Author's Note:
WOW! Thank you from the bottom of my heart — 11,000+ reviews!
YOU GUYS ROCK!
Reviews and Comments: To sweetxsavory: Sorry, no Harry POV for that scene. I felt like his angst was shown enough. To TatiRena: We all wish Ginny would have just grabbed him and snogged him. To CorbanD17: They will realize it VERY soon! To JonathanRL: Haha, sorry you're so tense, but no, I am not trying to induce a heart attack. To briana_t: Goyle will be pissed off — but only if she tells him LOL. There may be a little bit of tension between Theo and Kane. No angry snog session for Hinny, but it was close! To marauders_mowopapr: We'll see Draco's reaction soon (not this chapter) and yes, Voldemort will have an interesting reaction. To Yanverett: Thank you! Harry did need to get mad at her, but he was trying so hard to hold it in and well, hence exploding. To shuweet: Haha! I don't know, but I love how many people are loving Pansy and Greg so you're welcome I think. And definitely not ages, I promise. To HinnyForLife: They really do both need a hug, don't they? Lucius and Theo was heartwarming! They both needed that. Theo and Kane aren't exactly enemies, but there's some tension. Thank you! To Fanfis01: I want to scream at Ginny to kiss him already too! They will be soon.
To AQuickRead91: Not quite HEA yet, but soon! Happy to provide some steam "on the Lord's day" as you said lol. To GryffindorHealer: Pansy was definitely more concerned about the price gouging than recording the names for blood status. She's not a saint lol. And you don't see Theo and Kane ending up together? Interesting. To AnaGPotter: Speechless on Theo and Kane? Is that a good thing? Hope the chapter helps the anxiety. To edwards_zoe_32: I love how many people are rooting for Theo and Kane! We'll see more of Zee soon and yes, Hinny are so close I can almost taste it! To potterheaded_hipster: Not too much to ask, but not quite yet either. To Ironhidensh: I disagree. If you know a relationship is worth fighting for, you fix it.
To Endinium: You're welcome for the two chapter surprise! That's so sweet that weekends are your favourite because of ASC updates! Angry Harry is kind of sexy, but honestly, he's sexy ALL the time! To PurpleLotus: Thank you. To Sam: Haha, the tooth fairy! Theo definitely was saving Harry from Romilda! Haha, Dean is me when I run too LOL. Theo definitely was shimmying his way in for a hug, he does want a parental figure. To Gimrrin: Happy to give you a surprise of two. Goyle will definitely not be happy. To Steel: Why did Kane show up? Ah, so many reasons! Keep hoping, Steel!
To notthatchhavi: You're right, the loss of loved ones will make them prepare themselves more. Ginny is definitely feeling a bit jealous. Haha, that is good motivation for Dean to run, you're right. I promise not to hurt your babies too much longer! To Just William: Thanks. To jaccy3: You're welcome. We'll have to see what happens with Draco. I honestly don't know, we'll see. To Ellieoryan7447: I do sometimes miss writing Deamus and have to give them some time. Ted is a gem and I think his idea is very clever! You're right, Harry doesn't get angry at Ginny and it does show how hard he is taking it. I love that you want to commit fictional character murder haha. To Guest: Thank you! To ahlem stelena: Sorry, no triple posts this week. Sorry to make you scream in frustration. To Mutt N Feathers: They definitely are and love is complicated. To Slaidback: Just a little sexual tension… LOL
To CorbanD18: Soon, I promise. To xXMizz Alec VolturiXx: You think Kane is sketchy and can't be trusted? Interesting. Yes, poor Pansy. To QrowAnnie: Thank you very much! To Guest: Thank you! I am so happy you felt the emotion and tension. K is an interesting character, I think. We should definitely be a bit concerned with the Ministry. To Natsirt2610: I am so sorry to hear that! Ginny does have a lot of trauma to deal with and I promise they will be happy and soon. To DeadFish37: Ha, sorry I made you care LOL. I love that you want Greg and Pansy to come out safely! But sorry, Hinny will not be dating anyone else. To scrappy8: Thank you! Yes, both Harry and Ginny are worried they don't deserve the other. To Wolf's scream: I think Harry was hoping she would react to give him something. Pansy is starting to understand more and it worries her and makes her worry for Greg. To ANewRanger: I'm not killing you — honest! To Yusraa Ifthikar: They do just need to snog, don't they? To the Mandalorian terminator: Thank you! Ha, I've made you like Lucius Malfoy, you're welcome! Thank you! I'm glad you think I can write angst.
To pix25: Happy to hit you in the feels. To Guest: Poor Harry, I know. And Ginny definitely deserves Harry. To ValGrey02: Thank you! I love Theo too! You think K is suspicious, guess we'll have to see. Can't make any promises on character death. To Dianne: Haha, the Romy nickname is as stupid as her, poor Romilda LOL. Of course she would wear perfume that makes Harry think he can't breathe. Theo is the best cabbage ever and thank you for saying he's become a little hero, speaking up about his concerns. Haha, you're imagining Kane and Theo adopting a baby! I haven't even confirmed they will be together yet lol. Your reviews are gold and please never stop writing them! To shivani: Didn't mean to shatter your heart and I promise the suffering is almost over! To Anon: Sorry you find it too drama filled to read, but I like it.
To Nuno Neves: Thank you! I think Ted and Andromeda have a good plan as well, but we'll see if Draco is willing to come back. To pottermum: I'm not killing you, I swear! To ITHersey: Thank you very much! I really wanted to show that whiplash, that emotional struggle she is going through. Haha angry hate sex between Theo and Kane… we'll see. To GodMisha: There will be major character deaths, yes. Who is the tallest of the three? I always thought Dumbledore. To Bella: Not quite yet, but very, very soon. To joss518: Thank you very much! We will see more of Na'eemah yes. To Cristina: You're right, Ginny is more bothered by her reactions/feelings/actions. Theo is funny, I love him. You think Kane is looking for a reason to see Theo? Hmm. You don't think Theo and Cornfoot are meant to be? Will Draco accept it, that is the question. To TheRealTonks: They will get there.
To alix33: I don't know what song Kreacher sang to Mina and Leo. To akshutalankar: Haha, chanting "kiss" and yet it still didn't happen. Brooding Harry is sexy. To New Reader: Welcome to my world of ASC! Thank you very much! To anyagpotter: Thank you for re-reading! As I said on tumblr, I never really gave them an official punishment because I felt nothing was truly terrible enough. All we know is that when Fudge mentions them, we've learned they've been "rehabilitated." I am leaving that to the reader's imagination to decide what that means. To yunkol76: Thank you! And yes, I wanted to show that flip, that Ginny is worried she doesn't deserve him because of what she's gone through. To Sloopyqueen4: Thank you! I didn't intentionally start out that way, but it's kind of fallen that way so I thought I would try to continue it when I could. I did not plan the explosion around the anniversary of 9/11 for America. I'm not American so it never even clicked for me until you mentioned it. Thank you for saying the last few chapters have been both deep and funny. I promise the suspense won't kill you! To Nightwing2013: Greg is not going to like that. Haha, Riddle is gonna lose his income and not be happy. Harry is patient, but even the most patient of us reach our breaking point.
To saucyswimmer: I love live reactions! Ginny is definitely constantly seeing Harry front and centre. I'm glad you hate the "dearie," I think it ups Crouch's creep level. Meadow was in the critical care unit, but she died. You think K is "totally into Theo?" We'll see. I like giving Draco a bit of redemption storyline too. I've said it before, I've never considered Draco a bad person, just an asshole LOL. To gemini614: Reviews are never too long! Never apologize! Thank you! Ha, was Crabbe useful though? Lucius is doing all right under the circumstances and I think he and Theo both needed that moment together. To Mackie919: You're welcome for the double posting! Thank you! I am proud of how my Ginny and Na'eemah scenes turned out. Sorry to break your heart this week. To WinkingSkeever: On schedule as usual. To JamesTKent: Your heart in your throat? Sorry! Will Draco go for it indeed! To Laura: Hi in Brazil! Thank you very much! To Shouldna: Happy to give a little surprise ending!
My posting schedule: Weekly.
Thanks to Dusk for her amazing editing skills.
As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!
Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!
CHAPTER TWO-HUNDRED AND NINETY-FIVE:
The One With the Mayo
Tonks was seated at her desk in the newly, almost fully renovated bullpen. She was staring at the files in front of her, pretending to read more than actually reading, and gently sucking on the end of her Sugar Quill. She bolted to her feet at the sight of Kane marching through the room and into the conference room. When no one else seemed interested in following him, she did just that, sneaking in behind him in time to see him kick a chair and wince.
"Ah, so he does feel pain," she teased.
Kane's blue eyes met hers. "Am I an arsehole?"
Tonks' eyes widened in surprise. "Do you want me to answer that as if I'm speaking to a superior officer or as a general bystander?"
Kane swore under his breath.
Tonks took a seat on the edge of the conference table. "So, what happened with Malfoy?"
"Malfoy? What… no, everything was fine there it was… the one I took to see him, the pretty boy."
"Theo?"
"Is that — yeah, Lord Norfolk," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.
Tonks watched him for a moment. She had only known him for a few months but in those three months there had been three specific things she noticed about him: He took his job very seriously, he was never distracted by the women who blatantly threw themselves at him, and he was never distracted, ever.
Right now, Sebastian Kane was definitely distracted.
"Yes, you took Theo to see Malfoy. How did that go?"
"Fine," Kane said quickly. "They talked and then I spoke to him about the inferno."
"Did he know anything?"
"No," Kane said. "It was planned after he was out, obviously. I figured it was going to be a dead end."
Tonks nodded. "So you said. It's part of the reason why Rex was so surprised when you volunteered to go in his place."
Kane cleared his throat. "I had to check up on other things. Speaking of, we need to talk to King about setting up more welfare checks. Collins left his bloody post to take a shit without waiting on relief."
"That's grounds for a write up," Tonks said, frowning. "If something happened and his partner was abandoned…"
"Exactly," Kane said. "I might have overreacted a bit when I saw him, but…" He let out a slow breath. "They need to be cautious. We have guards on the prison for a reason."
"Uh-huh," Tonks said, rubbing her hands on her thigh. "And Theo?"
"What about him?"
"How did it go with Malfoy? Was he all right?"
"Yeah. Was he not supposed to be?"
Tonks shrugged. "He's just had a rough go of it and the only person who's ever been a father figure to him is in the crypt, I just wanted to know how he dealt with seeing him there. He'll be writing his NEWTs this year, but I think if I remember correctly, Harry told me his eighteenth birthday is coming up in a few weeks. According to Harry, everyone at Hogwarts really goes for his winning smile and those blue eyes of his."
"Brown," Kane barked.
"What?"
"His eyes are brown."
"Oh? Are they?" she asked, innocently.
Kane pursed his lips.
Tonks stared at him. "K, is there a reason you keep taking over tasks that involve Theodore Nott? Is there something that I don't know here?"
"What? No, of course not! He… he keeps calling me Auror Arsehole!"
Tonks burst into laughter. "Oh Merlin! I love that! Can I call you that?"
"No!" Kane growled. "I'm not a bloody arsehole!"
"He seems to think so."
Kane growled again. "I took him to see bloody Malfoy because he requested it and it was a waste of time. Malfoy knows nothing."
"Which we expected," Tonks said. "He's been imprisoned for most of the year, the chances of him knowing about the inferno were slim to none. Higgins was only going as chaperone to take Theo inside. It's protocol for all visitors higher than level three. We thought it was interesting that you decided to go in his place."
Kane ignored her and tossed a stack of letters on the table. "I got letters from Malfoy written to his son and to Nott. I want them examined with a fine-toothed comb. If there's anything in there that we need to know, I want to know about it."
Tonks reached for the first letter, but Kane grabbed it from her.
"You read the ones to his son. I imagine they are more diary based since his son his dead. I'll take care of these ones."
Tonks bit her lip. "Hoping to learn more about Theo?"
Kane took the letters over to his desk. "Shut up and do your damn job, Lupin."
Tonks scooped the letters addressed to Draco up in her hands and grinned. She wondered if Theodore Nott was aware of the fact that he made a secret Knight of the Auror squirm.
She headed back to her desk just as Atwell rested her hip on the corner. "Anything new?"
"Possibly. Letters from Lucius Malfoy to his son."
"How'd we score those?" Atwell asked
"Theodore Nott went to visit Malfoy and K took them from him. Speaking of," Tonks said, sneaking a look behind her. "What do we know about K? Personally?"
Atwell looked over her shoulder. "Not much. A lot of it is still speculation. He's damn good at his job though."
Tonks agreed with that. He missed almost nothing and he was always first to arrive and last to leave of their team. He spent two hours in the workout facilities of the Ministry every morning before and could often be found down there during his breaks as well. He fought well, both with and without magic and Tonks had been impressed to watch him take down some of their top Aurors without even touching his wand.
He was good looking and incredibly fit, though being fit was a job requirement he took very seriously. He never spoke about past cases and despite the rumours that had floated around about all of the great missions he'd been on, he never confirmed nor denied any of it, leaving him even more of a mystery than before.
"Do you think he really is a K of A?"
Atwell looked thoughtful before she nodded. "I think if they exist, he's definitely it. He's much too focused and Merlin knows he's willing to do what needs to be done. I know he's younger than us, but do you think that he has a girlfriend? Courtney from evidence has been flirting with him almost daily and she said that she can't get a read on whether he's interested or not."
"I think he might be gay," Tonks whispered.
Atwell laughed. "No way. He's so not gay! Is he?"
Tonks shrugged. "Courtney can't get a read on him. He's never distracted by flirting women. And remember a few weeks ago, when Savage brought in that prostitute and her tits fell out of her top? Every bloke in this joint was staring and K didn't do more than look over to see what the commotion was about."
"Maybe he just has better willpower," Atwell said.
"Maybe," Tonks said. "But even I checked out those tits, they were nice. And K took Theodore Nott to visit Malfoy in the crypt today and he came back all annoyed and distracted."
"Why? Did Malfoy do something?"
"No," Tonks said. "But Nott called K, Auror Arsehole."
Atwell laughed. "Oh Merlin, I love that! Can we call him that?"
"He said no, I already asked," Tonks admitted, making her friend laugh harder.
"So, what, you think he likes this Nott or something?"
Tonks shrugged. "I'm just saying, it's the first time I've ever seen him distracted by anyone."
Atwell looked thoughtful. "Annoyance isn't the same as attraction though."
"True," Tonks said. "I don't know though, I think Nott's gotten under his skin and it is strange that he volunteered to take him to the crypt and gave Higgins another task."
Atwell grinned. "Well, Nott will be at the Wizengamot session on Friday and we should be done examining the letters by then. Let's get him up to the DMLE and see if K says anything."
"I can't get a read on K to save my life," Tonks said. "How do we know that this will prove anything?"
"We don't," Atwell replied. "But I think it might be entertaining as hell to watch."
Tonks grinned widely. She definitely had to agree with that.
~ ASC ~
Hermione stepped into the hot shower, whimpering at how good it felt on her sore muscles. This physical training of the Defence Unit was a lot more work than she had bargained for. She was tired and sore and her legs felt weak from all of the running she'd suddenly been doing. She was pretty sure Ginny was harder on her than Harry would have been and she hated and loved her for it.
Between her studies and her duties as Head Girl, September was already flying by. Tomorrow was her eighteenth birthday and the thought that her parents wouldn't even be able to acknowledge it with a letter made her sad. She was looking forward to the weekend and hoping to find time to snog her boyfriend who despite sharing a dorm with, she'd barely seen all week.
By the time she wrapped herself in a towel, her hair curling madly due to the steam, she felt a little better. She jumped at the sight of her boyfriend leaning casually against the doorjamb. His shirt was unbuttoned and his tie hanging loose around his neck. He had his hands in his pockets and his belt was loose on his trousers. She intentionally looked away so that she wouldn't lick her lips. It really was sinful for him to look that good.
"Sore?"
She nodded. "Ginny's a sadist. She said that I couldn't leave until I successfully managed to do ten sit-ups and ten push-ups."
Ron chuckled. "And?"
"My arms feel like limp noodles."
Ron stepped into the bathroom, sliding his rough palms over her arms. "Feel like arms to me."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "I'm all about getting stronger and being able to keep pace when I'm fighting, but I'm not a running, jumping, and push-up kind of girl. I'm the enjoying-a-nice-long-stroll kind of girl."
Ron's hands rested on her hips, tugging her closer to him. "And I love that about you, but if making you do push-ups and sit-ups will help keep you safer, I'm all for it."
Hermione slipped her arms around his neck. "Ginny's still a sadist."
"I've been saying that for years, but no one ever believed me," Ron joked.
"And how come you didn't have to do all the fitness stuff like the rest of us?"
"Us Quidditch players are already in shape, Hermione, so we're more or less around to help the others."
"You are fit," she admitted, her hand sliding down to run over his naked chest. She pushed his shirt off completely, letting it fall to the bathroom floor. "Very fit."
Ron's lips curved as her hands roamed over his broad shoulders, down his arms and slowly over his chest, dancing through the soft reddish blond hairs there. "Do you like what you see, Miss Granger?"
Hermione made an appreciative noise just as he bent his head to kiss her.
Ron grinned against her lips. "Want to practice your sit-ups?"
"No," she growled. "Don't even joke."
Ron's lips brushed along her jaw. "Not joking."
Then he grabbed her hand and tugged her along into her bedroom. He yanked his tie off, tossing it on the floor before he sat on the end of her bed. In one swift move, he pulled her towel off, leaving her naked before him. Hermione automatically crossed her arms over her chest.
Ron simply took her hands, moving her towards the bed. "Come here."
Hermione waited until Ron sat on the edge of the bed and then she straddled him as his hands slid down to cup her arse, squeezing.
"So, about those sit-ups…"
"I'm not doing any more sit-ups," Hermione insisted. "And I'm certainly not going to do them naked for your amusement."
He nipped at her collarbone. "Yes, you will."
She made to protest but he covered her lips with his.
"There's going to be a prize," he continued, kissing her throat. "You see, I'm going to slide down here, like this," he said, sliding her onto the bed before he moved down to the end. He spread her legs, his eyes on hers. "And I'm going to take your legs and put them over my shoulders, like this…"
Her breath hitched as her legs were moved over his shoulders. "Ron…"
"And then," he said. "We're going to lock your ankles in place, yes, just like that." His lips brushed her thighs, eyes on the triangle of brown hair between her legs. "Now, you're going to put your arms behind your head and you're going to do a sit-up."
"Ron," Hermione began. "I can't do a sit-up like this!"
"You can," he said, a smirk on his face. "Because every time you manage to sit-up successfully…" His tongue slid into her and she cried out in surprise. "You'll be rewarded."
Hermione's brown eyes darkened. "That's just…"
"Brilliant," Ron said, kissing her thigh. "I know. The question is, how many sit-ups will it take for you to come for me?"
"Ron…" she said, her hand reaching for him.
Ron kissed her thigh again. "Not until you sit-up for me, Mione."
Hermione cursed him. At first Ron thought that she was going to be stubborn about it, but after a moment, she reluctantly started to pull herself up and Ron's tongue slid into her. He gave her a few cursory licks before slipping his hands up to her chest and pushing her back down.
"Again," he whispered.
By the tenth sit-up, she was whimpering. Ron used his tongue more aggressively, taking control as she begged him and then he stopped just when she was on edge, unlocking her legs from around him and standing up. He kept his eyes on hers as he slowly pushed his trousers down, his pants followed and he stepped out of them, crawling onto the bed.
Hermione reached for him, her hand wrapping around him. "I want you."
Ron kissed her, his hardness pressing against her thigh and when she shifted, guiding him into her, they both groaned. "Fuck… you feel so good."
Hermione's hands slid down his back, her nails teasing him. "Mmm, more."
Ron began to move, relishing in the incredible feeling of being buried inside of her. She was so close, he could feel it, and he bit his bottom lip, slowing his thrusts to prevent himself from going over. Not yet, he chanted mentally, not yet. He let his thumb slide over her, applying more pressure until she erupted a second time. He watched in amazement as she bit her bottom lip, her head tipping back, and a deep moan tore through her. He lasted two more thrusts before he was coming with her.
When he collapsed on top of her, his heart pounding, he kissed her neck.
"Mmm," she said, stretching beneath him. "I liked that workout."
Ron chuckled, rolling onto his side and taking her with him. "I'll mention it as incentive for sit-ups."
She smacked his arm and he laughed.
Ron kissed her forehead. "I think you being on top counts as cardio. We'll do that one next."
"Oh, we will, will we?"
"Oh yeah," he said, his hand moving to cup her breast. "I know how much you like to be on top."
She smacked him again and he laughed, capturing her lips in his. It was these little moments with her he treasured most and when he looked into her eyes, the love he saw there made his heart soar.
"It's after midnight," he said, his hand stroking down her spine.
"Oh?"
Ron's eyes twinkled at her. "Happy Birthday."
Hermione smiled. "Thank you."
When he shifted, she moaned and heard him chuckle. A moment later, he returned to the bed with a small box wrapped in brown paper.
"Ron…"
"Open it," he said, a grin on his face.
Hermione sat up, taking the box from him as she carefully unwrapped it. Inside were four silver curved stems with a little teapot hanging on the end. Each teapot had a tiny gemstone dangling inside of them.
"It's nothing special," Ron said quickly. "I didn't really know what to get you, but they're bookmarks. See, each one has its own little gemstone inside. This one's rose quartz, then green aventurine, then carnelian, then lapis lazuli, and then amethyst. I asked to make sure I knew what they were."
"Ron, they're beautiful," she said. "It's so thoughtful."
"I love you," he whispered, kissing her again. "Happy Birthday."
"I love you, too," Hermione said, placing her gift on the night table before snuggling into his chest. "And Ron?"
"Hmm?" he asked, his nose buried in her bushy curls.
"I'm definitely going to be on top for this round."
He laughed when she straddled him and the sight of his blue eyes staring up at her in adoration and love made her think this birthday was going to be pretty great after all.
~ ASC ~
Ginny woke gasping for breath. Her hands automatically went to her throat, clutching it as she tried to breathe. She took huge heaving breaths and her bed curtains opened, revealing the tousled hair of the half awake Maisie.
"You okay?"
Ginny nodded, her breath slowing. "Yes"
Maisie still looked suspicious but she went back to her own bed anyway.
Ginny sat in her bed a moment, waiting for her heart rate to even out. That had been one of the most intense dreams she'd had in years. She looked down at her hands, half expecting to see them covered in blood again, but they were clean. She climbed out of bed and went to the bathroom and by the time she looked at her pale, wide-eyed face in the mirror, she still wasn't quite calm.
The last few weeks had been a struggle. The magazine article and the subsequent articles that followed caused her to get hate mail. Most of them had been rude letters, some bullying, a lot of Howlers, and her least favourite, the ones full of pus. Thankfully, she had been smart enough not to open them, but it was still hurtful to receive them and she was grateful that they had diminished greatly over the last week. These people didn't even know her and yet they felt the need to send her hate mail. It was really very mortifying. She said as much to Na'eemah when the mind healer asked her how she was doing.
Her meetings with Na'eemah were going well and she felt better after every one, but she still had some things to work out on her own. Her friends were great and writing as Compass for the school paper was already starting to feel normal again.
Except for one thing, she was jealous of the attention that Harry was getting. Watching witches flirt with him was harder than she expected. To his credit, he seemed to be uninterested, but a small part of her wondered how much longer that would remain if she didn't talk to him soon.
KJ and Romilda had openly talked in the dorm about hitting on him and Ginny's stomach had shifted uncomfortably. She knew that Harry wouldn't fall for Romilda's charms, not after she had given him a love potion, but KJ was very beautiful. She was tall and willowy, and a killer duellist. She was confident and bright and Ginny could see all of that appealing to Harry.
But no matter how jealous she was, she still couldn't bring herself to talk to Harry in more than a friendly acquaintance-like manner. They coordinated the defence unit and Quidditch practice which involved Harry training them hard. With Katie gone this year, they had brought in Jack Wolf from the Gryffindor reserve to play Chaser. He was a third year and he was good, really good. Harry had put him in competition with Dennis Creevey and Wolf had far outshone Creevey on the pitch. Dennis was happy to stay on as a reserve player in the meantime.
The first game of the season was scheduled for a week after Halloween and Ginny knew that Harry was going to make sure the team was ready by then. He was a great team captain and the fact that she only stared at his arse when he ran in front of her maybe ninety percent of her run, meant nothing.
Demelza had elbowed her after the last lap. "You might have actually beat me in that last lap if you hadn't been staring at the captain's arse."
Ginny stuck her tongue out at her. "I was distracted."
"Oh, I know," Demelza said, laughing. "Can't say I blame you. I admire it from time to time myself. When I'm not looking at Ron's that is."
Ginny made a face. "Excuse me while I say 'ew.'"
"Facts are facts and Ron Weasley has a great arse," Demelza said. "I don't know what I'm going to do next year when Potter and Weasley are gone. Who are we going to ogle on the Quidditch team? You'll be captain then."
Ginny's heart stuttered a bit at those words. Quidditch Captain… that was a dream she'd never imagined would come true and yet… but right now it was still Harry and she loved watching him direct his team. He did just as well off the pitch when it came to the Defence Club. He had a gift when it came to leading people and it was why she admired him so much with the whole Chosen One decision with the press.
Harry was a natural born leader and it showed. People wanted to follow him; to trust him. She could relate because she wanted that too. Now, she stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom, still trying to will her heart rate to calm down. The clock chimed two and still she stood there, not wanting to move from her spot. Afraid to close her eyes again.
It was already the middle of the third week of September and things were changing so much. The new Minister of Magic had been voted in and changes were already taking place. The Ministry was still being renovated and rebuilt to deal with the damage from the explosion. There had been more attacks on local magical villages, more deaths and more destruction from shops owned by Muggleborns being vandalized to set on fire. The owners of Gambol and Japes had closed down their business in Diagon Alley and no one knew where they had vanished to. The hair salon in Diagon Alley was boarded up and every day it seemed the paper printed something new and horrible that was happening.
Arthur was home from the hospital and resting now, though he was off work for another week to recover. Molly was fussing over him and according to Fred, their father was chomping at the bit to get back into the office. The Wizengamot had finally made a detailed list of those who were killed in the Ministry explosion and their names were to be immortalized on a plaque near the tree of life in the atrium, but the big news was the missing Sovereign Chalice. It was a mystery as to where it had gone, though Theo told her the word around the Ministry was that it was stolen and the question on everyone's lips was why?
It couldn't be used for anything. It was a symbol of government, a stepping stone in keeping the Wizengamot honest and if anyone attempted to do anything dishonest with it, it would siphon their magic. But Theo had brought up an interesting point, if the Sovereign Chalice wasn't in the Wizengamot during the sessions, if it couldn't be there to feel the decisions being made… would it be able to stop bad things from happening? Ginny really hadn't like the sound of that.
She sighed, her hands still trembling. Her dream was still too close to the surface. The sight of Harry collapsed against her, blood covering him and her hands, and her knowing that she was the one who had ended him… it was horrible. She clutched her hands at her sides and before she'd even fully comprehended what she was doing, she marched out of the bathroom.
Ginny found her slippers next to her bed, grabbing the Gryffindor jumper she'd stolen from George this summer and left her dorm. She made it to the common room, still not sure what she wanted, and she found herself heading up the stairs to the boys dorm. She pushed open the door that said 'sevens' slowly and the sounds of muffled snoring could be heard.
Ginny closed the door behind her before she tiptoed across the room to where Harry's bed was and opened the curtain. He was sleeping on his side, a chunk of blanket against his face and over one leg, the rest of him mostly on top of them. He was wearing a tee shirt and sleep pants, his hair delightfully tousled, his face still covered in a decent amount of stubble. She wondered if he was trying to grow a beard. Then before she could talk herself out of it, she sat on his bed, closing the curtains behind her.
He jolted at the intrusion, squinting at her.
Before she said anything she reached out and touched his arm.
"Gin?" he croaked, his brow furrowing.
"Hold me. Please," she whispered.
Harry didn't even hesitate. He pulled her tight against his chest, snuggling her down into his bed, his arms wrapped tightly around her, her cheek against his heart.
Ginny finally felt her heart rate slow and for the first time in longer than she could remember, she could breathe. Her fingers clutched his tee shirt and when a hand began to soothingly roam up and down her back, she let out a slow breath.
"Want to talk about it?" he whispered.
"I killed you," she whispered back.
"Not gonna happen. I'm basically invincible, you know."
Her lips curved before she tilted her head to look up at him. "No one's invincible, Harry. Not even you."
His hand came up to brush her hair back before he caught himself. "But you came to me tonight."
Ginny's brown eyes darkened. "I was selfish."
"You're never selfish."
"I am," she told him. "No one is completely selfless and tonight… I was selfish. After you… in the change room yesterday…"
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I never should have given you an ultimatum like that."
Ginny nodded. "Can we go down and chat?"
Harry agreed and it was only a few minutes later before they were sitting on the chesterfield in the common room.
"I'm sorry that I… I'm a bit of a mess," she said, sneaking a look over at him.
He reached out to place his hand over hers. "That's usually my line."
She let out a shaky laugh, her eyes on where his hand rested over hers. "Harry… I…"
Harry's fingers twined with hers. "I know," he said, sadly. "I just… miss you. I miss having my best friend to talk to at the end of the day."
Ginny swallowed. "I miss you, too."
"Talk to me then. As friends. Am I not still your friend, Ginny?"
Ginny let out a slow breath. "I don't know what to say. One minute everything is clear and the next, nothing makes sense."
"How so?" he asked.
Ginny rested her cheek against her hand. "There's so much going on outside of here and I'm worried about my family. Dad goes back to work next week and Mum says that she'll be helping Andromeda with something for the Order. Theo said that the Sovereign Chalice is missing from the Wizengamot and the new Minister seems so different from Bones. The attacks are getting bolder and Mum's worried about Fred and George's shop and so am I."
"I know," he whispered. "I wish that there was more we could do. Tonks told me that they're using the Terra Troops as guards in the larger magical villages and towns. They have them patrolling the streets and doing what they can to keep people safe."
"Businesses are still closing," Ginny said. "And Theo said that Pansy's shop is thriving in Apricity Lane."
"Parkinson's married to a Death Eater and a Death Eater herself, I'm sure her shop will be well protected," Harry said.
Ginny nodded. "It's just a lot… I don't know. Being here in school when all this is happening just seems…"
"Wrong," he finished. "I know. I wish that I was doing more."
"The Defence Unit is going well," she told him. "I think people are taking to it, even with the fitness regiment that makes people curse us."
He chuckled. "I think so. I'm hoping by Halloween we won't have to have a separate meeting just for the physical aspect. My hope is by then people will be able to handle the obstacle and the duels without the extra needed day."
"I'm sure they will," she said.
They were both quiet for a moment and the familiar comfortable silence made her yearn to move into his chair, to snuggle close, but she stayed where she was.
Harry watched her. He watched the way the candlelight reflected off the colours in her hair, making the red gleam brighter. The way the light danced over her freckled skin, making them seem shadowed on her face. The way the light danced over her chocolate brown eyes, making them seem brighter and if possible more beautiful. He missed her.
He missed the little things. He missed the looks they'd exchange when Ron said something particularly stupid, he missed her smile. He missed the sound of her laugh. He just missed being near her. Not to mention that he'd made a complete arse of himself after practice the other day, practically demanding that she decide. He didn't want to be that man. The man who made her choose before she was ready. He didn't want to rush her or worse, force her into making the wrong choice. But her words had been haunting him.
Liability…
Fault…
Weakness…
He hated that all of them were true. He needed her more than he needed oxygen to breathe. He needed her in ways that he didn't know he needed her and Merlin knew he needed her in ways that his body knew. The thing was, he knew that he could live without her. But a life without Ginny would just be… survival. A life without her would be life without truly living. It was a life he didn't want. He didn't just want to exist from one day to the next and without her, that's all he was doing.
Harry cleared his throat. "I know that you need more time and I… I shouldn't have cornered you in the change rooms yesterday. It was wrong of me to make demands of you."
"No," she whispered. "It wasn't. I know this is hard on you."
"And you?"
She nodded. "I just…"
Harry stood up, kneeling in front of her chair. He took her hands in his, holding them tightly. "I love you, Ginny Weasley. I think I've loved you since I was five years old. Maybe I didn't know it then, maybe it took me a bit to realize it, but I did. You're the most important person in my life and I'll wait for you. However long you need me to do it, I'll wait. But please don't shut me out. I can't bear losing you as a friend."
Ginny pulled her hands free, reaching out to stroke her fingers through his soft messy hair. "I don't know what to say."
His face turned automatically towards her hand, his lips brushing her palm. "Please, Gin, don't shut me out."
Ginny's brown eyes stared into his, the feel of his palm against her cheek warm and comforting. "Harry, what I said over the summer about you kissing me in the orchard —"
"—I'm sorry," he interrupted. "I never thought of it like that! If I had, for even a second, I wouldn't have kissed you and—"
"—No! It was my fault! —"
"—I wasn't thinking and I just wanted to make you come back to me and I —"
"—No, I wasn't thinking and—"
They both broke off and Ginny snuck a look at him. "This isn't working."
Harry bit his bottom lip. "Ginny, I know that being part of my life puts you in danger. I know that and I hate it. I hate that this happened to you because of me and I hate that it's my fault and that —"
"—Harry! Will you please just shut up and let me talk?"
Harry looked at her in surprise before he nodded.
"It's not your fault," she whispered. "It was wrong of me to say it was. It's not. It happened to me because of my relationship with you, but you're not to blame. You didn't give me the potion. Snape did. And Godric knows Slughorn has apologized about a million times over the last three weeks, but I don't blame him either. It just… it happened. To me."
He stared at her in the dim light from candles on the wall.
"And I miss you," Ginny told him. "It's stupid to pretend that I don't when I miss you every minute. After my dream tonight, I just needed… you. I needed to make sure that you were okay and… I needed you to hold me. Just you. No one else."
Harry's eyes found hers. "I need and miss you, too. So much, Ginny."
Ginny took his hands in hers. "I didn't mean it when I said that you kissing me reminded me of Rabastan Lestrange touching me. I never meant to put that on you. I… I've just been so confused and so unsure of everything and I lashed out. It was like I woke up from this strange dream and I was confused and angry. It was like the diary and yet so different… but one thing was very much the same. I was the one doing bad things."
"Ginny, you did nothing wrong," Harry said.
She shook her head. "No, I did! I put this blame on you that you never deserved. I pushed you away because I was so scared that I would hurt you and I am hurting you now! I let that potion consume me and manipulate me into manipulating you and it just… I woke up or was cured or whatever it is that you want to call it and I couldn't trust myself. That's what's been so terrifying."
"You can trust me " he whispered.
Ginny turned his hand in hers, her thumb brushing over his knuckles. "I know. I do trust you. With everything, but not being able to trust yourself is more terrifying than you can imagine."
Harry stared at her, his green eyes searching hers for some kind of answer. He was afraid that she had weighed the pros and cons of them being together and realized it was more of an argument against them than for.
"Speaking to Na'eemah has helped a lot," she admitted. "I just really needed time to process everything, to understand what I missed and what I felt over the summer and align it with what really happened. Being cured from the bloodlust and seeing how I treated my family, especially my dad and my brothers and you… it was hard to adjust. I know that no one blamed me and that they all understood, but it was hard for me to accept that. I could see the horrible things that I had said and done and I didn't feel like I wasn't to blame. It was… it was like the diary, Harry."
"I know," he whispered.
"I know that too," she said. "I knew that you would have understood that immediately which only made it harder for me to talk you." At his frown she let out a slow breath. "That day, when you kissed me… I was manipulating you."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"The potion was… I was… it was me, I mean… I don't know why this is so hard."
Harry squeezed her fingers in assurance.
"It's like I knew what I was doing and the kiss… I blamed it on you, but in reality it was me. I kissed you in order to manipulate you so that I could hurt you. I'm to blame, not you."
His lips curved. "Did you think that I'd be upset with you over that?"
"No," she whispered. "But I'm upset with me! Harry, it's like I was being controlled by someone else again; like someone else was pulling the strings. I tried to fight back, but I couldn't break through… and… I tried to stop them from giving me the potion."
"Ginny," he whispered. "Did you think that we didn't know that? We know you fought. It took three Death Eaters to take you. You… you're so fucking brave and brilliant and when I realized they'd… I knew you'd fought back."
"I was fighting the potion, too. I mean… I tried to… it's why I had so many black veins and bruises and… my fighting made it speed up the process, I think."
"If you wouldn't have gotten the antidote, it would have killed you."
"I know," she whispered.
Harry brought their joined hands up to his lips. "I love you and I trust you. With everything I am."
Ginny's brown eyes softened. "I don't deserve you."
"What? That's preposterous. If anyone doesn't deserve anyone, it's me, you."
"No, really, Harry," she said. "My soul is… tainted. First Tom possessed it and now this potion touched it and I'm… I'm afraid. What if it's already turning black and what if I lose it? What if it's breaking off like a Horcrux because of it?"
Harry started to laugh before he caught himself. Her eyes were wide and scared and he pulled both of her hands up to rest on either side of his face.
"Never going to happen."
"But —"
"Never going to happen," he repeated. "You are good, Ginny. You're kind and beautiful and anyone who would worry so much about hurting someone else doesn't have any black on their soul. Trust me, I see your soul when I look at you and it's beautiful and it's… entwined with mine."
"Harry…" she whispered.
"You're my person, Ginny. You're the one that I won't live without. My life is full and yet when you weren't in it, I felt empty."
"I'm scared," she whispered. "I'm scared that Tom will use me against you. I don't want to hurt you."
"You won't," he assured her. "You'll only hurt me if you walk away."
Ginny kept her eyes on his and she slowly leaned in and pressed her lips to his. The kiss was soft, chaste even, but they both felt the power behind it. She pressed her forehead against his.
"I don't know if I'm ready to be… like we were. I don't want to go backwards, but I don't know if I can go forward either. I'm stuck in this loop and I know that's not fair to you and…"
Harry's hands slid down her wrists, to her arms and then to her hips. "I'm not going anywhere."
Ginny leaned in, her lips brushing his softly. His breath hitched against her and he didn't move a muscle, waiting for her to decide. She brushed her lips over his a second time before she moved back.
"Talking to Na'eemah has been helping me a lot," she told him. "There's so much I need to work through and so much I still need to understand. It's not you, Harry. It's me… and I know how cliché that sounds, but it is. I didn't mean to shut you out so completely and not for so long, I just need… I need to make sense of it all."
Harry's green eyes stared up at her, but he didn't speak. She stood up, her heart pounding as she did so.
"I know it's not fair to ask you to wait. I know it's not what you were hoping for. But I just need more time to make sense of it."
He nodded, standing as well. "Okay."
"Thanks for listening, Harry," she said.
"It's what friends do," he told her.
Ginny nodded. "Goodnight, Harry."
"Goodnight, Ginny."
She turned to head towards the stairs leading to her dorm and stopped, turning to look over at him. He was still standing in the middle of the common room, his eyes on the fireplace.
"Harry?"
When those green eyes met hers, she smiled.
"I love you, too."
The smile on his face made her grin back before she headed up the stairs, feeling a bit lighter.
~ ASC ~
Harry stayed back after the defence unit was dismissed to go over the day with Remus. He filled his father in on the fitness regiment and how all of the students were doing. Many of them were cursing his name, but they were still doing it and he was grateful for that. He wasn't making it as intense as his Quidditch practices were, but he wanted everyone to be in the best shape they could be in to withstand a long duel if necessary.
Running laps helped keep the heart rate up and he decided that doing push-ups and sit-ups helped them strengthen their cores, all something that he definitely felt made them stronger. The stronger someone's core was, the more easily accessible their magic was. Remus was increasing the obstacle course so that they were forced to duel an opponent (sometimes multiple opponents) while moving through the maze, dodging through obstacles, and sometimes having to jump over things. It was about relying on one's body to do what their wand couldn't because they were duelling another person.
The idea was to spend the next few weeks getting people into shape and then go back to just the two lessons for duelling. Once people were better acquainted with their strengths, the obstacle course wouldn't seem as intense for them to make it through. Or it was what Harry was hoping for.
"I don't care if you're into fitness or not," Harry told them. "I'm not doing this to change your lifestyle. I just want you to be strong enough to withstand a duel for as long as necessary. Professor Lupin will be testing those abilities in the next meeting when he issues duelling challenges. Be prepared to be standing and duelling for the entire lesson."
He dismissed them and when Remus left to head home, he moved to take a drink of water from the canister he had on the bench. He turned and almost bumped into the short haired brunette.
"Sorry," he said quickly, taking a step back.
"It's all right," she said, taking a step closer. "I wanted to talk to you anyway."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
"Don't know if we've been properly introduced, but I'm KJ," she said, her finger dancing up his arm. "And I'm going to be a famous duellist one day."
"Oh yeah?" Harry replied, his eyes on her.
She was tall with brown hair worn boyishly short. "Absolutely. I think that what you're training us to do is vital to me reaching that dream. I've been in the minor competitions you know. Even won a few rounds."
"Good for you," Harry told her. Her fingers danced across his collarbone now. Then they took a turn and began to slowly dance down the centre of his chest. "Er…"
KJ smiled, her lips painted a dark pink, parted. "We should talk about duelling. I'm very interested in the give and take of it. Keeping up on stamina is important and of course, staying fit. You're quite fit, Harry."
He made to grab her hand when her fingers brushed over his belt buckle, but she snatched it back before he could.
"I think that we can help each other out, don't you think?" she asked, her dark eyes on his.
"Help each other?" Harry repeated. "With duelling?"
KJ nodded. "For starters. We all know that Weasley chucked you, but that's on her because you are definitely a catch. I'm not looking for anything serious. I want to be a duellist and I won't let anyone or anything stand in the way of my dream, but that doesn't mean that I can't let off a little steam, does it?"
"Um…" Harry said, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. He glanced around to see if anyone was around to assist him, but they were quite alone in the duelling room.
Ever since he and Ginny had talked, he had felt lighter and more hopeful. They'd been making a point to talk every day, but only talking. She hadn't kissed him again and he knew that they were still taking things slow, but he wasn't sure if she exactly qualified as his ex-girlfriend anymore either.
KJ's fingers were on his belt buckle again. He made to move her hands and she giggled. "I'm not worried about your size, Harry, big or small. As long as you know what to do with it." Then to Harry's surprise, she pressed herself against him. "I could use a really good, hard fuck."
"Erm," Harry said, wiggling out of her grip. "That's a really nice offer, KJ, really, but —"
"But what?" she exclaimed, her hands on her hips. "You're single. I'm single. It's only a shag. Come on, Harry, let's relieve a little of this… tension."
She licked her lips and he backed away from her. "Erm, that's… no thanks."
KJ's eyes narrowed. "No thanks? Are you kidding me?"
"Look, you're really pretty, gorgeous actually, and the offer's appreciated, but I'm just not interested."
She stared at him cooly. "If you prefer Romy, I'm willing to share. I have no problem letting you have the both of us at the same time."
"What?" Harry squeaked, feeling more confused than ever. His cock definitely seemed interested in that idea even if the rest of him wasn't and he shook his head. "No, thank you."
KJ snorted. "Ever the polite one, aren't you, Harry?" She stepped towards him again, standing on her toes to brush her lips over his. "Offer's open if you change your mind. And for the record, Romy and I were both going to suck you off at the same time." She winked at him and sauntered off.
Harry let out a slow breath, feeling like he'd just dodged a stunning curse and maybe a few others. He gathered up his stuff and headed towards the stairs, more relieved than he wanted to admit to not see KJ standing nearby. But Romilda Vane was there and she was smiling. It wasn't exactly the quick escape he'd been hoping for.
"Hi, Harry!"
"Romy," he said, keeping his voice neutral.
Romilda kept pace beside him. "That was a great lesson today. I feel like I learn a lot from you."
"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Harry said.
"Very much!" she exclaimed. "You're a gifted teacher."
"Thanks."
Romilda smiled. "I know KJ comes on a little strong sometimes, but she meant well."
"Right," Harry said. "Well, considering I don't know her, a little strong about sums it up."
She chuckled. "She likes to take what she needs, doesn't go for the frills. Me? I like a few frills, but I know that you still don't trust me. And that's on me, I did a terrible thing, but in my defence I was young and stupid. I didn't truly understand what I was doing and I just… I just wanted you to like me."
"Romy, I'm sorry. I know that you regret what you did and you're right, it was a long time ago and we were both young."
She nodded, biting her bottom lip before giving him a hopeful look. "Perhaps we could even start over? KJ told me what she offered and I can be into whatever you need, Harry. I'll do anything you want me to. Anything."
"Romy, that's… I love Ginny."
"But she ditched you?" she exclaimed. "You deserve someone willing to put you first, Harry, and I promise I will always put you first in everything."
"I love Ginny," he repeated. "And I don't need someone to always put me first. I need someone who understands me and Ginny's that person."
Romilda's eyes flashed in anger. "How can you still want her after what she did to you? I could make you so happy, Harry!"
Harry shoved his hands into his pockets. "I'm not interested, Romy. Sorry."
She glared at him before she turned and stomped off. Harry let out a slow breath and wondered how many more witches were going to decide to offer themselves up to him because as of late, he couldn't believe the number who had decided he was suddenly available.
Natalie Monroe had pinched his arse in the hall yesterday and asked him if he wanted to snog. Su Li had found him in the library and sat across from him, opening her cloak to reveal her unbound and exposed breasts and he'd stared at her small tits until his face turned red. A fifth year girl he didn't know had offered to blow him and that had only been in the last week.
The articles about his life had only been getting bolder. After the article in Bella Sorcière had come out, others had followed. Not to mention Witch Weekly's horribly embarrassing article titled "Tips to Handle Your Bloke's Wand" which gave information on how to deal with wands considered too big with his name being mentioned throughout. Belle Sorcière published an article on charms used to hide parts of one's body and how to see through them and now Harry had a great number of witches and wizards accidentally bumping into him in the halls to cop a feel. It was mortifying and he wanted to die of embarrassment and hex all of them at the same time. Witch Weekly published another one called "Tips to Make Harry Potter Notice You" along with "Potter's Favourite Things" (which only half had been right). Witches were going out of their way to ask him questions about his favourite sweets or his favourite Quidditch team and he felt like no matter what he did, he couldn't be left alone or he would be found.
But then being with others didn't even help.
Yesterday he had been sitting with Neville in the courtyard and a sixth year Hufflepuff with blonde hair had sat right in his lap. When he'd attempted to remove her, her tongue had slipped into his ear and she whispered something so naughty, he'd been unable to hide the erection in his trousers. Neville had to help him dislodge her and his friend had merely laughed at his predicament as he hastily covered his lap with his robes.
"Maybe you should go have a wank then," Neville said. "You'll never make it through class with that thing pointing out."
"Piss off," Harry muttered. "I just need a minute."
"Are you going to share what she said to you?"
Harry glared at him. "Some things should never be mentioned in public, Nev."
And it wasn't just witches.
The indecent letters and proposals he'd received from wizards in the last month had been almost scary. Thankfully since Dobby was doing what he could to keep the letters scarce, there hadn't been as many, but the ones Harry had seen before the elf's magic, had been more than enough. One wizard had written him such detailed sexual promises that Harry swore his face had been red for a week. Of course it didn't help that the wizard had also sent a photo of his assets and that Seamus had gotten a hold of it. Godric knew the jokes and teasing at that point had been impossible to stop.
Harry dragged his fingers through his hair, making it stand up even more than usual as he headed back to Gryffindor. He made it up to the third floor when he caught sight of Theo being snogged senseless by the tall sandy-haired Ravenclaw. Cornfoot was sucking on the side of his neck and Theo definitely didn't seem to be minding the attention.
Harry decided that he wasn't ready to turn in and turned around to head outside. A few minutes later he was walking along the edge of the lake, his hands in his pockets. He had started doing the nightly walk after dinner a few days ago. He needed the quiet and to be honest, he was finding it hard to be in the common room without her. Ron and Hermione were always busy with head stuff. Neville was always with Hannah. Dean and Seamus were always welcoming to him of course, but he knew that they wanted some couple time as well so he made himself scarce.
He kicked at the stones again before he took a seat by one of the trees, hiding himself from view in case someone came around. He pulled his knees up to his chest and stared out across the lake in silence. It wasn't long before a shadow fell over him and he looked up, surprised to see Neville standing there.
"Come on, let's go play a game of exploding snap."
"I'm fine," Harry said, looking out at the lake.
"Don't care," Neville said grabbing his friend's hand and hoisting him to his feet. "We're going to play some exploding snap."
He let out a slow breath. "Am I delusional to think that Ginny will take me back?"
Neville draped an arm around Harry's shoulders. "You're already talking again, Harry. Give her time. Now come on, let's go challenge Seamus and Dean to a game."
Harry sighed and let his friend steer him back to the castle, feeling a little lighter. Neville was right. They were talking again and that's what truly mattered.
~ ASC ~
Remus arrived in the atrium of the Ministry of Magic that Friday, looking around curiously at the construction that was still taking place. Most of the Ministry was up and running again, but there was still a lot of cosmetic damage that needed to be dealt with before winter arrived. He took the stairs as opposed to the lifts and made his way to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, clutching the bag in his hand. When he stepped into the Auror Division, he kept his eyes peeled for his wife's bright pink hair.
Instead they found the tall dark-haired man near her desk so he made his way over. As he got closer, he caught a glimpse of his wife's pink hair and smiled.
"There's nothing in these letters," Higgins said, tossing them down on the desk as Remus approached. "Complete dead end. It's just letters from an apologetic father. Is there anything in the ones to Norfolk?"
"No," the dark haired man said. "Nothing of any use to the case."
"All right. Well it was a good idea anyway, K. I still think Malfoy might know something else we don't. I'll get them back to Nott when he comes out of the Wizengamot today," Higgins said.
"I'll do it," K said, plucking up the letters from the table. When everyone stared at him, he cleared his throat. "I need to go down there to speak to the Chief Witch anyway."
Tonks exchanged a look with Higgins before she caught sight of him. "Remus!"
"Hi," he said, bending to kiss his wife. "Sorry to interrupt."
"You're not," Higgins said.
"Remus, this is Sebastian Kane, the MIA Auror I was telling you about. K, this is my husband, Remus Lupin."
Kane extended his hand. "I've heard good things. Congratulations on the new post as Deputy Headmaster. It sounds like you're the right wizard for the job from what I'm hearing."
"Thank you," Remus said, shaking his hand. "I'm doing my best." He placed the bag on the desk in front of his wife. "I brought you lunch."
Tonks' smile widened as she opened the brown takeaway bag. "You got me garlic noodles with crab? I love you!"
He smiled. He hadn't been able to resist sneaking out to do so after lying in bed with her this morning as she went on and on about how good it would be. "Good. Enjoy it."
"Lupin, is your husband spoiling you again?" Atwell asked, coming to check out her lunch.
"Every day," Tonks said with a grin. "And no, I'm not sharing."
"Tease," Higgins said.
Kane tucked the letters in his hands under his arm. "I'll get these back to Lord Norfolk. The Wizengamot session should be ending any moment."
"K? Try not to make him call you Auror Arsehole this time," Tonks called out.
Kane glared at her. "Funny, Lupin. Enjoy your lunch. When I get back, I have more files for you to go over."
Tonks groaned, turning her attention to Remus. "This takeaway almost makes up for the files I'll have to read later. Have I mentioned how much I hate being on desk duty?"
Atwell rolled her eyes. "Every day. All day. See you later, Remus."
Higgins and Atwell both disappeared and Remus leaned back against the edge of his wife's desk.
"Kane seems interesting. Why did he want to return the letters to Theo so badly?"
"Right?" Tonks exclaimed. "It's weirdly suspicious."
"I wouldn't say suspicious," Remus said. "Just odd considering he's with the MIA. Returning letters is more A1 level work, is it not?"
"Exactly!" Tonks said. "But he keeps volunteering for stuff like that when Theodore Nott's involved. Then he comes back all distracted and complains he's a pretty boy."
Remus frowned as he watched his wife dig into her noodles. "I'm sure he has his reasons. He certainly didn't seem like an arsehole despite your name."
"He's not really," she said. "But he can be very focused and snappish when he's working. He's truly an incredible Auror and he's really done well at leading the division while King is at St Mungo's."
"Is he back yet?"
"Next week," Tonks said. "The healers insisted that he rest more. From what his secretary's been saying, the rest isn't going well. Apparently he sends Audrey at least five owls a day demanding updates."
Remus chuckled. "That sounds like King."
"So, what did I do to get a lunch date with my handsome husband?" she asked, sliding her hand over his thigh.
"You said that you wanted garlic noodles with crab about a hundred times this morning."
"Cravings are very real," Tonks said seriously.
"I know," he said, his eyes twinkling. "But I have a class in thirty minutes."
Tonks smiled when he bent his head to kiss her. "I love surprise visits. Next time you should come in your free period and we can sneak off somewhere…"
Remus nibbled at her ear. "Promises, promises. Eat your lunch. You'll come to Hogwarts tonight? We have to stay at the castle for the next two nights."
"I remember," Tonks said, standing up to hug him. She stood on her toes, her lips near his ear. "And we're going to make good use of the choir room."
Remus' eyebrow rose. "Why the choir room?"
Tonks' eyes twinkled mischievously. "It's almost wall to wall mirrors, love."
His cheeks flushed as he realized what she was saying and he kissed her. "Well, we'll have to definitely put it to use then, won't we?"
Tonks grinned when he kissed her once more and hurried off to return to school. She really did have the best husband in the whole world.
~ ASC ~
Theo laughed at Neville's description of the leaves falling off the trees in the greenhouse and covering Sprout in red powder as they walked out of the Wizengamot together. The red powder was used for paints and makeup, but when it was left exposed on the leaves, it could also be dangerous. Neville was explaining how the powder could be put into a ball and used as a stunning explosive that could potentially blind people, but in its natural state, was mostly just a nuisance that stained one's skin red as Sprout had found out that morning.
"I always learn the most random things from you, Neville," Theo said. "Do you think that we have time to grab a bite before we head back to Hogwarts? I'm famished and could go for something different than Hogwarts food."
"I really have to get back," Neville admitted. "If the Pulvis Plant is left alone too long, it will create more red powder and until I figure out how to dial it back, it's a bit of a hazard. Not to mention that a few of the third years keep mistaking it for Powder Puffs which are completely different all together."
"Lord Norfolk," a deep voice said, making them both turn.
Theo stared up at the tall figure of Auror Kane in surprise. He was dressed all in black as usual, his badge pinned to the belt of his black jeans. He wore black leather boots and a black button down shirt rolled at the elbows with a black cloak draped over his shoulders. It seemed he just kept running into him.
"Auror Kane," he said politely.
"Sorry to interrupt," Kane said, his eyes on Theo. "But I wanted to return these letters to you as promised."
"And were they incriminating?" Theo asked, his voice a little sharper than he intended.
"No," Kane said. "But it was still our job to check."
Theo tucked the stack of letters away. "Well, thank you. Now excuse us, Neville and I have to return to Hogwarts."
"If I may," he said, taking a step forward. "I couldn't help overhear you mentioning food and there's a great deli across the way. I'll buy you a sandwich if you can talk for a moment."
"More questions?" Theo repeated. "I don't know what you think I know, Auror Kane, but I assure you that I don't know anything more. My father was a Death Eater and a shit human being until Lucius Malfoy killed him. I know nothing about the explosion except what I witnessed and told you and as you can see, these letters are not incriminating in any way."
Kane stared at him. "Lord Norfolk, we seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot here. I'm well aware of who you are and of who your father was. Now, you just said that you were famished, would you like a bloody sandwich or not?"
"He does," Neville said, a smile tugging his lips. "Stay. Get a sandwich. We'll talk later. I'll let Stephen know that you stayed behind."
Theo looked like he wanted to protest but he nodded. "Fine."
When Neville headed off, Theo turned back to Kane.
"I want the biggest sandwich that they can make me and a glass of sauvignon blanc, preferably Australian. Then we'll talk."
Kane nodded and led him across the way to the small deli in Muggle London. Once Theo had a large turkey club sandwich with chips and his wine in front of him, he gave the Auror his full attention.
Kane seemed to be waiting for him to settle. He kept playing with a loose piece of dark hair near his eye, his blue eyes never leaving Theo's face as he did so. Theo merely bit into his sandwich, determined not to speak until the Auror did.
He had no idea what Kane could possibly want to talk to him about. He didn't know anything and he had honestly given them everything he did know about Death Eaters, about his father, about the explosion… he didn't have anything new to add. Of course, he did know that Blaise and Draco were alive, but that was for him to know and no one else.
"The letters weren't incriminating," Kane finally said, making Theo arch an eyebrow. "And honestly, we didn't think that they would be, but we have to make sure that the prisoners in the crypt aren't sneaking out secret messages of some kind. You understand that?"
Theo took a sip of his wine, enjoying the sharp flavour on his tongue. "I get that. Lucius Malfoy was a father to me in ways that my own never was. Their home was a safe place for me and when he offered me these letters to read, to know that he had thought to write to me was such a nice thing to hear. And then you took them… I might have overreacted."
"Lord Norfolk —"
"For Merlin's sake, call me Theo," he interrupted. "Norfolk is incredibly formal and I prefer to use it only within the Wizengamot when necessary."
"All right, Theo," Kane said. "I just wanted to apologize for the delay in returning the letters to you."
"Noted." Theo said.
Kane picked at his own sandwich and Theo watched him for a moment. He was waiting for the Auror to start asking him more questions but Kane seemed to be in no hurry to do so. Instead he bit into his own reuben and Theo glanced around at the people around them.
More than a few people were looking over at Kane and he seemed oblivious to it. He heard someone at the table behind him say something about him having a mouth made for kissing and Theo's eyes fell on the strong jaw, the sharp chiselled cheekbones, and the full lips. He was good looking, he could admit to that, devilishly so. The dark hair, mussed from his fingers, the eyes reminding him of the colour of the ocean in Anguilla. The broad shoulders and the tall frame made him stand out in a crowd. He had a day or two's worth of black stubble on his face and Theo noted that his eyes looked tired.
He ate quietly, still not making an attempt to ask Theo any more questions. Theo took another sip of his wine before he cleared his throat.
"So, Kane, other than K and Auror Arsehole, what do people call you?"
"No one calls me Auror Arsehole," he grumbled.
Theo grinned, his eyes twinkling in suppressed laughter. "I do."
"Sebastian," he said, a nervous smile on his face. "My name is Sebastian Kane."
"Sebastian," Theo said, letting the name flow across his tongue. "Not the name I pictured for you, Auror Arsehole."
Kane's lips twitched before he gave Theo an exasperated look. "I'm not… it's Bas."
"Bas," Theo repeated, his lips curving. "Now that suits you. Auror Bas Kane… I like it. Not as much as Auror Arsehole, but it works."
Kane's lips started to smile before he caught himself and Theo pointed at him.
"Aha! So you can smile!"
"Of course I can smile," Kane said. "I… I do smile. I even occasionally laugh."
"Could have fooled me," Theo told him. "Mr Always So Serious."
Kane cleared his throat. "It's my job to be serious. I work for the MIA. Finding the bad guys and helping to stop the darkest wizard to ever have lived is more of a challenge than you might think. Look, I wanted to speak with you about something that was mentioned in one of the letters —"
"I haven't read them yet," Theo interrupted.
"I know," Kane said. "It… never mind. It probably wouldn't lead anywhere anyway."
Theo stared at him. There was something about Sebastian Kane that he couldn't quite place. He was always barking out orders at people, yet people like Lupin and Higgins seemed to like him. He was brash and abrasive and, clearly he could be an arse, but now… now he looked nervous. It only confused Theo even more.
"What did you want to ask about the letters?"
Kane hesitated. "You haven't read them yet so you might not know, but… Malfoy mentioned something about warding the safe house from your father's reach."
Theo finished the first half of his sandwich before he spoke. "When I took the title, I had a lawyer help draft everything up for me. I wanted to make sure that I could claim what belonged to Norfolk and that my father couldn't. If I warded everything with me as the sole controller, it meant my father couldn't give access to the Dark Lord or to his followers."
Kane nodded. "Voldemort likes to use the assets of others, doesn't he?"
"He doesn't have his own," Theo said. "But old families like mine, we have more assets than we probably know what to do with. Some of them on the books and some not and those not are better protected. Secrecy is key, is it not?"
"Yes," Kane agreed.
When Kane only finished off his own sandwich without asking anything else, Theo felt more confused. Why would he bring him here to ask him questions that he didn't even have? And a question about warding hardly seemed important. He took another bite of his turkey club, eyes on the Auror curiously before he spoke.
"Thanks for the wine and the sandwich, Bas. I was famished. Those Wizengamot sessions can get a little dry and carry on and I missed breakfast this morning."
Kane nodded. "Of course, I… Lord — Theo, you never used my card."
"What?" Theo asked, bewildered.
"I gave you my card," Kane said. "To contact me."
"Yeah," Theo said slowly. "But I didn't remember anything else from the Ministry explosion."
"Right," Kane said.
Theo blinked at him. Those blue eyes were staring at him again. Intently, as if they were looking for something. Feeling rather self conscious, Theo put his sandwich down.
"You have a little mayo there."
"Where?" Theo asked, licking his lips.
"No, on the left," Kane said.
Theo grabbed the napkin and when he missed it again, Kane leaned forward.
"No, just…."
The thumb brushed over his bottom lip and when Theo's eyes met those blue ones, his stomach fluttered in a way that surprised him. Kane was staring at him, his thumb still on his bottom lip and the sudden desire to press his lips to the man's thumb surprised him.
"Sorry," Kane said quickly, dropping his gaze and removing his hand.
Theo nodded, grabbing the napkin to wipe his mouth, but it did nothing to diminish the tingling feeling his lip was now doing. "Right, thanks."
Kane cleared his throat. "Um, well, I just wanted to return those letters to you so… you have my card if you think of anything else. Remember it's 'Chevalier.' Good day, Theo."
Theo watched him walk away, the black cloak trailing behind him, and realized that the Auror had never really actually asked him anything at all.