Chapter 2
Ginny stared at Sirius as if she had never seen him before and felt her eyes fill with tears to her shame. She blinked hard to keep them away.
His eyes were fixed solidly on her and those dark orbs were livid with rage. He strode forward across the stones and through the crowd who immediately parted to let him pass until he was standing at the foot of the platform and staring up at Ginny. He was older and had a harder look to him than the last time she had seen him, but in the back of her mind she supposed that it made sense that he was here. He had fallen through the Veil just as she had and thus it made sense that they were in the same place.
He looked far angrier than she had ever seen him, more so than when he had learned that Harry had been illegally entered in the Triwizard tournament. The aura and sheer presence he seemed to cast was so imposing that people literally shied away from him as he walked past them. He practically radiated magic and that could either draw people to him or send them away and Ginny had a feeling he was projecting the keep away feeling now.
"Two thousand dragons," he said again and this time those gathered began to murmur amongst themselves about the high price that had been set. Beauty was something that was sought after in the Free Cities but for that price none of the merchants had expected to compete against a lord and so didn't have the coin on them at the time.
Ginny scrunched her eyes shut and prayed that no one else would speak up to contest the offer.
She had wanted to run the moment she had woken up in the wooden cage but looking out at the desert had prompted her to ask herself that if she got out, where on earth would she go? She had no idea about this new country she was in and was just as likely to die as be captured again.
At least by waiting until they were in Qarth she could see the benefits of the city and what it had to offer her before she decided what to do.
Now she was glad she waited because it meant that she had seen a familiar face.
This time Sirius turned and looked at the master with hard eyes who Ginny noticed had begun to squirm beneath his gaze.
"Lord Gryffindor," the man said uneasily. "We were not expecting you to attend today."
"And yet here I am," Sirius said menacingly. "Are there no more takers for this young woman?"
The master looked warily out into the crowd as if searching for anyone else who would come to rescue him.
For some reason no one else spoke up and Ginny could see that many were eying Sirius with a great deal of fear.
Just what has he been up to here that would inspire all this?
"Very well then," he said. "Your lordship has always had an eye for beauty. Nothing but the best for your lordship." He went to remove the manacles from Ginny's wrists and neck while Sirius reached inside his tunic and brought forth a sack of coins that jingled.
Ginny took that moment and seized the attention.
"If you buy me you have to buy her too," she said seizing Missandei's hand and dragging her forward. The girl looked terrified, but Ginny was determined she wasn't going to leave her here at the mercy of the masters.
The darker slave looked at her as if she had lost her mind but Ginny paid her no heed. Sirius looked at her for a long moment as if trying to read her as he had done all those years ago but then he nodded. "Very well, her too."
Missandei gripped Ginny's hand as if her life depended on it and Ginny squeezed it back. The master grumbled but removed her manacles as well.
Both girls quickly descended the stairs and hurried towards their new master. Only when they got close did Sirius lock eyes with Ginny and she saw his hard expression begin to soften.
The moment she was standing next to him, he placed a hand on her shoulder before sending a hard look that seemed to say he would make the man pay for what he had done at the master who squirmed once more before leading the two trembling women off down the street.
The moment they were out of sight down a side alley, Ginny dropped the stoic act along with Missandei's hand and threw her arms around Sirius's neck. He wrapped his arms around her too and hugged her back just as fiercely. Ginny was too overwhelmed and speechless with relief to know what to say. She had never been so glad to see anyone in her entire life and the shock of what had just happened and that she had nearly been sold as a slave was starting to catch up to her making her tremble.
"Sirius, thank Merlin," she whispered.
"Are you alright?" Sirius whispered into her hair. She had always seen him as a treasured uncle figure since he had meant so much to Harry before he had died and his death had devastated Harry. His embrace was so comforting as if she had been taken to a sanctuary again and she would now be safe.
"I am now," she whispered back.
After a long moment, she pulled back and gave him a watery smile. "I'm so glad to see you."
He grinned at her, the same grin she remembered him having back when they had been in England. "I'm glad to see you too little one."
But then he turned serious. "What are you doing here? How did you get here would be a good question as well?"
Ginny scrubbed her eyes roughly. "Why don't we get to a safe place and I'll tell you everything?"
She turned to poor Missandei who was looking very confused and took her hand again. "And I think we need to get cleaned up first."
Ω
It turned out Sirius had done very well for himself in the Free Cities. His story was very similar to hers as well and short enough.
He had landed in the middle of the slave trade and had been forced to rely on his magic to free himself and thus had used his considerable talents and intelligence to carve out a life for himself in this harsh land.
As a result of his work he was the wealthiest lord in Qarth one of the most beautiful cities in Essos and someone to be feared if the way he had intimidated the slave master was any indication.
He had taken the title of Lord Gryffindor for himself as a way to honor his former house at Hogwarts, only to find out that it was an old Valyrian name and lived on an estate right by the sea in Qarth. It was a large one and heavily guarded if the way the armored men patrolling up and down the streets in front of it were any indication.
She gripped tightly to Missandei's hand noting the girl's trembling. "It's going to be alright. Sirius won't let anyone harm us."
"How do you know Lord Gryffindor?" the slave girl asked.
"It's a long story," Sirius said quietly as he walked beside them. "I'll explain everything when we get inside."
Sirius's estate was enormous. Ginny could hear the waves of the ocean behind it and she gave a sigh of relief at the peace she felt. Her wand was still gripped in her hand and she loosened her grip on it slightly, reminding herself that she wasn't about to go into battle.
The walls around it were high, but she could still see the tall trees of an enormous garden behind them. The sweet scent of fruit and flowers wafted over the walls towards her and unconsciously her stomach growled as if she hadn't eaten for days.
The walls of the estate itself were white and bronze and it seemed to be three stories high. She could see some of the windows had been left open to let the light and the warm breeze in but that was all she could see.
Sirius led them towards the main wrought iron gates and the guards nodded at him and looked curiously at them as they passed.
Sirius tapped the bars of the gate with his cane and Ginny blinked when she saw a flash of gold envelop the bars before disappearing and she realized that Sirius had set up many wards around the property. It made sense why he had done so. This place was filled with more greedy people than she had seen in England so it made sense that he would be protected by more than just physical means.
She noticed most of the guards had averted their eyes when he had done with the gates and with barely a sound, the metal doors swung open to reveal to Ginny an oasis of beautiful pools plants and flowers.
Inside the walls and outside of the house itself was a maze of gardens with small in ground pools containing lily pads and exotic fish every few feet. There were numerous fruit and exotic trees dotting every few yards as well along with flowering bushes and shrubs that looked as if they were about to over flow with blooms.
The gardens seemed to circle the house entirely and Ginny absently wondered what was at the back of it before Sirius shut the gates behind them and turned to the both of them.
"I will have the servants draw up baths for the both of you," he said and Missandei looked as if she were about to cry from relief.
"After that," Sirius said looking severely at Ginny, "I want you to come outside to the back of the house where you will find the terrace overlooking the ocean. We need to talk."
Ω
If Ginny had thought the outside of Sirius's house was stunning it was nothing compared to the inside.
The moment the doors of the place were opened, she caught the sea breeze from all the open windows and she took a deep breath of the salty air, feeling relaxed at once.
"Mera, Jaena?" Sirius called and immediately two servant girls in modest linen robes appeared in front of them. They bowed when they saw him and he smiled at them.
"Please show our guests to the rooms upstairs and have baths prepared for them, they are going to be staying with me."
Without a word they both nodded and Sirius gave Ginny an encouraging smile as she was looking at the girls distrustfully.
"It's alright Ginny, follow them. They'll show you where to go."
With some reluctance, the beautiful red head followed the two servants up the stairs that was marble and circling all the way up to the third floor.
"This way please my lady," Mera said cheerfully when they had reached the landing of the third floor and Ginny saw that all the room on the hall were on the right side of the hall so that they would be closest to the sea and face the sun. The floors were marble and tall plants and pots lined the wall every few feet the leaves of them drifting back and forth gently in the breeze.
Missandei had finally let go of her hand as they entered the house and looked a little more relaxed.
"Will everything be alright now?" she asked.
"Yes," Ginny whispered back. "I know Sirius. He's an old friend."
She decided she wouldn't explain further as it would just be confusing to Missandei. It was obvious she was living a second life and that would be too odd to explain right now.
They reached a set of adjoining rooms and Mera opened the door on the right, gesturing for Missandei to go inside which she did reluctantly. Jaena opened the door on the left for Ginny to enter and when she did, she almost gasped.
The room had pale blue tiled flooring and a large bed on the right side covered over with silk curtains. In the center of the room there was an in ground pool which looked to be already bubbling and steaming with hot water.
Directly across from the door, there was a large balcony that opened to the sea and the curtains attached to the doors were blowing gently in the breeze.
While Jaena walked over to the bath and began to pour some type of lavender colored liquid into it, Ginny wandered as if in a daze out onto the balcony and was immediately blinded by the hot sunlight.
She squinted for a moment as her eyes adjusted and then looked around in astonishment. The azure blue ocean was directly below her and she could hear it crashing against the rocks beneath Sirius's estate.
There was not a cloud in the sky and the sun above her was a great big ball of fire. She closed her eyes for a second basking in its warmth and contemplated how the bloody hell she had gotten to this new strange land and what on earth she was going to do now.
She was beyond relieved that she had found Sirius so perhaps this would not be so bad but there was a lump in her throat as she considered the fact that she would never go home. She had chosen to walk through the Veil and now she had a new life to live, away from England, away from magic and everyone she had ever known and loved.
You still have your magic, she thought to herself as she glanced down at the wand gripped tightly in her hand. And Sirius is here. Things could have been a lot worse. You could have been stumbling around in that desert without money and a home and water and food. Count your blessings….isn't that what your mother always told you?
Of course thinking about her mother caused Ginny's eyes to smart with tears and she blinked them harshly away. It would do not good to think on the past now that she was here and had been given a second chance at a new life.
"My lady?" Jaena called. "Your bath is ready."
Not realizing how tired she was, Ginny walked back into the room and wearily thanked the servant who nodded and left her alone.
Only when the door was shut did Ginny tear off the rags she had been wearing and step hesitantly into the bath. The water was warm and after putting her foot down on the step beneath the water, she sighed slightly and sunk all the way in up to her shoulders and neck. Her hair which had been tied with a scrap of rag she pulled loose and let sink down in the warm water as she tilted her hair back.
The feeling that came over her then at the comfort and relaxation was one of complete euphoria and satisfaction. At once her worries and fears and doubts slipped away as she lay there in the bath and allowed the steaming water to cover her.
She forgot for a moment about Harry and her family and all her friends from school and Hogwarts itself. She even forgot about the Dark Lord even though he would never harm her ever again.
She ran her hands through her wet scarlet hair and closed her eyes again. She felt tears prick the corners of her eyes and she blinked hard so they wouldn't run down her face.
They were gone.
They were all gone.
And she was here having no clue really where here, she only knew that she wasn't in England anymore, perhaps she wasn't even in the world she knew anymore.
She had seen men in armor with swords at their waist and women in dresses that looked as if they had walked out of the pages of a history book. There was no form of technology that she knew of so it appeared that everyone in this new world were Muggles.
Essos…..that was where Missandei had said she was…..across the Narrow Sea from a place called Westeros.
She was really in for it this time.
Ginny spent at least twenty minutes in the bath just enjoying the water and allowing herself time to grieve where no one could see her.
She wasn't someone who cried a lot. She hadn't cried when Harry left her to go on his mission from Dumbledore because she knew why he was leaving. She hadn't cried when she was tortured by the Carrows for insubordination in that year from hell. She hadn't even cried when Fred died because she was too numb.
But knowing they were all gone…..Harry, Hermione, Fred, George, Ron, Mum, Dad, Charlie, Percy, Bill and all of her friends, Hogwarts and her teachers, Luna…..they were gone and she would never see them again.
Just knowing that made her want to sink down in the bath and never get up again because she didn't think she had the strength to. She was the last of the Weasleys but even her name didn't mean anything because the Weasley name didn't exist in….Qarth.
After about half an hour she began to realize she had been in the bath long enough and was going to turn as wrinkled as a prune if she stayed there any longer. She closed her eyes and forced herself to her feet taking the white cloth from beside the bath that Jaena had left for her and drying herself thoroughly, squeezing the water from her hair.
Turning around to see if she could look in the wardrobe and find something to wear, she was faced with over a dozen dresses that were silky and showed more skin than she thought appropriate for a dress.
Selecting a red one, she hesitantly pulled it out and looked at it. It had a plunging neckline and small cut-outs at the waist but thankfully it went down to her feet.
I'll look like some high priced whore in this, she thought to herself. Do all the women in this city dress like this?
Granted it was more than what she had been wearing when she came into the city but still.
It took her some time to work up the daring to put it on and when she did and looked in the mirror, she was a little surprised to see how well it suited her.
Great, good to know I've always had a whore like inclination beneath the school uniform, she thought sarcastically to herself.
There were no shoes on the floor so she assumed that when you were in your own home in this place you were always barefoot.
Cautiously she opened the door of her new room and looked up and down the hall for one of the maids to tell her where the terrace was. She didn't see anyone and so decided to try and find her own way.
Quietly she scurried down the hallway and down the stairs. When she reached the bottom, she felt a breeze lifting her still damp hair off of her shoulders and turned towards the right.
Behind the staircase she could see a long marble hallway that led to a set of doors opening out onto a large marble patio where one could overlook the ocean.
At the edge of the patio as close to the ledge of the drop off as possible there was a large gazebo like structure that one could sit under to keep the sun off of one's shoulders.
The pillars around it were wrapped with ivy and garlands. There was a table underneath the awning with four chairs around it and Ginny could see Sirius in one of them overlooking the ocean.
She breathed a quiet sigh of relief and hurried in that direction, down the hall, out the doors and into the sun which had felt oppressive before but now felt wonderful against her skin.
She crossed the patio and at the sound of her steps on the stones, Sirius turned around and saw her before getting up.
The hard look in his eyes faded away and he held out his arms, allowing Ginny to walk into them.
She buried her face in his chest and tried not to cry because she had done far too much of it upstairs and instead gripped the sleeves of his tunic for dear life.
She could feel one of his hand on her hair and the other rubbing her back gently as he tried to comfort her. "It's alright little one….it's alright now."
But it wasn't alright and she lifted her face from his chest to tell him so. "I don't think it ever will be. They're all dead….all of them."
His dark eyes turned sorrowful and he held her tighter. "Even Harry?"
"I don't know, but he didn't finish the fight with us," she whispered. "I don't remember seeing him fall. But they're lost to us now. I just remember all the bodies and thinking I didn't have anything to live for anymore…..they were all dead. So I got up and I walked through the Veil."
Sirius nodded. "That's how I ended up here years ago. The Veil it seems is a bridge between different worlds. I don't know how many but when I came to I was sitting in a wooden cage much like the one you were in."
"Sirius what happened to you?" Ginny whispered. "If you came here first as a slave years ago how did you become so…..wealthy?"
Sirius gave her a sad smile. "Come sit down and I'll tell you everything. I've had the servants bring out some food for you. I'm sure you must be starving."
She was, in fact Ginny was a little embarrassed to hear her stomach growling as he led her towards the table. The table already had a selection of fruits, cheeses and breads she had never seen before.
"Where's Missandei?" she asked and Sirius gave her a slight smile. "She's being shown around the house, don't worry."
Sirius let her eat for a moment before he started in on his story. "I was sold to a group called the Second Sons. They're basically mercenaries in this land that fight for gold and there are enough of them that they can be hired to defend cities from invaders. We were essentially a sell sword company who fought for gold. Our banner was a broken sword and we took commands only from our captain."
"Sirius that sounds awful," Ginny said softly.
"It was at first, but that's where my magic came in handy because I became known as the Serpent. I was able to kill people that my commanders couldn't and thus I was given more and more important jobs. My abilities as an Animagus came in handy with that."
Ginny could feel the horror on her face because she couldn't imagine Sirius killing people for money. What kind of savage world is this?
He must have seen her expression for he gave her a sad smile. "I was a different person back then Ginny. I was angry and filled with so much hate at the life that had been stolen from me that I couldn't be able to take care of Harry that I didn't care what I did. The commanders were impressed with me because I did whatever they asked me to no questions asked. It was only when they asked me to kill a child did I realize what I'd become and I left."
Ginny breathed a sigh of relief that he hadn't lost himself into that world completely because she knew a bit of what it was like. Killing someone…it changed you. She had killed enough in the war to know a bit of what it was like and even though they had been Death Eaters, she still felt haunted that there was blood on her hands.
"I wandered for a time," Sirius went on. "I had enough gold from the Second Sons to buy a small ship and purchase the help of sailors. I became invested in trading and made a name for myself as a merchant. One of the places we went into was the Smoking Sea, a place said to be demon haunted."
Ginny scoffed and he smiled. "I didn't believe in any of it and I had made good coin from my other journeys so I decided to go. The treasures we found there…..were unlike anything I had ever seen before and we took back as much as we could carry. I had enough to last me several lifetimes with all that I had found and so I had this villa built for myself and I've been living here in Qarth ever since. The odd time I make a journey back into the Smoking Sea and return with strange and remarkable things, gems that haven't been seen since Old Valyria and thus I became one of the richest man in Qarth. I took the name Lord Gryffindor for myself to honor my old life and found out that it was an old Valyrian name with connotations to the ancient animals that had lived there not just dragons."
Ginny's head was spinning from all that he had told her and she felt as if she were about to burst with questions.
"I still am not entirely clear where this…..Qarth is in relation to the rest of the world," she began and Sirius shook his head.
"We're not in the world we know anymore Ginny. This world is far harsher than England and far more unforgiving. I know it's confusing but we're out of the world we know entirely. Here there are monsters."
"There were many in the world we lived in too," the red head countered and Sirius smiled sadly.
"I know, but they seem to be far more vicious here."
"I don't even know what to do now," Ginny said softly looking out over the ocean. It was a beautiful sight and one that she found very calming. "My whole life has been taken away from me. I don't know where to start."
"That's easy," Sirius said gently. "You start here, with me. It's gotten rather lonely living in a place with only servants and having a familiar face would do wonders. Plus it will be very easy to create a story as to why you're here without there being any…..scandals."
"Scandals?" Ginny asked in confusion. "Why would there be any – "
She cut off when she remembered the slave traders commenting on her looks and remembering the respect and fear they had addressed Sirius with, and she felt her face pale with horror.
"They don't think you would have bought me for – "
Sirius raised a hand cutting her off. "If we spin a tale quickly about who you are than others will keep quiet. We will say you are my daughter and I have not seen you since you were a little girl when I left your mother in Volantis when I was still trading. You had been on your way to Qarth to find me when you were captured by the slave traders. It was only due to good luck that I found you."
Ginny grumbled. "I don't even know why you should feel you need to spin a story in the first place. People should mind their own business."
Sirius chuckled. "They should but that's not the way it works doesn't it. Reputation means a lot here and many of the people here will treat you better if they think you are my blood."
Ginny bit her lip but nodded grudgingly. "Very well then. I will be your daughter from this moment on."
Sirius grinned wolfishly, a smile she remembered from when they had been back in England and staying at Grimmauld Place. For a moment she was able to pretend they were sitting in the backyard of that place and not in an unknown foreign country.
But then the moment passed and the sorrow washed over her again.
Things would never be the same again.
Never.
Ω
Sirius had led Ginny to the library after she had eaten her fill of the food let her look at all the books he had amassed over the years since he had first begun living here. He also told her that time in Essos worked differently than time in England. He had estimated that he had been there for around ten years and she was having a hard time wrapping her head around the notion that it was likely she had been gone in England for a few days.
She asked him why, but he had shrugged his shoulders saying he honestly didn't know.
At the end of the day she supposed it didn't really matter. She was here and the world she knew of was gone.
Missandei had happily agreed to serve Sirius even after he had set her free because she had nowhere else to go and there was no way she would be treated as nicely by anyone else. She seemed overwhelmed that Sirius intended to see to it that she was paid for her work.
At least her friend was being given a new life she was happy about.
For her part, Ginny just felt…..hollow.
She was relieved beyond words that she had found Sirius and that she would be safe with him, but the cost had been so high, far too high for her to pay.
To not lose herself in memories, Ginny threw herself into reading up on this new world she had entered. Sirius seemed to have an insatiable thirst for knowledge and so had collected every book he could get his hands on wherever he went.
As a result of his hard work, he now spoke high Valyrian and a bit of Dothraki which as a harsh and guttural language very difficult for the mouth to master.
And Ginny was no slouch. Her grades were not as high as Hermione's when she had been in school but they were high enough to ensure that she was noticed by the teachers and that she had had very good O. .
So after berating herself thoroughly for not being thankful at this new chance she had been given with someone she knew and cared for as family when she had been back in England, Ginny decided she was going to choose to pull herself from this depression she was in no matter how long it took and she would devote herself to learning about her new life with Sirius as her adoptive father.
She would honor the memory of her parents and her friends and Harry by living each day for them. In time she knew it would get easier and she would hurt less and less but she wasn't there yet.
Instead, she chose to distract herself and in the coming days she would even venture outside the of the high walls of the villa with Sirius by her side to see the city of Qarth as she hadn't when she first came in.
Life would begin to have meaning again and Ginny couldn't wait for the day when she woke from her bed and didn't feel the pain as if it were a wave crashing over her.
But in the meantime she would not lie about wasting the new life she had been given.
Second chances didn't come by very often and she as determined that she would face this new challenge head on.
She would honor her parents no matter how hard it was to let them go.
In the years to come, she would begin to be happy again and the beginning of those glad days would come from across the Narrow Sea.
Ω
So Ginny will be living with Sirius in Qarth for the time being as his daughter. Don't worry the story will start to pick up soon as Ginny learns more about the new land she lives in and of course the one from across the Narrow Sea. ;) Don't forget to review!