All characters are property of JK Rowling and I do not make a profit from this story.
Chapter Sixty-One: On the Run
Ginny Weasley – Present Day
March 1, 2001
Ginny had spent the night alone in her shared flat with Harry. She wasn't worried about Harry's safety as this was not the first time that he was out somewhere in hiding. She also knew that it wasn't permanent, but the last time Harry, Ron, and Hermione had to go into hiding, it took almost a year before their names were cleared. She spent the evening searching their flat for anything useful that Harry could use, and she filled a rucksack with plenty of food and water for the three of them. She knew of course that she could not go with Harry. It wasn't because he didn't trust her; she knew that wasn't the case anymore. It was because Harry needed someone here that he could trust, and so Ginny knew that she was that person. She continuously reassured herself that her fiancé would come back sooner rather than later, but she could not ignore that nagging voice that kept telling her that Harry would not be back in time for their scheduled wedding of September the first. She looked at her watch and saw that it was almost time for her shift to start. She inconspicuously switched locations with Luna that morning, so that she could be on watch near the big hill and could meet Harry as planned. She went to their bedroom and grabbed the last item that she needed to, which was his small little box that had the extendable charm on it. She quickly opened it up to make sure that everything Harry would need was inside of it, but after pushing aside Harry's Firebolt and Marauder's Map, Ginny knew that what she really needed to find was not there. "Where is that cloak?" Ginny said out loud, fear starting to build up inside of her. She spent the next ten minutes searching their flat but she knew in her heart that the cloak was not there. Sighing, she slipped the filled rucksack under her robes, and apparated to Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix.
"How many people followed you?" asked George, as Ginny walked into number twelve, Grimmauld Place.
"Two were at my flat when I left," she responded. "There's about four outside."
"We are going to have trouble finding a new Headquarters," said Tonks, as she walked into the house. "All of our dwellings are being watched."
"I suppose we just keep this as Headquarters," answered Ginny. "They know that we are here and there is no way that they can get in, so who cares if they know."
"Kingsley said that they are looking for ways to gain entry by means of Ministry protocols," said George.
"So, we keep nothing in writing here. We'll just need to find a safe place to store everything," said Ginny shrugging.
"Yeah, but where?" asked Tonks.
"We'll figure it out," said Ginny, whose mind was elsewhere. "I've got to get going to my watch." She turned and headed out of the house, simply making a show for the Aurors who were watching, and apparated her way to Les Bonbons De Rene. She knew she wasn't followed when she arrived, and so she walked to the side of the building, hoping that she hadn't already missed Harry.
"Hey," came the sweet voice of her fiancé.
"Hey," she smiled back, falling into his arms. "Were you waiting long?"
"We've actually set up our camp just over there," he responded, pointing to an empty spot just passed the bakery. "You can't see us because of our protective charms of course, but we came last night so that we wouldn't be heard by anybody."
"Makes sense," she said, handing him the rucksack that she brought. "I couldn't find your cloak anywhere," she admitted to him.
"Darn," he responded, furrowing his brow. "I don't know where it could be, I always put it in my box."
"I know; I'll look for it," she said.
"Well, don't contact me," Harry said quickly.
"I know," she responded sadly.
"I will be in touch when I can – I promise," he added, seeing the look on her face. "In the meantime, plan our wedding. I'm serious! Make it discreet and only invite those we can trust; but plan it. If I can't come home before, I will at least be there on September the first."
"I can't risk you being caught," she said.
"And I can't risk not marrying you," he responded. He kissed her gently. "I have to go," he said. Ginny nodded her understanding. "Plan it, I'm serious," he told her. "And I need you to invite these people," he added, handing her a folded piece of parchment. "But do so last minute."
"Okay," she said. "What are you going to do now?"
"Probably fight horcruxes," Harry answered honestly. "See you," he said, and Ginny watched him walk away and disappear under his protective charms.
Harry Potter – Present Day
March 1, 2001
Harry walked into the tent and saw Hermione and Ron sitting at the little table.
"Happy birthday, mate," said Harry, talking to Ron.
"Thanks," said a disgruntled Ron, clearly upset with the fact that they were back in hiding again. "How's Ginny?" he asked Harry.
"Fine," he said. "She sent us some stuff," he added, opening the rucksack. "Look, Ron, cake!" he said, throwing him a piece of cake that had been wrapped up.
"Must have been from Mum," responded Ron, eating the cake. "She would never let me be without cake on my birthday."
"Why would Ginny send a Daily Prophet?" Harry asked, pulling the newspaper out of the rucksack. "Of course," Harry groaned, looking at the cover. Staring back at him was a black and white moving picture of himself, Hermione, and Ron, under a large heading that read: Wanted by the Ministry: This Time, There are no Exceptions. He threw the newspaper on the table, and Hermione picked it up, reading the article out loud.
"There is no surprise that along with Miss Hermione Granger, Mister Harry Potter and Mister Ronald Weasley are wanted by the Ministry once again, writes Rita Skeeter, famed journalist and author. Miss Granger has been wanted by the Ministry for some time, for forging illegal documents, and has been in hiding since, however, yesterday it was confirmed, as was suspected by the Ministry of Magic, that Mister Harry Potter and Mister Ronald Weasley were keeping her hidden and therefore breaking Ministry rules themselves. "This is not the first time that these three have been wanted by the Ministry," says DoloresUmbridge, from her office at the Ministry of Magic, "and it most likely will not be their last if we do not put a final stop to it this time." It seems as though the golden trio is not as honest as they proclaimed to be, and it has been stated that the last time they were on the run, they were the ones who had assisted He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and instead took the credit for his fall when it was in fact the Aurors from the Ministry of Magic who had defeated him once and for all. (See page fifteen, with my interview with Carl Jerkins, where I explain why I stated elsewise in my book The Golden Trio). The Ministry has warned the public not to approach Potter and his friends, as they are considered extremely dangerous, and instead advise any witch or wizard with the known whereabouts of these three criminals, to contact the Ministry of Magic immediately."
"Oh yeah, I remember assisting You-Know-Who," said Ron sarcastically, "that was fun."
"I suppose it could be worse," said Hermione, putting down the newspaper.
"Whatever," said Harry, truly not caring about it. "We have bigger things to deal with."
"Like what?" asked Ron. "Do you actually have a plan this time, or are we just winging it again?"
"Are you serious?" yelled Harry, getting really angry. "If you didn't open your big mouth in front of Umbridge-"
"How the hell did I know she was there?" he yelled back.
"If you were smarter you would have known to look around before saying anything-"
"Sorry we all can't be as smart as precious Harry Potter!"
"Enough!" yelled Hermione. "I am not going through another year of this bickering between the two of you! We are all in this situation whether we like it or not, and we are just going to have to make the best of it. Now, we know that there are two horcruxes out there so for now, we are going to focus on destroying them."
"And how do we do that?" asked Ron, still fuming.
"We make a plan, together!" she added, giving Ron the dirtiest of looks. "And if you don't like it then you can just go and lay in your bed but you are not leaving and you and Harry are not arguing about it, either!"
"Fine," said Ron. "I'll take watch," and he grabbed his wand and headed outside of the tent.
"Harry, just ignore him, okay?"
"Why do I always have to play nice?" asked a frustrated Harry. "He needs to grow up!"
"Yes, I quite agree, but I can't control both of you so for my sake please just let it go."
"Fine," said Harry. "Let's make a plan to deal with these horcruxes, then."
Hermione nodded. "What did you end up doing with the sword of Gryffindor?"
"Gave it back to Hogwarts, why?"
"We will need something to destroy the horcruxes once we find them."
"Right. Well, maybe McGonagall can get it for us."
"If she's seen taking the sword out of the castle, they'll know she is helping us and she will be wanted, too."
"How would anyone know that the sword has to do with us?" asked Harry.
"It's in our book that we used the sword to destroy some horcruxes," Hermione responded.
"Oh, right, so then, what do we do?"
"Maybe another basilisk fang," Hermione said.
"The basilisk is gone," Harry stated.
"Really?"
Harry nodded. "McGonagall told me that they had it removed last year."
"Darn."
"I suppose we can worry about destroying it later. We need to find out where they are first."
"Does Kingsley know that we've made the connection with the Fortescue's yet?"
Harry shook his head no. "We didn't get that far in the conversation," he responded.
"Well, even still, I'm sure someone has made the connection by now. It'll be dangerous to just appear at the Fortescue property."
"Do you even know where that is?" Harry asked her.
"Sadly, no," she responded. "Originally I was going to go to the shop in Diagon Alley."
"So, that's what we do, then," said Harry.
"Harry, we are wanted again, remember? We can't just show up wherever we'd like!"
"It's never stopped us before," Harry argued. "You've got Polyjuice potion, haven't you?"
"Only enough for us all to take it once," she responded.
"Well, that's enough. We will take it, find out what we can in Diagon Alley, and go from there."
"Do you really think we should use our supply on that? Once we use it, we won't have anymore."
"I'm not just going to sit here in this tent, Hermione!"
"And I'm not saying to do that! But we need to be smart. Remember that rocky hill we stayed at last time?" Harry nodded, remembering how dead the place was. "Well, I say we go back there tonight. We can stay put, hidden of course, but so far away from the world that nobody will find us, and we can focus on making a plan."
"Fine," said Harry, not really happy with it. "But we don't stay a day over three weeks, and after that, we start ending this."
Jessica Ferguson – Present Day
March 6, 2001
"Now, Dear, are you sure about this?" asked Molly Weasley, as she packed a fresh lunch in a rucksack for Jessica and Amelia.
"Definitely," Jessica nodded. "I've thought about it for awhile now, and with Ron gone, there is really no need for Amelia and I to stay here."
"You know that you two are welcomed here at any time," said Molly.
"I know, and thank you. But I have a life back at home and now that Amelia is healthy, I really need to get back to it."
"I understand, Dear. But promise me you'll write?"
"Of course!" responded Jessica.
"I'll send Pig with a letter every week, all you'll have to do is write back and attach it to his leg; he'll know what to do."
"Okay, and for sure you don't mind babysitting Amelia when needed?"
"Honestly, Jessica, I would be offended if you didn't allow me to! Whenever you need me, I'll apparate over there and bring Amelia here while you do what you need to do."
"Thank you."
"I really do wish that you would let me apparate Amelia home, though. It is such a long journey for her."
"Amelia has spent a lot of time around magic; I want her to get back to her muggle roots for now. But I have Neville coming with us anyway, so we will be safe."
"Neville?" repeated Molly, surprised.
"Yeah, I guess he should know where I live so that he can come and visit her," she replied. "This way is better anyway; at least it will just be Neville around and not his Grandmother."
"Well, I think you've made the right decision," said Molly, smiling.
"You will let me know as soon as Ron is back?" she asked.
"Of course, Dear! But you know, it may be awhile," she added sadly.
"I can wait," was Jessica's response. "Well, I better get going; Neville is waiting just outside of the fidelius charm."
"Do take care of yourself, Dear," said Molly, giving Jessica a large hug and wiping away a tear. "And you too, Amelia, I shall see you soon," she said, hugging the little girl tightly.
"Come on, Amelia," said Jessica, grabbing her daughter's hand. "It's time to go and meet your daddy."
Petunia Dursley – The Past
December 16, 1986
Petunia walked into the nursing home where her mother currently resided, with her husband and son. She hadn't allowed Dudley to see his grandmother since the horrible accident five years ago, but she had decided that it was time. She heard Vernon groaning behind her and she knew that he was unhappy with her decision, but she loved her mother and wanted her son to know who his grandmother was.
"Now, remember what mummy said, diddykins," she said to her son, as she held his hand and walked down the hall. "Grandma is ill and so we mustn't take anything she says seriously."
"Grandma will lie?" asked the young child.
"Not lie, my sweets, she is just sick and doesn't always remember everything."
"What about Grandpa?" asked Dudley.
Petunia stiffened at the mention of her father. "Your grandpa died many years ago," she answered honestly. "Come along now." The three of them entered a small bedroom where an elderly woman could be seen sitting on her rocking chair. "Hello, mummy, it's Petunia," said Petunia, as she cautiously approached her mother. "I've brought Dudley with me today, remember him? Your grandson?"
The woman turned around and faced Petunia. "Lily?" she whispered.
"Petunia!" said Petunia loudly, shielding her son as if the word Lily could hurt him.
"Lily, Lily," the woman kept repeating.
"I told you this was a bad idea," whispered Vernon from behind her.
"Mummy, it's me, Pe-tuuun-iaaa," she said slowly, extending her name as much as possible.
"Petunia," responded her mother.
"Yes!" said Petunia happily.
"Petunia, where is Lily?"
Petunia frowned. "I've brought Dudley to see you," she told her mother. "This is your grandson, Dudley."
"Dudley," her mother repeated.
"Yes, Dudley," said Petunia, bringing her son closer.
"Dudley, where is Lily?"
"Dudley, let's go," said Vernon, putting his foot down. Dudley left with his father and Petunia frowned at her mother.
"What has happened to you?" she said in a disrespectful way. "Even ill, all you can think about is Lily!"
"Lily, where is Lily?"
"This was a mistake coming here, mummy." Petunia stood up and straightened out her clothes. "You will be well-cared for here, Vernon and I will see to the expenses." And with that, Petunia Dursley walked out of the room and never looked back.
Author's notes: Not much to say here. Jessica's story will be put aside for a little awhile. She may spring up here and there, especially when we have a Neville scene, but for the most part, our story is going to focus elsewhere (for now). The next chapter excites me; it isn't a super long one but it opens up the door for a big event that will immediately follow.
On to reviews: I knew my Ginny lovers were going to get mad at my last chapter! I promise you this is not Harry abandoning her and there is a reason why she had to stay behind (which you will find out in a few chapters from now) but Ginny also knows it and agrees with the decision. To reply to Cobezack3, I wish I could provide you with a posting schedule but I can't. Originally it was a minimum of once a week, but life happened and as of right now I can't promise anything. I do apologize but I can assure you that I am committed to this story and it will be completed! To reply to SpeedsONEandONLY, Kinglsey was going to explain who he was meeting with but Ron interrupted him. It was not Kingsley being malicious, it was Ron jumping the gun (which is very much like the Ron from the books). Harry also didn't actually burn the letter; he was trying to think of a quick excuse to cover up what happened and that was all he could think of. (Remember when Harry got caught by Snape in POA and quickly had to lie on spot? He didn't do a great job, and he didn't here, either). If it was Hermione, she would have argued with Umbridge about your exact point about the letter not revealing someone's location, but Ron and Harry basically panicked and ran, which is what caused them to look guilty. Your thoughts on Augusta are interesting but I can't say much right now because we will see more of her (much much later) in the story. Kingsley under pressure doesn't seem to be the nicest, but he is on the right side. He plays along with what is required of him as the Minister, and he's made some mistakes, but he is a "good guy". Finally, in regards to Umbridge, she did her time and paid her dues. She didn't get off, her sentence was simply over. Keep in mind the date that this story is currently at. Zorica, have faith in Harry's decision to leave Ginny! In regards to Harry's sister, I still can't say a word! To "guest", you have nothing to worry about Harry and Hermione - they are brother and sister in a sense, but that's it!
Thanks so much for the reviews! Keep reading and reviewing and I'll see you all at the next chapter!