Ch 10

Ginny woke up with a painful start. She heard laughter; cold and vengeful laughter. Something was covering her eyes. She clawed at the cloth with her hands frantically, trying to discover where they laughter was coming from.

"Eric?" she whispered tentatively.

Something smashed into her ribcage and she doubled over in pain, falling off the bed. She gasped and tried to breath but the wind had been knocked out of her.

"Yes dear?"

She began screaming as she recognised the voice.

He ripped the blindfold off of her and grinned manically down at her.

She sobbed and tried to look away, clutching her ribs and struggling to breath. He took out his wand and she screamed again.

"No… Eric! Why do you have your- somebody help! Help!" She curled into a ball. "Somebody help."

"No help here, dear wife. Obliviate!"

Ginny went limp was vaguely aware of a floaty, relaxed feeling. She yawned and opened her eyes, wincing at the pain in her ribs. Was it morning already? Eric was staring down at her with a funny expression on his face. She blinked, startled. Then she realised she was on the floor.

"Oh, what am I doing on the floor?" She tried to get up and gasped at the pain.

"I came back and you were on the floor. You must have had a crazy dream to fall out of bed that hard."

Ginny closed her eyes and thought. "No, just a normal sleep."

"Oh."

Ginny watched him walk away. For some reason, she felt something like… fear… in her subconscious. She stared around the room, trying to fit everything into place. Her head felt like disorientated, like somebody had tilted her brain upside down and it was trying to orientate itself. She listened to Eric moving around in the kitchen and quietly slipped into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. It was irrational, but she felt a little… nervous.

She put the toilet lid down, making sure not to slam it and sat down. The fluffy blue towels on the rack hung innocently in front of her and she pulled one off and hugged it to her stomach. All of a sudden, Harry felt very far away. She winced again as she hugged the towel to tight and her ribcage throbbed. She didn't usually sleep funny.

Suddenly, Ginny realised the noise in the kitchen had ceased and the house was very still and quiet. She held her breath and clenched her fists into the towel.

1 second.

3 seconds.

She breathed out slowly.

Then the doorknob turned sharply and she muffled a yelp of fear.

"Ginny?"

Eric rattled the doorknob and knocked hard on the door.

She breathed in an out. "Just having a shower. What is it?"

"Why is the door locked?"

"Am I not allowed some privacy?" she said back. She bit her lip and waited.

Silence.

"Well, breakfast is ready when you're out," he said after a pause.

She didn't answer, just turned the shower on.

"Stupid…" she said aloud as the water washed over her.

Once she had finished and dried off, she went to the door and listened. Not a sound. She put her hand on the knob but didn't move it. Waiting.

No sound.

She shook her head and pushed the door open, letting the steam roll out around her and evapourate.

"Eric?" When he didn't answer she walked out into the kitchen and saw the note he had left under the fruit bowl.

Gone to get some food and go for a walk.

Back soon.

She looked at the fruit salad he had made her and made the split-second decision to throw it down the sink.

- - - - - - - -

Percy Weasley was doing a double-take. He had just seen something that, to put it simply, did not make sense.

He had been walking along in Muggle London, on his way to the Ministry from having lunch with Penelope. He had stopped at a traffic light crossing and was waiting for the strange little green man to appear on the black pole when his eye had caught an ad for a missing person on the pole next to him. And it wasn't until he was halfway across the road that he realised what had been so odd about the ad.

He had recognised the person on it.

That was the second thing. Why would he recognise a missing Muggle?

By now, the red man was blinking furiously ahead of him and vehicles around him were beeping with rage. But Percy was walking backwards to where he had been waiting. He stared at the poster and blinked. And blinked again.

Missing: Ben Johnson.

Married, father of two. Birthmark on right shoulder. Aged 32.

And there was a picture. The thing was, the picture couldn't be of Ben Johnson, because it was clearly of Eric Greenweiser. Yet, there he was, Ben Johnson, father of three. Missing for a year and a half.

Less than one hour later, Percy was in a place he never thought he would visit. A Muggle library. Sporting some very baggy jeans and a shirt in an attempt to look like a Muggle, he hung around the front desk. He was hopelessly lost. Fortunately, an elderly librarian was giving him some pitying glances and she beckoned him over a minute later.

"Would like some help finding a book, dear?" she asked in a motherly tone.

"Actually, I'm looking for some newspaper headlines from over a year ago. Would you have any records available?" Percy said nervously, feeling like he stood out terribly.

She pursed her lips patiently. Obviously, she had wanted him to show him the joy of books. "Well, yes. Come with me."

She led him to a room off to the side, filled with strange box-like equipment.

"What exactly are you looking for?"

"Um, a missing person, please." He pulled out the items from his pocket, dropping a few Sickles and Knuts as he searched for the scrap of paper he had written on.

"Are you foreign?" the librarian asked.

"No, er, cousin of mine is," Percy lied quickly as he handed her the paper with the name of the man.

The librarian brightened. "Oh, names always make this easy. I can just search on the computer for you and it will find all the articles for me."

Percy nodded, not knowing exactly how the computer worked. She only took about five minutes and she was handing him some pieces of paper. "Tell your cousin he can come borrow books anytime with you," she said encouragingly.

Percy nodded enthusiastically. "I will." He watched her go and then looked down and began reading. About halfway down was where he found something interesting.

A neighbour was the last one to see Mr Johnson. At about 2 pm, Mrs McCabe alleges she saw a man knocking on the door of Mr Johnson's home. "I found it strange because he didn't seem the type to frequent or come calling on people in our neighbourhood. He had long, dark hair and sallow skin. He was very skinny – looked very unhealthy to me. Weirdest of all was that he was wearing a long black cloak. It was a bit ragged though," she says. The suspect is, according to various witnesses, tall, dark and middle-aged. If any one has anything more to add please contact…

Percy re-read the paragraph several times. Was it a long jump? Rudolphus Lestrange could fit the description. The 'long black cloak' sounded a lot like wizard's robes. He sat back; mystified. But why? What was the point?

Why was a man fitting Lestrange's description the last to see a missing person? And why was that missing person identical to Eric Greenweiser, his sister's husband?

Percy left the library without a backward glance, taking the papers with him.

- - - - - - - - -

After reading Eric's note, Ginny quickly went into the bedroom and put on some clothes. She hadn't really worn anything pretty since being here so she pulled out a little white summer dress, thinking Harry would like it.

She walked over to Harry's, deciding to go around the back in case Eric came back up the hill at that very moment. She felt silly for this morning. In her white dress and the open, beaming sunshine, things seemed a lot less ominous and threatening. She knocked softly on the door and half a minute later Harry opened it slowly. He looked tense but his gaze softened as it fell on her loose, damp hair in tendrils and the white dress. He drew her to him and she followed him inside.

Neither was aware of the person watching them in the shadows.

Ginny, once inside, sat down on the chair near the window and surveyed the room. "Did you clean it?" she asked as she sniffed the air. There wasn't the usual amount of dust that made it hard to breathe. It was then she noticed the box of possessions on the bed.

"You're leaving," she said flatly.

He met her gaze evenly. "Not until you do."

Ginny plucked at the hem on her dress nervously. "I'm not leaving, though," she countered.

He sat down across from her and nodded firmly. "I don't like you here on your own. And what's the point of staying here anyway if you're not going to write your book?"

Ginny stared at him and knew that he was right. "I don't want to leave you alone," she whispered. "I can't go back home knowing you're alone somewhere. How do I know you wouldn't hide from me?"

Harry hesitated.

Ginny crossed her arms. "See? I'm not going." She frowned. "And if you even tried to hide from me again I would hunt you down. I can't – I can't believe you would even think-" she stopped and looked frustrated.

"So you can do what Gin? Leave on frequent, mysterious trips? Endanger yourself? Live a double life with me as a secret on the side?" He stood up. "We would spend the whole time apart and wishing we were together!"

"No, that would be the case if you took off again. But I need to see you Harry." She tried pleading him with her eyes but he stared back hesitantly.

"What I want most is for you to be back with your family. I don't trust Eric… but you've known that from the beginning of all this."

Ginny bit her lip. "This morning…" She stopped.

"What?" he prompted.

"I don't know… I just felt scared for some reason with him. Just a bit nervous I guess. I think I had a bad dream or something…"

"You think?"

"Well, I can't remember." She closed her eyes and then opened them. "No."

Harry looked down at her. "Well if you-"

But suddenly it was Eric was looking down at her as she trembled at his feet in fear. She could feel the places he had hit her.

Ginny gasped and leapt away from Harry, clutching her stomach in memory.

"What are doing?" Harry asked, remaining still. He held his hands up as if to say he had done nothing.

Ginny took deep breaths, her stomach hurting for real. "I just had… a flashback… of my dream, I guess." She made a weak attempt at a smile. "Some dream."

"More a nightmare it seems," Harry commented, still looking at her tensely.

She nodded wearily.

He came and stood close in front of her. "Listen Gin, I thought it was just me but if you feel uneasy around Eric too, then I really want you to leave. I promise I will somehow let you know where I am but I want you to go now."

It seemed crazy, but what he was saying suddenly seemed the right thing to do. "Eric has a Portkey," she offered. "He uses it to come and go because he got sick of doing nothing around here."

"Good. Go."

"What – now?" Ginny shook her head. "Eric's out, I should…" But she wasn't thinking about Eric. "Come with me."

"No, please go now. I just have a bad feeling."

She started to tremble. "But when will I see you again?"

He pulled a twisted sort of smile. "Tomorrow." She almost shuddered. Tomorrow meant never.

She laid her hands on his chest and felt his heart beating wildly. It didn't show on his face. "Please, Harry, don't pretend. When?"

He kissed her and she could sense the desperation. It was happening to quickly to be good-bye. This was so quick – she hadn't even thought – was she being stupid? But Harry was looking at her so seriously with that intense green gaze; she felt powerless. She shook her head again and tried to laugh.

"… this is ridiculous," she protested. "We could just stay here together and Eric could go back," she whispered against his lips. She could feel tears on her cheek but were they his or hers? Why was he crying if he was going to see her again? How had this all escalated so quickly?

"I love you," he whispered back. He said it like he needed to say it, like it would be his one chance ever and it scared her.

"I love you!" she said back, clinging to him. He was pushing her away, though.

"Just do it, Gin. Go now."

"What's wrong? What's going to happen?" He had told her a while ago that ever since that night he had killed Voldemort he had adopted some sort of sixth sense. If he said go now, he meant it for a reason. She stepped back so she could look at him. "You're not going to contact me, are you?" A minute ago, she hadn't understood that. But now, that one minute later, she somehow got it.

He looked undecided for a split second and Ginny felt her body sag. She nodded and tried not to let fresh tears fall.

"I just – I need to hear you say that you love me… one last time," Ginny whispered.

"I love you," he said instantly. "I love you. I love you," he repeated again and again, hugging her tightly.

"Please come back," she begged, shaking as he held her.

He didn't answer.

"I – I don't know what will happen or how – we can make it work… Eric is… but – but I want to." Ginny looked up at him. "Please, please come home."

"I'm already there," he said softly. "Just think of me and I'll be there in spirit. But I can't – I just can't come back, Ginny. It would kill me. And you – you already know Lestrange wants me. I can't risk that."

Ginny cried silently, trying to take a photograph of this moment. She knew as soon as she left he would leave here too, go somewhere else where she and nobody else could find him.

"I'll divorce Eric," she said quietly. "I'm never going to go on another date. We'll be together… but apart." She kept crying. "There will be no one else, Harry, no one else."

Harry nodded, not wanting to do that but knowing her mind was made up. He walked her to the door and opened it, trying to let no pain show on his face.

"And then maybe one day we'll –"

Harry shook his head. "Don't Ginny. Don't say things that will make it harder."

She felt him release her and she stepped back. Their eyes met and locked on each other. Then she turned and walked away. She looked back once, only to mouth something unknown. He raised his hand and then closed it, as if he were catching the words in his palm.

- - - - - - -

Ron closed his eyes and sunk into the bathtub with a blissful sigh. He had enjoyed the prefect bathrooms so much at Hogwarts that he'd persuaded Hermione to get one of their own. Though she'd sniffed at how indulgent it was, he hadn't heard her complain since the first time she – they – had used it. He sunk even further into the bubbly water and wondered when she was getting home.

He was just sinking off to a pleasant daydream when a large crack made him sit up in shock. He listened hard as water sopped over the sides. It had sounded like someone Apparating… or Disapparating? Hermione hadn't warned him that she was coming home. He frowned.

The door flung open and Ron yelled as Hermione stepped in with her robes in disarray. He stopped yelling immediately.

"Merlin, Hermione don't scare me like that!" he said as he sunk back into the water.

She didn't apologise. "Get out."

Ron tipped an imaginary hat. "Well, good morning to you too." He closed his eyes. "And no."

"No?" she said impatiently. "No what?"

"I'm not getting out. Even if you have come back, it's not polite to interrupt a man in his bath."

Hermione raised her eyebrow. "Oh, well I'm terribly sorry. I will go find out where Harry is on my own then." She shut the door behind her.

Ron heaved himself out of the bathtub in a second and ran to the door, flinging it open in much the same fashion as Hermione had one minute ago. He stood in the doorway and she stared at him, barely able to contain her excitement.

"I haven't told anyone yet. But he's alive, Ron. These notes by Dumbledore and Aberforth prove it!" she held them up in triumph.

Ron gaped at her speechlessly. Then he turned around, went into the bathroom and got a towel. Two seconds later he came back out and said, "Hermione I think you should sit down."

"Ron, we don't have time to waste," she said impatiently. "I know what's happened. I know why he's hiding but we have to find him to warn him." She looked at him seriously. "I'm not wrong, Ron. Please hurry up so we can find him."

Ron stuttered, looking confused. "Wh – hiding? Why? And what – why wouldn't he even let us know he's alive?"

"The ring," Hermione explained. "In a way, I guess that was his way because he could have destroyed it if he wanted and then it never would have gone green." She pushed Ron into the bedroom to try and get him to dress. Ron was still looking dumbfounded.

"I think we should contact Ginny," she said as he threw on some robes.

Ron frowned. "She would kill us! You know how important the book is."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "This is Harry Potter, Ron. I don't think she would kill us for letting her know he's alive. Besides, she might have an idea where he could have gone, seeing as he's not dead. Now, come on!"

- - - - - - -

Percy walked through Ginny's apartment; his eyes were alert but wary of Fred watching him silently.

"I can't see them," Percy announced after a few minutes of fruitless searching.

"I gathered that," Fred remarked, smirking at his older brother.

Percy glared at his brother's back. Fred had agreed to go to Ginny and Eric's home to make sure everything was normal. Percy was convinced he would find something, Fred; not so much.

"So now you can leave," continued Fred, crossing his arms.

"Okay." Percy walked reluctantly towards the door but stopped abruptly when he saw the crack in the wall. Of course they would be in there!

Fred sighed impatiently. "Now what are you doing? Look Perce, everything's good with you and the rest of us, why ruin that now chasing after Eric for no reason?"

Percy used his wand to open the hidden hiding place in the wall. Percy sighed; wrong. There lay two wands that belonged to Ginny and Eric – just as everyone but he had predicted.

"Satisfied? Now come on," Fred said.

"Just one minute, Fred," Percy replied tersely, furrowing his brows so hard his glasses dug into his nose. He lifted Eric's wand and muttered and incantation as he waved it in the air. Maybe there would be traces of something suspicious.

Nothing.

He looked wistfully at Ginny's wand, wishing she was home. He touched it gently and out of the blue it gave a loud squawk and turned into a rubber chicken.

Fred went still and Percy turned around slowly, the rubber chicken hanging limply in his hand.

"Ginny would never take her wand and cheat," Percy whispered. "If this is a fake wand, where is Ginny's real one?"

Fred didn't answer, just looked troubled.

"I don't like this," Percy said. "I'm going to go the Ministry and warn Dad. I think you should go back to the Burrow and tell everyone, preferably Ron and Hermione."

Fred nodded silently, looking at the rubber chicken with unease. Percy Disapparated with a loud crack and Fred prepared himself for doing the same. Just as he was about to do so, however, he heard another crack from the living room.

"Good Apparating, Perce," he called out sarcastically.

But he received no answer. Fred tensed and pulled out his wand.

"Crucio!" he heard a voice say and all of a sudden he was on the floor and the only thing he was aware of was the pain.

When it stopped he looked up and saw Eric grinning at him. Fred groaned and tried to get up. All he could think was that Ginny was in danger. Before he could move, the pain started again and he lost consciousness.

- - - - - - - -

Ginny walked quickly back to her cottage. She didn't look back at Harry's cottage. She reached her door and wiped her eyes quickly before shooting a glance down the hill to see if Eric was coming. Once inside she leant over the sink and cried harder. For the first time in her life, she had no idea what to do. Stay and be with Harry? Leave and go home – without Harry? She let herself cry, because she knew it would keep making the decision as something for later.

It would be unfair to just leave Eric without a word. As much as she knew she wanted Harry, hurting Eric by just leaving without a word would be so unreasonable. She would leave him, but she would tell him first.

She started crying again. What would she tell him her reasons were? Harry would be gone, leaving a trail of dust behind him. She really didn't know if he would hide from her. She did know she would go to the end of the earth to find him if he did. Then she started laughing because she was thinking about searching the earth for him when he was next door.

It was when she realised how silly it was to cry when he was just steps away that she stopped being hysterical and dried her eyes. She would go over there and talk sense to him. Before she could open the door however, she heard a sound.

Ginny let go of the doorknob and turned very slowly.

There was a sound coming from somewhere in the house. She listened and heard it again faintly. It was the same sound she had heard ages ago; somebody crying for help. She looked down and grabbed the wooden-handled umbrella leaning against the wall. Very silently, she tip-toed to the closed door of Eric's workroom and pressed her ear to the wood.

"Help..."

Ginny gasped and tried to twist the doorknob. Somebody was in their house! It was locked. She kicked the door, trying in vain to break it.

The voice stopped. Then it got louder.

"HELP."

Ginny took a step back. The door wasn't very thick… She looked at the handle of the umbrella and without thinking twice started bashing it into the door. She didn't believe the person crying for help would try to hurt her. But how long had they been in her house for Merlin's sake! She heard the wood start to splinter and kicked it again before resuming with the umbrella. A hole emerged big enough to put her hand through and she opened it from the inside.

Once again, she stared into the room Eric hid from her and tried not to feel queasy. There were so many newspaper clippings stuck to walls with scribbles on them. The room stunk and it was littered with empty potion bottles.

Then Ginny gasped. There was a wand on the bench. She went over to it slowly and picked it up with shaking hands. She recognised this wand; it was her own. She turned around; trying to not to retch. The photos of her family and Harry Potter stared back at her and she closed her eyes in revulsion. She had to leave.

"Somebody!"

Ginny screamed at how close the voice was. It came from the large cupboard to her left. Shaking and gripping her wand tightly, she walked over to the cupboard and took a deep breath. There was a sobbing noise coming from inside. She closed her eyes.

"Alohomora!"

The door clicked open and Ginny opened her eyes.

Crouching in terror before her was a man who looked very familiar.

It was Eric.

- - - - - - - -

"Dad, you don't understand! There is a block on the town where Ginny is! I can't get there," Percy pleaded.

Mr Weasley sat at his desk, trying to calm his son down.

"Percy, I've told you, there are commonly glitches with the system and the far-off towns are usually more affected by it. It's nothing unusual."

Percy paced in front of the desk. "I've tried Apparating, I've tried Floo and I've even tried making a Portkey – nothing will work! How is that not suspicious?"

"It's suspicious, yes, Perce. But maybe not in the way you think. That area is most likely just having a problem. It happens." He held up a hand before Percy argued. "I'm not going to ignore it and wait for it to stop, if that's what you think. There could be something wrong with Ginny so I will go now and talk with those who will know how to fix it. But you are not to Apparate Percy, I can't stress that enough. Do not be responsible for ruining Ginny's book. I will handle this and get back to you."

"Have you not listened to anything I've said? The block on Apparition, Eric looking like a missing Muggle…" Percy refused to be satiated.

"I will handle it, Percy."

"THERE IS A BLOCK SO WE CAN'T GET THERE!"

Mr Weasley flinched and looked extremely startled. "Now really-"

Percy took deep breaths. "She. Is. In. Trouble."

Mr Weasley stood up and looked angry and disappointed. "I will go now then. I'll contact you when it's fixed."

"Her wand is gone! There is a rubber wand there instead, hasn't Fred told you anything?" Percy yelled.

Mr Weasley sighed. "No, Fred did not tell me this," he said wearily. "But I will go ask for permission to do a search on its whereabouts."

"Well what has Fred told you then?"

"I haven't seen Fred today. Why was he with you?"

He exited his office and Percy was left standing alone. He hesitated and then pushed up his glasses. Where had Fred gone, if he hadn't gone to Mr Weasley? Percy had already been to the Burrow and nobody was there.

There were hurried footsteps in the hall and Percy looked up to see Ron and Hermione burst in looking dishevelled and red-faced.

"You're back," Percy said; his mind was still on Fred.

Hermione beamed. "Good news! You won't believe it, Percy. We have absolute reason to believe Harry is alive! We came to tell Mr Weasley."

Percy frowned, not in the mood for more theories on Harry Potter being somehow alive.

"Yeah, but apparently Rudolphus Lestrange is after him or something," Ron added, looking like he didn't quite know what to make of all this news.

Hermione nodded. "And he's probably after all of us in particular. I don't have a lot of time to explain but I need to talk with your dad about it. If Lestrange finds Harry first…" she didn't finish, just looked worried.

Ron sighed. "How do we find Harry, Hermione? The world is actually a big place," he added sarcastically.

Percy paused and then decided to go ahead with it. "Eric Greenweiser is Rudolphus Lestrange."

Ron snorted and Hermione raised an eyebrow.

Percy nodded. "I'm almost sure of it." He thrust the MISSING poster for Ben Johnson into Hermione's hands. "Tell me that is not the splitting image of Eric. And a man fitting Lestrange's description was last seen at this Ben's house. He's in hiding!"

"But why…" Hermione looked sick. "Why make such a huge lie? What does he want so bad to pose as somebody else?"

Percy looked grim and resolute. "He wants Harry."

"But nobody knows where Harry is!" Ron said.

Silence took over the room.

Percy took control. "You guys, go try and reason with Dad. I've got to break the Apparating block where Ginny is; I think Lestrange's put it up on purpose. Maybe it's been on from the beginning."

"A block?" Ron looked furious and then anxious. "What if Ginny's in trouble."

Percy nodded. "I'm going to find her. The problem is we don't have time. Wait, you guys – find Fred. He hasn't been seen since we discovered Ginny's wand missing from her apartment this morning. Something could have happened. Then go get Dad, and if nothing works, distract him from trying to find me." He paused. "Don't you think… that if we find Lestrange, we'll find Harry?"

They all looked at each other.

"Let's do it," Ron said.

- - - - - - - -

The man fell out of the cupboard and landed at Ginny's feet. She stopped screaming when she realised something: there was no way this could be Eric.

His hair was long and uneven and he had a long beard. He was as skinny as a rake and looked very sick. And he was crying uncontrollably. The only thing was, he was a living, sick twin of her husband.

Ginny kneeled down. "Who are you?" she whispered. He didn't answer; only seemed more terrified.

"I'm not… I won't hurt you. But who are you?" she said louder.

He grabbed the hem of her dress and clutched it desperately. "Help me," he begged. She looked down into his wide, scared eyes and felt a chill go through her.

"What's your name?" she whispered gently, prying his fingers away but patting his back. She grimaced at how easily she could feel his individual bones.

"Ben," he stuttered. "Ben Johnson."

"Are you-" Ginny paused at how ridiculous this would sound. "Are you related to my husband?"

But she had lost him. He had started crying again. She looked around helplessly. That's when she saw Eric in the doorway.

She froze.

He smiled at her and walked inside the room. Her mind went blank and she stood up and backed away. Ben Johnson kept crying. She looked at him and saw she had left her wand lying next to him. Eric saw that too.

He walked over and picked it up; Ginny was stuck to her spot, frozen in place by fear and shock.

Eric looked down at the man and whispered, "Filthy Muggle."

Then he looked at Ginny, smiled and lifted her wand. Ben Johnson looked up.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Ginny screamed and fell to her knees. She gazed at the man's dead spread-eagled body and then at Eric.

He turned slowly to face her.

- - - - - - - -

Percy walked quickly along the corridor, making sure not to make eye contact with anybody walking in the opposite direction. Trying to look casual he slowed his pace down and stared straight ahead. He knew that he wouldn't be let off so lightly by his father if he was caught in unauthorised areas a second time.

He turned left at a long, empty corridor and kept walking until it opened out into an office area. He walked up to the main desk, where a brunette witch was arguing in frustration with a man's head in the fireplace next to her desk. She only looked once at the papers Percy held up for her to look at. He held his breath until she nodded for him to go ahead, before resuming her argument.

Percy could hardly believe he had gone this far without anybody questioning him. And it seemed it would stay that way. He walked over to the door marked Apparition Management and opened it with a straight face and a shaking hand. Once he had closed it behind him he breathed again.

The room was empty of people; just many, many unorganised papers to his left and a long table to his right. Behind the table on a raised platform was what he wanted. Percy walked over and studied the thousands of numbers flashing before him. People Apparating or Disapparating. To the left of that was a panel of more numbers, thought less of them. These were the Apparition blocks approved by the Ministry that had been put up. Below it was a glass case with a red square inside it. Percy lifted the case and then paused. What he was going to do would have serious repercussions; those blocks had been put up for a reason. But all he could think of was that Ginny was in trouble, or could be.

He pressed his wand to the red square and the red light promptly became green.

He expected a sound, or even Ministry officials to come running in. But nothing did. Percy pushed up his glasses and gripped his wand. Time to go.

- - - - - - - - - -

"I don't understand," Ron complained. "Why are we wasting time looking for Fred when we could be looking for Harry?" He plonked himself down on a chair in the kitchen of the Burrow.

"Well, for starters," Hermione said, "we have a slightly better idea of where Fred could than Harry. And Percy asked us," she added.

Ron raised his eyebrows. "Do we?" When she didn't answer he exclaimed, "We've been looking for Fred for hours now!"

"Don't shout," she said, frowning. "And yes, we at least know what country he's in." She stood up.

"Where are we going now?" Ron asked. "Can we get something to eat first?"

"We're going to Ginny's house, Percy said he last saw Fred there. And no, Ron, you can't eat first. As soon as we find Fred, we're going to go find Harry."

She Disapparated and Ron made a face at where she had been standing. Giving a longing glance at the food cupboard, he Disapparated too.

Ginny's house was very quiet. There was a fine layer of dust covering some objects, but other than that it was spotless. Hermione looked around slowly, looking for something out of place. It didn't even look like Percy and Fred had been here this morning it was so untouched. Ron went over to the cupboard and opened it with a hopeful face.

"Ron!" Hermione hissed at him.

"I'm hungry!" he protested. "And why are you lowering your voice?"

"Can't you feel it?"

Ron stopped. He did feel it. It was a kind of eerie quietness to the place. Still as the dead. Their eyes roamed over the room and Ron looked down the hallway. He stopped when his gaze fell on the doorway to the last room. Ginny's room. There was a lamp lying on the floor, half out of the doorway. He motioned to Hermione and her eyes went round and she pulled out her wand. Ron pulled his own out and they walked slowly down the corridor. On three, they jumped in front of the doorway with their wands raised.

There was nothing.

But there was a mess. A chair was turned over, the bedspread was lying in a crumpled heap on the ground and lamp they had seen was cracked down the middle.

"I'm sure Percy and Fred didn't leave it like this," Hermione whispered. She walked over to the other side of the room and looked behind the bed and screamed. She kept screaming until Ron grabbed her. Then he too saw what she did.

Fred was lying at an odd angle against the bed, his body was twisted and his eyes were rolled into the back of his head. There was a small trickle of blood coming out of his mouth. Hermione stopped screaming and went to his side.

"He's still alive!" she cried. She groaned and held his hand. "Who would do this?"

Ron was as white as a sheet as he stared down at his older brother. "Come on, we have to get him to St Mungo's. Then we have to make sure the rest of the family is all right."

"No, first we have to get Ginny."

Ron stared at Hermione. "After Fred, I meant," she said quickly.

- - - - - - - - -

Ginny clutched at the wall to help herself off, never taking her eyes off the man in front of her. He continued to grin at her, advancing ever so slowly. She felt her back press against the wall and the heavy realisation that there was nowhere to run now. She wanted to close her eyes but she was too scared to risk it.

"All this time?" she whispered with loathing.

"All this time." He surveyed her, stroking the wand… her wand.

She couldn't understand. This was Eric, her loving, til death do us part husband. Eric was now pointing a wand at her.

"Why?" she whispered again, as if more noise would push him over the edge.

"Because I knew you would lead me to what I wanted." He took a step closer. "And a small, personal vendetta against your father."

"What did you want?" Ginny asked, also wondering at the same time what her father had done to Eric.

Eric grinned. "Harry Potter."

Ginny stopped breathing.

"No, let's not play dumb," Eric said firmly, leaning against the bench and eyeing her.

"How… how could I lead you to Harry Potter?" Ginny said unsteadily. "I don't know where he is." Her hands felt the shelves along the cupboard behind her, desperately searching for a weapon. There wasn't even a window in the room that could provide an escape.

"I thought said," Eric shouted, "don't play dumb!" He shoved over a glass and Ginny jumped as it shattered all over the floor. She pressed against the cupboard harder, quickly realising there was nowhere to run.

"I don't know where he is!" Ginny cried. She was struck with fear at the fact that this was the truth. Harry had probably taken off by now, never to be found again.

"Oh, 'I don't know where he is…'" Eric mimicked her. He spat on the floor in front of her. "Then, the person you visit in the cottage alongside us is… nobody you know?"

Ginny looked at him in disgust and fear but held her head up high when she answered. "I don't think I know what you mean."

Eric leered. "Don't you?" He flicked his wand carelessly at her.

Someone was screaming. She was screaming on the ground in agony. She wanted to die. It was over as quick as it began.

"Maybe you remember now?"

Ginny groaned and tried to get up, staggering as she came to her feet. She shook her head. "Harry Potter is… has been missing for a long time now."

The agony went for longer this time. She couldn't breath; could barely move as it consumed her. When it stopped, she couldn't stand up.

"Who are you?" she whispered with loathing, wiping blood from her lip where she had bitten it.

"Funny you should ask that now. It's just in time for…" he trailed off and closed his eyes. "Ahhhh," he sighed with satisfaction.

Ginny watched in horror as he stepped back and stretched his arms. He was changing - transforming. His arms became longer, his body skinner and taller. The nose became hooked and stubble appeared around. He smiled, a hideous smile. He was dirty and unkempt, but it was his eyes that scared her the most. They were bottomless and black; expressionless holes. But then something scared her far more; she knew this man standing in front of her.

"No, no, no," she groaned as she slid herself backwards, away from him. And the pieces started to grind together painfully in her mind.

"It took me so long to figure out how to get close to the Weasley family," Rudolphus Lestrange said. "I wanted to crush every one of you, especially your fool of a father for killing my wife."

Ginny shuddered and clenched her teeth. She had slept next to him. She had kissed him. She had lived with him. All of these things she had done with a murderer.

"I plotted and I planned but nothing seemed to work," he continued, staring at her, all the while smiling that insinuating, horrible smile. "And then I read about you Ginevra Weasley. Broken-hearted from Harry Potter's death and trying heroically to make it on your own… or so everybody thought. But I knew that you were my ticket to revenge on a small and also a large scale."

"You hated my dad? That's why you did all of…" she cried and waved her arms around the room. "… this? You're insane."

Lestrange narrowed his lidded eyes. "Perhaps." He flicked his wand. "Crucio!" This time she thought she was going to lose conciousness. She could hear herself screaming but it was oddly muted. When it stopped, she lay curled up on the floor.

"Tell me where he is, I didn't play husband to have you lie on your side in pain."

"Why did you?" she whispered, refusing to let her voice waver.

"I needed Harry Potter. And I knew that you would slip up and let on where he was hiding, I just needed to get you to trust me. When you wanted to move here, I knew it was because this is where Harry was." He walked slowly closer. "By the way… I don't think you were a loyal wife," he whispered.

"Slip up?" Grinny tried to laugh but it came out as a groan. "I didn't even know he was alive until we came here!" She stopped, kicking herself mentally for giving him up.

Lestrange faltered for the first time. "Didn't you?" he asked suspiciously. "Strange coincidence then." He smiled again. "Well all the more well done on my part for being intuitive, yes?" His gaze grew cold again. "Now where is he? The charade is over."

Ginny managed to really laugh this time. Or was she crying? "Well if you've checked his house then you can see that he's long gone." She closed her eyes. "Long gone."

Suddenly there was a thud from somewhere in the house.

"Ginny? Ginny?" a voice loudly.

Ginny frowned. It sounded like…

Lestrange was quicker. "Silencio!" he whispered, pointing the wand at her, just as her mouth formed the word 'Percy!' He moved behind the door. Ginny heard her brother's footsteps come closer. She tried to scream in vain.

'Don't come in, don't come in,' she pleaded silently. But a second later, his figure framed the doorway. Their eyes locked, his in confusion, and hers in fear. Ginny pointed wordlessly behind him, opening and shutting her mouth in a silent scream. Percy ran over to her and she shook her head.

"Ginny! What - what - why are you on the floor?" He frowned. "You're bleeding!" He knelt down and patted her. "Where's Eric, Ginny? I know you're not going to believe me after everything but he's dangerous. We have to leave right now!" He tried to pull her up but she struggled against him, pointing at Lestrange behind him. She picked up a glass that had fallen on the ground and threw it at Eric. He waved his wand at it and it floated to the ground gently.

Percy had frowned when she threw the glass but now he stood up slowly in fear when he realised there was no sound of smashing glass. He felt the tip of the wand dig into his back and his eyes locked on Ginny's.

I'm sorry, he mouthed to her. She screamed now, the spell removed as Lestrange yelled "AVADA KEDAVRA!" Green light shot out of the wand as Ginny threw herself at Lestrange. She heard Percy's body fall as Lestrange shoved her to the ground. She turned around and saw the cupboard had toppled over as well because of the curse. It fell partly on Percy's leg but he didn't utter a word.

Ginny started convulsing as she crawled toward her brother. Lestrange strode over and grabbed her by her hair, jerking her head upwards. She gasped in pain. But the pain was nothing compared how she felt "Where is he?" he hissed in her ear.

She stopped struggling and looked him in the eye. "Even if I knew," she hissed back, "I would never tell you."

"CRUCIO!"

When she came to she was on her back and his foot was pressing into her stomach. She tried to breathe but could only manage one, wheezing gasp.

"I must say, it's a good thing you failed your Auror's exams otherwise I would have actually had to put up a fight." He sneered down at her coldly. She shuddered at the wild glint in his eyes and flicked her eyes over to Percy's deadly still form on the floor. She closed her eyes then.

"If I'd passed those exams… I wouldn't be here right now!" she yelled. She choked on her rage and pain and tried to push him off her.

He only dug his heel into her stomach harder. "Ah see, that's why I made sure you failed the entry exams.

The small amount of remaining air in her lungs whooshed out. "What?" she croaked.

"Well it wouldn't do to have my wife become an Auror. You would have been prior to the investigation into a certain Death Eater called Rudolphus Lestrange." He emphasised his name by applying more pressure on her stomach. She felt her vision start to go black.

"What do you mean 'made sure I failed?'" she gasped out, almost unable to speak.

He removed his foot from her lungs momentarily. "I wrote a note as yourself saying you were declining the offer to train to be an Auror. They were very annoyed, it isn't often that such a young witch passes the exams." For a second, he looked almost surprised - even impressed. But then his mask of hatred took over again. "Then I got your letter of acceptance and changed it to a fail." He took his foot off altogether, waiting for her reaction.

She could have been an Auror. She could have lived her dream. She screamed and threw herself at Lestrange, tearing at his face and sobbing. He blasted her backwards with his wand and she hit the wall and slumped.

"Why do you want him so bad?" she whispered. But even as she asked, she already knew.

"I have Voldemort's power. He wants to restart the war with it," Harry said, gazing at her.

"Oh, I think you know…" Lestrange answered, staring at her face closely. Ginny looked over at Percy.

"He's dead."

Ginny looked away. She knew, for her whole life, she would never forgive herself for not trusting Percy. The guilt would forever reside within her. But then, something made her look at him again.

And his hand twitched ever so slightly.

She took a sharp intake of breath. She didn't imagine it. Her eyes darted back to Lestrange. He was muttering to himself, looking like he was in another world. They darted back. Maybe it was the cupboard which had taken the full brunt of the curse, not Percy!

Quickly she turned back to Lestrange. Something had occurred to her. "The bruises?"

He snapped out of his day dream. He peered at her, sizing her up. "I wondered if you'd think about that." He shrugged. "You'll have to forgive me for wanting to amuse myself. Just to torture you and throw things at you while you screamed and then to be sleeping together two minutes later made the waiting worth it."

"You're sick," she said in a low, even voice. She shuddered and drew in her legs.

He threw back his head and laughed. "I am."

Ginny glanced over at Percy again. His hand had definitely moved. She started shifting her body slowly to block him from view as much as possible.

She turned back to Lestrange and a strange sense of victory overcame her. "Well, I don't know what you're going to do. Harry is gone. Your plan has failed." She held her head up and stared at him.

"Wait for him to come back."

Ginny laughed desperately. "We will be sitting here for the rest of our lives then. He's never coming back."

Anger and surprise registered on Lestrange's face. "What?" he asked.

"Why do you think I went over there today? It was to say good bye. I'm never going to see him again." She tried to laugh but could only cry at this truth.

"You're lying," said Lestrange, but he looked like he knew it was true.

"If I was lying," she yelled, "why do you think I'm crying like this? I have no hope left now."

This time he cursed her repeatedly without stopping. It must have gone on for hours. It felt like it. She could barely think or see.

"TELL ME!" he screamed in her face, the whites of his eyes glinting dangerously in the dim light. She mustered all the strength she had left and spat in his face.

He let out a roar of fury and pulled her to her feet by her hair and shoved her against the wall, pushing his body against hers.

"You think I'll kill you right away? You think I'll give you the luxury of a quick death? Take one last look around before your sanity leaves you." He shoved her against the wall again and her head smacked loudly on the wall. "Even now I want to ravish you," he whispered hotly in her ear and fumbled with her skirt.

She didn't have breath left to say or scream anything. She leant forward and sunk her teeth into his neck, tasting the coppery blood and retching. He yelled in agony and punched her straight in the face. She closed her eyes and stopped fighting. Please kill me she thought. Just kill me. My life was over when Harry left anyway. She felt her mind and soul begin to slip into the unknown.

But then there was nothing holding her up, nothing touching her at all. She sagged to her knees and tried to open her eyes. A dark figure loomed over her and she whimpered, holding her hands above her head.

But then she noticed the figure had green eyes.

She let herself fall into his arms, her strength completely gone. She cried openly as she looked up into Harry's face. She touched his cheek to make sure it was real. "You came back…" It was a whisper but his eyes flared as he heard the pain in her voice. He put his hands over her cuts like he was trying to heal them. She had to look away when she saw the tears in his own eyes because they were so powerfully guilty.

"No guilt," she murmured, on the edge of consciousness. "But Percy," she said, trying to get up. Harry stopped her and lay her down gently before going over to Percy.

"He's alive. Just not conscious!" he said. "We need to get him out of here."

And then Ginny heard another moan.

She screamed and crawled towards the door. "I thought he was dead!" She turned accusatory eyes at Harry who shook his head and looked at her intensely. She grabbed her wand lying on the floor.

"Av - Avad…" she stammered, only in a whisper.

"No!" Harry shouted. "We can't kill him like that. I know Voldemort put special protection on him. It'll only backfire!"

She didn't listen. She wanted the man in front of her dead.

"No, Ginny! Please! It will kill you! I've seen it in his memories!" she stopped and dropped the wand.

He carried Percy over to her. "You need to get out of the house, both of you."

She began to protest. "Now, Ginny," he commanded, keeping one eye on Lestrange's body. He was starting to move.

"But wh-" she cried. She couldn't even stand. She didn't know what was happening. What was he doing? She couldn't move. She lay still. The pain was unbearable.

Harry gripped her hand so tightly it hurt. He kissed her fiercely. "I love you. I love you, Ginny. I need you to get up and keep going. And I need you to hear me because I love you."

She felt the tears coursing down her face as she heaved herself to her feet and grabbed hold of the unconscious Percy. She had heard him. She looked back only once and Harry was chanting some sort of spell and there was a green light surrounding him.

She staggered through the house, wanting to go back to Harry but pushing on because of those words. Those beautiful words. The house began to get hot and steam was surrounding her. She pushed on.

She fell on the grass with Percy when she made it outside. The house was engulfed in green flame. She screamed and tried to run back inside but a hand stopped her. She turned around and Percy was looking at her from where he lay.

"NO!" she screamed. She hit the grass and yelled something wordless and full of pain. She felt her heart rip as the house began to crumble.

The green fire burnt on and Ginny lay on the grass. How could she live in a world where she had lost Harry twice? It was only now that she realised she would have searched for him for the rest of her life if he had left. Maybe she still would now.

She felt a hand on her back and somebody lifting her up. "No, no…" she moaned. She tried to clutch at the grass in vain.

"Ginny! Ginny! It's me!"

She only dimly recognised Hermione's voice. She turned around and saw her friend's fearful and worried face. She looked over at Percy and saw Ron kneeling over him.

She looked back at the house as the fire started to die as quickly as it had begun. She crawled towards it but Hermione stopped her.

"Ginny! No! We have to get you home! Where is your wand?" Hermione tried to lift her up but Ginny kept crawling and didn't answer.

"Please… please," she cried. She looked at the ruined and charred front door in desperation. She needed to at least see his body. But she didn't have the strength. It failed her and he wasn't there to tell her I love you and get her up again. She felt Ron lifting her up and carrying her down the hill. She sobbed uncontrollably. She could sense her brother's confusion.

"I don't see Lestrange," he called out to Hermione. She shook her head at him, agreeing.

"Let's go," she replied.

As she opened her eyes, Ginny let out a shriek. She found her strength and broke free from Ron, running back up the hill with incredible energy.

He was black with dirt and smoke and his eyes didn't focus properly on her. But when she launched herself into his arms he held on like he would never see her again. Ron, Hermione and Percy stared, not knowing who the haggard man in front of them was.

But Ginny did.

"Get us away from here," she commanded, not letting go of Harry. She saw Ron start to question and Hermione frown and she shook her head.

"DO IT QUICK!"

She felt Hermione grab hold of her and Disapparate. She felt the rubbery, squeezing sensation, but it was nowhere near as tight compared to her grip on Harry.

She felt herself fall onto hard floor. A second later Percy and Ron appeared next to her. Ron and Hermione were up within a second.

Ginny opened her eyes. In front of her, her family was sitting down to dinner. Mrs Weasley was holding a pot of what looked like pumpkin soup, George has his fork held in midair. Angelina and Penelope were gaping, as was Mr Weasley who had dropped his cup on the ground and it rolled over to Harry. Charlie had stood up to get a better look and Bill was holding a hyperventilating Fleur's hand. They all stared in shock and horror at the figured in front of them, three of which were covered in blood, ash and wounds. One of which nobody knew but Ginny.

But now Hermione was staring at the man holding Ginny's arm. Her eyes were roaming over his scarless forhead and those green eyes.

"Harry?" she whispered in shock.

There was a clatter as Mrs Weasley dropped the pot and fainted.

Ginny laughed through her tears and nodded. She didn't even let go off his hand when the entire family came at them in a wall of joy.

-----

It took a long time for the world to accept the Boy-Who-Died was now the Boy-Who-Returned. There were interviews and letters and disorder. There was happiness and joy and love.

Fred recovered, he had been upstairs recovering when Ginny, Harry, Percy, Ron and Hermione had Apparated home. He had suffered only minor damages at Lestrange's hands and recovered quickly enough when he learned Harry was back. Ron and Hermione hadn't even told the rest of the Weasley's where they were going. They just made sure Fred was fine, ignored questions and took off. Ginny thought it was a good thing that they did.

Harry himself naturally tried to avoid the attention, but it was inevitable. He only told the Weasleys and close friends what had happened to him. It became clear quickly that Harry had killed Lestrange, only adding to the mystery surrounding his return. But only Ginny knew that it was Dark Magic he had had to used to kill Lestrange. And only she knew about what had changed Harry and how Voldemort had died. Only she knew the consequences it meant to Harry.

Ron and Hermione were overjoyed at having their best friend back. They knew what Ginny knew but also knew it was in the past now. They decided to get married again just so Harry could be best man.

She and Percy now had a relationship with a closeness she had with none of her other brothers. The long anger and resentment between them disappeared and was replaced with true affection and trust. He was no less worse for wear considering he had stared death in the face and lived. Sometimes he had nightmares, but Ginny understood.

If it was hard for the world to accept Harry return, it was harder for Harry himself. He was more withdrawn than he used to be, never far from Ginny. In fact, he never took his eyes off of her. She was the same. Being parted was a painful reminder of everything they had gone through and so they never strayed far from each other.

Once she felt it was time, she re-applied to become an Auror and was accepted. Harry was offered a place but he declined. Maybe later, was all he said to her questions.

One day, a while later, she found the ring he had given her so long ago and she cried as she put it on her finger.

That night they lay in bed, thinking about things better left unsaid. She knew he was thinking about the memories still locked inside his head, raging to get out. But oh, he knew about her fear of Lestrange. The internal and external scars that would never go away. But because he knew about her, and she knew about him… they worked. They could fit together and not be afraid or ashamed.

"Harry," she whispers that night. Late, late that night. "I'm wearing your ring."

He turns to her and stares, gently probing her thoughts with his eyes. She smiles and he slowly smiles back and traces his fingers over her smiling lips. She lies still, sensing his question.

"My answer has always been yes," she says.

They lay in bed heart to heart, breast to breast, welded, conjoined together. Soul to soul. He opens his mouth to speak and she puts her hand on his lips and says, "I understand it all. I feel it all. Say nothing."

And he doesn't.

THE END

A/N Thanks all of you for reading and enduring with me. It did take far too long for me to get the chapters out. I really liked this story for being different. I hope you all did too. There are inconsistencies and it's definitely not my best work yet but just looking over it now I have a smile on my face. It was fun to write. I'll be back to finish my LJ, don't worry. Maybe not now, but in the near future.

So thanks for reading and reviewing, it's a pleasure to write for you all. Oh, and I aplogise for all the spelling/grammatical mistakes. I know there are many but I just can't go over it again!