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 19
The sun was streaming in through the half-shut blinds. Ginny came gradually to wakefulness but tried to hold on to sleep for as long as she could. The dream had been a good one and she'd been safe and happy amongst her family. With a deep sigh, she squinted through her lashes. She wasn't in her own bed at home or even the one she used in Grimmauld Place. She was lying on the sofa in Harry's hideout, covered by her winter cloak. She gave a little wriggle and winced as every muscle in her body protested. Sleeping on the couch was never a good idea – even one as comfortable as this one was.
Suddenly eager to look around. Ginny opened her eyes fully and sat up. Last night, she'd been too tired and overwhelmed by what she had just done to truly take in her new situation. Her jaw dropped. This wasn't just some stop gap place. Her surroundings were airy, modern and luxurious.
And very Muggle.
Pulling off her cloak, she stood up and stared around her. The room was larger than she'd expected. The kitchen area was in one corner with a dining table close by. The large chocolate coloured sofa and squashy arm chairs spoke of chic expense and careless comfort. She knew that Harry had money and for the first time in his life could spend it on a home of his own choosing. This was still far more than she'd expected.
She stared at a grey rectangle attached to the wall, her brow furrowing. She wondered what the object was for several seconds - it wasn't a picture, nor was it a mirror, although the glossy surface showed her reflection and then she remembered that it must be a Muggle televisual.
Ginny wisely decided not to touch it.
In the daylight, the light switches she'd been unable to locate were clearly visible. Curious, even though it was unnecessary, she pressed one of the switches on the wall and was intrigued to see the light above her head illuminate. That was it?
It was as instantaneous and effective as a Lumos spell.
The urge to relieve herself made itself known once again to her brain. She'd found the bathroom last night but it had been in the dark. The white bathroom was tiled and gleaming containing a bath and a shower. Ginny moved closer and peered at the silver taps. It all seemed straightforward enough. A sudden longing for a cleansing shower swept through her but not in this place – this wasn't home. Carefully, she did what she had to do, located the flush mechanism and approached the sink. This wasn't so different from what she was used to…just newer and shinier.
She twisted one of the taps and held her hands underneath the flow of warm water. A sense of longing for the antique plumbing in the bathroom at The Burrow grabbed her. There was never enough hot water and her brothers always got in before her… Ginny closed her eyes and swallowed, pushing the images away as she shut off the tap and dried her hands on the towel hanging from a rail affixed to the wall. She had to stop thinking of home. This was home now.
Her feet moved her away from the bathroom and into the first, of what she later discovered to be, two bedrooms. It was about the size of her room at The Burrow and contained a bed, a chest of drawers and a wardrobe.
The second room was bigger than first – all done in neutral colours with the quilt on the bed smooth in its creamy perfection lacking the scorch marks from a Fred and George spell gone wrong. It was like something from a magazine - the kind of place where the Weasley family would never be at ease. It didn't seem to be real.
She walked towards the window and peered cautiously out, almost as if a wizard might fly past and find her. But she was in Muggle territory now and all she could see in the early morning light was the spire of a nearby church, boxy office blocks and various grey and red tiled roofs.
"I guess there won't be a Boggart in this wardrobe," she murmured aloud, eyeing the large wooden cupboard in the corner of the room. "Well, I hope there's not." Opening the wardrobe door, she noted with surprise that there were some clothes hanging. To her amazement she recognised them. They were last seen in her closet in The Burrow. How had Harry done it? He obviously meant this room to be hers. She retrieved her cloak from the living room and dropped it onto the bed.
The whole place was ready to inhabit – ready for her and Harry to live a new life.
Ginny avoided looking at her own reflection in the large free standing mirror in the corner of the room. She looked a mess but that didn't seem to be important right now. Her stomach gave a rumble of protestation. It seemed reasonable to assume that Harry had thought about food. He'd prepared everything else.
Returning to the main room intent on sourcing sustenance her gaze was caught by a pile of objects on the dining table. A large blue folder and a grey cardboard box sat innocently calling to her. She'd seen similar storage items when she'd once stayed with Hermione and her parents for a week.
A letter lay on top of the box. She picked it up and had it ripped open before she'd properly read the name written on the front. It didn't say Ginny Weasley.
Jennifer Weston
Who…? Then the sickle dropped. Ginny Weasley was to become Jennifer Weston. It was similar enough to remember, yet different enough to act as a new identity. The folder had her name on it; she thought that it might be a good idea to read it. A piece of paper dropped out of the envelope and floated gently to the floor.
Ginny,
Read this and then destroy it. This is the last time you will see your name written in this way until its safe for us to do so. When that will be, Merlin knows.
I hope to follow you as soon as I can. I'm planning a week longer at most but there can be no guarantees on that. Dumbledore and the Order are watching me very carefully. I wish I could say exactly when I can join you with more certainty.
The folder and the box contain all the instruction booklets for every single piece of Muggle equipment in the flat along with some general information about life outside the wizarding world. Included too, are documents pertaining to your past life – fake birth certificate, school details and exam results, driving licence etc. The goblins have been most thorough on our behalf. You have your homework to do.
"Driving licence, exam results!" she exclaimed. They'd created her a past and hopefully provided her with a future. Ginny gave a watery chuckle. She could hear his voice saying everything as she read it. This was just so Harry. This was her guide to life as a Muggle.
By now you will have taken a tour of the place and I hope, thrown your cloak across your bed. Next I suggest a cup of tea. The instructions on how to make a cup of tea Muggle style can be found on page one of the first folder. It's not so different from the wizarding way.
The fridge has been stocked with as many easy to cook foods as possible.
This is not going to be easy for either of us. Sit tight and wait for me. If I don't make it out, the goblins have promised to help you. Apparently, they have helped those they deem 'worthy' to escape the magical world before. It's not much of a back up plan but its better than nothing.
Harry.
Ginny retrieved a handkerchief from up her sleeve and wiped her eyes. She felt better already and no longer so alone. What she would do if Harry failed to make his escape from the wizarding world never occurred to her.
Harry had always managed to save her.
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Several lonely tension-filled days later, Ginny wasn't so sure that being alone in a Muggle flat was a good idea. She'd paced the dimensions of the property what felt like hundreds of times, wondering how she would escape if she had to. She'd read all the information Harry had left several times; she'd attempted to use the microwave once and had completely destroyed the dish used. The food had been a disaster – completely inedible and it had taken her many hours to clean the blackened tar like substance from the container. Thankfully, Molly Weasley had made her children clean regularly without using magic.
Ginny picked up her usual reading material and ensconced herself onto the sofa. She appreciated that Harry had given her a new identity and she had to learn all the facts about this woman's life. She couldn't risk making a mistake and giving away her true identity. Jenny Weston was becoming more real to her by the day.
She could hear a door slam somewhere in the building and flinched a little. The residents in this building were obviously professionals working in the city, possibly only living here during the week. It was quiet but occasionally she heard voices and music. It was difficult being on her own, knowing that she couldn't seek out companionship. She'd been a popular girl at school and as a member of the large Weasley family, had always had company at home. Ginny was scared and lonely and she wished that Harry would come. She was beginning to feel trapped. Was this how Sirius had felt? Was this what had made him react to Snape's taunts? Was this what had led him to his death?
She gave a groan and threw the booklet down on the floor, her hands clenching into fists. She needed fresh air. She wanted to be out flying on her broomstick over the fields around Ottery-St-Catchpole but she could not. She wanted to be with her mother. Ginny Weasley wanted a lot of things most of which she couldn't have. They would still be looking for her – waiting for her to slip up and contact her friends and family – watching everything they did. With a frightened shiver, she realised that the Ministry of Magic and the Order of the Phoenix would search until they found her. She couldn't decide which was worse.
It all seemed too much to think about and with a sigh she shifted her position until she lay full length on the sofa. She hadn't slept at all well last night and with a heavy-eyed yawn she slipped into an uneasy doze.
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Harry made his way through Diagon Alley as quickly as possible. Everyone looked like he did with their heads down, huddled into their robes intent on reaching their destinations as swiftly and as unobtrusively as possible. The return of Voldemort had fostered the air of grey unease seen in the wizarding world.
Harry gathered his Invisibility Cloak around him and pressed on. He wasn't even sure what the time was. He knew that he had only a couple of minutes at best before it was noticed that he was missing but thankfully he hadn't far to go. The Leaky Cauldron was almost empty as Harry slipped through it and out into Muggle London. Moving through the darkening streets, he slipped into a narrow lane and removed his Invisibility Cloak and pulled a hat over his messy black hair. The more normal disguise would be more effective away from Diagon Alley. Mad-Eye Moody and Dumbledore could see through Invisibility Cloaks.
There was a sudden bang and peering around the corner, Harry could see several people rush past the end of the street he'd turned into. They'd finally noticed that he wasn't in Diagon Alley any longer, he thought with dark amusement. By the time they found out that he couldn't apparate away he should be undercover. Moving from his hiding place he walked across the road and into a small general shop where he purchased a newspaper, a pint of milk and a loaf of bread. It seemed a very ordinary Muggle thing to do.
Trying to act as if this was something he did every day, Harry collected his change from the teenaged pierced and tattooed shop assistant before exiting the shop and crossing the road towards the building containing his new home.
The lift seemed to take ages to come and Harry had never felt as vulnerable before while he stood waiting for the doors to open. He could hear shouting and running feet from the streets and wondered if this was the wizarding world trying to find him or part of his fevered imagination.
There was a sudden click and the lift doors slid smoothly open. With a sigh of relief, Harry stepped inside and pressed the button indicating that he wanted to go to the top floor. The lift only took seconds, but to Harry it felt like an age before he was exiting at the correct floor.
With a deep breath to steady his nerves, Harry placed his key in the lock and opened the door. The room looked warm and welcoming but there was no sign of any occupant.
"Ginny!" he called softly. "Ginny!"
The sensation of a sharp object being placed under his chin made him stiffen.
"What do I have in the palm of my hand?" the voice hissed carefully.
"Apart from my heart?" he quipped, recognising her by the feel of the slender body pressed against him and the faint fragrance of her perfume.
"Potter," she said warningly.
"A small white scar. It's so faint that unless you know to look for it, it cannot be seen," he answered.
"When did I get it?" the voice was shaking.
"The day of your betrothal. I have a matching scar." Harry's heart was pounding in his chest. She was safe. "Ginny!" he whispered.
There was a clatter on the tiled floor as the young witch dropped her wand and threw herself into his arms. "Harry, oh, Harry," she babbled frantically. "I was beginning to think that you weren't coming."
"Of course I was coming. We're in this together," he said, his arms full of warm, vibrant redheaded witch. "Gin, I need to breathe."
"Sorry." She stepped away from him and stared at him properly. "You look tired, Harry but I'm glad to see you. I've never been so glad to see another person."
He grinned at her, relief on his face. "I'm glad to see you too, Ginny."
She threw her arms around him again revelling in his closeness and then tugged him towards the kitchen area, fussing around him in the manner of her mother. Pulling off his coat and placing his backpack beside the sofa before finally pushing him onto a chair. "Come on, I'll put the kettle on."
"Now who's sounding like a Muggle?" He handed over the pint of milk and the loaf. "I leave you for a few days on your own and look what happens."
"I can cope with a kettle, Potter," she muttered.
"I'm sure you can." She was bright and resourceful and he knew not to underestimate her in a fight.
"I did spend a couple of days with Hermione at her house once," Ginny said thoughtfully. "I remembered the kettle. On the other hand, the microwave I'm not convinced about. Or the washing machine or the hooter."
"Hooter?" For a moment Harry looked completely mystified.
"It cleans," Ginny explained carefully, as if she was talking to a not very bright three year old. "You put the…plug thing into the wall and it cleans."
"Hoover," Harry corrected with a smirk. "Vacuum cleaner."
"Whatever."
"You dropped your wand." Harry recalled hearing the clatter. She had to get out of the habit of carrying her wand. She might be tempted to use it. "Ginny…"
"It wasn't my wand," she admitted, a mischievous twinkle lighting up her brown eyes. "You told me not to use it. It's in its box in the drawer next to my bed."
Harry's gaze followed hers. On the floor was a single chopstick. "I would ask about the type of wood and the properties of the magical core but I suspect it would be a waste of time."
Ginny grinned, the relief of finally having Harry with her brightening her face into happiness. "It made you stop and think didn't it?"
"That it did."
"If you'd been a hostile wizard I would have had time to do something about it. Come," she said. "Sit."
He sat at the table and watched her gratefully, his eyes tired, as she bustled around the kitchen making a pot of tea.
"Drink this and then I suggest an early night." She pushed a large mug of steaming hot tea in his direction.
"I can't go to bed at…" Harry glanced at his watch, his eyes widening in horror. "Tea time."
"If you need to rest, you need to rest," she said briskly. She looked at her own watch. "Oh! It is a bit early. I suggest you have a nap. Harry you look tired. Are you hungry?"
He shook his head. "No, I should be but I'm not. Maybe in an hour or so I'll feel more like eating." He felt vaguely squeamish, his stomach unsettled as he thought of what lay ahead. "We need to talk."
"Of course we do but you're in no shape to do it right now. I felt exactly the same when I arrived – completely drained. Go and have a nap. I'll wake you in an hour and we can talk then." She watched as he finished his tea and then she ushered him through to his bedroom.
"We've done the right thing, haven't we, Ginny?" Harry asked.
She nodded. "I couldn't marry him, Harry. It would have killed me and you couldn't have survived without your magic. This is the only way."
Harry gave a brief nod. "Dumbledore wanted to send me back to Privet Drive. He knows that I couldn't defend myself in the wizarding world any longer."
This was news to Ginny. "So he would cut you off from everything you love and send you back to live with people who hate you?" she asked indignantly.
"Yes, but I suppose we're doing that to ourselves anyway. I couldn't exist without magic so going to stay with the Muggles was the only option. Why did it have to be the Dursley's?"
"We're doing it willingly and we have each other," Ginny said firmly. "It's enough for now." She crossed to him and kissed his cheek before leaving the room.
An hour later he awoke to the soft tapping on his bedroom door. "I've made us something to eat. Well…" Ginny gave a little shrug. "I assembled a selection of stuff from the frigerator."
"The what?" Harry asked sleepily.
"The frigerator," Ginny repeated.
Harry blinked. "Oh, the fridge."
She grinned. "My attempts at the micro-thingy have been less than successful. I hope you're going to be able to complete my crash course in Muggle Studies very quickly Mr. Potter."
"It's Peters," he said lamely. "Gary Peters. The goblins gave me a new identity, too. Learning about new appliances will just take a little time. We have time." He swung his legs to the floor and followed her to the main room.
Ginny had raided the fridge and laid a selection of items for them to eat without actually having to cook. "We'll need to go shopping, Harry. We're almost out of fresh stuff."
"I know," he said. "I asked the goblins to stock the fridge for at least ten days." But there's a couple of market stalls on one of the nearby streets at the weekend and the shop on the corner sells most staple items. We won't starve."
They sat opposite one another feeling a little like two small children playing house.
"When Sirius was on the run they put posters of him in the muggle police stations as well as in wizarding places," Harry said thoughtfully. "There were even adverts on the Muggle evening news about this dangerous escaped prisoner."
"But he was a criminal."
"He was innocent," Harry growled.
"Yes, I know that," said Ginny calmly. "But the Ministry and general wizarding public did not. We've done nothing wrong."
"That depends on your definition of 'nothing wrong'," Harry murmured. "You've run away to avoid a contractual marriage to a prominent Pureblood and I could be aiding you. That is against the law. I've already been questioned several times by Aurors."
"About me!" Ginny gasped.
"Yes. If Percy had been allowed to do what he wanted I would have been arrested and questioned under Veritaserum at the Ministry. He appears to think that I am personally the cause of all his problems and standing in the way of his meteoric rise to power."
Ginny's mouth tightened, anger flashing in her brown eyes. "Git!" she said.
"I was lucky in that Dumbledore and the Order did not want me to leave Grimmauld Place. Tonks and Kingsley questioned me there."
"Oh."
"The Ministry of Magic is still full of those loyal to Voldemort. Lucius Malfoy isn't exactly being carted off to Azkaban."
"No, he seems to be able to operate as he wants. How many times can he get away with supposedly being under the Imperius Curse?"
"Once too many as far as I'm concerned," Harry declared. "What I'm trying to say, Ginny. Is that we're still not safe. We need to do something about the way we look. We cannot stay in this room for the next few years or we'll go insane. We have to be able to live our lives the way we want to."
"But if they send out our pictures…" Ginny began.
"I don't want to change things too much. The closer you stick to the truth the better for us. I am still the Boy-who-lived and although Voldemort may have gone again. It's still temporary. He will return when his followers re-enact the ritual. The prophecy still states that I must destroy him."
"So Dumbledore and the Ministry will continue to be concerned with your whereabouts."
"Of course and yours." Harry's shoulders slumped. "No me no chance of destroying Voldemort. They will want to find us and lock me away. It will be for my own good."
Ginny sighed "What can we do?"
"Be very careful all the time." He stared at the pretty witch across from him. "Your hair, Ginny," he murmured stretching out his fingers and lightly tracing a curl. "I love the colour – it's like fire but it's too noticeable. We have to do something about it."
She reluctant nodded. "I know. Weasley red is distinctive. You bought me that brown hair dye but I obviously haven't used it. What about you?"
"The obvious would be my eyes and my scar. But people also know me for my messy black Potter hair. We need to stop people giving us that second look."
"What can we do about that?"
"Coloured contact lenses would remove my dependence on my glasses and change my eye colour? My scar could be covered up with makeup. I could try and grow some facial hair to blur the shape of my face."
Ginny gave a squeal of horror. "Not a beard, Harry Potter. I'm not kissing you with a beard."
"Kissing me!" He echoed, a strange look in his eyes. "You're planning on kissing me?"
Ginny blushed. "I thought…" she stopped.
"What did you think?" he asked quietly.
She lifted her chin and gazed at him with a certain amount of proud defiance. "That you still love me and we should never have parted."
"I…I…" Harry closed his eyes and sighed. He couldn't deny it – it was the truth. "I do love you, Ginny," he admitted. "I kept telling myself that I couldn't. It was far too dangerous. You've felt nothing that makes you want to seek out Draco?"
Ginny scowled. "Definitely not."
"The Order think that you should. They told me that your magic could be in danger."
"My…my magic!" her face paled.
Harry stretched his hand across the table and clasped Ginny's. "I think you're okay. Dobby told me that we are joined. He could see it."
"Joined?" Ginny echoed and then gave a little nod. "We did something when we gained our matching scars."
"You never touched the marriage parchment did you?"
"No."
"Then I think we're safe enough for now. I suspect that you're more likely to be contracted to me…" he chewed at his lip, uncertainty clouding his green eyes. "If that's alright with you?"
"I'm good with it," she returned carefully, her face flushing. "And the kissing?"
"We can work something out," he stated with an answering blush.
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A couple of weeks later, a young couple, arms entwined about one another, walked carefully past a dilapidated pub called the Leaky Cauldron as if they couldn't see it. The girl was small with a smooth cap of dark brown hair. Her boyfriend wore a hat over messy dark hair but every so often, he'd turn dark eyes to his surroundings.
"Can you see anyone familiar?" Ginny asked softly.
"Not so far but its early days yet," Harry whispered back. They'd walked around the area every day since he'd left the wizarding world. Harry wanted to know every alleyway and lane just in case he needed to. "I doubt they would be expecting us still to be in this area." He stiffened. "There are a couple of Aurors stationed in the window of that coffee shop next to the pub but it's no one we know."
"How can you tell?" Ginny resisted the urge to turn and stare.
"Moody's training. They think they're blending in." He grinned and dropped a kiss on her cheek. "They're not."
"Oh. Are they looking for us?"
He shook his head. "Not really. They'll have moved the search further away. That's what I'm hoping. We're hiding in plain sight and we're together."
"Yeah, no one would believe that we're so stupid. I bet Hogsmeade is crawling with a combination of Aurors and Death Eater spies," Ginny murmured with a nervous giggle. "Come on, let's go home."
"When are you starting your shift?"
"Two," she said. "I finish at six."
"I'll go to the college open day and pick up the brochures on those courses we could do and then I'll come and pick you up."
"I can make my own way home," Ginny argued. She'd acquired a waitressing job in a small café in the same street as their flat.
"I know you can," he assured her. Ginny hadn't needed a job; he could well afford to keep both of them without either of them needing to work but they needed an occupation. "It would make me happier to know that you're looked after."
Ginny shook her head. "Oh, alright. You're worse than my mum."
"No one's as bad as that, sweetheart," he said with a wry grin.
Her face clouded. "Do you think…?"
"I do. We have to believe that everyone's safe and well."
"And missing us."
"That too."
They turned and walked back they way they had come not noticing the small group exiting from the dilapidated pub.
"There's been no sign of Potter," said one. "It's most unlike him to lie so low. Albus is frantic."
"Albus wanted to send him back to those relatives of his," said a tired looking man with amber eyes.
"He would have hated that, Remus" said a young woman with pink hair. "And you know it. But I can't understand why he had to be sent back there if he hates it so much. He's a fully grown wizard."
"Dumbledore says that's the safest place for him," Moody said.
"Dumbledore's talking a load of…" Tonks bit off the word she was going to say.
"Dumbledore knows more than he's telling us," said Lupin thoughtfully. "I admire the headmaster very much but I don't think that he's treated Harry the way he should have. Does Harry know that Voldemort's gone again?"
Moody glanced behind him. "We'd better get out of the way. There are some Ministry lackeys about to have a wander around here."
"You can see through the door?" asked Tonks.
"I can see Percy Weasley's hair," grumbled the old Auror. "It's as bad as yours, Nymphadora."
"No it's not. Mine is pink."
"Pink!" snorted Moody. "What kind of hair colour is that?"
"I like it," Tonks retorted. "You know how effective it can be. They notice my hair, they don't necessarily see past the rest of me."
"Albus thinks that Harry was the one that banished the Dark Lord for the second time," Moody growled in an undertone.
"Harry did?" asked Remus, startled. "And he didn't tell anyone?"
"Maybe he didn't know," offered Tonks.
"Dumbledore definitely thinks that he knew," said Moody. "He also thinks that Potter knew where the Weasley girl went."
"That doesn't surprise me," said Remus. "He was devastated when she was betrothed to Malfoy and everyone sat back and let it happen. Harry looks after his friends."
"Kingsley and I had to interview him several times after she vanished," muttered Tonks. "I felt really sorry for the kid. Bloody shame, if you ask me. Hasn't he gone through enough?"
Remus sighed. "I still don't understand why Albus made arrangements for Harry to return to the Muggle world. With the Dark Lord gone he should be safer…"
Moody shook his head. "Dumbledore doesn't think so and do you know why?"
Remus raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"The Longbottoms," Moody said succinctly. "Bellatrix Lestrange tortured them into insanity after he'd been sent packing that first time."
"That would explain part of it but Harry's a powerful fully adult wizard. He could stay at headquarters. Albus is hiding something."
"He wouldn't be who he was if he didn't," grumbled Moody. "But he's the only one old You-know-who was ever afraid of."
"I think You-know-who is afraid of Harry," said Tonks.
"You could be right, Dora," said Remus with a warm smile at the young witch. "Any sign of Harry or Ginny's magical signatures?"
Moody produced from the pocket of his coat a London A-Z and opened it. "No, he said, scanning the page in front of him. If he was ever here, he's long gone."
"I need a drink," said Tonks suddenly.
"Good idea," agreed Remus and turned to go back inside the Leaky Cauldron. The others took one look around and followed the werewolf back inside.
"Good morning Undersecretary Weasley," twittered Tonks brightly. "Any luck?"
Percy Weasley scowled at the Auror and even more so when he saw her companions. He'd come into the Leaky Cauldron to check and see if his Aurors had found anything yet. So far there was no sign of either his sister or Potter and for the first time he was becoming concerned. The magic involved in the parchment would surely have begun to take effect. Powerful spells had permeated the contract and Ginny was no match for the power of the Malfoy family.
Why couldn't his family see that he was in the right?
And now all these rumours were flooding the Ministry of Magic saying that Potter had destroyed the Dark Lord once again. Percy shook his head. It couldn't be true.
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15