get all woozy and lightheaded? You wouldn’t want to be responsible for me fainting and hitting my head and getting a concussion, now would you? I didn’t think so. Well, then, you know what you must do.
Hugs and kisses to all the fabulous people who reviewed the last chapter! You brightened my world!
A New Definition of Family by RahNee
Chapter Notes: The students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang arrive, the Triwizard Champions are chosen... and whose name comes out of the Goblet of Fire? Also in this chappie: Moody is, well, moody. Snape is snappy. Rinna is in a snit. Cameo appearances by other Professors, and the Giant Squid. Oh, and more fluff.