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The Winding Road
By NotAWriter

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Category: Alternate Universe
Characters:None
Genres: Drama
Warnings: Violence
Story is Complete
Rating: PG-13
Reviews: 48
Summary: A Harry Never attended Hogwarts Story
Hitcount: Story Total: 16829; Chapter Total: 910
Awards: View Trophy Room






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Chapter 11
Ginny slowed suddenly, faking a shot before darting to her left, drawing Harry out of position and letting her get more power into her shot. Harry dove back, trying to get back into line, but he had bitten hard on the fake. The shot sailed past, Harry not even getting close the quaffle that was curling away from him. The quaffle went through the far-left hoop easily and Ginny let out a whoop of triumph.

“HA!” Ginny shouted out. “That’s what? 80-20?”

Harry harumphed grumpily. “Technically, 80-30. Just because you were distracted doesn’t mean my goal didn’t count.” Ginny pulled up, offended. “Distracted?? I was performing my duties as an auror!” She yelled back.

“All I know is that you weren’t guarding the rings.” Harry replied loftily.
Ginny murmured angrily, giving him the evil eye. “Besides” Harry continued “who won more of the seeker battles?”

“You have the better broom!” Ginny burst out. “How can I compete when your broom hits its top speed in half the time mine does!”

“Excuses, excuses” Came Harry’s sing song voice as he drifted back towards the ground. Ginny momentarily struggled with the urge to drop something on him. She took comfort in the fact that she had absolutely destroyed him in the keeper-chaser competition. Harry was a decent chaser, but fairly hopeless as a keeper. His two ‘saves’ has actually been misses on Ginny’s part, a fact that still irritated her to no end.

Ginny swooped down to land next to Harry. The days that had passed since their night at the Burrow had been wonderful for the most part. Ginny felt closer to Harry than she ever had, but he continued to pull back for some reason. They would get close, and Ginny could literally feel the electricity between them, but then Harry would disengage, disappear into himself. He was honestly driving her crazy, wondering if he felt the same or if it was all in her head. She found herself overanalyzing every interaction.

But those nerves and worries seemed to fade whenever they could sit and talk. Being close to Harry was…right. That was a close as Ginny could get to describing it. It felt right to be close to him, to be held by him. Harry felt it too, she was sure. Or at least she hoped.

The unseasonably warm night had led to them using their quidditch pitch for the first time. It had been easy to set up the goals, and Harry’s handy little light carrier had easily given enough light to play by. Ginny couldn’t remember the last time she had as much fun. Her and her brothers hadn’t played quidditch in ages. Life gets busy, it seemed.
They shouldered their brooms, continuing to argue about the actual outcomes of their matches, as well as the relative value of the chaser and seeker positions. A foregone conclusion, in Ginny’s opinion.

It was dark as they walked through the forest, arguing good-naturedly, and the temperature dropped quickly as the night wore on. As they neared the house, Ginny’s hands and toes were starting to go a bit numb, despite their warming charms, and Ginny was eager to get into the warm house. As she stepped onto a log, she cold deadened foot slipped out from under her, sending her crashing into Harry, who had been following closely behind her.

Harry wrapped his arms around her, preventing her from tumbling onto the rocks below, but also prevented him from breaking his own fall. They tumbled down and Ginny lost track of the world and she rolled down the small ridge they had been walking along, Harry still wrapped around her. Then, with a shout, Harry was gone. Ginny rolled to stop, head spinning and aching. Rising to her feet and trying to get her bearings, Ginny began searching for her wand. “Harry?” She called out, feeling along the ground. A small groan was all she got in response.

Concerned now, Ginny searched more frantically, finding stumbling on a few feet away from where she fell. “Lumos” She said urgently, and directed the light towards the hill. The small cone of light from her wand revealed Harry laying on his back, most of the way down the hill. Ginny hurried over to him, concerned about his lack of movement.

“Harry, are you okay? Harry!”

Harry slowly opened one eye. “I think… I think my leg….” He croaked out. Ginny quickly shifted down to examine his leg and found that his foot had gotten caught between two rocks and the force of their fall had wrenched his leg into an unnatural angle.

Working quickly and ignoring the sudden fear in her belly, Ginny cur away his pants around the extra joint. In the dim light Ginny hadn’t noticed, but his pants had been soaked in blood. Ginny grabbed her wand again and directed it at his leg, and almost fainted. The break had forced the bone through his skin midway up his calf.

Ginny swallowed her rising panic. “Harry, your leg is broken, I can heal it, but I need to get your leg straight first. This is going to hurt.” She warned. Harry just nodded, sweat beading on his forehead despite the cold night.

Ginny slowly raised his foot out between the rocks, eliciting a gasp from Harry. Once free, Harry’s leg almost flopped back on its own, forcing Ginny to catch it. Harry was still silent, aside from a deep inhale that he held for a 10 count before letting it out.

Ginny held the leg straight and took a breath, forcing herself to focus on the outcome of the spell. Losing focus at the wrong time could cause some pretty horrible things to happen, and she really didn’t want to banish all the bones in his leg by mistake.

Ginny cast the spell and watched as the bone slid back into Harry’s leg, leaving behind a small cut. His leg straightened out on his own, and Harry breathed a sigh of relief and sagged onto the forest floor.

Reaching out a hand, Ginny helped him to his feet. Harry staggered against her, limping heavily.

“Thanks Ginny” Harry muttered, obviously exhausted. Ginny just nodded, not trusting her voice. “Stay here Harry, I’m going to grab my broom.” She finally got out. Ginny hustled up the hill, then returned, helping Harry onto the broom, before sitting behind him and hugging him tight.

They got to the house and Ginny helped him limp into the room. He hadn’t said a word after his initial thank you. Something was off, and Ginny’s anxiety over his wellbeing was skyrocketing. Ginny laid him down on the bed and hovered, unsure whether to stay or go.

“Ginny?” Harry asked from the bed, eyes closed. Ginny stepped forward. “Yes, Harry?”

“I need to ask you something. I need you…I need you to answer me truthfully.” He said in a pained voice.

Ginny paused, surprised at the hurt in his voice, but nodded. “Of course, Harry!”

“Did…was that on purpose?” Harry asked in a small voice. Ginny blinked several times, confused by the question. “OF course not! Why would I do that?” Ginny answered, affronted, hurt that Harry would think that of her. She wasn’t some damsel in distress, throwing herself into his arms. If that’s what he thought…

Ginny quickly turned and stomped towards the door. “Wait…” Harry’s voice pulled her up short, her hand on the doorknob. “Would you stay with me?”

All of Ginny’s prior anger was washed away in the wave of guilt that followed Harry’s question. Ginny dropped her hand from the doorknob, and sat on the bed next to Harry. He reached out and placed his hand on top of hers, before seeming to slip immediately into sleep. Ginny didn’t move, confused by Harry’s actions, but not willing to leave his side, especially when he was in pain and needing her.

Ginny came awake suddenly, movement in the bed drawing her attention. Harry was thrashing in his sleep, mumbling and sweating. Ginny reached forward to touch his should, but a sudden yell from Harry caused her to jump and flinch back. His screaming continued and suddenly took form. “NO, stop, please, GINNY. No no no no.why Ginny.” Harry’s thrashing grew more violent and Ginny jumped out of the bed, grabbing her wand off the bedside table.

“Auguamenti!” Yelled Ginny, and a stronger stream of water than she had intended blasted Harry out of the bed and onto the floor. Ginny rushed to his side, finding him breathing heavily, face down on the floor. Ginny crouched next to him, placing her hand on his shoulder, nervous that he would begin thrashing again. Harry looked up at her, eyes wide, unseeing. Slowly, understanding returned to him, and he reached out to touch her. “You’re here.” He murmured, voice rough.

Ginny reached down to grasp his hand and pulled him up to sit on the edge of the bed. Harry leaned into her, still breathing heavily, then pulled back, looking down at Ginny, intensity written into his features. She froze, eyes wide, as he slowly lowered his head, drawing closer to her. He paused, uncertainty flashing across his face, his lips only a hair away from her own. They sat like that for a moment before Ginny closed the distance between them and pressed her lips to his.

The feeling was impossible to describe. It was as if there had been an ache, a pain, that Ginny had had for so long that she had become accustomed to it. And then it was gone. Ginny wrapped her arms around him, and the kiss deepened. Ginny felt herself getting lost, focused on the sensation of his lips on hers, his hands on her, his body on hers.

It was a shock when Harry suddenly drew away. It was so sudden that it took a moment for Ginny to realize what had happened. She opened her eyes to see Harry standing, facing away from her.

“Harry?” Ginny asked delicately “Are you okay? I’m sorry was that too fast?”

Harry shook his head and began to pace. “I…I can’t do this…” He responded in a broken voice.

“What do you mean? Seems like we were already doing it.” Ginny said, trying to lighten the situation. Harry kept shaking his head. “I can’t do this….because…because…you aren’t real.” He finished in a whisper.

Ginny, truly mystified, felt anger start to stir. “Not real? What are you talking about? I’m right here.” Ginny wanted to get up and get closer to him, but worried that any sudden movement might send him running.

“I’m not sure…I can trust you.” Harry said quietly, still refusing to look at her. Ginny, fully angry now, had to resist the urge to shout. “When have I ever given you reason not to trust me Harry? What could have I done to make you think I’ve ever been anything but honest?” Ginny hissed back.

A long silence filled the room. Ginny refused to speak, wanting an answer to her question. Harry seemed lost in thought.
“Everybody…everybody I’ve ever cared about has used me, lied to me, or left me. Trust…isn’t something I’m inclined to give.” Harry said.

Ginny shook her head. “That isn’t true, Harry. You’ve told me of your family, Sirius, Dumbledor, these people-“
“Lied to me, used me and left me.” Interrupted Harry angrily.

“I’ve seen your picture, Harry, I know Sirius cared about you, Dumbledor cared-“ Ginny tried to reason.

“Do not. Talk to me. About Dumbledor. He cared” he drew the word out, stressing it “about the greater good.” With a sudden motion Harry whipped his shirt off, and grabbing his wand, waved it over his chest. A large, red, angry scar began to appear. It ran across the length of his chest, angular and jagged. Ginny’s hand flew to her mouth.

“Dumbledor raised me to die. Sent me in to die. And I did die, only it didn’t take. I was never supposed to survive. And they knew. My whole life , they knew and never told me. Dumbledor, Snape….Sirius… they used me. Manipulated me my whole life.” He paused, breathing deeply, close to losing control.

“And then you show up. A ministry agent. Young, beautiful, the daughter of a high ranking ministry official. Energetic, empathetic, fun. Your whole presence here has been a manipulation, another attempt to control me. Whether you know it or not. And, by merlin if this has all been a lie…” Harry shook with anger at the thought.

Ginny swallowed heavily. The insight into Harry’s life, the fact that he had been hit by a killing curse, had caused her brain to lock up. Casting around for a response. “Harry… I would never, have never lied to you. I’m, I’m not here to…to use you, I’m here to protect you!” Ginny protested quietly.

A laugh escaped Harry, humorless, harsh. “Protect me? Ginny, if you believe that, you are more naïve than I thought. Tell me, Ginny, did Dumbledor get protection? Does protection usually entail checking inside protective wards for dark magic? Are wards typically made to keep somebody inside them? This has never been about protection. This is imprisonment. Surveillance. A pretext to keep an auror close by in case I go dark and decide to kill everyone. You are a canary in a coal mine. My first victim, and an excuse to kill me or throw me in Azkaban.” Bitterness made his voice ugly.

Ginny shivered at the sound, ready to deny the allegations. But then the words that he had said penetrated, and suddenly puzzle pieces slammed into place in her mind. Robards hostile, almost provocative, attitude towards Harry. His concern about the potions that he had given her. His eagerness when he was missing from the house. The reports, the checks, the interest that Robards had taken. There had always been a nagging doubt at the back of her mind that Ginny had pushed down, but it all made sense when looked at from the perspective of him, a prisoner and her, his guard.

“Makes sense, doesn’t it?” Harry asked softly. He had been watching her closely, waiting for her reaction. Ginny could only nod. “Please, could I be alone for a bit?” Harry asked. Ginny nodded again and rose heavily from the bed. She had been used, manipulated, and sent in as a sacrificial lamb.

Ginny left the room and began to pace, hearing the door close behind her. As her daze faded, anger began to return. Robads had lied to her, given her bad information, used her like a chess piece. She knew that being an auror was dangerous, demanding. But aurors looked after each other. There was a trust that existed. Robards had betrayed that trust in an unforgivable way.

She stopped pacing and reached a decision. With a crack Ginny disappeared and landed outside the ministry building. Ginny hurried through the doors and lift, fairly certain that Robards would be there despite the late hour. He was known to sleep in his office most nights, a fact Ginny appreciated now. Hurrying down the hall Ginny nearly bowled over Marzoc, who was able to confirm that Robards was in his office.

The door loomed in front of her, and some of her anger was replaced by anxiety. She was going to confront the most powerful person in the auror department. But the gravity of his actions returned to her, and she walked swiftly up to the door and began pounding on it.

A quiet followed her knocking, before Robards called out, his voice rough from sleep. “Come in!”

Ginn crossed the threshold, coming to stand before Robards. “Weasley?” He asked, clearly surprised to see her. “What are you doing-“

“Sir,” Ginny interrupted. “Why was I assigned to guard Harry Potter?”

Robards stared at her before steepling his hands and considering her. “I take it you’ve been talking with Potter?” Ginny stared and waited.

“Well” Robards said with a sigh “I won’t pretend that there weren’t other considerations besides just your punishment. You have a reputation for being kind. And fun. And that reflects well on you. And thus you reflect well on your Father and thus the whole ministry.” He said with a small smile.

On a deeper level, Ginny had known that Harry was telling the truth. And Robards response made sense, even though the manipulation still rankled. And the real question went unanswered.

“No, Robards, why is anyone assigned to guard him. He clearly doesn’t need it. What possible reason is there for spending ministry time and money on somebody that should be protecting us?” Ginny asked sharply.

Robards spread his arms conciliatorily. “Look, Weasley, you can’t believe everything Potter says. He’s paranoid. Delusional. We are only there-“

“Do. NOT. Lie to me, Robards.” Ground out Ginny, teeth clenched. Robards’ face hardened. “ You want to know, Weasley. Think you deserve to know? You’re wrong.” Robards snapped. “This is beyond your petty little feelings. This is about the good of the world, about what is best for the ministry.”

“You sent me in there with incorrect information! You sent me in there willing to let me die!” Accused Ginny.

Robards lost control. “Yes, Weasley” he roared, standing and leaning on the desk, face red. “I sent you in there unaware, because it was our best shot. Potter can sniff out manipulation a mile away. I needed, the ministry needed, someone who could connect with him, keep an eye on him, without knowing what they were doing.” Robards voice dropped to whisper, but only increased in intensity. “Do you know why Ms. Weasley? Because Harry Potter is the biggest threat, existential and otherwise, to the existence of the ministry of magic. And I will not apologize for protecting the ministry.”

“He’s not a threat. I don’t even understand why, or how, you could think that!” Ginny shot back.

“Really? Not a threat?” Robards asked in genuine astonishment. “Well, let me lay this out for you Weasley. Potter is magically and potentially politically powerful. He’s been the subject of assassination attempts since he was barely a year old. He’s been betrayed, manipulated, and even attacked by people he thought of as friends. The Ministry has derided, ridiculed, and isolated him. And now he has literally lost every connection he had to the wizarding world. Tell me, do you think his impression of our world has been positive? Do you think this is a world he’s intent on joining? No, Weasley. The best case scenario is that he decides to leave our world all together. And at worst, he decides to destroy our world break by break. And if we aren’t prepared for that eventuality, then we will never stop him.”

Ginny sat heavily in the chair across from Robards, stunned by the admission and by his view on Potter. “You don’t even see.” Ginny finally said. “You don’t even see that the way you treat him is guaranteeing his view on this world. You’re creating the next dark lord, all in the name of preventing it.”

Robards began to snarl a response but a high pitched shrill from his bookshelf cut him off. One of the instruments that sat there had stopped whirling and was now shrieking loudly. Robards stared, emotions splashing across his face. Finally, he tapped it with his wand and the noise died. He turned and sat across from Ginny slowly.

“Weasley, did you get a replacement when you dashed over here?” Robards asked calmly.

Ginny, confused by the sudden change in his demeaner, as well as the question itself, shook her held curtly. “No. I’m headed right back. Why?”

Robards leaned back into his chair, twirling his wand. “That device is connected to the wards that surround Potter’s house. That sound means that they just went down. All of them.”

Scenarios ran through Ginny’s head, and her eyes widened as she realized what must be happening. Jumping out of the chair, she dashed for the door, only to have it slam in her face. She whirled back around to see Robards still with has wand out, pointed vaguely in her direction.

“Sit down Weasley. I think it’s time we discussed our...options.”


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