Chapter 14 – Love and War
NAUGHTINESS WARNING! This chapter contains scenes of extreme naughtiness, designed to shock the shockable and delight the delightful.
Massive thanks to Arnel for beta reading.
By breakfast the next morning, the school was awash with rumours of Draco and Pansy's death. Harry and Ginevra sat at the Slytherin table eating breakfast calmly, enjoying the sound of the urgent gossiping that was going on around them. Ginevra glanced up at the Teacher's table and noticed most of the staff was missing. No doubt they were scuttling around trying to find out what exactly had happened the previous night.
"When do we put stage two into action?" she murmured to Harry.
"If possible tonight, after dinner. Make sure you have everything you need packed," he replied without looking up from his meal.
"I'm already packed," she shrugged. "I can't wait to get out of this cesspool."
"Neither can I, gorgeous," he grinned, "neither can I"
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The rest of the day passed slowly for Harry, and he found himself resenting the fact that he had to attend lessons. Eventually, however, classes ended for the day and he was able to meet up with Ginevra in the Great Hall for the evening's meal.
"If I can have everyone's attention," Dumbledore called out as dinner was about to be served. "It seems my fate to have to make tragic announcements of late, but I regret that I have more upsetting news to deliver. I'm sure you will all have heard the rumours floating around the school today regarding events that occurred yesterday evening at the Astronomy Tower. Now, I regret that I cannot say too much at this stage due to an ongoing investigation by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, but I am most saddened to reveal that two pupils did indeed lose their lives in what appears to be a tragic accident. I would ask, therefore, that before we start we start our meal, that we share a minute's silence in memory of Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy."
Silence did indeed fall over the Great Hall, but Harry suspected that it had little to do with honouring the memory of the two Slytherins. Most pupils were looking inquisitively at each other, as if to ask each other if they knew what had happened.
"Thank you for showing the proper respect," Dumbledore said after a minute. "Please, enjoy your meals."
Almost at once, the sound of subdued mutterings filled the hall as the pupils started to speculate amongst themselves as to what had happened. There was a noticeable lack of grief from anyone, except perhaps the remainder of Malfoy's entourage. Theodore Nott in particular looked confused and scared.
"Are you going to do it now?" Ginevra whispered to him.
"In a little while," he replied quietly. "Dumbledore always lingers at the dinner table, and I need to time this right."
Ginevra just nodded and started in on her meal. Harry ate sparingly, his concentration solely fixed on what he needed to do next. When he noticed most of the Professors had finished their food, he carefully pulled out his wand and held it under the table. He then gently withdrew a tiny pill from a pocket and placed on the table in front of him. With the utmost concentration, he silently cast the spell he had taken from Blaise Zabini's memory months before, and sent the tiny pill hurtling towards Dumbledore's goblet. Although too small to see from this distance, he was pretty sure that he managed to get the pill into the Headmaster's drink.
"Did you do it?" Ginevra whispered intently.
"Direct hit," Harry smiled, "and look! He's just taken a drink. In an hour's time, the old bastard should be flat on his back."
"Good work," she grinned triumphantly.
Dumbledore lingered at the table for another fifteen minutes, mainly chatting to McGonagall. As he stood and began to make his way out of the Great Hall, Harry leapt to his feet and intercepted the old man.
"Professor, I wonder if it would be possible to come and have a chat with you in a little while," Harry asked politely.
"Oh, and what is it that you need to discuss, Mr Potter?" Dumbledore asked civilly.
"Well, it's not something I really want to talk about out here in the open," Harry said furtively, "but it has something to do with You-Know-Who. It's quite urgent."
"Then we must not tarry," the Headmaster replied. "If you would like to accompany me…"
"Actually, I have to fetch something first," Harry interrupted. "Could I meet you in your office in, say, half-an-hour?"
"You have managed to intrigue me," Dumbledore smiled. "Pop along when you're ready. The password is Apple Rings."
"Thank you, Headmaster, I'll see you soon," Harry replied and let the old man go. He glanced over at Ginevra and smiled.
Forty minutes later, Harry entered the Headmaster's office, having used the password provided. He found Dumbledore at his desk, rubbing his head and looking rather uncomfortable.
"Thank you for seeing me at such short notice, sir," he began.
"Quite alright, my boy. I realise by now that if you're seeking a meeting with me then you must have something important to discuss. Now, what can I do for you?" Dumbledore said with a rather forced smile.
"Well, as I stated, it's about Voldemort. You see, I've been doing some research on him and come to some startling conclusions and… are you alright, sir?" Harry asked with mock concern.
"Yes, I'm… just feeling a little… tired," he replied, blinking owlishly.
"If you're not feeling well I can come back?" Harry offered.
"No, I'm… I'm… what's happening to me?" Dumbledore suddenly gasped. "I feel like I'm…"
Groggily, the Headmaster struggled to his feet and pulled out his wand, although what he was proposing to do with it, Harry had no idea. Then, without warning, the old man toppled forward onto his desk.
"Night, night, Albus," Harry smirked.
A sudden screech made Harry look round. He saw Fawkes, sitting on his perch, glaring at him with his black eyes.
"He's just asleep, he hasn't been hurt in anyway," Harry assured the bird coolly. "I promise that I'm only here to destroy an object of great evil, as Dumbledore should have done years ago. I will not cause any harm to the Headmaster, or take anything that isn't rightfully mine."
The bird stared at him for a moment, before crooning softly, which Harry took as acceptance of his words. He quickly opened the door to the office and gave a sharp whistle. A second later, Ginevra appeared at the top of the stairs.
"Did it work okay?" she asked, eyeing the slumped Headmaster.
"Like a dream," he confirmed. "I'll give Zabini one thing; that was a bloody useful spell. That delayed-action sleeping pill was bloody handy, too."
"Yeah, it's nice to know Fred and George were actually good for something, although I doubt that knocking-out Dumbledore was what they had in mind when they came up with that tablet," she grinned evilly.
"Too right," he agreed. "Okay, the display cabinet is over here. Do you want first crack at getting it open?"
"Hey, sister of a curse-breaker here," she pointed out. "I'll have this open in a jiffy."
"Good, you crack on with that and I'll see if Dumbledore has any of my possessions around here, like I suspect," he replied. He strode to the middle of the room and took out his wand. "Accio James Potter's Invisibility Cloak!" he cried.
A definite thump came from a small cupboard situated in a snug on the far side of the office. Harry approached and cast several Detection Charms on the cupboard and, finding it unprotected, he carefully opened it. Inside was a jumble of objects, most of which he couldn't begin to identify, but sitting on a shelf he spotted a folded piece of material. He grabbed it and inspected it eagerly.
"That thieving old git," Harry snarled as he examined it. "I knew he bloody had it!"
"What's that, Harry?" Ginevra called.
"I've found my father's old Invisibility Cloak," he replied. "Dumbledore specifically told me he didn't have any of my parents' possessions, and yet here it is!"
He strode over to where Fawkes was sitting eyeing him distrustfully and waved the cloak at the bird.
"This rightfully belongs to me, and I'm taking it, got that?" he said forcefully.
The bird made no reply.
"Honestly, I thought phoenixes were only supposed to bond with pure-spirited people," Harry growled. "Dumbledore is nothing but a thief and a liar. If he had his way, I would have suffered a life of misery at the Dursleys, all ready to be served up as a sacrificial lamb to Voldemort. Is that behaviour you condone, bird?"
Fawkes just crooned sorrowfully.
"I thought not," Harry snapped before turning his attention back to where Ginevra was hunched over the display cabinet containing the diary. "How's it looking?"
"I think I can get it open," she confirmed. "Most of the Charms on the cabinet appear to be designed to alert Dumbledore if it was tampered with. As he's in the land of nod, I don't think that's an issue."
"I think you're right," Harry smiled. "Go ahead, then, try and open it."
Ginevra picked up a small statue of a griffin that was situated on a table nearby, and threw it hard at the display cabinet. The glass shattered in a million pieces.
"Okay, that's one way to do it," Harry muttered.
"Hey, who's the expert here?" she smirked. "You want to grab the diary? I'd rather not touch the bloody thing."
Harry reached in and picked up the diary. Shaking bits of broken glass off it, he turned and placed it on the Headmaster's desk. He then pulled a vial from within his robes, opened it, and carefully poured a little of the contents over the diary. A hideous screaming sound immediately filled the air.
"Bloody hell," Ginevra cursed, "it's like the damn things alive!"
"It was, in a way," Harry confirmed. "Was, being the operative word."
He examined the diary, as was pleased to see that the corrosive potion that Gellert created was more than up to the task of destroying the diary. A large, black hole had been burnt right through the book, and part way through the desk.
"Ha! That will teach… oh, shit!" Harry began, but his voice trailed off as he looked at the prostrate old wizard.
"What's the matter?" Ginevra demanded in a worried voice.
"Dumbledore's wand," Harry replied. "I just realised I should gone about this differently. I was so focused on destroying the diary that I forgot all about his bloody wand! The wand is extremely powerful and could have been useful to us."
"Should we nick it?" she asked, glancing at the wand still clutched in the old man's hand.
"Nah, we can't," Harry replied regretfully. "I gave Fawkes there a promise that I wouldn't take anything that didn't belong to me. I'd rather not have an angry phoenix attacking me, if I can help it. Besides, I would need to take it from him in such a way that it changes allegiances to me, and I don't think that just grabbing it while Dumbledore is asleep will do it."
"Whatever," she shrugged. "Are you going to just leave the diary there?"
"I think so. It will be a fitting notice that I've quit the school," he grinned. "Are you all packed?"
"Yep, all my meagre belongings are in my trunk, which I've shrunk and I currently have in my pocket. Are we leaving immediately?" she asked.
"I can't think of any other reason to stay," Harry confirmed. "I certainly have no desire to say goodbye to anyone here."
"What about your little Hufflepuff minx?" Ginevra pointed out. "She's going to be devastated that you're gone."
"Actually, I spoke to Michelle at lunchtime and hinted I was going to have to leave soon. I implied that with Madam Bones in charge, things were becoming very difficult for me here," Harry explained.
"How did she take it?" Ginevra asked curiously.
"Pretty well, actually, although she did remind me that I have to come and find her once she turns seventeen," Harry sighed.
Ginevra sniggered. "I'll bet she's completely forgotten about you by then. Why, you'll be positively ancient by that point!"
"Yeah, yeah, but you'll only be a year younger, so don't get clever," he grinned.
"But I'll always be younger and more attractive then you," she boasted.
"Well, duh," Harry muttered. "Anyway, I don't think this is the time or place to be discussing this. We've done what we came here to do, so I suggest we bugger off - rapidly."
"Agreed," she smiled. "So, we simply head out the main gates, but where do we go from there?"
"Oh, just wait and see," he smirked back.
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With a soft pop, they arrived at their destination. Ginevra immediately looked around her, and found she was in a narrow alleyway between two houses.
"Okay, Potter, are you going to tell me where the hell we are now?" she demanded acidly.
"Bristol," he replied simply. "Come on."
He grabbed her hand, and led her out into the main street. The houses were all terraced and narrow, and looked rather pressed together. She did like the fact that they were all painted different colours, like different flavours of ice cream. The end of the street opened out and she could see the houses were built on a slope at the bottom of which she could see a harbour. Numerous boats were moored along the edge of the water and she could just make out the rigging of a large sailing ship beyond. The place was quite interesting, she had to admit.
"Alright, I can see that this isn't somewhere the authorities would instantly look for a runaway witch and wizard, but what's the appeal of this city, exactly?" she asked him bluntly.
"Because this is the location of one of the safe houses Gellert and I set up a couple of years back," he explained. "We realised that if our home in Godric's Hollow became compromised we would need somewhere else to hide quickly. We set up four places in all, this one, a cottage in Wales, a house in Birmingham and a flat in South London. I've always liked this place, for some reason, so thought I thought we'd come here first."
"You're sure we can't be traced here?" she asked worriedly.
"The properties were all purchased the Muggle way, using a complex series of funding arrangements and false identities. Gellert was always a genius at that sort of thing. We managed to get the Goblins to release some of the funds from my family's main vault, and the rest we 'liberated' from various Death Eaters who suddenly found they didn't need the money, mainly on account of them being dead," he smiled blandly.
"Pretty good reason," Ginevra agreed. "So, where is this house then?"
"Just up here," he said, taking her hand again.
A short walk later and they were stood in front of one of the narrow-fronted terrace houses, this one painted a salmon-pink colour. Harry produced a key from his pocket and swiftly opened the door.
The inside was not quite what Ginevra expected, although she had to admit she had little experience with Muggle properties. The door opened up into a living area dominated by a large, black sofa. The floor was of polished wood and the walls were painted a stark white. Various Muggle devices were positioned around the room including a surprisingly large television set. The was a bare wood staircase that led upstairs, and further on Ginevra could just make out another room which looked like a kitchen/dining area. The whole place was modern, fresh and immaculate.
"Okay, this isn't bad," she admitted. "Are you telling me that this place has just stood empty in the off-chance that you might need it?"
"I do pop in now and again," he explained, "but, basically, yes. We hired a Muggle cleaning and maintenance firm to come in and give the place a once-over on a weekly basis, and now I think about it, I'll need to tell them to stop coming. We don't want Muggles traipsing through the place while we're here, do we? I've always liked this place, actually. It might be the view of the harbour from the upstairs window, I guess. Besides, the few times I've been to Bristol it's always struck me as being a pretty cool place."
"We'll see," she muttered. "Do all these Muggle contraptions work?"
"Yes, they do. Ground rule: no magic in the house! This is a purely Muggle area and the Ministry will detect any use of magic here. One of the reasons we bought this particular house is that it had a small basement, which Gellert and I expanded, somewhat. That area is heavily protected and shielded. Any magic that needs to be done has to be done in the basement, okay?" Harry told her.
"Sure, that sounds a pretty good idea," she shrugged. "So, what's the plan from here on in?"
"I thought tonight we'd just get settled in. We've already eaten dinner, so we don't need to worry about that, although if you do get peckish later, Miss Hollow-legs, I'm sure we can order a pizza," he grinned. "Tomorrow, we'll sit and plan our next move. I've been out of touch with things, and I think that a bit of intelligence gathering will be priority, but, as I said, we'll worry about that tomorrow. There are two bedrooms upstairs, so if you want to pick whichever one you want and I'll…"
"No," Ginevra interrupted him firmly.
"Eh?" he grunted in surprise.
"I said no," she repeated calmly. "You said that from this point we would share everything. That includes a bed."
His eyes went wide. "Ginevra, are you saying…"
"Come off it, Potter. We've been dancing round each other for months, now. Let's cut the crap and be honest with each other. From now on, we have to rely on each other totally, and I don't want a load of unresolved sexual tension getting in the way of that. In short, my hunky friend, I wanna get laid," she told him resolutely.
"I think I might be able to take care of that," he said with a wide smile. "I'm just a bit surprised, that's all. You always seemed so intent on protecting your virtue."
"Harry, I made a solemn promise to myself during my second year at Hogwarts, that no boy would ever have me while I was in school," she explained in a firm voice. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't we both just cease being students at Hogwarts about half-an-hour ago?"
Harry's smile was positively lustful now.
"I was never sure that doing in wolf-form counted," she continued. "In fact, I convinced myself it didn't, and I think it's definitely fair to say no boy ever did me. So, as far as I'm concerned, I've kept that vow."
"And as I recall, I made you a promise that when we did it for the first time, I would make you scream my name," Harry said huskily.
"You did," she confirmed, desperately trying to keep her voice level.
"Then why don't we head upstairs so I can keep my vow, too?" he said, holding his hand out to her.
She reached out and took his hand, and let herself be led upstairs. She barely noticed the décor as she went; despite her bravado she was very nervous. Once upstairs, he guided her to a closed wooden door. Opening it revealed a small, light-filled bedroom, dominated by a double bed with a large, squishy white duvet on it. As Harry said, out of the window the harbour could clearly be seen.
"Nice view," she commented, her voice trembling a little.
Harry rightly ignored this, and turned towards her, his green eyes almost glowing with lust. With agonising slowness, he leaned down and captured her lips with his.
It had been when they shared a kiss on Boxing Day that Ginevra had finally decided that Harry was the one for her. Although that kiss had mainly been meant to annoy her family, she'd never experienced anything so wonderful in her life. Now, alone in this strange bedroom with him, she found that previous kiss paling into insignificance. As breath-taking as his previous effort had been, it contained none of the raw passion that his current kiss did. She could almost taste the wolf within him, and knew that she was going to be fully exposed to his animalistic side.
Frankly, she had never been as excited or terrified in her life.
His hands slipped around her, pulling her close to him, and she could feel his arousal pressed against her. For a brief second, she nearly pulled out of his embrace and ran, but the animal within her forbid it. She was a wolf, too, and she was determined to show him that she was his perfect mate.
Rough hands began to pull off her clothes and, almost automatically, she began to tug at Harry's shirt, too. Suddenly, those cloth garments seemed a hideous burden to her, and had to be disposed of immediately. Their lips barely parted for a second, but somehow they managed to undress each other completely, anyway.
Harry then pulled away and Ginevra blushed as his eyes ran over her naked body. She'd never considered herself bashful, indeed, growing up in a house with six ignorant brothers she couldn't afford to be, but for the first time ever she felt totally exposed to another person. It was a frightening but exhilarating experience.
She let her own gaze drift over his naked body. Although she had seen him like this before at Malfoy Manor, there he had been wounded and vulnerable. Now, there was nothing vulnerable about him in the least. His manhood was large and fully erect, and she could only stare at it in wonder. Seeing the direction of her gaze, Harry reached out and took her right hand in his, guiding it until her small fingers wrapped around him.
"Is this for me?" she asked in a trembling voice.
"All for you," he breathed, and began to place a trail of gentle kisses along her neck. She shivered, and her hand began to automatically stroke him. He growled in approval.
She almost jumped out of her skin when she suddenly felt his hand between her legs. Harry began to caress her, his fingers touching places no other person had ever touched. Her body began to respond, and she felt herself becoming moist. They stood there for an eternity, their breathing becoming ragged as they tenderly stimulated each other.
Harry's fingers began to increase in speed and intensity. Ginevra found herself practically panting as he began to rub her in a tight circular motion that set her legs trembling. She tried to move her own hand faster to match his pace, but for some reason her brain just couldn't seem to remember how to pass that instruction to her arm. Instead, she just gripped him as hard as she dared and hoped that her touch brought him pleasure.
Her first orgasm hit her like the Hogwarts Express, as intense as it was unexpected. She howled and pressed her legs together, trapping his fingers in the position that had brought her ecstasy. Whining pitifully, she wiggled around, savouring the last few tremors that ran through her body.
"On the bed," he snarled in her ear. It was only at this point that her befuddled brain registered that the experience had only barely begun, and that further delights awaited her. Eagerly, she dragged him over to the bed and climbed onto it.
Immediately, he pushed her onto her back and climbed on top of her. Once again, hot, steamy kisses rained down on her neck and jawline, with him occasionally venturing up as far as her lips, but never lingering in one place for long. Without warning, he raised himself up so he could look into her eyes.
"It's time I made you scream my name," he said in a voice that was pure, raw passion. She shivered in anticipation.
Harry's head dipped and he began to kiss her neck and then her collar bone. Ginevra lay perfectly still, unable to move in breathless expectation of his next move. Silently, she prayed that he would continue his exploration of her body, and her prayers were answered.
His tongue encountered her left nipple and began a slow, exquisite dance over it. She let her hands desperately run over his strong shoulders and he slowly drove her insane. When his mouth closed fully over her painfully-hard protuberance and began to suck, madness did claim her and the world turned into a vast ocean of pleasure. She almost growled with displeasure when he released her, but she was silenced immediately when she realised that he was just continuing his downward journey. Excitement built in her as each gentle kiss on her flesh led him closer to the place she desperately wanted him to go. Then, to her joy, he reached his destination.
"Ohh, sweet bloody Merlin!" she cried as he licked her most intimate spot. Pleasure like she had never experienced washed over her as Harry's tongue made love to her. Her hands gripped him by the hair, encouraging him, begging him, to continue.
Time ceased to have any meaning. Her second orgasm hit her like a Bludger to the forehead and, amazingly, her third followed shortly afterwards. Dimly, she became aware that, as Harry had promised, she was screaming his name as she came. Slowly, reality returned and she began to come down off her pleasure-induced high. She as shaking so much she barely noticed Harry leap off the bed and began fishing amongst his clothes. A second later, he returned with his wand in his hand. He waved it over her abdomen twice, and Ginevra felt a strange tickling sensation for a second.
"A Contraception Charm," he replied to her unspoken question. "It should also make things a bit…easier for you, being your first time. Don't worry, it's only a tiny piece of magic. The Ministry won't even notice. "
"I want you in me… NOW!" she snapped, surprising herself with the lustfulness of her own voice.
With his eyes full of raw desire, Harry nearly leapt back onto the bed. He was on top of her before Ginevra could blink, but then seemed to pause. Then, with agonising slowness, he slid into her. She gasped, and could literally feel herself stretch to accommodate him. The pain she was expecting never came, however, whether a result of the spell that Harry cast or the aftereffects of her previous mating with him in wolf form, she didn't know. All she knew was that she ached for him, and the gentle way he was slowly entering her was unacceptable. Grabbing his firm buttocks in her hands, she pulled him forward, until he was completely inside her.
"Oh, yes," she gasped. "Do it; do it, now!"
At her urgings, Harry began to rhythmically thrust himself into her. Her hands roamed over his by now moist flesh, as if she couldn't touch enough of him. Her lips planted desperate, hot kisses along his shoulder and neck, as her fingers caressed every inch of his muscular body she could reach.
"You feel so good," he gasped, his breathing ragged, "so tight and wet."
She couldn't bring herself to answer. Her mouth was too busy savouring the taste of him. As he looked down at her, she took the opportunity to stretch her neck upwards and capture his lips. She began to suck on his lower lip, dragging her tongue against it languidly. This must have met his approval, as he moaned and his pace began to increase, causing the bedsprings to start squeaking alarmingly.
Almost giddy with pleasure, she released his lip and arched her back, savouring the feel of him deep inside her. Strangely, she then had a moment of clarity, and her lust-fogged brain was overwhelmed by a single thought. She and Harry were become one, in both a primal, animalistic way and a higher, spiritual way. Silently, she rejoiced that she had chosen to remain pure up to this point, and saved herself for this young man. Ginevra almost felt pity for the likes of Pansy Parkinson and even Tracy, who had viewed sex merely as a pleasurable diversion. This was more, so much more. With the right person, as she had found in Harry, the whole experience bordered on being a religious event.
Just as she was building nicely towards another delicious orgasm, Harry suddenly withdrew from her. Ginevra nearly screamed in protest, until she saw him throw himself down onto his back, with his glorious manhood directed upwards in his hand.
"Your turn on top," he growled.
Ginevra doubted she had ever moved so fast in her life, and in seconds she was straddling him. She shuddered as she lowered herself onto him, taking him all the way into her. Planting her hands on his chest, her hips began to move. This time it was his turn to let his hands wander, taking especial interest in her breasts, which seemed to fit perfectly in his hands. His thumbs rubbed her stiffened nipples as he roughly massaged them.
They were going at it now so fast, for a moment Ginevra was afraid they might break the bed. She briefly wondered if their Muggle neighbours, assuming they had any, could hear them and what they would think. Then as she reached another climax, she realised she really didn't care.
"Ginevra, I'm going to… going to… ahhhhhh," Harry groaned. His eyes were closed and a look of ecstasy was on his face. Realising that he was empting himself into her, Ginevra ground herself against him, as if to coax every last drop from him.
As their bodies stilled, Harry opened his eyes and looked directly into hers.
"That was amazing," he gasped.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure that first times aren't meant to be that good," she panted.
Almost reluctantly, she moved forward and felt him slide out of her. She lay beside him, and they wrapped their arms around each other, their sweaty, sticky bodies pressed tight.
"Ginevra," he whispered, "would you be completely freaked out if I told you that I was falling in love with you?"
For a split second, she felt a desire to tease or make fun of him, but she found she just couldn't do it. Not after what they had just experienced together.
"No," she breathed in his ear. "I love you, too. You're mine now, Harry, and no one will take you away from me."
Their lips met, tenderly, lovingly. They continued to hold each other, exchanging gentle kisses and loving touches. For that moment, her whole world revolved around the young man in her arms.
Eventually, they lips broke apart and Ginevra laid her head against his shoulder.
"Promise me that it will always be like this," she begged. "Promise that we won't let things ever get stale and boring, that we'll always have this passion."
"Well, I can't promise anything once I turn eighty," he joked, "but up until then, I promise to love you like the goddess you are."
Smiling happily, she pulled him even tighter against her. It was then that she noticed he seemed to be becoming aroused once again.
"Bloody hell, Potter," she teased. "Again?"
"What, did you think I'm only a once-a-night man?" he asked, shocked. "Besides, it's your turn to make me scream your name."
With a wicked smile on her lips suggesting she approved of that plan, Ginevra began to slowly trail kisses down his chest…
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Harry cracked the last of the six eggs into the bowl before adding salt and pepper, and began to beat the contents vigorously. Seeing the slab of butter he'd placed into the pan had melted, he poured the beaten eggs in and turned the heat down. The sausages were just about done, as was the bacon, so he just needed to pop a couple more rounds of bread into the toaster and he was finished.
A gentle creaking of the floorboards upstairs revealed his plans had just been scuppered. Sure enough, a few seconds later a pair of bare, shapely legs started to descend down the stairs. Ginevra emerged, dressed only in a t-shirt of his and peered cautiously around the frame of the kitchen door.
"That's bad timing," Harry greeted her. "If you'd waited another couple of minutes I would have brought you breakfast in bed."
She grinned at him. "I couldn't help it," she replied. "I smelt the bacon and I was drawn."
Harry couldn't help but notice that she seemed a little nervous this morning. Not wanting there to be any awkwardness between them, he open his arms to her. Her smile widened, and she hurried forward into his embrace. They hugged tightly, before he leaned down to give her a tender morning kiss.
"You must have been up early," she noted, looking around the kitchen.
"Yeah, I've been up for a couple of hours. I got washed and dressed before nipping out to the local supermarket. I figured you'd be wanting a decent breakfast and we had no fresh food in," he explained.
"Wow, I could get use to this. First, a night of passion, and then a slap-up breakfast to follow the next morning," she grinned impishly. "I knew coming with you was a good idea."
"The food's almost ready. Can you grab some plates from that cupboard behind you and some cutlery from the draw underneath?" he asked, turning his attention back to the scrambled eggs.
Ginevra laid the table as Harry began to dish up. Knowing his lover's eating habits, he'd cooked a lot more than he normally would, and judging by the appreciative way she was eyeing the feast, he had made the right choice.
"So, what's on the agenda for today?" she asked as she started buttering her toast.
"There's a few things I need to show you," he replied, tucking into his first sausage. "I haven't really explained quite how I manage to get so much secret information on the Death Eaters and old Tom, and it might come as a bit of a shock to the system. Later, I thought we'd explore the area a bit. It never hurts to know your immediate surroundings in case of trouble."
"Good thinking," she agreed. "Maybe we can find a good place to eat dinner tonight."
"You're just starting a huge breakfast. How can you possibly be thinking about dinner?" he protested.
"Just planning ahead," she smirked. "Besides, if you wine and dine me you might end up getting a repeat of last night."
"Okay, that does sound like a great idea," he laughed. "So, do you think this house will do for a while?"
"Yeah, it's a lot smaller than I'm used to, but with just the two of us that really doesn't matter. The place is clean and comfortable, the kitchen appears to be well stocked, and the bed comes equipped with a naked Harry Potter: what more could I need?" she asked, munching on her bacon.
"I'm glad it meets your approval," he smiled. "Seriously, Ginevra…"
"Ginny," she interrupted him.
"What?" he asked in surprise.
"I want you to call me Ginny from now on," she explained. "I've been thinking about the conversation we had after our encounter with Luna Lovegood awhile back. As much as I hate to say it, I think Luna was right. Since I've been with you, I have changed and I'm more like the person I used to be. I feel a lot more relaxed and I'm not as angry all the time as I used to be. Ginevra was a product of her surroundings and needed to be that way to survive alone in the house of snakes. Here, with you, I don't need to be that person anymore. I want to be Ginny again."
"Ginny," he repeated. "Actually, I think it suits you better than Ginevra. It's cheekier; more carefree. Okay, it'll be Ginny from now on."
"Great, and I'll just call you 'Sex Slave' from this point, shall I?" she grinned.
"Yes, Mistress Ginny, I live to serve you," he replied, bowing his head.
They giggled together as they finished the rest of their breakfast.
After they had finished, Ginny went upstairs to get washed and dressed, while Harry headed down to the basement. He knew they were lucky to find a house with one, especially here in the centre of Bristol. Very few modern houses in Britain had a cellar of any type, so even a small one was appreciated. He and Gellert had carefully expanded this one so it provided a useful space, and placed special Wardstones around it to shield any magical emissions. This hid them from the Ministry's magic detectors, and allowed them to run the fridge/freezer upstairs without it going haywire.
Opening the small trapdoor, he edged down the narrow steps into the dark space. A few flicks of his wand lit the lamps situated around the room and gave the bare stone room a warm glow. A few basic items of furniture were already scattered around the room, including a couple of hard, plastic chairs and a small table. There was also a large cork board mounted on one wall, and Harry approached this. He placed a box he brought with him onto the table and, from this, he began to remove various pieces of parchment and a few photographs, all of which he began to pin to the board. He'd been at this only a few minutes when he heard Ginny coming down the narrow stairs.
"Hey, what are you doing?" she asked curiously.
"Putting up all the intelligence data I have on Tom's Death Eaters," he replied. "This is probably all out-of-date by now, as I'm sure he will have been recruiting while I've been at Hogwarts. Still, you have to start somewhere."
"Wow, does the Ministry have all this information?" she gasped, peering at the various lists of names.
"Nah, and even if they did, they couldn't legally use it," he snorted in disgust. "Half of this list is made up of low-lives who used the old 'I was Imperioused!' excuse to avoid prison. I, however, have definite confirmation that everyone named here is an active supporter of Mr Riddle junior."
"Okay, I'm probably going to regret asking this, but how did you get that confirmation?" Ginny asked warily.
Harry paused and reached inside the t-shirt he was wearing. He withdrew his mother's locket and popped it open, revealing the grey stone inside it.
"Since you're a good little pure-blood girl, I bet your parents read you 'The Tales of Beedle the Bard' when you were little, right?" he asked.
"Umm, yeah. In fact, I'm pretty sure that 'Babbitty Rabbitty' is still Ron's favourite story," she smirked.
"I wouldn't be surprised," Harry laughed. "You're familiar with 'The Tale of the Three Brothers' then?"
"Naturally, every pure-blood kid in the country grew up with that story," she confirmed.
"Then, Ginevra Weasley, you will be familiar with the Resurrection Stone," he smiled, holding the locket up to her face so she could clearly see the stone within.
"Yeah, but… NO WAY! Are you pissing telling me that this is the real thing?" she exclaimed loudly.
"Oh yes, the Deathly Hallows are very real, and this is one of them. In fact, you saw the second one yesterday, clutched in Dumbledore's hand; the Elder Wand. Trust me, if the circumstances had been right, I would definitely have taken it," Harry confirmed wryly.
"All right, if it was anyone but you, I would have said you were stark, raving mad for even suggesting that the Hallows were real, but I know by now that you're up to your neck in this kind of legendary stuff," she said, a little in awe. "But I don't understand how this stone, which I thought was meant to raise the dead, helps you get info on You-Know-Who."
"The dead cannot lie, Ginny," Harry said grimly. "Gellert and I found that if we summoned the spirit of a recently killed Death Eater, we could force it to reveal all its secrets. Generally, to make the summoning easier, we took an object or better still a body part of said Death Eater, drew a Summoning Circle to trap the spirit in one place, and used the stone to call the person back. We could then interrogate the bastard until we learnt everything they knew. The real beauty of this is no one ever suspected how we were getting information. Once a person's dead, you don't normally expect them to be a security risk, right? Tom has twice now launched witch-hunts within his own forces looking for a mysterious spy who was giving away his secrets. He's killed quite a few of his own followers, just to be on the safe side."
"Necromancy?" Ginny gasped. "That's pretty dark stuff, Harry."
"Says who?" he demanded. "The Ministry? Raising the spirits of the dead has been performed for centuries, and just because some bureaucratic tosspot suddenly decides its 'Dark Magic' doesn't necessarily make it so. Besides, most of the time this is used against Death Eaters, so who cares?"
"Most of the time?" she repeated questioningly.
"Well, I confess that I until quite recently I used the stone to temporarily call back the spirits of my parents. I never got to know them in real life, and as long as you just call them back for short periods of time they don't suffer in any way. Sadly, spirits are only recallable for a certain period of time, before the souls of the dead move on to the next plane of existence. Sometimes the spirits can linger between worlds for hundreds of years, other times they move on after only a few days. That's why it's important to interrogate any Death Eaters we kill as soon as possible," he explained.
"You talked to your dead parents?" Ginny asked in wonder.
"Yeah, but I can't anymore. They've both moved on," he told her sadly. "They both said they liked you very much, though."
"They were watching us?" Ginny nearly shrieked.
"That's what the dead do, Ginny," he replied in an amused voice.
"Great, so your mum and dad saw me getting shagged as a wolf, did they?" she asked, seemingly mortified.
"Yes, they did, and they still thought you were wonderful. In fact, my dad said one of the reasons they chose to move on was the fact that I had you in my life now. Mum was quite taken by you, apparently," he said with a smile.
"I wish I could have met them," Ginny said tenderly. "Of course, I wouldn't have been able to look them in the eye, but still."
Harry laughed. "I wouldn't worry. They were pretty young when they died and they weren't exactly prudish."
"So, I take it our next task is to bump-off a Death Eater, so you can pick their brains for up-to-date information," she said, changing the subject.
"Yeah, and that was what I was doing down here; picking my next target. We need someone who is an active member of society so we can find them easily," he pondered, eyeing the list of names pinned on the board.
"Harry, are you going to try and get the Elder wand off Dumbledore?" she asked. "I mean, I've heard all sorts of strange legends about what would happen if you unite all three Hallows."
"It has crossed my mind, if only to make sure the wand doesn't fall into Riddle's hands," he admitted. "Of course, no one has the slightest idea where the third Hallow is, so it's not much of a priority."
"The Cloak of Invisibility," Ginny murmured. "Hey, didn't you take a cloak from Dumbledore's office yesterday?"
"Yeah, but that was only really for sentimental reasons," he admitted. "My dad said that he had a cloak that Dumbledore had borrowed around the time they were killed. I was just annoyed that the old bastard had something that rightly belonged to me and wouldn't admit to it. The cloak's probably useless by now, those things never last very long."
"Well, get it out and let's see if it's still any good," Ginny insisted.
Harry grabbed his robes which he had also brought down to the cellar and began to rummage around inside the pocket. A moment later, his fingers closed around the soft material and he pulled it out.
"I doubt it's got any magic left in it," Harry said as he unfolded it. "I mean, it must be…"
He stopped abruptly. As soon as he had unfolded it, he had wrapped it around his shoulders and was shocked to see his body instantly vanish from sight.
"Looks to be working fine to me," Ginny announced triumphantly.
"But… it shouldn't be any good by now… unless," he muttered.
"Unless what?" she demanded.
"Unless I was bloody inches from uniting all three Hallows, and I didn't even realise it," he cursed. "Damn it, I knew I should have taken Dumbledore's wand!"
"Then you think this cloak is it? The actual Cloak of Invisibility?" she gasped.
"I do," he admitted, "and now we have two tasks we need to take care of quickly."
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
"He's coming," Harry hissed as he peered around the corner using a simple hand-mirror to do so.
"Get under your cloak, Harry," Ginny urged. "I know what to do."
As Harry quickly threw the Cloak of Invisibility over himself, Ginny took a deep breath, and casually walked around the corner. Harry saw her tense, as if in surprise, and then turn and run past him. He pressed himself against the wall, as a second later Walden Macnair came haring around the wall in pursuit of the red-haired witch.
Harry let him pass, before starting to run after him, managing to stay just a few yards behind the man despite the hindrance of the cloak flapping around him.
They had selected Macnair as their target several days before, partly as Harry believed the man was a fairly senior Death Eater, but mostly because Macnair's job with the Ministry of Magic enabled them to find and track him with relative ease. For a supposedly careful man, Macnair was pretty much a creature of habit. They had quickly discovered that he always ate lunch at a particular pub, and it had been child's play to lay this ambush. Macnair currently thought he was the hunter, but he would soon learn that he was the hunted.
As planned, Ginny ran into an alley, which they knew to be a dead end. She turned, faking terror as she faced her pursuer.
"Well, what do we have here?" Macnair sneered gleefully as he came to a stop behind her. "The Dark Lord wants a little word with you, girl. I'll be rewarded well for bringing you in."
"I don't think so," Ginny grinned, he previous fear completely gone.
"And why is that, little girl?" the ugly man mocked her.
Without pausing, Harry closed the gap between him and Macnair and placed his hand around the man's mouth, whilst thrusting his dagger into the man's side. Macnair stiffened, and a muted scream slipped past Harry's fingers. Without mercy, Harry wrenched the knife from the man's side and thrust it into Macnair again, this time angling the blade upwards so it would miss the ribcage. The Death Eater's body convulsed for a second, and then collapsed into a heap at Harry's feet.
"Good riddance, you sick bastard," he spat at the corpse.
"That worked out well," Ginny said, nervously glancing around. "Take what you need to and leave the note on his body, then let's get out of here!"
Nodding his agreement, Harry bent down and neatly sliced off Macnair's right ear, before tucking a piece of parchment into the front of the man's shirt. They had written the note yesterday, and it purported to be from a disgruntled person whose beloved pet had been executed by Macnair. They had kept the details deliberately vague so no innocent pet owner could be blamed. It was highly likely that a man like Macnair had many enemies, anyway.
Their mission accomplished, the pair Disapparated and a few seconds later reappeared in the tiny courtyard garden that served their small house. The garden was completely closed in by a high wall and it was unlikely that even a neighbour peering out from a back window would notice them. Hurriedly, they went inside and immediately headed down to the cellar.
The Containment Circle was already drawn, as Harry had wanted Ginny to practice creating one. They stepped inside and Harry unwrapped the ear he had taken from Macnair and placed it in the circle. With Ginny looking on uncertainly, he removed the Resurrection Stone from his mother's locket, and turned it in his hand three times.
A terrible groaning sound suddenly filled the air. A second later, the ghostly form of Walden Macnair appeared in front of them.
"You killed me," the man said simply and without malice.
"I did, and unless you wish to remain here in limbo, slowly going insane and unable to rest, you will answer our questions," Harry told him.
"I will do as you say," the ghostly form confirmed.
Harry nodded. None of the spirits he had recalled had ever argued with him. Simply, the Resurrection Stone was too powerful, and the dead knew the terrible fate that would await them if they refused his request.
"Tell me of Lord Voldemort's plans," Harry ordered.
"My master is well pleased," Macnair began. "He has recruited a follower in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement called Bryant, and she has been supplying him with much useful information. We were able to kill Scrimgeour due to her revealing details of the protective magic around his house."
"Why did Voldemort kill Scrimgeour?" Harry asked. "He must have suspected that Amelia Bones would take over, and she's a far harder nut to crack that Rufus ever was."
"Bones is no threat," Macnair shrugged. "She's far too trusting and she views the world as black or white. Scrimgeour was a shrewd man, and wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty when he needed to. Bones has a very strict code of morals that she will never break, and this makes her weak. My former master was confident that he could use the woman's beliefs against her."
"Okay, I can see that," Harry admitted. "So, what are Voldemort's plans now?"
"He intends to create a web of fear. More deaths, more disappearances; we intend to make this country shiver in fear of our name. The more devastating attacks that occur, the more desperate the Ministry will become. Your rift with Bones has played straight into the Dark Lord's hands. She is a stubborn woman, and it's highly unlikely that she will come to you for help, especially now you have fled Hogwarts with the Weasley girl. This gives my former lord a free hand to do what he likes, and those pathetic Aurors won't stop him. Only once he has cast a blanket of terror over the country will he make his move. Every day, more Ministry staff are corrupted, either willingly via bribes and promises of reward, or through blackmail. Later, key staff will be Imperioused and the Ministry will be ripe for plucking," Macnair explained in a detached voice.
"What about Dumbledore?" Ginny asked. "Isn't Voldemort worried about what he'll do?"
"Dumbledore is a sentimental idiot who puts too much stock in Potter here," Macnair replied, a glimmer of contempt in his voice. "The old fool will do nothing until it's too late. Although he preaches that we should be friendly to Muggles, he's as much of a blood-purist as the Dark Lord. No, Dumbledore will not want to see a drop of magical blood wasted if he can possibly avoid it, and by the time he realises that he cannot win without fighting, Lord Voldemort will have already won."
"Stupid old git," Ginny grumbled. "Does he think that Riddle will just give up if he gives him a hug, or something?"
"No, Dumbledore expects me to beat him," Harry pointed out, "but not in the way that I intend to do it. Remember, the old man is convinced that the Prophecy is all important, and I suspect he believes that Voldemort and I will destroy each other in the coming confrontation. It's the only thing that makes sense. Dumbledore thinks I'm the sacrifice that will enable the Dark Lord to be killed once and for all. It explains why he wanted to keep me as a virtual prisoner at my aunt's house, so that I would be conveniently at hand when Albus decides the time is right for me to die. He wanted me as a weak, malleable puppet he could control."
"Wow, that plan went to shit, didn't it?" she sniggered.
"Yeah, but it's only thanks to Gellert that it did. I've got an enormous amount to thank him for," Harry admitted.
"What do we do next, then?" Ginny asked, eyeing Macnair distastefully.
"We start by ripping holes in Tom's 'blanket of terror'. We start ambushing his Death Eaters, exposing his Ministry followers, and generally ruining his plans," Harry said decisively, before turning back Macnair. "Right, I want you to name every Death Eater and supporter of the Dark Lord you can think of. I want details of all his planned operations, and a breakdown of how his forces operate. Got that?"
"And if I do, will you release me and let me rest?" Macnair asked plaintively.
"Give me everything that I need, and I promise that I will let you pass on and never call you back. Try and hide anything from me, and I'll summon you and leave you here to howl out your miserable existence in pain and despondence," he replied harshly.
"It will be as you say, my Lord," Macnair agreed, and began to tell Harry everything he knew.