Shocking Discoveries
Chapter 14
Ginny never expected to find even greater danger at home, in the form of her hysterical mother. She gratefully took a deep breath as her mother finally released her from a tight hug.
"I was so worried!" Molly sobbed. "I heard all about it on the wizarding wireless."
"It's okay Mum," Ginny said soothingly. "I don't think anybody got hurt."
"What about Ron?"
"Ron is fine, Mum," she said, and she smiled as she remembered, and told Molly what Ron had said about Harry.
Of course Molly's face lit up as well when she heard the news, but her face darkened shortly afterwards. "Dear, I know you're a grown woman, but I feel it's my duty to advise you against marrying Draco."
"Oh, not you too, Mum!" Ginny groaned. She couldn't bear hearing any more bad things about Draco. "We've been over and over this."
"Now you listen to me, young lady!" Molly said sternly. "What he did tonight proves that he doesn't love you. He just abandoned you in the face of danger! And you don't really love him either. You're just deluding yourself."
"Deluding myself?" Ginny said sharply. "You told me you trusted my judgement, and now I'm deluding myself?"
"I did trust your judgement. But that was before Draco abandoned you…abandoned you, Ginny! And you're always insisting that he loves you. Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?"
"He does love me, Mum, and I love him!"
"Really?" Molly smiled triumphantly. "Then why didn't you go home to Draco? Why did you come here instead?"
It was only then that Ginny fully realised that she'd Apparated home…not Draco's. It had felt like the natural thing to do. In fact, she'd forgotten all about her fight with her mother two days earlier. But she wouldn't admit that to her mother…not now! "It was force of habit…that's all."
Molly shook her head in a very patronising manner. "Whatever you say, dear."
That attitude infuriated Ginny. "Don't talk down to me like that. I'm nearly twenty!" she hissed.
"Then why don't you start acting like it!" Molly said, raising her voice. "Why don't you face the facts? You're marrying Draco to try and forget about Harry. Ginny, you'll only end up hurting yourself more."
"For the last time, I know what I'm doing!" Ginny erupted.
"Keep your voice down!" Molly yelled back. "Angelina and her kids are staying over. You'll wake them up."
"So you're allowed to yell, and I'm not! Fine, just fine!" Ginny pointed out. "In fact, you're the one who started it."
At that moment, Ron and Charlie Apparated into the Burrow, interrupting the impending fight.
"What do you want?" Ginny snapped, as she took notice of her brothers.
"Be quiet Ginny, this is important!" Ron said in a dismissive tone, infuriating Ginny even further. She was sick and tired of being shunted to the bottom of the priority list.
Charlie started speaking immediately. "Mum, you have to owl Bill at once. We have to put heavy wards around the Burrow again."
"What…why…what are earth are you talking about?" Molly snapped.
"Voldemort's wand has been stolen during the attack on Diagon Alley," Ron explained, looking extremely pale. "There could be some Death Eaters about… ones the Ministry didn't catch."
"I'm not saying the Burrow's necessarily a target, but we have to be safe," Charlie continued.
Ginny blanched, and she suddenly felt sick. Death Eaters! And what was that about Voldemort's wand? She'd believed it had been destroyed. She looked at her mother, who had also gone deathly pale.
The fire in the kitchen suddenly surged and changed colour.
"Oh…what now? Who could be calling at this hour?" Molly groaned
Percy's head hovered in the flames soon after. "Mum, Ginny…Hannah's having contractions. I think she went into labour early. She was very upset when she heard about the attack on the wireless…that may have caused it."
"Are you sure these contractions are real?" Ginny asked. "False labour is quite possible at this stage…it can start up to four weeks before the estimated delivery date."
"Pulling a Hermione on us?" Ron muttered to Ginny.
Ginny scowled and gave him the one-fingered salute she'd once learned from Colin Creevey.
Percy looked away from the Weasleys. "What's that…your amniotic sac ruptured?"
"Amiotitic what?" Ron frowned quizzically.
"Her water broke!" Ginny snapped impatiently.
Percy looked back at the other Weasleys. "Well Hannah's obviously decided to get it over with. I'm taking Hannah St. Mungo's right away. We planned to have the baby at home. But under the circumstances I think it's best to take her to St. Mungo's. Good thing I prepared a Port Key just in case. She can't Apparate or travel by Floo like this…I'm going to be a dad!" he said excitedly, and his face disappeared.
The kitchen exploded with excitement, and a sleepy Angelina walked right into the middle of it.
"What's going on?"
"Hannah and Percy are having the baby," Molly said anxiously.
"Come on!" Ron bellowed and Disapparated.
"Ron…oh, typical!" Molly huffed as Ron vanished. "Charlie, Ginny, help Angelina with the kids while I get dressed."
"It's likely to be a long and dull wait, Molly." Angelina yawned. "I'll just stay at home with the children."
"Absolutely not," Molly replied. "You won't be safe here until the wards are in place."
Angelina looked alarmed. "Wards? What are you talking about?"
Molly frowned, and she told Angelina about the attacks in Diagon Alley, causing Angelina to look sick as well as frightened.
After Molly had gone to change, Ginny, Angelina and Charlie managed to get the children ready soon enough, but they were still waiting for Molly to come downstairs twenty minutes later. Then Molly finally came down the stairs, holding two hats. Now that Molly Weasley didn't have to worry about finances anymore, she'd developed quite an obsession with hats. "What do you think, Ginny, blue or tartan?"
"Honestly mum!" Ginny exploded. "The baby won't bloody care what kind of hat you're wearing! Hurry up…I want to help deliver the baby," Ginny added anxiously. She was seriously considering specialising as a midwife too, so this would be a prime learning experience.
"Tartan it is," Molly decided, and placed the hat on her head. "On to St. Mungo's then!" she said brightly, and started the fire.
"I'll take Fred," Charlie said. He was very fond of his godson, and the feeling was mutual. Fred was usually very calm when he was with Charlie. "St Mungo's!" Charlie said and threw a bit of powder into the flames and jumped in after they turned green and roared high.
Then Angelina and Molly followed each with one of the twins, leaving Ginny to carry Arthur, who was growing quite heavy, into the fire.
An instant later she was in the lobby of the wizarding hospital. It was quiet. Ginny guessed that not too many people had got hurt in the attack. She shivered...in the all excitement, she'd forgotten all about it…and Draco. Her insides squirmed guiltily.
"Come on Ginny!" Percy called from a distance. "Mum told me you wanted to help."
Ginny put the sleepy child in her arms on a couch, next to his little brother and the girls, and hurried after Percy.
"The mediwitch in charge said there could be some complications if we wait," Percy explained. "So she speeded up the process a bit. Hannah should deliver within the hour. Thank goodness for magic, you know. The midwife's Muggle-born. Told me some poor Muggle women have to endure eighteen-hour labours sometimes." He shuddered at the thought. "Makes me glad I'm a man," he mumbled.
"Don't let Hannah hear you say that." Ginny grinned. "Mum told me she resented dad for getting her pregnant each and every time she was giving birth. Good thing women forget the pain of childbirth. Otherwise Bill would be an only child."
"I see your point," Percy said delicately. "This way!"
He led her through the corridors of the hospital and to the exact room Hannah was in.
"You're just in time, Mr Weasley…" The mediwitch said…and she looked at Ginny. "Who's this?"
"My sister, Ginny. She's a nurse in training, at Stonehenge. She'd like to witness the birth."
"All right." The mediwitch smiled. "Ginny, stand next to me and pay attention…Mr Weasley, hold your wife's hand."
An hour, and three of Percy's broken fingers later, Hannah was cradling their baby girl, Grace. Ginny had mended Percy's fingers so he could sever the umbilical cord, but in the end the honour was Ginny's, because Percy had had trouble keeping to his feet as he saw the placenta being expelled. Ginny thought he'd surely vomit all over himself, for he looked that nauseous, but he managed to contain himself after the midwife warned him not to be sick in order to avoid contamination.
The baby was pink-faced like her mother, and what little hair she had was a red-golden colour…a compromise between her parent's colours. The baby would probably be allowed to go home with her proud parents because, though a bit early, she wasn't so premature as to need special care. Many twins were born in the 35th week after conception or the 37th week, depending on how one counted, and little Grace was a fairly big baby, Ginny observed.
"She's beautiful," Percy said after he gently kissed Hannah on the lips. "She looks just like you."
Ginny smiled. Hannah had threatened Percy with several horrible deaths during the transitional contractions, but everything seemed to be okay now.
"Grace Virginia Weasley," Hannah said, her tears of joy mingling with the beads of sweat on her face. "Grace after her grandmum, Virginia after her aunt. Would you be her godmother…Ginny?" Hannah asked.
Ginny didn't know what do say. They wanted her to be godmother to that tiny creature. Her heart swelled with pride. It was unlike anything she'd ever felt before.
"I'll take that as a yes?" Percy asked, looking at her silly grin.
"Yes, it would be an honour." Ginny beamed. "Should I go break the news to the family, or do you want to?" she asked Percy.
"You tell them!" Percy said, briefly looking away from his baby. I'm not ready to let go of my baby yet."
Ginny made her was to the waiting room, just overhearing Angelina saying how lucky Hannah had been with such a quick delivery as she walked in. Fred had taken his sweet time in the womb, only coming out after 41 weeks.
"Well…is it a boy or a girl?" Charlie asked. "I bet Ron it would be a girl…well?"
Ginny ignored them and turned to where Molly was standing holding on to Mr Abbott for dear life in suspense, even though it would be her seventh grandchild.
Ginny guessed her mum had most likely called Mr Abbott.
Mrs Abbot, a Muggle-born witch, had been yet another victim of Voldemort's, and Ginny understood why Hannah had wanted to name the baby after her if it turned out to be a girl.
"It's a girl," Ginny revealed.
"Hah! Galleon to me, Ronniekins," she heard Charlie say after a muffled groan from Ron. "And what about the hair colour? Ron said it would be blonde, but I'm betting on good old Weasley red."
"Sorry to disappoint you, but neither of you are right…strawberry-blonde."
"Mummy, where is the baby?" Arthur asked, tugging on Angelina's robes.
"The baby should have been brought to the nursery by now. You can all have a look at her there," Ginny said, as she turned to lead the way.
The entire Weasley clan marched through the corridors of the hospital towards the nursery, and Angelina had Charlie and Ron carry Millie and Susie to prevent them from running off and causing mayhem.
When they rounded the last corner, Ginny expected to see Percy admiring his daughter and boasting about her to any other people who might be present. Instead, she saw Percy restraining a middle-aged Indian wizard, and none other than a rather guilty looking Oliver Wood cowering behind Percy for protection.
"Control yourself sir!" Percy said in his most reasonable tone.
"Do you want me to control myself? That's the vagabond who got my daughter pregnant, and you want me to control myself?" he said, glaring at Wood.
"Wood got someone pregnant?" Ron whispered to Charlie. "That's a surprise…I read in Witch Weekly that he might be gay."
"You read Witch Weekly?" Charlie laughed.
"It was one of the older issues mum's got lying around," Ron said defensively, his face glowing like the setting sun. "I didn't have anything better to do at the time."
"Right!" Charlie teased.
Ron's eyes widened. "Blimey, isn't that Patil…the chairman of the Quidditch league?
"And Padma and Parvati's dad!" Ginny added, annoyed that Ron made the connection to the Quidditch league before connecting the name to a fellow Gryffindor in his own year.
"Oh, right." He grinned sheepishly. A second later his grin vanished however, and his mouth fell open. "Jumpin' Jarveys…Wood must have got Parvati in trouble!"
Charlie grinned. "Funny coincidence isn't it, Ron? Wood and our Perce both with girls from your year?"
"Huh?" Ron said absently, as he saw Mr Patil reach for his wand and aim at Wood.
"Gentlemen!" Molly admonished, raising her voice. "That is no way to behave to one another! This should be a time of great joy!"
This seemed to calm Patil down, and he put away his wand. "I'm sorry. It's just that it came as quite a shock when Parvati told us, and she didn't want to tell us who the baby's father was either."
"Probably protecting Wood," Charlie muttered. "He would've got traded to the Vultures for sure…forcing him to play abroad."
"Mr Patil…" Wood began earnestly. "I love your daughter very much, and I meant no dishonour to you or your family. Parvati couldn't let anyone know who the father was either." He grinned apologetically. "Her boss assigned her to stalk me! I was her project for a couple of months…conflict of interest, you see?"
Ginny allowed herself a brief smile. Whereas Padma had been a serious correspondent for the Daily Prophet, Parvati had been a gossip journalist for Witch Weekly. Now she understood why Parvati had given that up to become Witch Weekly's Agony Aunt instead. She couldn't follow people around very well while being pregnant! Still, this had come as quite a shock. Parvati must have covered her pregnancy up with several illusion spells, because Ginny hadn't known about Parvati's pregnancy. She also wondered if Parvati spread the rumour that Wood was gay, to scare off the competition. She wouldn't put it past Parvati.
Quick footsteps came echoing down the hall, and soon Ginny saw Padma rushing over to her father. "Parvati…I came as soon as I could. How is she?"
Wood raised an eyebrow. "How'd you know the baby was born? We didn't send word to Nomad Island yet, and it takes a while for post to get there."
Patil's eyes bulged as he looked at his other daughter. "You knew?"
"Of course…and Lavender Brown and Mum knew too!"
Ginny raised her eyebrows at this. She couldn't believe Lavender had managed to keep the secret.
Padma continued. "I could feel Parvati go into labour," she explained to Wood. "It's a twin thing."
"Ah," was all Wood managed to say.
"Well, where is my nephew?" she asked, looking through the glass. Just then, two nurses came out and carried two babies into the nursery.
"Awww," Everybody sighed tenderly and Millie and Susie shoved their way forward trough the jungle of adults, pressing their faces to the glass, making funny faces at the babies.
"The world has been blessed with another Patil." Mr Patil said, eyeing the black-haired baby boy.
"What?" Wood burst out hotly. "Patil? That's Wood, old man…Oliver Jr."
"Stop it!" Molly warned, and both men cowered as Molly's kindly face turned into that of a sabre-toothed tiger. She pointed at Percy and Mr Abbott, who were beaming and shaking hands. "That's how you ought to be behaving."
"Boss!" A distressed sounding voice echoed through the hall. "We've got some serious trouble, boss!"
Percy's head whipped around. "What is it Seamus?"
"I just got a message from Bertha McDonald."
Ginny frowned. Bertha McDonald was a senior Auror, and spokeswoman for the Auror Office. She wondered if Seamus carried news about the attacks.
"Someone used the killing curse at number four Privet Drive. It killed Vernon Dursley! The Aurors said that four Rangers of Illumination were already there when they arrived."
Ginny had to lean on Charlie for support…her legs felt like spongy pillars. Who'd want to kill the Dursleys?
"Boss," Seamus glanced around nervously. "The Rangers know who did it…it was the same wizard who devastated Petra?"
Percy paled. "So it's true…Voldemort has managed to return again?"
Seamus shook his head. "No." He took a deep breath. "Worse…this wizard is more powerful. Percy…" Seamus said, forgetting to use the usual nickname he used. "It was Harry…Harry Potter. He's alive…and by the looks of it, he's out for revenge! There's…"
"No!" Ginny's scream rattled the glass and the babies in the nursery started to cry. "No, it can't be true!" she moaned…her head feeling as if it were being crushed by the grip of a troll…and her heart felt like it was being torn apart by a pack of savage dogs. "Harry wouldn't…never!"
She had trouble breathing, and the lights in the room seemed to grow dimmer and dimmer. She distantly heard her mother call her name. That was the last thing she heard. She withdrew into herself, shutting out the cruel universe.
*
Ron leaned on a nearby wall for support just as Seamus caught Ginny. Harry was alive…and he'd killed Vernon Dursley. And Harry was also behind Petra…but it didn't make sense. Attacking the Dursleys was understandable. After all, they'd treated Harry like vermin. But attacking a bunch of innocent wizards in Petra?
He started pacing about, forgetting everyone around him. He needed to be analytical about this…Petra had been attacked…with several casualties. The same thing happened tonight but thankfully no one died…at least, not in England. But maybe the Norwegians, Turks or Australians hadn't been so lucky.
Ron clenched his fists. Harry sure hadn't wasted any time in gathering a bunch of evil followers. Dismayed, he shook his head. So Malfoy had been telling the truth after all. Ron knew he should have felt glad…now that he'd been proven right. But he didn't, he couldn't…because too many lives were at stake. Harry would thunder over them like a herd of Graphorns.
"Ron?" Percy called, bringing Ron out of his thoughts. "There's a Ranger waiting to see us in the waiting room."
"Ranger, what Ranger?" Ron frowned.
"Haven't you been listening to me? A Ranger accompanied me here," Seamus said.
Ron nodded and cast a glance at Ginny. It broke his heart. She was in terrible pain…because it was obvious that she loved that murderous maniac more than life itself. She just couldn't believe it.
When they arrived in the waiting room Ron saw the Ranger wasn't anything like he'd expected her to be. The first thing that he noticed about her was a tight-fitting, purple shirt that read 'Girls Rule, Guys Drool', and that left her pierced belly button exposed. Under it she wore tight fitting pants of some stretchy, clingy material, and the sole of one of her dragon-hide boots made a clicking sound as she tapped it impatiently.
She was about Hermione's size and had the same build…Ron assessed as he gave her a once-over. Her eyes were pale blue and her hair was short, and deliberately styled so it looked wild and unkempt. It was red…scarlet…not a natural colour. Her face was full of iron, with several rings through her eyebrows, ears and nose. All in all, she looked scary! A cigarette dangled out of the corner of her mouth. He also half expected to see the slogan, 'magic sucks', inked across her knuckles but apparently she hadn't got around to doing that yet.
"Please, miss, you have to put that out," a young orderly said.
"Bite me!" she grumbled at him.
"Miss, I must insist…"
She heaved a sigh and extinguished the cigarette on the white floor, causing the orderly to wrinkle his nose in disgust. Then she pulled out a small ring. She pointed her wand at it, and it grew as large as a hoop.
"Grab on!" she said.
Percy and Ron just looked at her, still shocked by her appearance.
"Well, what the hell are you waiting for?"
Hesitantly, they grabbed the hoop.
"There, it doesn't bite, does it?" she sighed. "Beam me up…Scotty!" she said melodiously, and the Port Key activated itself, whisking them away to what seemed to be…Ron didn't know where he was.
"Beam me up…" Seamus began. "Scotty?" Percy finished, puzzled.
"Muggle-born humour," a voice said. "Don't mind Gudrun. She's a bit eccentric, but she's all right deep down."
Percy, Ron and Seamus looked and saw a dark woman standing with her hands on her hips.
"Lieutenant Diatta." Percy smiled, walking over to her with his hands outstretched.
She returned his smile and took his hands. "Congratulations on your fatherhood." Her face went sombre. "I just wish we didn't have to meet under these circumstances."
"I understand." Percy said solemnly. "You wanted to talk to me about…Harry."
"I need to give you a full briefing. As we speak, other Rangers are informing Ministries all across the world. My first advice would be to stay out of his way."
"How can you say that!" Ron exploded angrily. "He needs to be stopped."
"Agreed, but that's our job." Diatta frowned.
"Oh yes, your job!" Ron mocked. "Well let me tell you something. I don't trust you! You're the ones who convinced everybody that Harry was really dead. I don't think you can do your jobs properly," Ron said. He didn't have the least bit of faith in these people.
"Really?" Diatta said, half-angry yet amused as well. "Tell me, then, what do you think?"
Ron gathered his thoughts. This was his chance to mobilise everybody against Harry. "Okay, I'll tell you what I think. I think Harry faked his death and crossed over to the other side, after learning all your secrets. And now he and his minions are attacking everyone and everything."
"And your evidence is…" Diatta smiled.
"Well…it's true, isn't it? Harry attacks Petra, and now he and his minions attack England…"
Diatta laughed. "You're wrong in so many ways it's going to take me a long time to set you straight. How can you jump to conclusions like that with no evidence to support your theory? I don't understand what Hermione sees in you."
Despite his anger, her words made Ron's stomach do flip-flops. Had Hermione told this woman about him? And she'd said "sees" instead of "saw", when referring to Hermione. Could this imply that Hermione still had feelings for him?
Before Ron could voice his questions, Diatta continued. "Listen, we want you to know that we think that Harry and the attacks are not connected. Harry had a specific target in Petra. It wasn't a random act of violence. Omar Saleh was the last person killed in the Petra attack. He had been the target. Harry hated Death Eaters more than anything, correct?"
"Omar Saleh? The Death Eater?" Ron frowned.
"What are you talking about?" Percy asked anxiously.
"In our seventh year, Harry, Hermione and I met with Dumbledore and Snape. Saleh was a rite-master who specialised in transformation rituals. Snape told us so. But he was never found after Harry killed Voldemort. He was hiding out in Petra?"
Diatta nodded. "We think Harry wants revenge…and we don't think today's attacks are linked with him in any way. The four attacks that occurred a couple of hours ago turned out to be a diversion for an extraction of certain prisoners from Azkaban. Even though no distress call came when the attacks occurred, our analysts figured out their purpose. We went to Azkaban immediately. We had to fight off the Dementors, who'd been trying to cover something up. The Ministry wizard who are posted on the monitoring island didn't have a clue about the breakout…it was very carefully planned." Diatta shook her head sadly. "We found the soulless bodies of forty Muggles…and the disappearance of four dark wizard from the prison, two of which were Death Eaters, and two whom we strongly suspected to be supporters of Voldemort. Horatiu Chivu, Tetsuo Yamato, Ivan Maximov and Lucius Malfoy…so you understand why we believe that Harry is not in league with them. These men would all be on his hit list. We believe that no one will be hurt, as long as they don't get in Harry's way."
Ron rocked back on his heels. Lucius Malfoy was free once more! That was almost worse news than Harry's rampage.
"So you're just going to wait for Harry to finish them all of before you capture him?" Seamus frowned.
"Of course not!" Diatta said, shocked. "We've seen that's he's willing to go over the dead bodies of innocent people to get to the object of his revenge. We can't allow that to happen. That's why we want you, Ron, to help us. Maybe you could reach out to him…and have him turn himself in.
Ron doubted that he could contribute anything, but he was willing to give it a try. He sighed and rubbed his temples. What Diatta had said about Harry also made sense. He'd been wrong to immediately conclude that Harry was in league with the Diagon Alley attackers. But he still didn't discount the possibility. If Harry's rampage's intended targets were indeed only Death Eaters, then Ron thought it might be possible to swing him around. But he couldn't do it alone. He needed Hermione. "I won't be able to do it alone. Hermione will have to be there too."
"She will be," Diatta assured him.
Ron sighed with relief. That was something then…but he was still uneasy about the whole situation. What Harry had done was unforgivable…killing those innocent wizards and goblins…and to a lesser extent, Vernon Dursley. What Harry had done now, dwarfed the severity of what he'd done to Ron. He'd be fed to the Dementors for sure, or at least executed, since the Dementors had just proven themselves unreliable. This was going to kill Ginny! He groaned inwardly.
Then there was still the unlikely possibility that Harry had really turned evil beyond redemption. That thought gave Ron pause. When had he changed his mind about Harry? Even earlier this evening he'd been ready to believe that Harry had managed to recruit an army of evil minions in a few short months. Of course, upon reflection, he now realised that this wasn't really possible. But still… He'd been able to picture Harry being behind some random attacks around the world, and now he was somehow doubting that Harry was capable of that. He buried his face in his hands and shuddered. Deep down, he knew what he wanted to believe about Harry. That he'd been wrong about him all along.
They were taken back to St. Mungo's by the eccentric Ranger Gudrun, and Ron went outside into the court-yard for some fresh air. He really needed it.
"Ron…what are you doing out here all by yourself?"
Not recognising the voice, Ron turned around. It was Padma. She walked over to the bench he was sitting on, sat down beside him, and started to nervously fiddle with her robes. "So, how have you been?"
"Great, just great!" he snapped.
She recoiled a bit, looking surprised and a bit shocked. "You don't have to bite my head off."
"Sorry," he said quickly. He didn't know why, but Padma made him nervous. He still felt a bit guilty about the Yule Ball in their fourth year. "How's Ginny?"
"Devastated." Padma replied. "Is there a problem, between us…Ron?" she then asked. "I mean, you've always been nervous and edgy around me. I'd like to know why."
"I haven't been nervous and edgy around you. Why do you say that?" Ron asked, hoping that he wasn't revealing the nervousness he was definitely feeling.
She shrugged. "I don't know. At school you always seemed to go out of your way to avoid me…Oh, never mind. It was probably my imagination, wasn't it?"
"Maybe…not completely." Ron forced the words out of his mouth. "I mean, I always sort of felt a little guilty for treating you the way I did at the ball."
"Really…I hadn't noticed," Padma said airily. "You seemed preoccupied with Hermione."
Ron flinched a little as he heard the name. "Well, you've got me there."
"You miss her, don't you?"
Ron looked at her, and saw a knowing smile on her face. Padma had him figured out. "I guess."
"She's a great person." Padma nodded. "I guess it's no shame that she beat me in every single subject. Gosh, I really was jealous of her. She had Harry Potter's friendship… the best marks…you."
Ron shrugged. "I don't why you're jealous about that." Ron shrugged. "Being Harry's best friend was a dangerous thing…" His eyes widened as he realised what she'd said. …the best marks…you. He swallowed and looked at her. "Padma…did I just understand you correctly? Did you just say…"
Padma was now madly fiddling with her robes and looked at her feet. "Yes…you heard me right."
"But…but…I always thought you never even liked me, you know, because I was poor. I saw how you looked at my robes at the ball. I didn't really care at the time, since I had other things on my mind," he said, blushing. "But I did note it, and it stung a bit afterwards."
Padma startled him by taking his hand. "I'm sorry about that. I was biased back then. I thought no money equalled no class. But I guess I forgot my roots. My parents had to work hard to get where they are. I guess I took them for granted. But I grew up."
"I was a little biased too," Ron admitted. "About giants and all that. But I guess Hagrid proved me wrong," Ron said, as he remembered how Hagrid and Madam Maxime had managed to swing a few giants into Dumbledore's camp.
They sat for a while in comfortable silence, and Ron regarded her profile in the moonlight. She was rather pretty, prettier than Hermione, if he was completely honest. But still, there was something about Hermione that no other women had. A perfect combination of all the virtues, and very few vices to oppose them, unlike him, he thought
"Is Hermione seeing anyone?" he asked out of the blue.
Padma suddenly went rigid. "I'm not sure."
"What do you mean? You don't know? Come on, I can take it."
"I saw her just before I started feeling Parvati's pain. I wanted to say hello, but she was pretty far away and she'd just entered an alley, so I hurried to catch up to her. I saw her kissing another Ranger…I'm sorry!" she added miserably.
Ron's heart shattered into a million pieces. He'd thought he'd be able to take it, but it was painfully clear that he'd been wrong. What he was feeling now was worse than what he'd felt upon hearing the news about Harry and Malfoy put together.
"I'm sorry, Ron." Padma said. Ron hadn't even noticed when she'd started to wipe the tears off his face with a handkerchief. He hadn't even realised that he'd been crying, and he was even more surprised by the fact that he wasn't the least bit embarrassed about breaking down in front of Padma like that. He just didn't care anymore.
"Well, I reckon it had to happen someday," he said in between sobs. "I mean, she's too great a girl to remain single for long, isn't she?" He looked at Padma. "You know, when we were still at Hogwarts, I was always afraid that something like this might happen."
"What do you mean?" Padma asked.
Ron didn't answer immediately. He'd always been afraid that Harry would break them up by running off with Hermione. He shook his head at his own stupidity. Harry and Hermione had just been friends. He'd always chosen to listen to his own insecurities instead of Hermione…and Harry. He uttered a rueful chuckle, realising that not all that long ago, he'd have been finding a way to pin the blame for this turn of events on Harry, as well. It had taken losing Hermione to give him this moment of lucidity. "I lost her because I'm stupid. I always thought that she and Harry were attracted to one another, and that they would get together as soon as the circumstances were right. I didn't have enough sense to trust them."
Padma looked genuinely surprised at this and Ron was just as amazed at what he'd just admitted. "So you don't believe Harry to be evil anymore?" Padma asked.
"Not for putting the Cruciatus on me…no," Ron said, feeling the pent up pressure that he'd carried for nearly three years drain away. "But he can't get away with what he did in Petra. We need to bring him in, but they'll kill him if we do…and it'll be my fault," he groaned, as his head spun with the sudden realisation. If he hadn't been such a stubborn idiot, Harry wouldn't have fallen to darkness. "It's all my fault!"
Padma scooted closer to him and wrapped her arm around him. "Don't do that to yourself. The rest of us are just as responsible for it. And if you absolutely have to blame someone…blame You-Know-Who. He's the one who's ultimately responsible," she whispered.
That sounded an awful lot like something Hermione would say. Ron turned and stared straight into her face… the tips of their noses rubbing together as he turned his face. He felt a tingle of electricity spread from his nose throughout his face, and he flushed. He looked into her compassionate dark eyes.
"You can't blame yourself over something you didn't have any control over," she continued. "It isn't your fault."
He nodded, and her face grew ever more present in his vision, until her eyes were all he could see. Then he leaned in…and kissed her. It wasn't a deep kiss but it was warm and sweet, and oddly comforting. His mind was buzzing, but he broke through the buzz and he pulled back a little. "I'm sorry…I…wasn't thinking."
"Neither was I," Padma said softly, her warm and sweet breath caressing his cheeks. "I didn't mean for this to happen…I just came out here to convince you that Harry wasn't really evil. I…I'm sorry, I'm not that kind of woman. It's just that…I'm so lonely."
Ron thought her hair felt really nice as he tucked a silky black lock behind her ear. "How can you be lonely? You can have any man you want. You're bright, beautiful and really nice."
"Nice…me?" Padma smiled. "You're the first man to ever call me nice."
"You've been really nice to me just now." Ron whispered. "But why are you lonely? Are all the men in Concordia stupid?"
"No…just the ones I like. And if there's a good one…" She stared into Ron's eyes. "…he's taken."
"Well, I'm free now…and I think I'll be going to Concordia soon. Maybe we could get to know each other a bit better then."
Padma sighed. "You belong with Hermione. I could never take her place in your heart."
"No…Hermione and I are through." Ron said, feeling utterly defeated.
"No you're not." Padma smiled. "The obstacle between you is gone. If you fight for her, I'm sure you'll win her back."
Ron raised his eyebrows. "Really? So you reckon my competition isn't that formidable?"
Padma looked away. "Well, I don't know him really well, but from what I know of him, he's a heroic type like you and Harry…and he's really handsome…but I still think you've got a good chance!" she said quickly.
Ron didn't share Padma's apparent optimism. "What's his name?"
"Max Wolfe."
Max Wolfe…why did that name sound familiar? It clicked…Ginny had told him about a Ranger named Max Wolfe…a distant relative of theirs. "I don't know, Padma. He sounds like a perfect man."
"Well, he's far from perfect…I'm actually quite shocked that he and Hermione got together. They didn't seen to get along before he slipped into that coma."
"Yeah, well Hermione and I didn't get along either at first," Ron pointed out.
"Stop being so insecure," Padma said. "If I say you've got a chance with her then you've got a chance with her! Besides, Hermione may not be able to hold onto him. She has a devastatingly gorgeous rival."
"That's never stopped Hermione before," Ron said gloomily. "She can be really attractive too." He remembered how Krum had picked Hermione over a lot of other girls.
"Maybe." Padma frowned, but she was still looking unconvinced. "It's just that the other woman and Wolfe have a history together…it's all really strange…" she muttered.
"Either way, thanks for your support," Ron said. "I wish there was something I could do to show how much I appreciate our talk.
Padma took his hand and guided him to his feet. Then she took out her wand and transfigured the bench they'd been sitting on into a piano. She waved her wand and it started playing a Weird Sisters tune. "How about we correct a mistake we made in the past."
Ron smiled and bowed. "May I have this dance, Padma?"
"I thought you'd never ask, Ron!" she giggled.
***
Hermione's intestines twisted with worry as she, a mediwizard and a mediwitch listened to the wizarding wireless. There had been attacks on wizarding settlements in northern Australia, Turkey, Norway and England. She hoped that everybody was okay.
"We've just received some additional information," the newscaster said. "The Order of Illumination has just officially revealed information that hints at the survival of Harry Potter. This happened after Wizards from the British Ministry of Magic reacted to the detection of a killing curse, finding the Rangers of Illumination on scene. It turns out that he is also suspected of the attack in Petra. They have stressed, however, that they have no indication that Harry Potter is in any way involved with the culprits of tonight's attacks. According to the Order, Potter's target in Petra was a Death Eater in hiding. The fact the tonight's attacks turned out to be a diversion to free four Death Eaters, supports their theory. They stress that Potter is not to be engaged by anyone except Rangers of Illumination, and that there is no reason to panic, since Potter only seems to be after his enemies. However, they will make every effort possible to put a stop to Potter in order to prevent him from harming innocents."
"But why murder that Muggle?" the newscaster's partner asked.
"It turns out that the Muggle was Potter's uncle by marriage and guardian, and that he'd heavily abused Potter in his childhood. Inside information reveals that Potter was forced to live inside a cramped cupboard under the stairs from his second to his eleventh year of life, and that starvation and heavy physical labour were frequent punishments used to discourage wand-less Magic, something no young wizard has control over. "
"I wouldn't call it murder, then…Animals aren't murdered!" the mediwizard spat. "Good riddance! I don't really blame him for killing the Muggle."
Hermione only vaguely heard this, however. She was too shocked…and angry! Why had the Order revealed Harry's survival?
"Hermione!" Galatea's voice echoed through the lab. Her silvery white hair flowed behind her as she hurried across the lab, and from the corner of her eye, Hermione saw the mediwizard's face going purple and started smoothing his hair as he saw Galatea. That stirred a memory in Hermione's mind, but she was too preoccupied with the news bulletin to pay much attention to it.
She looked at Max, who had stopped in the doorway to the lab. He looked distant and a lot of things seemed to trouble him. The haunted look he'd had before his coma had now returned full-blown.
"We heard!" Galatea said anxiously. "We have to go. Are you done here?"
Hermione nodded. "We were just finished when the emergency broadcast had been announced."
"Max?" Galatea asked, startling the frowning Ranger out of his thoughts. "The Port Key?"
He nodded and pulled out the little ring that grew into a hoop, and they all grabbed on to it. "Activate!"
They were whisked away from the two bewildered mediwizards and transported what looked like the lower deck of a Cruiser. She recognised it as the warship, Hurricane.
"My condolences, Wolfe," Matt Kelly, who looked up from his work, said. He was repairing a heavy crossbow.
"Yes, I'm sorry about Lei!" Gudrun Njallsdottir added. She was a Muggle-born witch from Iceland, and a Ranger Fifth Class. Hermione almost didn't recognise her in uniform, and without the many metal ornaments stuck in her face.
Max gave them a small nod.
Seconds later, she felt the ship lurch into motion, and Lieutenant Gaal's face appeared on a communication mirror. "Get up here!" As he said that, a circle detached itself from the ceiling and came down. They stepped on and it carried them up to the bridge.
"Why did you tell them about Harry?" Hermione burst out.
"We had to. There was no way to cover up the fact that Harry killed Vernon Dursley," Diatta said calmly. "The Ministry wizards were also relatively quick to respond."
"Why didn't you Obliviate Dudley and Petunia?" Hermione asked. "You could've done that."
"Assuming that we would have had enough time to set up our jammers to avoid the Ministry detection equipment from picking up those charms, we still wouldn't have done it. We were operating inside British wizarding territory without their foreknowledge. And wouldn't it be highly suspicious if they'd found us there with two Muggles with no memories?" Diatta shook her head. "This was a surprise move…we weren't prepared for it. The truth was the only way out. If we'd had a bit more time, we could have changed their memories and have them remember that they'd been out of the house when Vernon was murdered. But it was after midnight…and there was no way that would stand up to closer scrutiny."
Hermione's anger abated a bit. "I understand…but it came as a shock. What will we do now?"
"We stop Harry as soon as possible. We will try to bring him in with no bloodshed, but if he resists we have our orders," Diatta said grimly. "Either way, he's as good as dead. People want retribution for Petra. He'll be executed after we capture him."
"But what if he's being controlled by someone else?" Hermione said, her heart beginning to race as the implications sunk in. Harry was as good as dead. The mere thought of Harry being in this much danger was making her feel ill, and that irritated her. How many times had she seen him in danger in the past? She ought to be used to it by now. But here she was leaning on Galatea for support.
"That's why we will do whatever we can to bring him in alive." Diatta sighed. "But the people will be wanting a scapegoat. The only way Harry is going to survive this, if he is indeed being controlled, is if we catch those who are controlling him."
"What do you mean if he's being controlled?" Hermione yelled. She couldn't believe this…Now the Rangers were turning their back on Harry too! Her anger quickly overcame the sickening feeling. "Of course he's being controlled! We all know he can resist the Imperius Curse, but there are other, more powerful ways to take over people's minds," she said, remembering what Max had said after she'd woken up after fainting in the amphitheatre. Harry's been gone for months," Hermione pointed out. "What if they worked on him until he cracked?"
"I'm sorry, but his killing Vernon Dursley doesn't fit that profile. It really looks like he's doing this of his own free will." Diatta said with a pained expression on her face.
Hermione shook her head. "You're wrong! You don't know Harry!"
"I beg to differ, Lieutenant," Max said, in a hoarse voice and a he cleared it. "It could still fit in the profile. They could have conditioned him without the use of magic, using his hatred towards his targets as a motivator. The Dursleys abused Harry, and I'm sure that left a mark on him. That would make them valid targets as well. I'm surprised that the newscaster got a better read on the situation than you did, Lieutenant… no offence, but you're a bit narrow minded right now!"
Diatta's jaw dropped, and Hermione felt a rush of gratitude towards Max. He never said much, but whenever he did say something it always made sense. She could kiss him…but Galatea wouldn't appreciate that, Hermione thought guiltily.
Gaal turned away from his console. "Whether or not Harry's being controlled isn't relevant, Granger. Right now we have to concentrate on catching him. There are lots of wild theories surfacing about us being in league with the attackers to take over the world! We're running out of time!"
***
A/N: Well, before the site went down, I'd been dreaming about reaching the magical 200 reviews mark before chapter sixteen. But it seems many people have forgotten how to review…or maybe they're just on holiday. My story isn't that bad…is it? I mean, chapters twelve and thirteen only got 8 reviews between them, whereas the previous chapters averaged at over 10 reviews each. Special thanks to those who kept reviewing.
Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed the chapter. I'll just go wallow in my own insecurities some more. Please Review. I'd like to know what to think of the revisions, oh noble readers. My beta reader put in a lot of hard work correcting most of my stupid mistakes and supplying me with some thoughts. The name for Concordia's make-out spot Sensu Alley…sensually, was her idea. J Thanks, Anne!
