All characters are property of JK Rowling and I do not make a profit from this story.

Beta: Roman's Sundial

Chapter Sixteen: The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore

Ginny Weasley – Present Day

November 29, 1999

"Hey, Jessica, how is everything?" Ginny had approached Jessica cautiously, outside of Amelia's room at St. Mungo's. Nobody except for Molly had been able to visit with them (As per Jessica's request), but Ginny decided that it was time to show up anyway. She did not regret telling Jessica, but regardless it was her fault that Jessica was pushing everyone away, and she needed to make sure that she was okay.

"As best as it can be, I guess, given the situation."

"I'm sorry I came, I know that you requested to be alone…"

"That didn't include you, Ginny, you're the only one that actually told me the truth. As hard as it is to wrap my head around all of this, I appreciate you not treating me like a fool."

Ginny sat next to her and smiled. "For the record, I think Ron wanted to tell you as well. The wizarding world has ways of informing muggle-borns about their magic, I think Mum was just trying to make sure those rules weren't broken."

"But you told me anyway," said Jessica.

"Yeah, well, I thought your situation was a little different. Besides, I don't tend to follow the rules." Both girls laughed. "So, how is Amelia?"

"Healer Martus says the magic she's displaying is a reaction to whatever happened to her with the wand. All the Healer's are telling me it's a good thing though, because it means that she may wake up."

"Look at you using our language, the Healers, you're learning quick!" Ginny tried to lighten up the conversation a little bit.

"Ginny," Jessica turned to her seriously, "I need you to be honest with me again. Your mum is sweet but she holds back anything that she thinks is unpleasant, and Healer Martus barely tells me anything… I really need to know something."

Ginny nodded. "Sure. What do you need to know?"

Jessica took a deep breath. "What's the worst that can happen to Amelia? Other than d-death, I mean."

Ginny considered her answer for a long time. "Honestly, I don't really know. Even pureblood witches like me don't know everything. Magic is very complex, you know."

"Please, can you tell me what you do know?"

"Well, there's this book, it's actually a load of rubbish to be honest, but there are a few small truths to it."

"Does it talk about situations like Amelia's?"

"Kind of," Ginny said. "How much has Ron told you about our world?"

Jessica snorted. "Very little, but I also never asked."

"Well, there are pureblood wizards, like my family, half-blood wizards, muggle-borns…"

"Like Amelia."

"For sure her father couldn't have been a wizard?"

Jessica shook her head. "Definitely not, Nigel would be the last person you would suspect has magic."

"Okay, so muggle-born like Amelia, and Hermione, remember her? She's muggle-born, too." Ginny continued. "And then there are squibs."

"What are squibs?"

"The opposite of a muggle-born. Squibs are children born of magical parents who do not possess any magic."

"Oh, that happens?"

"Well, it's rare, and frowned upon in the wizarding world."

"That's sad, it's not like they can control it."

Ginny nodded in agreement. "It is sad, but that's the way the world is."

"Okay, so what does all this have to do with Amelia?"

"Well, as I said, the book is rubbish, it's supposed to be the biography of a wizard named Albus Dumbledore, but the author didn't know much about him, and so she made up the majority of it. She did get some truth though, including the part about his sister, Ariana. When she was six, muggles saw her practising magic and attacked her."

"Weren't there laws back then, before we found out about magic?"

"Yes, but it didn't apply until you were eleven. A child cannot control accidental magic, and that's what happened with Ariana."

"So, what happened to her?" Jessica asked, slightly reserved, in fear that she would not like the answer.

"I don't remember what the book said exactly, but, she became erratic. She wouldn't use magic, but she couldn't get rid of it either, and sometimes she would cause explosions and such. It eventually drove her mad."

"So, that could happen to Amelia," Jessica said quietly, looking down at her hands.

"I don't know, Amelia isn't a squib if both her parents don't have magical blood. But you asked me what's the worst-case that I know, and I believe it would be that."

Jessica nodded. "Thank you for being honest with me, Ginny, you're the only one."

"I know that feeling," Ginny said, more to herself than anything. She got up to leave, but then hesitated. She was mad at her family, but they were her family nevertheless. "Talk to Ron," she told Jessica. "He truly only means well."

Hermione Granger – Present Day

December 2, 1999

"There you are, Ginny!" Hermione said, as she walked over to her friend. Ginny was sitting alone at the Gryffindor table in the great hall, having a late dinner. "Why are you only having dinner now?"

"I was out on the quidditch pitch with some Hufflepuffs, they have some really good fliers in their house."

"Well, I wouldn't know anything about that!" The two women laughed in unison. "Actually, I'm glad I caught you alone, though, I wanted to talk to you."

"About what?" Ginny asked, through mouthfuls of roast beef.

Hermione thought back to the promise she made to Harry about a month ago. "You and Harry," she said sternly.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "What about?"

"You know what about! What is going on with you two?"

"Beats me," Ginny shrugged. "Maybe you should ask him."

"It's not my place to tell Harry to induct you into the Order, but…"

"But you think I should be," Ginny finished for her.

"I think you've earned it," Hermione agreed. "Is this why you're so distant from him? Can't you just talk to him?"

Ginny snorted. "There's no talking to Harry about anything!"

Hermione hesitated, but ultimately continued with her thought. "Why are you with him, then?"

Ginny put down her fork and turned to Hermione. "This Harry you see now, that's not my Harry. If this was the man that I had met all of those years ago, you can rest assured that I would never have been with him."

"I'm confused," Hermione said, and she looked it, too.

"This war has changed Harry. Do you know that he blames himself for every death? He even blames himself for the death of his parents!"

"That's ridiculous!"

Ginny nodded in agreement. "He told me that Voldemort was looking for him, not his parents, so if he hadn't been born, Voldemort would never have killed them and they would still be alive."

"Oh, Harry," Hermione was starting to understand the effect that this war had on the Boy Who Lived.

"Do you see? I can't just leave him, I know that my Harry is still in there, he just needs help coming out."

"I was wondering why you were putting up with all of it, to be honest."

"Believe me, it isn't easy! I know he is doing this because he's trying to protect me, but it's so bloody annoying! He thinks he can prevent my untimely death or something!"

"Harry needs help," Hermione finally said.

"Yeah, but he's not going to listen to anyone."

"I think it's really sweet that you're not leaving him, after all of this nonsense he's putting you through."

"Like I said, this isn't my Harry, but he's in there, and I hope he comes back soon." Ginny looked off into the entrance hall where Harry could be seen walking in with Ron.

Hermione glanced in that direction too, wondering how she could help her best friend become himself again. "I wish I could help," she said quietly.

"He'll come around, Hermione, in the meantime, we just need to show him that none of what had happened was his fault."

Gellert Grindelwald – Present Day

December 17, 1999

Harry, of course, had known where the location of the cave was, having travelled there previously with the late Albus Dumbledore. With the locket finally destroyed, that only left a few more for the glorious trio to find.

Gellert was focused on the passage that he was reading, and therefore did not hear Pius walk in. He was drumming his wand on the page of the book, wondering how much of what he read was true.

"Is everything alright, Master?" Pius asked, after realizing that Gellert had not replied to a thing he had said for the past five minutes.

"Ah, Pius, I did not hear you. I'm very much intrigued with Skeeter's book here, however, I wish I knew how much I could believe."

"What do you mean, Master? She said she had received the information in an interview directly with Potter and his friends." Pius said, confused.

"She claimed to have received the details of this story first hand as well," he said, indicating to another book that was laying on the table. "Yet nobody knew Dumbledore better than me, and I can assure you there are more lies in The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore than there are in all of the Daily Prophet articles combined!" Gellert slammed the golden book he was holding down on the table in frustration. "Riddle never mentioned horcruxes to any of you?"

"No, Master, he was very private."

"I need information, Pius!" Gellert paced the room back and forth and did not stop until he perched himself in front of the large window facing the big hill that kept his little shack well hidden. "The girl," he started to say, an idea coming to him. "Pius, you said that the girl knew Potter? The one that followed you over the hill?"

"Yes, Master, she's the daughter of the Weasley's, the family that took Potter in. She may have dyed her hair black, but I know a Weasley when I see one. I believe her name is Gloria."

"Gloria!" Gellert repeated, with a smile. "She's the one I need to see."

"Shall I kidnap her?"

"No, no, nothing harsh, we need to stay low for now. Not to worry, Pius, our new friend will return."

"How do you know, Master?"

"Because I watched her that day. She had left only because she had received a message. Our little Gloria Weasley will return, this I am sure of, and we will gladly welcome her into our little dwelling."

Harry Potter – The Past

May 10, 1998

Harry sat outside of The Minister of Magic's office, waiting for their scheduled meeting. It had only been about a week since his defeat of Voldemort, and already so much had changed. For starters, Kingsley Shacklebolt was now permanently Minister of Magic, and there were several conversations happening within the Wizengamot about revealing their world to the muggles.

"Mr. Potter, my apologies for keeping you waiting," Kingsley said, as he reached out a hand to grasp Harry's in his, and then sat behind his large desk. "Now, there are several matters that we need to discuss. I know that you must be exhausted with everything going on, defeating the darkest wizard of our time only a week ago, you must be the eye of everyone's prize at the moment!"

"I guess you could say that," Harry said, emotionless. "I would much rather be at home with my friends and my girlfriend, instead of here all of the time."

"Well, I shall try not to take up too much of your time, then." Harry nodded his thanks. "The first matter of the day is the Wizengamot."

"What about it?"

"Well, as I am sure you know, the Sacred Twenty-eight each have a seat on it, and since the defeat of Voldemort, I'm sure you can imagine how many of those seats are now vacant. So, it is my responsibility to fill them with the proper heirs. With that said, I must require you to fill your seat at the next meeting."

"What?" said Harry, confused. "Potter isn't part of the Sacred Twenty-eight!"

"Not Potter, Mr. Potter, Black."

"But, I'm not a Black!"

"The last living Black was Sirius Black, your godfather. As he did not bear any children and he had named you in his Will as his successor, the seat now falls to you."

"But I don't want it," Harry shook his head. "Pass it on to the next person in line, please."

"Very well, Mr. Potter, but that burden, then, will fall onto your godson, Teddy Lupin."

"What? How?"

"As you bear no children, wizarding law states that a godchild would follow suit in the chain of command."

"But Sirius had cousins, why can't they take the seat?"

"Bellatrix is no longer with us, nor would she be allowed, of course, given her heinous crimes, and Narcissa is one of the Malfoys' whom are on the list to be tried, therefore she cannot take the seat."

"So, that leaves Andromeda. She can have it, she would be great."

"Indeed, she would be, Mr. Potter, but she is filling the Malfoy seat instead. As Narcissa's sister, she would be the next of kin for the Malfoys, other than Lucius and Draco, whom are both not allowed either, due to their upcoming trials as well."

"But… I don't want it," Harry said childishly.

"Nor did Andromeda, but she did not want to put such a burden on her grandson and, therefore, took the Malfoy seat."

Harry frowned. How could he put that burden on Teddy, when Teddy's grandmother wouldn't even do it? Besides, Teddy would not come of age for a long time, so the burden would have fallen on Harry anyway. "Fine," he said, pouting.

"Very good, Mr. Potter. We shall owl you to inform you of the next meeting. On to one final thing, then. The Harry Potter Association needs to come into effect-"

"I'm sorry, the what?"

"The Harry Potter Association. You were informed that you would be taking charge of the Death Eater proceedings, as well as follow-ups, review hearings, and whatever else is required."

"Yeah, I remember, but…" Harry hesitated before speaking. "I kind of just want to relax with my friends, it's been a hard year," he said with a slight smile.

"I understand, Mr. Potter, but even with the changes that may take place within Hogwarts, you have still almost completed your education and will require a job. You are being handed your own department! And if I remember correctly, you were adamant on being present during the Death Eater trials."

"Yeah, because I need to make sure they don't get away with what they've done!"

"Mr. Potter," Kingsley started, taking the kind tone that perhaps a father would take with his son, "You have a marvelous opportunity here. You can ensure justice is served, choose how to serve it, continue to protect all those that you've already protected, and then, when you're done with it, you may appoint someone else to take over! Do not make this decision lightly, but almost all of the wizarding world is looking at you as the one who saved them. You are their hero, Mr. Potter, let them continue to believe in you."

Harry thought long and hard before responding. Kingsley was right; he would need a job shortly. "I want Hermione and Ron to be a part of the department, too."

"Of course, it is your department, you may hire whomever you choose."

"It needs a new name," Harry also said. He was tired of hearing his name everywhere; perhaps there could be something else that people would start chanting instead.

"Very well, Mr. Potter, but I need your desired name, now. I need to have these documents processed immediately."

Harry thought that the name should be in memory of someone they had lost. He thought of his parents, of Sirius, of Dumbledore and Snape, he thought of Remus and Tonks, and Fred and Collin; there were so many worthy people. His mind then shifted to two other innocent lives; he thought sadly of the house-elf, Dobby, and his beloved pet owl, Hedwig. "I'll call it the Dobwig Association."

Author's Notes: Well, there you have it, the reason Ginny hasn't left Harry! I hope I was able to get the point across; basically Harry is not dealing with everything well. The Ginny we know, however, is not going to just let him sit and mope. In fact, chapter 21 Ginny finally gets fed up and goes into "action mode". I definitely enjoyed writing that chapter! Oh, and to answer the question "does Harry actually care about Ginny?" the answer is yes, very much so, which is why he is acting the way he is. He believes he is protecting her.

A couple of things in regards to relationships... Obviously the characters are getting older and leaving Hogwarts and we know that they end up having children. With that said, clearly sex is unavoidable in this story. However, I am not one to write many details (we all know how it's done, no need to explain!) So there will be mention of it and what not, but no crazy detailed porn.

The next chapter (seventeen) is really going to start opening up the Grindelwald story. It gets much more detailed in future chapters but "Christmas" starts it all and chapter 17 starts with Christmas. Hope you all enjoy!