Chapter Seven

Hidey Places

Bill came home half an hour later and found Ginny sitting in front of the fireplace and Harry reclining with his head in her lap. Harry was holding his wand, examining it and turning it between his fingers. They both looked up when Bill came in.

"Don't get up," he grinned. "I'll be right back." He hung up his cloak and went into the kitchen, where Ginny and Harry heard him talking to Fleur. They both came out into the parlor and Harry sat up.

"Fleur said you ran into some Muggles this afternoon," Bill said. "I think I know who they were. We've seen them along the cliff a few times."

"But zey never bozered us," said Fleur. "I t'ink zey are scared by Bill's face."

Bill ran his finger over his nose. "There's one big bloke who's the worst troublemaker. Derrick Roach. His father is a magistrate in the local Muggle government and owns quite a bit of property, so his kid gets away with a lot."

"Not this time," Harry said. "He opened his mouth one too many times and said a couple of things to Ginny. He now has a face-full of bat wings."

Bill looked at Ginny in alarm. "You didn't use your Bat-Bogey hex, I hope."

"Not to worry," she said cheerfully. "Harry did the honors. But I was thinking I'd come back after my birthday and cut off his ba—"

"Okay!" Bill laughed. "I get the idea." He turned to Harry. "Did you get an owl from the Ministry? They usually want to know when someone uses magic on Muggles."

"Not yet. But Fleur said you wanted to talk to me?"

Bill's brow furrowed. "I overheard some things at work that I wanted to ask you about. A goblin who works in the Property Office mentioned that—"

"Wait!" Harry waved his hands in the air. "Can we talk about it somewhere else? It's . . . it's . . . um . . ."

"I think it has something to do with my birthday present," Ginny said.

"I didn't say that. It . . . um . . . probably has something to do with the mess that dragon made."

"Right," Ginny said. "Go ahead and talk. I like rubies, I never had any, you know. Oh, and chocolate cake."

Harry grinned, and he and Bill went outside. As they walked around the side of the cottage Bill asked Harry about his wand. "Is something wrong with it? I saw you looking at it."

"I don't think so, but it acted a little differently this afternoon. Something happened to it after the battle that might have affected it. It's fine, though." They sat on the low stone wall near Dobby's grave. Harry changed the subject, not wanting the matter of the Elder Wand to come up. "What about the goblin?"

"I heard you bought the Hog's Head Inn," Bill began. "The goblins are all talking about how they got some revenge for the theft, as they're calling it. What happened?"

Harry was momentarily nonplused. "Yeah," he said after a moment. "Aberforth sold it to the goblins the day after the battle, and—"

"Why did he sell it? That really surprised me. He's owned it for years."

"I think he wants to get away for a while. He said he was going abroad. The goblins were arguing with him about the price. They said that goblins had built the place, so it was rightfully theirs."

Bill snorted. "That's rubbish. Every building in Hogsmeade was built by an old family of wizard carpenters that lives right outside the village. I did a research paper when I was a student," he explained when Harry gave him a questioning look. "Professor Binns was teaching a course on the history of magical places."

"Must have been interesting. Anyway, they were pretty steamed about it, and then they started talking about wizards attacking Gringotts and stealing their dragons and breaking into vaults. They mentioned me, of course, so someone went and got Kingsley, and then he went and got me. So I was kind of stuck in the middle."

Bill sat, thinking. "Hmm. The last thing Kingsley would want the day after the battle would be a mini goblin rebellion. They probably realized that, and thought they could pressure him and Aberforth into giving the inn away."

"More politics," Harry said with distaste. "But I had an idea." He glanced at Bill. "I had already decided that I wanted to take some classes at Hogwarts next year, even if I couldn't do my seventh year again. And I also had some ideas about, um . . . well . . ." He hesitated.

"You wanted to be near Ginny," Bill grinned.

Harry nodded, thankful that Bill understood. "I thought she'd like that. I know I would," he said softly.

"Everyone in the family would, Harry." Bill looked over at the cottage and Harry followed his gaze; they could see Ginny and Fleur through the kitchen window, sitting at the table and talking. "I don't think I'm giving anything away by telling you how much she worried about you all year," Bill said. "And Fred . . . She needs lots of comfort."

Harry was not surprised to hear this from Bill. He had seen how Bill had become like a father to both Ginny and Ron since Fred's death, while Arthur was preoccupied with Molly's grief. But Harry had started to feel that Bill was also filling a need for himself, a need he was quite familiar with. He had lost Sirius and Dumbledore, and Remus had stepped in; now Remus was gone. It felt good to talk to Bill, to have someone who understood him. It was quite different from talking to Ron, even though Bill was only ten years older.

Of course, it was complicated by Bill's being Ginny's brother, but Bill had none of the possessive protectiveness that Ron had shown. It never seemed to occur to Bill that Harry would ever do anything to hurt Ginny. In fact, Harry sensed that Bill expected that, someday, Harry would become the one whom Ginny looked to for shelter in a storm. It made Harry feel part of the Weasley family, like Ginny's love and Ron's friendship.

Harry picked up his train of conversation. "I kind of blurted out that I'd like to buy the inn. So we went into another room, and I asked Ron and Hermione to come with me because there were five of them and only one of me. I think I still ended up paying too much, but what the hell, it's only money."

Bill laughed. "It's great that you can say that. No one in the Weasley family can, although I suspect that George . . ." He trailed off and sighed. "Anyway, yes, you did pay too much, at least as best as I can tell. And that won't make goblins feel any better about wizards. But I'll go out on a limb here, since somehow I can't see you as a barkeep for the rest of your life. My guess is that you'll sell it back eventually, and if you do, remember that you have a few cards of your own to play."

"Like what? Goblins can be pretty intimidating when they want to."

"And they know it. It sounds like they pulled that act on you. But there's two things you need to remember. First, you have a substantial fortune stored in their vaults, and they wouldn't like to see it go someplace else."

"Like where?"

"Like to another wizarding bank, even a bank overseas. Fleur has relatives who own a bank in France, did you know that? The goblins do."

Harry glanced at the cottage again; Ginny and Fleur were still sitting at the kitchen table but now vegetables and chunks of meat were flying off the table towards the stove.

"The other thing you need to remember," Bill went on, "is that you are Harry Potter, nemesis of the Dark Lord. A lot of goblins expected Voldemort to win. They would have ended up regretting it, but they've been treated so badly by wizards in general that they were receptive to his lies."

He paused and looked off into the distance. "Kingsley wants to change that. I think that's why he got involved when he found out that Aberforth wanted to sell. He saw a chance to open up a dialogue."

"And I blew it," Harry said ruefully. "I told you I'd never understand politics."

"You could have done better, that's true, but many, many others have done worse. Don't undersell yourself, Harry. You are somebody. Don't over-reach, but don't under-reach, either."

"Why are you telling me all this?" Harry asked. He had always gotten advice from Dumbledore, Sirius, and Remus, but Bill's frank, friendly, and warm style was a little different; Harry liked it.

Bill grinned. "I have a very dear sister who is head over heels in love with you. And I think she has very good taste."

Harry went scarlet and Bill laughed again. "I thought only Ron could turn that color. Sorry, Harry, I didn't mean to embarrass you." He stood. "I think we should see how dinner is coming along. I don't want that meat to get overcooked. And don't worry, I won't say anything to Ginny about the inn."

After dinner Harry and Ginny were sitting outside on the edge of the cliff watching the waves, when an owl from the Ministry finally arrived. They didn't see it until it literally fell out of the sky and plopped at their feet. It lay sprawled on the rocks, looked up at Harry with a feeble, pathetic hoot, and lifted its leg in the air.

"No wonder it took so long," Harry said as he removed the parchment. "This one's more decrepit than Errol." His remark seemed to upset the owl; it clucked a few times and struggled to its feet, flapping its wings erratically.

Ginny stroked its head feathers. "There, there. Don't listen to nasty old wizard. I understand." The owl took heart and managed to flap up to Ginny's shoulder, where it perched contentedly, nibbling on her ear and pecking at Harry whenever it thought he was getting too close.

Harry began perusing the parchment, and Ginny transferred the owl to her other shoulder and read over Harry's. It was an Official Notice from the Improper Use of Magic Office.

Dear Mr. Potter. Greetings. We are advised that you performed five (5) or six (6) charms and/or spells and/or jinxes and/or hexes upon as many as six (6) Muggles on the current date, at a location along the Channel coast in Essex.

In addition, we are advised that you may have performed a combination Levitating and Separating charm and/or spell and/or jinx and/or hex in the presence of said Muggles on said date at said location.

While there is no evidence at this time of any violation of Magical law on your part, this Office is nevertheless conducting a routine investigation to determine whether or not additional action by the Ministry of Magic may be required with respect to the events alluded to herein above.

We are, therefore, respectfully requesting that you provide us with any information you may possess about the events alluded to herein above, including the names of any non-Muggle witnesses, and the specific charms and/or spells and/or jinxes and/or hexes you may have used during the events alluded to herein above.

Furthermore, we respectfully request that you provide the information requested herein above within thirty (30) days of your receipt of this Notice.

Respectfully yours,

Priscilla Pompard

Improper Use of Magic Office, Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Ministry of Magic

"Blimey, does Kingsley have his work cut out for him," Harry remarked.

"Yeah," said Ginny. "First throw all the solicitors into Azkaban."

Harry chortled. "Well, I might as well do it now. Come on, bring the bird."

They went into the cottage—the owl still perched on Ginny's shoulder—and into the kitchen, where Fleur was cleaning up from dinner. They sat at the table and the owl flew up to the top of a cabinet and peered down at the room.

"If zat bird makes a mess in 'ere, I will cook 'im for dinner tomorrow," Fleur said darkly and pointed a large cleaver at it. The owl squawked and hopped along the cabinet away from Fleur's menacing knife.

"Fleur, do you have a quill and some ink?" Harry asked as he laid the Notice on the table; the Ministry had conveniently left space at the bottom for Harry to write his response. Fleur fetched the writing materials from a drawer while keeping an eye on the owl. Harry and Ginny reviewed the events of the afternoon, and Harry wrote down the details.

"Don't forget the Bat-Bogey charm and/or spell and/or jinx and/or hex," Ginny said.

Harry laughed, "I won't, but that's the one most likely to get me in trouble. They'll have to send someone from the reversal office or whatever they call it to sort him out."

"Then why don't you wait the whole thirty days," Ginny suggested.

"Hmm, that's not a bad idea. But we'd have to keep the owl here so we'd have a way to send it back."

"Non, non, non!" Fleur waved the cleaver in the air, and the owl squawked again and hopped along the cabinet as far from her as it could get. "Absolutely not! 'e must get out of zis 'ouse, now!"

Harry laughed again. "Okay. Here, it's ready." He rolled up the parchment and took it to the cabinet where the owl was perched. When he reached up to take the bird down, it pecked at his hand. "Ouch! Damn bird! Here," he handed the parchment to Ginny. "He likes you. You do it."

Ginny took the parchment, and the owl flew down to her shoulder; it lifted its leg and Ginny tied the Notice on. They walked outside and the owl flew off, wobbling a bit but on a steady course to the southwest, and disappeared into the dusk.

They went back to the wall where they had been sitting and watching the sea. The horizon was shrouded in darkness but they could still see whitecaps as waves crested near the shore. Harry put his arm around Ginny and she moved closer.

The door of the cottage opened and Bill stepped out holding a small rug. He waved at them and tossed the rug into the air; as it floated, Bill pointed his wand and dust flew off and wafted away. He grabbed the rug and took it back inside.

"Bill is a great guy," Harry said, thinking about their talk earlier in the day.

Ginny looked up at him. "He is. Why do you say that?"

"He makes me feel like I'm part of your family."

Ginny put her head back on his shoulder, but didn't speak. When Harry turned his head and kissed her brow, she put both arms around him. "I'm glad," she said into his chest. "He does have a way of making you feel welcome, if that's the word. Maybe wanted is the right one." She looked up at him again and Harry could see her smile in the candlelight glowing through the windows of the cottage.

"Yes," he agreed, "that's how I feel."

# # # #

Several days passed and the weather turned warmer and sunnier. Harry and Ginny spent most of their days on the beach, talking, reading, napping on a blanket, building magical sand castles. They never saw Muggles again. They took several long walks to the fishing port and beyond, and became acquainted with the owners of the grocery where they bought candy. Once they overheard a conversation between two other customers about a strange rash that one of the local youths had come down with. The clinic in the nearby town had not been able to treat it and had sent him down to London to see a specialist.

"They better send him to a specialist at St. Mungo's," Ginny chuckled as they walked back. "Or to the bat house at the zoo."

"I wonder why they haven't sorted him out yet," Harry said. "I hope that owl got back to the Ministry."

"It's probably lost in someone's inbox and/or trash bin." They both laughed.

Although their days were fine, they both were waking up every morning not well rested. Bill commented on their drowsiness at breakfast and suggested a sleeping potion, but Fleur shook her head and smiled to herself. In fact, both Harry and Ginny were lying awake almost every night thinking about the person just on the other side of the wall separating their tiny bedrooms. But neither one said anything. Harry did not want to go past the limit that Ginny had set, although it was becoming harder and harder for him to stop himself. Ginny did not want to put Bill in the position of having to confront her about a rule that her parents might have insisted on before allowing her to come to his home with Harry, although it was becoming harder and harder for her to stick to her conviction. In the close quarters of Shell Cottage, always in each other's presence, they thought and dreamed about each other.

A week and a half after they came to Shell Cottage an owl arrived before lunch from Hogwarts addressed to both of them. Ginny read it sitting at the kitchen table while Harry stood behind her, brushing her hair.

"It's from Professor McGonagall. This explains why we haven't heard anything about Colin's funeral. His parents are asking his friends to have a memorial service for him at school. They buried him a week ago but the service was for family only."

"They didn't want any wizards or witches showing up in weird clothes," Harry guessed. "It's okay with me. I wasn't fancying another funeral."

Ginny rolled up the parchment. "Me either. I was thinking that we could have a D.A. reunion at my birthday party and make it a memorial for Colin too. Luna suggested it. I like the idea."

"So do I."

Harry continued to brush; he loved the silky feel and flowery scent of her hair. And when he was finished, Ginny always turned around for a long and enjoyable snog.

This time was no different, but just as their tongues were becoming involved and their breathing heavy, and Harry's hands were straying down her hips, the kitchen door opened. Their tongues and then their mouths disengaged; they were surprised, since Fleur always left them alone when she knew this activity was occurring. They turned and saw Ron standing in the doorway, his hand on the handle, and Hermione behind him peering around his side.

Ron stared at them; his mouth worked but nothing came out. Harry started to pull away but Ginny tightened her hold and wouldn't let him go. Hermione glanced up at Ron's face.

Ron finally put his fist to his mouth and cleared his throat. "So, how are you blokes? We can wait in the parlor if, uh, if you'd like."

Harry could feel Ginny relax. She gave him a quick squeeze, flew to Ron, and, with a big smile, gave him a sloppy kiss on his cheek. "We're fine! It's great to see you." She hugged Hermione and pulled them into the kitchen. "Why are you here?"

"We both had some time off," Hermione said, "so we just decided on the spur of the moment to pop up here." She sounded as though it had been a momentous decision. "It's so much—"

"I got hired at the Ministry!" Ron interrupted, unable to contain his news. "It's not the most exciting job, but it'll be a regular paycheck and, Harry, get this. Shacklebolt is setting up a whole program for anyone who wants to take the Auror exams. It's three years, but they don't care about all those Acceptables I got at Hogwarts, or any of that crap. Pass the exams and the practicals and you're in!"

"Don't be so restrained, Ron," Hermione said as Harry grinned at Ron's enthusiasm. "And don't be surprised if the exams are a lot harder than O.W.L.s."

Ron waved away her caution. "Yeah, but this time I won't have all that other school stuff to distract me."

"No, just a shop full of free jokes right underneath your feet. But you're right. It's a brilliant program. Harry, you should really consider it. You would ace it."

Harry shook his head. "Maybe later. I have other plans for the immediate future."

"Right," said Ron. "Well, what have you two been up to, aside from imitating thrashing eels?" He grinned at Ginny who stuck her tongue out at him.

"Not much, aside from that," replied Harry, fending off Ginny's punch. "Walks along the beach, naps, meals, naps, walks along the beach, you get the idea."

"Busy schedule," Ron chuckled. He looked around the kitchen. "How's the food?"

"Much better than last time. I think Fleur was pretty unprepared when we showed up and she also didn't like having to feed Griphook. And Ginny is learning French cuisine. She knows all the French names for everything,"

Oui," said Ginny. "Le fromage, le vin, la viande, les pommes de terre. What else does a young witch need to know?"

They decided to take a walk down to the beach, and Ginny went to tell Fleur who was up in her bedroom and hadn't heard Ron and Hermione arrive. She came downstairs with hugs and kisses for both; Ron only blushed a little.

"Do not be too long," she said. "I will 'ave lunch ready in an hour." They decided to stay near the cottage and take a longer walk afterwards. They went out and sat near Dobby's grave; it was covered with sprays of flowers that Harry and Ginny had placed on it. They talked about Colin's funeral—Ron and Hermione had received the same owl from Professor McGonagall—and liked Ginny's idea of a D.A. reunion. Ron told them that Dean, Neville, and Neville's girlfriend Keesha were frequent visitors to Diagon Alley and talked about getting the D.A. back together somehow. George had also shown up at the shop once, but didn't stay long.

"I don't think he's ready yet," said Ron. "Lee and the witches are keeping it going, and we help out in the evenings."

Harry asked about his new job in the Ministry. "The International Magical Office of Law," Ron said pompously, and laughed. "I wanted Games and Sports, but so did everyone else, and they had all finished their seventh year."

"You mean all the boys wanted it," Hermione corrected him.

"Well, some girls too. Angelina Johnson's already there." Hermione shrugged.

"So what does your office do?" Harry asked.

"Haven't a clue, and I've been there for four days already. But it doesn't matter. I won't be there after the Auror program starts."

"They help set up conferences and coordinate legal activities," Hermione said. "They liaise with other magical governments."

"Okay, that's what they do."

Ginny turned to Hermione. "What about you? Have you started at that institute yet?"

"You'll be sorry you asked," Ron grinned.

Hermione jumped up, ignoring him. "Oh, it's fabulous! You wouldn't believe what they're doing! I'm working directly under Septieme Geneva, she's the witch who wrote all the Arithmancy textbooks. She's world famous, and she's brilliant. And Kingsley asked her to set up a special project, and she put me on it!" Hermione beamed, her arms outspread, and looked at them expectantly. Her face fell when Ginny and Harry just stared at her blankly.

"Tell them what the project is," Ron prompted.

"Oh right. Kingsley wants to set up an office in the Law Enforcement Department that can trace every use of an Unforgivable Curse. He wants to know who used it, when, where, and who it was used against. I think he wants to abolish them somehow, eventually. Isn't that brilliant? So we're doing all the theoretical groundwork. It'll take months, maybe years, but it's so exciting. I'm doing exactly what I've dreamed of doing for years and it's going to make such a difference!"

"It's not like she loves the job," Ron said. "I have to check her every morning before she leaves to make sure she didn't forget to put her shoes on."

"That's not true. I did forget to tie them once."

At that moment Fleur called them in for lunch. Afterwards they walked along the cliff to the path down to the beach. Ron wanted to see the fishing port, and as they traipsed over the sand Harry and Ginny told them about their confrontation with the Muggles.

"Hey," Ron interrupted Harry when he was describing the Bat-Bogey hex, "I heard about that bloke. They had him in St. Mungo's for two days. So that was you?" He peered at both Harry and Ginny. "I wish I had known. I would have gone and cut off his ba—"

Uh, uh," Ginny interrupted. "I have dibs on them. After my birthday."

"You are one ferocious family," Harry observed. "Hermione, we'd both better be careful."

"You'd better be careful," Hermione said. "I don't have those." Harry and Ginny both laughed and looked at Hermione in surprise; she had never joked like that before. Harry noticed that Ron was looking at her with an amused expression, and decided that they were both becoming a good influence on each other.

The village was quiet as usual but they attracted a little more attention this time. The locals had got used to seeing two teenagers wandering around in cloaks, but here were two more, and one of them another redhead. It was good for gossip, though, so everyone was friendly, especially the grocery proprietor after he sold out his entire stock of chocolate candy to Ron, who borrowed all of Ginny and Harry's Muggle money.

The sun was shining brightly, and low waves were breaking off-shore as they walked back. A warm land breeze dropped as the cliffs on their right gradually rose. They climbed the path in the cleft and were only a few hundred yards from the cottage when Ginny noticed a figure coming towards them.

"Bill is home," she said, shading her eyes. "Something's wrong." They hurried to meet him, and saw his worried expression when he got closer.

"Good, you're here," he said, looking around nervously as he spoke. "We've got to get back. Ginny, Mum wants you home."

"What! Why? What happened?" Ginny exclaimed. "Is anyone hurt?"

"No, no. Everyone is fine. But Fenrir Greyback has broken out of Azkaban."

They were silent until, after a moment, Ron swore. "What the hell is going on? Did the dementors screw up? The Ministry was supposed to have this under control."

Bill started shepherding them along. "I don't know. There's all kinds of rumors in town. But everyone is freaked, especially Mum."

Fleur was waiting just outside the door. She had a small traveling bag with her and was holding her wand, looking worried. "I started to pack your t'ings," she said to Harry and Ginny. "Do we put ze Fidelius back on ze 'ouse?" she asked Bill.

He thought for a moment and nodded. "No point in taking chances. Go pack," he said to Harry and Ginny. "The charm is going to take a while and I want to get going."

They went upstairs and were back down in a few minutes. Ginny was biting her lip, looking worried, and Harry took her arm. "We'll be fine," he told her. "There's no way he can get into the Burrow."

"I know, it's just that I thought we were finished with this. I thought all we had to worry about were drunken Muggles on the beach."

"Well, we'll all be together."

"And this time you're with us."

"We're coming too," Ron said. He had his arm around Hermione who was pale.

"Good," said Bill; he was facing the cottage, casting the complicated spell. "Mum and Dad will appreciate that." He glanced at Hermione, who was now looking ill. "Are you all right?"

Hermione just shook her head, and Ron said, "That's why we're coming." Fleur quickly came and also put her arm around Hermione's shoulder.

"Zat monster t'reatened you, didn't 'e? Don't worry, darling, no one will let zat 'appen again. You are safe wiz us."

"Thanks," she whispered. She put her hand over her eyes and Ron put both of his arms around her. They all stood next to her as her body shook and muffled sobs came from Ron's chest where her face was buried. She lifted her head.

"I'm sorry," she said in a choked voice. "It—it all just came over me again." She looked at Ron as though pleading. "But she's dead. I saw Bellatrix die. She's dead." Ron stroked her hair.

"Okay, it's time," said Bill. He set a battered copper kettle on the ground and they all knelt and put a hand on it. In seconds they were in the lane just outside the Burrow's front gate, and as they hurried towards the house, Charlie opened the door. He was almost bowled over by Molly who charged past him and ran to Ginny. She hugged her so hard that Ginny grunted. "Mum, you're strangling me!" She extricated herself and Molly went down the line, hugging and kissing the others.

When they had all gone inside, where the rest of the family were gathered in the kitchen, Molly sat next to Arthur, who took her hand; he looked drawn and tired.

"Thank goodness," Molly said in a no-nonsense voice, "now we're all here, and we'll stay here until they catch him." She glared at Charlie. "I don't care. He has as good a reason to come here as anywhere."

Charlie looked at Bill and raised his eyebrows. "He probably went into hiding. Every Auror in England must be looking for him, plus dementors."

"No," said Arthur quietly, "no dementors. Kingsley is not using them for that kind of thing anymore."

"He should be!" Molly snapped. "People's lives are at risk."

"Does anyone know what happened?" Harry said. "Bill said there are rumors, but do we know what actually happened? How do we know he really got out? Maybe that's a rumor too."

Everyone started talking at once, until Percy shouted, "Quiet!" and the room went still; everyone turned to him. "Gawain Robards sent me an owl thirty minutes ago and—"

"He sent you an owl?" Bill interrupted, somewhat incredulously.

"I've been helping him straighten out the mess that Rufus Scrimgeour left when he was in charge of the Department," Percy said testily. "I never worked there myself, though," he added smugly. "In any event, Robards owled me. He said that four Death Eaters disguised as Aurors showed up at Azkaban this morning an hour before Greyback was to be picked up and taken to the Ministry for his trial. They bluffed their way past the guards and took him. Neither the imposters nor Greyback have been seen since." He paused and looked around. "Anything else you hear is unofficial and probably a false rumor."

"Okay," said Bill into the silence, "what about protection? What about the house and the grounds? We Portkeyed in without any problem."

"Taken care of," George spoke from the back of the room. "We're as safe as can be without a Fidelius."

"I don't think we need one," said Charlie. "Can't we wait for more information before we go whole hog and keep anyone from finding us? For Merlin's sake, it's only one man."

"It's at least five men," Molly snapped again. "And they could be right around the corner of the lane, just waiting."

Arthur put his hand on Molly's shoulder. "Dear, we have ten excellent wizards and witches here. No one would be so foolish as to—"

"Wait!" Fleur, who was standing by the window, held up her hand. "I just 'eard somet'ing." She peered out the window and most of the others crowded around to see. Two people were standing outside the gate: Head Auror Saliyah Ushujaa and another witch, also in Auror robes.

"That's Laura Lovegood," Percy said. "I know them both quite well." He started to open the door.

"Percy!" Molly shrieked, and everyone jumped. "Be careful!"

"Yes, Mum." He rolled his eyes at Bill, who was standing next to him at the door. They stepped out, along with George and Charlie, who motioned everyone else to stay inside. "Auror Ushujaa, my apologies," Percy called, "but we need to be certain that you are really you." He shook his head and muttered under his breath, "That sounds intelligent." He called out, "What is Department Directive Number Eighty-Seven?"

The Head Auror stared at him. "Percy, this is nonsense. We've come with news. Let us in. Oh, all right," she said crossly as Percy shook his head once more. "There is no Directive Eighty-Seven. The last one was Forty-Two."

Percy nodded to George, and he waved his wand in a wide circle. There was a loud ringing sound, and the gate swung open. The two Aurors crossed the yard, and Percy shrugged apologetically as Ushujaa glared at him. Charlie opened the door and they entered the crowded kitchen. People moved and shuffled around to make room; Harry found Ginny and stood next to her. Some of the family were sitting, the rest stood around the table. Hermione was staring at the Aurors with a look that Harry thought resembled a cornered rabbit, except that no rabbit could ever be so terrified. Molly was glaring at the Aurors. Percy was trying to arrange people into some kind of order, but everyone ignored him. Finally, Saliyah found a spot next to the stove where everyone could see her, and looked around at each face.

"Fenrir Greyback is dead," she said. There was total silence; Hermione began to weep.

"Just a moment," said Arthur, who was sitting in front of the Auror; he turned to face her. "Why in Merlin's name would the Head Auror come here to tell us that? An owl would have been perfectly sufficient, and if that wasn't secure enough you or Kingsley could have sent a Patronus."

"Because there is a crime involved," replied Saliyah, "and we think some of you may be able to help us." She looked directly at Ginny, and all the others followed her gaze.

"Me?" Ginny said, startled. "I think I only saw the bast— the blighter two or three times, ever."

"Yes," said Saliyah, "but let me explain. Greyback's body was found this afternoon, about two hours ago, in one of the large rubbish bins next to the public entrance of the Ministry. Fortunately, we found him before the Muggle authorities did. He was mutilated. His face was gone, there were large gashes on his forehead and cheeks, and we found his nose in his pocket." There were noises from around the room. "Sorry," she said, "but we don't know if that's significant. And all of his wounds were made by a knife, not by fangs or claws or a wand. Also, both of his arms and legs were broken, crushed actually. He probably suffered horribly before he died."

Ginny had put her hand to her mouth. Harry put his arm around her. The Aurors were watching her.

"Miss Weasley . . . Ginny," Saliyah said, "we think that relatives of a Hogwarts student who was killed in the battle, Elizabeth Derby, did this. Greyback may have deserved everything they did to him, and more, but if they did it, they committed a murder themselves. Can you tell us anything?"

Ginny glared at the Auror. "I was holding her hand when she died. It was horrible." She put her face on Harry's shoulder and he turned her away.

"Does anyone else know anything?" Saliyah asked, looking around the room. "Minister Shacklebolt asked me personally to come here because he knows what you have gone through. I'm asking for your help."

There was silence for a long moment. Charlie gripped the back of the chair he was standing behind that George was sitting in. Others shifted on their feet. Then Percy spoke.

"I know you all think I'm a pompous stuffed shirt, and at times I do too. But I wonder if you were listening to Kingsley when he spoke at Fred's funeral. Do you remember? He said we'll never have a better world until we make it better ourselves. If we don't help bring murderers to justice, no matter how deserving of death their victim was, then what is there to keep someone whose motives aren't as noble as ours—" he looked at Ginny "—from protecting another murderer, maybe a murderer as vile and terrifying as Fenrir Greyback?"

Again there was silence. Harry looked down at Ginny; she was staring at Percy, but she glanced up at Harry. Her eyes were troubled, but she was no longer angry, as she had been a few seconds ago. She looked at Charlie and when he nodded, almost imperceptibly, she turned to Saliyah.

"Yes, that's how Elizabeth died. She had identical wounds, that's what it sounds like." The Aurors looked at each other, and Saliyah put her hand on Arthur's shoulder.

"Thank you, thank you all." She glanced at Percy. "Minister Shacklebolt will give all of you his personal thanks, I'm sure. Ginny," she looked at her, "I doubt that anyone will need to talk to you again about this. We're fairly certain of the names of those who did it. And if they are caught and tried, frankly I can't see any jury of witches or wizards sending them to Azkaban. They'll probably get Ministry detention, maybe for a few years, but it would be nothing like a sentence to Azkaban."

The family moved into the yard as the Aurors left. Saliyah spoke quietly to Percy, who nodded solemnly. They went out the gate and Disapparated. Bill patted Percy's back and smiled at him, and they all went inside.

Dinner at the Burrow that evening was a quiet affair. Afterwards, Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione walked down to Fred's grave and Ginny took the flowers lying on it. "I'll pick fresh ones tomorrow," she said. Ron and Hermione left to bid goodbye to the others before returning to London. Later, Bill and Fleur came and told them that they were staying for the night. Harry and Ginny walked back in the darkness and decided that they would remain at the Burrow and not return to Shell Cottage tomorrow with Bill and Fleur.

"You know what?" Ginny said when they stopped near the house and looked up at the stars. She leaned against Harry, and he put his arms around her and pulled her close so that her back was against his chest; he kissed her neck and she giggled. "I'm really glad we're home. I loved it at the cottage, but . . ."

"But what?"

She paused for a moment. "Do you know what you discover when you live in the same house in the countryside for sixteen years?"

"That's totally outsidemy life experience. What do you discover?"

"You discover lots of places where you can go and hide and no one can ever find you."

Harry felt his pulse speed up for some reason. "And do these hidey places have room for more than one person?"

"Just," Ginny whispered, and turned her head and kissed him.