Chapter Eighteen - Predictions and Foretellings
Ginny stared blankly into the swirling mist of the crystal ball before her, willing herself to see anything within its depths. The small clock on the wall, with its staccato tick tick, was getting more and more irritating and Ginny sighed for the millionth time, wishing that she was still snuggled deep in the warm covers of her bed. She knew she shouldn't feel alone though, her three companions were suffering through their own individual lessons at the same moment.
In the three weeks that she had been taking these lessons to improve and show her abilities as a Seer, Ginny hadn't Seen one bloody thing. The tea leaves had been an absolute disaster and all they had been to her were a mass of wet dredges. The palm reading was horrendous as well, Ginny having predicted her own death to be five days earlier. So now she had been studying the crystal ball for the past few days, hoping with everything she had that finally she would be able to See something.
She started drumming her fingers noisily on the lace covered table top and her eyelids drooped, partly from fatigue and partly from the heavily perfumed odor of the small room. She was stuck in a classroom way at the top of the North Tower, which was a great many corridors and staircases away from her room. The room was very tiny and extremely cluttered, with different Seer objects strewn about among the many papers and books. Two small windows were the only way for light to filter through and Ginny could just barely see the sun rising up from the east.
So lost in her thoughts, Ginny practically toppled out of her spindly chair when a loud tutting noise was made from across the table. Tearing her eyes from the hypnotic swirling mist trapped in the ball, her gaze settled on the thin and eccentric woman who was currently pursing her lips in distaste. Professor Trelawney was the oddest person Ginny had ever met, and that was saying something, since she had met many strange people. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had all warned her about the Divination teacher and how picky she was with her students. Hermione had also said she was a complete fraud and not to listen to a word of her nonsense.
So far, Ginny had to agree with Hermione. Professor Trelawney was in no way a true Seer and except for those two prophecies she had made, she was utterly useless in the area. Ginny had not learned one thing from her and was ready to throw the towel in and give up on being a Seer. She obviously didn't possess the Gift like Dumbledore thought she did, or maybe it was just Trelawney was that bad of a teacher.
"Have you Seen anything yet, dear?" Professor Trelawney asked in a mystical voice.
Ginny frowned deeply and grumbled before answering. "No, are you sure this crystal ball isn't broken?"
Professor Trelawney gave her a very offended look and blinked her eyes repeatedly behind her large spectacles. "I assure you it is not broken, you are just not trying hard enough. Dumbledore says you have the Gift of a Seer, so show me that you have it."
Ginny glared icily at her and snapped, "Maybe if you truly taught me, I would See something."
Professor Trelawney stood up so sharply her chair fell over. Ginny flinched a little but her hard stare never wavered.
"I will not be spoken to like that, dear," she whispered coldly. "When I return I expect you to have finally Seen something, anything. For goodness sake, do like every other student and make it up, it doesn't matter to me anymore. I have yet to meet another true Seer."
With a loud huff, she marched from the room, slamming the door behind her. Ginny snorted and let out a sigh of relief. "Finally, I got her out of the room. Without her hovering over me and her unending questions, I might be able to See something."
Ginny looked back at the crystal ball but it was like her brain was refusing to work. If anything, she felt even less and she had to keep shaking her head to stay awake. The fumes becoming sickening, Ginny stood up and shoved both of the windows open, cool morning air seeping in and making the room more breathable. Ginny stood by the window for a few more minutes, watching as a lovely golden glow was shimmering on the fluffy clouds in the sky. The early morning mist was starting fade away, leaving the grounds in a hazy light.
Shifting her eyes to the forest, Ginny saw that it stretched on endlessly, looking very inviting but also ominous. She squinted, noticing a very dark patch among the trees miles away, where no sunlight seemed to settle and a faint trail of smoke was rising. Confused and curious, Ginny felt the urge to explore the forest and find out its secrets. She remembered Dumbledore's words though, it is not what it seems to be. She really needed to learn more about the forest.
Just as Ginny was ready to turn away and go back to her crystal ball gazing, though she used the term loosely, something along the edge of the forest caught her eye. Peering closer she saw there was something, or someone, moving down there. Ginny quickly crouched down, not wanting to be seen. The dark shape continued to move forward swiftly before stopping just short of the last row of trees. Holding her breath, Ginny watched as the figure moved once more and stepped into the faint sunlight.
It was a person, a tall, dark cloaked figure. The face was completely hidden beneath the hood they had pulled up. The light breeze rustled their cloak but still the person did not move. Finally, a wand was pulled out and a few seconds later, a pale purple light shot out of it but was immediately deflected a few feet in front of the person. Apparently satisfied with whatever that had meant, the person quickly tucked their wand away and turned sharply on their heel and disappeared once more into the dark depths of the woods.
Ginny let out a shaky breath that she hadn't realized she was holding. She stood back up slowly and stared with wide eyes at the forest. Who was that? she thought, feeling suddenly terrified. Have we been discovered by...by....You-Know Who?!
The urge to go and tell Professor Dumbledore hit her suddenly and Ginny forced her feet to move and she started to dash to the door. She completely forgot about the table in front of her and knocked it over in her panic. The crystal ball hit the floor with a loud thud and Ginny stumbled to her knees in front of it. The ball came to a spinning halt, the mist swirling faster and faster. Ginny's eyes were unwillingly drawn to it and she stared hard, concentrating.
The mist parted and Ginny felt as if she was watching a movie play out before her. An old, crumbling mansion standing amidst a black forest with a dark figure walking into it. Suddenly, the point of view switched and it was like she was seeing through the eyes of the stranger. They passed through dark, cob-web filled corridors with eerie shadows dancing on the walls. The stranger reached the end of the corridor and stopped at a door, reaching forward and pushing it open. Ginny bit back a scream when she saw what was on the other side of the door. A vile, red-eyed creature turned and gazed hungrily at the stranger.
"Well?" the Dark Lord questioned.
"I have found them," whispered the low, monotone voice of the stranger.
Voldemort let out a shrill laugh of delight and Ginny cringed. The scene disappeared in the white mist of the ball and quickly changed to a different time, a different place. She was staring at the grounds of Hogwarts, and it was nighttime. A tall figure was standing by the lake underneath the oak tree. Slowly, another person came into view. Ginny squinted, trying to recognize the people but the image was distorted. The tall figure turned and embraced the newcomer, who grabbed the hand of the other and slowly dragged him out of sight, toward the forest.
Ginny blinked as the mist turned a blood red and she was suddenly looking at a pair of evil, snake-like eyes. They leered at her maliciously and she screamed in horror. At the same moment, in another room at Illustris, the Boy-Who-Lived shuddered violently and collapsed to the floor, clutching his scar in agony.
The door to the North Tower burst open and Professor Trelawney rushed in, looking very flustered. She froze at the sight of Ginny, cowering on the floor and shaking, and of the crystal ball, which was sitting on the floor quite innocently, the swirling mist gone.
"My goodness! What happened here, my dear? Why are you on the floor? Did you just scream?" Professor Trelawney asked all these questions hurriedly as she gently picked the crystal ball up and placed it on her desk.
She walked over to Ginny and pulled her up. Ginny swayed dangerously and Trelawney grabbed one of the toppled over chairs and pushed her into it.
"I saw.....I saw," Ginny muttered, closing her eyes.
Professor Trelawney gave her a surprised look. "You saw? What did you see?"
"Man," Ginny mumbled, rubbing her forehead furiously, a pounding headache forming. "A man, in the forest. And then....a mansion.....Dark Lord....was there."
Professor Trelawney's interested look turned to one of polite disbelief. "You saw.....He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named? Come, come, my dear. That is incredibly far-fetched. You are almost as bad as Mister Potter. The Dark Lord? When I said make up stories, I did not mean that."
Furious, Ginny jumped to her feet, the chair falling once more. "I SAW THE DARK LORD! WHY DON'T YOU BELIEVE ME?! HE KNOWS WE'RE HERE, HE KNOWS THE FOUR HEIRS ARE AT ILLUSTRIS!"
Professor Trelawney look a step back in shock. Ginny was red in the face and breathing hard, her glare burning with hatred. A piece of paper on the desk burst into flames and Trelawney jumped in fright.
"He knows?" she whispered. "He can't possibly know. There are so many wards around this place........" She trailed off.
"Then ask Harry," Ginny fumed. "He could tell you, his scar always hurts when Voldemort knows something."
Professor Trelawney flinched at the name but ignored the rest of the statement. "What else did you See?"
Feeling defeated, Ginny mumbled, "Hogwarts. There were two people. One dragged the other way, I couldn't see who they were though."
Professor Trelawney made a funny noise in her throat, suddenly noticing the small fire on her desk. With a quick wave of her wand, the fire disappeared and smoldering embers were left in its place.
"Well," she began, "Professor Dumbledore will need to hear about this. I will take you to him and we will find Mister Potter on the way, to see if you are right about him. Come along."
Feeling numb, Ginny followed her teacher out of the room, down the stairs, and away from the North Tower, her mind still reeling. She had actually Seen something, something that was real. But Ginny was beginning to think that this Gift of hers was more of a curse.
She barely noticed as Madame Pomfrey rushed out of a corridor a few steps ahead, trying to get a very shaken Harry to walk. Professor Trelawney swept forward.
"Poppy," she said softly, "what is the matter?"
"Sibyll!" Madame Pomfrey exclaimed. "Whatever are you doing here?"
"That doesn't matter at the moment," she sniffed. "What is wrong with Mister Potter?"
"I'm fine," Harry snapped, yanking his arm away from Madame Pomfrey and glaring at the two adults. "Its just a headache."
"That's a lie, Harry," Ginny whispered.
Harry spun around and stared at Ginny in shock. "What....what are you talking about?"
"I saw him, Harry. I saw V-Voldemort." She trembled, taking a step closer.
Harry put a hand to his scar, which was a vivid red, and he winced in pain. Realization dawned on his face and his eyes went wide with horror.
"Oh. My. God," he muttered, "he knows."
Ginny nodded wordlessly as Harry turned to Madame Pomfrey. "Where's Dumbledore? We must speak to him now!"
"Mister Potter! Professor Dumbledore is at Hogwarts right now! You know he doesn't come to Illustris until Saturday."
"Then take us to Hogwarts," Harry said firmly. "Ginny, Malfoy, me, and Hermione, we all have to go. This is important!"
Eyeing him suspiciously, Madame Pomfrey finally nodded. "Very well, Mister Potter, you all will be Portkeyed to Hogwarts. Sibyll, please go and get Mister Malfoy and Miss Granger."
Professor Trelawney nodded and walked away, her bangles clanking loudly. Madame Pomfrey turned back to the two students.
"All right, you two, follow me, we have to get a Portkey ready."
She marched down the hall, Ginny and Harry in her wake. Neither spoke, both too lost in their own thoughts. As they reached the entrance hall, Draco and Hermione appeared, both looking confused.
"Harry," Hermione said softly, "what's wrong? Professor Trelawney sent us both here."
Draco snorted. "Did little Pothead have another scary vision? Did his scar hurt again?" He made his voice sound very child-like.
Harry growled and made a lunge at Draco, with only Hermione holding him back. Draco laughed and Ginny bit back a sarcastic remark.
"It wasn't Harry," she said through clenched teeth. "I had the vision."
Draco raised an eyebrow. "Ah, Seer abilities finally working? Are you finally making your existence useful?"
Ginny flushed and mumbled something incoherently. Hermione gave Draco a very dirty look as she continued to hold back an angry Harry.
Madame Pomfrey reappeared, having gone to find a Portkey, and she gave the group a very surprised look when she saw them.
"Is something the matter?" she asked.
"Oh, no, Madame Pomfrey," Hermione responded quickly. She then tilted her head toward the old glove the nurse had in her hand. "What's that for?"
"We're Portkeying you four to Hogwarts. Apparently, there is something of great importance that Mister Potter and Miss Weasley need to tell Professor Dumbledore immediately. This will take you directly to his study."
She paused and tapped the glove with her wand. "Portus," she muttered. The glove glowed blue and then she handed it to Harry.
"It will take you there in about a minute. Professor Dumbledore will send you back when you are finished."
Reluctantly, Draco walked forward and placed his finger on the glove with the others. A few seconds later, the tug behind his navel was felt and the four were spinning to Hogwarts. They landed hard on the ground and Ginny, having lost her balance, knocked Draco over and the two fell on top of each other. Finding a mass of red curls suddenly on his face, Draco made a disgusted noise and tried to push Ginny off of him. His hands grabbed her waist and an odd tingling feeling shot down his spine. He shivered and Ginny's head came up suddenly, their eyes locking. Draco found himself drowning in her brown eyes and he mentally slapped himself.
She's a Weasley! he told himself furiously.
Ginny blushed under his intense gaze and quickly rolled off of him. Draco had to stifle a groan from the sudden loss of contact. Why did he find himself missing her warmth? He picked himself off the floor and came face to face with a very amused Harry and Hermione. He sneered at them and turned him back on them, facing Professor Dumbledore, who was seated behind his desk.
The old wizard looked mildly surprised at the sudden intrusion into his office but he smiled gently at them.
"Well, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?"
Harry became very serious and released Hermione's hand to step closer to Dumbledore. "Professor, my scar.....it started burning again. Voldemort, he knows."
The twinkle in Dumbledore's blue eyes vanished and he stared sharply at Harry. "Are you absolutely positive?"
"Yes, Professor," Ginny spoke up, finding her voice. "I...I had a vision, in the crystal ball. I saw....a stranger. He went to an old mansion and V-Voldemort was there. He said that he had found us. But that's not all." Ginny paused and then took a deep breath. "I saw this person myself, on the grounds. He came to the edge of the forest and then stopped. Then he took his wand out and shot a pale purple light out of it. It deflected and then he vanished back into the forest."
Dumbledore went slightly pale and stood up. "So, Tom knows, I was afraid of this. Though I didn't actually think he would discover Illustris, it was something I greatly feared. He will not be able to enter though, too many wards are placed all over that place. Even with his dark powers, it would take him months to remove them all. But he knows, and that is terrible enough. Just to be safe, I'll assign two teachers to patrol the grounds each night."
He glanced at the Four Heirs. "It was good of you to come and tell me, this is serious. Please do not worry too much though, concentrate on your training. I know you are all struggling but you are getting better. The ability of Miss Weasley to see in the crystal ball now is proof of that. Now, would you like to say hello to your friends before I send you back?"
Suddenly looking elated, the Four Heirs nodded vigorously. Ginny suddenly remembered something though.
"Wait, Professor, there was something else!" She then paused, remembering how vague the next vision had been and how silly it would sound, not knowing who the people were or what was really happening.
"Yes, Miss Weasley?" Dumbledore said, looking interested.
"Oh," Ginny said softly, "it was nothing, nevermind."
Dumbledore stared down at her, as if knowing she was lying, but Ginny averted her gaze. "Very well," he said softly. "Return to my office in an hour and I will have a Portkey ready to take you all back to Illustris."
The Four Heirs left Dumbledore's study and as soon as they were in the corridor in front of the gargoyle, Draco turned to Ginny.
"What are you hiding, Weasley?" he asked suspiciously, eyes narrowed.
"Never you mind," she retorted. "Go off to your Slytherin buddies. I think I'm going to enjoy this hour of freedom, not being in your presence."
Draco smirked. "You know you can't get enough of me."
Ginny coughed and desperately tried to hide the blush forming on her cheeks. "Sod off, Malfoy," she hissed.
She stalked away, Harry and Hermione trailing after her. Draco snorted and went down to the Slytherin Common Room.
"I can't wait to see Ron again," Hermione whispered excitedly to Harry.
Harry smiled at her and squeezed her hand. "I'll be glad to see him too, love."
The three reached the Entrance Hall and Ginny quickly pushed the doors that led outside open. Confused, Harry called out after her.
"Where you going, Gin? Don't you want to see Ron?"
"He's outside," she answered back simply.
They walked across the grounds toward the lake, reveling in the fact that they were back at their true home. As they approached the familiar oak tree, Hermione and Harry saw that Ginny was right, Ron was indeed outside. But he wasn't alone. Hermione's jaw dropped open in shock when she saw the blonde Ravenclaw resting in Ron's arms.
"Ron!" she shrieked.
Ron jumped and quickly let go of Luna. He turned his head sharply and his face first showed shock, then joy as he leapt up and raced toward his two best friends and his sister.
"Harry, Hermione, Ginny! What are you doing here?" He grabbed Ginny in a tight hug, who laughed with delight.
"Decided to come visit you, mate," Harry said with a cheeky grin before giving Ron a hug.
Hermione threw her arms around Ron's neck. "Oh, I've missed you! Like I said, Illustris isn't home without you there."
Ron blushed as he pulled away from the brunette. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Luna standing a few feet away, twirling a strand of her hair absentmindedly around her finger. He smiled at her and quickly went and took her hand, leading her over.
"You guys, there's something you should know. Luna and I...well....we're together now." He smiled sheepishly.
Hermione shrieked again as Harry gave him a knowing wink. Ginny quickly hugged Luna, who was smiling vaguely.
"I'm so happy for you two," Ginny said, "I always thought you two would go well together."
Ron wrapped his arms around Luna and pulled her close, dropping a quick kiss on her lips. "I just wish I had realized it sooner. It practically took a blow to the head for me to realize."
Luna laughed dreamily. "He's quite serious."
Ron tore his eyes away from his girlfriend and gave the three Heirs before him a questioning look. "What are you really doing here? I know you wouldn't forfeit a day of training just to visit me."
Ginny suddenly looked uncomfortable and she exchanged a quick glance with Hermione, who decided to speak for her.
"Ginny had a....vision. She was in her lesson with Trelawney and she saw something in the crystal ball. Voldemort knows where we are training."
Ron flinched at the name but shuddered even more when he heard all of the news. "Oh, that's really not good. How did he find out?!"
"A spy," Harry said angrily. "Came right up to the grounds. He didn't see the castle but he knew what was there and he went running back to Voldemort. I knew right away, my scar burned."
Ron's mouth was hanging open and Luna was looking at Ginny with interest.
"You actually saw this happen? Wow, your powers must now be really working."
"Yeah," Ginny mumbled, "really great."
Her eyes went to the Forbidden Forest, which reminded her so much of the forest surrounding Illustris. She then looked at the large oak tree not far from the small group, and suddenly the other vision flashed before her eyes. The two people, one pulling the other away. Her gaze fell on Ron and Luna, who were talking animatedly with Harry and Hermione, trying to catch up on as much as they could in the short hour.
As she stared at her brother and his girlfriend, something in her mind clicked. Two people, at night, one had red hair, the other had blonde hair, only their faces were blurred.
"Oh. My. God," she whispered, the pieces to the puzzle falling together. "No, it can't be."
She locked her eyes on Luna. "Luna would never," she muttered, fear suddenly gripping her heart.
"Ron!" Ginny yelled suddenly, her heart racing, needing to tell him her other vision, needing to warn him.
Ron started at her sudden word. "Ginny, what.....?"
She cut him off. "I need to......." But the words stuck in her mouth. A shot of pain ran through her skull and she clutched her head suddenly. She felt herself blacking out and she collapsed to her knees. She heard the yelling of her friends and somebody grabbed her shoulder. But as quickly as the pain came, it was gone and she looked up into the terrified eyes of her brother.
"Ginny!" he said anxiously.
Opening her mouth to respond, to tell him she was all right, a sudden flow of words came forth instead. The voice was not her own and her eyes rolled back and she began to shake.
"The time has come. The Dark Lord is growing stronger and soon he will strike, officially beginning the Second War. Only four stand in his way and could be the ultimate end to his reign. But he wishes for them to be on his side, for they alone hold the Key to bring destruction to whatever side they oppose. Should they choose to go against him, the Dark Lord needs only one tool to know how to destroy them. It lies deep within the Ministry, protected and untouched. Only four have the power to remove it and one he will force to bring it to him. The Dark Lord awaits for the perfect time with his plan already set. The time has come, the Dark Lord is restless. He shall take the one and hold the weapon in his hands..........."
Ginny gasped as the flow of words stopped. With another shuddering breath, she fainted right into Ron's arms. Ron easily picked her up and stared fearfully at her. Harry had gone very rigid, remembering all too well the other Prophecy that he had witnessed three years ago, that one coming true. Hermione was clutching his arm tightly, her fingernails digging into his skin. He removed her hand and quickly wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
Luna looked very shocked and said quietly, "What did that mean?"
Ron shook his head, looking pale and numb. "I don't know," he said softly. He looked up at Harry and Hermione, silently pleading for an answer.
Harry cleared his dry throat. "She'll need to see Madame Pomfrey. We....we have to go back to Illustris."
Ron nodded and started walking back to the castle, Ginny in his arms and Luna at his side. Hermione went to follow but Harry held her back.
"What did that mean? What did Ginny just foretell?" He truly looked scared.
"Oh, Harry," Hermione whispered, "I have no idea, I don't like it though. Voldemort wants someone.....someone who can take......this tool. But who?"
Harry hung his head. "That's what I want to know."
And he gazed blankly at the lake, looking for an answer that he knew he wouldn't find, Hermione at his side, looking just as lost as he.
.........................
Author's Note: Yay, a long chapter! I told you guys I'd get another one out for you! :) I hope you liked this chapter, its a little different from my other ones I think. Finally back to training, lol. Oh, and I promise, D/G in the next chapter!! Its what a lot of you have been waiting for, I know, but its coming! Also, I decided to finally think really far ahead in this story, all the way to the end, I wrote out chapter titles and summaries to each chapter. I figured out how many chapters I think this story will be at the end. At the moment, prepare yourselves, I have 51 chapters planned out. That's a lot! As you can tell, the end to this story is a long way away. I'm probably not going to finish it before college, which isn't very good cause I really wanted to get this done before August 25. Ah well, it'll just mean I have to work harder, lol.
Ah, btw, I'm leaving for Ireland this thursday, July 29, so I'll probably be able to only get one more chapter in before I leave, if that, don't really hold me to it. I have to pack tomorrow but if I find some free time, I'll write. I won't be back until August 10. I am truly sorry about that, I know you guys like my frequent updates! I promise to make it up to you when I get back, the really good action stuff is coming up plus a lot more training chapters!
I appreciate all the reviews I've gotten, they mean so much to me! I really hope you like this chapter....I tried
my hardest to make it really good and interesting. Wish me a safe flight to Ireland and I'll see you guys when I
return! Please please review!
Much Love,
PhoenixFirebolt