Ginny glanced up at Harry surreptitiously, wondering what he was scribbling on that piece of parchment. Or more to the point, what he wasn't scribbling. He was holding his quill poised over the sheet and staring at it, as if willing the words to come. She craned her neck, but couldn't make out what was written across the top of the sheet. There was only one line, and it was almost certainly a greeting.

She turned back to her History of Magic text with a small sigh. She wasn't having much more luck getting anything useful done than he was. Of course, in her case, the subject matter may have had something to do with it… That and the fact that she was stretched out on her side, one hand propping up her chin. She'd come out here after lunch and spread out a blanket to lie on. It wasn't the most conducive spot for doing summer homework, perhaps, but the day was too fine to sit and do this inside.

She'd been surprised when he'd come outside to join her, bringing his parchment and ink. He hadn't said a word as he'd sat down near her, his back against the bole of the tree, but he'd seemed less tense somehow. It was noticeable in the set of his shoulders. It had been this way ever since their talk the day before. It had done them both good to get things out in the open. Now if only he could open up to the others…

"What are you writing?" she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Nothing at the moment," he mumbled.

"I can see that. But what are you trying to write?"

"I'm trying to write to Remus Lupin, like you suggested. Only I've no idea what to say…"

Ginny's heart leapt within her. That was definitely a step in the right direction. She remembered his reaction to Professor Lupin's offer of help in the hospital wing, and the way Harry had insisted he didn't want to accept the fact that he'd given up his powers. If he was taking this step, it had to mean he was ready to accept it now. "Whatever you have to say to him, I'm sure he'll understand. I think of anyone we know, he's in the best position to give you a hand."

"Yeah, but it would be a lot easier to do this face to face."

Ginny wondered about the truth of that statement. He'd opened up to her yesterday, but only because she'd forced him to. When the rest of the family returned home, he hadn't been exactly talkative, although the nature of his silence had changed. It was more of an embarrassed silence now, rather than an angry one. Ginny supposed it had been enough that he'd told the others about his NEWT results over supper without any prompting. Her mother had been as pleased with his results as if it had been one of her own children, but then in a sense, Harry had been for a long time now.

"I'm glad you're writing to him, Harry," she responded. She wished she had a suggestion for what he could put in his letter, but the first thing that came to mind was all that had happened yesterday, and she didn't like to bring it up. She was still drained from that conversation, and she knew he must be doubly so.

"Actually, I do know what I ought to be putting in this, it's just … well it isn't easy, is it? I'm not exactly happy about the way I've been acting lately…"

Her heart went out to him, and she wished she knew what to say. "I think you're just going to have to grit your teeth and do it."

He sighed heavily. "I know."

Ginny turned back to her homework, but her attention was divided now between listening to the scratching of Harry's quill and experiencing the warm summer breeze. After a few minutes, however, the scratching stopped and she heard the sound of a parchment being crumpled. "Where are Ron and Hermione?" he asked abruptly.

Ginny smiled to herself, knowing he was only asking as an excuse to keep from writing his letter. "Out in the orchard with Mum."

"What are they doing there?"

"Practising Apparating."

"They are? When did they start learning?"

"About a week ago, I think. Mum and Dad have been helping them whenever they have a chance."

Harry looked surprised for a moment, and then, as Ginny watched, he reddened slightly and looked down. "I wonder why they didn't say anything," he said almost to himself.

"I expect neither one of them wanted their head bitten off."

He went even redder at that. "I guess I ought to apologise to them… to everyone, really, for the way I've been behaving." Ginny had to strain her ears to hear him.

"Well, it would be the grown-up thing to do."

He swallowed hard enough that she could see it, before taking out a fresh sheet of parchment. Given the choice between writing to Professor Lupin and apologising to his best friends, it seemed he suddenly found the letter a much easier task.

Ginny turned another page in her History of Magic text, quickly skimming over a few paragraphs before striking something that made her stop and reread more closely. She couldn't stop the giggle that bubbled to the surface.

Harry's quill stopped scratching. "What's so funny?" Then he reached over and tilted up the cover of her book so he could get a look at the title. "Now you've got to tell me… What could you possibly find funny in there."

"Gefinn."

"Sorry?"

"As well as you did on your NEWTs, and you don't know who Gefinn is?"

"Erm, no, can't say that I do. I don't think we had anything on him."

"Her, you mean. She's a goddess of Norse legend. I suppose it is a minor detail. She's only mentioned in passing… I'll try to remember not to go over this bit for my NEWTs next spring."

"Yeah, every little bit helps… Anyway what did she do that's so funny."

"Well, she seems to have been a goddess of maidens. Unmarried women were believed to go to her halls when they died. But there was this necklace she wanted, so she prostituted herself for it…"

"I suppose it is a bit ironic," said Harry, starting to grin a little.

"Yeah, the goddess of virgins, and she's a prostitute herself. Strange what some people will believe in."

She went back to her homework, but she could feel that he was still watching her. She wondered if he was thinking about what was going to happen in just over a month when she would return to school. It wasn't going to be easy for her to leave him behind, especially when he seemed so fragile. But maybe it would be good for him, in a sense. Difficult, but good all the same. She wasn't going to be there all the time to be strong for him and drive him out of his shell when he closed himself off. He was going to have to learn to do that on his own. And she was going to have to learn to let him go so that he could.

No. She wouldn't think about that now; she'd cross that bridge when she came to it. She might not have the old Harry back just yet, but he was in there, and she missed him. Sometimes she caught glimpses, and she would remain in his company hoping for as many as she could grasp.

The summer breeze suddenly grew stronger, whipping her hair into her eyes. She pushed it out of her face, irritated, but it kept coming back. When she could stand it no more, she stood suddenly.

"Where are you going?" asked Harry looking up.

"To get something to tie my hair back with. I can't get anything done with it blowing into my eyes like this." He looked as if he was about to get up, as well. "Stay there. I won't be a minute."

"No, sit. I'll go get it for you."

"How will you know where to look?"

"I know where your room is… I imagine I'd just have to dig a bit."

"No, there's no way I'm letting you turn my room upside down when I can just do it myself," she replied lightly, smiling.

"Well, maybe you'd get some more done if I got out of your hair," he said getting to his feet. His tone was as light as hers had been, but she saw he was perfectly serious.

"Don't be silly, Harry, of course you're not bothering me." He still looked hesitant, so she reached out a hand and touched his arm. "Please, stay."

He stared down at her, and she met his gaze steadily. She thought he looked as if he might take a step nearer. If he took one, and she took one then they'd be close enough for him to lean down to her and…

Suddenly Ginny's range of vision was obscured by the back of a blinding orange T-shirt. "Ron, gerroff!" she cried, giving him a shove, which only served to make him stagger into Harry. At the same time, Harry said, "Ron, you're my best friend, and I'm quite fond of you, but I really think snogging is pushing things a bit too far, don't you?"

"Sorry about that," Ron replied, stepping to one side. "Last time I let the twins give me Apparition pointers."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "I could have told you that much. Why would you believe anything they told you? They probably gave you pointers on the best way to splinch yourself. You've only had eighteen years' experience to go on. Honestly!" But her irritation was false, because she could see that Harry's eyes were sparking with good humour, and it sent a jolt of elation through her.

"Ron, what happened?" Ginny turned to see Hermione coming out of the house. "You were supposed to end up inside the house. You completely missed the mark and landed on the other side!"

Ron shrugged. "I was tired of practicing. Come on, Hermione, what do we need to practise so much for?"

"You obviously need to work on it some more. You were off by at least fifty feet!"

"What do you need your Apparition test for anyway? It's not as if you're going to need it."

"Why wouldn't she need it?" asked Harry.

"Hermione had a job offer along with her NEWT results," explained Ron. "If she accepts it, she'll be working up at Hogwarts. And we all know what that means…"

"Oh, honestly, Ron!"

Hermione tried to cut him off, but he went on as if she hadn't tried to interrupt. "You can't Apparate on Hogwarts grounds! You'll have to travel by Floo," he teased.

"Well, if I'm on staff, I expect I'll be living in the castle," Hermione pointed out, which made Ron suddenly stop smiling.

But then he grinned evilly. "Do you think you'll be allowed conjugal visits? Maybe that's what made McGonagall so sour all the time…"

"Ronald Weasley!" cried an outraged voice. No one had noticed Ginny's mother come out and join the group, but she must have followed Hermione out of the house. Hermione blushed deeply, and Ron's ears went scarlet. "If you know what's good for you, you'll explain that comment to my satisfaction!"

"It's only a joke, Mum…" Ron began.

"Congratulations, Hermione," Harry said quickly, no doubt hoping to steer the conversation into safer waters. "What's the job offer?"

"Madam Prince apparently didn't recover from the injuries she sustained in the battle at Hogsmeade, and she's planning on retiring. She's decided to hand pick her successor, and she chose me."

Ginny wasn't sure what she thought of this news. She'd never imagined Hermione spending the rest of her life in Hogwarts library, no matter how much time she'd spent there during her years as a student there. Harry may have been thinking along the same lines, for he said, laughing, "You're not actually going to accept, are you?"

Hermione bit her lip and looked slightly uncomfortable. "I haven't quite made up my mind yet…" But Ginny had the impression she had, and she didn't want to admit it.

"Perhaps you should look and see what else is out there, dear," added Mrs Weasley. "I'm sure this is a nice offer, but a clever girl like you can do whatever you set your mind to. Arthur could look into openings at the Ministry."

"Thank you, Mrs Weasley," Hermione said, her tone rather dismissive.

Yes, Ginny thought, she's already decided, but why?

Her mother looked as if she was ready to lay into Ron once more, and Ron must have sensed it as well. "You know, Hermione, you're absolutely right about me needing more practice at this. I won't be accepted into Auror training if I haven't got my license."

Before anyone could say another word, Ron's face took on a look of deep concentration, and he disappeared.

"That boy…" his mother said after him. "Now where's he got to?"

Hermione laughed. "No doubt, fifty feet away from wherever he meant to appear."

Ginny's mother sighed. "He's going to turn out like Charlie and have to take his test over."

Ginny wondered if anyone else had been struck by the way her mother had mentioned Charlie so casually. Why couldn't her mother see--why couldn't any of them see--that bringing up Charlie was like bringing up Harry's lack of powers. It could be mentioned without the world falling to pieces, without everyone bursting into tears. It was a topic that ought to be broached with sensitivity, of course, but not one to be avoided at all cost. Now that Harry seemed to be taking steps to accept his situation, perhaps they could all stop walking on eggshells around him. Perhaps they could all take another step towards some semblance of normalcy.

Ginny's mother was now eyeing the rest of them closely, and Ginny wondered if her mum had sensed that she and Harry had begun to patch things up. She was relieved when her mother's scrutiny settled on Hermione. It looked very much as if Molly was going to ask Hermione to explain Ron's comment.

Hermione had to have sensed it, as well, for she took a step backwards. "I'd best see where Ron has got to. Wouldn't want him to splinch himself…" And then she, too, Disapparated.

"If either of them thinks they can hide from me, they'd better think again," Ginny's mother muttered, before stalking off towards the house, leaving Harry and Ginny alone once again.

Ginny turned to look at Harry saw his eyes were still shining with mischief. "Come on," he said. "Let's see if we can find them before your mum does."

Ginny smiled at him. "I suppose it is more fun than working on my homework, but how are we going to manage to find them? If they're clever about it, they'll keep moving…"

"Well, it'll be like going for a walk, won't it? Come on."

He took her hand, and Ginny decided it was really best not to protest. Her hand fit so naturally into his. Ginny had missed this so much. They took a long walk around the Weasley property, taking care to remain within the wards, in case any reporters might be lurking about, and it was late afternoon before they decided to go back to the house. They'd seen no sign of Ron or Hermione, and Ginny thought her mother was going to be hard-pressed to find them and tell them off.

But as they were passing the shed on the way back to the house, Harry stopped suddenly.

"What is it?" Ginny asked him.

"Shh… I heard something."

Ginny strained her ears, and she heard it, too. There were voices coming from inside the shed. And they were arguing. Harry leaned in close and spoke into her ear. "I think we've found them."

They exchanged a look and stepped closer so they could hear what Ron and Hermione were saying.

"I still can't believe you said that in front of your mother!" they heard Hermione admonishing. "Honestly, I don't know what got into you!"

"I didn't know she was there, Hermione," Ron replied. "I didn't hear her come up. You think I would have said something like that in front of Mum?"

"I don't know, Ron. You don't always think before you before you open your mouth, do you?"

"Keep your voice down, Hermione, do you want her to find us?"

Ginny had to bite down on her lip to keep from giggling, and Harry must have felt that she had the urge to laugh, because he nudged her. But that only made matters worse.

"As if she wouldn't find us out here in the shed. I'm surprised she hasn't found us already."

"We could move again."

"Where? Up to your room? That's the first place she'd look!"

"She wouldn't see us if we borrowed Harry's invisibility cloak. It's up there."

"How are you going to get past her to get it? I'm sure she's got the house staked out."

"I'll Apparate!"

"Oh, that's a good one, Ron. You'll Apparate fifty feet off the mark, come out in thin air, and fall."

"You have such confidence in me, don't you?" Ron sounded hurt now. "I'm getting better at it, you know. I managed to Apparate into the shed without missing, didn't I?"

"Yes, but you almost managed to splinch yourself. If you do that, your mum is going to find you, and then there will be no escaping her."

"No worries there. I won't splinch myself. The twins told me how to do that in detail. I just do the opposite of what they tell me."

This statement was met by silence from Hermione, and Ginny imagined she was rolling her eyes at Ron. She was shaking with suppressed laughter now, and although she knew she shouldn't be listening to this, it was too much fun. It was too much like old times.

"Anyway," Ron was going on, "we'd best move again. Let's just go up to my room and get the invisibility cloak…" He paused, and when he went on, his voice had gone serious. "D'you think Harry would mind if I borrowed it? You know, he seems a lot better today for some reason."

Ginny stopped laughing and turned to Harry. He was looking back at her soberly. She could tell what he was thinking… that this was his cue to go in there and apologise to them both for his behaviour over the past few weeks. She squeezed his hand and nodded once.

Harry took a few steps back and approached the shed door making quite a lot of noise in the process. The voices inside fell silent, and Ginny was afraid for a moment that Ron and Hermione would think it was her mother that had found them and would Disapparate.

Harry must have been thinking along the same lines. "Don't worry, it's only me," he called. "No need to panic."

"Keep it down, Harry," Ron's voice hissed from inside. "We don't want Mum out here."

"Can I, um, come in then?"

"Yeah, as long as no one sees you."

"I've get Ginny with me."

"Just get in here, and be quick about it!" came Hermione's voice.

Ginny suspected Harry was enjoying this, in spite of the seriousness of what he was about to do. They entered the darkness of the shed. Ron and Hermione were nowhere in evidence. "Where are you two?" Ginny called.

"Over here," came Hermione's voice from behind the Muggle washing machine Ginny's dad had been fiddling with for what seemed like an eternity now. It apparently made for a convenient hiding spot.

Ron and Hermione made room for Harry and Ginny to sit on the floor with them. Ginny waited for Harry to say something, but he suddenly seemed tongue-tied. In the half-light of the shed, she could see he was looking down at his hands. Ron and Hermione seemed to sense he had something important to say to them, and they waited for him to begin.

"I couldn't help overhearing what you said about the invisibility cloak," he began slowly. "And I just wanted to let you know, you're free to borrow it any time you want. You don't have to ask. Either of you can have anything of mine you want. I hope you know that. Although you can't have my Firebolt. I gave it to Ginny."

"Harry…" Hermione began.

"No, don't interrupt me. I have to say this. There's a lot of things I'm not going to be needing anymore, and you can have anything you want out of it."

Hermione broke in on him again, sounding more alarmed this time. "Harry, we don't want your things… What are you trying to say?"

"Nothing bad. Don't worry. Ginny and I had that talk yesterday. I guess what I'm really trying to say is, I've been a complete prat for the past few weeks. Worse than that. Prat doesn't even begin to cover it. And I know there's nothing I can do to make up for it. But I am sorry for the way I've been acting, and I promise to try to do better. I don't know if I can, but I'll try. I just seem to say things I don't mean lately. I don't want to say them; I don't even know where it's coming from most of the time. It just pops out of my mouth before I can stop it…" Harry said all this while looking down at his hands.

Hermione gave an audible sniff. "It's all right, Harry, really. We understand this has to be very difficult for you. Don't we, Ron?"

Ginny saw her give Ron a nudge with an elbow. "Yeah, mate, it's all right."

"Well, I'm going to try. I'm going to write to Remus Lupin…"

"That's good, Harry," Hermione said.

"Just do me a favour, will you?" Harry went on. "It's okay to talk about magic in front of me. You don't have to pretend you're Muggles around me. I mean, doesn't that defeat the whole purpose? One of the reasons we wanted to get rid of Voldemort was to stop the terror on Muggle-borns, wasn't it? If he'd had his way he'd have terrorised them all into not using their magic, wouldn't he?"

"He would have done a lot worse than that, mate," Ron said. "No telling where he would have stopped."

"Ron," Ginny broke in, not wanting this conversation to become side-tracked, "I think we all know that."

"Right. Anyway forget about you being a prat. I'd have gone mad if I were you. We weren't mad at you, we were worried."

Hermione leaned over and squeezed Harry's hand. "No one blames you for the way you acted."

Harry opened his mouth, but before he could say anything else, they heard a noise out in the yard. "Arthur?" Ginny's mother was calling, and from the sound of things she was heading in the direction of the shed. "Is that you already? I didn't know you were home yet…"

Ron and Hermione shot to their feet, exchanging a panicked look. "Go!" Ginny hissed to them, getting up.

"But you and Har-" Ron began.

"Just get out of here," Harry urged. "Don't worry about us."

They needed no further encouragement. In the next instant they'd gone, leaving Harry and Ginny alone in the shed. Ginny knew her mother was going to jump to conclusions if she came into the shed no matter what she saw, so it probably wouldn't matter if she witnessed just a bit more. She knew it hadn't been easy for Harry to swallow his pride and apologise to Ron and Hermione, and she wanted him to know that she recognised that.

"Harry," she said, putting her arms around his waist, "that was well done. I know it wasn't easy for you."

She thought he let out a breath of surprise as she hugged him close. But he didn't have the chance to reply to her or even settle into her embrace. Her mother had opened the door to the shed and cleared her throat. Ginny released Harry and turned to face her mother, who was standing with her arms crossed and looking at the two of them knowingly.

"What's going on in here?"

"We thought we heard Ron and Hermione," Ginny replied quickly.

"Really?"

"We did hear them," added Harry, "only they Disapparated again."

Ginny's mother looked at them sceptically. "Well, come on out of there. Ginny, I need you to help me with dinner," she added in a tone that Ginny knew meant business.

She followed her mother into the house, thinking it wasn't fair that Harry had got off the hook. "It looks as if the two of you have made it up," her mother said as soon as they were in the kitchen.

"Well, yes, we did have a long talk yesterday."

"While you were cutting his hair?"

"He'd tried to do it himself, Mum. It was really awful. Someone had to do something about it."

"You did a good job on it… Ginny, just remember what I said about being careful."

Ginny was extremely grateful her mother let the subject drop after that, and together they went about the business of getting supper ready. She couldn't help notice, however, that her mother muttered occasional comments under her breath, and all of them were along the lines of wishing she had an extra pair of eyes.

The family was all seated around the tables outside much later, having finished another delicious meal. The twins, Bill and Pauline were still staying at the Burrow, although according to the twins, they might be able to relocate to the rebuilt Zonko's fairly soon. As Ginny's mother rose and waved her wand to clear the dirty dishes from the table in anticipation of dessert, her father cleared his throat.

"I've been asking round at the Ministry today, Harry. There will be positions opening up in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

Ginny caught her breath, as she watched Harry shift uncomfortably in his seat. The rest of the table seemed to tense, as if everyone were expecting an angry outburst. "Thank you, Mr Weasley," he said. "No offence, but Magical Law Enforcement? Would I be qualified?"

"They're going to need help in the office itself, Harry. The Department of Magical Law Enforcement isn't just Hit Wizards and Aurors. It's also the Council of Magical Law, and they're going to have their hands full very soon, if I don't miss my guess. There are going to be trials, lots of them. And trials mean paperwork, and paperwork needs looking after. There will be openings for desk jobs, which don't really require the use of magic, just as there will be need for more Aurors."

"That would be brilliant, Harry," Ron chimed in. He and Hermione had turned up just as supper was being put on the table. "We'd be working in the same department!"

"Not if you don't fill out the application," Hermione pointed out. His father had brought the application for Auror training home from the Ministry and given it to Ron just before supper. "You ought to work on that tonight if you want to be accepted into training next month."

Ron suddenly looked less happy about things. "I've had a look at that application, and it's about as exciting as a History of Magic essay," he complained.

"How's Apparition coming along?" asked Fred.

"Manage to splinch yourself yet?" added George.

"No, thanks to you lot, I've managed to avoid it. I just do the opposite of whatever you say," Ron shot back.

"He's getting better at it," said Hermione proudly. "Last few times, you were only about five feet off the mark."

"Just remember if you splinch yourself not to leave anything important behind," said Fred with a wicked grin.

"Yeah, Hermione might not appreciate that so much," put in George.

"And I suppose the two of you know from personal experience?" asked Ron, not missing a beat.

"That will do," said their mother with a glare at all of them, but Ginny noticed she looked longest at Ron. She hadn't forgotten his comment this afternoon, and Ginny was sure their father would be recruited to have a talk with Ron before the evening was through.

Ron had obviously picked up on his mother's mood, as well, for he disappeared rather quickly as soon as the meal was over, but he didn't go far. When the rest of the family came in, he was seated in a corner, a quill in his hand and several sheets of parchment on the table in front of him. Ginny was sure he was working on his application to Auror training, and this was borne out, as she approached him and heard him muttering under his breath.

"Question seven: Have you ever been in contact with illegal animals? Answer: no I have not, not even dragons." His quill was scratching away at the same time as his words.

"Erm, Ron," Harry began, "aren't they going to know you're lying on that one? They'll be sure to check your Hogwarts record and know you had Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid for three years."

Ron seemed to come out of a trance. "Oh, that's right, isn't it? I'll have to change that." He picked up his wand to erase what he'd just written. "Er, what can I say so this doesn't look so bad?"

"Well, I wouldn't mention the dragons for one thing," advised Hermione. "That's just asking for trouble."

"Why would you even mention them?" asked Ginny. "It's not as if any of us were ever in contact with a dragon. Besides Harry, that is, and those were special circumstances."

She felt Harry nudge her, and then he was whispering in her ear, "I'll tell you later. It's a bit of a long story."

"Ron, just tell them the truth," Hermione said. "Just say you have been in contact with certain creatures that are classified by the Ministry as being dangerous, but it was in an academic situation."

"Yeah, that sounds good…" Ron scribbled down her answer. "Question eight: Have you ever brewed illegal potions… Erm, Hermione…"

"Well there's no need to tell them about that."

"Right. Answer: no."

Meanwhile Hermione had moved so she could see over Ron's shoulder. "Honestly, Ron!"

"What?"

"You've lied on every single one of these!" She snatched up the parchment and began to read aloud. "Have you ever broken school rules? No?" Ron looked sheepish. "Have you ever cheated on homework or exams? No?!"

"Now hold on there, I only ever cheated on Divination homework, and that's not a real subject!"

"True, they'll hardly care about that. That can stay. But have you ever used illegal items? And you said no?"

"When have I used an illegal item?"

"Do the words 'flying car' mean anything to you?"

"Oh. But I didn't bewitch it to fly…"

"No, but you used it. And it was in the newspaper, and it's certain to be on your school record. Ron, you're going to have to tell them about this…"

Ron sighed heavily. "All right. But this is a nightmare, it really is. You haven't seen the worst of it. I have to write an essay on what I think my strengths and weaknesses as an Auror would be. And I need to get a recommendation from one of my teachers."

"That's easy enough," said Harry. "I'm sure Professor Flitwick or Professor McGonagall would put in a good word for you."

"It's not that simple, Harry," Ron groaned. "They've chosen the teacher for me. They say it's done at random to ensure an impartial review."

"And who have they chosen for you?" asked Ginny, although from Ron's demeanour it looked as if the choice was not a favourable one.

"Snape! And just look at question four!"

"Have you ever cursed an adult in authority?" Hermione read.

"Face it," said Harry. "You're dead."

"I know," Ron said despondently, "but, if I don't give it a shot, I'll just never know, will I? Will you help me with this, Hermione?"

"Yes, of course."

They worked on Ron's application for the rest of the evening, while Ginny did some more of her summer assignments. Harry got out his letter to Professor Lupin once more, but partway through the evening, his put the parchment away and disappeared. Half an hour later, Hermione got up and said she was going up to bed. As she passed by Ginny, Hermione motioned with her head that she wanted Ginny to follow her.

"What?" Ginny asked.

"I'll tell you upstairs."

Ginny rose from her seat and moved in the direction of the stairs. Voices coming from the kitchen make her pause, and she put her hand out to hold Hermione back.

"Oh, Harry, of course it's all right," Ginny's mother was saying, and she sounded rather teary. "We all understand…"

Harry replied something, but Ginny couldn't hear what he said. her neck, she peered around the doorway into the kitchen, and saw her mother was hugging Harry tightly. She smiled to herself. He must have apologised to her parents for his behaviour now, too.

Up in Ginny's room, Hermione closed the door and cast a silencing charm. Ginny looked at her friend questioningly.

"I don't want this conversation to be overheard," Hermione told her. "Pauline may come up, and I want this to remain between the two of us."

"What's this about, Hermione?"

"It's about that job offer I had. I'm going to take it."

"So I gathered from the way you sounded when you told Mum about it. But I can't help but wonder why. It's not the most exciting job in the world, is it? And as former Head Girl it's not as if you won't get any other offers."

"You're right, Ginny. Normally I wouldn't consider taking this." She paused and smiled. "I know if Ron were here, he'd be teasing me about how much time I liked to spend in that library, and here's my chance to spend the rest of my career there… But anyway. I thought that if I took this job, I might be able to find out something useful. I'd have access, you see, access to all the books."

Ginny had no idea where Hermione was going with this. "What do you think you're going to learn while you're there? And why is it such a secret?"

"I want to try and find some way to restore Harry's powers to him, and if I take the position at the library, I'll have all that information at my disposal. If it's possible, it'll be in the library. Somewhere. I'll just have to find where it is. But I want this to be kept a dead secret, because I don't want him to know we're doing this."

"We?"

"I thought you could help me. What if there's something in some of those ancient texts? You're much better at the runes than I am."

"Of course I'll help you, Hermione. If he could get his powers back… Oh, Hermione, you don't know what he said to me yesterday. He told me he was going to miss flying more than anything else. He gave me his broomstick. Insisted I take it. If he could only fly again, he'd be so happy…"

"If it's possible, we'll find the way, Ginny. But he can't find out about this, until we're certain it's going to work. I don't think he could stand it if he got his hopes up and it didn't work. Are we agreed on that?"

"Yes."

"Ginny… I think I owe you for keeping that spell a secret. Harry insisted on it, or I would have told you. I don't think it would have made any difference in the end, though. None of us would have been able to stop him once he knew what he needed to do. You didn't see what he was like. It was frightening."

"It's all right, Hermione. You're right, no one would have been able to stop him. I don't know if I could have stopped myself from trying… I never will…"

"In any case, if we can find a way to restore his powers, it won't matter anymore. This will all be like a bad dream and we can forget about it."

Ginny couldn't agree more with that assessment. She had no idea if it was even possible to restore Harry's powers to him. She only knew that if there was even a remote chance at it she was ready to do whatever was necessary to achieve that goal. As she lay in bed later that night, listening to the others' steady breathing and waiting for sleep to overtake her, she repeated that thought to herself, until it became a vow.

To Be Continued…