Chapter Seventeen

Percy's Apology

Harry realized when they reached the tapestry that he didn't know the password. "Er, does anyone—"

"Norwegian Ridgeback!" Ginny told the knight, smiling at Harry. The bad feeling in his stomach only got worse. He wanted to tell them to turn back, but he couldn't find the right words. Besides, they were only going into Charlie and Tabitha's flat; what could possibly happen?

The bright red dragon snorted in disgust at Ginny, sending a stream of flames toward the armor-clad knight. "Honestly!" he shouted. "Can't you see he's a Chinese Fireball?"

"It's the password!" Hermione said, exasperated.

"Oh, right," the knight replied. The painting swung forward, revealing a large door with "The Weasleys" written on it in gilded lettering. ("That's new," Ginny giggled to Hermione.)

"'The Weasleys,'" Ron mumbled. The golden knocker was in the shape of a fierce Hungarian Horntail. Ron grasped its spiked tail and rapped the door. "Charlie must feel right at home here, with all these dragons everywhere," he said.

The door opened rapidly. "Minerva, we've been—" Tabitha stopped when she saw Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny standing before her. "What are you four doing here?" she asked, surprised.

"Is Charlie here? We need to ask you something," Ron said.

"Yes. There's, er—" Tabitha looked behind her and then back to her students. "Well," she said hesitantly. "I suppose you four ought to stay. You'd be hearing about this soon enough, anyway." She showed them in and said quietly, "Arthur's here. There was an attack at the Ministry last night. That's all he's told us so far. We're waiting for Professor McGonagall." She led them past the small front hall and into a cozy study, where Charlie and Bill Weasley, Mr. Weasley, Snape, Lupin, Hagrid, and Professor Dumbledore sat. Only the small sofa on which Bill and Mr. Weasley sat and the armchair where Lupin was perched seemed to be the furniture that belonged; the rest looked as if it had been conjured to seat the rest of the guests.

Snape narrowed his eyes as Tabitha entered. "What are they doing here?" he asked nastily.

"I don't think it's your place to ask, Professor Snape," Charlie said hotly. "My brother and sister and their friends are always welcome in my home."

"True as that may be, Professor Weasley, very serious matters are to be discussed ..."

Mr. Weasley jumped in before they began to argue. "Severus, they can hear this. They would have been told, anyway. Here, have a seat," he said, conjuring up another sofa, which barely fit inside the little room.

A loud knock echoed through the flat. "That'll be Minerva," Tabitha said, racing to the door. She reappeared a moment later with Professor McGonagall, who was quickly supplied with a chair. Tabitha leaned against a large bookshelf with Charlie. Everyone stared silently at Mr. Weasley.

Mr. Weasley looked upset. His face was very pale, and his hands shook as he wiped his glasses on his robes. "There—there was an attack early this morning," he began. "You all know that much. The Ministry has not made any comment to The Daily Prophet, but it should be running a story about the attacks once Fudge gives them more information. If Fudge gives them more information." He took a deep breath before continuing, "It appears that several Death Eaters gained entry to the Ministry this morning. They killed the four guards stationed in the Atrium before spreading out. It seems that their mission wasn't to kill everyone at the Ministry, but to wound enough to send a message. Everyone who wasn't killed is at St. Mungo's, on the Spell Damages floor." He paused, then looked from Lupin to Tabitha with great sympathy. "Nymphadora Tonks was taken to St. Mungo's. She's been very badly injured."

Lupin's face went white. Tabitha had grabbed Charlie's arm and was clutching it tightly. He put his arm around her reassuringly. Lupin absently ran his fingers through his graying hair. "Will she—will she be all right, Arthur?"

Mr. Weasley shook his head softly. "I don't know, Remus," he said. "She hasn't woken up yet." Lupin stood suddenly, shaking. He turned towards the wall and stood there, wringing his hands, his eyes clenched shut. Hermione and Ginny sat in shock.

Mr. Weasley wasn't finished. "Tonks was one of the luckier ones," he said. "Most of the other Aurors were ... well, she was found with Perkins in my office, so perhaps the Death Eater who went after her didn't know she was an Auror. But Kingsley ..."

"Oh, no!" Hermione whispered hoarsely. Kingsley Shacklebolt was a tall, serious, black wizard who'd taken on Bellatrix Lestrange last year after she killed Sirius. Harry didn't know him well, but he seemed like a nice fellow. He was in charge of the Ministry's hunt for Sirius, and for the past several years he'd been redirecting the search so as to keep Sirius from being detected. Last year, when Harry went to the Ministry Headquarters with Mr. Weasley, Kingsley had given them a magazine that he thought Sirius would enjoy reading.

"He's dead, Arthur?" Dumbledore said quietly.

"I'm afraid so, Professor Dumbledore," Mr. Weasley replied.

"How many others were killed?" Bill asked seriously.

"Right now, fifteen, with about that many at St. Mungo's." Mr. Weasley sighed. "They chose their time for a reason. They know they wouldn't have been able to make such a brazen attack during the day, when the Ministry was full. No, no, they're just sending us a message. And now, with so many Aurors gone, we won't be able to guard Azkaban as well as we have been. The Death Eaters may just be able to escape again."

Charlie touched his father's arm lightly. "Dad, when you got there ... was—was he there yet?"

"Who?" Harry asked. He looked around at the members of the Order, perhaps imagining that they all knew who Mr. Weasley was to meet at the Ministry of Magic, but only Bill and Mr. Weasley appeared to know what Charlie was talking about.

Mr. Weasley closed his eyes briefly. He was choked up when he began speaking, "I was, uh ... well, I was to meet with Percy this morning at the Ministry. He contacted me last week and said he had something important to show me, but we had to meet secretly while Fudge and most of the other employees were gone." Harry felt Ginny's hand slip into his nervously. This is it, Harry thought. Mr. Weasley continued, "Percy ... well, everyone found near Fudge's office was dead when I got there, and Percy—"

"It's all right, Dad," Bill said softly.

"I haven't told Molly or Fred and George yet," Mr. Weasley continued, his voice still quavering. "I really should be off to the Burrow to tell them. Professor Dumbledore, I'll need my children home for several days for—for the funeral." A sharp sob escaped Ginny's lips. Without knowing what else to do, Harry put his arm around her shoulder awkwardly.

Dumbledore looked at the Weasleys sympathetically. "The Order can carry on its business without you until feel it's the right time to come back."

"Charlie and I will help the kids pack, Dad," Tabitha told Mr. Weasley. Harry started slightly at how she addressed Mr. Weasley. But then, she had known the Weasleys and been friends with Charlie since she was a first year at Hogwarts. Harry felt a pang of jealousy. Tabitha could cry to him about losing Sirius, but at least she had always had some kind of a father. The Marauder's Map suddenly flashed through his mind, though he didn't why.

Mr. Weasley gave Tabitha a grateful smile. "Thank you," he said hoarsely.

Tabitha hugged her grandparents. "I'll see you in a few days," she whispered. She and Charlie led Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny out of the flat, while the rest of the Order continued to quietly discuss the attack. Ron and Harry were walking stiffly, unable to speak. Hermione and Ginny were crying softly. Tabitha walked beside the girls slowly, her arms around their shoulders.

"I'll go to the Burrow with you all," she told Charlie softly. "But I have to go to St. Mungo's to see my cousin. I'll talk to Remus before we leave; I'm sure he's heading right to London to see her."

"I can't believe they got Perce," Charlie muttered. "And Kingsley. He was one of our best ..."

"Charlie," Tabitha said. "It's all right. Help the boys pack. We'll talk on the train."

Tabitha followed the girls up to the girls' dormitory. Charlie went with Harry and Ron, who mechanically packed several days' worth of clothes. "You won't have to worry about your trunks or any of that now," Charlie whispered, taking care not to wake Neville, Dean, and Seamus.

"Charlie?" Ron whispered. "What was Percy going to tell Dad?"

Charlie shook his head. "I don't know for sure. He told Dad that he was really sorry about this past year and that he realized that he was completely wrong, that he just realized something about Fudge. But he couldn't tell Dad; he had to show him." Charlie laughed dryly. "To think, of all days? Perce got the boot months ago, and the one day he goes back to the Ministry ..."

"What do you think Mum's going to do?" Ron asked seriously.

"I don't know, Ron. I'd rather not be around Mum, actually, but I know she'll need us. This is what she's been worried about." Charlie looked towards the door. "I think I hear Tabitha and the girls. Come on, I'm sure Dad is waiting."

Charlie and Tabitha walked behind them all, whispering quietly. Ron and Hermione walked hand-in-hand, silent. Harry grasped Ginny's hand as they left Gryffindor tower; she sniffled, silent tears dripping down her cheeks.

Harry could only think of Sirius. This is how his death would have been treated if he hadn't been in Azkaban, he thought bitterly. And if Tabitha's mother never died. Sirius would have had his family and his wife's family mourning him properly if not for Peter Pettigrew.

Mr. Weasley, Bill, and Lupin were waiting for them just outside the Great Hall, where the rest of the school was noisily eating breakfast. Outside, Hagrid had a carriage waiting to drive everyone through the snow to Hogsmeade. From there, Tabitha would drive them to the Weasleys' home in Ottery-St. Catchpole. She and Lupin made plans to meet at St. Mungo's later that day to see Tonks.

In the village, Mr. Weasley hugged each of his children. "I'll see you all at the Burrow," Mr. Weasley said. "I'm Apparating there now, to tell Molly and the twins." He and Lupin waved to them as Tabitha drove away, and then both of them disappeared.

Tabitha sealed off the front seat, so she, Charlie, and Bill could talk freely without the younger kids hearing them.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny sat in silence for a while as Tabitha's car flew through the countryside. Ginny was still sniffling, though she had stopped crying. Hermione was holding her hand and patting her arm reassuringly. Finally Ron said, "That giant git."

"Ron!" Ginny yelled sharply.

"Well, it's true!" Ron spat. "If that prat had never abandoned our family, he wouldn't have had to ask Dad to go to the Ministry just to apologize and tell him that he was wrong. And now, he's dead, and it's all his own fault! Poor Mum. Look at what Percy's putting her through now!"

Fresh tears spilled down Ginny's cheeks. "Ron!" Hermione snapped.

There was a pop as the seal around the front seat disappeared. Bill turned around. "How are you all doing?" he asked. He looked at Ginny sympathetically. "I know, Gin, it's hard for us. But we've got to remember what's happening. We have to expect that things like this are going to happen. Sirius, Kingsley, and Percy were only the first to go. We can only expect that You-Know-Who is going to come after more of us. We've got to be strong, okay? Especially for Mum." He smiled at Ron and Ginny. "Remember that time that Fred and George charmed Percy's nightshirt so he thought he was shrinking? He just about fainted when he looked in the mirror and thought he was the size of a house elf!" Ron and Ginny laughed weakly.

Harry and Hermione listened quietly as the Weasleys told more stories about Percy. Hermione said that Percy had always been really nice to her. Harry remained silent; Percy had always been nice to him, too, until last summer when he warned Ron that Harry and Dumbledore were dangerous and shouldn't be trusted.

Fred and George Weasley were waiting for them outside the Burrow when they arrived. "Mum's in a real state," George told them. "It's hard to be with her right now. I don't think she really knows what to do right now."

Harry was almost afraid to see Mrs. Weasley. He thought of last year, when he walked in on her trying to get rid of a boggart in Grimmauld Place. The little shape shifter had become every member of the Weasley family, appearing dead to Mrs. Weasley. She had been so upset that she couldn't perform the simple spell to get rid of the nasty little creature. Harry could only imagine how inconsolable Mrs. Weasley must be.

Bill and Charlie loaded up their arms with everyone's bags. "Well," Bill said. "Come on."

Harry was immensely unnerved by the haunting quiet of the Burrow. Every other time he'd been there, the house had been teeming with life. But the Weasley boys remained unusually solemn.

Mr. Weasley emerged from the back of the house. "Ah, you're here already."

"Molly's making dinner," Mr. Weasley continued. "And I just got back from Uncle Edward's. He's going to tell the rest of the family for us."

"How's Mum?" Charlie asked.

"I'm not quite sure," Mr. Weasley said. "I don't think she's realized it yet. Tabitha, maybe you ought to—"

"I'll help her with dinner," Tabitha said. She walked briskly to the kitchen.

"Bill, Charlie, I need you to see William Thanatos about doing a service in two days, and Fred and George, see Mr. Ollivander about the wand-burning ceremony. Ron, Harry, go up to Percy's room and look for his Hogwarts' robes and his Head Boy badge." Mr. Weasley stopped and ran his fingers through his thinning red hair. "Am I forgetting anything?" The Weasleys, who understandably knew far more about wizard funerals than did Harry and Hermione, shook their heads. "Good, good. I've, er, got to Apparate to your grandparents. I told Ed that I'd tell them. Hermione and Ginny, you can help Molly in the kitchen, or maybe start tidying up the house? We're going to have a lot of people here in a few days. We best make the place look nice. Well, I'll see you all in an hour for dinner." With a pop, Mr. Weasley disappeared.

Bill looked at his watch. "Mr. Thanatos should still be around, but we'd better go quick, Charlie." He looked at the twins. "And Mr. Ollivander may have already closed up shop."

"We'll be able to catch him," Fred assured his brother. The four eldest Weasley brothers disappeared as quickly as Mr. Weasley.

"What's all this for?" Hermione asked when everyone had gone. "The wand burning and the Hogwarts' robes?"

"The wand burning is just a ceremony. A lot of wizards don't do it anymore," Ron said. "It's supposed to be a way of making sure that no other wizard tries to harness your powers once you're dead. Of course, some families have wands that they pass down as part of tradition. And, I dunno, I guess Mum and Dad want Perce to be ... well, to be dressed in his Hogwarts' robes when we cremate him."

"Cremate?" Hermione said faintly. "Do wizards ever bury—?"

Ron shook his head. "It's part of the ceremony."

Hermione looked at Ginny nervously. "We ought to ... to tidy up a bit, like your dad said." Ginny nodded. They moved about the living room awkwardly, picking up loose articles of clothing, forgotten knitting projects, and toys that had to have been invented for Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Harry and Ron walked upstairs quietly. The house was still full of an eerie silence that neither wanted to disrupt.

Percy's room was immaculate. It wasn't difficult to find his old Hogwarts robes hanging in the wardrobe. His Head Boy and Prefect badges were displayed prominently on a shelf above his bed, next to a picture of a pretty young woman.

"Ron, is ... was Percy still seeing Penelope Clearwater?" Harry asked, looking at the picture.

"Oh, bollocks, I don't know," Ron said. "I wonder if she's heard. I mean, d'you think it's in The Daily Prophet today?"

"Shouldn't it be?" Harry wondered aloud. "I mean, it was a massive attack on the Ministry, fifteen people dead, all targeted around Fudge's off—oh!"

"What is it, Harry?"

"Oh, nothing. I just—well, it's just odd to think that Percy—"

"I know. I still can't believe it," Ron said. "I—I think I know how you felt now. You know, when Sirius ... I mean, I think it was much worse for you. Percy was my brother and all, but he was a git, and he didn't give two licks about our family. But it's odd to think that he'll never be here again. We don't even have a portrait of him to annoy us. Mum always wanted a portrait of the family, but we couldn't aff—we ... well, you know, we couldn't afford it."

Harry smiled at Ron weakly. "D'you reckon Ginny will be okay?"

"Probably. But she's like Mum. If Percy had just decided to come home, they'd have forgiven him in an instant. But the rest of us wouldn't have made it so easy for him."

Harry watched Ron putter around Percy's room, looking at his photographs and all the things he left behind when he left home. Harry didn't know why, but he just couldn't tell Ron yet about what he'd realized. Once we're back at Hogwarts, Harry told himself resolutely. He would tell Hermione and Ginny, too—that is, if Hermione hadn't already figured it out.

Harry hadn't really been paying attention to Charlie when he remarked that the one day Percy returned to the Ministry after being fired happened to be the day of a massive attack. And Percy had been there to tell Mr. Weasley—no, show Mr. Weasley—something about Fudge, something Percy had realized.

Percy had been fired personally by Cornelius Fudge. Ron told Harry it was because Percy still didn't believe Dumbledore and Harry's claims that Voldemort was back, and he got into an argument with Fudge about it. But did everyone who overheard them hear the fight correctly? Or had their memories been modified by Fudge?

Harry could feel his palms beginning to sweat. It was too frightening to think; as bumbling as Fudge was, as Minister of Magic, he had a lot of power. If he had teamed up with Voldemort, then Percy, as his personal assistant, would most likely know. Fudge could have overestimated just how loyal an assistant Percy was; perhaps their fight was not about Percy's disbelief in Voldemort's return, but Fudge's new alliance with Voldemort. Between them, they would have enough spies to find out if Percy dared tell anyone. And then, they would be free to attack ...

No, it was too ridiculous. Harry tried to wipe the idea from his head, but it stubbornly remained. He promised himself to tell his friends once they returned to Hogwarts; once they laughed at him and assured him the idea was ridiculous, he would feel much better about forgetting it.

Hermione came up a few minutes later. "Everyone's just got back," she told them. "Mrs. Weasley and Tabitha are setting out dinner right now."

"Thanks, Hermione." Ron smiled at her before taking her hand and walking with her down the stairs. Harry followed close behind, his stomach in knots from the possibility that Fudge could be working with Voldemort.

Since the Weasleys' kitchen was too small to accommodate a table for eleven, a second table had been set up in the living room for Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the twins. Mrs. Weasley's face was pale and drawn; she was not at all herself. She embraced Harry and Ron for a long time before letting them go. "You poor boy," she murmured, patting down Ron's hair. "To have lost your brother."

"Are you all right, Mum?" Ron asked cautiously.

"Don't worry about me, Ron," Mrs. Weasley said briskly. "I've got too many people worrying about me; let me worry about you. Bill, will you help me bring out the dishes—?"

"Here, Mum, we've got it," Fred said. He and George went into the kitchen and emerged with huge serving dishes, which they set down gingerly on the table.

"Come on, Mum, they're all right," Charlie said gently. He and Bill led her into the kitchen, where Tabitha and Mr. Weasley were waiting.

"Poor Mum," George sighed. "She was hovering all over me and Fred today before you lot got here. Dad says he sort of expected her to act like this."

They ate in silence. Harry could hear some murmuring from the kitchen; he thought he heard Mrs. Weasley start to cry. He shifted in his chair. The silence of the Burrow was completely unnerving.

Fred finally spoke. "So Harry, have you patched things up with our friend Tabitha?"

Harry nodded. "She, er ... well, she told me about herself."

"What d'you mean?" George asked.

"Tabitha is Sirius' daughter," Ron said. Fred and George's mouths dropped open.

"No!" George said. "But her last name isn't Black ..."

"Not the one she uses, but her last name is Black," Ron said.

"Well ..." Harry interrupted.

"Right, well, her last name is Weasley now, but—"

"Oy! Just a minute! What do you mean, her last name is Weasley?" Fred demanded.

"No one told you, either?" Ron said. "Honestly, the next time Charlie gets married—"

"What!" the twins cried.

"We'll ask him about it later," Ron said. "After Mum goes to bed."

Harry and Ron tried to help Mrs. Weasley after dinner, but she insisted on cleaning up herself. "Ron, you just entertain Harry for tonight. We're going to have a lot of people coming by the next few days, so you'd best make the most of tonight."

"Mum, are you sure—"

"Ronald Weasley, get upstairs this instant and have fun with your friend!"

"Yes, Mum."

"D'you think she'll be all right?" Harry asked as they walked upstairs.

"I don't know. Dad will make sure she is, I guess."

As they passed Fred and George's room, Harry saw that the door was cracked open. Bill, Charlie, Tabitha, the twins, Ginny, and Hermione were inside, talking quietly.

"Grandma will be here tomorrow," Bill was saying. "We won't have to worry once Mum's mother is here."

Harry and Ron pushed the door open all the way. Tabitha jumped. "You two scared—is that really the time?" She was staring at the clock above the door.

"It's a few minutes slow, I think," Fred said. "At least, that would explain why George and I are nearly almost late in opening the shop."

"I've got to go; I was supposed to meet Remus almost an hour ago." Tabitha kissed Charlie on the cheek. "I'll be back first thing tomorrow, I promise. I'm staying with my Aunt Andromeda tonight."

"Just stay with Tonks as long as you have to," Charlie assured her. Tabitha said goodbye quickly and Disapparated.

"Hmm, that was interesting, wasn't it, Mr. Weasley?" Fred said to George.

"Very, Mr. Weasley," George replied. They eyed Charlie carefully. "Tabitha's a lovely woman, isn't she, Mr. Weasley?"

Charlie rolled his eyes. "I suppose Harry's told you all, then?" He winked at Harry. "It's all right. I should have said something earlier."

"Why didn't you tell any of us?" Ron demanded.

Charlie shrugged. "Tabitha and I only got married last year because Voldemort was back. We were planning on telling everyone once she got back from working in South America, but there just hasn't been time—"

"There was all summer!" Ron cried.

"Listen, don't worry about it," Bill jumped in. "Now you all know; that's what's important."

"What's important is what we're dealing with right now," Charlie said. "We've got the funeral to get through, and Tabitha's upset because Tonks is in the hospital. And the dragon may already be at Hogwarts when we go back."

"What dragon?" Fred said. "Are George and I not in the Order any more?"

Charlie and Bill quickly summed everything up for Fred and George, who were both wholly dissatisfied in the lack of information they'd been getting recently.

"We'll have to open up a shop in Hogsmeade, just to stay updated on what's happening at Hogwarts," George muttered.

There was a knock on the door. Mr. Weasley let himself in. "You should all think about getting to bed early tonight," he said. "People are going to be coming by early tomorrow, and I need you boys to see Mr. Thanatos and Mr. Ollivander tomorrow to confirm our plans for Monday, all right?"

"Sure, Dad, get some rest tonight, all right?" Bill said.

"And make sure Mum sleeps well," George added.

Mr. Weasley smiled. "Goodnight, boys, Ginny, Hermione."

Harry couldn't sleep that night. He was tossing and turning about Fudge, and his anxiety over meeting the extended Weasley family continued to grow. He finally fell asleep just before the sun came up.