Chapter 9 – Advice

Ginny's father had not come home that night, or at least not before she herself had gone to bed. She had managed to return home without her mum noticing, but apparently her father had been held up late at work. She thought about approaching her mum, who was knitting at the kitchen table, but she really wanted to talk to her father. Ginny went to bed that night determined to speak with him first thing in the morning.

Bright and early, Ginny awoke with a start, her heart racing. She was having a nightmare, which was not common for her, but thankfully the memory of it faded almost immediately when she woke. She checked her clock and mentally thanked the bad dream for waking her up; the timing was perfect. Her dad tended to wake up earlier than her mum; if she was lucky, she could catch him alone for a private conversation. Ginny quietly put on her slippers and padded out of her room, down the stairs.

She found her father in the kitchen, reading the Daily Prophet and half-heartedly eating breakfast. The floor creaked as she stepped into the room, drawing her father's attention. "Good morning, Ginny! Up early for once, I see. Normally your mother has to drag you out of bed."

Ginny sat down at the table and mumbled, "Good morning, Daddy." The two sat quietly at the table for a few minutes. Ginny's mind raced as she tried to figure out how to begin. "I heard Luna came over to play yesterday, I hope you two had a good time."

Ginny absentmindedly nodded. She was nervous. She was still thinking when she noticed that her father had put away his paper, slid his breakfast to the side, and was staring directly at her. He seemed to be waiting. Oh well, now or never.

"Daddy, I have a question. What should… what should someone do if they have a friend… if they know someone whose parents aren't very nice to them?"

"Well, Ginny, I suppose it depends on what you might mean by 'not very nice'."

"Right," said Ginny. That wasn't very helpful. She tried to think of a follow up question, when her father interrupted her thoughts. "Why do you ask?"

Ginny froze. She scrambled to think of a good answer, her thoughts suddenly scattered, but either she took too long, or her expression gave her away, because her father continued. "Ginny, if you know someone whose parents 'aren't nice' to them, as you say, then I think you need to tell me. Now, please."

"Uh… I…" Ginny fumbled for words. She should have been cleverer; this wasn't going at all how she thought it might. She felt like her dad could read her mind. As if proving her point, he continued, "Maybe you can tell me why you're hesitating?"

"I'm… I told… I'm not sure my friend would want me to talk about it. I got permission to ask for advice, but…"

Arthur Weasley gave his daughter a very firm look. "Ginny, I am proud of you for trying to keep your friend's trust, but if whatever is happening to your friend is bad enough that you need to ask me for advice, then it's your responsibility to tell me about it. You must tell me so I can help."

Help. There's that word again. Ginny mustered her courage, blinked several times, and began talking. "It's… it's Harry. Harry Potter. I think… I think he's scared of his family, and I don't think they're nice to him. I think… I think they hurt him."

Arthur sat back, careful to maintain eye contact with his daughter. He waited, and she continued. "We met at the train station, and he was all alone. I think he came all by himself. He said his family didn't know he was there. And Daddy, he didn't have any of the things he was supposed to have to go to Hogwarts. He didn't have robes, or a wand, or any of his supplies. I didn't know it at the time, but I found out later."

"You found out when you went to Hogwarts? When Harry somehow summoned you?"

"Yes. Well, some of it. I found out that… Harry had stolen a set of robes, but got caught at the sorting. He ran away, scared, and that's when I got summoned to the castle. You know I went with Harry and Professor Dumbledore to Diagon Alley to get Harry's missing supplies. But… it wasn't just a few missing things, it was all his supplies, and not just school things. Harry… he didn't even have clothes that fit him, or shoes, and what little he did have was all torn up. And nobody knew, I only found out because I peeked inside his bag. He didn't even have underwear."

Arthur considered his daughter. "That is strange, I will admit. But it doesn't explain why you think his family would hurt him. That is a serious accusation, I'll need you to explain it."

Ginny took a shaky breath and tried to steady her voice. "There are… other things I noticed, too. The whole time we were out shopping, Harry never let anyone touch him; he darted out of the way of everyone like a scared kitten. He seems scared of everyone, especially adults. He acts like they all might hurt him."

Arthur met Ginny's gaze, "You know, some people just don't much like to be touched. If I remember correctly, I saw the two of you sitting on the chair together in Professor Dumbledore's office. He seems to let you touch him."

Ginny looked down at the table. "I think… I think I may be the only one. When… when I first hugged him, he barely reacted, like he didn't know what to do. I also… I have to confess… I ended up at Hogwarts again, yesterday afternoon."

"Oh really?" Molly hadn't mentioned that. "Yes, but… Mum doesn't know. I got home before dinner, and I don't think she noticed I was gone. Daddy… he was… he was upset, and alone again. He…" Ginny trailed off, not sure how to proceed. Her vision blurred, and she realized that she was crying. She wiped her face and pushed onward. "He hasn't been sleeping, because… for a bunch of reasons. But… Daddy, he told me at home his family makes him sleep in a cupboard under the stairs. He says… he says he likes the cupboard, because it's so small that nobody else can come in… he says it makes him feel safe." Ginny snarled the word like it was a curse, pawing at her own face to wipe away tears.

If she didn't have his attention before, she did now. Who would make a child sleep in a cupboard? "Alright Ginny, slow down. That is concerning, but did he actually tell you that his family hurts him, or are you guessing?"

"I'm… I'm guessing, but Daddy… you didn't see him when he told me. He was desperate, and I just… I know it. I know they hurt him. And… I'm not even sure that they feed him properly, because Harry said something about his stomach hurting because he isn't used to eating so much, and…"

She had run out of steam, and no more words seemed to come. She was so caught up in her misery that she was surprised when her father pulled her from the kitchen chair and into a huge hug. "You're a good girl, Ginny. That's enough. I have to ask you one more question, and I hope you understand I have to ask it. Is there any chance that he's… that he's making any of this up, or exaggerating to get attention?"

Ginny's eyes flared as she vigorously shook her head. "No, absolutely not! He didn't… he didn't even want to tell me, I had to make him. He doesn't want attention, he wants to be left alone. Part of why he was upset yesterday was because people kept singling him out. He doesn't… he didn't want to tell Professor Dumbledore, and I had to beg him to let me ask you about it."

That piqued his interest. "Why not tell Professor Dumbledore?" Ginny looked down at her feet before replying. "He says Professor Dumbledore already knows. He says his Hogwarts letter was addressed to the cupboard under the stairs. He's afraid if he makes any trouble he might get sent back home."

While that was certainly an interesting tidbit, it was a problem he could tackle later. He reached out and held Ginny's small hands in his. "Here's what we're going to do. First, I need to send a note to Professor Dumbledore and let him know we need to talk. Even if he already knows, this discussion must involve him. He will probably want to meet at Hogwarts later today; I think this kind of talk should take place in person."

Ginny nodded, eyes focused down on her hands. "Can… can I come to Hogwarts with you? I think Harry might need a friend if he has to talk about any of this."

Arthur smiled and sat Ginny back down in her chair. "I think he just might, and I'm sure that Professor Dumbledore won't mind you coming along. Once I send my note to Professor Dumbledore, I'm going to floo-call the ministry. I'm not going into work today. Instead, you and I are going to go do something fun. While I send my letter and make my call, go ahead and get dressed for the day. Maybe we will walk into town and get some ice cream, yeah?"

Ginny gave her father a watery smile, stood up from her chair, and headed towards the staircase. "Oh, and Ginny?" She stopped and turned to look at her father. "I can't tell you how proud of you I am. You're a good girl, and a good friend."

Ginny's smile grew even bigger. "Thank you, I'm trying, Daddy." She turned and began climbing the stairs.