Several days later, Molly Weasley looked up expectantly from her dinner preparations as her husband came in the door from work.
"Did you bring the paper?" she demanded as soon as he entered the kitchen and gave her a perfunctory kiss on the cheek. "The article about Ginny joining the Harpies was supposed to be in it today."
"Got it right here," he affirmed, pulling it out from under his arm, holding it up. "I almost forgot to get one, but I managed to find a copy just before apparating home."
"Let's see it, then," Molly said, wiping her hands on a dishcloth. Taking the paper from Arthur, she sat at the kitchen table to read, after pointing her wand at the dinner cooking on the stove so that it would automatically serve them once it was done.
Spreading the newspaper out in front of her on the table, she quickly found the expected article:
Ginevra Weasley Potter Picked to Be 1st Reserve Seeker For Holyhead Harpies
The article that followed gave essentially the same information that Ginny had already told them in her owl, but Molly wanted to have a copy of the announcement for the scrapbook she intended to start to follow her daughter's Quidditch career. The Weasley matriarch still wasn't keen on her playing professional Quidditch while James was so small, but she knew there was nothing she could do to change her headstrong daughter's mind.
As she finished the article and was about the fold the newspaper and put it away, her eye was caught by another headline:
Harry Potter Files for Divorce
"What is it?" Arthur asked, worried when he saw the stricken expression on his wife's face.
Molly could not speak; she made a strangling sound in her throat and gestured to the headline she'd just read.
Taking the paper from his wife, he quickly read the accompanying article:
In a shocking announcement, Harry Potter told the Daily Prophet that he has filed for divorce from his wife, Ginevra Weasley Potter, who was recently chosen as first reserve seeker for the Holyhead Harpies.
When asked by this reporter why he chose to end his brief marriage, so soon after a son was born, Mr Potter gave a laconic reply; that while he hoped to remain friends with his soon-to-be former wife, that they'd married too young before getting a good idea of what they wanted from marriage. He added that he wished Miss Weasley much success in her new career as a professional Quidditch player.
Mr Potter, who recently resigned from the Auror training program in order to be a full time father to his son, James, is also an active volunteer at the orphanage in Hogsmeade...
Arthur read the rest of the article in a hurry, then thrust it away from him. Taking Molly's hands in his own, he said, "Ginny never said a word when we floo called her this morning. Surely, she must know!"
"She did seem pre-occupied when she talked to us," Molly noted, still feeling gobsmacked. "But I intend to find out right now and set things straight." She got up and went to the fireplace, grabbing a handful of floo powder.
"Molly, dear," Arther gentle admonished. "Don't you think it would be better if you let them sort things out for themselves?"
"No, I most certainly do not!" she snapped. "I should have put my foot down when she insisted on attending the Harpies' training camp. She's simply too young to understand what she'll be giving up if she allows Harry to divorce her."
"If you'd not been so hell-bent on having them get married so soon after Ginny's graduation, and let them both wait a few years to sow their wild oats, this might not have happened," he told her.
"We got married right after school," the flame haired witch pointed out. "It worked out well for us."
"But we'd known each other since we were practically babies," he said. "Neither of us had the unfortunate muggle childhood that Harry had. Nor was either of us cast as the saviour of the wizarding world from the time we were a year old." After a pause, he concluded, "And you and I wanted the same things out of life. Ginny and Harry obviously do not."
"Be that as it may, I don't think that they tried hard enough to make their marriage work," she told him. "Ginny should not give up without a fight."
Arthur exhaled a loud, gusty sigh, knowing there was no reasoning with Molly once she had her mind made up. Several years of marriage had taught him that he was better off if he just walked away and stopped wasting his breath on trying to change her mind.
"All right, Molly, I see you're going to do whatever you want, anyway, so I'm going to go over to the joke shop to see how George is getting along," he said, washing his hands of the entire matter. "I'll have dinner with him."
No sooner had Arthur left the house to apparate to Diagon Alley than Molly threw the floo powder to call Ginny. She didn't have long to wait, as her daughter's face appeared in the flames less than a minute later.
"Mum?" Ginny said with a touch of impatience in her voice. "What is it? I'm kind of busy right now and..."
"Never mind that," Molly said. "I need to talk to you right away. It would be best if you stepped through so we can talk privately."
"Oh, all right," Ginny grumbled. A moment later, she stepped through the floo into the Burrow. "Can you make it quick? I was about to go out."
"None of your cheek, young lady," Molly huffed, thoroughly put off by her daughter's attitude. Picking up the newspaper and waving it under her daughter's nose, she demanded, "Have you read this?" Not waiting for her reply, she continued, "Did you know that Harry has filed for divorce?"
Looking distinctly uncomfortable, she said, "Yes, Mum, I already know. He owled me the papers yesterday."
"Why didn't you tell me?" her mother demanded. "I can't believe that you're so calm about all of this."
"I didn't tell you because Harry and I want to sort this out for ourselves," the younger witch explained. "And it's all for the best, really. We shouldn't have been in such a hurry to get married so soon after my graduation. He and I have realized that we really don't have all that much in common, after all, and we both want different things out of life."
"Nonsense," Molly insisted. "You simply need to work harder to save your marriage. You shouldn't have gone off to join the Harpies, you know. Just think of all you'll lose if you let Harry divorce you!"
"His money, you mean?" Ginny asked. "Well, I don't need him or his money any more. I'll be making more money as a Harpie in my first year than Dad ever did in a single year. I can support myself very nicely, thank you very much."
"What about James?" Her mother asked. "Have you thought about who will be raising him?"
"Harry is perfectly capable of raising James," Ginny told her.
"Have you considered the company Harry has been keeping lately?" Molly reminded her. "Do you want Lucius Malfoy to be one of your son's role models? Do you want your son to end up being sorted into Slytherin?"
"Mum, Harry won't let anything bad happen to James," Ginny insisted.
"You need to hire a lawyer, just the same, to look after your interests," her mother said. "Did you happen to note the name of Harry's lawyer, by any chance?"
"It was Duncan Rosier, I think," Ginny reported, somewhat uncertain.
"Rosier!" Molly spat. "That's Lucius Malfoy's lawyer. I wouldn't be at all surprised if Malfoy put Harry up to divorcing you. Mark my words, he's up to no good. He'll have a great deal more influence in the wizarding world if he gains control of Harry's life. He already owns Hermione; now he wants Harry, too. Nothing good can come of this, I assure you."
Ginny thought her mother was a bit paranoid and blowing things out of proportion, but knew it was pointless to voice her opinion, as it would only serve to wind her mother up even more. And Ginny had better things to do that afternoon than listen to her mother rant and rave.
"All right, Mum, I'll hire a lawyer to represent me," Ginny conceded grudgingly, hoping this would satisfy her mother.
"I'll have your father find a reputable lawyer for you and set up an appointment for you as soon as possible," Molly decided. "I'll owl you and let you know the date."
"That's fine, Mum," Ginny said in a placating tone, eager to leave. Grabbing some floo powder and turning back to the fireplace, she said, "I'll see you soon." Not waiting for her mother to respond, she threw the powder and was gone in a cloud of green smoke.
--
Thanks to all my readers, old and new. This story wouldn't have ended up this long without you.
Next chapter as yet unnamed.