Chapter Nine
Getting Closer…
The three of them arrived outside of the Hogwarts gates. They were greeted by the Headmistress of Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall. After exchanging a few pleasantries, they made their way to the grave site. Harry's eyes locked onto Ginny's casket. He raced over to it with Ron and Hermione right behind him. Harry reached for the casket, and then stopped. He gently reached out to it and grabbed a handle. Pulling it up ever so slightly, he realized she was still inside the casket. He breathed a sigh of relief and looked over to Ron.
"What did they do Harry? Why would they dig her casket from the ground and leave her in there?" Ron asked quietly. A shadow passed over Harry's face and he reached for the casket again. Then he noticed that the lid had been pried loose already. He cast a quick worried glance at Ron. Ron nodded and Harry pulled open the lid. Harry fought back a sob that was creeping up and looked at Ginny's body. Due to the preservation charms, she was almost like he remembered her. But he guessed the charms were starting to fade due to her slightly sunken in appearance. He waved his wand for a quick scan and only found the preservation charms on her body.
"Well the good news is they did not mess with her at all," Harry said. He was about to close the casket when he noticed the pendant he gave to her was missing. "Hang on, they took her pendant!"
Ron's face clouded over in confusion, but Hermione was curious. Her mind worked furiously for a few moments while Harry and Ron gently lowered Ginny's casket back down into the grave. Harry's eyes were moist as he waved his wand to replace the earth that had been covering Ginny. He put a hand on Ron's shoulder as he faced away from the grave.
"Ron, I know I have said this before, but I am so sorry she's gone," Harry whispered quietly. Ron reached up and put his hand over Harry's.
"I know Harry, but we need to move on. Ginny would hex us into the next millennium if she saw us now," Ron said. "She wouldn't want us to dwell in the past."
Harry released his hand and conjured a bouquet of roses and laid them at the headstone. He kissed his finger tips and pressed them to the picture of Ginny, who was waving and smiling. He let out a shaky breath and felt Hermione put her arms around him from behind. He leaned into her and looked up at the sky. A couple of tears spilled out of his eyes. A voice from behind them made them all jump.
"Ron's right you know, I would," the voice said. They spun around to see a transparent Ginny floating behind them. "How are the three of you?"
Ron stood there gaping like a landed fish, while Harry and Hermione were staring at Ginny with confusion.
"Ginny, how is it that you're here? I thought you made peace with everything and finished what you needed to. I thought that you would have moved on right away," Hermione said. Ginny smiled and shook her head.
"So did I. But there was one thing I needed to make sure of before I moved on. I figured it out about a year or so of floating around here," she said with a wry smile. Harry looked a bit confused.
"So what was it? What kept you here?" he asked.
"You did Harry. I was sort of there in the hospital wing when you lost it. Before you lost control, I was about to move on. But as soon as you disappeared, the way forward was blocked. I wondered what to do for the longest time, and I kept trying to figure out what to do. I was able to move to other locations, but I could not make myself seen. But I was able to watch," she explained. "When you finally admitted your feelings for him Hermione, is when I figured it out. Thank you for keep your promise to me. He deserves to be happy."
Hermione cracked a small grin and put her hand in Harry's. Ginny smiled and nodded. Ron reached out to touch her hand, and Ginny met him halfway. She was able to concentrate just enough to get a second's worth of solid contact before she started to fade.
"Harry, you need to let me go. I know you will be happy with her. Please, don't hold back your feelings because you think you would offend my memory. You would offend my memory if you sealed yourself off from everyone," Ginny said. "Hermione, take care of him, he needs it whether he admits it or not."
"Ginny before you go, I have a question," Hermione said. Ginny nodded for her to continue. "Well, two days ago when Harry and I finally talked about it, well we kissed and then we felt a warm breeze flow right through us. That was you, wasn't it?" Ginny nodded and smiled.
"Yes it was me that did that. I was so happy when you two finally got it worked out. I knew then that Harry would be ok," she said. "My time is short, because I can feel the pull now. Harry, it was Draco who did this to my grave. Don't hurt him too badly, as he had a wand pressed to his temple while he did this. He didn't want to, but they would have killed him. He didn't even touch my body itself. He just levitated the pendant off of me." She looked up and behind her and nodded. "It's time for me to go. Ron, give mum and dad a big hug from me please. And tell them that I am having a great time learning about 'baby Harry'!" she said with a wink. Harry went a bit red at this.
"Bloody hell, my parents have their claws in you don't they!" Harry said. Ginny nodded.
"Yeah, they are they ones coming to get me," she said cheekily. Harry chuckled to himself.
"Well I have a message for you to give to my dad. Tell him thanks for the great 'talk' he gave me!" Harry said. Hermione let out a scandalized huff and clipped him on the back of the head. "Ow! Easy, I just want Ginny to make him embarrassed for me."
Ginny shook her head at his antics and waved goodbye to the group and floated up into the air and disappeared forever. Ron stood there staring at the spot that Ginny had faded from. He was shaken out of his memories by Harry pulling him into a one armed hug. Ron gave him a quick hug back.
The three of them went to the Headmistress' office. They gave a quick rundown on what they had found out. Harry separated from the group and went over to Dumbledore's portrait. Harry saw him feigning sleep, because after Harry sighed in annoyance, he saw the corners of Dumbledore's mouth twitch. Harry got his wand out and poked the painting sharply. Harry huffed as this was Dumbledore's favorite new game, to annoy Harry.
"Alright Albus," Harry said. "I'll give you to the count of three before I get a bit rough. One… Two… Alright, you asked for it!"
Hermione shrieked in horror as Harry conjured up a ball of fire and was moving towards Dumbledore's portrait. She started to get up and run to stop him, when Minerva stopped her. She gave a pointed look that said, 'just wait and see what happens'. Hermione watched as Harry grinned mischievously and flicked his wand at the portrait. The fireball disappeared and Dumbledore let out a surprised yelp as he shot up from his chair. He rubbed his slightly burned bottom and glared good naturedly at Harry.
"Alas, I knew I should have not given you the name and location of that enchanter," Albus said, his eyes even twinkled in his portrait. "Now that you have won this round, Harry, could you please cancel the enchantment on my chair in here? I would like to be able to sit down."
Harry nodded and made a complex series of motions with his wand. Albus tested his chair and smiled appreciatively. Harry settled into a chair right in front of Albus' portrait. Harry glanced at Hermione and smiled. He put up a privacy charm so he could run his ideas over Albus before he talked with the others. Hermione was a bit annoyed at Harry, but he just gave her a small smile and wink, and motioned for her to be patient for just a minute. She nodded, but she wasn't thrilled about being left out of the loop.
Hermione and Minerva made some small talk as Harry appeared to be in a quick but deep conversation with Albus. A few minutes later the privacy charm was dropped and Harry made his way over to the group. He sat down and took a deep breath.
"Ok, from what I understand from what Albus and I were discussing, I think I know why the pendant was taken. During the final battle those years ago, there was a point when Voldemort stopped fighting the curse and was staring at Ginny. I think he transferred his soul to her pendant as a horcrux," Harry said. "It seems when I released the binding spell he had on himself to protect his remaining part of his soul, it enabled him to do that. That's how he was able to come back last night." Minerva gasped at the information.
"My word! He's back again?" Minerva exclaimed.
"Yes he is. I can tell," Harry said pointing to his scar. "Now another thing is bugging me. Ginny said that Draco was the one who took the pendant from her, but we fought him last night. Which one was the real Draco?" Ron cleared his throat.
"I can answer that one, Harry. It turns out shortly after you left last night; the polyjuice on 'Malfoy' wore off. We found out that it was Nott. He bragged that Malfoy had another project that had to be covert. He admitted this under veritaserum," Ron explained. He took a drink of water and continued. "We got a total of six Death Eaters last night thanks to you two. But the rest left before your duel with Snape was done."
Minerva's head snapped to Harry, and her expression darkened. Harry shrank under her gaze, thinking she was going to yell at him for dueling Snape. Her lips pressed into a thin line and her eyes flashed for a moment.
"What was the outcome of the duel Harry? Did you kill him?" she asked hopefully. Harry did a double take at her before answering her.
"I'm not sure if I did. I know that if I didn't, he won't be able to anything for the near future. I threw enough power at him to either kill him, or wipe his mind. All I know is that his hand must have accidentally hit his portkey and he never even landed. Oh, and Tom is none too happy about that either!" Harry finished cheekily. Minerva breathed a sigh of relief.
"Well, nothing you could do is good enough for that traitor!" she snapped. The three of them stared at her with surprise at her comment. Minerva looked back at them pointedly. "Albus was one of my greatest friends. Snape murdered him in cold blood. I don't care if Albus was already frail, he could have pulled through it. But that bastard just had to…" she trailed off.
Harry sat back in shock at hearing the normally strict and reserved headmistress before him rant about Snape. He knew there was always a bit of rivalry between the two of them, but he now realized that Snape had made an enemy forever. He leaned over and put his hand over hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. She gave a rarely seen smile in return.
They had a quiet lunch and Minerva grilled Harry for details on what he had been up to for the last few years. He explained about the things he had done and Minerva was as excited as Hermione was about the enchanting. Ron was even interested about the details of that subject. Harry was hounded by the two women into running to his home quickly to get the sword he had made. Hermione was especially adamant about it since he was supposed to show her the previous night.
Harry arrived back around fifteen minutes later with his sword in its scabbard, slung across his back. He lifted the sword off of his back and laid it on the table in the center of the office. Hermione gazed at the intricately designed scabbard, and could only imagine what the blade would look like. She reached out hesitantly to draw the sword, and glanced at Harry to make sure it was ok to do so. He nodded and she took a deep breath. She drew the sword from the scabbard. She marveled at the beauty of the weapon. The hilt was covered in gold, and the blade had multiple runes etched into the base of the blade.
Harry watched her with amusement as she read the runes and deciphered them right there. She looked at Harry with wide eyes on what he had written there. He nodded and smiled. Ron took the blade from Hermione and backed up so he could test it and not hit anything in the office. He whipped the blade around in a basic warm up. When he was finished, he laid the sword back on the table and noticed that Hermione looked excited about something.
"Hermione? What's got you so worked up?" Ron asked.
"It's what Harry etched onto the blade. See those runes there?" she said pointing to the base of the blade. Ron nodded and looked back up at her. "Well the runes are a bit more modern than they teach here but they mean the same thing. Translated it means: 'Pierce the heart of darkness, and the darkness within shall be taken from the heart. Only light shall remain, and the judgment shall be swift.' Harry, do you realize what this means? You can use this against Voldemort!" Harry nodded and chuckled wryly.
"When I created the sword, I made it so that if any other dark lord showed up, I could use it on them. The way the sword works is that if the sword pierces the heart of a dark lord, the magic will separate the darkness in them from their soul. It would be channeled through the handle of the sword and stored in this jewel here," Harry said and pointed to the end of the handle. "Then the other enchantment will be a spell that will force the mind to replay all of the evil things they have done. Now when the dark taint has been removed, it restores a section of their compassion. The judgment would depend on how bad their transgressions were. The result could be anywhere from ashamed to completely insane."
The other three people in the room were stunned by what Harry had just told them. Harry broke them out of their thoughts.
"There is only one problem with the sword," he said looking at his feet.
"What's the one problem with it, Harry?" Hermione asked curiously. Harry sighed and looked frustrated with himself.
"Er, it doesn't work yet," he said. At their spluttering replies, he held up his hand to have them let him explain. "It seems that the second enchantment did not take. I ran into a rising Dark Lord in Mexico last month. After a bit of a fight, I managed to get him with the sword. His dark taint had been removed, but then he just didn't care about what he had done. His power level was a bit less without the dark arts helping them along, but he didn't even twitch when the second enchantment should have hit him. He calmly asked me if I could pull the sword out, and then just walked away. He didn't have the desire to fight anymore, but he showed no remorse for anyone he had killed. I ended up turning him in for his crimes, but he just didn't care. So that meant I did not do the second part right. And unfortunately, because I have to remove the enchantments to re-apply them, taking them off will destroy the sword. So I will have to start from scratch again."
"Harry, what happened to the second enchantment that it did not work?" Hermione asked. Harry shrugged and pondered this question.
"I'm not sure, but I will need to do some research on it," he said. Hermione told him she would help him with his research, especially since she had access to Department of Mysteries materials. Harry, Hermione, and Ron took their leave and said goodbye to Albus and promising an update for Minerva very soon. As they were leaving Minerva had a quick conversation with Albus, and stopped them at the door.
"Harry might I ask you a favor please?" she asked. He nodded his head in reply. Minerva walked up to Harry and reached out with her hand, holding a ring with a phoenix on it. "Albus would be delighted to see you lead the Order of the Phoenix."
Harry stood there with his jaw on the floor. He had not expected this at all. He looked over at Hermione to see her silently begging him to accept. He knew he was probably everyone's favorite to lead the group, but he wasn't so sure of his ability to lead. He came to a decision.
"I will only accept the ring if the three of us are the leaders. I know everyone wants me to lead it, but I can't lead the Order without the help of Hermione and Ron," Harry said. Without missing a beat both Minerva and Albus' portraits answered his concession.
"Of course!" they chorused. Minerva spoke next.
"We had planned on the fact you would do such a thing. We knew that you would not do anything without those two at your side," she said explaining why they agreed so fast. She held out her other hand and handed each of them one of the Order's rings. She smiled as all three of them put the rings on and a brief flash of magic flared from them. She was about to dismiss them when there was a burst of fire from the far end of the office. A delighted trill of phoenix song echoed through the office.
Fawkes had been waiting for this moment for a while now. Since his dear friend Albus had died, he had been waiting for a person to bond with. That person had to have a good heart and a desire to bring happiness to others no matter the cost. When Harry put aside his own pursuits to lead the order, he became the perfect companion for Fawkes. The plus side is that Fawkes always had a soft spot for the black haired boy who visited his friend so many times. Fawkes flew towards the group and landed on Harry's shoulder. He nuzzled Harry's head and let out a content sigh.
Harry on the other hand was stunned into silence. No one had seen Fawkes since Albus' funeral four years prior. He hesitantly ran his hand over Fawkes' feathers, bringing another content sigh from the phoenix. He looked over at Albus, but he was just smiling and twinkling away. Harry shook his head and walked over to the portrait.
"You knew he would do this when I took the ring didn't you?" Harry asked. Albus nodded in reply.
"Of course, my boy! He and I had many discussions about this in my final weeks. He knew that he wanted to become your companion when I passed on, no matter how long he had to wait. I offered him an option to join you earlier, but he would not hear of it. He told me he would wait until it was time for him to bond with you," Albus explained.
"Sir? How were you able to talk with him?" Harry asked. He was eager to converse with Fawkes, knowing that Fawkes would have a few amusing stories to tell.
"Patience, my boy. It will happen in time. It will take a while to build up the connection between the two of you," Albus said. "Don't try to force it, as it could hurt both you and Fawkes. It will just happen over time." Harry nodded and continued to stroke Fawkes' plumage.
"Well thank you again, Albus," Harry said. "I will keep the two of you updated on what we should do next. I think we have a bit of time before Voldemort is ready to strike."
Everyone agreed and the trio left the office. Minerva watched them leave the gates from her office window. She smiled to herself as she saw the three of them talking with each other like they had while they were students there. She walked back to her desk and composed a note to the rest of the Order and duplicated the letter as many times as was needed to reach everyone. When she had finished the letters, she walked over to the fireplace in the office. She sent the letters through a special way to ensure everyone would get one of the letters.
Minerva McGonagall sat back at her desk and pondered the latest events. The sudden resurgence of Voldemort and his followers was shocking, including such a sudden and bold attack. She proceeded to draft a letter to the Minister for Magic, hoping that Rufus would act quickly to protect the wizarding world.
ooo
Harry, Hermione and Ron arrived back at Auror headquarters so Ron could file his report. While he was writing his report, Hermione took Harry to the Department of Mysteries so Gavin could meet Harry. Hermione knocked on the door and led Harry in. Gavin stood up to greet him.
"Well Harry, it's an honor to finally meet you," he said while shaking Harry's hand. They conversed for a while longer while Hermione finished a bit of her paperwork. She had got the feeling from Harry that he was not too comfortable in the department. She rescued him soon enough and they made their way back to the auror's offices. Harry got a few funny looks at the sword slung on his back, but he just ignored them.
When Ron had finally finished his report, Sharon joined the three of them and they all went out for dinner. They chatted the night away, attempting to make sure they would have one last night of fun before the next war started. The conversation turned to updating Sharon on what was going on. She was a staunch supporter of the light, so Harry invited her to the next Order meeting so they could induct her properly.
After dinner Harry and Hermione went back to his house. Hermione proceeded to raid the library in his house, trying to find books on enchantments. She busied herself in books while Harry went to his workout room to practice. He shut the door and drew the sword. He dressed himself in a pair of thin pants, and a tight sleeveless shirt. He stretched himself out. He did a small warm up to loosen his limbs up. He stepped into a marked area and a training dummy animated so he could do some sparring.
For the next hour, Harry and the training dummy fought back and forth, neither one backing down. Harry had not noticed, but Hermione had entered the room halfway through his session.
Hermione watched in awe as Harry moved at almost superhuman speeds dodging and parrying the blows from the training dummy, all while attempting to fight back. Her eyes took in his strong body. 'Well,' she thought to herself while fighting her flushing face, 'Harry has most definitely kept himself in shape.' She almost had to fan herself to fight the heat that was gathering in her face. Harry's well muscled upper body had come a long way from the wiry body he had while he played quidditch. Her daydreaming was interrupted by a loud yell from Harry.
Harry yelled in triumph as he managed to catch the training dummy with a very complex move. He parried a blow and slightly twisted his wrist so the blade would catch the opponent's blade at an awkward angle and with a flick of his wrist the blades connected and he was able to send his opponent's sword across the room. The dummy made the gesture for yielding in a duel, and Harry set down his weapon and stepped back. He heard a soft whistle behind him and he whipped around to see Hermione staring at his with a strange look in her eyes. He blushed down to his roots and smiled shyly. Hermione got up and walked towards him. She got within a few inches of him and then wrinkled her nose.
"Ewww, you kind of stink, luv," she said. He grinned and suddenly snatched her and pulled her close. "Oh! Harry that's gross! Why you, now I'll have to take a shower!"
He just grinned at her and kissed her soundly. She leaned into his kiss and wrapped her arms around him giving up. They kept going until they needed to break for air, and they rested their foreheads against each other's staring into each others eyes. Harry noticed a fire in her eyes that made him heat up a bit more than he already was. She let go of him and started leaving the room. He stood there trying to gain control again when she turned and looked at him.
"I'm going to go and take a shower," she said. She gave him a wink and a smile. His heart fluttered in his chest as she undid a couple of her blouse button as she said this. He wasn't sure if he was ready for this and she noticed his hesitation. She walked back to him and put her hands on his chest. "Please, just come with me."
Hermione reached up and pulled him into another heart stopping kiss. He lifted her up and returned the kiss. When they broke apart again, he finally said something.
"Mione, I'm not sure this is a good idea yet," he said huskily. "But if you keep that up, I might lose control." Hermione smiled at this and looked into his eyes.
"But Harry, think about it, that's what love is. It's something you cannot control and you shouldn't fight. I'm not trying to force you into anything, but you just have to let go," she said. "I know you are trying to make sure you are ready, but understand this. I will never let you go. You will never lose me, even if I am dead, that won't stop me from loving you."
Harry smiled and nodded. He did understand, but he needed a bit more time. It wasn't that he didn't love her and didn't want to be with her. He had been gone for four years and he had changed. He thought about things more thoroughly these days, and his mind was telling him it was a bit too soon. As he stood there, his mind was losing the fight to his heart. His heart was telling him to just let go. Hermione saw the conflict and put her hands on his chest and leaned against him. He held her close and felt her smile against his chest. They stood like that for quite a while, until Hermione broke the silence.
"Alright Harry, I can wait as long as it takes. But instead of a shower, how about a swim in your pool?" she said. She felt him sigh just a bit, almost in disappointment. She decided to go and get her suit on. "Well, I don't know about you, but I want to swim. Meet me in there if you wish."
She walked out of the room with a sly grin on her face. Harry raced past her in an effort to beat her. She took off after him and soon they were chasing each other around trying to win the race to the bedroom. Hermione won the race, but only because she had taken off her shirt and threw it into Harry's hands. With the stunned look on his face after he saw her like that, she was able to dart past him and into the room first. She grabbed her suit and a large shirt to wear down to his pool and she went into the bathroom to change. She heard him stumble into the bedroom and he bumped into something.
By the time she came back out, Harry had changed into his swim trunks. She reached out and took his hand. They walked down to the first floor and to the back room. Harry took his tee shirt off and dove into the pool right away. Hermione tested the water with her toes before she was ready to jump in. She could hear Harry happily splashing around and doing a couple of laps. She looked over her shoulder when it got quiet and saw Harry staring at her. She decided to twist the knife just a bit. She turned around to face him and took the shirt off. His reaction was priceless.
"Sweet Merlin," he whispered. She was wearing a very skimpy string bikini that highlighted everything about her.
She dove into the water and swam over to him. He had a goofy grin on his face. He gently reached out and put his arm around her waist. He pulled her close and they just stared into each other's eyes. He grin grew bigger and he leaned in to kiss her. She returned the kiss and they lost each other in the sensation. They lazily swam around and chatted for a while. When Harry made a rather cheeky remark, she splashed him right in the face. His grin turned feral and the water fight soon got out of hand when they started using magic to push the water around.
After they tired each other out, they went back upstairs. Hermione took her shower first which started with her pouting because Harry still did not join her, but at least this time he was actually standing in the doorway looking her way when she came out for a towel. She blushed a bit and laughed when he was stunned to silence again when she walked right up to him and brazenly kissed him before she took the towel.
After Harry finished his shower, he dressed just a pair of cotton sleep pants and found Hermione dressed like the night before. His heart rate sped up a bit and he climbed into the bed next to her. She placed a bookmark in the book she had been reading and moved to lay down next to him. She snuggled up close to him and he draped his arm over her waist. They both drift off to sleep, each one having some interesting dreams about the other.