The next morning Harry sat on his bed waiting for the order members to come pick him up, his room already returned to its normal appearance, although his older possessions were left unpacked so as not to alert the order that Ginny had snuck a letter to him. The Dursleys were all out of the house. Uncle Vernon was at work, but as for Aunt Petunia and Dudley he supposed that the order had probably lured them away just like they had when they'd come to pick him up the previous year.

Normally the prospect of getting out from under the Dursleys' roof would've been nothing but thrilling, but this year Harry's happiness was tinged with a sense of foreboding. Ginny had told him he was going to be back at Grimmauld Place, which he was certain was going to bring up unpleasant memories, but overall he felt this could be worse. He'd been dealing with unpleasant memories for the past month and his occlumency was making it easier for him, so as much as he wasn't looking forward to being in the dark house chalk full of reminders, he thought he could handle it. But there was a worse complication.

Dumbledore's betrayal left him unsure where to turn. As the head of the order, it was impossible to say just who was trustworthy and who wasn't. Harry wasn't exactly ecstatic at the prospect of having to be in a house where he had to constantly look over his shoulder and wonder about who, if any, of the people around him were in on the plan to betray him. He also knew that it was inevitable that he would be seeing Dumbledore there at some point, and didn't relish the idea of having to face him. He'd decided for the moment not to give away that he knew what Dumbledore had done, as his position was precarious. He wasn't sure how Dumbledore or anyone else would react, and Harry knew they could and would cause tremendous trouble in their efforts to keep him under their control. Until he could build up a force of some kind to fall back on so as not to be facing this alone, an open confrontation was out of the question.

Harry perked up as he heard movement downstairs. He quickly grabbed his wand, figuring that the best way to make sure the order didn't get suspicious of his reaction was to give them the same cautious, wary response as last time. True to form, when the door to his room unlocked and swung open the order members outside were met with what Harry hoped was a suspicious look and the business end of his wand.

"Who's there?"

Mad-Eye Moody grunted in satisfaction. "Good lad, quick reflexes, not trusting his protection to be full proof. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

"Are you trying to ruin my hearing, Mad-Eye?!" came the annoyed but humored voice of Nymphadora Tonks. "Wotcher Harry! We've come to get you out of here."

Harry refused to lower his wand. "Prove it."

Remus Lupin stepped into view, his hands held out in a placating gesture of 'we come in peace'. "It's us Harry. I'm Remus John Lupin, werewolf, also known as Moony. The first time we were in my office at Hogwarts together I showed you a Grindylow in a tank before you asked me why I didn't allow you to fight a boggart."

Harry relaxed, allowing a smile to break out on his face. "Remus, it's good to see you." And it was, despite the complications.

Remus gave him a small grin in return. "You too, Harry. How're you holding up?"

Harry's smile faded somewhat. "It's hard, but I'm hanging in there. You?"

Remus gave a sad, knowing nod. "Same."

"Alright, alright, your girl talk can wait!" snapped Moody. "Now listen Potter, since those fools in the ministry have finally come to their senses about Voldemort, we've been able to set up a portkey to take you to headquarters. We just need to get outside the wards. (Harry gave a mental grimace at the mention of the much respected but not very useful wards) I'll just pack your stuff-" He flicked his wand and much like Tonks had the year before all of the various items from around the room came flying towards his trunk and packed in, although even less neatly than Tonks had managed it. Harry was privately grateful he'd had the foresight to bury all of his recent acquisitions at the bottom of the trunk underneath some clothes so nobody would take notice. "-and we're off."

"Harry," piped up Remus, "where's Hedwig?"

Harry struggled for a moment with what to answer but in the end, seeing as he hadn't sent Hedwig anywhere sensitive, or anywhere at all for that matter, coupled with the fact that he was already quite worried by her lengthy absence, he decided her safety took precedence. "I'm not sure. I came back to my room one day about a week ago and she was gone. That in itself isn't unusual, but I'm starting to get a little worried. This is quite a while for her to be gone when not on a delivery."

The order members exchanged guarded looks before Lupin turned back to Harry. "We'll look into it Harry. For now let's get you out of here."

Harry nodded, and bent down to pull the trunk from the room before Mad-Eye stopped him and charmed the trunk to float behind them. He led the others downstairs to find several more order members waiting, and together they went out the door and started down the street. After walking about two blocks Mad-Eye stopped them and turned to Harry.

"Alright, Potter. We're about to cross out of the wards. The moment I say so you grab this portkey. No matter what happens, even if we come under attack (Harry struggled not to chuckle at Tonks rolling her eyes) you let us handle it and hold on to the portkey. Clear?"

Harry nodded, and they moved another few steps. At Mad-Eye's signal Harry and the others grabbed onto a brown hat in Mad-Eye's hand, and on his count of three, they disappeared, reappearing in front of one building Harry would've been very content to never see again, despite his new ownership of it. Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. At Mad-Eye's growl/urging they quickly crossed the street and entered the house.

Harry felt the breath fly out of him upon entering the front hall. Memories of Sirius flew through his mind as he regarded his godfather's childhood home turned prison, and he scrambled with his occlumency to restrain the deep well of grief which came pouring out into his chest.

"Harry!"

Harry barely had time to brace himself before getting bowled over. The hugs came from every direction. First was Hermione's friendly but firm embrace, followed by Ron's manly grip. He continued shaking hands even as he struggled to regain the breath robbed from him by Mrs. Weasley's rib-cracking squeeze.

The last hug went a little differently, though. Once through the veritable sea of people who had been waiting to greet him, Harry was enfolded in another hug, his face becoming buried in a long fiery red mane. He inhaled the sweet smell of wild flowers and began struggling with his occlumency to keep from blushing.

For the first time since Merlin had left Harry cursed the dirty codger out severely. The old man had taken every opportunity to make some lewd comment or other about Ginny and feeling her body against his sent blood rushing to places he didn't really want it right now. Thankfully Ginny herself unknowingly snapped him out of it with a whisper in his ear (although her breath did cause additional problems before the comment registered).

"After dinner, first thing say you want to go change so nobody follows you. I'll be in the room waiting."

As they pulled away from each other Harry gave a quick nod which would've appeared as a greeting to anyone watching but which told Ginny that he'd heard. He then turned and followed Mrs. Weasley into the kitchen, letting himself get bogged down in inconsequential small talk of quidditch and fears regarding OWL grades amidst Mrs. Weasley's delicious roast and boiled potatoes. As the meal began winding down Harry noticed Ginny quietly slip out of the room out of the corner of his eye and made sure to keep his attention focused on Ron, seated in the other direction, so nobody else would notice that he'd noticed. Finally, Harry put down his knife and fork, completely sated for the first time since he'd left Hogwarts.

"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley, it was delicious."

"Not at all dear, you're looking quite peaky these days. You'd think those muggles don't feed you!"

Harry turned away quickly to avoid answering.

"Hey mate, fancy a game of chess?"

Seeing a way out of a potential difficulty in his meeting with Ginny, Harry answered back, "Thanks, Ron, but why don't you and Hermione get in the first game? I want to change first."

Ron shrugged and dragged Hermione out of the room without even asking her first, something Harry could tell seconds before the raised voices were heard wasn't going to go over well. Shaking his head Harry nodded at the various order members still present before getting up and heading out the door and up the stairs to the room he'd previously shared with Ron. When he opened the door he found Ginny sitting on the room's lone chair. She wasted no time.

"Harry, we don't have much time. I need to tell you something before Ron or Hermione notice you're gone and-"

Harry held up his hand and matched her urgent whispering. "I know, Gin, but I have an idea. I found a useful spell that we can use to talk and make sure we aren't being overheard."

Ginny frowned. "Spell? What are you talking about, Harry? You know you still can't use magic without getting in trouble with the ministry!?"

Harry grimaced but pressed on. "For now let's just say, I have an edge. The ministry won't be able to tell a thing. Trust me."

Ginny continued staring at him warily for another few moments before finally nodding.

Harry made a quick wand gesture and murmured for a moment in a Celtic dialect the world had not heard even once since the late 14th century.

All of a sudden Harry felt everything around him change. He was still in the room, but he could no longer see it. The grandfather clock on the wall still clicked, but he could no longer hear it. All he was aware of was his own presence, although he couldn't even feel his body, as well as a- Harry had no other way to phrase it other than to call it a path. He knew not where it would go, what it was or even strictly speaking how he could move on it, he only knew that he could move on it and that he should. He started down the path, feeling his- what to call it? His essence, moving down the path, reminding Harry of the descriptions he'd heard of a zip line. He moved down for several moments before he could sense another presence up ahead, coming towards him. He kept moving as cautiously as possible, but he wasn't quite sure what he could do even if this other presence meant him harm, and something quite deep told him it did not. He and the other presence edged closer and closer to each other, until finally they met in the middle, and connected. And then the world exploded.

Harry had never felt anything even remotely like this in his life. He was drenched deeper than he'd ever been, yet there was no water. He was cocooned tightly, but there was nothing tying him. He was enveloped by a presence that felt like home in such a way that nothing he remembered feeling could even come close to approaching. Thoughts and feelings not his own began filling his mind, and he could finally identify this presence that had knocked his entire world on its end. Ginny.

He knew if he'd still been connected to his body it would've been trembling. He could feel her, all of her. The very essence of her soul, and it was so incredible. She felt like air, like life. He felt like half of a jigsaw puzzle that was finally being put together, and all of his pieces fit with hers so neatly. But the one thing that floored him the most was how much like the dreams he'd had his entire life she was, and yet more. For nothing in his miserable life could've prepared him for such pure, raw acceptance. He could see that Ginny didn't have an idealized version of him, she could see his flaws, yet she still regarded him with such pure, tender emotion that he felt like his soul was on fire. He could tell she was feeling him as well, and it was meaning just as much to her. She was also seeing his thoughts, his memories.

His memories….

Now in a blind panic, Harry reached out and saw that she was already through to his first year in Hogwarts and getting earlier. He desperately ignored the reluctance of every fiber of his soul to part with hers and wrenched himself away from her. He flew back down the path he'd moved along and landed abruptly in his own body. He was dazed, disoriented, and looking up he could see Ginny was feeling exactly the same.

They stood there staring at each other for what felt like an eternity. Harry was waiting, dreading the question he knew must be coming, only to realize it wasn't. Ginny and he were still linked when he'd panicked, she already knew why he'd pulled back. Before either one of them could say anything, the air between them shimmered and an image appeared. One Harry recognized quite well.

"Is that…?" Ginny asked.

"Merlin." Harry replied, nodding.

"Harry, Miss Weasley, first of all, do not worry, this message only exists in your minds, no others can hear or see it. If you are seeing this, than you have just invoked the right of Amore Amplexus. Yes, Harry, I did deceive you as to the purpose of the ritual, and I shall explain why. Amore Amplexus was used in my time as a way for two people to be intimate in a way that nobody who'd never experienced it could contemplate. I told you the ritual required compatibility. This was quite true. Two people who weren't and would never fall in love with each other would not be able to make the ritual work for them. The more compatible the people are, the better the ritual worked. I could tell, based on your memories, Harry, that Miss Weasley was in love with you (Ginny blushed in that way which only a Weasley can) and that you were well on your way to falling in love with her. (Harry's turn- he was, after all, an honorary Weasley)

Under normal circumstances I'd have simply let your love unfold naturally, but these were far from ordinary circumstances. Harry has an almost unimaginable amount of pressure on his shoulders, particularly for one of his age, and that was made much worse given recent revelations."

Ginny's eyes radiated sympathy to Harry, and for once he found he didn't mind too much. He knew he wasn't being pitied, she simply cared.

"I experienced such pressure in my own life, although I will say my experience wasn't quite as terrible. There were many times I would've faltered either spiritually or physically were it not for my beloved Gwendolyn. The true love of a spouse is a magic unlike any other, and I knew Harry simply did not have the time to wait, particularly since his upbringing was not exactly conducive to recognizing love. If my evaluation was incorrect, and the love you felt for Harry was that of a sibling Ginevra, or vice versa, than the ritual would not have worked. If, as I suspect, it has indeed been successful, than I have arranged that the first use of the ritual will copy to young Ginevra as well the memory teachers that Harry already possesses."

Ginny's eyes went wide.

"I know you're probably pretty angry at me for deceiving you like this, Harry, but I hope you will come to understand why I felt it necessary. And besides" at this Merlin began to smirk. "I didn't really lie to you. A memory of whatever you wanted to say to her that shouldn't be overheard would've been transferred to her during the ritual, so technically it is a way for you to speak without danger, and very quickly too."

Harry glowered at the old man.

"Good luck to you both. I wish you every happiness, and may I just say, Harry, it has been a privilege to get to know you." With this last, the image faded out.

Harry had no idea just what to feel. He wanted to feel betrayed by Merlin, but somehow he couldn't bring himself to look at that experience or anything that made it happen as a bad thing.

The two of them stood there in silence for several minutes, neither knowing quite what to say to the other, until the sound of arguing voices at the bottom of the winding staircase broke them out of their reverie. Ginny knew there would be questions if Ron and Hermione found her in here, so she quickly moved toward the door. As she passed Harry she quickly murmured in his ear. "We'll talk about this later. Look at my memory of yesterday afternoon and remember as you see it that I… I'm always here for you." Ginny then proceeded to kiss him on the cheek and hurry from the room.

Harry was locked in a daze for a moment with the only thing his mind could seem to keep straight was to raise his hand to the place where Ginny's lips had rested. But the loud voices coming up the stairs did not allow this fresh daze to last very long, and Harry scrambled to open his trunk and take out some clothes so he could say he was unpacking a little before changing. As he moved he thought back on the memories he'd received from Ginny, and found the one she wanted him to see.

Ginny was in her room at the burrow, crouched on the floor. Professor Dumbledore had come by and was down in the kitchen. She didn't even know who was in there with him, and he'd put an imperturbable spell on the doorway to the kitchen to prevent any listening, but Ginny had an advantage.

When Ginny was seven her mother hadn't wanted her daughter to hear her chewing out Fred and George for putting Percy's favorite quill into a fire ant hill, but as she had framed the twins for it to get back at them for turning her favorite teddy bear blue, she very much wanted to hear them scolded. Her room was right above the kitchen, so Ginny took an old nail and used a book to hammer it in and make a small hole in the floor through which her mother's yelling easily carried through, totally bypassing her silencing charm.

Now, as the discussion she wanted to overhear was quite a few octaves lower than the sounds of her mother's disapproval, she had to squeeze an extendable ear down through the hole. It was a tight fit, but Ginny managed it.

"-to make sure to keep me updated regularly. I know last year contact became scarce once I'd left the school, so I'm giving the two of you these enchanted parchments. The ones belonging to the intended recipients of your message will feel a signal in their magic when something is written letting them know they have an incoming message. This is how the order communicates. I will need regular updates from both of you as to Mr. Potter's movements and plans. We absolutely cannot afford another fiasco like what happened at the ministry. Understood?"

"Yes sir," Came the unmistakable voices of Ron and Hermione.