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Author: Velvethope Story: From Answers to Questions Rating: Teens Setting: Pre-HBP Status: Completed Reviews: 6 Words: 201,438
When Harry found the space where number seventy-two was supposed to be, he wasn’t disturbed when all that greeted his eyes was an empty lot. Using his wand, he sent a small puff of silvery-white smoke into the air to alert Remus that he had found what they were looking for. A few minutes later, the other man joined him. “Reckon that word on the paper is a password of sorts?” Harry asked Remus quietly, his heart pounding in his chest. Remus nodded. “More than likely to hide it from the neighbourhood. It may have other enchantments around it, but let’s try the easy way first.” Like he had done once before in his life, Harry thought about an address written on a piece of paper. He thought of the address and then the word written underneath it. His whispered voice sounded loud in the night as he uttered the word that made the house appear before them. Harry took a long look at the building and couldn't help but gasp; he'd seen this place before. The house shimmered briefly as it took shape before them, and even Harry had to marvel at how little space it took up, considering its size. The two Muggle buildings on either side of it seemed to shrink when compared to the mass of it. He turned and looked at Remus. “He left a painting of this house, in Winifred’s flat. He later made sure it disappeared, and now I’m wondering why he let us see it to begin with. Ginny had a really strong reaction to the painting.” Remus looked up at the house. “I don’t know why Dex has done any of the things he’s done, Harry. But let’s see if that password is all we need to get inside.” Harry nodded and they both advanced towards the front door. Remus moved his wand forward, as though testing the air for something. Harry didn’t get a sense that there was anything blocking the house. In fact, it seemed oddly...unprotected. Perhaps Dex had never dreamt that there would be someone else trying to get into it besides him. They walked to the front door and looked at each other. Harry shrugged and put his hand on the doorknob. With determination he turned it, half-expecting it to do nothing in response. Surely it would at least be locked? But when the door swung open easily, Harry knew with sudden insight that he was not about to find what he had been looking for - the house was empty. He knew it in his bones; Ginny wasn’t here, if she ever had been to begin with. Frustration screamed inside of him, and he didn’t realize that he had wrenched the door almost off its hinges until Remus put a hand on his shoulder. “There may still be more here than meets the eye. Don’t lose faith,” his old friend said softly to him. Harry swallowed hard and nodded his head. They lit their wands as they moved inside the darkened house. There was a grand staircase that arched upwards towards a second floor, splitting right and then left. Harry looked around the ground floor and realised there were no other rooms here; everything was up above them. Judging by the view from the outside that meant there were a lot of rooms they had to search. It would take them all night to go through the house. Remembering that the painting had shown one of the top most windows painted in red blood, perhaps starting from there and working their way down would be a good thing to try.... “Try a Locator Spell, Harry. It might work if we’re close enough to her,” Remus said after a moment, as they both looked up the winding stairway. Smacking himself for being an idiot, Harry doused his wand and then tried to clear his mind. The trick to a good and working Locator Spell was concentration. With a steady hand, he held his wand out in front of him and whispered the incantation. Then he added for good measure, “Take me to Ginny.” A small light appeared at the end of his wand, and Harry knew that if the spell was working, it would grow brighter. But after an initial surge, it darkened, and Harry’s hopes went with it. He had been right; she wasn’t here. Before Harry could break the spell, the wand seemed to jump in his hand and lean itself forward. Frowning, Harry moved with it, letting it guide him. Remus fell in step behind him. Up and up they went, passing by each landing as though it didn’t matter. When they reached the 5th floor the wand seemed to vibrate in Harry’s hand and he stopped. Turning to the right, Harry and Remus headed down a small hallway, Remus’s wand casting a ghostly light over the walls. Harry had a strange sense of foreboding in his stomach. The hallway had two rooms. The door to the first one, the nearest on the right, was open. The wand in Harry’s hand seemed to hum slightly as they stopped in front of it. With his foot he tapped the door to make it open further, and Remus used his wand to light the wall side candelabra. A flare of light filled the space. Inside the room Harry could see a small bed, its sheets stripped bare. There was nothing else in the room, but Harry had a sense that that had not always been the case. Remus walked over to the bed and looked around, using his wand. He looked at Harry. “Doesn’t seem to be anything other than a bed.” Harry nodded and looked around at the floor and walls. There were strange scuff marks against some of the walls, and he didn’t know what could make that sort of mark. As he turned towards the door again, the wand pulled harder in his hand, reminding him that there was another room to look at. He left Remus behind him as he moved to the next room, the light of the candles showing him that the door was tightly closed. A small voice in his head spoke up suddenly, and he tried to shake the thoughts away. What if she’s in there, lying silent and as cold as the grave? What if she’s dead? What am I going to do? Harry had been scared a lot of times in his life but nothing scared him more than the answer to those questions. He didn’t want to think of his life without Ginny; he’d had enough of that due to his own idiocy to last forever. With bravery he didn’t really feel, he put his hand on the doorknob and turned, the door creaking loudly in the silence. Nothing could have prepared Harry for what he found. *** Dex had a hard time hiding from everyone. It seemed every place he turned, he saw an Auror. Or someone who worked for the Ministry. Or worse yet, a Weasley. His face still smarted from what Fred and George had done to him before; he wasn’t looking for a rematch. Especially since he was wandless and still feeling woozy in the head. With frantic determination he somehow made it to the small section of east London that Louis had been calling home for the last year. It was late in the night or early into the morning, depending on which way you looked at it and for that, Dex was grateful. At least one thing was in his favour. He should be able to get to the house and confront Louis. Dex stopped as he thought it over. He didn’t have a wand and Louis was, magically speaking, definitely more powerful than he was. What did he hope to do if Ginny was there? Punch Louis out before the other man could stun him? Not likely. Cursing, Dex rested against a wall, trying to figure out what he could do. His head throbbed and the images that came when he closed his eyes confused him. His memory was coming back full force, but Dex didn’t know what was true or what was false. Maybe he could confront Louis and tell him he understood about what he had done. That he didn’t hold any ill will towards him. Maybe Louis would believe him. Yeah, right, a small voice in his head said sarcastically. Since when has Louis ever believed you? When have you ever been able to fool him? Sighing, Dex slid down the wall and hung his head in defeat. He almost missed noticing the man that was walking the way he had just come. The man’s walk was tentative and his manner unsure. When Dex finally realized someone was moving closer to him, he recognized the air of uncertainty about him and he also recognized something else. The man wasn’t a Muggle, and he had a wand. Not believing his luck, Dex held his breath and moved himself closer to the wall, trying to blend into the darkness as much as possible. He didn’t know if the man had seen him sitting there or not, and he wanted to be the one to do the surprising. When the man had almost reached his spot, Dex tensed himself, ready to jump. When his fist made contact with the other man’s chin, he mentally cheered to himself. After the scuffle ended and he looked down at whomever it was he had just clobbered, the cheering turned to shock. He had just knocked out Donald Fagan. *** Harry’s first thought when he could see into the room he’d just entered was this: It’s just like Hogwarts. But once his mind could understand what he was seeing, his second thought was much darker and more terrifying: Gods, look at all the blood. A surge of light off his wand barely registered in his mind. Instead, Harry felt his stomach heave and numbly tried to back out of the room. His back ran into something that had to be Remus, who was saying something in his ear, but Harry didn’t hear anything. He pushed past his friend and then fell against the wall across from the door, his head going down. He felt his stomach lurch into his throat and coughed, feeling the fear and bile mixing into one. He was amazed there was anything left in his stomach to get rid of; he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had any food. Harry felt a strange tightening around him. He slunk down lower and tried to hold onto the wall, to break his fall. He felt Remus’s hands around his shoulders, trying to right him. But Harry knew that nothing could ever be right again, not without her, not without Ginny. His mind flashed on the scene he had just seen and he choked again, the pain piercing his heart...piercing his soul. He heard a scream and realized it was coming from his own mouth, and then he knew and understood nothing. His mind floated into a sea of blackness, and he welcomed it greedily. He never wanted to open his eyes again. He didn’t want to know what all that blood meant. He didn’t want to believe that it was hers.... *** Dex dragged the body of Donald Fagan into a broken-down, abandoned warehouse. Using the other man’s wand, he tried to make sure Donald stayed asleep as long as possible. He did a brief Warding Spell, in case anyone happened to stumble onto him while he slept and then moved out again into the night. He didn’t know what Donald Fagan had been out here looking for; Louis had always said his father didn’t know about the house, and unless those two had finally started telling each other things, Dex couldn’t even begin to fathom the how or why of what Donald Fagan had been up to. He knew the wand wouldn’t work as well for him as it would for Donald, but it was nice to have it stuck tightly in his hand. At least maybe he’d have a chance to do something to Louis first this time around. And then maybe he could finally face the people that were after him. His mind still reeling, Dex made his way to the house on Wapping High Street, not aware that every single person he’d been trying to avoid was heading to the exact same place. *** Harry awoke with a start, his body sore and his head hurting. For one blissful moment he was unaware of the hell he had just left, and then it all came crashing back to him. He heard Remus saying something to him. “Harry! Snap out of it!” Harry opened his eyes and roughly pushed Remus’s hand away from him. Groaning, he tried to sit up, his stomach still queasy. But thankfully, the constriction he’d felt seemed to have passed. He glared angrily at Remus. “Why couldn’t you let me stay knocked out? You saw what was in that room! You saw all her...all the....” Harry couldn’t even bring himself to say it out loud. Remus looked pale in the light from the other candles he’d lit, and his eyes filled with sympathy as he looked at him. Harry felt anger and pain well up inside of him. He forced himself to stand and looked around for his wand. But he froze when Remus spoke again. “I don’t think she’s dead, Harry. I think someone...bled her to make us think that she was, but your wand went very bright when you entered the room. The Locator Spell still seems to be trying to work, and there’s no body in that room. And I found this....” Remus held out a small pouch, and Harry recognized it as the one that Ginny wore around her neck. It held the stone she used to ground herself. He had seen her use it once or twice. He grabbed it from Remus’s hand, crushing it in his fist. He pulled out the stone, and suddenly something unexpected happened; Harry could feel Ginny through the stone as sure as if she was standing in front of him. He had such a definite image of her in his mind that he couldn’t believe she wasn’t really there. As soon as it had flared to life in his hand, it went dark again, and the feeling that Ginny was near him abated. He stared at Remus, not certain what had just happened. Remus looked at him with wide eyes. “It did that for me too, although I don’t think quite as strongly. I think Ginny, because she is such a strong Seer, put a bit of herself into this stone for us. I think she left it as a clue. Or at least, to let us know she was still alive.” Nothing was making any sense to Harry. Before he could let the idea of what Remus had said sink into him, he heard loud noises down below. He recognized Bill and Arthur Weasley’s voices. His looked at Remus. “We can’t let them...see the room...they can’t see it this way.” He pleaded with his friend. “They can’t think she’s dead; I can’t let them think that.” Remus nodded at him. “Use your wand and clean it up a bit. I don’t think we should hide it all, but maybe you’re right. It may be too much for them at this point. I’ll go down and lead them up.” Remus turned and headed to the stairs, stopping and looking back at him. “Are you okay enough to do that, Harry?” Harry nodded, suddenly embarrassed for passing out the way he had. The feeling the stone had given him still echoed through him and all he could think was one thing: She’s still alive. *** Louis watched the passing countryside with a blank stare. His eyes weren’t really seeing anything at all; his mind was too full of plans and schemes to focus on the beauty of the dawn breaking across the Scottish moor land. Although he did realise somewhere in the back of his head that if Ginny were in the train car with him, she might actually enjoy the view. That is, if things were different and he hadn’t had to become what he was. Travelling to Scotland had been made necessary and indeed, he had been excited at the prospect and the promise it brought him. But in the harsh reality of light, Louis knew that returning home was also going to bring back things he’d much rather forget. To know that his mother was out there, just out of his grasp.... Louis forced the thought out of his mind and got up to check on his precious cargo. He had stuffed Ginny into an enlarged trunk and knocked her out; but still, the witch had proven rather hard to keep down, even with a four inch gash on her leg, designed to weaken her. Louis didn’t know where she got her strength, but he would soon be taking it away from her. He’d already taken away the stone she used. She had been grasping at it when he cut her and he had seized it, leaving it for the others to find. He wanted them to think the worst. Louis had loved Ginny from the moment he had noticed her; sometime during his fifth year and her sixth. He’d watched her from afar and desired her in a way that made him feel alive again. It had been a feeling that he hadn’t felt for a very long time. It had been a feeling that made him feel normal, for once. So he had tried to get close to her, but with everything else going on at the time, his attempts had proved quite pointless. It was only after the war was over that Louis ever managed to talk to her. He had tried to be nice, but Ginny had rejected him, running off to be with her older brother and Potter. Louis hadn’t realized at the time that Ginny fancied the other boy, but in retrospect he should have realized it. It didn’t matter anyway; Ginny was still his and had proved that she felt something too when she had taken him to her bed the next year. The memory of that was a bright spot in Louis’s mind. It was when he had realized his true nature; in that first spark of passion between them Louis had seen all that he needed. He wanted to own her, to control her. Possess her like he had never been allowed to do with anyone before. He had attempted a spell on Ginny, and it had backfired, but only because he had lacked the real conviction at the time. But it was then that he had realized that unless he took drastic measures, Ginny would never be completely his. Like his own mother before her, she would be taken from him unless he worked on the strength inside of him first. And it had led him to the path he now walked - even though it was a path that he knew no one else understood. Louis slipped quietly into the holding car and used his wand to open the trunk. She was still knocked out. Her hair had fallen forward over her face, and Louis was compelled to run his hands through it. She didn’t stir when he touched her, which meant the spell was still working. He checked the tightness of the rope and smiled to himself. Look Mother, I have her. She is mine and soon she will be mine in body and in soul. Completely. She will be all that you never could be. I will love her, and then I will make sure that no one can ever touch her again. His thoughts returning once again to his plans, Louis slipped back out of the holding car and returned to his cabin. They’d soon be arriving in Tormore, and then it was off to the island itself. He could hardly stand the wait. It would be good to see the stones again; it would be good to feel their power course through him.... Maybe it was because his mind was on more practical matters that Louis forgot one important thing: He couldn’t have Ginny absolutely and completely. He may have had her physically within his grasp, but her soul had already been spoken for. Hundreds of miles away, still in England, Harry Potter was about to learn what it really meant to have a soul mate. *** Harry cleaned up the room quickly, holding his breath and trying not to imagine someone cutting Ginny in order to make her bleed so badly. She’s alive...she’s alive...the words kept twisting through his mind, reassuring him. Although a strange sinking feeling seemed to be settling in his stomach. For better or worse though, Harry was glad he hadn’t been eating a lot lately. He didn’t fancy getting sick again. When he was done, he stepped out into the hallway and heard more people in the house. He also heard yelling. He’d expected Remus to bring everyone up to look at the rooms. He peered over the railing at the top of the stairs and tried to catch a glimpse of Remus. “Harry?” He heard Lupin’s voice calling up to him. “You’d better get down here.” Frowning, Harry took the stairs two at a time, his mind fresh with new worry. He hadn’t seen anything down there when they’d come in...had they missed something? He reached the bottom floor, breathless, and came face to face with Arthur and Bill Weasley. They nodded at him and then turned to where Remus was now bending. Harry saw someone sprawled on the floor and the twins looking very pleased about something. “What’s going on?” he asked, to no one in particular. No one answered him and Arthur Weasley did not meet his eyes. A medi-witch was saying something to Remus, who nodded and said something sharp to the twins, who chuckled, but moved back. Harry got his first good look at whoever it was lying on the floor and couldn’t believe his eyes. “What’s he doing here?” he said as he moved forward. Arthur Weasley followed him. “We don’t know, Harry. We caught him coming in behind us. To say he was surprised to see anyone in here is an understatement. I’m afraid the boys got a bit carried away and stunned him a bit too heavily.” Harry got his first full look at Mr Weasley and saw how tired the man looked. He was looking at his sons, not with pride, but something close to it. Fred and George, for their part, had stopped laughing, but were wearing hardly-sorry expressions. This was the second time in twenty-four hours they’d been able to stun Dex, and Harry could tell they were enjoying it immensely. The idea that they had just knocked out the man who might know where Ginny was, made Harry angry suddenly. He needed Dex to be willing to help them. If he had done something to Ginny before being caught, they needed to know now. Harry’s own anger with Dex was now something of the past, he found. He only wanted to get to the truth of it all. He no longer wanted to play games. He strode over to the medi-witch they‘d brought along, he assumed, in case they had found Ginny. “Can he be Ennervated?” She looked up at him from where she bending over Dex’s body. “Yes. Of course he can. But I’m warning you, if you’re doing it so one of them can stun him again, I’m not going to allow it.” Bill spoke up from behind Harry, causing him to jump. He’d forgotten the other man was there. “If it’s all the same to you Miss, this man is a prisoner of the Ministry of Magic. In fact, he’s an escaped prisoner and possibly the kidnapper of my baby sister, so if you don’t mind, none of us really care what you will or will not allow.” There was a nodding of agreement between everyone except Harry and Remus. Harry looked at the medi-witch, who was glaring at Bill. “He may be only a prisoner to you, but he is a patient to me, and I will not allow you lot to hurt him out of some sick sense of revenge. And you, Minister! I’m surprised you are allowing this to take place - ” Harry cut her off by putting his hand on her arm. He gave her a steady look. “I promise you no one will hurt him.” Immediately the Weasley’s started to shout at him: “But Harry! He had Ginny - ” “He’s probably done all sorts of twisted things to her - ” “The git doesn’t deserve to still be breathing - ” “Now George, Harry has a point....” This last one was from a very exhausted sounding Arthur Weasley. The medi-witch’s horror at his involvement in this had caused him to act more like his usual self, albeit a bit too late, Harry thought. Harry turned and looked at Remus. “Show them the rooms, Remus. Let them understand why we need him awake and alive.” Conversation broke out around him again, and Remus started moving the Weasleys up the stairs. Harry ignored them. He nodded at the medi-witch, and she frowned at him. Turning her attention to Dex, Harry watched as she brought the other man around. His pale skin looked like ice under her hands as she forced his mind to come back awake. Harry dropped down to his knees and placed a hand on Dex’s arm, willing himself to remain calm. Think of Ginny...think of saving her.... Dex blinked up at him, as though he didn’t recognize him, and Harry cursed the twins. If Dex was going to have more ‘memory’ problems now, he was going to pummel those two. “Dex,” he said softly. “It’s Harry Potter. Do you know me?” Dex continued looking at him, his eyes still holding a very blank look. With the help of the medi-witch, Harry set the other man into a sitting position and supported his weight. Dex shook his head and looked around. Suddenly his face looked fearful and he gripped Harry’s arm. “What’s he done? She’s not here, is she? I was coming...I was coming to check, to see...oh....” Dex put his face in his hand, his voice sounding full of anguish. Harry was trying to quell his desire to hit the other man. With a voice steadier than he felt, he tried to get Dex to tell him what he knew. “Who’s he, Dex? Were you coming back here to the house to get Ginny?” Dex shook his head. Harry heard him whispering to himself and tried to pull his hand away from his mouth. The medi-witch cleared her throat. “He’s disoriented because of the stunners. He’s not going to be much help right now,” she said as she made as though to put Dex asleep again. Harry stopped her with his hand. “No, I need him to tell me what is going on, now.” Harry turned to Dex again and made the other man look him in the eye. “Tell me Dex; tell me what’s going on here. What happened in this house?” “I....” Dex stopped, his expression fearful suddenly. Harry watched as the other man shook his head. “I...I came to the house because I thought he’d taken her. He was watching me, you see. I knew it. But he lied to me; he said he didn’t have her. He’s been changing my memory about things. I don’t know what’s real anymore, Harry. I don’t know what I’ve seen. But it must be something, because he wanted me to hide this house....” Harry was confused by the apparent rant, and yet something about it rang true to him. He pressed Dex further. “Who is this ‘he’ you keep mentioning? Did someone help you with the girls? Did you have a partner?” Dex gave a hollow, eerie laugh, and Harry felt his skin grow cold at the sound of it. “A partner. Yes, you might say that, Harry. A blood brother, actually.” Dex gave a hollow, defeated laugh. His eyes focused on Harry‘s. “He used that...he used me...made me believe. What did you find in the room, Harry? Did he take it all? Did he take the paintings?” Harry frowned. They hadn’t seen any paintings at all. What was going on? Who was Dex talking about? “I don’t know about the paintings, Dex. But we found...we found blood in one of the rooms, and we found this....” Harry held up the pouch he still had in his hand. “You know what this is, right? I’ve never seen Ginny without it. Why would she leave it for us to find, Dex?” Dex stared at the pouch as though he had never seen it before. He shook his head again. “He probably took it from her; he knew it gave her strength. He’s obsessed with her. I should have known....” Harry had just had enough. He gripped the other man on the shoulders and shook him, making Dex’s head rock back and forth. The medi-witch cursed and tried to stop him, but Harry snarled at her. He made sure Dex was looking right at him. “Who are you talking about, Dex. Who has Ginny?” Dex blinked sadly back at him, his expression slipping. “It’s Louis. It’s always been Louis. Everything has been him. Draco, the prison, the reason you got hurt. He’s going to kill her, Harry. He’s going to make sure we never see her again. And there‘s nothing we can do. He never fails, Harry. He always gets his way.” Harry let go of the other man as his words echoed the ones Draco had thrown at him. Harry again felt a strange twist of foreboding pass through him, his mind trying to grasp what Dex had just told him. A sense of panic overcame him and he felt as though the house had just grown smaller around him. *** In a trunk, bound for the west coast of Scotland, Ginny Weasley finally gained consciousness, her mind screaming in fear. After the first moment of claustrophobia passed, Ginny willed herself to calm down. She was just...in something, that was all. Nothing to get worked up over. Or so she told herself. Her hands were bound, but still movable and they strayed to the necklace around her neck. When they came up empty, the panic started to swell inside of her again. Pushing it down, Ginny tried to move, to see if she could at least get into a better position. The most she was able to do was tilt her head back, so that it was no longer at such an awkward angle. The ropes tightened around the rest of her. She racked her memory for what had happened and as she did so, she noticed her leg was throbbing. Moving her hands down, her fingers found a bandage wrapped around the top part of her ankle, and the pain flared as she touched the skin around it. She had a vague memory of something shining at her and then a tight feeling across her skin. She wasn’t sure, but she thought that perhaps he had tried to cut her. Obviously from the size of the bandage and the tenderness of her skin, he had succeeded. There was something else that floated around the edges of her memory but it was too faint to come into focus. Ginny’s hands again flew to her neck, once more coming up empty. She didn’t want to think about the fact that she had lost her stone; she didn’t want to think about losing the thing that had been keeping her sane. She tried to focus her energy on where she was instead. She knew she was moving; she could feel the forward motion. But where was he taking her? Ginny reckoned that someone must have been getting close to her captor, to make him flee like he had. There could only be one person; it had to be Harry and warmth flowed through her at the thought. Even the ropes seemed to loosen for a moment. Ginny pictured Harry’s face in her mind and all the love she felt for him. She knew then that no matter what happened, she was going to get out of this because she had too many things to do; she had too many ways still to show Harry how much she loved him. Her mind settling into the warmth still touching her, she let her mind wander. As long as she kept thinking about Harry, she was fine. The panic, the soreness of her body, it all melted away. She didn’t realize the train had stopped moving, so she was unprepared for the opening of the trunk. She blinked upwards, dazed at the harsh light. When her eyes finally focused, Ginny felt her panic come back in full force. Louis Fagan was looking at her with something close to pure joy on his face and for the first time since she‘d been taken, Ginny felt scared and truly lost. *** After hearing Dex’s startling news and seeing the Weasleys come back down visibly shaken at the state of the room they’d just seen, Harry dazedly went through the motions of doing what he thought he should do. He listened, he nodded, and he spoke when he needed to, but inside he felt a dull pain that was threatening to swallow him whole. Remus gave him strange looks, but Harry went about his business. He made sure the medi-witch took care of Dex. He sent Bill out to fetch Donald Fagan from where Dex had hidden him. Now since Dex had told the truth about Louis, it seemed no one could get him to shut-up; he talked about the poison used to knock the girls out, the rope that Louis had that was laced with belladonna.... It was almost too much for Harry. He stared miserably out of one of the darkened windows of the house and let his mind wander. He wondered where Louis had taken Ginny. He was hoping once they spoke to Donald Fagan, they would have some idea, but Dex had already said that Louis and his father didn’t exactly get along. But still, perhaps the man knew something...he’d been out heading toward the house, right? Harry closed his eyes for a moment, suddenly warm inside. Ginny. It was as though someone had spoken her name in his head. Harry sighed and suddenly felt utterly exhausted. All the days of searching and frustration had finally caught up with him, it seemed. He just wanted to sleep.... “Harry?” Remus said softly beside him, causing him to jump. Harry opened his eyes and looked at his friend. “Sorry,” Remus continued, “Didn’t mean to startle you. Why don’t you go home and get some rest. I’ll talk with Donald when they bring him in. I’ll make sure that if he knows anything, we’ll come get you immediately.” Harry started to shake his head no, but stopped. Maybe it was because he had finally reached his limit of energy or maybe because he didn’t trust himself to look at the father of the man who had taken Ginny, but he knew that Remus was right. He needed rest. “Fine. I’ll go,” he said softly, turning away from the window. He didn’t miss the raised eyebrow that Remus gave him. “And see, I’m not even arguing.” Harry tried to flash the other man a smile, but his face hurt with the effort. Remus suddenly did something very out of character, he hugged him. When he pulled away, Remus had an odd look on his face. “You’re going to find her. Your father would have searched to the end of the earth for Lily, and I know you will do the same for Ginny. The two of you are....” Remus paused as though trying to find the right words. “We’re meant to be, right?” Harry said sadly, his mind suddenly recalling a conversation with Remus from years ago; a conversation in which he’d ranted against the very thing that now meant more to him than anything. Remus shook his head. “No. Well, I mean, yes, obviously, but...that’s not what I was going to say. You’re both very strong. Ginny is a fighter. She’ll survive out of sheer stubbornness, just to make sure you have something to find. And I know you will find her, it’s in your eyes. Just hold on to what you have together.” Harry felt the small burn of tears behind his eyes and thanked the other man by way of another hug. He turned away and looked over at where the twins and Arthur Weasley were talking. The three of them turned and met his gaze. He walked over to them, suddenly unable to be cross at them for letting their anger out earlier. “I’m going to go home for a quick nap; Remus says he’ll let me know if Donald has anything to say.” Arthur pulled him aside and looked at him kindly, but also quite sadly. “Yes, Harry, get some rest. Leave Donald to us. I have a few choice words to say to him myself. I should have said them awhile ago, but I didn’t want to cause any trouble at the Ministry. This whole thing has proven that I‘ve grown far too complacent as Minister.” Harry knew Arthur was referring to the fact that he had found out about Louis being the one that had sold Neville the herb for Hermione. Harry shook his head. “Don’t second-guess yourself, Mr. Weasley, there’s no way you could have known. You were doing what you thought was right.” “But it may have cost me my daughter,” Arthur said softly, his expression haunted. “Not with me around,” Harry said simply. Arthur looked at him and nodded. “Yes, perhaps you’re right. I’ve thanked Merlin many times that you and Ginny have each other. Harry, no matter what happens...I...want you to know that you will always be like another son to me. There is no other person I would want out there looking for her than you.” Harry was touched at his words and again felt the small start of tears behind his eyes. He nodded his head and couldn’t say anything. Arthur seemed to understand and went back to talk to the twins. Shaking his head, Harry Apparated back home to finally get some rest. *** Ron and Hermione left a very relieved and happy Neville watching over Susan. It did Ron’s heart good to see Neville smile for some reason. Perhaps it was because he had watched the man sit at the brink of despair all night, but in reality he was just glad that Neville and Susan could be with each other and that she was unharmed. He glanced at Hermione as they made their way home to their flat and didn’t like the circles under her eyes. She’d been pushing herself too hard and what she needed was rest. Even her Healer had admonished her. Ron realized with a start that the start of their engagement had been anything but joyful. He took her hand into his and she smiled briefly at him as they walked through Diagon Alley, which was mostly empty due to the early hour. “I wonder how your brothers are faring,” Hermione muttered absentmindedly, and Ron knew her mind was really on Harry. “Harry’s fine. Remus is with him and he won’t let him push himself too hard,” Ron said softly. Hermione stopped in front of the building and gave him a sad smile. “Was it that obvious I was worried?” “No,” Ron said as he kissed her gently, “But I just know you that well.” Hermione laughed softly in his ear and Ron suddenly pulled her to him, wanting to hold onto her for dear life. After a moment, she pulled away and gave him an odd look. “Honestly, Ron, you act as though I’m going to disappear too,” she scolded him lightly, but her face was searching his for the meaning of his sudden despair. “I love you,” he said simply, meaning it with every inch of his being. Hermione bit her lip and he saw tears form in her eyes. He shook his head as they entered the building. “Honestly,” Ron said mimicking her voice from before, “You act as though me saying I love you is a bad thing, Hermione.” “You just seem very emotional lately, Ron; I hardly know what to do about it,” Hermione said, her voice returning to normal. Ron glanced at her and gave her a smirk. As they entered their flat, he felt the exhaustion hit him. He could only begin to imagine how tired Harry was. Hermione moved into the kitchen to put the kettle on, and Ron sank into the sitting room sofa, remembering how he, Ginny, and Hermione had just been sitting here a few days ago, talking. He felt overwhelmed all of a sudden. Hermione was right, what was his problem lately? She always teased him because she had thought that he had the emotional range of a teaspoon when they were younger and maybe she had been right then. But now Ron felt as though his emotions had moved on to bigger and grander things; he had at least worked his way up to a measuring cup. “Now that is a serious expression on a serious face,” Hermione said from the kitchen doorway and smiled at him. He held his hands out to her and she immediately went to him, her brow worried. “What is it, Ron? Is it worry about Ginny? You know Harry is going to find her,” she said as she settled onto his lap. “You sound very sure of that,” he said quietly. Hermione looked at him, her hand smoothing back his hair. “How can you not be sure? He loves her more than...well, more than anything I’ve ever seen him love before. He’ll never stop until she’s safe. You know Harry. And Ginny is so strong, Ron. She’ll fight with every breath in her body. Why else do you think the twins fear her temper?” Ron knew Hermione was trying to make him smile, but he just buried his head in her hair, wanting to lose himself. He didn’t want to think about Ginny hurting, he didn’t want to think about anything for a moment. He heard the kettle begin to boil and Hermione shifted on top of him, to get up to take it off the flames. He held onto her and pulled his face up, suddenly no longer in the mood for tea. Hermione looked at him, a question on her face. She eventually smiled and moved her hand to his face, kissing him deeply. She pulled away finally and rested her head against his. After a moment, she spoke. “Let me get the tea and you go turn on the shower. Let me see if I can put a smile on that face of yours.” Ron frowned. They couldn‘t indulge themselves, not when other people were hurting. “I don’t think we have the right to - ” “Oh, we have the right. I spent my engagement night in a musty old hospital bed. I spent my engagement party worried sick over Harry and Ginny. I’ve got serious payback coming to me for both of those,” she said lightly and pulled herself out of his arms. She nodded towards the bedroom and went into the kitchen. Ron sighed and ran his hand through his hair. Merlin forgive him, but he was going to be selfish this morning - this morning that felt as though it had come after a long day’s journey. He would try to forget everything. Just for a little while. *** Harry Apparated into his flat and immediately fell down upon his bed. His entire body ached. It was as though his body had dropped the pretence of being okay with the way he’d been pushing it as soon as he had admitted he needed rest. He didn’t even want to remove his clothes; he just wanted to sleep. Moving his head to the left he saw the package the Phoenix had brought and sat up suddenly, remembering. He reckoned that he should probably open the thing. Sighing, he got up and forced himself to pull it to his lap. It hadn’t grown any lighter since the last time he’d touched it, he found. The feather and parchment he’d sat on top of it fell to the floor as he dragged it across the bed. He used his wand along the seams of the paper covering it, and the package magically opened itself for him. Harry stared at the long purple box and had no idea who would send him something from Egypt. A note card had been sealed to the top of the box, and Harry pulled it open and started to read. Mr. Potter - You are, perhaps, wondering why you are currently holding a long purple box in your hands. Or perhaps, (and more importantly) you are wondering who in the world is responsible for putting it there. Let me introduce myself; my name is Laura Miracroix and I am a close friend of Ginny Weasley‘s. She studied under me during her time at Hogwarts, and I am proud to say that not only is she a former student, but a friend as well. She is a remarkable young woman, but I suspect you already know that. I’m not sure how much you know of Ginny’s time with me in Italy, but we grew very close, and I feel as though she is like a daughter to me. Which is why I was compelled to mail this package to you. I am not a Seer myself, but I have close associations with those who are. About two weeks ago a dear friend of mine told me someone I care for was in danger. When further pressed on the matter, I was told that it was someone with hair the colour of fire. Seeing as I know only one redhead that matches that description I immediately thought of our Miss Weasley. My friend also told me that her heart was being vied for by two who could not see without help; one raven, one fair. Knowing of Ginny’s former feelings for you, I put two and two together. I do hope you have enjoyed falling in love; it is the rarest and truest of gifts, and in my mind’s eye I see you and Ginny together. I hope you will not forget what it took to get you there. After much researching and continued probing of my friend’s visions, I decided I had to send you this package. Inside it you will find a stone basin used for water scrying called a Ewerahn. It is something that Ginny used quite a few times in her studying with me, and so it is something that holds a touch of her magic still. Ginny never knew it, but this old stone is more magical then I led her to believe. You will find carved on its side the image of four different items: a leaf, moon, centaur and heart. Each image stands for a different aspect; no doubt you can ascertain their simple meanings here. The one I want you to focus on when you scry is the heart. It would be too long for me to go into here, but rest assured I am aware of the connection that has finally made itself known between you and Miss Weasley, and it is this connection that will allow you to save her life, so please heed these words carefully. No doubt, you yourself have pushed the idea of being a soul mate out of your mind. Like prophecy and destiny, it is something you do not get to choose. But for all the mumbo-jumbo our world ascribes to the idea, there is a very practical aspect to it that I’m sure you will begin to understand. You have it within your ability Mr Potter, to open yourself up to Ginny in a way you have yet to do. Although I have no doubt that the link between you is strong, it is only the tip of the iceberg, as they say in Greenland. I have to warn you that once you do this, once you allow your mind to open, you cannot go back. I understand that you are gifted at Occlumency. So much so in fact, that it is probably something you do now without thinking about it. That is about to change. I applaud your efforts because it shows you have strength of mind, and this will serve you well. And I know you are familiar with the feeling of another person being inside your head; but Tom Riddle never owned a piece of your soul dear boy, and for that you should be very thankful. There is only one other person who can claim such a thing, and that person is the woman you love. I want you to understand this Harry. When you allow yourself to open up to her you will be getting everything - her love, her strength and yes, most assuredly, her pain. Right now you are probably reading this and not understanding, but you will soon realize the answer to your questions.... The letter trailed off into instructions of how to ‘water scry’ and Harry’s eyes strained at having to focus for so long. Blinking to keep them open, he placed the strange letter aside and opened the box. Inside was a long, ancient looking stone basin. It was smooth and naturally worn in the middle, as though it had been kept underwater for a long time, like a pebble in a stream. Harry found the carvings she had mentioned and ran his hands over the leaf and moon. When his fingers touched the centaur he felt the stone grow warm suddenly, and hesitated before touching the heart. A sharp jolt of...something made him pull his hand away as though burned. He stared at the basin, expecting it to glow red, but it just sat innocuous in his lap. Shaking his head, he knew he really must be tired if he’d allowed a strange letter to make him think a stone was reacting to his touch.... Harry folded the letter, placing it and the stone back on the table. He used his wand to make the box disappear and lay back against his pillow, his mind turning over what he had read. It didn’t make much sense. He didn’t see how some water and an old basin could help him find Ginny, for one thing, let alone the rest of what the letter had said. His head hurt from the effort of thinking. Again his exhaustion washed over him and he knew when he was this tired it was pointless to keep thinking. His mind always seemed to shut down. Sighing, Harry removed his glasses and turned over to sleep. After a moment, he cursed and pulled the pillow away from his face. It still smelled like Ginny - days later and it was still as though she had just left. With something close to despair Harry pulled the pillow back towards him, half-torn between wanting to cry and wanting to tear the pillow to pieces. He settled on sleeping and crushing the pillow under his fingers as his mind slipped into unconsciousness. *** Ron lay awake in bed as Hermione slept next to him, a gentle smile on her face. He watched her for a moment and then went back to staring at the ceiling. He knew he should be sleeping; he’d been exhausted before, but there was no word for how drained he felt now. But something was keeping the thoughts moving in his head and for him that was a major thing. Ron wasn’t as clever as Hermione, Merlin knew, and he wasn’t as strong as Harry. He wasn’t even as strong as his own sister, but he knew he had a good heart and a good soul. He cared about the people he loved and he would do anything for them. He let his heart rule him, true, but on the flipside of that, he let his heart rule him. A lot of people couldn’t even comprehend that. But Ron did it with a sense of pride; Hermione had told him once that it was a rare thing, and he had believed her. Although right now, he didn’t see what good it did anyone. Sighing, he pulled himself out of bed and grabbed his robe from the door to the loo. He shuffled out into the kitchen to see what he could get into. Baking helped soothe his mind, and he definitely could have used the distraction during the war against Voldemort. But of course, back when he was in school, he didn’t think he would have been too keen to let other people know he liked to cook. He pulled down the ingredients to make a batch of butterbeer biscuits. It was his speciality and he rarely made them. Mostly because he could never keep enough butterbeer on hand to supply the recipe. But this morning he was in luck. Having been out searching for Ginny, and being at the hospital with Neville the last few days, he and Hermione still had a cupboard full. Ron started to mix the ingredients and loved the feeling of the dough underneath his fingers. His mind wandered as he rolled out a bit of the dough to be shaped. The thought of Harry and the last time he’d seen his friend made him pause as he added a fourth bottle of butterbeer to his batter. Maybe he’d take the biscuits over to Harry’s for him to find. He didn’t know if Harry had even been home, but he knew his friend would appreciate the gesture. Maybe the sweetness of the biscuits would bring Harry a bit of comfort, even. With renewed energy, Ron began to bake in earnest. *** Harry was dreaming of stones. Small round ones, long and shiny ones...even ones that stood out of the ground. These were the ones he kept coming back to - they were gigantic slabs of earth that surrounded him, earthy and red in tone. They towered over him but he didn’t feel fear; in fact, he felt inspired by them. He couldn’t say why the stones filled him with peace, but they did, and he tried to linger around them but the dream kept him moving forward...into places he didn’t think he wanted to go. Harry wondered what he was looking for and as soon as the thought entered his mind he remembered: Ginny. He even thought he saw her somewhere up ahead in his path, but it was always nothing. He tried to reach out when he thought he was close enough to see her, but his hand only grasped at air. His dream changed; he was no longer dreaming of stones, but he was in a clearing and it was deathly quiet. Harry thought it odd that a clearing in the middle of a forest would be so still. He didn’t hear any birds or anything else that was alive. It left him feeling hollow. He had a feeling that something important had happened and that he had missed it. He walked around the clearing and it changed from night into day back to night again. Everything seemed to be moving past him now, and Harry struggled to make the images that floated past him turn into to something solid. He thought he saw Ginny or Ron once or twice, but before he could speak out to them, the blurry shapes would speed past him again.... Eventually Harry began to pick out more spots of red in all of the blurriness. He tried to move after each speck, to grab hold of it, certain that when he did so he would be able to slow it down enough to make sure it was Ginny. When he finally made contact with something, he screamed out in pain as his hand crashed through stone; it hadn’t been Ginny or Ron at all that he’d been seeing. It had just been the same tall stones from before. Harry’s hand throbbed, and when he looked down at it he was surprised to see blood everywhere that he looked. Certainly that wasn’t all from him, was it? His hand flopped strangely at the end of his arm, as though his body was no longer controlling it. Pain went shooting through him but behind that there was something else...behind it there was...happiness? There were strange words being said too and Harry couldn’t quite understand them. He heard someone saying his name, suddenly. He felt himself being jerked awake.... “Harry!” Harry shook his head and tried to go back to the dream, but already it was fading in his mind. He felt hands on him and felt his body move forward. Cursing, he opened his eyes to see a blurry patch of red hair floating in front of him. It was so much like his dream that Harry pulled out of Ron’s touch in surprise and hit his head on the headboard in his hurry. “Blimey! You were screaming, Harry, and waving your hand around, shouting something I couldn’t understand. I heard you all the way up the stairs to your door. Next time try a Silencing Spell if you’re going to be having nightmares.” Harry just squinted at Ron, not comprehending what his friend was doing there. “Ron?” he asked, his voice sounding loud in his own head. “Yeah, where are your glasses, Harry?” The Ron shape moved out of Harry’s line of sight and suddenly Harry felt his glasses thrust at him from the side. Harry thankfully put them on and his mind seemed to clear, now that he could see. The light outside of his window was just turning pink, and Harry knew it was still early morning. “I was dreaming....” he said stupidly, and Ron snorted at him. “No kidding, Harry. You were screaming to wake the dead. Bloody hell, what were you dreaming?” Harry felt himself frown. What had his dream been about? Stones? Ginny? Blood? “I’m not sure, Ron. It was...very odd.” Ron sat down at the edge of the bed and gave him a long look. “Was it...you know, was it about what you found at that...house...you know, the blood?” Harry blinked at Ron in surprise. “You’ve spoken to your family?” “Dad sent an owl. I was in the kitchen, baking something, and well, he mentioned you had come home to rest and since I was coming over here anyway....” Ron made a shrugging gesture, but his eyes bore into Harry’s. “What were you dreaming about that made you cry out like that, Harry? I haven’t seen you have a dream that bad since...well, since school.” Harry wasn’t sure what to tell him, it didn’t even make any sense to him either. It was probably exhaustion. But whatever it was, he didn’t like the look Ron was giving him. It was filled with worry and something worse, fear. “You and I haven’t shared a room in awhile, Ron; you have no idea if I have bad dreams all the time or not.” Ron frowned at his tone and shook his head. “I think Ginny would have mentioned it, if you woke her up every night with that.” Harry put his hand on his face and dragged it down his features in frustration. What exactly had he been screaming about to alarm Ron so terribly? He shook his head. “It was just a dream. It...wasn’t about what I saw at the house.” At least, I don’t think it was, Harry thought silently. Ron nodded, not pressing him further. Harry released a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. He turned sideways in the bed and rested his head on his hand. “Why were you up baking so early, Ron?” Ron startled as though he had been lost in thought. His eyes had been staring at the stone basin Harry had placed on the table. Harry watched as he pulled them away from it now and looked at him. “Nerves, I reckon. I bake to calm myself down.” Ron shrugged as though embarrassed, and Harry didn’t say anything. Both of them turned to look at the stone basin again. “That came for me...from Egypt, if you can believe it - ” Harry started, but Ron interrupted him. “It’s from Miracroix, isn’t it?” Ron said quietly and Harry turned sharply to him. “Yeah, she said she studied with - ” “She and Ginny are really close. They spent a year and half in Italy together, learning things about Divination, I reckon. Ginny told me about that....” Ron nodded towards the stone basin, “in one of her letters I think, called it a...a Ewerahn. She said she used it to have visions about herself. I never understood what she meant by that.” Harry stared at the stone basin again, more intrigued by it. He and Ginny hadn’t really talked about the time they’d spent apart, and he realised suddenly that he should have been more interested in that part of her life. “I wonder why Miracroix sent it to you,” Ron said as he got off the bed and stood in front of the table. He ran his hands over the stone. Harry pointed at the letter that had fallen. “She says I’m supposed to use it to find Ginny. I don’t really understand it. It sounds sort of...well, here, read the letter yourself; I’m going to take a quick shower. I don’t think I’ll be sleeping anymore this morning.” Harry handed the letter to Ron. He headed towards the loo and saw the plate of food Ron had put on the bedroom dresser. He suddenly realized he was absolutely famished. “Ron?” he turned and pointed to the plate. Ron looked up from the letter and gave him a small smile. “Butterbeer biscuits, mate. Thought you might need some nourishment.” Harry felt like hugging him, but didn’t. He remembered these were Ron’s specialty. He reached out and took a bite of one, his mouth watering at the taste. “Ron, these are amazing.” Ron didn’t say anything; he was still gazing at Miracroix’s letter. Harry shrugged and headed into the lavatory to try to wake himself up with some hot water. He grabbed two more biscuits, promising to himself to eat some real food before heading back out again. *** Ginny felt cold when she came to again. Louis had stunned her before she could say anything to him, and for once, Ginny was grateful to have been knocked out. She couldn’t wrap her mind around anything. Louis. Louis Fagan had taken her. The smarmy bastard had laughed when he’d seen the flash of recognition cross her face. Ginny thought of him touching her and felt her stomach heave in revulsion. She was glad now he hadn’t been able to do much of anything else. She’d already been down that road, thank you very much; she wasn’t going to go happily down it again. If Louis thought he was going to break her, he was dead wrong. Ginny realized he must have been behind everything; the girls disappearing, Hermione getting sick...even what had happened to Harry. She wasn’t sure how she knew this, but it just made sense. She still didn’t understand how Louis had managed to grab her to begin with - her mind was still very blank on this point, but it didn’t really matter. She was in the same trunk, but knew they were no longer on a train. The motion was different. She wondered if he had moved it onto a carriage. He had made sure the ropes were deathly tight against her; they were practically cutting off the flow of blood through her veins. If she ever got enough of herself free from them she was going to hit Louis with everything she had. Six brothers had taught her how to throw a punch and she was going to put that education to good use. If Louis expected her to be the girl she’d been at Hogwarts, he had another thing coming. She felt the motion underneath her stop and strained to hear what was going on outside her tiny cell, but heard nothing. She felt the trunk lurch forward suddenly and gasped as it hit something hard. A moment ticked by and then the lid to the trunk opened. This time Ginny prepared her eyes by keeping them closed. A dim brightness seemed to press in on them. She heard Louis laugh softly. “Awake again, I see. I tell you, Weasley, you just don’t stay down for long, do you? You know I love that about you. I love how you always come back for more.” Louis said this last part in a low voice, his tone indicating that he was thinking about something altogether different than just her waking up. Ginny opened her eyes and stared at him defiantly. A sudden memory seemed to bloom in her mind as she looked at him. “And I seem to remember that you had the opposite problem, Louis. You couldn’t seem to stay up. Fixed that, have you? Able to show a girl a better time now? Or are you still a one-time wonder?” When Louis’s hand made contact with her skin, Ginny’s head fell back, the trunk knocking into her. She felt her vision blur and cursed at having provoked him while in a vulnerable position. Louis reached down and roughly dragged her from the trunk. Ginny realized how tall he’d grown, and how small she’d stayed. Perhaps reminding him of his impotency had not been a good thing.... “Listen to me Ginny, and listen well. You’re miles and miles away from home, so that hero lover of yours isn’t going to find you anytime soon. So go ahead and play this little game of yours - make me hurt you, I know you really like it.” Louis’s hand strayed to her hair and she couldn’t stop the wince that crossed her features as he pulled gruffly on it. Louis’s eyes lightened as he noticed. “Ah yes, there it is...a little flicker of pain and fear. Not as tough as you like to think, are you?” “Go to hell, Fagan,” Ginny said as she met his eyes. She was not going to let him intimidate her. Louis laughed suddenly and released her, his eyes taking on a strange zeal. He opened up his arms and turned, and Ginny noticed their surroundings for the first time. Louis turned back around and faced her, pulling her abruptly to him. “I’m already in hell, Ginny. Didn’t you know that? And this time, I’ve brought you with me. I just know you’ll enjoy it.” He pulled her to the wall across from them and slipped her hand into a small set of manacles. He closed the iron around her wrists and smiled satisfactorily at her. Ginny just watched as he walked back to the trunk, using his wand to levitate it out of the room. When he was out of sight, Ginny released her breath. She looked around worriedly and knew without a doubt that it would take a miracle to get her out of this alive. ***
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