Deal Breaker

"Whoa! That is gorgeous!"

Ginny smiled and said, "Thanks, Hermione."

Ginny looked back at the painting, beaming with pride at the magnificent job she had done. It was a silhouetted image of a man's face. Everything else was just a sketched background of the human face. Everything except the eyes; those were a piercing green, colored in to highlight their beauty and to draw in whoever looked at it. And, apparently, it had worked.

"Seriously, those eyes are just so...amazing!" Hermione stood behind Ginny and continued to stare at the painting. "I wish I could find someone with eyes like that."

"I already did," Ginny said, remembering the man who had given her the inspiration for the painting.

"Really?" Hermione squealed, "When? Where? Better yet, who?"

"His name's Harry," Ginny laughed, marveling at her friend's eagerness. "I met him; well more like ran into him last night." Ginny decided not to say anymore about the events of last night. Hell, she didn't even know what exactly happened. All she knew was that he had run into her room looking for cover and she had helped him.

"So, nothing happened?"

Ginny looked at her friend and laughed again. "No. What the bloody hell did you want me to do? Shag him? I just met him last night. Probably won't even see him again."

Hermione shrugged. "I probably would have."

"That's because you are a little slut!"

Ginny threw her paintbrush into a cup of water and looked at Hermione. They had been best friends for years now, meeting when Ginny had first started working at Pompey Art and Photography Studio. They had clicked instantly and had grown even closer when Ginny discovered that Hermione was a Muggle-born witch. She had spent her entire life among the 'pure-blood' society and it was a breath of fresh air to know someone outside of that egocentric category.

"I'm going to go get a butterbeer." Hermione stood up from her half-finished painting. "Want one?"

Ginny shook her head. "No, I'm good."

Ginny watched as Hermione left the room and then stood up to stretch. Just as she was about to pick up her painting to place it somewhere for it to finish dry, she was tossed onto the floor, a massive weight bearing down on her. She watched as her painting crashed to the ground and her paint supplies flew everywhere.

"Don't move witch!"

Ginny froze at the familiarity of that voice. "Greyback," she whispered.

"That's right."

Ginny felt him move off of her and, after a few seconds, made an attempt to run for it.

"Levicorpus!" A voice from somewhere else in the room yelled and Ginny felt her body rise and turn upside down in the air. The blood began to rush to her brain and her vision started to get blurry.

"Now," Greyback said, moving to stand in front of her. "You're going to tell me where that little pest of a boy is."

"I told you last night that I don't know who you're talking about."

"Liar," Greyback shouted. He was getting angrier by the moment and Ginny could sense it.

Desperation began to sink in. She was more afraid than she had ever been in her entire life and more confused. She looked towards the door. 'Hermione where are you?' she thought.

Greyback picked up her painting and held it in front of her. "Nice painting. I'm sure that little Potter nuisance would love that you took such care in looking at his eyes."

"Potter?" Ginny asked with pure shock and confusion etched on her face.

Greyback looked behind her and laughed. "She didn't know he was a Potter." He looked back at her and smiled evilly. Ginny strained to see who was standing behind her but it was pointless trying. "Changes your perception of him, doesn't it."

Ginny stared at Greyback, thinking of all kinds of hexes and spells she could use on him if her wand wasn't currently lying on the ground instead of in her hand. Greyback smiled at her, revealing those sharp, yellow teeth once again and slapped her. Ginny felt the side of her face sting on impact and blood began to trickle down the side of her face.

"Impedimenta!" Greyback was flung against the wall and Ginny looked to see Hermione running towards her, wand in hand. She aimed it at her and said "Liberacorpus!"

Ginny fell to the ground and quickly grabbed hold of her wand, spinning around to see the person who was behind her but no one was there.

"Crucio!"

Ginny looked behind her to see Hermione writhing in pain on the floor. Greyback was still knocked out cold but there was another figure standing next to him. Ginny could not tell who it was because a mask was obstructing her view of his face.

Ginny raised her wand towards a few tables and chairs and yelled, "Oppugno!" The tables and chairs began to move towards the masked figure. He ducked out of the way and rolled along the floor.

Ginny grabbed Hermione and managed to pull her to her feet. "Come on, we have to get out of here." The two ran towards the front of the studio, bashing through the double doors that led to the gallery. "We need something to make into a portkey."

"Why can't we just apparate?" Hermione asked weakly, still recovering from the Cruciatus curse used on her.

"Because you're still weak and they may be able to track us if we do. A portkey presents less risk of us being followed." Rummaging behind the desk of the security, Ginny found an old security bat. "Perfect."

Just then, the sound of someone bashing through doors was heard. Ginny and Hermione looked behind them to see the masked figure walking towards them, a staggering Greyback close behind.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Ginny and Hermione ducked behind the desk just as the jet of green light from the curse blasted the wall, narrowly missing them.

"Ok, you make the portkey, I'll stall them." Hermione, feeling her energy return, thrust the bat into Ginny's hand and changed to a crouching position. "It should take about a minute. Hopefully I can hold them off long enough."

Ginny nodded and pulled out her wand. Just as she whispered "Portus!", Hermione jumped over the desk and yelled "Petrificus Totalus!" causing the masked man to freeze and drop to the ground.

"Filthy little mudblood!" Greyback pounced on Hermione, causing her to scream out as he collided with her.

Ginny peered over the desk to see Hermione struggling to hold him off; Greyback, however, was too strong. She looked down at the security bat that was beginning to glow brighter, signaling that it was just about ready to go. She jumped over the desk and jumped on top of Greyback, causing him to roll off of Hermione.

Both girls rolled out of the way, just as Greyback stood up to pounce again. As Greyback tried to recollect himself after crashing to the ground, Ginny crawled over to Hermione and grabbed her hand. Watching Greyback out the corner of her eye, she yelled "Accio Bat!" The bat came flying towards them and Ginny grabbed it, causing them to be pushed into a vortex and then land on hard ground a few seconds later.

"Where the hell are we?" Hermione asked, standing up and rubbing the dirt off of her clothes.

Ginny stood up and looked around. They were standing in the midst of a forest. The trees were thick and the ground had more dirt and rocks than actual grass. "It's the place where they found my mom's body." Ginny moved towards the biggest tree. It was a willow tree; its branches extended far out over them and its trunk was about the width of a quarter of a football field.

"Oh. So why'd you choose to come here?"

Ginny shrugged. "It was the only place I could think of at the moment."

Hermione started to walk around. "Not necessarily safe though is it? Anybody could be hiding around he- AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Ginny spun around to see Hermione fall to the ground and a figure emerge from behind a tree. She raised her wand but quickly put it down when she saw who it was. "Harry?"

"Yeah it's me." Harry looked at Hermione. "Sorry about scaring you."

Hermione scrambled to her feet and moved to stand next to Ginny, brushing dirt off of her clothes. "Yeah, sure." She whispered to Ginny, "This is the Harry?"

Ginny nodded. "What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for...something."

"Out with it," she started, "Potter."

Harry looked at her and, after a few minutes, smiled. "How'd you find out?"

"Because I was attacked by Greyback again and he told me who you were."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait. Potter? As in archnemesis Potter?" Ginny nodded. "So it's your fault we were attacked. That kinda kills the intrigue of the eyes."

"Excuse me?" Harry asked, utterly confused.

"Never mind," Ginny stopped Hermione from responding. "Anyway, what were you looking for?"

"Some clues. Thought I might find a link between your mom's death and my brother's seeing as how they occurred around the same time."

"Oh I know the truth. Your parents killed my mother. Plain and simple."

"Sure about that?" Harry asked, moving towards them.

"No. But who else would have it out for my mother if not the people she had been fighting with for half her life?"

Harry shrugged and put his hands in his pocket. "Good point. That's what I'm trying to figure out. See, your mom's death occurred too close to the time of my brother's disappearance. Just makes me wonder if either of them was done by one of the two parties."

"Like Ginny said," Hermione interrupted, "who else could have done it?"

"I don't know. Someone who wants both families out of the way I suppose."

"That's ridiculous!" Hermione snickered.

"But it makes sense," Ginny said, looking at the ground and lost in thought.

"Huh? Ginny what are you talking about?" Hermione asked in a whisper, walking closer to her.

"It makes sense," she repeated, looking up at them. "Think about Hermione. We were attacked by the same guys who are after him," she said, pointing to Harry. "If they were after him, you'd think it was my dad who sent them but yet, I was attacked too."

"So then," Hermione started, catching on, "someone else would have to be involved to be sending someone after both of you."

"Exactly!" Ginny looked at Harry. "Who else do you think could be involved?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know. But with your help I bet I could figure it out."

"You want me, a Weasley," Ginny said, pointing to herself, "to help you," she pointed at Harry, "a Potter?"

"Yes," he said nonchalantly, as though he had asked something simple of her.

"You're out of your mind." Ginny shook her head. "I don't want to be involved in this war. I walked out of it years ago and I refuse to walk back into it, especially willingly." Ginny folded her arms and turned away, walking away from them.

"But it's the only way to put a stop to it," Harry pleaded. "If we uncover the truth it could stop both parties from fighting. It could end this ridiculous war altogether."

"He has a point, Ginny," Hermione said, finally speaking up again.

Ginny stopped walking and looked back at them. She wanted nothing more than this war to stop. It had brought nothing but heartache to her life. She had walked out on it and, because of it, ended up walking away from her family. Uncovering the truth would indeed put a stop to it and reverse the estrangement.

Ginny nodded. "Ok. I'll help you. But under, one condition: that we remain strictly professional. I may not be involved in the war but that doesn't mean that I don't have a dislike of your family."

Harry thought about it for a while and then nodded. "Fine by me. We should get going then."

"Going? Going where?" Hermione asked, arching her eyebrow.

"My friend Neville's waiting for me," Harry responded. "He's going to help us too. Has access to records and stuff because he works at the Ministry."

"Well in that case then Hermione's helping us too."

"Sure, whatever." Harry turned and started heading out of the forest.

"What?" Hermione walked closer to Ginny and whispered, "Why do I have to help?"

"Because," Ginny whispered back, "if you don't help with this then it'll just be me working with him and his friend. That would give him the upper hand."

"Are you two coming?" Harry called out.

Hermione looked at Harry then back at Ginny. "Fine. But if I get killed I'm coming back as a ghost and haunting your ass."

Hermione moved towards where Harry was standing. Ginny watched as the two turned to walk and then started to follow. She had no idea what she had just agreed to and was already starting to regret her decision. Her father would have her neck if he found out she was working along with a Potter and walking back into the heat of this war was the most dangerous thing she could do.

As the trio made their way out of the forest, all Ginny could think was "What have I gotten myself into now?"