Ginny Declares War and The Foolish Quest

Harry retreated to the Shrieking Shack. It's reputation as the most haunted structure in Britain, as well as the fact that people knew that this was where Voldemort had murdered Severus Snape meant that Harry could stay here for a bit with very little chance of being disturbed.

Harry sat down against a dirty wall and took out the resurrection stone. He looked at it for a moment before turning it over in his hand three times.

"So how did it go?" Sirius asked him.

"Her exact words were; I don't want to go back with you, now leave me alone. Doesn't leave much room for misinterpretation, " Harry said without looking up from his trainers.

"Oh, Harry. This is where I wish I was still alive, so I could try to sort all this out."

Harry looked at his godfather. "I thought you could see anything from the other side."

"Only to an extent," Sirius said. "We can watch you, because we have a close connection to you, but we can't watch events indiscriminately."

"You'd think being the Master of Death would have more perks," Harry said in his depressed voice. "I'm sorry, by the way."

Sirius laughed. "Any specific reason for this apology, Or is it just habit by now?"

"I'm sorry for disturbing you. You're supposed to be resting in peace and I keep disturbing your rest."

"It's no bother," Sirius said morosely. "To be perfectly honest, my rest isn't all that peaceful."

Harry looked over to Sirius, who had a thoughtful look. "What is it?"

"Since I've been on this side," said Sirius quietly. "I've found that the rules are a bit different for me, than for others."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that I seem more... substantial, I guess would be the word."

"Substantial?"

"Mm. Lily reckons that because I crossed over with my body intact, through the veil itself, that I'm different than most over here."

Harry looked at Sirius, weighing his words. He took out the Elder Wand, regarded it and the resurrection stone, and smiled.

"Harry, don't do anything foolish!" Sirius cried with a worried voice.

Harry smiled again. "I'll see you soon." With that he slipped the stone in his pocket, and Sirius vanished.

The Weasley family had opted to stay at Hogwarts for a few days, to assist with the clean up effort. The ministry was making preparations for many funerals at the same time, but it would take a few days.

This had the effect of making Ginny Weasley quite angry. Dean Thomas hadn't said anything else to her yet, but he was following her around, and smiling sickeningly every time she looked his way.

Ginny had resorted to outright violence once, and it hadn't done the trick. She decided that it was time for a more subtle approach, something that would have made Fred proud. She did a little research, and with a little sweet talking to Professor Slughorn, she acquired the ingredients she needed to put her plan in motion.

That night in the common room, she didn't give Dean her regular menacing glare, as she usually did when he stared and smiled at her. She simply gave him a reluctant nod and retired to her dorm room. The next morning when she went to breakfast, she made sure there was an empty seat beside her, as if on cue, Dean showed up and sat beside her.

Meanwhile...

Harry sat in the kitchen of Grimmauld place, sipping the tea that Kreacher had brought him. He quietly slipped the resurrection stone out of his pocket and turned it over three times.

"There you are!" Sirius said angrily. "Lily and James reckon that you"re up to no good!"

Harry smiled. "I solemnly swear that I am up to some good!" said Harry with a smirk.

Sirius gave him an accusatory look. "You are much too much like James."

Harry held his glare for a moment. "I'll take that as a compliment."

Sirius just shook his head. "At least tell me you've spoken to Ginny."

"Nope," Harry said as he pulled out the Marauders Map. "Let's see what she's up to."

Harry unfolded the map and with a tap of his wand and the right phrase, he activated it.

He and Sirius both looked for a moment before Harry found Ginny's dot. She was in the Great Hall. Deans dot was right beside her. "There she is," Harry said. "Having breakfast with her boyfriend."

"I'm sorry, Harry. I would never have believed it."

Harry watched the dots. After a few moments, Deans dot moved back from the table and started moving back and forth. Was he pacing? Perhaps, but it looked too bouncy, more like he was dancing...

Ginny sat, eating her breakfast, waiting for Dean to make his move. She looked across the table at George. Poor George was having a dreadful time trying to come to terms with the death of Fred. Ginny hoped this mornings' show would help him a bit.

She felt Dean bump his leg against hers for the third time. She knew he was testing the waters and she was allowing him to build up his nerve. Feeling that he was just about to make his move, Ginny turned and spoke. "Dean," she said sweetly. "Could you pass me those eggs down there?" She pointed to a platter of eggs on his far side.

"Sure Ginny," he said, reaching for the eggs.

George saw Ginny pour the contents of a phial into Dean's pumpkin juice.

Ginny dipped out some eggs, and gave the platter back to Dean who deposited it on the table. He took a long drink from his juice and turned to Ginny.

"I think we need to talk."

Ginny spoke a little too loudly. "What is the weather like today, Dean?"

Dean looked at her as if she had two heads. Who cared what the weather was like? Dean tried to speak, but something caught in his throat. When the words came out, they were not the words he had planned on.

"The humidity is rising..." His bum started scooting back and forth on his chair, almost as if it were moving to a beat.

"Barometer's getting low..." Dean tried to stop, but found that he couldn't.

"According to our sources, the streets the place to go..." Dean's shoulders started moving back and forth.

Ginny smiled. "Really? Do go on!"

"Cause tonight for the first time, just about half past ten..." Dean stood up completely involuntarily and started dancing.

George sniggered, Ginny tried, poorly, to suppress her laugh.

"For the first time in history, it's gonna start..."

Dean tried with all his might to will his mouth to shut.

"RAINING MEN!" He danced and spun down the aisle in the Great Hall.

"IT'S RAINING MEN! HALLELUJAH!"

Ginny rolled on the ground laughing. George laughed so hard he cried. Everyone in the Great Hall started laughing as well.

"IT'S RAINING MEN! AMEN!" Dean danced and spun around, all the while trying to regain some control of his body.

"I'M GONNA GO OUT, GONNA LET MYSELF GET, ABSOLUTELY SOAKING WET!"

George Weasley got up and tried to dance along with Dean, laughing the whole time.

"IT'S RAINING MEN, HALLELUJAH!" When Dean finished another chorus, he regained enough control to make a run for it.

Later that night, Harry Potter slipped quietly into the phone booth on the deserted London street. He dialed 62442, and when the voice asked him his name and purpose at the Ministry he said "Harry Potter, Foolish Quest."

The Telephone dropped out a badge that read; Harry Potter Foolish Quest.

"Hermione will love this," he laughed .

He pinned on the badge and rode the lift down to the atrium of the Ministry of Magic.

Harry wondered if his foolish quest was anything more than that. He had no one to go to for advice anymore. He couldn=t go to the Weasley family, that would mean seeing Ginny, and he did NOT want to see Dean Thomas' new girlfriend.

Harry's mind was still reeling from that bombshell. When Dean had told him about it outside the dorm room, Harry had hoped that it was some kind of misunderstanding. Dean was playing a really mean prank or something, but when Ginny told him point blank that she didn't want to get back together, then seeing Dean and Ginny's dots on the map together, it all added up to one unavoidable truth. Ginny was lost to him.

Harry made his way through the Atrium, and to the elevators. The normal flock of flying memos was absent, as it was nearly two in the morning, but Harry, with his invisibility cloak in place, boarded the elevator and pressed the button for level nine, Department of Mysteries.

Ginny sat in the Gryffindor common room on the sofa, staring into the fire. George's head was in her lap, and he was fast asleep. He had followed her all day long, singing her praises for 'A prank that would've done Fred proud'. It made Ginny's heart warm to think that her prank had brought some relief to George.

Ginny wondered where Harry was at that moment. Damn Dean Thomas for fouling things up with Harry! If it weren't for that stupid prat Harry would be here with her right now. Instead, he was out there, Merlin knows where. Who knew if he even had decent food or a place to sleep?

She knew that Dean would give it at least one more try. After tomorrow, they would all be returning home. Tomorrow was the Memorial Service, where everyone would pay their respects to the fallen.

She wondered if Harry would show up. It would be disrespectful, Ginny thought, for him to not show. She doubted that he would stay away, because if there was one thing Harry held in high regard, it was those who had lost their lives in this war.

Ginny patted the small phial in her robe pocket. She would prank Dean in the morning if he dared to sit next to her, and later at the Memorial Service, she would corner Harry and set things right. Satisfied that her plan was fool proof, Ginny drifted off to sleep.

Harry stepped through the door into the Death chamber. He looked up on the raised dais in the center, and saw the great stone archway.

On the other side of that arch is Sirius, Harry thought.

Harry walked up the steps and approached the arch. He could see the veil floating inside the arch as if there were a gentle breeze pushing it along. He heard the whispered voices that he knew were the echoes of souls that no longer walked this Earth.

Harry took out the Elder Wand, as well as the resurrection stone. He turned the stone over in his hand once, twice, and a third time.

He saw an image start to form inside the veil as he concentrated.

It was Sirius. He was trying to say something. He looked frightened, as if he were trying to warn Harry, but Harry was having none of it. He had come here for one purpose and would not be deterred.

As Sirius' image became more clear in the veil, Harry raised the Elder Wand. He didn't say any spell aloud, he just concentrated on the one thing he wanted.

He wanted Sirius.

Here.

Now.

The room began to shake as the magic Harry called forth fought against the natural purpose of the veil. It was never intended to allow passage into this realm from the other.

I'm the Master of Death, Harry thought. This is what Dumbledore wanted to achieve with his sister. Harry was calling forth Sirius Black from beyond the veil of death.

The entire building seemed to quake. Dust floated down from unseen rafters far above Harry=s head but he didn=t waver.

Soon stones fell from great heights as Harry concentrated harder. The entire world seemed to shudder as Harry's will coupled with the power of the Elder Wand overpowered the magic of the veil. As the very ceiling began to fall, Harry felt something large and cold fly into his outstretched arms.

Knowing that the entire chamber was about to collapse, Harry Disapparated out.