Chapter Two
Cassie?
"Uncle Harry!" Yelled Adele, just as Harry apparated in to the Weasley household, "Mum, Dad, Uncle Harry is here!" she yelled upstairs.
"Hey Adele," Harry said scooping his niece up into a hug, "so you all ready for Hogwarts this year?"
"I can't wait! We are going into Diagon Alley today to buy my school stuff. Are you going to come?" she said quickly
"Maybe, I came to see your dad about …"Harry paused "work things, before I do anything else, so where is he?"
"He and mum are upstairs with the twins."
"Ok thanks Adele." He replied, climbing the stairs.
Harry walked into the twins room, to see two very mischievous smiles,
"No mum, we will be good, we always are."
"You are becoming more like you Uncles Fred and George everyday." commented
Hermione, with a disappointed look on her face.
"Oh but they are so cute Mione,"
Surprised she quickly turned around, "Harry!" She said, giving him a kiss on the check, "I didn't know you where coming today."
"Yeah, I came to see Ron to clear up some work things, before I leave."
"Are you excited about leaving?" she questioned with an expectant look on her face
"I suppose I am a little nervous about going back, I just hope I last longer than a year."
"Oh stop it Harry!" She said hitting his shoulder, "You'll be fine." She said turning her attention back to the twins, who where playing with their toys.
"Now where is that husband of yours?"
"Oh I thought he was downstairs with Adele."
"Adele said he was up here" Harry answered slightly confused.
"Not again!" she said frustrated "Harry!"
"What did I do?" he said defensivly.
"You gave him the s…" she stopped herself remember the twins were still in the room, who were now giggling quietly "that.. invisibility cloak, he is uses it to get of helping me around the house, especially with getting the twins ready."
Just they Ron appeared out of thin air "No I don't!"
"Well what where you doing?' Hermione questions giving him an reprimanding look.
"Having a game with the twins, before you two interrupted" replied Ron indignantly.
He turned to Harry, "So what did you wanna talk to me about?"
Harry shook his head and laughed quietly, Ron and Hermione hadn't really changed since school, "You two are hopeless" He told them. "But about work do you need anything from me before I leave, besides my files?"
"No that's brilliant, I will need thoses files for this new case" His face went serious for a second then broke into a sad smile. "It is going to be weird without you"
"Yeah I know, pity I got injured…" There was a pause in the conversation; no one liked talking about that day. "So Adele seems excited about Hogwarts." He said changing the conversation.
"Yeah she hasn't stopped talking about it since the letter came." Ron turned to the twins, "You boys go downstairs we'll will be down soon. "
"Ok dad." replied the twins who dropped their toys and ran top speed downstairs.
"I can't believe she is eleven already, and off to Hogwarts. Seems like only yesterday-" Harry stopped, he was going to say when he first saw Adele, but they he thought about Ginny and those memories were just to painful. Christa will be eleven at the end of the year.
"Harry, there is nothing you can do." Hermione said, knowing why Harry stopped.
"I know but still…"
"Hey so are you got to come to Diagon Alley with us?" said Ron trying to change the subject again.
"Yeah, I hope you guys don't mind, I have to pick up some stuff anyway."
"No you would be so much help"
"One adult to every child." comment Ron
"No Ron," said Hermione, "With Harry it only makes it two adults"
Ron thought about this for a second "Mione, there is you me and Harry, that's three. What are you on about?"
Harry burst into laughter, while all Hermione could do was shake her head.
"What?" Ron asked.
"Hey mum, how long has that old place been there?" She questioned, pointed to a sign that said The Leaky Caldron.
"It has always been here," said Cassie quickly, "you just probably didn't notice it."
They entered the pub but didn't stop; they walked through to the back, where they came to a wall. Cassie took off a necklace that she was always wearing and tapped the wall. Christa hurried to get a better look at what her mother did but she was quickly distracted when the wall started to move. It opened up and there was a sign hanging over the street saying Diagon Alley.
"Ohh!" Was the only sound that Christa could make as they walked down a busy street.
"Ok well first we have to get you some books, we can go to Florish and Blotts for that," she said pointed at a store, halfway along the street. As she said it, she spotted a large group of red heads entered the shop.
"Umm but lets go in there." she said pointing to Magical Menagerie. Turning her daughter away from Florish and Blotts. They hurried into the shop, it was covered with cages of all types on animals.
"You can chose an owl", Cassie said to her daughter.
"Ok," Christa looked around at all the owls of all colours and sizes. Finally, half an hour later they emerged with a large black and white owl. It was very beautiful and seemed to be pleased to be being bought.
Christa had asked where she got the Wizarding money from, when she paid for the owl, but Cassie had just pretended not to hear her.
"Ok now what else do we have to get."
"An ice cream?" said her daughter hopefully; she had spotted Florean Fortescues Ice-cream Parlor.
"Ok fine." Cassie said, trying to sound like she objected, but really didn't mind at all. They were sitting outside, five minuets later, eating their ice creams' when a loud voice caught their attention.
"HARRY POTTER, you are as bad for Adele as Fred and George, seriously." said a familiar female voice
"Oh come on 'Mione, I'm not doing anything wrong am I!" he said turning to a little girl with red curly hair cascading down her back. The next moment a man walked out of Quidditch Quality Supplies, with two little boys, both with flaming red hair, similar to Cassie's. Cassie panicked, she couldn't be spotted, not now, maybe if we stay here they won't notice.
"There you are Ron! Harry is trying to get Adele to set off the fireworks that Fred and George gave her."
"Harry" replied Ron, "you know better than that. You don't tell Adele those kinda things when her mother is standing guard."
"Oh! Fat help you are," said Hermione turned to Ron, "you're my husband your suppose to support me, not Harry!"
They all just laughed, "Yeah but agreeing with Harry is always more fun!" For this Ron received a playful punch in the arm.
"Uncle Harry," yelled Adele reverting attention back to her and the twins, "you promised to buy us some ice cream!"
"Yeh" agree the two little boys
"I did didn't I, come on then, lets go!"
They're heading over here, oh $#!T what am I got to do? Thought Cassie.
"Come on mum", said Christa, "can we go get my school stuff now?" not paying attention to the conversation that was taking place nearby.
Cassie looked back at Christa, luckily she had finished her ice cream, so they could make a quick escape, and they got all their stuff together and left.
"Oh mum, I left my list on the table. I'll go back and get it." She said, just as the had successfully avoided Harry, Hermione, Ron, Adele and the twins and where about to walk into Flourish and Blotts.
"No it's ok, I'll go, you go into Flourish and Blotts, and I'll meet you there."
"Ok!" her Christa walked into the store. Cassie headed back to the table to pick up the letter but unfortunately bumped into someone on her way out.
"Sorry" replied Cassie, looking up, she saw who it was, and had to concentrate on not gasping.
"No, it was my fault", replied Harry, also looking up. "Ginny?" he questioned.
"Cassie" she corrected. Panicking she said quickly "Look I have to go, sorry" and she hurried off running back toward her daughter.
Harry was still frozen as Ron and Hermione came up behind him.
"What, you still scaring people away Harry?" Ron joked as he saw someone run off, but Harry didn't reply, he was still in shock. That woman had to be Ginny she had to be. She looked exactly like her, but it wasn't, just Cassie or someone. He thought
"What's the matter Harry?" Hermione asked, seeing the look on Harry's face.
"I don't know." replied Harry still wrapped up in his own thoughts.
They moved over to the table that Adele, Mark and Josh were now sitting at as they ate their ice creams.
"Harry tell us what's wrong."
"That was her, that woman I bumped into, it was her, well it wasn't her but it has to be!"
"Harry I have no idea who or what you are talking about. Who was what?"
There was an awkward pause, but Harry finally replied, "Ginny" There was a shocked silence. "but it wasn't."
"What!?" replied Ron in shock, no one had seen or heard from Ginny in over nine years, she had left the Wizarding World with her and Harry's daughter, soon after Percy had died.
There had been some death eater attacks even after the fall of Voldemort, and Percy and Ginny had been a victim of one of them. Ginny had escaped, but Percy had already been killed. Ginny had cried and she had said it was her fault that she could of saved him, that it should have been her that died, and then one day she wasn't there. She had taken Christa and gone. She had left a note behind saying that she had to leave. She couldn't stand by and watch her family die. She said that she knew she was a coward, but she just couldn't take it anymore. Everyone had searched for her for months and Harry's world had been turned upside down. Only now was he finally accepting he wouldn't see her again.
"She looked exactly like Ginny, but she said her name was Cassie or something and then ran off."
"Harry I know this sounds really mean, but it probably wasn't her, it was just a coincidence Harry. Maybe you have just been hoping to see her and Christa so much these days that anyone who looks like her is-"
"But no Hermione, she looked exactly like Ginny, and I know Ginny." replied Harry.
Ron hadn't commented, his mind was filling up with questions, was it Ginny? What had she been doing? Why had-
He was snapped back to reality with a question from his little girl. "What are you all talking about Dad?"
"Nothing honey, don't worry your little head." he turned and look down the street looking for any sign of the woman Harry saw.
"Harry there is no use getting yourself worked up!"
"Hermione, just drop it!"
"No Harry I am not seeing you go back to the way you were just after she left. Not now!" Said Hermione angrily
"Yeah well at the moment I don't really care!" Before anyone else could say anything Harry had apparated out.
"Why did Uncle Harry leave?" questioned Adele, who had been listening to the conversation, but not really understanding it.
"He just needs to cool off." said Ron to his daughter.
"He will splinch himself if he isn't careful. This is the worse possible time this could happen, just when everything is going so well for him."
"Hermione, if it was really Ginny…"
"And if it wasn't? What then Ron? Harry will try to find her again, and she doesn't want that, or she would have contacted us. " She paused "Come on you three," she said putting a smile on her face and turning to her kids, "lets go get the rest of Adele's school things so we can go home."
Harry had apparated home and was now rummaging through a cupboard, looking for his photo album.
He had stashed it in the cupboard years ago. He finally found it and started flicking through it. The few pages where covered with picture of him at Hogwarts, some with his Quidditch team, some with Ron and Hermione, and some with Ginny.
He kept leafing through, celebrations just after the war, family members weddings, his wedding, Ron and Hermione's wedding, then he found it.
Pictures of his daughter. There were pictures of her as a newborn till when she was around two years old, just before Ginny left. Harry's favorite picture was the one where Christa took her first steps. That photo was kept besides his bed so he could always see it.
She should be going to Hogwarts this year, he thought to himself, she should really be here with me, he thought, here with me, and Ginny and maybe another child, or two. I have a family but I have no idea where they are.
He had to do something to get his mind of Christa and his wife, so he started pack, he was leaving for Hogwarts tomorrow, he had to be there a week before all the students to get ready for classes. At least that will take up all my time, thought Harry, as he finished packing for the year.
A/N: And the plot thickens... all feedback is welcomed D Thanks again to my beta.. and to goddess-lil-angel formy first reviewhugz thnx heaps!!