A Surprise for Andromeda

Ron opened the door quietly. He would have knocked, but it was not quite seven a.m., and he did not want the verbal lashing from Hermione that was sure to come if he woke Teddy up. Setting his broom and a bag of Quaffles down in the hall, he followed the sound of voices to the sitting room.

"Hey, Harry, why are...oh, blimey." Ron stared at them all, mouth agape.

"Ron! You're back; wonderful!"

"Harry, how?" Harry grinned at him.

"How was the match?"

"Don't be mean, Harry." Sirius stepped forward. "Good to see you again, Ron. In case you were wondering, Teddy found a way to work the Resurrection Stone; he's brought us back." Ron was incredulous, but there was Sirius before him, looking just as he did the last time he had seen him. Tonks and Remus too. He leaned forward and gripped Sirius' outstretched hand, still shaking his head, but smiling nonetheless.

After a round of greetings, Ron punched his best friend in the arm. "Some funny joke, mate."

"Ron!" Hermione entered the room followed by a strangely familiar, dark haired man.

"Oof!" She threw herself at him, hugging him tightly. When she finally let him go, she stepped back and gestured to the man.

"Ron, this is Regulus, Sirius' brother." He shook hands with the man. So this was the infamous R.A.B. What was his hand doing on Hermione's shoulder?

-o-O-o-

"So, Tonks, do you still have the Stone?"

"Yes, in my pocket." She drew it out. "Here."

"Wow!" Hermione peered into her outstretched hand. "It didn't look like that before."

Harry's fingers ran over the newly exposed surface. "It's warm."

"Yes, I thought it was because of the water, but it's really only warm on the inside. I was just holding it and telling Teddy about his grandfather when..."

"Hang on. You had the Stone when Ted came back?"

"Well, yes."

"So anyone can use it?"

Sirius snatched the Stone from her and held it tightly in his hand.

"James Potter."

Nothing.

"Maybe only a Metamorphmagus can do it," Hermione said as she patted Harry on the back. Sirius handed the Stone back to Tonks. She took a deep breath and pressed her thumb on the open surface. It was not quite as warm as before.

"James Potter."

Nothing.

"I don't know; I'm sorry, Harry." She frowned and handed it to Harry, who took it dejectedly. He held it tightly in his fist and closed his eyes.

When the crack sounded, Hermione screamed.

-o-O-o-

Ted, Regulus, Hermione, Ron, Tonks and Teddy all sat around the kitchen table. James had been quite jumpy when he returned, his last memory having been confronting Voldemort, so they decided it was best to have only Lily's friends present when Harry brought her back.

Ron was still trying to cope with what was going on, as was Ted. Hermione and Regulus were not fazed anymore. No one really spoke until shrieking broke out in the next room.

"Sounds like Lily's back."

"Why can Harry do it if we can't?" Tonks nodded to the boy in her father's lap.

Hermione opened her mouth to speculate, but Regulus interrupted her.

"Blood relatives."

"I think he's right; it's the only connection I've been able to come up with too."

Ron scowled a bit when Regulus patted Hermione's leg under the table. They were awfully chummy. Not that he cared, they were over ages ago, but still, who was this git anyway?

"Obviously, it doesn't have to be a close relative; I mean Regulus and I are only second cousins."

"But the Blacks are inbred." Everyone looked at Ron, who realized that may not have come out how he meant it to. "No offence, mate, but it is true."

Regulus only shrugged. Mum referred to it as linebreeding, but he wasn't going to split hairs.

Remus peeked in the kitchen. "It's safe to come in now."

-o-O-o-

Hermione was quite taken aback. Harry did look like his father and really did have his mother's eyes. No wonder people never let up on him about it. They seemed rather nice, still stunned, but nice. Harry was beyond ecstatic, and she did feel happy for him, but the mystery of the Stone was gnawing at her. She felt helpless with no known reference about it either.

"Harry, may I see it?"

"Huh?"

"May I see the Stone please?"

"Oh, right, here, Hermione." She held it as best as possible; the center seemed to burn hot.

"How did it work before?" She had to ask him twice since he was focused on his parents again.

"Turn it over three times and think about the people you want to see." Ron recognized the look on her face.

"Here," and he pulled her by the elbow into the hall, "if you are going to try something, maybe it's best out here."

"Or here." She led him to Tonks' old room, which was not so ominous anymore. "I'm not sure if this will work."

"Are you going to bring back Dumbledore?"

"Even if this works for me, I'm not sure that would be ethical. He was dying, Ron; I would hate to bring him back only for him to die again." Ron nodded. Leave it to Hermione to think of that. His own mind did not have to wander far to think of whom he wanted to bring back.

She held the Stone as Harry had, making sure to touch the center. Her eyes closed, and her hand clenched, but nothing happened. Cautiously, she opened one eye, then the other. She looked into Ron's face. He only shook his head. Taking a deep breath, she turned the Stone slowly in her hand.

The translucent form of Severus Snape appeared before her.

"Bloody hell."

"What do you want, Miss Granger?" Even in the afterlife, her former professor held no enthusiasm for seeing her. "And where are you?" He looked around the room, obviously disgusted at being subjected to the violent pinks and purples.

"Is this really you or just an imprint of you?" Ron snorted, having a flashback to his sixth year Defense Against the Dark Arts class. The semi-opaque Severus eyed her warily.

"Only you would ask that question, Miss Granger." He shrugged. "Very well then, the real soul of Severus Snape is dead and not subject to the trivial curiosities of Gryffindors. I, however, am a mere shadow of him, much like the portraits that I am quite sure you are familiar with."

Hermione swallowed nervously before asking, "Do you have any living relatives?" Again, he eyed her warily. Was it possible for a shade of a person to use Legilimency?

"Whatever your plans are, Miss Granger, do remember, some things are better off left alone. Death is not such an incomprehensible horror as some believe it to be. You will experience it yourself one day." She and Ron were rather dumbfounded. A small knock at the door made them both jump.

"Thank you, Professor, for everything." With that, she loosened her grip on the Stone, and the apparition before them faded away.

"Come in." Her voice faltered. Regulus opened the door cautiously. He noticed Ron was in the room as well and tried to quell the jealousy rising in him.

"I was just worried; you disappeared rather suddenly." Again, he was looking at Ron, who rather secretly enjoyed making Regulus squirm.

"Sorry, there was just someone I needed to talk to." She held the Stone out to Ron. "I believe you'll be needing this."

"Thanks, Hermione." He hugged her tightly and not solely to annoy Regulus.

"Come on, Regulus, let's go see the others." She led him out of the room, leaving Ron to make his decision.

-o-O-o-

It had been a long day, and quite frankly Hermione was pleased to have some time to herself to sort her thoughts. Upon returning to the sitting room after a slight detour with Regulus to the coat closet, she found Harry composing a letter to Kingsley. She volunteered to go speak to him in person. And she had quite a story to tell him too.

Regulus had wanted to come with her, and truthfully, she would have liked that. However, unlikely as it was that he would be recognized, it was too risky. So instead she Apparated to the Ministry alone and made her way to the Minister's office. Her involvement in the war gave her the freedom to gain audience with him with little trouble. Especially when she came bearing a missive from Harry Potter.

"Hermione, my dear, what is so important that you came to see me personally?"

"Well, Minister Shacklebolt," and he gave her a friendly scowl for addressing him so formally, "Harry, Ron and I have a bit of a situation on our hands. It seems we had a little mishap with a very powerful magical object, and we, well, we sort of brought several Order members back from the dead." She spoke the last part so quickly, Kingsley wasn't sure he heard right.

"You what?"

"Um, we brought some people back from the dead." Had she been anyone but Hermione Granger, she would have undoubtedly been chucked out of the Ministry building forthwith. "I brought a letter from Harry in case you don't believe me. I wouldn't blame you; I wouldn't believe me either." She nibbled nervously on her bottom lip while he read the letter over. When he finished, he set the parchment down and stared at her blankly. "Perhaps you would like to come with me?" she asked.

-o-O-o-

Andromeda was a bit jarred from the Portkey, but otherwise in good spirits when she walked down the street to her house. She was anxious to see her grandson again; however, she would not deny how much she had enjoyed the week of peaceful relaxation on the Continent.

Voices from the direction of the sitting room startled her when she opened the door. Harry had Teddy with him at Grimmauld Place, so the house should be empty. She drew her wand and crept up to the half opened sitting room door. She recognized Harry's voice and that of...Kingsley Shacklebolt? What was going on? Deciding it was safe, she lowered her wand and entered the room. That is when she saw him. Her pulse raced, and her face and hands started to numb.

"'Dromeda!" She was ghostly white.

"Mum!"

Ted rushed forward just in time to catch his wife before she hit the ground. "Well, that went better than expected."

-o-O-o-

Tonks fanned her mother's face as she slowly came to. "Mum, are you all right?" She didn't answer, only reaching up to touch her daughter's face as if to confirm it was truly her. Soon, the two were embracing and sobbing madly. Ted sat next to them and held them both.

When she finally gathered herself, wiping her eyes with a kerchief provided by Remus, she spoke. "Oh, I thought I'd lost you two forever. And you, Remus." When she looked up to acknowledge her son-in-law, she noticed the others in the room. Kingsley stood beside Harry and Sirius, who was smiling with a hint of a tear in his eye. Beside him were James and Lily Potter, Regulus, who she had not seen since he was a child, and Hermione. On the other side of the room were the Prewett brothers, Gideon and Fabian, joined by Ron and what appeared or rather she hoped was Fred Weasley.

Andromeda's mouth hung open in shock. Tonks began to fan her again in case she fainted. "But, how, how is all this possible?"

-o-O-o-

After a careful explanation of the origin of the Stone and what they could figure about it so far, Andromeda sat thoughtfully in her chair. She lifted her teacup to her mouth, lowering it without drinking. She raised it again, but once more didn't drink.

"So you believe that the true Stone lay beneath the surface all the time?"

"Yes," Harry answered, "I doubt Death believed that Cadmus Peverell would know to crack the Stone open or even have the ability, but technically, he did give him something that would resurrect the dead."

"Sounds like Death's style," snorted Fred.

"Yeah," Ron counted off on his fingers, "let's see, give him what he asked, but only after it's been etched on, harbored a bit of human soul, been hacked into with a basilisk venom flavored sword and eaten away by the stomach acid of an eighteen-month-old boy. He'll never think of that."

Hermione shook her head and tried to hide her amusement. "I doubt it was that specific."

Finally managing a sip, Andromeda set her cup down on one of the delicate tables by her chair. "The point is what do we do now?"

That earned a round of silence from the rest of the group.

Kingsley finally spoke. "I will go back to the Ministry and put the Unspeakables to work on it. This reaches into their territory." He looked to Harry. "I would like to turn the Stone over to them, for study, maybe they can..."

"Harry." Hermione spoke in a small voice to her friend. She had told him of her experience in Tonks' room and her opinion on the matter.

"I'm sorry, Kingsley. As much as I wish for everyone to be able to use it, it is just too dangerous, especially if it were to fall into the wrong hands. Even in the right hands, it is enough to drive anyone mad. I think it ought to be destroyed, or hidden."

Kingsley nodded; he knew that was the answer he was going to get in the first place, but it did not hurt to ask. "I trust you to do that, Harry."

He nodded, fingers brushing the now cold Stone in his pocket. He knew just the place. The same place he had hidden the Elder Wand.

-o-O-o-

Andromeda was in no mood to be alone after the recently returned were shuffled off to the Ministry to meet with the Unspeakables. They then had to spend the night at St. Mungo's, enduring all manner of tests.

She and Hermione shared stories well into the night after Harry left to hide the Stone and Ron returned to the Burrow to prepare his family, namely his mother, for the return of her son and brothers. After putting Teddy down for the night, she told her all her favorite stories of Sirius and Regulus as children, then of her elopement with Ted and subsequent exodus from the Black family. Hermione told her all about their search for the Horcruxes and Hallows, especially the part where she had impersonated her sister using Polyjuice potion. Eventually, Hermione returned bleary eyed to Grimmauld Place to find Harry already back from Hogwarts and in bed himself.

The sound of the door opening midmorning distracted her from her packing. After the last 48 hours, her quiet flat would be a blessed relief.

She came downstairs to find Harry trying to usher his parents and the Black brothers in quietly so as to not disturb Mrs. Black's portrait. Sirius was grinning from ear to ear.

"They came up with a story for us," Lily explained. "Sirius managed to escape the veil and brought us all back with him."

"They figured since my name was going to draw a lot of attention anyway, might as well have it be for bringing people back to life instead of killing them. It will also keep the public eye away from Teddy. You know what a burden that can be, Harry."

"Plus," James added, "he's connected to everyone brought back, through blood or friendship."

"Or both," Sirius added, giving his brother a nudge.

"Well, come on then, Kreacher has been cooking all morning for you. I guess Number Twelve is yours again." Sirius made a face.

"Are you kidding? I am going house hunting with Lily and James as soon as I empty a few plates in the kitchen!" His enthusiasm made everyone laugh. "It's all yours, Regulus!" With that, he bounded down the stairs, followed closely by the Potters.

Hermione realized she and Regulus were finally alone. "Well, welcome home then." She fidgeted a bit. "I suppose we should get down to the kitchen while there is still food left."

"Yes, I suppose."

They were in each other's arms in an instant. He pressed her hard against the wall. They were kissing so intently, he did not notice the flutter of curtains behind him or pay any heed to his mother's screeching voice.

"FILTH! MUDBLOODS! SHAME OF...Regulus? Is that you, my boy? What are you doing with... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"