Seeing Double

Chapter Three: Playing Pretend

By: Lord of the Flame

Beta-ed by: Marcela W.

It began to rain that night. In fact, the only noises there were at dinner that night was the roar of the thunder and occasional clinking of a fork.

The meal was splendid. Mrs. Weasley had prepared a feast. The table was full of pork chops, turkey, ham, with sides of potatoes, cranberries, and assorted vegetables. There was not any conversation between the family members whatsoever, but instead there was the annoying silence Harry had grown to hate throughout the day. He was lodged in between Ron and Ginny, feeling very meek and alone. He kept his eyes down for most of the meal, not knowing what to say or do.

Ginny ate very regally, he noticed, for someone of her appearance. She sat with a very straight back, and kept her chin up. Her hair—though an odd color—was pulled back into a low ponytail at the nape of her neck, falling gracefully straight down her back. The freckles that lightly sprinkled her cheeks made her look older, rather than younger. Brown eyes betrayed her other features, giving the impression of a soft, gentle demeanor. Ginny glanced his way and caught him looking at her; he returned his eyes to his food and didn't move them for the rest of the meal—until…

There was a crash and yet another redhead burst into the kitchen. His hair was frazzled and his glasses askew; he was obviously in a rush.

"Dad—" he gasped, "—You-Know-Who—Ireland—hurry." Mr. Weasley stood up and grabbed his wand from the counter. "Molly," he said in a rush, gathering a few more items Harry didn't recognize, "I'll be back later. Be careful." He planted a kiss on Mrs. Weasley's cheek, her face already pale with worry.

"Arthur," she said, "you be careful." And Mr. Weasley and the other Weasley were gone.

"Mum," said Ron, "Dad and Percy's jobs don't even involve work against, well, You-Know-Who, why are they sending them to Ireland?"

"Everyone in the Ministry works against the Dark Lord now, nothing else is more important to them. Oh, I do hope Arthur is alright…"

             * * * *

Harry didn't sleep that night; he had too many things on his mind. He sat on the sofa in the living room, staring blankly into the dark fireplace. What on earth was going on? He put his head in his hands, frustrated. No one would ever believe he wasn't Harry. No one would ever let him go home. It was almost like being held captive. Almost, but not quite. For one, these people were actually concerned about him. Did he really look that much like another person? He didn't even think that it was possible, to have the same eyes, hair, skin color, and same birthmark.

Or, maybe he was Harry, and everything he'd known before was a lie. Maybe Sirius was really, actually evil and trying to keep his real identity from him. Harry banished this thought immediately. "No," he thought. "I'm not him. I can't be." Harry was at the point of screaming in frustration, the only things stopping him were the zillions of redheaded people sleeping upstairs. He'd just have to convince them he wasn't Harry.

"I'm not Harry," he said into the darkness, trying to convince himself more than anyone. What surprised him most was that the darkness answered back.

"I know."

Harry nearly jumped out of his skin. He whipped around behind him, gasping, to see a sleepy-eyed Ginny. He let out a breath of relief.

"What did you say?" he demanded of her.

"I know you're not Harry." These words were spoken very slowly, and with a smirk.

"How?"

Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I just do. My family's all a bunch of gits if they can't tell that you aren't him."

"That doesn't make any sense," he replied.

"Sorry, I didn't know it was required." Ginny smiled. "Look, it doesn't have to make sense, does it? Shouldn't you be thrilled that someone actually believes you?"

"Never in my life have I gotten 'thrilled'."

"Go figure."

Ginny walked forward and took a seat on the couch next to him. "So," she said, "I'm waiting."

"For what?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Didn't anyone ever teach you manners? I'm waiting for a thank you, but don't bother now, you've missed your chance."

Harry paused for a second. Then with a bright smile, he said, "Thanks, Ginny! …Though I still don't know what I'm thanking you for."

"Git."

"I've been called worse."

"So…" began Ginny.

"A needle pulling thread," finished Harry.

Ginny nodded curtly. "So he's a Sound of Music fan…" She sounded more as if she was talking to herself, and not Harry.

"Actually I think the concept of 'the hills coming alive' is kind of scary."

"Indeed," countered Ginny, grinning. Then added, "I'm not even going to go into where you learned about the Sound of Music, H—" she stopped herself and shot him an apologetic glance.

"Sorry," she said, "You just look so much like him." Harry, for once, smiled.

"If you're not Harry," said Ginny pointedly, "Then you should at least tell me who you are."

"Why?" said Harry. "It's not like it matters."

"Of course it does!" Ginny exclaimed. "Why would it not mat—wait. Don't try to change the subject!"

"I was trying to change the subject? The things you learn…"

"Answer the question."

'Ginny, I—" said Harry "I—I can't."

Ginny's eyes flashed. For a frightening second, the Boy-Who-Wasn't-Harry thought she might yell at him. But Ginny sucked in a breath, and said, "Why not? What's stopping you?"

Harry gulped. "I—I don't trust people. I've never trusted anyone. I've never had any friends—in fact, the only person I'm really comfortable around is Sirius. And even he's always telling me I've got to have 'a little faith in people'. I can't really help it. It's like a disease."

"Sirius Black?!" Ginny's eyes were wide with fear. "You know Sirius Black?!"

Harry shifted uncomfortably. He hated it when people did this. Sirius had been a big hero in a past war, bringing fame with him. Everyone was always saying, "You're so lucky, you live with Sirius Black." It was really beginning to get annoying. "Yes," said 'Harry', "I live with Sirius Black. He's my father." Well, it wasn't exactly a lie. Sirius was his father in Harry's opinion, but Sirius also hated it when Harry addressed him as so.

"He is?! But—but—that doesn't make any sense at all!"

"Why not?"

"You've lived with Sirius your whole life, right?"

"…Yes."

"You're a liar! A traitor! Sirius Black was in prison for thirteen years! He just escaped a little under two years ago!"

"You're a nutter, Ginny Weasley. Sirius was pardoned over fifteen years ago! He was framed. Jesus, and I thought you were going on about Sirius' fame."

Ginny looked confused. "Yes, Sirius is famous, but not in a good way. He's only famous because he's wanted in all of Europe! He's a criminal!".

"Ginny, trust me. He's not a criminal."

"Why should I trust you if you don't trust me? That hardly seems fair."

"I know. I'm sorry, but you have to trust me. You can't go shouting it to the rooftops, that Sirius is a murderer."

"I don't have to shout it! Everybody already knows! He killed Harry's parents!"

Harry stopped dead. His jaw dropped. Was this…? Did she…? What the hell…? He decided to leave it with a simple, "No, he didn't."

"I'll make you a deal," said Ginny, smirking. "I'll trust you on this one if you tell me your name and origin."

Harry considered this for a moment. Ginny didn't seem to be harmful, but you never knew in these strange times. Followers of him could be around anywhere. In any corner, house—hell, this very family could've taken him in to turn him in—to him. And that was the last thing he wanted. Harry shook his head stubbornly. "I can't, Ginny," he said, "I'm sorry."

"Then you can do something else for me."

"What?"

"If you won't tell me who you are and where you're from, you'll be Harry."

"Say what?"

"You're going to pretend you're Harry." Ginny's eyes were not joking. Harry almost gagged.

"No way!"

"Then I shall just run upstairs and tell time you're involved with the mass murderer, Sirius Black." Ginny smirked.

"I—but—argh," complained Harry. There was no way out of it except to go along with Ginny, or tell her whom he was. He didn't really want to do either. But, if he had to choose, he would rather keep his identity sealed. "Fine," said Harry, "but you have a lot of explaining to do."

"Don't worry, I'll tell you everything about him…" Ginny smiled and launched into the details.

Neither slept that night..

***

In fact, the next morning Harry and Ginny were up and dressed before the rest of the family. Both dragged themselves into the kitchen after dressing, dark circles under their eyes for obvious reasons. "Harry" had learned everything one could possibly know about 'the other Harry', and wondered how much Ginny really knew about him and how much she had made up.

"Good morning, Ginny, Harry," said Mrs. Weasley, currently occupying her herself with making breakfast.

"G'morning," said Harry back. Step One, he remembered Ginny saying, reply to the name Harry. This particular step had taken quite a while to practice ("After all, they have to believe it!"). "So, Ron," he said in what he hoped was a way to address a best friend. After all, he'd never had one. "When did you say Hermione was coming?"

Ron looked up, surprised. "Monday," he said dully.

"Has she mentioned anything about Krum?"

This got the attention of all the Weasley family. Four shocked looks—everyone except Ginny—met eyes. Harry burst into fake laughter. "Don't tell me," he laughed, actually finding this situation funny, "You actually believed me! It was a joke, the whole thing was a joke!" This considerably lightened the mood. The family froze in shock for a second, then everyone laughed except Mrs. Weasley, who looked at him crossly.

"Good one, Harry!"

"Can't believe I actually fell for it!"

"You've got some acting skills there, Potter!"

"Harry!" exclaimed Mrs. Weasley angrily. Laughter faded from the room. "How could you do that?! Arthur, Dumbledore, and I—all of us were worried sick! I would've expected more from you."

It was now time for Harry to put on his Acting Hat. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Weasley. I was just trying to lighten the mood, you know, with… You-Know-Who and everything…." He let his voice crack. Mrs. Weasley could no longer take it. She strode over to him and gave him a great big hug. Harry looked at Ginny to see how he was 'acting'.

She just smiled back at him.

"I'll contact Dumbledore straight away! He'll understand—haven't seen such a strong sense of humor in a man for a long time."

Fred and George were still snickering. "That was brilliant, Harry."

Ron, well, he could do nothing but smile. The Weasley house was happy and lively once again.

Even Mrs. Weasley was beaming. But there was one more thing Harry was curious to know about, something that would definitely dampen the mood. "Mrs. Weasley," he asked, "Have you heard anything from Mr. Weasley or Percy? Any news at all from Ireland?"

A/N: A little bit of a short chapter, but oh well. Big thanks to all the reviewers and a special big thanks Marcela W. who has taken the rather huge task of beta-ing for me! THANK YOU ALL! ^^:::

Coming up in the next chapter: Hermione, Quidditch, and more Weasley fun!!