"No, I don't care what you have to say Arthur. They are kids and they will not be a part of Order."
"But Molly no one is saying anything about inducting them in the Order."
"Saying anything will be admitting everything. I will not let anyone destroy their childhood."
Arthur sighed heavily before muttering a simple good night. He was fed up of the situation. For the last two weeks he and Molly were having the same argument again and again with the rest of the order joining in sometimes (though mostly they backed out early on).
He didn't know what to do. On one hand, he wanted to protect his children and support his wife's argument. But then he couldn't help but doubt his ability to do so. After all, of all his children, the most vulnerable were the farthest away from him. What would happen if they were in trouble and he couldn't reach Hogwarts fast enough?
Everytime he said that, though, Molly argued that they were safe with Dumbledore and McGonagall and other professors. Arthur didn't have the heart to mention every time the professors had failed to keep them safe, out of unfortunate circumstances.
He heaved another sigh as sleep overcame him. Harry would be arriving in tomorrow. He just hoped everything would go well.
Harry was frustrated beyond belief. Not only were they not telling him anything, they were coddling him like a baby.
Why couldn't they understand that he didn't want their sympathy but the cold hard truth? Why were they so hell bent on making him feel miserable?
"He is just a child Sirius." Molly all but shouted.
"And I am his godfather, I have every right to tell him what I want to." Sirius responded barely being civil.
"Yeah well you know a lot about raising children don't you?" Molly replied angrily.
"I know enough to raise James' son." Sirius said.
"He is not James. Stop trying to look for his dead father in him." Molly said not even realizing what she had said.
There was a pin drop silence. Even Snape knew a line had been crossed, a line even he, with all his hatred for everything Potter, wouldn't dare breach.
Minerva was glaring so harshly it was a wonder Molly was breathing. Arthur kept a hand on his wife, trying to shut her up. Sirius was frozen in his seat. Harry was fervently hoping the last few seconds never happened. Hermione had a hand on her mouth the other squeezing Ron's. Ron like every other Weasley sibling had his jaw slacked and eyes wide. Kingsley was dreading the next hour.
Remus stood up so abruptly his chair fell back.
But before the poor werewolf could even formulate his thoughts there was a flash of light and he found himself stuck in his chair, a yelp telling him that Molly suffered the same fate. He, upon further inspection, realized that everyone was literally stuck to their chair. Everyone that is except one.
"If anyone dares to even think of drawing their wand, I swear to Merlin I won't care who you are, I'll hex you to the next century." It was a calm voice that threatened the selected few who were brave enough to oppose the Dark Wizard and it made some things pretty clear when no one moved an inch.
There was only one person who could control the Order like Dumbledore did. And that person was Ginevra Molly Weasley.
"I've had just about enough of you all acting as if you know what is best for everyone and treating us like bloody twelve year olds." Ginny was staring at everyone as she felt the last threads of her patience strain.
"The war is on our doorstep and there is no denying it as well as the fact that we are in the middle of it. No matter how hard you all try the only way you can shield us all is if you lock us in a room until it is over and I think we don't need Madam Pomfrey to explain how stupid the idea is. Mentally we are still vulnerable and we will remain so for years after the war ends. Or you could always just go out, kill Voldemort and get it all over with. Can you do that? " The question was spoken softly but hit like a dagger to most.
"This war affects my life and it's outcome is going to affect my future family's. Now I don't know what you all think about us but if you think that we are just going to sit back while you build the world WE are supposed to live in then I'm sorry to disappoint you. Because we don't believe that war has spectators and we have not been raised to stay in the sidelines." Ginny finally paused, whether to take a breath or to let her words sink in, Harry would never know. Nor did he care at this point because he was too enthralled to do anything but stare and hope he would remember all the words his ear took in but his brain refused to register.
However a moment's pause was enough for Molly.
"I am proud of you my child but you are too young to fight." Molly said softly.
"And when are we supposed to be old enough to fight? When we are 17 like Fred and George. While I'm sure they know more spells than us lot here I'm also pretty sure that half of them are useless in battles." Ginny countered back with logic and not childish accusations, Hermione noted happily.
"But Fred and George are also not allowed to fight Gin." Bill said.
"Why can Tonks fight?" She fired back immediately as if she already knew what they were going to say. Bill personally thought she did but didn't dare acknowledge it.
"Because I am a trained Auror." Tonks replied amusedly.
"Professor Lupin trained Harry in Patronus Charm and he did exceptionally well in it, better than most wizards. So of course our lack of training is no fault of ours." By now it was clear that winning this battle would change the course of everyone's life. Maybe that's why Professor Snape decided to step in, George mused.
"Your underdeveloped brains are incapable of grasping the gravity of situation." Snape drawled as if that statement ended the argument.
"It is our underdeveloped brain that helped Harry win a tournament authorities are scared to organize but of course Professor, let's discuss how Mundungus here has a brain more developed than Hermione." All Hermione did was squeak. But in her defense, none of the "children" were saying anything. It was an unsaid agreement that only Ginny can handle it.
"Mundungus has ears and eyes in the right places, he is an asset." Minerva said, trying to not compare this redheaded girl with another she knew though it was getting fairly difficult as the argument continued.
"Half of Hogwarts drama would have been over before Christmas if adults would listen to us. We have access to most of the core Death Eaters's children not to mention their living spaces." If Severus was not a man abiding his list of priority, he would have commented on the casual admittance of the breach of Slytherin's privacy.
"I think that is enough for today." Arthur knew his daughter better than anyone here did. Her current expression was screaming trap and he really didn't want to get caught in it.
"No Mr. Weasley, this insolence ends today." Snape said maliciously, patience was a virtue he lost in company of children.
Arthur glared at the Potions Master but he knew he had lost when Molly spoke again. More like screamed.
"What do you want to know Ginny? We are afraid that we are going to lose you like we lost so many in the last war. And I know that it could happen even when you all are not fighting in the war. But there is one huge difference. By not fighting you remain children, you live the life you are supposed to live. You get to have a childhood. You get to experience INNOCENCE! WE ARE TRYING TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO PROTECT YOUR INNOCENCE" Molly finally let it out. She herself had lost her innocence early on in the last war and didn't want her children to face the same fate.
"So we can't fight in the war that is going to define the only world we have ever known because you wish to protect our 'innocence'?" The words were spoken in stark contrast to Molly's. They were soft and had a tint of amusement.
Realization dawned on Ron at the exact moment Ginny uttered the last word. His sister was a dangerous witch. He knew from her face that she had been waiting for this exact argument and she was ready with a lethal counter. He had never been more proud of his little sister.
"In an unusual occurrence, I think Professor Snape will agree with me that the twins have no semblance of innocence." Snape caught himself from nodding at the last moment. "Pair that with their age and I think they have earned the right to decide their stance in the war." Fred and George would have let out a whoop of joy if they hadn't been too engrossed on what their baby sister was saying next.
"Hermione faced one of the biggest fears of even the most capable witches and wizards, a troll and that too within two months of her first year. She lived all of her second year fearing for her life only because her parents are muggles. The first thought she had when her best friend was gifted a broom was that it was cursed. Her third year was spent around probably the worst magical creatures ever. She spent all of last year fearing for her best friend's life and was the only one who helped him survive the first task. She spent the last month in a constant fear of being attacked. How can you protect the innocence of the girl who looks at her parents as if it's the last time she will ever see them?" Hermione froze as everyone stared at her. She felt exposed. When did Ginny become so observant?
"Ron has spent all of his life being bullied by his siblings. Yes, as ashamed as I am to admit it, we bullied him. Fun and jokes always have a limit and crossing it is bullying even if it is done by siblings. We are the reason he has insensitivity issues. Bill and Charlie were already mature and Percy was not one to react so the twins targeted him. And I, in a childish wish to not be coddled, pranked him too. But even after all of this, he actually defeated a troll and he sacrificed himself at the age of eleven for friends he had met not even a year ago. And he spent his second year trying to protect them even if that meant belching slugs. He spent his third year with the constant reminder that someone wanted to kill his best friend which ended up in his pet being exposed as a monster. His fourth year was spent dancing between jealousy, concern and fear. And he spent the last month hating the fact that he had to ignore his best friend when he was at an all time low. How can you protect the innocence of the boy who knows that he could lose the first friend he ever had to a maniac anytime?" Ron decided that no matter how proud he was of his sister, she shouldn't have aired his dirty laundry. And seriously, when did she become so understanding?
"And then we have Harry. Where should I begin? His loving home? The fact that he knows more about his parents' death than their lives? That he had to face Voldemort in his first year? That he spent his second year being christened a murderer and then had to save someone from being murdered? That in his third year he was chased by a deranged escapee who turned out an innocent man while someone he shared a dormitory with for the last three years was a killer? That everyone here thought Harry would be after the glory of the Triwizard Tournament and that the only reason he is alive here is because Hermione didn't give up on him and that even his departed parents were more help than any other adult who didn't want to kill him? Or that he faced a dementor not even a week ago? How do you plan on protecting the innocence of the boy who has had more brushes with death than a fucking cat?" The silence was so thick Harry wondered how everyone was not choking. Still, he was happy everyone was too shocked to comment on his summer residential scenario.
"And now it's the turn of the youngest of us all. Little fourteen year old me. The baby Weasley who spent her first year at Hogwarts being mentally raped by a monster." Ginny could feel her voice rising and so she paused for a breath. Shouting wouldn't get her anywhere.
She surveyed the room silently. Her brothers were looking at her with varying degrees of open pride. Hermione was looking anxious but also pleased. Her mother was the definition of horror while her father looked resigned. Professor McGonagall and Professor Remus were looking equal parts guilty and nostalgic. Kingsley was laid back as if surveying the scene like her. She wanted to ask him if he was trying to fill in for Dumbledore and his ominous aura. Tonks' hair was a shade of rainbow, definitely excited. It made her wonder how Moody would have reacted. He was probably the second hardest to guess, first being Dumbledore. Obviously.
No one knew what went on in that ancient mind of his.
She then quickly sprang back into action. Maybe because she didn't want to give anyone a chance to recover. Definitely not because she was trying to avoid someone's eyes. Nope.
"You all sit here trying to find out ways to fight Voldemort. And what resources do you have? Half of you have fallen back to your old routines as if the last few years never happened. As if you have been at a never ending war. As if nothing has changed. I'm not a healer or an auror but even I know that such symptoms of PTSD are no use in battleground. Other than that you have a ministry who won't believe you, a public who follows ministry blindly, a spy who might want light to win but surely doesn't care the price Harry has to pay." Ginny adamantly ignored Snape's flinch and glare.
"You have a paranoid auror, a werewolf, a fugitive and those of the Wizarding world who have at least some level of common sense. While you might be able to bring up your manpower enough to fight him we all know that it's a battle to be fought in vain." Before she could continue, an unsurprising interruption made her look towards the kitchen door.
There stood Albus Dumbledore in robes as Grey as a stormy sky. For a second, Ginny faltered.
"Excuse me?" She said because she had missed what he had said and his interruption made her lose her footing.
"We have what Voldemort wants the most in our protection." Dumbledore said waving his wand and revealing a chair- wait!
Revealing? He has been here for how long exactly?
And with that one question, Ginny felt some of her nervousness fly away from her.
"And how exactly are you protecting it?" Ginny retaliated, expertly hiding her worry. She was fishing for a logical and strong argument.
"Let's just say that the only way Voldemort can have it is by revealing himself to the Wizarding world, something I believe we both agree he is not prone to do anytime soon." His lips were dangerously close to a smile and Ginny hated it. She hated the fact that she might lose this argument.
"There can never be one way of doing anything when You Know Who is concerned." Hermione blurted and then blushed crimson. Before anyone could say anything, Ron spoke up.
"That's right. There's no way You Know Who would actually do something on his own, not when you are around. That's not how he works." Ron slapped a hand on his mouth when he realized he had spoken the last part out loud.
"And how do you know how You Know Who works?" Molly finally spoke up, choosing to focus on what Ron had just said. Ron thought of diverting the question but his mother's glare and everyone's stare made his brain turn into a puddle.
"I read the books Hermione has on the first war." He then scowled at the look of shock on everyone's face. "What? We are going to have to fight him so it only makes sense to study his strategy." He defended himself.
"And what is his strategy Ron?" Ginny asked gazing at him intently. It was proof of their strong bonding that Ron realized the only option he had here was to answer her question. Or maybe it was because she looked exactly like the Weasley matron when she wanted answers. Either ways, Ron gave in.
"You know Who doesn't take on the battle up front unless the victim is too weak or too tired. There are even accounts of him using wand less magic to restrain his victim, especially in the accounts of Bathilda Bagshot when he fought unnamed members of an elite fighting group, a code I believe for members of Order of the Phoenix." Ron briefly summarized, his ears red with embarrassment. He could particularly feel Hermione's eyes on him but he was too nervous to look at her.
"That is the best summary of the last war." Sirius commented.
"Be that as it may, this is one instance where Voldemort can neither do the work himself nor can he make someone else do the work for him." Dumbledore's tone held a degree of finality but Ginny had seen something no one else had and she couldn't help her sharp intake of breath.
Any calm Dumbledore had aimed to spread with his words was pushed out as Ginny uttered a single word. A name.
"Harry." Said boy was as still as stone, figuring out what his name meant in this conversation almost as soon as Ginny had said it. The others held varying degrees of confusion and discomfort.
"Excuse me?" Snape was positive that the little Gryffindor girl had uttered the pathetic boy's name with no context. There was no way she had made the connection. The thought was as far fetched as a second year brewing an acceptable batch of Polyjuice Potion. Simply impossible.
But Ginny had ears for no one. She was staring unblinkingly at Dumbledore and in his eyes she found the answer she was dreading. She sat back down on her chair with a thud while everyone else demanded to know what was happening.
"What is it Albus?" Minerva asked. She did not like the way Ginny had sat down.
"Albus?" Remus' tone was frantic. He could feel his brain making a connection but he stopped before it could. It couldn't be true.
Albus Dumbledore however was as pale as death. He didn't want to acknowledge what he had been denying since Voldemort had come back. But now, when some of the best and most brilliant minds he ever knew had made the same connection he couldn't deny it no longer. He had to accept it and it was more painful than any crucio he had ever faced.
"He will never be able to do it." Albus was clutching at straws and he was painfully aware of it. Maybe it was that desperation in his voice that made Ginny realize that there was no way the old man would back down. Only one thing would deter him from his resolve.
But could she do it? She never told anyone. She had bottled it all up. Could she handle reliving it all over again?
And then, because she could stall no more, she looked at him. He who was sitting almost exactly in front of her. He who hadn't spoken for so long. Harry James Potter.
Maybe he felt her gaze on him for he looked up. Their eyes locked. She didn't know what she looked like but she knew it was no better than him. He looked haunted and hopeful. It was a weird combination. And just as she was about to look away she saw something flicker in his eyes. Vulnerability. And she knew.
There was nothing she won't do for this boy in front of her.
"Lord Voldemort is nothing if not charismatic, manipulative and cunning. You people don't understand the extent of his inhumanity. He could enter your mind and make you live your worst nightmare and no one would be any the wiser. He could pry your secrets out of you and he could destroy you with one word. You don't know what it is like to feel your mind corrode because of his darkness, to plunge in the darkness while those around you are swimming in the light. So don't you dare to tell me what he can or can't do when none of you have been as close to him as me. I know him and I know what he is capable of. I don't care what you decide but remember. I won't let Voldemort use Harry even if it means I have to face him again and again." Ginny's breath was labored, her heartbeat frantic. But her eyes, they were on fire. It was ferocious enough to make most lose their breath.
Everyone stared at Ginny as her words started to make sense to them.
"What did you mean use Harry?" Ron asked because for once his brain had made a connection so soon and it scared him more than anything.
"Oh think of it Ron." Hermione's voice was bitter enough to give Severus a run for his money. "When it's about You Know Who, Harry is always involved. So of course if He Who Must Not Be Named wants something he can't take on its own and no one else can retrieve it, then by some twisted fate, Harry alone will be the one You Know Who will use to get it." With that, Hermione abruptly got up and headed towards the stairs.
"Where are you going?" George asked too shocked to comment on anything else.
"I'm going to the library to find out a way to help Harry. Call me when the adults here decide to do the same." Minerva gasped at the amount of hatred the last line held. It made her wonder if she was standing on the right side.
Ginny came out of her stupor and stood up too.
"Voldemort is going to come after Harry, why I don't know. All I know is that for the last 15 years that's all he has done and I don't see any reason for him to change. And when he does come after him, he won't find him alone. We are going to stand beside Harry, with or without your support. You have the evening, make a decision. You can either prepare us for what's coming or watch us as we do it on our own. Voldemort will never harm my Harry ever again. Ron, Fred, George, Harry lets go." And with that, the children walked out.
Ron's mind was running at a fast pace, his chess pieces turning into Death Eaters. George and Fred exchanged a glance. They might have a few things which could be useful in war with some modifications. Ginny was desperately trying to keep her tears at bay. She had to be strong now.
Harry, surprising himself, was taking all the latest developments pretty well. The fact that Voldemort was after him was a bit discomforting but he was too busy thinking about the warmth that spread in his chest when Ginny had called him hers. That was enough to send all fatal thoughts out of his mind.
Back in the kitchen, matters were much worse. No one spoke for almost an hour. They were too busy trying to silence the demons of their minds.
Molly was seconds from breaking down. She had failed to protect her children and that made her question the very purpose of her existence.
Arthur was gripping Molly though he didn't know who he was trying to hold together. He was living his nightmare and he could not for the life of him come out of it.
Minerva felt the guilt gnawing at her insides. She was supposed to protect them and she had failed every fucking year.
Kingsley was stuck in a spiral, the last hour replaying in his mind. Over and over again. How come these children had been through more than many of his aurors?
Tonks didn't want to believe those words even though she knew them to be true. She couldn't even begin to fathom how she could have ever envied these children for living 'exciting' lives now that she finally realized what exactly their life entailed.
Bill was drowning in the sea of self loathing. Why did he prioritize his career over his family? He knew if he had been here at home then his siblings wouldn't have to face any such thing. He just knew it.
Snape might've been impersonating a goldfish, except it was all in his head. On his face though was a mask of indifference. Or so he believed.
Remus had a sense of deja vu, back to his Hogwarts years when another group of friends had stood up for their own many times. He was happy his cub had found his own pack. That was the only thought that kept the wolf in him grounded enough to not lash out at anything and anyone.
Sirius was happy. It might be the aftereffects of years in Azkaban combined with his genetic insanity but he couldn't help but feel giddy. For he was not seeing the gloomy insides of a kitchen full of adults who had just been thoroughly reprimanded by a fourteen year old. No, he was looking in the future, maybe ten or so years later, when his little godson would have a family of his own, a family he chose. And his beloved godson would live a happy life. And so, Sirius was happy.
Dumbledore was relieved. Again you could link it to his odd style or his age induced craziness, it's all up to you. But the issue on hand was that dear old Professor Dumbledore was relieved. He had been fearing that if he didn't tread carefully, Harry might end up like him, making mistakes in his journey to power that haunt him for the rest of life. But he had, once again, realized that Harry had something he never did. Friends that would not only help him but also bring him back to the right path, should he ever stray.
And as the clock chimed 12 times, Dumbledore rose from his seat. Minerva was shocked to see his eyes twinkling.
"It's been a long night for all of us. I request you all to retire to bed. Tomorrow, at 12,we will have a meeting. Sirius, would you be kind enough to inform our young charges to be ready by then. It is going to be a significant day for the Light Warriors." And with that, Dumbledore left in a whirlwind of robes that were definitely gray when he came but had somehow become bright yellow.
Professor Severus Snape too stood up before realizing what a stupid mistake it was. With no time to digest Dumbledore and his actions, everyone turned towards him as one.
"Tomorrow it is then." And with a weird movement which might have as well been a bow, Snape too left, his robes almost making him fall. Curse those brats for making him act like that clumsy Hufflepuff. Oh the horror!
"I think we all need some sleep. I hope you don't mind Sirius but I'm going to find one room to crash in. Merlin knows I'm in no shape to travel." Minerva had always known that Gryffindors would be the death of her but she never thought that day would come during summer. All thanks to that wretched Dark Wizard. She had a sudden urge to claw at the furniture and so she left the kitchen.
"Sirius I hope you have some firewhiskey. I desperately need one right now." Kingsley all but cried out of frustration.
And so the night came and went by, making room for a new day. A dawn of acceptance. And if somehow the fate of Wizarding world had changed and many lives were saved, we have a particular Weasley to thank for.
And when historians would write of the Life and Times of Tom Marvolo Riddle aka Lord Voldemort, they might mention how red haired witches were the bane of his existence. But that is the thing of future.
As of now, the silence of Grimmauld Place was broken by clinking of glass in the kitchen, rustle of receding "ear" on the stairs and whoop of delight of the children.
After all, in times of war, existence is chosen over innocence.
A/N Hey everyone! So I finally published a story of mine after almost months of just staring at it. I think i should thank my sister over here, so yeah. Thanks!
Please review and tell me what you thought of it!