Chapter 12
A Cunning, Cunning plan!
The office door swung open, leading Harry and Ginny into a clean, clinical office. The walls were all bare and painted stark white. Two large bookcases, stacked with modern looking books stood on either side of the room. A medium sized, black metal desk sat towards the back of the room. No pictures were on it, only neat, official looking papers all stacked into important piles on the surface. One large, old-fashioned straight back chair was on one side, and two, very uncomfortable chairs were opposite of it. This was the space Ginny had completed her interview in. "See Harry, if Moody can keep a tidy office, why can't you?" She immediately went to sit.
"What are you doing?"Moody coughed a harsh laugh, "Oh, no Weasley, we're going to my real office, I don't trust this place as far as I can through an elephant." He then proceeded to open a bookcase which had been concealing a hidden office cramped to the point of claustrophobia. It was a large room, filled to the rafters with... well everything. Odd instruments hung from the ceiling, walls and somehow from the floors. The sneakascopes were on full alarm. Mainly, well at least all of the surface area, was covered with posters, of every criminal that wasn't caught from the war, even a large print out in which the Quibbler, which had become quite a respectable non-ministry magazine had printed, "Potter War, is it our World War II?" Harry had to admit, as much as he detested to lending his name to the war more than he had to, the two wars had similar characteristics. Both were lead by Mad-men, who brain washed people into believing a certain group was evil, and both times, luckily, the men were proven wrong.
The walls were not only dripping with posters, but also pictures of Moody with friends, and who Harry imagined was family. Also various awards hung from the walls. In the corner, sat the trunk that had indeed held Moody prisoner during Harry's fourth year.
The place was in shambles, and Harry was getting more and more comfortable by the minute. "Ginny, what was that you were saying about me being more organized like Moody?" Harry was enjoying the fact that he could throw this back in her face.
"Shut it Harry, I'm not in the mood." Ginny, who had grown up with all males knew how dirty their minds could be; the instant she saw the smirk on Harry's face she flashed him a warning glance and waved her wand.
Instantly, green, blue and orange sparks illuminated the room and Harry grabbed Ginny and ducked for cover.
"What ... was ... that?" Ginny managed to spit out through the shock.
"That was me," the gravely voice of Moody growled, "there will be no funny business in here. If you two can't control your immature emotions I'll do it for you, and my way is more painful, much more painful..."
"I can see that they aren't joking, he really does get more paranoid by the year," Harry muttered under his breath.
"And more sinister," Ginny added under her breath.
"Oh sure, everyone thinks I'm crazy, but I'm right, I know it, I'm right," Moody barked this as he sat down in a very comfortable office chair, "Oh, your shocked to see me, still sharp as a tack, the only thing I've lost is looks," at this point he gave another laugh, only this time it was softer, like a memory that he wasn't sure existed. "So anyway you two, we've got to have a talk about this case, where are you going with it?"
"What," Ginny was completely taken aback, "You don't want to yell at us about supposedly getting married?"
"What, oh that load of crap? Why in the hell do I care about your personal life, besides, I knew instantly you two wouldn't elope, Harry doesn't have the guts to face down Molly, and besides, you wouldn't dare not invite me." Moody winked through his beaten, scarred, leathery face.
"So, sir," Harry continued, "you want to discus the case?"
"Yeah, yeah, as a matter of fact I need you two," Moody looked lost again, or at least that was the impression they were getting from his expression. "Remember Voldemort's Brother you met?"
"What, how do you know about him? We haven't even got the paper work done on that yet!?!" Ginny was shocked ,how did this old paranoid man know so much?
"Weasley, no important right now. Here's what you need to know, so you will know what to do: Get into this portrait, go to his house, and spy for three days. Any problems?" Moody said all this in a voice that was merely stating the sky was blue.
"Well, for one that's impossible, how are we suddenly to become paint, its physically impossible." Harry was shocked at Moody, the man's completely lost his mind. All gone, he's been used up, this man is no more, not to steal a Monty Python phrase or anything.
"Actually Potter, its quite practical, just unorthodox, so hop on in." Moody said this in a final voice.
He pulled back a curtain, unlocked a strange snake rope with his wand and revealed a solid blurred color square dripping in everytime of color swirling like a puddle of oil.
Harry stepped in first, instantly the square became more solid. Then Ginny joined him. And the Square became a portrait.
"Okay you two, no funny business, spy, be discreet and don' be seen."
"Moody? Just one thing, is this similar to what Dumbledore uses to know everything at Hogwarts?" Ginny couldn't hold in her curiosity any longer.
Moody just laughed, "We all have our tricks and dirty little secrets, haha. You've got three days now, anything and everything you need is in there. Here's a map. Be careful on what you do, you can always add but you can't take away while painting."
"What do you mean?" Harry was puzzled.
"You'll see Potter. Good bye, remember, be careful. And search for the Reco's. Oh and by the way, I'll explain your disappearance." He continued to laugh.
"So, where the hell are we Harry?" Ginny was confused. They were in a huge grassy meadow, with doors popping up every few steps.
"I think this is the right one. Here, hold this, I'll open it up"
It was the wrong one.
They walked into a painting of a Hot Air balloon, with some kind of anti-stress saying; it clearly didn't work.
"HERMIONE! You didn't?!?!" It was an outraged Ron. Clearly laughing hysterically all the while slightly getting less and less mad. He was twirling a pencil through his fingers while his girlfriend pranced around the room.
"Honestly Ron, all I had to do was write a lovely letter to Luna to print it in the Quibbler, and then I called our favorite Beetle bug." At this point she spun around in a full circle.
"Mione, why, why did you drag her up in this. Harry will never forgive you!" Ron cast this out of his mouth in a warning tone.
"Ron, those two need to get together, your brothers plan isn't effective in the slightest. You all might as well try to get Lupin to marry Nymphadora."
"'Mione, they are married."
"No they aren't", Hermione was quite sure of herself on this count.
"Yeah they are, right after the war, remember?"
"Was that the one I got drunk at the reception?"
"Yeah 'Mione, that's when you became an alcoholic."
"Shut up Ron! I'm a not an alcoholic."
"Whatever you say." Ron but on a disbelieving face.
Ginny glanced over to Harry, "What do you think they are arguing about?"
"Whatever it is, we don't wanna know anymore details than necessary. I'm sure of that."
"What do you think Hermione did?" Ginny gave Harry a intense questioning look.
"If it's something to do with Rite Skeeter I don't want any part of it."
"All right, its cold, lets find the right place."
"Good idea brain child" Ginny shoved him through the door.
"Think your real tough, don'tcha Weasley?" Harry jokingly pulled her into a headlock, loose enough for her to get out, but she wasn't really paying enough attention to.
"As a matter of fact I do Potter." Ginny flashed him a mischievous grin and took the map. After consulting it she grabbed his hand and took off to the correct door.
Meanwhile...
Moody burst into Ron and Hermione's office, "Did it work, did they hear?"
"Yeah, but I don't think they put it all together," Ron said off-handily.
"It will, it'll work, those two will see the light eventually, they have too." Moody said as he grinded the remainder of his teeth.
"In all of my years, I never thought you would be such a hopeless romantic." George had, once again popped in with his twin.
"Yeah Moo-moo," (The twins called him that on account of an incident two years ago in which Moody, jumped the gun on an operation and transfigured himself and the other people in the room, into a herd of cattle.) Fred interjected, "We had to pinned for a more, well, drunk and bitter old man."
"Hush you two, or I'll get you both in your sleep." Moody was looking extremely sinister, however the twins rarely knew when was the right time to give up, they were risk-takers, and they liked to push until they were up against the wall.
"Gred?" George winked.
"Yes, Forge?" Fred smirked.
"I think Moo-moo is threatening us."
"Not in this office last time is was blown to smithereens." Hermione mentioned in a disapproving tone.
"Fine, I'll give you two to the count of three, hide and I garuntee I'll smell you rats out."
"Good luck smelling with the bump you call a nose." Fred said as he took off out the door.
"Yeah Moo-moo, c'mon. Let's see what you can do." George winked as he slammed the door on the way out into the main office area.
"This time, I will not do any perminate structural damage, as to damage to their brains, well their already addled."
"Moody, before you go, do you really think all of this will work?" Hermione looked nervous.
"Yup, give her a couple more weeks and him about a couple of months, and they won't be able to keep their hand off of each other. So now, if you don't mind, I gotta go and kill the twins." Moody, who was surprisingly agile for a old man, took off out the door.
Immediately you could see lights flashing and things breaking. Luckily, Moody ran the department. The oddest thing about it all was that those doing office work that day continued, business as usual.
"Harry, what is that?" Ginny was scared sounding.
"I couldn't tell you. Let's just hang out here for a while. Or should we check other portraits?"
NO, we stay here. Only God knows what else is in the other ones."
"But what is it?"
Sorry this was way late. Review please! please! please! Thank ya much!
A Cunning, Cunning plan!
The office door swung open, leading Harry and Ginny into a clean, clinical office. The walls were all bare and painted stark white. Two large bookcases, stacked with modern looking books stood on either side of the room. A medium sized, black metal desk sat towards the back of the room. No pictures were on it, only neat, official looking papers all stacked into important piles on the surface. One large, old-fashioned straight back chair was on one side, and two, very uncomfortable chairs were opposite of it. This was the space Ginny had completed her interview in. "See Harry, if Moody can keep a tidy office, why can't you?" She immediately went to sit.
"What are you doing?"Moody coughed a harsh laugh, "Oh, no Weasley, we're going to my real office, I don't trust this place as far as I can through an elephant." He then proceeded to open a bookcase which had been concealing a hidden office cramped to the point of claustrophobia. It was a large room, filled to the rafters with... well everything. Odd instruments hung from the ceiling, walls and somehow from the floors. The sneakascopes were on full alarm. Mainly, well at least all of the surface area, was covered with posters, of every criminal that wasn't caught from the war, even a large print out in which the Quibbler, which had become quite a respectable non-ministry magazine had printed, "Potter War, is it our World War II?" Harry had to admit, as much as he detested to lending his name to the war more than he had to, the two wars had similar characteristics. Both were lead by Mad-men, who brain washed people into believing a certain group was evil, and both times, luckily, the men were proven wrong.
The walls were not only dripping with posters, but also pictures of Moody with friends, and who Harry imagined was family. Also various awards hung from the walls. In the corner, sat the trunk that had indeed held Moody prisoner during Harry's fourth year.
The place was in shambles, and Harry was getting more and more comfortable by the minute. "Ginny, what was that you were saying about me being more organized like Moody?" Harry was enjoying the fact that he could throw this back in her face.
"Shut it Harry, I'm not in the mood." Ginny, who had grown up with all males knew how dirty their minds could be; the instant she saw the smirk on Harry's face she flashed him a warning glance and waved her wand.
Instantly, green, blue and orange sparks illuminated the room and Harry grabbed Ginny and ducked for cover.
"What ... was ... that?" Ginny managed to spit out through the shock.
"That was me," the gravely voice of Moody growled, "there will be no funny business in here. If you two can't control your immature emotions I'll do it for you, and my way is more painful, much more painful..."
"I can see that they aren't joking, he really does get more paranoid by the year," Harry muttered under his breath.
"And more sinister," Ginny added under her breath.
"Oh sure, everyone thinks I'm crazy, but I'm right, I know it, I'm right," Moody barked this as he sat down in a very comfortable office chair, "Oh, your shocked to see me, still sharp as a tack, the only thing I've lost is looks," at this point he gave another laugh, only this time it was softer, like a memory that he wasn't sure existed. "So anyway you two, we've got to have a talk about this case, where are you going with it?"
"What," Ginny was completely taken aback, "You don't want to yell at us about supposedly getting married?"
"What, oh that load of crap? Why in the hell do I care about your personal life, besides, I knew instantly you two wouldn't elope, Harry doesn't have the guts to face down Molly, and besides, you wouldn't dare not invite me." Moody winked through his beaten, scarred, leathery face.
"So, sir," Harry continued, "you want to discus the case?"
"Yeah, yeah, as a matter of fact I need you two," Moody looked lost again, or at least that was the impression they were getting from his expression. "Remember Voldemort's Brother you met?"
"What, how do you know about him? We haven't even got the paper work done on that yet!?!" Ginny was shocked ,how did this old paranoid man know so much?
"Weasley, no important right now. Here's what you need to know, so you will know what to do: Get into this portrait, go to his house, and spy for three days. Any problems?" Moody said all this in a voice that was merely stating the sky was blue.
"Well, for one that's impossible, how are we suddenly to become paint, its physically impossible." Harry was shocked at Moody, the man's completely lost his mind. All gone, he's been used up, this man is no more, not to steal a Monty Python phrase or anything.
"Actually Potter, its quite practical, just unorthodox, so hop on in." Moody said this in a final voice.
He pulled back a curtain, unlocked a strange snake rope with his wand and revealed a solid blurred color square dripping in everytime of color swirling like a puddle of oil.
Harry stepped in first, instantly the square became more solid. Then Ginny joined him. And the Square became a portrait.
"Okay you two, no funny business, spy, be discreet and don' be seen."
"Moody? Just one thing, is this similar to what Dumbledore uses to know everything at Hogwarts?" Ginny couldn't hold in her curiosity any longer.
Moody just laughed, "We all have our tricks and dirty little secrets, haha. You've got three days now, anything and everything you need is in there. Here's a map. Be careful on what you do, you can always add but you can't take away while painting."
"What do you mean?" Harry was puzzled.
"You'll see Potter. Good bye, remember, be careful. And search for the Reco's. Oh and by the way, I'll explain your disappearance." He continued to laugh.
"So, where the hell are we Harry?" Ginny was confused. They were in a huge grassy meadow, with doors popping up every few steps.
"I think this is the right one. Here, hold this, I'll open it up"
It was the wrong one.
They walked into a painting of a Hot Air balloon, with some kind of anti-stress saying; it clearly didn't work.
"HERMIONE! You didn't?!?!" It was an outraged Ron. Clearly laughing hysterically all the while slightly getting less and less mad. He was twirling a pencil through his fingers while his girlfriend pranced around the room.
"Honestly Ron, all I had to do was write a lovely letter to Luna to print it in the Quibbler, and then I called our favorite Beetle bug." At this point she spun around in a full circle.
"Mione, why, why did you drag her up in this. Harry will never forgive you!" Ron cast this out of his mouth in a warning tone.
"Ron, those two need to get together, your brothers plan isn't effective in the slightest. You all might as well try to get Lupin to marry Nymphadora."
"'Mione, they are married."
"No they aren't", Hermione was quite sure of herself on this count.
"Yeah they are, right after the war, remember?"
"Was that the one I got drunk at the reception?"
"Yeah 'Mione, that's when you became an alcoholic."
"Shut up Ron! I'm a not an alcoholic."
"Whatever you say." Ron but on a disbelieving face.
Ginny glanced over to Harry, "What do you think they are arguing about?"
"Whatever it is, we don't wanna know anymore details than necessary. I'm sure of that."
"What do you think Hermione did?" Ginny gave Harry a intense questioning look.
"If it's something to do with Rite Skeeter I don't want any part of it."
"All right, its cold, lets find the right place."
"Good idea brain child" Ginny shoved him through the door.
"Think your real tough, don'tcha Weasley?" Harry jokingly pulled her into a headlock, loose enough for her to get out, but she wasn't really paying enough attention to.
"As a matter of fact I do Potter." Ginny flashed him a mischievous grin and took the map. After consulting it she grabbed his hand and took off to the correct door.
Meanwhile...
Moody burst into Ron and Hermione's office, "Did it work, did they hear?"
"Yeah, but I don't think they put it all together," Ron said off-handily.
"It will, it'll work, those two will see the light eventually, they have too." Moody said as he grinded the remainder of his teeth.
"In all of my years, I never thought you would be such a hopeless romantic." George had, once again popped in with his twin.
"Yeah Moo-moo," (The twins called him that on account of an incident two years ago in which Moody, jumped the gun on an operation and transfigured himself and the other people in the room, into a herd of cattle.) Fred interjected, "We had to pinned for a more, well, drunk and bitter old man."
"Hush you two, or I'll get you both in your sleep." Moody was looking extremely sinister, however the twins rarely knew when was the right time to give up, they were risk-takers, and they liked to push until they were up against the wall.
"Gred?" George winked.
"Yes, Forge?" Fred smirked.
"I think Moo-moo is threatening us."
"Not in this office last time is was blown to smithereens." Hermione mentioned in a disapproving tone.
"Fine, I'll give you two to the count of three, hide and I garuntee I'll smell you rats out."
"Good luck smelling with the bump you call a nose." Fred said as he took off out the door.
"Yeah Moo-moo, c'mon. Let's see what you can do." George winked as he slammed the door on the way out into the main office area.
"This time, I will not do any perminate structural damage, as to damage to their brains, well their already addled."
"Moody, before you go, do you really think all of this will work?" Hermione looked nervous.
"Yup, give her a couple more weeks and him about a couple of months, and they won't be able to keep their hand off of each other. So now, if you don't mind, I gotta go and kill the twins." Moody, who was surprisingly agile for a old man, took off out the door.
Immediately you could see lights flashing and things breaking. Luckily, Moody ran the department. The oddest thing about it all was that those doing office work that day continued, business as usual.
"Harry, what is that?" Ginny was scared sounding.
"I couldn't tell you. Let's just hang out here for a while. Or should we check other portraits?"
NO, we stay here. Only God knows what else is in the other ones."
"But what is it?"
Sorry this was way late. Review please! please! please! Thank ya much!