AN: Quick thanku to all my lovely reviewers. you brighten my day :o) . sooo...spent all day reading Gossip GIrl instead of studying. Talk about a wasted day...twas fun tho. hehe. Enjoy:
A few hours later, Harry found himself sitting on a hard, orange plastic seat outside room number twelve, a paper cup of steaming coffee in his hand. Mrs Weasley was sitting next to him, crying softly into her handkerchief, Mr Weasley shushing her and rubbing her back gently. Hermione was on his other side, a sleeping James in her arms and a worried expression plastered on her face.
Harry sat up straight and pushed his fringe out of his eyes as the door swung open and Healer Fitzgerald stepped out, a tired smile on his lined face.
"She's waking up now," he said softly, nodding his head at Harry and the Weasleys who all rose simultaneously. "You may see her."
Harry almost ran into the room tripping over his feet as he went. There she was, lying on the bed, her face still very pale and her eyes closed. He took her hand and it felt warmer than it had a few hours before. Ginny's eyes fluttered open and she smiled weakly at Harry.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. He just shook his head and smiled at her: he knew if he spoke, the tears he was holding back would overflow, and he had to be strong for her.
"Where's Jamie?" asked Ginny quietly, squeezing her husband's hand tightly in her own.
"Hermione's got him. He's just outside."
"And…and Torie? Have you…is she…?"
Harry shook his head sadly, a tear escaping from his eye and running down his cheek. Brushing it away angrily, he sat down on her bed and raised her hand to his lips, kissing it gently. "I promise you, I will find her."
Ginny nodded, tears streaming down her own face now, and said, "I know you will. I know."
Harry leant forward and took her in his arms, holding her tightly against him, trying to make her feel safe although he felt so insecure. She would never let him say it, but she was his to keep safe, his to look after.
---
The next day, Ginny found herself sitting restlessly on the sofa at home, bouncing her knees up and down. The doorbell rang and she jumped up, a hand pressed to her chest as she hurried to the door and peered out through the netted window. Breathing a sigh of relief, she unlocked the door and pulled it open, letting Draco Malfoy come in.
"He's out?"
Ginny nodded and indicated for him to sit down.
"Good," Malfoy muttered. "I think it would be better if Harry didn't know I was helping. He doesn't really trust me…"
"Have you found anything?" Ginny asked impatiently, cutting across him.
"Well, we've tried to track her…"
"And?"
"We've traced her to Hythe, just outside of Southampton."
Ginny clapped a hand over her mouth as her eyes filled with tears of joy. "You've found her?" She squeaked out, grabbing Malfoy's hand and staring into his clear blue eyes, trying to read his thoughts.
Malfoy squeezed her hand and returned her gaze steadily, before sadly shaking his head. "There are spells, albeit poor ones, protecting her. We can deduce the rough area, but we can't pinpoint her exact location."
Ginny let out a small sob and let go of Malfoy's hand, covering her face with her own. Malfoy moved to sit next to her and wrapped an arm around her thin shoulders.
"Shhh, Ginny, listen," he murmured softly, pulling her against him and brushing her hair with his lips. "Whoever's hiding her…they're novices…their spells are childlike and shabby. They're not Deatheaters. My best bet is it's someone who has a grudge against the Tornadoes."
Ginny turned her tear-streaked face up to Malfoy's, which was mere inches away from her own. "You…you'll find her then?"
He nodded and smiled softly at her, gently brushing away a tear with his thumb. Ginny realised with a start that he was slowly leaning towards her when there was an almighty CRASH and something heavy smashed into the closed window, shattering it and spraying glass across the room.
Feeling flustered and shocked at the same time, Ginny rose quickly to her feet and picked up the rock, pulling off the parchment tied to it. Her hands shaking, she unrolled the piece of paper and read:
"Dear Mr and Mrs Potter,
I haf your dawter. If you vant her back, Arry must agree not to play Quidditch anymor. If he dos this, I vill giv her bak unarmed. If not, I vill be forsed to kill her.
My deepest regrets, (and then a roughly scratched out name, followed by:) anonimus.
P.S. Oh and also, that Ron weezly must move avay and never come bak.
P.P.S. Viktoreea seemed to haf a bit of a cold, so I gave her some medisin. I ope that vas o.k."
Malfoy peered closely at the scratched out name and deciphered, "Viktor Krum." He snorted and read, " 'I vill giv her bak unarmed'. Mmm that would be handy, can't have Torie attacking innocent people now, can we?"
"What now?" Ginny asked. What she really wanted was to find that git Krum and hex him into oblivion, but first of all, she didn't know where he was, and secondly, that was slightly illegal.
"I'm going to go back down to the Ministry. Get a squad together…will you be alright here alone?" Malfoy looked concernedly into Ginny's eyes and rubbed her arm. "Tania's at home if you want to…"
"No," Ginny said. "It's ok, I need to go and find Harry anyway." She rolled the parchment back up and stuck it in her pocket. "Thank you Draco," she said, taking his hand in hers and squeezing it. "Thank you for doing this for me."
"I'd do anything for you," Malfoy said quietly, not breaking his gaze.
"Draco…" Ginny began quietly, but Draco cut across her.
"It's ok, I know. I best be going anyway. I'll find her, don't worry."
---
Ginny walked up a flight of stone steps, her footsteps echoing around her. She had only been here once or twice before as the coach didn't like anyone watching the Tornadoes practice. Apparently it distracted them. But Harry would be distracted today anyway, and this was urgent. Pushing open the door, Ginny stepped out into the cold, miserable air and made her way through the stands to the coach, who was sitting on a bench, gazing up at his team.
"Awful," he muttered in a thick Londoner accent. "Absolutely dreadful. 'ello there pretty. Your 'usband is playin' like a sack of dragon dung, today. OI POTTER!"
"Yes, well his daughter has been kidnapped," Ginny snapped at him, rubbing her gloved hands together in the cold.
"Gotta keep your mind on the game, darlin'."
Harry flew towards them and slipped off his broomstick, landing on his feet in front of them. He took Ginny's gloved hand in his and asked, "Have they found her?"
"Sort of," Ginny said with a small smile. "She's being held in Southampton. They don't think she's been hurt. And someone threw this through the window." Ginny handed Harry the parchment and he unrolled it quickly, scanning the letter.
Noticing the coach trying to read the letter upside down, Harry led Ginny away from him and down a set of outside stairs. "Who's it from?" he asked quietly as they descended.
"Viktor Krum." She pointed at the scratched out name.
"You're kidding," Harry breathed. "Did you see who threw this in the window?"
Ginny shook her head. "There was no one there…."
Once they had reached the bottom of the staircase, Harry pulled Ginny into his arms, burying his face in her shoulder. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.
"What?" Ginny asked. "Why are you sorry?"
Harry lifted his head and indicated the letter. "It's my fault. You were right, it's because of the Quidditch."
Slowly, Ginny shook her head. "I'm not so sure it is. I mean, Krum's not even going to be playing in the World Cup. He was kicked off the league for bad behaviour. There's nothing in this for him."
"So what are you saying?"
"What if…well…what if someone's paid him to do this?"
Eek, i dunno. wat do you think? so...who wants Krum to have been paid off and by who? Please review and give me ur suggestions! xxx oh and i totally couldn't be bothered to proofread this. if anyone finds any mistakes, plz let me know.