Parallel
By deemarie
Chapter 14
Harry sat staring out the waiting room window. How much longer would those healers take? If anything really bad happened to Ron, Harry couldn't bear to think about it. Harry had Apparated at the ministry and bolted straight to Arthur's office, taking the stairs, clutching the package. Close on his heels was the guard, Eric, whom Harry had dashed past shouting "It's an emergency."
"Oi!" Eric said as he came to an abrupt stop outside Arthur's office. Eric bent double trying to catch his breath. "What's...the...emergency?" Harry knocked on the office door frantically.
"Arthur! It's me, Harry, open the door!" he shouted, not out of breath at all. Harry heard scrambling behind the door. Arthur opened it quickly.
"Harry!" he exclaimed. "What's going on?"
"You've got to get to St. Mungo's as quick as you can." Arthur threw Harry a puzzled look. The guard had sunk to the floor, a bit purple in the face. "This came for Hermione, but Ron opened it. When he put his hand in, something happened and his hand started to bleed. Molly and Hermione rushed Ron to the hospital."
Despite the fact his son was injured, years of ministry experience took over. Arthur's demeanor changed, with business like efficiency, he went into action.
"Eric, it's all right. Get yourself back to your post when you have recovered. Harry, come with me. We should get this to the Department of Mysteries. Then we'll head to St. Mungo's." Harry remembered the first time he had followed Arthur to the lower floors of the Ministry. It was all eerily familiar. In no time, Arthur led Harry to the Department of Mysteries. Harry explained the situation to the witch who received them.
"Thank you, Mr. Potter," she said taking the box from Harry. She turned to Arthur. "We'll get this analyzed and the results to the hospital, quickly, Arthur. You best get there yourself, now."
"I'll be grateful if you could put some speed behind that, Suzelle," he said. "If you would let Kingsley know about this..."
"Of course, Arthur" she replied. "Go now. I do hope your son will be fine." With a nod, Arthur strode from the room.
"I'll let Percy know, we'll Apparate together, Harry. You go get Fred and George; we'll meet you there. Leave word at Gringot's for Bill. He'll get Ginny." They parted ways; Harry rushed to the Apparition point.
Fred and George closed shop quickly. They had Lee go to Bill. Together, the three of them Apparated to St. Mungo's where they met Bill. It seemed to take forever to get to the reception witch. She pointed them to the correct ward and Bill left to get Ginny. Percy was in the waiting room.
"Mum, Dad and Hermione are with Ron and the healers now," Percy told Harry, since Fred and George, upon seeing Percy had gone to sit in chairs. "They won't let anyone else in until they've finished working on Ron." Harry clapped Percy on the shoulder.
"Thanks, Percy," he said. "Do you know anything else?" Percy shook his head. "Then go sit down, we probably have a long wait." Percy had gone to sit in a chair away from the others. He sat with his head in his hands. Harry had taken the chair by the window. Something crinkled in his pocket as he sat down. He pulled it out. It was the wrapping from the package. He didn't remember picking it up. He unfolded it. Maybe there was a clue as to who sent it? There was nothing but the address. Miss Hermione Granger, 82 Marchbank Lane, London. Nothing else. Harry folded it and put it back in his pocket. The Granger's must have redirected the owl. Wait a minute. The package was meant for Hermione.
Whoever sent it didn't know she was at the Burrow. If she hadn't been there, and had opened it at her own home, how long would it have taken her to get here? She would have been much worse off than Ron. Harry shuddered. Who would want to hurt Hermione? Harry looked over at the brothers. They needed to be united now, more than ever. How could he get them to do that?
He didn't have to. Ginny and Bill had finally arrived. Harry watched as Ginny brought about the reconciliation with longing. The more he saw Ginny and the magic she worked on those around her, the more he admired her. There was so much more to her now. He wanted to take the time to discover it all; he had to get her to come back to the Burrow.
She broke away from her brothers. Harry stood and told her how wonderful he thought what she did was. She backed away from him. Why wouldn't she let him close to her? Before Harry could say anything else, George called him over to join them.
Five minutes later, the healer had appeared letting them know Ron would be fine and they could go see him in a few moments. The healer turned to Harry.
"That was quick thinking on your part, Mr. Potter," the healer said. "The freezing charm you used stopped the poison from entering Mr. Weasley's blood. The damage might have been much worse. He won't loose his hand, now." The healer shook Harry's hand and left. Harry glanced at the others. All four had brilliant smiles on their faces. He looked at Ginny. She was at the ward door. There was a soft smile of gratitude on her face. Harry's heart swelled. Arthur stuck his head out the door and told the family; Ron was ready to see them.
They had given Ron a pain-relieving potion, which had him a bit muddled. So after a while, and some good-natured teasing from the twins, Bill and Percy had bustled most of the family off to the teashop. Ron insisted Harry, Hermione and Ginny stay. They were wondering who could have done something like this, when Harry voiced his suspicion. It had set Ron off and Hermione had chased Ginny and Harry from the room.
Ginny looked stress out. She had started to sway, as if she would faint. Harry decided the best place now for them was the Burrow. But Ginny wouldn't go. This was getting ridiculous. She had to stop running away. Damn her Weasley pride. Harry was getting angry. The air around them began to crackle with suppressed magic. All right, she was coming whether she liked it or not. He picked her up and carried her to the fireplace. Setting her down, he warned her to hang on and they Flooed home.
Harry twisted as they fell out of the fireplace, so he wouldn't land on top of her. As soon as they landed, Ginny tried to escape. You're not going anywhere, he thought and he quickly turned and trapped her beneath him. That made her struggle all the more.
"If you don't stop," he growled, "we'll end up doing more than just talking." That stopped her. She stared up at Harry, her brown eyes wide. "That's better," he said. Well, maybe it isn't he thought. "If you promise not to bolt, I'll let you up, otherwise, I'm perfectly happy to stay just like this until your parents get back." Ginny nodded. Reluctantly, Harry got up. He extended his hand to Ginny; she took it and let Harry help her up. He led her to the settee. They sat in opposite corners.
"You really should stay, Ginny. You're needed here." She stared resolutely at her hands folded together in her lap.
"No I'm not."
"Yes, you are, Ginny. Your Mum and Hermione will need you. Your Dad and your brothers need you."
"No, they don't. The boys will all head back to their own homes. Mum has Dad. They've always been a source of comfort for each other. And I don't think Hermione will be home at all. She won't leave Ron. She's probably already bullied the matron to set up a camp bed next to Ron. I'm not needed here at all." Harry could see tears forming in her eyes.
"But, I need you, Ginny," Harry said quietly. He saw her shoulders stiffen. "I know you don't believe me, but it's true." Still she wouldn't answer him.
"Ginny, look at me." Slowly, so slowly Harry thought she never would, Ginny turned to face him.
"I don't know why, but somehow I've scared you. You have been walking on eggshells ever since I got here. And what I did the other night, well, I want to apologize for that. But, Ginny, I want to start over. I want to be your friend again. If you'll let me."
"How could you say that? After all the horrible things I said to you in the common room. You must hate me."
"Hate you? I could never hate you, Ginny." Harry moved closer to Ginny. "Look, we were all a bit out of sorts. Look at what we all went through last year. No, Ginny, I don't blame you for what happened. That was all my fault." He ran his hand through his hair in frustration.
"I should have gone to St. Mungo's. I couldn't leave. I needed to talk to you, alone. The opportunity never came up."
"You stayed because you wanted to talk to me?"
"Yeah." Harry reached out and took her hand. "I mean we were friends and all. I realized I didn't really know that much about you. I wanted...I want to get to know you, Ginny" Ginny's eyes widened. "I know you're warm and generous. You're wicked clever and you have a really quirky sense of humor. But I don't know what your favorite color is, or your favorite sweet, or a hundred other things I can name.
"I still want to get to know you, Ginny. You see, it's because I..." Harry weighed his next words carefully. He didn't want to scare her again. For once, he wasn't going to rush headlong into something. "It's because I care about you. Not Ron's little sister. I care about you, Ginny Weasley."
The air was thick about them. Harry couldn't take his eyes off her. He leaned in closer.
"Green," she said. The tension melted instantly.
"What?"
"My favorite color, it's Forest Green. And I adore treacle tarts." Harry sat back laughing.
"So do I, Ginny. So do I."
By deemarie
Chapter 14
Harry sat staring out the waiting room window. How much longer would those healers take? If anything really bad happened to Ron, Harry couldn't bear to think about it. Harry had Apparated at the ministry and bolted straight to Arthur's office, taking the stairs, clutching the package. Close on his heels was the guard, Eric, whom Harry had dashed past shouting "It's an emergency."
"Oi!" Eric said as he came to an abrupt stop outside Arthur's office. Eric bent double trying to catch his breath. "What's...the...emergency?" Harry knocked on the office door frantically.
"Arthur! It's me, Harry, open the door!" he shouted, not out of breath at all. Harry heard scrambling behind the door. Arthur opened it quickly.
"Harry!" he exclaimed. "What's going on?"
"You've got to get to St. Mungo's as quick as you can." Arthur threw Harry a puzzled look. The guard had sunk to the floor, a bit purple in the face. "This came for Hermione, but Ron opened it. When he put his hand in, something happened and his hand started to bleed. Molly and Hermione rushed Ron to the hospital."
Despite the fact his son was injured, years of ministry experience took over. Arthur's demeanor changed, with business like efficiency, he went into action.
"Eric, it's all right. Get yourself back to your post when you have recovered. Harry, come with me. We should get this to the Department of Mysteries. Then we'll head to St. Mungo's." Harry remembered the first time he had followed Arthur to the lower floors of the Ministry. It was all eerily familiar. In no time, Arthur led Harry to the Department of Mysteries. Harry explained the situation to the witch who received them.
"Thank you, Mr. Potter," she said taking the box from Harry. She turned to Arthur. "We'll get this analyzed and the results to the hospital, quickly, Arthur. You best get there yourself, now."
"I'll be grateful if you could put some speed behind that, Suzelle," he said. "If you would let Kingsley know about this..."
"Of course, Arthur" she replied. "Go now. I do hope your son will be fine." With a nod, Arthur strode from the room.
"I'll let Percy know, we'll Apparate together, Harry. You go get Fred and George; we'll meet you there. Leave word at Gringot's for Bill. He'll get Ginny." They parted ways; Harry rushed to the Apparition point.
Fred and George closed shop quickly. They had Lee go to Bill. Together, the three of them Apparated to St. Mungo's where they met Bill. It seemed to take forever to get to the reception witch. She pointed them to the correct ward and Bill left to get Ginny. Percy was in the waiting room.
"Mum, Dad and Hermione are with Ron and the healers now," Percy told Harry, since Fred and George, upon seeing Percy had gone to sit in chairs. "They won't let anyone else in until they've finished working on Ron." Harry clapped Percy on the shoulder.
"Thanks, Percy," he said. "Do you know anything else?" Percy shook his head. "Then go sit down, we probably have a long wait." Percy had gone to sit in a chair away from the others. He sat with his head in his hands. Harry had taken the chair by the window. Something crinkled in his pocket as he sat down. He pulled it out. It was the wrapping from the package. He didn't remember picking it up. He unfolded it. Maybe there was a clue as to who sent it? There was nothing but the address. Miss Hermione Granger, 82 Marchbank Lane, London. Nothing else. Harry folded it and put it back in his pocket. The Granger's must have redirected the owl. Wait a minute. The package was meant for Hermione.
Whoever sent it didn't know she was at the Burrow. If she hadn't been there, and had opened it at her own home, how long would it have taken her to get here? She would have been much worse off than Ron. Harry shuddered. Who would want to hurt Hermione? Harry looked over at the brothers. They needed to be united now, more than ever. How could he get them to do that?
He didn't have to. Ginny and Bill had finally arrived. Harry watched as Ginny brought about the reconciliation with longing. The more he saw Ginny and the magic she worked on those around her, the more he admired her. There was so much more to her now. He wanted to take the time to discover it all; he had to get her to come back to the Burrow.
She broke away from her brothers. Harry stood and told her how wonderful he thought what she did was. She backed away from him. Why wouldn't she let him close to her? Before Harry could say anything else, George called him over to join them.
Five minutes later, the healer had appeared letting them know Ron would be fine and they could go see him in a few moments. The healer turned to Harry.
"That was quick thinking on your part, Mr. Potter," the healer said. "The freezing charm you used stopped the poison from entering Mr. Weasley's blood. The damage might have been much worse. He won't loose his hand, now." The healer shook Harry's hand and left. Harry glanced at the others. All four had brilliant smiles on their faces. He looked at Ginny. She was at the ward door. There was a soft smile of gratitude on her face. Harry's heart swelled. Arthur stuck his head out the door and told the family; Ron was ready to see them.
They had given Ron a pain-relieving potion, which had him a bit muddled. So after a while, and some good-natured teasing from the twins, Bill and Percy had bustled most of the family off to the teashop. Ron insisted Harry, Hermione and Ginny stay. They were wondering who could have done something like this, when Harry voiced his suspicion. It had set Ron off and Hermione had chased Ginny and Harry from the room.
Ginny looked stress out. She had started to sway, as if she would faint. Harry decided the best place now for them was the Burrow. But Ginny wouldn't go. This was getting ridiculous. She had to stop running away. Damn her Weasley pride. Harry was getting angry. The air around them began to crackle with suppressed magic. All right, she was coming whether she liked it or not. He picked her up and carried her to the fireplace. Setting her down, he warned her to hang on and they Flooed home.
Harry twisted as they fell out of the fireplace, so he wouldn't land on top of her. As soon as they landed, Ginny tried to escape. You're not going anywhere, he thought and he quickly turned and trapped her beneath him. That made her struggle all the more.
"If you don't stop," he growled, "we'll end up doing more than just talking." That stopped her. She stared up at Harry, her brown eyes wide. "That's better," he said. Well, maybe it isn't he thought. "If you promise not to bolt, I'll let you up, otherwise, I'm perfectly happy to stay just like this until your parents get back." Ginny nodded. Reluctantly, Harry got up. He extended his hand to Ginny; she took it and let Harry help her up. He led her to the settee. They sat in opposite corners.
"You really should stay, Ginny. You're needed here." She stared resolutely at her hands folded together in her lap.
"No I'm not."
"Yes, you are, Ginny. Your Mum and Hermione will need you. Your Dad and your brothers need you."
"No, they don't. The boys will all head back to their own homes. Mum has Dad. They've always been a source of comfort for each other. And I don't think Hermione will be home at all. She won't leave Ron. She's probably already bullied the matron to set up a camp bed next to Ron. I'm not needed here at all." Harry could see tears forming in her eyes.
"But, I need you, Ginny," Harry said quietly. He saw her shoulders stiffen. "I know you don't believe me, but it's true." Still she wouldn't answer him.
"Ginny, look at me." Slowly, so slowly Harry thought she never would, Ginny turned to face him.
"I don't know why, but somehow I've scared you. You have been walking on eggshells ever since I got here. And what I did the other night, well, I want to apologize for that. But, Ginny, I want to start over. I want to be your friend again. If you'll let me."
"How could you say that? After all the horrible things I said to you in the common room. You must hate me."
"Hate you? I could never hate you, Ginny." Harry moved closer to Ginny. "Look, we were all a bit out of sorts. Look at what we all went through last year. No, Ginny, I don't blame you for what happened. That was all my fault." He ran his hand through his hair in frustration.
"I should have gone to St. Mungo's. I couldn't leave. I needed to talk to you, alone. The opportunity never came up."
"You stayed because you wanted to talk to me?"
"Yeah." Harry reached out and took her hand. "I mean we were friends and all. I realized I didn't really know that much about you. I wanted...I want to get to know you, Ginny" Ginny's eyes widened. "I know you're warm and generous. You're wicked clever and you have a really quirky sense of humor. But I don't know what your favorite color is, or your favorite sweet, or a hundred other things I can name.
"I still want to get to know you, Ginny. You see, it's because I..." Harry weighed his next words carefully. He didn't want to scare her again. For once, he wasn't going to rush headlong into something. "It's because I care about you. Not Ron's little sister. I care about you, Ginny Weasley."
The air was thick about them. Harry couldn't take his eyes off her. He leaned in closer.
"Green," she said. The tension melted instantly.
"What?"
"My favorite color, it's Forest Green. And I adore treacle tarts." Harry sat back laughing.
"So do I, Ginny. So do I."