DISCLAIMER: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
NOTICE: This chapter contains intense violence
The next day went somewhat better than the previous one, but that was only because Harry forced himself to ignore Ginny's fear as much as she was. It made him feel odd, and Hermione didn't feel any more comfortable at lunch than she had the day before.
When Harry returned from supper that night, he found Hedwig perched near the alarm bell Lazlo Petrov had demonstrated for them. As Harry approached, his owl held out her leg to inform him that he had a message. Ignoring the curious looks on Ron and Hermione's faces, Harry took the parchment from Hedwig and unrolled it.
Harry,
I would request that you and Ginny Weasley meet with me tonight. I will wait for you in my office. Come as soon as you have time.
Albus Dumbledore
Harry had almost completely forgotten about the comment Dumbledore had made to Ginny the day she'd come back to Hogwarts. Harry was certain that was what he intended to meet with him and Ginny about. With any luck, she would talk to him about her mark (if she had one) and Harry would be able to get some hint as to what was upsetting her so much.
He handed the note to Ginny. After simply glancing at the parchment, she handed it back to Harry. Apparently she'd been expecting this. He shoved the parchment back into his pocket and turned around with Ginny following him.
"And what was that?" Ron complained. "Or are we not important enough to know about it?"
Harry stopped and gave Ron an annoyed glare. "Ginny and I have to talk to Dumbledore."
"Why?" Ron asked. "Is it something about the D.A.?"
"No," Harry replied slowly, making no effort to hide his frustration.
"Then what?"
"I can't tell you now, Ron. Maybe after—"
"I was Memory Charmed," interrupted Ginny.
Ron and Hermione both stared at her, dumbfounded. "Memory Charmed?" Ron asked in shock. "Why? What did they make you forget?"
Ginny rolled her eyes. "If I knew that, it wouldn't be much of a Memory Charm, would it?" She pushed the portrait open. After checking to see that no one else was nearby she turned back to Ron. "We'll tell you if we learn anything you should know, okay? Don't blame Harry. He was just keeping a secret like I wanted him to."
With that, she grabbed Harry and pulled him into the corridor after her. The two of them made their way to Dumbledore's office. They tried talking, but somehow it suddenly felt awkward. Ginny seemed preoccupied, and Harry had to admit that he didn't like the idea of having Ginny remember the things she hadn't been charmed to forget. He didn't want to think that there might be more, yet at the same time, he couldn't ignore the tense feeling in his stomach that reminded him how much he needed to know what was still affecting her.
Harry tried to force himself to relax as they rode the spiral staircase up to Dumbledore's office. Dumbledore was waiting for them by his desk. In front of the desk were a pair of chairs. Harry and Ginny sat down.
Dumbledore shuffled a stack of parchment into a single pile and stuffed it into one of the drawers under his desk. "Before we do anything else, I wonder if you have remembered anything more from your captivity," he asked Ginny.
Ginny shook her head and seemed to shrink a little. "No, sir. I— I didn't really try."
"Yes, of course," Dumbledore said with a warm smile. "Perfectly understandable. Do you wish to know what happened?" Dumbledore looked intently at Ginny, and waited for her answer.
"I— I suppose I do," Ginny answered reluctantly. "I'm afraid of what it might be."
"An honest answer," Dumbledore replied. "I have called Harry here for two reasons. I suspect that the reason you have been Memory Charmed is related to him quite specifically." Dumbledore smiled gently as his eyes twinkled at Ginny. "And I hoped that you might be more comfortable with him here. Will that be alright with you?"
"Er... Yes," Ginny said as she tugged at her skirt. "I just... The room is... secure, right? No one can get in ...or out? We'll all be safe here?"
Dumbledore stared shrewdly at her, then drew his wand and swirled it just once. "I promise you that there is no safer place in all of Britain than this office, and that you and Harry are both quite secure here. Shall we begin?"
Ginny nodded, and Dumbledore began calmly asking her questions about that night. Most of it Harry already knew. She had planned everything out. She had nicked Harry's essay the night before, and borrowed the book and Harry's cloak and knife the next morning. That night, when Harry was halfway through his paper, she'd gone to her dormitory, sending Colin and Dennis off to return her book. She put on the cloak in her dormitory and slipped out the door when Colin and Dennis returned.
She told Dumbledore how she had walked along the edge of the forest to avoid the Aurors. She would have been difficult to spot even if she hadn't had the cloak. She picked the large oak as the place to wait. That was where Harry had broken his arm, where they had argued with Dean, and where Neville had been attacked. If there was one place to try and attract the Death Eaters' attention, that was it.
Once there, she'd made a small fire with her wand, then bundled it into the Invisibility Cloak with Harry's original essay and her necklace and given it Hedwig. She had planned on sending Hedwig off as late as she could, so that Harry wouldn't have time to try to save her. She kept Harry's knife to cut branches to make a larger fire.
It had worked, for the most part. She said she'd been worried when the Death Eaters had just stood and watched her after she'd sent off Hedwig, and that the worry had grown to panic when she saw Harry flying out to protect her.
"I had thought that it would be like the others. I thought I would just be hexed, and that would be it," Ginny said with reddening eyes. "I didn't think it would be like that. I... I'm sorry."
Dumbledore waved his hand dismissively. "We cannot change the past, Ginny. You have nothing to apologize for. Do you remember anything after the Portkey?"
"Well, er..." Ginny paused and seemed to be concentrating quite a bit. "Yes, I— I'm not sure. I think I was stunned. And I remember waking up and two of them —men, I'm certain— they..." she glanced at Harry, then turned away. "They took my robes. They wanted my wand. They kept asking me where it was. They didn't believe I'd left it behind. They were very angry when they couldn't find it."
"They probably intended to use your wand, instead of their own," Dumbledore added.
"I don't know what happened to my robes. I don't think I saw them again, but I don't remember them taking them off the floor."
"The first Memory Charm," Dumbledore said with grim certainty. "I want you to close your eyes and try to remember as much about that moment as you can."
Ginny seemed suddenly uncomfortable. She shifted nervously in her seat, tugging absentmindedly at her skirt. "I... I'm going to remember what happened to me?"
"If you try," Dumbledore said reassuringly. "You may be able to remember more with a little help." Ginny nodded stiffly. She seemed tense and nervous. Dumbledore drew out his wand, and talked softly to Ginny.
"Close your eyes. Tell me what happened when you first arrived."
Ginny's eyes closed and she tried to describe as much as she could: the cold dampness of the stone floor, the revulsion she felt as the Death Eaters rifled through her robes, the tight feeling in her throat as she tried to control her fear. As she spoke, Dumbledore began swirling his wand toward her. A fine golden mist collected on his wand and slowly crept toward Ginny, where it swirled and danced around her head.
"There was... a third Death Eater," Ginny said slowly, seemingly surprised by her own words. "He took the robes. They did want to use my wand. He said that... my wand was supposed to be some— some sign. They had to change their plans, but I... I don't know when he left... He must have but..."
Dumbledore stopped and the golden mist slowly melted away. Ginny opened her eyes and looked disappointed. "I'm sorry, sir, I just can't remember any more than that."
"You've done quite well," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "There is more we can try." Dumbledore explained what he had planned. The idea was simple. Ginny would be able to reclaim some of her memories with help from the spell Dumbledore had used so long as she had something specific to remember. The closer the memories were to the Memory Charm, the harder it would be. If Harry could describe what he'd seen in his visions, Ginny might be able to remember other things that happened around the same time.
A moment later, Ginny once again closed her eyes, and once the golden mist was spinning around her head again, Harry began explaining the vision he'd had with the Boggart. Ginny was concentrating very hard, and small beads of sweat were appearing across the bridge of her nose and cheekbones.
She did remember a number of things, but none gave them any more information about why she'd been taken, or what they had done with her for well over a week. She remembered being fed, the stabbing pains in her throat from drinking the poisoned water, and waking up with bruises from long nights sleeping on the stone floor. She had even punched one of the Death Eaters, who'd received the Cruciatus Curse for tossing her against the wall.
But it wasn't what they were looking for. There were no memories of being marked and no physical or magical attacks on her, except for that lone incident which resulted in the punishment of the Death Eater who had done it.
Dumbledore prompted Harry for more visions until he couldn't remember any more. Unfortunately, there were quite a few that Harry remembered, which Ginny had absolutely no recollection of. It seemed there were actually quite a large number of Memory Charms, but they were subtle and well cast. Without the smallest remnant of a memory, there was little Dumbledore's magic could do. Ginny looked very tired when she finally opened her eyes.
"I'm afraid we don't have anything more to work with, Miss Weasley," Dumbledore said in a disappointed tone. "And though many believe there is no end to my knowledge, I admit that I cannot think of any other way to help you. They were too thorough, and you have very few memories for me to work with. I regret that I do not know any other charms which can bring back memories taken forcibly."
An idea jumped into Harry's mind. Or had it been planted there? Could it be a coincidence?
"I do," he said before he had even decided whether it was something he should have shared. Both Dumbledore and Ginny turned to stare at him.
"You do what, Harry?" Ginny asked.
"I know a charm to bring back memories," he said slowly. "I've seen it performed. I watched Bellatrix use it on Neville."
"Harry, to accomplish such a thing would require powerful magic. It would take some practice—"
"He hasn't needed practice for months," Ginny interrupted. "He's been getting all the new charms and spells right on the first try. Or good enough." She sat back in her chair and stared at the floor, obviously trying to make some decision.
"I would not recommend that you try this, Harry," the Headmaster said. He looked quite serious. "However, this is Ginny's decision."
"Did it hurt him?" Ginny asked, still staring at the floor.
"Well, yes, but he was reliving his parents torture, wasn't he?" Harry replied. "And I don't know how good I'll be at it. You may not remember anything at all. I might be rubbish and mess it up."
"You won't. I trust you," Ginny whispered. She looked up at Dumbledore, then over to Harry.
"Do it."
Harry wasn't used to seeing Dumbledore look worried. He seemed to be looking about, as if he were searching his odd collection of small silver gadgets for something that might help. Finally, he looked back at Harry and gave him a reluctant nod.
Ginny was looking pale. She looked like she was trying to find a comfortable position to sit in, but failing utterly. Finally she pushed herself back into the chair, with her hands tucked under her legs.
"Are you okay?" Harry asked as he pulled out his wand, and walked in front of her.
"I— I'll be alright," she stammered. "Just do it... And promise you'll stay here with me when it's over."
"I will."
Harry raised his wand and tried to remember what it had looked like when Bellatrix had used it on Neville. It was a smooth swish with a sharp jab. The words echoed in his head. He took a deep breath and aimed his wand. Where did Bellatrix hit Neville? He wanted to make her remember, so should he aim at her head?
He aimed his wand right at Ginny's forehead. Her eyes stared back at him. He could see the fear and uncertainty in her eyes. What if it did hurt? Better to fail than hurt her, he thought. He lowered his wand to point at her upper chest.
His throat was dry and it was difficult to swallow. She'd volunteered to try this, he told himself. And he needed to know what Voldemort had done to her. As he concentrated, he remembered how Dumbledore had spoken to her, and he felt the anger building in him slowly. Perhaps that was for the best. It was probably Dark Magic, he thought, maybe it would only work if he was angry.
Harry gave Ginny a nod to tell her that he was ready. She closed her eyes and sat perfectly still. Harry began the smooth motion he'd seen Bellatrix make. He tried to remember the pair of Death Eaters entering the room in the cellar. As he jabbed his wand, he heard himself utter the spell.
"Sataru Mudutu!"
The same crackling ray of light he'd seen before raced from his wand to Ginny's chest. For the briefest moment Harry thought that the spell might not do anything, as Ginny remained completely still. Seconds later, however, her whole body seemed to tense up. Harry tried to concentrate on not breaking the spell as she arched her back and clutched at the arms of the chair.
The crackling light of the spell seemed to take on a life of its own as it leapt up her neck and settled on her temple. Ginny let out a gasping whimper as the light danced around her head. Her legs kicked and her arms flailed as she tried to gain control of her body. She seemed to be trying to say something. With a wrench, he pulled his wand away, breaking the spell.
Ginny flopped back, breathing in long rasping gasps. Her body went slack and she slid off her chair, falling to the floor limply. As she caught her breath, she started talking between gasps.
"A pair of Death Eaters... They said I'd stay until you came for me..." She took in deep scratchy breaths as she lay in a tumbled heap in front of her chair. "...said that Voldemort was going to wait... but they didn't do anything... I— They never did anything..."
She kept talking but Harry couldn't hear her. The world around him had frozen. His eyes were staring at a single point in front of him. His stomach clenched painfully, and he would have been violently ill if he'd had any control over his body.
When Ginny had tumbled to the floor, her skirt had slid up her legs. As she lay gasping for breath with memories spilling from her mouth, Harry's eyes had caught something that filled him with a rage he didn't know he could have ever experienced. About halfway up the inside of her thigh, he saw something that looked like a nasty burn which which was still healing. It was red and irritated, and appeared as a single jagged line shaped like a lightning bolt.
Harry couldn't hear anything anymore. His ears and mind were overwhelmed by the deafening sound of a rushing wind mixing with the screams of everyone who'd ever been in his nightmares, Voldemort's laughter and the slow, painful pounding of his own heart. Ginny was still talking and her eyes were filled with tears. He had to focus. He had to know.
"When did they mark you?" He said slowly.
Ginny gasped and made a weak attempt to push down her skirt and sit up. Instead her arm gave out, dropping her to the floor again. She looked back at Harry, with tears running down her cheeks.
"I don't know..." she sobbed. "It's all the same. Hours and hours of nothing, then one of them standing over me and... it burned. I thought my leg was on fire. But..."
"What happened before that?" Harry asked flatly, barely to restraining the storm raging inside him. "What did he do to you?"
"I... I don't know," Ginny said in a defeated voice. "I don't know if I was even awake. There's nothing... I just remember someone standing over me..." She gave Harry a resigned look. "I don't remember." With some effort, she forced herself up into a kneeling position and closed her eyes again. After a brief moment, she took a deep breath and nodded weakly.
Harry knew he had to try again. He had to know what Voldemort had done. He needed to know for certain. His mind had already considered a dozen things that might have happened, each more vile and horrible than the last. It was too much for him to take. He felt his insides boiling with anger and loathing. Knowing had to be better than this. This was agony. Nothing could be worse than this.
Harry raised his wand again. As his wand looped through the air, he could hear Dumbledore calling for him to stop, but that part of the world didn't exist anymore. There was only him and Ginny, and he needed Ginny to remember what had happened.
"Sataru Mudutu!"
The string of crackling light connected with Ginny again, and after a brief second of silence, she let out a short scream as she fell to the floor again in convulsions. Her back arched against the pain and her legs jerked uselessly. It seemed to be stronger than the last time.
Harry tried to concentrate on the image of the mark on Ginny's leg. It seemed to work. Ginny seemed to be thrashing less, and was slowly curling into a ball. Her mouth was working silently, as if she was trying to say something. Harry broke the spell. It was much easier this time.
Ginny was slower to respond, however. She wasn't taking the deep, gasping breaths she had been last time, but she wasn't talking either.
"What is it? What did he do?"
Ginny didn't respond. She just laid on the floor, her mouth opening and closing silently. Harry saw her trying to look at him, but every time she did, her eyes would roll back into her head, and she'd collapse onto the floor.
"What do you remember?"
Ginny took a pair of deep, rasping breaths, coughed, then took another deep breath.
"Nothing..." she said weakly. "There's nothing... must have fallen asleep... They—they just appeared... Just happened..."
Harry raised his wand again. He was getting better each time. They had done something to her. She could almost remember it. She knew she wasn't remembering it. He wouldn't let Voldemort have this secret. That must have been his plan all along. He would torture Harry with it. He had to fight back.
He aimed his wand at Ginny.
"Harry, NO!" Dumbledore shouted. He'd walked up behind Harry, and was reaching for the hand Harry was holding his wand in. But as the Headmaster's hand wrapped around his forearm, Harry felt a bizarre electric sensation passing through him. The old wizard's hand jerked away, and he stumbled and fell to the floor some distance away.
Harry turned back toward Ginny and began the steady swishing movement for the third time. Ginny saw him and reached out for him, as if she were asking to hold his hand. Or perhaps she was trying to tell him to wait. It didn't matter. She would remember everything after this try.
"Sataru Mudutu!"
The response was instantaneous this time. Ginny immediately curled herself into a ball on the floor as the crackling light flickered across her head and shoulders. Ginny's arms struggled to push her into a kneeling position, but her legs weren't cooperating, and she kept collapsing onto the floor. With one last effort she pushed herself off the ground. She let out a loud, pained scream as she fell to the ground again.
Harry broke the spell a third time. Ginny rolled onto her stomach, and pushed herself up to rest her elbows on the floor, making her flaming hair hang in a tangled curtain around her face. She let out a series of sharp coughs, followed by a number of gasping sobs.
"What do you remember, Ginny," he asked her again, but she didn't answer and simply held her self still. Harry's jaw tightened. "I'm sorry, Ginny. I swear, it's almost over." Harry raised his wand a fourth time.
She heard him and immediately let out a rasping shout as she flipped herself onto her side again. She put her hands out as if they might have stopped the spell.
"NO," she gasped. "Please, stop! No more... There's nothing... I-I can't—" Her voice was cut off by more coughing.
Harry's heart stopped when he looked at her. There was a pool of blood on the floor beneath her head and a steady trickle of crimson was making its way from her mouth and nose down her chin and neck. Her eyes were bloodshot and filled with fear.
She was terrified. She was terrified of him. In his mind, Harry heard her screams mixed with the screams of his mother begging for his life. Ginny collapsed again with another series of coughs, still begging for him to stop.
What had he done? She'd been telling him the truth. There was nothing more. Voldemort hadn't hurt her. He had. Harry's wand clattered to the floor as he rushed forward to Ginny.
Ginny looked up at him. There was no more fear in her eyes. They were filled with agony now. She didn't try to speak. Her eyes were bloodshot, with larger spots of red everywhere, and they seemed more sunken than they should be. Her face was deathly pale, making the blood on her lips seem even more grotesque.
"Quickly, Harry, You must fetch Poppy," Dumbledore ordered. "Tell her to come here immediately." He knelt beside Ginny and held his wand over her stomach. "I'll do what I can until then."
"I'm sorry," Harry gasped. "I—I didn't mean... I wasn't thinking... so angry..."
"I know, Harry," Dumbledore replied sharply. "We both know, but she needs your help again. Run, now!"
Harry ran as fast as he could. He didn't remember how many people he passed or who they might have been. They couldn't help him. Only Madam Pomfrey could.
Harry burst into the Hospital Wing and ran along the rows of beds looking for any sign that might tell him where Pomfrey was. He stopped suddenly when he noticed a flash of light outside. Someone had sent up green sparks, and they'd done it very close to the castle.
"Potter!" he heard Madam Pomfrey shout behind him. "What— What is is? You're not injured?"
"No, it's Ginny," Harry said quickly. "She's in Dumbledore's office. He said she needs you immediately."
"Oh my," Pomfrey said as she dashed into another room and came running out a moment later carrying a large bag which sounded like it was packed with every potion in her cabinets. "Come on," she beckoned. "He's opened the Floo for us!"
Harry ran after her as she darted into another room —her office it seemed— where a bright green fire was burning in the fireplace. Without any other word, Madam Pomfrey had stepped into the fire.
"The Headmaster's Office!"
There was a rush of fire and she was gone. Harry took a breath and jumped in after her. He stumbled out of the fireplace on the other end and tripped over the large bag Pomfrey had taken with her.
"Please be careful!" she shouted from where she was kneeling. "I may need quite a few of those. Please bring it here."
Harry picked the large bag up and slung it over his shoulder. He walked slowly to where Ginny was still lying. She was covered in a thick woolen blanket, but her arms were wrapped around her stomach and she was shaking. She still had dark red circles around her bloodshot eyes, and her teeth were pink with blood.
"She's much like the Longbottom boy was," Pomfrey said as she rummaged through the bag Harry had brought to her. "Though there was something else wrong with him. I don't believe Miss Weasley will need to go to St. Mungo's." She turned to look at Dumbledore. "She was attacked by the same wizard who attacked Longbottom?"
"It was the same spell," Dumbledore said with a quick glance at Harry. "Though Miss Weasley may have endured it longer."
Madam Pomfrey made Ginny drink a small goblet of a smoking white potion which made her eyelids flutter. After a few more spells and yet another wave of her wand to clean up a line of blood flowing down from the corner of Ginny's mouth, she conjured a large padded stretcher and Harry helped move Ginny onto it.
"I wonder if you might do me a favor, Harry," Dumbledore asked lightly as Ginny floated toward the fire. "Down those stairs are a number of Aurors. They are no doubt quite interested in what is going on here. You can tell them as much as you're comfortable telling them. If they have more questions, they can speak with me in the Hospital Wing."
When Harry got to the bottom of the stairs, he saw them, just as Dumbledore had said. They seemed hardly surprised to see Harry walking out of Dumbledore's office, and immediately started firing questions at him. After a quick explanation, Harry understood what was going on, but it didn't make him feel any better. The sparks he'd seen were signals to the Aurors that something had happened inside the castle. A number of dark detectors they had placed around important parts of the castle had gone off simultaneously.
"Either there are a number of Death Eaters here, or one very strong one," one of the older Aurors said. "It takes a bit more than your average Imperius Curse to set off that many detectors."
What had Harry done? He didn't tell the Aurors much more. He needed time. He needed to think. He told them that Dumbledore had gone to the Hospital Wing. They asked no more questions and rushed off.
Harry paced around for a short period of time. He couldn't go back to the common room. What was he supposed to say about Ginny? Harry felt his stomach clench. They would know when Ginny didn't return tonight. He'd have to go back sometime. He'd have to say something, but what? He couldn't really just walk up to Ron and say, Sorry Ron, I used some seriously dark magic on your sister, but cheer up, mate, I'm sure the bleeding will stop soon, could he?
Harry needed someplace to think. Before he was even sure where he was going, he found himself walking quickly and quietly down the hallway to a dusty abandoned office. He walked in and sat down where Ginny had been sitting the night she'd introduced him to his god-daughter.
He gave a bitter laugh at the thought. Dumbledore had been right. He wouldn't be able to protect her. He couldn't protect Neville or Dean or Justin. And he'd failed so miserably at protecting Ginny that he couldn't imagine a failure more complete. 'There's no safer place in all of Britain,' Dumbledore had said. It was a lie. No place was safe so long as he was there. He could never protect Claire because he himself was the most dangerous thing around her.
Harry shook his head, and tried to remove those thoughts from his head. He'd have to think about them, but not now. There were other, much more painful things to think about right now. How would he explain what happened to Ron and Hermione?
How would he explain it to Ginny?
Again, Harry had to wrench his mind back onto the immediate problem. Talking to Ginny was a terror he might not have to face for a few days. He sat silently in the room, staring out the window and watching the Aurors return to their normal patrols, while he struggled through the impending conversation again and again.
Each time he tried to come up with some way of explaining it, he ended up sounding like some madman trying to justify some atrocity he'd committed. It was appropriate, Harry thought. Wasn't that just what he was trying to do? He knew waiting wouldn't change anything, but perhaps if he put it off long enough, he wouldn't have to endure hours with Ron and Hermione before claiming that he needed to sleep.
And so Harry sat and looked out into the inky sky. There were no stars. They had been blotted out by dark rolling clouds that kept the moon to little more than a sickly glow in the night sky. Voldemort would have been pleased to see what Harry had done and Harry dreaded the moment he knew would be coming, the moment he'd feel a loathsome lightness in his stomach as Voldemort learned what had happened.
That thought itself only made him more angry, and he had to control his emotions. He had to let them go. He couldn't let Voldemort know something had happened. He couldn't let Voldemort pull him into another vision. Not tonight. Not now.
So Harry forced himself to relax. His eyes closed and he focused on the shapeless clouds drifting across the moon. The world melted away into nothingness. There was no one else here. Just Harry.
"Hullo there?"
Harry's body jerked back into awareness as he fell to the dusty floor. As the cloud around him settled he saw Claire standing in the doorway, looking pale and quite a bit more startled than he was. He felt an all too familiar chill as he looked at her face, and realized what he'd done.
His wand was out, and pointed directly at Claire's chest.
His hand jerked back as if his wand were a red hot poker, letting it fall back to the floor with a clatter.
"I'm sorry—" Claire started to say weakly. "I... I didn't mean to wake you."
"I wasn't sleeping," Harry said dismissively as he gingerly picked up his wand and stuffed it into one of his robe pockets.
"Right," Claire said skeptically. "You were just laying silently with your eyes closed."
"I was trying to—" But Harry stopped short. It would be better if he didn't tell Claire that he could talk with Voldemort in his mind.
"I was just trying to relax. I hadn't fallen asleep. You just startled me."
"Well, I could think of a couple better places to relax. I've never been in the Gryffindor common room, but we have some chairs and couches that really are quite comfy."
"Yeah, well, I was trying to avoid my common room," Harry mumbled.
"Oh," Claire said with an understanding look. "I suppose after what happened earlier that you wouldn't—"
"What did you hear?" Harry interrupted, looking a little more alarmed than he would have wanted to. Claire gave him a bewildered stare as she sat down in the window seat.
"Why are you asking me? No one tells me anything." Harry tried to ignore the bitterness he heard in her voice.
"Could you just tell me what you heard, and who told you."
"Fine," Claire said in a defeated tone, though she turned and stretched her legs across the seat, leaving no room for Harry to sit. "I was walking back to my common room and an Auror stopped me at the door. He said that all the students were confined to their common rooms. All he'd say was that there was an intruder, and that they couldn't find you."
"Why were you out of your common room alone?"
"You're not a prefect, Harry," she said with a mocking smile. When Harry didn't smile back, she frowned and shrugged. "Just more of the same. Flitwick and McGonagall wanted to talk with me. They're 'worried about me'. I'm supposed to 'be careful' and not do anything 'foolish'." She paused to smile at Harry. "Actually, it was: 'don't do anything foolish like Potter would' —figured you'd enjoy that part. But they don't want me telling any of my friends about it. I guess they don't want everyone to think You-Know-Who is going to attack me at any moment." Claire looked away from Harry. "Like he'll ever do that. Looks like it won't matter that my godfather is completely useless."
"But you haven't heard anything else?" Harry asked. Claire looked annoyed with his question but shrugged and shook her head.
"Not really, no. Someone said they heard Pomfrey arguing with a student in the Hospital Wing, but people attacked by Death Eaters don't usually argue all that much. The Aurors said we could leave the common room, but ours gave me a nasty look when I left. Stupid git."
Harry paced back and forth in front of Claire, who seemed puzzled by Harry's behavior.
"Did I say something interesting? Didn't you already know all that?"
"No," Harry said honestly as he paused. "No, I came here just after the... er... well, whatever it was, I just came here. To think."
"But you don't want to think anymore?"
"No, I don't think so. I think I need to talk to Ron and Hermione."
"Right," Claire said as she turned to look out the window. "Go on and talk to them, then. I'm sure they're eager to hear news, too."
If Ginny was already arguing with Pomfrey, she might be out earlier than he thought. The prospect of facing Ron and Hermione seemed less daunting than facing Ginny, and he preferred the idea of not doing them at the same time. With a sigh, he turned and walked toward the door.
"I've got to go."
"I figured you would. Goodbye, Potter."
Harry walked quickly down the halls, hoping to go as fast as he could, while still avoiding anyone else. What he really needed was his own phoenix. It would be so much simpler to just grab its tail and simply appear in the common room in a puff of smoke a flame.
Despite his lack of a phoenix, Harry made it back to the Fat Lady without incident. As he tried to relax and regain his composure, the Fat Lady woke up and took note of him.
"Ahh! Harry Potter! And where have you been?" she said much louder than Harry wanted. "Do you know how many Aurors I had waking me up to ask if I'd seen you? As if it were my job to keep track of you. And now you just waltz on up—"
"Wormwood"
"Oh, that's nice," the Fat Lady said as her frame swung open. "See if I help you the next time Argus comes looking for you..."
Author's Notes:
So there it is. This is perhaps the biggest reason for the 'M' (or 'R') rating for the story. It's almost torture, but not really. I really don't know how disturbing people are going to find it, so I'm sorry if you feel that it was too much, or if you feel that I was worrying over nothing.
Either way, I'm curious to know what everyone thought.
And, well... hopefully you aren't under the impression that things are going to finally get better, now. The next chapter is equally rough, but for completely different reasons. If you've gotten this far, I'd hope that you wouldn't stop suddenly. It may be discouraging, and you might find it upsetting, but it's supposed to be that way. Again, you'll just have to trust me.