Hello, folks! Sorry 'bout how long it took me to get this up. I've been trying for a week, but wouldn't let me. Expect monthly updates to the story. I'll try and make them a bit longer than this, but I've recently come across a little beauty called the Nintendo Wii. Time is even more difficult to find than before!

Myrr: Well, you don't have to worry about it becoming a slash fic, I can tell you that. Harry/Hermione might happen at some point. I'm keeping my options open.

Draghknar: Why, thank you.

Gohan'slittlebro47: Couldn't apply any of your advice to this chapter, mate. Too much to do. Next time, I promise.

And now, to the story.

Chapter 6: Another Happy Landing

"Eh?" Grunted out Murray, dragging his eyes lazily towards Harry. He toyed with the idea of apologizing for attacking him, before deciding against it.

"Remus Lupin. Where is he?"

Murray raised an eyebrow in annoyance, looking at Harry.

"Who the hell is Remus Lupin?"

Harry reached into his back pocket, pulling out a weathered brown leather wallet. He opened it, poked aside a few dollar bills before pulling out a worn picture. It was of himself and Remus, taken shortly before Harry had left for France. Remus and Harry were wrestling in the yard in front of the Burrow, laughter etched on their moving faces. Hermione had taken the picture.

Showing it to Murray, Harry maintained a stony expression as Murray's countenance brightened in recognition. Harry felt his patience begin to fray as Murray just continued looking at the picture, not saying anything. Finally, Harry cracked.

"Well?"

Murray wrenched his gaze from the picture, and looked Harry in the eye.

"I know him."

Harry waited for Murray to expand and when he didn't, he began forward menacingly, Sirius and James both behind him, expressions of equal impatience on their faces. Then Murray began again.

"Died again. 2nd death. Pissed off some vampire. Got his jugular ripped apart. The vamp got worse. You never will, and you shouldn't ever want to see him again. Where he is makes Hades look like a theme park."

Harry closed his eyes briefly, before shaking his head and looking up again. Sirius had fallen back onto a pantry, holding onto it for support. James was being supported by Lily. Tonks just stood behind Harry.

"A…again?" James gasped. Murray nodded stonily, before looking back up at the ceiling.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

Harry turned around, his hands balled into fists. He walked towards the nearest wall, and slammed his fist into it. Once. Twice.

He punched the wall a third time before going limp against it, pressing his forehead against the flowered wallpaper.

Tonks stepped towards him, and placed a hand on his shoulder. A barely audible 'god damnit' was heard before Harry turned back around, full composed once more.

"Alright… Alright… I'm good. I'm good."

Tonks cast him a lingering look, before going back to the kitchen door. Harry sat on a sofa across from Murray, and paused to collect his thoughts.

"So what happens when somebody goes to wherev-" Harry began, before Murray interjected.

"We call it the Other Place. And nobody knows, except for those who've gone there, and when they go, they don't come back. Ain't no such thing as a ghost of a ghost."

Harry nodded, another moment of sadness washing over him for a moment before he smiled sadly.

"Then it could be a better place then here."

"Could be. Personally, I don't plan on finding out." Murray said, before lying back down on the couch, and gluing his eyes to the ceiling again. Harry kept his gaze on Murray, falling into his chair just a little. Sirius and James were standing, their mouths opening and closing, trying to say something, then thinking better of it.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Lily took her husband by the hand, and led him back into the kitchen. Sirius followed the two. Harry stood as his parents left through the door, and walked into the foyer. Tonks followed Harry.

Harry sat on the staircase and took a deep breath before looking dully at the doorway. Tonks sat beside him quietly, not wanting to disturb his reverie.

"I wonder if it hurts more. Knowing I'll never get the chance to see him again, short of leaving my parents. I mean, I've got along fine since he died, haven't I?"

Tonks looked at Harry, and brushed her fingers against his. She smiled when his eyes slid away from the ceiling and connected with hers.

"I'm here for you, Harry."

Harry leaned towards her, just a little, and Tonks leaned forward as well, and their lips brushed, just for a second, before they moved apart. Harry retreated, just a little, and smothered Tonks with his eyes.

"I know." And he then stood up, and walked into the kitchen.

Tonks meanwhile, lit up like a light bulb as she realized what had just come to pass between her and the boy of her dreams.

41 hours left…

A tattered boy stood on a street corner in London, a little cart beside him, weighed down with the evening edition. He was calling out, at the top of his voice, the night's headlines, only stopping to thank those leaving him tips.

"Muggle Madness: Muggle Minister Murdered!, Harry Potter, A Martyr, A Hero, A Friend, and A Lover: Interviews with his friends, and girlfriends! …Thank ya, guv'na. Voldemort Strikes A- y'have a nice night, madam! –gain! Friends of our Hero dying one by one! Oi, watch were you're going, eh?!"

A disheveled man wearing a green bowler hat had run into the paper boy, and was now uttering apologies, offering the youth his hand. The boy took it, and pulled himself to his feet.

"Fancy buyin' a paper? Big news today!" The hatted man stared at the boy incredulously, before shaking his head, as though clearing it, before reaching into his back pocket to retrieve some loose change.

He handed the boy 7 knuts, and grabbed a paper with his other hand, before hurrying off, acknowledging the boys thanks with a wave of his hand. He burst into the Leaky Cauldron, and let out a breath at the familiar scene of Tom the Barman throwing out drinks to fill his orders. The man took upon a stool by the bar, and rapped his knuckles on the table, nodding at Tom as he looked at him.

"Mr. Fudge! Ain't seen you round since you got sacked! 'Ow you been?"

Cornelius Fudge, deposited his paper on the bar, before responding.

"Been traveling, Tom. Big world, little England. This place has gone to hell since I left, I suppose? Think I could get a fire whiskey? We can drink to the end of the world if it tickles your fancy."

Tom nodded, filling 2 glasses to the brim, and bringing one of them over to Tom, and the other to an overzealous patron. He yelled he was taking a break, and that this would be the last round for 10 minutes, before fulfilling the onrush of orders that came to the bar, and sidling over the Cornelius, a butter beer in hand.

"Cheers, Cornelius."

The two men clinked their glasses, before taking a long draught from them. Tom glanced a peep the paper that Fudge was absently fondling as he sipped from his fire whiskey.

"What're the day's headlines, then? More doom and gloom, no doubt."

Fudge looked at the paper, as though surprised it was there, before beginning to unroll.

"Not rightly sure. I'll check, shall I?"

He flattened the paper out, and began reciting the headlines out to Tom.

"…and it seems that some of Mr. Potter's friends have died."

Tom looked up from his drink curiously.

"Oh? Which ones? Mr. Potter kept some good, quality company he did. Great bunch of folks."

Fudge surveyed the two pictures beside the article, before shrugging. He got a strange sense of familiarity, but he hadn't been in the country for 6 years or so, so he couldn't really be sure who they were. Instead, he turned the paper around to allow Tom to inspect the pictures of the wavy haired blonde, and the straight haired brunette.

Tom choked on his drink, causing some of the butter beer he was drinking to go back into his glass.

"Aw, naw. Not Ms. Granger n' Ms. Delacour! Those two were wonderful little lassies, and damn pretty to boot. Did this old face of mine good to see those two walkin' in here everyday. Butter beer n' coffee, always the same order. S'a real shame, a real shame. Wonder what they were doin' round each other. Seems to me that the few times they were in my little shop together they tried their best to stay the hell away from each other."

Cornelius took another sip from his drink, and shrugged.

"Voldemort attacked the coffee house they were at, it appears."

Tom sighed, and leaned into his elbows.

"Course' he did. Bastard."

Fleur flickered her eyes open, and groaned softly, rolling over to push her face into the soft cushion she seemed to be lying on. Murmuring, she turned back over, and sat up, and was greeted by the smiling face of Hermione Anne Granger.

"You even groan sexy, Fleur."

Fleur chuckled, and leaned her head against the purple wall behind her. She cast a glance around the room, raising her eye at the violent purple colouring of the room.

"An' where ec'zactly are we, Ms. Granger?"

"Dead, I imagine. Voldemort messed us up pretty good, didn't he?"

Fleur let out another chuckle, before groaning as she overexerted herself.

"Zis' explains ze pain, no?"

Hermione laughed, and leaned back against the wall behind her, letting her legs hang over the 'bed' she sat on.

"Oo'evair designed this place had ze 'orst sense of style. Evair." Stated Fleur blankly, looking at the walls around her. Hermione nodded absently. They both sat there for a few minutes in silence, before a hole began to burn through one of the walls. Even then, the only speech they made was commenting on how good the purple looked after being burnt through. They listened as their guide gave them a speech, detailing that they were dead, and now about to head to metropolis. They chatted mildly as they stood in line, waiting to enter through the gates of Metropolis.

They offered the goblins standing around the gate their names courteously, before walking through the door, their guide right behind them.

"I like 'zis place!" exclaimed Fleur as they stepped out of the portal, and into Metropolis' central square. Hermione couldn't help but agree as she looked at the mix of various cultures in this one little square. Off to the corner was a building very much inspired by the Taj Mahal, and right beside that a tall building of English influence, and just beside that a building built to a French style.

"So, ladies, know any dead people? I'll lead you to em' and they can show you roun' town, eh?" Fleur and Hermione both looked at each other, then at the guide, before speaking at the exact same time.

"Harry Potter." The guide, a man with a pig's head, dressed in a slick black suit, politely inquired about spelling, before punching the name into the little computer embedded into his arm.

"Mmmm… Seems to be a new death then… Hold on, let me call… Yeah! Yep. Harry Potter." He looked at Hermione and Fleur and mouthed 'Black hair, green eyes?' they both nodded. "Yep. That's the one. Still with his guide, eh? Quad 4, Zone 3? 732 Illsbury. Alright. Thanks, Xerculon. There's a poker ga- oh, sorry, can't make it. Gotta please the missus. Alright, cya."

The guide tapped a red button on his computer, before nodding and motioning for Fleur and Hermione to follow him as he walked down the northwestern road. Both of the two stunning ladies could barely contain themselves, and were now speaking animatedly to each other. A few minutes later, and some moments where their guide looked hopelessly lost, Fleur and Hermione were standing on the doorstep of 732 Illsbury, a house inspired by the Victorian era, and looking very similar to Godric's Hollow, saying their goodbye's to the pig-headed guide.

As the character left, Hermione nervously raised her hand to the door, and rapped her knuckles against it. Fleur stood beside her, a nervous energy burning in her eyes. The two were ready for most anything.

But they were most certainly not ready to see the sight that they did see. James Potter had pulled open the door, and over his shoulder, Harry was holding hands with a bubble gum haired witch, who Hermione recognized as Tonks. And identical thoughts crossed the two witch's minds as they saw this.

WHAT?!!?!

Harry's eyes shot out of skull, although in a completely figurative sense, when he saw the two women standing in the doorway. He quickly let go of Tonks' hand upon seeing Fleur, and braced for a screeching when he saw Hermione. Tonks looked highly offended.

Fleur pushed James out of the way, fire leaping around her aqua eyes, ridged spikes forming on her back. With every step she took, the ridges grew more pronounced, until she was right in front of him, and wings had burst through the back of her robes. Flames danced around her hands.

Hermione had also stalked forward, knocking James, who had already been off balance due to Fleur's shove, to the floor. Harry had never thought that a girl as petit as Hermione would scare him more than Voldemort ever had. His eyes jumped to the wand in Hermione's hand, to the flames in Fleur's to the angered features of Tonks, before looking straight up and whispering.

"What'd I ever do to you, man?"

Then Fleur grabbed Harry by the collar, and slammed him up against the wall, rage burning through her eyes. Hermione positioned her wand in the gap between Fleur's neck and shoulder, pointed directly a Harry's face.

"Uh… hi?" Harry plastered his best cheesy grin on his face, pushing his hands against the wall, trying to eject his wands from their holsters. He had no plan on hurting this two, but they certainly looked like they planned on hurting him.

Tonks went from angry at Harry, to angry at Fleur and Hermione. Where the fuck did they get off slamming her man into a wall?!?

"Hey, what the f-" Tonks' protest was cut short by Lily clamping her hand over her mouth, shaking her head furiously, and whispering.

"No, no, no, no. I sense my son hasn't been entirely honest with you. Or either of these two girls."

Sirius who had come running into the foyer upon hearing James crash to the ground, burst out in laughter, with his best friend joining him only moments later.

In unison, the elder duo roared, and roared, and roared at Harry's predicament.

"Looks like Harry figured out how to score himself a Veela!" laughed Sirius, talking about Fleur, hanging onto the wall for support through his peals of laughter. "But he wasn't smart enough to figure out not to piss her off!"

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned!" roared James. But James' laughter came to an abrupt halt when his wife's gaze burned a figurative hole into his skull. Sirius, of course, just kept laughing. Lily began to stalk over to her husband, seemingly set to kill.

"Er… Should I set up the couch? … I love y-… Don't hurt me!"

A/N: Harry/Hermione is a possibility in this fic. I just want to keep my roads open. See ya next month, folks. I might even have a little present for you if I can get around to it. And thanks to my lovely beta readers!