"You guys don't have to come with me," said Harry an hour and a half later as, supported by Hermione on one side and Ginny on the other, with Ron going ahead to open doors, the four students made their way back into the castle.

"We want to go," assured Ginny. Hermione had made Harry repeat the whole story to Ron and Ginny and the four had discussed the mysterious first crack.

"Are you sure there were only four wizards there?" asked Ron. "You weren't exactly with it the whole time."

Harry had shaken his head. "The only ones around me were Bill, Remus, Snape and Dumbledore. There may have been others later." He paused, a bit embarrassed before he looked up at them from behind glasses that had slipped down on his nose. "I . . . I think they had to modify some memories . . . ."

"I don't think they went that far," said Ginny. "Remember the story in the Muggle paper? Someone remembered what happened."

Hermione had nodded in understanding. "I'm sure Bill came up with a good cover story."

"But this first crack you heard," persisted Ginny. "It happened right before your scar started hurting, right?"

"Right," confirmed Harry.

"Do you think..." she said, hesitating, "that it could have been…Bill?"

They all stared at her.

"What?" asked Ron loudly. "Why would Bill make Harry's scar hurt? What are you suggesting?"

Ginny stared at Ron angrily. "Ron, I am not suggesting Bill is a deatheater! We don't even know that whoever that crack belonged to had anything to do with his scar hurting." She paused and traced her finger in the sand. "Is it possible….that Bill apparated in without knowing that Harry was there and he just happened to get there at the same time everything else happened? He could have startled the cat…"

"Ginny," said Hermione softly, "don't worry about that. Don't you think the Order would always have at least one person on guard duty—actually there on Privet Drive? Bill wouldn't have had to apparate to get to Harry. He'd have been hiding or under an Invisibility cloak."

Ginny nodded and looked up.

"But you know, if it wasn't Bill…or another member of the Order…" she said.

Ron paled a little.

"You have to tell Dumbledore," he said to Harry. "Hermione's right."

Ginny nodded somberly in agreement.

And now here they were, standing in front of the gargoyle statues that guarded the entrance to Professor Dumbledore's office.

Ron looked at Harry hopefully.

"Don't suppose you know the password, Harry?"

Harry shook his head.

"It's always something like lemon drops or chocolate frogs," he said. He looked at the statues hopefully but they remained in place.

They tried a variety of possibilities without success.

"It's no use," said Hermione finally. "Let's go find one of the other professors. They must have another way of finding him."

"Hey!" said Harry, suddenly remembering the means Dumbledore often used to send messages. He turned to Hermione. "Are there any portraits of old headmasters in this school?"

Hermione looked at Harry as if we were insane.

"Well, in Dumbledore's office to begin with," she said in the sort of tone that said she couldn't believe he hadn't known that.

"I know about those, Hermione," he said. "But are there any anywhere else?"

"Oh. I don't . . . No, I do know. There's a portrait of one of the previous headmaster in the entrance hall. It's rather small—stuck in the corner…"

"Come on!" said Harry, turning around and heading for the entrance hall. The other three exchanged glances and followed.

"It's how he gets messages across," explained Harry as they moved down the hallway. Harry's legs were beginning to hurt and his arm throbbed painfully, but he kept moving. "Portraits can visit their other portraits, you see. There are portraits of headmasters in St. Mungos and the Department of Mysteries too….and at Grimmauld Place…" He looked significantly at Ron. "Remember? That's how he was able to check on your dad last year….after the attack."

"Brilliant," said Hermione, hurrying ahead of them and leading the way to a portrait which was tucked in a corner to the right of the giant hourglasses that tallied the house points.

"Hello there," she said. The sleeping headmaster opened one eye. "Can you tell Albus Dumbledore that Harry Potter needs to speak with him? It's important."

The old man in the portrait studied her carefully and moved his eyes over to Harry.

"Oh, it's you again, is it?" he said rather haughtily. "Feeling a bit destructive again and wanting to have another go at it?"

Harry started to turn red but he quickly shook his head.

"We can't find Professor Dumbledore and I've remembered something important…about my accident a few days ago." He took it on faith that the portraits would already know what had happened on Privet Drive.

"Oh. I see." The portrait raised an eyebrow and looked at the teens again. "All of you need to see him?"

Harry exchanged glances with his friends. He nodded. "Yes, all of us. Can you tell him please?"

The former headmaster considered and then nodded his head. He stood up slowly from the wingback chair he was sitting on and fumbling for his cane, hobbled off to the left and disappeared from the portrait.

Ginny smiled. 'That's brilliant. Now we know how they communicate so quickly. How Dumbledore keeps tabs on everyone."

"Wait!" said Ron suddenly. "Do you suppose there are portraits like this in our common rooms?"

While they pondered this, the portrait returned and smugly said: "Skiving Snackboxes."

"You're kidding!" said Ginny. "Fred and George will LOVE this."

They headed back to the gargoyles. Harry was slowing considerably but tried to keep the pace up. He was panting slightly by the time they gathered around the gargoyles and Hermione firmly stated "Skiving Snackboxes."

The gargoyles sprang to the side and the friends rode the spiral staircase to the Headmaster's office.

The door opened before they got there and Albus Dumbledore met them at the doorway. He looked uncharacteristically worried.

"There is a problem?" he asked, his eyes sliding over the other studentss and coming to rest on Harry.

Harry nodded. He was still trying to catch his breath.

"Come in and sit, sit down," said the headmaster, standing aside and pointing to the chairs in front of his desk. As they settled down he took his seat behind his desk and glanced up at the wall.

"And thank you, Professor Dippet," he said. "Quite resourceful of my students, wasn't it?" he finished with a small smile.

"It was Harry's idea," said Hermione. "And brilliant! I can't believe that all this time I never thought…"

"And a good thing to not spread around too much," said Dumbledore, his blue eyes twinkling.

"Oh, of course, of course not," said Hermione, turning pink.

"Now, tell me, what is the problem?" He looked deliberately at Harry. Harry had settled back into his chair, and was clutching his arm tightly against his body. He had started to shake a bit. He hadn't realized what emotions this office would stir in him. The memories of the last time he was here, when he had practically torn the office apart in his anger. Less than an hour after Sirius had died….

"Harry? Are you all right?" Dumbledore stood up and waved his wand. A tea tray appeared on his desk and he quickly poured and nodded to Hermione, who pressed a cup into Harry's hands.

Harry gratefully took a drink of tea. "I'm fine….well, the arm still hurts, and my legs are a bit sore, but it's all fine. That's not the problem anyway. I wanted to talk to you about what happened before my accident. Right before it."

Dumbledore folded his hands and leaned back in his chair.

"Go on, Harry."

"Well, first I … I mean we have some questions…."

Dumbledore nodded. "Continue."

"Well," began Harry, "how did my guard work? At Privet Drive, I mean?"

Amazingly, Professor Dumbledore answered without questioning his reason for wanting to know. "The Order maintained a 24-hour guard at #4 Privet Drive. We broke the watch into six-hour shifts. There was an active guard member there at all times with a designated back-up who could apparate in at a moment's notice."

"So…Bill was on guard when I had my accident then? And Remus was the back-up?"

"That is correct," said the headmaster.

"Where did the guard hide?" asked Harry.

"It depended on the preferences of the person on watch," said Dumbledore. "I believe Bill was disillusioned behind the shrubbery. We have an invisibility cloak or two that we share, and some of the Order members prefer to patrol the perimeter of the yard wearing one. And, of course, there are other ways of making oneself unseen."

"So, how did Bill get Remus so fast?"

Dumbledore glanced over at Fawkes, his phoenix, who was on his perch eying the teens with tilted head.

"We have a warning system," he said simply.

Harry glanced over at Fawkes, remembering the night that Umbridge and her Inquisitorial Squad had broken up the DA meeting last year.

"Professor, right before my scar started hurting, I heard something…."

The headmaster leaned in and gazed at Harry.

"Go on, Harry," he said softly.

"It was a crack," explained Harry. "Like someone apparating. It happened after the cat jumped and scared me, but right before my scar started to hurt."

Dumbledore gazed at Harry a moment, then leaned back in his chair.

"Professor, if Bill was behind the shrubbery, then whatever….or whoever….this was…"

"Would have been right in Bill's sight," finished Ron.

The teens exchanged significant glances then looked up at Dumbledore expectantly. He sighed, then smiled as he looked back at Harry.

"You are correct, Harry," he said very calmly. "The sound you heard was the sound of someone apparating. We do not yet know who it was, however. According to Bill, a robed figure apparated onto the yard behind you. The cat jumping was coincidental, we believe, but may have saved your life as it startled whoever this was. According to Bill, he took a step or two backward and at that very moment you grabbed your head and fell into the street."

"What happened to him?" asked Harry. This was unbelievable. Another whole scene had been taking place behind his back and he hadn't had the least idea—but obviously the Order already knew.

"He ran," said Dumbledore. "Down the street. Bill didn't try to follow him—he had something else to take care of."

"Me," said Harry quite softly.

"He had his priorities straight," said Dumbledore looking at Harry and then at his friends.

"But, Professor," said Hermione. She had been uncharacteristically quiet all this time.

Professor Dumbledore inclined his head at her. "Yes, Miss Granger?"

"This person who apparated behind Harry—it wasn't someone from the Order, then?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "There would be no cause for someone from the Order to run."

Hermione glanced over at Harry, then back at Dumbledore.

"But it wasn't a Death Eater, was it?"

Dumbledore slowly shook his head. "No, we do not believe it was. It is also not likely that a Death Eater would have taken off running."

Harry's mouth had dropped open. Ginny and Ron were staring at Hermione. It was Harry who spoke next.

"It was someone from the Ministry, then, wasn't it?"

Dumbledore met Harry's eyes. Harry saw a sadness in them that he had seen before, but behind that sadness was a determination that was somehow encouraging.

"The Ministry is divided," answered the headmaster. "After the attack and battle at the Ministry in June, Cornelius Fudge has indeed acknowledged Voldemort's return."

He paused and Hermione gave a satisfied nod.

"However, Fudge is and always has been weak. He will soon be gone—any day now. We are confident that the new Minister will be chosen from the ranks of those who oppose Voldemort. But there is a smaller group that continues to support Fudge and that believes that I am the true enemy." He stopped talking and looked intently at the friends, tapping his index fingers together.

"And with you….me," guessed Harry.

Dumbledore nodded.

"And those who support you," added Ginny very quietly. "Like Dumbledore's Army. And Umbridge had the list…"

Again, Dumbledore nodded.

"It was Percy, wasn't it?" asked Ron suddenly. His hands were balled into fists and his face was pale.

Dumbledore's eyes narrowed and he looked at Ron intently then answered in a voice that didn't quite hide the emotion within.

"It may have been, Mr. Weasley. In fact, Bill seems quite convinced that the wizard that apparated behind Harry was indeed your brother Percy."

"But…but….my scar…" said Harry. Percy was a git and didn't like him for sure, but how far would he go? Could he be a Death Eater?

Dumbledore shifted his measured gaze from Ron to Harry.

"The explanation we would all like to believe is that the apparation of this …. person…had nothing to do with your scar hurting. However, it is certainly more likely that the two were indeed related. Voldemort was feeling strong emotion…"

"Maybe he was feeling strong emotion because someone had been sent by the Ministry to get me," said Harry. A wave of anger was rising inside him and he was trying, quite unsuccessfully, to squash it.

"That is indeed likely," agreed Dumbledore. "But perhaps the person wasn't exactly sent. He may have been forced…"

"Could Percy have been under the Imperius curse?" asked Hermione

Professor Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, our belief is that Percy, or whoever this was if not him, was sent to Privet Drive on orders to kidnap him. He would not have been able to apparate out with an underaged wizard without detection so leaving on foot to a more secure meeting place would be a viable plans. The Imperius curse leaves its victims confused, fighting an inner battle. Flight on foot is more likely as the muddled mind is so utterly focused on the imposed task that logic is often lost when the task is interrupted. A wizard forgetting to apparate and relying on more base physical actions such as running is a feasible scenario."

"Wait a minute," said Harry, going back to something the headmaster had just said. His mind worked furiously and he looked up at Dumbledore with a puzzled expression. "You just said he wouldn't have been able to apparate with an underaged prisoner. Is that really why…why…."

"Why Professor Snape portkeyed with you here instead of apparating?," finished Dumbledore.

Harry nodded dumbly.

"Partially. Frankly, we were concerned that you could be traced if you used your own magic to travel…and yes, even side-along apparition requires some of your own. With the state of things at the Ministry, it would not be inconceivable that you would again be prosecuted for underage use of magic. Furthermore, apparition exerts a great deal of pressure on the body. Even though it is generally not life-threatening, you had extensive injuries which would certainly have worsened had you apparated and that may have become critical."

"But carrying someone while you portkey is dangerous," said Hermione. "It's rarely done, isn't it?" She looked up at Dumbledore for confirmation.

"You are correct, Miss Granger. Portkeying while holding on to an injured or incapacitated person is very rare indeed. It is not without risk either….great risk…to both parties. It is done only in cases of extreme emergency by the most gifted—and brave—wizards and witches. In this case, it was the only viable option. While portkeys can be traced, those who use them cannot as the magic comes from the spell used to create the portkey, not from those using it."

"Have you done it?" asked Harry. "Carried someone by portkey?"

Dumbledore fixed his gaze on him. His blue eyes locked with the boy's green ones.

"I have. One time." He still remembered the weight of the barely conscious body in his arms, how he had picked the bleeding body up without thought of danger and only when it was over had he realized what a risk he had taken.

"Then why didn't…"

"I will discuss that with you at a different time, Harry," said the headmaster quite softly. Harry knew the conversation was over, but he locked gazes with Dumbledore for a moment more, searching for something….anything….. Dumbledore allowed the contact, returning the stare for a moment before he stood up and continued. "Harry, please have Madam Pomfrey look at that arm again after lunch and give you something for the pain."

"Yes sir," answered Harry, breaking eye contact reluctantly.

They stood and made their way to the office door, silently riding the spiral staircase down to the gargoyles. They were all very quiet until they were out of sight of the statues and around a corner. That's when Ron punched the wall.

"Git!" he yelled, punching it again. "Traitor! Conniving little…"

"Stop!" said Ginny, grabbing Ron's hand. Harry moved in front of him to try to calm him down but Ron was still going at it and managed to punch him in the side.

"Oooof!" said Harry, dropping to his knees. Hermione pulled Ron off and put her arms around him, enveloping him in a tight comforting hug while Ginny dropped down next to Harry.

"Oh, Harry!" she exclaimed. "Are you OK? I'm sure he didn't mean…"

"Fine. I'm fine," he wheezed. "Help me up…I know he didn't mean to punch me." He held out his good hand and she pulled him to his feet, tucking an arm around his waist to give him a bit of support.

"Sorry mate," said Ron, looking over Hermione's shoulder. She was still hugging him fiercely. "I didn't mean…I mean….that GIT! If I EVER see him again…"

"Ron!" threatened Hermione as Ron's fists began flailing again.

"You two go on ahead," said Ginny, pulling Harry back to stand against the wall. "We'll meet you there in a few minutes. And Ron, CALM DOWN! He was under the Imperius Curse for goodness sake!"

Ron sheepishly let Hermione lead him away while Ginny and Harry leaned quietly against the wall.

"He's your brother too," said Harry at last. "You should be worried…"

Ginny looked down at the floor. "I am worried," she said. "But Percy's in adult, and Imperius or not, he's chosen his path." She looked sideways at him and caught his eye. "You, on the other hand, don't seem to get a choice." She sighed.

Harry stared at her. She was right. He had no choice. Not really. The prophesy would dictate his life until it was fulfilled.

He took a deep breath. His arm hurt, and now his side hurt as well. He felt Ginny's arm tighten around him and he gratefully leaned into her as they walked together toward the Great Hall for lunch.