Yup, I'm fixin' this one, too.

A/N: Hey all! I'm in Spanish class right now, and I'm very bored. We're doing occupations for about the fifth time… Anyway, because I have a quote unquote "loyal fan" *cough* Katy *cough* I decided to write this. I actually already wrote this chapter, but I lost it…So I'm writing it again. I actually don't know whether or not this will be better than the original, but personally I think the original sucked, so I certainly hope it's better. Now on with the fic!

THANKS TO:

Katy for telling me she loves this fic. Yes, there are several weird coincidences between us…Hopefully not too many, it's starting to get scary. I'm really really sorry it took so long. I had a concert, and then my mum kicked me off the computer…so I dedicate this chapter to you.

Harry Potter and the Trial of Sirius Black

Chapter Four

Harry didn't sleep the night before Ginny was supposed to visit. He was inexplicably nervous. He told himself that he felt that way because he was going to tell her about Sirius, but deep down, he knew that that wasn't true. But he was afraid of the real reason he felt the way he did.

Harry sighed and changed position for the fifth time in the past ten minutes. Impatiently, Harry sat up and grabbed his flashlight of the bedside table. He reached under his bed to where he kept the letters from his friends and removed the ones from Ginny. He spent the rest of the night rereading the most recent ones. She had a way of describing things that made things come alive, making Harry feel as though he were actually there, watching events happen.

~~~~~~~~~~

Little did Harry know, miles away, Ginny was doing nearly the same thing he was. She, too, was anxious about the meeting, but unlike Harry, she knew exactly why. She wasn't in denial about her feelings, but two years before, she had resolved not to let them make a fool of her like they did in her first year. Ginny couldn't sleep and so she was reading the letters Harry'd sent her for the umpteenth time. She was focusing on the newest, most perplexing one at the moment.

Dear Ginny,

Is there any way that you can come to visit? There's something important that I need to tell you, but I'd rather not say in a letter, in case it gets intercepted. On Friday, my aunt and cousin are going to London for the day on a shopping trip. If you came around ten, then we'd be all set. Tell me what you think.

Yours,

Harry

She sighed. *I wish I knew what he wanted to tell me. But I guess I'll know soon enough* Ginny thought.

~~~~~~~~~~

Ginny knocked timidly on the door of Number Four Privet Drive. She heard the click of a lock.

Harry cautiously stuck his head around the door, furtively glanced around, and yanked Ginny inside before closing and re-locking the door. Ginny looked slightly bewildered at these actions, so Harry said, "I didn't want the neighbors to be suspicious."

"Oh." Ginny said. *Well THAT was intelligent* a nasty voice at the back of her mind remarked.

They stood in the hallway in an awkward silence for a minute before Ginny ventured to ask, "So, um, you had something to tell me?" *Of course he does, that's why you're here, isn't it?* The voice said.

"Yeah, but it's kind of a long story, so why don't we go up to my room in case they come back early."

"Okay." She followed him up the stairs to his room, taking in the huge metal door and barred windows, the sparseness of working items in the room, and the fact that nothing seemed remotely Harry-like in the entire space besides a single quill pen on the broken desk in the corner, which seemed to have cracked down the middle where a large person sat on it. She sat gingerly on the tiny bed and he sat down next to her, a few feet away.

"Do you remember in my third year, when everyone thought that Sirius Black was after me?" At her nod, Harry continued. "Well, you know how Buckbeak was executed? Well, Ron, Hermione, and I went to see Hagrid right before it under my dad's Invisibility Cloak and while we were there, Hermione discovered Scabbers in a milk jug of Hagrid's and a few minutes later, the Ministry officials arrived, so we had to leave. We were almost up to the castle at that point when Scabbers went insane and ran off. Ron, of course, followed him, and Hermione and I ran after Ron. Ron caught him near the Whomping Willow, but that's when we saw a huge black dog that looked amazingly like a Grim. It dragged Ron in under the Willow into the tunnel and Hermione and I followed…." Harry continued to explain what happened.

Throughout the whole story, Ginny was silent. She was horrified when she found that Scabbers was, in reality, Peter Pettigrew. Her family had been harboring a mass murderer for twelve years and none of them knew it. She knew Ron must have been devastated to find that his pet rat was responsible for the death of his best friend's parents. She felt the prickling of tears in her eyes as Harry related the moment when Sirius offered to have Harry come live with him. And the irony of it all! Not ten minutes later, Sirius was almost killed. She couldn't even begin to imagine the disappointment both he and Harry must have felt when Harry had to go back to the Dursleys'. She felt angry that she was nearly crying; it wasn't something she normally did. She carefully avoided looking at Harry as he finished the story.

"And so, he and Buckbeak flew away. Of course, he came back when he found out about the Triwizard Tournament and after…" here he swallowed "I think he's on a mission for Dumbledore, but he could be at Professor Lupin's house. Hey, are you all right?" Harry noticed that Ginny had said nothing so far.

She forced herself to smile. "I'm fine. That's such an incredible story, Harry. Like a fairy tale. I only wish it had a different ending. But I was just wondering, why did you tell me about all this? I mean, I'm glad you trust me with something this big, but why now, of all times?"

"Well, mainly because I wanted you to know, but also… Well, this may seem a bit melodramatic, but it's not really that farfetched. My uncle comes back today and I just wanted to make sure that if I don't answer your owls within forty-eight hours, owl Sirius okay?"

"O-okay." Ginny said uncertain as to whether or not this was a good thing. She bit her lip, then added "But Harry, you don't really think he'll- he'll hurt you do you?"

"I'm not sure. I wouldn't put it past him. But Ginny, you've got to promise me you won't tell anyone. Not Ron, not Hermione, not your mum, okay? You're the only one I trust with this. I didn't even want to tell you, but I needed to tell someone. Promise you'll only owl Sirius and Dumbledore if you think something's happened." Seeing the uncertainty in her eyes, he muttered "I shouldn't have said anything."

"I promise I won't tell. Really I do! And it's good you told me. What if something happened, but you didn't tell me? No one would know. I don't know, I just have a bad feeling about this. It's probably nothing." Ginny looked up at him. "I swear I won't tell."

Harry grinned in relief. "Thanks Gin. I knew you'd understand."

Ginny's heart leapt. *He called me Gin!* She fought off the blush that was rising. "You're welcome, Harry." They sat in silence for a minute, just looking at each other. That's when Ginny noticed a fading purple bruise on Harry's forehead.

"Oh, Harry, what happened?" She cried, reaching out. Her fingers barely brushed his forehead, when he jerked away.

"Nothing, Gin, it's nothing." He replied quickly.

"It most certainly is not nothing!" Ginny said hotly. Then, noticing Harry's embarrassment, she said in a low, barely audible voice, "Do they hit you often?"

"I-I don't know what you're talking about." He protested weakly. Then, upon seeing the seriousness and determination in her eyes, he sighed and in a defeated voice, whispered, "Yes."

"Oh, Harry." She breathed her voice thick with suppressed emotion. She fought an urge to throw her arms around him.

Harry was surprised to see tears in her eyes. Were they because of him? Did she really care about him enough to cry just because the Dursleys whacked him now and again?

"It's okay Gin, it doesn't really hurt that much." He said, hoping that she'd leave it at that. No such luck.

"That's not the point! They shouldn't be allowed to do that! It's most certainly not okay! It's against the law! They could and should be locked up for what they do to you!" Ginny retorted heatedly. Harry's words had had the opposite effect than what he'd hoped. Instead of making her want to drop the subject, it merely made her more furious. *How dare they hit Harry!* she thought angrily *It's not as if he ever does anything wrong!* But then she saw Harry's expression, the one where he wished he hadn't said anything, and said softly, "But I suppose it's really none of my business. It's not as if I can do anything about it anyway."

"So, have Fred and George invented anything new recently?" Harry said effectively changing the subject.

"Well, they did…" When Ginny finished telling Harry about Fred and George's latest escapade, Harry started to laugh. Unfortunately, laughing made him cough. A cough that sounded and felt like it would rip apart his chest wracked his body.

"Harry!" Ginny leapt up concerned.

"I'm…Alright." He wheezed. At her look of disbelief, he added, "Really!"

"Well, I suppose-" Ginny started, but the sound of a key in the lock interrupted her.

"They're home!" Harry hissed. He reached under his bed, yanked up the loose floorboard, removed his dad's cloak and his Firebolt, and handed them to Ginny. "Hurry! Put this on and fly home on my broom, okay? Go out through Dudley's window."

"Okay. I'll write soon. Goodbye Harry!" She whispered.

"Bye Ginny." He responded softy, watching her disappear beneath the cloak.

~~~~~~ Later that night ~~~~~~

Vernon had returned home and Petunia had made him a wonderful dinner. Right before they sat down, however, Petunia had just got off the phone with Mrs. Next Door. Harry, who was still thinking of Ginny, was oblivious to the danger he would soon be in.

"Well, you'll never guess what Mrs. Next Door had to say." Aunt Petunia remarked, a vicious undertone prevalent in her voice. "She said that a girl visited here today. A girl with red hair. You wouldn't happen to know what she was talking about, would you boy?"

"Huh?" Harry said, jerking out of his daydream.

"You had one of your strange friends over, didn't you, boy?" she hissed.

"N-no, of course not-" Harry began, panicking.

"DON'T LIE!" Uncle Vernon roared. "HOW DARE YOU! WHO WAS SHE, YOUR GIRLFRIEND? WELL SHE WON'T WANT YOU WHEN I'M THROUGH WITH YOU!"

The beating that followed was the worst ever. Bloody, battered, and bruised, Harry was tossed into his room, the door slamming shut. It was all he could do to collapse onto the bed.

~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Sorry this took so long, but I was busy, then I got sick, then I had make-up stuff, and then it was my birthday. So I'm very sorry I didn't have a chance to update. I honestly didn't think anyone cared, so I was surprised. Anyway, I've realized that I don't really need a beta, as I'm doing okay without one. Thanks for the offers though! Anywho, if you ever want to talk to me, I'm on AOLIM all the time. My sn is kranberri5213. Or you can email me at Strawberry5213@hotmail.com. Whichever is fine, but I love talking to people, so email or im me! Anyway, my mother wants me to go to bed now, so I guess I will. Ttfn!

~ 'berries

Updated Note: Very little changed in this chapter, besides some grammatical stuff.