Awaken
Chapter 1
"Oh no!" exclaimed Ginny Weasley at the sight of her lime green hair. "Mum and Dad are going to kill me!"
Ginny Weasley and Hermione Granger were sitting in front of the mirror in Ginny's small room in the Burrow. It was the Summer Holidays and the Weasleys had graciously invited Hermione and Harry to stay with them for the week before school started. The Weasley twins had joined them, returning home with armloads of new "products" that needed testing and they had bribed Ginny into being their subject.
"Stupid prats," grumbled Hermione as she looked over Ginny's bright green tresses. "Should have known. Hasn't worn off yet...all for new robes...lime green...bad idea...always trouble, those two..." Hermione mumbled under her breath. She flipped through one of her spell books, glancing over each page quickly but thoroughly.
Ginny sighed. "What would Mum and Dad say if they knew I was Fred and George's test subject? Ohhhh." She buried her head in her hands. Well, if she decided that she wanted to become a punk rocker...
"Found it!" exclaimed Hermione loudly, making Ginny jump. Hermione brought the old spell book over to where Ginny sat expectantly. "This spell reverts hair back to its original color," read Hermione.
"Perfect!" Ginny exclaimed, sounding hopeful.
"Okay then." Hermione put the spell book down and pulled out her wand and pointed it at Ginny's head. "Pelotia Naturoso!"
Ginny watched in the mirror as the lime green hue evaporated into the air with a snake of greenish smoke. What was left, however, was not the Weasley's signature fiery red, but a dark, chocolate brown. Ginny's eyes grew wide in horror.
"Oh no! Now the green's gone, but my natural color still isn't back!"
Hermione gave Ginny a puzzled look. "Well, that's odd. The spell was executed perfectly. It looked like it had worked. Let's try it again. Pelotia Naturoso!"
Nothing happened.
Hermione frowned, but kept her wand pointed at Ginny's head. "Pelotia Naturoso," she said again, more defiantly, but Ginny's hair remained dark brown.
Now Hermione was getting a bit angry. She picked up the spell book and read through the page again, more carefully this time.
"Nope," she said aloud. "It should have worked. It says that it doesn't matter what color it is before, it will still turn the recipient's hair back to the color it naturally grows. Maybe we should go ask your mother for help."
Ginny was reluctant, but she agreed. Though she had to admit, she kind of liked the way she looked as a brunette. Still, red hair had always been the signature Weasley family trait; there hadn't been anyone in her family born without it for ages. Without her hair color, she thought, it made her feel like a different person. 'That's a silly thought,' she chided herself. 'You'd always be Ginny Weasley, no matter what color your hair was.'
Hermione and Ginny headed downstairs to the crowded living room where Molly, Arthur, Ron, Harry, Fred, George, Bill and Charlie sat, talking and laughing. However, the boisterous atmosphere of the living room was quickly dampened as Hermione led Ginny into the room.
"Um, mum?" squeaked Ginny, feeling incredibly shy at the moment. Ginny pointed to her hair as Hermione motioned for Molly to come with them into the kitchen. Hermione calmly explained the situation, as Molly became visibly pale.
"And we have no idea why it didn't return to its natural red color."
"Hermione dear," replied Molly after a thoughtful pause, "Would you go out into the living room and tell Arthur to join us in here please?"
Hermione sensed the strain in Molly's normally cheerful voice, and nodded wordlessly, gracefully ducking out of the kitchen. A moment later, Arthur Weasley joined Ginny and Molly. He was equally as ashen as Molly.
"Now Ginny dear," Molly started, speaking softly, "You know that no matter what happens, you'll always be our daughter..." Ginny's stomach suddenly felt queasy. "Around fifteen years ago, a friend of ours came to us in the middle of the night, carrying a small bundle in her arms. She looked scared and was acting strangely. And then, she asked us for the biggest favor that anyone could ever ask for. She wanted us to raise the tiny baby girl in her arms. That's when we first saw you. You were only a few months old, but still the most beautiful baby girl we had ever seen, and your father and I had wanted a daughter, we agreed to raise you as our own. We enchanted your hair to grow red, but this is its natural color." Ginny felt hot tears well up in her eyes.
"So, I'm...I'm not your real daughter?" Ginny practically whispered before starting to cry quietly. Molly and Arthur got up and went over to Ginny and threw their arms around her.
"You've always been our daughter, Ginny, no matter who your real parents are. We love you more than anything," said Arthur in a consoling voice. Tears continued to stream down Ginny's face. She buried her head in her parent's arms, soaking up their warmth, their love. Suddenly, she looked up.
"So, who are my real parents then?" Ginny managed to ask without choking up.
Molly looked into Ginny's big, hazel eyes. "Well, your mother's name was Silvia Ager, a friend of mine at Hogwarts. We had lost touch over the years, and then she turned up on our doorstep with you that night, around 15 years ago. She wouldn't say who your father was."
"Is...is she still alive?"
This time Arthur spoke. "I'm afraid not. About a year later, they discovered her body outside of Diagon Alley. There were rumors that she was killed by the Death Eaters, but not enough proof."
Ginny nodded sadly. "Do my brothers know that I'm not a real Weasley?"
"Ginny, honey, you are a real Weasley, no matter who your parents were. Bill, Charlie and Percy know, but Fred, George and Ron don't," Mrs. Weasley replied. She then pulled out her wand and said 'Accio note' and continued. "Ginny, on the night that we decided to adopt you, your mother gave us this note to give to you when you found out that you weren't our biological child." A piece of folded parchment flew into the room and straight to Molly's hand. "This is that note. Here, Ginny, this is for you."
Ginny carefully took the note from Molly and looked it over. The parchment had tanned from age and there was an unbroken silver wax seal on it.
"Thanks...mum, dad."
Molly and Arthur's eyes started to tear up, so they all had a good cry, sharing memories of the family and Ginny growing up. Finally, when there was more laughter than tears, Ginny yawned and excused herself to bed, but not before giving both of her parents and extra long hug.
When Ginny got to her room, she noticed that she had the note from her real mother-no, not her real mother, Molly was her real mother- her biological mother still in her hand. Curiosity got the best of her, so she decided to open it and read it. The letter was written in slightly faded black ink and read:
To my daughter,
Knowledge is both a blessing and a burden. If you are reading this, chances are that I am no longer alive. Your life is very valuable, so I have given you to Arthur and Molly Weasley. They will be able to protect you better than I can. I bet you are wondering why I have given you up. It is because you, my child, are the daughter of Lord Voldemort. If he knows you exist, he will hunt you down and kill you, or worse. I am already wanted by the Death Eaters, if you had continued to remain in my care, you would surely be killed along with me. Daughter, you must live, you must stay alive. There is great power within you, and it must not fall into the wrong hands.
Your mother,
Silvia Ager
Ginny felt like she had just had the wind knocked out of her.
A/N: Well, that's the first chapter. Please let me know what you think, because I love, love, LOVE constructive criticism. So, please review, you'll make my day! Also, leaning towards a Draco/Ginny ship, though a Harry/Ginny ship would be interesting in this situation. Please let me know which one you prefer when you review!