The Unbreakable Vow

by

Ash Darklighter

It all belongs to JK Rowling and I thank her for her inspiration – There are no galleons to be made from me. This little story is my first Harry Potter fic. It is AU and of course comments are welcome. My thanks to Tad and Mona for their help.

Part 16

No. 12 Grimmauld Place

Harry couldn't settle once he returned to Grimmauld Place because of the anxiety gripping him with relentless fingers. His thoughts were all concentrated on the redheaded woman he still loved. Yes, he loved her and his less than successful attempt at pushing her away had finally proved it to himself. He needed Ginny Weasley in his life. But he couldn't succumb to his feelings for her now or he'd give the game away. He had to stop his edgy fidgeting and maintain an appearance of innocent calm. That was after the headache potion he'd had to imbibe as soon as he'd apparated home with Ron, had taken effect.

Ron hadn't lingered long in the Black ancestral home but had immediately apparated back to The Burrow with a loud crack, anxious to tell Hermione of his success. Harry had never had to concentrate so hard on apparating since he'd first made a successful jump back in his sixth year at Hogwarts. Splinching himself was a very real risk owing to the current state of his magic but at the last minute, he'd had an idea – it was risky – but worth a shot. Taking a deep breath he grabbed onto Ron's arm.

"Harry…!"

"You do it, Ron," he'd joked. "Apparate us both."

The headaches and the dizziness he was experiencing were getting worse when he attempted even the easiest of spells. Madam Pomfrey had said that she'd saved his magic and it would recover in time but he wasn't so confident. He seemed to be getting worse not better. His time was running out.

"Lumos," he murmured. And for the first time ever - nothing happened. There was no flare of light at the tip of his wand, no rush of magic through his fingers. The dream of one day having a normal life in the wizarding world was still a dream for Harry Potter. For the moment, he was as powerful as Argus Filch, the squib caretaker at Hogwarts – magically useless. If someone came after him flinging curses and hexes, Harry could not defend himself. Not could he go hunting Horcruxes. He would be unable to counter the protective enchantments that Voldemort had in place guarding the fragments of his soul. He would be unable to do what his friends could.

In a nutshell, the supposed saviour of the wizarding world was completely useless. Madam Pomfrey was right. He needed to get away if he was to heal quickly.

He headed to the library and opened the books in which he'd been searching for interesting hexes. That's what he usually did when alone in Order Headquarters but his heart wasn't into it today. He had to face facts however unpalatable they might be. He sat in a dingy library fruitlessly waving a wooden stick in the air in the hope that it might emit red and gold sparks. For the moment his magic had gone and he was trapped inside Grimmauld Place like Sirius had been. His mind shied away from thinking of his godfather – it still hurt too much. His godfather had wanted the best for Harry - just for Harry.

Sirius had liked Ginny, he thought suddenly. He'd approved of her for Harry. He could hear his godfather's voice inside his head saying, "another redhead for a Potter male, eh?" and then Sirius would give that bark of laughter which connected him so strongly to his Animagus form - Padfoot.

He examined the white line in the middle of his palm, the result of the blood magic between him and Ginny. He still wasn't exactly certain of what he'd accomplished. Had she got away safely? When would he know if she'd escaped? They would automatically suspect him of having had something to do with it and they'd be right, but he was going to try to do his utmost to stop them from finding out. He reinforced his Occlumency shields, hoping that they wouldn't be tested. He'd taken the antidote to Veritaserum since he'd begun to put his plan in action but he still wasn't sure if it would be enough. Snape was the last Professor in Hogwarts that he'd ask for anything and especially not an illegal potion. Harry was not skilled enough to brew it for himself and had to sneak to an apothecary in Knockturn Alley to buy what he needed.

For the first time, he considered what might happen now due to Voldemort's temporary incapacity. He had, if he so wanted, time to go looking for the Horcruxes without the Dark Lord getting in the way. His pulse quickened until he realised another truth. Yes, he could search for the Horcruxes all he wanted but in all probability would be unable to destroy them. He pulled off his glasses and rubbed his hands over his eyes. He had to be realistic. He didn't have fifteen years to waste away. He didn't want to wait fifteen years to know if he had a life or not. Voldemort was gone but not forever. His followers would not wait so long to find him and bring him back to life a second time.

He had a very strong suspicion that the Death Eaters were by now aware of Voldemort's demise. This time they wouldn't be so certain that he'd gone for good and would search for his disembodied remains. He reluctantly tried to think back to the events surrounding Voldemort's rebirthing. This was not something he wanted to dwell upon but it was imperative that he try to remember what had happened in the graveyard at Little Hangleton.

Not all the Death Eaters had been present during the first part of the incantation – only Peter Pettigrew, Harry and the deformed creature Voldemort, had been in the graveyard to begin with. Pettigrew, he thought with hatred. The rat animagus, once his parents' friend, had performed the dark ritual and he was still at large. Pettigrew knew how to bring back his Master.

Sirius had left him a pensieve in his will and he needed to examine these memories more closely. It had to be somewhere in Grimmauld Place and he wanted to take it with him when he left. The manner in which he would manage that feat had yet to materialise.

Bone of the Father…

The graveyard at Little Hangleton had been the place where Harry had lost the last remnants of his childhood. He screwed his eyes shut tightly and yet he still saw Cedric's body lying beside him, eyes wide and staring – still heard Voldemort's words...

"Kill the spare!"

"No," he whispered. He wasn't ready to revisit the memories that he still couldn't face in his darkest dreams. He replaced his spectacles on his nose and determinedly focused on the text in front of him, pushing away the memory of someone screaming. Harry blinked; he could hear a commotion in the entrance hallway. It wasn't a dream - the portrait of Sirius's mother was screeching loudly and unpleasantly about something. It meant that, apart from Dobby the house-elf, he was no longer alone in the house. Straining his ears, he recognised Snape's silky sneer, the headmaster's distinctive dry speech and a rich melodious voice that could only have belonged to Kingsley Shacklebolt.

He pulled out a parchment and fresh quill and began noting down information on the spells he'd read about, his ear fixed on the voices outside the library.

"Hello, Dobby. Is Harry about?"

"Harry Potter, Sir, is being in the library, Professor Dumbledore, Sir," the little house elf squeaked.

Footsteps began climbing the stairs and then the library door creaked slowly open. Harry did not react and kept scribbling things onto the parchment. When he read it back later, most of it would make no sense whatsoever.

"Harry! Could I have a word?"

Harry slowly lifted his head from the parchment upon and glanced at the speaker. "Professor Dumbledore," he murmured warily. "I didn't expect to see you tonight. I thought it was tomorrow." He furrowed his brow and hoped that he looked bewildered. "There wasn't a meeting planned for tonight, Sir…was there? I'll tell Dobby to…" He stopped and stared hard at the headmaster, chewing on his lip in apparent confusion. "Something's happened, Professor. Another raid? Someone's hurt badly…"

"No, Harry. It's time you and I had a little chat."

Harry swallowed but managed to keep his expression from showing panic. He'd known that Dumbledore was going to be watching him very closely. It was showtime. "About what?" He asked as he waved a hand across the books and pieces of parchment littering the desk. "I haven't had any more thoughts about the whereabouts of the Horcruxes but I have discovered some interesting spells."

"No, Harry. This has nothing to with the Horcruxes. I think you know what I want to discuss with you." Dumbledore moved into the room letting the door swing closed behind him.

"No. I don't." He rolled his eyes and shifted uneasily in his seat. "Unless it's the battle in Hogsmeade again. I've told you…"

"That is part of what I want to discuss, yes." The headmaster's eyes weren't twinkling like they normally did. He looked older than Harry had ever seen him to be – his face strained and tired. Harry squished down the ever-present feeling of guilt as he watched the aged wizard sit opposite him. He had to remember that Dumbledore was still keeping things from him.

There was a tap on the door and the dark face of Kingsley Shacklebolt appeared. He nodded at the headmaster and then turned and looked at Harry. "Harry!"

"Hello Kingsley," he murmured quietly in response.

Kingsley glanced again at Dumbledore who gave a brief nod. "Yes, come in, Kingsley. I know you also have things that you want to ask Harry."

"What things?" Harry asked. Ginny must have managed to get away if they were sending an Auror to question him. Kingsley had been one of the Aurors Percy had detailed to escort his sister. He still assumed that Dumbledore would ask him the Voldemort type questions. Swiftly, he pushed the thoughts behind his tightest shields and continued to try and appear confused. "What's happened? Someone is hurt or…"

"Where is Ginny Weasley?" the Auror asked.

"Ginny!" Harry looked surprised. "What kind of a question is that?"

Albus watched the boy carefully. "Yes, Harry. Where is Ginny Weasley?"

Harry frowned, his bright green eyes gazing at the headmaster in confusion. "Is this a trick question?"

"No."

Harry shrugged, his tone deliberately sullen. "Ginny should be at The Burrow with the rest of her family. Where I should be, if you remember? But because of this stupid marriage contract, I have to stay away until she's married off to that…" Harry closed his mouth with a snap. "Ginny's at The Burrow with Ron and Hermione." He returned his gaze to the parchment in front of him. "And possibly the twins. They moved back there after the Malfoy's arrived with the betrothal contract. They don't trust Percy or the Malfoys one little bit. I don't blame them," he added defiantly. "I don't trust them either."

Kingsley looked at Dumbledore for a split second before saying with careful deliberation, "No, Harry, she's not at The Burrow."

"What do you mean, she's not?"

Dumbledore's face was grave. "Ginny didn't return to The Burrow. You did know that she had an appointment with Narcissa Malfoy this afternoon to select her wedding robes?"

"Yes, I knew that," he said impertinently. "But…but…she didn't return?" Harry asked faintly. "She didn't go home after meeting Malfoy's mother? She's maybe running late…" He glanced at his wristwatch. "Hell," he swore. "She's running very late."

Kingsley shook his head. "No. She's not running late."

Harry stiffened. "Then where is she? She's okay, isn't she?"

"We don't know where she is," Kingsley admitted, casting a warning glance at Dumbledore. "We wondered if you might know where she is."

Harry's eyes darkened and he sat up, his face horrified. "You're telling me that Ginny's missing?"

"Yes." Dumbledore sighed heavily.

"I knew that she was supposed to be choosing her…her…wedding robes with Draco's mother this afternoon and that she didn't want to go. I didn't know where they were going. I don't know where witches get wedding robes. I suppose there is more than one shop." His voice rose. "There were Aurors collecting her from The Burrow this morning. Didn't they stay with her and protect her? Maybe one of them was a Death Eater. Oh, sorry," Harry muttered sardonically. "She's being married into a whole family of Death Eaters."

"I collected Ginny this morning," Kingsley said. "I was outside Madam Malkins' shop the entire time she was in there. She couldn't have left without one of us seeing her."

"She disappeared from the dress shop in Diagon Alley?" Harry said, his voice faint. "And there were Aurors outside while she was there and you didn't see anything. How? Why…?"

Dumbledore interrupted Harry's panicked questions, his voice unusually stern. "I have to ask you this. Where were you this afternoon, Harry?"

Harry almost grinned. Despite his brilliance Dumbledore was predictable in many ways. "Me!" he exclaimed. "Where was I? I was with Ron." His green eyes darkened with hostility. "You don't think I had anything to do with Ginny's disappearance?"

Dumbledore paused, grasping the pertinent point immediately. "You were with Ron?"

"Yes. I've been with Ron for most of today. We met Moody in the morning for some training…" He looked confused. "I thought you arranged it."

The headmaster shook his head. "No, that must have been Remus."

"Figures," muttered Harry. "I must thank him. He seems to be taking my training seriously."

"Were you working on new spells?" Dumbledore asked, leaning forward and gazing intently at Harry, ignoring the young man's jibe.

Harry saw the movement and understood. The headmaster was attempting Legilimency – the art of mind reading. He'd almost shot back. 'No, I can't do magic now, remember?' Dumbledore was definitely aware of Harry's problem. Anyone else might just think that the headmaster was interested in what Harry was doing but the young wizard knew better. "No – we didn't work on spells today," he muttered. "It was fitness training, actually. But Moody did show us some neat detection and concealment charms and then we flooed to Diagon Alley and popped into Quality Quidditch supplies for about five minutes. But that's not important now. Ginny is what's important. We have to find her. I bet the Malfoys have something to do with it. Death Eaters the lot of them."

"Where did you go after the Quidditch shop?" Dumbledore asked quietly, ignoring Harry's mention of the Malfoys.

Harry's nostrils flared and he sat up straight in his chair. "You think that I have something to do with Ginny's disappearance don't you? You're accusing me…"

"Harry!" Dumbledore raised his voice stopping the flood of words. "Harry. Please listen," he almost pleaded. The hostility he'd felt from the boy since the death of Sirius Black and the divulging of the prophecy was definitely out in the open. Harry was glaring him with dislike and he'd never done that openly before. Banked flames in the vivid green eyes burned. The young man was keeping control of his anger but only just.

Once upon a time as his anger grew, Harry would probably have performed accidental magic. Now, he would find it difficult to perform the simplest spell. Albus felt his own guilt beginning to rise again. He had to tell the boy the truth and he had to do it now before more damage was done between them. He could see how unfair life had been to Harry Potter and perhaps Albus Dumbledore had made more mistakes than he'd realised. At least he hadn't raised another Voldemort. Had he even considered for a moment that Harry had the potential for darkness? Of course he had – every wizard had. As he'd often told Harry, it was the choices he'd made that determined what he became. The boy was powerful and deep down Albus had feared that power twisting out of control. "Harry…"

"I see," Harry said coldly. "You do think that Ginny's disappearance has something to do with me. I would love to be the one to help her escape Malfoy's clutches but you said there was nothing we could do. If you couldn't help her – who could? You are the most powerful wizard in the world. I would be a fool to even try. I'm stuck here most of the time and I'm hardly ever alone. Where would I hide her? At Privet Drive with my magic hating relatives or in the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix? That's not very bright." He shook his head. "You are certain that she's gone?" he asked.

Kingsley glanced once more at Dumbledore and then nodded. "Yes."

"Then I'm glad. This magical betrothal Percy contracted for her is supposed to draw her towards Draco. Ginny's free will slowly and surely will be robbed from her. You could almost say that this is a form of magical rape…"

"Harry!"

"Wouldn't she lose her magic if she continued to resist?"

"It's possible," Dumbledore admitted. "But Harry…"

"Would you like to search the house?" the young man asked. "You can if you want to. Were you lying about the marriage contract or just withholding more information? I searched through hundreds and hundreds of books and found nothing." Harry's voice began to rise again. "You are the most powerful wizard in the world," he repeated, "and you did nothing. Don't tell me there wasn't something that you could have done because I just won't believe you. And if there truly was nothing, why do you think that I might have managed to do something that all the professors in Hogwarts say is impossible?"

"You should always know that you can trust me, Harry."

"Do I?" Harry laughed bitterly. "I can't say that you've proved yourself trustworthy to me recently. You don't trust me so why should I reciprocate. You lie to me and you manipulate me. I'm the one in the prophecy. I have to kill or be killed. I would have liked to have known about it sooner."

Albus pulled off his spectacles and rubbed his eyes giving himself a moment to collect his thoughts. With a sigh, he placed them back on his nose. Harry had placed himself very close to Ginny Weasley's location this afternoon. He was resourceful and he was determined but he wasn't a liar. "Harry, where did you go after visiting Diagon Alley? Kingsley is here on behalf of the Ministry and of course, Percy Weasley."

Harry shrugged. "Ron and I only spent about five minutes in Quality Quidditch Supplies. We'd heard stories about the new Nimbus and decided to have a quick look at it. We saw the Malfoy family waiting, figured that Ginny would be close by and decided it would be more prudent to remove ourselves from Diagon Alley and immediately returned to the Ministry. I had arranged for Ron to sit his apparition test as a surprise. We were both delighted when he passed it. I waited for him outside the apparition room while he sat the test. Conveniently for me, I even spoke to the former Minister for magic, Cornelius Fudge. It was me - no Polyjuiced impostor. Does this mean that I have a believable alibi?"

"All this can be verified?" Kingsley asked.

"Of course it can. You can check the time that Ron sat his test and you can even ask Advisor Fudge…" Harry grinned briefly. "…if he spoke to me this afternoon." He glared at the headmaster. "Will I be allowed a trial? My godfather wasn't so lucky."

If Harry had indeed been at the Ministry at a certain time it would be easy to prove. Kingsley got to his feet. "Excuse me for a moment or two."

"Harry…" Dumbledore began to say.

"No more, Professor. What's important is Ginny. Where is she? Was she taken by force? Did she leave of her own account? I blame all of you for this, you know." He clenched his fists as he peppered Dumbledore with his questions. "She was supposed to be with me, Sir. Not being with me should have made her safe. We stopped being…" Harry closed his eyes, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose, pushing his glasses askew as he did so. "I ended my relationship with Ginny because I thought that it would keep her safe."

"Harry…"

"I'll kill Draco Malfoy with my bare hands," he ground out. "I won't need to use any spell. An unforgivable is too swift. He has to have something to do with this. He doesn't want to marry Ginny any more than she wants to marry him. You know that Malfoy's been involved with Pansy Parkinson since they arrived at Hogwarts. The whole wizarding world expected a betrothal as soon as the pair was old enough. They're both nasty enough to be welcome to one another." He clenched his fists, examining them as if he was checking that they were strong enough to do the job he intended them for. He looked up. "I must contact Ron, Hermione and the twins. Do they know? They'll be worried sick."

"Tonks has gone to The Burrow," Dumbledore offered quietly. "They will already have learned what has happened by now."

Harry covered his face with his hands. "Oh, Ginny."

Dumbledore sat back. The emotions he sensed coming from the boy was of worry and distress. Surely, Harry, emotions easy to read upon his face, would have displayed his guilt for all to see. He'd never been able to lie successfully to Albus, his green eyes blazing the truth. Instead of a triumphant Gryffindor, Dumbledore had a grief-stricken young man in front of him and he was going to have to add to that burden.

"I have to find her," Harry announced, lifting his head from his shaking hands. He couldn't make any mistakes now – it could cost him and Ginny their freedom. But he hated lying to Dumbledore – he wasn't good at it. "What's being done to find her? Can I help? Please, I need to help."

"The Aurors were in place at the time of her disappearance and immediately started searching Diagon Alley. They have things covered, Harry."

"I'll help," Harry muttered, getting to his feet. "I know how she thinks." It wasn't quite the truth. Ginny Weasley was an unpredictable witch and he liked her even more because of it. No, it was more than 'like'. The feeling was much stronger. He loved her.

"No, Harry," Dumbledore murmured. "You cannot become involved."

"But I must," Harry pleaded. "She's my friend. I'm already involved. I also have to prove my innocence. If you suspect me for this, others will, too."

Kingsley walked back into the room. "Could I have a minute, Albus?"

The headmaster nodded and followed the Auror from the library saying, "of course. Excuse us please, Harry." Dumbledore did not see the small smile that crossed the young wizard's face as he left the room.

"I spoke to Fudge, Albus," Kingsley murmured quietly.

"And…?"

"Harry and Ron were exactly where he said they were and couldn't have been anywhere near Diagon Alley when Ginny disappeared. They were still in the Ministry."

"There were no communications?"

"None," Kingsley said. "I checked the area around Madam Malkin's for any traces of his magical signature. It's difficult to do as he's now an adult but Harry is currently in the clear. He's done exactly what we told him to do. Keep away from Ginny…"

Dumbledore frowned. Harry's behaviour didn't add up. Normally, the boy didn't follow the rules if he had friends that he considered were in trouble. The events of the Chamber of Secrets and the Department of Mysteries were very good examples of Harry's reckless need to save those he loved. Harry being at the Ministry at exactly the right time was suspicious. It didn't fit his usual pattern of behaviour. "He spent time with her here last night."

Kingsley shrugged. "We already know about that. Dawlish and Tonks have now returned to the Ministry after visiting The Burrow. They interviewed the remaining Weasleys and Hermione Granger. Hermione Granger stated that at no time were Harry and Ginny alone with one another and reported no conversations that could have led to Harry aiding Ginny in her escape. Ron, George and Fred Weasley corroborated her story. She could have been taken but I'm not certain why or by whom."

"How are they coping?" Dumbledore asked with concern. The Weasleys had gone through so much in a very short period of time.

"Extremely worried and upset. Tonks is going to take them to St Mungos and may have already done so. She thought that it might be best if Molly heard the news from her children rather than the Aurors and Percy." Kingsley sighed. Percy Weasley didn't rank very highly in his estimation. "Ginny visited Molly this morning."

"Did she now," mused Dumbledore. "Was that usual behaviour?"

"She often visits her mother but this time, she put up several privacy charms. I don't know what was discussed. I didn't consider it to be any of my business. Perhaps I should have," he added ruefully. "It could merely have been about the wedding and the duties Ginny would have to perform…poor girl."

Dumbledore put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a paper bag. "Lemon drop?"

"No thank you. Albus…" Kingsley hesitated. "It won't be so easy to get information from Molly. The healers are not happy about her being questioned at all."

"Her memory is improving."

"Oh, yes," the Auror agreed. "It's improving daily but she may still forget most of what Ginny told her – if she told her anything of importance."

"We have to hope that she does not forget," Albus murmured, popping a sweet into his mouth. If Harry hadn't helped the young witch disappear, who had? It was unlikely that she could have done this alone.

"I need to get back to the Ministry, Albus."

"Of course."

"We may still need to bring Harry in for questioning. Percy may insist upon it." Kingsley's tone of voice indicated that he thought the man idiotic enough to do so. "So far there is nothing to link Harry to the mystery of Ginny Weasley's disappearance. We need proof and we have none. Harry was probably in the Ministry before Ginny arrived at Madam Malkin's and was still there when she vanished."

"You will let me know?"

"That I will, Albus. I'll see you for the next meeting. Say goodbye to Harry for me." He headed back down the stairs giving a nod to Snape as he passed him in the front vestibule.

"Well?" Snape asked, climbing the stairs to join Dumbledore outside the library.

"No luck."

Snape glanced at the library door and frowned. "He denies all knowledge?"

"Yes, he does. Kingsley has just informed me that there has been no evidence to link Harry to Miss Weasley's disappearance despite all efforts to do so."

"None at all?" Snape's dark eyes widened. "The brat is getting sneakier with age."

Dumbledore shook a long finger at the Potions Professor. "The Aurors found no evidence, Severus. None."

"None?" Snape shook his head in disbelief. "I don't believe it!" he exclaimed. "Well, Potter, you may amount to some use in wizarding society after all. Albus, that boy is becoming positively Slytherin," Snape muttered with a trace of unwilling admiration in his voice. "He must have had some help. Where was the wolf?"

"Severus, Harry was in the Ministry of Magic at the exact time Ginny Weasley disappeared. There is no indication of Remus Lupin being involved and you know it."

"Can this be proved?"

"I've already been over this with Kingsley. Yes, it can be proved. Harry spoke to Fudge while he was at the Ministry. Remus is currently on Order business for me."

"Let me talk to…" Snape reached for the door.

"Leave him for a moment, Severus. He's very upset. Maybe we should…"

"Begin questioning him on the other matter. If he's upset, he may let something slip." Snape's black eyes glittered. "Personally, I still think that he is behind this. Potter's so arrogant that he thinks he can fool you and the Ministry Aurors at the same time. The Weasleys are undisciplined enough to follow him."

Dumbledore's mouth tightened. "Perhaps you should leave any questions to me, Severus."

"I would like to hear what Potter has to say."

"You cannot resist goading him, Severus."

"True."

"Perhaps it is time you stopped this ridiculous nonsense, Severus," Dumbledore said flatly. "Harry Potter is not his father."

Snape's lip curled.

Suddenly, the library door opened and both wizards turned to look at Harry. "Professor Snape, how nice of you to join the gathering" he said mockingly.

"Potter," Snape all but growled, his manner surly.

"Will you be staying for supper, gentlemen?" Harry asked.

"No," snapped the Potions Professor.

"I would still like to speak to you on the other matter, Harry," Dumbledore said quietly. "This is important."

There was a silence and then Harry gave an odd little smirk. "Of course, I was expecting that, Professor. You did say you wanted to rehash the Hogsmeade debacle once more, although I doubt that I can add to your knowledge."

A strange look crossed Dumbledore's face. "Do you, Harry? I would like to hear again about your encounter with Voldemort. You duelled him and again you survived. There are not many wizards who can make a similar claim.

"Probably not," Harry muttered. "Seeing as they're either dead or insane."

Snape's eyes narrowed at the insolent tone in the boy's voice. There was something about the way that the boy spoke and then he knew. The brat had guessed that they were now cognizant of the Dark Lord's current status. How had he known? He was no Legilimens. "Albus…"

Dumbledore shook his head. "I'll speak to you later, Severus. For now, I need to talk to Harry alone." He ushered the boy back into the library leaving Snape on the landing. There was a moments silence and then the Potions Professor's feet clattered angrily down the stairs.

"Well, Harry?" Dumbledore seated himself at the table where Harry had been studying.

"Well, Sir," Harry returned evenly, moving a pile of crumpled parchment to one side.

"I'm disappointed that you failed to tell me everything."

"Really? Welcome to my world," snapped Harry, annoyed at the headmaster's ploy. He stood up straighter. "I continually find that I'm left out of the loop. What exactly I am supposed to have told you?"

Dumbledore's voice grew stern. "That you once again managed to drive the spirit from Voldemort's body."

Harry stared at the headmaster, his face white. Minutes ticked by, the tension in the air palpable. Dumbledore had finally given the seal of authority to what Harry had suspected for weeks. "I…I wasn't sure that I had done anything," he finally admitted softly sinking into his chair. "Not for several days after. Voldemort was killing me. He was laughing – he's always laughing. I hear that high pitched-cackle in my nightmares forever twinned with a flash of green light. It wasn't until at least a week later that I realised I'd felt nothing from my scar. I'd felt nothing since we'd fought at Hogsmeade."

"Harry." Dumbledore's expression softened at the frightened look on the boy's face. "Tell me," he said coaxing gently and then understanding came. "You used an Unforgivable, didn't you?"

Harry nodded, his head drooping as he stared at the surface of the table. "I had no choice – it was me or him and I chose to survive. I'm not very good at them – the Unforgivables. I never say the curses with enough dark intent but this time I was terrified. I thought I was dead." Harry bit his lip worriedly. "Will I have to go to Azkaban, Professor?"

"No!" Dumbledore's heart sank. So that was why the boy hadn't told anyone. He'd thought he'd be sent to Azkaban. Harry wouldn't last two minutes in that hellhole. His reaction to the dementors was already extreme. "No, Harry. You are not a criminal. You could never kill callously and enjoy it. Tom Riddle took great pleasure from the suffering he caused. No one else need ever know what happened."

Harry lifted his head and watched the headmaster carefully. "I was losing the encounter; Voldemort had almost backed me inside the apothecary's. I was trapped. I ducked, stepped back and suddenly I had nowhere to go and had run out of ideas. It looked as if my famous luck would finally desert me. There was glass showering down upon my head – the window had broken. He laughed that high pitched cackle once again - then he hit me with this strange hex…" Harry hesitated. What could he say safely? The probable answer was – nothing. Everything was about to come out.

"And…?" queried Dumbledore.

"And then he lifted his wand to cast the killing curse – I knew that's what he was going to do. He always has to announce it for maximum effect. 'Goodbye, Harry Potter, it's time for you to join your poor Mudblood mother and blood-traitorous godfather.' He always has to tell mew I got in there first. I knew it couldn't finish him off permanently. You've drummed that fact into my head. Until we locate the Horcruxes, he cannot be killed. Still, I had to do something."

"Can you recall…?"

Harry smiled and Dumbledore noted that the smile was cold. "Oh, yes, Professor. I know what the first hex was and what it does. It's a pity that you didn't tell me anything more than it was an obscure text and you'd have to research it. By then it was far too late. I'd been bundled off to St Mungos where they treated my scrapes and sent me home again."

"If it had been obvious they would have treated it."

"Well it probably wasn't and they didn't," Harry snapped.

Dumbledore's eyes lost their twinkle and he looked ashamed. "I didn't think he'd actually connected with you…"

"No?" Harry said in disbelief. "He was standing right over me. Not even Neville in his first year at Hogwarts could have missed."

"Stranger things have happened," murmured Dumbledore.

"Unlikely." Harry managed to squeeze out the word between his clenched teeth. "You had time to inform the healers that took me away instead of this 'not to talk and save my strength, dear boy' rubbish. You could have sent a message with a Patronus charm. There would have been a chance that the damage could have been less. Did you want to limit my magic? Was I becoming too powerful? Did you think I could become like…him?"

"Harry, I…" Dumbledore gestured feebly with his hands and Harry noted with surprise that they were trembling. Albus hadn't thought that the dark hex would be so effective. But Voldemort was at the peak of his powers and had to have imbued the hex with an extra twist of venom that Dumbledore hadn't expected. He'd mistakenly supposed that if Harry lost some of his magical strength it wouldn't be a bad thing if it kept him from becoming a focus of power like Voldemort. A few hours delay in treating the hex shouldn't have made much difference. He had gravely misjudged the situation.

"I did manage to research the curse even further when I got home," Harry continued grimly wanting to make the headmaster think long and hard on what he had done. He still hadn't told Dumbledore that Poppy Pomphrey had been inside the apothecary's and had, on her hands and knees, crawled towards him as soon as the Death Eaters had begun to vanish, her wand out already trying to correct the damage that the Dark Lord's hex had done. She'd been close enough to hear the curse and owing to one of those lucky chances Snape always maintained that Harry managed to have, had read up on it just the night before. Harry hadn't been badly hurt, merely frightened and had been on his feet moments later. The Hogwarts' mediwitch had then attended to others in the vicinity that had more obvious injuries.

"The library here contains many informative dark texts. What I discovered is that this particular curse drains me of my magic. Riddle was making sure that I wouldn't be a threat to him…ever. Putting it simply," he said. "My magic is failing."

"Yes."

"And you didn't tell me such an important fact?" Harry said softly. "Didn't send me to Madam Pomfrey to have my magic checked? You assumed everything was fine until I started showing signs of a serious magical core breach. And yet, you still did nothing."

"I didn't know how to tell you. I did not think that it would take all of your magic. I thought that you would barely notice the difference."

"I find that strange," the young man said calmly. "You've never failed to point out unpleasant facts before. Oh, but then, no, you usually tell me when it's too late and someone is killed or goes missing."

"Harry."

"No!" Harry slammed his fist down upon the table making the objects upon it shake dangerously. "You knew because you were close enough to hear what the hex was and you should have immediately acted to help save my magic – it may never recover. If you weren't certain don't you think you might have asked the experts or checked it immediately yourself? According to the prophecy, I am the only one who can defeat Voldemort. I can hardly wave a useless piece of wood in his face or perhaps throw hard objects at him. I certainly can't use magic now. How am I supposed to locate and destroy the Horcruxes if I cannot get around the protective charms? He will undoubtedly have charms protecting parts of his soul. How I am I supposed to defend myself in a world that is none too friendly to me at times? I see-saw between the wizarding world's saviour, The Boy-who-lived or a raving attention-seeking lunatic." His voice had risen to a bellow. "You could have left me helpless forever – you may well have."

Dumbledore sat as if stunned. "I only thought to spare you more pain," he admitted.

"Well, you haven't," Harry roared back. "I can't even perform a lighting spell." He pulled his wand from his arm holster. "Look," he said, his voice bitter as he waved his wand. "Lumos!" And nothing happened. "You may very well have doomed the wizarding world, Professor by taking away the only chance that they had. I'm not saying that I would have succeeded but I had a chance and although Voldemort doesn't know the prophecy I would say that he has a pretty good idea of the contents."

The headmaster frowned. He hadn't meant for everything to unravel like this. He hadn't wanted anything like this to happen to the boy. "How long have you known, Harry?"

"Known?"

"How long have you known that your magic was failing?" Because Harry had indeed known, Albus now realised.

"Almost from the beginning," Harry admitted, remembering. "When something is so much a part of you it's easy to tell when things are going wrong."

The apothecary's window had shattered with an ear splitting crash and in an instant he'd turned his head and glanced at the aged wizard, hoping for some help. Voldemort had used Harry's inattention and had bellowed 'Magisiphonoux'. He'd noted that the Dumbledore had registered the curse – registered and, something told Harry, that he'd recognised it before turning away to fire a defensive spell at another Death Eater. It was then that Harry had quietly severed Voldemort once more from his body with the use of the Unforgiveable.

"I'm asking you again," he said, staring straight at the headmaster. "Did you think that I was becoming too like Voldemort – a danger to wizarding society?" Harry paused, a muscle working in his cheek, his eyes glittering with pain and betrayal. "Are you hoping that when I kill You-Know-Who, I die too? I couldn't be allowed to survive afterwards as I'll be too dangerous a wizard? It all sounds very convenient."

"No…!" Dumbledore exclaimed sharply.

"Because that's what will happen. You've condemned me into not having a future. Forget Voldemort – he's the least of my problems - as the next time any free Death Eater sees me they'll be able to overpower me in seconds. I won't be able to do a thing about it." Harry took a gulping breath, his shoulders slumping. "You should have told me," he finished softly.

There was another awkward pause. "I'm sorry, Harry," Dumbledore whispered.

"I don't believe that you are," Harry said bitterly. "This happened nearly a month ago and you've kept quiet. You saw my increasing tiredness, dizziness, and headaches - all because of that hex. Every time I cast a spell I damage my magical core. It could be permanent. What will the Daily Prophet say? I can see the headlines now. 'Harry Potter, saviour of the wizarding world is a squib!'" He wasn't going to admit to Dumbledore that Poppy had saved his magic by being in the apothecary. She hadn't known that Voldemort's power would boost the spell but whatever she had done had stopped the rot. The headmaster had placed him in an almost impossible situation and in Harry's opinion deserved to feel some guilt. He didn't deserve to know that Harry's power drain would not be permanent.

Only by completely removing himself from the magical world and Dumbledore's control would Harry ever have a chance of recovering and he intended on making that recovery possible.

"I'm sorrier than you could ever imagine."

"You'll pardon me for saying again that I have a hard time believing you. No more secrets?" Harry said quietly, arching a dark eyebrow sardonically. "That state of affairs didn't last very long."

Dumbledore's lips firmed. "You were too young…"

"I disagree. You placed far too much expectation on a child and not enough trust in the adult. I am no longer a child."

The headmaster seemed to deflate. "I know," he whispered slowly.

Harry wondered if by continually agreeing with him, the headmaster was hoping that the young man would eventually calm down and forgive him. But Harry was quite calm and wasn't yet ready to forgive. His forgiveness had to be earned. But first, he had other issues to bring to Dumbledore's attention. "And you did nothing for Ginny – nothing. The wizard considered to be the most powerful on the side of the light couldn't help her. What could I do that you could not?"

"You have shown yourself to be resourceful in the past, Harry," the headmaster murmured.

"Oh, please," Harry jeered. "Ginny should not have been left in such a position with you sanctioning an alliance with known Death Eaters. You question me as if I am a criminal - after all that I have done?" He stood up, his face hard. "I'm going to do something now – I'm going to find her without my magic."

Dumbledore frowned. "You cannot."

"You have no right to tell me what to do, Professor Dumbledore," he snapped.

"Harry, you just said it yourself," the headmaster got wearily to his feet. "You are defenceless. Your magic is weak."

"My magic is currently non-existent but you cannot keep me shut up in Grimmauld Place forever." He narrowed his green eyes. "I'll just have to risk it."

"No, Harry. It's too dangerous."

"I don't care…"

Dumbledore's face was stiff. He held up his hand. "Until we're really sure that Voldemort has indeed gone, you shouldn't be wandering around Diagon Alley or the Ministry of Magic by yourself."

"I know that the Ministry's full of Voldemort's followers," Harry declared, his lip curling. "That's no surprise to anyone in the wizarding world - it always has been. But they're much braver these days. They will look for him, Professor. They won't leave it fifteen years this time before they find a nice necromancy spell to rebirth him. Pettigrew is still scuttling around free from the punishment he deserves and he was there in the cemetery. I'm sure Peter will be able to recall the exact words he used in the rebirthing ritual. It was Peter Pettigrew that killed Cedric Diggory - referred to him as 'the spare'. I'm sure if I looked I could find one or two suitable incantations somewhere in this very library. The Black Family were known for their love of the Dark Arts. I can't guarantee to be able to be there to help Voldemort's associates this time. They would have to find another enemy willing to donate his or her blood. I am correct assuming that he can be reborn?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, unfortunately he can. Not all of his Horcruxes have been found."

"I thought so."

Dumbledore attempted to smile. "We do now have some time to search for the remaining Horcruxes in peace. They must locate his disembodied spirit and that will not prove to be so easy."

"They did it the last time and they must know that he could rise again if anything happened. He claimed his immortality and he's right. I cannot keep removing him from his body at periodic intervals and I certainly cannot do that without magic. I am telling you Professor Dumbledore that the Death Eaters won't take long to try and revive him. You know I'm telling the truth."

"I don't think the prophecy means that you must use an Unforgivable curse to kill off Tom permanently," Dumbledore said carefully.

"I can't use anything to kill off Voldemort. If I cannot do magic it doesn't matter what I do," he shouted.

"It always matters, Harry," Dumbledore said soothingly. "You always have a choice."

With a sound of disgust, Harry stood up and angrily pushed his chair away from the desk. "I refuse to be kept here…"

There was suddenly a cacophony of sound at the front door. The portrait of Sirius' mother had started screeching again. Harry groaned and opened the library door peering down into the entry hall. He glanced back at Dumbledore. "Not a word, Professor about my magic."

"Harry!"

"Not a word," he hissed fiercely. "I mean it. I don't want them pitying me. I'll tell them myself and in my own way."

Dumbledore gave a reluctant nod. Things had rapidly gone from bad to worse. Voldemort was temporarily not a threat but Harry was not backing down and taking his advice the way he once would have. The boy had grown into a good man which made him very proud. But Dumbledore wondered if he would ever regain Harry's trust. He'd made too many mistakes in his dealings with Harry and it was proving to be harder to repair the rift than he'd at first thought. It was going to take some time.

"Ron! Hermione!" Harry dived down the stairs towards them. "I'm so glad to see you. Have you any news. Dumbledore and Kingsley told me about Ginny. Where could she have gone? Do you think the Malfoys had anything to do with it?"

"Where is she, Harry?" Hermione demanded, halting Harry's rush of questions.

"You must know," Ron snapped. "Where is my sister?"

"I don't know," Harry said, hoping they couldn't tell that he was lying. He'd never been able to lie very convincingly. His Occlumency had improved beyond recognition but it still had, in his opinion, a long way to go. "Why should I know?" He had a pretty good idea where Ginny was at this moment in time but it was by no means a certainty. "Ron, I really don't know where she is. I hope she's okay and if she is, I'm glad she's well away from Malfoy. I wish I'd thought of it myself."

Ron glared at him. "Percy says that you're the one responsible."

"Well, Percy has a tendency to talk out of his backside," Harry retorted, suddenly annoyed at Ron's attitude. One day, Ron's tendency to spout off without thinking of the consequences would get him into serious trouble. "He wanted her to marry Malfoy," he spat back at his redheaded friend. "Ron, how could I be responsible for her disappearance? I was with you all afternoon. You came back here with me and then went to The Burrow."

"Oh…yeah," Ron muttered feebly, the fire going out of him. "Look, I'm sorry, mate, but I'm worried about my sister." He straightened his shoulders. "Hermione thought…"

"Hermione thinks too much on occasions," grumbled Harry underneath his breath. "Don't you think that if I had arranged Ginny's disappearance that I would be gone, too?"

Hermione flushed and looked down. "I'm sorry, Harry but you were trying to find her a way out the marriage."

"And you had given up," Harry gibed. "You were supposed to be her friend. How could I manage such a scheme without you to help me?" He hoped she didn't hear the sarcasm. He loved Hermione but sometimes she got too full of herself. Her intellectual ability occasionally overrode her common sense but she wouldn't be fooled for long.

Dragging Hermione and Ron into his plans would only slow him down and endanger them all. He and Ginny had to do this without them.

Hermione assessed Harry suspiciously. "You don't look too upset by all of this."

"Of course I'm upset," he ground out between clenched teeth. "Ginny's gone, Merlin knows where or has been taken by Voldemort's chums and you ask if I'm upset. Hermione!" He howled at her in disbelief. "I'm upset that everything got this far and Ginny, if she's made her own escape, had to do that without any of us being able to help her because she felt that it was her only way out. Ginny didn't trust her own family to help her." He levelled a glare at Hermione. "I'm upset that the supposedly smartest witch in Hogwarts could say something so stupid. Go and ask the headmaster what he thinks. He's in the library."

"Dumbledore's here?" Hermione looked surprised.

"Didn't I just say that?" Harry dug his fingernails into his palms, the pain focusing him on not losing his rapidly fraying temper. "I've already answered questions from him and from Shacklebolt."

"Kingsley?" queried Hermione, looking surprised. "My goodness. They've been very quick. That will be part of the official investigation. Harry, please tell us if you know anything."

"I don't know anything. I wish I did," Harry returned stiffly. There was an awkward silence. "Great," Harry said irritably. "My own friends don't believe me."

"Do you blame us?" asked Ron. "She's my sister and the pair of you have been whispering together ever since the contract was announced."

"And I'm your best friend," Harry muttered quietly. "But it doesn't count for much with you, does it?" He took a steadying gulp of air. "When did Ginny and I get the chance to 'whisper' as you put it? I moved out of The Burrow immediately after Percy and the Malfoys left. We haven't had a chance to think up anything. Ginny and I have hardly had the chance to say two words to one another without anyone else witnessing our conversation. Ginny's my friend, too. I owe it to her and to you, Ron, for all that your family has done for me."

"I do believe you, Harry," Ron said, the tips of his ears turning red. "Sorry, mate."

"Didn't sound like it," Harry grumbled.

Hermione sighed, suddenly feeling rather guilty. "I'm sorry, Harry. I'm just so worried about Ginny."

"And you think that I'm not? I've researched the spells used to make that contract and haven't been able to find a way to break it. But I'm not about to stop trying. Ginny may have bought us some time. If you were to help…" He dangled bait of research in front of Hermione knowing that she would find it difficult to resist. "I found several books in the library upstairs dealing with contractual parchments. There are a lot of Arithmancy calculations in them. That's your subject not mine. Professor McGonagall agreed to give me access to the restricted section in the library at Hogwarts the next time I visited."

Hermione's eyes lit up as she capitulated. "Let me see the books, Harry. I can arrange a time with Professor McGonagall myself."

"Thank you, Hermione. We may, between us, find something that will help." He looked up feeling Dumbledore's eyes on him. "The library and its contents are at your disposal, Hermione." This would distract Hermione. He only hoped that it would do the same for Ron.

He felt for the outline of the small book on blood oaths hidden in his pocket. This was his own secret research. Harry had noticed that Ginny hadn't been drawn to Malfoy in the way that the marriage contract intended. In fact, he'd been banking on it. He hadn't known what the outcome of the blood-sharing would be but he hoped that it would run deeper than the Ministry's contract. Old magic – blood magic, was unpredictable but something had happened between them. They'd both felt it.

Whatever it was - it gave them both a chance.

22