Harry contemplated his Auror rig spread out on the bed and looked back at the computer screen. An image of Carey Elwes as the Dread Pirate Roberts in the middle of his duel with Inigo Montoya was frozen in place and Harry studied it carefully. Wand in hand, he carefully visualized the full-sleeved black pirate shirt as he worked the Transfiguration spell on one of his old black tee shirts, pleased to see it come out exactly as he'd envisioned. The trousers were fine as they were and he doubted anyone would notice the extra pockets. The boots, however...
Picking up his old Docs, Harry looked them over critically. They looked just about done in, but they were still the most comfortable shoes he'd ever worn and he'd had them resoled a couple of times already. Not really pirate-y enough though, he thought as the scrolled through the video, looking for a good shot of Westley's footwear. All right, so they fold over and they're a bit baggy at the ankles. I can do that.
He had just finished when Ginny finally came out of the loo. "Oh, those look great," she said happily. Harry turned to look at her and the words he had been about to say promptly flew out of his brain. She had been in the bathroom for about half an hour and Harry was starting to wonder exactly what she was doing in there. Apparently what she had been doing was a bit of her own Transfiguration. In place of her usual chin-length red bob was a cascade of loose blonde curls that fell down past her shoulders and to the middle of her back, making her look like a completely different person.
"Holy shit," Harry murmured making Ginny laugh and clap her hands.
"Oh Harry! That is the best reaction I could have hoped for." She turned and looked back at the mirror in the bathroom. "I didn't think I was ever going to get it right. Transfiguring your own hair is quite a chore."
"I know. You should have seen all the trouble Ron had with it. Almost made himself bald once." Harry stepped closer to her and surveyed her job with a critical eye, noting that the color was not all one single color but rather varied with light and dark strands like a real blonde. He took some strands near the end and rolled them in between his fingers, noting the texture. "This is really good, Gin. Full marks."
"Thank you, Professor Potter." Ginny gave him a quick peck on the cheek and picked up the billowing pirate shirt he'd created out of the old tee shirt. "Very nice. You still need a sword and a belt though."
"Easy enough. Give me a butter knife." Ginny handed him one and he couldn't resist showing off a little as he quickly transformed the humble knife into an exact replica of the Dread Pirate Roberts's sword, giving it an experimental swish through the air. He noticed the balance was off just a bit and it wouldn't really hold up to any real fighting, but it was fine for hanging off of his hip for an evening. Another moment and he had a passable black leather belt with the appropriate buckle. Black gloves, a mask and a headscarf completed the look.
Glancing at his watch, Harry saw it was almost eight o'clock. The invitation said seven, but they were planning on arriving fashionably late and leaving unfashionably early. He still didn't really want to go, but he'd resigned himself to the fact that in order to make nice and keep everyone happy he had to at least make an appearance. The kids had helped some too. Their excitement over the holiday had been a nice change from how he usually thought of it. Even the older ones who were too old for trick-or-treating were excited about costume parties and the chatter the last few days had been about who was dressing as what.
"What's that for, Mr Potter?" one of his students, a girl named Eleanor in his eighth grade class had asked yesterday afternoon, pointing at his mustache.
"This is for my Halloween costume," he said, smoothing it down with his finger. "What do you think?"
"I think it looks weird," she said, giggling and looking down at the carpet.
"Well my girlfriend disagrees with you. Shouldn't you be working on your Bigfoot paper?" She nodded and scooted back to her desk and Harry saw her put her head together with her best friend Jeannie, the two of them giggling madly behind their hands.
Now he looked at his own face in the mirror, the mustache reminding him of when he'd grown both a beard and a mustache and Ron's burning jealousy over it. Holding the image of the Dread Pirate Roberts in his mind, he carefully trimmed his mustache down to approximate The Man In Black. Satisfied, he fixed his reflection with a stern look. "We are men of action. Lies do not become us."
"What was that?" Ginny asked, poking her head around the bathroom door.
"Nothing." Harry turned around and spread his arms. "Well?"
"Very nice!" she said, grinning appreciatively. "Who are you?"
"No one of consequence."
"I must know."
"Get used to disappointment." Ginny's hug almost knocked the breath out of him and he hugged her back just as tight, delighting in her laughter. He knew she was working very hard to keep him upbeat and he loved her all the more for it.
"Now we just need to get dressed. I've just about got my dress done." She'd chosen to wear the red dress from when Buttercup and Westley are first reunited, reasoning that it was a simpler dress thus easy to Transfigure and very recognizable from the movie. She put a few more finishing touches on it and pulled it on over her head, cinching the jeweled belt tightly. After some deliberation, she'd decided to add a tiara. It wasn't exactly movie-accurate, but Ginny thought it would help people recognize who she was dressed as. With the hair and the red dress, she was the spitting image of Princess Buttercup out for an afternoon ride and Harry smiled in admiration.
"Now you." Ginny sat down on the sofa, spreading her skirts wide to watch him dress. Shedding his tee shirt and jeans, Harry quickly pulled on the billowing shirt and the black trousers, noting with some pride that the waistband was a little looser than the last time he'd worn them. The calf-high boots came next and then the mask and headscarf. Belt, sword and gloves completed the look and he turned around in a slow circle so Ginny could see the entire outfit. "Very nice," she said standing up on her tiptoes to kiss him. "You look like you could really sweep a girl off her feet!" Her sentence ended in a whoop as Harry scooped her up and held her up against his chest.
"Like that?" Harry asked, grinning down at her flushed face.
"Rather!" Ginny glanced at the bedside clock. "We should get going." Harry set her down on her feet and clapped his hands over his pockets, making sure he had everything he would need for the evening. Ginny had renewed the procedure on his eyes so he wouldn't have to worry about managing both mask and glasses.
"Ready?" he asked after Ginny had wrapped a shawl around her shoulders. At her nod, he took her hand and Apparated them to a spot he had scouted out a few days previously. It wasn't on the approved list, but it allowed him to approach Jacob Green's ostentatious mansion from a less-obvious direction while he was able to have a good view of the other two streets the house was on the corner of.
Perched on top of one of the high hills in the City, getting to the front gate was a bit of a slog. Just outside of the gate, they stopped and turned to look at the lights of the city spread out below. Another couple, costumes hidden beneath their cloaks, stepped around them and went through the gate and up to the front door.
"Well, we came. Let's go now," Harry said, trying to quell the uneasiness in his stomach.
"Harry, come on. We'll go in, be seen, have a couple drinks and a bite to eat and then leave. One hour, tops."
"Ugh, I just hate this so much," Harry groaned, dropping his head to stare at the dark sidewalk before taking a deep breath. "Okay. Let's go." Ginny opened the wrought iron gate and pulled Harry up the walkway, ringing the doorbell when he made no move to do so.
A woman dressed as what Harry could only think of as sexy demon opened the door. "Oh, who do we have here? A princess and a…?"
"Dread Pirate Roberts, at your service." Harry bowed, flourishing the rapier-cum-butter knife.
"Oh, of course! Welcome! Happy Halloween!" The sexy demon motioned them in and took Ginny's wrap. As they crossed the threshold, Harry felt the unmistakable tingle of a Blood Seal and he wondered who'd created it. Blood Seals were excellent home defense magic, but they'd fallen out of favor due to the blood magic aspect and were viewed as old-fashioned these days. Maybe the colonies didn't get the memo, Harry thought. Party sounds echoed in the high-ceilinged foyer which was decorated in the manner that Harry had learned was typical for Americans during Halloween, with grinning Jack-o-lanterns, cobwebs, spiders, bats and an assortment of skulls. Lurid purple and orange lights twinkled everywhere. Halloween, American-style, he mused.
Mentally girding himself, he looked at Ginny and grabbed her hand. "Let's go." They followed the sounds of the party down a hallway into an enormous room with windows that looked out onto the city lights on one end and a grand staircase on the other. "Oh my," Ginny breathed as they took in the rich dark wood paneling, beamed ceiling and richly appointed furniture. They could tell that they were indeed a little bit late as the room was already quite populated with chattering groups of costumed adults, all sipping a variety of brightly-colored drinks.
A house-elf dressed as what Harry thought was supposed to be Frankenstein's Monster paused and mutely offered his tray of drinks—a glowing green, bubbling concoction. "Ooh, this looks interesting," Ginny said as she took one and handed another to Harry. Once the house-elf departed, Harry took a sniff of the drink and raised his eyebrows, the smell of the alcohol stinging his nose. Ginny had already taken a sip. "This is really good, Harry! Try it!"
"Be careful with that Gin, it's stronger than it tastes," he said, confirming his statement with a cautious sip.
"We won't be here long enough for me to get in trouble. Let's go see what's to eat, okay? I'm starving!" All around the room were small tables set up with a variety of foods. Harry noticed traditional Samhain apples, nuts and even loaves of barmbrack along with the requisite candy and other assorted savory nibbles. As Ginny was making a plate to share, Harry scanned the room. He recognized Juanita right away. She had charmed her dreadlocks to move around like snakes. She was talking to someone he didn't immediately recognize and he stared at the man before realizing it was Artemis in a Wild West cowboy outfit.
"So, see anyone you know?" Ginny asked, holding out a plate piled high with tasty bits.
"Well, over there is Juanita, you remember she's the Magical History teacher. She's talking to Artemis the Headmaster." He looked around the crowded room and spotted another fellow teacher. "That gladiator over there is Richard Parker. He's the flying instructor and Quidditch coach."
Ginny looked at the well-built man dressed in the barest suggestion of a Roman gladiator costume and back at Harry. "You will definitely need to introduce me!"
"I already did. He was at the back-to-school reception, remember?"
Ginny looked again, squinting a little. "Oh, yes, I remember now. Well, he was wearing a lot more clothes then. Let's go have a chat."
Harry snorted and took another sip of his drink. "Not bloody likely. He's dead boring."
"I don't think that's the proper answer. What does Westley say to Buttercup when she asks for things?"
"As you wish."
"That's more like it," Ginny giggled and popped a piece of fruit in her mouth. Taking Harry's arm, she pulled him out of their corner. "Come on, let's get you seen so we can leave."
Harry guided them over to Juanita and Artemis, pleased that they didn't know who he was until he told them. "Wonderful costume, Harry," Artemis boomed, whacking Harry heavily on the shoulder. Harry wondered how long he'd been here and how many of those curiously strong drinks he'd already had.
"Thank you, sir. Have you seen Jacob? I want to thank our gracious host for inviting us." He'd been looking around trying to spot him, but Harry barely knew the man and it was doubly hard with everyone dressed up.
"Jacob won't be down for a while yet. He likes to make a grand entrance," Artemis went on, oblivious to Harry's muttered "Brilliant". "Every year he has to top his costume from last year. Juanita, do you remember who he was last year?"
"I think he was Louis XIV last year."
"Oh yes, the Sun King." Artemis chuckled, taking another drink from a circulating house-elf, this one dressed as a zombie. "That was quite spectacular. He claims to be descended from him, but I didn't think there was any Wizarding blood in the French royal family. What do you think, Juanita? You're the magical history authority here!"
"Right. Well, it was good seeing you, sir. We're going to mingle a bit." Harry nodded to Juanita and allowed Ginny to pull him in a direction. He went to take another sip of his drink and found he'd already finished it. Setting the empty glass on an end table, he took another one from a passing Dracula and greeted another group of people he vaguely recognized from the back-to-school reception.
He was pleased that people weren't recognizing him right away, but he wanted to make sure people knew he was there and explaining who he was over and over again got old fast and he wished Jacob would just show up so he could leave. He found a group of parents that were alumni themselves and they confirmed that Jacob didn't usually show up to his own party until it had been going for a couple of hours at least. "Although you can count on him to be busy behind the scenes. Jacob insists on perfection," one of the fathers dressed as a Muggle policeman said. His wife was also dressed in a police uniform, but her costume had considerably less fabric than her husband's, a trend Harry had noticed for women's costumes in general.
"I can understand," Ginny said, gesturing to the room with her drink. "All the planning that must go into this. The food, the drink, the decorations. I can't even imagine trying to put something like this together."
"And there's always entertainment. Jacob put it out that there's something special tonight," the scantily-clad policewoman said.
Glad Ginny had captured the group's attention with party planning talk, Harry disengaged and surveyed the crowd. All of these people dressed up in costumes had him on edge and he had decided that his second drink would be the last for the evening. He didn't like not being able to immediately identify people and he was beginning to get a massive headache.
He felt the tingle of concentrated attention and slid his eyes to the left. There was a short man dressed in an old-fashioned parti-colored doublet and hose with a mask on and Harry could see that he was looking intently at him. When the man saw Harry had seen him, he leaned over to the taller woman with him and whispered something, causing her to look at Harry too. With a shock, Harry realized it was the old man with the dog that had saluted him that night he went for a run to clear his head. With an inward groan, he realized they were going to come and talk to him.
"Harry Potter," the man said, sticking out his hand for Harry to shake, "Ignatius Weatherbee and my lovely companion, Esmerelda." Harry dutifully shook Ignatius's hand and clasped Esmerelda's, wincing at the man's posh Mayfair accent. Why does the only other Brit in the room have to spot me?
"Good to meet you." How is he going to play this? Do I pretend that salute never happened? "May I introduce Ginny Weasley?" Ginny extended her hand to Ignatius who took the opportunity to kiss it.
"Arthur Weasley's daughter? I remember when you were born! Arthur was over the moon at your arrival, my dear! The first Weasley girl in generations and the seventh child to boot!" Harry shrugged at Ginny's questioning look and Ignatius laughed. "Don't worry, you haven't met me before! I left the ministry shortly after."
"Oh? What department did you work in?" Ginny asked politely, sipping at her drink.
Ignatius rubbed his ample belly and took a tidbit off of the plate he held. "Misuse of Muggle Artifacts, same as your dad. Decided the Ministry was getting too stuffy for me, so I struck out for the colonies," he chuckled. "Enough about me! Harry, the last I heard you were the star of the Aurors!"
Hearing a couple of murmurs from the parents they had been talking to, Harry gripped his glass tighter and shrugged. "I decided it was time to teach the next generation of Aurors," he said. What's he playing at? What's his game?
"Well why not go to Hogwarts? I'm sure they would have fallen all over themselves to have you! Is Dumbledore still in charge over there?"
Harry felt a cold flash. "No, Dumbledore passed away several years ago. Minerva McGonagall is headmistress now," he said shortly.
"Oh yes. Animagus, isn't she? Turns into a cat or something." Ignatius nodded to the gathered parents. "Well, their loss is certainly our gain! I'm sure they're glad to have—" Don't say it, don't you dare say it "—The Boy Who Lived teaching their children!"
The parents all murmured agreement and Harry wished that a giant black hole would swallow Ignatius up. I could make it look like an accident… Harry glared at the shorter man and saw an answering glint in his eyes. Taking a swig of his drink, Ignatius gave him a nasty grin. "Speaking of, isn't Halloween usually a somber time for you? I'm surprised to see you out at a party."
Harry heard Ginny's sharp intake of breath and he ached to blast this man with his knowing smile into next week. Inclining his head at Ignatius, he said, "It's true I don't usually celebrate Halloween. As you know, it's not a big deal at home. Since Jacob was good enough to invite me, I thought Gin and I would come and see what an American Halloween party was all about."
"American Muggles do love their things that go bump in the night! I wonder what they would do if they knew how many things there really are that do bumble about in the dark?" He looked at the gathered witches and wizards and gave a hearty guffaw, which was answered with a few uneasy chuckles. Harry did not find much humor in Ignatius's statement however. Years spent waiting in the dark had taught him exactly what and who goes bump in the night.
Before Harry could say something terribly rude, Ginny came to his rescue. "Harry, I think I've had a little too much of that green drink. Care to join me outside for a bit of air?" she asked, fanning herself with her hand.
Relieved at her diversion, Harry bowed to her. "As you wish, my lady," he said, holding out his arm for her to take. He nodded to the group of parents. "Ladies, gentlemen. Ignatius."
"I'm sure we'll have another opportunity to speak again tonight, Harry. I look forward to hearing all of the news of the motherland," Ignatius said, stepping aside for Harry and Ginny to pass. Harry didn't respond.
Outside, the cool air felt wonderful and Harry took off his mask, scrubbing his hands through his hair. "Oh God. Thanks, Gin. If I'd had to stand there another minute, I'd have done something really awful."
"That man was horrible! The things he was saying, Harry!" Ginny looked outraged and he smiled, drawing her to the stone rail of the terrace.
"He's on about something. You remember that man I told you about? On my run?" Ginny nodded and Harry continued, "That was him. He knew me, seemed to know all about me—my former career and what I was doing now. If he knew that, then he knew Dumbledore had passed. He was just playing dumb to see if he could get a reaction out of me." Harry leaned against the rail and looked down at the City. This was really a prime spot, offering views of both the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate.
"And then bringing up You-Know-Who and your parents." Ginny leaned on the railing with him and shook her head. "You know who he reminds me of? Rita Skeeter. You know how she would ask the worst questions and feign ignorance and all the while she was twisting the knife."
Harry grunted in agreement. "I'm going to have to call up some information on our friend Ignatius Weatherbee." I wonder why he really left the ministry? The timing of his leaving is interesting. Not too long after Gin was born... He turned to look at Ginny, appreciating the effect the low lights scattered around the terrace had on her face, still jolted by that blonde hair. "You think you could mention him in your next letter home to your parents? See what your dad has to say about him, yeah?"
"All right. I'm about due to write another one anyway. You know how Mum gets if I don't write on a regular schedule," Ginny said with a wry smile.
"Do I ever. Come here." Harry pulled her into a hug and held on, resting his chin on top of her head. They stood quietly for several minutes until he felt Ginny shift in his embrace.
"Feeling better?" Ginny asked, her voice somewhat muffled by his chest.
"Mmm, but I don't want to go back in there."
"What time is it?"
Harry checked his watch and saw it was later than he'd thought it was. "Almost 10."
Ginny wormed out of his arms and straightened her hair and dress. "How about we do some exploring? We'll just keep an ear out for the 'grand entrance', say hello and leave. He's got to be coming out soon." She helped him get his Dread Pirate Roberts mask back in place and held out her hand. "Come on."
Harry followed her as she went around the corner of the terrace to another set of French doors that opened to an unoccupied room. It looked like a small retiring room with uncomfortable, ornate furniture. He followed Ginny from room to room as the sounds of the party grew fainter.
Ginny paused to gaze at a Wizarding painting of a pastoral scene complete with frolicking lambs and a sleeping shepherd. "Why does someone need a house this big?" she whispered.
"I dunno," Harry whispered back. They seemed to be in a library and in addition to the books, there were several glass-fronted cabinets full of objects d'art tastefully displayed. "He does have a lot of stuff. I guess the import-export business is good for this sort of thing." One of the items in the cabinet caught Harry's eye and he moved closer to get a better look at it.
"Why are we whispering?" Ginny asked, her breath hot on Harry's ear.
"So we don't get caught!" Harry whispered back with a smile. "Look at this." He pointed to the tiny oval portrait of a young woman with dark hair and a teasing smile on her lips.
"Ooh, who's that, I wonder?" Ginny said, leaning in closer. "It's not moving, so it's Muggle. It looks really old." She paused a moment, cocking he head. "Do you hear something?"
Harry listened and shook his head. "Just a bit from the party. All right?"
"Fine," Ginny said, "I guess those drinks were stronger than I thought."
Harry turned back to the display case. "It's definitely Muggle, but there's something about it," he mused, reaching for the handle on the door of the display case.
"Harry!" Ginny hissed, reaching out to stop him.
"I'll be careful; I just want to get a closer look at it." Harry slowly opened the door, alert for any rattling of the objects inside. Squatting down, he looked closely at the image. The girl looked to be in her late teens and she was dressed in what seemed like a Victorian-ish fashion with a mass of dark hair piled in what looked like an elaborately sloppy updo. Up close, he could see that in addition to her tart smile, her eyes snapped fire at the observer. It was a very fine piece considering that it was thoroughly Muggle.
Something about the piece bothered him, however. It wasn't out of place. There were several other fine miniatures in the same case, but something about this one…
Reaching out a finger, Harry touched the edge and felt a sharp pain run down his arm and come to rest in his Auror tattoo, becoming an insistent throb that echoed the rapid beat of his heart. Feeling like he was briefly outside of his body, Harry heard himself give a loud gasp and he broke the contact with effort, falling flat on his arse onto the hard parquet floor.
Ginny had her wand out and looked ready to fight. "Harry! What happened? Are you all right? You looked…strange."
Now that he was no longer touching the portrait, Harry felt the pain in his tattoo begin to fade. Standing up, he carefully closed the door of the display case and grabbed Ginny's arm, pulling her out of the room. "Harry! What—"
Harry shushed her with a motion and pulled her into a powder room, closing the door and locking it with a bit of wandless magic. Taking the mask off, he ran cold water in the sink and splashed his face. "Harry, what happened in there?" Ginny asked, concern plain in her voice.
Shaking the water droplets off his hands, Harry looked at Ginny in the mirror. "Gin, I think that portrait is a Horcrux."
"What?" Ginny's eyes met his in the mirror, completely stunned.
"Yeah. When I touched it, it was like I was being electrocuted or something. I felt it right here." He motioned to his shoulder and wiped his face with a towel.
"Your tattoo?" she asked, reaching a hand out to it, frowning when he shied away. "It's not active anymore now though."
"I know." Harry shook his head and felt his heart slowing down. Taking a deep breath, he examined his face in the mirror. Do I look like I just found a Horcrux in the home of one of California's wealthiest wizards? "What the hell is that doing there? Does he know what it is?"
"Not everyone can tell what a Horcrux is right away. You can because..."
"Because I was one?"
"Harry..." Ginny said reproachfully, rubbing the nape of his neck. "That's not what I was going to say." Harry closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of her hand rubbing his neck, gently massaging some of his stress away. His shoulder still throbbed a little bit and he felt like he could feel the exact borders of the ink in his skin.
He was about to open his mouth and suggest that they just leave when they heard a gentle knocking on the door. "Hello? Harry? Are you in there?" It sounded like Juanita and Harry unlocked the door, opening it to see her standing there, dreadlocks still twitching around.
"Juanita, hi. Ginny and I were just—"
"I think those drinks were stronger than I'm used to and I started feeling a little bit queasy," Ginny cut in deftly. "Harry found this loo just in the knick of time!" She flushed the toilet for emphasis and Juanita looked a bit taken aback.
"Oh, are you okay? Do you need to lie down?"
"I'm fine now. Sometimes alcohol and rich food don't quite mix. I stick mainly to cider at home," she said conspiratorially.
Juanita nodded sagely. "I see. Well, if you feel you can stay a little longer, I just wanted you to know that Jacob should be joining the party soon."
"Thanks! We'll be over there in a sec." Ginny fanned herself and gave Juanita a silly grin. "No more of those green drinks for me!" Juanita smiled and headed back to the party, shaking her head at Ginny's giddiness. She closed the door again and sighed. "Sorry, looks like I just roped us into staying longer."
"Don't be sorry. We need to put in our appearance still." He slipped the mask back on and made sure it was straight. Ginny made some adjustments to her hair and dress and nodded that she was ready. Rather than go back through the library, they chose a different route back to the party which was in full swing and joined the edge of the people clustered around the grand staircase.
Almost as if by magic, a hush descended on the assembled throng and everyone looked up expectantly. Just when Harry was beginning to wonder what they were all waiting for, a short fanfare came out of nowhere and Jacob Green finally appeared at the top of the stairs eliciting a loud cheer and lots of clapping. Next to him, he heard Ginny gasp and say, "What in the world...?" echoing his own thought.
Waving his arms expansively, Jacob slowly descended the stairs wearing a full Hogwarts Slytherin student uniform including badges for Prefect and Head Boy. His robes, tie, jumper and slacks were all spot on and Harry had no doubt in his mind that the whole rig had come from Madame Malkin's right on Diagon Alley. Reaching the lower landing, he turned around, giving his clapping admirers the opportunity to see him from all angles.
Facing them again, he moved his hands in a quelling motion and the claps and shouts gradually trailed off. With a benevolent smile, he surveyed the crowd and Harry had the feeling that Jacob was searching for him and Ginny. He felt a surge of satisfaction that the both of them had drastically changed their appearances for this ridiculous holiday such that their host couldn't easily pick them out in the crowd. "Thank you all so much for joining me here tonight at my little soiree," he said with a deprecating chuckle, eliciting a laugh from his admirers in response.
"Tonight we celebrate Samhain, the end of summer, the night the boundaries between our world and that of the Aos Sí are lessened. Has anyone seen one flitting about tonight?" Murmurs abounded as people looked around and asked companions if they'd seen any stray fairies. Jacob clapped his hands for attention and continued, "Well, if you haven't seen one yet, keep a sharp eye out and you just might! I hear it's good luck to catch one." The twinkle in his eye faded and his manner turned somber as his eyes settled on Harry. Damn. How did he recognize me? Someone must have told him who I was dressed as.
"Tonight is also the night that many say the souls of those dearly departed from us return." He waved his right hand and branches of candles on either side of him lit up. "I would like to light these candles in remembrance of those lost souls." Again, his eyes were on Harry and he began to have a sinking sensation in his stomach. I've held the Resurrection Stone, you bastard. My dearly departed have already returned to me. Harry felt Ginny's hand clasp his and he squeezed it tight.
Jacob turned somber as he looked out into the gathered witches and wizards. "We have been very fortunate here in that Halloween has always been a time of celebration, rather than a time of sadness as it has been for some," he said, glancing at Harry again. What are you planning? Harry thought, an uneasiness forming in the pit of his stomach.
"I have a very special announcement in remembrance of two very specific souls that were lost 25 years ago." Harry heard a roaring in his ears and a cold sweat broke out all over his body as he squeezed Ginny's hand even harder. Unrelenting, Jacob's voice carried on, "I would like to announce the endowment of the James and Lily Potter Memorial Scholarship for worthy students at St Ambrose's Academy of Magical Studies."
Suddenly Harry was blinded by a very bright light and he took a startled step backwards, shoving up against someone behind him. "Harry," Jacob boomed, "why don't you come up and say a few words?" And then Artemis was there, holding on to his arm and pulling him through the crowd, up the stairs and away from Ginny. A wave of chatter and applause pushed him up step by step until he was standing in front of Jacob and shaking his hand.
Numbly, he turned to face the gathering, all eyes glued to him but he could see only Ginny and then he was able to breathe again. "Thank you, Jacob, for your kind consideration," he said, fighting to keep the fury out of his voice. "I'm sure your generous endowment of this scholarship will be beneficial to all the Wizarding community." Jacob looked at him expectantly, clearly anticipating a much longer, more effusive speech, but Harry was done. "Thank you," he said again, shaking Jacob's hand once more. He bowed to the crowd and stepped down the stairs, the bemused partygoers moving out of his way as he made a beeline for Ginny.
Behind him, he could hear Artemis gushing about the scholarship and how wonderful it was that Jacob kept their little school so near and dear to his heart and how he was most eager for the very first applicants and oh my, this scholarship would ensure that financially-challenged magical students would be able to get the very best magical education that they deserved. His voice faded as Harry and Ginny left the gathering, stopping only to grab her wrap from the sexy demon in the foyer. Not even bothering to leave the mansion, Harry pulled Ginny close and Disapparated without a sound, loud applause over Artemis's speech ringing in his ears.