It was a testament to how desperate Harry had become that he was just as immersed in the Daily Prophet articles as Hermione. The three friends sat in the midst of the pile of papers, searching to find any clue as to what the fifth Horcrux could possibly be. After their mandatory day at The Burrow, Mrs. Weasley packed a lunch for them and sent them on their way over to the Lovegoods'.
It had been Hermione's suggestion to search through the papers again, but Harry had quickly realized that without any leads to work with, they needed to continue the mind-numbing task of trying to locate what the Horcrux is and where it could possibly be. Funnily enough there weren't throngs of books waiting on the shelves of Flourish and Blotts bookshop that focused on Voldemort's past and history. Most of what could be learned about it was written from the general terms of what had happened during the last war.
Harry only knew this because Hermione had already read all of those books over a year ago. So here they sat, three days after leaving Hogwarts, reading through old newspapers, hoping that a reporter accidentally stumbled onto something that could lead them to the truth. He didn't hold out much hope, but he had exhausted all of the clues that Dumbledore had given him.
Except about the four founders.
That was something else that they were looking for in the Daily Prophet, references for items from the founders. Ron was doing the same, but reading through The Quibbler. Every few minutes he would let out a snort and mutter something like, "Stealing cold cereal..." or, "changing candles for pixies..." and continue reading.
On the whole, Harry thought Ron probably had the easier job, but it was one that certainly held his attention. Harry was bored out of his mind by the nonsense he had to skim through, but he was determined to discover something... anything.
He needed to know that he was going to be able to finish this, the sooner the better.
Since his excursion into the box, he had been able to think of little else than getting Ginny back, away from Nott, and making her part of his life again. His dreams were filled with her and most of his waking thoughts as well.
In his dream life he had been sure of himself and secure in his knowledge of what to do. Back in reality, Harry struggled to keep that focus, but somehow he knew that it was vital for him to survive. He had faced down the snake without fear and willing to die. He knew now that he would have to do that with Voldemort. If he was afraid of dying, he wouldn't take the risks that were needed to kill him.
Harry wanted to live. He wanted to be with Ginny, create a life with her and surprisingly enough to his seventeen-year-old brain, make a family with her. It shocked him at first, when he woke this morning from a dream of playing with his small child during Christmas, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. His older self had wanted the baby so badly that it was just ingrained into his psyche.
Harry doubted that Voldemort had intended for the box to be inspirational. He imagined that most would enter the perfect world and forget about what they were doing there until one of the magical creatures could kill them, but Harry wasn't just anyone. He was the one who was fated to finish Voldemort off, and he could speak to snakes.
He shuddered to think of what would have happened if Ron or Hermione had been the one to open the box. He wanted to believe that they could have fought off the dragon and the troll, but the snake meant business and wasn't going to stop until everyone in the box was dead.
"No way!" Ron snorted. "Fudge wasn't having an affair with Hestia Jones!"
Harry and Hermione laughed. Ron really did have the better job.
He sighed and stretched upwards, feeling the knots in his back twinge at the maneuver. The piles of unread papers that towered around them were so vast that it would probably take them weeks to locate what they were looking for, if it could be found here at all. Harry still wasn't sure that the paper held the key to finding the Horcrux, but he didn't have any other options.
"Here's something," Hermione said, as she spread the paper flat in front of her, on top of several other stacked newspapers. "It says here that the Aurors were called in on a burglary where Dark magic was used. The woman was a collector of antiquities, but it doesn't look like anything was stolen, and she put up quite a fight before she died. The case was kept quiet because she belonged to a prominent family."
"When was this?" Harry questioned, as he got onto his knees for a better look, and slipped when the papers slid beneath him. Ron laughed and got up to help him before doing to exact same thing as Harry.
Hermione's eyebrow was raised as she regarded the two boys sprawled before her. "It was seventeen years ago, 2nd October, 1981."
Harry turned his head to meet Ron's eyes, and saw the same look on his friend's face. "That can't be coincidence," Harry said slowly.
"Well, it could be," Ron answered as he slowly got to his knees again. "But let's hope it isn't."
"No, we need some sort of lead," Hermione said before holding out a hand for Ron to help him stand. "We need to know where to go ne--"
Bang!
Harry was instantly on his feet and, just as quickly, back on his bum. When he'd jumped up, he landed on a stack of papers, which went sliding from beneath him. His wand was out anyway, pointing up at Tonks, as she burst into the room, followed quickly by Luna. "Tonks?" Harry blinked stupidly. "What are you--"
"No time!" she commanded, grabbing Ron's arm as he slipped again. "We need to get out of here!"
"What's going--" Hermione began, but the Auror shook her head.
"Just get out!" Tonks bellowed, and the concentration on her pinched face told Harry all he needed to know about her. She was the consummate professional at this moment. "We only have a few minutes before they get here!"
"It's clear," came a voice from the hall, and Fred stuck his head into the room. "Let's get out of here."
Luna didn't speak at all; her face was ashen as she nodded and followed Fred from the room. Harry scrambled to his feet, careful this time to step on the clear carpet, and pick his way through the room. He followed Ron and Hermione through the door and down the narrow hallway, past many moving pictures of Luna and her dad.
Tonks halted them at the door and conferred with George, who had been standing guard. "Anything yet?"
"No, nothing, but we should probably Apparate out just in case," he answered in a tone that Harry rarely heard him use, determination.
"What's going on?" Harry demanded now, confused by the fact that they were even here. How did they know that they were here? Who was coming?
Tonks shook her head. "I'll explain when we're safe. All right, let's go. Luna will Apparate with me because she can't get into Grim--"
BANG!
The room around Harry exploded with a shower of sparks as he stumbled backwards into the room as the small kitchen filled with smoke. "No time! Apparate to The Burrow!" Tonks' voice barely penetrated through the blinding yellow smoke, but he heard three pops and felt someone grab his arm. "Let's go, Harry!" she demanded, but he couldn't move.
A chilling cold was filling the room rapidly, and he couldn't think clearly. His vision swam as a scream filled his mind.
Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry! Stand aside, you silly girl... stand aside, now.... Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead-- Not Harry! Please... have mercy... have mercy.... Avada Kedavra! Feet moved quietly along the floor. He knew that sound well and then, Oh yes, the symbolism of it is too great to pass up.
"Harry!" Tonks screamed in his ear, through his own cries as a baby. "Now, Harry!" Her voice was desperate and weaker than it had been a minute before. He could see a small shimmer from a Patronus circling the room feebly.
He didn't even think, just reacted as the thought of Ginny holding their baby flashed into his mind. "Expecto Patronum!"
Prongs, as always, sprang from his wand and charged straight through Tonks' wolf Patronus. The room cleared instantly of all the negative feelings, and the Auror was gaping at him in amazement. "How did you do that?"
"What?" Harry stuttered, and then ducked, pulling Tonks down with him. She tripped backwards, and he found himself on the floor again, as a spell demolished the wall above their heads. Dust sprayed from the wall and littered their hair with white plaster. He and Tonks acted together, sending spells towards whoever was waiting in the doorway.
The spells were blocked, and he crawled one way, while Tonks went the other, so they could get a better shot at the attacker. The dust was still so thick that whoever it was couldn't see through it to find them and was firing wildly into the haze. "Reducto!" Harry yelled, and in tandem, Tonks shot a bright blue spell towards their assailant. The man blocked Harry's, which he had heard coming, but yelled when Tonks' spell hit him. Harry didn't wait; concentrating hard, he thought, Stupefy! and the red light hit its intended target.
"Good work, Harry," Tonks told him, as they both made a dash for the door. When they reached the fallen man, Tonks bound the masked Death Eater and looked back at him. "Apparate to The Burrow and get everyone--duck!"
She grabbed his shirt and yanked him away from another flying spell. Her wand was already trained on the next Death Eater. "Go," she ordered after she sent a stunner at the man.
"No," Harry replied, as he began to work with her again, firing spells at the two of Death Eaters. She wasn't going to leave the house, and he wasn't going to leave her. Two more Apparated into the Lovegoods' yard, their robes billowing behind them as they approached the house.
Harry and Tonks were heavily outnumbered. He glanced once at his pink-haired friend and turned determinedly back to the advancing group. Sectumsempra! He waved his wand and watched as one of the robed figures fell instantly from the cut that slashed his legs to ribbons. He was aware of Tonks also battling the Death Eaters as he tried to stun another one. It was blocked, and the man fired back with a purple spell. Harry dodged and yelled, "Reducto," as he hit the porch railing and dropped behind it. The wood shattered with another spell, and he ran down the railing, looking for better cover, while firing spells over his shoulder.
"Potter!" a voice called to him, and he froze, not recognizing the voice. Slowly, almost as if compelled by magic, he turned and saw an older man sneering at him, his hood down around his shoulders. "Recognize me?" the Death Eater asked with amusement in his voice.
"No," Harry replied quickly, glanced back to find that Tonks had two Death Eaters down and was fighting the third in a fierce battle. She was holding her own, though. He turned quickly and saw that the man didn't even have his wand on him. His expression was taunting.
"My family name is Nott," he recounted as his voice grumbled low in his throat. "I understand that your old girlfriend is living in my house. I just had to be the one to come for you."
Harry saw red. His body began to move without conscious thought from his brain as his wand was whipped forward, pointing straight at Nott's face. He didn't need to speak; the spell came from bursting through his thoughts as the Reductor curse flew from his wand, smashing into the man's face. The look of momentary surprise was replaced with a fine mist of blood spraying from the damaged tissue. He stunned the man, just in case he wasn't dead, and bound him with a conjured rope.
"Harry," Tonks' voice called to him, and Harry turned back to her duel, sending a body-binding hex at the man before could do more damage to her. The Death Eater hadn't expected it, and he dropped to the ground. Harry ran back to her as she studied him silently. "We should get out of here," she told him stonily. "I'll call for reinforcements to come and collect them."
"What if they escape?" Harry questioned a second before several pops caught their attention. He turned in horror to see at least twenty robed figures before him.
Tonks grabbed his arm, and he felt her jerk him around as she Apparated them away from the Lovegoods'. They landed at The Burrow, but she took one look at the dark house and shook her head. "We're going to Grimmauld Place."
"But..." Harry began, but couldn't finish. She Apparated them out of there a second later, and once again he felt like he was being sucked through a small hole. They landed hard in the sitting room, and Tonks pitched forward, nearly crumpling to the hearthrug.
"Harry! Tonks!" Ron's frantic voice came into the room, and Harry turned automatically to him. He swayed a bit as the adrenaline coursed through his body, making his arms shake. Ron sat him down and asked, "What happened?"
Tonks explained quickly, and asked about the others. "Where's Luna?"
"George took her to the main office of The Quibbler and warned her dad to stay away from his house," Ron explained. "He just got back about five minutes ago."
"Right, well, I have to get to the Ministry and figure out how to explain all of this to the Aurors. Stay here until someone comes for you," Tonks commanded them. "Is your mum here?"
"Yeah, we brought her after we got home," Ron answered. "Will you let Dad know what happened?"
Tonks nodded and turned to Harry. "Will you be all right?"
"Yeah," Harry replied automatically. "I'm fine."
She watched him for a moment before spinning and disappearing from the room.
"Harry?" Ron sat next to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "You all right, mate?"
"Nott," Harry said softly. "Nott was there, and... he taunted me about Ginny being at his house."
Ron swore loudly and stood from the couch to pace the room. "I hope you cursed him."
"I did," Harry assured him as he watched his friend moving about, like a caged tiger. "I blew his face off."
Ron froze and slowly spun to face him. "Seriously?"
Harry smiled sardonically. "Yeah, he mentioned Ginny, and I... lost it."
"Good on you, mate. I'd have done the same," Ron assured him and pulled a chair over to face him, scraping it across the floor and sitting down, his elbows on his knees. For the first time, Harry saw that his face was lined with worry. "Hermione was knocked out when the house exploded."
"What?" Harry sat up straight.
"She's okay," Ron assured him quickly. "Mum's putting her to bed, and she's awake now, just a bump to her head." Ron scowled and picked at a loose thread on his jeans. "Do you know why they targeted Luna?"
Harry was brought instantly to his short conversation with Nott. "They weren't after Luna; they were after me. They knew I was at her house."
"That's not possible," Ron replied blankly. "Only Mum knew we were at her house, and Mum wouldn't tell Death Eaters we were there."
"Then how did Tonks know we were there?" Harry countered. How had she known....
Then Ginny's face popped into his mind... her determined expression as she spoke to Tonks in the yard at The Burrow... the conversation he wasn't supposed to overhear. "Damn..." Harry muttered, and he fell backwards into the couch, staring up at the ceiling. "Ginny...."
"What about her?"
"I think..." Harry said slowly, choosing his words carefully. "I think Ginny told Tonks that we were about to be attacked. Nott knew I was at Luna's, and he said he wanted to be the one to come for me."
Ron's expression was guarded as Harry watched his friend. It was the look he often took when he was playing chess. "But how would Ginny contact Tonks?"
He shrugged. "I have no idea," Harry told him. "All I know is that Nott knew I was there and he shouldn't have known, so someone had to tell them, and somehow, Ginny must have warned Tonks."
"She can't just send out an owl, Harry," Ron reminded him, and his friend stood and began to pace again, stopping at the mantel and staring at the old wood. "It doesn't make sense."
"I'm not saying that it does, but someone told--" Harry froze and sat up. His eyes widened, and his heart began to hammer hard in his chest. Her words reverberated through him.
"Do you trust everyone in this room?"
"What?" he'd replied. "No, of course I don't."
"Do you trust me?"
Yes. He trusted her, and she'd told him right then not to trust everyone around him. Ginny knew something... knew someone was watching him who wanted to hurt him. Someone who was close enough to cause this kind of damage.
"Damn..." Harry said softly. His eyes met Ron's confused expression. "There's a spy in our midst."
Ron shook his head in disbelief. "That can't be.... Snape's gone."
"I'm not talking about Snape," Harry told him. "Ginny must have found out... something, somehow... about a spy, and she warned me at Bill and Fleur's wedding. She asked if I trusted everyone around me, and then to trust her."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Yeah, but she's the only one who's acted bizarrely."
Harry glared at him and tried to think of a way to argue her behavior and couldn't find the words. It didn't make any sense to run off to Nott... and finally the last piece fell in place. Harry's hand flew up to his head, smacking his head when it popped into place.
"What?" Ron demanded sharply.
Harry slowly opened his eyes and sighed. Ginny had known that someone was watching the Order and him, specifically. So she'd done what she could do. "I take it back, Ron."
His mouth twitched into half a smile. "Are you going to explain any time soon? You're starting to sound like Hermione."
"Right," Harry said; he couldn't have that, after all. "I just meant that there isn't one spy." Ron waited patiently while Harry got up the courage to say it, to realize that Ginny could be that stupid... and that brave. "I think that we now have two."