CHAPTER TWO: Merlin's Beard
The rain pelted against the window of the first bedroom at the top of the stairs of number 13 Grimmauld Place, and Ginny Weasley watched it wash away the dirt and cobwebs that had built up on the window sill since the last time it rained. The Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix was nothing more than dismal, the dust and spiders webs seemed to flourish over night and not a day went by when the air felt sweet and dry. Instead, for the past week of her holidays she was forced to breath the damp and bitter air that made it's way through the dark and dingy corridors.
It had been six complete days since her encounter with Snape back at the Burrow, and if it wasn't from a bruise on her back where she had been leaning against an old bookcase, she would not believe that it actually happened. She almost had to laugh at the situation. How could he help her? And, especially, how could he help Harry? She didn't even think that she could trust him. He had killed Albus Dumbledore, making Hogwarts and the entire wizarding world weak against the attacks of his kind. But, if he really wanted to harm her, he would have done so in the shed, there was nothing stopping him except… Hope? No, Don't be silly! Ginny mentally slapped herself for thinking that Snape, that horrible murderer, could possibly hold any hope for the resistance. But the possibility still nagged her, tormented her as though there was something more to his offer, something that she could trust.
It was his eyes, his dark black, dangerous eyes. When he looked at her in the shed the violence seeped out of them and another, softer, emotion flooded into them. Perhaps he wasn't really evil. Perhaps it had been as he had told her, Dumbledore had asked Snape to kill him, but if he did Dumbledore would have told someone in the order and Snape wouldn't have to come to Ginny and ask for her trust. Ginny sighed and threw her head back on her pillow.
There was a loud knock on the door and she sat up quickly, she looked around for her quill and started writing on the parchment. She had told her mother that she had a big assignment to do so that she could get out of the dishes. She had lied.
"Come in." Ginny called, trying to sound angry that her concentration had been broken. The door opened and Harry walked in, he shut it behind him and walked over to her bed.
"Ginny, put the quill down, you don't have to pretend for me." He said waving his hand dismissively. She grinned and put her quill back on her bedside table.
"You know Harry," She begun "I don't think my mother would appreciate you being in my with me while the door is shut." Harry rolled his eyes.
"Your mother is out of the house, and you know that for a fact." Harry replied, Ginny shrugged.
"Yeah, I know, but I still don't think that she would appreciate it." Harry placed one hand on her knee and leant towards her. She bit her lip. She would not kiss him. She did not want him to think that he could have her even though he didn't want to be in a relationship with her. She bit her tongue stubbornly.
Before she could stop herself and resist the temptation Harry's lips fell against her own and she soon begun to return his kiss. His arms wrapped around her waist and his hands slowly worked his way up through her hair, sending shivers down her spine. After a few moments she pulled away from him, and, returning to her senses, decided to talk to him about what she had been putting off for a while.
"Harry?" She asked, he kissed her neck softly and nodded. "Harry!" she growled, pulling his head away from her neck, he smiled at her and she had to resist the urge to let him continue kissing her. "We can't do this." She said, he looked shocked.
"What do you mean?" He asked, she sighed.
"What do I mean?" She repeated exasperatedly, she glared at him "Harry, you can not just come into my room and start kissing me like that. We are not together, and you don't want to be, you made that clear at Du…" She trailed off, not wanting to mention the funeral, it was still a sore topic for Harry, he looked away from her.
"Ginny, I did not say that I didn't want to be with you." He told her sadly "I said that we shouldn't be together because I didn't want you to get hurt. You were a target because you were Ron's sister. Imagine if you were my girlfriend." He explained.
"I would love to imagine that I was your girlfriend again Harry, I really would, but you are making it so damn hard for me. Do you really think that You-Know-Who wouldn't know about us? If he knows that we are going out then he is sure to know that you are snogging me at every available time. You can't have it either way Harry, you are my boyfriend, or you are my friend, there is no neutral ground. Not any more." Harry looked at her, shocked. He opened and closed his mouth a few times before standing up and walking out of the room, shutting the door gently behind him. Ginny laid back on her bed and closed her eyes. At least she had spoken her mind.
Ginny woke early the next morning to the sound of tapping on her window. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes groggily and peered over to where the sound was coming from, and as she had guessed, there was an owl tapping on the glass. She rolled out of bed and crept over to the window knowing all too well that it was three o'clock in the morning and it would be best not to disturb the others in the house.
The window gave a loud screech as she opened it and took the letter from the unfamiliar owl. It was very light brown, speckled with white and grey and about the same size as Errol. When she took the letter from it's beak it made to bite her finger, but she pulled away in time, and shooed the bird away from her window. She decided that it would be best not to close the window just in case it made more sound before she tiptoed back to her bed.
She looked at the front of the letter, which was addressed simply to 'Ginevra Weasley', and furrowed her eyebrow in confusion. The writing was not at all familiar to her with a quick sigh she turned it around and looked at the seal. The unmarked white wax caught her attention and she bit her lip. When people sent letters they would always make some kind of mark in the seal and white wax was only used for the most impersonal and anonymous letters. She ran her fingers over the seal, trembling slightly, before quickly breaking it and opening the letter.
Ginevra Weasley,
In response to your last letter I would like to tell you that the weather here is terrible. It has been raining for days on end and it is hot despite the downpour and quick winds.
Sincerely,
Tobias Prince
Ginny's brows knitted further in increased confusion and she turned the letter over a few times, making sure that it was all there was to it. She decided that she was not likely to get any more sleep so she walked over to her cupboard and opened it. Pulling out a white skivvy and a pair of jeans. She pulled her nightgown over her head and threw it onto the pile of clothes on her desk before leaning over to pull her jeans on. As she was straightening up there was a soft shuffling sound and her head snapped up. She let out a squeal and jumped back into her cupboard. Her arms flailing around her torso in order to cover up her bare chest. The man who had just come through her window crossed the room in two quick strides and pulled her into his arms, one hand snaking around her face to cover her mouth. She tried to wriggle free of his grip but he was far too strong.
"Silencio." He whispered while he moved his wand in a circular motion, effectively soundproofing the room. He muttered another spell and the lock on Ginny's door clicked shut. He let her go but kept his wand pointing at her threateningly.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Ginny yelled, careful not to use her arms to accentuate her anger and distress. He shrugged indifferently.
"I told you I would be back to talk to you." He hissed. Ginny looked into the ex-Potion Master's eyes and glared at him.
"Yeah, but now? When I'm like this?" She threw her arms in the air angrily before blushing furiously and covering her bare breasts up again.
"Weasley, don't be so. It is not like I haven't seen breasts before." Snape drawled in a bored tone.
"Not mine, you haven't!" Ginny growled, sincerely doubting that he had seen a naked woman at all, and bent over to picking up her nightgown before pulling it over her head again. "What in Merlin's name do you want?" She asked, looking around the room, she left her wand on her bedside table and to reach it she would have to get past him. She thought for a moment and then realised that even if she did have her wand on her it would not be any use against an infamous death eater anyway.
"The same thing as last time." He said, wand arm lowering slightly.
"You want me to trust you?" she scoffed, he nodded seriously, ignoring her obvious sarcasm.
"Yes, I do, and I believe that I will give you reason to." He said, He pulled a piece of parchment out of his pocket and handed it to her. She opened it carefully.
Last Willing Testament of Albus DumbledoreAll money to be donated to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
All journals and books to given to Arthur Weasley and Molly Weasley
Personal effects to be given to Harry James Potter
Portraits to be given to Minerva McGonagall excluding the one of Merlin which is to be given to Severus Snape
SIGNED: Albus DumbledoreGinny looked at the paper and laughed. She gave it back to him and shook his head. He folded it up before putting it back into his pocket and looking at her very seriously.
"You can laugh until you are out of breath Miss Weasley, but I will assure you that it is quiet real."
"They have already found his will and distributed his property accordingly." She hissed.
"Yes, and this is a copy of that will." He placed his hand over his pocket where he had just put the parchment. "You will find that all of the property except for the portrait of Merlin has been distributed accordingly." He replied, the last two words slightly mocking her.
"And so what if it is?" She asked, her heart still racing, reminding her that she was with a Death Eater, not a Potion's Master.
"Then that portrait rightfully belongs to me." He told her.
"I hardly think you deserve it, you did murder him, and so what if it does? There is no chance that I will give it to you." She hissed, she shook his head, slightly impatiently now.
"Think about it you stupid girl." He growled, she glared at him, there was no need for the insult "That portrait was not given to me because I did kill him, but there was no clause in his will stating that by murdering him I waver my right to the portrait! And it isn't the portrait that is important anyway. It is the note you will find in the frame of it." Ginny raised her eyebrows.
"I really don't think-" she begun, before he interrupted her.
"I know you don't think. So don't start now. All I want you to do is find that portrait and pull the backing off it, there you will find something rather interesting about the agreement Albus and I made before the night at the Astronomy Tower." He said before walking over to the window and jumping out of it casually. Ginny raced over and peered out of it, he was nowhere to be seen. She sighed and pulled the window shut, locking it tightly. She grabbed her wand and unlocked her door and undid the soundproofing on the rest of her room. She sat on her bed and put her head in her hands.
Later that morning Ginny made her way down to breakfast, fully dressed and wide awake. She took her seat at the table and waited for her mother to push a plate filled with waffles in front her. A spark ignited a chain of thought in her mind.
"Mum?" She asked, her mother turned to face her.
"Yes Ginny dear?" She asked.
"I remember seeing a portrait of Merlin in Professor Dumbledore's office once… It was a really nice one of Merlin, and I was wondering if I could see it again so I could use it as a resource for the major History of Magic research project this year." She said sweetly, her mother looked around thoughtfully.
"Yes, I think I remember the one you are talking about. Did he really keep it in his office?" Ginny nodded slowly "Hmm, I could have sworn he kept it in his home study." Ginny shrugged and her mother patted her on the arm. "I'll see what I can do, dear." Her mother said before returning to the kitchen bench. Ginny took a deep breath. It couldn't hurt her to look, could it?
That evening Ginny sat in her room staring at the magnificent portrait. It was of Merlin as a young man, a very handsome young man at that, with deep brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. His robes were a dark blue, nearly the same colour of the night sky pictured behind him dotted with blazing white stars.
Her foot tapped against the floor impatiently as a battle raged in her mind between intuition and logic. The portrait looked completely normal, it didn't seem to hold any cursed or hexes, and the few spells she did proved that to be true. There was no way that Snape could have put a curse on it, he would not have seen it for over a year, let alone been able to cast a spell on it. Her first instinct was that the portrait would be fine, and that it wouldn't hurt her to see if what the Death Eater was talking about was true. Yet, all the years of her parents nagging, and her natural disposition towards self preservation prevented her from acting on her instincts. She knew for a fact that a curse could last longer than a year, and she also knew that she was not one hundred percent sure of Snape's motives.
To be completely honest, she wasn't even two percent sure of Snape's intentions.
The debate in her mind raged for a further ten minutes before the foot tapping and curiosity got the better of her. She snatched her wand out of her pocket and walked over to the portrait leaning against her wall as if it was a manticore. She took great care turn the large gold framed painting around and rest it so that the back board of it faced her. She took three big steps back and pointed her wand at it.
"Elimeraticus!" She hissed, the wooden backing popped out of its frame and flopped onto the floor, Ginny prepared for the worst. After a few minutes of intense anticipation nothing happened. So she stepped towards the piece of wood carefully. She observed it closely.
Nothing.
There was absolutely nothing.
She kicked the old wood in anger and threw herself against her bed. She had been stupid to think that Snape told her the truth. Foolish to even bother to try to see what he was talking about. That look she had seen in his eyes that day at the Burrow had fooled her, and she guessed that it was intended to. She was idiotic to trust him. She stood up and walked over to the wood again, intending to put it back on the portrait, but her breath caught in her throat as she looked at the back of the painting. The faint marks of the stars on the opposite side of the portrait showed through very faintly and begun to move. They positioned themselves smartly into flowing writing, very similar to that of Albus Dumbledore. When they had finally settled the stars blazed just as brightly on the back of the portrait of the as they did on the front. She swallowed the bubble of air caught in her throat and read the writing that had appeared before her.
I, Albus Dumbledore, wish to declare that I have given Severus Snape permission to take my life, if the need arise, to prove his loyalty to Voldemort in order to continue his under cover work for the Order of the Phoenix.
Signed: Albus Dumbledore
She rubbed her eyes furiously and then opened them, the writing was still there, it was real. Now she only had to decide what to do about it. She looked around the room suspiciously. There was no way that he could be watching her, the only way he got in was through the window, and that was closed, bolted and locked (magically and non-magically). She quickly put the backing on the portrait and turned it around. Merlin's eyes twinkled knowing.
"Oh yeah, I'm sure you'd know what to do." Ginny hissed, glaring at the legendary wizard.
A/N: Thankyou to all reviewers! I am so sorry that this has taken so long, but I have had quiet a bit on my mind lately.
And just incase you are all wondering, this is going to be a gw/ss so just hold on tight for a while!
In any case, thankyou for reading, I hope you liked it.
I really did intend for this story to be different from The Midnight Hour, because it IS a different story, and I didn't really want to re-use my old ideas, I thought that it would be interesting to take a fresh approach in regards to a Ginny/Snape relationship!
THANKS TO:
Mistress of Eternity: You don't need to apologise, I hope you feel better. I also hope to see that new story soon, as well as updates of you other ones! I miss the Midnight Hour too, it took me so long to build up those characters, and to have to just leave them… I don't know, but my fingers are aching to write more of it. The length of these chapters will improve when things start to move a little quicker (story-wise) and that shouldn't be too far away! Thanks for reviewing (and get well soon!)
Angelic Bladez: I love Ginny/Severus and I know what you mean. After reading the first one, you are hooked, but there are plenty of good gw/ss stories out there that do real justice to the pairing! Thanks for your comments, they are much appreciated!
HarryGinnyfan23: Thankyou so much for reviewing, I am sorry if this has taken a while, but here it is! Take care!
Angelique Collins: Thankyou for the comments on both stories, it is good to see you likes the ending of Midnight Hour. I hated to end it actually, I was having heaps of fun with that storyline. Well, I hope you like this story so far!
puresilver: LOL, at the moment I don't have a job and I don't go to school, so apart from spending my time with my boyfriend and friends (which is most of it) I have plenty of free time to write and sleep. I don't know how much will change when I start uni and get a job, but probably not much, cause my boyfriend is moving away and I will be up earlier in the morning. My other account is full of unfinished stories as well, I have been meaning to pick up on them again but this account and the ss/gw stories are much more interesting. You'll find time one day, don't worry!
maddudewalking: Hehehe, a happy dance, that makes me feel wonderful. And yes, this is (or will be) the pairing you want it to be, but I guess that kinda ruins it for you doesn't it? Lets pretend that I didn't tell you and that you are frozen with anticipation to find out whether or not they do get together in the end. Thanks a bundle for reviewing!
Lyssasoulless: I agree, this story doesn't have even an eighteenth of the coolness of Oh My Squidness! But aww well, I can't produce work like that all the time. Nah, only joking. I should be updating that one soon to, I just need to sort out the story line, it isn't nearly as easy as I thought it would be originally. Take care!
brokentoy19: Wahoo! You were the first reviewer! THANK YOU! I am glad you found the first chapter interesting, and I hope you found this one interesting as well! Thanks again and stay safe!