SIYE Time:21:46 on 17th April 2024 SIYE Login: no | | |
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The Thorny Rose By Brennus
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Category: Pre-OotP
Characters:Harry/Ginny
Genres: Action/Adventure, Romance
Warnings: Mild Language
Story is Complete
Rating: PG-13
Reviews: 185
Summary: Harry has been entered into the Triwizard Tournament against his will, and his friends don’t believe him when he insists he didn’t enter his name. Will Ginny Weasley sit by and watch him suffer alone, or will she risk exposing the dark secret she has been hiding. GoF re-write from Ginny’s POV. Smart & slightly manipulative Ginny! Extreme Ron-bashing!
Hitcount: Story Total: 69185; Chapter Total: 7075
Awards: View Trophy Room
Author's Notes: I don’t know, I throw one Slytherin off a tower and look at all the kerfuffle it causes! Really!
Snigger. I did enjoy the very mixed reactions I got to the last chapter. Most people seemed to fall into one of two camps. It was either ‘you’ve turning children into killers, you bastard!’ or ‘shouldn’t they have wiped the blood off that window ledge?’ I think one reviewer summed it up best with that old quote: a good friend will help you move house, a true friend will help you move the bodies. Wise words.
Those of a nervous disposition will be pleased to know no one gets thrown off anything in this chapter; there are even some quite fluffy moments to tug at the heart-strings! Of course, my idea of fluff appears to be quite different from most people, so be warned.
Mega thanks to Arnel for her wonderful beta work and her welcome sympathy for my injured foot. Ouch!
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Chapter 8 — The Mirror Black
“Oh, sweet Merlin, what has that cow written now?” Harry demanded, as he sat himself down for breakfast.
Hermione, who had been looking at her newly delivered copy of the Daily Prophet, just shook her head and thrust the paper at Harry, clearly too upset to talk. Harry took the paper and began to read with a resigned expression on his face. As Hermione looked like she was nearly in tears, Ginny feared the worst.
The last couple of weeks had been strange ones for her. Theodore Nott’s disappearance had been noticed the day after she and Harry had accidentally thrown the boy off the Astronomy Tower, but the investigation had never involved them. They’d had a brief moment of panic when they remembered the blood-splattered window ledge in the tower, but a swift visit under Harry’s Invisibility Cloak and a couple of Cleaning Charms had sorted that problem. Eventually, as there was no evidence of foul play, it was declared that Nott had run away and was officially listed as missing. Ginny had nearly broken down in tears of relief when she heard that. The worst time for her had been when the staff of Hogwarts had mounted a search of the Forbidden Forest, but nothing had been found. The Acromantulas had obviously done their work well.
With no suspicion being pointed towards Harry or her, things had settled back down into their normal routine. At her insistence, however, they had immediately begun Occlumency training, but it would be many months before that would yield results. In the meantime, she became quite fanatical about casting the Mind Fortress Spell whenever she was around teachers, and had urged Harry to do the same.
Harry.
Without his quiet support Ginny knew she would have broken down and confessed everything by now. At first, she’d been a bit alarmed at how calmly Harry had been handling everything, but after a few days she gained a new appreciation of her friend. Occasionally, his eyes would betray the pain and worry that he normally hid so well, but he carried on with a grim determination that amazed her. It was then she began to think of Harry as a soldier, fighting in some bitter war he never wanted any part of. He hated killing and bloodshed, but equally he would do whatever he needed to do to win and defeat Voldemort’s followers. It also explained why Harry was doing so well at the extra training that they had been doing; he was preparing himself for battle. Once she accepted this idea and tried applying it to herself, she found herself feeling a little bit better. Still, she clung to Harry like a lifeline.
“That bitch!” Harry snarled, bringing Ginny back to reality.
“What’s Skeeter said about you now?” she asked.
“It’s not so much me this time,” Harry lamented, “she’s mainly having a go at you and Hermione.”
“What!” Ginny exclaimed snatching the paper out of Harry’s hands. Quickly, she began to read the front page article.
It was true; the article was another fairy-tale about Harry’s supposed love life. This time, however, Hermione had been cast in the role of an ambitious and manipulative temptress, who had dumped Harry for the rich and famous Viktor Krum. Harry had apparently been heart-broken and, on the rebound, had fallen into the arms of a scheming gold-digger named Guinevere Weasley. It was hinted that she was using Love Potions to keep Harry under her control, so she could systematically steal his fortune. Ginny scrunched the paper into a ball and threw it as hard as she could away from her.
“Skeeter couldn’t even get your name right,” Harry noted. “And I must say, Gin, if you’re stealing my fortune you’re not doing a very good job of it. I think you’d better up the dosage of those Love Potions.”
“Don’t even joke about this, Harry,” Ginny growled. “If Mum reads this I’ll never hear the last of it. She’ll think I’m a scarlet woman.”
“Well, with that hair you could be called a scarlet woman,” Harry note with a wry grin, “and you do look lovely wearing red.”
“Do you find this funny?” Ginny challenged him, a note of anger in her voice.
“No, not really,” Harry replied calmly. “That bloody cow Skeeter has hurt my two best friends, and trust me, I will get my own back. It’s just I can’t take anything the woman says too seriously anymore. I know everything she writes is a pile of crap and I’m going to treat it accordingly. And let’s face it, Ginny; if anyone will willingly believe what that woman writes about you, you know they’re not your friend.”
“True,” she replied, her anger fading slightly. “Still, I think I’d better send a letter to Mum immediately. I don’t want her to get worked up and send me a howler, or something.”
“Good idea,” Harry agreed. “You can use Hedwig if you like. You might want to get the twins to write to your mum, as well, just to back you up. If Ron sends a letter home, there’s no telling what he’ll say.”
“That’s a good suggestion,” Ginny agreed. “So, what do you think? Is it time for Harry Potter to do another interview for The Quibbler? I can’t wait to see what Luna will write about your tragic love-life.”
“That’s a bloody good idea,” Harry agreed. “Hey, Hermione. Do you fancy being interviewed for The Quibbler, too? Give you a chance to tell your side of things?”
Hermione looked up in surprise. “Well, I’m not sure they’d want to interview me, but if they do, I’ll willingly give my side of the story.”
“Oh, I think they will want to interview you,” Ginny assured them. “I think Luna’s dad takes special pleasure in showing up the Daily Prophet. I’d bet they’d jump at the chance!”
They ate the rest of their breakfast in somewhat better spirits. There were some abusive shouts from the Slytherin table directed at them, but Harry and his friends had long since learnt to ignore them. After they finished, Harry and Hermione said their goodbyes and headed off for their first lesson of the day, Charms, while Ginny lingered to have a quick word with Fred and George. The twins proved sympathetic to her plight and agreed to write to their mother that very night. Feeling encouraged, Ginny left the hall to head to her first lesson of the day, History of Magic.
After leaving the hall, she was surprised to see a large group had gathered in the Entrance Hall, and she could just make out voices shouting from the centre of the crowd. She was about to ignore the group and walk on by, when she heard the distinctive tones of her brother. Groaning, she began to push her way to the front of the crowd.
Sure enough, once she reached the front she found Harry and a tearful Hermione being confronted by an enraged Ron and a sullen Neville. The crowd seemed to be anticipating a good fight and several people were shouting encouragement, although to which side Ginny wasn’t sure.
“You’re just a bloody slag, Granger!” Ron was yelling. “You ought to be ashamed of yourself throwing yourself at Krum, like that. You’re a traitor to Hogwarts!”
“Shut it, Ron,” Harry yelled back. “You’re just jealous! You nearly wet yourself in excitement when Krum arrived at the start of the Tournament.”
“That’s a lie!” Ron shouted back. “Besides, Krum wasn’t competing against Hogwarts then, was he? I bet he only picked up Granger so he could spy on you. Not that you deserve to be in the Tournament, you cheating bastard.”
“I’ve not said a word to Viktor about the Tournament!” Hermione shrieked. “In fact, I’ve not spoken to him since the second task.”
“Oh, realised Krum isn’t really interested in you, have you?” Ron taunted. “Trying to get back in with Harry? Merlin, you’re such a tramp!”
“Piss off, you moron,” Harry raged. “Hermione is my friend and she’s not ‘trying to get back in with me’ as you charmingly put it. I can’t believe you’re so stupid to believe those stories in the paper. Only a gullible fool would believe them.”
“Gullible fool, am I?” Ron snarled. “Just because someone started telling the truth about you, you don’t like it, do you? And let me tell you something else; you’d better leave my sister alone or I’ll kick your head in!”
“Ginny is free to be friends with whoever she likes!” Harry raged. “She doesn’t need an idiot like you trying to run her life for her.”
“Ginny’s just a naïve little girl,” Ron spat back, clearly not noticing his sister in the crowd, “and I’m not going to let you take advantage of her. Shag that stuck-up Muggle-born if you want, but if you lay one finger on Ginny you are dead!”
Unable to stand any more, Ginny stepped forwards, trembling with rage. “You complete bastard!” she raged. “How dare you talk about me in that way in front of everyone? I can’t believe you! Do you think you have the right to tell me what to do? You’ve been acting like a jealous little prick since the start of this term and if you think I’m going to stand by and let you insult me, Harry and Hermione like that, you’ve got another thing coming!”
“Get out of here, Ginny,” Ron yelled, “I’ll deal with you later. But first, I’m going to teach this stuffed-up ponce a lesson!”
As soon as the words had left Ron’s mouth, he drew his wand and pointed it at Harry. Without thinking, Ginny drew her wand and aimed it at her brother.
“Chiroptera Mucous!” she cried.
The curse hit Ron squarely in the face and he screamed as his own mucus hardened into bat-like shapes and began to claw at his face. He dropped his wand as he frantically began to try and beat the shapes away with both his hands.
“Drop it, Longbottom, or you’ll be spending the next month in the Hospital Wing,” she heard Harry say in a low, dangerous tone.
Looking over, she saw Neville had his wand pointed directly at her; however, his eyes were looking fearfully in Harry’s direction. Harry also had his wand drawn, and it was pointed unwaveringly at the plump boy. A second late, Hermione stepped forward with her wand pointing at Neville, too. Longbottom lowered his arm, and began to back away, much to the derision of the gathered crowd.
Ron’s pained cries drew her attention back to her brother. By now he was curled into a ball trying to protect his face. Ginny had never cast her favoured Bat-Boogie Hex with so much power or spite before, and the results were quite horrific. Strips of flesh had been torn from Ron’s face and his hands were dripping with blood where he had tried to defend himself.
Casually, she cancelled the spell and slowly walked forward until she was just a few feet away from her brother. Ron looked up at her with fear in his eyes.
“This is your last chance, Ron,” she told him calmly. “If you mess with me or Harry again, I swear next time I’ll keep that Hex on you until it rips your face off!”
“Ginny, how can you say that?” Ron sobbed. “I’m your brother!”
“Really? You certainly don’t act like it. In fact, you’ve been acting like a complete arsehole for months now, and I’m sick of it. I warn you: one more spiteful comment, one more nasty look, one more unwarranted attack, and we are through, brother. Do you understand me?”
“Teachers!” someone yelled from the back of the crowd.
Instantly, the gathered mass of pupils turned and hurried on their way. Ginny felt a hand on her elbow and she looked up to see Harry gently leading her away. She didn’t resist, and left a sobbing Ron Weasley on the floor, his mauled hands held out in front of him, blood dripping from his wounds.
As they walked, she felt Harry’s arm slip around her shoulder and she leaned her head into him. Part of her was horrified that she could do such a thing to her own brother. Another, larger, part of her was tired of people screwing her around and was glad she had sent a clear message to everyone: don’t mess with Ginny Weasley.
The war was starting and no one, absolutely no one, would stand in her way.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
Ginny sat in the common room impatiently awaiting Harry’s return. He’d gone to be given details of the third task, but had been gone for hours. Ginny was starting to get a bit worried about him.
Sitting across from her, Hermione also looked rather impatient. Although her eyes were glued to the book on her lap, the tapping of her foot in time to some unheard music, and the way she pursed her lips were sure signs that Hermione’s patience was wearing thin.
Despite the tension, Ginny couldn’t help but smile when she recalled the recent interview the bushy—haired witch had conducted for The Quibbler. Luna had once again conducted the interview in her normal style and had succeeded in sending Hermione to the hospital wing in search of a Headache Potion as soon as it finished. The results were worth it, though. The article made Rita Skeeter look like a gossiping moron. As the piece pointed out, Rita’s version of events sounded more suited to a steamy romance soap opera on the wireless, rather than a bunch of thirteen and fourteen-year-old kids. It had done much to quieten the gossiping witches around the castle, thankfully.
Glancing at her watch, Ginny was just starting to think about going out to look for Harry when the portrait hole swung open and the young man in question emerged. With a tired expression on his face, he flung himself down on the sofa next to Ginny.
“That took a long time,” Hermione noted sharply, the second he had taken his seat.
“Yeah, well, some strange things happened this evening,” Harry explained.
“First things first,” Ginny interrupted. “What’s the third task going to be?”
“Oh, they’ve turned the Quidditch pitch into a giant maze. Apparently, the Triwizard Cup will be at the centre of the maze and the champions will race to get to it. Just to make it extra fun, Hagrid will be putting certain ‘interesting animals’ around the maze. You can just imagine what he’ll come up with,” Harry sighed.
“We’ll have to research as many magical beasts as we can and come up means of subduing them,” Hermione suggested.
“Yeah, and we’ll just keep on training you in general purpose spells as we don’t know exactly what you’ll face,” Ginny decided. “I think for your physical training you’d better concentrate on running and building up your endurance.”
“Fine, why don’t you stick a broom up my arse and I’ll clean the castle, too,” muttered Harry quietly.
“What was that?” Ginny asked.
“Err, nothing. But let me tell you about the weird thing that happened afterwards,” Harry said quickly. “Viktor and I had gone down to Hagrid’s hut so we could talk in private, and suddenly Barty Crouch comes crashing out of the forest gibbering like a monkey. I mean, he was totally off his head! I left him with Viktor while I went and got the Headmaster, but by the time we got back we found Viktor had been Stunned and there was no sign of Crouch.”
“Is Viktor alright?” Hermione asked hurriedly.
“Yeah, he’s fine,” Harry replied with a small smile on his lips. “But the weird thing is Viktor swears it wasn’t Crouch that attacked him. He says he was watching Crouch carefully when he was hit and he was certain it was someone behind him that hit him with the spell.”
“That’s very worrying,” Ginny said frowning. “Crouch has been signed off sick for ages; what’s wrong with him and why did he suddenly just turn up here?”
“He’s been here loads of times before, remember?” Harry pointed out. “I’ve seen him on the map in Moody’s office a dozen times at least.”
“Was Moody around when you found Crouch?” Ginny asked suspiciously.
“No, not straight away,” Harry admitted, “but he turned up pretty quickly after I got back with Dumbledore. He said he would help look around.”
“Isn’t it funny that Moody is the only person who’s seen Crouch for ages, and he just happens to turn up just after Crouch vanishes again,” Ginny pondered.
“What are you suggesting, Ginny?” Hermione asked.
“I’m not sure,” Ginny admitted, “but I’ll wager every Knut I own that Moody knows more than he’s letting on. Don’t forget that we still don’t know who put Harry’s name in the Goblet.”
“You can’t suspect Moody!” Hermione protested.
“I suspect everyone who had the means and ability to charm the Goblet and Moody is on that list, right along with Karkaroff and, yes, Dumbledore. I wouldn’t put it past our Headmaster to have staged this whole thing as some sort of test for Harry.”
Hermione looked at Ginny disapproving, but said nothing.
“One thing I don’t understand,” Ginny said, turning towards Harry, “was why did you and Krum feel the need to go off and have a private conversation?”
“Ah, well, it seems Viktor was a little concerned about my relationship with Hermione here,” Harry said, grinning widely. “Despite what you said to him at the Yule Ball, he was still worried that Miss Granger and I might be more than good friends.”
“Oh, really?” Hermione said, her eye’s wide with surprise. “I really don’t know what to do about Viktor. I really like him, but I’m not sure if I like him in that way, if you know what I mean.”
“Well, don’t worry about him getting the wrong idea about you and me,” Harry assured her. “I set him straight on that account.”
“Thank you,” Hermione said simply.
“Yeah, I told him all about our passionate affair, but I explained that it’s all over now,” Harry said in a deadpan voice. “Although I did warn him that you get rough when you’re aroused…”
Harry didn’t get the chance to say anything further as Hermione had pulled out her wand and sent several nasty Hexes in his direction. In credit to his training, he managed to fling himself to the floor so they missed him. Wisely, he then leapt to his feet and ran as fast as he was able, with Hermione hot on his heels, yelling at the top of her voice exactly what she was going to do to him.
Ginny watched the pair chase around the common room in amusement. Well, she’d suggested Harry do more running, anyway. It was good to see him taking his training so seriously.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
“Har ry, are you okay?” Ginny asked the dark-haired young man. She had entered the common room to meet him for breakfast only to find him sitting alone on a sofa with his head in his hands, looking pale and tired.
“Oh, morning, Gin,” Harry greeted her. “I’m okay, I guess. I just had a bad night.”
With the third task now just days away, Harry’s training had intensified considerably and Ginny knew that most nights he virtually collapsed from exhaustion as soon as he reached his bed. To find that he had not slept well the previous night was worrying.
“What’s the matter?” Ginny persisted. “Did you have a bad dream, or something?”
“Well, yeah, sort of,” Harry mumbled. “It was like a dream, except it felt like I was really there, you know?”
“Really where?” she asked, thoroughly confused.
“It was like I was in this horrid, dirty room in this big house I’d never seen before,” he explained. “It was weird, because it seemed like I was talking to Wormtail, that’s Peter Pettigrew, remember I told you about him?”
“Yeah, I remember,” Ginny confirmed. “What on earth were you saying to that bastard?”
“I was sort of threatening him,” Harry revealed, “but not because of Sirius or my parents, but because I’d sent him some sort of job to do and he’d made a mess of it. I had this huge snake beside me and I threatened to feed Wormtail to it! But because someone had died or something, I decided not to kill him. I had just started to cast the Cruciatus Curse on him when I woke up. I tell you, Ginny, the whole think really freaked me out.”
“I can imagine,” Ginny replied in a flat voice.
“But this isn’t the first time I’ve had dreams like this,” Harry confided. “Before this term started, I had a dream where I was in this same house, and that big snake attacked an old man. There was another person there, as well, who I didn’t recognise and it was like I was giving him orders. It was just like I was in someone else’s body, Ginny. The first time it happened I just chalked it up as a strange dream, but now it’s happened again I’m not so sure. What do you think?”
“You’re a wizard, Harry,” Ginny said dismissively. “All wizards and witches have strange dreams. You’re just a bit stranger than most, that’s all.”
“Thanks!” Harry said sarcastically. “But seriously, you don’t think this is anything to worry about?”
“No, I don’t,” Ginny assured him. “You’re under a lot of pressure and that’s bound to have an effect on you. But if it happens again before the final task you should get some Dreamless Sleep potion from Madam Pomfrey. You need to be well rested, Harry.”
“Okay, I might do that,” Harry agreed, sounding relieved.
“Good. Look, I’ve just realised I’ve forgotten something. Why don’t you head down to breakfast and I’ll catch up with you?”
“Yeah, okay,” Harry said with a smile. “I’ll see you down there.”
Ginny watched him stand and head out through the portrait hole before she turned and ran up the stairs to her dormitory. She headed straight for the bathroom and entered one of the toilet cubicles, locking it behind her. Only then did she allow herself to fall apart.
As tears started to fall, she bit her lower lip to prevent herself from crying out loud. Of course she knew what Harry’s dreams meant, just as she knew what the scar on his forehead really signified. A piece of Voldemort’s soul was hidden within him, making Harry a makeshift Horcrux. And if he was having dreams this vivid, it meant that the Dark Lord was nearly ready to return, and they were all in danger.
She hated the fact that she had to conceal this all from Harry. There was simply no way that she could reveal this information without giving away the fact that she had Tom Riddle’s memories inside her head. How long would her friendship with Harry last once that little nugget got out? She did have a plan to deal with the Horcrux; it was, after all, an accidentally created one and not very stable. Ginny was convinced she knew of a means to banish that sliver of Voldemort’s soul from Harry, but she could not put her plan into action at the moment. The procedure to remove the Horcrux required certain conditions to be met and they were not in place. When it boiled down to it, Harry was just too young for it to occur. He needed more strength and experience; other things needed to happen first.
But it looked like time wasn’t on their side. She would wager ever Knut she owned that Voldemort had obtained a partial corporeal form, and was preparing to obtain a human body to inhabit shortly. The fact this appeared to be happening at the same time as the tournament was unlikely to be a coincidence, in her book. By the time Tom had created his first Horcrux in the diary, he had researched all forms of Soul Magic and Necromancy extensively. He had a number of options open to him to return to his body, and none of them were very pleasant. Ginny had a horrid feeling that something was going to happen during the third task and that she may not be able to prevent it.
Wiping her eyes, Ginny stood and unlocked the toilet door. A new-found determination filled her and she had a number of things she needed to do. The first thing that needed to happen was for Harry to write a letter.
She needed a bit of advice and she knew just who to ask for it.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH P
Theodore Nott sank to his knees, an expression of terror on his face. His eyes pleaded with her for mercy.
“You shouldn’t have tried to follow me, Nott,” Ginny told the frightened boy. “Now you’re going to pay!”
“No, please! I was just doing as I was ordered! I didn’t mean any harm!” the boy begged.
“Too late for that, Theo,” she laughed. “No one crosses me and lives.”
And with a casual flick of her wand, Ginny sent Nott hurtling over the handrail. His screams could be heard as he fell to the ground, hundreds of feet below.
“Ginny, you didn’t have to do that!” Harry protested. “He’d surrendered. You didn’t have to kill him.”
“But I wanted to kill him, my love,” Ginny crooned. “He tried to defy me and I can’t permit that to go unpunished. You should know that, Harry.”
“Yes, Ginny, I know,” Harry replied meekly. “It’s just…”
“Just what?” Ginny interrupted angrily. “Nott was an insignificant little worm who deserved to die! Why are you questioning me?”
“I’m not!” Harry replied hurriedly. “You know I would never disagree with you.”
“Really? It didn’t sound like it just then,” Ginny said coldly. “Perhaps it’s time to remind you of your place.”
“No! Please, Ginny, I love you! Please don’t …” Harry started before he crumpled to the ground in pain.
“Crucio!” Ginny shouted again, laughing as Harry contorted in agony at her feet. Her laughter became louder and louder, drowning out Harry’s screams. It was the funniest thing she’d ever seen! She laughed so hard she thought she was going to cry…
Ginny awoke with a start.
For a second she stared into the darkness unable to remember where she was. She realised tears where running down her cheeks and she was trembling.
Slowly, clarity returned to her and she realised she was in her bed in the third-year girls’ dormitory. The curtains around her bed were pulled closed shutting out all light. A cold clamminess around her suggested her sheets were soaked in sweat.
With an unsteady hand she reached out and pulled the curtain to one side. A grey light leaked in revealing it must be morning. Trying to control her ragged breathing, Ginny flung the bedding aside and swung her legs out of bed. The stone floor was painfully cold on her bare feet. Trying to be as quiet as possible, she stood and padded over to the window. Looking out, the false dawn spread its pale light across the horizon, signalling to Ginny that it wasn’t worth trying to get anymore sleep.
Wearily, she returned to her bed and collected her toiletries and a clean towel before heading to the bathroom. A long, hot shower warmed her body, if not her spirits. She found herself staring into the bathroom mirror for some time; her reflection looked drawn and nervous. Her already pale skin looked sallow and lifeless. Closing her eyes, she forced herself to move. Today, Harry would be taking part in the third and final task of Triwizard Tournament, and she was more worried than she cared to admit.
That she and Harry had become extremely close in these last few months could not be denied, but she would never have believed that a murdered Slytherin boy would have been the reason for it, if she’d been told beforehand. No, she forcibly corrected herself, it wasn’t murder: it was self-defence. The trouble was that no matter how many times she told herself that, she didn’t really believe it. Her guilt triggered her nightmares and she was beginning to feel like she was falling apart. Perhaps when this bloody tournament was finally finished she could start to move forward.
Mixed in with her guilt was her fear for Harry. Something was going to happen today, she just knew it. Too many odd things had happened in recent months to be ignored, and Harry’s frequent nightmares where he seemed to inhabit another body were a clear sign as well. Voldemort, or one of his followers, was going to try something today and there was little she could do to stop it.
Not that she and Harry weren’t going to take precautions, though. Ginny was determined that she was going to be able to track Harry when he entered the maze later that day and Sirius had come up with an excellent idea how. A couple days previously, he had mailed a pair of small hand mirrors to his godson. These mirrors acted as a two-way communication device and it had been agreed that Harry would activate his just as he entered the maze, allowing Ginny to hear, and partially see, what was going on. Sirius himself had indicated that he would be nearby as well, just to add another set of helpful hands (or paws if he was appearing as Padfoot). In addition, although she didn’t intend to tell him, Ginny decided she was going to cast a Tracking Charm on Harry as well. Better safe than sorry.
Ginny returned to the bedroom and dressed in complete silence. Her dorm mates were still fast asleep and the heavy drapes around each bed muffled the sounds of their breathing. Feeling lonely and a little dispirited, Ginny decided to head down to the common room.
She was unsurprised to find Harry already there, sitting on the sofa near the fireplace, staring pensively off into space. Ginny crossed the floor and sat down quietly next to him.
“Couldn’t sleep?” he asked without moving his head.
“Nope. I’m just too nervous, I guess,” she responded.
This time Harry did turn his head to look at her. His piercing green eyes seemed to bore right through her.
“But it’s more than just nerves, isn’t it?” Harry insisted. “What’s wrong, Ginny?”
She gulped and looked away. For a second she considered lying, but in truth she was desperate to share her guilt-ridden dreams with him.
“I keep having these nightmares,” she said quietly. “It’s always the same; we’re up in the Astronomy Tower and… it… happens again. Only this time I throw him off the tower deliberately. I’m enjoying listening to him scream as he falls. And then… oh, sweet Merlin… I… start to torture you, Harry. I cast the Cruciatus Curse on you and I laugh as I hold it on you. I laugh and laugh and laugh. I…”
She got no further as a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around her. Harry pulled her head to his shoulder and held her tight against him.
“It’s okay, Gin,” he whispered. “It’s alright to feel bad about this. But never forget, Nott attacked us; we were just defending ourselves. It was an accident; we did nothing wrong. I think your dream is just you facing your real fear: that you might end up not being upset by something like this happening. The very worst thing you can imagine is ending up like Voldemort, someone who can kill and torture for pleasure. But the very fact that you are afraid of that proves you will never be like him. He might have been in your head once, Ginny, but you are still just you. You’re a million times better person than he will ever be. You fought him and won, and you always will beat him. Voldemort is just a cruel, empty husk of a person, while you are a kind, loving, wonderful girl with a core of pure steel. He’ll never win against you.”
Tears started to fall down Ginny’s cheeks. She clung to Harry as she wept, her body shaking as she sobbed. Harry just held her, offering his silent comfort to her. After a while, Ginny managed to get control of herself. She pulled away a little so she could look Harry in the face.
“How did you know what I was thinking?” she demanded. “I never told you.”
“It’s been pretty obvious,” Harry explained. “Ever since the tower you’ve been acting… not afraid exactly, but more cautious. I could tell you haven’t been sleeping well, either, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out why. Hell, I’ve been having bad dreams about Nott, too. On top of everything that has been going on, I’ve just been sort of waiting for it to come to a head. You’re not one to bottle up her emotions and I knew it would all come out eventually. I just wanted to make sure I was here for you when it did.”
Ginny looked him directly in the eyes. She had never loved him more than she did at that exact moment.
“Thank you, Harry,” she said, her voice shaky. “You don’t know what it means to me to know you’re there for me.”
“Yeah, I do,” he disagreed, “cos’ I know how much it means to know you’re there for me. I would never have made it through this term without you, Gin.”
Harry leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. He then pulled her close again and they sat there on the sofa, wrapped in each other’s arms, not saying a word. It was only when they began to hear movement from the boys’ dorms that they reluctantly let each other go.
“Come on, Ginny,” Harry said, standing up. “I don’t feel like facing anyone just yet. Breakfast will start being served in about half an hour; let’s slowly head down there.”
Sniffing, Ginny stood and pulled Harry into one last quick hug. “Yeah, we might as well get a head start on the day. Besides, you need to eat well; you’re going to be busy later.”
“Yeah, don’t remind me,” Harry agreed mournfully.
With that, the pair of them headed out of the portrait hole, ready for whatever the day may bring.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
They were, unsurprisingly, the first down to breakfast. They took their seats at the Gryffindor table and quietly talked about unimportant things until other early-risers started to filter into the hall. Hermione, as was her habit, was one of the first to arrive and she sat down opposite Harry with a concerned look on her face.
“How are you feeling, Harry,” she asked the second she was seated. “Are you nervous?”
“Well, yeah,” Harry admitted. “I’d be daft not to be, wouldn’t I? But there’s no point worrying too much. I’m as well prepared as I think I can be; I’ve learnt loads of new spells since the start of the tournament and I’m a lot fitter, too.”
“Yeah, what happened to that skinny, weedy, little runt who used to wear glasses?” Ginny teased.
“Runt?” Harry objected in a pained voice.
“You were awfully thin, Harry,” Hermione pointed out. “You’ve really started to fill out a lot this year.
“Yeah, well, I guess that’s what good food and lots of exercise does for you,” Harry agreed mildly. “I could hardly not put on a bit of weight with the amount of food Miss Weasley here has been insisting I eat. I think she’s been channelling her mother in that respect.”
“Oi!” Ginny protested, punching Harry on the arm. “Don’t you know it’s rude to compare a girl with her mother?”
“I do now,” Harry muttered, rubbing his injured arm.
“Well, really,” Ginny continued. “As much as I love my mum, I really wouldn’t want to be like her. I mean, she’s wonderful in many ways, but she is completely mental! If she had her way, I’d be locked in an ivory tower until I was twenty-five, when I would be permitted to leave only if I agreed to get married immediately and produce my first child exactly nine months after the wedding. Mum seems to think I’m some porcelain doll that needs to be protected. I don’t want to just be a wife and a mother; I want to do things with my life!”
“I agree,” Hermione said, nodding her head, “although my mother wants me to achieve my full potential and is very supportive. She’s always pushed me to be the best I can, and trusts me to make my own decisions. I actually want to be like my mother; she’s intelligent, thoughtful, determined and very beautiful. I think she’s a wonderful role-model.”
“Well, I’d say you were all those things already,” Harry chipped in.
Hermione turned to look at him in shock. “Harry, that has to be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me,” she told him in a stunned voice. “Come to think of it, it has to be the nicest thing anybody has ever said to me.”
Harry cheeks flushed and he looked down in embarrassment. “I only said it because it’s true,” he mumbled.
Ginny regarded him with her eyes shining with moisture. In many ways, Harry was almost unrecognisable from the angry, sullen boy she had befriended at the start of the tournament. As he had said, physically he had changed greatly due to his improved diet, constant exercise and the Nutritional Potion she had been slipping him on a regular basis. As a student, he was different, as well. Harry was applying himself much more and his grades had significantly improved. While he had always had excelled at Defence Against the Dark Arts, he was now becoming extremely gifted in other subjects, particularly Transfiguration and Charms, his core subjects. The additional training they had done together had also equipped him with an impressive repertoire of spells that no fourth year had any business knowing.
However, to Ginny, the biggest change in Harry was to his personality. The events of the year had definitely changed him, particularly the dreadful incident in the Astronomy Tower. Perhaps it was the removal of her brother as a negative influence on him; certainly, Ron could be rather childish and always seemed to insist that everyone around him did what he wanted them to do. Or perhaps it was the fact that he now didn’t rely on Hermione to do his thinking for him. It might even simply be that passage of time, but the fact remained that Harry Potter was growing up.
Reaching under the table, Ginny slid her hand into his. He looked up at her in surprise and she smiled at him warmly, trying to convey her approval of his words in a look. He smiled at her shyly in return, before they were interrupted by the arrival of Professor McGonagall.
“Mr Potter, the champions are congregating in the chamber off the Hall after breakfast,” she informed him. “Miss Weasley, your presence has also been requested. I have already informed Professor Snape that you will not be attending Potions class this morning.”
“Both of us?” Ginny gasped. “I’m not going to be involved in this task too, am I?”
“No, Miss Weasley,” McGonagall said primly. “The champion’s families have been invited to attend the third task and this is a chance for them to meet up. You were specifically requested to accompany Mr Potter.”
“But the Dursleys don’t even know you exist,” Harry protested after McGonagall had left. “Besides, I can’t see them coming here; they hate everything to do with magic!”
“One way to find out,” Hermione said, pointing to the opposite side of the hall where Fleur Delacour and Viktor Krum were both making their way towards the chamber. “I’ve got a History of Magic exam in ten minutes, so I’d better get moving. I’ll see you both later.”
Bidding their friend goodbye, Harry and Ginny stood and made their way over to the chamber. Ginny was intrigued by the request that she accompany Harry, and had a suspicion as to whom they would find once waiting for them. As they passed through the chamber door, she saw that she was half right.
“Mum! Bill! What are you two doing here,” she cried, hurrying forward to hug them both.
“Hello, Ginny darling,” Mrs Weasley greeted her daughter, “and hello, Harry. We thought we’d come and support you during the final task. My, but you’ve grown!”
Releasing Ginny, Mrs Weasley pulled Harry into a crushing hug before kissing both his cheeks. Ginny was pleased to note that Harry didn’t flinch as her mother did so. Bill then stepped forward and shook Harry’s hand vigorously.
“Charlie wanted to come as well, but he couldn’t get the time off,” he informed the younger man. “I must say, it’s great to be back here. I haven’t seen this place for five years.”
Ginny noted that Bill’s attention seemed to be drawn to the fireplace where Fleur was greeting her family. Interestingly, the beautiful blond girl seemed as distracted by Bill as he was with her.
“It’s great to see you both,” Harry declared. “When they said the champions’ families were here, for a horrible moment I though the Dursleys might have come.”
“Humph,” Mrs Weasley snorted disapprovingly at the mention of Harry’s guardians. “Well, never mind about them. We’re here to give you a bit of support and cheer you on during the task. But first, I think we all need to have a little chat.”
At this Bill tore his eyes away from Fleur and gestured that the little group should move to the furthest corner of the chamber. Ginny started to have a sinking feeling about why her presence had been requested.
“Now,” Mrs Weasley began, “I want to have a chat with you both about the letters I’ve been receiving this term, not to mention that horrible article by that dreadful Skeeter woman.”
“Mrs Weasley,” Harry interrupted. “Ginny hasn’t been feeding me Love Potions, I can assure you.”
Molly Weasley paused for a second and Ginny gasped. “Mum!” she protested. “You didn’t seriously believe that I might be doing that!”
“Well, after that article I had a look around the twins’ bedroom and I did discover ingredients that could be used to make Love Potions. I know they are involved in all this, too, as I’ve received letters from them talking about it. And when I received Ron’s last letter stating that everything in Rita Skeeter’s article was true, I wasn’t sure what to believe.”
“I can’t believe you would have thought I would do such a thing!” Ginny said loudly.
“Come on, Gin,” Bill protested gently. “When mum starts getting letters from the twins that are completely serious in tone, you can’t blame her for thinking something’s wrong.”
“I guess not,” Ginny admitted reluctantly.
“Besides, we all know how long you’ve been lusting after young Harry here,” Bill added cheekily.
“Bill!” Ginny howled, completely mortified.
“Has she really?” Harry asked in a deadpan voice.
“Oh, yes,” Bill replied, matching Harry’s tone. “She’s besotted by you.”
“That’s useful to know,” Harry noted, his lips twitching with suppressed mirth.
“Right, one more word out of either of you and I’m going to start hexing!” Ginny declared, pulling out her wand.
“Ginny, the boys were just playing with you. Put your wand away,” Mrs Weasley said, although Ginny could see the amusement in her eyes.
Muttering to herself about what insensitive prats boys were, Ginny tucked her wand back into her robes.
“Now we’ve cleared that up,” Mrs Weasley continued, “I have another question. What’s going on between you two and Ron? Harry, you used to be such good friends with him; what happened?”
“I really don’t know, Mrs Weasley,” Harry admitted. “It all started when he didn’t believe me when I said I didn’t enter my name in the tournament.”
“But Professor Dumbledore confirmed that you didn’t,” Mrs Weasley protested.
“I guess Ron doesn’t believe the Headmaster either,” Harry said sadly.
“It’s been coming for a while now, Mum,” Ginny interrupted. “You know how insecure Ron can be. He’s been jealous of Harry’s money and fame for years, and it just needed a trigger to set the whole thing off. Ron’s sick of being seen as a sidekick to Harry and I think he’s trying to distance himself. All this rubbish about Harry entering the Tournament and this stuff about Love Potions is his way of justifying his actions.”
“But I don’t see Ron as a sidekick!” Harry protested. “He was the first proper friend I ever had.”
“Yeah, but that’s not how everyone else sees it,” Ginny pointed out, “and I guess Ron valued his reputation amongst others more than his friendship with you.”
“But… that’s… nuts!” Harry stuttered in disbelief.
“It does kind of make sense,” Bill agreed. “In his letters to me he frequently says things like ‘if I was Harry I’d do so and so’ or ‘if I had Harry’s money I’d buy this’. I guess his resentment has been bubbling under the surface for a while now. It’s a shame.”
“I’ll talk with him when the holidays start,” Mrs Weasley insisted, “or get Arthur to. His behaviour is just plain ridiculous. I’ll soon set him straight.”
“With respect, Mrs Weasley, I’m not sure I want Ron as a friend just at the moment,” Harry said. “If it was just me he’d hurt it would be different, but Ron’s been horrible to Ginny and Hermione. Until he apologises to both of them I want nothing to do with him.”
“Well, I’m not sure that Granger girl deserves it,” Mrs Weasley huffed. “Breaking up with you like that just so she could chase after that Krum boy! Disgraceful behaviour. You’re better off staying away from girls like that!”
Harry and Ginny both burst out laughing at that comment, much to Mrs Weasley confusion.
“Oh, Mrs Weasley! Hermione’s not my girlfriend and she never has been,” Harry grinned. “As for chasing after Viktor; he asked her out. I think she was more surprised than anyone!”
“Don’t believe everything you read in the papers, Mum,” Ginny giggled. “Hermione must be the most unlikely girl in the world to become a trollop.”
“Hermione a trollop!” Harry repeated in delight, before bursting into laughter again.
“Although I think Ron rather liked her,” Ginny added more seriously. “Of course, he never had the nerve to do anything about it, and then got all upset when Viktor asked Hermione to the ball. It’s just one more thing that’s got Ron in a tizzy.”
“Well, let’s not worry about that now,” Mrs Weasley decided. “Bill and I are here for the entire day. It’s been ages since I’ve been to the castle, why don’t you two show us what’s new?”
Nodding happily, Ginny and Harry lead them out of the chamber and towards the school grounds. They spent the rest of the day exploring Hogwarts and happily chatting away. Ginny was pleased to see the calming effect that having such a relaxing day was having on Harry. The anxiousness that had been building up in him for the last week seemed to just seep out of him and he appeared happy and calm. For that at least, she was grateful. The fact remained that whoever had put Harry’s name in the goblet was still out there.
And today was that person’s last chance to strike.
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