The Golden Trio's Return
"We knew this day would come
We knew it all along
How did it come so fast?"
Maroon 5- Daylight
Without being one hundred percent sure why, Ginny ran, Blaise's hand still in hers as they turned around the corner in the corridor and hurried down another one. She was afraid of what would happen if she stayed here, but she didn't know whether she was ready to face the sight that might meet her in the Room of Requirement, either. If Harry, Ron and Hermione came to Hogwarts they were likely to go look for Neville, Luna or someone else that they knew they could trust. And so Ginny would have to face them. Soon.
But suddenly, before she had time to realize what was happening, her thoughts were interrupted as Blaise grabbed her arm firmly and pulled her around another corner, pressing them both against the wall.
"What are you..." she started but stopped speaking abruptly as he moved to stand right in front of her, pressing his hand over her mouth with one hand while motioning for her to be quiet with the other.
They stood close together, and Ginny could see the worry in his eyes. It only took her a second to figure out why; Snape's voice soon carried over to them from somewhere close and he did not sound happy.
"Why is it that I'm receiving these news now, Amycus? I was under the impression I'd made it perfectly clear that I'd be informed as soon as anything concerning Harry Potter happened"
Ginny's eyes widened in surprise and her reaction was mimicked on Blaise's face.
He knows.
Carrow sounded rather nervous, and yet excited, as he replied:
"Don't blame me Severus, I'm just the messenger. Apparently the snatchers lost them in Hogsmeade..."
Snape snorted loudly.
"It really astounds me how three seventeen-year-olds can manage to get away from at least ten full grown wizards who were assigned one task and one task only: to catch Harry Potter, should he turn up anywhere near the castle"
Ginny looked straight at Blaise again. At least this meant that they hadn't managed to get ahold of the Golden Trio. Yet. But Snape knew, and what if Harry, Ron and Hermione had already managed to get into the school somehow? They had to be warned, now.
She was just about to grab Blaise's hand and remove it from her mouth to tell him this but stopped moving abruptly when another voice joined Snape's and Carrow's:
"You wished to see me, Severus?"
Ginny felt a sting of pain in her chest when she heard how tired and defeated professor Mc Gonagall sounded, as if she had already given up. And yet there was something there, something that made her seem angry, annoyed and furious with Snape for what he had turned Hogwarts into.
"I did, Minerva. Harry Potter was sighted in Hogsmeade earlier this evening, which means he could be on his way here right now"
Ginny couldn't see Mc Gonagall's reaction, but she could only imagine the look of shock and surprise on her Transfiguration teacher's face at these news.
"P... Potter?" she asked, voice trembling slightly. "He's here?"
"I'm pretty sure that's what I just said, yes" Snape replied, sounding truthfully bored. "I need you to gather all students in the Great Hall, I would like to have a word with them"
Ginny clenched her fists when thinking about how rude Snape sounded to Mc Gonagall and what he'd probably want with all students. He'd threaten them. Tell them that he'd make them regret it if they didn't share whatever information they might have on Harry.
There was a long silence, in which Ginny and Blaise exchanged another look, before Mc Gonagall finally said:
"Very well. I will make sure they are all down there in twenty minutes"
"Not quick enough, Minerva"
"Fifteen, then" Mc Gonagall snapped, and anyone could tell that she'd now lost what little patience she might have had left. "I'm afraid that's the fastest I can do, seeing as you've already asked me to remove the swamp that somebody has conjured on the fifth floor, and I'll have to attend to that matter before I do anything else"
This seemed to be the end of the conversation. Blaise and Ginny remained still, listening to their three teachers' retreating footsteps. Once the corridor had fallen completely silent again Blaise let go of Ginny, who immediately exclaimed:
"We have to warn them, they might already be here..."
She started walking again and only turned around several seconds later when she realized that Blaise was not still beside her. Slowly, as if afraid of what might happen once she got there, she made her way back to him.
"Are you coming?"
He avoided her gaze for a moment, and as he looked up at her again she realized that they had now reached one of those moments when he had to choose. A moment when they both had to realize that there were several risks involved in what they were about to do and that there was no going back.
"If I go with you..." Blaise started quietly.
"I know" Ginny interrupted him, grabbing his hand again and squeezing it gently. "And I know how hard this is, believe me, I do. But we can't hide from the truth anymore, Blaise. We have to choose. We have to come to terms with what we really want"
And when looking into his eyes, she knew what she wanted. Whenever she was near him she felt warm and safe. Like anything in the world could happen. This was what she wanted.
"I want to be with you"
His voice was suddenly perfectly clear. Sincere. Ginny nodded, smiling at him.
"Then we'd better hurry"
How do you make a time line haha
It was not at all difficult getting into the Room of Requirement, since all Ginny had to do was think of the room where they usually held the DA-meetings. However, when she and Blaise first entered, she thought that they had ended up somewhere else entirely. She had never seen so many students in here at once and judging from Blaise's shocked face expression he hadn't, either.
"Are you always this many?" he muttered as he and Ginny made their way further into the room.
It took a while before anyone spotted them and she used the extra time to answer Blaise's question, hoping that speaking would make her forget, if only for a second or two, how nervous she was:
"No" she mumbled. "When Madison said we'd be many I didn't think she meant this many..."
But she drifted off, and stopped, for she'd now spotted three familiar looking faces. They were standing there, next to Neville, in front of all the other students who clapped their hands and hurried forward to greet them.
"You're here"
The room fell almost completely silent once Ginny spoke, but whether it was because everybody knew that she was very close to the Golden Trio or because Blaise was by her side she couldn't tell. She tried to ignore people's curious stares and let her gaze rest on Harry, Ron and Hermione instead.
They looked all right. A bit paler and thinner perhaps, but okay. Like no time had passed at all. Like nothing had changed. But then again, everything had...
She could see Ron's face expression change from happy to disappointed in only a few seconds and he burst out:
"'You're here'? That's all you get after over eight months? 'You're here'?!"
It was all too much, seeing them here was like a glimpse of a dream. It didn't seem real and to prevent herself from feeling too overwhelmed Ginny turned to look at Neville, giving him a look as if silently asking him to explain everything.
"Ab took them in" he explained, smiling widely at her.
He cast a quick glance at Blaise, cleared his throat slightly and then continued:
"So they got here through Ariana's painting. Right Harry?"
"Right"
Locking gazes with Harry was even worse than doing it with Ron. Those green eyes, now shining with confusion, held so many memories. So many things that Ginny now only wanted to forget. Because he didn't look happy to see her. And for a split second, she wished that Aberforth hadn't turned up and showed them the entrance to the castle via his dead sister's painting.
For a split second, she wished they'd just leave again.
Her thoughts were interrupted as Neville told Seamus:
"Send word to Remus and the others that Harry's back"
Ginny's eyes widened in surprise for what seemed like the hundredth time that evening. The Order was here, at Hogwarts? When did they get here, and why? Were they expecting a battle?
"Ginny, what are you doing with him?" Ron suddenly burst out, nodding towards Blaise.
She couldn't help feeling amazed by the fact that no one had said anything about that until now. But then again, she'd almost forgotten he was standing right next to her as she'd been so busy taking it all in. That they were finally back. Alive.
Now, Blaise gave Ron a fake smile which caused Ginny to roll her eyes at them both.
"Nice to see you too, Weasley"
"Zabini, what do you think you're doing with my sister..."
"GINNY!"
Hermione suddenly hurried forward and wrapped her arms around her, obviously to stop Ron from saying or doing something very stupid. Ginny hugged her friend back and watched as her brother slowly followed Hermione's lead, looking somewhat suspicious and never letting his gaze leave her and Blaise's intertwined hands. Harry remained in the background, but Ginny could tell that he wasn't any happier to see Blaise than Ron was.
It was strange, how Ginny had pictured this moment in her mind so many times. What she'd say to him, what she'd do and how she'd react. And yet, now that he was standing right here in front of her, she had no idea. She couldn't tell exactly what seeing Harry again made her feel and so she ended up feeling nothing apart from hurt.
No matter what everybody else might think, she was really happy to have Blaise by her side.
"We came to deliver a message" She was surprised to find that her voice carried. "Snape knows. He knows you were sighted in Hogsmeade and he'll want everybody in the Great Hall in a couple of minutes. If we haven't left here by then..."
"They will come looking for us" Hermione filled in, looking frightened.
One could tell that even though she'd been absent from Hogwarts during this past year, she knew what kind of headmaster Snape was. And those who didn't want to get into trouble should never keep him waiting.
Hermione turned to look at Harry, sounding almost desperate as she asked:
"Oh Harry, what are we going to do?"
"Yeah Harry, what's the plan?"
Dean's question caused the large group of students to start talking excitedly amongst themselves again and Ginny could see from the corner of her eye how Blaise rolled his eyes, even though he obviously tried his best to hide his annoyance. And she knew why.
Why did everybody always assume that Harry would have the answer to all questions? Why wouldn't they just understand that he was human and sometimes needed help, like the rest of them?
Harry looked slightly uncomfortable with all stares he received and remained silent for a moment, before saying:
"I guess we'll all have to go to Snape's thing, and then there's something we have to do..."
"And what is that?" Ginny asked, noticing how Harry tried his best to avoid her gaze.
The room had fallen completely silent again and everybody seemed to hold their breath while waiting for Harry's reply.
"No, look, I don't want any of you to get into trouble..."
And here we go again Ginny thought, clenching her cheek to prevent her annoyance from getting the best of her. If it did, she might end up saying something very rude...
"... When I say 'we' I mean Ron, Hermione and myself..."
But at this, she couldn't hold it any longer and laughed in disbelief.
"Please tell me you're not serious..."
"Yeah, you're kidding right?" Neville agreed, staring at Harry as if he'd gone mental. "After all this time you're still determined to save the world all by yourself? After everything we've done while you were away? We never gave up, you know"
There was another silence and judging from the look on Harry's face he was slowly beginning to realize that this was a fight that he was never going to win. Besides, neither Ron nor Hermione seemed to agree with him on this matter. He took a deep breath.
"Okay, we need to find something"
"Great, what is it?" Neville asked and Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged a quick glance before Harry admitted:
"We don't know that"
Ginny saw how several students looked at each other, furrowing, and beside her Blaise let out another snort.
"That's gryffindors for you..." he said, but only loud enough for Ginny to hear, and she nudged his side right as Colin Creevey wondered out loud:
"Well, where is it then?"
"We don't know that either"
Neville raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth to say something but Harry interrupted him:
"I realize that's not much to go on"
"That's nothing to go on" Seamus Finnigan pointed out and then, Hermione stepped forward.
"Well, it's not entirely true that we don't know what it is, is it Harry?" she asked, giving him a glare as if he'd handled the whole situation quite badly. "It's probably quite small, and easy to hide. Oh, and we think it has something to do with Ravenclaw house"
"Well, there's Rowena Ravenclaw's lost diadem"
Ginny had been so busy with everything else going on around her that she hadn't spotted Luna until just now. She was standing in the front of the crowd, her big eyes glancing around as no one seemed to know what she was talking about.
"Am I the only one who's heard of it? It's quite famous..."
"But it's been missing for centuries, Luna" Cho Chang pointed out, every now and then casting a longing glance at Harry whilst she spoke. "There's not a person alive who's seen it"
It was impossible to miss the look of defeat in Harry, Ron and Hermione's eyes. Perhaps they'd come here, thinking that someone would know what they were looking for and how to find it. But as it seemed, no one in here had a clue. And what did they want with that diadem anyway?
"So what do we do mate?" Ron asked, once again expecting Harry to have the answer even though nobody else did.
"Talk to someone who's dead"
Blaise's point of view
Blaise had never in his life been comfortable with being the center of attention, and this was even worse than that time when Carrow had asked him to practise the Cruciatus Curse on the first years in front of all his classmates. He tried his best to look unbothered as everyone, including Harry, stared at him and he turned to look at Ginny as she alone was a reminder of why he'd even agreed to come here in the first place. She raised her eyebrows slightly.
"What do you mean?"
He was actually surprised that no one else saw it. To him it was just... obvious.
"You said it yourself, didn't you?" Blaise cast a quick glance at Cho Chang who seemed amazed by the fact that he even acknowledged her existence. "There's not a person alive who's seen it"
Everybody, gryffindors, ravenclaws and hufflepuffs, stared at him and he realized that none of them understood what he was talking about. And despite the fact that Ron's stupid and confounded looking face expression made him feel really frustrated it felt... good that he knew something that they obviously didn't. That he could contribute with something.
"Talk to a ghost. And if the thing you want to find has something to do with Ravenclaw house, I'd start with the Grey Lady"
There was a long silence and Blaise felt the urge to smirk as even Hermione Granger seemed to be at a loss of words and Ginny smiled up at him. Ron cleared his throat.
"Well... Of course... That's obvious"
Blaise opened his mouth to retort but was interrupted as Mc Gonagall's voice carried throughout the room, obviously via the Sonorus-charm.
"All students to the Great Hall immediately. No exceptions"
The voice faded as fast as it came and as if on signal most of the students gathered in the Room of Requirement started moving towards the exit, all knowing that it'd do them no good to ignore Snape's wishes.
"Come on" Blaise muttered to Ginny, gently dragging her towards the door leading out of the room. "Unless we want to get into trouble we'd better hurry"
How do you make a time line haha
None of them said much while heading towards the Great Hall, walking with their heads down and all silently wondering what might happen once they reached their destination. Blaise doubted whether the fact that Harry, Ron and Hermione had put on school uniforms would make them blend in so well that Snape wouldn't spot them.
But it had never been an option for Potter to just stay hidden. Of course, he had to be brave as usual and show himself to Snape "at the right time" to make people know that he hadn't given up. According to Blaise that was, however brave, just another suicide mission.
Potter was now walking a couple of meters ahead of him and Ginny, glancing back every other second. Blaise felt like asking him if he wanted to take a picture, but remained silent for Ginny's sake. Even if Potter still annoyed him to the boot he was her friend. And he had to respect that.
As they reached the Entrance Hall a couple of minutes later they almost bumped right into Draco and Tracey.
"Watch where you're going Weas..." Draco started, but drifted off when he spotted Blaise by her side.
He shook his head, looking as if he wanted to object to the whole thing but simply couldn't. Instead, he snorted silently and muttered under his breath:
"Should have known..."
"Where have you been?" Tracey hissed, grabbing Blaise's arm and as he opened his mouth to reply she hissed:
"Never mind, we don't have time for that now. We should go inside, Snape seems to be in a really bad mood..."
She looked at Ginny and then back to Blaise before telling them both, voice soft:
"The gryffindors are in another line..."
"Come on Ginny!"
Madison looked both stressed and worried as she made her way towards her friend, casting one quick glance at Draco and Tracey before whispering:
"If we don't go inside now Snape'll know that something's up!"
"Yeah, I'm coming..."
Ginny let go of his hand but didn't drop his gaze, and for a moment they were both unaware of everything else that was happening around them. He didn't want to leave her out of his sight. Not now.
"I'll see you later?" she mumbled and Blaise could only bring himself to nod.
"Yes"
And then, before he knew it, she and Madison had disappeared out of sight. As they entered the Great Hall together Draco muttered:
"What does she mean, 'something's up'?"
Blaise froze for a second and realization hit him; his friends didn't know that Potter was back. He trusted them, and they deserved to know, but he couldn't tell them now. Someone could accidentally overhear him. And apparently, he cared enough about Potter's well being to resonate that way...
"Nothing, I'll tell you later"
And they took their places next to Daphne, Theo and Pansy.
Ginny's point of view
"Many of you may wonder why I have summoned you here" Snape's voice was cold as ice and even more frightening than usual. "It has come to my attention that earlier this evening, Harry Potter was sighted in Hogsmeade"
Ginny was not at all surprised by the mumble that broke out amongst all students, even those who had earlier seen Harry in the Room of Requirement were putting up a good act.
"Silence!" Snape called, and all voices faded at once.
The headmaster let his gaze rest on the crowd standing in front of him for a few seconds, before he slowly started to make his way through the lines of students. Ginny felt her heart pounding as if she'd just been running a marathon race and she could see the horrified look on Madison's face from the corner of her eye.
"Now..." Snape continued. "Should any of you know anything about Mr Potter's current whereabouts and fail to come forward, I can promise you that you will be severely punished"
Nobody said anything. Nobody moved. In fact most students, just like Ginny herself, kept their heads down, terrified to catch Snape's attention.
"If you know something, step forward..." Snape had now returned to where he stood before, once again facing all of them. "...Now"
Ginny had wanted to tell Harry earlier that he shouldn't be here, or be doing this. That she feared for his life. But she hadn't been able to, and now it was too late. Snape's most trusted colleagues, the Carrows, were standing only a couple of meters behind him. Harry wouldn't stand a chance against the three of them if they decided to attack...
And then, several people around Ginny gasped and as she looked up again she realized why. Harry had stepped out of the crowd and was now speaking directly to Snape:
"It seems that, despite your great efforts, you have some security problems, headmaster" he said. "And I'm afraid they're quite extensive"
Suddenly, the doors leading into the Great Hall burst open and Remus, Tonks, Kingsley and the other Order members appeared, including Ginny's parents. At that moment, she wanted nothing but to wrap her arms around them both and tell them how happy she was that they were here and all right. But she knew that she had to stay put.
At least now she could risk casting a quick glance at Blaise, who looked right back at her with a troubled look on his face. And Ginny could tell that they were both thinking the same thing:
What would all this lead to?
"How dare you stand where he stood?" Harry continued, his voice trembling even though it carried throughout the silent hall. "Tell them what happened that night! Tell them how you looked him in the eye, a man that trusted you, and killed him!"
Snape seemed to have had enough and before Ginny knew it he'd drawn his wand and pointed it at Harry. But whatever spell he cast, and whatever it was supposed to do, it never reached its target. Ginny gasped as Mc Gonagall turned up out of nowhere and jumped in front of Harry, blocking the headmaster's spell.
The duel between the two Hogwarts professors lasted only for a few seconds, during which Ginny found herself really impressed by her Transfiguration teacher and her skills. Then, Mc Gonagall finally conjured a really bright and dangerous looking fire from her wand, which caused Snape to disapparate.
"COWARD!" she roared at the place where he'd just stood before turning to look at Harry.
She gave him a small smile, which he returned, and then, students started clapping their hands. Neville grinned at Ginny and she was just about to return the gesture when thunder rolled in, causing the ceiling to turn a darker shade of grey and casting a shadow over the hall and its occupants. And then a voice, sending cold shivers through Ginny's entire body, hissed throughout the entire room:
"I know that many of you will want to fight, some will even think it's wise. This is foolish" The voice made a pause and suddenly, Ginny knew perfectly well who it belonged to. "Give me Harry Potter, and no one will be harmed. Give me Harry Potter and I shall leave Hogwarts untouched. Give me Harry Potter and you shall be rewarded"
Another pause. As Ginny's gaze locked with Blaise's again she desperately wanted to stand next to him, protect him from whatever might happen from this point and know that he was safe.
"You have one hour"
The Great Hall fell deadly silent once more. Ginny couldn't make out the look on Harry's face from where she stood but she could only guess that he was terrified. They all were. And then, Pansy Parkinson burst out:
"Well, what are you waiting for? Someone grab him!"
However, the words had barely left her mouth before Ron and Hermione had both jumped in front of Harry and Ginny, Neville and the other gryffindors were not far behind. Ginny glared at Pansy and Daphne who stared right back at her, their gazes burning with hatred and malice. She had never despised the two Slytherin girls as much as she did at that very moment.
Apparently, Mc Gonagall felt the same way since she called on Mr Filch:
"Mr Filch, please escort ms Parkinson and the rest of Slytherin house out of here"
Ginny froze. Was she really going to punish all slytherins for what Pansy had just said? That was not fair at all... Filch furrowed.
"Are where should I take them, professor?"
"The dungeons will do"
"No..." Ginny muttered under her breath as people around her starting clapping their hands again. "No..."
She didn't have time to look at Blaise before Filch had convinced all Slytherin students to move and he was now leading them out of the Great Hall and towards the dungeons. Ginny considered walking straight up to Mc Gonagall and tell her that what she'd just done was a huge mistake, but she was already busy talking to Harry:
"What do you need, Potter?"
Harry looked both relieved and grateful.
"Time, professor. As much as you can get me"
"I'll secure the castle"
Ginny hadn't seen them entering, but now professor Sprout, Flitwick, Slughorn and the other teachers who remained loyal to Mc Gonagall gathered around her whilst the Carrows both hurried out of the room. Her professors all wore determined looks on their faces even though Slughorn, as usual, looked a bit nervous.
And Ginny knew what all this meant. They were ready, at least as ready as they were ever going to be.
The battle had begun.
Author's note: I know this chapter might have been quite predictable since it basically follows the plot line of DH part 2. In this chapter I have used many lines from the movie and that's not because I was too lazy to come up with my own, but because I think they're quite brilliant and I also think it's a great way to keep the story realistic. However, as the story continues, things will be very different and seen from other perspectives than in the movie.
I think it's only fair to point out once again that J.K. Rowling owns all of it. And the people behind all eight movies are, in my opinion, amazing.
Oh and PLEASE review, it'll only take you a minute and it'd make me sooo happy! :)