Chapter Thirteen
Meeting Miss Riddle

"Ginny! Ginny, wake up!" Molly Weasley's voice rang through the hall. She had attempted four times to wake up her daughter who was sleeping on the stairs. This made getting up the stairs impossible, except to apparate at the top of the steps, which was no consolation for the underage members who needed to use the upstairs bathroom.

"Let us try, Mum," Fred suggested innocently.

"Don't hurt her or I'll have both your heads!" his mother replied, which obviously meant yes, because she moved out of the way.

George pulled something out of his pocket that resembled a small horn. He spoke into it, but the voice that came out of it was not his.

"Ginny…Ginny, wake up. It's me, Harry."

Ginny opened her eyes, and a smile appeared on her face which immediately turned into an angry expression when she saw Fred and George standing in front of her.

"GEORGE! I'll kill you! I gave you the idea for that Magical Voice Modifier and you used it against me!" Ginny yelled and ran after George like a madwoman.

"Why did that work, when he used Harry's voice?" Mrs. Weasley asked Fred, puzzled.

"Mum, don't you know? You don't even know whom your only daughter fancies? I'm appalled!" Fred replied in a fake-surprised voice.

Mrs. Weasley frowned, and then burst into a fit of laughter.

"Not again? Goodness, Ginny and Harry? The thought of it, well, actually," a smile spread across Mrs. Weasley's face, "that wouldn't be so bad! It would be great, really! I wish I would've known, though. Ginny used to tell me everything. Oh well, now they'd be a brilliant pair, wouldn't they?" Mrs. Weasley's grinned proudly at the thought of Harry and Ginny getting married someday…

"Yes, I'm looking for Ebony Whittaker. Does she live here?" Harry Potter asked a stern-looking wizard of about 65 standing outside of a large old-fashioned home.

"You're Harry Potter, aren't you? What do want with my wife?" the man asked in reply.

"Yes, I am Harry Potter. And Albus Dumbledore sent me here. He would like to speak with her," Harry replied, and he pulled a folded piece of parchment out of his pocket, and handed it to the man.

The man read the letter, and gestured for Harry to come inside. Harry sat down on a crimson armchair and gazed around the house. It was extremely colorful, and bright, and considering whom Ebony Whittaker was related to, Harry was extremely surprised. A few moments later, a tall, slender woman aged 65 descended the stairs with her husband.

"Hello, I am Ebony Whittaker. I haven't seen Dumbledore for ages! When I went to Hogwarts, he was the Transfiguration teacher. Now he's the Headmaster, I've heard." The woman's voice was soft and sweet which contrasted her physical appearance: long, sleek, jet-black hair and pale blue eyes. Harry stood up, and introduced himself.

"THE Harry Potter? Oh, goodness, I know why you're here. Has it got to do with my half-brother?"

Ginny had managed to catch George and she jumped on his back, knocking him to the floor. Luna, Ron, and Hermione entered the drawing room at that very moment, and they almost collapsed to the floor themselves in laughter.

"George! Is that you underneath our dear sister? Well done, Ginny! I've tried that many times myself, but I was never strong enough to knock him over," Ron mocked George, and let out a loud howl of laughter.

Fred came in a moment later, and quickly exited the room in fear that he would explode with hilarity.

"All right, you've had your fun. Now help me up!" George demanded as Ginny jumped up off of his back.

That morning at breakfast, everyone was talking, and laughing; even Ginny. Despite the fact that she knew the Final Duel was drawing nearer, she began to feel more herself, and was able to enjoy her last few hours before she left again.

The night before, Ginny had a wonderful dream. She hadn't told anyone about it, because she knew they would all tease her as they did when she was 11 and 12.

She had been flying on her new broomstick late at night, and she didn't really know where she was going. She just flew for what seemed like an hour. Eventually, she dismounted in front of a small house. Suddenly, Snape and Voldemort appeared in front of her. But Ginny walked on and smiled, and withdrew her wand from inside of her robes. She had her wand in her hand, but she didn't point it at Snape or Voldemort. She pointed it at the door of the house, which flew open immediately. She turned around as though not to face Voldemort and the Half Blood Prince. A few screams and flashes of light later, Harry came over to her and put his hand on her shoulder. She turned around and saw everyone sitting on chairs on the lawn, and Fred and George were using the Extendable Ears to listen to Voldemort and Snape's breathing.

"They're dead, alright," Fred announced, and with a flick of his wand, the two corpses vanished.

"Wow, and there was only an hour left, too!" George exclaimed.

Her mother was crying, and then said, "I always knew they'd make such a good team. And now they're getting married!"

For a moment Ginny thought her mom was talking about Fred and George, but then realized that she was now wearing a white Wedding gown, and Harry was leaning in to kiss her…

It was a great dream, but very unrealistic, Ginny thought. But it contented her for the rest of the morning.

Harry and Ebony had apparated to Hogsmeade where Dumbledore was waiting for their arrival. Ebony told Dumbledore everything she knew, and was willing to help out in any way she could. She had found out almost seventeen years ago that she had a half-brother, and felt ashamed to be related to him at all, even if it was only on her dead father's side; the father that had abandoned she and her mother when Ebony had received her Hogwarts letter. Her half-brother's mother was a witch, but both of her parents were Muggles. Her mother accepted the fact that she was a witch, but her father fled back to his own parents when he learned that his second child was magical. (Her half-brother had murdered her father and her father's parents about a year after Ebony's parents divorced, but Dumbledore just told her that.)

She had never spoken to her half-brother before, and had only seen him at school. But they weren't even in the same house; he was a Slytherin, and she was a Ravenclaw, and they were five years apart. Her information provided helpful to Harry, and she would be returning to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place with Dumbledore in an hour's time.

"Harry, will you be coming to Neville's funeral?" Dumbledore asked Harry as they walked along the lifeless streets of Hogsmeade.

"I 'spose so. I won't stay afterwards, but I would feel guilty not going. Neville was a great guy, and he was a superb duelist. I always knew Malfoy was a sneaky, conniving little-"

"Harry! That's enough. I know you how you feel. But you must calm down. The funeral is to be at 11:30, so don't be late. He will be buried in the same cemetery as your parents, and you may leave immediately after. Just keep in mind your promise to Miss Weasley. I expect that she'll be in the Shrieking Shack no later than 12:01. Ebony and I will be leaving now," Dumbledore finished, and with two loud cracks, Harry was left alone.

After everyone was finished eating breakfast, they all changed into their black dress robes for Neville's funeral. They had to wait for Dumbledore to return from his meeting with a new Order member. No one at Number 12 knew who this person was, but Dumbledore had said they would be extremely helpful, and that they lived a few miles from Grimmauld Place.

At 11:00, Dumbledore arrived back at Number 12, with a tall, dark-haired woman. She smiled and waved at everyone gathered in the hall. She looked a little shy, so Dumbledore introduced her to everyone.

"Hello, again everyone. I would like to introduce you to the newest member of the Order. Her name is Ebony Whittaker, but some of you may recognize her as Miss Riddle: Voldemort's sister."