56Welcome to my latest brain dump. This came to me in a thought and was intended to be just a one-shot. Well, someone decided to make their appearance and changed things around. There are definitely no pairings in this story. As always, I own nothing - this all belongs to J.K. Rowling and I'm just playing in her sandbox. Reviews are quite welcome, but flames will be vanished. Thank you!
SS - Parseltongue
Italics - spells, titles of publications, other emphasis
I.
It had been a hectic few days for Harry Potter and his friends. First, he'd been awakened by a vision of something deadly attacking and injuring his best friend's father. They'd all been dragged to the Headmaster's office only to have it confirmed that it was not one of Harry's frequent nightmares, but, in fact, an actual occurrence. He and the Weasley children had then been packed off to Grimmauld Place to await news on Mr. Weasley's status from St. Mungo's, the wizarding hospital. Harry had isolated himself from the rest of the group fearing he was a danger to them as well.
Sleep hadn't been a high commodity for him. He was afraid that once he did go to sleep, he'd have another one of his visions and someone else would be hurt. Or that he'd be seeing through Voldemort's eyes the continuous abuse and torture of innocent (and not so innocent) people. It was in this half-asleep/half-awake state he was in when Sirius crept into his room quietly and motioned for him to join him in the hall.
"Sorry to wake you, pup, but I thought you'd like to join us in a real Yule celebration. Have you got something old that you'd like to cast off?"
"Yule celebration? Yeah sure. Give me a minute," Harry slipped back into the room he was sharing with Ron and dug out the oldest, grungiest shirt he had from Dudley. If that didn't count for something truly needing casting into oblivion, that shirt definitely did. Sirius then led him out into the back garden where Tonks and Remus were waiting. Sirius quickly cast a warming charm on both of them.
"You could have warned me to put on some shoes, Padfoot," Harry said, looking at his godfather askance.
"Nope, you need to be barefoot for this. It increases your connection to nature. See, Tonks and Moony are also barefoot."
Harry looked around and saw that everyone was without shoes.
"Have you ever been to a Yule celebration before, Harry?" asked Sirius.
"No. I didn't realize people actually celebrated it. I just thought it was a fancy term for the winter solstice."
"Haven't your classmates talked about their Yule celebrations before?" asked Remus.
"Well, if they have, it hasn't been around me. Even Ron talks about celebrating Christmas."
"Well, Professor Moony, would you explain to our pup what we are about to do?" said Sirius.
Remus cleared his throat in an exaggerated fashion. Tonks giggled at that.
"Yule celebrations date back centuries to the ancient Druids. It is a time to let go of the old year and welcome the new one. We celebrate the end of the darkening days and welcome the increasing light. It's similar to the summer solstice, but in reverse," explained Remus.
"There are actually two parts of the ceremony. The first part we'll welcome Mother Magic and thank her for the gifts she's given us this year. The second part we'll add the actual Yule Log to the fire and we'll cast off the shackles of the old year and welcome the coming one. That's why I asked you to bring out something old you wouldn't mind getting rid of. Understand so far?" said Sirius.
"Yeah. I think so. So, what do I need to do?"
We're each going to take a compass point. Remus will take the North and represent Earth. You'll take the East and represent Air. I'll take the South and represent Fire and Tonks will take the West and represent Water. I've written out your part for you so you won't have to make up anything on the spur of the moment. Why don't you take a few moments to look this over while Remus and I finish setting up each position?"
Harry took the piece of parchment Sirius handed him and read it over. It looked pretty simple. A blessing to Magic for her gifts and something specific for his element. Once he felt comfortable with it, he walked over to where Sirius, Remus, and Tonks were.
"Ready for this, squirt? It's really something the first time you see a Yule celebration. There's probably quite a crowd at Stonehenge right now doing a very similar ritual. The Obliviators are out in force tonight. Glad I'm not one!" said Tonks.
Harry smiled at that comment. Let the Ministry worry about someone else besides him tonight.
"OK, pup. You're over there where the white candle is. Remus is by the brown candle. I'm by the red one and Tonks has the blue one. The small flame in the middle is what you will use to light your candle. Once Remus finishes his part, you'll light your candle and stand back at your spot. Once we've done the first part, we'll take our lit candles over to where we've got the fire set up and light it. Then we'll go into the second part. It's more fluid. I'll explain more when we get to that part. Any questions?" asked Sirius.
"Yeah. Why are we the only ones out here? Why aren't the Weasleys or Hermione here too? I bet she'd be interested in this," said Harry.
"The Weasleys don't celebrate the traditional observances. I asked Bill earlier about it and he said his family had never held a Yule celebration. As for Hermione, we'd spend too much time trying to explain every little nuance of the ritual to her. And I'm a bit selfish. I wanted to celebrate tonight with just our little family," replied Sirius.
Harry's breath hitched a little at the thought of these three people being his family. His real family and not just three people who happen to be related to him.
"OK, if everyone is ready, let's take our places," said Sirius.
Each person moved to their designated point. There was a small flame in the middle, similar to Hermione's bluebell flame. It gave light as well as a little heat.
Sirius looked at each person and gave them a nod. He raised his hands upwards toward the sky and began, "Mother Magic bless this gathering of family with your presence. We thank you for the gift of magic and all it enables us to do. Help us to use your gift wisely for the betterment of all mankind."
Harry thought he felt a bit of a breeze pick up as if someone had heard the call.
"We come before you tonight to thank you for the year that is passing and ask your blessings on the year to come. The light has faded into dark and once again it returns. May your light guide us in all we do." Sirius then nodded to Remus.
Remus' strong voice began, "Thank you Mother Magic for the blessings you have given us. I represent the North, the Earth and all that grows within it. Thank you for the seasons of growth, harvest, and fallow, that we may enjoy the bounties you have bestowed upon us." Remus then took his candle and lit it; holding it in front of himself. He then nodded to Harry.
Harry's voice was quiet at first, but soon grew in strength, "Thank you Mother Magic for the blessings you have given us. I represent the East, the air and all that sustains us. Thank you for the air that gives us breath and sustains the birds of the sky. Remind us of your presence with every breath we take." Harry then took his candle and lit it, then nodded to Sirius.
"Thank you, Mother Magic, for the blessings you have given us. I represent the South, the Fire which consumes and grants rebirth. Thank you for the fire that gives us warmth and heats our food for nourishment as well as consumes that which has come to the end of its time and returns it to you." Sirius lit his candle and nodded to Tonks.
"Thank you, Mother Magic, for the blessings you have given us. I represent the West, the water that provides life to all things. Thank you for the creatures of the deep and the water which refreshes our body. Remind us of your gift as we drink to our nourishment and cleanse our bodies." Tonks then lit her candle.
Sirius continued, "Mother Magic you have blessed us all this year. We ask your blessings for the coming light. As the wheel turns and the seasons change, Mother Magic is the constant which blesses each of us throughout our days."
All four members could feel the heavy presence of something. Whether it was Mother Magic or something else, no one ventured a guess. Sirius bowed to the center, took a step back and then walked towards the laid-out wood. Harry saw the other two do likewise and copied them.
"This is the easy part, Harry. I'll say another bit and as I say your element, come up to the hearth and lay your candle at the base until we're done. Then we'll each take our item and say a few words about it then toss it on the fire. Just follow our lead. There is no script for this part." Sirius smiled at Harry and Harry nodded back.
"Thank you, Mother Magic, for the blessings you have given us. We come now to light the Yule Log to signify the rebirth of the light and the ending of the dark. May the Light guide us in our lives. We thank you for the Earth (at this, Remus came up and set his candle to the kindling at the base of the logs) which gave us the tree which gave us the logs we celebrate with. We thank you for the Air (Harry took his candle and placed it at the base) which allows the fire to breathe and grow. We thank you for the Fire which consumes these logs and returns them to you. We thank you for Water, which will quench the fire when we are done." When Tonks put her candle to the kindling, the fire fully caught and blazed up, causing the four to take a step back.
"Whoa nelly! That's the biggest fire I've ever seen at this celebration before!" said Tonks. Remus nodded his agreement as well.
Sirius said, "Now here comes the fun part! We get to burn things! Me First! Me First!"
Sirius took a bundle of clothes that looked suspiciously like the ones he'd worn as a prisoner in Azkaban. "Mother Magic I ask for your blessings. I come before you to rid myself of the effects of Azkaban prison. I offer to you the robes of a prisoner that I may be set free." Sirius took the pile of clothes and tossed them on the fire, causing it to flame up quickly.
Tonks then stepped up, "Mother Magic I ask for your blessings. I come before you to cast off the burden of a lost love. I offer you the letters received and those never sent that I may go forward in a new life to love whomever I choose and not be stuck in the past." Tonks took a stack of letters out of her robes and tossed them on the fire. Once again it flared brightly.
Remus then stepped forward, "Mother Magic I ask for your blessings. I come before you to rid myself of the anger and embarrassment over my condition as a werewolf. Help me to be one with the wolf. I offer some hair of the wolf as well as my own human hair that they may become one." With that, he tossed in the hairs. It too sparked a brief flare.
Harry was a bit nervous as he stepped forward, but he'd had a chance to think about it as the others said their piece. "Mother Magic I ask for your blessings. I come before you to rid myself of the burden of the Dursleys and all that they have done to me. I offer one of Dudley's hand-me-down shirts that I was made to wear as I wasn't good enough for "real" clothes. I offer these and ask you to cleanse me of their taint." Harry took the dirty, holey shirt and tossed it on the fire. This time the flames flared brightly and with considerable heat.
"Mother Magic as the dark fades and the light blooms, bless us, your children."
With that, Sirius stepped away from the fire and led them over to a sitting area with drinks and snacks. They were all quiet; thinking on the things each had said. Harry wondered who Tonks was trying to get over. He understood the others' wishes. Then the fire flared up twice as bright as any before. When the four could see again, there was woman standing there.
Remus was the first to recover, "Lily?"
"Yes, Remus, it's me. Mother Magic has sent me as an emissary to help Harry get rid of Moldyshorts for good. He made horcruxes. Six of them. Mother Magic is, to put it politely, pissed that someone would abuse her gift so much. There's one in your house, Sirius. Ask your elf about it. Harry, my love, while it's not a true horcrux, there's a sliver of his soul in your scar. Remus, you need to take Harry and that other item to Gringotts tonight and they can remove it. They can use these two to find the others. One is already gone thanks to Harry. That diary contained a full half of Moldy's soul. Once they have all of the others collected, they can then call the current soul that's left and send them all to their next life.
"Sirius, you've got to stop letting other people dictate your life. You are Lord Black so act like it! Go with them to Gringotts tonight and get your ring. Once you have it, you can ask the goblins for the Ritual of Judgement. They will call in representatives from the DMLE and Ministry to witness it. Once you have completed the ritual, the Ministry will have no choice but to declare you free."
"But what if it finds me guilty?" Sirius asked.
"You were not the secret keeper and you didn't kill Peter or those others. You will be fine. The only thing you are guilty of is being stupid! You were trained in all of the rituals yet you've never availed yourself of them! The ritual will also find the one who IS responsible and render judgement on them." Lily scolded.
"Harry, I know you think you're evil and you are responsible for Arthur Weasley's injury, but you're not. Arthur should have never been there in the first place! Albus knows the full prophecy yet he withheld it from you! Even if Voldemort knew the whole thing, it wouldn't matter. We're going to make it a moot point anyway. Getting that soul piece out of you will make you feel much better! Oh! And tell the goblins you wish to claim the Potter Lord's ring. That stupid tournament Albus forced you to participate in emancipated you. That farce of a trial should have never happened in the first place. When you've done that, declare blood feud on the House of Umbridge. She'll have to face you on the dueling piste if she wants to regain any status. You'll wipe the floor with her."
Remus, quit playing 'poor little werewolf'! Just because you were Albus' token werewolf doesn't mean you have to debase yourself and do everything he tells you to! You're a brilliant person with a furry little problem. Get over it! Go somewhere where you can teach. Or better yet, Harry is going to need a steward to handle his estate until he graduates. And for heaven's sake, allow yourself to love! You aren't going to make little wolf cubs regardless of what you think."
"Tonks, I don't know you that well, but I can guess what is in your heart from your wish. All I can say is 'go for it'."
"Now, my time is short. Mother Magic has one more thing for you, Harry. Once you have been cleansed of that little hitchhiker, have Gringotts do an inheritance test. You'll find a few surprises that will help you with both the Wizarding World and with Albus. All of you remember that Albus is a human just like you and just like you he has his weaknesses. He does not own you! Oh, and Harry, the blood wards at Privet Drive fell when you made your request. Regardless of what Albus says, you NEVER have to go back there. Your Dad told me to tell you he is so very proud of you and I am too. Now, grow up into the man you are meant to be!"
With that, the specter faded out.
"Holy crap! I thought that was only supposed to happen at Samhain!" exclaimed Tonks.
"I didn't think it was supposed to happen at all. You either stay here as a ghost or you go on," said Remus.
"Anyone up for a midnight trip to Gringotts" asked Sirius.
"Kreacher!" said Sirius.
"Nasty Master calls Kreacher?" the elf asked.
"Bring me a quill and parchment. I need you to take a message to the Black account manager, Bloodslayer." A few seconds later, he had the necessary writing implements and he wrote a hasty letter to his account manager asking for a portkey to the restricted portkey arrival area for four people. Kreacher took it and returned about five minutes later with a letter.
"OK folks, our portkey leaves in fifteen minutes. Kreacher, I understand you have something of Voldemort's. I was told to take it with us so the goblins can cleanse it. Can you get it for me?" Sirius asked kindly.
Kreacher burst into tears, "Kreacher tried to destroy evil necklace but nothing he tried worked! I failed Master Regulus!" He went to hit himself with a piece of wood, but Sirius stopped him.
"There's no need for you to punish yourself. These things need special handling. You are welcome to come to Gringotts with us as we get it cleansed," said Sirius.
Kreacher looked at Sirius as if he'd been given the moon and the stars, then choked out, "I'd like that, Master Sirius."
Sirius looked at the rest, "Ok you lot. Shoes and robes. Be back here in ten minutes. Try not to wake anybody up."