Chapter Six:
Ginny Weasley was smarter than she looked, that was to be sure of. She knew something was going to happen, something major and possibly life-changing, the morning Harry approached her in the garden, while the fog was still dense and the sun was barely beginning to rise into the shadowed sky.
"I'm going," he had told her, "and I'm not sure if I'll ever be back."
Ginny had been surprised, but she bit her lip. She had no right to command him to stay. He was a servant, not a slave. "Can I ask why?"
"It's a long story, one you probably wouldn't understand. I just… I have to find someone, okay? Someone who has answers for me."
Ginny looked down. The ground was moist and soft. Her slippered feet were unsteady and she clung to the cloth belt that held her lavender robe around her body. It was cold. "Okay. I understand. Have you told father? Or Ron?"
Harry shook his head. "I'm sorry but, can you do that for me?"
She nodded. "I just wish you could've stayed a little longer."
Harry sat down his small bag on the ground beside his feet. He put his hands on her shoulders. "Maybe I'll come back, after this is over. I can't make any promises though."
"And I suppose I can't come with you?"
"Nope, you sure can't. This is a personal thing."
Ginny smiled. "All right then. I'll wait for you. I'll come out here to the garden every morning until I see you again."
Harry smiled back, then leaned in to kiss her on the lips. It was a brief, gentle kiss, one shared by two people who knew they could have been more, if only the circumstances were different.
Ginny said nothing as he picked up his bag and walked away, his back fading into the fog as he disappeared. She turned around, crossing her arms and frowning. "You can come out now, Ron."
A couple of bushes toward the back of the garden rustled and Ron stepped out sheepishly. "So you knew I was there the whole time?"
Ginny sighed. "Of course I did. Harry probably knew too. What are you doing out here?"
Ron was dusting leaves from his robes. "I heard him come out of his room this morning, so I followed him out here."
"And you decided to duck into the bushes when you realized he was meeting me out here?"
"Yeah, that's pretty much it."
Ginny finally smiled. "You're so easy, Ron."
"So he's really gone, huh?"
"Yep. Guess you got your wish."
Ron walked up beside her. "Not really… I was finally getting used to him."
Ginny poked at him playfully. "You were not! You were always scheming to get rid of him!"
Ron dodged her jabbing finger. "Okay, I was at first. But trust me… if I'd wanted to get rid of him, I could have a week ago."
Ginny stopped suddenly. "Oh really? How?"
"I caught him in dad's study," said Ron, "going through his books and stuff. Said he was looking for his lost little sister."
Ginny froze. "So that's who he's looking for? We should help him!"
Ron frowned. "Why? How?"
Ginny walked over to the stone bench and sat down. She folded her hands in her lap. "Harry was our friend, wasn't he? Maybe we didn't come out and say it, but he was. When a friend needs help, why shouldn't we do everything we can?"
Ron sat down beside her. "But how can we? We don't know where he's heading, or what he plans to do when he gets there."
"We can follow him. He's not gone far by now. Of course, we'll have to pack some things and get some money…"
Ron stood up. "And how are we going to explain this to mom and dad? You go back to school in three days, Ginny!"
Ginny stood up too, and started walking toward the house. "It shouldn't take long to find her. And it won't hurt me to miss a few days. We'll just leave a note for mom and dad."
"Just a note?! Mom would have a heart attack," Ron yelled, following her, "We can't pull something like this off… mom can't handle another incident like Fred and George!"
Ginny whirled around to face him. "Fred and George did what they believed was right! We should be proud of them! I don't care what mom says. I don't even care what you say! I care about Harry, and I want to help him. Why is this such a big deal?"
Ron sighed. "Okay. If you feel that way… we'll go. Let's just hurry, alright?"
Ginny smiled, and her entire face lit up. The two of them hurried into the house to pack some things and prepare for their trip. They each tucked their wands into their robes and slung their bags onto their shoulders before leaving the house. As she walked out the door, Ginny placed a folded piece of parchment on the floor, and they were off.
They followed in the direction Harry had left, until they came to Diagon Alley. At this early hour, the street wasn't very crowded, so they looked back and forth as they made their way along the road. Finally Ron caught sight of Harry's form disappearing into the dark side of town, and motioned for Ginny. The two of them rushed to follow Harry, ignoring the memory of how dangerous the place could be.
They trailed behind him, occasionally trying to get his attention from their distance, until they saw him enter the pub that Ginny had been taken into during their first visit to the area. They walked quickly to the door, and pushed inside. They scanned the room, wondering where Harry went, but both of them went still when they saw the back of his head, sitting across from a dark and dangerous looking wizard.
Ron motioned for Ginny to stay quiet, and they slipped into chairs beside a table that sat just behind Harry. They pulled their hoods down over their faces and listened. Ginny looked at Ron curiously, as if to ask why they weren't talking to Harry. Ron didn't have to answer.
"I know you're the one who gave it to me," they heard Harry say, "and now I know what it says."
The older wizard slumped back into his seat. "Do you now, boy? And how did that come about?"
"I got my sight back, that's how. Now I need you to give me some answers."
The other man grinned. "I'm assuming you want to know about your parents? I thought you'd be able to figure it all out on your own. That's why I gave you that."
Ginny glanced at the man, who was pointing directly to the a small pendant hanging from Harry's neck. She wondered why she'd never noticed it before.
Harry reflexively touched it. "Why didn't you just tell me? Why did you have to leave my parents' names written inside the necklace?"
The old wizard glared at Harry. "The same reason I didn't raise you. The same reason I put you out the day you turned four. The same reason I hate the very sight of you now. Because that's all I owed your father! I did only what was necessary. The rest is none of my business."
Harry leaned across the table. "You know, I don't care how much you hated my father. I'm not even going to ask you why. All I want to know is how I can find him! And if you don't tell me, Snape, I'll tear off your head the same way I'd pluck a rose from a vine!"
Snape shifted in his seat, obviously uncomfortable. "You'll never see your father, not matter what I tell you. He's in Azkaban, and the only way a Half-blood can get to Azkaban is by being sentenced there."
Harry leaned back into his seat. "They don't allow visitors?"
"Never have," Snape said, smiling his wicked smile.
"Why was he sent to Azkaban?"
"That, boy, would be something you'll have to ask him."
"You're saying you don't know?" Harry asked, annoyed.
"I'm saying I can't tell you. That's a long and tragic story. A story I made myself forget."
Harry took a deep breath. "All right. But you have to have some idea how I can get to Azkaban. You used to have power, didn't you? You used to have influence."
Snape looked down. "That was a long time ago. The only one who can help you get into Azkaban is an old friend of your father's. His name is Sirius Black. He once escaped from Azkaban himself. If anyone knows how to navigate that place, it's him."
Harry leaned forward suddenly. "How can I find him?"
Snape laughed. "That's easy. He's rotting in a cave a few miles east. That man gave up on life a long time ago. If you can get something coherent out of him, you'll be lucky."
Harry stood up and pulled his hood over his face. "I'll find him, and he will help me find my father." Harry started to turn, but looked back at the other wizard. "And Snape… I know you hated my father, and he probably hated you. But you owed him a debt for some reason. Consider that debt paid… in full."
Snape said nothing, but nodded slowly, his eyes on Harry.
When Harry turned, he was surprised to see Ron and Ginny's faces peering at him from beneath hoods. The sight was strange, yet he wanted to laugh at how ridiculous the two of them looked, trying to be sneaky. "What are you two doing here?"
They both laughed nervously. "We were looking for you," Ginny said.
"I already told you," said Harry, "This is personal. You'll just get into trouble."
Ron stood up from the table. "Okay, you were obviously lying about the whole sister thing, right? It's your parents you're looking for. You once helped me get back someone I was desperate to find. Now we can return the favor."
Harry started at him, surprised. "Wow, I didn't know you cared so much, Ron."
Ron immediately went red. "Well… you know… I kinda owe you… and Ginny wanted to…"
Harry looked at Ginny, who was smiling brightly. "We're your friends, Harry. Friends help each other out."
Harry grinned. "Never had a friend before. But I guess it'd be nice."
Ginny stood up. "Of course it's nice."
Harry looked at both of them. "It might be dangerous. Breaking into Azkaban won't be a picnic. They might decide to keep us."
Ron and Ginny looked at each other. "Actually…" Ginny began.
"We know someone who escaped from Azkaban too," Ron finished.
Harry lead them to another table near the back and sat down. "Tell me about it."
Ron and Ginny sat down too. "Did you know we have lots of older brothers?" Ginny asked.
Harry shook his head.
"Two of them are twins, Fred and George. They were always goofing off, real clowns, you know. But they were serious about one thing, and one thing only."
Harry stared at Ginny. "What was that?"
"Muggle-born Slavery," Ginny answered.
Ron continued the story. "You see, they hated the idea of it. They couldn't stand to see people leading Muggle-borns around like animals. They tried everything to make their voices heard. They talked to the Ministry, visited, wrote letters, everything. They wanted to make a difference. But none of those things worked."
"So they tried something a little more… drastic," Ginny said. "They snuck over to the Muggle-born cages on the west side of town, in the middle of the night, and set them all free. They even lead them to an underground base and started-"
Ron put his hand over Ginny's mouth. "Not so loud!" he whispered. He leaned in very close to Harry, "They started a Muggle-born resistance."
Harry was truly shocked for the first time. Two Pure-bloods had started the Muggle-born resistance? Even Harry had heard whispered rumors about its existence, but no one was sure. After all, any Muggle-born who successfully escaped was never heard from again. But no rumors had ever even hinted as to who was in charge of the whole thing. "So what happened to them?" Harry asked.
"They stayed underground for two months, setting things up. They sent us letters occasionally, telling us what was going on. But they decided to come out again, to try again to talk some sense into the Ministry."
"That was a bad idea," Ginny continued, "They were arrested and sent to Azkaban. But no one knew what they had started, and to this day, no one other than escaped Muggle-borns and us, do."
Harry exhaled. What a surprising story. "But they escaped, right?"
"Yep," Ron said proudly, "Even Azkaban couldn't hold the two of them! They escaped, and sent us one final letter before going back underground."
"So," Ginny said, standing up, "Ron and I know the risks. We're not afraid of danger, or of standing up for what we think is right. We'll help you break into Azkaban, and get back out."
Harry smiled, a sincerely happy smile that neither Ron nor Ginny had ever seen on him before. "Okay. Let's go then."
And so the three of them left the dark side of town, and Diagon Alley, to head for a cave that could give them answers. It would be a dangerous journey, but they had each other. For the first time in his life, Harry truly wasn't alone.
Notes: I'm really sorry for taking so long to get this chapter out. I know a lot of you have been waiting for a long time, and were growing impatient. I don't blame you. I'm disappointed in myself. But a lot of things have happened. A LOT of things. Things that have changed the way I think about friendship and relationships in general. This may or may not affect my writing. Anyway, thanks for keeping up with my work, and for encouraging me to do better. E-mails and messages over AIM (screen name is Faellamor now!) mean the world to me. Reviews mean even more. And remember, long, wordy reviews that give me lots of tips, pointers, and suggestions, are the most welcome of all! Feel free to e-mail me personally (especially if you'd like to recommend a good fic! I like dark, angsty, NC-17 type stuff involving Draco/Hermione or Harry/Ginny most of all!). Above all, thanks for reading, and I hope you'll read more of my work!