Chapter Eleven: Tobias Evans
Grace knocked loudly on her boss' door for the second time in the past ten minutes and again received no answer. She knew what was happening on the other side of that door from experience. An experience she could have lived without. More importantly, an experience she didn't want to repeat if she could help it.
Mr. Evans, or Tobi as he kept insisting she call him, had stopped by with lunch. It wasn't the first time he'd stopped by like this either. The wizard had a calling card for his lunch appointments. He'd either send in lunch with his daily flowers, or the flowers would come alone, which always meant he'd be following them. Grace could expect him to follow the flowers at least twice a week, which was an improvement from nearly every day as had been the case during the first two weeks of her boss' relationship.
Normally, she wouldn't have cared about Mr. Evans lunch visits. Nor, the longer than normal lunch that would entail for her Healer. It was actually very sweet that he made it a propriety to see her so often. But Ginny had an important Senior Healer meeting in five minutes that she could not miss. There would be no sorry, I'm late for this meeting. More importantly, this particular meeting couldn't and wouldn't start without her.
Grace knew from experience that Senior Healer Smethwyck would be down here in ten minutes asking for her Healer. The one time this had happened before, she'd only just barely been able to point the Senior Healer in the wrong direction long enough to get Ginny out of her office and hurrying to the meeting. Grace did many thing for her Healer willingly, but she didn't plan on having to use that type of misdirection again today.
Knowing this meeting had been in the books for days now, Grace had gone out of her way to tell Ginny not to have lunch with Mr. Evans today. It wouldn't be the first time she'd politely suggest that her boss schedule her lunch dates around these important Senior Healer meetings. But of course that was out of the question. Mr. Evans was apparently a very busy man, self-employed but busy.
Grace supposed it was even true as she'd yet to see him here with lunch on the same days of the week for each successive week. Nor did there appear to be a pattern that could be traced between the weeks. So, there was no rhyme or reason that she could use to schedule Ginny's meetings ahead of time. And Grace had been desperately trying for the past couple of months to find said pattern. She like to think of herself as the super secretary, who could work around anything to get her boss to the places she needed to be. Unfortunately, Mr. Evans was making a liar out of her.
Altogether, it meant Grace had to work within the six or so hours between flower arrival time and possible meetings that could and would be interrupted by her boss' lunch date. At least, Ginny never let her patients come second to the dates, unlike her meetings. Normally, she'd try to reschedule for a later time in the day, which could work some times. But not with Senior Healer meetings. Unfortunately, Ginny wasn't the only Senior Healer with a busy schedule. Either way, knowing he'd be here didn't really help her in her situation now. No, when only flowers had appeared this morning, and her words had gone unheeded, Grace had known this was a very real possibility. She'd known she might be put in this position, again.
Ginny, being the kind and compassionate boss that she was, had seen Grace's displeasure when Mr. Evans had arrived and had promptly assured her that lunch wouldn't go over an hour. Grace had just been able to not laugh in her face. She was, after all, still her boss. Nevertheless, she'd given Ginny the benefit of the doubt, and had watched the clock and time. An hour had turned into an hour and a half, which was now dangerously approaching two hours. Now, Grace was faced with the embarrassing job of interrupting her boss and her boyfriend in what was probably a very intimate situation. Unfortunately, today wouldn't even be the first or the fifth, and likely not the last time she'd have to do this.
Taking a deep breath, Grace steeled herself as she slowly opened Senior Healer Weasley's office door just a crack. She'd had to do this often enough to know how far she had to open the door to make sure her boss heard her without seeing something she couldn't un-see. Ignoring the sounds coming from within, Grace called out, "Senior Healer Weasley, you have a meeting in four minutes." She waited only long enough to hear Ginny flustered 'be right there' before she shut the door quickly.
Grace had only made the mistake once of thinking Mr. Evans response would be enough. She'd been so embarrassed at the time that she'd assumed his nod had meant they would be out shortly. Instead, she'd waited nearly fifteen minutes with no change before she'd had to try again. Now, she always waited for Ginny's response. Perhaps that was just one of the reasons why she wasn't overly fond of Mr. Evans.
Despite her new embarrassing job, the thought of the last couple of months brought a smile to Grace's face and a short bark laughter at her current situation. She'd been working with Ginny from the very beginning, before even since she'd been Ginny secretary when she'd been a simple Trainee Healer.
Grace was no mediwitch turned secretary. She'd been hired by Ginny directly and approved by the board to work for her Healer, and her Healer alone. Something that was nearly unheard of for a junior Healer. No, most Healers didn't get a secretary until they were a Senior Healer, but Ginny was a special case. So the board had made an exception as long as Ginny paid for Grace's services herself.
The arrangement hadn't been met with too much blowback, because of the precedence of apprentice Healers paying for their own personal servants. Even so, Grace was no personal servant and never planned to be one. Not to mention those cases were so very different than their own. Those type of apprentices didn't normally make it far in life. In fact, Senior Healers normally looked down their noses at them. Not a single one of those apprentices had ever made it to the Trainee Healer stage. As St. Mungo's just wasn't the type of place where parents could buy their children's Healer position.
At St. Mungo's like many other wizarding hospitals, you had to have some kind of talent to make it. And it didn't matter how much money mummy and daddy had if you had no talent to back it up. The Healer profession just wasn't that kind of field, which made the difference between Ginny and all those other would be healers whose families had tried to buy their position. At least the apprentices made for some excellent gossip as the rumor mill within St. Mungo's was a powerful one. And oh, were they gossiping now.
Grace watched as Senior Healer Weasley and Mr. Evans walked out of her office together. They weren't the type to go walking around hand in hand, or at least Mr. Evans wasn't. But there was a clear togetherness about them. It was the way they looked at each other, and the secret looks they shared that gave them away. Grace was impressed that her Healer looked so put together given the state of undress she'd likely been in moments before. Mr. Evans had a smug look on his face, the same look he seemed to always wear no matter the occasion. So, it probably was only partially caused from his activities earlier.
Grace looked away, trying to give her boss some privacy so she could say goodbye. Most likely for the second or third time. Even so, she caught Ginny giving a lingering touch along Mr. Evans arm, only to have the man pull her in for a very passionate kiss. For the amount of time she'd known him, Mr. Evans was always this bold. Probably a Gryffindor in another life.
Despite all the drama, the man brought to her life, he was good to Ginny, good for her too. And their romance beat her wireless soaps every day of the week. If only she didn't have so much damage control to do afterwards. Keeping what Heather, the center of all things gossip, knew about the situation down to a bare minimal was not an easy task. And Mr. Evans boldness didn't help either. His cunning in this situation left a lot to be desired. After all, Ginny's relationship in the workplace was as inappropriate as it could get, or nearly so.
Still, as long as Mr. Evans wasn't secretly a Healer working in some hidden department of St. Mungo's, the situation probably wouldn't get worse. At least she hoped it didn't. Still, Grace really hoped she could keep others from finding out about the extent to how Ginny conducted her relationship at work. Although she was sure no one would fire her for it because of Ginny's great skill, it was still best not to chance fate.
Besides, with the things she knew, Grace was sure to win the pool on what house Mr. Evans had been in at Hogwarts. Although it had been slightly modified to potential house, as nobody around his age seemed to recognize him or his name. So far the best odds were Slytherin, but Grace knew that was only because he dressed like a fancy ass pureblood, he walked like he owned the very ground they stood on, and seemed to think the rules were just suggestions for the low folk.
And all of that was true. The man could be an arrogant son of a bitch and was clearly used to getting his way. He at least knew when to not act like a complete prat, and who not to offend. As the only slight he'd ever given her was the complete ignoring of her requests to get Ginny out of her office and to her meeting in a timely fashion. He could be extremely sweet in one instance, like with the flowers and lunch, but a complete ass with everything else.
Honestly, Grace would have never believed Ginny was into that kind of guy, but to each her own. Either way, the St. Mungo's gossip team didn't know the other side of Mr. Evans. That man was as much a Gryffindor as she'd ever seen, an arrogant self-entitled Gryffindor, but those weren't reserved for only Slytherins. She would know as she'd dated a few Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs that acted the exact same way. It seemed to be a pureblood thing.
Still, whatever house he may have been destined for, there was one thing Grace could say without the shadow of the doubt. He was no Harvey, or any other of Ginny's previous boyfriends that had made it to the 'show up at work' category. For one thing, the man seemed to know Ginny's schedule whether he respected it was another matter, but he knew it.
Harvey always made the mistake of coming during normal lunch hours, but the day Ginny took her lunch at noon would be a cold day in hell indeed. In fact, Ginny only took a lunch break because Grace badgered her non-stop after the noon hour, which meant two was the earliest Ginny ever stopped for lunch. And for whatever reason, Harvey never seemed to figure that out, despite her telling him outright.
But there was more than figuring out the correct lunch hour. It was more than making sure Ginny had a lunch every day whether he took it to her or sent it. It was more than flowers every day for nearly three months. And it was more than the boldness of Mr. Evans actions. It was the chemistry, the way they just were when they were in the same room.
Like just now for instants, Harvey would have never taken a goodbye kiss, probably because Ginny wouldn't have let him. Her Healer had always been about professionalism at the work place. Shoot, the only time she'd come close to interrupting a private moment with Ginny and one of her exs had been a fierce argument. He'd stormed out moments later, and Grace never saw him again.
So, it went without saying that Grace had never imagined a situation like this one. Where she'd be interrupting her boss, the most professional women she'd ever met, not once but multiply times with her boyfriend in a very compromising position. Ginny had never seemed like the type to shag her boyfriend at work. Clearly that had more to do with the boyfriend at the time and not simply her boss' nature, because her boss was more than willing now.
Grace sighed heavily as she reviewed some of her paperwork for the day. It didn't really bother her as long as she didn't have to interrupt. Ginny worked too hard and needed to let loose every once in a while. No that wasn't what was bother her about the relationship. Keeping her from getting to comfortable with Mr. Evans presence. It was the vibe she was getting from the relationship itself.
The way they interacted in public, a soft touch here, a lingering look there. More importantly, it had started off like that. That instant connection, and chemistry between the two. Grace had just never seen them act any other way. That awkward stage of every new budding relationship was missing. That was the problem she had with Mr. Evans. There was no way their relationship was barely three months old. And she was sure that had more to do with Evans than her Healer. In fact, from the comfortable level they had with each other, she'd have placed the relationship at six months or maybe even a full year.
Whether Ginny had known that Mr. Evans' 'friendship' had been an attempt at dating, Grace wouldn't ever know. And honestly, she shouldn't really care that Ginny had either knowingly or unknowingly two-timing Harvey. Ginny was happy. Grace had never seen her this happy in the more than three years they'd been working together. And if Mr. Evans, no Tobi, made Ginny this happy. It didn't really matter how the relationship had started.
Whoever Tobias Evans was didn't matter. As long as he kept Ginny happy, Grace would accept him, and do her job without complaint. Be that damage control in the rumor mill, interrupting her boss so she's not late for an important meeting, or simply managing Ginny's work load. No, Grace looked forward to the next twenty years with her boss, whether Tobi Evans was in it or not.
Harry leant back from his finished lunch as he listened to Theo discuss one of the latest reports. Sitting across from him, Theo had finished his lunch only moments earlier, and was now giving his full attention on their current stack of reports. A boring task, but necessary. Still, Harry would have preferred to have lunch with Ginny like yesterday. It was wishful thinking of course as these reports needed his immediate attention. Could they have waited until after lunch? Probably. Yet here he was, getting a head start on it all.
He tried not to sigh in front of Theo. His friend had been quite pleased at the invitation to lunch. That things were getting back to normal. He didn't need to know that Ginny had specifically asked him not to go to St. Mungo's today. Something about if he couldn't control his hands, then he needed to eat lunch somewhere else today. Which he'd found a little silly, since Ginny had never complained during. But what could a bloke do?
So, Harry had respected her decision, which found him having a working lunch with Theo. All in all, it was technically a win-win. Theo was happy to have this extra time to discuss reports with him, and Ginny was happy to have the extra time to actually work. As it was, this lunch was also turning out to be very productive. Everything looked to be falling into place with no major hurdles. Now, if only Theo's expression would reflect their good fortune. For someone who'd expressed such delight at having lunch with him, he didn't seem all that happy now.
Instead, worry laced his voice and lined his face. No report, nothing they went over seemed to change that. And there was only so long Harry could ignore it. Whatever was on Theo's mind had nothing to do with their current conversation. As his friend, Harry felt it was his duty and his pleasure to find out what was bothering him.
"What's wrong, Theo?" Harry finally questioned.
"Wrong, my Lord?" Theo replied absentmindedly.
"Do I need to repeat myself? You've been fretting over there about something. So spit it out."
Theo sighed heavily. "It's Voldemort."
"Tom again? I told you I was working on getting someone else on the inside now that Daphne's across the channel." Harry replied as he sat back in his too soft chair. Ginny had only recently convinced him to get rid of the bed and make the room a real office. He was still getting used to the changes, and the softness of his chair. Perhaps he'd order a different one.
"I know, but…" Theo trailed off holding back his thoughts.
"Theo, he hasn't attacked us outright in months now. After the Umbridge incident, Tom's finally learned his lesson about the Reaper. This is a good thing." Harry patted Theo's shoulder in an attempt to convince him, but there was no change in his expression.
"I wish it were, my Lord. I wish it were. He's just too quiet."
"Too quiet? He's upped his attacks on the Order two-fold. Merlin, Theo! Ginny's had me put an extra pair of guards on the Lupin's household. And you think Tom's too quiet!" Harry had not been able to deny Ginny the request. He could deny her very few things, and the safety of her family and those she considered her family were not among the few.
"And suddenly he's given up on the Reaper?" Theo questioned disbelievingly.
"He doesn't lose men permanently when he fights the Order. He's attacking an easier target, Theo. It's exactly what I would do in his position." Tom was finally acting with care. His action made perfect sense, attack a weaker opponent to show strength in the face of such great losses. Harry had great respect for Tom's choice of actions.
"That, my Lord, is the problem. Voldemort isn't…" Theo stopped in frustration. "Voldemort has good and bad days, but mostly bad days. Maybe in his youth he'd have thought rationally more often than not, but ever since he tried to kill a baby, kill you my Lord, his rational thought is a hit or miss."
"And so you think, because he's stopped attacking the Ankou Company that he's up to something big?" Harry had thought of the possibility, but could think of nothing that Tom could or would do that he was not prepared for. He just didn't see why or how Theo could be so worried. Still, he supposed that was a good thing. Without Jim here to act as the see everything as a mighty attack, Harry needed someone to think of the big bad possibilities.
"I think," Theo paused to compose his next sentence. "That this is the calm before the storm, and I wish. Merlin knows I wish for many thing, but my Lord I wish now most fervently that you hadn't sent Daphne across the channel so soon." Theo had a lot of nerve given the conversations they'd had nearly a month ago about Daphne's increased danger for little to no information. Theo held his hands up in surrender seeing his displeasure. "I know, I know, she wasn't really all that helpful, but she was something. She was something."
"Daphne wanted to be with Blaise. There was no reason to keep her here, Theo." The reply wasn't enough, Harry could see it in Theo's eyes, so he continued. "I'm working on it. I'm just not sure who I can trust in that position."
"My Lord, if I may speak freely."
"You know I welcome it." Harry replied warily. Whenever Theo asked to speak his mind, Harry never liked what he had to say. It was always something he absolutely didn't want to hear or think about. And this time was no different.
"I think you already know who to use, my Lord. It's time for you to bring him in." Theo replied.
Harry paused trying hard not to grimace at Theo's comment. He knew who Theo was referring. Ginny had even mentioned to him about the possibility. And although it was not rare for Ginny and Theo to agree on a topic, it was far rarer for Ginny to mention it before Theo. Still, Severus had been like a father to him. Had raised him to be a strong competent wizard; however, he had not raised him to be a dark lord.
There was no way Severus would be able to forgive him for what he had become. Right and wrong were not just abstract ideas to his father figure. And Severus had spent plenty of time demonstrating to him right from wrong. Harry only justified himself because of the corruption and the evil that penetrated the wizarding world. Nevertheless, Severus, a man who had spent the majority of his life fighting against a dark lord, would not likely see it his way. He wasn't going to change his position on the dark arts to help Harry. Not now, probably not ever.
"I can't, Theo." He could not lose Severus again. Nor, would he be able to bare the disappointment that would surely shine through his mentor's eyes.
"You must my Lord. Not knowing about Voldemort's movements will damage us." Harry remained unmoved. They could get past this, there had to be someone else. "Think about it, my Lord." Theo pleaded, "Think about it with… with Weasley."
Harry's lip turned up in surprise. For Theo to mention Ginny like that could only mean this was important to him, far more important than his own pride. And Theo's pride was everything.
Ginny paced the empty prep room as she waited impatiently for her potion to finish brewing. She'd never had to make this particular potion before, for work or otherwise. So, she wasn't accustom to the ins and outs of the brewing process. Nor, was her lack of information on its properties and brewing process that unexpected. Why would she have cause to brew this particular potion?
It wasn't a common place potion, and she worked with attack victims, animal and spell damage alike, not in family practice. And to be honest, she'd had no cause to brew this potion outside of her work life either. More importantly, she just wasn't ready to need this potion outside of her work life. Merlin knew she wasn't ready for this.
Ginny screamed quietly in frustration as she turned suddenly in the potion's direction to see its progress. But it was the same deep purple it had been for the past several minutes now, completely unchanged.
Turning sharply to begin her pacing anew, she lost herself in thought once more. How had this happened? She'd been so careful, at least for the most part. Surely Harry would have as well. It wasn't like he'd never done this before. Ginny stopped suddenly to look back at the potion. Still purple.
'Merlin, how long does it take for ten minutes to pass?'
Ginny did a quick time check. Five minutes. "Bloody hell!" It had felt like a century. What she wouldn't give to turn the clock of time forward to be done with this. Ginny turned back around sharply to begin pacing anew. The physical movement at least could take some of the agonizingly slow wait off her mind. Unfortunately, it didn't help her nerves much.
Everything had been going so well for her. Her relationship with Harry, her job, even her mother wasn't trying to stick dates down her throat. Sure she'd had to explain to her mother why she was 'home' but ignoring her Floo calls, since the clock seemed to recognize her room in Anaon as 'home' instead of work. Even so that hadn't been much of a problem. Tonks had covered for her by offering up a plausible excuse for missing the Floo calls. Since then, she'd been more careful.
To solve the problem, she made sure to be at her flat during the weekend. Since her mother only called her during the weekday, she'd not had worry about missing her calls. Better yet, no more arguing about it with her mother either. Now only Tonks knew that her flat wasn't the only place she called home. She snorted at the thought. She'd never been more pleased that being the very busy Senior Healer, meant her mother finally respected her right to some private time during the week.
Now, they had a routine. Ginny spend the weekdays at Azkaban, and Harry would spend the weekends at her apartment. At work, at home, they worked together flawlessly. Even their arguments never seemed to change anything between them. Ginny honestly thought it made them better, deepened their understanding of each other and the lives they'd missed.
Their relationship was becoming more and more like a partnership with the Ankou Company. When they thrived, Ankou Company thrived. Bryony and her other healers in training were excelling. Harry's whole operation seemed to be moving forward seamlessly. The whole company had an uplifting environment to it these days, even if she was still getting used to the 'my lady' title everyone seemed to be calling her lately.
The only downside was Riddle's increased activity against the Order. Her family was safe at least, or as safe as they were going to get being in the thick of the fighting. Even with that, Ginny could honestly say she'd never been happier.
But now this…
Turning back to the potion, she was startled to see the beginning of the change. She moved closer to get a better look. Purple lightened to a light pink and continued on to a pale yellow. Ginny continued to watch to see if it would continue to change colors, but knowing it was likely going to stay yellow. Hoping against hope, somehow it would make that final change to green. 'Just a little green, please.'
It didn't. The happy pale yellow mocked her and her new-found happiness. This would change everything. And Ginny wasn't sure if that change would be for the better. This could end them.
'How was she going to tell Harry?'
Hermione was a bright witch. She'd ended up graduating at the top of her class, even if that was only due to her biggest competition getting a death sentence to Anaon of Azkaban. She'd been a Prefect and Headgirl. She'd excelled in nearly all of her classes. She'd gotten the job she'd wanted and was moving up in the position every year. Sure she had trouble getting all of her agenda passed, but if it were easy it wouldn't be worth it. Besides, she was still making a difference and keeping the Minister honest.
Move over, it wasn't all business and academics. Hermione had a devoted longtime boyfriend, whose family loved and supported her as if she were one of their own. So, everything wasn't heaven in paradise with that relationship, but again if it was worth having it wouldn't be easy. Besides it worked. They worked, most of the time.
So, yes. Hermione was very successful, despite being a muggleborn or maybe because of it. She'd known adversity during her time in Hogwarts and beyond. Still she'd succeeded when seemingly everyone around her would see her fail. She had succeeded.
Even with all that going for her, she had few friends. Fewer still were girls, women. So, when one of her best friends, best girlfriends, seemed to forget her existence. Hermione didn't plan on letting it go out with the wash. She was going to take measures into her own very capable hands.
Which was precisely why she'd taken the rest of the day off, and forced her way into said best friend's office despite her assistant repeatedly telling her that Ginny had a lunch meeting that wasn't to be disturbed. A lunch meeting that important wasn't likely to be held in her office, so Hermione could wait it out here. She'd go to endless lengths to secure her friendships. Friends and family weren't something that should be let go without a fight.
In fact, Hermione had come prepared just in case a situation like this arose. Furthermore, she didn't care if Ginny was saving the life of some excessively wealthy noble or if she had ten more meeting today. She was going to have to take a break sometime. And when she did, Hermione would be here waiting in Ginny's surprisingly large office ready for some much needed girl talk. And it hardly mattered if it took a while before said girl had her break. She could wait. After all, she'd brought some light reading to entertain herself.
Hermione was in mid-paragraph on a chapter about wizarding policy in France when the door opened.
"Hermione?" Ginny's voice questioned.
Hermione had never stopped in mid-paragraph before and she wasn't going to now. Finishing the paragraph, she marked her page before looking up at the surprised expression on her best friend's face. Putting the book aside carefully, she stood to greet her. "It's so good to see you too, Ginny." Hermione spoke as she gave her best imitation of Molly's bear hug.
"Hermione what are you doing here?" The confusion was still evident in her friend's eyes.
"Having lunch with the terribly elusive Senior Healer Weasley."
"Lunch? Hermione, I already have plans."
"Yes, I'm aware. Your assistant already mentioned a lunch meeting."
"Good, so I'll see you Sunday." Ginny point to the door, but Hermione was firm in her decision to stay.
"Yes, I'll see you than too. Try not to eat too much, or it will ruin our lunch. I spotted a nice little café down the street that will make for a great lunch spot once you get back." Hermione replied as she sat back down effectively ending the conversation. She wasn't going anywhere without Ginny. She would do everything in her power to keep her friend, whatever it took. "We have a lot to talk about."
"But Hermione. This could take awhile. Don't you have work?" Hermione picked up her book and found the marked page. She could tell when she'd won, and it sounded like Ginny was fishing for excuses now. An excuse wasn't going to work here.
"I'm done for the day. Go ahead." Hermione motioned to her book, "I can wait."
"Damn it Hermione not today!"
Putting her book down angrily Hermione replied, "Ginny..." She began harshly, but was interrupted when a tall, dark and handsome bloke walked through the door. There was no way he was a healer, not in his fancy looking robes.
"Am I interrupting?" He asked as he moved toward Ginny. Hermione noticed how close they stood. His hand resting on the small of Ginny's back. And the basket of what looked like lunch in his other hand.
"Tobi." Ginny replied softly.
"This is your lunch meeting!?" Ginny blushed bright red at the question answering Hermione without words. "You were going to blow me off for some bloke?"
"Hermione!" Ginny replied angrily, gone was her embarrassment. "I had plans with Tobi before you got here. If you'd told me you were coming, I would have made other arrangements. But I am not blowing my boyfriend off, because you suddenly drop by!"
"If you answered any of my Floo calls or my owls than I wouldn't have to use such drastic measures just to get an hour of my best friend's time!" Hermione blinked back tears as she replied just as angrily. She would not cry, not in front of a stranger.
Ginny calmed down seeing Hermione break. "Hermione, I'm sorry, but I can't change plans this last minute."
The bloke's hand went to Ginny's shoulders pulling her in to a sideways hug. "Yes, you can."
"Tobi." Hermione watched with interest as Ginny melted into this 'Tobi' turning fully into his arms. It was behavior Hermione had never seen before from Ginny. "I need to talk to you." Hermione just barely made out the words.
"Then we'll talk tonight. Here, eat lunch with your friend. I'll see you later, okay?" Rubbing his thumb along her jaw. Ginny leaned into his chest more.
"Okay."
Tobi kissed Ginny softly leaving the basket of food at Ginny's feet. The whole display was sweet. A picnic lunch date, very romantic even. She kind of wished Ron would take notes, but that was neither here nor there. Just as he was leaving, Hermione stopped him at the door.
"My name's Hermione Granger, by the way." Ginny should have introduced them, but Hermione could wait to interrogate her about it after the bloke was gone.
"Tobias Evans. Goodbye Miss Granger, Ginny."
Hermione snapped her eyes on Ginny. She looked at Tobi's retreating form, worry etched her face. Something was wrong, but… Hermione knew when to pick her battles, and first she needed to figure out who this bloke was. "Tobi Evans? Never heard of him Ginny, and from the look of it, you've been keeping him a secret for some time."
Ginny sighed heavily before turning to face her. "We might as well eat while you interrogate me."
Ginny moved into bed with Harry. She'd been avoiding this conversation since she'd gotten home by spending as much time in her Healer General office as she could. Harry might look in on her from time to time depending on his mood, but he'd never interfere with her work. Never entered even though she'd already told him that it was perfectly fine for him to do so. Still, he was a creature of habit, which was why she'd eaten in there as well instead of enjoying the meal with him. But how could she have enjoyed it?
Sighing softly as she settled into her side of the bed, Ginny wasn't at all surprised when he rolled over to put his arms around her. It was a twofold move. One, he could get closer for sleep as he was an extreme cuddler, and two he could gauge her mood for something more. She waited a few seconds and wasn't disappointed when the wandering hands began a familiar route.
"Harry." She breathed out. He pulled her in closer as his mouth found the sensitive spot at the nape of her neck. Ginny moaned out in pleasure letting herself get lost in his touch. She was tempted to let him continue, but if they started, then they'd never get around to talking tonight. And they really needed to talk.
When Harry broke contact to reposition himself, Ginny took that opportunity to push him back and focus on her objective. She could not avoid this conversation.
"What's wrong?" Harry replied as he looked down on her. Slight worry in his eyes.
"We… we need to talk. There's something I need to tell you."
The seriousness of the situation must have shown on her face, because Harry leaned back to give her his full attention. "What is it, Ginny?" He questioned softly.
"Harry, I…"
Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.
"Merlin, not now!" Ginny leaned over to her night stand to determine which of her pendants had decided now was the time to interrupt. If it was the Order, she was ignoring it. The bone and wand pendent glowed brightly. "St. Mungo's" Ginny breathed out closing her eyes in frustration. This was not something she could just ignore, nor could she leave Harry with what she had to say. What was she to do?
"It's okay Ginny, go. We'll talk tomorrow. I promise."
"I would tell you, Harry. I would."
"I know, Ginny. This is clearly something you want to discuss. I can wait."
Ginny leaned into Harry, giving him a quick kiss. "Tomorrow."
"Tomorrow."
Ginny hurried to get ready and apparate back to St. Mungo's. It didn't take her long to find the Healer on duty.
"Where do you need me?"
"We have a few spell damage patients from the Ministry that need your attention."
"A few?" Ginny replied as they walked to the patients. She must have misheard. St. Mungo's wouldn't call her in unless it was urgent. At least not when she was off duty.
"Yes, Senior Healer Weasley, three patients." Ginny frowned at him she'd thought there would be a number of patients.
"Why did you need me?"
"They're from the Department of Mysteries. They have spell damage that doesn't even exist outside of that department. If they're going to live, they need you, Senior Healer Weasley."
Ginny nodded as she passed several more full rooms. It looked like even Senior Healer McFarland was here. "Are they the only ones?"
"The whole wing is at full capacity tonight, ma'am. The Ministry was attacked again, and unfortunately it was heavily staffed. We can only be glad that You-Know-Who left so many people alive."
Ginny took one look at her three patients before answering, "The death toll isn't finished yet. Let's just hope it doesn't get too much higher."
Severus' sharp footsteps echoed off the stone halls. It was eerily quiet. He'd expected to see others walking the halls, but he was alone. This could not bold well for him. He stopped only momentarily at the door of the Dark Lord's summoning chamber. It was precious few seconds of hesitation where he could think his situation though.
He'd been called more than once in the past week alone, ten times more than in the last two months.
He could only give the Order so much information no matter what that dog demanded. As for the Dark Lord, well he'd more than willingly given the Dark Lord the mutt's whereabouts among other things asked of him. The mutt's timetable had been extremely accurate as well. Unfortunately, none of those attacks had panned out. Still, there'd been other information that had benefited the Dark Lord without many causalities on either side. So, there'd been a few deaths. He couldn't be held responsible for idiot youths getting into fights that were well over their abilities.
And what did his help get him? This private audience with the Dark Lord. There were only so many times he could get called in like this before his luck ran out. Today might be that day, despite the amount of information, quality information, he'd been providing.
Severus opened the door, hoping against hope that the inner circle would be surrounding the Dark Lord. But it was not to be. The Dark Lord sat alone with only his pet Nagini by his side. Which boded even worse. Not only would he die tonight, but he'd also be eaten by a snake. Fitting.
"Severus, my loyal follower, you've arrived in good time."
"My Lord, I would not keep you waiting." Severus bowed in reply.
"Time and time again your loyalty to me has been challenged. And for a time, I thought you truly betrayed me."
"Never, my Lord."
"Yes, I've realized that now. Ever since Dumbledore betrayed your trust, your loyalty has never been stronger." Severus waited for the Dark Lord to finish. This could go either way. The only thing he was sure of now was that whatever the Dark Lord asked next would not end well for him. "But I wonder how strong it truly is, Severus." Severus did not flinch as he waited for the Dark Lord's next action. If he died he would die without fear. The next great adventure awaited him. "What are the limits to your loyalty to me, I wonder. How far will my servant go to please his master?"
"As far as you ask me to go, master. I will leap without hesitation."
There was no immediate reply to his response, which could mean many things, too many things. "I want you to kill the Reaper."
"The Reaper?" Severus whispered softly in his surprise. He'd been prepared to die, but this…
"Do I have to repeat myself?" The Dark Lord replied darkly.
"No my Lord, your will is mine." Severus ought to leave while he was still alive, but he needed more information if he were to survive his task. "May I ask how I might find him, my Lord?"
"You will find him in his prison." There was no inflection, no tale. The Dark Lord looked him directly in the eyes searching for any hesitation, anything that would send him to his death. But he would find nothing. Severus was no amateur at this game. He'd been playing it for decades.
Seeing nothing, the Dark Lord continued, "Azkaban. You will go there, and you will kill him I don't care how, only that you do so, soon."
"It shall be done." Severus paused before asking the most pressing of questions. He did not know who this Reaper was, so going to a prison full of murders wouldn't help him. He needed to know, which prisoner was to have his life ended so soon. He just hoped the Dark Lord was in the mood for sharing. "May I know the Reaper's identity, my Lord? So, I know who will be my victim."
The Dark Lord smiled evilly. "Harry Potter. You will kill Harry Potter."
Severus breathed in sharply despite his training. Harry was alive.
"Will that be a problem, Severus?" The Dark Lord questioned. There was only one right answer.
A small smile started to form on his lips. The cruelty of it not lost on the Dark Lord. "No, my Lord. It will be my pleasure." Malice dripped from his voice. True hate could not be suppressed. For Severus could hate no stronger than he did now. Harry was alive, through no help of his own. And had been for some time without thought of contacting him. He had failed once more, and it was likely to be the way he ended his life. In failure.
The Dark Lord leant back in his seat pleased. "I expected nothing less from one of my most loyal servants."
Light shone from an artificial window breaking through the once dark room. The deep reds that made up the curtain at the entrance to his room was now present throughout. A new rug with the Ankou Company symbol centered in dark red filled the floor. Without the bed taking up space, a large desk and three chairs fit in its place. This place had been his home for more than ten years, but now it was nothing more than an office.
A fancy quill set sat on his desk mocking the change. It should have disturbed him, how easy everything could change. But this change was good. His room, this room, no longer trapped him. This room did not hold his life. In fact, there was no room within Azkaban or outside of it that held him.
Harry turned his attention back to the conversation at hand. He sat at one of the three overly comfortable chairs with Theo by his side. Across from them were a couple of large two way mirrors that they used to communicate instantly from long distances. Despite being in the same location, Daphne and Blaise had chosen to use separate mirrors. Every once in a while they'd turn to the right in Daphne's case or left in Blaise's. But more often than not, their attention was squarely on him.
"Why attack the Ministry again? What was Tom after?" Harry questioned. Throughout their conversation thus far, it was that piece of information that bothered him the most. Tom never did anything without reason, even if said reason wasn't always sound.
There was silence that told Harry more than his friends probably knew. He knew that Blaise, Daphne and Theo spoke with each other often. In fact, they often spoke of things before bring it to his attention. This silence told him they'd already discussed this particular topic, which could mean nothing good if they were hesitant to share it now. Even now, he could see they were trying to figure out how best to tell him the bad news. "Spit it out. You know something. What was Tom after?"
"It wasn't the Ministry that Voldemort was after. At least not directly." Daphne replied.
Harry looked impatient at the short pause but soon enough Theo continued the conversation. "The Department of Mysteries, my Lord. Voldemort wasn't attacking the Ministry he was getting into the Department of Mysteries."
"Why?" He could see the reluctance to speak on each of his friends' faces. "Why?" He questioned again forcefully.
Finally Blaise broke the silence. He gave a quick look to his left as he spoke, "There are prophecies held within the department."
"Prophecies? Tom's not stupid enough to attack the Ministry for something as silly as a prophecy." Harry dismissed the idea with a wave of his hand.
"Don't be so quick to dismiss it. We've thought about this possibility for some time now. In fact it was the reason why Tracey took Divination." Daphne countered. She hesitated briefly before continuing, probably lost in some memory from long ago, "She'd had this theory that Voldemort attacked you as a baby because of one."
"It made perfect sense at the time. Why would a powerful Dark Lord personally attack an infant? No sane wizard or witch is scared of a child that can barely even talk." Blaise continued.
"Not without a prophecy at least, my Lord." Theo added. Harry hated when Theo started adding my Lord to his sentences. Oh, he wasn't going to like where this conversation was going.
"So you've lot have decided there's a prophecy about me?" Harry shook his head in disbelief. They couldn't be serious. "Does no one believe they make their own destiny in the wizarding world?"
Blaise looked at him seriously. "It's not about destiny, Harry. Prophecies. They are strong driving forces in our world. If you'd grown up within it, you'd be able to understand the true fear one can bring. Because despite all that has happened, you are still the Boy-Who-Lived."
"To die another day." Harry spoke softly to himself. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "You all seriously believe that Tom attacked the Ministry to get a prophecy?" The nods he received from his friends could not be ignored. They were all purebloods, if they thought it was more than a possibility for wizards like them to be driven to such motivations, then it was probably true. With a sigh he relented, "What do you suggest?"
"We take down Voldemort once and for all." Theo replied automatically.
"Or we make a bargain." Daphne suggested.
"I wouldn't…" Theodore started but stopped at the motion of the curtain divider being pushed back. There was only one person who entered his office like that. Ginny appeared not a second later.
"Don't stop on my account." Ginny replied shortly with a raised eyebrow. Even so, Harry knew the conversation was pretty much stalled as long as she was here. There'd been much progress, but not nearly enough for Theo to trust Ginny the way Harry did. But that was for another time. Ginny had been gone all last night and for much of today. It was already well past lunch. He'd been worried she'd been called to the Order as well given her long absence.
"How was it? You're alright? No problems with the Order?" He bombarded her with questions worry evident in his voice.
"I'm fine Harry. Nothing with the Order either. I just had some very tricky patients. They needed me to treat some patients with unknown magical damage, and not just any magical damage." Ginny paused with excitement lighting her eyes. Even as tired as he knew she must be, when she spoke of healing her exhaustion seemed to disappear. A fire seemed to burn behind her very eyes. It was hypnotizing. "You'll never believe this but Riddle attacked the Department of Mysteries. The Ministry to be honest as only a few of the Department of Mysteries employees were working. Still, my patients came from the DoM. I've never seen magical damage like that before." Ginny shook her head to focus. Harry was sure she could have gone on and on about her patients. Her excitement was clear in her voice. A small smile touched Harry's lips at the thought. "Unfortunately, more than fifty workers perished." Ginny added soberly.
"Your brothers?" Harry questioned. He didn't think they'd be working the late shift, but it was best to ask anyway.
"All fine as well as Tonks." Harry nodded in understanding. He wanted to ask her about how she was doing properly. How was she physically and mentally? Last night she'd seemed so preoccupied. She'd spent a lot of time in her office, and the worry in her eyes when she'd asked to talk with him was still on his mind. But he was working and his relationship would have to wait for another hour.
"Perhaps we should continue later." Theo replied. His voice held no trace of resentment, which was an improvement from months ago. There was no rush in the eyes of his friends either, which caused Harry to hesitate in his reply.
"No, don't stop your work just because I'm back. I'm sure this is important. I just wanted to let you know, so you wouldn't worry." A large yawn escaped from Ginny after she spoke.
"Get some sleep Gin."
She smiled at him before leaning in for a kiss. "You don't have to tell me twice." Straightening up she continued as she turned to go, "You know where to find me when you're done. We still need to talk."
"Sleep well, Ginevra." Harry watched her go knowing he could not hide his worry. He needed to solve this Riddle problem one way or another.
"Voldemort can't ever know about her." Theo replied softly.
"I know." Harry replied soberly.
"No bargain can ever work, not with your weakness." Theo continued just as softly as before.
"And Dumbledore? We can't forget about him." Daphne added.
"It really just comes down to who's the biggest obstacle. Who is more likely to hurt us?" Blaise questioned.
"If we keep a low prolife, Dumbledore shouldn't be a problem." Harry answered. Dumbledore might be dangerous, but he was also arrogant.
"For how long?" Theo replied, always the devil's advocate.
"Long enough for us to level the playing field." Harry replied with steel in his eyes. Tom was suddenly becoming a problem that needed removing, immediately.
Theo shook his head, "I know what you're thinking, Harry. But look at what happened with Umbridge."
"Umbridge was in the past, and you know I keep the past in the past. We don't need this plan to last forever, just long enough. Keep Dumbledore in the dark for a few more years. Stick with the current plan, and finish building up our forces. I will handle Tom when the time comes. Prophecy or no prophecy."
Ginny had slept through the rest of the day. Harry hadn't the heart to wake her. She seemed so tired these days. And yet, she got up in the morning and went to work with little complaint. Still, Harry could not forget the look in her eyes, when she'd spoken about them needing to talk. A part of him didn't want to have whatever talk she seemed to think they needed. But he knew that to be the coward in him. So instead, he spent flowers and Ginny's favorite chocolates.
He'd probably be sending her flowers for the rest of his life, and it would never be enough. Not for the forgiveness she'd already given him.
Come lunch time, Harry made the now familiar route to her office.
"Good afternoon, Grace."
"Mister… Tobi." Grace corrected herself bring a smile to Harry's lips. That was the first time she'd willingly called him Tobi. Finally he was making progress. Although he wasn't sure why she wasn't all that fond of him, he was pleased to see she was starting to warm up to him. "I hope you're having a lovely day."
"Not nearly as lovely as it's about to be." Harry placed a second lunch on her desk. He'd not been planning on letting chance dictate how soon she'd warm up to him. "Compliments from Chef Davies."
"Oh. Thank you sir." She replied as she peeked into the basket.
"Tobi." Harry reminded her lightly, "You work hard for Ginevra. I appreciate how much easier you make her life here."
"Well it's really my pleasure to work for someone like Ginny. Still, I won't turn down free lunch." Grace smiled kindly at him for the first time. Merlin, he was good.
"I thought I heard you out here. Flirting with my secretary, are you?" Ginny cut in. He could hear the cheek in her voice.
Harry chuckled softly as he turned to greet Ginny properly. "Gin." He wrapped her in a strong hug before giving her a gentle kiss. "I've missed you."
"You saw me this morning." She replied with a smile. She kissed him in return before pulling him into her office. "I've missed you too." She admitted once they were alone.
Their lunch went as well as normal. They talked about the years spent apart as they always did. Harry liked to think it was a chance to get to know Ginny all over again. He loved her smile, and the way she'd talk about her twin brothers. Additionally, he'd come to recognize how often she mentioned Tonks and her family. And how much they must mean to her. Slowly he was creating a picture of her new life and the important people within it.
All of that was well and good, but he could not forget his purpose for this lunch date. The reason alone sobered his expression as he directed the topic to something more serious. "You wanted to talk about something, Ginny?"
"Oh that." She trailed off. Turning away from him. He watched her play with her bracelet, a sure sign of her nervousness.
"Ginny, it's alright. Whatever it is, we can get through this together. Nothing is a problem too big for us to solve. Nor will it change how I feel about you."
"You say that now." She replied in a small voice.
"There is nothing that can change how I feel about you. Not time and space, and nothing you could tell me would change that. Nothing." Still Harry saw Ginny's hesitation. "Trust me."
"I do trust you. I trust you with my life, with the life of my family. Even after everything you've done, I trust you with their life." Ginny moved to stand as she leant heavily on her desk. "You, you should sit."
Harry moved around her desk to take Ginny in his arms. "Tell me." He whispered in her ears. Sometimes closeness was the easiest way to say something unpleasant.
"Harry, I'm…" Ginny started but stopped as if having trouble finding the words. Harry gently wipes his thumb over her cheeks. "Harry, I'm pregnant." Ginny whispered.
"Pregnant?" Harry paused his hand motion in surprise, "You're sure?"
"Yes."
A small smile broke on to his face. This was, this was amazing news. "I'm going to be a father? But how?"
"Well, Harry, when two people love each other very much…"
"Ginny." Harry interrupted. She relaxed at the smile on his face.
"You're not upset?"
"Upset? How could I be upset? I just thought you'd wanted to wait. I mean you were being so careful." Harry fumbled over his words trying to process this new information while comforting his girlfriend. This was... This was just...
"Yes, well this wasn't exactly planned, Harry."
"But you're sure. No take backs?" He didn't want to get too excite, but he hardly thought she'd prank about something this serious.
"This isn't a joke, Harry. I'm thirteen weeks." Ginny replied sharply.
"Thirteen?" Harry did the mental math, "But that would put…" Ginny gave him a knowing look.
"Yes, I can count too. Honestly, I thought you were using protection, but clearly not."
Harry couldn't hide his proud smile, and didn't even try. Ginny was pregnant with his child. He was going to be a father. No, he was a father now. If she was telling him like this, then she was planning to keep the baby. They were having a baby. "Ginny," He held her tighter, "You've made me the happiest man alive. We're going to start a family. A real family."
Ginny leant back into him, relaxing further. "You're sure this doesn't change anything?"
He held her tightly at the question as his mind whirled with the possibilities, "This changes everything." Ginny startled in his arms, but he held her in place. "Somehow, I love you even more than before. Not to mention, we'll need a baby friendly place. Can't have a toddler running around Azkaban. We'll have to tell Theo, who won't take this well. After his small fit, I'm sure he'll send for Jim to help out. And…"
Ginny turned around in his arms silencing him with a kiss. It was slow, but passionate. Lasting for what felt like forever, and yet wasn't nearly long enough. She broke away far too soon for his liking, leaning against his chest. "You wanker."
Harry smiled down at her, "You seem to have that role reversed."
Ginny snorted in amusement, her eyes finally holding mirth without the lingering worry, "Don't scare me like that." She hit him lightly on the chest before leaning in for another kiss, which turned into two then three after which he had better things to do than count.
He was vaguely aware of Ginny's incoming mail filling, but paid it no mind. All too soon however, fire broke out followed by the ringing voice of the Weasley Matron.
"GINEVRA MOLLY WEASLEY! HOW DARE YOU NOT TELL ME YOU'RE SEEING SOMEONE!? I HAD TO FIND OUT FROM HERMIONE OF ALL PEOPLE INSTEAD OF MY OWN DAUGHTER! TO THINK YOU'RE SO ASHAMED OF THIS FAMILY THAT YOU COULDN'T SEND WORD! NOT ONE NOTE! WELL, WE BETTER SEE THIS MAN THIS SUNDAY! NOT NEXT SUNDAY, THIS SUNDAY! NO EXCUSES!"
Ginny leant back on her desk as they both caught their breath. They shared an amused smile as the howler burned out. Ginny's eyes sparkled in delight. "Well Mr. Evans, it seems like it time for you to meet the family."
AN: Dang that took forever to get out and done with. I'll tell you why too. I've been busy, but not that busy. I'm just not that good at writing fluff. It doesn't help that this whole chapter is pretty much just a filler chapter. Yeah, like you couldn't tell. But it had to happen. Can't get to the action without all the little pieces coming together. So, we end with this chapter. Not my favorite, but tomorrow I get to release one of my favorite chapters. This is so exciting.
KJ
PS If you're into Naruto/Hinata fanfiction check out the Princess of Konoha by BloodRed13. We're writing it together, but BR get's to post it.
PPS The last chapter is taking a little longer than a thought, but so far so good. I still plan on posting chapter twelve sometime tomorrow.
PPSS All errors are my own. And I don't own Harry Potter. No witty comment about that.