"I said no and I meant no."
"Ginny, you don't have a choice these are direct orders from the Minister of Magic."
"Don't pull that on me, Ronald Weasley. I don't care what Dad said I am not going!" Ginny hated the way she sounded so much like a petulant child, but she was desperate.
Under most circumstances, Ron would have backed down from the fierce look in his sister's eyes, but these circumstances were anything but normal. "Ginny…" he began in a softer tone.
"No! I don't need Harry bloody Potter to rush in and save me again. I had enough of that for this lifetime."
"So, you would rather die, is that it? You would rather risk your life and the life of my wife, your best friend, because you had your heart broken when you were barely old enough—" The smack that followed his diatribe was well deserved, but it still stung like hell.
"I am not some stupid little girl with a stupid little crush. How dare you presume to know how I feel?" She could feel the tears welling in her eyes. She resolutely ignored them. He wouldn't make her cry. Whether she was thinking of Harry or Ron, she wasn't quite sure.
Ron quickly backtracked, changing tactics. "Look, I was way off there, you know? But this is serious, Ginny and I'm scared. I'm scared for you and I'm scared for Hermione." He pushed his hair off his forehead distractedly as he began pacing the floor. "You have to go and it has to be with Harry."
"Please, Ron not with him, anybody but him." Ginny could feel the fight leaving her, literally feel it flow out of her in great waves until all that was left was a quiet desperation. They wouldn't do this to her, they couldn't do this to her.
Ron stared at the scratched and scarred surface of the kitchen table struggling to order his mind. He could deal with a defiant Ginny, the screaming, yelling, hellcat Ginny, but a beaten, crying Ginny he didn't know what to do with that. He moved around the table and put his arms around her shaking shoulders. Both redheads stared out the kitchen window taking in the view of their childhood, memories of happier times at the Burrow flashing through their minds. It was a while before either spoke.
"Ginny, it has to be him. I can't go with you…Hermione…"
"I know, Ron." Ginny turned in her brother's arms searching his blue eyes, not quite knowing what she was looking for. "Isn't there anyone else?"
Ron shook his head. "He is the best and you know it. There is no one else."
Ginny released a bitter laugh. "There never has been has there?"
Six months ago, had someone told Ginny Weasley that she would be packing her bags to go into hiding with Harry Potter, she would have laughed in their face before hexing them senseless. It was with a surreal sense that she began placing the most important items in her possession into a small case to begin that very journey. Had she known that accepting a position as Hermione Granger's assistant would have led to this she would have ran as far as her legs could carry her and never looked back. But she hadn't known and so she began down the path that led her to this…fiasco for lack of a more appropriate word.
After the war, Hermione had begun working for the ministry in the Department of Mysteries, researching who knows what, but about a year ago, Hermione suddenly quit her job stating that she could no longer tolerate the closed-minded politics that dictated her every move. She wanted to be free to research independently. To study what she choose and be free to do what she wanted with her findings. Ron had supported her and with her husband's blessing and the money she received from her parent's estate upon their death, she set up an independent laboratory.
Ginny had been dissatisfied with her own job at the ministry dealing with experimental charms and had been looking for something different. Hermione had offered her a job aiding her in her research. Ginny had to admit even now after everything had gone as wrong as it possibly could, that working with Hermione had been both enjoyable and rewarding at the same time.
Two months ago, they had received the ring. That's how Ginny now thought of it, the ring Luna Lovegood, whom both women had remained close to after all these years, had brought it into Hermione's office after a recent expedition to the Swiss Alps, where she and her father had been searching for some mythical creature or another. Luna said she found the ring in a cave and she could sense the magic within it. Ginny and Hermione agreed that the artifact was definitely worth studying; the aura around it was powerful, magnetic.
The simplicity of the ring was deceptive, consisting of a thin gold band and topped with a heavy red stone unlike anything they had ever seen. It had taken almost a month of research before they came across their first clue in an obscure historical text: It was on this day that Mandalia, the most feared witch of her time, died. Her ring with its beautiful red stone was never seen again. It wasn't much, but it was a start. Ginny knew now that the smartest thing to have done with that blasted ring would have been to destroy it, but she had to admit her curiosity had been just as strong as Hermione's. They hadn't destroyed the ring, hadn't left well enough alone and now Ginny had to run away with Harry Potter.
Ginny shook off her morose thoughts as she shoved the last few items into her bag, then shrunk the entire thing so that it would fit into her pocket. She refused to let her mind wander to Harry as she finished readying her home for its long vacancy. She walked around the small flat doing small mindless chores while biding her time. The refrigerator and cupboards were empty of any perishable items. The windows were all closed tight and all the faucets were turned off. She removed the timed charms from the lights and stored her broom in the closet. She dusted the fireplace mantle and straightened the cushions on the sofa. She screamed when Harry appeared with a pop in front of her.
Instinctively, Harry reached out and grabbed Ginny by the shoulders. "Shh…its just me. I couldn't have anyone see me arrive."
Ginny swallowed a hysterical giggle. Just him, it was just him? There was no just him. "Sorry," she said as she took a large step back from him. "I wasn't sure when you were going to arrive, but I'm ready."
Harry shoved his hands into his pocket and frowned as he took in her appearance. She looked awful, her skin was too pale and there were dark circles under her eyes. Her hair was lackluster and hung lankly around her shoulders. She was wearing a Weasley jumper that had seen better days and her Muggle jeans were stained and dirty. He felt the urge to go to her and tell her that everything would be okay, but he couldn't. He was here on business and for the time being she was his to protect. He cleared his throat. "Ron told you about the Obfuscate charm?"
Ginny nodded. Ron had explained that it was a charm Aurors often used to alter their appearance, so that they could go undercover when necessary. It was a powerful concealment charm that obscured the person's features just enough so that they were unrecognizable to those that knew them and unmemorable at the same time so that they were almost immediately forgotten after they left a person's line of sight.
Harry continued after Ginny's nod. "If I cast the charm on you and you cast it on me, we will be able to see through the charm."
Ginny pulled her wand out from her back pocket and pointed it at Harry. "Obfuscate," she said as she aimed her wand at his face and turned it in a slight circular motion. She watched as Harry's features seemed to blur, then righted themselves like nothing had happened. "Did it work?" she asked.
Harry nodded and pulled out his own wand and aimed it at her, uttering, "Obfuscate." Ginny felt momentarily light headed as the spell hit her and for a moment she thought she might lose her balance and fall to the ground, but the sensation passed quickly enough and left her staring at Harry, unsure of what to say or do.
Harry pulled a coin out of his pocket. "We will be leaving here by Portkey. There is a safe house set up for us, but I can't tell you the details of the location. Even I'm not entirely sure where it is for safety reasons."
Ginny checked her pockets to make sure she had her luggage and took one last look around her flat, hoping that she would see it again soon. "I'm ready."
Harry offered a brief, reassuring smile before he tapped his wand to the coin and said, "Portus."
Ginny touched the coin with her index finger and closed her eyes as she felt a tug behind her navel. Things would never be the same again.