Three shots of vodka did not make Harry reevaluate his position. Ginny told all she knew — about how Severus Snape really was alive, how here he goes by the name 'Tobias Prince' and wants nothing more than to live his life in peace and frequent the Crone for drinks. She left out the parts about his scandalous after hours rendez-vous with the local redheads, but made certain to mention that he was not involved in any of the Dark Lord schemes.
Harry put down his fourth glass of vodka and cleared his throat. "I just don't understand how you're so calm telling me this. He spent so many years lying to everyone about his intentions, how can you trust him?"
Like you lied to me about going on Dumbledore's final Horcrux mission and left me to fend for myself in Hogwarts, Ginny wanted to say, but knew the comparison was not equivalent. Snape was a Death Eater who killed many innocents, tortured them, Crucio-ed and manipulated minds. Shite. Even now the wizard could be manipulating her—her and all of the wiccans in Cagailshire— while secretly working for Voldemort. Maybe he was scoping out the farmhouse in terms of luring her and Harry off his scent? Perhaps even during the time at the warehouse in Carlisle he was making sure Ginny's suspicions had proven incorrect. To think she almost believed he had changed.
Almost? Completely!
Seeing him at his usual seat at the bar every Saturday —his long hair slicked back and tied as it hung over his short, everyday robes. His cutting comments were admittedly quite funny and very true. His long fingers curling around the glass as he spoke. To think that Ginny didn't see an ounce of deception there from the start. Ugh, gods.
"Ginny?"
"Huh? Yeah. Right." Ginny poured herself a double shot and downed it. "Listen, let's not talk about him."
"Agreed," Harry said smiling.
So they spent the rest of the evening sharing new gossip—who married whom, who had children, where they were working and so on. Hermione Granger and Viktor Krum were dating, and Harry was sure he was going to pop the question as soon as Hermione finished her apprenticeship in Arithmancy at Durmstrang. Ron was dating Padma, of all people, and they weren't in a rush to get married. According to Mrs Weasley and Mrs Patil, they needed to hurry up and tie the knot because both were anxious for grand-witchlings. Neville and Luna had broken up and both were focusing on Hogwarts reconstruction for the time being. George's shop was doing better than before and he and Angelina were soon to be engaged, despite everyone's objections that it was too soon.
Both Harry and Ginny remembered their good times at Hogwarts: playing on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, about how Harry was in the Triwizard tournament and the time Ginny and Dean got caught sneaking around after hours by Mcgonagall and served detention. They remembered their time with Hagrid and Professor Sprout and Madame Hooch. Harry was certain that now that Hogwarts was rebuilt after a few years of hard reconstruction, most of their former educators would return to teach. Rumor had it that a few professors were retiring so their mates might be filling in: Neville as a Herbology Professor and Luna as the new Care for Magical Creatures Professor.
It felt good to return to easier times and Ginny found herself laughing far too much, so much so that tears were coming out of her eyes. They called it a night and gave each other a long farewell hug. Harry pulled away first and before Ginny could say anything, pressed his lips to her cheek. Then, he kissed her lips and moments later Ginny was back against her door with her tongue consuming his in a delightful makeout session.
-xxx-
Ginny woke up in her own bed— dressed, alone and aching to be satisfied. Harry had some nerve to turn her 'on' last night and leave like a gentleman. Ginny wished he could have stayed, but Auror duty called. Besides, he probably didn't want to rush things—especially since both of them had a bit too much vodka judging by the empty bottle.
Very well, more for next time, she thought as she hopped in the shower for a long scrub down. After singing to The Weird Sisters' Greatest Hits album to her hairbrush, dancing around the living room in her bath towel and drinking three coffees, a loud knock had her tripping over her own legs. Ginny pulled on the nearest shirt and sweatpants she could find and opened the door to Snape's scowl.
"Good morning to you," she said.
"Not." The wizard made himself at home, marching inside the flat and pacing about the room.
"Do you mind?"
"I do. But there are some pertinent news regarding my investigations last night."
Ginny frowned. "Why not tell Harry? He's in charge of investigations."
"Potter and his colleagues would only skew the data in favor of denying the existence of any Dark Matter. It is what the Ministry always does—avoids causing panic in the general population," Snape said. "That, until they locate a Black Sheep to blame all of their suspicions on, in which case they eradicate the suspect and create the impression the Ministry is not using taxpayer money to host fancy banquets and fund their holiday parties."
"That's morbid."
"It's the Iron Law of Oligarchy," Snape said, "Unfortunately Potter has yet to realize his attempts at discovering the truth within our society means nothing unless you're part of the elite chosen few in the high chairs of the Wizengameot."
Ginny sat on the sofa, hugging her knees into her chest. Snape sat right across from her, equally tense.
"You're trying to work under the Ministry's nose then?" she said.
"I aim to discover the whereabouts and plans of Riddle's followers and what they've done-"
"-with his body. So you would like to watch them until they're a large enough threat that the Ministry will have no choice but to use more serious methods to kill them off once and for all?"
Snape's mouth pulled into the closest resemblance of a grin Ginny had ever seen it do. "Precisely. I might have underestimated you."
Ginny grinned. "Mum used to say if you kill the first roach, it goes unnoticed, but send them back behind the walls with poison on their backs, they'll soon eradicate their entire nest."
"Cockroaches do not make nests."
"You know what I meant."
"I did." Snape nodded his head. "It is important you do not tell Po–"
"-Harry of our plan. I got it."
"My plan. That you have nothing to do with," Snape said firmly.
"That isn't fair. I helped you! Remember the warehouse?"
"You were there at the appropriate place at the right time to witness some key information. Nothing more."
Ginny crossed her arms. "I want to help. Remember, I was the one left behind in Hogwarts while Harry, Ron and Hermione hunted Horcruxes. I'm not going to sit on the sidelines again. Those arseholes killed my brother and my friends! There's no way I'm going to let you go out there alone."
"Correct," Snape said. "Which is exactly why I no longer want to witness any more casualties."
"But I work in a bar! I can help you gather intel-"
"-no."
" Why are you telling me this if you don't need my help," Ginny snarled.
"Because when the time comes, and it will come, I'd like you to be prepared. Not like you were down in the Chamber of Secrets when you discovered Tom Riddle's Diary and were subsequently possessed to do his bidding. Merlin knows he dislikes leaving loose ends."
Ginny admitted that Snape had a point. She was probably more susceptible to Voldemort's magic than she thought herself to be since that incident. "Fine, what are your news?"
Snape leaned forwards. "Riddle is gathering his followers. They are living in nearby villages and settlements, some taking shelter in the forest. That house appeared to be inhabited by Pettigew himself."
"Peter? But he was strangled to death by his own hand? Harry and Ron saw it themselves-"
"They saw what Riddle wanted them to see. Make no mistake, the smell of rat droppings and betrayal are rampant in that place."
Ginny winced. "Gods, disgusting. After we let him sleep in our beds as kids, disguised as a rat, I'd hoped he was long gone."
"As have I."
"All roads really do lead to Cagailshire," Ginny said. "Why am I not surprised?"
She paused. "Then if Voldemort is alive, then there must be another Horcrux available. I thought when Harry died and came back to life he was the last remaining one. One cannot live while the other survives. Unless, Harry was not the Other."
Snape nodded slowly.
"Longbottom," both of them whispered, for only one other child was born in the same year to parents who defied Voldemort and could fulfill the prophecy.
"But then, Longbottom would have had to be marked," Ginny reasoned, "Harry has the scar-"
"Unless the mark was not physical." Snape considered. "Nowhere in the prophecy did it say the mark given by Riddle had to be physical.
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."
Ginny paled. "You're saying that all this time, Voldemort could have marked Neville and pretended Harry was his Chosen One? That scumbag! No wonder he was in no rush to kill Harry. All these years we thought his goal was to kill Harry and become invincible when it really was about gathering followers and creating havoc around his name in the Wizarding World!"
If Neville had been the Chosen One all along and Voldemort was making a fuss about Harry, it all made perfect sense. No wonder he was in no rush to kill him. No wonder he had let Harry grow up in peace, putting up a fight only at the end of the year, occasionally killing one of his loved ones as a gentle reminder he was nearby. Voldemort was gathering his strength for the real threat, a threat he himself kept concealed from everyone. All this time, Ginny and the rest of the Order were protecting Harry. Meanwhile, Voldemort was using this time to spread word about his return worldwide like a whisper in the trees. And soon, that whisper would become a war cry—a howl that awoke every inch of evil in England and possibly the rest of Europe.
Snape was right. The real battle was yet to happen and Ginny had to be ready.