A/N: I think this is close to the fastest I've ever written a chapter; I guess being quarantined is good for something. Plus, I have been the extremely grateful recipient of some wonderful reviews lately, and it's made me want to write more. A special thanks to Deadwoodpecker for her cheerleading, suggestions (you were totally right about the dream), and general support today and all days. Now, go write - you owe me words!
Ginny hesitated, wondering if she should find Camilla or even a different Auror to meet Kane with her. But there was no one immediately around and the pull to help Harry was too great. After a moment she gave Kane a quick nod and followed him into his office. He closed the door but did not, she noticed, either seal it or set a silencing charm. Ginny relaxed a fraction, sitting down in the chair Kane indicated. He himself sat down at his desk, leaning forward with a rather mournful look.
"I want to apologize, Ginny. I'm afraid I was not as . . . sensitive as I should have been, to hearing about how Harry's situation has affected you." He gave a small shrug. "I'll admit, I was so relieved to hear that the interruption of the spell had not resulted in a more serious memory loss that I quite lost sight of the fact that for you of course, the possible end of your relationship with Harry would be upsetting." Kane spoke mildly, but it could not mask the meaning of his words.
"The possible end of my relationship with Harry?" asked Ginny. "I thought you just said . . . you have a way to help!" She couldn't help the rise in inflection at the end of her sentence, and Kane looked swiftly at his door as if rethinking his decision not to set a silencing charm.
"Only a possibility," he said. "And as I said, I think I may have found a way around the difficulty, if you're willing to help me." Kane leaned forward expectantly; he knew what Ginny's answer would be.
Think like an Auror, Ginny. Don't put yourself in danger on my account.Harry's voice was clear and direct and Ginny wanted to close her eyes and hope he kept speaking. But the voice did not return and after a moment Harry's message sunk in. Although Ginny had been about to tell Kane that yes, she'd do whatever he asked, the shock of hearing Harry's voice was enough to make her pause.
"What exactly do you need me to do?" she asked carefully.
Kane smiled as if he knew where Ginny's thoughts had gone. Actually, she considered, he probably did know; she hadn't attempted to avoid Kane's use of Legilimency all day, hadn't even noticed if he'd been using it on her. Still he gave nothing away when he spoke.
"Why, nothing more than what I've been asking you to do since you began your training," he said. "Talk to Harry, convince him to join you here so that you can work together to finish the spell he started last year."
"Both of us," said Ginny slowly, thinking hard. "But I wasn't part of the spell when Harry began it, so why do you need me now?"
Kane spread his arms wide. "As I've said to you from the start, the benefits of being able to draw on both your and Harry's collective experience with Tom Riddle are far greater than what Harry could do alone." He inclined his head. "Just the same, if you performed the spell alone - and completed it, it would also help."
"To make a new Dark Detector," you mean," said Ginny. "What exactly will it do? If I do the spell by myself, will Harry get his memory back?"
Kane smiled again and Ginny was reminded of her brother Percy when he was being his more infuriating self. Percy had mellowed since the War had ended and since he'd met Audrey, but he'd never quite rid himself of the aura that he thought he knew more than everyone else, and wanted to make sure they knew it too. She could tell that Kane was using one of the interview techniques he had taught the trainees himself - reveal the minimum of information possible, so that the person being questioned had to ask for clarification about everything. It gave a lot of insight into what they knew and where their mind was. He'd likely tell Ginny as little as possible.
Indeed, Kane gave a casual shrug. "Just another means of seeking out Dark activity among groups of people," he said. "It should have a longer range that some of the detection methods we use now. Of course, it only works if the spell is completed," he said pointedly. "And as to whether Harry will get his memory back if you perform the spell alone . . ." Kane paused for a moment. "I'm not certain. Having both of you working together is best, by far. I'm sure you can convince him to come help." Kane stood up suddenly, signaling their talk was over. "Just send me a Patronus when the two of you are ready; I'll make sure everything is prepared here. No matter what time of day."
"Here?" Ginny asked. Somehow, she'd envisioned the spell taking place somewhere more remote, possibly even outside. It wasn't something that could be completed in one go; Harry had been working with the Aurors for nearly a near before he left, and Kane said he'd stopped the charm before it was complete. It might take weeks, months even. The pit in Ginny's stomach that had eased with Kane's offer dropped back down again. Even if he wanted to, there was no way Harry could just leave the Arrows for weeks.
"Harry had completed the more time-consuming parts of the spell before he left," Kane said, and Ginny realized she'd let her thoughts be read again. "The last bit is the trickiest, but it shouldn't take too long." He gave her a piercing look. "I'm sure you can convince him, Ginny.
Ginny took a deep breath but didn't trust her voice for a moment. "And if we come together, Harry will get his memory back?" she finally asked.
Kane paused for another moment, a pause Ginny didn't like. But he nodded. "I can nearly assure it," he said.
Ginny didn't have a choice. "I'll send my Patronus," she said before rushing out. No matter what else he knew, she was not going to let Shepard Kane see her cry.
HPHPHPHP
"Are you feeling better? I think Hermione made some tea." Harry stretched and leaned down to touch his toes, massaging his calf muscles. His run that morning had been a long one. "Sounds like Dam caught something too - hopefully just a cold like you have." He looked around the flat. "So I'll forgive you for not making coffee," he said with a grin.
Ron grimaced. "I have a cold, but I heard they think Dam might have Doxy flu," he said, his voice thick and stuffy-sounding. "We got a floo call while you were on your run; probably a good thing to stay around here for a day or two so no one else catches it."
Harry nodded. "Good thing we have a couple days off from playing. Hopefully he's better by Saturday. I assume they've contacted Callum though, in case he needs to play Keeper instead." He looked around. "D'you think Hermione is out of the shower? I need to get in."
"I'm done," she said, coming down the hallway toweling her hair. Harry snorted. "Are you a witch or what? Why not do that magically?"
Hermione shrugged. Old Muggle habit, I guess. "I've never been that good at beauty charms anyway." She glanced quickly at Ron. "Maybe I should, uhh, ask Ginny to help me. Her hair always looks nice."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Like Ginny cares about how she looks most of the time," he said. It was a rather Ron comment to make, he thought. Truth was, Harry had been watching Ginny's hair since Fifth Year, and yes it did always look nice, whether it was pulled back in a messy ponytail or falling straight down her back the way her mum liked her to fix it. He shook his head. "She'd just as likely hex your hair as fix it." Ron and Hermione exchanged a look and Harry backtracked, thinking he'd gone too far. "Probably not hex," he said said quickly. "But maybe you should ask someone like Parvati?"
"I'll do that, yes," said Hermione. She looked troubled. Harry didn't really want to get involved; likely she and Ron were disagreeing about paint colors or something similar again. "Right then," I'll just take my shower," he said. But before he could take two steps towards the loo, there was a knock at the door.
"Ron?"
Harry looked at Ron. "Why isn't Ginny at work?"
"I don't know," said Ron grimly. He waved his wand to open the door. Ginny came in and looked at the three of them.
"I . . . I wasn't feeling well, so I came home," she said.
Harry sighed. It would be a miracle if he avoided getting sick himself. "You too?" he asked. "Shouldn't you be back in your own flat then? Ron's got a cold, Dam apparently has Doxy flu, and you've got . . . what?"
"Just a cold too," said Ginny. "I came by to see if you have any tea." She wrinkled her nose. "Did you just get back from a run?"
"Yes, and I was just about to get in the shower, so no need to comment on how I smell, thank you very much." For some reason, Harry felt himself flush. Of course Ginny would mention that.
Ginny nodded. "Good. Take a shower. We'd all appreciate it."
"Fine, I wouldn't want to offend your delicate sense of smell," he said, feeling unaccountably cross. His good mood from the run evaporating, Harry turned on his heel. Hopefully the shower would cool him off.
Unfortunately, Harry usually reserved shower time for something else, and often enough, that something else involved the type of thoughts of Ginny that would likely have a negative effect on his welcome at the Burrow, were anyone else to know about them. He couldn't help it, though; he'd been wanking to progressively more explicit thoughts of her since he was fifteen and he'd never been able to stop, no matter how smarmy they might treat each other in real life. Today was no different, although the image that popped into Harry's head as he turned on the shower and pulled off his sweaty running clothes was a new one. Usually in Harry's shower fantasies, he watched from afar, hidden, as Ginny did something physical - flying and running with very few clothes on figured prominently, as did her showering after said activities. Once he'd imagined her jumping into the pond at the Burrow completely naked after a run while he watched from behind a tree, his hand pumping frantically as Ginny swam and dove and floated.
But this time was completely different. For one, Harry wasn't hidden, watching Ginny from a distance without her knowing This time, the Ginny in his head was much closer, indeed, she seemed to be lying on her side right across from him, and Harry was lying down too - on a bed he wasn't sure he recognized. It was piled with pillows and comfy blankets and he felt like he should know where it was, but the answer danced at just outside the edge of his brain. It didn't matter though, because what Ginny herself was doing was much more interesting. She met his eyes and smiled before they traveled lower, slowly taking in his body. Harry realized he was naked, and Ginny was watching him carefully, and then she was reaching across the space between them to stroke him softly. It was so different from the way Harry gripped himself now, and his hands fell away from his body as Ginny's fingers teased up and down his shaft. Her forehead was wrinkled in concentration and for a wild moment, Harry wished she'd speak to him. Instead, she moved her hands to grasp him more firmly and Harry moved his own hands back to his wet skin, feeling her pump, awkwardly at first and then . . . Harry climaxed hard, white spurting across the tiles before he'd even had a chance to establish a proper rhythm. He had to brace himself against the wall of the shower he was shaking so hard, both with the intensity of his orgasm and surprise. Where had that thought come from?
Harry was still wondering to himself as he finished his shower and dressed, thinking of the way Ginny had looked at him and touched him in his daydream. Had she even been wearing a shirt? So intent was he in trying to remember as much as he could that he was totally unprepared to see the real Ginny, sitting on the sofa in his flat, apparently deep in conversation with Ron and Hermione. He stuttered to a stop, surprise making his words more harsh than he intended. "What, you're still here?" he asked. "I thought you were going home so you didn't infect the rest of us."
Ginny didn't respond with the sharp retort Harry expected. Instead, she looked at Ron and Hermione for a long moment. Ron nodded and Ginny nodded back before she looked up at Harry.
"I'm not sick and neither is Ron," she said.
Harry barked a laugh, feeling a bit of relief that he would apparently not be catching anything from them. "Skiving off work already? Do you think that's a good idea for a trainee?" He flopped down at the other end of the sofa from Ginny, trying to push the image of her from his shower out of his mind. She looked seriously at him, biting her lower lip, which didn't help. Harry kicked at her leg with his foot. "What's going on?"
"Harry, do you remember that Shepard Kane's been asking me to have you come . . . back to the Aurors, that there's something he wanted your help with, and mine?
Harry frowned. "I thought it was Robards." He vaguely recalled Ginny complaining about it when she'd first started her training.
Ginny nodded. "Well yes, Gawain wanted me to speak to the other trainees about my experience - and yours - in the Chamber, but it was Shepard Kane who kept asking me if you'd return to . . . complete what you'd started for . . . what you'd started."
Harry shrugged. "Yeah, and you told him off, right? That there's nothing I have for him or Robards or anyone else." He grimaced, feeling tired all of a sudden. "Why's Kane bugging you about me anyway? I barely worked with him." Harry rubbed at his eyes.
"Actually Harry, we think maybe you worked with Shepard Kane more than you remem . . . realize." Hermione spoke in a soothing tone that Harry found somewhat patronizing. "I think Ginny has some important information we all need to listen to."
It was clear to Harry that everyone else in the room already knew what this information was; he was the only one not in the know. It made him feel oddly irritated, hearing them talk about the Aurors and Harry's participation with them so frankly. Normally no one - not even Ron - pushed Harry about his past activities with them, not after Harry had made it clear that he was well and finished there. He was perfectly happy to hear about what Ron was doing in training, and Ginny too, he supposed. He'd even enjoyed using his knowledge to help them, especially with things like those crazy fan-witches who kept trying to break into the building for autographs. But that's where it ended; Harry had no interest in completinganything he'd started, even assuming that there was anything to complete in the first place.
Still, he trusted Ron and Hermione more than pretty much anyone else in the world. And Ginny was . . . well, Harry just hoped she didn't know Legilimency, because he was having more than a usual amount of trouble getting his earlier daydream out of his head. He took a deep breath and tried to focus. The least he could do was listen.
Ron, Hermione and Ginny seemed to be having a silent conversation with each other. Ginny looked at him and Harry felt a jolt in his groin, remembering. This time though, her eyes didn't travel downward and her expression held none of the curiosity from his dream. She took a deep breath.
"There was a spell, one you were working on," she began. "We don't know a lot about it, but it never got finished. It's important that it get finished." Ginny stopped and shook her head to herself. "I'm not making sense." She looked at Ron. "Should I?"
Ron shrugged. "I don't know."
"Should you what?" asked Harry. "Obviously there's something you all know that I don't and I don't understand why you won't just tell me." He didn't even try to keep the petulance out of his voice. The huge shift from what he'd done and thought in the shower to what the real Ginny was sitting here telling him made Harry unaccountably tense. She wasn't making any sense, and he told her so.
"Why are you trying to explain all this anyway? Why not Ron? It's not like you and I are . . ." Harry stopped himself. True, he and Ginny weren't really friends, but he didn't have to come out and say so. He certainly didn't dislike her; his completely unrealistic fantasies were proof of that if nothing else. But he couldn't understand why she was looking at him so intently as if she was the one he'd naturally want to listen to. A thought struck him. "Is this about the Chamber?" He gave Ron an annoyed look; Ron should have warned him if he was going to tell Ginny the truth about who'd really been the one to save her. Harry had been perfectly fine with letting Ginny believe it had been Ron down there, but he'd have appreciated some warning if Ron was going to tell her the real story. Ginny bit her lip.
"It's kind of about the Chamber, yes," she said. "There are things that happened to us that Shepard Kane thinks could be useful in creating a better and more effective way to detect dark magic. But you'd have to come with me. To finish the spell you were working on when you left the Aurors." At the other end of the sofa, Ginny's eyes were wide and for a moment, Harry felt himself getting lost in them. Then her words penetrated.
"You're asking me to come with you . . . into the Chamber? To do a spell?" He rubbed at his temples, trying to make sense of Ginny's words. Why does she sound like she's about to cry?
"Not into the Chamber, no," said Ginny, sounding confused. "But yes, I want you to come help me finish the spell you started last year. It's really important."
"You keep saying that, and I keep telling you that you're wrong; I didn't start any spell with Shepard Kane last year." Harry was starting to feel irritated that no one believed him. He saw Ron and Ginny exchange a look and his irritation grew. "What?" he asked.
Ron leaned forward. "It's just this, mate. You did start a spell with Kane, but for some reason, you don't remember that right now. You uhh, don't remember a few things actually. And we're trying to figure out how to get them back."
"What kind of things do I supposedly not remember?" Harry tried to keep his voice calm but it was getting more difficult. "Because I haven't noticed anything." Ron and Ginny exchanged another look. Harry looked at Hermione. "Did you know about this too?"
Hermione nodded. "I'm sorry. But they're telling the truth."
"Telling the truth about what? What have I forgotten?" Harry stood up and walked over to the kitchen, intending to get a glass of butterbeer or water or something. He couldn't sit still and his head was pounding from trying to absorb the information. He heard the words, that he'd supposedly forgotten being part of some important dark magic detection spell organized by Shepard Kane, but Harry was having trouble believing it. He'd seen memory spells before - more times than he would have liked - and the results were usually messy and complicated. Harry didn't feel any different than he always had, didn't have any gaps in his memory or confusion about his life, other than trying to understand what Ron and Hermione and Ginny were saying to him right now. He shook his head as he opened the door to the icebox. "What have I forgotten?" he asked again. There was a beat of silence.
"Me." Ginny's voice was quiet but it carried through the flat as if she was shouting. "You've forgotten that you're in love with me."
Butterbeer in hand, Harry carefully closed the icebox, trying to keep the smile off his face. "Ahh, so that's it," he said. "Of course. I forgot I was in love with Ginny." He turned to face the room. "And I assume she's in love with me too, right?" He found Ginny's face. "Are you? In love with me too, I mean. And does your family know?" He made a show of looking around the flat. "I don't see any of your brothers lying in wait to lecture me and it doesn't seem like your mum has sent extra pudding, so I'm going to guess that it's still a secret from everyone, right?" He lifted his butterbeer in a mock toast. "Cheers to us, I guess." He took a long pull, expecting that everyone would grin and give up the game. Instead there was more silence.
"Harry, mate," Ron finally said. "It's . . ."
"No Ron, let me." Ginny's voice was still quiet, but firm. She stood up and walked over to Harry. He could see what looked like unshed tears at the corners of her eyes, but her gaze was steady as she looked at him.
"We aretelling the truth," she said. "You started a spell with Kane last year, and when you left it uncompleted, it affected your memory somehow, or your emotions." Ginny was trembling but her eyes didn't leave his. Harry wanted to back up but he couldn't make himself move. "It only started happening recently. Until this week, you and I . . . we . . ." Ginny took a deep breath. "I promise I'm not making it up," she said. "And I'll do anything to get you back." A single tear finally trickled down her cheek and she impatiently brushed it away and reached out her hand. "You need to come with me to the Ministry," she said. "Shepard Kane said that if you and I finish the spell, together, it will bring back your memory. And we'll help the Aurors too, they'll have a new way to uncover Dark Magic." She took a step closer. "So I need you to come with me now, I promised Kane I'd get you to help me." She took a deep breath and touched Harry's arm. "Will you?"
Harry jumped back as if he'd been burned. "No," he said brusquely. He pulled his arm away from Ginny. "I'm not going to the Ministry and I'm not doing any more spells" He shook his head with disgust. "I can't believe you'd even ask me to do something like that." Without looking at anyone, he stomped off to his room.
HPHPHPHP
"Let him go." Hermione's voice betrayed her own pain. She stood up and walked over to Ginny. Ron came too and Ginny fell into their arms. "What's wrong with him, why didn't he believe us?" she asked. She couldn't even bring herself to cry.
Hermione shook her head. "I think the shock was too much," she said. "It can be painful to be confronted with the effects of a memory charm, or with whatever that spell did to him. He might need some time to let it absorb." She gave Ginny an apologetic look. "And I'm sorry, but I think you should go back to your flat for a while. When Harry's ready to come out, he's likely to be more willing to listen to me and Ron if you're not here."
Ginny knew Hermione was right, still, it was difficult to think that she was the reason for Harry's distress. She nodded. "Send me a Patronus as soon as you can," she said. She turned to her brother. "You'll get him to see reason, won't you? He'll listen to you, I know it."
Ron gave her a hug. "I'll do everything I can, Ginny, I promise."
With a final look towards Harry's room, Ginny went back to her own flat. After carefully setting a silencing charm, she waved her wand. Expecto Patronum,she said firmly. As soon as her horse appeared, she began to speak. "Shepard, it's Ginny Weasley. I need to see you tonight. I . . . I want to start the spell myself; we can't wait for Harry."