The scene that unfolded in the kitchen was chaotic and Ginny was quick to react, after throwing a protection shield in front of Harry and watching him still go limp and hit the ground. She screamed, ‘Expelliarmus!’

George’s wand flew out of his hand and skittered across the floor. As it flew she screamed, ‘Incarcerous!’ Ropes flew out of the end of her wand, tying George up. She levelled a glare at George and said steadily, ‘Stupefy!’

George fell to the ground, hard. Ginny shook her head and quickly knelt down next to Harry. He didn’t move, but she could feel him breathing. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his head into her lap and tried desperately to keep from crying.

Mrs. Weasley stood frozen in the doorway as footsteps could be heard bounding down the stairs. Hermione and Ron came through the doorway in a rush and saw the scene at hand. Ginny locked eyes with Hermione and said, ‘We were too late…I never thought…’ As if remembering something from a previous conversation, she shouted to Hermione, ‘The wand!’

Hermione pulled her wand out. ‘Accio Fred’s wand!’

The wand flew into Hermione’s hand and she swayed after holding it for a few seconds. Ron grabbed her shoulders and Ginny uttered, ‘Break it!’

Ron looked questioningly at Ginny and grabbed the wand, throwing it to the ground and stepping on it, breaking it in half.

Mrs. Weasley came out of her stupor and said to Ron, ‘Help Ginny get him out of here. Lie him down on the sofa and I’ll throw something together to wake him up.’

Hermione shook her head, clearing it, as Ron knelt forward and grabbed Harry under the arms, dragging him towards the coach. Hermione took Ginny’s arm and wrapped her other arm around Ginny. She said quietly, ‘Why don’t we cast an Rennervate charm on Harry and see if that doesn’t revive him.’

Ginny nodded mutely and said, ‘The spell George hit him with was a purple flame, that isn’t an Unforgivable Curse, is it?’

Ron eased Harry onto the couch. Hermione shook her head and pointed her wand at Harry, saying, ‘Rennervate!’

Harry didn’t move and the spell had, apparently, no effect. Ginny sat down in front of the couch and took Harry’s hand in hers. She felt the heat from the locket coursing through her and she noticed the ring on his finger was warm to the touch.

Hermione put a consoling hand on Ginny’s shoulder and asked quietly, ‘What happened?’

Ginny rubbed her eyes and went through the confusing scenario again. Hermione sat quietly, listening attentively and waiting for Ginny to finish. She ended with the three spells she cast at George and sighed, worry creasing her features.

Hermione said, ‘It sounds like you did everything you could. I wonder why Harry froze like that. Its not like he’s never been under attack before.’

Ginny shook her head. ‘He wasn’t even looking at George. He was trying to push me out of the way, as if he knew the kind of curse George was throwing.’ She rolled her eyes. ‘He should know I can take care of myself.’

Hermione said quietly, ‘After last time, can you blame him? He didn’t move fast enough and George got you pretty good.’

Mr. Weasley came into the sitting room and asked, ‘How is he?’

Ginny gave her father a worried look. ‘Not good.’

Mrs. Weasley came bustling into the room and put a bowl of a warm, scented liquid next to Ginny with a washcloth. ‘Keep his brow damp with this, he should wake up quickly. Though I’m not sure how he’s going to feel.’

Ginny soaked the washcloth into the bowl and placed the cloth on Harry’s forehead. The scent was over-whelming and Ginny felt herself feeling light-headed.

Hermione started to shake her head. ‘What is in that bowl?’

Ginny shook her head and started to say something when Harry stirred, his eyes blinking as if everything were out of focus. Ginny put her hands on Harry’s chest, breathing a sigh of relief. ‘Harry, are you alright?’

He started to say something, but no sound came out of his mouth. Mr. Weasley was watching anxiously from the doorway and pointed his wand at Harry, releasing the charm constricting Harry’s voice. He coughed loudly, and Hermione ran into the kitchen to get a glass of water. Harry tried to sit up, but Ginny pushed him back. ‘Just relax.’ She repeated nervously, ‘Are you okay?’

He nodded and asked hoarsely, ‘Are you?’

She nodded, wiping the tears away from the corners of her eyes. ‘I’m fine, Harry. I’m more worried about you.’

Hermione handed Harry the glass of water and he tipped it back slowly. Coughing again, Harry asked, ‘I thought you two were going to sleep?’

Ron laughed. ‘We were, but Ginny was screaming so loud, she could have woken the dead!’

Ginny shot Ron a glare and said, ‘Sorry, Ron, I know you need your beauty sleep.’

Harry tried to laugh but coughed again. Ginny took the glass from his hand, placing it on the floor in front of the couch. Mr. Weasley looked worriedly from the doorway and said quietly, ‘Perhaps we should take Harry to St. Mungo’s.’

Harry sat up slowly. ‘No, Mr. Weasley, I’m fine.’ He tried to sit up further, but he grimaced and doubled over, a blinding pain washing over him. He couldn’t see anything, but could feel Ginny’s hands grab him and help him lie back down. He felt the damp washcloth on his forehead again and the cloud dissipated around him. As his sight came back into focus, he could see Ginny’s worried face looking back at him, and could remotely hear a conversation going on behind him.

Mr. Weasley said in a hushed tone. ‘We’d better get Kingsley out here.’

Mrs. Weasley sounded panicked. ‘No, that isn’t necessary!’

Mr. Weasley didn’t sound like he was willing to hear any argument. ‘I’m going to send him a Patronus. If nothing else, he can get Harry through the hospital much faster.’

He continued more sullenly, ‘I knew this would happen. Where’s Percy? We need to find out what the bloody hell happened to his watching George!’

Harry shook head and coughed, ‘I’m fine, really!’

Ginny put her hand on Harry’s forehead and whispered, ‘Please, Harry, just lie still.’

He reached for her hand blindly and she took his, squeezing it. He repeated, ‘I’m fine, really.’

She shook her head and replied, her voice shaking, ‘Of course you are, Harry.’

He knew something was wrong when she didn’t say anything further and he whispered, ‘What happened?’

No one said anything and Harry tried to move his head around, but felt a sharp pain in his neck. Ginny rested her hands on his shoulders and said, ‘Harry, it doesn’t matter. Just, lie down and we’ll get you something to make you feel better.’

He started to argue but felt exhaustion taking over and his eyes fell shut. Ginny sighed in relief and looked to Ron and Hermione. Unbeknownst to Harry, his face was turning various shades of red and his head was burning with a fever. The conversations continued despite Harry not hearing nor understanding them.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were in the kitchen trying to jostle George awake. They cast various charms on him, but knew that Ginny had knocked him out cold. Ron had destroyed the wand, so there was no way to track what spell or combination of spells was used. Mr. Weasley hurried back into the sitting room and said, ‘I’ve alerted Kingsley about what’s happened. He should be along shortly. Get some of Harry’s things, I have a feeling he’ll be at St. Mungo’s for a bit.’

He shot everyone a reassuring smile, but Ginny looked as if she were about to burst into tears and Hermione had tears already spilling down her cheeks. Ron gave Hermione a squeeze on the shoulder before saying, ‘I’ll go throw something in a bag.’ He said more quietly, ‘He’ll be fine. This is Harry we’re talking about. Besides, Ginny, you got that protection charm up before George’s spell hit him.’

Ginny shook her head. ‘How can you be sure?

Ron replied grimly, ‘He’d be dead otherwise, I expect.’

Ginny shot him a panicked look, but nodded. She knew he was right. George was looking to torment and kill Harry all this time. She shook her head, she couldn’t believe it. Not her brother, not her big, funny brother George. She looked up sadly at Hermione. Hermione had sunk into a nearby chair and said shakily, ‘Ron’s right, Ginny. You saved him with that spell or if not the spell, the protections around the locket and ring. I see Harry’s wearing it now.’

Ginny nodded, the tears finally coming, and replied, ‘He gave it to me before the end of our date. That feels like years ago. He was so sweet.’

She ran her hand down his cheek and he stirred before settling back down. She couldn’t believe he had yet another birthday of pain and horror. His eyes fluttered for a second, but Ginny heard a commotion from the kitchen and tore her eyes away from Harry. She could hear the familiar voice of Kingsley asking her parents exactly what had happened. They did their best to give him an idea, but told him to ask her, Ginny, for a better re-telling.

Kingsley slowly walked into the sitting room to see Hermione and Ginny looking completely shaken. He sat down and looked at Harry for a moment before thoroughly questioning Ginny on everything that had transpired. Once he’d established that the curse was linked to the wand he had a troubled look and went back to the spell.

Ginny repeated, ‘He didn’t say anything! He just pointed his wand and a purple flame came out, knocking straight into Harry!’

Kingsley kept his voice calm. ‘He uttered no spell? And a purple flame?’

He shot Hermione a questioning look and said, ‘Any thoughts?’

She looked startled, but the idea of applying her vast amount of knowledge to something perked her interest. She wiped her face with her hand and replied, ‘It sounds like some derivation of dark magic. Not an Unforgivable Curse, but something on that level. It vaguely reminds me of what I got hit with back in when we stormed the Ministry.’

Kingsley nodded. ‘Harry will be fine. Really, Ginny, take a deep breath. He’ll be fine. He’ll just need to get used to the taste of various potions in the morning, noon and night.’

He smiled broadly and Ginny found herself smiling in return. She rested a hand on Harry’s chest, feeling him take shallow breaths. Ron came into the room quietly, nodding politely at Kingsley before turning his attention back to Hermione. She gave him a weak nod and Ron asked, ‘Are we going to take him to the hospital, or what?’

Kingsley replied slowly, ‘No, we don’t have to. Why don’t we leave him here and I’ll have a healer come by immediately. We need to keep this quiet.’

Ginny looked up inquisitively. ‘What? Why?’

Kingsley put his hands up. ‘Ginny, it’s late. Let us get Harry the help he needs and let us continue this discussion tomorrow. However, George will have to be dealt with now. I’ve called Gaunt in. He’ll be collecting your brother and checking him into the psychiatric ward of St. Mungo’s for observation.’

Ron balked, but then nodded. Mrs. Weasley, overhearing the comment turned white. Mr. Weasley stood behind her and nodded. ‘Of course, Kingsley, we need to do what’s best for everyone. I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this, no use crying over a spilled potion.’

He said the words slowly, but the tension was palpable. Kingsley gave both Weasley parents a remorseful look and said quietly, ‘You know George has targeted Harry since the battle. This isn’t really his fault.’

Ginny, Ron and Hermione all looked up sharply at this and Ginny spat out, ‘You knew? You knew and you never told us!’

She jumped up and faced her parents, her eyes blazing. ‘I can’t believe this! You knew he would go after Harry, try to kill him, and the best you did was give us some general warning about being careful! Especially when you knew where the danger was coming from!’

Hermione put a consoling hand on Ginny’s shoulder, but she shrugged her off and took another step forward. ‘I can’t believe this!’

Mr. Weasley looked sadly at Ginny. ‘We never wanted this to happen. We had Percy with him at all times. He was supposed to find a way to…defuse George.’

Kingsley said, ‘It looks as though George was the one doing the defusing.’

Mr. Weasley looked up uncertainly. ‘That brings up an interesting question: where’s Percy? Ron, do you think you can Apparate to George’s flat and the store and see if you can find Percy and make sure he’s okay?’

Ron looked nervously over at Hermione and Ginny, but nodded at his father. After that, Ron gave Hermione a quick hug and looked sadly at Ginny, but she was paying no attention to him, her glare focused on her parents. Ron headed outside and a distant crack could be heard as he left.

Mr. Weasley and Kingsley turned to look at Ginny and Kingsley replied slowly, ‘There was never any intention to let anything happen. I know you’re upset, Ms. Weasley, but Harry will be fine. You’ve given us more than enough information, the healers will be here shortly and Harry will be up-and-about in a day or so.’

Ginny narrowed her eyes. ‘That doesn’t answer why you left us believing we were safe. Here. At home.’

Mrs. Weasley said quietly, ‘Ginny, please. Your father and I love Harry. We never, in a million years, dreamed that George would succumb to this.’

‘Succumb to what?’ Hermione asked quietly.

The three adults exchanged nervous looks before Kingsley said, ‘What I warned all of you against was, perhaps, a little vague. Since the end of the battle, we’ve been able to track various magic usages. George’s usage was strange, stranger than usual. We compared it to what we had on record and noticed that he was not, in fact, using his own wand. This lead to a great deal of speculation about what had happened. Initially we thought it was a simple Imperius curse, but that wasn’t the case either.’

Kingsley sat down heavily and continued, ‘We thought, based on what Percy had been telling us, that George showed no signs of being under a direct Imperius curse, but an indirect one.’

He continued with a serious tone, ‘I’m not sure if you’ve ever heard of this, but in the magical world, you can indirectly curse or hex someone by placing a curse on an object, and as the object is more frequently used, the power of the indirect curse becomes overwhelming. We believe that George had, in his mourning for Fred, continuously used Fred’s wand. The wand was, most likely, during the break in the battle, grabbed by a Death Eater, and cursed.’

Mr. Weasley sighed and said, ‘We knew he had Fred’s wand, we weren’t positive we could get it away from him without doing more harm. Thanks to all of you, we won’t have to worry about it causing any more problems. However, we will have to take extra care of George from now on. Being cursed for this long,’ he put a hand on his wife’s shoulder and continued, ‘can have a lasting effect.’

Ginny gave her parents a questioning look. ‘Does this mean you think George used Fred’s wand to put an Imperius curse on Percy?’

Mr. Weasley nodded. ‘That makes the most sense. Initially, Percy was giving us thorough reports, but then, a month or so ago, it just stopped. And all he had to say was George was fine and busy with the store.’

Kingsley nodded. ‘That’s when we knew something more serious was most likely afoot. But to confront George would have served no purpose.’

Ginny turned to check on Harry and could see him returning to his normal colour, though still breathing in a shallow manner. She sat down in front of him and asked quietly, ‘Now what?’

Kingsley smiled. ‘Take a deep breath and let’s have all of this behind us. We’ll make sure that your brother gets the care he needs. The healers will be here shortly to give Harry the potions and ointments he’ll need to get better. Then you and Ms. Granger will get ready for your term this fall. And the rest will be history.’

He smiled broadly and Ginny smiled weakly back at him, saying quietly, ‘Just like that…’

He nodded and repeated, ‘Just like that.’

Mr. Weasley stood up and Kingsley and Mrs. Weasley followed him into the kitchen to check on George. This left Ginny and Hermione to stare blankly at Harry’s inert body.

Ginny felt herself shaking all over and Hermione got up and sat down next to her, wrapping her arm around Ginny’s shoulders. She tried to smile and said wryly, ‘You know Harry, never a dull moment.’

Ginny couldn’t help herself and laughed. ‘I know. He does love to make things more interesting.’

Hermione sighed and squeezed her shoulder. ‘Don’t worry, Ginny. I know this is hard to hear right now, but trust me, he’ll always come back for you.’

Ginny felt herself flushing and replied, ‘Scares me a bit, to be honest.’

Hermione shifted to face Ginny and gave her an inquisitive look. ‘What do you mean?’

Ginny shook her head. ‘Nothing…’

Hermione gave her a sceptical look and Ginny sighed and continued, ‘Fine. Harry’s right, there’s no stopping you when you want to know something!’

Hermione smiled smugly and waited for Ginny to continue. Ginny took a deep breath. ‘I know we’ve talked about our feelings for our respective boyfriends. Harry and I have been really close lately, but sometimes I just don’t know what to think about ‘us.’ I want to be sure, and I feel like he’s just coming to me because…’ She stopped and looked helplessly at Hermione. ‘I just feel like he’s with me because he needs someone now. But in a few weeks, once he gets on as an Auror, he’ll forget about me.’

Hermione shook her head. ‘Ginny, how many times are we going to have this conversation? Harry loves you. You can’t deny it! Every time he looks in your direction, every time he talks about you, he just lights up. You’re mad thinking otherwise.’

Ginny wiped her eyes and replied quietly, ‘I know, I know…and this…’ She touched the locket at her neck and continued, ‘This is serious!’

Hermione nodded and smiled. ‘He was really labouring over how to give that to you and if you’d understand his feelings behind it.’

Ginny rested her hand on Harry’s chest and said quietly, ‘I know what they are, I’m just not sure I understand them fully.’

Hermione shrugged. ‘Don’t over-think it, I find that works best for Ron and I.’

Ginny couldn’t help herself and laughed. ‘If you and Ron are the standard I need to get off this ride!’

They both broke from the tension and found themselves laughing jovially. They stopped abruptly when they heard a loud crash outside. Hermione jumped up and headed out the door. Ginny gave Harry once last look before following her. As she made it to the door Hermione yelled, ‘Get your parents! Now!’

Ginny didn’t question the command and called to her parents. Mr. Weasley and Kingsley came running from the kitchen and rushed out the door to see Ron dragging Percy towards the house. Kingsley shook his head and stepped out with Mr. Weasley to help Ron bring Percy into the house. Percy was somewhat coherent and started mumbling something about George.

They finally managed to get him to sit in a chair. He sat back heavily and said, ‘Mum, Dad, I don’t know what happened…I’m so sorry.’

Mrs. Weasley rushed forward and wrapped her arms around him. ‘Percy, dear, don’t worry about that now, its over.’

Mr. Weasley stepped forward and asked, ‘Percy, are you alright? You gave us a fright out there!’

Percy nodded and replied, ‘Dad, yeah, I’m fine. Just a little light-headed. George used an Imperius curse on me for the last month…I couldn’t shake it…I’m so sorry.’

Percy raised his eyes slowly to Ginny’s and he said emphatically, ‘Ginny, I’m so sorry. It was like I was in a fog, I never meant…’

She shook her head. ‘Percy, don’t worry, really.’ She moved around her mother and embraced Percy awkwardly, whispering, ‘I’m just glad to have my big brother back.’

He returned the embrace and said, ‘I never left, I was just a little trapped.’

Kingsley headed back into the kitchen, beckoning Mr. Weasley to follow him. Mrs. Weasley began fussing after Percy, and he tried to smile and enjoy the attention.

Hermione looked worriedly at Ron, who’d said nothing up to this point. He sighed and wrapped her in warm embrace. Ginny turned to see Harry sitting up slightly and she walked over, sitting down in front of the sofa. She smiled reassuringly at him and asked, ‘How are you feeling?’

He smiled back at her and said, ‘Brilliant. This has been a bracing birthday.’

She smiled and brushed his hair away from his face and leaning in, kissed him softly on the cheek. ‘It’s almost over, love. Someone’s going to stop by to give you some…medicine to get you back to normal.’

He looked dejectedly at her and replied, ‘Do I have to?’

She laughed softly and said, ‘If you know what’s good for you, you won’t argue with me.’

He smiled and lied back down, shutting his eyes and saying, ‘Yes, dear.’

The commotion in the kitchen continued to escalate, but Ginny paid no attention. She heard Hermione and Ron leave and she curled up in a chair near Harry, falling asleep as the healers arrived. She didn’t leave his side all night.