Disclaimer:

J.K. Rowling is the owner of Harry Potter. Stories she has written and characters that she created are not mine. I don't take credit for any of her work. I do thank her for providing such a wonderful universe to dream about and write in.

Harry Potter and the Shadow of Evil

By: Starwin

Chapter 22 – Thin Line

So far today had been a normal Monday. Harry had started by sending off a letter to Mr. Olivander asking if it would be possible to repair his wand. Harry had enclosed the broken halves hoping that there would be some way to repair the damage.

As the end of the day drew closer Harry felt tense. Tonight was the Legion meeting. At first Harry had thought of going to the Legion meeting dressed as a member. However, as Hermione pointed out, Morag had indicated that there had been a small group, and an extra member might easily be spotted. The invisibility cloak was the next best option for this mission. It offered the best chance for infiltration. Harry had decided he would go alone, more than one person would be too risky.

And so it was that Harry stood outside the statue of Milla Mirith, a witch with hair that defied the laws of all things, pointing out in every direction. It was seven thirty. Morag had said eight o'clock but Harry wanted to be here early, giving him time to sneak in undetected, he hoped. The hallway was empty. Not a single person had come this way for more than twenty minutes. Perhaps most of the students were at dinner still. Harry checked his watch under his cloak. Seven thirty two. Harry sighed and looked up. He froze someone had stopped in front of the statue that Harry was standing next to.

The person was dressed in all black—a black mask without eyeholes, a black robe, with no markings, and black gloves covering the hands so that no skin showed. For a moment Harry almost forgot he was under the invisibility cloak. The person seemed to be looking right at him. Harry held his breath as the person moved slowly towards him. Harry's back was against the wall there was no space to retreat. The person in black's hand rushed out towards Harry to pull the invisibility cloak away.

Reacting at the last second Harry stepped aside. The hand missed and instead touched a stone on the wall, then another, then another. The floor rumbled and the statue of the witch sunk backwards into the wall. Where the statue had been, a large circlar hole now existed. Spiraling stairs led down into the dark.

Without a moments hesitation the person moved down the stairs. The top of the black mask had barely vanished before the statue pushed out from the wall to cover the secret passage below it.

Harry pulled the Marauders map from his pocket. This was a reconnaissance mission after all and he wanted to get the names of his enemies. Harry tapped the map with his school wand and whispered 'I solemnly swear I am up to no good.' The map however did not activate, Harry tried again.

"Shhh, did you hear that?" asked a voice from down the hall. Harry pulled the map against his chest and held his wand in front of him. Three more black masked students had arrived, Harry hadn't even heard them approach.

"I don't hear anything," said one of the students. It was Malfoy speaking this time, Harry was sure of it. The students that had just spoken moved to the same spot as the last person and pressed the bricks in order. Again the statue slid away and the student moved partway down the spiral stairs. Harry pushed the map down into his pocket. It would be too risky to try and activate it again. He would just have to listen. Maybe Malfoy would refer to people by name.

"Crabbe," Malfoy said pointed to one of the two masked students, wait here and check people as they come in. Harry couldn't help but smile. Malfoy and, Harry assumed, Goyle, moved down the passage. It did not close after them this time. Now was Harry's chance to get in unnoticed. Harry moved around Crabbe, who stood watching the hallway, and down the stairs.

The stairs spiraled down so that Harry could not see far in front of him. His instincts told him he should move slowly in case some one was coming up, but he knew it was more likely people would be coming down behind him.

At last Harry reached the bottom meeting no one. The stairs connected to a short stone passage that led to a heavy wooden door, which was swinging closed. The door hit the latch but it did not click shut.

Harry knew his best bet would be to wait for someone to open the door and follow them in. However, in this small space there was no place he could stand and not risk colliding with someone. There were voices coming down the stairs behind Harry now.

Harry bit his lip. He would have to do this right. Harry moved to the end of the passage close to the unlocked door. A group of black masked students appeared at the bottom of the stairs heading right for him. Harry put his hand against the door.

"It should be a good meeting tonight," one of the students said. It was a female voice that Harry couldn't place. "I hear that Malfoy has a special treat for us." They were almost here.

Harry opened the door just as the students reached it and slid through into the room. The students walked in and became silent, not glancing back. If Harry was right they had figured someone had opened it from the inside and the people already in the room would think it had been opened from the outside.

Quickly Harry moved against the back wall. The dungeon was a little larger than then a classroom. It was void of anything except a stone stage and podium. Two members stood on the stage talking in low voices. A third sat in a chair, almost invisible under the bright torches that lit the podium. The two standing on the stage did not look towards the door as the members entered.

Without being instructed the members sat on the floor, but not at the front of the room or even together in the group they had come in. Instead they sat in different spots around the room, like they had assigned places on the floor.

Harry waited and watched as more members arrived. Each sat in a different spot. It was almost unnerving to watch. Harry was reminded of the circle he had seen Voldemort's Death Eaters make.

At last the room was almost full. Crabbe came in through the door and closed it behind him, locking it and taking his place. Harry counted forty students. Two spots seemed to be left open, as though members were missing.

"Greetings members of the Legion," Malfoy said standing at the podium at the front of the room. The torch light illuminated his black robed figure. In the darkness of the dungeon he seemed menacing. It was like watching a meeting of death eaters. Malfoy spoke differently his voice commanding power and purpose.

The students had not been talking but the room became quiet as Malfoy talked. "The dark lord is pleased with your hard work. But not all of you have been loyal."

For the first time there was a sense of uneasiness in the air and some of the members shifted around. Harry stood motionless under the invisibility cloak. 'Not all had been loyal?' did Malfoy know about the DA spy hiding among them?

"You," Malfoy said pointing into the audience singling out a member indistinguishable from the rest. Malfoy stepped around the podium his hand still outstretched towards the masked student. For some reason Malfoy seemed much taller than Harry remembered him.

Harry gripped his wand tightly. If Malfoy had found Morag, the DA spy, Harry was going to have to act fast to save him. But with the school wand Harry doubted if he would be able to perform even simple spells. This wasn't good.

Malfoy moved through the ranks of black masked students final stopping short of one, his finger pointed menacingly down. "Rise," Malfoy said coldly. Harry knew Malfoy was a slimy git but he had never seen this side of him, a side that truly seemed evil, almost frightening. It was almost like Malfoy had become Voldemort.

The masked student rose.

"You are the spy," Malfoy said coldly. The student nodded.

"Yes… yes I am," the student said. Harry wasn't sure because the voice sounded frightened but the student didn't sound like Morag. "It was Harry Potter's idea. He wanted me to spy on you. He threatened to kill me if I didn't do what he said. His army is slowly taking over the school, threatening anyone that gets in their way!"

Harry felt his throat wanting to cry out in protest, to tell them all that it wasn't true. Only the remembrance that he was invisible kept him silent. 'If they can't see you they shouldn't hear you either!' Harry thought to himself.

Malfoy placed his hand on the boy's shoulder and spoke in a soft, kind, voice.

"It's alright," Malfoy said with a smile in his voice. "We all know that the evil Harry Potter has been trying to take over since the year he arrived." Malfoy turned and began to walk back towards the stage. The student remained standing.

"Lies have been told by everyone," Malfoy said as he walked, "The Dark Lord knows this, lies have been told about him too and about the dark arts. Magic is magic, there is no good or evil magic, only power." Malfoy reached the stage and turned back to the audience. "And those too weak to seek it."

"The Dark Lord is kind enough to forgive a wayward follower. You have renounced the evil Harry Potter. Follow the Legion faithfully and the Dark Lord will grant you the power you seek."

"My allegiance is to the Dark Lord," the student said. "He is my only master." Malfoy motioned for the boy to sit.

Harry's brain seemed to have gotten stuck somewhere along the line because he was still waiting for Malfoy to pull out his wand and kill the student, or at least torture him or something. But forgive him without a moment's hesitation? That seemed almost uncharacteristic, unreal.

And then, a little voice, spoke in the back of Harry's mind. It was a voice he had heard many times, mostly when he was about to, or doing something wholly irresponsible, Hermione's voice. 'It's not real, they're acting,' the voice said. Suddenly everything that Malfoy had said and done made sense. This whole thing had been planed. The member had never been a spy or even unfaithful. It was just an act. And the members of the Legion seemed to be lapping it up.

Harry listened to the rest of the meeting, shaking his head unable to believe how anyone could even consider the words Malfoy spoke were true. Malfoy was very good at spinning his web of lies. Standing at the podium illuminated by torches against shadowy stone he had a very powerful figure. His voice was strong and willed the ear to listen. But the words had no effect on Harry. All Harry could hear in them was a hissing quality like a snake lying between its teeth.

The meeting consisted of no training what so ever. Just lots of talking, by Malfoy, about how great Voldemort was, though he never once said Voldemort's name, and how evil Harry and Dumbledore were.

When at last the meeting concluded, two hours latter, Harry was sure of only one thing. What ever the Legion Ex Voldemort was it wasn't a threat to anyone except its own members.

Students began to exit. The two members that had been sitting behind Malfoy the whole meeting and hadn't said a word stood and began talking with Malfoy in low whispers. However now that the meeting was over they seemed to have quite a lot to say. However Harry could not make out their words. Harry moved along the wall towards the front of the room. Whatever they were talking about with Malfoy this was what Harry had been waiting to hear.

"…ov…all convincing," the member on Malfoy's left said.

"I think it went well," Malfoy said. "At least Goyle was able to remember his lines." The member on Malfoy's right nodded.

"But, there are still too few," said the black masked person Malfoy had been talking with. He had a thick accent that sounded like he was from Bulgaria. "The dark lord needs more willing supporters, here, ready to join his cause at a moment's notice.

"We're gathering as quickly as possible, but we have to be careful," Malfoy said. "Potter has eyes everywhere." Harry moved closer.

"Yes, Potter is a problem," the Bulgarian accented man said darkly. "I would have thought the Dark Lord would have removed him by now." Malfoy nodded but did not respond.

"Someone is watching us," said a female voice that hadn't spoken yet. It belonged to the third person standing on Malfoy's left. Her voice was raspy and barely above a whisper. Harry couldn't place if he had heard it before or not.

The female legion member pointed a black gloved hand at Harry. Harry felt his heart stop. How could this person see him?

Malfoy whirled drawing his wand and shouting something Harry didn't hear. Harry was already sprinting for the door.

"THE DOOR, LOCK THE DOOR!" the Bulgarian voice shouted. Harry reached the door just as a spell impacted with it. The handle would not come free. Harry spun around the cloak still wrapped around him. The three masked Legion members advanced on him, their wands drawn.

"Can you see who it is Demoltrov?" Malfoy asked as they walked towards the door. Harry could see only one way out of this. Focusing Harry transformed into Talon. He tried to think of anywhere but this. There was a burst of flame and Talon vanished.

---

Talon landed rolling on something soft. He wasn't sure where he had teleported to. Up until now he had never used his teleport ability to jump more that a couple of feet. But surly he had gone much further than that this time.

Looking around Talon found himself in some sort of dark room. There was no light and for some reason his feathers were not giving off any glow. His feet were pressed against something soft and springy, a sofa maybe? A creaking of hinges pulled Talon's attention towards the door as light sprang into the room. A woman entered and flicked her wand, illuminating the lamp next to Talon.

Talon wasn't on a sofa, he was on a bed! What's more he was on a bed in a girl's dormitory! And on top of all that he was on Hermione's bed! Talon realized all this because the person that had just come in was Hermione. She looked very tired, but for some reason didn't seem at all surprised to see a phoenix sitting on her bed. In fact it was almost as though she didn't see Talon at all. Talon had to quickly hop out of the way as Hermione pulled her robe off and tossed it onto the bed almost hitting Talon.

Talon was confused. It was like she couldn't even see him. Talon lifted his wings and was surprised to find that he couldn't see them! It was almost like he had become invisible! For a moment Talon thought it was because he was under the invisibility cloak but usually he could still see his wings…err arms… whatever.

Talon struggled with his thoughts trying to figure out what had happened and what to do now. But his thoughts were suddenly interrupted as Hermione began to unbutton her blouse. Talon felt his beak drop open.

He was invisible in Hermione's room watching her undress. This was messed up. He knew it was and yet, he couldn't draw himself away. Some urge inside him kept his eyes locked on Hermione's soft white breast hidden beneath her pink bra as she slowly undid the buttons on her shirt. It was almost like she was teasing him to watch.

Talon had dreamed of things like this before. But that's all they had been, dreams, there had never once been a real desire to actually see Hermione stripping down before him.

Hermione pulled her blouse off and tossed it into the hamper. Talon's mind was starting to work again. He had to get out of her before she found him out. Her friendship was too important to lose over a misunderstanding like this and Harry was certain that in the mood she had been in lately, ever since her and Ron had broken up, she wouldn't be very understanding.

Talon began to look around to put his eye's anywhere but on Hermione, who was now wiggling out of her gray skirt and exposing very tight fitting pink panties. Now that Talon was trying to look away it was like she was the only thing in the room. His eyes kept coming back to her soft round body. Seeing Hermione in a way he had never seen her before.

Suddenly Hermione turned around. A giant pink butt came rushing down as she moved to sit on her bed, right where Talon was standing. His wings reacting for him Talon leapt sideways and glided to the floor. He chanced a glance back at Hermione who was working her black socks off her feet. His eye's slipped upwards to her breast again. Talon looked quickly away feeling that if he wasn't covered in feathers or completely invisible, he would have been very red.

When he teleported he left a burst of flame behind but maybe since he was invisible he wouldn't this time. But it wasn't something he wanted to risk. If Hermione saw the burst of flame it would be just like she had seen him, since she knew he was a phoenix.

There was only one thing to do wait till she either went to sleep or left the room. Talon turned back around and felt his eyes bug-out. Hermione had taken her pink bra off. Her small round breast were bouncing slightly as she worked her way out of her underwear. Talon turned away again. He wanted so badly to turn and look but he knew that it was so very wrong.

Talon closed his eyes hoping that she would leave soon and to his surprise a moment later the door opened and closed. Talon turned around. Hermione had gone, how she had gotten dressed so quickly Talon couldn't fathom but now that she was gone it was time to make his escape. Talon looked at the window and imagined himself outside it. Just as he was about to teleport the door opened again. Talon looked back to see who it was. Hermione was standing in the doorway, a towel wrapped around her. She was looking into the room as though she had forgotten something.

With all his will Talon was trying to not to teleport away yet. The towel slipped a little revealing a pink nipple and a moment later Talon vanished with a pop right in front of her.

---

At the last second Talon's concentration had been thrown off and he had not appeared outside the window as he had wanted. At least this time he was not in someone's bedroom. He was in one of the school hallways. From the looks of it most likely the first floor hallway that connected up with the Great hall. Talon backed against the wall and with a force of will became Harry again. He'd had enough of the troublesome teleporting and he didn't want to risk appearing anywhere else.

The invisibility cloak was around him again. He could see his arms and legs beneath it. Harry leaned heavily against the wall. Had Hermione seen him? Did she know that he had been in her room watching her undress? Harry didn't know. He hoped not. Harry let out a sigh and turned, heading for the nearest staircase that would take him up to Gryffindor tower.

---

No one was in the halls this late at night but all the same Harry kept the cloak over him as he moved. He had gotten too many detentions for being out of bed and he didn't want another problem to add to his night.

"Floor 3, clear," said a voice. Harry stopped. His heart began to beat very fast as adrenalin pumped into his blood. There had been a soft voice speaking only a moment ago. But Harry could see no one else here. Harry reached into his pocket and pulled out the blank piece of parchment that was the Marauders map. Harry tapped it with his wand and said the words but the map did not activate.

"Moving to floor four," the voice said again. It was further away this time. Harry pushed his wand into his pocket and looked at the map as though trying to rationalize what he was about to try. With a quick jab Harry tapped the map with his finger and spoke the words to activate it.

Ink began to pour out onto the map drawing walls and passages. Quickly Harry unfolded it. There was his name, Harry Potter, and down the hall moving up the stairs, where, when Harry looked up there was no one, was the name tag that read 'Adam.'

It was the first time Harry had ever seen only a first name on the map. But it wasn't the first time he had seen a person appear on the map that hadn't been visible.

Cautiously Harry followed the name as it moved. Whoever this person was they weren't talking anymore and they were moving very slowly. Harry squinted his eyes trying to spot the person, he should be right in front of Harry, but they had to be under an invisibility cloak or something because Harry didn't see anyone.

Suddenly the name vanished from the map. Harry looked down unable to believe it. Had the person dissaperated? No that was impossible. After all you couldn't dissaperate on the Hogwarts ground. Harry was so amazed that he had remembered that, that he didn't hear the footsteps close in behind him. Moments later an arm wrapped around Harry's chest and a hand clamped itself over his mouth.

"Don't move," the voice said into Harry's ear. Harry was trying to fight out with all his might but whoever this person was they were very strong. "Who are you and why are you following me?"

"et e o!" Harry said through the muffling hand. Harry felt himself lifted off the ground and pulled quickly into a classroom. The man let Harry go, spinning him so that Harry was disoriented.

Harry heard the sound of the door as it shut and locked. For a moment Harry wasn't sure which way the door was. Whoever his assailant had been he'd done a good job of putting Harry off his guard.

"Look kid," the man said. "We can do this the easy way…" there was a swishing of air and something that sounded like it was charging up "…or we can do this the hard way."

Harry finally steadied himself and turned to find the man standing in front the door. The light from the hallway illuminated him in a strange way. Harry could see his outline but he was like glass. Light bent around his the top half of his body but he still cast a shadow on the floor. He was not completely invisible but still mostly transparent except for the long metal baton he in his hand. The silver metal glowed with an eerie blue light as its tip hovered just above the stone floor.

"Who are you?" Harry asked.

"Adam," the man said simply as though this explained everything. He had a different accent, American maybe? "Now your turn kid, who are you and what'a you doing outa bed?" Harry teetered back and forth as to whether or not he should tell this stranger his real name. What if he was a Death Eater sent here to kill him?

"Harry," Harry said at last. "And what I was doing out of bed isn't any business of yours." Harry said defiantly. The man chuckled as though he found Harry's taunt amusing.

"Harry Potter hu?" The man said. The man flicked his wrist and the metal baton shrunk into his hand. "Well kid you just saved us a whole night of searchen for ya." The man pressed something on his stomach and the invisibility shimmered away leaving a black, suited man. It was like no magic Harry had ever seen.

"Wana take off that cloak so we can talk proper?" the man said pulling off the black mask that covered his face. Harry could see that the man's hair was gray. Two great slashes ran down his face and through his left eye. He reminded Harry a little bit of Moody, except he didn't have a peg leg.

Taking a deep breath Harry pulled the cloak off and held it under his arm.

"Target found, room 423," Adam said. Harry looked at him quizzically. "Mico radio transceiver built into my ear and throat. I'm assuming that you heard me talking to the rest of my unit."

"Unit?" Harry asked. "Just who are you really and what do you mean by target?" Harry took hold of the wand in his pocket, fully aware that it would not protect him against this person.

Adam took a step closer and held out his hand.

"ELF unit, United States Magical Enforcement Division," Adam said still holding his hand out. "We were sent here to find you, Harry Potter." Something in Harry's head clicked.

"ELF? Hold on I heard of you before, my friend Ron has a whole bunch of comic books on you," Harry said in disbelief.

"The best place to keep a secret is in the open," Adam said. "But that's not why we are here." Adam turned and looked out the window and then nodded. The door opened and in the illumination of the light Harry could see three more semi invisible people enter.

"How are you invisible like that?" Harry asked pointing at the others as they in turn became visible again. Each was dressed in a black tight fitting outfit, like Adam. "I thought you were all supposed to be muggles."

"It's RLCD technology," said a man with a deep voice. He pulled the hood off his face. His skin was dark in color and he had black short cut hair. "Makes us like glass, bending imaged around us. Not magic, just good science."

"This is Kain," Adam said indicating the dark skinned man with the deep voice. "Lilith," the women standing next to Kain, she had fair skin and short blond hair. "and Eve," the shortest of all the people in the room, save for Harry, Eve had long black hair and an Asian look to her face.

"So what are you doing here?" Harry asked. "And why were you looking for me?"

"Our job is to protect the interests of the United States," Eve said. Even though she looked Asian her accent was definitely American. "Officially our government says that wizards and witches do not exist. But as everyone in this room knows, that is not true.

"We are here because of a problem, a wizard calling himself Voldemort." Eve said. Up until that point Harry wasn't entirely sure what to make of these people, but she had said Voldemort's name as though it was just another name. Whoever they were they weren't afraid of him. "We've been assured by the British government that the problem was under control. But as is our policy we like to ensure that all problems are under control. This one is not."

"The point is," Adam said interrupting. "That this wizard's been red flagged."

"Red flagged?" Harry asked confused.

"National security threat," Kain said.

"He's a problem that hasn't been dealt with. We launched an attack on a location where he was rumored to be. But Voldemort escaped."

"So why didn't you just go after him again?" Harry asked.

"I didn't say we weren't still after him, I just said he escaped," Adam said his voice still calm.

"We've never fought magic like his before." Lilith said. "Most of the registered wizards living in the US don't cause any major problems."

"Is that why you came to me, looking for help?" Harry asked.

"Yes and no," Adam said. "We picked up on the rumor about you and Voldemort. And quiet a few interesting stories to boot. It seems you two have tangoed before and each time you've come out the winner. The next time you meet, we want to ensure that it's the last time, Lilith." The women stepped forward.

"There is rumor that you are building an army to fight against Voldemort." Lilith said. "I've volunteered to help train you."

"Woah, hold on," Harry said waving his hands. "Thanks but, I mean what are you going to do? None of you are wizards, how exactly could you help us?" Faster than Harry could comprehend Lilith vanished and Harry felt her forearm across his throat. Harry dropped the invisibility cloak to the floor as his hands came up to try and pull her arm away.

"The biggest weakness of any wizard is their overconfidence in magic," Lilith whispered into Harry's ear. "None of them expect to fight close combat. We know more than a few tricks that." Lilith released Harry. Harry rubbed his throat.

"We're also willing to supply you with equipment," Adam said.

"For free?" Harry asked.

"Think of it as payment for taking care of a problem," Kain said.

"I need to think about it," Harry said. Adam pulled his hood back on.

"You have till tomorrow. We won't be far." Adam pressed the button on the front of his stomach and dissolved into the glass like outline. The rest of the members followed and left the classroom.

"Wait, how do I reach you?" Harry shouted after them. But no answer came. Harry closed the door to the classroom and picked up his invisibility cloak from the floor. As he did a small black object fell from inside the cloak. It looked like some kind of walky-talky, but it wouldn't work here. Muggle devices weren't supposed to work in places like Hogwarts.

Harry froze. That was the third time tonight he had been able to recall something like that and this time he could even recall the page it was on from Hogwarts, a history. Page 211, chapter 14 – Magic and Science. Harry held the walky-talky like object in his hand. Why had he remembered that, how had he remembered that? Harry had never once read the book.

Wanting this day to end Harry pushed the black muggle device into his pocket and wrapped the invisibility cloak around him. Harry checked the map before he left empty classroom, there was no one out of bed except for him. Harry poked the map with his finger and whispered 'mischief managed.' The map returned to blankness and Harry hurried back up to the dormitories.

---

The common room was empty as Harry arrived or so he thought. As Harry moved over towards the boy's staircase he spotted Ginny sitting in one of the armchairs, her eyes watching the portrait hole. Harry stood looking at her for a moment, trying to decide what to do. He wasn't sure he was up for talking with her tonight but at last he pulled the cloak off feeling that he didn't want her to sit up all night waiting for him.

Ginny's eyes popped open as though Harry had awoken her.

"Harry!" she cried leaping out of her chair and grabbing him around the middle. "I was so worried! You were gone so long I thought something had happened to you!"

Harry had forgotten he was supposed to meet up with Hermione and Ginny after the Legion meeting to tell them what he had learned.

"Sorry," Harry said. "I ran into some diversions along the way."

"Well?" Ginny asked looking up at him.

"Well?" Harry said confused. "Oh, about the meeting? I'm not really sure where to start. Where's Hermione at?" Harry asked looking around.

"She said she was going to bed early," Ginny replied. "Did you find out what kind of curses the Legion is teaching?"

"No," Harry said rubbing his eyes. Ginny looked at him as if to ask 'no?' "I mean, they weren't teaching any curses. Do you mind if we talk about his tomorrow. I'm really tired." Ginny nodded.

"Alright, do you mind if I walk you to your room?" Ginny asked. Harry shrugged. She had never offered to do that before.

Ginny's body was warm against Harry's side. She had her arm wrapped around his waist and Harry had his arm across her shoulders. The two of them walked up the stairs and down the hall to Harry's room. It was almost dream like. Harry's brain seemed to have completely signed off.

At last the two of them stopped at Harry's door.

"Thanks. Goodnight, Gin," Harry said reaching for the handle. Ginny put her hand against the door to keep Harry from opening it.

"Harry," Ginny said, "we have to talk."

"Gin, I'm really tired, can we talk tomorrow." Harry said feeling a little annoyed. Surly she wasn't going to try and squeeze the details about the meeting out of him tonight.

"I think we should talk now," Ginny said firmly taking Harry's bicep tightly, three was urgency in her voice. Harry was startled awake by her forcefulness.

"What' wrong?" Harry asked looking at her concerned. Ever since he had seen the vision of the future his senses seemed to be alert whenever Ginny did anything around him as though he was waiting for her to attack.

"I want to know how you feel about me." Ginny said looking up into Harry's eyes. Harry's brain whirled for a second.

"I'm becoming and Animagus because I love you Harry," Ginny said searching Harry's eyes. "Because I want to be with you and do things with you do. But if you don't feel the same about me I want to know right now." Harry's full attention came forward. She was serious and this was no time to be half asleep.

"Gin," Harry said stalling for time. After all that had happened he wasn't sure how he felt. Ginny was a friend, sure, but did Harry really love her? Or was she just some place for him to let out his thoughts and tensions, just someone who would listen to him. "You're… important to me… and I… I just don't know right now. I don't want to say something stupid and lose you. But I'm afraid. I'm not sure I can give you the love you want and deserve, at least not right now."

Ginny didn't break her eye contact. She continued to look at Harry as though trying to will more words out of him. Harry wasn't sure if she hated or understood him.

"Tomorrow Harry," Ginny said. "I am going to become an Animagus." Harry was taken aback, tomorrow? They had only been training for two weeks.

"Already?" Harry asked. "Are you sure you want to do this so quickly?

"I'm ready now," Ginny said. "The question is, are you?" She pushed up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the side of his face. "Goodnight." Harry put his palm against the kiss as though trying to keep it on his cheek. Ginny smiled up at him then turned and walked away down the hallway. Harry stood watching her until she vanished down the stairs.

Authors Notes:

And thus is chapter 22, OMG 22 that's like 19 more chapters then I have ever written in my life! Well no that not entirely true. But it is a long story that for sure. I didn't even hit what this chapter was supposed to be about! OMG my hair it's falling out! No wait that's just me pulling it out! HA HAHAHAHA HAH HA AHAHA HA (crazy laughter continues for 37 minutes)

(later) Seriously I am so stressed trying to get this thing done before the 16th (which I totally don't see happening) cuze today is like the 6th so that only gives me 10 days to write like ten chapters, yeah, so not going to happen. Must… condense… story… and… takeout… random… thoughts!

None of which will happen so it gets done as fast as it gets done. I might have to put off reading book 6 so that I don't spoil my own vision.

Darn my slow typing! Damn you mind work faster type non stop till my eyes bleed…ewww okay maybe not.

So chapter 23 coming soon and I swear I will get what needs to be done done in chapter 23… HA HAHAHAHA HAH HA AHAHA HA (crazy laughter continues for 42 minutes)

Side Note: (A note that is sideways)

For those of you who haven't noticed 42 appears quite a lot, mostly in my authors notes, but in some places in the story. 42 is 'the answer to life the universe and everything' as written by author Douglas Adams in Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. If you have never heard the original radio show it's worth your time to buy, rent (from you local library), or download illegally online.

The book is okay, the movie is cute, but it's all about the radio show.

Adams' work has had a great impact on my life and humor. To me he was a god.

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Coming soon… the next chapter! Presented in Web-o-Vision! With Web-o-Vision you can read you stories on the web without having to pay for them! Because crazy authors do this stuff for free!