A/N: Whoops I took too long to write this again. I'm still working on getting better at updating, promise!
Speaking of updating, I've decided not to write a companion story and just finish this story here, as writing it as a separate thing would break up the flow, and it might take me a bit longer to be ready for it. But as I outlined I realized that it'll take longer than I thought, so we still have about five chapters to go!
I had to make up a few spells in this chapter that didn't have incantations listed; sorry if I've accidentally used an incantation that already exists as another spell! I almost did that once and changed it, but I may not have caught others.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything but my original characters and concept.
And lastly, thank you to my lovely reviewers! You all keep me going, in more ways than one. I would have given up on this story ages ago without you, and every review I get brightens my days considerably. So thank you so very much, everyone.
Well – on to the chapter! Enjoy!
Six Months Later
Misery was a comfortable thing. It was much more difficult for her to learn to be happy.
Six months ago, she'd arrived in Hogsmeade shivering, in shock, Shikoba cradled in her arms. She found George quickly, who had seemed to find it difficult to believe she was real. He'd approached her as if she were a ghost, and finally after reassuring him she was there and alive, he'd embraced her, the beard he'd clearly grown out of negligence rather than actual desire for a beard scratched at her face.
They went to Hogwarts where her family was staying, being kept safe by McGonagall in case another attack on their lives was made. They hugged, they cried, and Ginny told them her story. Her story was told many more times, to McGonagall, to Luna and Hermione, to Ministry officials, to Daily Prophet reporters, to Mr. Lovegood for the Quibbler. Most readers of either paper discredited half her story, claiming it must have been Tom's ghost haunting her and not a fragment of soul, or that it was ridiculous to imagine a secret order of Wizarding elite studying magic and love that no one had heard about before.
It didn't matter to Ginny. She had her freedom and her family. Let the world call her insane. Everyone that mattered believed in her.
While she'd been gone, a magnificent memorial had been held for Harry Potter. It was hosted on the grounds of Hogwarts so that there would be room for the hundreds of people who attended, some who stood to share memories, some to talk about how though they'd never known him personally he was still their hero, some who recounted tales of how Harry Potter had directly or indirectly saved their lives. After the memorial, a smaller funeral service was held in Godric's Hollow, and Harry was buried in the grave Tom had reserved for him. Ginny was broken-hearted at being forced to miss it, but Mrs. Creevey – Colin's mother who insisted on attending for all the good Harry had done for 'her boy' – had recorded it using a Muggle device called a camcorder, and Ginny had been able to see both the memorial and the funeral in full on a small television set her father had added to his collection. She'd sobbed for weeks after, but was very grateful for every person who had loved Harry, and who had spoken about their sorrows that his girlfriend had disappeared.
The Burrow was rebuilt, smaller than before since half the family had moved on, in one way or another. Ginny lived there as she recovered and saw healers and therapists. But after a couple months, she knew it was time to move on. She couldn't live with her parents forever, and if she was going to reclaim the fierce and independent witch she'd been before, she needed to start by actually being independent.
Hermione, Luna and Ginny rented a flat in Muggle London. Hermione was now engaged to Ron, and her post-war fame was settling down enough for her to consider her career choices. Ginny had expected her to return to Hogwarts as a professor, but Hermione surprised her by entering the Ministry, working for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Luna got a job at the Leaky Cauldron, working while she continued her studies on her way to becoming a Magizoologist. Her ultimate goal was to discover evidence of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack.
As for Ginny, she was no longer sure what she wanted to do with her life. She still often dreamed of being a professional Quidditch player, of living off the adrenalin and the fight and the adulation, but after everything she'd experienced, how could she want a job that was seemingly meaningless? Granted, Quidditch players had been her heroes when she'd grown up and being that for another lonely little girl was a beautiful idea, but how much good could she really do?
Luna Lovegood tirelessly tried to convince her that there was plenty of good to be done.
Luna made another valiant attempt one bright, clear summer afternoon. It was beautifully warm and sunny, and Ginny couldn't help but feel it was the most radiant day she'd seen in years. Ginny spent a good deal of time indoors, hidden away in her room with books of all sorts, still feeling a deep need to escape reality. She struggled every day with her depression and melancholy, but she fought it valiantly and now and then had days like this, warm and bright and happy. On this day, she was grateful for the sunshine.
Luna had forced Ginny to dress (in Muggle clothing, so they didn't look suspicious), help pack a picnic basket and go out into the day, letting Shikoba ride on top of the picnic basket. They went to Primrose Hill, walked around the lovely roses of Queen Mary's Gardens, and then found a pretty spot on a green hill and laid out a patchwork quilt as a picnic blanket. They unpacked their picnic goods, as well: a sandwich of prosciutto, artichokes, spinach and mozzarella on ciabatta bread; scones made with walnuts and cheddar and asiago cheeses and lemon zest; herbed strawberry sandwiches of small rectangles of honey-wheat bread, cream cheese mixed with basil and slivered almonds, and a slice of strawberry on top of each; a tabbouleh filled with dried fruits, walnuts and mint; and a dark blue colored blueberry macaron filled with blueberry cream cheese. They brought a warm fruity tea and an elderflower, lemon and vanilla cordial in tumblers to drink. They also packed some small fish for Shikoba, a kite that looked a bit like a phoenix, and a bottle of bubbles.
After eating, they collapsed beside each other, and talked and laughed as Luna blew bubbles and Ginny sneakily charmed them to not pop for hours. They watched the wind pick up the polychromatic bubbles and carry them up and off into the kite-filled sky. A peaceful feeling filled Ginny and she felt more content then ever before. Both she and Luna were dressed in loose clothing with short skirts and no sleeves so they could soak the sun into their pale skin, their hair laid out behind them, and the conversation was never serious.
At least, it wasn't until Luna blew bubbles past Ginny's face and said in airy tones, "What do you plan to do with your future, Ginny?"
Ginny rolled her eyes as she whispered another charm for the new group of bubbles floating on the breeze. "This again? Really?"
"I'm just curious."
Ginny sighed, staring up at the white clouds above them. What could she say that she hadn't already? "I still want to be a Quidditch player, but I don't know how substantial that would be," she said.
"You'd be an example to young girls, you could give the money you earn to charities, you could encourage other people who dream of being Quidditch players to follow their dreams no matter what trials they face."
"Is that enough, really?" Ginny wondered. "Besides, it's been too long since I last played, and even longer since I played at Hogwarts. Any team would probably tell me to get more practice."
"So get more practice," Luna suggested, pausing in her bubble-blowing to toss Shikoba a fish. "I'm sure your brothers would love to play with you."
Ginny shrugged. Maybe the honest truth was that she was still too depressed to attempt anything that would force her outside, but she wasn't going to admit that.
The conversation turned to their favorite Quidditch moments and things Luna had made to support her favorite teams, and somehow they wound up with Luna continuing to blow bubbles as Ginny did impressions of their favorite players. She was just getting good at impersonating her hero Gwenog Jones when her blood turned cold.
She wasn't sure why at first, but then a scream to their right filled the air, and she turned and saw the face of the one person she'd never imagined she'd see again.
Hades Xylander had apparated into Primrose Hill.
He'd fired a few curses at the nearby Muggles, and those who could were running away as fast as they could, screaming. Ginny darted up, her wand in her hand, and quickly performed a shielding spell around herself.
Luna reacted a bit slower than Ginny did, but she cast the same spell. At first Ginny was confused since Luna didn't seem to be any more shielded then she was previously, and then she realized that Luna hadn't cast a spell to protect herself, she'd cast it to protect the retreating Muggles. She felt a flash of warm affection for her friend, that quickly disappeared as Hades pointed his wand at them.
"Relashio!" he shouted, and fiery sparks exploded out of the end of his wand as he ran closer. She couldn't hear his next spell, but suddenly the sparks expanded outward and grew into flames, burning the edges of their blanket. While Ginny quickly stomped the burning pieces out, Luna raised her wand.
"Impedimenta!" she said, her voice no less airy despite the urgency in it. Hades slowed suddenly, and Ginny was grateful that Luna had bought them more time as her head was spinning from the sudden, public attack.
She took in a quick breath, and tried "Pterosnasus!", her signature Bat-Bogey Hex. But she quickly dove out of the way as the spell bounced off a protective shield surrounding Hades. But the shield was weakened, and Luna took the chance to try another spell.
"Petri-" she began, but Hades was quicker.
The impediment spell had worn off quicker than it normally did, and there was a cold glint in his eyes as his mouth began to form words they both dreaded to hear.
"Crucio!" the spell shot at them, but Luna's shield was just strong enough to protect her from it. The shield broke and Luna took off running, trying to move fast enough that Hades couldn't hit her with the Unforgivable while she tried to think of some other way to stop Hades from attacking.
Hades was ready for another attack on Luna, when Ginny aimed her wand at the ground beside Hades' feet. "Crepitus!" The ground exploded upward, knocking Hades to the ground and hurting his whole right side. His leg was clearly injured, blood already soaking through the leg of his trousers.
Ginny took a breath for another go, but was too slow. Hades cried out in pain as he lifted his injured arm, and called out, "Petrificus Totalus!" at just the right moment for Luna to run right into the spell. Her body went rigid and she fell to the ground.
In a blind panic, Ginny charged forward, her mind forgetting her wand as she moved to tackle Hades and take his wand by force, one thought going through her head over and over and over again: He must not be allowed to fire another spell.
But panic slowed her and made her stupid. If she'd disarmed him then, he would have been defeated. But her quick charge gave him time to shoot another spell at Luna. "Cruico!"
Luna tried to scream, but couldn't. Ginny could see that though Luna wasn't the most powerful in Dumbledore's Army, she was strong in mind, and refused to give in so much that though in a full Body-Bind, she was fighting it as hard as she could, and her fingers twitched.
"Luna!" Ginny screamed, as she turned directions suddenly and had to throw her hands out in order to catch herself as her balance was lost. She quickly got back to her feet and ran for her friend, and then suddenly she was flying through the air from the force of some spell Hades had cast in her direction. Her head hit the ground and the world was spinning, but she forced herself to stand up and look towards Hades, trying to find her target. Something blurred and bright caused her eyes to water, blinding her for a moment. After blinking a few times, she realized that the object creating the bright light was the sun sparkling off of Hades' new fingers. They were all made of silver, much like Wormtail's hand had been.
As the word crucio rang in her ears, a sharp scream ripped from her throat. But it wasn't pain she felt, it was helplessness, a sort of claustrophobic feeling like she was trapped in a small box. The spell had been directed at Luna again, and the way Hades' gaze was locked on Ginny's and the slight upturn of the corners of his mouth, it was clear he was more interested in torturing Ginny emotionally than actually hurting Luna.
"Shall I do it again?" Hades shouted, now getting to hit feet, his wand still directed at Luna.
"No!" Ginny screamed, and she repeated the word over and over until her throat was raw. She'd lost Fred, she'd lost Harry, she'd lost the life she should have had. She couldn't lose Luna too, she couldn't lose Luna and continue to live herself. "Please, please! Kill me instead!" She threw down her wand to show her willingness to die, if only Luna could live.
Hades smirked. He turned to look at Luna's still form, took a breath, and while he was distracted, Ginny acted.
She snatched up her wand as quick as she could, and took inspiration from the silver of his fingers stinging her eyes. "Consectetur!"
Quickly, Hades' eyes began to turn pink and to swell. Soon, he was blinded. In rage, he shouted, "Crucio!", once more sending the curse in the direction of Luna.
Ginny had no time to react and stop the curse from hitting Luna. But someone else did.
"Protego!" called a familiar voice, and a protective shield formed around Luna, powerful enough to take the hit and continue to hold. Ginny looked around and spotted him: Tom Riddle.
At the sound of Tom's voice, Hades immediately disappeared, with no time for anyone to stop him. Ginny watched Tom rush to Luna, and somehow through her muddled thoughts she managed to realize that he could have taken the chance to kill Hades if he'd let Luna be cursed again.
Instead, Tom quickly undid the Body-Bind, and immediately Luna's screams filled the air. Her feet pushed into the ground and her back arched so far upwards that the top of Luna's head also dug into the ground. Her fingers were claws tearing at the blades of grass as her eyes shut tight, barely letting tears escape. Her skin was nearly white. Her screams echoed through Primrose Hill, one long scream after another.
The torture of Luna broke Ginny's heart, and swiftly she got to her feet and ran to the blonde girl's side. Ginny couldn't imagine the pain of being hit with the Cruciatus once, let alone the agony of being hit with it twice. A third may have been enough to drive Luna over the edge into pure madness.
Ginny collapsed onto her knees beside Luna and barely noticed that Tom was holding Luna's head still, so she wouldn't push it harder and injure her neck. She took Luna's hand and let her friend cut into her skin with her nails. Slowly, Luna began to breathe more regularly, the screaming ceased and her body relaxed and collapsed back onto the ground. Tom released her head, stood and quickly surveyed the park.
Ginny listened to Luna's gasps for breath, and that was the only reason why she heard Luna's softly whispered words.
"I…I particularly dislike that li…little curse." It was then that Ginny remembered that during the Second Wizarding War, Luna had been captured by Death Eaters. She had probably been tortured with the Cruciatus a few times before. Ginny had a new respect for her friend. Luna never let other people's actions change her, be it bullying from fellow students or torture from dark wizards and witches. If Tom had captured Luna instead of Ginny, Luna probably would have survived much better than she had.
"We should go," said Tom, putting his wand back into a pocket in his robes. "Aurors will be here soon, and I have no interest in being discovered by them."
Though grateful to him for saving Luna, Ginny felt a ball of hot rage building in her chest at his sudden appearance and his assumption that they would just go with him.
"What are you doing here?" she demanded. "Have you been following me?"
Tom shook his head quickly, though he didn't look at her. He was folding Luna's arms across her chest like a body at a funeral. "No. I was following Hades. He has been a thorn in my side for quite long enough, but I can't quite seem to catch him long enough to kill him."
How Tom managed to track Hades to Primrose Hill, she wasn't sure, but it didn't matter. Tom had come, and had helped, but Ginny knew he had to leave her life immediately, or she'd risk his capturing her again. "Why should we leave? We need to tell the aurors what happened!"
"No. Hades knows I am after him. He will assume I apparated out to find him, and he may take the chance to come back and kill you. I can't take that chance – you have to leave the area at once," Tom said, standing. He removed his wand again, and began to back towards the exit. "Lovegood can stay behind and talk to the aurors, but you must leave."
"If it's really that dangerous, I can't leave Luna behind!"
Tom hesitated, sighed, and stepped forward again. "Fine, then. We'll take her with us, and you can report it to the aurors later. But we must hurry!"
Tom bent down and picked Luna up like a bride, making sure her skirt would keep her modest. He turned and began for the exit, and after hesitation, Ginny ran and picked up Shikoba – unharmed from the fight – and followed after him, abandoning the picnic things.
They exited the park in silence, just in time to avoid the Muggle police as they arrived in cars. They hurried down the block, attempting to escape notice.
Ginny's mind was reeling with all that had happened. Hades attacked her in a public place. Muggles had seen and ran – it would be a hard job for the Ministry to clean it up, though she had no concern that they wouldn't manage it. Luna had been tortured. Tom had returned. And they were running now for their flat.
"I don't want you to know where I live," Ginny said suddenly. "When we get close enough, I'll carry Luna myself."
Tom sighed, clearly annoyed. "Do you realize how easily I could find it if I wanted to? Your name is on a lease, Granger's in a phone book, and it is even simpler to find you through magical means. You'll recall that I have a special talent for reading minds."
He did read minds, didn't he? Ginny wondered how often he had read her mind. "Then I guess I'll just have to hope you respect me on this."
Tom smirked over at her, but he didn't respond. As they turned a corner, Ginny couldn't resist asking, "What happened that day?"
"Which day?"
"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about."
After a pause, Tom shrugged. "It doesn't really matter."
"Why would you say that?"
"Because after today, we will never see each other again. So why would it matter at all?"
The only real reason Ginny had was curiosity. What illness or curse had laid Tom Riddle so low that he crawled under tables, begged for touch, and let Ginny go free? And why, once it ended, hadn't he come back to capture her again? Yes, he'd begun to realize that his plan was futile, but she'd never really expected Tom to let her go and never return.
Ginny stretched, arching her back as they walked and wincing at the soreness in it from Hades flinging her to the ground. "I guess it doesn't matter."
Tom shifted Luna's weight in his arms, and Luna gasped, residual pain seeming to shoot through her at the movement. Ginny had almost forgotten Luna was even there, but one look at her face showed that Luna could barely hear them anyway. She was still trying to recover from the blow of double Cruciatus curses.
"I suppose," Tom said softly, "That if we were to tie up any loose ends, now would be the time."
Ginny paused, trying to think of anything she really needed to know from Tom. But nothing really came to mind, at least nothing important. She knew all about Tom from books, from Harry, from her time spent with him. Any questions she'd had were long-since answered or given up.
Eventually, she held Shikoba tighter to her chest, and then turned her head to look at Tom. "How did you control Shikoba? And why?"
"He was a pawn, easy to use. I needed something to guide you to Hades, without the use of obvious magic, or he would have detected you and may have attacked without realizing who you were. The bird was nearby, and with the power I'd gained while in your head, I reached out and touched his mind. I did the same to cause headaches whenever I needed to," said Tom. "I suppose, in a way, I also knew that if you didn't have some sort of companion you would be too broken to be of any use to me. An animal companion that I could control if need be was much safer than you speaking too often to your siblings or parents or other friends, and perhaps giving too much away without my being able to stop you."
"Oh," was Ginny's response. She wasn't sure what else to say. Tom spoke in a cool, detached way, which Ginny realized was better than how he'd used to talk. He'd spoken of isolating and controlling her like he was talking about a story, whereas he once would have had his voice full of cruel amusement and possessiveness. He distanced himself now from their time together, it seemed, and she was grateful. She tried to distance herself, too.
After a moment, Ginny realized that she had a golden opportunity, and she was wasting it. She shouldn't be focusing on solving mysteries of the past, but rather focus on the future, and Tom's plans for it. More importantly, whether he'd decided to revert to his old plans or not.
"Have…" she began, but her voice failed for a moment. She tried again. "Have you hurt anyone since I left?" She was especially worried about Léska, who may have been blamed for whatever had happened to Tom. Maybe Léska was to blame! It occurred to her suddenly that the old wizard may have slipped Tom some potion or other.
"Hurt? Oh, yes," said Tom, with some measure of pride. "I've hurt Hades plenty of times, as well as other ex-Death Eaters that have gotten in my way. But if you are merely afraid to use the word 'killed', then the answer is no. I have not killed anyone yet, and the only life I plan to take is Hades Xylander's."
"The only? As in…the only only?"
Tom chuckled. "Yes, Ginny. The only only," he said. "I told you, I have no intention of weighting whatever conscience I may have now down with multiple deaths. As of now, the only person I've killed is my father."
Ginny reminded him, "And the people killed by the Basilisk. You're responsible for those too, since you opened the Chamber of Secrets and controlled the monster inside."
Tom paused, his face showing a slight confusion as though this were the first time he'd ever thought of it. "Yes. Alright, I'm responsible for those, too. Though I would have to say that the world is a bit better off without Moaning Myrtle. Imagine the sort of mother she would have been."
"That's cold," she said instantly, as though she weren't speaking to the man who'd killed Myrtle. A bitter taste filled her mouth.
"Perhaps," said Tom, shrugging. "But true."
Ginny shook her head, and she felt a sudden pity for Moaning Myrtle. She'd never liked the ghost, but having her life so easily disregarded and dismissed was cruel. Maybe Ginny had been cruel to the ghost, too. She'd done a lot of things in her Hogwarts years she wasn't proud of.
Maybe Tom had, too.
"What do you plan to do now, then, if not kill Muggles? Are you still going to take over the Wizarding world?"
"There would be no point," said Tom. "Ruling the world is too much work. The only reason I wanted the world was so that I could make you Queen of it. Can you imagine? It would have been beautiful."
Ginny felt her body turn cold, and then hot, as the bitter taste reached her throat. She wasn't sure what to make of those words, but she didn't want to give them weight anyway. Instead, so returned to her question.
"Then what are you going to do?"
Tom smiled at her refusal to respond to his bait, and said simply, "I have a few ideas, but I haven't made any decisions yet."
Before Ginny could digest this information, they reached the corner of her block. She didn't want to get any closer to their flat with Tom. It wasn't just for her own sake, but for Luna and Hermione's, too.
"This is as far as we go," said Ginny.
Tom sighed. "How do you plan to carry both Lovegood and the bird?"
As a reply, Ginny placed Shikoba on Luna's chest, and Luna wrapped her arms around the bird to steady him. Then she held out her arms to take Luna from Tom.
Tom didn't move. "Are you quite certain you want to carry her? She's light for a human being, but still a human being. She may be heavier than you expect."
"I'm stronger than I look."
Tom chuckled. "In more ways than one, I'm sure. Very well," he said, and then surrendered Luna to Ginny's arms. "That's all you need to know?"
"That's all," said Ginny, adjusted to hold Luna a bit easier. She turned, and began walking away without giving Tom so much as a passing glance. "Goodbye, Tom Riddle."
Tom's voice was soft in reply. "Goodbye, Ginevra."
After six months, they had finally said their farewells.
Artificial: Sorry if the quality on this chapter is a bit…off. It was written at three different times, though the biggest chunk was in one day, and a day I was having difficulty focusing. So if it seems a bit rushed or soulless, that's why. But I guess you could say I wrote it that way for a reason. Maybe it represents Ginny's disconnectedness? Yeah, I'm going to go with that! Haha. Also, please forgive me for not writing Luna well. She's a character that takes practice, I think, and I haven't really had any. Anyway, please review! Praise and criticism are both wonderful things, and I happily accept either.