"Kalopsia"
"Chapter Three"
After leaving St. Mungo's, Ginny swung by home. Teddy and James were bunking together in the older boy's room, which wasn't surprising in the slightest. They often slept in the same bed. Ginny stood in the doorway, her side pressed against the doorjamb, as she watched her sleeping sons. They looked peaceful and content, a stark contrast to the tears earlier in the evening.
Ginny felt a pang of guilt for causing Teddy to worry when she broke down at the news Harry had disappeared without a trace. She blamed her raging hormones after giving birth to Albus on her breakdown. Normally, she would have stayed composed around the children so they wouldn't worry. She had always been better at keeping her emotions in check when something happened to Harry at work.
Shutting the door quietly, Ginny made her way to her bedroom. Luna slept in a reclining chair, her blonde hair covering her face. Albus kicked in his cot as he made gurgling noises. Ginny leaned over the cot and smiled down at the infant. He instantly reached up to her, his limbs jerking. Lifting him out of his cot, she settled onto her bed on Harry's side.
Leaning back against his pillows that still faintly smelled like him, she unfastened her shirt to feed Albus. His green eyes shone up at her, and Ginny felt tears spring to her eyes. She sniffed, pushing them back to the best of her ability. With her free hand, she brushed a fine lock of black hair off his forehead and gave him a watery smile.
"His eyes were as green as fresh pickled toads," she whispered. "His hair is as dark as a blackboard."
Albus blinked up at her in response as he continued to eat. He looked so much like Harry that it was painful. She could remember the day he was born, how George took one look at him and said, "How unfortunate he looks exactly like you, mate!" Harry had laughed and punched him in the arm. Ron had lamented it was a shame that none of the Potter boys had the trademark Weasley hair. Molly had cried saying how handsome he was, just like his daddy, which made Harry blush but look pleased.
"I'm sorry, Ginny, was he awake?"
Ginny glanced up to see Luna sleepily sitting up in the chair. She rubbed her eyes. Ginny shook her head, a soft smile on her lips.
"It's fine. I think I woke him up coming in." Ginny glanced back down at her son. "You could have slept in the bed."
"I've slept worse places," Luna said a little too cheerfully as she sank down on the mattress next to Ginny. "He was an angel all night. Teddy and James have been sleeping through the night. No issues. I put a Monitoring Charm on their room so I'd hear if they got up."
"I don't know how to thank you, Luna."
"Just saying thank you is enough, I think." Luna sighed as she leaned against the pillows, her hands folded on top of her stomach. "How was Ron?"
"Unconscious. He had a Muggle needle mark in his neck. Apparently, he was injected with something that might be Muggle. I don't know."
"That's very peculiar." Luna's brows furrowed.
"Hermione seemed baffled by it. Apparently, Ron was asking her questions about potions being injected directly into a person's bloodstream." Ginny sighed as she ran her fingers through Albus' baby soft hair. "I'm going to go to the Auror office and look through Harry's things to see if I can find out any information about the case they were on if you don't mind saying with the boys again. I thought if I got there around four in the morning, it would be after everyone went home for the night but before anyone would come into the office for the day. I don't want to be caught by Robards."
"You're looking for an adventure."
Ginny frowned. "I'm looking for my husband."
"Well, if you find anything about potions and need me to look at it, I'd be more than willing to."
Ginny glanced over at Luna to see her eyes were closed. She looked like an angel lying on the bed. Her blonde hair fanned around her head. Her face serene. Her legs crossed at the ankles.
With a soft chuckle, Ginny nodded even though Luna couldn't see her. Luna had always been top of their class at Potions. She had a knack for it and would have made an impressive Potioneer. Even Snape had a hard time finding anything negative to say about her potions, despite how many times he had tried. Luna had refused to enter a career revolving around potions. She was far more interested in magical creatures.
"Thanks, Luna."
Luna snored in response. Ginny finished feeding Albus before she laid him down in his cot. He kicked happily as Ginny flicked her wand to project little Snitches onto the ceiling. She settled down next to her best friend in bed, her face burying itself into Harry's pillow. Tapping her wand on the top of her head, she cast a spell to wake her up at a quarter to four before she drifted off to sleep for a few hours.
Her entire body tingled a few hours later. She quietly slid out of bed and checked on Albus, who continued to sleep, before slipping out of the bedroom and out of the house.
When she arrived at the Ministry of Magic, the building was mostly dark. Only half the lanterns were lit in the corridors, casting enough light to see where she was going. The Auror Department was lit completely, which gave Ginny some pause. She took a step in, looking around for any sign of life but saw none. Creeping along the wall, she made her way to Harry's office.
She successfully made it without being spotted. Her hand wrapped around the doorknob to find it locked. She frowned and pulled out her wand and whispered, "Alohomora." Nothing happened. Ginny swallowed a growl in the back of her throat as she thought about what kind of unlocking pattern Harry would choose. She drew her wand down in a straight line before tapping three times, the same combination that they used on their home. Nothing.
"Merlin, Harry, you're paranoid," Ginny whispered as her lips pursed to the side.
She tried several combinations. The lock to the broom shed (two H's that were vertical for the Holyhead Harpies), the lock to his desk drawers in his home office (an M and then three jabs for the true three Marauders). Nothing. Ginny chewed on her bottom lip, her eyes narrowed at the doorknob. Leaning against the door, she lazily drew her wand in patterns on the door as she thought. She traced a GMP, her own initials, and the door finally clicked. Ginny grinned as she slipped inside. Harry was such a sap.
Ginny grimaced at the sight of Harry's office. Pieces of parchment were everywhere. There was a large stack of Defense books in the corner of his office with a stack of folders next to it. It would take forever to figure out what exactly was relevant and what wasn't.
Taking a seat behind his desk, she rifled through the papers that littered the top. She squinted at Harry's small, messy scrawl. It was nearly unreadable as he had scribbles through words, drew arrows to the margins with more notes, and even drew some small picture diagrams. It was obviously a rough draft to a report he had been writing.
Victims ranged from ages fifteen to forty-five. A mixture of male and female victims. No known link or connection amongst the victims. The next sentence was scribbled out with an arrow pointing to the margin. Fifteen-year-old victim was a runaway living with an uncle. Never reported missing – uncle obviously an arsehole. Found unconscious in a ditch near Theddingworth. The margin note ended, so Ginny went back to the report where she left off. Multiple puncture wounds found on the left side of the neck like all the other victims (most likely from a Muggle needle). Toxicology showed unknown substances. Then there was a long list of things that were identifiable in her system. Ginny frowned as she had always been rubbish at Potions. She recognized most of the names but could not remember what their uses were.
Ginny pointed her wand at the parchment and made duplicates. She folded her copies and tucked them into her jacket pocket before putting the folder back the way it was. She started opening the drawers to his desk, looking for anything else that may be useful. She paused when she opened the top right drawer. Her heart hammered in her chest as she reached in and pulled out a small bit of parchment that had her childish writing on it.
His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,
His hair is as dark as a blackboard.
I wish he was mine, he's really divine,
The hero who conquered the Dark Lord.
Ginny let out a small chuckle. It was the written copy of the Valentine she had given the dwarf to recite to Harry. She didn't even know how or when he would have obtained a copy of it. He was barmy to even keep the damn thing as he had been so embarrassed during the incident. Her eyes trailed back to the drawer to see the singing get-well card she sent him when he was in third year. There was the congratulations card she sent him when he passed his Auror certification. Another get-well card from when he wound up in St. Mungo's the first time after an Auror mission. The poem she wrote for him on their wedding night. A stack of letters she wrote to him while she was away at Harpies training camp. He had kept them all tucked away in a drawer at work.
"Oh, Harry," she murmured as she picked up a card and opened it.
"Congratulations on being the boyfriend of the newest Holyhead Harpies Chaser! I hope you'll be able to handle all the press and fancy events we'll be invited to. Hope you don't mind becoming an overnight celebrity. Love, Gin," the card read and Ginny chuckled softly as she wiped a finger under her eye.
Ginny neatly put back all the cards and letters. After doing a quick sweep of the office to make sure there was nothing else she was missing, she slipped out of his office and locked the door behind her.
"Breaking and entering, Weasley?" a familiar voice rang cheerfully, causing Ginny to whip around. "Or would you rather I call you Potter?"
Demelza sat at a desk in the bullpen not far from Harry's office. She had propped her feet up onto the desk, her eyes flickering lazily between Ginny and the emery board she held in one hand. One of her eyebrows rose elegantly in the air as she idly filed one of her nails.
"Although, being the sister of Fred and George, it really shouldn't surprise me."
"Demelza." Ginny wrapped her arms around her middle and closed the space between them. "I was just-"
"Oh, trust me, I know what you were doing, Ginny. Save me whatever lie you were going to tell."
Ginny frowned. "Robards won't tell me anything."
"Well, yeah, Robards is really big on the rules." Demelza smirked as she swung her legs off the desk. "Good thing I'm not. What do you want to know?"
"I just…" Ginny sighed and closed her eyes. "I just want to know where Harry is."
"Well, that I can't help you with. I can tell you that this has been a case that's been a thorn in the office's side for a few months now." Demelza drummed her nails on the desk. "Robards assigned it to Ellis and Addington first. They couldn't crack it for the life of them. Robards was getting impatient with them since the body count kept rising. Did you know that Harry and Ron have the best solve rate of any team in the entire office?"
"No, I didn't," Ginny replied, her brow furrowing. "Harry doesn't talk about work unless something is bothering him. Even then, it's like scrubbing a cauldron. He's so… stubborn."
"Their solve rate is through the roof. Rumor has it they're up for the next departmental heads. Anyway, about a week and a half ago, Harry and Ron get assigned to the case. Bodies show up, Muggle needle marks on their necks, weird substances cropping up in the toxicology report, some very worrisome identifiable components."
"What was in their system?" Ginny leaned against the desk Demelza was sitting at.
"Hallucinogenic agents. All the victims were under some pretty serious mind-altering potions at the time of their deaths. At first, we thought they were just overdosing on some hot new potion on the black market. Except nobody could identify half of the ingredients. It was Harry and Sutton's idea to bring in a Muggle expert on drugs on the case. They suspected that this potion dealer was combining both illegal potions with Muggle drugs to make one crazy, wicked trip."
Ginny's brow furrowed. "That explains the Muggle needles?"
"Needles in a way that Muggles can inject drugs into their system." Demelza moved her neck, causing it to crack loudly in the quiet office. "Sutton's been giving everyone a very detailed education on Muggle drugs the past few days. It's all hands-on deck since Harry and Ron determined that this new potion was killing its victims and they weren't just overdosing."
"They think it was murder?" Ginny questioned as Demelza nodded. "Why?"
"Rope burns on the victim's wrists. The fact that they were starved and severely dehydrated. Harry suspected they were probably already addicted to some form of drug or potion. This potion dealer promised them the holy grail of trips and forced them to stay against their will to experiment on them. Apparently, if you look closely, the toxicology report differs slightly from victim to victim, like the potion dealer was attempting to find the perfect mixture of ingredients. Harry suspects they were experimenting on these people until they died from the experiments. Harry's breakthrough put this potion dealer on the top of the most wanted list."
"The fifteen-year-old victim. She was the only one to survive?"
"I don't know anything about that. I just know the general gist of the case. I'm sorry, Ginny, I don't know any more than what I told you." Demelza sighed. "You should probably leave. Robards called a five o'clock meeting for an update on the wizard hunt for Harry. Aurors were out all night combing the field where Ron was found for clues. Another team has been pouring over Harry and Ron's notes from the case."
"Will you keep me updated? I know Robards won't tell me anything."
"Of course. Now get out of here before I get fired for telling you too much."
Ginny smiled gratefully before making her way to the exit. She slid her hand into her jacket pocket to make sure that duplicates of Harry's report were still there. She couldn't help the anxiety that had settled in the pit of her stomach. Part of her wondered if Harry was the newest victim of this wizard's potion experiments, and he'd be found dead in a ditch with needle marks on his neck. She shuddered at the thought, pushing away the negativity. They would find Harry. He'd be home before she knew it. Harry wasn't that easy to kill.
Harry groaned. His arms were stretched high above his head, his shoulder blades and biceps aching. He tried to pull them down, but rope cut into his wrists. He tried to open his eyes, but they were stubbornly glued shut with sticky sleep crusted into the corner of his eyes. A soft moan escaped his lips as he weakly tugged his arms down, but he only felt a trickle of blood seep down his forearm.
Forcing his eyes open, everything was blurry as he realized he didn't have his glasses. All he could make out were his shoes on what appeared to be a stained hardwood floor. He shivered as a burst of cold air hit his bare chest. Glancing to his left, he noticed a girl in a similar situation to the one he was in.
It was the girl from the pavement, or at least he suspected because of the dirty dress she wore. She stood beside him with her arms stretched high above her head. Her body sagged against the bonds as she was clearly asleep. Her lips moved and a soft mumbling escaped, but Harry couldn't understand what she was saying. He squinted, trying to get a better look at her face, but her features blended together into one giant blob.
Harry blinked, trying to clear the fog from his mind. He felt disjoined and unsure of where he was or what was happening. He tried to focus on something to ground him, to help him ease the panic that had settled in his chest. Long, red hair shimmering in the sunset flickered in front of his eyes.
Ginny.
A lump formed in his throat as memories crashed into him. Her infectious laugh, her cheeks blushing like the setting sun, her gravestone. Harry's breathing increased as he tugged hard at the binds around his wrists.
Then something grabbed a hold of his hair. Fingers wrapped around his unruly strands and jerked his head back. Harry could do nothing but stare at the grossly stained ceiling above. Rancid breath tickled his cheek as something pointy danced along the vein in his neck.
"Let's try this new version, eh?" A male voice sent shivers down his spine as pain erupted on his neck.
Icy cold liquid rushed through his veins. Black dots formed in front of his eyes, sleep pulling him under into a dark pit. His legs felt like jelly as he tried to keep his balance. A strange cackling, a speck of sunlight, and then darkness.
Harry shot up in bed in a cold sweat. His heart raced, threatening to break from his chest. He reached for his glasses on the bedside table and the vaguely familiar room came into focus. He was not at Potter House with Ginny. He was in the bedroom Sirius had given him the night before. His eyes roamed around the room, taking in all the details as he tried to calm himself.
Had that been a dream, or had that been reality? Was he strung up in some dark, dreary place and this was his nightmare? Or was this his new reality and his dream had just been a nightmare?
Throwing the covers off him, he scrambled out of the bed. His bare feet hit the cool hardwood floor, and he sucked in a deep breath. There was a faint pounding noise in the distance, but he ignored it. He instead focused on his breathing before he hauled himself out of bed and made his way to the stairs.
A familiar voice made him pause on the staircase. He frowned.
"I know he's here!" Cho's shrill voice rang throughout the cottage. "He can't even come home at night now? He can't let me know where he's going to be?"
"Cho…" Sirius heaved a heavy sigh.
"Don't! You two are always together! You're codependent!"
"Oh, so it's a crime to be close to your family? I didn't know having a good relationship with my godson was so terrible for you," Sirius said dryly.
"Where is he? I want to see him! He can't just sneak off into the night!"
"He had a rough day yesterday. Let him sleep."
"No! I want to talk to him right now! He didn't even bother to show up for work! I stopped by the pitch to see him!"
"Of course, you did. Why doesn't that surprise me?"
"I'm his fiancé!"
"How could I ever forget?" Sirius laughed bitterly. "You don't let anyone forget you're engaged to him! You're always doing your little interviews in all the papers and magazines. Going on all the wireless shows. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were an attention seeking, narcissistic, manipulative, crazy-"
Harry stepped off the stairs and into the entryway. "Sirius, don't."
Cho smirked triumphantly while Sirius whipped around. Their eyes locked as Harry took a few steps closer. Sirius eyed him wearily, like he was almost nervous he had overstepped. Cho continued to look smug, her hand reaching out for him.
"You can't talk to me that way, Sirius." Cho sneered. "Harry won't stand for it! I don't know what your problem is with me, but it ends today. There's no way I'm going to allow you to attend our wedding with your negativity and misplaced hatred of me. It's abhorrent!"
Harry stood next to Sirius, his hands stuffed in his pajama bottom pockets. Cho snapped her attention to Harry, her hand still dangling in midair. She snapped her fingers and waved her hand a bit, urging him to grab it.
"You're right, Cho, Sirius won't attend our wedding," Harry whispered and saw the hurt immediately cross over his godfather's face out of the corner of his eye, "because there will be no wedding. I can't believe I ever liked you. I remember you being a lot nicer."
Cho's jaw dropped, her hand frozen between them. Sirius let out a bark-like laugh and clapped Harry on the back of his neck. Harry couldn't help his heart aching painfully for Ginny.
"Please leave," Harry added.
"What?" Cho screeched. "You cannot be serious!"
"No, that would be me." Sirius grinned as Harry snorted.
"Harry! Baby, you don't mean what you're saying. I know you had a hard day yesterday and our little fight was just… we just need to talk. Let's go to brunch and we'll talk. You're just upset and not thinking straight."
Cho reached out and ran a hand down his arm, her fingers wrapping around his wrist. He tugged his arm out from her grasp and took a step back. She scowled at him but quickly tried to school her features.
"I am thinking straight. We're just not… compatible. We're not meant for each other. We don't make each other happy."
Harry couldn't help but think of Ginny. She was his soul mate. They were meant for each other. They completed each other, understood each other, loved each other. If Harry was stuck in this alternate reality, he'd rather spend his life alone than with Cho. No woman could hold a candle to Ginny. He just wanted to go home to her. It was the only thing he could think about.
"Is there someone else? Is it that new bitch on your team?"
"What? No!" Harry exclaimed.
"It is! I knew it! I told you she was going to try to steal you away from me. You called me paranoid! Jealous! Look at you! You're breaking off your engagement for her? She's not even that pretty." Cho looked crazed, her eyes wide and lips drawn into a thin line. "What does she have that I don't?"
Harry glanced over at Sirius helplessly and saw his godfather was doing everything in his power not to bust out laughing. Harry glowered at him before turning back to Cho. Ginny had never been so jealous or hysterical in all the years they had been together. She used to laugh and poke fun at all the little articles in the papers and gossip magazines about him and other witches.
"Oh, should I be scared, Potter?" she whispered and pressed her lips against the sensitive spot below his ear. "Do I have to fight a bitch to stake my claim in you?"
Harry's heart ached for Ginny, for her sense of humor and the effortless way she had him in stitches. Life without Ginny wasn't even living.
"Look, it's not you. It's me."
Cho laughed bitterly. "Oh, no, you don't. You are not going to use that line on me! Honestly, Harry, I already picked out my wedding dress! We booked the venue! We hired all the help! We were going to have the wedding of the century! We planned that honeymoon in the Bahamas! We were going to buy that big house by Apricity Lane! It was going to be just the two of us, spending the rest of our lives together. No kids. No pets. Just you and me living our best life! You can't tell me you still don't want that!"
Harry grimaced. The thought of living in a big house without his boys running, playing, and yelling sounded awful. A house wasn't a home without Teddy's infectious laughter, James' high-pitched giggling, and Albus' cooing gurgles. His heart ached for his sons, to hold them in his arms and watch them wreaking havoc. He craved to be chasing his boys around the house with Ginny scolding them playfully to be careful. He wanted his boys to tackle him one last time, for Ginny to give their boo-boos magic kisses after she cast a healing charm. What if he never made it back to them? What if Albus never even had any memories of him, just like he didn't with his own parents?
"Are you even listening to me?" Cho demanded.
He shook the thoughts from his head and focused on the hysterical woman in front of him. "Yeah, I am. I'm sorry, Cho, but it's over. We're done."
Cho's chest heaved as she ripped the overly large and gaudy engagement ring off her finger. She flung it at him so hard it smacked him in his glasses, causing him to jump in surprise.
"I'll ruin you for this! That bitch from your team won't want you when she hears about what an arse you are!"
Sirius stepped forward, a growl emitting from deep in his throat, and grabbed her arm so tightly that her eyes widened in surprise. "You will do no such thing. You're not the only person who knows people, Cho, and if you say anything other than this being a mutual decision, anything to ruin my godson's life, I will personally make yours a living hell. Are we clear?"
Cho yanked her arm away. "Screw you, Sirius. Screw the both of you!"
She turned and stormed out of the cottage. Sirius turned to face Harry. A wide grin spread across his lips as he pulled Harry into a bone-crushing hug.
"I am so proud of you I could snog you senseless right now."
"Please don't," Harry pleaded as he pulled out of the embrace. "I have to go meet Luna."
"Luna? Is she…?"
"Just a friend." Harry smiled tightly. "I'm going to go see the Weasleys with her."
Sirius crossed his arms over his chest, concern laced across his features. "You won't find Ginny Weasley alive, Harry. I know it was… traumatizing for you and Ron. I know you tried to save her, that you figured out the entrance was in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. There was nothing you could have done to get down there to save her. It took a Parselmouth to open the entrance."
"In my other life, I was a Parselmouth. I opened the Chamber of Secrets, I slayed the Basilisk, I saved her," Harry whispered.
Sirius opened his mouth as though to say something but only snapped his mouth shut. Instead, he nodded and gave Harry's shoulder a squeeze. After a quick and awkward goodbye, Sirius left the cottage to meet with Lily and James at St. Mungo's for an appointment. Harry ran upstairs to change quickly before he too left. He let the brisk morning air hit his face for a few moments before disappearing with a faint crack.
He reappeared in Ottery St. Catchpole. He could see the Lovegood house. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he took a deep breath and made his way towards the house. He was just about to turn into the drive when a flicker of red caught his attention out of his peripheral vision. His head snapped and all the air escaped his lungs in one quick kick.
Ginny stood in the distance, her shimmering hair flowing in the wind. Her hair sparkled in the sunlight. He could make out all the golds, coppers, reds, and oranges in her bright strands. A lump formed in his throat as she stared at him, face pale and freckles standing out prominently on her face. She smiled at him, and Harry felt faint. She wore a long white dress, untouched and pristine looking.
"Gin?" Harry whispered as his legs jerked forward towards her. "Ginny?"
"Harry!"
He whipped around to see Luna exiting her house, a slight bounce to her step. Harry glanced back to where Ginny had been, but she was gone. His heart sank, his chest constricting painfully. He searched frantically around for her, but she was nowhere to be seen.
"Are you ready to go to the Weasleys?" Luna touched his wrist.
Harry could only nod numbly. Had Ginny really been there? Or had she just been another ghost? Luna wrapped her fingers around his wrist and gently tugged him to follow her, a warm smile spread across her lips. Harry couldn't help but glance one last time at where he had thought he saw Ginny before following his friend towards the Burrow.
Luna rapped her knuckles on the front door as she rocked on her heels. Harry shoved his hands into his jacket pocket, feeling very awkward to be standing outside the Burrow and not just entering like he normally did. There was no knocking, no waiting, no awkwardness. Harry and Ginny had always made themselves at home, because it was what Molly Weasley had always insisted on.
When the door opened, the tension in Harry's shoulders evaporated at the sight of Molly. He couldn't help but smile. She looked exactly how he remembered her looking. Red hair with streaks of white. An apron was tied around her waist and she was drying her hands on a tea towel. Harry had the urge to throw his arms around her neck and never let her go. Like a man possessed, that's exactly what he did. He held Molly close to his chest, tears springing to his eyes.
"Oh my! Who do we have here?" Molly pulled back from the embrace and stared at Harry. "Oh, Mr. Potter, I didn't recognize you at first. I didn't know you were friends with Luna."
Harry's smile fell. He couldn't recall a time that Molly Weasley had ever called him Mr. Potter. He had always been Harry or dear. It took him a few moments to realize that he probably never met this Molly. He had parents and a godfather to show him how to get on the platform his first year, and he didn't need to be rescued the summer before his second year in this reality. There was no need to make the Weasleys his surrogate family.
"Hello, Mrs. Weasley," Harry greeted, feeling like he was a teenager again. "I was looking for Ron."
"Ron?" Molly furrowed her brows.
"Yes, your son!" Luna piped up cheerfully.
Molly glanced at Luna. "Well, yes, Ron is my son. I just… I'm surprised. You boys haven't seen each other since… since you were twelve."
"I've been thinking about him a lot lately," Harry replied, which wasn't entirely a lie. "I'd like to talk to him if you could tell me where he's living."
"Well, Ron's been living here since… my husband's been ill recently. Ron's been helping around the house."
"Arthur's sick?" Harry frowned.
Molly eyed him, slightly taken aback. "Yes."
"Mum! I have got to leave before I'm late for work. Is there anything you need before I…" Ron appeared in the doorway and trailed off upon seeing Harry and Luna.
Harry forced a smile on his face. His best mate looked the same as well – tall and gangly with an array of freckles scattered over every inch of his body.
"Hi." Harry waved awkwardly.
"Hey."
"Fancy a chat?"
"I, uh, I have to get into the office. We can chat if you don't mind walking to the Apparition Point with me."
"Brilliant! Yeah, let's walk!"
Luna beamed. "My work here is done! Goodbye Harry, Ron, Mrs. Weasley!"
Harry glanced down at Luna and thanked her. She only stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek before skipping away, humming an unfamiliar tune. Harry turned back to Ron and smiled sheepishly at him.
"Are you dating Luna Lovegood?" Ron inquired.
"No, no, we're just friends." Harry shook his head.
Ron nodded slowly before turning to Molly. He bent down to kiss her on the cheek and told her to fire call him if she needed help with Arthur. Harry's insides twisted, curiosity getting the best of him. He didn't dare ask. This was a Ron who didn't know him let alone consider him family. Ron shoved his hands into his robe pockets and the two of them walked down the dirt lane in perfect step with one another.
"So, I see you play for Puddlemere United now. I heard you're up to make the national team as star Chaser," Ron commented, his voice strained and his features wincing.
"Apparently. Look, Ron, I know you don't know me that well, but I know you really well." Harry turned to face Ron. "You're going to think I'm mental, but I think I traveled to another dimension. Everything here is wrong and we're wrong and… you're my best mate. We do everything together. We went to school together, we spend our holidays together, we played Quidditch together, we fought in the war together, we even work together now. You're more like a brother to me than just a best mate. I don't know what I'm supposed to do without you!"
"Err… right, I do think you're mental. Harry, I haven't seen you since our second year at Hogwarts."
"Ask me a question about you that only you would know! Go on, I bet I could get it right!" Harry encouraged. "You're deathly afraid of spiders, because Fred and George turned your teddy bear into a giant spider when you were little. You think the freckles on your left arse cheek look like Merlin and you're more than willing to pull down your pants to show everyone when you're pissed. You used to play hide and seek with your brothers and Ginny as a kid and Ginny always used to hide in the ceiling tiles in cupboards because Bill would hoist her up there. You like the Chudley Canons so much, because your favorite color was orange as a kid and now you have some misguided loyalty to them that nobody understands because they can't win a season to save their lives. You secretly like Celestina Warbeck even though you'd never admit it because Fred and George would never let you live it down, but it reminds you of home and you can't imagine not listening to her at Christmastime."
Ron paused in his stride and turned towards Harry. His brows furrowed low on his face. His face grew pale the longer Harry talked, his freckles shining brighter than ever on his face. Harry did a silent whoop, a grin flitting across his face.
"We have been best mates since we were eleven years old. I know you better than anyone. Ginny and Hermione like to say we're codependent with one another. Which, I think is sort of an exaggeration, but I guess we do see each other almost every single day. You're godfather to my son, and I'm godfather to your daughter. If I'm not at work or at home, I'm with you."
Ron stared at Harry like he had grown another head. "You're right. I do think you're mental. I don't have a daughter."
"Ron…"
"I do have a nice arse though. Kind of unsettling that you know the freckle pattern on my arse cheek, though. I'm pretty sure I've only ever shown Fred and George while pissed."
"Do you believe me, then?" Harry shifted anxiously, his eyes glued on his friend.
"I don't bloody well know. It sounds completely mental. I mean… who am I even married to if I have a daughter?"
Harry grinned. "Hermione Granger."
"Hermione? Hermione? Are you serious right now? She was a nightmare half the time!"
"She grew out of being such a nightmare." Harry shrugged. "We were best mates all throughout Hogwarts and even now. The four of us are always together. We take holidays together and have dinner every Friday night at the Burrow. We spend a lot of time together."
"You mean Hermione and me and you and…"
Harry swallowed a lump in his throat, taking a deep breath to brace himself for Ron's reaction. "And Ginny. I'm married to Ginny."
"You're a fucking ponce, Potter! You know that, right? Fuck! I have it in my right mind to punch you in the ruddy jaw." Ron turned beat red, his entire body shaking with fury. "You think this is funny, do you? Merlin, I heard you became a self-absorbed pillock after joining Puddlemere, but I never would have guessed those rumors were true. You always seemed so nice when we were kids."
Ron stormed off, huffing and cursing under his breath. Harry darted after him, determined to make Ron see he wasn't lying. He grabbed Ron by the shoulder and the tip of Ron's wand appeared in front of his face.
"I will fucking hex you."
"Look, Ron, just listen to me! Where I'm from, I was the Boy Who Lived, alright, not Neville! My parents died when I was just fifteen months old. I had the scar on my forehead and I could speak Parseltongue. It's how we saved Ginny. I could open the Chamber of Secrets. We rescued her and you stayed at Hogwarts. Eventually, Ginny and I started dating, and I remember being so bloody scared you'd be upset with me. In the end, you loved that Ginny and I were together. We got married, and you were the best man. And... and…"
Harry's chest heaved. He needed Ron to believe him. He needed Ron to help him get back to his own life. It had always been Harry and Ron. Harry didn't know how to solve a mystery without his best mate. He didn't know how to function without Ron lending an ear. For the first time since he was eleven years old, he truly understood just how much his friendship with Ron meant to him. He couldn't lose Ron just as much as he couldn't lose Ginny.
"A Pensieve!" Harry nearly yelled in a crazed tone. "I'll show you my memories! I'll prove to you that what I'm telling you is the truth!"
"I have to go to work," Ron said wearily, his wand lowering.
"Come by my place after work, yeah? I'm staying with Sirius right now. I have his address." Harry reached into his jacket pocket to pull out the slip of parchment Sirius wrote on the previous day and handed it to Ron.
Ron hesitated before taking the address and pocketing it. Harry counted that as a minor victory, his chest filling.
"What do you do? Are you still an Auror?" Harry asked as the two continued to walk.
Ron laughed. "No, I'm not a bloody Auror. Fuck, is that what I do in your wonky dimension?"
Harry grinned. "Yeah, we're partners in violent crimes. We have the highest solve rate of any partner duo in the department. Robards calls us his golden boys just to get me all fired up. You love it."
Ron snorted. "I'm sure I do."
"So, not an Auror. I don't know what you'd do if you weren't an Auror. It was just always the plan for us, all we talked about honestly."
"I work in the Department of Magical Games and Sports." Ron shrugged. "Dad helped me get a job in the patents office. Thrilling work."
"Sounds… boring."
Ron laughed, the tension leaving the air between them. "Not all of us can be international Quidditch stars."
"I'm not an international Quidditch star, though. Auror, remember? Different universe or something." Harry licked his bottom lip. "I think something happened to me on our last case. Except I'm having trouble remembering what we were even investigating."
"That's problematic."
"Yeah, hence why I need my partner."
"I don't know the first thing about solving cases or being an Auror."
Ron stopped in his stride and Harry realized they had reached the Apparition Point, much to his dismay. Harry felt his chest tightening. He needed to make sure he would see Ron again.
"You'll stop by after work, yeah?"
A few beats passed between them, the air heavy. Slowly, Ron nodded. A weight lifted off Harry's shoulders as a breath he didn't know he was holding escaped his lips. He grinned broadly at Ron.
"Bloody mental you are," Ron muttered, his head shaking.
A second later, he disappeared. Harry lolled his head back to look at the bright sky. Dread quickly replaced his happiness as the sky darkened and flickered. Harry screwed his eyes shut, not willing to see the shift taking place. He had to find his way home before it was too late.
I hope you enjoyed the newest chapter! I'm posting early, because I will not be able to post this weekend. So, please, don't forget to leave a little review for posting early instead of late! Reviews inspire me, make me want to write, and generally just make me happy, so please take a few moments and send a little review my way. The next chapter will be up next Sunday, back to the normal schedule.
Special thanks to Arnel for editing. Special thanks to Bree for bouncing ideas around with me.