Chapter Five: The Devil's Deal
"Yes, I could do it. Break the wards around the Burrow, among other things... But you seem to be missing a very important requirement for speaking with the Fixer." Harry paused only for a second, "Why should I help you? You've nothing to exchange, Weasley..."
"Weasley? You've not called me that in a long time, Harry." Ginny replied without pause.
"Times have changed. Haven't they?" Harry looked past Ginny pensively before he snapped out of his own thoughts. "Leave, Ginny. You're wasting my time."
"Have I ever wasted your time before?" Ginny shook her head to answer her own question, "Never, and I don't plan to start now." Ginny knew she could not offer the family clock now. She only had one other option left...
"What is your bargain?"
"Save my family, and I'll trade you my life." Ginny took a deep breath before continuing. "I'll trade you my life as a Healer. I'll be the Ankou Company's personal Healer, no charge. Whenever you or your people need. Let my skills be yours to control..."
Harry observed Ginny closely. He did not try legilimency. No, he'd pretty much taught her occlumency in his third year. Still, Ginny had other tells. A slight pressing of her lips together, would have signaled her impatience. A crinkle of her nose would have signified the beginning of her anger. A slight crease of her eyebrows would have signaled frustration.
Currently, Ginny's brow was slightly creased. The problem was that he could not be sure her tells still worked the same. It had been a long time since he'd seen her.
Because of his time in Azkaban, the last memories of Ginny he had were no longer of fourth year. No, he kept looking at this Ginny and seeing her smaller, younger... Harry had half expected for Ginny to start yelling at him about the Chamber incident when she'd arrived.
It had taken him several minutes to believe that the Ginny before him was real. She was not the eleven year old Ginny from his nightmares. She wasn't even the thirteen year old Ginny from the Yule Ball, wearing his dress despite the fact that they'd not gone together. That thought allowed other memories of his time with Ginny at Hogwarts to wash over him, briefly. But he quickly squashed them. It had been a long time since those memories had come to him, and he was not about to change that now.
Hogwarts had been a long time ago, and this Ginny was clearly no longer his Ginny. No longer that girl. This Ginny looked him in the eyes without straying; there was no shyness. Her conviction was strong, solid. She would do anything to save her family.
Harry planned to use that to his advantage.
He tried not to smile to himself. His plan had worked better than he'd thought it would. He'd only wanted to see her, to test her. But Ginny had gone beyond that.
To use her Healer abilities, the very reason he'd wanted this meeting, as the bargain... No, Ginny did not disappoint. But could she rise to the challenge again?
"Why would I want a half-trained healer? I can't do anything with an apprentice healer, nor do I want to wait for you to finish and then find out if you're any good."
"An apprentice healer?" Ginny looked slightly insulted at Harry's question. "I haven't been an apprentice for more than three years, Harry." Ginny's expression turned from insulted to disappointment as she continued, "I'm surprised you didn't know."
Harry kept his face neutral at Ginny's response. He'd been caught off guard. Harry very much disliked the feeling of being caught off guard. Moreover, it had been a while since anyone had talked to him like that. It would seem that after all these years, Ginny still knew what to say to get under his skin. Harry could have smiled at that too. He may have been challenging her, but she was also challenging him.
"Three years... Impossible, even for you." Harry replied. If that were true then Theodore would have at least mentioned it in passing.
Ginny took no time to reply, "Says the man who's been free of Azkaban for more than four."
"Four years? Such a precise number..." Harry deflected.
"Precise? I'm not just talking to the Fixer... I'm in the presence of the leader of the Ankou Company, the Reaper." Ginny paused briefly, but Harry did not change his expression. "Since the appearance of the Reaper four years ago, you've had your hand so far up Fudge's arse I'm surprised he can still walk."
Harry could not hide his smile at Ginny's word choice this time. She had not disappointed him. If there was anyone who could have put the pieces together with so little to go on, it was Ginny. Dumbledore was just too prideful to think someone could manipulate Fudge so well. On the other hand, Tom was too arrogant to directly manipulate Fudge as he had. Not to mention his ideas wouldn't have been well received. He couldn't very well help Fudge decrease his own activity, now could he...
More to the point, if Ginny could really do what she said she could... Then his plan would have worked better than he'd originally thought. He'd not only get to see Ginny once more, but for years to come. More importantly, he could fill the position his empire needed the most, a head healer. She could train future Ankou healers throughout his small corporation.
All of this because Theo had casually mentioned the occupations of all the Weasley's years ago. It had been in the back of his mind for years now, and when Lucius had come for an exchange three weeks ago... Well, there were some opportunities that just had to be used. It had been a gamble that she'd make it this far, but not a big one.
Harry knew all about her little foundation. He'd read Jacob's reports in detail. He kept close track of the different types of people who went through the 'Fixer'. The probability that she'd make it this far had been too high to pass up, but she still had to be able to deliver. Immediately.
Instead of answering or replying directly to Ginny, Harry called Jim back into the room. He'd stepped out as soon as Ginny had stumbled past him, "Jim, a word."
"Milord." Jim bowed as he spoke, "How may I be of service?"
Harry reached out with his left hand as he replied, "Your arm, Jim." There was a pause before he added "please" as an afterthought.
Jim extended his right arm to his master without further question. His obedience was rewarded with a deep gash as Harry waved his right hand over it. Jim gritted his teeth in pain, but said nothing and did not pull away.
Harry moved Jim's arm in Ginny's direction before letting it go.
"What are you doing!? That cut's deep enough he'll bleed out in minutes!" Ginny spoke as she began examining the wound.
"That's unfortunate, since I'm very fond of Jim." Harry paused as his eyes darkened, "If he dies, then so does your family."
Ginny grimaced at the promise, but did not reply. Instead, Harry watched as she moved into action. He was not surprised when the first thing she tried was magic. But he'd never give a challenge with such an easy solution. The spell he'd used had only one counter curse. A curse for which Ginny could not possibly know. There was only one way to stop the bleeding and only five people knew that counter curse. Harry was the only one within a 10,000 km radius that could perform the spell.
It seemed Ginny too realized that she would not be able to figure out a counter curse before Jim bled out. She put away her wand. It was a hopeless situation, really, with a no-win solution for Ginny.
Instead of forfeiting right away, what Harry considered the smart solution, Ginny pulled out a potions kit from within her robes and gave one of the vials inside the kit to Jim.
"Drink this. It's a blood replenishing potion." Ginny stayed only long enough to see Jim drink the potion before she was out the door. Harry and Jim both watch her take a sharp right. Interesting...
Jim looked at the door in pain before turning to Harry, "Milord, if she forfeits, will you, perhaps, heal my arm?"
The pathetic look on Jim's face was enough for Harry to reply to him. "Of course." Harry looked out into the distance before continuing, "But she has not left Anaon, so I will not assume her forfeiture. Yet." Harry had no plans on letting Jim bleed to death. No, he was too useful and trustworthy. There was no point in losing him over a test.
Besides, Jim really didn't have anything to fear. Harry was keeping a mental note of the time. With that blood replenishing potion, Ginny had ten more minutes to show Harry what she could do before Jim would lose consciousness. Even with the added time, Harry did not expect Ginny to complete the task. It was, after all, impossible.
Ginny would not have been able to complete it even if she'd had a week to prepare. The point of the test was not for Ginny to heal Jim. No, Harry had always planned to heal Jim himself. But to see her in a no-win situation. How would she react under pressure? If she could think critical in this situation, then she'd do fine as his organization's healer.
Harry just didn't see a reason for Jim to know that. He was too likely to give Harry's plan away, which would not help with negotiations.
When she failed, for it was a matter of 'when' not 'if', her failure would put him in a very good position for negotiations. He could probably even get her to agree to serve him for the rest of her life.
Of course, if she didn't have a good showing, for which he doubted seriously could happen given the current events, then he'd not agree to the bargain. Harry would not let his personal feelings get in the way of business. And this was business...
Ginny returned with little more than a minute before Harry deemed Jim would pass out. Her arms loaded with bowls of what Harry could only guess were prepared potions ingredients from his private lab. He'd assumed that's where she had gone. Very resourceful... She'd known she didn't have time to brew a potion, but what could she do with just those ingredients, prepared or not?
Harry watched as Ginny ripped the remaining cloth from Jim's right arm and began lining the wound with the contents of one of the prepared bowls. Some brown mush that was surrounded with purple juices. She then began placing the contents of the other bowls on Jim's arm at what seemed like random places with no clear overlying pattern.
But, the bleeding stopped. Harry leaned in closely as Ginny continued to work. She took some of the other prepared ingredients off of the wound only to replace it with some type of greenish brown paste. Once the wound was packed with the paste, Ginny transfigured a needle and took out a very thin threadlike ingredient, cut beyond recognition, which had been soaking in some type of sour smelling juice from the last untouched bowl.
Harry watched fascinated as Ginny sewed the wound back together. He was sure it would not stay, but it held. Impossible... Ginny gently covered the wound with a clean cloth that she conjured. "That will stay for a couple of days, but I'll want to change it tomorrow." Ginny leaned back on her heels and sighed in relief, "I'm sorry, but it will scar." Ginny continued before anyone else could, "However, I should be able to make you something to decrease the scaring over time."
Harry watched Ginny carefully as she wiped her brow, and turned her attention back to him. She met his gaze as an equal, and raised her left eyebrow in challenge. Ginny had just done the impossible. She'd far surpassed his expectations, putting him in an awkward position.
He could no longer negotiate her services for the rest of her life. At least not in good conscience. He'd have to decrease it. How long would it take her to organize his forces to include a competent healer component, ten years, twenty years...? No, he couldn't think like that. There was only one deal he could honestly make, given her skills.
"I've passed your test. So, I take it we have a deal." Ginny spoke.
"We have a deal." Harry replied with slight reluctance.
"Five years, then?" Ginny offered in negotiation.
"Don't insult me." The low offer had given him back his wind. "A year for everyone you need me to save."
Ginny paused for a brief moment doing the math mentally, "Nine years."
"Aren't you missing someone?" Harry replied.
At that statement Ginny looked confusingly over at Harry but chose to list the names aloud, "Mum, dad, the twins, Bill, Charlie, Percy, Ron and Hermione..."
"And you." Harry interrupted. Ginny's expression turned stern. She'd clearly not considered herself as a victim as well. "Ten years of service."
Ginny looked thoughtful, but Harry knew she would agree. Ten years of her life for her family's life was a deal she could not refuse. And she didn't.
Ginny nodded her head in agreement as she responded, "What do I need to do?"
"Normally, an exchange is done, you give me our agreed upon item in exchange for my… services." Harry paused interlacing his fingers in front of him. "And that would end our exchange. But this is impossible..."
Harry's expression remained unchanged as he continued. "More importantly, you are not one of my men, so I will not ask for your unwavering fidelity via magic. Instead, I shall simply say this. For the next two months, you are to come here every day. I do not care when as long as you are here for a minimum of two hours." Harry paused here for Ginny's nod of agreement, "After which you will have a schedule you will keep. If you do not, you forfeit the lives you would have saved with this bargain. For every day you cut short of my time, will be time I will personally cut short from one member of your family. In whichever order I please." Ginny nodded solemnly, "Don't forget, there are ten lives I'm saving, and no grace period."
Harry waited for Ginny's response. She replied with fire in her eyes, "I understand." Ginny took a deep breath "Please. Save them. There isn't much time left."
"Then we have a deal." Harry stood up and crossed forearms with Ginny. Bringing her close. He let his aura out to surround them and pushed magic to his eyes. Harry watched Ginny for her reaction. Knowing that his eyes would be glowing and his magical aura overwhelming.
Ginny did not hesitate, or flinch away. He could detect no fear in her eyes, but there was something... Harry didn't know what it was. And it was gone as soon as he saw it, but it was there. Harry had never seen it before in anyone else's eyes, and found himself staring trying to decipher it.
"Milord, why don't you get your cloak while I start with the arrangements?" Jim interrupted. Harry had forgotten he was still here.
Harry waved his left hand in dismissal as he took a step back from Ginny. "No, I'll do it myself." He then preceded to wandlessly summon his evening cloak and a pair of black boots.
Upon see Harry's boots, Jim spoke again. "I'll get that for you, sir. You needn't lower yourself to such menial labor." If Jim didn't stop acting like Harry never went out...
"Enough, Jim. You've done enough for today." The dismissal was clear and Jim obeyed, reluctantly.
"You sure you didn't want him to at least tie your shoes for you? Wouldn't want you to have to lower yourself to menial labor, now would we?" Ginny's reply was full of sarcasm.
Harry didn't bother to respond. Instead, he sat back down and wandlessly charmed his shoes to tie themselves. It was an unnecessary piece of magic, like the aura trick he'd picked up from Dumbledore and Tom, but it would likely shut Ginny up. From the look on her face, he had the bonus effect of impressing her.
"Anymore comments or can I go save your family?" Ginny looked embarrassed, but shook her head no. Harry turned to go, but changed his mind. "One more thing." Harry grabbed Ginny's arm and created a small wound on her wrist. Ginny yipped in surprise, but did not pull away. As her blood began to drop, a summoned vial appeared beneath it.
"Should I ask what that's for?" Ginny questioned after Harry had finished.
"You'll find out soon enough." Harry answered as he turned to leave. Before exiting the room, he spoke once more over his shoulder. "I trust you can heal yourself?"
Ginny's reply was to take her wand out. She returned it to its holster seconds later.
Harry smiled to himself as he left the room. Holding the blood red curtains open as he turned to face Ginny, "Don't get too comfortable. This won't take that long." The next second he turned on the spot and was gone in a soft 'pop'.
The early morning air around the Burrow simmered with magic. Lucius had been here for nearly twenty-four hours, three times the length he'd thought he'd needed. However, that didn't truly matter. The ward stones he had acquired from the Prisoner of Azkaban could easily last for years. Of course, Lucius didn't plan on needing nearly that much time to break into the Burrow, but it was nice to know that he needn't worry about outside interference. Not from Dumbledore and his Order, and definitely not from the Ministry's Aurors.
Still, there were downsides to being here for that length of time. Lucius' meals had not been to the standard he was used too, and his sleeping arrangements were lacking. However, the thought of the reward for his success was enough to keep both discomforts manageable. Of course, that didn't change the fact that he'd been sure it would only require eight hours... There was no telling what had gone wrong.
The plan had been for his group to go undetected until the Weasleys were long dead, but he supposed this would work just as well. The helplessness Dumbledore must have felt when he realized he could do nothing... The Dark Lord would enjoy that the most, along with heads of the Weasleys. Now he just needed to get to them.
Once the last of the Burrow wards had been destroyed, his group would finish off the Weasleys inside. They were unlikely to go down without a fight, but that was why he'd brought twenty of the newest recruits with him. Including the ward breaker and himself, it would be twenty-two against nine. The Weasleys didn't stand a chance.
Even better was that Lucius' plan didn't call for him to dirty his own hands. Once they could damage the Burrow, he'd have the men torch the place. It would be a marked improvement on the current building. Probably increase the property value. Not that the Weasleys would be around to enjoy it. Oh, he supposed the widows might fight over it. But the end would be the same. The Weasleys would either die inside or come out and be slaughtered. The entire clan would be dead in one fell swoop. It would be a blow to Dumbledore's Order like no other.
A soft rustling sounded to his right causing Lucius turn around sharply. His wand at the ready. But there was nothing behind him. Lucius looked around carefully. He'd been sure he'd heard something. Lucius knew it was impossible, but the longer he was here the more likely someone could have gotten past the ruin wards. He observed the area closely, but nothing. It had probably been a gnome. The Weasleys seemed to have an infestation of them, to which Lucius couldn't be all that surprised. Vermin attracted vermin.
Lucius shook his head and put his wand away. These days, he seemed to startle more easily. Lucius hoped this would not take much longer. Otherwise, this assignment just might finally break him.
"Good evening Lucius." Lucius jumped out of his skin at the voice behind him, "Or should I say good morning?"
Turning around slowly, Lucius gave a tight smile to the Prisoner of Azkaban, "Lord Potter, what a... surprise." Lucius didn't even try to draw his wand. There was no defending against a killer of dementors. Lucius wasn't sure if he should ask what the younger man was doing here, or just wait for him to speak. In the end, he opted to just wait this one out. It wasn't worth it to offend this young man.
He didn't have to wait long as the Prisoner spoke, "I have respect for you Lucius, which is why I'm bothering to tell you this at all."
Lucius swallowed loudly, this did not sound good...
The Prisoner stared him down, "You have five minutes to leave this place before I kill you."
"Wha... uh? I beg your pardon?" Lucius asked with confusion written all over his face. Did they not have an agreement?
"Four minutes and fifty-three seconds, Lucius." The Prisoner of Azkaban walked away disappearing into the magically inducted mist. Lucius did not for a second believe him gone.
Lucius turned toward the ward group. He had little time to finish this, and he must finish it. Returning to the Dark Lord empty handed would not be good for his health.
"You, ward breaker."
"It's Jarvis, sir." The ward breaker Jarvis replied.
"Yes, Jarvis, whatever. How much longer will it take to finish breaking down these wards?"
Jarvis looked at the wards in question, "Probably another fifteen minutes, sir."
"You have four." Lucius didn't wait for the ward breaker's response. Instead he moved over to the five teams he'd set up earlier. "I want the leaders from the five teams now!"
The five men began to stumble to attention, but it was taking them too long. "I said now, damn you!"
The men pushed their way to stand in front of Lucius quicker at the sound of their boss' anger, "Sir?"
"Do you remember your jobs once the wards are broken?" Lucius didn't wait for a response. "Groups one and two are to attack from the back with any fire spell they know, while groups three and four attack from the front. Group five will enter the house killing anyone you see. Do you understand?"
"Yes, sir!"
Lucius nodded his head before walking away. He had less than three minutes to deactivate the ruin wards and leave. It would take him five if he had to walk the entire time. So, once he was out of sight of the men, he ran. Lucius knew the Prisoner did not bluff or give time buffers. More importantly, Lucius had reviewed their agreement in his head. It had only been for the pendants and the stone wards. Nothing was said about the success of the attack or that the Prisoner of Azkaban would not interfere.
For the first time, Lucius noticed the unnatural silence of the surrounding forest. His heartbeat was beating in his ears so loud he was sure it filled the air. Not soon enough, Lucius found himself at the central ward stone. He didn't have time to turn it off properly or completely, but he could still misalign it.
Lucius pushed the ward stone back nearly half a foot by hand. Not bothering with his wand. The area in front of him simmered. Lucius waited no longer than that. The barrier singed the back of his robes as he dove through and apparated away. The Dark Lord would Cruciatus him for sure whether they succeeded or not, but he would live...
"How much longer Jarvis?" One of the team leaders Lucius had pulled out earlier asked.
"Another thirty seconds."
"Do you know where Lord Malfoy is Khan?" A nameless recruit asked his team leader, Khan.
"Does it matter?" Khan turned back to Jarvis. "I thought you were supposed to get this done in four minutes." Khan looked at his watch before continuing, "It's been nearly five minutes now."
"If you keep talking to me, it's going to take..." Jarvis didn't finish as he started to retch violently. Brown and red slushy liquid poured from his mouth. Followed by... was that flesh?
"What the fuck!" Khan yelled as watched in object horror as Jarvis began to vomit his intestines. He only had time to scream as his head imploded, brain matter landing on his surrounding group members.
"Shit! Who did that!?" The young recruit spun around on his heels trying to find the source of the violence. "Show your god damn fucking self!" The nameless recruit shouted at nothing. Around him fellow Death Eaters screamed in pain as they fell to the ground. If they were lucky they'd be dead on impact, but some continued to writhe and scream.
A buddy he'd been drinking with just a couple of hours ago, tried to gouge his own eyes out. He ended up running into a sharp pole that appeared out of nowhere. The nameless recruit held his wand out shakily as he continued to circle around and around trying to keep the brutality in front of him. He watch as one by one his fellow Death Eaters died. The majority of which appeared to be very painful deaths. He did not sign up for this shit. The nameless recruit knew he could get Cruciatus, but this... This was torture plan and simply. The killing curse would have been a kinder end.
The young recruit looked at the predawn sky. "I don't know if there's anyone out there..." A loud scream sounded in the background before all was quiet, "But please." A soft sound rustled from behind the nameless recruit. He barely noticed when he defecated on himself. Words trembled out of his mouth as he spoke to the sky and the person behind him. "I'm sorry, whoever you are... I'm so sorry... Please don't..."
The nameless recruited didn't get to finish. Instead, he grabbed his neck, blood flowing through his hands. The recruit only had time to look at his own blood pouring from him before he fell to the ground. Unmoving. Dead.
Harry looked around him at the bodies scattered across the cold Earth, "I hate cleanup..." Harry waved his hand in front of him and watched as the Earth sprouted up and swallowed the bodies whole. He rarely had to clean up his own messes. Why should he, when he wanted everyone to know the work was his? But that wouldn't work for the Weasleys...
Harry had calculatedly left the body with the least damage above ground to send his message. He observed the body to try to remember how he'd killed this one. Yes, he'd boiled his blood. The body looked pretty good from the outside too. There was only a little bit of blood caked under his nose and at the corner of his mouth. He'd have to remember to do this spell again if he needed a usable body.
Harry stood up and conjured his signature scythe. In one smooth motion, he chopped the head off. Harry then preceded to stage the body. Like a scarecrow, the body pointed away from the house it protected. It would be a sign to Tom, if Lucius didn't understand the warning he'd given earlier. This would send the message. The Weasleys were now under his protection.
Harry looked around one more time. He'd never had the need to use the undertaker spell before and wasn't sure how deep it would take the bodies. It might be awkward for the Weasleys to find several decomposing bodies in the front yard in a couple of months. But that wasn't his problem.
Harry started walking in the direction that Lucius had taken just minutes ago. It didn't take long before he came up to the central stone.
After Harry adjusted the stone's alignment, he took out the vial of Ginny's blood to alter the wards protection. It didn't take long to change several of the wards from a simple on and off to one that would accept the Weasleys' presence.
It was likely to be altered further by Bill, so Harry didn't bother to put any more energy into it. This would allow the Weasleys to come and go as they please, along with activating the floo system in this direction so that Hermione could get out even if she couldn't get back through the wards.
Harry stepped through the wards and apparated away. He was done here.
As Harry walked into his room, he was met with the sight of an anxious Ginny leaning against his desk.
At the sight of him, Ginny moved from the desk to stand in front of him. "My family... Are they safe?" Ginny asked.
Harry did not immediately reply. Instead he took off his cloak and sat down to undo his shoes by hand. "Go home Ginny." Harry paused to take off his right boot, settling it in front of his bed. "Your family is safe." Harry took off his left boot, and set it next to its mate. "Tomorrow..." He banished his boots before putting his full attention on Ginny. "Tomorrow, we will begin."
Ginny nodded, her shoulders sagging in relief before she turned to the door. Harry noticed her hesitation and questioned her, "Can you find your way back or do you need me to get Jim to escort you?"
"No. No, that won't be necessary." Ginny replied. She moved the thick curtain, but paused on her way out. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me. I didn't help you out of the kindness of my heart. This is a deal, nothing more than that."
"Still, you didn't have to help." Ginny looked kindly back at him, "I promise you will not regret this decision."
Harry laughed softly before he replied, "It's you who may come to regret this deal." Ginny hesitated only briefly before leaving Anaon. "Yes, let's hope you don't regret this..."
It was nearly an hour later before Jim returned. "You took your sweet time, Jim."
"I'm sorry milord. I wasn't sure if you'd gone to sleep yet, and didn't want to bother you unnecessarily."
Harry waved his hand in dismissal, "Did you give Ginevra a direct Azkaban apparition talisman? I don't want her to take the boat."
"Of course, milord. I thought it would be an unnecessary inconvenience." Jim paused briefly in the silence. "As the General you put in charge of this militant, I must apologize for the mistakes that led to your previous disturbance. I'm not sure how Miss. Weasley managed to get this far, but I take full responsibility to whatever punishment you deem necessary. No Weasley should have ever gotten this far to bother you, sir. And for that, I sincerely apologize." Jim bowed low as he finished his apology.
"I was surprised that she made it past you with everything Theo's probably told you about the Weasleys."
"For that, I must also take responsibility. When Danny told me that he'd sent her to see Major Schneider, I wasn't sure what he was thinking, but I did not directly intervene like I should have. I trusted too much that the pictures of the Order members would be enough that something like this would never happen. That trust was misplaced."
"Ginny didn't come here on Order business; quite the opposite I'm guessing. Danny must have sensed that from her. That is not something you could have accounted for."
"Even so milord, this is inexcusable. You should not have had to deal with her. My apologies cannot express how deeply sorry I am. Please, sir. I am ready for my punishment."
"That's enough Jim. Despite what Theodore has undoubtedly told you, Ginny isn't like the rest of the Weasleys. I'd even intended for her to find me, so Danny did exactly what I wanted him to do. Therefore, there is no need for your apologies or punishment." Harry paused in thought, "I'll want to look into her record as a Healer of course, but we have an agreement, now." Harry turned to Jim, "I want you to make sure she has the best accommodations that we can offer. In fact, give her the room across from yours."
Harry was about to continue but he could tell that Jim wanted to interject. "Unless there is a problem with that decision?"
"No problem sir." Harry waited for Jim to continue. It wouldn't take long. Jim was more relaxed when they were alone. "It's just... I thought we were going to give that room to Davies. He's worked really hard. More importantly, I figured that having him closer wouldn't be a bad idea."
"Davies? No, he already has a room adjacent to the kitchen. As a cook, that is where he belongs. I want the room across from you to go to Ginny." Harry paused. "Make sure she has a fully stocked library of healing materials, counter curses, potions books, anything and everything she may need. If we have to, we'll have the Goblins add additional rooms to incorporate the library."
"If you insist. I'll see to it personally."
"Get her an assistant for potions brewing as well."
"I'll give Owen a promotion and swear her in to the new level of clearance before Miss. Weasley arrives."
"Very well." Harry laid down, signaling Jim's dismissal.
"There is another detail we must address, milord." Harry looked up in question. "Miss. Weasley will need a uniform. I don't think you'll want her in the normal one."
"You're right. Ginny will need a unique uniform to signify her healing position and her importance to the organization. I trust you can handle it?"
"Yes, sir. I'll have someone get on that along with any other robes and clothing she may want or need. If she's to have a room, then it should be fully functional. It wouldn't do to have her coming and going at odd hours of the night."
"Yes. Make sure the room is fully functional. A home away from home. Anything you or Danny have should be in her room as well."
"Yes, sir. I'll have Davies fully stock her kitchen, and have one of our trusted female members obtain toiletries, and any other personal supplies she might need. A couple of spare St. Mungo's Healer robes should also be added. I'll even have the room re-styled in the Gryffindor fashion."
"No, don't re-style the room. All your other plans are fine, but not that. Ginny's favorite color is green, so she'll like it the way it is now."
Jim hesitated to reply, "Of course. Milord, there is one other problem we must attend too."
"What is it, Jim?" Harry had grown tired of this conversation and it showed in his voice.
"We've no more room in Azkaban for Miss. Weasley to set up to receive patients."
Oh, now that could be a problem. Harry took a few minutes to think of other places that might work for Ginny. It would have to be close, and they didn't have time to get the Goblins to create a new room for her... "Use my ritual room. Have it redesigned for her purpose. I'll use the stone in my room until we get a new ritual room."
"Yes, sir. I'll have it done before her arrival."
"Good Jim, but don't let this interfere with your other duties."
"I would never dream of it, sir..."
Ginny apparated directly to her apartment. She took two steps toward her couch before fatigue hit her. Ginny leaned heavily on the back of the couch. Her eyes felt heavy. Her shoulders sagged. Ginny was dead tired and it showed. Even so, she could not sleep yet. Her family was free, and soon they would contact her. And then… and then… Ginny's mind blanked. Her ability to think had dropped with her adrenaline. All she wanted to do was sleep. But she needed to see her family. Ginny knew herself well. There would be no easy rest until she saw them.
Ginny wanted to just go to them. She could apparate to Grimmauld Place and wait for their arrival, if they weren't there already. However, it would have given away her involvement if she waited for her family's arrival right under Dumbledore's nose.
Ginny moved around the couch to settle down and wait. She'd be close at hand when someone flooed her. One minute she was watching the fire and the next...
"Ginny! Ginny!" Black's head popped out of the floo in front of her, waking her from a nightmare. "Thank Merlin you're still up." Ginny didn't know how she'd fallen asleep, and she didn't have time to contemplate it as Black continued. "You need to get over here now. It's about the Burrow..." Black's floating head smiled as he continued, "Everyone's alive!" Black laughed hysterically, "They're alive!"
"Thanks Sirius, I'll be right over." Ginny replied tiredly.
"Let me get out of your way!" Black's head disappeared from the green flames so that Ginny could floo to Grimmauld Place.
Ginny stood up to follow, and nearly keeled right over in her hurry. She squeezed her eyes shut in pain, moving her hand to her head to try and massage the migraine developing at her temple. Taking a deep breath, Ginny straightened her body. She did not have time for this.
Instead of going straight to the fireplace, Ginny walked shakily over to the kitchen sink and splashed cold water on her face. The cool water wouldn't help her migraine, but it would help wake her up a little. After drying her face off, she took out a pepper up potion from the kit still in her robes. It would help her headache for a few hours at most. Ginny hoped she wouldn't need more than that.
Ginny was halfway through the process of flooing to Grimmauld Place with a pinch of floo powder in her hand, when she realized she was still wearing her gray robes. She briefly looked over to where her room was before deciding it would just be easier to transfigure the robes she already had on to another color.
Five seconds later, Ginny was moving through the floo with green robes and joy in her heart. Her family was safe.
Ginny arrived to a warm, but empty, kitchen at Grimmauld Place. It was not, however, silent. She could hear her mother's voice from here. As Ginny moved slowly up the stairs, she could make out more voices. The twins laughing with Black, Ron and Hermione arguing, Charlie talking with her father... As Ginny reached the first floor landing, she saw Dumbledore near her father and Lupin smiling with Black and the twins. Professor McGonagall was sitting at the dining room table speaking with her mother. Professor Snape was in the far corner of the room with Mad Eye close at hand.
But Ginny's focus was on her family...
"Ginny!" Her mother shouted getting up from the table.
"Mum!"
"Ginny!", "Gin-Gin!" Her family chorused.
Her mother engulfed her in a hug, followed closely by her father.
"Mum, dad. It's so great to see you." Ginny replied as she pulled away. "But where's Bill and Percy?"
"Home with their families. We've been here for more than two hours now, so Albus just sent them home. Although Bill will be back later today." Her father answered.
"You've been back for two hours. Why didn't anyone tell me sooner?" Ginny wasn't sure what time it was, but it had to be closer to four in the morning if they'd been here for two hours.
"We thought you'd be asleep at this hour. We wanted at least someone to get a good night's rest."
"How could I sleep with the knowledge that you all were in trouble?" Ginny shook her head. "It doesn't matter. You're here now." Ginny hugged her mum and dad again before pulling away to get a good look at them. Harry had not said if anyone had been hurt in the crossfire."Is everyone alright? What happened?"
"Yes, Weasleys. What happened? I'd also like to be informed about this morning's events since no one has seen fit to update me." Professor Snape asked. Mad Eye grunted his agreement, while Professor McGonagall also looked on curiously. However, Lupin and Black looked unconcerned. Ginny was surprised that Lupin and Black were the only ones to have already heard the story. What was Dumbledore hiding?
Ginny's father looked over at Dumbledore briefly before replying. "It was the middle of the night when our pendants went off. Curiously enough, summoning us to the Burrow. Molly and I went downstairs to wait for the meeting to start. As one by one, only our children arrived. We thought nothing of it." Her father nodded at her mum, who gave a nod of agreement. "It wasn't until fifteen minutes after Ron and Hermione had arrived, when we grew concerned about no one else's arrival. So, I asked Ron and Hermione to settle down, so that I could floo Albus."
"We were talking…" Hermione began.
"More like arguing." Fred interrupted.
"Again." George added.
"We were talking about how my pendant must be malfunctioning, since it didn't go off when Ron's did. I thought we ought to ask Professor Dumbledore about it once he arrived, while Ron disagreed, strongly."
"In my defense, the pendants aren't supposed to malfunction. That's just not supposed to be possible."
"So, I was in the process of flooing Albus, when Molly let out a horrified gasp. I'd already thrown the powder in and called for Grimmauld Place, but nothing happened. So, I turned to my wife to see what had upset her."
"I'd been watching Ginny's hand on the clock to make sure she was safe." As her mum said that, she rubbed her hands up and down Ginny's arms. "She was at work, and I was about to tell Arthur our little girl wasn't going to make it to the meeting, when all of our hands went from home to mortal peril."
"It was seconds later before we felt the wards shudder." Her dad replied softly.
"Bill checked the wards to see if they'd failed completely." Charlie took over the explanation. "They were still active, but being drained. Broken into crudely. Bill was sure it would take nearly twenty-four hours for the wards to fall."
"Unfortunately, that didn't change the fact that a secondary ward had been created to block apparition and the floo connection." Hermione added.
"We tried to apparate when dad couldn't use the floo, but nothing." Ron spoke giving evidence to Hermione's statement.
"And Miss. Weasley was still at work, correct?" Professor Snape asked. Ginny was unsure why he wanted to know that particular point.
"Yes, Ginny's hand never moved from work. It was the only thing that made the situation even a little more bearable." Ginny's mum replied.
"Bill wanted to go outside to check the secondary wards, and see if he could break them." Fred spoke.
"And we wanted to go with him as backup." George added.
"But, dad convinced us not to." Fred finished.
"I came up with a different approach to tell how many people were outside of the Burrow that didn't include going out to count them." Hermione paused dramatically.
"Which would be?" Professor Snape snapped impatiently.
"Hermione counted their body heat." Ron replied heatedly, "There were twenty-two outside the Burrow. We were completely outnumbered."
"I see... It is interesting that Miss. Weasley was not included in this attack. Granger was clearly in the wrong place at the wrong time. But that doesn't explain why Miss. Weasley was excluded from the attack. This situation just doesn't make any sense." Professor Snape replied.
"I was called to the Burrow." Ginny looked at her parents with a guilt ridden face as she continued, "But I was also called into St. Mungo's. I chose to go there instead."
"It's alright Ginny. Watching your hand safe at work," Ginny mum turned to her father, "Before you father managed to tear me away from it." Her mum turned back to her, "It was one of the only things that kept me going."
"Who was in charge of watching the clock, if I may ask?" Dumbledore inquired.
"The twins volunteered to watch it for us to see if our condition changed." Her father replied.
"So, you lot were stuck behind these secondary wards, huh?" Moody replied. "From what Albus has already told me about the wards, it should have been impossible to penetrate in either direction." Moody paused as his magical eyes rolled around in his head. "How is it you managed to escape?"
"Alastor!" Professor McGonagall replied in outrage over his callous question.
"We didn't..." Charlie replied with a distant look on his face. "The wards were about to fall. Bill was sure of it. He, Percy, and I were to guard the front door. Ron and the twins the back, while Hermione secured the windows.
"I was preparing for a fire. It was the most likely choice given the situation." Hermione added.
Charlie continued as if Hermione had not spoken. "Bill convinced mum and dad to stay in the kitchen while we waited and watched." Charlie paused. His eyes unfocused as if he were reliving a nightmare. "It was torture. We could see them. Not well after Bill and Hermione had reinforced the window, but we could see them. And we could hear them. Laughing. Talking. Drinking with their mates."
Charlie's eyes were hard, intense. "As we waited at the front door..." Charlie paused to shake himself. "The screams... I'll never forget those screams. It was over so quickly. One minute, the screams were so intense it was as if they were right in front of us. I wanted… we wanted to help them. And the next moment…" Charlie didn't finish. And for a while, no one else spoke.
"Then what? Did you see the force that was behind it?" Professor Snape interrupted the silence. The way he'd asked the question made Ginny believe he was hiding something. Some piece of information he didn't want anyone else to know. Why?
"We didn't go out immediately. Dad convinced us not too. But when we did..."
"What boy? What did you see?" Mad Eye questioned.
"There was one body left. Out of twenty-two, only one Death Eater's body remained."
"And you're sure he was a Death Eater." Professor Snape questioned.
Charlie nodded to the Professor, "Yes. At first I thought he was just sleeping, or maybe unconscious. So we took a closer look at him. But he was dead. With his Death Eater mask, laying in his lap." Charlie looked Professor Snape in the eyes as he continued, "Professor, he was leaning on a scythe with his head next to him…"
"So, it was the Reaper." Professor Snape spoke almost to himself.
Moody let out a short hard laugh, "I'm telling you Albus, we don't need to go after this punk." Moody chuckled to himself, "He'll kill himself going after the Death Eaters."
"Alastor, we must not lose sight of what is important here." Professor McGonagall admonished Mad Eye. "What are the Reaper's motivations for saving the Weasleys for instance? Does he expect something in return, or has he already received it?"
"There's more. Bill and I took a look at the wards. The Burrow's original wards were completely destroyed, but the secondary wards… They were stronger than ever, but more importantly, they no longer prevent either me or the Weasleys' from using the floo." Hermione responded.
"We flooed immediately to Grimmauld Place once they got back. Didn't want to chance apparition, just yet." Ron added.
"So, the Reaper saves the Weasleys and adds stronger wards to the Burrow. All because he seems to hate Death Eaters." The disbelief hung heavily from Professor Snape's voice.
"Yes, it's hard for me to believe as well Severus, which is why I had Sirius bring Ginevra here."
"Excuse me? Bring me here…" Ginny did not like the way that sounded.
"Albus, you told me to get Ginny so that she could reunite with her family. What are you going on about, now?" Black countered.
"I'm curious, Ginevra, why you weren't included in this attack? I also find it curious that after I'd informed you that there was nothing anyone could do, the Weasleys were still saved. By the Reaper no less." Dumbledore interrogated Ginny.
"Are you implying I have something to do with the Reaper? Some information about the Reaper that I've not been sharing?" Ginny deflected the question with disgust in her voice.
"I'm implying that you would do anything to save your family. If this is not true then I apologize." Dumbledore held no apology in his voice.
"Albus?" Professor McGonagall question. She was clearly going to have words with him in private.
"Enough, Albus. That's my daughter you're accusing." Ginny's father defended her.
"She's part of the Order just like everyone else. Putting her life on the line to help, when she doesn't have to." Her mum added as she stepped protectively in front of Ginny.
"Damn it Albus! Ginny's a healer, for Merlin's sake! I know my sister, and she'd have nothing to do with someone like the Reaper!" Charlie yelled in outrage. "If Bill were here hearing this..." Charlie shook his head in disappointment as he let the sentence hang.
"It's an easy conclusion to come to. She's the only one who knew of the entire situation, and for whom I know not of her whereabouts for the past several hours." Dumbledore gave a dramatic pause. "Tell me what else am I to think?"
"It would make for an excellent cover." Mad Eye added, not helping her case.
Ginny was not going to let them know the extent of her involvement. Beside, Dumbledore would never believe she was not involved with the Reaper from the very beginning if he learned the truth. He would not learn it today, and not from her.
Ginny stepped in front of her parents and looked Dumbledore straight in the eyes, challenging him. There was no twinkle, just a cold, calculated stare. She had seen that look before. When she was much younger, she'd not understood what it was, but now... Now she knew. "We both know what this is about, and it hasn't got anything to do with my family's current situation." Uncontrolled anger crept into her eyes as she spoke, "You've never trusted me, and it's not because of anything I've done. You can't read me like the others. But that's not my fault, and it doesn't mean I've had anything to do with what's happened to my family."
Ginny paused, unable to speak as tears welled in the corner of her eyes. A trick she'd perfected when she was eight. "Merlin knows I wish I had been responsible for saving them. For at least finding them someone who could help, but I couldn't… I didn't even know where to begin. And I won't let myself become your easy way out."
The dining room erupted in noise. Outrage from her family that Dumbledore would use their sister, their daughter, as a scapegoat.
"Silence!" Dumbledore commanded and the dining room went silent. "There is an easy way to prove that you were not involved with today's events." Dumbledore turned to the twins as he continued, "Can you recall, George, Frederick, the movements of your sister's hand on that amazing family Weasley clock? Any movement that was not at home, work, or here?"
The twins didn't even hesitate to answer. "We were watching the clock carefully, besides her travel this afternoon."
"What time was it?" Dumbledore interrupted. Her father held his face in disapproval at Dumbledore's question.
"It had to be close to two yesterday afternoon, wasn't it Fred?"
"Yeah, she went from work, traveling, work, traveling, home, traveling, and home in about three hours."
"Gin-Gin's been at her flat since then."
Ginny's father took over for the twins. He put his hand firmly on Ginny's shoulder in support. "This is an instance of what is easy and what is right, Albus. Ginny is the easy target, but not the right one."
Dumbledore took a moment to think before he replied. "You're right Arthur." Dumbledore breathed out, "I'm sorry Ginny for the accusation. I seem to have let my imagination get away from me."
"I'm just glad that everyone's okay." Ginny replied.
"With that option eliminated, we must look in a different direction. But first," Dumbledore turned to Professor Snape, "Severus, are you sure this was a Death Eater attack?"
Ginny's attention immediately went to Professor Snape. She was tired and, with her family safe, all she wanted to do was sleep. But this was important, potentially useful, information.
"Without a doubt. In fact, Lucius Malfoy led the attack." The Professor tilted his head in Charlie's direction as he continued, "He is the only known survivor." Before Charlie could reply, the Professor continued, "But only because he ran away before the… fighting."
Moody snapped to attention, "Ran away? Malfoy? That doesn't sound like him. Did he know the Reaper was coming?"
"He didn't say why, at least not in front of everyone. It is most likely that he informed the inner circle of his reasons." The Professor looked hesitant to continue. Dumbledore pounced on his hesitation.
"What else was there Severus?"
"The Dark Lord mentioned that Lucius had guaranteed the attack would work. He'd promised the Weasleys' heads would be laying at his feet the next time they met."
"Guaranteed? Malfoy guaranteed it?" Dumbledore needled the Professor.
"He guaranteed it."
"I don't like it. Not one damned bit! Why would scum like him promise his Dark Lord anything? No Malfoy wouldn't guarantee anything, unless he'd had assurances from someone else. Someone he trusted." Mad Eye added.
"I do not know if he had someone helping him. But I can tell you that he has excelled for the past several years at just about every other task the Dark Lord has set him. Something I've mentioned to you before, Dumbledore." Professor Snape paused to look over at Dumbledore before he continued, "The Dark Lord was very surprised to see him fail at this one, which was probably why he chose to only… discipline… Lucius for his failure, and not do something more permanent."
"Thank you Severus for the information. Will you be able to look into the situation more?" The question was not a question, but Dumbledore's way of giving out unpleasant orders.
The look on Professor Snape's face showed that he was no stranger to this type of order, "I shall do my best."
"That is all I can ask, my boy. In the meantime, I want to further discuss the new wards surrounding the Burrow..."
Ginny tuned the rest of the conversation out. She would get an update on the new wards from Bill soon enough. Now, all she wanted was to find a bed. Her exhaustion must have showed on her face because her mother gave her one more lingering hug.
"Dear, we'll be fine. You, however, need to get to bed. You have work in the morning, and I don't want your patients to suffer from your lack of sleep."
"Mum, I'll be fine. I just want to make sure everyone's alright before I go."
"Well, you've seen us." Ginny was about to reply, but her mother talked over her, "You can come back tomorrow, or today, I suppose. We'll be sleeping here tonight, me and your father. So, you go on home, now. My little Healer." Her mum always knew how to make her children feel like they were five again.
"It was so good to see you all safe. I only wish Bill and Percy were still here."
"They're safe. Now go home and sleep. That's an order from your mother."
"Yes, mum." Ginny kissed her mum goodnight, something she'd not done for years, and moved to leave.
"Goodnight sweet heart. We'll see you tomorrow?" Her father kissed her on the forehead.
"Not likely. But I'll try. Work was bad today, yesterday…" Ginny shook her head in confusion. She needed to get some rest. "When I go in, I'll probably be swamped."
"Don't work too hard."
Ginny made her way out of the dining room. "We'll leave with you." Fred spoke as he and George followed her to the basement kitchen.
It wasn't until they were alone, before Fred spoke up again. "Thanks sis."
"Thanks? For what?" Ginny asked tiredly.
The twins smiled together as George replied, "We don't know how you did it."
"And we don't care." Fred added.
"Thank you." They said together.
"You'd have done the same." The twins smiled at Ginny's reply. Fred held out his hand in front of him, demonstrating that she should floo first. Ginny grabbed a pinch of floo powder before she paused and turned back to the twins, "How did you guys manage to lie to Dumbledore without him knowing?"
"Trade secret." George replied.
"Now, get out of here." Fred added.
"Mum's right."
"You've got work in the morning."
Ginny smiled at the twins. She wasn't likely to get anything more out of them. Now was the time to get home and rest. Ginny briefly looked over at the clock. Four fifty-three in the morning. She had maybe two and half hours of possible sleep. Ginny was a full Healer, and yet days like this reminded her strongly of her apprentice years.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Ginny rolled over in bed. Slammed her hand down where her alarm clock was supposed to be. Missed three times before hitting the off button. And that's where the resemblance from two days ago ended. 6:01 flashed over at her as Ginny looked at her alarm clock through half opened eyes. She reached under her pillow for her wand, too lazy to reset her alarm clock, and cast a quick spell to get her up in another hour. It was way too early for this...
Seven forty-five saw Ginny fumbling with her lime green healer robes as she made her way into the kitchen.
Ginny bypassed the fridge and abandoned her morning tea for a strong cup of coffee. Only when she was halfway through her second cup did she pop in some bread to be toasted. Ginny stared at nothing as she waited for her morning toast, not bothering to even attempt to make a real breakfast. Having only slept for maybe five hours in the past two days, Ginny was in no state this early in the morning to be working the stove.
More importantly, she didn't have the strength to think of all the events last night. The Fixer… the Reaper… Harry... All that mattered now was that her family was safe. The rest would come, just not right now.
The post arrived just as her toast popped up. Ginny bypassed the Daily Prophet. She no longer needed to look out for news about the Reaper. Ginny knew more than she needed to know about him. Instead she looked at the note from Harvey.
Ginny refilled her cup of coffee before sitting down to read it.
Ginny,
How is everything? I hope work isn't getting too busy for you. Work for me is just starting to slow. I just settled my new case yesterday, and wanted to celebrate. I tried to floo you last night, but you weren't home. So, I'm apologizing by letter about work the other day. I really would have preferred eating dinner with you, rather than working on that case. I was also hoping dinner tonight would make up for our missed dinner Tuesday. What do you say I pick you up at seven?
Love,
Harvey
Dinner tonight?
…For every day you cut short of my time, will be time I will personally cut short from one member of your family…
No, she most definitely could not do dinner tonight.
Ginny summoned a quill and some parchment to pen her short reply.
Harvey,
I have to work late tonight.
Ginny
It wasn't a lie either. She did have to work late tonight, just not with St. Mungo's. Which reminded her to come home before going to Azkaban tonight. Her mother was sure to be watching the family clock closely. It would most definitely look odd if she went from work to work.
Ginny sent the letter off, finished her coffee and toast, and got up to go to work. She'd have a very busy day ahead whether it was with St. Mungo's or the Ankou Company. Ginny sighed, tilted her head back as she closed her eyes in thought for the day to come. It was going to be one long bloody day...
"Milord. Lord Nott is here to see you."
"Bring him in Jim. I'm sure you have better things to do, than be here..."
"Of course." Jim bowed out the door as Theodore entered.
Harry did not speak as Theo got comfortable. "He seems more formal and stiff every time I see him."
"The more power I have the more distant and formal he has become. I believe it is his time here as General that has caused this transformation."
"He's become a very important man himself, and yet he knows he's not your equal." Theo tilted his head in understanding, "But, no one really is, my lord."
Harry didn't even bother correcting Theo, when he was level headed he always was deferential to him these days. At least Daphne and Blaise didn't do it when they were alone. Still, that could have to do with something else entirely, and wasn't a matter he cared to go into now.
"So, I've noticed..." Harry paused as if in thought. "I've decided that Jim needs to get out more. So, I'm planning on sending him on a tour of the company very soon now."
"Really? It is your decision of course, but I..."
"Yes, you're right. It is my decision." Harry cut Theo off.
"You're not pleased to see me I take it, my lord?" Theo added the honorific as an afterthought. For someone who was always about respect, he had a very strange way of showing it.
"I find it interesting that my men would go to you, Theo, whenever I make a move." Harry idly toyed with the quill on his desk. "Will you continue this coy attitude, or tell me why you're here?"
"You need not worry about the hierarchy. Daphne told me, not Jim. Unless things have changed so drastically from the last time we talked, I believe this is the way you like it." Theo paused briefly, "So I came over and Jim didn't see a reason not to tell me in detail. So, you don't have to send him away."
"You think I've made a mistake, Theodore?"
"There are other healers who could serve our purpose. I've given you a list every six months for the past two years of the Healers I think are the best candidates. She was not on them for good reason. Yet, you chose her?" Theodore looked away as he continued, "Am I to believe her choice had anything to do with her healing capabilities? What am I to think, Harry?"
"It's not like that, Theo, and you know it. She is remarkable." Harry added with a hint of wonder in his voice. "I gave her an impossible task and she spit it back at me. She should have been on that list two years ago, Theo. So why wasn't she?"
"She was barely a Healer at the time. We needed someone more seasoned. She's still too young." Theo responded.
"No! You've done the research and you should have known how talented Ginny had become, youth or not. I had to spend the last several hours looking up her file myself." The stern look on Harry's face showed how happy he'd been to do it.
"Weasley."
"Pardon?"
"She's still a Weasley. Nothing can change that Harry. She was a blood traitor then, and she's a blood traitor now. Nothing has changed."
Harry turned away from Theo, "You've never liked her or my idea."
"It was as foolish a plan then as it is now. You could have never fooled Dumbledore, and you know it."
"Well, I'm not trying too!"
"So, you'll isolate her further, just like then..." Theo shook his head in disappointment. "You weren't thinking with your head, and you aren't now either."
"Enough! I chose who I will or will not have in my empire. I listened to you once before, Theo, but never again! I'm far more powerful than I was in our fourth year. My choices are no longer limited."
"And yet, you're still here..."
"I chose to stay here, Theo. You know that."
Theodore shook his head in disagreement, "You are free in name only. I've spent the last four years trying to change that, and here you are making these plans!" Theo shook his head again, "I'm saying this is a very bad idea. For you and this company. Just..." Theo paused to get his bearings, "Just, tell me how you think this can go well? What do you think she will do when she finds out about your involvement? And Weasley will find out eventually."
"It doesn't matter. An agreement is an agreement. More importantly, I want the best. And Theo, she is the best." Harry gave a thin lipped smile, "You realize my organization is now complete, my Generals..."
"It doesn't matter? Do you truly believe that, Harry? Do you think she'll want to be with you after this?" Theo laughed cruelly, "General? She'll hate you. And she'll wish you were truly dead."
Harry looked away from his best mate. "Like I said... I want the best."
"You only gave Lucius access to the Order's pendants and the ward stones, because you thought there was a chance this could happen. If I hadn't given you the information Daphne collected about the Weasley's being Voldemort's target for Hollow's Eve, you'd have never agreed to the exchange. And the only reason this worked was because those idiots used the ward stones too early! If they'd done it right, the power of the ward stones would have helped them breakdown the wards surrounding the Burrow faster. The fools wouldn't have needed twenty-four hours. In fact, it would have only taken eight at the most." Theo paused for breath, "You were lucky, and Weasley will find this out."
It had been a calculated gamble, but not as big of a gamble as Theo seemed to think. Lucius had come to him several weeks ago for a way to break into the Order's pendants. He'd initially refused for those same reasons. A Hollow's Eve break-in wouldn't have given Ginny enough time to find him, nor could he guarantee that Ginny would be called into work.
More importantly, Harry did not want to get directly involved with the fight between Dumbledore and Voldemort. He was perfectly fine letting them kill each other. Once they'd weakened each other enough, he could come in and clean up the mess. However, at his refusal, Lucius told him the planned attack was on the Weasleys. That alone wouldn't have changed his mind except... Lucius didn't stop there.
Lucius told him everything. Down to the minutest detail. How they were going to use the pendants? When they were going to use them? Why they needed wards to last several days? Wards that would take a high level curse breaker days to break through. Lucius unfolded the whole plan before him. The number of Death Eaters and their given ranks and specialties. More importantly, Lucius told him that Tom had planned to attack multiple places with easy access to Aurors. It would keep the Aurors busy, yet the valiant Order unable to help. And of course, it all depended on his involvement...
It was simply an opportunity he could not pass up.
"Don't be a fool Theo. I would never have done it with the little information Daphne gave you. No, Lucius told me everything. I didn't need any of your information." Harry paused to let that sink in, "I knew they would attack early. I knew they would have additional attacks going on that would involve the Aurors and not the Order. But more importantly, I knew Ginny would not be there." That last part was of course not true, but Theo didn't need to know that.
Theo did not hesitate to reply. "You didn't know she would be able to find you. You gambled with her family's life. For that alone, how do you expect her to forgive you?"
It was true, he'd gambled, but the probability was high, so high... Perhaps Ginny would never forgive him, but he was okay with that. "It was business. Personal feelings were not considered. For if I had, then I'd not have done it at all."
He'd simply hoped for a highly advanced apprentice healer, but what he got was so much more.
Theo got up to leave at Harry's last statement. "I see I'll not be able to convince you otherwise... But, before I go. Just think. If it was business, purely business. Why Weasley? You wanted the best, but you thought she was only an apprentice. I'm not stupid, my lord. I know why you didn't pick a Healer until now. You wouldn't have either, if this opportunity had not landed at your feet. You were going to wait for her to become a full Healer." Theo nodded his head agreeing with himself, "You and I both know it was always going to be her." Theo straightened his robes as he continued, "Business or not."
AN: First off, big thanks to my beta bkats. He made this thing more understandable. You might not realize it, but I am slightly dyslexic and get similar words confused, a lot. So, my beta does very important work. With that said, bkats, is starting med school soon, which means I'm going to need a second beta to take some of the pressure off of him. I've got plenty of buddies in med school, and one of my lab mates is in the MD/PhD program. So, I know he's not really going to have a life during school. I'd really appreciate the help extra help.
As for this chapter, (1) still don't own HP and (2) told you I'd get it out this week. I always keep my promises. Just don't expect another chapter for another two weeks or so. Could take a little long, since I'm preparing for a big experiment, but I could possibly have a lot of down time. Won't know until I do it. Which pretty much sums up my approach to life... I am, however, looking forward to getting out to the middle game. (I think of writing this story in chess phases...)
Thanks for the reviews. I like to read them when I'm close to posting the next chapter (gives me the strength to finish final edits...), or when my twin bothers me about them...
KJ
PS I had half a mind to post Sunday instead as a b-day present, but that technically wouldn't be this week so...
PSS Wish I would get an update from my twin for my birthday... hint... hint...