The Return
The Only One
Though no one searched and no body was found, a riddle, a Weasley, and steadfast conviction leads to an eye opening situation. Sequel to In the Midst of it all.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything, sadly.
The air in the room was bristling with anxiety. The clock was moving spasmodically, one moment going too slow for her heart to handle, and another moment it was going too fast for her mind to comprehend.
She made a turn in her walking as she reached a wall and went in the direction opposite to the one before it. She knew that if she didn't stop pacing back and forth that she would slowly, but surely, wear a hole in the stone floor.
Where is he? She asked herself over and over again, glancing at the clock frequently. What if he had been captured? She bit the inside of her cheek. Or worse.
She had told him time and time again since they had gotten together, and even before that, that spying was the most dangerous job. But with Voldemort no longer being an impeding and terrorizing obstruction, he thought that he was untouchable and indestructible. He thought that there was no reason to worry.
Just wait...
With that thought, Ginny collapsed to the floor in agony. Her heart raced within her chest. She looked to the clock again. Two hours, ten minutes late. There was no other reasonable excuse for his tardiness.
Tears were beginning to sting at the corners of her eyes.
Damn him!
When Dumbledore brought him into the Order of the Phoenix, there had been immediate resistance and complaining. At that time, Voldemort's demise was fresh in their minds and the possibility of a new Dark Lord was beginning to feel inevitable. But he had ties to nearly most of the aspiring dark wizards, they could not challenge his usefulness as an ally.
Yet, most of the members, declared him to be one of the Dark Lord Candidates because of the ties, and some like Ron were more forceful in their convictions than others.
He immediately accepted the offer to be the spy for the Order against the uprising of dark wizards. She had privately admired his courage then and fell deeply in love. But in the open, she merely defended him and was as much of a friend to him as she could be.
That was one of the many things that drove a wedge between Ginny and her brother. Not only was Ginny acclaimed as one of Harry's confidants and his closest friend, she was also openly on friendly terms with one his only living enemies. If only he knew how friendly we are!
Ginny laughed darkly in her empty bedroom. One would think that a petty school grudge would fade away over time, but it had not. Well, Snape is proof that grudges don't disappear with time.
She wrapped her arms around her body as though something very cold was being pressed against her. It was hard to tell whether the chilliness was from the opened window or her thoughts of what could be wrong. She shook herself and tried to focus on something else.
She looked down at the dazzling diamond encrusted, gold band on her ring finger. She remembered when he gave it to her. He had purposely picked a fight with her, I was just about ready to rip out his guts. And then out of no where, Draco proposed. She smiled at the memory. He was nearly sent to St. Mungos!
If only Ron knew that we are engaged!
Hermione was one of the few people to be aware of the fact that they were dating, and she was also one of the even fewer people who knew that they were engaged. Ginny could count the number of people who knew about their engagement on one hand. Not including the ring finger.
Her head nodded sleepily on her shoulder. She had succeeded in distracting herself. With a tired sigh, she shook herself again and went to the window ledge. It was nearly six o'clock.
The view was breathtaking, especially at sunrise. The lake was directly before her and caught the rays of the sun as it peaked tentatively over the horizon. She was not sure exactly which common room their rooms were situated by. She had long guessed the Ravenclaw Tower ever since the beginning of the school year.
Dumbledore had insisted that Ron, Hermione, and herself be given their own private rooms. Draco, once he became a member of the Order, was also given the right and privilege. It was a safety precaution. Not for their safety, it was for the safety of their fellow students.
They were main targets, the four of them. Dumbledore considered them threats to the other students should they be attacked. He was yet to be disproved in any of his assumptions except that one. Ginny was not going to complain. She enjoyed having her own room.
She stuck out her neck and looked to the her far left. The Forbidden Forest loomed imposingly and ominously into her line of sight. She shivered slightly, that was where he was to be coming from.
Where he should have come from. She mentally corrected herself.
After a few moments of scanning the air for his broom over the forest, she massaged her neck and leaned heavily against the frame of the window.
She was not certain when her eyes began to droop, but they did. In her state of light slumber, she remembered someone taking her gently in their arms. They took her from the window ledge and laid her in her bed.
When she awoke fully, the sun was high in the sky. She blinked and rolled over to block her eyes from the glare of the sun. She stretched her legs slightly, hitting something. She paused. There was extra weight at the foot of her bed.
That damned Crookshanks! When will he learn that my comforter was not a play toy! Irritated, she kicked out at the obnoxious cat.
There was a surprised fumble as the animal tried to stay on the bed and a loud 'thump' as it hit the floor. "Fuck!"
She recognized the voice immediately and sat up quickly. "How did it go?" Her cracking voice was slightly apologetic.
She had learned long since to always cut to the chase with the platinum blonde. 'Pussyfooting', as he deemed it, was one thing that they both had grown to despise in these hectic times.
"Dead. The lot of them." He pulled himself back onto the bed with a grunt.
She could see the effects of sleep deprivation. The sunk and sallow skin, the puffy and red eyes, he looked like a prisoner in his own mind. It sent a knife through her heart. She crawled forward and took his hands into hers. He smelled distinctly of alcohol.
"You did the right thing." It was what he wanted to hear. Ginny was willing to give him the satisfaction.
"You weren't there, Gin." Her heart fluttered at the use of her nickname. Even after months of hearing it, it still had the same effect on her. But the pain in his voice took the moment away.
"Conan taught me many things, some more rarer than I thought possible, but he never taught me how to take a life." Draco spoke rarely of his tutor from when he was a child. The man had been wrongly sent to Azkaban, and Draco never forgot, but it always caused pain.
"Do you want to talk-." The look in his eyes was answer enough. She sighed. She was going to kill Dumbledore for what he was doing to Draco.
He looked off at the wall almost like in a trance. "They begged me for mercy." Her breath caught her throat. "They were on their knees groveling, pleading, crying..." He trailed off.
She hated this. The psychological effects of that homicidal dark wizard hunt that Dumbledore had relentlessly going against potential Dark Lords was unnerving.
A sob tore through his body.
Ginny pulled him close to her. Another one came, and another, and soon the convulsions were continuous. He laid his head on her shoulders and cried. She wanted to cry and vent the endless amounts of worry and grief that she held for Draco. But she knew that she needed to be strong for him. He needed her to be strong for him.
Gently, she pulled him onto the bed and into a repose position. They laid there; her partially wrapped in the sheets, and him fully clothed and robed. They slipped off into an uneasy sleep.
She needed a drink. She needed one badly.
Hermione was never one to condone drinking as a way to solve issues, but today-.
"DAMNIT RONALD!" The shrill sound of Ginny's angry voice, followed by some muffled comments from Draco, resonated through the halls of the school.
She sighed. He should have waited like I told him to.
"Honestly! What brother barges into his sister's bedroom unannounced!"
She shook her head. She was beginning to talk to herself, and the portraits were looking at her in unease. As she once said: talking to oneself, and hearing voices when no one was around, was not a good thing, even in the wizarding world.
She looked at her watch. Based on her prior experience with this kind of situation, Ron would take to physical violence within the next six minutes. That gave her time to go alert Madam Pomfrey about her definite future patients, and it also gave her the opportunity to run to the teacher's lounge for a quick glass of Fire Whiskey.
The halls were silent, yet they were not eerily so. She heard peals of laughter and happy voices from paintings and from behind doors.
The school was once again alive and animated with the sounds of the chattering of students. Hermione loved it. Hogwarts had always been her second home. And now she felt as though her extended family had come to join her.
Her wand appeared suddenly in her hand. A noise from around the corner in front of her had startled her. It sounded like a moan or a groan. It was hard for her to tell which.
She walked forward quickly, albeit cautiously. Her senses were wide awoke, besides the fact that she had been up for only about twenty minutes.
She turned the corner with her wand instantly trained on the source of the noise. With a sigh, she lowered her hand immediately. Two boys, obviously fourth years or the like, stood in the obscuring shadows of a column. Some articles of clothing lied scattered around them. One stood kneeling before the other.
She cleared her throat loudly. Both boys straightened up and tried to cover up what they had been doing. They moved at the same time, causing a collision of sorts. Hermione shook her head to conceal the essence of a smile that was tugging at her lips.
"Who are you?" One of the boys asked, rather obnoxiously.
The other was staring at the Head Girl badge pinned to Hermione's cloak. "Shhh!" He murmured fiercely to the other boy. It was then that Hermione noticed that one of the boys was a Gryffindor and the other was a Slytherin. It was then that she also noticed that both of the boys' pants were undone.
All three of them blushed at the same time when the assumption had been made silently. Hermione opened her mouth to take away house points when she heard the yells coming from down the corridor. She massaged her temples and turned back to the boys who were about ready to bolt from her sight.
"It's been a strenuous day and I'm tired," She said seriously, "Don't let it happen again."
She heard both boys sigh as she turned the corner. "I thought we were dead for sure."
Feeling rather wicked, she yelled over her shoulder, "Don't forget to put on your rightful ties! We don't want any house confusion at dinner!" She heard both of the boys scamper away in the opposite direction. Maybe this morning isn't that bad!
Ginny was a bit worried. And as she looked over her shoulder at Hermione, she noticed that Hermione seemed to be worried as well.
They had both been separating Ron and Draco for fear of another duel like the one that landed both of the idiots in the hospital wing a week or so back. They had managed perfectly fine since the only class the two shared in common was Defense Against the Dark Arts. But now that Dumbledore had called together a full Order meeting...
Ginny sighed and turned in her seat at the extremely large, oval table. The Great Hall had been turned into a temporary meeting room. It was accommodating, both in size and in its calming effect. Something about the stars overhead in the navy blue sky and the spontaneous flickering of the fire in the brackets floating on the wall allowed for everyone to be at peace.
She looked around the table and took in faces. She spotted empty bowls on the table, but there were just a few bowls, not enough bowls for everyone, so she guess them to be for something else.
"What do you think we've been called together for?" She said softly, turning her attention from the bowls to Draco.
She was rather mystified by how calm he was acting. Even with her brothers spewing death threats at him left and right from the information that Ron was pumping them with, Draco managed to look aloof and somewhat bored.
"I believe," He drawled looking towards the door, "Dumbledore must have found something relatively important."
Ginny agreed. "I'm positive that it has to do with your mission last night."
He shook his head. "I have briefed him on the... outcome of the mission, but he did not seem that interested." She could tell that he did not wish to talk any more about it and let the conversation drop.
She reached out for his hand on the table. He gave her a very warm smile. She enjoyed the brief tingle when he touched her hand.
"GET YOUR FUCKING HANDS OFF OF MY SISTER!" Ron jumped up out of his seat and made for Draco. The other Weasley males stood as well, but did not follow Ron.
Ginny had her wand trained on him in a heartbeat. The pendant on her necklace vibrated.
"I dare you." The temperature in the room dropped noticeably. The tip of Ginny's wand was a pale blue color, a spell just bursting to get out.
"SCARLET!" Ginny jumped. "How dare you defile our family name with the likes of-." She subconsciously gave her wand a flick and sent the spell flying in Ron's direction.
His anger at Draco had left him without defense to the spell. A shield appeared suddenly in front of him before the spell had hit home. Ginny's eyes followed the beam of magic to Draco, who was in the process of putting his wand away.
"Gin, you did not have to stoop to his low level." She would have laughed at the situation if she were not in it. Draco just called Ron low, and Ron called me a 'scarlet'. Ironic.
"THAT IS IT!" Ginny's mom yelled from her position at the table. "ALL OF YOU, SIT!" They all did, there was no need to get her angry. She eyed each of them in disappointment that hurt their very bones. "I am ashamed of each of you." Her eyes lingered on Ron. "Your sister is of age, she can date whoever she wishes." I just hope she is making the right decision.
It was unspoken, but implied. Ginny had never been more disgusted with her family in her whole life than she was at that moment. Other Order members look uncomfortable in the presence of such a family drama.
As if foreseeing an oncoming battle, Draco grabbed her hand in his and brought it to his lips. There were hisses of abhorrence from some individuals at the table, more specifically the Weasley members and the other 'Dragon-haters', as Hermione so dubbed them.
Draco gave her a patented smirk. She frowned slightly. Those smirks of his never meant anything good. The last one she received was followed by a marriage proposal.
It was then that she noted that her hand was still in his and her ring was catching the glow of the fires. It was sparkling for all to see.
That sly devil! She gave a smirk as well and noticed with absolute satisfaction that the hall had gone impossibly quiet. Her mom had clutched her chest in horror. Hermione was staring with a smile continuously tugging on her lips.
"WHAT THE-." Whatever Ron had been going to say was cut off by the opening of the doors.
As soon as Dumbledore entered with his cane hitting the floor, everyone stood. It was a sign of respect that he demanded the first day he started his 'mean act'. Hermione remained seated this time. Taking a cue from her, Ginny stayed seated, pulling an unsure Draco down with her.
A figure with its hood over its head and in shabby robes followed the headmaster. His or her head was down, hiding his or her identity. It was from her seat that Ginny saw under the hood and recognized the figure as her brother.
"Bill!" She growled.
He stopped and wavered a bit, almost as if considering leaving the way he came. Ginny was ready to spew out against the abomination to the Wizarding World. A slightly calloused finger pressed to her lips.
"Don't. He's been through enough." She bit the inside of her cheek. Draco pointed to her and then to the empty chair next to her with obvious intentions. She pouted but nonetheless stood up, pulled the lanky man to the seat next to her.
She noticed immediately that he was thinner. His facial features were slightly sunk in. His eyes were a dull blue. Oh my! She turned to Draco and saw a grim knowing look.
She leaned in close. "Did I do that?" His eyes told her the answer that somewhat broke her heart.
She closed her eyes and exhaled slowly. When she opened them back up, everyone was seated and staring at her or Bill.
From his seat at the head of the table, Dumbledore stared at Hermione. Ginny once again marveled at their wordless relationship. Dumbledore nodded solemnly. Hermione looked grim. Uh oh, Ginny said to herself mentally.
Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Lemon drop, anyone?" He gestured to the once empty bowls that were now over flowing with the sour-sweet, yellow candies.
It was pin-drop silent. Everyone eyed the candies in shock. Ginny realized what was soon to happen. Just like they did me.
Draco, with his ever-calm disposition, reached forward to the nearest bowl and grabbed a few. He turned back looking at Ginny inquisitively. She shook her head in the negative. He shot another inquisitive look towards her, this one Ginny realized was for Bill. He, too, shook his head in the negative.
Draco nodded with indifference and sat back in his seat to indulge himself.
Slowly, more and more members helped themselves to the candies. Dumbledore nodded thankfully at Draco for breaking the lull. Draco returned the gesture however in a more reposed manner.
Hermione cleared her throat and began telling the story Ginny had heard before, in much greater detail. Everyone listened, mystified by what they were hearing, Ginny included. Whenever someone wanted something clarified, Dumbledore was the first to answer the inquiry. He then passed it on to the others in the room who knew of his act.
As Hermione finished her bit, the table erupted in chatter.
"So what you are saying is that Potter is still alive?" Draco asked loudly over the noise.
The chatter subsided. "Yes." Dumbledore said simply. Draco visibly relaxed.
Ginny watched Draco's reaction to the question in confusion. It seemed as though a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.
"Why hasn't he contacted us?" Dumbledore's eyes flickered to Ginny at the question.
She tried hard to keep the blush that was creeping up her neck from showing. Draco noticed this with narrowed eyes.
"Maybe someone has been contacted by Potter. Someone who was writing to him every chance she got." Ginny glared at Draco, who was suddenly very interested in the grain of the table. He is sooo going to pay for this!
"Ginny?" Her mom asked in disbelief.
She sighed in irritation. "Yes, I have been writing to Harry. But all of my owls were returned untouched-."
"Who examined the letters to see if they had been read?" She did not see the person who asked her the question.
She opened her mouth to give a retort but found her lips stuck.
She allowed no one to examine the letters. Recently, she locked them up in the box that she got fro-.
She gasped. It was then she realized a horrible mistake she had made. Her eyes went wide in shock.
"ACCIO BOX." She all but screamed the incantation.
How could I be so stupid? He sent the box for a reason. I should have noticed it two months ago.
The letter that Harry had written, she remembered, was sent to her by the bird she had sent her letter with. It never gave Ginny her letter, and she assumed Harry had kept it. When she had been sorting through the letters, she found neither Harry's letter or rather note, but found the letter she had written.
That box! It must have had an enchantment on it so that Harry's letters would only appear when it was nearby...
The doors to the Great Hall burst open, despite the wards and charms Dumbledore had placed upon them. The vulture pendant vibrated against her chest.
The box slowed once it was near to Ginny and hovered in front of her. There were some muttering on her use of wandless magic, but most had seen her in the act before and were not surprised, completely that is. She clutched the pendant on the necklace around her neck. The vulture seemed warm to the touch, aside from the fact that it was absorbing her body heat.
I wouldn't be able to do have of the things I do without this.
It was a sad reality, but it was an honor all together.
"Is the some type of engagement present you want to share with us?" Ron snarled at Draco rather than Ginny.
"No... it's a box." Draco laughed coldly. "But I don't think you could afford it nonetheless."
Ron's eye twitched. Before he could say anything, Moody, who had been staring at Bill ever since he entered the room, spoke.
"Albus, what is he doing here?" Everyone knew which 'he' he was speaking of.
Dumbledore looked vaguely happy and surprised, but for reasons other than Moody's question. His eyes twinkled and Ginny had a feeling she was not going to like this. I hate surprises.
"Mr. Weasley," Ginny's other brothers hissed. Dumbledore continued as if they had never responded at all, "Has quite a bit of information regarding the information we can use to locate Mr. Potter."
The chatter built up again. Ginny looked to Bill and saw a complete resignation in his features.
"I won't believe it until I see it." Ron spoke what most, including Ginny, had on their minds. Dumbledore shot him a slightly admonishing glance.
Hermione waved her wand and Fawkes appeared moments later with Dumbledore's pensieve in his claws.
"She can summon his phoenix." Draco whispered in awe.
It was unheard of in the wizarding world, to be able to call upon the familiar and or bonded servants of another wizard. The only known exception was if the person was family. Once more, Ginny marveled at the relationship between the Head Girl and the Headmaster.
She performed some very complex charms on the pensieve. She walked around the table, after petting Fawkes on the head and thanking him, and set the pensieve before Bill.
"Bill, just put the memory in here. I charmed it so everyone could see the memory."
"Completely rubbish." Ron murmured loud enough for everyone to hear.
Bill did the task of removing the memory silently. Ginny saw a flicker of pain pass across his face. But it was gone so quickly that she had to wonder if she really saw it at all.
A flash of light hit all of those in the room. Ginny felt herself sudden transported out of the Great Hall. She looked around, she and everyone else were in the memory.
There were bodies everywhere. Many of the non-memory Order members looked sickened by the carnage. Ginny could see that most of the injured bodies belonged to Aurors or Order Members, some of whom were with her.
In the distance, she could see reporters taking pictures and approaching rapidly. Hermione in the memory went to head them off.
"Lord Dumbledore, what is it doing?" Ginny recognized the person doing the healing of the captives as Gregory Thompson, a healer she had gotten to know well.
Everyone's attention went to the lake and the sky above it. Ginny could see the look of recognition as those who could not remember, were beginning to. Ron looked around himself in horror. What had he expected, a jubilation over the fall of Voldemort!
Dumbledore took a while to answer, even though it was no longer an evasive statement. "He is making the ultimate sacrifice."
Ginny saw her disgruntled look in the memory, and was surprised by her own audacity.
"Dumbledore, I have seen too much crap today to sit here and listen to riddles."
"Harry is going to sacrifice himself in order to destroy the Death Eaters and Voldemort."
There was the collective gasp. Even though Hermione had held most of the press away from the disaster, a few had gotten around her.
Ginny's eyes traveled to a lone figure on the banks. She approached him.
Bill was an absolute mess. Covered in dirt and blood, he looked like he had been chased by death. Many of his bones were at odd angles and his very skull was bleeding. How had I not noticed this before!
She looked back at her memory self and saw that she had been arguing with Dumbledore at the time.
"The baby." She heard him mutter. He did not even seem to notice that he had muttered those words.
Someone yelled, pointing towards the sky, whether it was a memory person or a someone who came with her, she could not tell, but she looked up. The clouds in the sky turned a dreadful red. Lightening flashed, though there was no rain. Thunder boomed intimidating.
Suddenly, a tremendous bolt of lightening ran from the cloud to the lake, and to the Chamber. The ground itself seemed to cry as it rumbled and the lake gurgled and the water level lessened considerably. The red light disappeared.
The middle of the lake seemed to have caved in dramatically. Then suddenly in a sprouting motion, a giant gush of water mingled with bodies, blood, rocks, and black cloaks shot skyward. The water sloshed along the banks like tidal waves. The press couldn't take enough pictures to capture the moment. The was a blast of wind that knocked the papers out of the hands of those with them present. Even those who were not a part of the memory were blasted by the wind.
Many people looked sick at the carnage. When Bill, in the memory, threw up, Ginny was happy that she had taken pity on him to clean and help him up.
The ground continued to groan, the sky rained down tears of sadness. Ginny saw some of the non-memory individuals gaze around themselves in apprehension.
Just like it had a year before, the red water diffused into the whole lake, turning it pink, and it washed onto the banks.
Several reporters looked quite sickened. They paused in their notes to get pictures that would circle the globe for many months after that day. They were still in the papers!
Dumbledore, who had been watching this with sorrow, spoke a phrase that carried like the pictures. "It is done."
The trees drooped, several of them let their leaves fall. The water went still, even though it carried the blood of the enemy. The evening sky went gray.
Ginny , who was standing next to the memory Bill was suddenly yanked away by the real Bill. As she retaliated by fighting back, a thick beam of red light struck the ground near memory Bill from the oddly churning clouds above them. Ginny's eyes widened and she did not continue to fight Bill's grip on her. She clamped her hands around his arm.
Something was being said. It was almost like poetry only in a different language. Ginny saw the look of complete astound on both Bill's faces. The beam pulsed and thundered what it said once more.
Ginny's head snapped in the direction of a gasp. Draco was watching the beam like it was an object of the utmost antiquity and required complete reverence. "Olympian," he murmured.
Out of the corner of her eye, Ginny saw that Hermione too took note of his observation.
Olympian... That's understandable. These are greek deities. And it would explain why we couldn't understand it. We are only mortals. She looked down at the necklace. But shouldn't this allow me to hear?
xX Unless you are not supposed to hear, young mortal. Xx
Ginny had to place her hand over her mouth to keep from gasping out loud.
She wanted to respond, but she was unsure how. It had been a while since a deity had spoken to her directly. They usually approached her in dreams and the like.
Bill lessened his grip on her at her sudden moment. "I'm sorry." He said quick, ducking his head in shame. "I'm sorry for grabbing you too hard."
Ginny shook her head. "You didn't. I was just... surprised by some- Bill?"
He was shivering slightly. His eyes were very piercing. "You had that look on your face, the one that Harry had when I first saw him... You were talking to them, weren't you?"
Ginny could not conceal the look of surprise on her face. "Something like that." She said vaguely. She trusted Draco's opinion, but she still was not sure how much she could truly trust her brother.
He nodded solemnly at her vague words, and it was then that a question suddenly popped into her head.
"Have you ever talked to them?" The question caught him completely off guard, Ginny was sure.
"Only when that occurred." He pointed to the place where the red beam had been.
Ginny bit her tongue to keep in the question she was bursting to ask him. Did he understand what the god-or gods- had been saying?
They looked at each other for some time. Both were looking for answers to questions that they did not want to verbalize. Ginny's question replayed over and over in her head. Suddenly she felt a spark. There was a look of bewilderment in Bill's eyes and it was tinged with something she knew too well. Fear.
Ginny's eyes widened in shock. He knew! He knew the riddle-well oracle, and didn't tell anyone. Why was he keeping it a secret? Wh-.
The fear was still in his eyes as hers narrowed at him. "You're scared of him."
Bill shook his head in the negative. He looked away from her. "I did know it. I didn't understand its important though. And when I thought about it, everything came back to me, it just- it was painful." Ginny was shaking in anger. How dare he say it was painful to him!. "Then came the nightmares, I realized the only thing to do was to take a Lethe Potion."
Ginny gasped. Lethe Potions were classified as one of the few Potent Dark and Inhuman potions. It was not like the border line Memory Charms as those could be reversed, and they only blocked a memory while putting another in its place. A Lethe Potion removed the very memory of something specific from a person's mind through a painful process.
The potions were banned world-wide, most of the ingredients that go into them were banned as well. Just making one was punishable by death!
"Bill-."
He continued as if she had never reacted or spoke. "It took me a few months to hunt one down, and even then it was harder to steal. But it wasn't worth the trouble. The potion did not remove the memory, it merely blocked me from understanding it."
He turned his back to Ginny as Dumbledore in the memory finished the Rites of Death. "And the wand of the grand Light Lord Harry Potter of Gryffindor..."
The memory ended. Ginny was sure that it had been Bill who ended the memory to avoid further questioning from her.
Everyone was discussing the memory. Ginny saw Hermione head over to Dumbledore, and point at Draco, most likely relaying his observation to Dumbledore.
"That was..." Ron said from a few steps away, completely out of words. Ginny bit down the retort she had ready for him and took her seat.
Draco did not bother to restrain himself. The scene in the memory obviously had taken its toll on him. "Always eloquent, Weasley." Ron's ears went red.
Ginny ignored their bickering and looked to Bill. He was shivering again.
She wanted to yell, scream, and fly at him with her fists, but she could not. She would never forgive Bill for what he did to Harry. Yet, as she looked at him, she saw that his punishment had been dealt fully.
Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes. She was tore between hating her own flesh and blood, and comforting him. It must be horrible to live through the repercussions of his actions every single day!
She made up her mind. Slowly and tentatively, she laid her hand on top of his shaking one.
He gave a jolt and she heard his breathing quicken. "If he forgave you, than so will I."
"He did." Bill said with a choked kind of sob. Ginny was happy that everyone else were distracted. It must hurt a lot in order for him to cry in public, she gave his hand a squeeze. "He forgave me and still loved me after all I did."
"I'm sure he did, Bill." She believed her words. It was something Harry would do.
She gave a mental laugh. I'm officially a Harry-ologist!
Bill gave a groan. Even though she could not see his face, she could tell he was still blinking back tears. "You don't understand. At the Final Battle, he said it, from that platform he and Voldemort were on." His voice gave at that moment.
Ginny pulled him into a hug and stayed that way for a few moments. She knew people were watching her now. She could feel the tension in the now quiet hall. Turning, she had prepared to glare at all of them, she froze.
Everyone, minus Dumbledore and Hermione, had their wands trained on Draco. He sneered at them all. Bill slowly removed his arms as she stiffened.
"I see loyalty and dedication means nothin-."
"You never had any to begin with." Ron said with conviction. Ginny's blood slowed when she noticed that his wand was pointed straight at Draco's heart.
Draco gave a quick breath. "Understood." He took in the faces of everyone in the room. "I see no need to be a part of a club where one is persecuted for being-."
"A future DARK LORD!" Ron bellowed. Draco merely raised an eyebrow.
He did not respond to Ron's remark. He shook his head slowly, in disgust. And with a fake smile, most likely hoping to cheer her up, he leaned over and kissed Ginny on the lips.
A spell flew at Draco and Ginny. Draco put up a shield so fast and so strong that Ginny felt it pulsing. The spell, along with several other wordless ones, flew at Ron. Ron was blasted off his feet and was implanted in the wall behind him. The other Weasley's rushed to help him.
"I will be in your office happily awaiting the Memory Charm, Headmaster." The only time the Memory Charm was used in reference with the Order was when a member was kicked out. All knowledge had to be removed for the safety of the Order.
Draco turned and left. Wait, what just happened? Things had flown so quickly that Ginny barely kept up.
Ron was pulled to his feet, and, once free of the spells Draco had put on him, he launched at Ginny. The biggest mistake he would ever make.
The pendant on Ginny neck vibrated against her chest. Several people backed away from Ron when they saw the raging look in her eyes. It bespoke doom.
From the ceiling of the Great Hall, the Hall was illuminated as lightening flashed and thunder boomed onimously. There was not a cloud or drip of rain in sight. A lightening bolt, almost hot as the sun and just as bright, flew from the ceiling and hit the place where Ron had just been moments before. A hole was scorched in the ground.
Several people screamed and turned their wands on Ginny. She eyed them. Bring it on.
"GINNY!" Hermione said. "Calm yourself."
Reluctantly, Ginny did so. She sent Ron a withering glare. Ron looked up at her in fear and spite.
"This is enough. Stow your wands and take your seats!" Dumbledore growled menacingly. Ginny was the first back in hers. Ron relocated to a spot nearest Dumbledore. "This childish behavior has gone on long enough," He looked straight at Ron when he said those words.
Most were looking at Ginny. Summoning lightening bolt surely was not horseplay as Dumbledore had made it seem.
"We have figured out the language to the oracle spoken by the deity in the memory." Hermione's voice seemed to carry over all of the previous attention-grabbing scenes. "It is Olympian."A few muttered. "Now we have reached another obstacle."
Dumbledore rubbed his eyes tiredly. "Such a dead tongue has rarely resurfaced in our times. In the past century, I have personally known only two who even knew it."
"Lilian Evans, mother of Harry Potter." More whispers as Hermione spoke. "And a man, who was in Azkaban, but is no longer alive, Oleo Conan."
There was silence. Ginny noted the confusion in the room. No one knows who he was. And, as if another lightening bolt had entered the room, one that was aimed at her this time and full of enlightenment, Ginny jolted in her seat. Conan. That was the name of Draco's tutor!
She gasped at the implications. "You mean Draco's tutor from when he was a child?" Like a Quaffle had been passed, everyone looked to Hermione.
"Draco Malfoy is currently the only person alive who knows Olympian. Therefore, a key to us finding Harry." Everyone's eyes slowly drifted to Ron...
When I say something is going to be action packed, I usually mean it! lol REVIEW, come on, please, it'll make me write faster!!!! lol