Author Notes: Find the Sondheim quote if you can! It's from Into the Woods...
Chapter Fourteen: Time Passes, a Lot of It Spent in the Library, and Hermione is Clever
Ginny wasn't sure how to deal with her situation. Should she tell Harry that she was carrying a child? He wouldn't have to guess whose it was--the only possibility was Malfoy. And did she need to tell him that for her safety, they needed to pretend that it was his child in case anyone found out?
They were already an obvious couple to those who cared to notice. Little things, like always sitting next to each other at meals, or working together in the common room at night or in the library during the day. It wasn't a matter of running off to snog in empty classrooms, but rather of being close to each other and enjoying the other person's presence.
And Ginny wasn't exactly ready for anything physical yet. The hug in the infirmary didn't count--it was more of a comforting gesture than something to excite her.
She'd visited Professor Snape a few days after the diagnosis, and he'd provided her a package of small vials. "It will calm the inevitable nausea," he said, almost kindly. "I would encourage you to take one each morning, or evening, as you prefer, until it subsides. Come back if you need more."
She'd thanked him, packed the bundle carefully into her bag, and climbed up to the library to do some more research.
The work to find the Heir of Ravenclaw was tedious. First, she was able to eliminate all the Muggle-borns, like Hermione, because there was no chance of old wizarding blood in their veins. But the half-and-halfs, like Seamus, were still possibilities. Out of the three hundred and seventeen students currently Hogwarts, she still had to trace the lines of two hundred and forty-five possible Heirs.
Bother.
She tried tracing Rowena Ravenclaw's lineage, but that became impossible after several generations, because of the tendency of that family to migrate. There was an instance of at least one Ravenclaw relation on the American colonial expeditions, and after finding out that Fiona Dewtree, née Burroughs-Ravenclaw, had run off to join her lover in Marco Polo's expedition to China, Ginny gave up.
So it was back to tracing out current lineages. Why on earth was Voldemort so convinced that the Heir had to be at Hogwarts? And she wasn't even sure exactly how one came about being an heir--the blood had to be diluted, of course, as each person married. What made Harry, Voldemort, and herself so special? Well, Harry was an only child, as Tom Riddle had been. But then how could she be an Heir? She had six brothers...
But no sisters.
Ginny happily eliminated one hundred thirty-seven male students from her list.
Which still left one hundred and eight girls to investigate.
Still, she felt like she was getting close. She had to be. But constant notes of "paternity questioned" in the records meant rummaging up old society columns and gossipy diaries to find out who was having "indecent relationships" with whom. It was difficult work, made even more difficult by having to squeeze it in during Harry's Quidditch practices, which no one expected her to attend after what had happened at the last match.
By Easter, she and Harry were considered an "item"--Colin had caught a snapshot of the two of them kissing in the snow at Hogsmeade, and it had easily found its way out of Gryffindor tower. Ginny had "accidentally" left it in a book on reserve for Charms, so everyone in her class saw it, including the Slytherins... whoops.
She still hadn't told him she was pregnant.
But she had only fifty-one more girls to trace, and two and a half months in which to do it.
The Easter holidays were a nightmare. Not only did she have to try and manage her research in secret, when Harry followed her around like a puppy, but the regular workload from her teachers was immense.
She'd had to write home for some new underclothes--"Oh, that's so wonderful you're growing up," Mrs. Weasley had written back, chatting about Percy's pet cat, and Charlie's latest dragon adventure, and her father's newest Muggle obsession, paper planes.
Ginny wasn't sure which was worse--the mood swings, or the cravings.
"I'm going down to the kitchens," announced Fred late Wednesday night. "Want anything?"
"Eclairs," said Ron, without looking up from the current chess game he was playing with Harry. It seemed Harry had improved a bit over the last four years, and Ron actually had to think during a game.
"Ham sandwich," said Harry.
"I'm fine, thanks," said Hermione. "Ginny?"
What Ginny wanted, more than anything in the world, was greens. Greens, and nothing but greens. Parsley, peppers, cabbages, and celery. Asparagus and watercress and fiddleferns and lettuce...
"Umm... can I have a salad? Lettuce, celery, fiddleferns-"
"Er." Fred looked startled. "Maybe you should come with me, that sounds complicated."
"Sure." Ginny got to her feet. She was starting to feel heavier, which made her feel both pleased and a little scared.
The house-elves were quite eager to please, and she got her salad.
When Ginny returned, munching on a piece of lettuce, Hermione was looking at Ginny in a completely different way. "Ginny?" she asked slowly. Ginny met Hermione's eyes and realized that the cleverest Gryffindor in hundreds of years had once again connected two and two to make four.
Hermione cornered Ginny in her dorm the next morning.
"Ginny!" called Hermione, knocking on the door. "I know your friends went home for the holiday, so let me in!"
Reluctantly, Ginny opened the door. Hermione was standing there in her bathrobe. "Want to come with me to the prefects' bath?" she asked, holding out another fluffy robe. "Come on, we can talk in private."
Ginny sighed and followed her. No time like the present.
The prefects' bathroom was luxurious, done in some sort of spicy wood that was springy under her feet. One complete side was taken up with a large, steaming tub, big enough for at least a dozen girls to sit in without bumping elbows, and on the other side were several partitioned shower cubbies. Ginny peaked into a doorway and saw a traditional bathroom, with toilet and a spacious shower-tub.
Hermione had dropped her bathrobe when the door clicked shut behind them. Ginny averted her eyes, but Hermione just said, "Oh, don't worry, you haven't got anything I haven't got--well, mostly." Ginny stood, undecided for a minute. "Oh, just undress and shower!"
Ginny found her tongue. "Why are there both?"
"You mean, both tub and these showers? It's a Japanese thing--you shower off first, then soak in the tub," she said, pulling out a small stool and turning on a showerhead.
If she can do it, so can I, Ginny shucked off her robe to shower.
The hot tub was luxurious, Ginny thought ten minutes later. She found a conveniently sloped spot and relaxed against it. Although the baby didn't weigh much yet, it was nice to take the weight off.
"You're bulging a little," said Hermione eventually.
"I know," said Ginny. "There's not much to do about it. Magic could really hurt it at this stage. But it's hidden underneath the robes pretty well."
"True." Hermione paused to sink underneath the surface of the water. "Have you told anyone yet?"
"No."
"Not even your mother?"
"She'd freak out."
"I don't think she would," said Hermione, frowning. "She's a pretty strong woman--Dumbledore trusts her."
"True. But I think she'd probably take me out of Hogwarts, and I don't want to be away from here."
"Away from Harry, you mean," said Hermione.
"Well, how would you feel if you were pregnant with Ron's child, and your parents decided that you should leave school?"
"Well, I'd probably want to stay here, near Ron," said Hermione thoughtfully. "But aren't you afraid people will figure it out?"
"Well, Harry and I have been awfully close for a long time now," said Ginny with a slight smile.
"I see. How does he feel about that--oh, that's right, you haven't told him."
"How did you figure it out, anyway?" asked Ginny curiously.
"Well, apart from you wanting that strange salad last night, you glow."
"I do?"
"Yes, rather prettily. Of course, since you're usually around Harry, it looks like you're just in love."
"Good."
"So," Hermione's face turned girlish. "What's it like being pregnant?"
Ginny smiled. "Oh, it's wonderful and horrible at the same time," she began.
Ginny laid down her quill. Had she done it? Really, truly? It looked like it--she'd better check one more time.
Rowena Ravenclaw begat Beatrice Ravenclaw, married Harold Burroughs begat Hildegard Ravenclaw-Burroughs, married Lucas Johnson begat Greta Johnson, married... the names continued over a full roll of parchment, and led directly down to Laura Madley, second-year Hufflepuff.
Ginny groaned. She knew Laura vaguely through Colin's brother Dennis, who partnererd Laura in Herbology. The girl was sweet, biddable: your standard Hufflepuff. She certainly didn't deserve to get mixed up with Voldemort's plans, whatever they were.
Time for more research.
She borrowed Hermione's copy of Hogwarts: a History, which was just a shade away from being completely bloody useless. "Magic worked by four Heirs," it read, "will be powerful and very difficult to stop or reverse once completed." So much for that.
But luck was with her. In Defense Against the Dark Arts the next day, Professor Thorens (who wasn't as good as Lupin had been, but not quite as bad as Lockhart--though close in arrogance) mentioned double-wizard curses--performed often by "certain groups in the past"--but abandoned now, because of the power required. Perfect opportunity.
"Professor?" Ginny approached the desk as everyone filed out for lunch.
"Miss Weasley, what can I do for you?" he asked, piling papers.
"I've never read anything about double-wizard curses before, and the theory behind it... I'm confused. Do the wizards need to work completely in tandem, or does one wizard control the other person's power? And how does the spell manage to work with two different wands, since I know that unicorn tail hairs especially can be quite fussy--"
It was a trick she'd learned from Hermione--annoy a teacher just enough with questions to let them refer you to a book so they don't have to deal with you.
"Well, I don't have time now, and I'll be busy preparing exams for the next two weeks--but here's a book I recommend. I think it's in the Restricted Section, so you'll need a note..." He scribbled a quick note and handed it to Ginny.
"Please give Miss Weasley permission to browse the Restricted Section on curses at her leisure. Signed, Professor A. Thorens."
Perfect.
Ginny sent the owl off to Lucius with just a name on it, and was finally able to start revising for her end-of-year exams. But the books on curses she'd found were highly distracting.
She learned that two wizards were four times as powerful as one, and three were nine times, and four were sixteen times as powerful. She learned that one wizard could absorb the power of the others, or they could work together--it only made a slight difference in the channeling. She learned that Voldemort was one of the few wizards who could dominate more than one other wizard, but that he'd commonly used Imperio to manage the spell-casting.
But she didn't find anything about Hogwarts.
Maybe the Secret-Binding had worn off by now? She experimentally tried writing down her findings, but her ink bottle spilled over it (without being knocked at all) before she could write anything interesting. So much for that.
Maybe...
"Professor Dumbledore?"
"Yes, Miss Weasley, how can I help you?"
It was the night before exams, and everyone was holed up somewhere studying. She decided to wander out and see what she could tell Dumbledore. Harry's map, which he gladly lent to her, showed the Headmaster pacing around the Astronomy Tower. He didn't seem surprised to see her there.
"I--I've come to a bit of a stopping point in my research, sir."
Dumbledore turned around quickly. "I see." He was immediately focused on her, no longer the slightly mad old man. "What can you tell me?"
What could she tell him? Better try. "Hufflepuff, sir."
"What year?"
"Second. Female." What else? "Her father is Muggle-born."
Dumbledore bowed his head. "The poor girl."
What else could she say? "Sir, I got a note from Professor Thorens for free use of the restricted section; it was after we discussed double-wizard curses in class."
His head snapped up. "I see."
"Professor? What are you going to do?"
"At the moment, nothing."
"Nothing!"
"Ginny, there is nothing I can do at the moment--I will warn Laura's parents of the danger, advise them to keep her in school; but other than that, there is little I can do before Voldemort makes his strike."
"Do you--do you have any idea what he'll do?"
Dumbledore shook his head sadly.