Only Half-Weasley
Chapter 19
A/N: I have that odd feeling that people are either going to love this chapter or hate it. It was a very difficult chapter to write (being that it was a summary of what has happened so far), though I felt it was necessary. Big thanks to all of you who reviewed so far and please bear with me—there is still more interesting things to come!
Just as Ginny had promised, she arrived just outside of the Ministry of Magic at a quarter past nine on Friday morning. The hearing had been scheduled for ten o'clock in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement on level one, a place that Ginny had often travelled to when she was working for the Department of Mysteries. She had felt confident when she had agreed to meet Hermione in front of the red telephone box, but now that she stood there, a feeling of anxiety welled up inside her.
"You're here," Hermione breathed in relief, holding a cup of coffee and walking briskly towards her.
Ginny looked imploringly at her friend. "You sound like you didn't think I would show up."
The brown-haired woman did not meet Ginny's eyes. "Well, considering your history…" her voice trailed off as she stepped into the telephone box and motioned for Ginny to follow her. "Shacklebolt gave me the number. I never go this way, you know. Oh yes, here it is." Hermione pulled out a scratch piece of paper where five numbers had been hastily written.
"Six…two…four…four…two," she repeated, dialing the numbers on the telephone box.
A woman's voice filled the booth, "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and purpose."
"Ginny Weasley and Hermione Granger," Hermione pronounced. "We have a hearing."
Two badges shot out of the machine's change bin, both glittering silver with the Ministry of Magic seal on it. Ginny picked hers up and pinned it to her cloak. "Who is going to be at the hearing?" Ginny asked curiously.
Hermione pulled the lever and the telephone booth began to sink into the pavement. "Ministry of Magic, a few secretaries, Ron, and your father," she counted them off. "It is going to be small."
Ginny nodded, feeling slightly better. As long as it wasn't a room full of witches and wizards, she might be able to get through this without puking. The Muggle world had finally disappeared and the door behind them opened. The atrium was as crowded as Ginny had remembered it when she had worked there. It was like returning to an old home—you never forget what it was like. The two stopped by the security desk where Ginny and Hermione's wands were examined, but Ginny did not breathe deeply until they were riding the elevator up to the first level.
"Do you think they really bought the story in the paper?" Ginny asked incredulously.
Hermione shook her head, though she looked slightly pale. "I really hope not," she muttered. "Though people never believed you ran away, Gin. They have always thought you've been kidnapped, under the Imperius curse most likely. That's why they are taking the article so seriously."
The red-head looked surprised. "They would really think that?" she asked.
"Your family had a big influence in that case," Hermione continued. "Especially since the last time we saw you…you hadn't been acting like yourself."
The elevator door swung open to allow them entrance to the top floor. Hermione and Ginny stepped out and followed the wide hall to the very end where a door was open, leading to a larger room. A small amount of chattering carried out into the hall and Ginny could distinctly hear her father's voice. "This is it," Hermione announced. "Can I trust you to wait out here until you are called?"
Ginny only nodded, her face losing its color.
"You won't run on me, will you?" Hermione asked suspiciously.
"I had promised to be here," Ginny said hoarsely.
Hermione took Ginny's hand and squeezed it before she disappeared into the room. The door closed automatically behind her, leaving Ginny in the hallway alone. The red-head looked around for a place to sit and spotted a bench to the left of her. She could not guess how long it would take for them to call her in, but as the minutes ticked past, she found it increasingly hard to keep Hermione's promise.
It felt like ages—maybe it had been—before the door to the room opened up and large man in light blue robes stepped out. His tall figure filled the doorway and a familiar grin was set upon his face.
"Ginny?" the man said in a low, yet calm voice.
Ginny studied the man for a moment before recognizing him. "Kingsley!" she cried, standing up to meet him. "You're here?"
The black man nodded, motioning for Ginny to enter. "And don't worry about the questions. Just be yourself."
The red-head would have found this sound advice, except for when she entered the room there were more than just a few people as Hermione described it. The room was circular with the audience seated around the edges and the defendant in the middle. She spotted her father and brother to the left of the room, but nearly groaned as she found they were also accompanied by her mother, Bill, Fred, George, and Harry. Her eyes did not linger on them for too long. Ginny did not want to know what they were thinking at that moment. Instead, she concentrated on the brown-haired woman who was smiling meekly in the center of the room.
A chair was conjured next to Hermione and Ginny settled herself into it, bracing herself for what was to come. "Are you Ginevra Molly Weasley?" a female voice asked her. She located the source at the center of the room, an older woman with gray hair and a stern face. Ginny could reasonably guess that this was the head of the Magical Law Enforcement department.
"It's Miller now, but yes," Ginny answered nervously.
There was a shuffle of paper and the sound of a quill before the examination continued. "And you have been called here on the sixth of January to this disciplinary hearing for Hermione Rose Weasley?" the questioner continued.
"Yes."
"Are you aware of the charges against Mrs. Hermione Weasley?"
Ginny shifted nervously in her chair. "Yes."
"The court now recognizes Ginevra Molly Weasley-Miller as a witness on behalf of the defendant," the woman announced. Several people began to mutter quietly and Ginny tried to ignore it.
"Ms. Weasley-"
"Miller," Ginny corrected.
"Mrs. Miller," the woman said in a slightly annoyed tone, "are you aware of the situation surrounding the 4th of October twelve years ago?"
What? She thought. Twelve years ago? What happened twelve years ago? Ginny racked her brain, going through the timeline. Fifteen years ago, Voldemort had died and she ended school. She joined the Ministry of Magic for two years…would that be twelve years? Holly was twelve-years-old, but October 4th was before Holly was born…exactly. "That was the day I quit my post at the Ministry of Magic," Ginny answered, proud to have been able to recite that.
"Do you recall the reasons you gave for leaving your post?"
"I wrote down personal reasons," Ginny responded, the situation resurfacing in her mind. "I was pregnant."
The muttering rose again, making Ginny feel uncomfortable once more. She looked at Hermione for reassurance, but the latter was staring straight ahead and refused to look at the red-headed witch next to her.
When the room was silent again, the examiner continued. "Where did you go after you left your post at the Ministry?"
"Where did I go?" Ginny repeated in confusion. "Home, I think."
Some of the people began to chuckle. The woman questioning nearly broke into a smile, though tried to resume her rigid composure. "Let me rephrase," she said slowly. "Did you seek other employment?"
"I did," the red-headed witch admitted. "I was hired at a bookshop. My husband was making enough at the time to support me."
"When were you married?"
"The 19th of March."
"To whom?"
"Alex Miller," Ginny answered promptly. "He was a Muggle doctor working in London. He owned a clinic there before he died."
The woman looked curiously at Ginny. "He died?" she repeated.
"Yes, in a car accident," Ginny said tentatively. She hoped that the woman would not continue on this topic. Though it had been twelve years, this was not a topic that she enjoyed discussing, let alone repeating it to a large room full of people. Yet, there was no such luck.
"How long were you married before he died?"
Ginny tried to count the months since they were married. "Nine months? Ten?" she guessed. "He passed away the Christmas after we were married."
The questioner reshuffled her notes. "You have a daughter, do you not?"
"Yes. Her name is Holly."
"And she is how old?" the woman asked.
"Twelve. She was born on Christmas day."
The room went silent. Everyone seemed to be thinking what the questioner obviously pondering as she took the glasses off of her face and tried to look at Ginny squarely. "Your daughter was born the day your husband died?" the woman asked incredibly.
"Yes, within five minutes of each other," Ginny clarified. Her voice was even, though her gut was urging her to cry. It was enough that she had carried the weight of his death alone for twelve years. Having to repeat to a room full of people who could not understand what she had gone through was worse.
The questioner could sense the uneasy feelings and looked pitifully down at her. "What did you do afterwards?"
"I went to live with my in-laws," Ginny told her. "Holly's grandmother was very helpful with the baby and I was there for several years before I found another job and could support my daughter."
A quiet sob echoed from the left corner of the room. Ginny only glanced over to see her mother covering her eyes with her hands. She could not guess if it was Ginny's story or that she was there at all that was causing her mother to cry, but it wasn't until she had seen the expression on her mother's face that she truly knew what she had done to her.
"Was the defendant aware of your marriage to Mr. Miller?" the woman asked.
Ginny tore her eyes away from her mother to look at the examiner. "Yes," she answered, thankful for the change of topic.
"How did she find out?"
"I told her," Ginny said simply.
"Did anyone else know of your marriage?" the woman persisted.
Ginny hesitated. On the top row sitting next to her brother was Harry wearing a grim expression. It was apparent that it had not been him but Hermione who alerted her family. "Yes," she said, meeting his eyes for a brief second.
"Who?"
"Harry Potter."
The room was suddenly still, though all eyes were now shifted towards the one accused. She could sense the silent anger that he was feeling, though she did not feel regret. Hermione had asked her to come clean and this was what she was doing. Harry was summoned down for questioning which gave Ginny a small break from her interrogation. She took this moment to glance at Hermione again and was relieved when the brown-haired woman met her eyes. Everything is going to be alright, Hermione seemed to tell her.
Harry was grilled for nearly ten minutes on how he knew of Ginny's marriage. He repeated the short encounter that he had had with her the August before she disappeared and how he had not spoken with her until recently this year.
"Why did you not alert the authorities with your knowledge, Professor?" the woman asked him.
"Because Hermione already had," Harry explained. "I did not feel the need to repeat it."
"Thank you, Professor Potter, you may be seated."
Harry returned to his seat next to Ron and did not look at either Hermione or Ginny. From the shocked look on his face when he came down for questioning, it was apparent that he had not expected to be a witness. Now that he was hidden in the crowd once more, the tension rose again and all eyes were back on Ginny.
"Mrs. Miller, why did not alert your family concerning your whereabouts?"
Ginny thought for a moment, unsure of whether she should repeat the words she had given Harry on Boxing Day or come up with better ones. "Because I couldn't," Ginny said.
"Couldn't?" the questioner said in confusion. "What couldn't you do?"
"I couldn't admit to my family that I had made a huge mistake," she confessed. "I couldn't break my parents' hearts when I would have to tell them what I had done."
The questioner studied Ginny's face as if she was an interesting beetle that she had found on the ground. "Then what brought you back to the wizarding world?"
"My daughter, Holly. She received her letter for Hogwarts. I didn't think she would, you see," Ginny admitted. "I always thought she was a squib."
"A squib?" Kingsley repeated from behind the questioner. "With your magical abilities? I wouldn't have ever considered it."
A few people laughed softly and even Ginny realized how absurd the idea sounded. "I didn't know," Ginny defended herself. "Holly never showed any magical behavior before. I was shocked when she did get her letter. I thought it had been a mistake."
Some of the people nodded understandingly, though others just looked very amused making Ginny wish she had never mentioned it. "Did you tell anyone of your return to the wizarding world, Mrs. Miller?" the questioner continued.
"No, I did not. I disguised myself very well to match my daughter…er…well, until a bad charm turned her hair red." She glanced at George as she made this comment. Her brother only looked sheepish, though the expression on his face reflected his entertainment of turning his niece's hair red.
"How did Mrs. Weasley learn about your identity?"
Ginny turned her eyes away from George. "From my mother-in-law. They ran into each other at the library where my mother-in-law works and she informed her."
"How long ago was this?"
"Two months?" Ginny guessed. "It has been a while."
"Why do you suppose Mrs. Weasley has not come out with this information before now?"
"Because I told her not to," the red-head informed her. "I wasn't ready to tell and I still am not, but here I am. Hermione was doing me a favor." Ginny turned to face the brown-haired woman next to her. "I'm sorry for making you do that."
Hermione nodded, but did not say anything. The calm expression in her eyes was the only sign that Ginny had been forgiven.
"Why did you-" the questioner began.
"I think that is enough," Kingsley announced, interrupting the interrogator. "It is plain that Ms. Ginevra Miller was in no way harmed or bewitched by Mrs. Hermione Weasley. This hearing is being dismissed at twelve hundred hours."
Ginny let out a sigh of relief for the first time in the last two hours. She turned to see a large grin on Hermione's face as the latter stood up and embraced her husband as the latter rushed down to meet her. A few witches and wizards passed by, giving Ginny their condolences for her husband and welcoming her back to the wizarding world. This was the very last thing she had expected from anyone as she knew she deserved a good kick for what she did.
Her mother and father were the last to approach her. It was an awkward moment as mother surveyed daughter, neither knowing what to say or what to do. "How could you?" her mother said, attempting to dry her tear-stained face.
"I'm sorry," Ginny mumbled. "I really am."
"Keeping my own granddaughter from me!" Mrs. Weasley cried with more tears running down her cheeks. Before Ginny knew what was happening, her mother grabbed her and crushed her in her arms. "Oh, Ginny! Ginny!"
Tears of relief flooded from Ginny's eyes. She had expected to be disowned. She knew her brothers would have done that with her just as they had done with Percy. Yet, her mother was forgiving her as if it was nothing, as if she hadn't broken her mother's heart with the news that she was dead. Ginny did not feel that she deserved to be forgiven.
"Please, Molly, you're suffocating her," Arthur stated, a hand on his wife's shoulder.
When Ginny was finally released from her mother's arms, she turned to her father who appeared to be solemn and calculating. His reaction was much more different and less forgiving. "I'm sorry, Dad," she told him.
"I know," he said quietly. "We have all made mistakes in our lives and I won't deny that this was the biggest one I have seen yet."
Ginny nodded, drying her eyes on her cloak. "I know."
"What have I always told you?" he asked her.
"To use my head," Ginny repeated, wondering if she was going to receive a lecture.
"Yes," he said, though with a warmer expression. "And that we love you no matter what." He received his daughter in his arms and held her much more gently than his wife had. Ginny knew that this did not mean he had completely forgiven her, but it was a start.
"I love you, too," she mumbled in his aged cloak.
It was with a bright expression on her face that she left the courtroom and found Hermione, Ron, and Harry standing just down the hall. Hermione beamed at the site of the red-headed witch, though the reaction from the other two was quite the opposite.
"Hello," she greeted them.
"Thank you so much, Ginny!" Hermione said, giving her a quick hug.
Ginny released her brown-haired friend and turned toward the other two. Ron and Harry looked coldly down on her as if she was a piece of filth they had found in the basement of Number 12 Grimmauld place.
"Ronald! You can at least say something!" Hermione said to her husband.
"It's alright, Hermione," Ginny interrupted. "They have a right to be mad at me. I will just see you later on." Just as quickly as she arrived, Ginny left not wanting to make the situation worse. It was bad enough getting Hermione and Harry involved into the conflict. She knew she deserved every last bit of anger they could muster towards her.
Hermione rounded on the two boys. "You are being childish!" she accused her husband.
"And what was she being? Mature?" Ron countered.
"More than you are being right now," Hermione told him.
"Well, I'm sorry if I can't forgive my sister just as quickly as you can," Ron answered grimly.
His wife bit her lip, testing the words in her mind. "And how do you suppose I am supposed to forgive you for all of your blunders when you can't forgive anyone else?"
"That's different," Ron dismissed. "I didn't do what she did!"
"But I can certainly choose not to forgive you all the same!"
The two stared stubbornly at each other neither wanting to give up but forced to when Mr. and Mrs. Weasley approached them, interrupting their argument. "Harry!" Mrs. Weasley cried, crushing the raven-haired man in her arms. "I didn't expect you to be here. What about your classes?"
"Professor McGonagall gave me the day off," Harry answered politely. "She took over my morning and afternoon class while I attended the hearing."
"That was very nice of you," Mrs. Weasley told him. "Where did Ginny go?"
"Home," Hermione answered.
Mrs. Weasley looked slightly put out. "I was hoping to invite her for lunch. I want to become reacquainted with my daughter again."
Ron looked disgusted at the thought while Harry merely appeared to be withdrawn. Hermione gave the pair another stern look before offering to fetch Ginny herself. She found the red-head relaxing on the sofa of her flat and with some crafty persuasion on Hermione's part, was convinced to meet her family at the Burrow. To Ginny's relief, the only guests were her mother and Hermione while the boys dined elsewhere. Ginny suspected this was at her mother's request, though could not be sure.
While the lunch went as smoothly as anyone could hope, there was still a barrier between the three women. It would be a long time before anyone could truly forgive what Ginny did and she understood that. She was just thankful that her mother hadn't murdered her, that Hermione was still talking to her, and that she did not run after Hermione had exposed her. The voice that had kept her from running had been right. Hermione had been right. Everything was going to be ok.