Disclaimer: I still don't own the wonderful world of Harry Potter
EDIT: So i got a review for the story and it really bothered me, so much that i rewrote this chapter, if you've already read the original don't worry it doesn't change the story in any way it's just written a little differently. Anyway Enjoy
The three of them stumbled through the door, not looking where they were going ,they almost ran into a very angry Dumbledore, the old man was dressed in his customary purple robes, but his kind smiling face was set in a frown. His twinkling eyes were hard.
"You are lucky to have returned with your lives. I do hope the two of your realise that" He said disappointment evident in his voice
"What do you suggest Dumbledore? someone had to go and get her, and I sure didn't hear anyone else volunteering to go." He was tired and irate already, Dumbledore was not helping the situation, this was Ron's sister and he was expected to just leave her. No.
"I am sure that you see what you did was very admirable, and many will view to so, but an impromptu rescue mission was not the way to handle this, you are incredibly lucky to have survived not to mention bringing Miss Weasley out with her life. Now you will follow me to the office where Mr and Mrs Weasley are waiting to see their daughter and apparently now son" he said looking at Ron and Ginny. "They will be most pleased to get them back but we must tell them what has taken place in this school."
Ginny paled at this new information. She didn't think that they would have to involve her parents not with the knowing every detail of what had occurred, it was not going to end well for her.
"Fine, we'll come." Harry said reluctantly; he had seen the flash of fear that crossed Ginny's face, it confused him, why would she be so scared to face up to her parents?
They followed their headmaster through the castle for a long while, the whole trip seemed to take much longer than it usually would, perhaps it was just the exhaustion finally wearing on him. Eventually they reached the office.
"Sugar plums" the gargoyle nodded his head before leaping to the side and allowing them entrence.
Climbing the staircase at record speed Dumbledore gave no time for Ginny, the only one that had never been in this position before, to admire the finery's. They stopped before the door and could hear the loud and panicked speech of Molly coming from inside. Dumbledore paused for a moment before reaching for the ornate handle and revealing the room inside.
Walking in Ginny stopped to gasp as she was suddenly pounced upon by her parents. Molly fussing over the dirt on her face for the moment not noticing that her youngest son and the honorary son were in the room as.
"Thank heavens, Ginny are you alright? I was so worried, what happened? Don't worry yourself it must have been just awful, oh i will never let you go again" she was hugging Ginny close to her chest as she let herself settle into the sofa she had been sitting on before, pulling Ginny down with her.
"I wouldn't sound so pleased so quickly Molly, this is far from a joyous time for us all, Harry and Ron went into the Chamber alone to save your daughter." He paused to look for the reaction of Molly and Arthur. Who were both too busy to notice the strange behaviour of the old man.
"I know that what they did was wrong Albus but if it wasn't for them," he motioned his head to Harry and Ron acknowledging their existence for the first time since they had returned from the deadly clutches of the Chamber "then my baby girl wouldn't have got out of there." Arthur said
Albus sighed "I really didn't want to tell you this but Ginny, she wasn't just a random target," he paused and Ginny looked at the floor as her parents grip already started to loosen as they looked at Dumbledore in confusion. "She has spent the last year attacking, controlling the monster that has been terrorising my school."
'Oh brilliant, just brilliant. Could he have made her sound any more evil" Harry thought, suddenly understanding Ginny's apprehension at being returned to her parents
The three Weasely's in the room turned to look at Ginny with a mixture of horror and shame, Ginny looked at the floor first the emotion becoming too much for her, the salty tears bubbled up over the lids of her eyes. That is until she took a deep breath, composed her face, Harry couldn't see what effect this had had until she reaised her head. Any look of a lost and scared child she had possessed before was long gone, replaced by a rather terrifying look of indifference that even he would never be able to acheive. It bothered Harry, sure he had figured out why she was so afraid earlier, they wouldn't accept her back and she knew that, but she appeared to have turned off all emotion.
"If you want an apology your not getting one, it wasn't my fault" Ginny said her voice cold.
"She is half right; she was being controlled by Voldemort. I am very sorry to say there is no way to tell how much of an influence this may have had on her. For all any of us know Miss Weasley could have been in league with Voldermort and still harbours an allegiance to him."Dumbledore looked apologetically at the parents of the Weasley clan.
"What are you talking about, I don't even know what happened!" Ginny said anger rising.
"I'm sorry Ginevra but I just can't support you in this and I won't lie to your parents."
Ginny dropped the indifferent look for a moment and looked over desperately to her mother and father. Molly and Arthur were looking at Dumbledore ashamed as he returned it with a look to them in sympathy.
"Ginny, we cannot live with someone in the family possibly on the dark side. We have a fully light family, no one will spoil that," Arthur paused, swallowing; he looked like he was collecting himself "We disown you, from this moment you are no longer any relative of ours"
Even Dumbledore looked shocked by this.
"I understand," she looked at them with her own look of shame "The muggles... the muggles would call you Hitler!" she took one last look at them all before running from the office.
"I never thought I would see a Weasley leave one of their own behind willingly." Harry said before he followed the girl from the room.
Harry followed the winding stairs to castle floor, looking both ways for any signs of Ginny.
'Damn she can run fast' he thought.
He had a sudden idea, rolling up his sleeve he spoke "Hey Nat, can you tell me where she went?"
He felt that same heat that he felt went Salazar used the magic in the chamber. It was like a pleasant burning feeling running around the snake on his arm. She began to enlarge, moving, becoming real. Until the full body of Natalia wrapped herself around his forearm, her slight head moving around to look at Harry.
"Ah Harry, missed me already I see" she hissed, Harry was almost sure that she was smirking at him.
He rolled his eyes at his friend. "Not now Nat please, can you just tell me where she went?"
"Fine," she paused for a moment, he saw a flash of pink as her tongue grazed the outside of her mouth. "She went that way" flicking her head to the left, indicating the left hallway.
"Thanks Nat" he said before rolling down his sleeve and followed the scent down the corridor. Confused, he arrived at the doors to the grounds, when he looked closer he noticed the doors slightly ajar.
Harry pushed the ornate old door outwards, the loud it created made Harry pause for a moment listening for any sound of movement in the darkened castle. Not hearing anything he breathed a sigh of relief, opening the doors slower this time, he exited the castle. Sliding his overly thin body through the tiniest crack he created in the double doors.
The humid nights outside the castle were a strange difference to the cool stone inside, he took a moment to adjust the dirty t-shirt which was already sticking to him, coated with sweat, blood and some form of strange water.
He peered in all directions trying hard to see through the dark night. At first he didn't see where Ginny could have gone but then from the corner of his eye, a glimpse, a dark shape in the air above the very hoops he was so familiar with, that provided him the same comfort she was seeking now. He wandered towards the Quidditch pitch hoping not to frighten her. Honestly he was apprehensive of what mood she would be in, considering how rapidly it was changing.
He stood for a moment next to the stands and admired the red head flying above the goals flying in and out doing tricks.
'She's good' he thought surprised at the youngest Weasley's capability. Ron had always implied she could not fly.
She shot suddenly towards him, landing on the ground with a thump, stumbling a bit before correcting herself.
Ginny straitened then smiled at him "Hello Harry"
"Ginny, are you all right?" he asked concerned, searching her face in hopes of gaining a true answer.
"I'm fine Harry, why do you ask?" she said lightly as if completely oblivious to the fact that she had just been disowned by her family.
"Ginny you were just disowned, you're taking that much too lightly. Plus don't make me think that you're an idiot. I know that you are much smarter than you look, don't try to play me for the fool." he replied so annoyed with her now he forgot to soften the blow for her.
She sighed knowing that she wasn't going to get out of this. "Look Harry I knew that this was going to happen eventually when I realised that I was being possessed by Voldemort, my parents they won't let me back after I have 'consorted' with the dark side. Do you really think I was so stupid as to not realise something was wrong… the moment I woke up I knew… I just knew." she said mocking both them and the dark side of magic, yet she was sad, very sad.
This shocked Harry, he found it so hard to imagine that Molly, the woman he thought of as his second mother, could do this to her only daughter. "But Ginny, they are your family. You didn't have a choice in that matter, you were being controlled. You have to fight make them see reason."
"That doesn't matter to them. When I said that they were like Hitler, I meant that once you aren't perfect anymore, then you can never be again. I can live with that, you know I might even enjoy life better now." Ginny smiled but he could see that it didn't reach her eyes.
Harry sighed knowing that he wasn't going to get to her this time. "What are you going to do this summer, you don't have a home." He was annoyed by the fact that she didn't seem the least bit bothered by this.
"I don't know yet I'm going to talk to McGonagall tomorrow morning to tell her although I'm sure she will have already heard by then." she had that indifferent look on her face again it scared Harry.
"Ginny I know what it's like to live without a family. I would never want anyone to live through that but you aren't taking it well." he said
Ginny eyes flashed "Don't judge me Harry, I will not cry" she said before kicking off from the floor and flying round the pitch.
Harry looked at her in pity for a moment. Turning he made his way back to the castle. Walking up he saw a dark shape standing below the doors of the castle getting closer he saw the distinct face of professor McGonagall staring back at him.
Harry paused for a moment before gathering himself and continuing towards the strict woman. "I have a reason to be out here after hour's Professor." he said when he made it to her.
She looked at him briefly before returning her eyes to the pitch "As much trouble as you are in Mr Potter, I'm not here for you."
He turned to look at Ginny for moment before looking back and asking what was on his mind- "What's going to happen to her now?"
McGonagall knew that the question was coming; it was going to be difficult for both of them, for Harry to watch another child lose their family when they never should have. She also knew that he wouldn't let her be completely alone in the world. Despite this she was really concerned about Ginny, the Weasely's were a very tight knit family, she was going to be depressed for a long time until someone was going to bring her out of it, but it could be a long time before that was going to happen.
"Harry don't worry for the moment, she can stay at the castle this summer, I always stay I won't let her be sent off to some unfamiliar place. I think that for the time being this will be just fine," for a moment she paused "I know that you're worried Harry but I need to know how is she?"
Harry considered the answer to this question "She isn't good Professor, she doesn't seem at all upset about it, and I don't understand. When I met her earlier this year she was scared of me, I have never talked to her, but now she has this face of complete unconcern. It really worries me, she says she knew that it was coming for a long time, but it's the Weasley's. They wouldn't run out on anyone in a time of need right?"
'Damn this boy is much too observant' she thought.
"Not everything is as it seems Harry," she said cryptically which only added to his annoyance "Why don't you go on up to bed, you need rest. Also, a shower might be in order" she finished with a slight twitch of her nose.
Harry wanted to protest but the look on her face clearly said not to, so he reluctantly obeyed her orders, pushing the heavy doors any walking off down the corridors. She waited until she could no longer hear the sound of his footsteps echoing of the stone floors before making her way out to the flying red head.
She took the same path that Harry had just come from and she came to a stop in almost the exact same place. However unlike Harry she didn't stop to admire the flying skills of the young red head before calling to her.
"Miss Weasley I need to speak to you" she called in a loud voice watching as the girl; stopped seemed to consider something before flying down to join her professor.
"What did you come to kick me out of school to?" she asked spitefully.
McGonagall ignored the rude tone of her voice "Actually Ginny I came to offer you a home for the summer," she paused to let Ginny register this information the continued "I always stay to look after the castle over the summer, you of course are most welcome to stay in my rooms with me I have a spare room in there."
Ginny paused "I don't need your charity or your pity professor but thank you for the offer" she said
"Do you have any other choice, besides I'm not offering you charity I could use the company. A whole castle to myself is a bit lonely sometimes."
Ginny was shocked by everything happening today 'I don't know if I can handle all this at the moment but, who am I kidding what choice do I have' she thought deciding what to do.
"Ok professor I'll stay with you." Ginny agreed albeit reluctantly
McGonagall nodded to her and had begun to leave. Stopping when she felt a small hand on her arm she looked back at the first year.
"Thank you, I appreciate it" Ginny looked extremely uncomfortable admitting to this.
Minerva McGonagall smiled at Ginny as best she could before leaving the strongest girl she had seen in almost 20 years behind.
Taking another short look back she saw Ginny sitting on the grass her head resting against the tall stands behind her.
Shaking her head she turned back towards the path. 'I didn't expect the casualty's to begin this early ' she thought walking inside the cold stone castle.