Ginevra called Ginny
The Riddle House
Everyone feared there had been yet another innocent loss to be added to the list of casualties in the war that had followed Harry Potter's fifth year at Hogwarts. Everyone had expected him to be able to go up to Voldemort, wave his wand and make the boogie man disappear. It was what Harry thought he too could do. But sadly, life just didn't work like that, especially not for Harry. Harry lifted his head off of his cluttered desk of his room at Hogwarts. He had moved out of the dormitory recently, he just couldn't stand being near people, and knowing that he may hurt them.
Everyone assumed his visions had left him. Everyone assumed he was safe. But Harry knew better. Harry had tried to block his mind to it, until he recognized the girl in his visions. Now his visions of her were his fear and his hope.
What he saw made him fear for Ginny, made him angry, made him scared. He wanted to help her, to save her, protect her, but she was still too far away. He also assumed that Voldemort was holding her until Harry came to him. Harry knew Ginny was being used as bait, and so did Ginny. But why had Ginny gone in the first place? She knew she would be safe here at Hogwarts.
His visions of her also kept him hoping she was alive. Every night he ignored his Oclumency, he saw her, and it made him feel better. He risked penitration into his mind. He risked it every night to know that she was still alive. Harry told Ron, even though Hermione said not to that she was alive. She said not to get Ron's hopes up, but Harry figured that Ron and Hermione were in the war as deep as he was. They were all active members of the Order of the Phoenix, as well as the D.A. or Dumbledore's army, which was the only reason he remained here at Hogwarts.
He taught the Army everything he knew, they had a right to know all they could. The wizard's world had become a dangerous place, not knowing one curse or counter-curse could be the difference between life or death. The classes exhausted him, they tired him, they tested him, but Harry knew better. He knew, that eventually he would face a more challenging task than dueling a group of 16 year old wizards. In fact, Harry already had, many times.
This was another reason that Harry wasn't sleeping well. Between the visions and the nightmares, and the studying, he was lucky to steal a few hours; no matter how tormenting they were.
Nobody asked Harry why he wasn't sleeping well, why he looked tired, they all knew. They knew all about the nightmares, the screaming, the sleepwalking.
The first time Harry slept-walked, it had been funny, he was trying to pulled down some curtains, which he was going to make into a ladder to climb down Gryffindor tower with. The next time it was frightening. Hermione had woken up with Harry, wand in hand, standing over her, doing some kind of security ward, which he still doesn't remember. She wasn't sure quite what he was doing, until later, when he awoke and was asked.
For his own safety, as well as everyone else's, he had moved into a spare room in the tower. In this room her collected clippings from any and every paper about Voldemort. Harry studied him, from every angle about everything. Harry knew all too well what the prophesy meant, and he knew there was a huge chance that he could die on the way to distorting Voldemort, but he wouldn't be going alone.
Harry knew everything about Voldemort. Harry also had researched, with Ron's, Hermione's, and sometimes Ginny's help, every single type of killing/vanquishing curse, hex, spell, charm, potion and all that jazz.
In doing so, Harry began to amass quite the knowledge of Dark Arts. Malfoy, who by now was generally recognized as the scum of the universe, began to spread rumors that Harry had gone to the Dark side, to Voldemort's cause.
About a week after Ginny left Malfoy started.
"OY, Potter?! I Off to chat with you-know-who? That's what people usually do after they turned loved ones in, and now that Ginny' gone..." Malfoy sneered one day after advanced potions.
Harry, completely calm and cool, pulled out him wand and hexed him, "Alivisoria Congestatora!"
Malfoy never stood a chance, he was rocketed off the ground, straight into the cold stone wall, bounced off, landed on his face, and began violently puking.
"What was that you were saying about me Ferret?" Harry said in a cold voice. The days of being polite were over. "Go ahead and write to your father, tell him all about how I beat you up. Make sure you get tear stains all over the paper, make sure you snot all over it and everything. Then as a P.S. add: Potter sends his love, and he still is going to kill ol' Voldemort. Happy Easter!"
Harry turned and walked briskly up the stairs, to the main all, out the main doors, down the sloping lawn, and to Hagrid's. He didn't even bother to knock of the door, he just burst in, shaking with rage. He left a stunned audience, including Ron and Hermione, in his wake.
"What the ..? Why hello Harry. Would you like some tea?" Hagrid asked with his back turned to the kettle.
"Sure Hagrid." Harry said in a would be calm voice, he was still shaking.
Hagrid turned slowly, "Is something bothering you Harry?"
Harry took a deep, calming breath and told Hagrid everything, about the nightmares, about the visions, about Malfoy.
"Ahh Harry, Malfoy's a little trash talking daddy's boy. You were right to call him a ferret. As for the nightmares, see Madame Pomfrey, she'll fix you up good."
"Thanks, but what about the visions Hagrid?" Harry was grateful to have someone to talk to about all of the craziness.
Hagrids face fell, "You know I gotta tell Dumbledore-"
"He already knows! He just says I got to do my Oclumency properly!'
"Well, I'll tell ya what, it sounds as if you really don't mind them all that much, I mean they bother you, but you wana see her, don't you Harry?"
"Look Hagrid, I'm not going to lie and say I don't like seeing her every night, but its distracting."
"Well, I'll tell you what, when I get back, I'll bring you a treat."
Harry grimaced, whatever treat it was it would probably be dangerous. "Thanks Hagrid-" Then is clicked, "Wait, when you get back, where are you going?"
"Top secret Harry, real serious though... But not to worry! I'll be back in a jiffy!" Hagrid was trying to be cheerful, it was painfully obvious.
Harry was upset, he couldn't hide it, his shakes returned, this time for a different reason.
"Look Harry, I'll be fine, it'll only be a week."
It was two weeks now. Hagrid was not back. Ginny was not back. Harry shoved the desk over. It instantly made a loud crashing sound, strewing everything that was on the desk around the already chaotic room. Nothing in life was fair, Harry thought. Why was it that he always was expected to put the pieces together of a puzzle he wasn't in charge of?
Harry ran his fingers through his hair, he looked across the room, to the walls, on which were displayed a timeline of Voldemorts life. A nagging feeling was calling him to the corner near the window. He looked to it. It was a picture of Voldemorts graduating class. McGonagal had been in it.
Oh man, McGonagol! Harry had an essay due for her in the morning, she had already given him and extension! Harry righted his desk with a flick of his want, step up and quill, inkwell, and a roll of parchment. He was just going to have to dictate the letter. It was a useful trick he had picked up from Mr. Weasley.
There was a noise near the door, apparently someone was trying to open it. Harry moved over to heave the load of junk away from it. It was Hermione, "Harry, I heard noises. What are you doing up here?"
"Homework," Harry muttered as he tried to shield her from the room, but he was no good at hiding things from Hermione, she knew him too well.
"Harry James Potter! Look at the state of your room! I know your depressed, we all are, but its not reason to let your room go like this! And the walls! Your becoming a fanatic about all this-"
"Hermione, you know I've got to be prepared!" Harry snapped.
"Yes, prepared! But in a organized fashion! If you would only put things away when you've finished-'
Ron had stepped his way in, "Why don't you just clean it Hermione, we both know you've been itching to for days."
Hermione didn't even wait to start cleaning, "If you insist!"
Harry went to stop her, but Ron reached over and grabbed his arm, "Let her, it keeps her mind busy and off of things. Come here, we need to talk."
Ron led Harry to the corner Harry was initially looking at.
"Look, this sucks, Ginny and Hagrid are both missing, but really, we've got to stay on our toes here in the school. Mum's having kittens about you and me and Hermione as it is. She just lectured me via letter-" Ron waved what was a piece of parchment with his hand, "that we are not to go sneaking around this year. She said that for the past six years we've snuck around, and each successive year it has gotten more and more dangerous."
"Did you explain to her that that is what makes life worth living, what makes it fun?"
"You know mum, keep you nose to the grindstone, smile, and don't say anything."
Harry nodded, he had noticed something. It was a picture of the Voldemort's father's home. It was a huge white house, and it had the appearance of once being a grand manor. It jogged something in Harry's mind. Something-
"Harry, are you paying attention? Mum wants me to write back and swear not to leave school till I graduate. The most I can hold off writing it is a couple of days. Now, are you going anywhere? On any more adventures? Or can I write back and say we'll all be good sheep?"
"Can I get back to you on that?" Harry kept on thinking. Yes that house was very familiar, with some man named Frank.
"What're you thinking about mate? Come on, I see it in your eyes."
Apparently Hermione did too because she exclaimed, "Not now Harry, now it probably the worst of times to be sneaking out of school."
"I know where Ginny is." Everything fell into place, nobody really knew about the Tom Riddle connection to Voldemort. It was the perfect place to hide out.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Ron was halfway out the door when Hermione grabbed him by the back of the neck.
"Harry, not that I don't have total faith in you, however, I need some concrete evidence."
Harry ripped the snapshot of the house off of the wall. "Place," then he went to a stone basin he kept in the wardrobe, it was empty at the moment because he didn't trust anyone to leave it be, Harry lifted his wand to his temple, pulled it away with the dream he had had the beginning of his fourth year, and dropped it in the Pensive and swirled. "After you my lady."
"Harry, when did you get a Pensive? And please don't say that, you sound so sinister," Hermione mentioned as her curiosity made her step forward.
"I am sinister, one-"
"Harry do I have to go in their as well?"
"Yes Ron, the both of you, your going to see this, and your going to believe me, I'm not sure if I ever told you about this vision, but its exactly where Ginny is. Two-"
"Okay, okay we're going..." Hermoine said as she grabbed Ron's hand and stuck her finger into the pool of swirling gray mist.
Harry also stuck in his hand, instantly the three were pulled into the dream/vision Harry had.
They walked the halls with him, saw the snake he had seen, Nagini, slithering down the halls, past the poor, terrified old muggle. The both witnessed Wormtail, pre-silver hand, serving Voldemort and they witnessed Voldemort murdering Frank, the caretaker.
"Okay Harry, so you have some evidence. What now?" Hermione asked as Harry took them back to his room.
They landed in the exact same places they were before in Harry's room. Harry began, "That's the evidence. We know the who-"
Ron finished, "All we need is the when."
Harry smiled as Hermione finally controlled her trembling legs. "I think that goes without saying."
"You really are smart Hermione, the time is now."
Hermione did something next that shocked them all. " I agree, we need to act, and now."
Ron gaped, "Yeah, but, what about our school work?"
"Don't be thick Ron, who cares about that now? We'll pass in what we do have now and screw the rest of it. We'll finish it when .." she caught herself, she almost said if, " When we get back."
"I agree, hope about we meet back here in 20 minutes?" Harry suggested.
"Sounds good," Ron said as he dashed for the door to turn in all the assignments he had done. Hermione was quick to follow him. Harry sighed, was he ready? He flicked his wand and sent his homework's to the corresponding addresses. He was not going to waste time running about the castle to find people.
Harry reviewed some notes he knew by heart, and called Hedwig down from her perch. He scribbled a note to Dumbledore then paused, should he really risk Ron's and Hermione's lives? No it wasn't fair to ask that of them, he would just have to explain it to them when they returned.
20 minutes later...
"HARRY! You've completely lost your marbles-" Hermione bellowed.
"Gone mental-" Ron added.
"If you think you're going without us-"
"You've completely lost it." Ron finished.
Harry sighed, he sure picked some stubborn friends. "All right, but I don't want either of you to get hurt, any sign of danger, you leave. Swear it?"
"Yeah, right, whatever you say." They both pledged, with their fingers crossed behind their back, Harry recognized it, but it wasn't time to waste now. He finished off the note and sent it with Hedwig.
"Fine, we're off then, but what are we to take?"
"Isn't Buckbeak back here, at Hogwarts?" Hermoine suggested.
"Nah, let's just go out there and use whatever we see first. Buckbeak is probably sleeping, and I don't fancy waking him up." Harry said.
So they snuck out of the castle, down the grounds, and to the woods. Harry wasn't sure how far Little Haggleton was, but he remember a creature that would. "Guy's, let's use the Thestrals."
"Oh no Harry, I really would rather find Buckbeak," Hermione began but was clearly outdone as the creatures began to appear, they all could see them by now.
"Well, don't we shy, we've got to get going." Ron said as he lifted Hermione up, and thrusted her onto the fastest looking one.
"Come on Harry, we've got to get a move on if we're going to arrive before Dumbledore stops us." Ron was right.
Harry took a last glance at the Castle, and mounted. "To the Riddle House, Little Haggleton!" He exclaimed as they lifted into the crisp night air and out of sight.
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