Disclaimer: Check first chapter for full disclaimer and other warnings.

Chapter 16 – The Pitch

Ron was sorry. He was sorry at himself, for his lack of understanding, and sorry for his little sister, because, contrarily to what he and Luna had imagined, she still didn't remember the funfair escapade. However, whatever the deepness of Ron's sorrow, it never showed on his face anymore, and nobody got a clue. For her part, Ginny had only napped a few minutes in the Hospital wing, and she had woken up quickly. Feeling quite well despite not knowing how she arrived there, she had escaped the matron and had gone straight to her dorm to change, before leaving for the breakfast of the most important day since the beginning of term.

Today, at 2pm, was the first Quidditch match of the season, and Gryffindor was playing against Slytherin!

Apart from Draco Malfoy, the other Slytherin players were still there, even the brutes Crabbe and Goyle were still at the beater positions. And, judging by their looks, they were ready to trounce their opponents that afternoon. The Hufflepuff seemed loyal to the previous year's scores and thought that Gryffindor would win, whereas the few Ravenclaw that weren't against Quidditch realistically remarked that, while both teams lost their favourite seeker, Harry had always been the one winning, and that did put both teams on the same winning chance.

All these comments had their effect on the players, and, when lunch arrived, Ginny was nervous. She now understood why Harry had never eaten much before matches, as she couldn't eat anything either. Unconsciously, she repeated Harry's preparations, even letting her hair loose from her usual ponytail and messing them up. In the Quidditch changing rooms, while the crowd took place, she dressed slowly, brooding about Harry's absence, and wishing that he'd be there. Only Oliver Wood's solid prep talk brought her to her senses again, enough to tie her hair again, before they all went to the field, to the applause of their house, and the boos of Slytherin. As usual, Lee Jordan was commenting the encounter, next to the dismayed Headmistress.

The match started pretty well for the Gryffindors, as their chasers put the quaffle three successive times through Slytherin's loops. But Slytherin's strategy finally showed itself, and it hadn't changed from the preceding years. They were still committing fouls to disable players, only this time, they were doing it in a deliberate and concerted manner. Madam Hooch couldn't keep track of all players, and no less that four fouls were done at the same time, multiple times. This was wearing the Gryffindors down, and Oliver Wood had most difficulties keeping the hoops with his bruised sides, letting three attempts pass through his goals. He glanced up at Ginny, in hope that she would find the snitch before they would be crushed, but she was inspecting the field tirelessly, and the golden ball hadn't been spotted yet. Strangely, the Slytherin seeker didn't seem to be searching for it, as he was only flying leisurely in front of her, obviously trying to block her view. Some time later, Gryffindor scored one goal, but Slytherin quickly retaliated. The Gryffindors were getting desperate, and Oliver understood that, either they were going to find the snitch quickly, or Slytherin would gain so many points that beating them out of the Cup would be impossible. Even the teachers looked stunned at the level of unfairness they played.

Suddenly, Oliver saw a golden tint near the floor, and, neglecting the incoming Slytherin chasers, frantically gestured and called to Ginny. She noticed him, turned her head, saw the Snitch, and...

...blacked out.

In a public high school, hundreds of miles away...

The day had been weird. It was as if the whole world had waited for him to get out before turning again. It was Monday everywhere. Monday-closed shops were closed, the class schedule was a Monday's, and everyone looked at him strangely, as he was visibly stunned at this. The only rational explanation would be that all his outing had been a dream, he thought. But what about the diary he remembered storing in his nightstand at Grace's house?

The morning had passed quietly, his friends thinking that he was brooding over the week-end revelations, and they had eaten silently as well. They were now in Phys. Ed., and their teacher had decided to let them play some volley-ball. Some students knew the sport already and some didn't know anything. The ones that knew mostly included the jocks that had made fun of Gabriel and his friends earlier in the term, and they grouped together as a team, ready to crush any opposition. Unfortunately, only Tamara knew a little bit of the sport, and the first match that ensued, between the two groups, saw the domination of the jocks, with no point marked by Gabriel's team whatsoever. Besides, despite the injunctions of the teacher, the jocks played it rough and, more than once, Gabriel or one of his friends got a bruise from that. The last point of the game, though, was valiantly fought, but finished by a smash from the jocks, directed straight into Gabriel's face. Seeing the ball arriving with high velocity, he just had time to wonder about its golden tinge, before being knocked out.

Back on Hogwarts' Quidditch pitch...

Ginny had seemed to collapse on her broom, but, to everyone's eyes, the movement smoothly turned into a crouching position on the broom, before launching herself in the air, the Slytherin seeker hot on her tail, as, if she caught the Snitch right now, they would lose. Her dive, despite having started slowly, began to gather speed as she descended, wide-eyed, towards the ground.

Ron was in the stands, right next to Hermione, who had taken a break in her studies to show a bit of last-minute solidarity towards her House. They hadn't sat there on purpose, but, when Ginny started her dive, Ron nudged Hermione in the ribs.

"What?" She clearly wasn't happy to find her ex-friend and now lunatic housemate sitting next to her.

His eyes were fixed on Ginny, though, and he muttered "Look at his eye!"

For a second, she couldn't understand whose eye he was speaking of, and looked at the Slytherin Seeker's face through Ron's proffered omnioculars. Looking at her, Ron muttered "the other seeker!" and she changed to look at the plunging face of Ginny Weasley. He had left the zoom to its maximum setting, and she clearly saw her closed left eye, and her wide-open right one, as if she was winking. Normally, she thought, you needed both your eyes to evaluate distances. Even stranger was the tint in her eye, as if her eyes were clearer from their usual chocolate colour. Hermione quickly looked around, but everyone was cheering at the diving Seekers, and nobody seemed to have paid attention at her face. Even Ron seemed to be oblivious now, looking as ecstatic as the others.

The seekers were diving fast. Very fast. So fast that the Slytherin had trouble following the Gryffindor, even with a superior broom. So fast even that their brooms began to vibrate. Even Ginny newly-acquired broom shouldn't go that fast, normally. But the fact was ignored by the shouting crowd. Then, just as they were closing on it, the snitch shot up, and got inside the rough game play. Ginny manoeuvred her broom accordingly, but the other seeker, unable to see what was in front of her, continued straight into the ground, his broom hitting the soil hard. Due to its inertia, his body continued on its way, gliding three feet on the ground before stopping, unconscious. The Slytherins didn't have time to call for a timeout, though, because Ginny got hold of the Snitch while it was trying to escape through the melee of chasers.

The stunned pitch held its breath for a second, not believing their eyes, before erupting into shouts of victory from Gryffindor, and of dismay from Slytherin. Lee Jordan could only barely be heard above the ruckus, to comment on the 'heroic display by the valiant seeker who tore the victory out of the evil clutches of the flying slime-balls,' just before being silenced by the Headmistress. During that time, Ginny performed a short victory dance with her broom, turning around the handle, fifteen feet above the ground.

Now, that sort of 'dance' wasn't uncommon for practised players, even if a little difficult. However, Ginny wasn't seasoned. At all. True, she had played at home, with her brothers, and some times, Hermione had been there too, watching and reading. Ginny was good enough to have been chosen as Gryffindor Seeker, but that move reminded Hermione more of someone like... Harry. The wondering teen didn't have time to extrapolate this, as the victorious Seeker fell limp on her broom, before dropping from it.

The shouts of the crowd transformed into a yell of surprise and despair. Ginny was falling, falling, and falling towards the ground. The other Gryffindor players were turning around the pitch to celebrate, and the Slytherins had left for the changing rooms. Only Albus Dumbledore had the presence of mind to whip his wand and cast a cushioning charm on the ground. Even with that, she hit it badly, and the crunching sound of bones breaking could be heard in the now-silent pitch.

Somewhere full of clouds...

He was flying. The feeling was exhilarating, but strange at the same time. How could one fly without assistance? Reflecting upon this, he suddenly acknowledged the broom under him. And he was chasing an elusive golden tint. He knew that he had to catch it, and concentrated on grasping it. Once his hand closed around it, he was happy for a second, but everything fell back into blackness for a short time, before he felt someone shaking his shoulder.

"Wake up, young man. You should be fine, now."

Gabriel blinked a few time, groggily adjusting to his environment. He had been dreaming, but was now sitting in a bed, in the school infirmary, and the old nurse had just woken him. He felt as if his head had tripled its size, and he patted it to check if he was whole. Finding a swelling on his forehead, he remembered. They had been playing volley-ball, and he had been hit with the ball, rather forcefully. That explained his presence here, as well as the swelling on his head, he thought.

He quickly went to his feet, verifying that his equilibrium hadn't been damaged. All seemed fine, so he thanked the old lady, and left the premises. He just didn't like staying in there. As if he had been there before, he thought. But still no memory emerged to confirm, and he went to the next period to meet his friends. Chemistry! He was anxious about his essay, and the dream was swiftly forgotten.

Some time later, he found himself doing an experiment with Kevin, something they both generally enjoyed. This time, it involved some ingredients that reacted by changing colours only when a precise dose of each were mixed. During the experiment, Kevin told him something that caught his interest.

"Wow! See that colour? I wonder if the group Deep Purple chose its name based on it!"

Gabriel merely shrugged. He didn't know anything about popular music anyways.

"Perhaps they use this stuff in the tattoo parlour..."

"What?" his tone was still nasal, because of the volley-ball accident earlier.

"Yes, the tattoo parlour. You didn't think I made these myself?" Kevin nodded towards his shoulders, where the eagle and badger couldn't be seen because of the protecting garb, but Gabriel understood.

"Still, what is the link with this?"

"Even if I don't like coloured ones, I saw people getting tattoos with this kind of purple on it. That reminds me..." he looked at Gabriel with a calculating glint in his eyes.

"What?" Gabriel didn't like that look, it generally implied some mischief.

"I don't know... perhaps you aren't man enough to do it..." Kevin was openly smiling now, while sinking his hook.

"Well, you got me curious, now. What is it?"

"See, while we were away this week-end, I received a coupon at home. From the tattoo parlour. They want to promote their activities, and, if two persons go there to get a tattoo, and if one of them doesn't have one already, both get a hefty discount. More if both are newly tattooed."

The bell rang before they could say more, and the usual confusion that ensued prevented normal talk, so they cleaned their workplace, collected their stuff, and went outside with the other members of the group. As it was the last class of the day, the left the school, and, once on the walkway, Gabriel asked his question. In the few minutes that elapsed since the end of the chemistry period, he had taken a decision.

"How much?"

Kevin smiled, sensing that his fish was caught.

"How much what?" Joan asked, curious.

Kevin decided to nag him a little, and answered to Joan. "I don't know, Joan, but it seems that our friend Gabriel here wants to get himself marked."

Seeing Gabriel's look, horrified at Kevin's betrayal, everyone laughed for a moment. Mortified at first, Gabriel soon joined everyone's mirth.

Kevin then answered his first question. "If the price didn't change, a tattoo like my eagle costs 20 pounds. The reductions we talked about are 15 percent in the first case, and 30 percent in the second. You can also..."

"Which cases?" Tamara seemed interested.

Gabriel answered. "Kevin told me about a coupon giving reductions for tattoo... well... 'virgins', if they are accompanied. The second rate is when both persons are... like that."

"Hmmm..." Tamara seemed thoughtful, looking alternatively between Gabriel and Kevin, before fixing Kevin, asking in a small voice. "Do you think it would look good? I mean... on me?"

Kevin understood her meaning, and clarified easily. "It sure wouldn't be as obvious, but you can also ask for a coloured tattoo, with light colours like white."

She winced. "I don't like white. I rather want something... I don't know... red, yellow, orange... something more..."

Gabriel was looking at her intently, and he interrupted "...fiery?"

She looked at him in dismay, but the others didn't catch the underlying sense, and she nodded. "Yes, fiery."

Thinking about something, Gabriel turned towards Kevin. "Is it possible to personalize a tattoo? I mean, can I bring one of my drawings?"

Kevin reflected a little, before answering. "I think it's possible, and I even saw a client once, asking for a tattoo with parts from other tattoos from the catalogue. That particular guy wanted a horse with wings, or something like that."

Gabriel nodded, muttering something. As nobody caught was he said, Kevin continued.

"It would be more expensive, though. Same goes for colours. The more colours there are, the higher the price. Why the question, Gabe?"

"I may have an idea for Tamara. I'll bring it tomorrow."

As they arrived to their separation point, they told each other their goodbyes and went home. As Joan and Gabriel were still together for a few hundreds of yards, she continued the conversation.

"So, you want to get marked?" she asked ironically.

He blushed, but nodded nonetheless. He didn't know why, but the idea of getting some personal mark on his skin appealed to him.

"What kind?"

The seemingly simple question started a long string of thoughts, because he wasn't sure of wanting the mythical bird anymore. Especially if he wanted to give its drawing to Tamara. He still wanted some flying animal, but also wanted a more regal one. Perhaps he would have to get two tattoos to satisfy his needs. After all, Kevin had two already. After a while walking like that, they arrived to the point where their path diverged, and, after hugging each other gently, they left to get home. When he entered Grace's house, Gabriel didn't noticed the man who had been following him in the distance since they had left the school.

Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the Hospital Wing...

Snape sighed. It looked like the infamous trio had re-united. Except that it wasn't Harry Potter in the bed now, only Ginny Weasley. Hermione and Ron were at her side, though, like they had been for Harry before. The Potion Master also sensed that something was strange with Ron's attitude. Previously, he had never looked into his charges' attitude unless it was disturbing him or his class, but, with all the changes coming in his way, he had opened his eyes at some point, and had noticed numerous things. How the Gryffindors Patil and Longbottom seemed to be very friendly towards each other. How Hermione was proud of her advances in research. And now, he privately remarked how Ronald Weasley seemed more like Luna Lovegood by the day. Which normal brother could stay at his sister's sick bed holding her hand, and have a smug look at the same time? This question elicited a stirring in the heart of the severe Potion Master, which he quickly quieted. No need to think about family now.

Returning to the present, he deposited a large glass, full of a dark grey wobbly substance, on the nightstand. Then, after nodding to Hermione and receiving a nod in return, he signalled to Madam Pomfrey and left the wing. Said Madam Pomfrey went to the bed, and cast a few spells on Ginny's broken arm and leg. As a result, the targeted limbs went soft, not containing bones anymore. Then, the matron woke Ginny up with a spell, and gave her the Skele-Gro glass Severus Snape had brought. The bone regrowing potion was going to be painful, so she also provided a Dreamless Sleep draught to her, ignoring the envious look of Hermione.

Just before she fell to sleep, though, she spoke a few words that instilled doubt inside the Gryffindor resident genius' mind. "I hope we won."

They had waited for her, not only because she was a member of the team, and not only because she had been injured in a match, but mainly because she had been their only reason to have won. The usual Gryffindor Party hadn't taken place on the evening of the match itself, but the following day. The Headmistress, still with her old reflexes of Head of Gryffindor, had been surprised when she showed up in the common room at midnight, thinking that she was going to interrupt a party, as she always did, and finding no one up.

The next day, though, Ginny had to stay in bed for most of the day, while her bones were strengthening. Even with the Dreamless Sleep draught, her sleep had been interrupted by pain and nightmares. The pain was always localized in her re-growing limbs, so it didn't faze her. The nightmares, on the other hand, were incomprehensible. She was passing by hideous and frightening creatures, but she wasn't afraid. And she was in a train at the same time. She didn't know if she really could call them 'nightmares.' Finally, she could be released by Madam Pomfrey just after dinnertime. Just before leaving, though, Hermione showed herself at the wing door, frowning at her.

"What?" Ginny asked quite rudely. After all, she wanted to get back to her own room, and didn't even suspect that the party had been delayed for her. Besides, Hermione hadn't been in the family's good graces since the beginning of the summer.

"We have to talk."

"I don't see what we could talk about. Now..."

"Yesterday's match."

"You were there? How surprising of you."

"Okay, I was there. And, if you really want to know, okay I was a bitch this summer. Now, can we talk?"

Ginny was aghast at her admittance, and could only nod.

Hermione continued. "What do you remember from the match?"

"We were pathetic, and they were unfair. I saw a golden glint, and that's all."

Seeing the frowning look of her Hermione, she extrapolated. "Perhaps I've been hit in the head by a bludger at that moment, and fell on the grounds. I don't remember. Errm... by how much did we lose?"

Hermione looked at her, before sighing. "You won."

Thinking that she was joking, Ginny looked at her doubtfully, before answering sarcastically. "Of course we won. We were crushed, I lost consciousness, and we won because all Slytherin forfeited the game at that very moment. How funny." She then noticed that Hermione was shaking her head. "What do you mean?"

"Just what I said. You won. You caught the Snitch."

Ginny's jaw fell on the floor. Well, not exactly, but it seemed that she had problems closing it. After a long moment, she answered. "That's not possible! That's..."

"That's why I wanted to have a chat with you, before you arrive to the party."

"What do you mean, a party?"

"As you caught the Snitch when the team was effectively crushed, you saved the day. You didn't think that they would have had a party without you then? They are waiting for you now."

"But... but..."

"You don't remember doing it, that's it?"

"Errm... yes. I blacked out after Oliver gestured at me, when I saw it on the ground, and I woke on a bloody hospital bed."

"We don't have much more time now, or the others would skin me alive..." lowering her voice, she muttered "...as if they didn't want to do it already." Returning to a normal voice, she continued. "You are going to act as if you did it. We are going to continue this discussion tomorrow evening. That is... if you agree." She added the last part almost reluctantly, as if asking for people's approval was something difficult. But she couldn't do it if Ginny wasn't agreeing, and she wanted to know what happened. Besides, if she succeeded in sorting this with her, Ginny could be the one Gryffindor vouching for her re-Sorting.

Said Ginny seemed to think for a while, before they arrived in front of the Fat Lady. "I agree." She said, before uttering the Tower's password, and entering a cheering crowd, smiling and raising her fist in the air.

The Slytherins were angry. Some were angry at losing the game to the ever-annoying Gryffindor, but most of them were even angrier towards their own team. Since the beginning of the term, they had maintained the statu quo, not attacking anyone first – of course, they were generally able to defend themselves when provoked, especially if the provoker played fair.

The team's strategy had destroyed the fragile peace, and they had suffered two days of constant humiliations from students in the corridors, and also in the classrooms, as their teachers were also dismayed of the game's level of unfairness. All Gryffindor team had gone to the Hospital wing after the match, because of the roughness of the game. Thankfully, only Ginny stayed more than a few hours.

In this volatile atmosphere, someone was happy. Pansy Parkinson was strutting in the corridors, and, seconded by her gorillas, was freely annoying people, thus adding to the imbroglio. Voldemort wanted the school to be in disarray to occupy the 'old fool' Dumbledore? No problem. However, in her attempts to get the most mess in the least time, she forgot one rule, that even first year Gryffindors knew by heart: never mess with a Weasley when another is nearby.

True, Ronald Weasley was an easy target. He didn't even defend himself when the brutes pushed him from wall to wall until he fell on the ground following a low hit. The person that arrived behind them, though, even little, was their nightmare in flesh. She had been their nightmare two days ago when she had caught the Snitch. And now, Ginny Weasley was seething.

"HOW DARE YOU!"

Before the others could react, she launched herself and threw a punch into Pansy's stomach. When the girl fell down, holding her stomach, Ginny took her wand, and aimed at the two approaching gorillas. They snickered at her, thinking that Gryffindor seldom attacked anyway, and, seeing in her an easy prey, they continued to advance.

Bad idea.

Years of enduring Fred and George's pranks had taught her some tricks, and she quickly cast a spell on the corridor walls. Dozens of small arms and hands grasped the boys' clothes, and they got drawn to the opposite walls of the corridor, unsuccessfully struggling against the stony hands. They had a little liberty of movement, though, and, if they had thought a little, and if they had them on their person, they could have drawn their wands to retaliate. But they didn't, and Ginny went to Pansy, and, grasping her hair, pulled her face upwards to address her.

"Never. I said, never do that again..."

The kneeling girl spitted on her face, and she drew back a little, stunned, but still holding her long and slick hair. Throwing back her arm, she aimed, and a resounding slap was heard in the corridor. Pansy was thrown on the floor, her lip split, and a hand-shaped mark on her cheek. The mark was going to stay a while, Ginny reflected with a smile. She quickly lost that smile when she heard an angry voice behind her.

"Miss Weasley!" Severus Snape had been alerted by the ruckus, and, seeing the setting – two Gryffindor were standing and three Slytherin were in difficulty – immediately assumed the logical conclusion. "You are not allowed to fight in corridors, nor use magic there. That will be fifty points from Gryffindor, and detention with me for a month!"

"But, Professor, they attacked Ron first! Three against one!"

"Mister Weasley doesn't seem to have any problem standing, as I see. And don't start to object, or I'd be forced to take more p..."

A deep voice resounded from behind him. "I don't think so, Severus."

The Potion Master frowned, sighed, and then turned around. Slightly panting, Albus Dumbledore, Head of Gryffindor House, was addressing him. "My legs aren't as nimble as when I was 100. You can guess, as well as I do, what really took place there."

"Albus! The girl..."

"... obviously used magic, and she'll be punished for that..." Dumbledore intoned, but, seeing the malevolent glint in the Slytherin students' eyes, he smugly added "...by me. Detention this evening in my office, Miss Weasley. And, Severus, I'd suggest you give those points back, or I'll be forced to remove some from your house, for starting it all. Please take that poor girl to the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey can find something to do, will you?"

"Very well, Headm... I mean, Albus. Up, Miss Parkinson!" she obeyed, and they left.

After a while, seeing Crabbe and Goyle still held to the walls, Albus asked. "Now, Miss Weasley, what can we do with them?"

Ginny didn't miss the mischievous twinkle in the old man's eyes, and answered lightly. "I don't know sir. The spell is rumoured to be permanent. They even found corpses hanging in some pyramids in Egypt, my brother Bill said. He's a curse breaker there, you know? The poor people died of hunger." They took Ron, and left the place, continuing a light conversation, and leaving both boys to struggle more wildly than before, trying to escape the stony hands that held them by their clothes. Dying could be envisioned by those two, but certainly not from hunger. At dinner that evening, everyone recounted the story of two rather fat and very naked boys going back to Slytherin quarters. The event seemed to appease the school, and the Slytherin House also decided to change their whole Quidditch team, as most of them had been forbidden to play again by their Head of House anyway.

After dinner, Ginny spent her detention with her Transfiguration Professor, practising her animagus transformation, while he was commenting and drinking his tea. She was rather advanced, and managed to transform her clothing into fur on both her arms. The detention, however, how pleasant it was, made her forget about Hermione's appointment.

Even satisfied of Crabbe and Goyle's treatment, Ginny woke up thinking that Pansy only got a little part of what she deserved. After all, she had been the... brain, behind the brutes' behaviour. Entering the common room that morning, she saw her twin brothers moodily looking at the fire, and decided to do something with them that day, too.

They went to breakfast together, and started to plan the first official prank of the term. Dubbing a prank 'official' meant for them that it had to happen in plain view of everybody, preferably in the Great Hall. They reflected about Pansy Parkinson overrated beauty, and decided that their prank was to make her appear much older, with wrinkles. And, to make her realize it even more, every other Slytherin would have the same head. A whole table of shrivelled Pansies! The mere thought of that made the three of them laugh in the corridors, a sound that all students, except first years, had learned to fear.

The twins got their pranking material out, and, aided by Ginny, prepared the concoctions that would do the trick, when mixed with the usual pumpkin juice and activated by wand at some point. When they were doing that, the twins asked about some hair from the person which appearance would be given to everyone, and Ginny immobilized herself, her eyes wide. The twins reacted quickly.

"What, Gin?"

"Yes, Gin, what?"

Her face lit up with a timid smile, and answered nothing. She grasped in her pockets, and, by a sheer stoke of luck, found a couple of hairs in one. She had wiped her hands at some point after having yanked the girl's head the previous day, and the greasy threads had stuck in her cloth. 'What a pity,' she thought, 'I'll be forced to wash my robes now.'

She held the hair strands, and talked towards them, her eyes looking somewhere else. "Do you think possible... I mean... would it be as fun as this prank to... No, it's ridiculous."

"Go ahead, Gin."

"We can't say it's ridiculous before hearing it, you know?"

That seemed to placate her, and she looked at them again. "If, at the same time, all Gryffindors look like Harry?"

They looked at her inquiringly "Harry?"

"Harry Potter, you prats!"

"We know, Gin. It's just... It would be fun, sure. But we'll need a string of his hair, you know... and..."

She blushed. Of course they needed some of his hair. But that's why she had asked herself the question first. Locked away in her trunk, she had what could be called 'remains of her crush', items from the time when she had been a pre-teen and had collected all little objects Harry had touched. That way, she had got some of his hair in a little locket. She wasn't to admit all that to her brothers, though. But she got up and retrieved one strand, before locking everything and coming back to them.

The preparations went quickly, because the twins had all the base potions already prepared. As they couldn't play pranks, they had devoted their time in preparing them. The prank would happen at dinner that evening.

So, after a day where all her free time out of class was spent preparing the prank, it's a little nervous Ginny that sat on Gryffindor table. Her brothers, unable to do it due to their oath, had rapidly taught her the proper wand movement to activate the spells. They had also confirmed having seen Dobby, a new house-elf, and one of the most... versatile and exuberant they ever seen. They had seen him and given him their product, asking to spread it correctly on the proper tables. The prank duration had been calibrated so that the only area of effect was the Great Hall. Once an affected person went out, the spell was to be ended. Well... except for Pansy, as that would have been too easy. If a targeted person didn't leave the room, the spell would be lifted after one hour. Everything was set up and ready to run.

The meal started quietly, like all meals nowadays, and Ginny waited for a little time, trying to maintain a count of who drank when. When she was sure that Pansy and at least half of the concerned house students had drank the laced juice, she pointed her wand under the table, and uttered the strings of words that would launch the pandemonium.

The Slytherin table was a sight to behold, as almost all of them looked a wrinkled old lady, with almost all hair and teeth gone. The true Pansy Parkinson, having recognized her traits somewhat, shrieked and fled the Hall. One of the Pansies searched the Weasley twins with her eyes, and raised her glass to them. Just at that moment, though, in the same way as the Slytherins, the Gryffindors took the traits of Harry Potter.

And Ginny thought immediately that it hadn't been a good idea at all.

Even if everybody knew that it was a prank and found it fun. Even if young Megan could see her rumoured look-alike 'in the flesh' for the first time. Even if Ron and Hermione weren't too affected of seeing him there, although for different reasons. She, on the other hand, was having trouble concentrating on her plate, as all her house mate showed the face of her –supposedly– deceased love. She started to cry, and left the room, with many sets of identical green eyes following her and four of these recognizing her worry.

It was the evening, and she wandered a little before coming back in the common room. She had been crying when exiting the Great Hall, and wasn't feeling really well. Besides, her body was behaving strangely. She wasn't balanced as she usually was, and, feeling through her clothes, finally remarked some intimate changes in her anatomy. Her eyes wide, she grasped her hair and looked at it. It was black. That couldn't be! She started to panic. The potion effect was to stop as soon as you exited the hall. She had seen some other students exiting before her, and they had reverted to their original appearance. But she seemed to have kept Harry's appearance. She was starting to become mad, and she had to see the twins, to see if they did something wrong. Awkwardly running through the corridors, she frightened a good deal of persons who, even after seeing the prank, had also remarked that it ended at the Great Hall's doors. Arriving in front of Gryffindor entrance, she was surprised to see a startled Fred (or was it George?) keeping the portrait open.

"Harry?" as the others, Fred thought that the spell effect would have been ended when out of the Great Hall, and he was startled to see one rogue Harry launching to him and hugging him fiercely, sobbing.

"Fred! It didn't stop! I'm going mad!"

"Now, now... errr... Gin?"

"Yes, it's me. What did we do wrongly?"

"I don't know. We should perhaps head to the Hospital wing..."

"I don't want to... what will Madam Pomfrey say?"

"She'll perhaps be able to reverse the effect. Although, if you want to keep it..."

"No! I don't want to fall in love with a mirror. I don't understand! What was wrong?" She was on the edge of an emotional breakdown and they both knew it. He called inside the Tower for his brother, alerting Hermione at the same time, and the three of them brought her to the Hospital Wing. Hermione was even more curious about Ginny, and reminded her that she had missed their appointment. They rescheduled it for the next evening, while praying that nothing would happen again.

Unbeknownst to them, some of the people she had crossed, while running through the corridors, had alerted Dumbledore and McGonagall. The two Professors, after a short trip in Gryffindor common room, were following them, and overheard that part of the conversation. When they all arrived in the infirmary, Ginny, still in the form of Harry, was put into a bed, as far away from mirrors as possible. They gathered around it, and Dumbledore, after thanking and dismissing the twins, asked what happened.

Ginny explained the prank, something that made Albus chuckle, and Minerva smiled a little. Hermione didn't smile, but she was storing information about pranks at the same time. All knowledge was interesting for her, and she decided to have a chat with the twins at some point.

Ginny also explained her lack of consciousness when she caught the Snitch, and the dreams that had plagued her the night afterwards. All this took them all the largest part of an hour, and they all saw the appearance spell effects disappear little by little from Ginny's body. Hermione was interested by the train dreams, and sat back to silently ponder things, while McGonagall, with her Headmistress workload, wished Ginny a swift recovery and left the ward after she turned back into herself.

"I never remarked having so much work to do," started Dumbledore, speaking about the Headmistress, "perhaps she had taken over already without my knowing?" he added with a wink.

Ginny chuckled. The old man had a talent for humour that always made her smile. He frowned afterwards, though.

"May I check something on you, Miss Weasley? It's a detection spell, for... ahem... miscellaneous types of... possession."

"Possession, sir?" She paled suddenly as memories from her previous year were brought to her conscious mind.

"Yes. Don't worry; you don't seem to have problems in that way. The spell has a wide range of detection, and we will just see if something magical had happened to your mind."

"Hmmm..." she was thoughtful for a second, before agreeing. "Okay, but I want to know your conclusions, sir."

"Agreed."

The old Professor drew his wand and moved it in a complex pattern around Ginny's head, while muttering strange words. As soon as he finished, the three of them could see some smoke taking form on top of her head. The smoke cloud slowly took form, and separated into two indistinct shapes before acquiring colour. One shape was lightening, getting a more and more defined white-blue tint. The other one was darkening, going towards pitch black. That one, though, seemed to be weaker and weaker as seconds ticked by. After a few seconds, the shapes began to take a humanoid form, with defined limbs and head.

The three of them began to feel curious about them, now. Ginny was attracted by the light figure, whereas the dark one repulsed her. Albus Dumbledore had some ideas about the spell results, but they had to wait for faces to be more defined before taking action.

After a full minute into the spell, they finally recognized the two characters. They already knew about the dark one, and the fact that it had almost turned transparent was a clear indication that her time being possessed by Tom Riddle was over. Dumbledore didn't even have to explain the colour meaning. But the other one was kind of a surprise. There, in front of them, was the smiling face of Harry Potter.

Albus reflected for a while, before sighing.

"What? What is it?" Hermione asked, too interested to remember to address her Professor correctly. Ginny looked ad him expectantly, too.

"Well... there is a result I can give you, but I will have to check in my books to complete."

"What can you tell us?"

"You saw Harry, right?"

"Yes, sir. Does that mean that he is possessing Ginny?"

"Well... in fact, no. But, by the colour of the smoke, it appears that he and Ginny shared what is called a soul bond."

If the old Professor had expected a reaction, he was in for naught, as the two teenagers looked at him questioningly. After a while, Ginny asked "Hmmm... Professor? What is a soul bond?"

"Ah yes, of course. If you didn't know what it is, it's normal that you don't react to its mention." He strengthened, switching to his 'Professor' mode. "You see, there are levels in relationships between people.

You have friendship, and then you have love. You can have as many friends as you can manage, and you can also have a few people you love. Of course, there also are levels in love, as you won't love your mother the same way you would your boyfriend. In all the persons in the world, though, you can have only one linked to you through what is called a soul bond.

Generally, it means that the two persons involved shared so much together that nothing could bring anyone to that level of closeness. And they usually love each other. The soul bond is also a link to each other's mind, so all this would explain the presence of little Harry here, and the colour of the smoke. Black is for forced possession, and that shade of bluish white is for soul bonds. In my entire career, it's the third I ever saw. There are other colours, but I think a full explanation may wait for another day. I also think that this bond may have forced you to assume Harry's features for a longer time than intended."

At these revelations, the two girls sat silently for a moment. Then, Hermione, true to her reputation, asked the question that Dumbledore feared. "What is it that you have to search in your books, Professor?"

"I can't really say now, Hermione, because that would be difficult if my interpretation was wrong. It may even cast everything we did this summer on the side."

Ginny looked the old man in the eye, feeling that it had something to do with Harry. She spoke softly, but with a pointed look. "Professor, if Harry is... d..." she couldn't force herself to say the word, as it still wasn't clear in her head if the whole episode had been a dream or not. She shook herself and started again.

"As Harry is not there anymore, you can tell us. I want to know."

"Well..." Albus Dumbledore was conscious that it could destroy the girl's life later on, especially if he was wrong, but he had always prized himself to be able to bring hope to everyone, so he continued. "What troubled me is the colour and thickness of the smoke. Normally, as Harry's... not there... the smoke should have been thinner, less defined, and more into grey. Another hint is that you actually have been possessed by something or someone during the match, and there were only two such possibilities, judging by the spell results."

Hermione, quick-witted as she was, put a hand on her mouth in astonishment, before asking. "You don't mean... He can't!"

"What? What?" Ginny was somewhat lost, before she caught on her Professor's words and her friend's attitude. "Harry?" she uttered faintly, turning towards the still present cloud of smoke, then towards the Transfiguration Professor.

"Yes, Miss Weasley. I will have to do some research to prove that, but it may be possible that Harry is alive."

She didn't faint this time, but collapsed in a heap of relieved sobs. She had felt this since Harry's supposed death. She had felt a tug at her heart, and now, Merlin knew where he was!

To be continued in next chapter: To Throw a Ball...

The meeting of the minds done,
Victory their way has gone.
Mating, now? Someone's missing...
Review, I'll let the miss sing.