Chapter Four: Dissolve, and Quite Forget
Ginny awoke the next morning to a tapping on her window. Hermione certainly doesn't waste any time, she thought ruefully as she recognized the handwriting on the letter the owl offered her. "Here you go," she said, offering the owl a treat as she tore open the letter.
Dear Ginny,
I'm sorry I didn't get another chance to talk to you yesterday. Don't feel badly that Malfoy got convicted; I know you believe that he was trying to help, but…he's Malfoy. He doesn't help people.
I'm going to Diagon Alley on the 30th to get my school supplies. Do you want to meet me there?
If Ron and Harry start talking to you again, can you tell them how sorry I am? I miss all of you.
Love,
Hermione
It was far too early in the morning to deal with this.
Hermione,
It doesn't bother me that Malfoy's in Azkaban. I think he really was trying to help, but you're right, he's Malfoy. He's where he belongs.
I'll probably be working at WWW, so drop in if you like. Harry and Ron still aren't talking to me.
Ginny
She let the owl fly with a pat and ambled downstairs, still in her pyjamas. Molly sat at the table in her bathrobe looking more disheveled than usual, clutching a cup of tea. When she looked up at Ginny, her eyes were puffy and red, full of shell-shocked pain. She half-expected Molly to yell at her or tell her to go away, but she did neither.
"Mum...what happened?" Ginny asked cautiously. She glanced quickly at the clock, but all hands still pointed to Mortal Peril.
"They're gone," Molly choked, her eyes filling with fresh tears. "Ron...Harry..." She bent over her cup, dissolving into sobs.
Ginny closed her eyes in sorrow, coming up behind Molly and wrapping her arms around her mother's shoulders. At this, Molly began keening. "Shhhh, Mum, they're going to be okay...the note says they'll be back soon...it's what they want to do...it's what they need to do..."
"You knew!" Molly wailed, her nails biting into Ginny's forearm.
"I knew they'd do this eventually," she admitted. "But it was easier for them to go without people telling them not to. Listen Mum, I'm going to quick Floo over to Fred and George and tell them I'm not coming in today, and then I'm going to make some rarebit for us." She disentangled herself from Molly. "How does that sound?"
Molly's shoulders heaved as she nodded; she couldn't speak, but the look she gave Ginny was enough.
Ginny kissed Molly on the top of her head, the same way Molly had done to her innumerable times during her childhood. "I'll be back soon. Love you, Mum."
She leaned her forehead against the cool stone of the fireplace and breathed deeply a few times to dispel any tears of her own before she reached for the Floo powder.