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Category: Alternate Universe Characters:Harry/Ginny Genres: Drama, Romance Warnings: Intimate Sexual Situations, Violence Story is Complete Rating: R Reviews: 410 Summary: The summer after the Chamber of Secrets was hard on everyone. How come no one can remember what happened? Prior to starting his seventh year at Hogwarts, Harry realizes he is missing some memories from his second year. Together with Remus Lupin, Harry sets out to discover what happened. He hopes to find out about that pretty red head he has been dreaming about as well. Hitcount: Story Total: 353543; Chapter Total: 8493 Awards: View Trophy Room Author's Notes: Special thanks to my beta Stephanie for her hard work! |
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Harry stared at the ceiling, not really seeing anything. The trip back from Grimmauld Place was a blur, he was grateful to Remus for his help in getting everything back and in one piece. Professor McGonagall had explained how whatever spell had been cast on Susan to keep her from revealing her secrets had eventually won and Susan had died without saying another word. He groaned, another innocent victim claimed by Voldemort. Hannah was heart-broken over her best-friend's death, but despite Harry's fears, she had not blamed him. Almost everyone believed that Pansy was the 'she' Susan was referring to, but unfortunately there was no evidence. The Aurors had descended upon the castle, the memory of Susan's Aunt Amelia driving them to discover what happened to her. Pansy Parkinson was the immediate suspect, both because of Susan's last word and the rumours of illicit potions that could be obtained from her. Unfortunately, a search of Pansy's room did not turn up any potions or any evidence of illicit activity. Professor Slughorn was positive that Pansy did not have the skills to make all of the potions Susan had in her possession. Amazingly anyone who had first-hand knowledge of the potions Pansy could supply them with suddenly had no knowledge of any potions. Mr. Parkinson had been outraged at the suggestion that his daughter could be involved in any type of plot to harm Harry Potter. In response to the allegations that Susan had implicated Pansy, Mr. Parkinson had come up with a list of names such as Pandora, Panthea, and Panphila that Susan may have been trying to say. To Harry's anger, Professor Fedorov refused to ask Pansy to pull up her left sleeve. Harry was positive that Pansy was a Death Eater, but as with the year before when he tried to tell people about Draco, he felt no one was listening to him. No, that wasn't true. His family and friends believed him, but he couldn't convince the authorities that he was correct. Monday had been difficult, Susan's death was announced at breakfast and Hannah had held a memorial service for her in the Room of Requirement that evening. Susan's parents were holding a funeral service for her Tuesday evening. Most of Hufflepuff was attending the funeral, but after talking to the Headmaster and Susan's parents Harry decided it was best if he didn't attend. Susan's parents had been very gracious and to his relief did not blame him for the events of Friday night. "Are you still brooding up here?" Harry turned with a start to see his wife next to the bed. He sighed as she climbed up onto the bed next to him and sat cross legged looking down at him. "I'm not brooding exactly," Harry defending himself. "I just really can't believe this happened. No one should die because they gave someone a love potion. Romilda got detention and Susan dies? How is that fair?" "It's not fair, love," Ginny said compassionately. "She should not have died." She watched him for a minute, running her hands through his hair, "You do know this isn't your fault, right?" Harry couldn't meet her eyes, "I guess." "No," Ginny said forcefully. "Not, you guess. It is not your fault. You only dated her under the effects of a love potion; when you broke the hold it had on you, you broke up with her. You never encouraged her, from what I can tell you were kind to her and that was it. We all know it was Pansy who encouraged this fantasy she had of the two of you together. It is Pansy's fault Susan died, Pansy or the Malfoy's." He closed his eyes and leaned into her hand. To his dismay, tears leaked out from under his closed eyes. He felt Ginny gather him in her arms, "it's okay, love." He started crying in earnest. "I hate this, Gin. I really do. I'm so tired of people dying — my parents, Cedric, Sirius, and now Susan." "I know, baby," Ginny whispered as she held him, running her hands down his back. Once he'd cried, he did feel a little better. He vaguely registered that he would have thought he would be embarrassed about crying in front of his wife, but with Ginny he did not. Slowly, he drifted off to sleep in the arms of his wife. Ginny wiped her eyes and slowly let go of Harry and covered him with a blanket. She entered into the bathroom and washed her face. Kissing him on the forehead, she headed down to the common room. She smiled tiredly when she saw her brother and Neville talking by the fire. Ron held out his arms when he saw her and she gratefully went into his arms. "You okay, Ginny?" She shrugged, "I will be. He's just taking this so hard. I think I may have gotten through to him a bit, but he's still feeling guilty." Ron shook his head, "He always takes it upon himself." "He does know it's not his fault, right?" Neville asked. "This isn't like before, no one else is blaming him. I was at her funeral and no one blamed him at all." "He does realize it on some level, I think," Ginny said. "He's just so used to blaming himself for everything." Ginny settled herself onto the couch next to her brother. "What were you two talking about?" Ron blushed, "Don't get mad, but we were talking about the Quidditch match this weekend. I know Quidditch doesn't seem all that important, but we can't let Slytherin win." Ginny nodded thoughtfully as she turned to Neville, "What do you think the Hufflepuffs would think if we dedicated the game to her? It wouldn't be like we are ignoring what happened, but rather we are honouring her and sticking it to those who had a hand in her death." He smiled, "I think that would be a great idea. Let me talk to Hannah and Ernie tomorrow, but I think they will love the idea." ________________________________ ________________________________________ _______________ Saturday morning dawned cool and crisp. Harry and Ginny joined the other members of the Gryffindor team in the Great Hall. Ginny watched her husband carefully, but his attitude had improved immensely since Tuesday night. He spared her a smile as he ate heartily. To Ginny's amusement, Ron was looking a bit green. "Aren't you going to eat, Ron?" she asked as she helped herself to more toast. "No," he replied tensely. He looked over at Harry, "Why did you pick me again?" Harry rolled his eyes, "Because you were the best keeper who tried out. Come on, Ron. This is the third year you've been on the team, what is your deal?" "I played one good game my first year and two good games my second year, that's not exactly a great record. The only two times you haven't caught the snitch you were unconscious." Ron retorted. He stood up from the table, "I'm going to head down to the pitch." Neville joined them as Ron left, "Is he going to lose his breakfast?" "Probably," Harry snorted. "Seriously, is he like this every game?" Ginny asked in amazement. "In his letters, he was always bragging how good he was and how he loves to play." "He is good and he does love to play," Neville explained, "but he's very insecure. We don't have Hermione to talk sense into him this year." "Yeah, didn't I tell you how I tricked him with Felix Felicis last year?" Harry asked as he finished his cereal. "He was so nervous and going on and on about how horrible he was. I pretended to pour the potion into his pumpkin juice when Hermione was watching. She didn't know what I was doing, so she worked it perfectly. He drank the juice and thought he had taken the potion — he was great, he saved everything in sight." "Then he came up to the common room and started snogging the life out of Lavender Brown," Neville finished. Harry made a face, "There was that." He looked down the table and saw that the rest of the team had finished eating. He was glad to see that Demelza was looking after Natalie who was making her Quidditch debut today. Rising from the bench, he gestured for the rest of the team to follow him. As they arrived in the changing rooms, Harry made it a point to find Natalie. "Are you okay, Natalie?" She smiled, "I am. I thought I was going to be more nervous, but I am more excited than anything else." "Good. You've been doing great in practice, just remember your plays and if you get into trouble look for Ginny or Demelza." "I will, thanks Captain." He looked over at Ginny, she was turned towards her locker and Harry could read the back of her jersey — Potter. He smiled, he loved reminders that she was his wife. "Do you ever stop drooling over my sister?" Ron asked grumpily. Harry laughed, "Not really." He whistled to get everyone's attention, "Okay team. We are a better team and we will win, but Slytherins have a history of playing dirty. Watch out for each other. Most of their team is not experienced, but we can't count on that to let us win. We are not just playing this game for ourselves. We are playing this game in honour of Susan — we all know that she was used by the Slytherins. We can't let them win this game on top of everything else. Let's go out there and win!" Harry led his team onto the field with pride. With Professor Sprout's permission, the Gryffindor Quidditch team were wearing a yellow and black arm band in honour of Susan and Harry was determined to win the game in her honour. "Okay, I want a clean game. Understood?" Madam Hooch's yellow eyes seemed to sharpen on the two captains. Harry shook Vaisey's hand and on Madam Hooch's signal rocketed into the air on his beloved Firebolt. Slytherin's team was much different than in years past. To the shock of most of the school, Astoria Greengrass became the first girl on the Slytherin team in over 50 years when she became seeker. Blaise Zabini, Caelan Warrington, Malcolm Baddock, and Ian Remmington rounded out the rest of the new team members. Harry circled the pitch, watching the action below. Ginny had started the scoring early and Gryffindor soon jumped ahead with a 50 — 10 lead. "The little wife is doing well." Harry didn't even bother to look over at Astoria were she was hovering next to him, "Thanks, I think so too." He winced as Demelza dodged a bludger that managed to knock Natalie off course, but to his relief she corrected quickly. "I'm surprised you're letting her play," Astoria remarked. "Why?" Harry asked. "I heard she's pregnant." Harry forced himself not to react, "Really? You'd think I would have heard about that." He bit back a smile at the disappointment that registered on her face at his lack of reaction. Tired of the conversation, he suddenly dove straight through the Slytherin's chasers and laughed as they scattered clearing the way for Ginny to score again. Flying back up above the action, Harry resumed his search for the snitch. He smiled to see Bill and Charlie Weasley cheering their youngest sibling on. Both of the older Weasleys were wearing Gryffindor colours, despite the fact they were supposed to be neutral. He saw a few flashes of gold, but quickly discounted them as the snitch. For Harry, the most amusing moment came when Astoria dove after a flash of gold only to discover it was Zabini's gold watch. A cheer ripped through the crowd as Ginny and Natalie scored in quick succession. An hour into the game, Harry had caught sight of the snitch twice, but it had disappeared quickly each time. Gryffindor was leading 210 — 100, but Slytherin was starting to become restless. Each of the Gryffindor chasers had been hit at least once with a bludger with Natalie suffering a short nosebleed. Harry himself had been hit several times with bludgers and he was fairly certain his ribs were bruised at the very least. Harry was circling near the Gryffindor side of the pitch when he spotted the snitch close to the ground. Without any hesitation, he dove. Astoria made the mistake of watching for a few seconds before realizing he wasn't feinting this time. Harry caught the snitch easily and raised the snitch over his head. A whistle sounded ending the game and the team flew down and jumped on Harry. He laughingly accepted hugs from Natalie and Demelza before receiving a deep kiss from his wife. He gestured for Ginny to climb on behind him and she did. Ron grabbed her broom as the Potters took off for a victory lap. Harry stopped in front of the Hufflepuff stands and handed the game snitch to Professor Sprout. She accepted graciously with a smile and a hug for each of the Potters. Upon landing, Harry and Ginny made their way to the changing room. They quickly changed so they could head up to the inevitable party in the common room. As Harry opened the changing room, he was surprised to find Professor McGonagall on the other side. "Mr. Potter, I was just coming to look for you," she said. "There are some people who would like to speak to you and your wife." "People?" Harry asked cautiously. "Scouts," she said with a smile. ________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________ "Scouts?" Ron shouted. "That's brilliant! Who did you talk to?" Harry laughed, "Who didn't we talk to? I really liked to people from Puddlemere, Portree, and Montrose. Ginny really liked the Harpies." "Were the Cannons there?" Ron asked eagerly. Harry laughed and handed his best mate a Cannon's jersey. "They were, but honestly I don't think I would want to play for the Cannons." "Do you think you would want to play Quidditch?" Ron asked as he pulled on his new jersey ignoring how badly it clashed with his hair. Harry shrugged, "It would be great, but I don't know if it would be possible. I mean with Voldemort and everything, I don't know. I think Ginny would like to play." "Ginny won't be able to play," Ron laughed, "she's going to be a mum." "So?" Harry said. "If she wants to play, she can play. I would never try to stop her." Ron looked at him in confusion, "But…what about the babies?" "I can take care of them," Harry said. "What do you think we're going to do next year? I'm going to take care of the babies while she finishes school." Ron goggled at him, "Really?" Harry nodded. He watched as his best mate digested that news before he said, "Look mate, you aren't upset about the scouts approaching us are you?" Ron laughed, "No. I mean I love Quidditch and I love to play, but I know I'm not as good as you two. I just hope one of you plays professional Quidditch." The boys were distracted by Ginny joining them, thrilled with both her first game at Hogwarts and meeting the scouts. She delighted in showing her brother her new Harpies jersey. "They've invited me to try-out once I graduate," Ginny said with a smile. "The Harpies, can you believe it?" "That's great, Ginny," Ron replied sincerely. He still couldn't imagine Ginny would be able to play Quidditch with two babies, but he certainly wasn't foolish enough to say that to her. __________________________________ ________________________________________ __________ The pall of Susan's death slowly dissipated over the next two weeks. The Hufflepuff house had decided to wear black armbands in her honour. Harry asked the Headmaster for permission to set aside an area to honour those lost in the war. Once he had secured permission, Harry, Daphne and the prefects decided to create a wall in honour of those lost in the war. A white marble wall was created and anyone who wished could engrave names of those lost in the war. The wall across from the marble wall was a picture wall. All students were encouraged to bring pictures of those lost. Harry had carved the names of his parents and godfather on the wall. Professor Sprout had carved Cedric's name, while Hannah added Susan as well as Susan's family lost in the war. Ginny and Ron together had added the names of their uncles Fabian and Gideon. Pictures started cropping up on the wall. Students had taken to adding messages to those lost such as 'I love you, Aunt Laura' and 'We miss you, Cedric!' Over all, the memorial hall was a big morale booster for the students and staff. Harry had even noticed some of the staff adding the names and pictures of their loved ones to the wall. _________________________________ ________________________________________ _____________ Ginny resisted the urge to stamp her feet, but just barely. Over the past month, since Harry had first shown her the Room of Requirement, the two of them had been learning the art of sword fighting. Not only were there books and diagrams, they had discovered that if they asked the room for help a shadow appeared on the wall to show them the proper movements. Ginny found she enjoyed sword fighting, but she was discovering the further along she was and the more weight she gained, the more difficult she was finding the footwork and working with the swords. She was getting so frustrated with her altered centre of gravity. She had always been flexible and athletic, so it was so frustrating that her body was not doing what she wanted it to do. "Sweetie, what's wrong?" Harry had stopped working out when she tossed her wooden sword over in the corner. She didn't answer right away, she just glared at him. "Ginny?" "I can't do anything!" Ginny yelled in frustration. Calming down she said, "I can't move right, I keep feeling like I'm going to tip over." She wiped angrily at the tears that were so close to the surface these days. Harry approached her cautiously, he had learned to be weary around Ginny when she was upset. One of the side effects of pregnancy was bouts of accidental magic or magic not responding how she wanted. He'd already experienced her Bat Boogey Hex when she was angry. He'd had a nose bleed for almost ten minutes afterwards. Ginny had been very apologetic, but it appeared she couldn't always control the strength of her spells. As Harry reached her side, he put his hand on her shoulder, "Maybe you should try something else for a while." She knocked his arm away, "I don't want to try something else. I want to get this right!" Harry watched in silence as she tried her footwork again. She started her footwork again and did well at first before losing her balance. She didn't fall, but it was a close thing. "I'm going to see my brother," Ginny said angrily. Harry watched her go unsure of what to do. He could feel the frustration coming off of her in waves, but everything he said seemed to be making her angrier. Slightly upset himself, Harry continued his workout. Like Ginny, he found that he liked working with the swords. He still wasn't sure how sword fighting was going to help him in his fight with Voldemort, but if Bill and Remus thought it was going to help he was willing to give it a try. Ginny left the Room of Requirement feeling angry and out of sorts. She headed down to her brother's quarters. Arriving at Bill and Fleur's quarters, Ginny was happy to see Fleur open the door. Fleur greeted her with a smile and a hug, "Come in, ma belle-soeur." That was all in took, Ginny burst into tears. Fleur guided her over into their sitting area and rocked Ginny in her arms. After Ginny calmed down slightly, Fleur handed her a handkerchief, "Now what is wrong?" "I don't know," Ginny shrugged. "I just feel so sluggish and out of sorts and I don't know what's wrong or what I should do." Fleur nodded sympathetically as Ginny struggled to put into words what was wrong. "I just…feel wrong," she said. "I'm trying to help Harry with the sword fighting and I just can't seem to get it right. My body feels off. I haven't gained all that much weight, I've gained a little over four kilos, but somehow just that seems to throw me off." "I know. I would say I am a bit more concerned with my looks than you," Fleur said with a self-deprecating smile. "I have found that nothing fits quite right, I feel tired and out of sorts. I've gained two and a half kilos and some days I get so upset." She sighed, "Then I get upset with myself. I am thrilled to be pregnant, but at times I don't like the changes in my body." Ginny agreed, "That's it. I don't like all of the changes and then I get upset at myself for being so vain when I have two babies growing in me." Fleur laughed, "At least I'm not the only one who feels this way. I talked to one of the other witches at work and she was going on and on about how beautiful pregnancy is and how wonderful. I felt so horrible, like this meant I was going to be a horrible mother." After summoning Dobby to get them some tea and scones, Ginny settled back on the couch. She told Fleur her London shopping trip and the baby shop they had found. "Over the Christmas hols, we need to go shopping together," Ginny said as she munched happily on an apple scone. "Harry and I decided to set up a little nursery at Grimmauld Place and then of course one at our new house." "That's a good idea," Fleur said. "My mum set aside a suite of rooms with a nursery at their house. I don't know what will happen, but I have a feeling one of us might need to seek refuge at my parents' house before this is over." Ginny nodded, "Unfortunately, I think that is true." "Totally changing the subject," Fleur said with a smile, "Bill's birthday is coming up on Saturday. Would you, Harry, and Ron like to join us for a birthday celebration?" "That sounds great," Ginny happily. "What do you want to do?" The two women were happily engrossed in their plans when Bill arrived. He greeted both women with a hug and kissed his wife. "What are you two plotting?" He asked as he settled in with his arms around his wife. "Your birthday celebration," Ginny replied. "We are going to have a small family-style celebration." "That sounds good," Bill said. "What's wrong, love?" Fleur asked in concern. He sighed, "Kingsley came to meet with the staff. They determined that Susan had been under an Imperius Curse, possibly for as long as a year. We don't know who was controlling her or even what they had her do. "Susan's parents allowed Kingsley access to all of her papers. She kept a journal, but rather erratically," Bill explained. "She did appear to be infatuated with Harry. Before they dated, she wrote quite a bit about how wonderful he was and how handsome — that kind of thing. They worked together on a Charms project and he was so nice and sweet, but he didn't seem interested in her. That is when she approached someone, we presume to be Pansy about a love potion. "She was able to slip him the love potion in a drink during dinner. Once she had his attention, she continued to feed him a love potion on a daily basis. She wrote in her diary about her jealousy of Hermione and her close friendship with Harry. Susan and Harry got in an argument about how much time he spent with Hermione and that was all it took to break the power the love potion had over him. She went to the same person for more help, but was unable to get close to him again." "What do you mean you presume to be Pansy?" Ginny asked. Bill made a face, "Whatever curse that prevented her from telling us who it was it also prevented her from writing it down. Whenever she talks about the potion seller, it comes out as xxxxx. That is a fairly advanced curse, I haven't been all that impressed with Pansy's curse work in class. While I don't doubt she is selling the potions, she seems to have others protecting her. I don't know if it was these people that put Susan under the Imperius Curse or not." "The Malfoys?" Fleur guessed. "Possibly," Bill said. "Kingsley said she has kept a close relationship with Narcissa, who is an excellent potion maker." Ginny growled, "How can they just get away with everything? They torture my husband, they take advantage of this poor girl's crush, why can't we do anything?" "Sweetie, they are in power right now. You know from Harry the kind of atrocities they commit," Bill explained. "Until we can figure out how to defeat Voldemort, well unfortunately that is going to be accepted." Catching sight of the clock, Ginny realized she'd been visiting with her sister-in-law for most of the afternoon. "I'd better go," she said standing up. Fleur swept her up into a hug, "Are you feeling better, ma petite?" "I am," Ginny said a bit sheepishly. "I'm sure I owe Harry an apology." _____________________________ ________________________________________ ____________________ Ron was relaxing in the common room when Harry stormed in. He watched cautiously as his best mate strode straight through the room and up the stairs to his dorm room. At first Ron wasn't overly concerned, while Harry's temper had mellowed considerably since his fifth year, he did still have a temper. What really surprised him was the fact that Ginny didn't return to the common room. While no one had said anything to specifically, Ron had noticed that Harry and Ginny seemed to be aware of when the other one was upset or hurt. When Harry didn't return to the common room and Ginny didn't come back down, Ron decided to go up and check on his best mate. He knocked on the door. It took a few minutes, but Harry eventually answered the door clad only in a pair of jeans. His hair was wet and he had a towel in his hand. "Come on in, mate," Harry said letting Ron into his room. Ron entered the room curiously. He hadn't been in here since the beginning of the school year and he noticed several changes. Harry noticed him looking around and said, "Have you seen our new kitchenette?" "Wow, this is brilliant," Ron said as he looked around. "You can get a snack anytime you want." Unlike Harry, Ron didn't seem fazed by the fact that the room was much bigger on the inside than on the inside. When Dobby had first enlarged the room, Harry had walked around the room in amazement with Ginny laughing at him. He had been just as amazed the second time when Dobby enlarged the room and created a kitchenette. Harry nodded, "It is cool. I've been able to make breakfast and snacks for Ginny." Ron shook his head, "You are so whipped. What about food for you?" "She's pregnant," Harry said as if that explained everything. As Ron explored the kitchenette, Harry rummaged through his chest of drawers for a t-shirt. Once Ron was sitting down at the table, he looked over at his best mate, "So what's wrong?" Harry sighed as he threw himself down in the chair opposite his best mate, "I don't know. We were working out in the Room of Requirement and Ginny started getting all upset." "About what?" "I don't know exactly," Harry said miserably. "She said something about not being able to move the same and gaining some weight. She just got really angry with me and I don't know what to do. I hate when she's angry at me." Ron felt a spike of anger towards his sister, he could see how miserable this was making his best friend. "Do you want to go fly?" Looking up, a smile spread across his face, "That's a great idea." Grabbing his broom, the two boys headed down to the seventh year dorm to get Ron's broom before heading outside. To Ron's relief, Harry's demeanor changed as soon as he hit the air. The two played an elaborate game of tag before Harry took off into the sky. Ron flew a bit more sedately as he watched Harry go into one of his trademark dives. "Hey, little brother." Looking around, Ron saw Charlie fly up next to him. "Charlie, you come to fly with us?" Charlie whistled as he watched Harry go into another steep dive, "Does he always dive like that?" Ron laughed, "Yeah, he loves to dive. Especially if he's upset." "What's he upset about?" "Ginny," Ron said. "She got all angry with him and he always gets upset when she gets angry." "I don't know much about pregnant women, but I do know from working with pregnant dragons they get really moody and angry at times," Charlie said. "Pregnancy releases a lot of hormones and at times it can get really over whelming." "I just wish she wouldn't take it out on him," Ron said. Charlie shook his head, "I know, but they'll be okay." Harry flew up next to them, "Charlie, you came to fly?" "I heard you think you can dive," Charlie said with a laugh. Ron took to the stands to watch the two of them dive. Both were excellent flyers, but Harry just had an edge that Charlie didn't have. He was willing to take more risks, he flew just a little faster and dove a little steeper. Dusk was upon them by the time the two seekers gave up. "Do you two want to have dinner with me?" Charlie asked. "I have a spicy stew and bread cooking in my hut." "No thanks, I better head back," Harry said. "I'll take you up on it," Ron laughed, "you know I rarely turn down any food." As the brothers headed off towards Charlie's hut, Harry headed back up to the castle. He reached out with his emotions and to his relief, Ginny was much calmer than she had been earlier. Reaching his room, he knocked softly before entering. Ginny was fast asleep on their bed. Harry set his broom up against the wall next to Ginny's and slowly approached the bed. He smiled to see her so relaxed. Her hair was unbound and spread across the pillows. Leaning down he pressed a kiss on her forehead, he was glad to see a smile cross her face. He headed over to their kitchenette. Maybe he would make her something to eat. Casting a silencing charm over the area, he called Dobby. Quickly explaining to the elf what he wanted to make, Dobby nodded and popped down to the kitchen returning quickly with the required ingredients. Getting to work, Harry started mixing up the marinade and chopping vegetables. He decided to make spicy chicken kebabs. It was a recipe he had originally tried out with Remus and with some adjustments he'd made it for Ginny over the summer. As he worked, he looked over at Ginny. He wished with all of his heart that he knew how to make her feel better. It was times like these he wished he had a parent to talk to. While Remus was great, Harry really wanted a mum to talk to. He smiled when he realized that the last time he'd had these kind of thoughts he found a wonderful big sister in Fleur. Maybe he could go talk to Fleur sometime in the next few days. He jumped when he felt two arms wrap around his waist. Smiling, he turned around to see his smiling wife. "I'm sorry, love," Ginny said as she leaned into his embrace. "I don't mean to take it out on you." Harry smiled and dropped a kiss on top of her head, "I know, baby. I just feel bad because I don't know how to help you." She looked up at him, "I know. It just takes me some time to get used to the changes in my body. I went to see Fleur and had a long talk with her, I actually feel a lot better after talking to her." "Good," Harry said as he kissed her. "I went flying with your brothers." Ginny giggle, "I thought that's what you were doing. I could feel the swoop of excitement." As he started cook again, he told her about flying with Ron and Charlie. Ginny pulled some plates out of the cupboard as Harry threw the skewers on the grill pan. Over dinner, Ginny shared the news from Bill. "I'm sure Narcissa made the potions," Harry said. "Bellatrix said something about her sister and potions. I bet Narcissa took Snape's place as Voldemort's potion's maker." Ginny sighed, "I feel badly for Susan. She had a crush on you and they used it to control her. She didn't deserve it." "I know," Harry said. "I've been thinking lately, we are so close to ending this thing. We've destroyed all of the Horcruxes except for Nagini. If we can figure out how to use the stone, we can get rid of him." "Can he tell that the Horcruxes are destroyed?" Ginny asked curiously. "I don't think so," Harry said. "I think if he realized what we were doing he would have tried to hide them in different places or even just attacked me earlier." Ginny nodded, "I guess that makes sense. It just seems so strange to be so concerned about dying, but not keep track of the Horcruxes." A thought struck her, "He can't make more, can he?" "I don't think so," Harry said. "I've talked to Bill and Remus, I think his soul would become too unstable if he created more. I mean it was already unstable enough that he accidently turned my scar into a Horcrux. Bill said he thought that Voldemort would not retain enough of a soul to inhabit his body if he attempted another Horcrux." "Wouldn't that be too bad?" Ginny said sarcastically. Harry laughed, "I really can't wait until he's gone." With a wave of his hand, he sent the dirty dishes into the sink to wash up. "Did you get enough to eat, love?" "Yeah, I'm good," Ginny said as she got up from the table, stretching. Harry walked around the table and drew her into his embrace, "I love you." "I love you," she replied, laying her head on his chest. She snuggled into him for a moment listening to his heartbeat. "I'm sorry I upset you." He smiled as he lay his cheek on her hair, "I know, baby. I just wish I could help you." "You do," she said emphatically. "You are patient and you don't get angry at me. Ron yells at me at least once a week when I get a bit shirty with him, but you never do. I don't want you to think I'm not happy about the babies, because I am. I am thrilled, actually." Harry settled back into his chair and drew her into his lap. "So where were we with our name hunt?" Ginny laughed, "I had just told you that under no circumstances would I name a baby Cyril." "Does that mean we are moving on to the D names?" Harry asked with a laugh as he summoned the baby name book from the desk. They spent the rest of the night searching their baby name book and trying to top each other with the worst combination of names. ________________________________ ________________________________________ _____________ Tonks smiled as she greeted Kingsley, "How is everything?" He sighed. Before he could respond, the waitress came to take their order. Kingsley ordered coffee and a pastry while Tonks ordered tea, crumpets, and eggs. Once the waitress moved off, Kingsley explained what he'd discovered about Susan's death. "I talked to my mum," Tonks said. "She said that Narcissa was always really good at potions. She had even talked about becoming a Potions Mistress before she married Malfoy." "That's what I was afraid of," Kingsley admitted. "We can't touch the Malfoys in the current climate." He smiled at his former co-worker, "So how is the school?" "It's working out really well," Tonks beamed. "Remus is really enjoying teaching again. The students we have are really motivated and they want to be there." Her face dimmed slightly, "Susan's death hit everyone pretty hard. Four of our students were Hufflepuffs, so even if they didn't know her well, they'd spent time with her. Remus and Filius both spent quite a bit of them talking to them. I think it helps that we don't have that many students, we're much more available to them than at a bigger school." Kingsley nodded, "How are you doing?" "I'm good," Tonks said. "I miss working, but I do like helping Remus with the kids. Harry and Ginny's cots were delivered last week, so now I want to start decorating our baby's room. My mum said she'd go shopping with me later after Christmas." "I miss you at work as well," Kingsley said. "How bad is it?" He shook his head, "It's bad. Everyone is distrustful of everyone else. Williamson, Umbridge, and Weasley are watching everything that everyone is doing. I honestly don't know about Gawain. I'm concerned that he is under an Imperius." "Really?" Tonks was shocked. "What makes you think so?" "I can't really explain it, but he's not the same anymore," Kingsley explained. "He doesn't have his own opinions, he just parrots whatever Williamson and Umbridge come up with. He just doesn't look good, he's lost weight and he doesn't look like he's sleeping well. I tried to talk to him, but now he seems to be avoiding me." Tonks shook her head, "I wish more people could resist the Imperius Curse or that there is a better way to tell who is under the curse." Kingsley laughed, "That would certainly make my life easier. It is a difficult curse to resist, not many people have the willpower to do so." "I know. I have trouble with the curse myself," Tonks admitted. "It should be a part of our training. Harry could do it when he was fourteen. He resisted an Imperius Curse from You-Know-Who." "That is impressive," Kingsley admitted. He looked around the diner; while they met in a Muggle diner, he was always making sure they weren't followed. "We've been able to get some more people out of the country. Mostly Muggleborns, but there were some families that just don't feel safe or comfortable in the current climate." "Good," Tonks said. "If you need any more help, let me know. My dad has been making plans. If the Muggleborn commission gets more aggressive, he and the Grangers might need to leave the country." "Let me know if you need anything," Kingsley said. "I will," Tonks promised. "Be careful, you are the only Auror we know we can count on. We don't need you compromised." "Yes, ma'am," he replied playfully. As the two went their separate ways, Kingsley headed back to the Ministry. As he arrived back in the Auror department, Percy approached his desk. "Shacklebolt," Percy said officiously. "The minister requires an update on the healers refusing to comply with the contraceptive decree." Kingsley looked at Percy impassively. He really couldn't believe that with Death Eaters all around, that is what they wanted to spend time on. "I will have it on his desk later today." "See that you do," Percy said turning to leave. Kingsley shook his head, he really hated the Ministry. For a moment, he envied Tonks. She might not be allowed to work, but she didn't have to put up with such foolishness. With a sigh, he pulled out a fresh sheet of parchment upon which to write his mostly fabricated report. |
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