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Chapter 21

Two days. Two whole days!

Ron was sitting in the drawing room, losing a chess match against Harry, with Ginny and Tonks as an avid audience. This was wrong in so many ways. Ron never lost at chess, especially against Harry, and if he did…he was competitive enough to become highly annoyed. However, he was losing to Harry, and he was not annoyed in the least. Well, he was not annoyed with himself for losing. He was annoyed with himself for not insisting that he go with Hermione to France.

She was going to be gone for two whole days. Dumbledore had escorted her by floo powder, but he wouldn't be staying with her. He was just dropping her off for two days, after which time he would return to escort her back home…or whatever this place was. It wasn't home. Ron's home was at the Burrow, but it was too 'risky.' Hermione's home was at her parent's, but it had been invaded. Then again, wasn't home where the heart was…or something of that sort? If that were true, then Ron's home was currently visiting her grandmother in France!

"Checkmate." Harry muttered.

"What? Oh." Ron looked down at the chessboard. Yes, Harry had won. He had taken his queen with a bishop. Damn. Ron let out a long sigh.

"She's going to be fine, you know?" Harry said softly, "As long as Dumbledore doesn't tell anyone where she is, she can't be found. The Fidelius Charm…if it weren't foolproof, do you honestly think the Order would set Headquarters here?"

Ron nodded at his friend. He was right. But ever since Hermione had left that afternoon, Ron had been beside himself with worry. He hadn't even gotten to talk to Hermione since the attack. He didn't even know what she was feeling exactly. Was she scared? Was she angry? He knew one thing. Whatever she, Harry, and Dumbledore had talked about in the kitchen had convinced her of the prophecy's authenticity. So naturally, he was worried about that too. How did she feel about it? Was she scared? Was she angry? Argh! Ron wanted to pull his hair out!

He knew that she was at least somewhat distraught. She had basically collapsed in the entrance hall, bellowed out at Voldemort, and set Sirius' mother on fire. Now that Ron thought about it, she was more than 'somewhat' distraught. And then Mad-Eye had had the nerve to grab her as if she were a rag-doll. That had seriously made Ron's blood boil. He liked Moody all right, but didn't like how he had manhandled and then yelled at Hermione, who was already in enough distress as it was. Why, why, why hadn't he gone with her? Oh yeah…Dumbledore thought she should be alone with her family…Well, maybe she should...but that didn't change the fact that her absence was driving Ron mad!

Maybe he could sneak into the fireplace and floo over to check on her… 'Ms. Leda Granger's House!' That's all it would take to be standing in Hermione's grandmother's house. What would happen if he appeared in the fireplace in front of the Granger's, who were probably fairly jumpy from the news of the attack on their house? Ron's dad had told him about the strange, metallic devices used by Muggle dentists. He might come out of the mission looking a bit like Mad-Eye…

Ron glanced over at Mad-Eye, who was in the corner of the drawing room, reading a copy of The Stealth. Apparently it was a newspaper that was not generally known to the entire Wizarding community. Only those in Auror work or high offices of the Ministry were subscribed. Moody kept grunting every five-or-so minutes and turning the pages roughly as if he were angry at the rag.

"C'mon, Mad-Eye," Tonks said suddenly, "You can't keep grunting like that and then not tell us what you're reading. It's very rude."

Moody looked at Tonks with a stern frown for a brief moment before standing up and limping over to where she and Ginny were seated on an old, wooden bench with an engraved snake along the back. "Here." He growled, thrusting the newspaper into Tonks' hands. "You won't like what you see, mind you…I need a scotch." Moody then turned and left the room, presumably for the basement kitchen to find a drink.

Tonks began thumbing through the paper; her brows furrowed a bit more with each turn of a page. Ron noticed a picture on the front of a fisherman, who kept looking to each side and then shrugging with a baffled look on his face. Ginny leaned over Tonks' shoulder a bit.

"Hey!" Tonks exclaimed, jerking the paper away, "Your mother will have my hide if she sees you reading this!"

"Why?" Ginny asked stubbornly; she didn't wait for a response, "It's just stupid. We aren't children. We know that there's a war going on; we know that there are people dying and disappearing. I don't like being kept in the dark. It only makes my imagination come up with its own morbid ideas to fill in all the blanks."

Tonks twisted her mouth as if struggling with something. Harry was nodding in agreement with Ginny. "Yeah," Harry began matter-of-factly, "I mean, think about it. Ginny's been possessed by Voldemort before, I've faced him five times, and we've all faced a horde of Death Eaters. Don't you think we can handle a few newspaper stories?"

Tonks raised her eyebrows and inclined her magenta-haired head in consideration. "Well…alright." She said with a sigh, handing the paper to a pleasantly surprised Ginny. "But I'm going to stand watch at the door, and if any of you hear me stub my toe, it probably means Molly's coming."

"Probably?" Ron asked curiously. Tonks shrugged.

"I stub my toe often." She said as she began walking toward the door, "I'm just saying that…ow!" She had just rammed her toe into a writing desk, and was now hobbling the rest of the way to the door, "See…anyway, if you hear me make any noise, hide that paper!"

After she had left the room and closed the door, Ron and Harry sat down on either side of Ginny on the hard, wooden bench to peer down at the paper. Ginny had opened it to the first page, which contained a table of contents…a very bleak and disturbing table of contents.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. The Lestrange Theory

2. Transportation Mishaps: Trains, Planes, and Automobiles

3. Muggles' Attempted Explanations: Bermuda Triangles: Are there more than one?

4. The Giants: Whose side are they really on?

5. The Ministry's Agenda

6. Deaths by Avada Kedavra

7. Deaths by Other

8. Suicides

9. Harry Potter: Quick Myths and Facts

"Hey, turn to that first one there," Harry said almost excitedly, "The Lestrange Theory." Ginny looked at Harry in exasperation.

"Don't you see that last one there? Harry, it's…it's about you." She said looking at Harry. To Ron's surprise, Harry smiled at her and kissed her on the nose. They sure weren't hiding anything. Ron briefly wondered if he should clear his throat to remind them of his presence.

"I think I probably know everything they have to say about me, but we'll read that one next, alright?" He said thoughtfully, putting his arm around her shoulders. She shrugged and leaned into the crook of Harry's arm as she turned to the first piece, where there was a short article and picture on Bellatrix Lestrange. Ginny read aloud.

The Lestrange Theory

Bellatrix Lestrange, Azkaban escapee since January of 1996, is suspected by some to be the Headmistress of The Slytherin School of Magic. Nothing has been heard of Lestrange since she escaped with Lord Voldemort from the Ministry of Magic: Department of Mysteries earlier this year. As a loyal Death Eater, she is believed to be located with or near Lord Voldemort.

"It's disturbing, to say the least," Says Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, "We do know that this Slytherin School has a Headmistress, who wishes to remain anonymous in identity and location. So it is disturbing that nothing seems to be known of this woman... Lestrange."

Mrs. Bones also pointed out that Lestrange's brother-in-law and fellow Death Eater, Lucius Malfoy, escaped yesterday morning and has yet to be found. Malfoy's wife and Lestrange's sister, Narcissa, would not comment on her husband's escape. However, authorities have searched her home and do not believe Mrs. Malfoy to be hiding her husband. Lestrange Theorists believe Malfoy may now be with his sister-in-law, and that if found, The Slytherin School of Magic, more Death Eaters, and even Lord Voldemort himself may be found, as well.

"Blimey, Harry," Ron said in surprise, "You think these people are onto something?"

Harry was rubbing his chin slowly with one hand, looking distracted. "I've been a Lestrange Theorist ever since I heard that blasted song at the Sorting Hat Ceremony." Harry let out a sigh and looked from Ginny to Ron, "There's a small detail that I left out of my dream when I retold it."

Ron's heart clenched painfully in his chest. A small detail? Please don't have anything to do with an adorable bushy-haired brunette, Ron pleaded silently. Ginny didn't look worried, however, she looked a bit angry. She had sat up from the crook of Harry's arm and was sitting on the edge of the bench, turned toward him.

"Harry!" She moaned in aggravation. "I asked you multiple times earlier if there was anything else you were hiding from me, and you said no!"

Harry sat up and grabbed both of Ginny's hands in his. Again Ron wondered if he should clear his throat to make his presence known. "Ginny," Harry began patiently, "I honestly forgot about this. Honestly. It's not really anything that big, okay? Listen, in my dream, you remember that I said Bellatrix was in the corner laughing when Voldemort used Crucio on Pettigrew?"

"Yes." Ginny said apprehensively.

"Well," Harry continued, "She was wearing plain black robes, but there was an official looking insignia on them, similar to that of the Hogwart's Slytherin seal. Her robes…well, they sort of reminded me of something a professor would wear. I had forgotten about that until just now when you read that article."

Ginny let out a small sigh. "Oh. Well, did you tell Dumbledore and the Order about that small detail?" Harry nodded at her. They both leaned back in the bench, and Ginny resumed her position in the crook of Harry's arm. She began thumbing through the paper again.

Ron remembered the pallid looks that Harry would get whenever anyone mentioned that stupid school. Now Ron had a Lestrange Theory of his own. She was the murderer of Harry's godfather; that woman in charge of a throng of Slytherin students could not be good for Harry's future 'task.' Wherever this school was...it must be where Voldemort was…so were these students intended to be…an army? Would Harry be forced to find this school in search of Voldemort?

"These are just your basic boring facts," Ginny said absently. Ron looked down to see that she had turned to the back of the paper to the article on Harry. "You know, only known survivor of the Killing Curse, faced Voldemort five times, speaks Parseltongue, conjured a corporeal Patronus at the age of thirteen…blah, blah, blah."

"I'm glad to see that you appreciate all that I've done." Harry said teasingly. Ron cracked a smile, but Ginny just continued to read.

"The myths are fairly interesting, though." She cleared her throat before continuing, "Harry Potter is not the son of Voldemort, he is not a werewolf or vampire, he has not been asked to tour with the Weird Sisters-…" At this Ginny stopped to burst out laughing.

"So,Wings, you mean you aren't touring with the Weird Sisters?" Ron exclaimed in mock-exasperation. Harry punched Ron playfully in the arm. Ginny began thumbing back through the paper.

Ron and Ginny had been taking turns calling Harry by his new nickname. Tonks had come up with it. Ron still couldn't believe that his best friend could turn into a large, winged horse at will. From what Ron had always heard, Anamagi had to study for a long time to be able to transform properly. However, Dumbledore had said that Harry had learned fairly quickly, and he had also said that Harry was only the third Wizard that he knew of that could turn into a magical creature. Ron wondered who the other two were.

"Oh jumping Jellyworms!" Ginny suddenly exclaimed incredulously, "Some Muggles actually believe that the recent boat and plane disappearances are due to paranormal sites over water, such as, something they call, the Bermuda Triangle. Since there have been so many disappearances lately, they believe that there are more of these triangles appearing out in the oceans."

"I remember learning about the Bermuda Triangle in grade school." Harry said.

"That must be what the picture of the fisherman is about." Ron offered. Bermuda Triangle? What rubbish. The Death Eaters were just having fun blasting the planes and boats to smithereens. Ginny began flipping more pages.

She gasped. "Look at…at all the deaths…"Harry and Ron both leaned over her. There was name after name of the deceased...some were witches and wizards, but they were mostly Muggles.

Ginny then exclaimed, "Graham Pritchard!"

"Who?" Ron asked. The name sounded vaguely familiar.

"He was a third year Slytherin student." Ginny scanned the page with her index finger, "Apparently his whole family, mother, father, two sisters, and himself were killed when his parents refused to turn to the dark side… so horrible."

Harry took the paper from her suddenly and folded it up. "We've seen enough of this, I think." He stood up then. "Tonks is probably growing tired of playing watch-maid anyway."

Ginny looked up at him and smiled slyly, "Why don't you just use your Legilimency to see for yourself whether or not she's growing tired?"

"I'm not that good, yet." Harry replied plainly, reaching down to grab her hand and pull her up. "I still have to use the incantation and make eye contact and whatnot. And even then I don't do it properly every time."

"Well, you're still brilliant." Said Ginny sincerely, nowstanding next to Harry and smiling up at him. Ron was still sitting on the bench, looking up at his sister and best friend. They love each other. Ron didn't know exactly how he knew, but there was something in the waythey were looking at one another right then that made it perfectly clear.

It made Ron's heart ache for more than one reason. One, he was worried about the woman that he loved, and she wouldn't be back for two days. Secondly, he was deeply grateful that Ginny and Harry had found this love, but it was bittersweet. It reminded Ron of how quickly they were all growing up. And lastly, he had found a love, at least as strong as theirs, but he was currently hiding it away in his heart. Suddenly Ron realized something. Since Harry and Ginny seemed to be together now, Harry might not feel as though he'd be losing his two friends if he and Hermione were to get together. Ron's heart skipped a beat.

The rest of that day drug by so slowly. So…slowly. After he, Harry, and Ginny had left the drawing room, the latter two had gone up to a dark, high-ceilinged room on the second floor, which was where he and Harry would be sleeping later that night. Ron hadn't followed and didn't really want to think about what they were doing, so instead, he had helped his mother and Tonks clean up around the kitchen and entrance hall in a desperate attempt at occupying his time. Luckily, Mrs. Black was still sulking at the bottom of her painting, silently, so she hadn't shouted when Tonks dropped and broke a large glass vase. Although, Ron could still hear some low mutterings coming from the painting.

Ron's dad had arrived late from work, but he had worked overtime in vain. He had found no news on the Granger attack or Lucius' escape. Of course, not that that was his job, but Ron had still had his fingers crossed all day. He thought his father might at least have some news from the Auror Office or something. But no…nothing.

Around ten o'clock that night, Ron couldn't stand anymore excruciating minutes of worrying. So, he turned in for the night, quickly followed by Harry. Across the room, Harry seemed to fall asleep instantly, but Ron was simply lying on his back, staring at the ceiling. Pig and Hedwig had both arrived at Number 12 earlier that evening, but Ron wouldn't even dream of sending one of them out with a letter to Hermione. That was way too dicey. If someone intercepted his owl, it might lead the Death Eaters straight to her, with or without the Fidelius Charm on the house. Ron actually wasn't sure of this; he didn't understand the charm completely, but he was not going to take any chances.

Suddenly Ron kicked the covers off and sat up. This was ridiculous. He was kidding himself thinking he would fall asleep anytime soon. Prowling around the house seemed like a fairly good idea, however.

Ron quietly left the bedroom, his bare feet padding along the cold, wooden floor. He walked slowly down the hallway, passed Ginny and Hermione's room. It was very dark, and Ron's heart jumped into his throat when he realized that there was a figure standing silently in the corner at the end of the hallway. He froze where he was. The first thing he thought was, 'Where's my wand?' Quickly followed by, 'Shit! It's in the bedroom.'

"It's just me."

Ron felt the tension slowly fall from his body as he heard the whispered voice of Tonks. "What are you doing lurking around the corners like that?" He asked before he took a deep breath, "You nearly made me jump out of my skin!"

"Sorry. I'm working the graveyard shift." She said matter-of-factly. "Moody will take over for me in a few hours. What are you doing lurking around?"

"Can't sleep." He offered darkly. Ron suddenly remembered something he had wanted to ask Tonks earlier. "Hey Tonks," Ron began hesitantly. She raised her eyebrows slightly, "What exactly was written on the Granger's walls?"

She twisted her mouth. The same expression she had made when she had been trying to decide whether or not to let he, Ginny, and Harry read The Stealth. She let out a small sigh, "Like Kingsley said earlier, some rather crude things."

"I want to know." Ron said stubbornly. This was only half-true. He wanted to know about as much as he didn't want to know…if that even made sense.

"Well, I guess I could tell you." She began slowly, "I agree with your sister; you aren't kids anymore. But, to your mother, you will always be her babies. So, don't mention anything to Ginny, okay? I think it would just upset her unnecessarily."

Ron merely nodded, as Tonks continued, "There were of course multiple derogatory names for Muggles and Muggle-borns. Messages of that sort are often found in invaded Muggle homes. However, there were other comments that didn't refer to her bloodline. Such as, 'Weasel Lover,' 'Book-loving Cow', 'Potter Bitch,' and…um…'The Redhead's Whore." Tonks looked away briefly with furrowed brows before giving him an apologetic frown.

Ron swallowed hard as he felt his heart rate quicken and a surge of anger shoot through his veins. "I figured on rubbish of that sort." Ron said through gritted teeth. He wasn't surprised in the least at what the Death Eaters had written; it just made their intentions more real hearing Tonks repeat those awful things. Suddenly, Ron knew what he had to do. He couldn't take it any longer. He couldn't take not knowing…anything could happen…

"Well, I guess I'm going to try to get some sleep." Ron lied. Tonks gave him a weak smile and to Ron's delight, she turned for the loo. She shut the lavatory door after giving him a brief wave. As soon as he heard the soft click of the door, he hurried as quickly and quietly as he could down the flights of stairs all the way to the basement.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay, another semi-cliffhanger. I don't know what's gotten into me lately. But, don't worry, the next chapter is in the making. Please continue to send in reviews; I still get excited with each new review that comes in! Thank you, thank you, thank you to my readers and reviewers!