From Across the Great Divide, Chapter 14
Rated: R
Summary: A post-Hogwarts H/G fic. Strange circumstances draw Harry and Ginny closer together. But are they in danger? Romance, adventure, Monty Python, and tartan boxer shorts abound.
When Ginny returned home from work that evening, she immediately had the feeling something was wrong. Going into her cottage, she couldn’t put her finger on just what was amiss for a moment, and then it struck her. Harry’s things were gone.
In spite of the evidence before her, she called out, "Harry!" She was answered by silence. Then she spied a piece of parchment on an end table. Lifting the vase which had served as a paperweight, she saw her name had been written on the parchment in Harry’s handwriting. A feeling of foreboding came over her as she unfolded the note and read:
Ginny-I’ve moved back to my flat. Will explain soon. Love, Harry
Ginny tossed the note aside in disgust, as she bit back a scream of frustration. An instant later she picked it up again, hoping at least to find some clue as to why he’d left. But there was nothing; the note was as terse as ever.
She began to shred the parchment methodically, as she tried to think of new and inventive ways to make him suffer. But then a new, sickening thought struck her, and she found herself engulfed in a wave of self-doubt. Maybe this was Harry’s way of breaking things off. The thought made her angrier than ever. If this was the case, he was the biggest bloody coward she’d ever known.
Some small voice of reason in the back of her mind told her this couldn’t be true. There was nothing cowardly about him. There remained, however, a niggling doubt that stood in opposition to the voice of reason. She thought back to how he’d claimed to have loved her since his sixth year. That was the part she’d had the most trouble crediting. If it had been true, why hadn’t he acted on it sooner? Why had he been with all sorts of women who had supposedly meant nothing to him? She cursed Witch Weekly for having aired all his dirty laundry in public. If not for that, she might have been able to live in blissful ignorance. But she couldn’t. And her mother was going to have a field day with this… just when a tentative truce had been reached.
She forced herself to calm down enough to think things through. A rapid search of the bedroom and bathroom told her he’d packed everything, down to Hedwig’s cage and his weights. He truly had moved out. The note said he’d explain soon, but Ginny decided that wasn’t good enough. He was bloody well going to explain now. She was going to see him at his flat and make sure of it. And if she didn’t like the explanation… well, she’d make sure Harry would be very sorry indeed.
Looking down at her robes, Ginny realised she’d have to change into Muggle clothes before going over there. It wouldn’t do to attract attention when his whole reason for living there was to fade into the crowd.
Once she’d put on something more appropriate, she paused. She was sure she remembered enough to be able to Apparate to the flat, but she wondered if there wouldn’t be a ward over the place. It was likely, she decided. She remembered leaving from the back alley when they’d been there almost two weeks ago. That would be the best spot to appear. It was summer and still light out; she didn’t want to alarm any Muggles by appearing in the middle of Harry’s street.
Ginny went outside and visualised the alley behind his flat. In the next instant, she was there. She quickly made her way around to the front of the building. She went into the lobby and was faced with a locked door, next to which was a row of numbered buttons. Some of the buttons had names underneath them but not all, and Harry’s name did not appear anywhere. Ginny cast about in her mind but could not remember Harry’s flat number. "I can unlock this door, at any rate," she said to herself. A quick glance told her there was no one about. She drew her wand and muttered, "Alohomora." The door opened, and she made her way up to the third floor-she remembered that much. Now she had only to hope that Harry was actually at home.
She knocked at his door, wondering what sort of reception she was going to get. None of the scenarios she could imagine was very pleasant. The expression on Harry’s face when he answered the door only confirmed these thoughts.
"What the hell are you doing here?" he hissed, as he grabbed her hand and dragged her inside, closing the door behind them. "Did anyone see you?"
Ginny’s anger returned in a flash. "No, of course not." She fought to keep her voice down, but her words remained clipped. "Not unless you count a few Muggles in the street. Did you expect me not to come over here after that note you left me? Just what the hell was that?"
Harry sighed. "Come on," he said, motioning her into the living room. "Sit down. I said I’d explain, and I will."
Ginny didn’t want to sit down; she wanted to have a row. That was the way things were usually done in her family. It didn’t seem that Harry would co-operate with this plan though. She sat down and crossed her arms, glaring at him. "This had better be good," she said testily.
Harry sat beside her and proceeded to tell her about his encounter with Malfoy’s ghost and the conclusions he’d drawn. Ginny pursed her lips as she listened, hating the fact that what he was saying seemed to make sense.
"How do you work out from all that, that you’re putting me in danger?" Ginny asked him, when he’d finished. She was determined to find some weakness in his reasoning. "You haven’t received a single threat or warning."
"Not unless you count the Witch Weekly photo. We were both in that."
"Even that had more of a bearing on me. It was to show me my house was being watched."
"I don’t know, Gin. Malfoy said his father had plans for me. He mentioned you as well, but I think it’s only because you stumbled onto something you shouldn’t have. The way things have worked out, you’ve been suspended from your job, so you can’t be in their way anymore. They ought to leave you alone now. In fact, they have been. But if I’m the one they really want, then I’m only bringing you back to their attention by being involved with you. That’s why I had to move back here. I think we need to give everyone the impression we’ve broken up, to keep you out of harm’s way."
Ginny swallowed hard. She had to ask. "Is this your way of telling me you want to break up?"
Harry looked stricken. "How can you ask me that?"
"That note sounded pretty final to me."
"I said we needed to give the impression we’d broken up, not that I actually wanted to do it. Why would you think that?"
"You do have this reputation. Even if it’s not entirely earned, you’ve admitted to me that some of it’s true."
"Doesn’t it mean anything to you that I haven’t lied to you about that? I could have. Easily." This was said in a particularly hard tone. Harry stopped, swallowed, and began again. "Have you ever done anything you regretted?"
Ginny immediately thought of taking the job with the Improper Use of Magic Department. Not that she regretted taking it, only that she’d had to out of necessity. She could also think of a thing or two she’d said to her mother whilst arguing. She nodded slowly.
"I’ve done plenty of things I’ve regretted, Ginny. If I could take them back, I would. You know, when I came back, I thought I was ready, but I wasn’t, not really. And then I discovered what I thought was a form of oblivion, but it never lasted. It was only temporary. I made mistakes, Ginny. I’m human. But that’s in the past now. As much as I’d like to, I can’t change it."
Ginny could only stare at the stark expression on his face. When he looked at her like that, she couldn’t help but believe him. She could read the truth in his eyes. She reached out and placed a hand against his cheek, her heart beating a bit faster as he leaned into her touch. He brought up his own hand and took hers, entwining their fingers. Ginny stared at their joined hands, as Harry continued.
"Do you know how difficult it was for me to leave today?" She shook her head mutely. "It was much, much worse than the first time."
Now she was confused. "The first time?"
"This is the second time now I’ve had to set my feelings for you aside in order to keep you safe. But this time it’s so much harder for me. In my sixth year I was giving up a possibility. This time I’m giving up something I know to be real."
Ginny met his gaze then and held it. "Then don’t give it up this time. Stop being so bloody noble and self-sacrificing for once."
"If anything were to happen to you, I’d never forgive myself."
"Nothing’s going to happen, Harry. I can take care of myself. I’ve been doing it for years now. At any rate, we’re both in this together. I have a say in what happens just as much as you do, and I’m not letting you leave. I forbid it."
His face began to twist into a smile. "You forbid it? Just how are you planning on stopping me?"
The atmosphere in Harry’s flat seemed to take on an electric quality. Ginny felt his hand tighten around hers. "I can be very persuasive when I set my mind to it," she said in a low voice that surprised even her. "And then if you still insist on moving out, I may just have to follow you." Ginny paused and looked around her. "No one knows where you live, do they?"
"Besides you, Ron and Hermione, no. I’ve never let anyone else see this. Really, it isn’t much. Just a place to sleep."
"Yes, but if no one knows, isn’t this the perfect place to hide?"
"It’s the perfect place for me to hide, Gin. That’s what I’ve always done here. But it wouldn’t look right if, all of a sudden, you disappeared from your place in Hogsmeade."
"Why not?" She had a good idea why not, but she was frustrated now. What he was saying made too much sense, and she didn’t like it.
"Because that house is being watched. They’ll suspect something’s up if you disappear, and they may decide to come looking. I’m sure they know you’re working at the joke shop. It would make you more of a target than ever. They could use you to flush me out. Or they could try to follow you until they found me. If they think we’re no longer together, they can’t use you to get to me." He hesitated for a moment, and Ginny saw doubt cloud his eyes. "Ginny, I may have to allow myself to be photographed with another witch. Will you trust me that anything showing up in Witch Weekly will be meaningless to me?"
Ginny swallowed. Now they were to the point. Looking into his face, she knew in her heart he’d never been anything but honest with her; he’d even been forthright about things he could have kept from her. He’d never given her any reason not to trust him. She took a deep breath and said, "Yes, Harry, I trust you."
She felt his arms encircle her waist and draw her close. "When this is over," he whispered against her hair, "I’ll come back." He pulled away slightly to look into her eyes. "If that’s what you want."
Ginny could only nod; she didn’t trust her voice at the moment, knowing she was acquiescing to the entire plan. Harry was kissing her in the next instant, in any case. Her thoughts were beginning to scatter when…
An insistent electronic noise caused them to break apart. "What is that?" Ginny asked.
Harry reached into the pocket of his trousers and pulled out the pager Ron had given him. "It’s this," he answered, a questioning look on his face. "Did Ron give you one of these?" When she nodded, he continued, "Look, it’s got a message on it. Did Ron tell you about this? Because he didn’t mention it to me…"
Ginny looked at the small screen which carried a message: "Harry, check in."
"Ron told me if I got a message like that to check in with whoever was at the joke shop. But why didn’t…" She trailed off as she realised the reason why her pager hadn’t gone off. She’d left it in the pocket of her robes when she’d changed before coming over here. She didn’t want to mention this oversight to Harry, though. To cover the awkward moment she said, "We’d better answer that. Where’s your powder for fire talking?"
"I’m not on the Floo network, so I don’t have any."
"We’ll just have to pop over then. Quick, before they decide to try to find us."
"Let’s go then. We need to go out in any case. I haven’t got anything edible. I came home to an extremely rank refrigerator this afternoon." Harry pulled a most expressive look of disgust at this.
They Apparated over to the alley behind Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes. They knocked at the back door which Ron, with quite a worried look on his face, opened to let them in.
"What took you so long to answer?" he demanded without preamble. The shop itself was empty except for the three of them. It had been closed for the day before Ginny had even returned to her cottage, and there was no chance of any outside ears overhearing their conversation.
"We had to come over from my flat," Harry answered him. "I’m not on the Floo network, or we could have talked through the fire. What’s the trouble, anyway?"
"We lost sight of the two of you. I told you earlier we had Ginny’s place under surveillance, and then both of you disappeared. I wasn’t quite as concerned about you, Harry, since you’ve been in and out of there since we’ve been keeping an eye on things. But then Ginny left as well, and I thought it would be a good idea to make sure everything was all right."
Ginny thought Harry looked distinctly uncomfortable. She assumed his discomfiture was for the same reason she felt her own cheeks heat. She didn’t like to think about how closely she was being watched, and by her own brothers at that. But then Harry began to speak. "Look, Ron, about that. I’ve moved out of Ginny’s for now. I’m back at my flat. I think it’s for the best that way."
Ron grinned lopsidedly. "There must be a good reason behind that if you’re still alive to tell about it." Ginny felt like kicking her brother, but she restrained herself.
"I’ve found something out today. Perhaps we should go into the office and sit down."
Without another word, Ron turned and went into the twins’ office. Ginny and Harry followed him. When they were all seated, Ron looked expectantly at Harry, who related to him all he could about Malfoy’s ghost. Ginny saw Ron’s eyes widen in surprise as Harry described his first meeting with Draco. No one, it seemed, had known about Malfoy’s continued existence in this world, such as it was, not even the Ministry of Magic. When Harry had finished the entire story, however, Ron did not look pleased.
"Why couldn’t you have told me all of this sooner?" he asked in a decidedly irritated tone.
"I didn’t know about a good bit of this before today."
"You could have told me you’d seen Malfoy’s ghost, at any rate. Hell, you should have told Fred or George about that the day you first ran into him. We could have got a hell of a lot more information out of him than you did."
"I don’t know how, he didn’t know that much." Ginny thought Harry was attempting to sound reasonable.
"How do you know he wasn’t lying to you about how much he knew? Shit, Harry, you’re not trained for this sort of thing. You don’t know the sort of methods we have at our disposal. Why the hell couldn’t you let the professionals handle it?" Ron was quite red in the face now, and he was using a tone Ginny hadn’t heard out of him for quite a while.
"Because I don’t think you and your brothers have been entirely above board about this from the beginning. I think you’re holding back important information on me." Harry’s own voice was adamant.
"We have to follow procedure, Harry. I’m not allowed to divulge certain things."
"Procedure? When did you ever play by the rules?"
Ginny thought it might be wise for her to intervene here before Ron and Harry had a falling out. She didn’t really like the way either one of them was looking at the other. "What’s done is done, now," she insisted, breaking in on their exchange before either one of them could say another word. "We’re not going to get any further with this by arguing about who’s been hiding what." She glared at both of them. "Now, Ron, Harry has told you something that could help further your investigation. Do you have anything at all you can tell us in return?"
Ron suddenly looked sheepish. "No, not really. I might have told both of you to keep on your toes, but it seems Malfoy’s done it for me. Basically, all we’ve been able to determine is what Harry’s found out from Malfoy, nothing more. But if we can get hold of Malfoy and question him effectively, we may be able to learn more."
"And has Harry done anything to stop you from questioning Malfoy by doing so himself?"
"Well, no," Ron was forced to admit. "But we could have learned all this much sooner."
"Then I suppose you’ve got your work cut out for you for tomorrow. You wanted us over here to find out if we were all right, and you’ve had your answer. Is there anything else?"
Ron looked rather dazed. "No."
"Then we’ll be off. I don’t know about you, Harry, but I’m starved. Shall we go and get some supper?"
Harry didn’t say a word, as he rose to follow her out of the joke shop. When they’d returned to the back alley, he asked, "how did you do that?"
"What? Shut Ron up?" Harry nodded. "I’ve only had about ten years more experience at it than you. You’ll catch on eventually. At any rate, someone had to stop the two of you. The way you were headed wasn’t exactly constructive, you know."
"I’m sorry, but I still don’t think he’s telling us everything he could."
"Cut him some slack, Harry. It’s the nature of his job. He wouldn’t presume to tell you how to play Quidditch, would he?" Harry was forced to admit she was right. "Are you going to take me to supper then? I really am starved."
*
Ginny and Harry sat on his sofa, the remnants of their supper littering the coffee table. They had brought some Thai take-away back to Harry’s flat after leaving Diagon Alley, and Ginny had never tasted anything like it before. Harry had been careful to warn her about the tiny hot peppers, and even without them, the food was spicy and exotic. But it was also very good.
They were now companionably ensconced in front of a film from Harry’s extensive video collection. Harry had given her a choice of films, but since Ginny didn’t know one Muggle movie from the next, she’d let him decide which one to watch. He’d chosen something very dark and violent set in Scotland in the Middle-Ages. But it was also a powerful and ultimately sad story about a man who tried to deliver his people in spite of himself. He’d only wanted to live a peaceful life with his wife, but circumstances had prevented that. Ginny shuddered at the violent battle scenes that unfolded on the screen. She knew that Muggle wars were waged differently these days, but still…
Harry must have sensed her distress, for the arm he’d placed about her shoulder tightened more securely around her. She buried her face in the hollow of his neck, where she could breathe in his scent, and she felt his hand run through her hair, lifting up the fiery locks and letting them fall back to her shoulders again. His lips brushed her forehead, and his free hand lifted one of hers. As their fingers enlaced, she raised her gaze to meet his.
Harry took Ginny’s face in his hands, his thumbs caressing her cheeks, and stared into her eyes. This would be their last night together until this whole mess was solved, but neither of them knew how long that would take. The thought hung unspoken in the air between them, as Harry slowly lowered his mouth to hers. In the instant before their lips touched, Ginny heard him whisper her name.
His first kiss was soft and fleeting, like a sudden summer breeze that brushes the skin. The second was slightly more demanding. Their gazes had remained locked the entire time, but by the third kiss, she felt the tip of his tongue touch the seam of her lips, and her eyes drifted shut. She shivered and opened her mouth under his, feeling him twine his fingers into her hair. When he broke away, they were both breathing shallowly.
Harry brought his hands down, lightly skimming the sides of her neck, his fingers coming to rest on her collar bone for a moment before moving on to the buttons of her blouse. He was pinning her with his gaze once more, and he opened his mouth to say something. But Ginny didn’t want to communicate with words just now. She silenced him with her palm, shuddering as he stopped working at her buttons to take her hand in his and press his lips into its centre. He then kissed her inner wrist before placing her hand at the back of his neck and returning to her blouse.
He made rather quick work of the rest of her buttons and slowly parted the fabric. His lowered his head to her neck, as his hands pushed the garment from her shoulders and down her arms. Ginny’s fingers tightened convulsively in his hair, as his lips traced a path to the junction of her neck and shoulder. Harry tightened his arms about her, holding her still, and then he brought his mouth to hers again, kissing her deeply.
Ginny moved her hands between them and began to undo his shirt buttons with trembling fingers, but it wasn’t easy. The things he was doing to her with his mouth made it very difficult to concentrate indeed. She completed her task at last, and her hands wandered over his chest. She could feel him shiver under her touch, his firm muscles jumping under her fingers and a strangled sound emanating from his throat.
He tore his lips from hers, hungrily kissing a path to her earlobe. She felt his teeth graze her skin, and she clutched at him. His mouth worked its way down the column of her neck, planting nipping kisses along her collar bones, before continuing its descent. Suddenly, Ginny felt warm breath against the tip of her breast. She arched against his lips, as he tried to draw her into his mouth through the lacy fabric of her bra. Even that was an obstacle not to be tolerated for long, and Harry pulled her bra strap from her shoulder so he could taste her skin.
She gasped with pleasure as his teeth grazed her. She felt languid and completely boneless in his embrace. One of her hands had found its way into his hair, and it clenched into a fist as she sought a way to support herself. Harry broke off, but it was only so he could lavish the same attention on her other breast. She could feel the roughness of his chin rubbing against her softness, but this sensation only heightened her pleasure. When he broke away from her at last to stare into her eyes once more, they were both breathing heavily.
Ginny had seen this expression on his face enough times now to recognise the symptoms of desire on it. The sight made her want to drive him mad with pleasure. She began by removing his glasses before she took his face in her hands and drew him into a long kiss. As she did this, she moved into his lap, placing her knees on either side of his hips. She allowed her hands to wander freely over his torso, and his groans only served to further encourage her. One of his hands was gripping her at the waist, while the other caressed its way up her back before coming to rest on the back of her head where it attempted to hold her steady. She broke away from his mouth in spite of this, moving her lips to his neck and upper chest, where his skin seemed so hot it burned, her hands working their way lower.
Ginny could feel every tremor that passed through him at her touch, just has she could hear his breathing become harsh, and this gave her a feeling of power over him. She unfastened his jeans and pulled them off entirely, bringing his boxers along with them and suppressing a giggle when she saw they were the plaid ones again. It struck her as funny that he should own so many pairs of them, but now wasn’t the time to remark on it; she had more interesting things to think about… such as where she wanted to touch him next.
He trembled violently as she took him into her hands. She looked into his eyes and could see a fine sheen of perspiration breaking out on his forehead. His fight for control was evident in his facial expression and in the way his hands were biting into her hips. Ginny noted all this and felt a devilish smile break out on her face. It was turning out to be more fun than she’d thought to see just how far she could push him. She lowered her lips to his chest again, paying special attention to all the sensitive spots she’d discovered in the past, and trying to locate new ones. And at the same time her hands never rested.
He allowed her to continue a while longer, but at last he must have nearly reached the breaking point, for he raised her face to his and began to kiss her passionately again. He began to touch her insistently as his mouth explored hers, causing her to cling to him for support. She felt his hands on her outer thighs, caressing their way beneath her skirt, moving higher to her hips and then back down again. With each stroke he moved a little closer inwards but only the slightest amount, until she let out a sob of frustration. If she didn’t know better, he was doing this on purpose.
She broke away from his kiss and looked into his face for confirmation. He was grinning at her in a way that told her he most definitely had been teasing. "Two can play at that game, you know." The low, seductive quality of her voice surprised her. She began to move her hands over him once more, causing him to tremble.
She saw him swallow. "Isn’t that what you’ve been doing to me?"
"I can keep doing it if you like."
"I like it just a bit too much at the moment." His shaking seemed uncontrollable now. He caught her hands. "It’s your turn now. Do you want me to touch you here?" His hand was high on her inner thigh now. Ginny nodded.
"Here?" He moved his hand beneath her panties, and she could only gasp.
"Here?" he whispered. He had found her centre now, and she cried out. His fingers began to stroke her in a maddening rhythm, and Ginny threw her head back and let her thoughts scatter. She felt his hair brush against her skin, as he leaned towards her and began kissing the hollow of her throat before working his way downward to her breast. His tongue on its tip matched the rhythm of his fingers, and soon the world seemed to shatter into sparkling shards. She seemed to hear a voice crying out from a great distance. It may have been her own; she was no longer sure.
The next conscious thought she had was of Harry’s mouth on hers once more. He’d managed to remove her panties somehow, and now his hands were on her hips once more, positioning her over him. She lowered herself the last few inches and felt him drive deep into her. She gripped his shoulders and began to move with him, attempting to maintain eye contact but it was difficult. She really wanted to throw her head back once more. Her eyes drifted shut as he began to kiss her once more. And then suddenly he froze and groaned as he found his release.
He buried his head against her shoulder, his arms tightening around her waist as he held her close. After a moment, he looked up at her, took her face in his hands once more and kissed her softly. "You were, right, you know," he said.
"Right? About what?"
"Earlier when you said you could be very persuasive. You’re not making this easy on me, you know."
Ginny reached up and brushed the hair back from his face. "I love you. I don’t want for us to be separated." She felt his grip tighten at her words.
"I don’t want that either, but it’s for the best. You understand that, don’t you?" She nodded and he went on. "Then let’s make the most of the time we have left. Stay with me tonight."
And so she did, although neither of them spent much of the night sleeping. And when she left the following morning in a rush, neither of them knew when they’d see each other again.
*
The following afternoon found Ginny leaning idly against the counter of her brothers’ shop waiting for closing time. She had no customers to occupy her at the moment, and she’d done everything else that needed doing. She had only to wait for the Muggle-style clock (given to the twins by their father as a present when they’d first opened for business) to reach half past five when she could close the shop and leave. It was odd how the hands of the clock always seemed to slow to almost a halt at this time of day. Not that she had anything to look forward to at home. She’d be returning to an empty cottage, and she knew there was no chance Harry would turn up and surprise her this time.
She really hadn’t had much sleep, and as a result, she’d woken up late and rather disoriented, not knowing where she was for a moment, before remembering she was at Harry's flat. She’d barely had time for a quick shower before it was time to report to work. She definitely had not had time to say goodbye properly to Harry this morning.
Ginny shook herself. What was done was done, and there was no use dwelling on it. She could only hope this entire mess would be cleared up soon, and then she and Harry could be together again, openly.
In spite of herself, she looked at the clock on the wall again, although she knew it couldn’t be 5:30 yet. She was right: five minutes to go. She sighed and thought about what she needed in the way of groceries. Making out a list would pass the time nicely while keeping her mind off of more depressing thoughts. Besides, she really didn’t have all that much food at home. She took out a scrap of parchment and began to write.
The clock on the wall struck 5:30 at long last, and Ginny closed the shop, said goodbye to George, who was in the office, and went out to the back alley to Disapparate to Hogsmeade. She’d have enough time to pick up the items on her shopping list before heading back to her house. She could take her time in returning, since no one was expecting her…
Ginny carried her groceries home at a sedate pace, rather lost in thought and not paying a great deal of attention to her surroundings. The road home was completely familiar, after all the years she’d lived here. She could very likely have found her way home with her eyes closed, she thought. Perhaps this was the reason she did not have time to react when a figure blocked her path, his wand drawn and pointing towards her. She froze, shocked for a moment, and looked into a familiar face. She’d seen this man before in the joke shop, she thought with a shudder at the unpleasant memory. Fred had introduced him to her. It was Richard Bradley.
In the particle of time it took these thoughts to occur to Ginny, Bradley had pointed his wand over her head and muttered, "tenebrae". Ginny had never heard this incantation before. Some sort of black, shadowy substance shot from the end of his wand, enveloping them both. Ginny dropped her bags, intending to reach for her own wand, but she wasn’t fast enough. Bradley had been ready for her. There was a loud bang, as ropes erupted from the end of his wand and bound themselves around her ankles, wrists, and mouth, cutting her off mid-scream. She fell in a heap at his feet.
Bradley leered evilly down at her, as she struggled uselessly against her bonds. "I wouldn’t waste my energy, if I were you, my dear." His tone was unctuous. "Oh, yes," he added, pointing his wand at her. "Accio!"
His eyes widened in surprise as nothing happened. Ginny had no idea what he was trying to summon, but she felt a sense of smug satisfaction, in spite of her present fear, that the spell hadn’t worked. Bradley frowned and tried again. Still nothing. He shrugged and mumbled something Ginny couldn’t quite make out. He seemed to be saying something about her not having… what? She wondered if he could have known about her pager, which she’d left in her robe pocket yesterday. Panic began to set in, as she realised she had no way of contacting help. She had a sinking feeling that the dark shadow which surrounded them was effectively concealing them from any possible onlookers.
Bradley retrieved an old magazine from the pocket of his robes and tapped it with his wand.. He knelt down and seized Ginny’s bound wrists, thrusting the object into her hands and forcing her to maintain contact with it. At the same time, he made sure he kept his hand on the magazine. Thirty seconds later, Ginny felt a jerk behind her navel, and they were both hurting out of control through space.
They landed on the ground in front of a dilapidated cabin in the midst of some dark trees. Ginny saw this quickly before she fell forward onto her face, unable to maintain her footing since her ankles were bound. She would have smiled grimly if she could have when she heard Bradley land with a heavy thump beside her. It sounded very much as if he’d landed on his posterior. She raised her head and saw him get up and move toward her. He grabbed her around the waist and heaved her like a flour sack over his shoulder. Ginny felt ill.
Bradley pushed his way into the cabin and deposited her none too gently on the floor. Looking around her, Ginny could see no furnishing other than a table and a couple of roughly hewn wooden chairs. There was no one else present. She looked back at Bradley, who had a distinctively nasty expression on his pale face. She definitely did not like the way his features twisted themselves into a hideous grin.
"Now, maybe I can expect some pay-off for my effort. You’ve been a lot more trouble than you’re worth so far." Ginny couldn’t say a word in reply, but she felt her insides twist sickeningly. She wondered how he’d known that he could find her on the road this evening.
"I’ve been watching for my chance, you know," he said, almost in answer to her unspoken question. "It’s been a bloody nuisance with your brothers keeping such a close watch on you and Potter slavering over you twenty-four hours a day. But he finally left you alone long enough for me to have a chance." He laughed, and the sound made Ginny shiver. "God," Ginny thought, "he’s been watching me, too."
He sat down next to her, and she cringed to feel his hand touch her cheek. "If you co-operate, I might not even have to hurt you too much."
Ginny was going to be sick if he touched her again, she just knew it. But Bradley didn’t have a chance to try. Suddenly a new voice, a female voice, was heard in the room. "Just what do you think you’re doing? You’re supposed to deliver her intact. That means no pawing!"
Ginny recognised that voice, although she hadn’t heard it since her days at Hogwarts. She never in her life thought she’d be relieved to hear it: it was her old school nemesis, Simone Howard.
Next Chapter
Summary: A post-Hogwarts H/G fic. Strange circumstances draw Harry and Ginny closer together. But are they in danger? Romance, adventure, Monty Python, and tartan boxer shorts abound.
When Ginny returned home from work that evening, she immediately had the feeling something was wrong. Going into her cottage, she couldn’t put her finger on just what was amiss for a moment, and then it struck her. Harry’s things were gone.
In spite of the evidence before her, she called out, "Harry!" She was answered by silence. Then she spied a piece of parchment on an end table. Lifting the vase which had served as a paperweight, she saw her name had been written on the parchment in Harry’s handwriting. A feeling of foreboding came over her as she unfolded the note and read:
Ginny-I’ve moved back to my flat. Will explain soon. Love, Harry
Ginny tossed the note aside in disgust, as she bit back a scream of frustration. An instant later she picked it up again, hoping at least to find some clue as to why he’d left. But there was nothing; the note was as terse as ever.
She began to shred the parchment methodically, as she tried to think of new and inventive ways to make him suffer. But then a new, sickening thought struck her, and she found herself engulfed in a wave of self-doubt. Maybe this was Harry’s way of breaking things off. The thought made her angrier than ever. If this was the case, he was the biggest bloody coward she’d ever known.
Some small voice of reason in the back of her mind told her this couldn’t be true. There was nothing cowardly about him. There remained, however, a niggling doubt that stood in opposition to the voice of reason. She thought back to how he’d claimed to have loved her since his sixth year. That was the part she’d had the most trouble crediting. If it had been true, why hadn’t he acted on it sooner? Why had he been with all sorts of women who had supposedly meant nothing to him? She cursed Witch Weekly for having aired all his dirty laundry in public. If not for that, she might have been able to live in blissful ignorance. But she couldn’t. And her mother was going to have a field day with this… just when a tentative truce had been reached.
She forced herself to calm down enough to think things through. A rapid search of the bedroom and bathroom told her he’d packed everything, down to Hedwig’s cage and his weights. He truly had moved out. The note said he’d explain soon, but Ginny decided that wasn’t good enough. He was bloody well going to explain now. She was going to see him at his flat and make sure of it. And if she didn’t like the explanation… well, she’d make sure Harry would be very sorry indeed.
Looking down at her robes, Ginny realised she’d have to change into Muggle clothes before going over there. It wouldn’t do to attract attention when his whole reason for living there was to fade into the crowd.
Once she’d put on something more appropriate, she paused. She was sure she remembered enough to be able to Apparate to the flat, but she wondered if there wouldn’t be a ward over the place. It was likely, she decided. She remembered leaving from the back alley when they’d been there almost two weeks ago. That would be the best spot to appear. It was summer and still light out; she didn’t want to alarm any Muggles by appearing in the middle of Harry’s street.
Ginny went outside and visualised the alley behind his flat. In the next instant, she was there. She quickly made her way around to the front of the building. She went into the lobby and was faced with a locked door, next to which was a row of numbered buttons. Some of the buttons had names underneath them but not all, and Harry’s name did not appear anywhere. Ginny cast about in her mind but could not remember Harry’s flat number. "I can unlock this door, at any rate," she said to herself. A quick glance told her there was no one about. She drew her wand and muttered, "Alohomora." The door opened, and she made her way up to the third floor-she remembered that much. Now she had only to hope that Harry was actually at home.
She knocked at his door, wondering what sort of reception she was going to get. None of the scenarios she could imagine was very pleasant. The expression on Harry’s face when he answered the door only confirmed these thoughts.
"What the hell are you doing here?" he hissed, as he grabbed her hand and dragged her inside, closing the door behind them. "Did anyone see you?"
Ginny’s anger returned in a flash. "No, of course not." She fought to keep her voice down, but her words remained clipped. "Not unless you count a few Muggles in the street. Did you expect me not to come over here after that note you left me? Just what the hell was that?"
Harry sighed. "Come on," he said, motioning her into the living room. "Sit down. I said I’d explain, and I will."
Ginny didn’t want to sit down; she wanted to have a row. That was the way things were usually done in her family. It didn’t seem that Harry would co-operate with this plan though. She sat down and crossed her arms, glaring at him. "This had better be good," she said testily.
Harry sat beside her and proceeded to tell her about his encounter with Malfoy’s ghost and the conclusions he’d drawn. Ginny pursed her lips as she listened, hating the fact that what he was saying seemed to make sense.
"How do you work out from all that, that you’re putting me in danger?" Ginny asked him, when he’d finished. She was determined to find some weakness in his reasoning. "You haven’t received a single threat or warning."
"Not unless you count the Witch Weekly photo. We were both in that."
"Even that had more of a bearing on me. It was to show me my house was being watched."
"I don’t know, Gin. Malfoy said his father had plans for me. He mentioned you as well, but I think it’s only because you stumbled onto something you shouldn’t have. The way things have worked out, you’ve been suspended from your job, so you can’t be in their way anymore. They ought to leave you alone now. In fact, they have been. But if I’m the one they really want, then I’m only bringing you back to their attention by being involved with you. That’s why I had to move back here. I think we need to give everyone the impression we’ve broken up, to keep you out of harm’s way."
Ginny swallowed hard. She had to ask. "Is this your way of telling me you want to break up?"
Harry looked stricken. "How can you ask me that?"
"That note sounded pretty final to me."
"I said we needed to give the impression we’d broken up, not that I actually wanted to do it. Why would you think that?"
"You do have this reputation. Even if it’s not entirely earned, you’ve admitted to me that some of it’s true."
"Doesn’t it mean anything to you that I haven’t lied to you about that? I could have. Easily." This was said in a particularly hard tone. Harry stopped, swallowed, and began again. "Have you ever done anything you regretted?"
Ginny immediately thought of taking the job with the Improper Use of Magic Department. Not that she regretted taking it, only that she’d had to out of necessity. She could also think of a thing or two she’d said to her mother whilst arguing. She nodded slowly.
"I’ve done plenty of things I’ve regretted, Ginny. If I could take them back, I would. You know, when I came back, I thought I was ready, but I wasn’t, not really. And then I discovered what I thought was a form of oblivion, but it never lasted. It was only temporary. I made mistakes, Ginny. I’m human. But that’s in the past now. As much as I’d like to, I can’t change it."
Ginny could only stare at the stark expression on his face. When he looked at her like that, she couldn’t help but believe him. She could read the truth in his eyes. She reached out and placed a hand against his cheek, her heart beating a bit faster as he leaned into her touch. He brought up his own hand and took hers, entwining their fingers. Ginny stared at their joined hands, as Harry continued.
"Do you know how difficult it was for me to leave today?" She shook her head mutely. "It was much, much worse than the first time."
Now she was confused. "The first time?"
"This is the second time now I’ve had to set my feelings for you aside in order to keep you safe. But this time it’s so much harder for me. In my sixth year I was giving up a possibility. This time I’m giving up something I know to be real."
Ginny met his gaze then and held it. "Then don’t give it up this time. Stop being so bloody noble and self-sacrificing for once."
"If anything were to happen to you, I’d never forgive myself."
"Nothing’s going to happen, Harry. I can take care of myself. I’ve been doing it for years now. At any rate, we’re both in this together. I have a say in what happens just as much as you do, and I’m not letting you leave. I forbid it."
His face began to twist into a smile. "You forbid it? Just how are you planning on stopping me?"
The atmosphere in Harry’s flat seemed to take on an electric quality. Ginny felt his hand tighten around hers. "I can be very persuasive when I set my mind to it," she said in a low voice that surprised even her. "And then if you still insist on moving out, I may just have to follow you." Ginny paused and looked around her. "No one knows where you live, do they?"
"Besides you, Ron and Hermione, no. I’ve never let anyone else see this. Really, it isn’t much. Just a place to sleep."
"Yes, but if no one knows, isn’t this the perfect place to hide?"
"It’s the perfect place for me to hide, Gin. That’s what I’ve always done here. But it wouldn’t look right if, all of a sudden, you disappeared from your place in Hogsmeade."
"Why not?" She had a good idea why not, but she was frustrated now. What he was saying made too much sense, and she didn’t like it.
"Because that house is being watched. They’ll suspect something’s up if you disappear, and they may decide to come looking. I’m sure they know you’re working at the joke shop. It would make you more of a target than ever. They could use you to flush me out. Or they could try to follow you until they found me. If they think we’re no longer together, they can’t use you to get to me." He hesitated for a moment, and Ginny saw doubt cloud his eyes. "Ginny, I may have to allow myself to be photographed with another witch. Will you trust me that anything showing up in Witch Weekly will be meaningless to me?"
Ginny swallowed. Now they were to the point. Looking into his face, she knew in her heart he’d never been anything but honest with her; he’d even been forthright about things he could have kept from her. He’d never given her any reason not to trust him. She took a deep breath and said, "Yes, Harry, I trust you."
She felt his arms encircle her waist and draw her close. "When this is over," he whispered against her hair, "I’ll come back." He pulled away slightly to look into her eyes. "If that’s what you want."
Ginny could only nod; she didn’t trust her voice at the moment, knowing she was acquiescing to the entire plan. Harry was kissing her in the next instant, in any case. Her thoughts were beginning to scatter when…
An insistent electronic noise caused them to break apart. "What is that?" Ginny asked.
Harry reached into the pocket of his trousers and pulled out the pager Ron had given him. "It’s this," he answered, a questioning look on his face. "Did Ron give you one of these?" When she nodded, he continued, "Look, it’s got a message on it. Did Ron tell you about this? Because he didn’t mention it to me…"
Ginny looked at the small screen which carried a message: "Harry, check in."
"Ron told me if I got a message like that to check in with whoever was at the joke shop. But why didn’t…" She trailed off as she realised the reason why her pager hadn’t gone off. She’d left it in the pocket of her robes when she’d changed before coming over here. She didn’t want to mention this oversight to Harry, though. To cover the awkward moment she said, "We’d better answer that. Where’s your powder for fire talking?"
"I’m not on the Floo network, so I don’t have any."
"We’ll just have to pop over then. Quick, before they decide to try to find us."
"Let’s go then. We need to go out in any case. I haven’t got anything edible. I came home to an extremely rank refrigerator this afternoon." Harry pulled a most expressive look of disgust at this.
They Apparated over to the alley behind Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes. They knocked at the back door which Ron, with quite a worried look on his face, opened to let them in.
"What took you so long to answer?" he demanded without preamble. The shop itself was empty except for the three of them. It had been closed for the day before Ginny had even returned to her cottage, and there was no chance of any outside ears overhearing their conversation.
"We had to come over from my flat," Harry answered him. "I’m not on the Floo network, or we could have talked through the fire. What’s the trouble, anyway?"
"We lost sight of the two of you. I told you earlier we had Ginny’s place under surveillance, and then both of you disappeared. I wasn’t quite as concerned about you, Harry, since you’ve been in and out of there since we’ve been keeping an eye on things. But then Ginny left as well, and I thought it would be a good idea to make sure everything was all right."
Ginny thought Harry looked distinctly uncomfortable. She assumed his discomfiture was for the same reason she felt her own cheeks heat. She didn’t like to think about how closely she was being watched, and by her own brothers at that. But then Harry began to speak. "Look, Ron, about that. I’ve moved out of Ginny’s for now. I’m back at my flat. I think it’s for the best that way."
Ron grinned lopsidedly. "There must be a good reason behind that if you’re still alive to tell about it." Ginny felt like kicking her brother, but she restrained herself.
"I’ve found something out today. Perhaps we should go into the office and sit down."
Without another word, Ron turned and went into the twins’ office. Ginny and Harry followed him. When they were all seated, Ron looked expectantly at Harry, who related to him all he could about Malfoy’s ghost. Ginny saw Ron’s eyes widen in surprise as Harry described his first meeting with Draco. No one, it seemed, had known about Malfoy’s continued existence in this world, such as it was, not even the Ministry of Magic. When Harry had finished the entire story, however, Ron did not look pleased.
"Why couldn’t you have told me all of this sooner?" he asked in a decidedly irritated tone.
"I didn’t know about a good bit of this before today."
"You could have told me you’d seen Malfoy’s ghost, at any rate. Hell, you should have told Fred or George about that the day you first ran into him. We could have got a hell of a lot more information out of him than you did."
"I don’t know how, he didn’t know that much." Ginny thought Harry was attempting to sound reasonable.
"How do you know he wasn’t lying to you about how much he knew? Shit, Harry, you’re not trained for this sort of thing. You don’t know the sort of methods we have at our disposal. Why the hell couldn’t you let the professionals handle it?" Ron was quite red in the face now, and he was using a tone Ginny hadn’t heard out of him for quite a while.
"Because I don’t think you and your brothers have been entirely above board about this from the beginning. I think you’re holding back important information on me." Harry’s own voice was adamant.
"We have to follow procedure, Harry. I’m not allowed to divulge certain things."
"Procedure? When did you ever play by the rules?"
Ginny thought it might be wise for her to intervene here before Ron and Harry had a falling out. She didn’t really like the way either one of them was looking at the other. "What’s done is done, now," she insisted, breaking in on their exchange before either one of them could say another word. "We’re not going to get any further with this by arguing about who’s been hiding what." She glared at both of them. "Now, Ron, Harry has told you something that could help further your investigation. Do you have anything at all you can tell us in return?"
Ron suddenly looked sheepish. "No, not really. I might have told both of you to keep on your toes, but it seems Malfoy’s done it for me. Basically, all we’ve been able to determine is what Harry’s found out from Malfoy, nothing more. But if we can get hold of Malfoy and question him effectively, we may be able to learn more."
"And has Harry done anything to stop you from questioning Malfoy by doing so himself?"
"Well, no," Ron was forced to admit. "But we could have learned all this much sooner."
"Then I suppose you’ve got your work cut out for you for tomorrow. You wanted us over here to find out if we were all right, and you’ve had your answer. Is there anything else?"
Ron looked rather dazed. "No."
"Then we’ll be off. I don’t know about you, Harry, but I’m starved. Shall we go and get some supper?"
Harry didn’t say a word, as he rose to follow her out of the joke shop. When they’d returned to the back alley, he asked, "how did you do that?"
"What? Shut Ron up?" Harry nodded. "I’ve only had about ten years more experience at it than you. You’ll catch on eventually. At any rate, someone had to stop the two of you. The way you were headed wasn’t exactly constructive, you know."
"I’m sorry, but I still don’t think he’s telling us everything he could."
"Cut him some slack, Harry. It’s the nature of his job. He wouldn’t presume to tell you how to play Quidditch, would he?" Harry was forced to admit she was right. "Are you going to take me to supper then? I really am starved."
*
Ginny and Harry sat on his sofa, the remnants of their supper littering the coffee table. They had brought some Thai take-away back to Harry’s flat after leaving Diagon Alley, and Ginny had never tasted anything like it before. Harry had been careful to warn her about the tiny hot peppers, and even without them, the food was spicy and exotic. But it was also very good.
They were now companionably ensconced in front of a film from Harry’s extensive video collection. Harry had given her a choice of films, but since Ginny didn’t know one Muggle movie from the next, she’d let him decide which one to watch. He’d chosen something very dark and violent set in Scotland in the Middle-Ages. But it was also a powerful and ultimately sad story about a man who tried to deliver his people in spite of himself. He’d only wanted to live a peaceful life with his wife, but circumstances had prevented that. Ginny shuddered at the violent battle scenes that unfolded on the screen. She knew that Muggle wars were waged differently these days, but still…
Harry must have sensed her distress, for the arm he’d placed about her shoulder tightened more securely around her. She buried her face in the hollow of his neck, where she could breathe in his scent, and she felt his hand run through her hair, lifting up the fiery locks and letting them fall back to her shoulders again. His lips brushed her forehead, and his free hand lifted one of hers. As their fingers enlaced, she raised her gaze to meet his.
Harry took Ginny’s face in his hands, his thumbs caressing her cheeks, and stared into her eyes. This would be their last night together until this whole mess was solved, but neither of them knew how long that would take. The thought hung unspoken in the air between them, as Harry slowly lowered his mouth to hers. In the instant before their lips touched, Ginny heard him whisper her name.
His first kiss was soft and fleeting, like a sudden summer breeze that brushes the skin. The second was slightly more demanding. Their gazes had remained locked the entire time, but by the third kiss, she felt the tip of his tongue touch the seam of her lips, and her eyes drifted shut. She shivered and opened her mouth under his, feeling him twine his fingers into her hair. When he broke away, they were both breathing shallowly.
Harry brought his hands down, lightly skimming the sides of her neck, his fingers coming to rest on her collar bone for a moment before moving on to the buttons of her blouse. He was pinning her with his gaze once more, and he opened his mouth to say something. But Ginny didn’t want to communicate with words just now. She silenced him with her palm, shuddering as he stopped working at her buttons to take her hand in his and press his lips into its centre. He then kissed her inner wrist before placing her hand at the back of his neck and returning to her blouse.
He made rather quick work of the rest of her buttons and slowly parted the fabric. His lowered his head to her neck, as his hands pushed the garment from her shoulders and down her arms. Ginny’s fingers tightened convulsively in his hair, as his lips traced a path to the junction of her neck and shoulder. Harry tightened his arms about her, holding her still, and then he brought his mouth to hers again, kissing her deeply.
Ginny moved her hands between them and began to undo his shirt buttons with trembling fingers, but it wasn’t easy. The things he was doing to her with his mouth made it very difficult to concentrate indeed. She completed her task at last, and her hands wandered over his chest. She could feel him shiver under her touch, his firm muscles jumping under her fingers and a strangled sound emanating from his throat.
He tore his lips from hers, hungrily kissing a path to her earlobe. She felt his teeth graze her skin, and she clutched at him. His mouth worked its way down the column of her neck, planting nipping kisses along her collar bones, before continuing its descent. Suddenly, Ginny felt warm breath against the tip of her breast. She arched against his lips, as he tried to draw her into his mouth through the lacy fabric of her bra. Even that was an obstacle not to be tolerated for long, and Harry pulled her bra strap from her shoulder so he could taste her skin.
She gasped with pleasure as his teeth grazed her. She felt languid and completely boneless in his embrace. One of her hands had found its way into his hair, and it clenched into a fist as she sought a way to support herself. Harry broke off, but it was only so he could lavish the same attention on her other breast. She could feel the roughness of his chin rubbing against her softness, but this sensation only heightened her pleasure. When he broke away from her at last to stare into her eyes once more, they were both breathing heavily.
Ginny had seen this expression on his face enough times now to recognise the symptoms of desire on it. The sight made her want to drive him mad with pleasure. She began by removing his glasses before she took his face in her hands and drew him into a long kiss. As she did this, she moved into his lap, placing her knees on either side of his hips. She allowed her hands to wander freely over his torso, and his groans only served to further encourage her. One of his hands was gripping her at the waist, while the other caressed its way up her back before coming to rest on the back of her head where it attempted to hold her steady. She broke away from his mouth in spite of this, moving her lips to his neck and upper chest, where his skin seemed so hot it burned, her hands working their way lower.
Ginny could feel every tremor that passed through him at her touch, just has she could hear his breathing become harsh, and this gave her a feeling of power over him. She unfastened his jeans and pulled them off entirely, bringing his boxers along with them and suppressing a giggle when she saw they were the plaid ones again. It struck her as funny that he should own so many pairs of them, but now wasn’t the time to remark on it; she had more interesting things to think about… such as where she wanted to touch him next.
He trembled violently as she took him into her hands. She looked into his eyes and could see a fine sheen of perspiration breaking out on his forehead. His fight for control was evident in his facial expression and in the way his hands were biting into her hips. Ginny noted all this and felt a devilish smile break out on her face. It was turning out to be more fun than she’d thought to see just how far she could push him. She lowered her lips to his chest again, paying special attention to all the sensitive spots she’d discovered in the past, and trying to locate new ones. And at the same time her hands never rested.
He allowed her to continue a while longer, but at last he must have nearly reached the breaking point, for he raised her face to his and began to kiss her passionately again. He began to touch her insistently as his mouth explored hers, causing her to cling to him for support. She felt his hands on her outer thighs, caressing their way beneath her skirt, moving higher to her hips and then back down again. With each stroke he moved a little closer inwards but only the slightest amount, until she let out a sob of frustration. If she didn’t know better, he was doing this on purpose.
She broke away from his kiss and looked into his face for confirmation. He was grinning at her in a way that told her he most definitely had been teasing. "Two can play at that game, you know." The low, seductive quality of her voice surprised her. She began to move her hands over him once more, causing him to tremble.
She saw him swallow. "Isn’t that what you’ve been doing to me?"
"I can keep doing it if you like."
"I like it just a bit too much at the moment." His shaking seemed uncontrollable now. He caught her hands. "It’s your turn now. Do you want me to touch you here?" His hand was high on her inner thigh now. Ginny nodded.
"Here?" He moved his hand beneath her panties, and she could only gasp.
"Here?" he whispered. He had found her centre now, and she cried out. His fingers began to stroke her in a maddening rhythm, and Ginny threw her head back and let her thoughts scatter. She felt his hair brush against her skin, as he leaned towards her and began kissing the hollow of her throat before working his way downward to her breast. His tongue on its tip matched the rhythm of his fingers, and soon the world seemed to shatter into sparkling shards. She seemed to hear a voice crying out from a great distance. It may have been her own; she was no longer sure.
The next conscious thought she had was of Harry’s mouth on hers once more. He’d managed to remove her panties somehow, and now his hands were on her hips once more, positioning her over him. She lowered herself the last few inches and felt him drive deep into her. She gripped his shoulders and began to move with him, attempting to maintain eye contact but it was difficult. She really wanted to throw her head back once more. Her eyes drifted shut as he began to kiss her once more. And then suddenly he froze and groaned as he found his release.
He buried his head against her shoulder, his arms tightening around her waist as he held her close. After a moment, he looked up at her, took her face in his hands once more and kissed her softly. "You were, right, you know," he said.
"Right? About what?"
"Earlier when you said you could be very persuasive. You’re not making this easy on me, you know."
Ginny reached up and brushed the hair back from his face. "I love you. I don’t want for us to be separated." She felt his grip tighten at her words.
"I don’t want that either, but it’s for the best. You understand that, don’t you?" She nodded and he went on. "Then let’s make the most of the time we have left. Stay with me tonight."
And so she did, although neither of them spent much of the night sleeping. And when she left the following morning in a rush, neither of them knew when they’d see each other again.
*
The following afternoon found Ginny leaning idly against the counter of her brothers’ shop waiting for closing time. She had no customers to occupy her at the moment, and she’d done everything else that needed doing. She had only to wait for the Muggle-style clock (given to the twins by their father as a present when they’d first opened for business) to reach half past five when she could close the shop and leave. It was odd how the hands of the clock always seemed to slow to almost a halt at this time of day. Not that she had anything to look forward to at home. She’d be returning to an empty cottage, and she knew there was no chance Harry would turn up and surprise her this time.
She really hadn’t had much sleep, and as a result, she’d woken up late and rather disoriented, not knowing where she was for a moment, before remembering she was at Harry's flat. She’d barely had time for a quick shower before it was time to report to work. She definitely had not had time to say goodbye properly to Harry this morning.
Ginny shook herself. What was done was done, and there was no use dwelling on it. She could only hope this entire mess would be cleared up soon, and then she and Harry could be together again, openly.
In spite of herself, she looked at the clock on the wall again, although she knew it couldn’t be 5:30 yet. She was right: five minutes to go. She sighed and thought about what she needed in the way of groceries. Making out a list would pass the time nicely while keeping her mind off of more depressing thoughts. Besides, she really didn’t have all that much food at home. She took out a scrap of parchment and began to write.
The clock on the wall struck 5:30 at long last, and Ginny closed the shop, said goodbye to George, who was in the office, and went out to the back alley to Disapparate to Hogsmeade. She’d have enough time to pick up the items on her shopping list before heading back to her house. She could take her time in returning, since no one was expecting her…
Ginny carried her groceries home at a sedate pace, rather lost in thought and not paying a great deal of attention to her surroundings. The road home was completely familiar, after all the years she’d lived here. She could very likely have found her way home with her eyes closed, she thought. Perhaps this was the reason she did not have time to react when a figure blocked her path, his wand drawn and pointing towards her. She froze, shocked for a moment, and looked into a familiar face. She’d seen this man before in the joke shop, she thought with a shudder at the unpleasant memory. Fred had introduced him to her. It was Richard Bradley.
In the particle of time it took these thoughts to occur to Ginny, Bradley had pointed his wand over her head and muttered, "tenebrae". Ginny had never heard this incantation before. Some sort of black, shadowy substance shot from the end of his wand, enveloping them both. Ginny dropped her bags, intending to reach for her own wand, but she wasn’t fast enough. Bradley had been ready for her. There was a loud bang, as ropes erupted from the end of his wand and bound themselves around her ankles, wrists, and mouth, cutting her off mid-scream. She fell in a heap at his feet.
Bradley leered evilly down at her, as she struggled uselessly against her bonds. "I wouldn’t waste my energy, if I were you, my dear." His tone was unctuous. "Oh, yes," he added, pointing his wand at her. "Accio!"
His eyes widened in surprise as nothing happened. Ginny had no idea what he was trying to summon, but she felt a sense of smug satisfaction, in spite of her present fear, that the spell hadn’t worked. Bradley frowned and tried again. Still nothing. He shrugged and mumbled something Ginny couldn’t quite make out. He seemed to be saying something about her not having… what? She wondered if he could have known about her pager, which she’d left in her robe pocket yesterday. Panic began to set in, as she realised she had no way of contacting help. She had a sinking feeling that the dark shadow which surrounded them was effectively concealing them from any possible onlookers.
Bradley retrieved an old magazine from the pocket of his robes and tapped it with his wand.. He knelt down and seized Ginny’s bound wrists, thrusting the object into her hands and forcing her to maintain contact with it. At the same time, he made sure he kept his hand on the magazine. Thirty seconds later, Ginny felt a jerk behind her navel, and they were both hurting out of control through space.
They landed on the ground in front of a dilapidated cabin in the midst of some dark trees. Ginny saw this quickly before she fell forward onto her face, unable to maintain her footing since her ankles were bound. She would have smiled grimly if she could have when she heard Bradley land with a heavy thump beside her. It sounded very much as if he’d landed on his posterior. She raised her head and saw him get up and move toward her. He grabbed her around the waist and heaved her like a flour sack over his shoulder. Ginny felt ill.
Bradley pushed his way into the cabin and deposited her none too gently on the floor. Looking around her, Ginny could see no furnishing other than a table and a couple of roughly hewn wooden chairs. There was no one else present. She looked back at Bradley, who had a distinctively nasty expression on his pale face. She definitely did not like the way his features twisted themselves into a hideous grin.
"Now, maybe I can expect some pay-off for my effort. You’ve been a lot more trouble than you’re worth so far." Ginny couldn’t say a word in reply, but she felt her insides twist sickeningly. She wondered how he’d known that he could find her on the road this evening.
"I’ve been watching for my chance, you know," he said, almost in answer to her unspoken question. "It’s been a bloody nuisance with your brothers keeping such a close watch on you and Potter slavering over you twenty-four hours a day. But he finally left you alone long enough for me to have a chance." He laughed, and the sound made Ginny shiver. "God," Ginny thought, "he’s been watching me, too."
He sat down next to her, and she cringed to feel his hand touch her cheek. "If you co-operate, I might not even have to hurt you too much."
Ginny was going to be sick if he touched her again, she just knew it. But Bradley didn’t have a chance to try. Suddenly a new voice, a female voice, was heard in the room. "Just what do you think you’re doing? You’re supposed to deliver her intact. That means no pawing!"
Ginny recognised that voice, although she hadn’t heard it since her days at Hogwarts. She never in her life thought she’d be relieved to hear it: it was her old school nemesis, Simone Howard.
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