The parchment was practically burning a hole in Harry’s pocket as he waited for Hermione to return. He knew it was crazy to stare at a dot on a map, but it was far less crazy then every thing else he was forced to do at the moment. He found great comfort in looking at the dot, Ginny in class, or sitting in the Great Hall, or in the nearly deserted Gryffindor Commons. He wondered where Ginny would be tonight. Finally, Hermione returned from her watch. It was his turn. He jumped up quickly and left the tent, practically running to the watch point they had established earlier. His hands were shaking when he took the Marauder’s Map out of his pocket.
“I solemnly swear I am up to no good.” He whispered, tapping the parchment with his wand.
"Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, purveyors of aids to magical mischief-makers, are proud to present the Marauders Map", appeared on the parchment.
“Lumos”, He called softly and a bright light illuminated the end of his wand.
He poured over the map, spotting Neville and Luna sitting together in the Great Hall, but no Ginny. He looked in the Library and the Commons, but no luck. His eyes went up the stairs to the Gryffindor Girls’ Dormitory. There she was. She was sitting alone in her room. If Hermione caught him staring at a dot, tears swimming in his eyes, she’d think he’d gone mental. Or not. She and Ron were snippy these days, but still on occasions, he caught the looks they shared between them. Somehow he knew she’d understand. Ron maybe not. Harry had done what Ron wanted. He had left Ginny alone. He knew he had broken her heart, because his own felt as if it was shattered and swimming about in his chest. He shut his eyes and let the tears fall remembering their last kiss.
~*~
Ginny sat on the window seat looking at the moon. The silence in her room was becoming more normal. At first, it had been difficult to be here, the absence of her roommates being a quiet form of torture. Emmy and Abigail, both Muggleborn, were hopefully deep in hiding, although she wasn’t sure. Jennifer, a Half-blood, she knew had gone into hiding with her Muggle side of the family, somewhere in the countryside. Millicent, a Pure-blood like Ginny, whose parents had sent her far away from Hogwarts, and hopefully, the War. It bothered Ginny no end to think of her friends in terms of their “Blood purity” but at this point, that was the only thing that mattered. She turned her attention to the Poster she had ripped off the wall in Hogsmeade. “Undesirable No. 1” it had emblazened on it, with a not terribly attractive picture of Harry. But as he moved his head back and forth, the rather grainy picture had some Harry-centric qualities she found so endearing. He often cocked his head to the side like that, and the little half smile was such a normal expression of his it made it hard for her to breath. She knew it was morbid, staring at a poster the Authorities had hoped would help catch him, but somehow it helped. She knew , obviously, that what Harry had to do was more important than the two of them, but this poster just made her more resolved to do whatever she could do to help.
“Not bloody much, holed up in Hogwarts.” She thought bitterly.
Ron’s sickness had been believed, as had Hermione’s flight with her family. It seemed absurd that it was working, but as far as she knew the three of them were safe. Ginny returned her thoughts to Harry. She was glad she had seen him once more at the Burrow. Their parting at Dumbledore’s funeral had been impossible for her to get over, but that last kiss they shared had kindled a small bit of hope deep inside her.
~*~
The following day, Ginny sat in Transfiguration Class, glumly hoping nothing would go wrong. Last class, she had inadvertently vanished her guinea fowl’s body, leaving its feet to wander aimlessly about her desktop. Professor McGonagall had been quite nice about it, saying it happened all the time. But they both knew that it shouldn’t happen to Ginny. She had been able to put it back together before the end of class, but barely. Today they were going to move along to whooper swans, a prospect that left Ginny a little leery.
“The whooper swan,” began Professor McGonagall “is one of the largest genus of European swans. They must live by large bodies of water as their legs cannot hold their body weight for extended periods of time.”
“Gives Ginny’s bird a bit of a chance then, doesn’t it?” piped in Magda Plumer, a particularly odious Slytherin.
Before Ginny could think of a worthy reply, there was a knock at the door. A small Slytherin boy that Ginny didn’t recognize handed Professor McGonagall a note.
“Head Master Snape would like to see Miss Ginny Weasley,” read Professor McGonagall. “ Miss Weasley, please collect your things and follow Mr. Finders.”
The other students in the classroom exchanged puzzled looks. Ginny ignored the tittering and collected her things as she had been told. Professor McGonagall gave her a half smile, but obviously was worried. Ginny grinned back at her teacher, some how feeling more confident just by pretending she had confidence.
~*~
Ginny stood in front of the gargoyle protecting the staircase leading to the Head Masters office. She had no idea what the password could be.
“Armadillo bile.” She said jokingly, this being an ingredient of the last potion Snape had taught her class as the Potions Master
Astoundingly, the gargoyle jumped aside, showing the spiral staircase. Ginny shrugged and stepped on the bottom step and road up to the Head Master’s Office. At this point, nothing surprised her, and nothing was going to stop her, either. She entered his office and looked at the portraits. The one where Dumbledore should be was presently empty. She had half hoped he’d be there for moral support, but she wasn’t keen on seeing him as a portrait, either. She stood in front of Head Master Snape, not knowing what to say. She knew, of course, that he had been the one who had attacked George when he had masqueraded as Harry. That had surprised her, since she had known him as a member of the Order for as long as she could remember. She knew Harry and Ron and Hermione hated him, but she never really did. He obviously favored the Slytherins, but he never did anything mean to her. She was always a decent student who did her work well, and he was always a decent teacher. But now, he had shown himself to be the enemy. For all she knew he could have been one of the Death Eaters that had attacked Bill’s wedding. She was the only student at the school with an obvious affiliation with the Order, a fact that they both knew only too well.
“Miss Weasley,” began Head Master Snape, motioning her to the chair across from his desk. He paused as she sat down on the edge of the chair, her eyes cautiously looking directly into his.
Snape returned her stare. He had not wanted to involve Miss Weasley, if he could help it. He could only imagine her feelings for him, since the fiasco with the fake Potters, but he needed an ally. She was the only person he could even attempt to reach out to. She was also quick witted and capable, two things he valued but saw only rarely. He had been surprised to see her walk into the Great Hall at the beginning of the term. Her parents took too many chances with her safety, he thought. Bad enough they thrust her to the side, keeping her ignorant of the Orders doings, but to send her back to Hogwarts when all the school knew of her and Potter’s growing affection was bordering on the homicidally negligent. Still he was fortunate to have her there.
“Miss Weasley,” he repeated, breaking eye contact by looking at his hands folded on his desk. “I can understand you’re anxiousness in my calling you here.”
He looked up and was surprised that her expression was neutral. “But…” He continued, “I find that I need your assistance.”
Ginny was extremely puzzled at what he could possibly want her to do, but she controlled her emotions. “I’m listening, Head Master.” She said finally, breaking the silence.
Snape paused again and looked up at the portrait where Dumbledore usually sat. They had debated whether he should be here for this interview, but it had been decided that the shock of Dumbledore being embedded in a portrait would far out weigh any convincing arguments he might have come up with. Snape was still not sure if that outcome had been in anyone’s best interest, but found he had no choice in the matter. Still, Miss Weasley was surprisingly collected considering all the events of the previous summer.
“To get to the point then. Do you see that sword on the wall?” he asked making a vague sweeping motion with his arm.
“Godric Gryffindor’s sword?” She asked incredulously.
“No, that’s not Godric Gryffindor’s sword. But I, and now you, only know that fact, as does…” His voice trailed off as they both looked at Dumbledore’s empty portrait. “I need for the rest of the world to think that that sword is Gryffindor’s, and that’s where I need your assistance.”
It was Ginny’s turn to stare at her hands, which she had folded neatly in her lap. She could feel them shaking slightly. He didn’t know about her first year. He couldn’t know
she was the one who unleashed the Basilisk. It had been agreed that the fewer people who knew the better. Ginny could have never returned to Hogwarts if it had been general knowledge. The sword had to be for Harry, she thought. He had saved her life with it then and it could help him now.
“What do you need me to do?” She asked, deciding that she had no choice but to trust him. When Ginny looked back on her life, she was sure that this would be one of those defining moments. She hoped it would be a good memory.
“Tonight, you and Mr. Longbottom and Miss Lovegood will attempt to steal the sword. All you have to do is smash the glass case, grab the sword and I’ll stop you before you get to the landing. I’ll report it and will have no choice but to take the sword away from the school.”
“Can’t you just take the sword away, saying you’re afraid of a theft, sir? Not meaning to be disrespectful, but the margin for error is huge!” Ginny could just imagine Neville doing something heroic and inadvertently getting them all killed.
Snape looked at Ginny. Normally, he would not have tolerated such an outburst, but he couldn’t help but understand her reluctance. “I’ll make sure that none of the Prefects or Professors are near this corridor. You just have to make sure that Longbottom and Lovegood believe they are actually stealing the sword. Trust me, Miss Weasley, it’s the safest way.” [
~*~
Hours later, Ginny stood in Gryffindor Commons, watching the embers slowly turn to dust. The guilt she had felt when she had unfolded the plan to Neville and Luna still jabbed at her. While she had a natural talent for blatant lying, she still didn’t enjoy it. Besides, it was one thing for her to decide to trust Snape, and to go along with his plan knowing the risks, but quite another thing to blindside her friends. Poor Neville, his face looked like he’d been stung by a dozen bees. Amycus Carrow’s system of detention by making the students target practice was taking its toll. Head Master Snape had promised to take the Carrows out of the equation. They were nasty, but not very bright, and no match for Snape. Finally, Neville appeared in the Common Room. He was eager to get started. Ginny looked at his still swollen face.
“Oh, Neville,” she cried, “Aren’t there any charms to take care of that?”
“It’s Impervious” He said proudly.
Ginny looked sadly at her friend. She had tried to warn Snape about the newly improved Neville. She hoped Snape would be able to disarm him without anyone getting hurt. She knew this little job was nothing compared to a real Order of the Phoenix assignment, but she couldn’t help wishing she had a better crew. She loved Neville and Luna dearly, and knew they were both very bright, but they were also so easily distracted.
Neville and Ginny met Luna in the hallway, near the Head Master’s Office, as they had arranged. Silently they made their way to the Gargoyle. Ginny whispered a nonsense word, as the Head Master had told her the only way past his new charms and spells was if you were supposed to be allowed in; passwords had outlived their day. The Gargoyle jumped out of the way and the three of them were carried up the stairs to the office.
“Effractus Hyalus”, shouted Ginny pointing her wand at the case, and it shattered into a million pieces. Neville and Luna picked up the sword, with Ginny following closely behind, their wands at the ready. Head Master Snape met them at the bottom of the staircase. He was able to apprehend them without incident.
Two days later, the three of them turned themselves over to Hagrid to serve their detentions. Ginny was amazed that no one had questioned this method of detention, as it had always seemed the weakest part of the plan.
A/N Special thanks to my beta ix3thehpseries for being so speedy and wonderful.
Deathly Hallows, Revisited by Slytherins
Chapter Notes: This chapter was also written by leahsm2.