A/N: I'd like to start out with a very heartfelt thank you to Mathiasgranger of FF.net. He spent some time with me on MSN Messenger working out a few kinks in the story, and answering several of my questions. He's helped a lot in the ongoing productivity of the story, and I'm grateful for it.
This chapter's a bit longer than usual, and there isn't much difference from the FF.net version, but there also isn't much room for fluff in this part of the story. Some questions will be answered and I know there's a few people out there looking forward to what's about to happen. :o)
Disclaimer: If Harry Potter belonged to me, he would have cut in for a dance with Hermione at the Yule Ball and snogged her senseless in front of everyone. Since that didn't happen, it's clearly not mine.
<><><><><>
A loud bang announced the arrival of the vividly purple Knight Bus in Godric's Hollow. It was late evening, and there were few muggles about to witness the triple-decker's arrival in the village. Ginny Weasley exited the bus, avoiding Stan Shunpike's curious gaze. He hadn't said much to the young witch throughout the brief journey other than to hang onto something each time the bus Apparated, and he couldn't help but be curious about her. There was no doubt that she was attractive, and yet she refused to use her good looks to her advantage. Had she flirted with him like many of the young witches that rode the bus did, he would have offered her a mug of hot cocoa free of charge. Instead, Ginny had taken to avoiding the greasy-faced conductor, remaining silent for the entire journey.
"Have a good night, now! And thanks for choosing the Knight Bus!" Shunpike called out after her in a last ditch effort to elicit a response.
Ginny heard his voice, but kept her back to him and continued walking. She recalled some of Voldemort's additional instructions. 'Avoid anyone who isn't necessary to your task, and don't get comfortable with anyone. I don't want to take any chances in this mission failing.' He'd hissed at her, suspecting that the youngest Weasley might spend several valuable hours attempting to find a loophole in his instructions despite telling her there weren't any. He had been right, as she had spent the rest of her time in the chamber desperately attempting to think of a way out of things. Unless she killed herself, there wasn't much else she could do.
"Strange bird, that one," Stan turned to the driver, Ernie, as he prepared to set the bus in motion again. His comment went unnoticed as Ernie was having a difficult time peering through the thick lenses of his glasses, trying to decide which gear to throw the bus into.
The thought of suicide had been something Ginny had entertained ever since Voldemort first revealed that she would die if she failed. Considering how she had put Harry's life at risk with her love potion, she found the situation greatly ironic. Harry had warned all of his friends that a close association with him could prove greatly dangerous, and while they listened and took his warning to heart, not a single one of them would have thought it would really happen. If she sacrificed herself to make sure that Voldemort would have a more difficult time getting his hands on Harry, she knew that at least she would have redeemed herself in the eyes of her family and friends.
As Ginny continued to contemplate the manners in which she could end her own life, the crack of the Knight Bus Disapparating gave her a start. She turned to glare in the direction of the bus, as she silently felt thankful that Stan Shunpike would now be far away from her. She had seen the looks he had been sending in her direction, and felt that uncomfortable would not be strong enough a word to describe how it made her feel.
Struggling to remember the specifics that Peter Pettigrew had learned about Godric's Hollow as he attempted to learn Harry's location, Ginny found herself drawn to what appeared to be the town's main street. Due to the late hour there were very few things open, and the young witch found herself wandering past several dark store windows. She hadn't a lot of experience in muggle towns, and had only a brief knowledge of what any of the stores could be. She recognized a few bookshops and stationary stores, as books and paper weren't that much different between magical and non-magical worlds. They were, at the very least, universally recognizable as reading and writing material.
A few more darkened windows drew Ginny's attention, and she soon found herself peering into a muggle hair salon. She was fascinated by the large number of hair products and appliances, and spent a few spare moments pondering over their uses. She continued along the street, feeling that there would soon be something that would draw her attention.
Sure enough, there was soon a string of lighted windows in a row, and quite a bit of raucous laughter coming from within the walls of the shop. Upon closer inspection, she could see several young adults beyond the windows. She glanced up at the sign above the door. Godric's Watering Hole, it read in ornate script across an antique looking wooden sign. Ginny found that rather odd. It was an old-fashioned looking sign, and old-fashioned sounding name, and from what she could see of the décor inside what appeared to be a bar, it was relatively old-fashioned as well. And yet, from what she could tell by looking at the crowd inside, there was a fairly large number of teenagers dancing, drinking, and socializing. As the legal drinking age in England was eighteen and a fair number of the people in attendance appeared to be roughly Ginny's age, she was surprised to see the majority of them carrying beer bottles and other alcoholic beverages in their hands. Not to mention that the contrast between the youth of the group and the age of the building was something worthy of noting in itself.
The redheaded witch made a move to enter the bar when a twinge of pain coursed through her body. She couldn't understand what had caused it, and looked down at herself to see if there was anything she had missed. Of course! Voldemort had been specific in his instructions to make sure that nothing appeared out of the ordinary while Ginny was completing his task, and her wardrobe would certainly not fit in with that of the muggle teen crowd inside of Godric's Watering Hole. She had forgotten that Godric's Hollow was a muggle town, thanks to its namesake being one of the Hogwarts founders. Entering the bar wearing her normal wizarding robes would definitely cause a stir, even if she avoided talking to anyone. She would attract attention simply for looking out of place.
Understanding now why the Obeir potion had caused her pain simply for attempting to enter a muggle bar, Ginny realized just how difficult this was going to be for her. She was nowhere near perfect, nor completely capable of performing the tasks of a dark wizard. Ginny had the distinct feeling that following Voldemort's orders was going to be a lot harder than she'd originally thought. Of course she had taken into consideration the fact that she did not want to do anything that the Dark Lord had ordered to do, but she knew that she would immediately die if she failed. She still held some small hope within her that when she arrived at Harry's hiding place, there would be a way for her to warn him of what was happening and somehow save him. She knew that seducing him as she had been ordered would be the most difficult part, as both he and Hermione no longer trusted her. Getting him away from the older witch would be a task in itself, she realized, and feared that the potion may consider that alone to be a failure and strike her dead before she even had a chance to try to warn Harry.
Using her new wand, Ginny transfigured her robes into muggle clothing; similar to what she could see the girls inside wearing. She was reluctant to use her new, illegal wand and yet still hoped that the Ministry of Magic would detect the fact that she was underage. Sadly, she knew that wouldn't happen. Not only was Gregorovitch willing to supply random wands to Death Eaters, he was more than happy to fail to report the purchase to the Ministry for the compensation of several Galleons. Ollivander was a much more reputable wand maker and always complied with Ministry rules and guidelines. Gregorovitch, however, was the second best wandmaker for a reason. Though he did make quality wands, his business ethics had lost him quite a bit of popularity with the wizarding public.
When Ginny had been required to have a new wand, Voldemort had summoned Gregorovitch to Riddle Manor, having a lackey Portkey the man in to avoid his locating the manor once again. He had brought a large supply of wands in his trunk at the instruction of the Dark Lord, prepared to outfit Ginny Weasley with a brand new, very powerful wand. Voldemort had demanded a top of the line model for the blood traitor, much to her own surprise. She had expected to receive perhaps a hand-me-down wand from one of his captured or killed Death Eaters and had been prepared to make due. She was not prepared to discover that Voldemort fully intended on ensuring that she was capable of following his orders. He had explained to her in great, gloating detail that he wanted her to have a powerful working wand so as to ensure her success. After all, if she had an experience similar to Neville Longbottom and his father's hand-me-down wand or Ron when his had been Spellotaped together, Voldemort's entire plan would have been ruined. He wasn't taking chances anymore, and made sure that Ginny's new wand was high quality.
It was eleven and a half inches long, made of birch with a dragon heartstring as a core. She felt that the wand was excessively long for her stature, but kept the concern to herself. Gregorovitch had been pleased at the wand's reaction to her, and assured the Dark Lord that it would be suitable for the task at hand. As much as Ginny hated to use it, she knew that there was no chance of saving or warning Harry if she didn't go through, for the most part, with her instructions.
Her transfigured robes had become a tight pair of flared denim jeans, and a snug-fitting navy blue t-shirt. Feeling properly dressed for the location, Ginny pushed the front door to Godric's Watering Hole open, and stepped inside.
Immediately, several heads swung in her direction in confusion. Ginny wasn't used to small towns, and had no idea that practically everyone in Godric's Hollow knew whom each other was. Several of the boys stared at her, taking in her pretty features and giving her appreciative looks. The girls just glared at her, not impressed with her intrusion into what appeared to be a party. Ginny hadn't seen the banner from outside the window that was spread across the bar. It spelled out 'Happy Birthday!' and there was a lone figure standing underneath it, holding a bottle of beer in his hand.
Taking a deep breath and ignoring the many glares she was receiving from the female population of the bar, Ginny made her way straight towards the lone boy at the bar. She was guessing by the fact that he was wearing the only party hat in the room that it was his birthday, and felt that the best way to introduce herself would be to make friends with the birthday boy.
Using every ounce of feminine charm she had, Ginny smiled at the young man. "Hi! I'm new around here, my name's Ginny. I don't mean to interrupt your party, but I was out for a late walk and when I saw so many people my age, I had to see what was going on."
The boy stared at her, almost as if he were uncertain as to whether or not he should take her words for the truth. He had chestnut brown hair and piercing blue eyes. Ginny decided they reminded her of icicles on a winter morning.
The teens continued to stand there, staring at each other for a few moments. Ginny took the time to continue to observe the appearance of the boy standing in front of her. She had about as much experience dealing with magic-ignorant muggles as she did with small towns and fellytones, but she knew an attractive guy when she saw one. Besides the shock of shiny brown hair on his head and his unusual eyes, the boy was about a foot taller than her and relatively muscular. She supposed that there must not be much else to do in the tiny town than exercise, and a quick glance at the other boys in the room told her she was right. Nearly every one of them was as solidly built as the one standing in front of her.
Her thoughts were interrupted by an introduction. "I'm Matthew," he said, holding out his hand.
Ginny was thoroughly confused. Being a pureblood brought up in the magical world, and not having many muggle friends other than Hermione, she didn't know what to do with his hand. She knew that couples held hands, but that was usually at their sides, and when they were walking or sitting together. His hand was extended in front of him, and not palm upwards as if he were offering a dance.
Hoping she was doing the right thing, Ginny held her breath and reached her hand out to touch Matthew's. He grasped her palm firmly with his fingers, and gently pumped her hand up and down a few times.
"It's nice to meet you," Matthew smiled back at her, releasing her small hand from his grip. Ginny dropped her arm to her side, confused as to what this gesture meant. She supposed it was some type of muggle greeting, but didn't want to embarrass herself by saying anything, just in case. "Sorry about the staring," he said sheepishly. "It's just that the last unfamiliar girl that was spotted in town was driving a BMW roadster a few days ago, and she's only been seen once. I was trying to decide if you were that girl, but your hair is red and I heard hers was brown."
Ginny's heart sank. While she had no idea that Harry had purchased a convertible in London, she knew that the only unfamiliar girl in this town with brown hair would be Hermione. Even though she'd known the older witch would be with Harry, Ginny was reminded of how difficult it would be to get him to talk to her alone. Especially considering how angry Hermione was at her for giving Harry a love potion.
Struggling to laugh, Ginny attempted to hide her discontent from Matthew. "I definitely wouldn't be driving a BMW anyway. I've only just gotten my license, I don't think anyone would be willing to trust me with an expensive car."
Ginny silently thanked Hermione for telling her a bit more about muggle customs, such as obtaining a driver's license. She knew that BMWs were a top of the line vehicle thanks to her father, who took to collecting muggle models of the little racing cars. He often animated them and spent a day in the tool shed, racing them around as though he were a Nascar driver. His fondness for Muggle contraptions had become infectious and he often shared with Ginny the stories of Nascar races he heard from his Muggleborn coworkers.
"I don't much like BMWs anyway," Matthew admitted. "They're too common. Everyone and their great-aunt has a BMW. I'd rather have something a little more rare, like a Lamborghini."
Vaguely recalling what a Lamborghini resembled from her father's collection, Ginny couldn't help but think that the brand name sounded more like a type of pasta than a fast Italian car. Rather than get herself too far into a conversation about muggle cars than she could handle, Ginny abruptly changed the subject. "So it's your birthday?" she asked, pointedly glancing at his hat.
A flush crept across Matthew's cheeks. Ginny couldn't help but notice that the tiniest of freckles appeared when he blushed. "Yeah, I'm seventeen. My friends thought it'd be fun to throw a party, but I honestly would've rather stayed home. I'm not the type to come out and drink."
"You're not old enough, either," Ginny reminded him. She at least knew that the muggle drinking age was eighteen.
"True, but my dad owns the bar. He keeps telling me that he'd rather me be drinking and get sloshed under his supervision than somewhere else, where something bad could happen to me."
Ginny agreed with the statement, and couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt knowing that her mother would grossly overreact to such an idea. She'd once found an empty bottle of Firewhisky in Fred and George's room, and even though they were honestly using it solely for the purpose of developing their joke products (or so they claimed), Mrs. Weasley had still thrown a fit.
"So, I know this might sound a bit strange, but what more can you tell me about the girl in the BMW? My family just moved here, but a friend of mine moved here years ago when I was really young. I don't know what she'd look like now, and I know she mostly keeps to herself. If it's her, she likes to read a lot and has her own private library, so that's why you probably wouldn't recognize her. She wouldn't spend much time in town." Ginny silently prayed that the boy might know more than he was letting on.
"She came from the edge of town, that's for sure. We'd know if anyone downtown had a BMW. She had long brown hair, but I don't know what colour her eyes were. I've never seen her up close. Just saw her zipping off towards London a few days ago, and she came back later that afternoon."
Ginny breathed excitedly. "Any idea which house she might live in?" She paused for a moment, realizing that if it really were a friend of hers who had moved away, she should know that. She quickly decided to make up an explanation. "I used to have her address, but I lost it. I was about seven when she moved, and I wasn't very good at keeping papers organized."
Matthew seemed to accept this, and nodded. "I think I know which house she might be in, but it would be kind of weird if it were that one. Years ago this family used to live there, my dad told me. At least, he thinks they lived there. It was the same year I was born. He swore he saw a young couple moving in with their baby one day, but he never saw them again after that afternoon. Ever since then, no one's lived there. That's the only place I can think of your friend being, as I pretty much know where everyone else lives."
Accepting this, Ginny nodded and smiled. "Well, thanks so much for helping me out. I'll quit interrupting your party now. Maybe my friend is awake and I can go visit her. Do you mind pointing me in the right direction?"
Nodding, Matthew escorted her to the door of Godric's Watering Hole. He pointed down the street and offered directions, explaining to Ginny the best way to get there. She thanked him, offered another cheerful 'Happy Birthday!', and turned to leave.
"Uh… Ginny?" he called after her.
She turned and faced him. "Yes?"
"If you ever want to, you know, hang out… You can usually find me here. I'm working with my dad for the summer, so…"
Ginny couldn't help but giggle. "Okay. I'll see you around, Matthew." She waved, and headed off into the night.
Matthew stood at the door of the bar, watching as she left. He exhaled, silently thanking God that he had managed not to make a complete fool of himself with such a pretty girl. He hoped that she'd come back and visit him soon, and headed inside to continue standing alone at the bar while all of his friends drank themselves into a stupor.
<><><><><>
Enjoying his breakfast in the kitchen as he looked over his notes from the Book of Requirement, Harry was surprised to see Hermione's owl, Atheos, flapping towards the window, returning from his letter run with an envelope in his beak. Hermione had named the owl over breakfast one morning, claiming that Atheos was an ancient Greek word for wise. She had argued that since owls were a symbol of the ancient Greek goddess Athena, and Athena was known for her wisdom, she should name the owl accordingly.
Harry had begged her not to name the owl Athena, as it was clearly male. The owl had also hooted his indignation at a girly name, and Hermione had relented, choosing an alternate word instead. Atheos was close enough to the goddess's name, and masculine enough to satisfy both Harry and the owl's male pride.
It was not Atheos' first mail run to let the Order know that the two young teens were safe, and it was highly unlikely that he had not been able to deliver the letter. Harry was confused as to whether the envelope would be the letter he had sent out, or a reply from whoever had received it.
As Atheos gracefully swooped through the kitchen window, he dropped the letter in Harry's lap and landed lightly on the kitchen counter. Harry tossed the owl a few strips of his bacon as a reward before he turned back to the letter. He knew that Hermione would have a fit if she saw him feeding the owl bacon (not only was it greasy and fatty, it definitely wasn't an owl treat), but he knew that the owl was beginning to prefer bacon to treats. It would be a secret that remained between the two of them, and Atheos had seemed to understand that he would have to make due with owl treats from Hermione, but Harry would always slip him some bacon.
Allowing the owl to contentedly snap his beak at the bacon strips on the counter, Harry hurriedly ripped the letter open. He had a feeling that he should be sharing it with Hermione, but as she was doing her morning yoga routine in the exercise room, he decided against disturbing her.
Harry's eyes scanned the letter, his heart feeling mixed emotions.
Dear Mr. Potter,
I must admit that I am pleased to hear that once again, both you and Miss Granger remain safe. However, there are a few matters that I believe need attending to here at Hogwarts.
Shortly before his death, Professor Dumbledore had commissioned his own wizard portrait. It has finally been completed, and is relatively up to date. The last time Professor Dumbledore visited with the wizard painter to update his portrait was only a few days before his death, therefore resulting in the portrait being well informed. Since its arrival at the castle, I have taken the liberty of having several conversations with his portrait, and he now fully understands the circumstances of his death, as well as the current holiday situation.
Professor Dumbledore's portrait has asked me to invite both you and Miss Granger to keep us both company here at Hogwarts for a week or two. He is not only concerned for your welfare, but upon learning that the two of you have your parents' wedding rings, he insisted that I invite you to the castle. He would desperately like to talk with you in regards to several things he claims I don't need to know about. Also, he has just reminded me to inform you that he can explain to you more thoroughly the magical powers behind your parents' rings, and the effects they may be having on you. He would also have me inform you that you are not to worry if either of you seem to be acting out of character, and more like each other. Apparently it is normal.
Please send your reply back with your charming new owl. I did my best to keep Hedwig from spotting him, but I'm afraid that Hagrid was just bringing her up to the office to ask if he could send her back to you as your new owl arrived. He feels that she has been homesick and lonely, and that she misses you. I should warn you, there might be some jealousy to deal with when you see Hedwig again.
Warmest regards,
Minerva McGonagall
Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
As much as Harry had made up his mind long ago that he wouldn't be attending Hogwarts in September, the news of Dumbledore's portrait stirred up feelings of longing that hadn't been there before. He missed his dorm room, the warm Gryffindor common room, and the castle itself. He couldn't deny that he missed Hedwig as much as she missed him, but he knew how recognizable she was as his owl, and didn't want to put her in harm's way.
It had been silly for him not to think that Dumbledore would have a portrait up following his death, but all the same, it hurt him to hear the truth. He had always secretly wished that Dumbledore had faked his own death, and had really survived the attack that fateful night. Of course, as far as Harry knew, only a deceased wizard could successfully have a wizarding portrait like those of the former Headmasters and Headmistresses in the Head's office. This could only mean that Dumbledore truly had died that night, which hurt Harry more than it should have. After all, he had accepted his former Headmaster's death and attended his funeral. It just was hard for him to realize that he really was gone.
Despite his sadness over Dumbledore's death, Harry couldn't help but feel excited that his portrait wanted to meet with him. He was hoping that Dumbledore might be able to share some insight on his and Hermione's hunt for the Horcruxes, and he was more than eager to tell him about the destruction of Gryffindor's shield.
"What are you reading, Harry?" Hermione interrupted his thoughts. She was standing behind him, doing her best to pretend she didn't see the bacon crumbs that Atheos had left on the counter. While Harry had been reading McGonagall's letter, he hadn't noticed Atheos flying back out of the window to chase some mice.
"McGonagall sent a letter back with Atheos," he answered, handing it to her.
Hermione's eyes quickly scanned the letter, brightening as she reached the part about the rings. "Dumbledore's portrait can explain these?" she asked rhetorically, fingering the two gold rings lying against her chest. She felt somewhat guilty that they hadn't been using the mental connection that they had very often, but knew that if they spent their time not only in solitude but in silence as well, they would go crazy.
"So when do we leave?" she asked, returning the letter to Harry.
He shrugged. "As soon as it's okay with McGonagall, I suppose. As soon as Atheos gets back from outside, I'll send a reply with him."
The young couple spent the remainder of their morning researching the Horcruxes with the Book of Requirement, awaiting Atheos' return from his mouse hunt. Sometime around mid-afternoon Atheos returned with a familiar redhead in tow.
"Ginny?!" both Harry and Hermione exclaimed in astonishment. They knew that she wasn't privy to Order information, and that she would not have been allowed anywhere near a meeting after the love potion incident. How on earth did she find them?
Wary of the young witch's intentions, Harry and Hermione chose to meet her at the front door of the house. That way they could easily keep her at arm's length if they wanted to.
Atheos led her around to the front door and flew into the house, leaving Ginny behind on the doorstep. She glanced nervously at the couple, clearly embarrassed.
"What are you doing here?" Hermione asked, her voice grave and restrained. It was taking every ounce of self-control she had not to throttle Ginny right then and there for what she'd done to Harry.
Harry chose to remain passive, standing back and waiting for the younger girl's response. He pasted a non-committal look on his face in the hopes of appearing as though he couldn't care one way or another why she was there.
"I had to see you," she said hastily, pleased when her reply didn't cause her any pain. Assuming that the potion thought that her words could be taken in a romantic way, she took a deep breath and steeled herself against the ache she knew was coming. "Something horrible is going to happen." A searing jolt of pain coursed through Ginny's spine, her nerve endings on fire. There was no fooling the potion this time. Her knees went weak and she was barely able to stand. Determined to at least get some essence of the truth out, she screwed up her face in concentration as she tried to find the best way to word it without making things worse.
Hermione and Harry exchanged a look of concern. Hermione took that moment as the perfect opportunity to start using their mind link again. What's she playing at? She said almost rudely, thinking that Ginny was faking whatever she was trying to pull.
Harry could only stare at the redheaded witch, his heart truly going out to her. She looked as though she were suffering from the Cruciatus curse, and that puzzled Harry. No one had cast it on her in their presence, she hadn't cast it on herself, and she had been perfectly fine before she started talking. After having suffered the Cruciatus at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange in the Department of Mysteries two years prior, Harry could tell that Ginny was sincerely in pain.
Ignoring Hermione's mental call to him, Harry dropped to his knees in front of the younger witch and drew her into his arms. All animosity he'd felt towards her faded as he felt her shudder in attempts to draw breath. "Ginny, what's going on? Did someone curse you? You can tell me," he pleaded, not wanting to see her in such pain. Even if she'd tricked him with a love potion and unintentionally put him at risk, he didn't want to see her suffering from what appeared to be an Unforgivable Curse.
Ginny's body felt like there were hot knives slicing into every inch of her skin and she was being roasted alive, but she fought through the pain. She had made up her mind earlier that morning. She would do her best to warn Harry about the potion she was under, and if she couldn't find the correct wording to do it without killing herself, she would use her new wand and take her own life. Ginny would much rather do it on her own terms than on Voldemort's.
"Curse…pain…hurts so much…" she spluttered, fighting for breath.
Hermione realized that this was not at all a fake attempt at securing Harry's attention, and immediately ran inside the house.
Though confused by his girlfriend's actions, Harry remained focused on Ginny and did his best to help her. He cast a few simple healing charms he had picked up from his parents' library, hoping to alleviate her pain.
These seemed to help, as Ginny suddenly blurted out, "Kidnap you!"
Hermione rushed back through the front door in time to hear Ginny's words, clutching the Book of Requirement in her hands. She opened her mouth to say something to Harry, but immediately stopped at the sight in Harry's arms.
Upon uttering those words, Ginny had gone completely rigid. Her eyes had rolled back into her head as she lost consciousness, slumping in Harry's arms. The pain had been too much for her to take.
"Dammit!" Harry swore, lifting Ginny from the front stoop. "Where the hell did you run off to?" he questioned Hermione, carrying the younger witch into the house.
She held up the book as a feeble offering. "I-I thought it might help," she stammered. "Surely the book would be able to tell us what kind of magic could do this to Ginny."
Doing her best to put aside her angry feelings towards the young girl, Hermione focused her constantly analytical mind on the situation at hand.
Harry laid Ginny out on a couch in the living room, and turned to Hermione. "I don't know what happened to her before she got here, but the minute she started talking she went all funny, and if you and I hadn't been the only ones present, I would've sworn that someone used the Cruciatus on her."
Hermione cringed at the mention of the Unforgivable, nodding her head in agreement. "That's what it looked like," she confirmed.
"She said she had to see us. Something bad is going to happen. Then some jumble about pain and curses, that thing about kidnapping me, and then she blacked out." Harry reviewed the situation.
"None of that sounded good," Hermione admitted.
Harry quickly lifted Ginny back into his arms, and instructed Hermione to pack their trunks as quickly as possible. She looked at him quizzically, questioning him over her shoulder as she headed towards the bedroom. "What for?"
Readjusting his grip on Ginny, Harry gave Hermione a grim look as she returned with their shrunken trunks. "Forget sending a reply with Atheos. We're going to Hogwarts."
And with that, Hermione Apparated to the Hogwarts gates, where she waited for Harry to appear. It took him a few seconds longer as he had to bring Ginny via Side-Along Apparition, but he was next to her in a mere moment.
The pair faces the gates ahead of them, pushing them open as they made their way to the great oak doors of the castle. Harry could only hope that Dumbledore's portrait would have the answers for Ginny's predicament as well as their own.