Trigger warnings:
Schizophrenia-like symptoms
Vomiting
Implied paedophilia
By the time the day of Buckbeak's execution dawned, the trio finally had a plan for his escape. Their disillusionment and silencing charms increased in strength since their revenge on Malfoy. The story of which was still told by the warmth of the Gryffindor fireplace by reverent students wishing to take Fred and George's place as master pranksters.
Ginny suggested that sneaking out before the execution and hiding in the forest would be their safest bet. That way they wouldn't need to worry about patrolling teachers or perfects delaying them from freeing Buckbeak. Colin and Luna agreed readily. Once Buckbeak had been seen by the ministry Colin would untie the rope and Luna would lure him into the forest. Ginny would stay positioned in the forest closer to Hagrid's front door to provide a distraction if needed. Once free, they would release Buckbeak deep in the forest trusting his animal instincts to keep him safe, and their notice me not charm to deter wandering eyes, before making their way back to school. It wasn't perfect but as they ministry needed to see Buckbeak it was the best they could do. Especially as leaving the grounds, past the dementor guard, was out of the question. It was the first time Ginny would be out of the castle since Christmas and the only time this year without the happy hoard of her brothers warding off the dementors' effects. She was a bit nervous to say the least. What if she fell to pieces before they could enact their plan? What if she wasn't strong enough?
Luna's warm hand brought her back to the present. It was nearly time. At Luna's insistence they spent half hour secluded from the main castle occluding to lock away any negative thoughts or worries. It was a stroke of brilliance really. Best to leave as calm as possible. None of them wanted to lose their cool when confronted by dementors. Any moment of hesitation could cost them their souls.
Luna had taken to occlumency like an owl to post, though Colin had struggled. Luna once tried to teach him occlumency by explaining that it was to suspend one's thoughts in a sense of presence and unpresence, to let them be fixed and free. If anything it left Colin even more confused and Ginny hadn't understood it either. Colin did some weird counting exercise instead which he called Muggle times tables. Ginny wasn't sure what that was meant to mean, or how it relates to maths but it seemed to calm him down.
The sun was starting to set and it was finally time to disillusion themselves and sneak out of the castle. It wasn't curfew yet, so nobody took any notice of three second years going to enjoy the sunset. The trio ducked down behind the greenhouses and dashed toward the forest. Professor Sprout seemed rather engaged in an argument with a venomous tentacula and didn't notice their presence. They picked their way along the forest edge careful to hide deep enough in the shadows that they wouldn't be spotted but not so far that they would get lost. The last thing they needed was to lose the path and miss their opening to save Buckbeak.
"It looks as though Harry, Hermione and Ronald have also come to help" Luna whispered when they finally made it.
Ginny followed Luna's finger to Hagrid's hut where there were three smaller silhouettes visible through the window. They probably made it down with Harry's not so secret invisibility cloak, Ginny thought. The boys really needed to learn some discretion.
"Maybe they have something better planned?" Colin asked.
Ginny shrugged, they would just have to wait and see. She wouldn't be surprised if Hermione had something up her sleeve. With the others inside Hagrid's hut there was no point in splitting the group now.
There was a bit of a ruckus and a girlish scream and without a moment's thought their wands were out. From the shouts inside the cabin Ginny learned that Scabbers hadn't actually been killed by Crookshanks and had instead been hiding out in Hagrid's hut. The joy was short lived though as a delegation of Ministry workers accompanied by Dumbledore reached Hagrid's and knocked. The silhouettes disappeared from the window and the backdoor creaked open. Luna pulled them back deeper into the forest and strengthened their notice me not charms. Before Ginny could ask another Harry and Hermione arrived in front of them staring at the cabin. What in Merlin's name was going on?
The voices of the original trio disappeared into the distance leaving Buckbeak alone. A brutish ministry worker looked out the window and let out a menacing chuckle before being pulled back into conversation with Dumbledore. Ginny felt Luna tensing beside her and patted her gently on the back.
Before they could do anything, the second Harry and Hermione rushed forwards. Harry bowed deeply to Buckbeak while Hermione hurried with the knots. Working as a team, they managed to coax him towards the forest. Ginny felt Colin whisper in her ear that it was time to go and grabbed Luna's hand. If they stayed they would only be in the way. Ginny's mind was reeling as she tried to make sense of what just happened. How could there possibly be two of Harry and Hermione? And why wasn't there another Ron? The duplicates seemed to be trying to help them which ruled out interference by dark wizards but it still didn't make much sense.
They must have caught up to the original trio, Ginny thought as she heard Ron's voice in the distance.
"Ugh, Scabbers, stay put!" before letting out a startled yelp.
Ginny stepped towards the voice but Luna's hand caught hers holding Ginny back.
"We need to hide".
They followed the blonde deeper into the forest until the barest prick of light was visible through the dense canopy.
Luna finally stopped at a clearing with the clouded sky visible ahead and daintily perched on a fallen log.
"We'll be here a while, I think" she added.
Ginny's brows knit in confusion.
"But why aren't we going back to the castle, Lu?" Colin asked, plopping down next to her.
"I feel like this is where we will need to be, you know?".
"No, I don't" Ginny replied "But it doesn't matter" she added taking a place on the floor resting against Luna's legs. Ginny wished she had learned some warming charms. Despite the weather being relatively mild this time of year it was still quite cold in the evenings. Without the adrenaline rushing through her veins keeping her warm she was starting to shiver. Colin wrapped his cloak around her and batted away her protests.
"It's fine. We go muggle camping a lot. I'm used to the chill" he rebutted with a goofy smile.
Ginny rolled her eyes and snuggled up closer to the both of them, drawing her knees to her chest.
"Don't worry. It won't be long now".
Ginny turned to see Luna looking up into the sky. It was nearly pitch black in the clearing now. The glow of the moon emanating from behind the clouds.
Slowly but surely, the clouds cleared. The moon was full and piercingly bright. Colin placed his hand gently on her shoulder as they stared up into the sky. Mesmerised.
Then, a wolfish howl echoed through the forest. The hairs on Ginny's neck stood on end. Was Lupin outside?! They needed to get back to the castle. Now! She thought heart jumping in her chest.
"A few more moments" Luna whispered gently rising to her feet.
The others joined her watching her gaze towards the castle grounds. Ginny didn't dare move or cast any light. Luna's steady breaths kept her centred. If Luna's calm it would be ok.A scurrying to her left made Ginny jump. Without thinking she turned and cast stupify. A quiet thud responded.
Colin lit his wand and stepped closer.
"It's just a rat".
Ginny joined him cautiously feeling a little silly at how on edge she felt. Her wand light joined his as she gazed down at the rat.
It wasn't just any rat. It was Ron's ugly pet. He must have given Ron the slip in the end. Stupid thing.
Are you talking about you or your brother? Tom snarked.
The Forbidden Forest was no place for a rat. At least not a rat who wanted to stay alive. Ginny huffed. As much as Ron drove her crazy, she knew he would be upset about losing his rat so soon after finding it again.
"It's Ron's. Can either of you make a box or something?".
Colin transfigured a little glass cage and Luna did a nifty spell to make it unbreakable.
"Daddy says it's always important to make your cages unbreakable. Umgubular Slashkilters are known to change form so it's always best to be safe!" She added by way of explanation.
Scabbers really did look quite pathetic. His fur was patchy and his ribs were showing. Ginny hoped that Hagrid would be able to fix him up a bit tomorrow.
A howl reverberated through the forest again. Accompanied by the crashing of underbrush not too far away.
"We can go now" Luna whispered before taking Ginny's hand in hers and running towards the castle.
Ginny turned, grabbed hold of Colin and the three of them headed back to the castle as quickly as they could manage. It was sheer luck that the entrance to the castle was unlocked. Ginny dreaded to think what would happen if they were trapped outside with a werewolf. They snuck through and caught their breath in an abandoned classroom. It was definitely past curfew.
"I still have no idea what was going on with Harry and Hermione..." Ginny whispered, hoping that someone had an explanation. "Tom has no idea either".
Well magical copies of people weren't exactly a thing in my time, Ginevra!
"He's a bit pissed that he doesn't know actually" she added as an afterthought.
Luna turned and cocked her head to the side. "Well, they clearly went back in time. Though, I thought that the Ministry were using their time turners to stop the rotfang conspiracy, not to allow overworked third years to attend more classes and rescue hippogriffs" she shrugged.
Ginny wasn't sure how to respond to that. Perhaps it would make more sense after a good night's sleep. Colin seemed to be on the same page as her and looked equally bemused.
"We'll walk you back to Ravenclaw, Lu".
"That's very kind of you. Thank you, Colin".
There was little time to talk on the way there. It was a miracle how they managed to avoid two sets of prefects and Mrs Norris who seemed perfectly fine to ignore them for some reason. Ginny hugged Luna glad that she would be extra safe from Lupin up in her common room. The way to Gryffindor was not nearly as smooth. In fact, it was as rough as it could have gone. A few minutes into their trip Mrs Norris appeared once again and was no longer content to leave them in peace. With a miaow and a twirl of her tail she stalked off to find Filch.
Ginny and Colin ran in the opposite direction, through a secret passage way and up a flight of stairs only to hear Filch coming round the corner. They backtracked, focusing on Filch's footsteps behind them trying to throw him off only to come face-to-face with another.
"Miss Weasley! Mister Creevey! 10 points each from Gryffindor for being out of bed. What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing running around the castle at this time of hour?" McGonagall barked.
Ginny quickly let go of Colin's hand. McGonagall looked between them, lips pursed.
"I'd think you were far too young to be having night-time escapades. Another 5 points, each".
Ginny blushed fiercely.
"Sorry Professor. I promise it wasn't anything like that. We were talking in the halls and got a bit carried away that's all. Didn't even realise it was past curfew until we saw all the patrols!" Colin lied.
"We found Scabbers!" Ginny added, holding up the makeshift cage for McGonagall to see. "He was sniffing around near the Great Hall. Probably looking for scraps or something".
"I see". McGonagall stepped forward and took the cage. "That is indeed Mister Weasley's rat. Who made the cage?".
"I did, Professor".
"Very good work, Mister Creevey. I expected nothing less of you".
Ginny swore for a moment that McGonagall's eyes passed over her with a flash of disappointment. Her breath caught in her throat.
You can't even make a simple box. You're hopeless Ginevra.
Ginny grit her teeth.
"5 points for excellent use of transfiguration and charms Mister Creevey". She tapped the cage with her wand. "I've increased its stability and strengthened the unbreakable charm". Another tap and a small straw bed appeared in the cage.
"Let's hope that Mister Weasley manages to keep hold of it this time" she handed the cage back to Ginny. "Make sure to keep it away from the ginger feline and do return Mr Creevey's cloak to him when you're done with it".
"Yes, Professor" Ginny mumbled.
McGonagall escorted them to the entrance of the common room. Clearly not trusting them to not go on any more night-time wanderings. Ginny still felt awkward at the thought. It was Colin for Merlin's sake and they were twelve! She hadn't even thought of anyone as more than a friend. That was just... gross.
Colin chuckled at her apparent anguish and brought her in for a hug.
"Goodnight, Gin!" he added before skipping up the stairs.
Ginny stomped up the stairs as gently as she could. At least her dorm mates were fast asleep. Merlin knows what kind of questions they would throw at her if they knew she'd been out that late with Colin! It seemed like her last threat was starting to lose its bite.
She plonked Scabbers' cage on her end table and got changed. The rat was still fast asleep. Ginny thought he looked rather dead if you ignored the rise and fall of its bony ribs.
Ginny curled up under the covers and closed her eyes, exhaustion taking over. Thoughts of time travel, werewolves and Harry chased from her mind. It was the early hours of the morning when McGonagall came bursting into the dorm. The sound of the door crashing against the wall woke Ginny suddenly. She dragged herself to a seated position and looked around with bleary eyes.
"Where's Scabbers?" McGonagall barked, an edge of panic in her voice.
Ginny frowned and pointed to the cage on the other side of the bed obscured by shadow.
A bright beam of lumos showed Scabbers still asleep at the bottom of the cage. McGonagall breathed a sigh of relief and left the room with the cage levitated in front of her. She didn't say another word to Ginny to explain what was going on. Ginny pulled on her dressing gown and followed. McGonagall didn't tell her to go back but she seemed rather distressed and rather reluctant to touch the cage directly. Something that wasn't lost on Tom either. Maybe Ron and Hermione had gotten into a massive fight over the rat and one of them had been hurt? She wouldn't be surprised, Hermione knew enough magic to put Ron on the floor if he crossed her.They soon arrived at the hospital wing corridor where Ginny could hear Harry shouting. Cornelius Fudge was stuttering and spluttering back in outrage and Snape was yelling about Sirus Black escaping.
They entered to see the scene of the chaos with Dumbledore at the centre eyes twinkling madly. Harry was insisting that Sirius black was innocent and that Peter Pettigrew was the real rat. Something clicked in Ginny's head at that and Tom's snort did nothing to reassure her. Snape was shouting that Harry must have done something to free Black and the Minister was then telling Snape that that was ridiculous as Harry had been trapped in the hospital wing and that Snape should know that after saving Harry from a pack of dementors and a rogue werewolf. Snape was purpling with rage insistent that Harry had done something. Hermione on the other hand, was deftly avoiding everyone's gaze.
It appeared that somehow Harry and Hermione had gone back in time and allowed Sirius Black to escape as well as rescue Buckbeak but Ginny has no idea how Black had factored into the story in the first place.
McGonagall shot sparks out of her wand to silence everyone. Harry's eyes widened in surprise as he saw the cage. Without a word, she removed Scabbers by the tail. He was awake now and frantically trying to get away. Ginny spied Dumbledore casting a subtle spell behind his back and pretended not to see anything.
McGonagall held him in front of her eyes glaring daggers at the creature and shot spell directly into his heart. A moment later the rat started changing form. Nearly everyone watched in awe as Scabbers transformed into a chubby naked man caked in dirt with watery eyes. Snape snarled and Ginny promptly threw up.
I bet he enjoyed watching you naked. Tom purred. Exactly how many shows have you given him little Gin-Gin?
Ginny retched again. The noise dulled in the background as she struggled to regain control of her breathing. Nobody was paying her any attention. The room was in chaos and the sounds were suffocating.
She tried using occlumency to clear her mind but Tom was not helping things.
He probably thought awful things about you, Ginny.
She begged him to stop. That was just too much. Did he always stay as a rat or did he transform into a human and use his grubby paws...
She doubled up as a fresh wave of vomit escaped her throat.
Why ask me to stop when you know it's the truth? Why not get revenge instead?
He did have a point, she admitted and the more she thought about it the more she agreed. Ginny could feel the fury building up more inside her stoked by Tom's words.
She straightened herself, wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and stalked forwards.
The man was currently pleading on the floor to a disgusted audience. Ginny stormed right to him and saw the recognition in his eyes. She cast the bat bogey hex with all the venom she could muster.
"You filthy, vile, disgusting rat of a man. How fucking dare you!" She roared as she closed the gap further.
Pettigrew swiped at his face trying to stop the bat bogeys from assaulting him but Ginny wasn't done. She grabbed the back of his head with her left hand and with the other broke his nose. He gasped in pain and fell backwards. She followed up with a kick to his private parts before she was dragged backwards. The bats were still crawling out of his broken nose splitting the flesh further and splatting his face and body with blood.
As she was wrenched further back she yelled "You better hope that you are imprisoned for life Pettigrew because if you leave Azkaban I. Will. Hunt. You. DOWN!".It was a mark of how disturbed everyone was that McGonagall didn't admonish her. Pomfrey instead pulled her into a tight hug and she broke down. She couldn't really remember much of what happened next. Pomfrey mentioned the word shock a few times but she wasn't in shock, was she? Tom had also gone quiet which was more unsettling than relieving. Eventually Pomfrey gave her a dreamless sleep and she drifted off.
She woke up to Mum and Dad's presence in the hospital. She soon found out that Pettigrew had sold the Potter's out to Voldemort, framed Sirius and hid as her family's pet rat. The thought still made her feel sick. Ron also seemed deeply troubled. He had a faint greenish tinge and his leg was in a splint. Mum was sat next to him stroking his hair while Dad was having hurried words with the matron.
Nobody seemed to pay her any mind so she dragged herself out of bed and sat with Harry and Hermione. They informed her that the Minister and Dumbledore had escorted Pettigrew to the Ministry where he would await trial. They refused to say any more about what happened, though Harry thanked her profusely for finding Pettigrew.
"Where did you find him?" He enquired "I know it wasn't near the Great Hall like you told McGonagall".
Ginny huffed.
"What happened last night?" She answered.
Hermione frowned.
"We've already explained that we can't tell you, Ginny" she rebuked.
What a bossy little...
For once I agree, Tom. Now shut up.
Merlin she was so sick of people treating her like a little kid!
"Then I'm afraid that I can't tell you anything" Ginny smiled sweetly.
Harry was frowning now too.
"Look, Ginny. I know you want to know but it's a secret, ok? But I need to know where you found Pettigrew. It's related".
Ginny closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Hermione was looking at so kindly it was patronising.
"I'm sorry that you fail to see how anything relating to Pettigrew, Ron's fucking pet rat relates to me but let me make it clear for you. You are just as much of a child as I am Harry Potter so don't you dare withhold information from me but expect me to give it freely!".
She may have raised her voice a little too much.
"Ginevra! What are you doing out of bed?" Mum called bustling over.
"Sorry dear" she added to Harry as she dragged Ginny away.
Ginny found herself being pushed back into her own bed, despite feeling fine. Well, very angry but otherwise fine. She wasn't paying any attention to the crap her mother was spewed and felt rather satisfied as her Mum's expression got angrier and angrier. Her parents left the hospital wing shortly after giving her worried glances. Ginny was glad to be released a few hours later by the matron and even gladder to see Colin and Luna waiting for her in the hospital corridor.
They listened to her rage and rant and then held her when she broke down again.
"I expected Harry to have a bit more tact than that, I think" Luna added "Though I'm not particularly surprised by Hermione".
"We won't tell them anything, Gin. I promise" Colin added.
Ginny nodded from where her head was buried in Luna's shoulder.
Over the next couple of days they gathered a rough picture of what had happened. Sirius Black had been after Pettigrew, there was a confrontation which involved the golden trio, Black, Pettigrew, Snape and Lupin. Lupin had stupidly forgotten to take his potion and therefore transformed into a werewolf, which allowed Pettigrew to transform into Scabbers and escape, and nearly killed everyone in the process. This was exactly why they shouldn't let werewolves teach!
Ginny was ecstatic when she heard that Snape had let it slip that Lupin was a werewolf at breakfast. So ecstatic in fact that she had to cover her laughter with a cough. She practically skipped back to her dorm until she bumped into the Professor in question. Anger bubbled up inside her at how dejected and sorry for himself he looked.
"That is exactly why you shouldn't be allowed to teach" she spat.
Lupin turned to face her, eyes hard and voice cold. "You wouldn't understand".
"It hardly matters whether people understand or not when they get their faces ripped off!" She retorted and brushed past him. Ginny was stomping down the corridor when she heard the familiar drawl of the potions professor.
"Miss Weasley, a moment if you will".
She turned to face Snape and looked up at him questioningly.
"Your essay" he said by way of explanation handing her a scroll that was noticeably heavier than when she handed it in.
"There were such a number of corrections required that I was unable to return it to you in a timely manner. I hope that you make good use of my feedback. I'd hate to see that my efforts were wasted".
"Yes, Professor" she replied as he turned and swept away.
She finally made her way back to her thankfully empty dorm. Hidden behind the curtains she unfurled the scroll. Snape had given her detailed instructions and spells for how to incapacitate and kill werewolves both in human and non-human forms. In his spiky writing there was an added note:
Several of these spells are far above your current curriculum level. However, I expect that you can manage them with adequate dedication and summer training.
There was no way on Godric's Green Earth that Mum would let her practice spells over the summer. She would have to try them wandless so not to raise any suspicion. Perhaps if she could get over to Luna's this time her Dad would help. He was a bit kooky and likely wouldn't care as long as she wasn't actually harming anyone (or anything).
A tap on the window brought her out of her scheming. She peered round her bed curtains and saw a stately black owl glaring at her. Ginny cautiously opened the window and he landed on her bedside table extending his leg towards her.
Inside the envelope was a letter made a of thick yellow parchment written in deep navy blue ink and a small, silvery green pouch pried open with a clip.
Dear Ginevra,
I cannot thank you enough for your part in saving me. Where Harry, Ron and Hermione saved my life you have granted me freedom and justice.
I have enclosed some galleons for your help. Though, if you could keep it secret that would be great I don't want to be scolded by Molly – yes I've met her. It's no dent to my family's vaults and I get the feeling you would put it to good use.
The pouch is Mokeskin. Only you will be able to remove any items stored inside . It'll recognise you as the owner as soon as you spill a little blood inside. Only a drop or two is needed, just enough for it to recognise you as the owner instead of me!
Kindest Regards,
Sirius Black
P.S. I hear you throw a mean right hook. Keep it up.
Ginny gently picked up the pouch, careful not to move the clip and moved it to the end table that the haughty owl had since abandoned. It was practically weightless. She rummaged in her trunk to found an old quill and sharpened it until she was satisfied that it was strong enough. She pressed the sharp edge into her forefinger and let a few drops of blood fall into the pouch. It glowed red for a moment before returning to normal. She picked it up carefully noting how it now felt warm to her touch.
Ginny peered inside. She couldn't believe it! She now held more money than her family had ever owned. Black was right, she would put it to good use.
Thank you so much to everyone new viewers and old for your continued support! I hope that you continue to enjoy
~Fiona