Chapter Five -- Interlude

"What else can he do?" Fred asked his father angrily. "He's in a rough spot, and whether or not it's his own fault, could you come up with a way for him to get out of it?"

"Quiet down, you git," George said, elbowing him, "You'll wake Mum."

Molly Weasley was already asleep. She seemed to do very little else since Ginny had been attacked during her last year at Hogwarts. She had nearly been shattered by the loss of her sixth son, Ron, and her family feared that she would never recover from the loss of her only daughter.

Arthur had been affected strongly by the events, as well. He had already been a workaholic, but he had only gotten worse since then. Coming home to the empty house, to the clock that was missing its hand for Ron, tore him apart, and he avoided leaving work each day as long as he could. His face looked old before its time, and his demeanor was serious, a serious change from the happy, jovial man that had helped raise seven children. He took a deep breath, biting down the angry words he had intended to say, and spoke softly. "I don't know. It's probably too late for him to do anything, at this point. The Prophet has stirred everyone up against him, and there's no love for him at the Ministry. And I can't say I feel any kinder towards him. Involving Ginny in the rescue of the Malfoys, after all they've done to her, is something I can never forgive."

Fred shook his head, "Dad, I don't think we know everything about that mess. Hermione said..."

"I don't care what Hermione Granger says," Arthur interrupted. "She's done just as much to hurt Molly as Harry has. As far as I'm concerned, she should have stayed gone."

"She didn't mean to hurt Mum," George said softly. "They both hurt each other a lot, after Ron died. You can't blame Hermione for not wanting to subject herself to that."

"She should have," Arthur said, firmly. "We were her family, too, she shouldn't have just turned us off."

"Dad, I don't think she saw it that way," George said, "Look, I've talked to her a little. Do you know what her and Mum were fighting about?"

"No, but it doesn't matter," Arthur said. He looked like he was pouting.

Fred put a warning hand on George's arm, but George waved it off. "Mum blamed Hermione for Ron's death. She told her point blank, along with a lot of other things. I don't think Hermione's still angry about it, but she isn't seeking Mum out, either. Can you blame her for not visiting for the holidays?"

Arthur sagged, looking down in defeat, "No, I suppose not. Molly said that?"

George nodded. "Hermione didn't want to talk to me about it. I think she blames herself, as well. I don't think she'll be any better until, well..." he trailed off.

Fred picked up the thread of conversation, "Until Harry and Ginny are back in the fold. And that brings us back to the question we started with. How can they come back?"

Arthur was hesitant, "There's something I hadn't told you, boys. I didn't want to burden anyone. It was bad enough seeing Ginny carried off, but I saw her once, after she was in Azkaban. They think the damage is permanent."

"Damage?" Fred asked.

Arthur nodded, and continued, staring at his hands. "The Dementors drained just about everything out of her, whatever the Orpheous curse hadn't pulled out of her already. She's not in her right mind. The Healers say that she's not synchronized with reality any more, she's totally unhinged from time."

His calm statements had knocked the wind right out of Arthur's sons. There was complete silence, until George finally spoke up. "Does Mum know?"

Arthur shook his head. "I couldn't bear to tell her."

"So, it's all hopeless, then?" Fred asked. "There's no way to get Ginny back? Harry's going to be on the run forever? That can't be."

George agreed, "I can't believe that there's no way to make everything right."

Arthur sighed, "Some things, you just can't make right. I saw people, after Ginny was attacked, people who tried to talk to me about something the Muggles call clothiers."

"I think it's closure, Da," Fred said.

Arthur shrugged, "Whatever. The Muggles keep thinking that there is always a way to fix everything, to make things neat and complete. I don't think there is, this time."

Fred and George were stunned. They had never heard their father speak so derisively of any Muggle thought, let alone at such a low point.

"There has to be a way," George said, sounding like he was trying as hard to convince himself as his family. "I don't know what it is yet, but I'm sure there's a way for all of this to work out."

"Suppose," Fred said, "Just suppose that Harry were to turn himself in. What would happen to him?"

"He probably wouldn't get Kissed by a Dementor," Arthur said, "He would probably just be sent to prison for life. They might give him and Ginny adjoining cells."

"Well, is there some legal loophole that we can use?" George asked. "Something like the way that Narcissa kept out of jail, for all those years."

"No, I don't think so," Arthur said. "Harry has been involved in too much to get away without paying. The scales always balance in the end."

Fred spoke up hesitantly, "Well, what if Falco were to recover? I know it's not likely to happen."

Arthur snorted, "Not likely, that's putting it mildly. They wouldn't even take him at St. Mungo's, because they didn't want to waste the room. They have too many people still suffering from the last days of Voldemort, to waste room on someone who's spirit-dead."

George asked his father, "Did they end up deciding for sure that he was? Sprit-dead, I mean?"

Arthur shook his head, "They seem to think so, but it's hard to tell. Most of the time, someone that reaches that point acts like they've been kissed by a Dementor."

"But, if Falco were to get better," Fred asked, hopefully, "do you think that the whole thing would just go away?"

"I don't think it would go away," Arthur said, "but it might save Harry from life imprisonment, assuming he would turn himself in, and assuming we can find the Malfoys. Of course, then there are those that will claim he used other Unforgiveables, in rescuing Ginny and Lucius. They haven't bothered with a trial for those yet, because he's already under sentence, but they are sure to bring them up again if it Harry looks like he will go free."

"So, there's no hope," George said, echoing the tenor of his father's thoughts. "I still can't believe that."

"Well," Arthur said, "I'd rather say that I can't see any hope. That doesn't mean that it isn't there, however. I never thought that Professor Snape would become one of your best customers, either."

"So," Fred asked, "what's being done to help Falco?"

"Not much," Arthur said. "I don't think there's much impetus to try, either. After all, his parents were arrested in their attack on Durmstrang, so there's no one to pay for taking care of him. And the Healers who would normally work on charity cases are too busy to take him on. There's not much public sentiment in his favor, and besides, no one thinks they could do anything for him anyway." Arthur seemed to be actually thinking about the problem, rather than just brooding about it. George felt better already -- whether or not they saved Harry, if they could save their parents from their depression, that would be a miracle.

"How do we start helping him, then?" George asked.

"I'm not sure," Arthur said, starting to look interested, "but I can begin by finding out what they've already tried. I'll talk to Dumbledore in the morning, and see what I can find out."

"If there's anything we can do," Fred said, looking at Arthur, "please let us know. We can put the full weight of Weasley Wizard Wheezes behind finding a cure for Falco."

"I may have to take you up on that," Arthur said. "I'll make sure to let you know."

"Thanks, Dad," Fred and George said in unison. They looked at each other -- if there was any way to get their parents back to normal, they would do anything it took. Now they just had to figure out how they could contribute.