Venus spent her days at Shell Cottage, in the gardens with Luna and Dean. Ollivander had made Luna a new wand, before he was moved to Muriel's and Luna enjoyed making streams of bubbles from her wand, as Dean (who was wandless) watched forlornly.
Venus couldn't help her mind wondering to Neville. With Ginny gone, Neville was all alone as ring leader of the DA, and Venus was sure that the Carrows would target him.
She still carried her DA coin in her pocket, it burnt hot from time to time, with messages that the DA (the ones still at Hogwarts) were giving eachother. This was the only reassurance that Venus had about if Neville was alive or not.
Hermione, Harry and Ron had been spending days locked in a room with the Goblin, seeming to plot something. Sirius spent his entire time trying to overhear what they were saying, which annoyed the trio to great lengths.
"Dad, I think you should leave it," Venus suggested, one afternoon when she and Sirius were in the kitchen, preparing dinner. Venus was sipping Wolfsbane, and making strange faces each time she took another sip.
"I don't, I want to know what they're up to!" Sirius growled, "I'm out of the loop with everything!"
Later, when everyone was sat down for dinner there was a loud knock on the door.
"Who is it?" Bill demanded, he had raised his wand and pointed it at the door. All of the rest of them had mirrored him.
"It is I, Remus John Lupin," said a voice, Venus's stomach dropped, if Remus was there, that meant that something had happened, "I am a werewolf, married to Nymphadora Tonks, and the secret keeper of Shell Cottage told me the address and bade me come in an emergency!"
"Moony!" Sirius pulled the door open.
Lupin tumbled into the room, looking breathless, "it's a boy! We've named him Ted after Dora's father!"
"Tonks had the baby?" Sirius was grinning from ear to ear at the news.
"Yes she had the baby!" Lupin smiled.
"Congratulations!"
"Blimey, a baby?" Ron mused as if he'd never heard of such a thing.
Lupin strode around the table towards where Venus and Harry sat.
"You two will be Godparents?" He asked them excitedly.
"What?" Venus blinked.
"M-me?" Harry stammered.
"Yes of course! Dora quite agrees- no one better-"
It was as if for that night only, the war that was raging around them ceased, and a small pocket of happiness had grown around them. Just for that night.
********
Harry, Ron and Hermione departed the cottage without warning not long after. They took the goblin with them and didn't tell anyone where they were going.
But soon the news got back to those who remained in Shell Cottage that there had been a break in at Gringotts, which was thought to have been orchestrated by none other than Harry Potter.
"Those three." Sirius shook his head when he heard the news, "they know that I would've loved to break in to Gringotts, but do they invite me- no they don't."
Short chapter! How many more chapters do you think there will be? (hint, I'm going over 100)
Remeber to vote, comment and (if you haven't already) check out Marlene which is the prequel to this book!
~Em xx