Chapter Three: The Fixer
AN: The past is in the past until its right in front of you. Moving on may be impossible, but acceptance? We can work with acceptance.
Disclaimer: A small portion of this chapter used information from Harry Potter and Order of the Phoenix. And somehow I still don't own Harry Potter. There's this woman, I don't know if you know her, but her name is JK Rowling and it appears she still owns Harry Potter.
Four Year Later
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Ginny rolled over in bed, and slammed her hand down on her alarm clock. Missing two times before finally hitting the off button, she barely managed to land on her feet as she rolled out of bed reaching blindly for her nearby running shorts and shoes. This was a ritual she had perfected over the years. Slow as she was in the morning, she had never made it out of her flat without it. Fumbling with her hair tie, she headed out the door, down the flight of stairs and into the streets of London.
Five minutes of mindless running, and her head cleared. She could finally structure her thoughts to the day ahead. This time alone always gave her a moment to think, to process. As the youngest Healer at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, she was seen as something of a prodigy among the staff. It was a lot to live up to, but she was always up for the challenge. She only wished it hadn't put her in such an awkward position with her colleagues who were more than eight years her senior. But there was little she could do to ease their bruised egos. After all, she'd earned her place there with her own merit.
After completing an eight-year apprenticeship in healing in three, she'd taken the wizarding world by storm. Becoming the first to ever accomplish such a feat, she'd spent the standard year rotating throughout the departments at St. Mungo's as the youngest Trainee Healer ever, which hadn't earned her many friends. Specially, not after she'd finished top of her rotation class. Followed by receiving one of the two St. Mungo's Early Healer Fellowship awards. Tonks had taken her out for beers when she'd heard. Ginny hadn't the heart to tell her that no first year Healer had ever received it.
With a fellowship award like that, she could have gotten into any department she'd wanted, and a lot of departments had wanted her. But the Dangerous Dai Llewellyn Ward had grabbed her attention during her rotations, so she'd spent the last two years as a Full Healer there. Her record didn't end there, of course, and she wasn't planning on slowing down. No, everyone expected so much more from her. And Ginny wasn't ready to disappoint.
It was an hour and a half later that found her fresh from a shower, dressed in her lime green healer robes, the wand and bone emblem embroidered on her chest, and ready to start the day with breakfast. As she passed the kitchen table on her way to the fridge, her hip bumped a stack of old newspapers. Briefly glancing at the stack to make sure no papers had fallen, she moved on to starting her breakfast. Bread and eggs, her usual morning fare.
It was an odd sight to see Ginny eating her fried eggs next to a pile of old newspapers that didn't seem to have anything in common. Date, time, headline. To an outside observer, nothing seemed to match. But to her, those newspapers were documentation of the wave of change that had hit the wizarding world. And that stack was not alone. Three other stacks mirrored it in odd places around her flat. In addition to the stack on the table in front of her, there was another on the counter next to the sink pilled with dirty dishes, one on the side table next to her couch in front of the fireplace, and one sitting on top of her dresser.
The oldest paper dated back to Ginny's last year of her apprenticeship. Buried at the bottom of the stack in her room. Its front-page story was 'Werewolves Refuges'. By now, she'd read it several times. It covered the story of Minister Fudge's strange reversal on the werewolves of Britain. The resulted stance bestowing more rights to the werewolf community, a never before seen feat within wizarding Britain's history.
Alone, the story created an uproar of reactionary public opinion, but Minister Fudge managed an additional surprise not even two weeks later as 'Minister Crackdown on Death Eaters' became the headlining news of the Daily Prophet. That also happened to be the second appearance of the Reaper, who'd killed two Death Eaters that turned out to have deep connection within the Ministry.
Ginny still remembered the first time he'd appeared just weeks before that incident. Those men had also been Death Eaters, even if they'd not all been Ministry employees. The gruesomeness of their murders had left Ginny with a bad taste in her mouth. But the scythe, the whole presentation to the kills, had remaindered her strongly of someone else. It was very arrogant with lots of showmanship that contrasted greatly with Riddle's typical style. Additionally, the Reaper only seemed to be targeting Death Eaters. All in all, a puzzle that intrigued Ginny greatly, and the reason for all of the newspapers.
Unsurprisingly after the Crackdown, Minister Fudge was confirmed as Minister of Magic for another term. She had a newspaper for that too sitting in her living room since it was such a historical event. Cornelius Fudge was now the longest running Minister in the history of the wizarding world. Still, this new change, this new wave of progress, didn't quite feel like Minister Fudge.
As far as she could tell, the Minister was an idiot. Pure and simple. He'd taken advice from Malfoy and before that Dumbledore, who was a significantly better choice in her opinion. Through all of that, she was sure he'd never had an independent thought of his own. He'd always needed to use someone smarter and stronger to decide things for him to get anything done. Quite frankly, Ginny didn't see why that should change now, especially with such new and controversial actions.
Now this Reaper, or whoever was leading them, was smart. He was clearly also strong, and currently only targeting Death Eaters. There was no face to the Reaper. No information, not even rumors. It was also interesting how the Minister capitalized on what the Reaper did by using his own specialized military. The investigations that followed any death of a Ministry employee were now being conducted with the Ankou Company as lead investigators. A spin on needing an independent investigation that even had Dumbledore going.
'But the name?' Ginny frowned in thought. Ankou Company was a sinister name matched only by the Reaper. It was hard for her not to make the connection given they'd both surfaced around the same time. But despite everything, their investigations were always fruitful. They were the direct force that had led to the decrease, if not non-existent, presences of Riddle within the Ministry. 'But only within the Ministry.' She added in her head. The Aurors still were responsible for fighting Riddle's forces, and that fight seemed to be going Riddle's way more often than not.
Ginny was of a mixed opinion about it. The Reaper seemed to be 'the end justifies the means' kind of guy. Killing Death Eaters in an amazingly grotesque fashion. But it was only Death Eaters. So, she remained optimistic about the Reaper. Of course, Dumbledore and his order were not of the same opinion. With half an eye on the Ankou Company and the other trying to unravel the Reaper's true identify, the man had managed only to split the Order's priorities and focus. No one had been able to infiltrate the Ankou Company, just as no one was close to figuring out anything about the Reaper. And they were still fighting against Riddle and his followers.
But that wasn't her problem. As a healer, she was only needed for quick medical treatments. Not that she didn't help with the fight in other ways, to the vast disappointment of her mother. Never one to sit back on the side lines, she preferred to be in the thick of it. She was a good healer, but she liked it even better when no one needed her help. And as a powerful and resourceful witch, she wasn't to be taken lightly.
Fighting against Riddle was one of the greatest satisfactions she'd gotten by being a part of the Order. And currently, she didn't see her position changing at least not any time soon. Not when they probably wouldn't be fighting the Reaper and his group for at least another ten years.
As she saw it, the problem with the Reaper was that no one, including Dumbledore, had made the same connection she'd made. The connection that linked Fudge, the Ankou Company, and the Reaper together. Of course, it was probably a combination of Dumbledore's arrogant belief that Fudge's change had something to do with him that stopped him from making any kind of connection. It also probably didn't help that the Order members looking in to the Reaper were so new. All of them young, too young to have really experienced a different Fudge. Too young to be anything but sheep when it came to Dumbledore's orders, following blindly without forming their own opinions or asking questions. If they'd looked outside the box even once, they might have at least heard a rumor.
Either way, she still wasn't planning to tell Dumbledore about her thoughts on the matter. As long as the Reaper targeted only Death Eaters, she was okay with letting him have the run of it.
Ginny was halfway through her fried eggs and toast when the post arrived. She picked up the Daily Prophet first. Would it be a normal news day or would the Reaper or Fudge make an appearance?
GOBLIN TREATY RENEWED! Headlined the front page with an impressive picture of the Goblins and the Minister signing the treaty. So, it would be Fudge today. Reading further it seemed the provisional treaty formed two years ago with the Goblins was being renewed and extended for another fifteen years. Ginny glanced at the stack of newspapers in front of her. That first Goblin Treaty article should have made it to that pile, but she didn't think it had made headlines. No, that had been one hell of a news day.
With the new legislation changes regarding werewolves, giants, and now goblins, the Minister had made large progressive strides on equality within the wizarding world. A position that Dumbledore and her father had supported for quite some time. In fact, this new move would put Dumbledore even more firmly in Minister Fudge's corner, despite the fact that the Minister has virtually turned his back on him.
In spite of Dumbledore's apparent arrogance, he was no fool. Ginny had overheard a conversation between Dumbledore and her father. It would seem that Dumbledore had her father test the Minister for polyjuice. And as it turns out Fudge was still Fudge, and so this strange behavior had to come from somewhere else. Strangely enough, Fudge had even distanced himself from Malfoy. In fact, it didn't appear he was being influenced by any other Lord or Lady Pureblood. Therefore, Dumbledore's easy acceptance of Fudge's new positions made a lot of sense. The best way to distance yourself from someone like Malfoy would be to do the opposite of what Malfoy would have wanted him to do. From Ginny's perspective, the Minister had accomplished this feat and she couldn't help but be happy with the current state of the Ministry. It also hadn't hurt that a couple of years ago Fudge had increased her father's division and added a werewolf component that her father now headed.
Along with the Daily Prophet, there were bills, a Witch Weekly that her mother had ordered for her, and a note from her boyfriend, Liam. Ginny picked that one up first.
She sighed as she put the note back down. Liam couldn't make it for dinner tonight. His boss was adding another case of files to his workload. From the sound of it, he'd be lucky to get done by midnight. The fact that it was coming in the post, most likely meant he'd slept at work again.
Ginny sipped on her tea as she thought. She'd change her plans and spend more time at the hospital. It was going to be okay, good news really. She really needed the extra hours to get ahead on some reading she was doing for some of the long-term patients. Besides, she'd eaten dinner at work hundreds of times. She'd even missed a date or two because of it, so she really couldn't fault him.
Looking over the newspaper one more time, she tucked away the bills and the Witch Weekly for another time. For some reason, she was reminded of a different paper. A paper that had been printed before her fourth year at Hogwarts. From time to time, she would read that paper from cover to cover. It didn't take long being a special edition. It was the only paper she didn't keep in any of the stacks. In fact, a guest would be hard pressed to find it within her flat. No, Ginny kept that newspaper locked tight away right next to some of her other precious items.
She wouldn't call it precious per say, but it was important, very important to her. She rarely took it out and read it. Normally only when she doubted herself, or if she was having a hard time with one thing or another. It was a grounding paper. There was nothing that could be done, or should be done. He was dead. Long dead. Had been since before Ginny had started her fourth year. And some days, she needed that reminder.
Shaking her head as she stopped herself from nervously twisting her bracelet, she finished off her tea. Moving to stand, she nodded to herself. Today was one of those days, she'd read it later tonight or maybe tomorrow. But now, now, she needed to get to work. She had a very busy workday ahead of her.
Ginny apparated directly to the ground floor of St. Mungo's Hospital. Four years ago St. Mungo's had gone through renovations so that it could handle the amount of witches and wizards coming in because of Riddle. The addition of an apparition site and a new fireplace for a floo connection was thanks to a generous donation from Sirius Black. One of the few good things Black had done over the years. Although she'd never admit it to his face. No matter the source of the funds, she was extremely grateful. She remembered her apprentice days well, and never wanted to go back to the pre-modification era.
"Good morning Healer Weasley. First one for your shift again, I see." The welcome witch behind the desk marked Inquiries spoke pleasantly.
Ginny looked around noting only a few people waiting in the reception area. "Morning Jessica," she spoke to the welcome witch as she walked towards the stairs. "You know I like to get a head start. There are always people to help. Why should I wait?"
Jessica smiled at the young healer. "If only all of the Healers were like you, Healer Weasley." As Ginny headed up the stairs from the ground floor, she heard Jessica add. "Do have a nice day, dear."
Ginny smiled to herself. Jessica was an extremely nice witch, which was probably why she was a welcome witch. Well, that wasn't completely true. Ginny knew a few welcome witches that weren't all that pleasant, or welcoming for that matter. Jessica was just a kind-hearted woman.
As she walked along the first floor to get to her office, she thought how nice it was to be a part of a department on the first floor. It never took her long to get to her office, which meant she could get right to work. Ginny said 'hello' to a few of the mediwitches checking on patients as she made her way toward her office area.
"Morning Healer Weasley," a young woman said as another Healer walked by the front desk stationed outside of Ginny's office.
"Weasley," the other Healer greeted sharply.
"Pye," Ginny responded in kind. It looked like Pye had a late shift again. That was never a good sign. Turning around to the young woman seated at the front desk outside of Ginny's office, she greeted her more warmly. "Morning Grace. What's today's schedule look like?"
Grace handed Ginny a few folders before speaking excitedly. "You'll be pleased to know Mr. Toulson is here with his daughter."
"Are they?" Ginny didn't want to get her hopes up. Mr. Toulson was a very poor man, and unfortunately, St. Mungo's didn't work for free.
"Yup! All accounts are settled. I took the liberty to schedule them for an eleven o'clock operation this morning, and a case of potions for little Annie." Grace handed Ginny another sheet of parchment for the potions case approval form.
Ginny signed off on the potions case as she replied. "Good. I'll include them in my rounds this morning."
"You know you don't need to do the prep work, Ginny. That's what a mediwitch is for," Grace trailed off as she took the sheet of parchment back.
"I know, but I want too," Ginny replied as she looked through her case files.
"That's right Annie's apart of your 'Lost Souls Foundation'," Grace replied with a sly smile.
"Grace. You know I don't like to call it that," Ginny paused as she looked up from the case files before continuing. "How are we on funds anyway?"
"Well," Grace got out another folder and gave it a brief once over. "The funds are doing really well. Since wolvesbane potion is becoming so cheap with the modifications from the Ministry research, we've been able to give more out and still save money. I've made some purchases of some of the more expensive potions we can never seem to get enough of these days with the extra."
"That's wonderful news Grace." Ginny had founded what Grace liked to call the Lost Souls Foundation when she'd started as a Trainee Healer. It had started as a supply of wolvesbane potions for those who couldn't afford them, but had since grown to pay for other expensive potions and costly procedures as well.
At first Ginny had used the foundation to get rid of all the money she'd gotten from the Chamber of Secret incident. She shivered at the thought of that money. One day during Ginny's second year, Professor Snape had asked her to stay after class. When they were alone, he'd told her that he'd harvested the basilisk from the chamber. Ginny still remembered how frightening just the name had been for her. And the questions racing through her head. Why was the Professor being this up now? He must have seen her fear for he had comforted her slightly. Lowering his voice so that it was gentle and his eyes were kind, when he told her that because of her involvement the Professor believed a share of the profits were rightfully hers.
Ginny had fought with him on that one. She remembered yelling at him that those profits should go to anyone, anyone, but her. Ginny had told him to give it to Harry. Give it to the victims. Give it to anyone, but her. For she did not deserve any kind of reward.
Professor Snape had been kind, but firm, when he'd told her that it was already done. Whether she wanted it or not. Whether she thought she deserved it or not. He'd already created a vault for her with the help of her parents. She still remembered the words he'd said, before Professor Snape had dismissed her from his office.
"You may not think so now, Miss. Weasley, but someday you'll realize that out of everyone involved, you are the one that most deserves this money. Use it with care Miss. Weasley."
If Ginny would have had access to the account in school, she'd have given it all away. As it stood, she was glad she hadn't. She'd finally found a reason to use it. And a reason to make sure she didn't run out. Which was why, the fund was invested in her brother's shop and the Harpies. There were a few other smart investments that she had Grace managing along with her other secretarial duties, but she'd kept the list small. She didn't want to overwork the woman. Altogether her foundation would be around for a long time to come. She liked to think she was succeeding at the task Professor Snape had given her. She could think of no better way to use the money with care, then the care of her patients and others.
"Oh, Ginny," Grace interrupted Ginny's thoughts. "Senior Healer Turpin wants you to observe in the Thickey ward this afternoon. Healer Turpin wants to try something new for mind healing. You're also on call for Llewellyn ward and Spell Damage ward all day today."
"Spell Damage? I don't normally do that one," Ginny questioned.
"Senior Healer McFarland asked specifically for you. They had a recent increase in incidents and he wants the best help."
Ginny chuckled at Grace. "You're enjoying this more than me, Grace."
"Well, why shouldn't I? You're the best. When Senior Healer Smethwyck retires, he'll appoint you to replace him for sure. At which point, I'll be secretary to the department head of Creature-Induced Injuries," Grace paused with a serious look on her face. "Do you know how much my salary will increase then? We're talking thousands of gallons here."
"Thousands, huh?"
"Yes, I'm thinking a ten thousand gallon increase will do me just fine."
"I'm sure it would. Still, I wouldn't count on that increase any time soon."
"Are you telling me you won't increase my salary when you're department head? Because, I don't work for free Ginny," Grace replied with humor in her voice.
"Come now Grace, there are more senior Healers that could replace Hippocrates. Like Pye for one…"
"Pye? Pye's been on the night shift for a month now!" Grace exclaimed with clear outrage that Pye could possible replace Healer Smethwyck. "There's a reason why Senior Healer McFarland wants you. Why Senior Healer Turpin wants you. As Department Heads, they could have another senior healer or a regular healer that's been here longer, but they chose you."
Ginny shook her head in disagreement, but there was no way she'd get through Grace's head about this. "Let me go do my rounds." She turned away from Grace to get started. "I don't need you getting a big head for me, now do I. Merlin knows mine's big enough for the both of us," Ginny mumbled the last part to herself. She was good, and she knew she was good too. But really, head of a department this early? She shook her head again. Not a chance.
Rounding a corner, she entered little Annie Toulson's room. She'd made them her the first stop, as she really wanted to know how Mr. Toulson became so fortunate.
"Healer Ginny!" A little girl with dirty blonde hair yelled as she ran over to the Healer. Giving Ginny a big hug, tiny arms hung around Ginny's waist as she continued at an equally loud volume. "Did you hear? Didja? Didja? I'm finally going to get that operation!" At only six, Annie's smile was missing a few teeth, but that didn't stop her from beaming up at her healer. She'd have looked like any other six year old were it not for the green scales running along the sides of her face and the slight grayish hue to her skin.
"So, I've heard," Ginny replied as she reached down to pick Annie up. "This is really good news Annie. You'll be playing with the rest of your friends in no time now." Turning to Mr. Toulson Ginny continued. "I've already signed off on the case of potions Annie will need to take for the next two months."
As Ginny carried Annie back to her bed, Mr. Toulson replied. "Hopefully dat'll be da last batch of potions she'll have ta take for a long time. It's gettin' harder and harder ta get lil' Annie ta take 'em."
Setting Annie back on her bed, Ginny spoke softly to her. "Is that so?" Annie looked down guiltily. "Well Annie, can you promise me you'll take these potions for the next two months?"
"Do I have to?" she whined back.
"I'm afraid so, but once the two months are done. You'll come back to me and if everything's okay, then you'll not have to take those potions anymore."
"Do ya promise?" Annie stuck out her little finger. A gesture that Ginny had noticed those that lived within the muggle world tended to do.
"Promise." Ginny locked pinkies briefly before giving Annie a once over. "Let's get a good look at you to make sure everything's alright for the procedure." Getting her wand out, Ginny did some basic diagnostic spells as she spoke to Mr. Toulson. "I'm so glad you were able to get the money for this procedure. Annie's going to have a normal childhood in front of her, now."
Beaming up at her, Annie replied in her father's stead. "Daddy sold a really old book in the attic and this nice man gave us some money for it. Now I'm going to be all better, and not have to take any more nasty potions." Ginny looked down briefly. "But for the next two months," Annie added quickly.
Ginny raised her eyes at Mr. Toulson in question. "That must have been one special book?" The potions alone were more expensive than her own fund could manage at least in the quantity Annie would need.
"Well, on da normal markets not so much, but…" Mr. Toulson trailed off with an uncertain look on his face.
"It's okay, Mr. Toulson. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I'm just glad that you're here and we can get little Annie nice and healthy again."
As Annie beamed at Ginny, Mr. Toulson looked on in thought before nodding to himself.
"I'd been drinkin' in a local pub down on Knockturn Alley. Tom kicked me out of his 'cause he knew I was tryin' to save up," Mr. Toulson sheepishly added at Ginny's raised eyebrows. When Ginny didn't comment, Mr. Toulson continued. "I was only on me second drink when this young bloke sat down beside me. Danny, he called himself. Saw I was down and asked about me troubles. Told him about me money problems and lil' Annie. I'd told the story a hundred times before, so I didn't really expect nothin' but a free drink or two from the lad. But instead he laughs in me face. Sayin' me problems ain't nothin'! He's heard worse tales than dat. Much worse, he tells me. I'd been prepared ta deck him one for it, but he explained himself real quick seein' me comin'."
"I can't imagine someone saying that to you and it not ending in a fight," Ginny interrupted.
"Yeah well, he explained himself real good. Sayin' I was goin' all in the wrong direction about it. Sayin' I ain't out of da game yet," Mr. Toulson paused to take a deep breath before continuing. "At first I thought he was goin' to say the same as Tom had thrown me out of his bar for. Gotta save up, gotta keep on keepin'."
"But he didn't?"
"Nah, not this lad. He asked me about family heirlooms. Ah course I got mad at dat one. Did he think I was stupid or somethin'? I'd already tried gettin' dat old book sold at Borgin and Burkes."
"Borgin and Burkes?"
"I know what ya thinkin', but it was an old family heirloom. Been in the Toulson family for generations, back when some of dat gray magic was still legal. Now-a-days, I want to sell dat book, I got ta take it ta some questionable gentlemen."
Ginny nodded in understanding, there were probably a lot of old families that kept gray books because of the family value whether or not the ministry said it was legal or not.
"So, dat book. Wouldn't go for more'n 50 gallons, and ya know dat ain't enough for lil' Annie. Dat's when Danny tells me I'm lookin' in the wrong place to trade it. I'm thinkin' he's a silver tongue thief at this point and wasn't about ta hear another word from him. But I'm glad he stopped me from leavin'."
Mr. Toulson smiled at the healer. "He only said two sentences, simple really. Da name of the guy I should look up, da Fixer. Said he can help with lil' Annie. Nothin' up front, nothin' dat could go wrong really if I looked him up, so I did."
"Turns out da Fixer works as a trader, more like one of those old barter systems than anythin' we got now. He can do anythin'. The bloke's got limitless power it seems. But he don't trade with just anybody. When ya got nowhere else ta turn, no other options left, and a rare artifact of some kind, then he'll do an exchange."
"Da book I traded for Annie's treatment was an old heirloom. Catchin' up dust in da attic. Wasn't exactly legal these days, but not rare enough ta really sell it for any hard coin. Definitely not enough ta pay for the potions for Annie's treatment let alone da procedure. It's only thanks ta ya we even got this far."
Ginny looked over to Mr. Toulson in confusion. "I just don't get it. If the book wasn't worth all that much, how does this Fixer help? Why would he be any different?"
Mr. Toulson smiled at his daughter as he answered the healer. "Da Fixer don't work with sales value, or anythin' like dat. He bases his 'favors' on a system of information value and type of information. Told me himself the information in da book was worth more than da operation and da potion's case combined. Gave me a lil' somethin' extra for Annie's schoolin'."
Turning to face Ginny, Mr. Toulson continued. "He's a real book worm, da Fixer is. Artifacts, books, and da likes, not money, are what da Fixer will trade you for. Really anythin' dat has history or some type of historic value, even if it ain't a really powerful old spell book, he'll trade ya for it. A favor for a favor, and like dat your problems are solved."
Ginny nodded her understanding. She'd been done with Annie a little while ago, but had wanted to hear about this Fixer. It was an interesting story to say the least, comforting to know that out there somewhere was someone who could help the truly desperate. Ginny didn't think she would ever have a reason to go looking for this Fixer. It wasn't like her family had anything the Fixer would want. For even this man had a price. Maybe the family clock, but…
Ginny snapped out of her thoughts, she needed to get back to work. The Fixer could wait for another time. "You guys should get comfortable. It looks like Annie will be well enough for the procedure later today. By tonight Annie will be on her way toward a full recovery."
It was nearly eleven o'clock at night when Ginny apparated back to her flat. The day had been surprisingly good, despite her packed schedule. Stepping out of her robes, Ginny slipped into the shower to relax. It had been a long day.
Before she'd left, she'd checked on Annie, who was staying overnight for observations. Annie had looked well after undergoing such a serious operation. Her lively red color was returning and the scales were gradually starting to fade. In the next couple of weeks, they should completely disappear. Additionally, Ginny had also wrapped up two other cases, which had been giving her trouble for the past couple of days. Then there was her observation of Senior Healer Turpin.
Although Healer Turpin had not been successful with his new mind healing technique, it had given Ginny valuable experience and a new idea about treating the long-term spell damage patients. She had even promised to get back to Healer Turpin by the end of next week for a briefing on it.
Hippocrates had made her Healer-in-Charge for three new cases. All of which were progressing smoothly. She didn't expect her patients to stay for more than a few more days, if that long.
Along with her work in the Creature-Induced Injury ward was her work in the Spell Damage ward. Her work with Senior Healer McFarland was so much more interesting than when she'd been a Trainee Healer for the department. With the increased action of Riddle and his gang, the Spell Damage ward was jam-packed with patients and under staffed.
McFarland had given her four new cases after she'd helped him with one of his mystery spell damaged patients. As luck would have it, she'd recognized the symptoms from her research on gray spells from her Hogwarts days. It was quickly becoming apparent that reversal of purely dark spells was simpler than the reversal of the older gray curses. It was a good thing she'd had so much experience with these more difficult to counter spells.
So today had been a very good day. The only thing she had to complain about was the constant running up and down from the first and fourth floor. She didn't normally mind going to the Thickey ward from time to time, but observing procedures and conducting her own cases were two different things. Even so, she was learning very fast the best way to handle it.
There was an excitement to spell damaged patients. More mystery when the spell they were hit with was unknown compared to simply not being able to identify what creature had injured the patient. She found this new experience with both wards absolutely exhilarating. Senior Healer McFarland had even hinted that if she did well solo, she could expect much more from his department. So she was looking forward to the challenge.
Ginny stepped out of the shower and was putting on a robe when her stomach growled. She had completely missed dinner working on one of her spell damage cases. An unknown curse had left a young man bleeding internally. They were able to control the bleeding, but they had not been able to stop it yet. Internal bleeding was always a tricky one.
Ginny shuffled over to her fridge looking for some leftovers, or something equally quick to cook. She found three eggs, half a loaf of bread, some cheese, and a quarter filled milk carton. She'd eaten the last of her mother's cooking from Sunday for lunch today. It was only Tuesday. Ginny sighed. Her mother's cooking just never seemed to last long enough. What was she going to do for the rest of the week?
Moving to the cupboard, she renewed her search. She had really been counting on that dinner with Liam. She lost herself in her work too often to remember to eat. And unfortunately, her mother's amazing cooking skills seemed to have skipped her. 'I should date a chef.' She thought wistfully. Honestly, she wouldn't be all that sad to see Liam go, but only if she could replace him with someone who could cook. He was, after all, great at reflecting her mother's inquires about her dating life.
'Bingo!' She thought, 'Thank Merlin for tomato soup.' With the cheese and bread from the fridge, she could make a meal for champions, grilled cheese and tomato soup.
As she cooked her dinner, warming up some tea to go with it, her mind was on the dinner that should have been. Liam was, well, he was okay. Not the best conversationalist, but not horrible either. He wasn't bad on the eyes, but a little below average in bed. Although she hadn't put in any work to train him on that front, so there was always a possibility of growth.
She sighed again. Liam was okay, and she was used to that. She'd yet to meet a man that produced that spark. A spark she knew could exist.
Shaking her head in frustration with herself, she poured her soup and took the slightly charred grilled cheese off the stove. A scrap with a knife latter, and her dinner was ready. She honestly didn't think she was being unreasonable. Just a little spark.
While she'd been joking about getting a cook as a boyfriend before, she did know that Liam wasn't going to last much longer. She sighed again. It wasn't that big of a deal, except her mother was going to be upset, again. It wasn't that her mother even liked Liam all that much. She just didn't like to see Ginny without a boyfriend. She seemed to think that if she was dating, then she was months away from getting married.
And Liam, he wasn't all that bad, but he was starting to get annoying. It wasn't like he was pushy, or demanding about sex. No, her problem with Liam was that he was asking for something she couldn't easily breakup with him for, emotions. Ginny hadn't connected with a man emotionally like that since, well, for a long time. And it would spell the end of this relationship, just like the others. Still, there wasn't much she could do about that.
Ginny's thoughts briefly went to a raven-haired youth. Green eyes seared into her memories. Ginny sighed again. She knew she was bad at picking boyfriends, but in her defense, the first person she'd ever fancied turned out to be an evil murdering wannabe dark lord. An evil murdering wannabe dark lord that even long dead, she still had feelings for despite herself.
Ginny interrupted her own thoughts. He was dead. She was over him. She had to be over him if she was ever going to find another happy ending. Tonks was starting to worry. She was starting to worry. Ten years and she'd yet to feel that something, anything, again. And while she could fool her mother, fooling herself or even Tonks was nigh impossible.
'Still, I think I might be starting to get over him.' She thought. Something she'd been telling herself for the past six years. Closing her eyes, strikingly familiar green eyes stared back at her. As far as she could tell, it was his eyes that still haunted her. And soon enough, whether she wanted to or not, those too would fade with the rest of him in her memory.
Pouring herself another cup of tea, Ginny readied herself for bed. Green eyes haunted her more than usual today. Why? Looking down between the small space between her nightstand and bed, she thought about retrieving the newspaper. But… Shaking her head, she'd read it tomorrow. Tonight, she'd needed the time to review her notes on internal bleeding curses.
She'd only just gotten into bed, notes in hand, when her Order pendant went off.
"Blast it!" She yelled out having been startled by the vibrations. Now of all nights? Dumbledore normally gave it a couple of days before going after another target. Looking at the pendant face, she waited for the location to appear. Depending on that would determine if she showed up. A bright red image of the Burrow flashed at her, so not an immediate threat. Most likely Dumbledore had a tip and needed volunteers.
Getting out of bed, she started to put on some light robes. If she went, she could get lunch for a couple of days if nothing else. She was one sleeve on, when her healer pendant went off too. "Bloody hell! You too?" Looking at her Order pendant, she expected it to switch to Grimmauld Place, but found the Burrow still showing. Well, whether it was the Burrow or Grimmauld Place, there was bound to be plenty of Order members on hand. She couldn't say the same for St. Mungo's. There was only so many qualified healers, and if they were calling her back only hours after she'd left, then this was important.
Making up her mind, Ginny put on her lime green robes and apparated away.
The reception witch stood up when Ginny apparated in the area. "Healer Weasley they need you in the Spell Damage ward immediately."
"Thanks Hannah," Ginny said as she walked briskly past her. "They called you back too?"
Hannah nodded as she spoke. "Sarah works part time with the Aurors, so she had to leave to help them."
"You truly are a life saver." Ginny wasn't able to say too much more as she took the stairs two at a time to get to the fourth floor.
She didn't get far before she spotted Senior Healer McFarland. "Healer Weasley, so glad you could join us."
"Where do you need me?" Ginny asked.
It was just past eleven fifteen in the morning when Ginny caught a break from healing. Riddle had been very active last night with both the Hospital needing extra staff and the Order business last night. At St. Mungo's alone, there had been numerous injured Aurors and injured muggles going in and out of the spell damage ward. Hippocrates had finally sent Ginny home after he realized she had been at the hospital for more than 36 hours, which wouldn't normally have been a problem if she'd not put in 80 hours the four days prior.
Ginny had been planning to spend another four hours finishing up a couple of spell damage patients, when Hippocrates had found her. There had been no arguing with the man after that. He sent her home to rest for the day, but he hadn't said explicitly to not come back until tomorrow. She planned on using his wording to her advantage. She was pretty sure she could get away with two hours of rest before coming back to work. By then Hippocrates should have already gone home.
As she made her was to the ground floor of St. Mungo's, she wished that she could have just used those few hours on her cot in her office. In fact, she'd been about to do just that before reviewing the spell damage patients' files again when Hippocrates had found her. Sighing, she prepared to apparate home before remembering about the Order. If she was already up, then she might as well see what Dumbledore had wanted. It couldn't have been that serious since no one turned up at St. Mungo's. Still, it was best that she check it out now, then later tonight or tomorrow. Who knew when she'd have free time again?
"Leaving for the day Healer Weasley?"
Ginny looked up to see Jessica on duty. "Yes, but not for too long. Is your husband all right, Jessica? I know he's an Auror."
"He was called in last night, too, but managed to not end up as one of your patients. I've been given leave to go home early all the same."
"Who's going to replace you?"
"Not that it should matter to you, Healer Weasley, as you should be off for a nice warm shower, and a comfortable fluffy bed, but Heather well be here any minute now."
Ginny smiled kindly at Jessica. "I really should be following your example, but I have a hard time sleeping when I know there's work to be done, problems to be solved."
Shaking her head Jessica replied. "You work too hard, Healer Weasley. The body and the mind need rest sometimes too."
"I have to Jessica. My body and mind will get the rest they need some other time." Ginny looked away and walked toward the apparition site. "If I'm lucky, that time will be now." Looking back at Jessica, she gave a last wave goodbye which Jessica returned as she turned on the spot to apparated to the Burrow.
Or she tried to. The familiar squeezing feeling she was accustom to was absent.
"Is everything alright, Healer Weasley?" Jessica looked at an off-center Ginny with a puzzled expression.
"Ah, yes. I just really must be tired if I'm forgetting the three D's." She closed her eyes and turned on the spot again. Nothing. Ginny quickly followed it by spinning again, and was rewarded by nearly tripping over her own two feet.
"Healer Weasley?" Jessica asked with more apprehension.
"Nothing to worry about, Jessica. I'm just clearly not in the right shape to be apparating anywhere. So, I'll just take the floo." Jessica nodded her understanding.
Ginny walked over to the common floo, put a Knut in the jar to get out some floo powder. Just as she was about to throw the floo powder in, Heather apparated into the lobby. Ginny absentmindedly listened into Jessica and Heather's conversation, pleasantries mostly, as she threw the powder in the fire and called out "the Burrow". Ginny watched for the red flames to turn green, only to stare at a raging red fire. A deep worry set in Ginny's features. Something was wrong.
"Can I help you with something Healer Weasley? Or have you simply forgotten how to use the floo?" Heather replied sarcastically. Jessica had already apparated away.
"No, Heather. Everything's all right. I just decided I didn't want to use the floo." Ginny gave a tight smile before walking briskly back to the apparition spot. Spun on her heels and was gone in a pop.
Standing on an isolated corner in London off of Grimmauld Place, a frown set on her face. She spun on her heels again, but nothing. She could apparate to Grimmauld Place, but not the Burrow. A sinking feeling crept into her chest. She was probably getting ahead of herself. Dumbledore could have put up new wards around the Burrow. They were due to get an upgrade.
Walking down the street to number 12 Grimmauld Place, Ginny let her mind wander. 'I'll just pop in and ask about the Burrow. It's probably nothing.' In fact, an upgrade would explain everything including why they needed her last night. Nodding to herself, she'd managed to convince herself that this would be a quick drop in. After that, she would find an empty room at headquarters and sleep for a couple of hours.
As she walked up to number 12 Grimmauld Place, she was suddenly reminded of the first time she had been here.
The front door no longer looked battered, but was a solid red with gold etchings. The walls and windows weren't dirty or grimy. Now, the red brick looked renewed and the windows shone brightly. The once worn stone steps had been replaced with marble. Not that any of that mattered. Although Black had really changed everything about the appearance of the place, it didn't change the people it held or the memories it always brought her. 'Just one of the many things I've learned to live with.' She thought as she pulled out her wand ignoring the gold knocker with a small lion head to tap the door once.
Silently springing open into a brightly lit hall, Ginny took a deep breath to steady herself. Pine filled her nose, a smell she'd come to hate given that it was Black's favorite and she had trouble separating the smell from the man who seemed to use it religiously. The wallpaper was pretty similar to the wallpaper found in the Gryffindor common room, as was the thick red carpet. More memories she tried not to dwell on. With a brief look at the scorch marks where the portrait of the Black matron had once hung, she moved forward. All the other portraits had long since been removed with the portrait of Black's mother being the last one to go. She'd not gone without a fight either. Ginny highly doubted those scorch marks were ever coming out.
The serpent chandelier overhead had been replaced by that of a raging phoenix. Black had called it the symbol of the Order. He'd gone so far as to say that no headquarters could live without it. She didn't agree with Black on a lot of things. However in this instance, she had to agree with him. She must have seen that piece over a hundred times, but every time it took her breath away.
"Hey there kiddo."
Ginny turned from her appraisal of the hallway to find Sirius Black eating breakfast at the dining room table. "Hey yourself." Ginny replied evenly as she walked into the dining room. For the twins sake, she'd learned to interact with the man civilly if nothing else. "Did you just get up?" She questioned politely. The twins would have been very proud of her today given that she could careless what Black did with himself on a good day.
"Yup, got to get my beauty sleep. Can't skip them as much these days. I'm not getting any younger, you know." He answered back playfully.
Ginny ignored his attempt at a joke, pleasantries over she wasn't here to socialize. Not to mention without the twins as a buffer, this was as much as she could do without her lingering resentment for the man leaking through, which was the last thing she needed right now. "Really?" She asked casually, "I figured you'd still be at the Burrow."
"The Burrow? I love Molly, but your mum can be a little overbearing sometimes. I can't say I'd go there unless I had too, not even for the biscuits."
"So, you're not helping out with the wards today?"
"The wards? What are you going on about Ginny?" Black paused in thought before continuing. "Now, that I think about it, shouldn't you be at St. Mungo's? I can't imagine the hospital running smoothly without their star healer." Being Black he had to add a little humor in their otherwise serious conversation.
"There was a large scale attack by Death Eaters last night. I got called in to help in the Spell Damage Ward."
Black took a bite of his pancakes before continuing. "Then shouldn't you be sleeping now?"
Ginny sighed as she leaned on the dining room table before answer him. "Yes, or I would be, if I hadn't also gotten a call from the Order to go to the Burrow last night too. Wasn't there a meeting at the Burrow? Surely you went."
"A meeting? Ginny, I didn't even know there was Death Eater activity. Tonks and Kingsley haven't gotten back to headquarters, yet." Black replied as he set his fork down.
"That can't be right," She replied as she pulled out her pendent. "My pendent went off last night. The image of the Burrow was on display." She paused in thought worry clearly evident on her face. "Black, I can't apparate or floo to the Burrow."
"So, you thought the scheduled ward upgrade for the Burrow was today?" Black inquired as he got up from the table and nearly ran down the stairs to the big fireplace in the kitchen. "The Burrow!"
Nothing happened. "Bloody hell! This is not good. As far as I know, there was no Order meeting at the Burrow last night, and the ward maintenance isn't scheduled for another week!"
"Bloody hell! We have to do something! What if there were more people who were called to the Burrow?" Ginny spoke as she began to pace the kitchen. "Not to mention that if we can't apparate to it, then that means there's anti-apparition wards up."
"And the floo connection to the Burrow is severed. Whoever's in the Burrow would be trapped magically." Black paused in thought before shaking his head. "We need Dumbledore." At that statement Black got out his wand and summoned his patronus. "Albus, we have an urgent problem with the Burrow! We need you five minutes ago!"
Ginny watch as Black's patronus disappeared to go find the headmaster. It could not get there fast enough, and the wait was too much to bare in silence.
"We have to do something! Mum and dad are at the Burrow for sure." Ginny twisted her bracelet nervously as she spoke. She looked over at Black before continuing. "It was late, past midnight, when my pendent went off." Ginny paused as she resumed her pacing. "How could something like this happen? Why would something like this happen?"
"Wait, calm down Ginny," Black said as he grabbed her shoulders to stop her worried pacing. Ginny shrugged him off, but Black was undeterred. "Everything you've said so far is pure speculation, that doesn't mean anything horrid has happened Ginny." She looked over at Black as he continued. "For all we know, everything could be perfectly fine."
Ginny stared in Black's eyes. He truly believed this could be a possibility. She wanted to believe that too, Merlin knew she wanted to pretend last night had never happened. But, but, something inside of her was saying something different.
Ginny closed her eyes in thought. She wanted to believe, but she'd not been that naive since her first year at Hogwarts. She'd learned then, and several times over since then, to always prepare for the worst. And this situation could only get worse. She had a strong feeling that what she imagined right now was as good as it was going to get. There was just no way she was the only one called to the Burrow last night.
At those thoughts, the fireplace turned green and Dumbledore waltzed right out of the flames. "Sirius, I got your patronus. What has happen to the Burrow?"
Black looked over at Ginny, before answering Dumbledore. Ginny was grateful since she got along even worse with Dumbledore than Black. Besides, if the news came from someone other than herself, then Dumbledore was more likely to take it seriously.
"The news isn't good, Albus. I was eating a late breakfast, when Ginny came asking about ward upgrades. I was surprised to see her this early in the day, since she's almost always at the Hospital. So, when she asked me about why I wasn't helping with the wards upgrade for the Burrow. I was completely baffled." Black looked between Ginny and Dumbledore as he continued. "I mean the scheduled upgrade isn't until next week. So, I asked Ginny what was going on. Albus, she said she was summoned to the Burrow last night." Ginny nodded her head in agreement with the last statement when Dumbledore looked over to her.
"There was no summons last night." Dumbledore shook his head deep in thought. "What time did this happen?"
"After midnight, it had to be nearly one in the morning, when I got the summons," she answered.
"And did you go?"
Ginny hesitated before answering. "Well, no. I also got called into St. Mungo's. I had to choose."
Black jumped in here. "In her defense, we wouldn't have needed her help as much as St. Mungo's needed her. We've been working under that assumption for a couple of years now Albus."
Dumbledore nodded his head in agreement. "Alright, then. Besides the Order pendent going off, what else is the problem? I don't see why Ginny would ask about the Burrow wards upgrade. What's happened that was so urgent?"
Black took over from Ginny again. "The thing is, well, the reason why Ginny asked about the wards." He shook his head and took a deep breath. "Albus, Ginny tried to apparate to the Burrow and couldn't. Moreover, she and I both tried to floo to the Burrow with the same results." Black paused. "Albus, the Burrow is on lock down. No one can get in, and no one is likely to be able to get out. At least not by magical means. At the very least, that means that Molly and Arthur are trapped at the Burrow."
Dumbledore's first response was not to Black, but to Ginny. "It seems very convenient that you were called to St. Mungo's instead of you also being trapped at the Burrow."
"Do you honestly think I want to be here, knowing that my mother and father could be dead!" Ginny asked with rage tinting her voice. "Not like this. Never like this."
Dumbledore looked Ginny in the eyes for several heart beats before he nodded his head in agreement. "Let's not assume anyone is dead just yet. The best way to check who is trapped at the Burrow is an emergency meeting." Black sighed in relief as Dumbledore continued to speak. "I'll take your word for it that we cannot apparate to the Burrow. In the meantime, we must move quickly to assess the situation. It's close enough to All Hallows' Eve that I wouldn't put it past Voldemort to do something this drastic to the Order."
Dumbledore moved into action as he grabbed his master pendent from his flowing robes. Ginny immediately felt her pendent respond. She looked down at it, an image of Grimmauld Place glowing bright red stared back at her. The wait had begun.
"In the meantime, tell me again Miss. Weasley, and leave nothing out. What happened?"
Order members trickled in groups of ones and twos for the next hour and a half. Never staying longer than a couple of minutes to check in with Dumbledore. All of them curious about the unusual summons in the middle of the day.
"Wotcha Ginny!"
"Wotcha Tonks." Ginny had not been as surprised as her mother when Tonks decided to still be called by her maiden name despite being married to Lupin. It suited her better than any other name they could have called her. "How's Teddy?"
"Doing well, which you would know if you spent more time with him and not always hiding in that Hospital," Tonks replied with a smile on her lips. Tonks had been there when she'd needed it most. They had formed a bond. So much so, that when Tonks had Teddy she'd name Ginny godmother. Ginny was about to reply in her defense when Tonks shook her head before continuing. "But that's neither here nor now." Tonks took a deep breath before asking the pressing question. "Ginny, what's going on? It's not like Dumbledore to call us in the middle of the day."
"Did you have trouble getting here?" Ginny asked. An obvious attempt to stall, but Tonks allowed it.
"Lucky for me I ducked out using my lunch break. I think Kingsley was a little behind me too." Tonks looked around before continuing. "For Dumbledore to summon us in the middle of the day, I'd expected more activity. Something more exciting with Molly running around shouting at everyone."
Ginny winched at her mother's name, she could no longer avoid the question. So far she had let Black answer anyone wanting to know what was going on, but this was Tonks. Sighing, she answered. "It's the Burrow. The Burrow…" Ginny stumbled over her words. Even with Tonks, she was not going to be able to answer her fully. "Dumbledore may go into more detail, but right now. It doesn't look good. No one can apparate or floo to the Burrow, Tonks."
Tonks put a supporting hand on Ginny's shoulder. "I'm so sorry Ginny. I'm sure Molly and Arthur are going to be alright." Tonks managed to get Ginny to look at her before she continued. "What can I do?"
Ginny turned away from Tonks' searching eyes. "You only need to check in Tonks."
"Ginny…" Tonks might have said more, but Kingsley entered the room. He nodded at the two of them before making his way over to Dumbledore.
Ginny shrugged off Tonks' hand. "No. Go check in with Dumbledore. You have to get back to the Ministry after last night's activity." Tonks didn't immediately move away from her. Her eyes never leaving Ginny's. Her body language was as it was so long ago. Telling Ginny that she was here for her. Ginny sighed. Tonks only wanted to help. "I'll be fine, Dora."
Tonks pulled back with a small smile on her lips. "Yeah, you'll be fine alright until I get my hands on you. How many times have I told you not to call me that Ginevra?"
"Ha!" Ginny laughed a short sharp sound. Still it was the first time she'd done more than a weak smile since the Burrow problem began. Tonks knew just what to say to make everything look a little more bearable. "I get it. I get it." Ginny smiled at Tonks. "Go check in Tonks." Tonks gave Ginny one last pat on the shoulder before going over to join Kingsley.
Ginny watched as Tonks and Kingsley talked with Dumbledore. Her smile faded. With Kingsley's arrival, that left the rest of the Weasleys and Hermione as the only ones still left unaccounted for.
It didn't take long for Tonks and Kingsley to finish speaking with Dumbledore. The three of them made their way past Ginny to leave.
"If you need us, Albus. Don't hesitate. You're right. This whole situation is very concerning," Kingsley replied to whatever Dumbledore had said previously. "Let's go Tonks. We have to get back to the Ministry. We've problems of our own."
"Alright. I'll be right behind you," Tonks replied before turning to speak to Ginny.
"I'll be alright," Ginny spoke first.
"You're not alone Ginny," Tonks consoled kindly.
"I know," Ginny answered softly to Tonks' retreating form.
"Miss. Weasley, I think it's time," Dumbledore spoke to the mildly distracted witch.
"No, just a little longer. The twins are probably caught up in business, and Ron has a hard time getting anywhere on time." Ginny knew her response was weak, but it was all she had.
"Ginny, we've been waiting for an hour and a half," Lupin spoke. He and Black had walked into the room as Tonks and Kingsley left. "They're not coming."
"It's time we went and checked out what has happened," Dumbledore added. He turned to Black. "But first Sirius, why don't you floo the other Weasley households?"
"Roger," Black answered as he made his way downstairs to the fireplace.
Dumbledore turned to Lupin. "Remus, are you sure the Ministry can spare you today?"
"Arthur didn't come in today." Lupin looked guiltily over at Ginny. "Besides, the more wands the better."
There was an awkward silence as they waited for Black to finish the floo calls to Bill and Percy's homes.
"Well, Sirius?" Dumbledore prompted at Black's return.
"The wives are home. They each asked about Bill and Percy."
"Really?"
"They said that Bill and Percy were summoned last night to the Burrow by the Order," Black paused with guilt on his face. "I didn't know what to tell them."
"That's fine Sirius. I'll tell them myself if it comes to that." Dumbledore led the way to the front door. "Shall we?"
They made their way outside to apparate to just outside of the Burrow in Ottery St. Catchpole. The walk from the small town to the Burrow was unbearable. The atmosphere gloomy, the clouds unusually thick, and the air cold. It took Ginny several minutes before she realized why the surrounding forest felt wrong. It was quiet, too quiet. The trees were still with no signs of animal life. It was just wrong.
Ginny missed a beat as the situation truly hit home. Her brothers, her parents, and Hermione were all missing. There could be no doubt that this was a targeted attack on her family, the Weasleys. An attack that she should have been trapped in.
As they got closer to the Burrow wards, the fog became heavier. It was clearly magically induced. They were just on the outside of the wards when Dumbledore stopped. His wand out, he began a complicate set of wand motions and muttering as he examined the wards.
"I'll go scout the area. Moony, you coming?" Black spoke as he led Lupin out into the surrounding forest.
Ginny looked at the wards carefully. Something felt off here. Pacing the boundary, she paused and shook her head. "This isn't right." She observed the surrounding markers before continuing. "The wards should be another twenty-five feet further in."
Dumbledore paused from his work to look around. "Indeed. It should be further in than this." Dumbledore turned to Ginny before continuing. "It will take some time Miss. Weasley. Why don't you mark the new boundaries?" Ginny nodded her head in reply before making her way around the Burrow to mark the location of the new wards surrounding her childhood home.
She had a map done within half an hour. In that time, Dumbledore had made it a quarter of the way around the boundary. Ginny had two options: one, hang around Dumbledore, or two, absolutely anything else. The options were clear to her as a dementor's presence would have been more welcoming than Dumbledore's. So she went to find Black and Lupin to help scout the surrounding area. It took the three of them another hour and a half before they were satisfied and returned to Dumbledore.
Deep in thought, Dumbledore stood facing the direction were the Burrow should have been. "Ginny, what did you find out about the new boundaries?" He turned to face the group as he spoke.
"New boundary?" Lupin interrupted. Ginny had not told them what she'd been doing before she'd showed up to help, and they had not asked.
"Yes, new boundary around the Burrow," she replied to Lupin before continuing to speak to the group at large. "It exactly twenty-five feet out from the original wards. I can't see more than five feet through this fog to get a better idea of what's going on inside the wards. So I can't tell you much else. After that, I went to help Black and Remus with the surrounding area. We've been able to search the surrounding forest only to find nothing. There doesn't seem to be any activity outside of the wards."
"As I thought," Dumbledore trailed off in thought before continuing. "I've looked throughout the wards, but I simply can't find any weaknesses." Dumbledore looked over to Ginny. "You're also correct about not being able to tell about the inhabitants within the boundaries. The fog is tied to these new wards so as to obscure the outside view."
"Are you sure you can't tell anything?" Lupin questioned. "If they're dead, I don't see why the wards would still be up?"
"Ah, yes indeed. That would be the good news. The Burrow wards are still active. They're on the second line of defense, but still protecting the inhabitants. Thus, explaining why these secondary wards are still functioning. To put it simply, whoever activated these wards has not managed to get through to the Burrow."
"Then we still have time!" Ginny spoke in excitement on Dumbledore's analysis.
"Well, theoretically, yes. At the rate they are going it will take them at least another ten." Dumbledore paused with a shake of his head, "No maybe twelve hours to break through to the Burrow. Your brother, I believe must have fortified them somewhat." Dumbledore took a deep breath before continuing. "The bad news, however, is that we cannot get through these wards."
"What do you mean we can't get through the wards? If they're having this much trouble with the Burrow wards, it should be easy to break their wards within the next twelve hours!" Ginny replied excitedly.
"It would be if the same people who constructed these wards were the same ones who were breaking into the Burrow."
There was a small silence at the news before Lupin interrupted. "But they have to be the same. No one can get in or out of these wards."
"There is no mistake Remus. I don't know who constructed these wards, but they are clearly on another level then the ward breakers currently attacking the Burrow. In fact, I would have to guess that these wards would have taken several days to construct."
"Impossible, we would have noticed that kind of activity!" Black replied in outrage.
"Yes, if they were normal wards, but these are most likely linked to ritual stones. Seven stones placed strategically around the Burrow. Excellent spell work." Dumbledore muttered the last part mostly to himself. "It would take a week for someone of Bill's caliber to get through something like this." He shook his head as he continued. "But without Bill?" Dumbledore turned to Ginny. "I can do nothing Miss. Weasley."
"No! You're supposed to be the strongest wizard of the century! You're supposed to be able to do these things, impossible thing, miracles! You have to be able to save them. That's my family in there! You have to be able to save them! Because if you can't. If you can't. No one can," Ginny finished weakly.
"I'm sorry Miss. Weasley, Ginevra." Dumbledore tired eyes look back at Ginny with pity. "This is truly a blow to the Order like no other. The Weasleys will be missed."
Ginny looked wildly around, clearly searching for something, some idea. "What about the Goblins? Bill trained with them, so they must be able to breakdown something like this."
"Yes, they might be able to break through these wards," Dumbledore replied. "However, we cannot trust the Goblins. Despite this new treaty, this is too sensitive a topic to depend upon the Goblin nation, not to mention we would not be able to afford the cost the Goblins will surely ask for."
Dumbledore shook his head. "No, what I'm more concerned about is how Voldemort managed to use the Order Pendants against us? It should be impossible, well, not impossible, but the amount of spell work and magic, the technique. Voldemort himself might be able to do it, but he's never tried anything like it before. What has changed?" Dumbledore paused in thought before he continued. "I'm sorry Miss. Weasley, but there is nothing we can do expect plan for when the wards fall. Go home, get some sleep. We have much to do in the evening."
Black put a hand on Ginny's shoulder, but she shrugged it off. "I'm so sorry."
"Don't Black," Ginny reply sharply. Looking out at where the Burrow should be, she remained, unmoved.
Lupin shook his head as he looked sadly at Ginny. "Let's go Sirius."
Black nodded as he followed Lupin to a place they could apparate back to Grimmauld Place safely.
"Go home Ginevra," Dumbledore ordered once more before following the remaining Marauders to Headquarters.
Ginny stared in the direction of the Burrow for several more minutes before she too turned away. She'd take Dumbledore advice, at least partially.
Apparating to her flat, she moved purposefully to her bedroom to change out of her healer robes. The lime green robes of a healer were very distinct. Too distinct, and too easily recognizable for whatever her next plans were going to be. And there would be a next step. There was no time for sleep now. Her family was in danger and she had to do something. She would not rest until she fixed this.
Now, if only she knew what her next step should be. Ginny could always go behind Dumbledore's back and get the Goblins involved. But without Black's money and the Order's funds she would have no way of paying the Goblins for the job. She couldn't use the Lost Souls funds, not even for her family. She just couldn't take out that kind of Galleons. Besides, the fund just didn't have that much coin on hand.
Ginny couldn't promise the Goblins the sum of all the Wealsey's fortunes, since even combined they wouldn't have enough money for what she expected the cost would be for an advanced ward breaking like this in the desired time frame. There was no one else she knew who was as good as her brother at ward breaking. Not to mention her brother's skill level wouldn't have been enough for this either.
Ginny Weasley had no options left, and no clear way to save her family.
Hitting her hand hard on her dresser, she let out a yell of frustration. 'What am I going to /do? Sit here and cry?'/ Forcing the tears threatening to fall at bay, she pushed herself up. She would do something. She wasn't that helpless little girl anymore and never would be again. 'But what can I do?'
Angry boiled inside her, but it would only get in the way. Closing her eyes, she forced herself to breath, calm down. Concentrate. There was a thought just on the edge of her mind. 'The Lost Souls Fund? No not that, but something. Something related.' She thought before her eyes snapped open. "Little Annie!"
"Da Fixer works as a trader, more like one of those old barter style systems… He can do anythin'… When ya got nowhere ta turn and a rare artifact, then he'll do an exchange…"
Nowhere to turn? Check. Rare artifact?
As Ginny had concluded before, the Weasleys didn't have anything that could be classified as a rare artifact. Maybe the family clock, but would the Fixer really take that? Not likely, but she couldn't let that stop her. No, she wouldn't let that stop her. She was a clever witch. She'd think of some other way to pay.
Right now, she needed to figure out how to find him, this Fixer.