Spider's Blood

Chapter Twelve

"I was wrong...anyone could be wrong. But now I know better...she's just like us with a few...quirks. It's nothing life threatening. If you can't trust her...then trust me, she's on our side."

Hermione shifted her glance to Ginny and to Ron and then back to Harry.

"All right, but can we please start concentrating on the fact that there is still something going on here? Even if it's not Zora, it's someone."

"Yes, but not tonight," Harry grumbled.

"Why not tonight?" Ron asked curiously.

Harry looked to each of his friends and smiled, "Tonight...we celebrate."

A smile spread on all surrounding Harry's bed and they gave happy and excited looks to each other.

"Ginny? Are you in here?" a hesitant voice called from the door of the Infirmary.

Quick padding footsteps echoed off the walls and ceased when Neville appeared and stopped in front of Harry's bed. Neville appeared a little flushed and out of breath. Harry wondered if he had been walking with such quick steps all the way from the common room.

"Hello, Harry," he smiled happily, catching his breath. "How are you?"

"Fine, thanks, Neville," Harry replied with a smile and a slight nod.

"Ginny...can I talk to you for a second?" Neville said quietly and quite unconfidently as he eyed the youngest Weasley.

"Sure," she smiled brightly and followed Neville out of the Infirmary.

Harry followed the pair with his eyes, a twinge of jealousy hitting his stomach. How nice it must be to call on such a wonderful girl at any time of the day and actually have her agree to follow.

"Your back will be alright tonight?" Hermione asked, trying to break Harry's glare with the back of Neville's head.

"What? Oh! Yes, Madame Pomfrey said it'll be fine...just sore for a while," Harry replied awkwardly.

"Well, we'd better let you rest for a while then...see you tonight," Ron smiled.

Harry quietly nodded his head and sunk back into his pillow. He watched as his two best friends walked down between the rows of beds. Halfway down, Ron reached over to Hermione's side and took her hand in his own. She looked down to their hands and back up at him, her cheeks slightly flushed with a slight pink and her eyes dazzled with admiration.

Harry rolled his eyes and slammed his head against the pillow has hard as he could. He let his eyes slowly close and his mind drift off into a peaceful dreamless sleep.

"Chocolate spiders! Chocolate spiders!" George announced as he carefully walked down the dormitory steps. He was carrying a large box filled with tiny packages. He set the large box down and all in the common room rushed up to him.

"Hey! One each! Greedy sons of...Harry! Have you seen Ron?" George said as he eyed the crowd.

"No...I haven't seen him since I was in the Infirmary, why?" Harry replied as he took one of the small packages.

The small white box had a paper on the top help on by a sealing charm that read "Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes Original Crawling Chocolate Spider! Crawls longer than any other candy spider! Eat at your own risk!"

George gave Harry a devious smile and reached over a first year's head for one of the boxes, "Wanted to give him a little gift," he said with a wink.

Harry smiled as he watched George make his way through the crowd, searching for his brother. Harry too found himself searching the crowd for his friend, but he found no Ron...or Hermione...or Ginny. All those he had felt like celebrating with were not even present in the room. He could not help letting out a disappointed sigh in the midst of all the celebration. He smiled a few more times and accepted a few more congratulations before he quietly slipped out of the common room.

He heard the voices fade as the portrait quietly closed behind him as Harry began to walk down the deserted hallway. As his heels clicked against the stone floor, Harry began to think again of what Zora had told him earlier in the evening. She had seen him falling off his broomstick from the dungeons. She was having visions about him, but not just visions. She was seeing a catastrophic event as it was happening. Was it a side effect of their blood mingling? It seemed from how she had spoken that she could not see anyone and everyone if they came in contact with a harmful event. She made it sound as though it were the first time anything like this had happened. This made Harry worry a little. Could she only see harmful events? Or could she tap in whenever she wanted? Could Harry do the same?

It was at this thought that Harry suddenly stopped. He closed his eyes tightly and tried to think of what Zora was doing at that moment. He concentrated on what she was doing, trying to locate her exactly, trying to see what she was doing. Harry let out a defeated sigh when he saw nothing but the blackness of his own eyelids. He would just have to ask during his next three AM visit.

Harry looked around him and was surprised to find he had wondered a good bit from the common room in a short amount of time. He turned quietly and began to walk back when he heard a quiet yet heavy sigh. His ears perked up and his curiosity led him back down the hallway and to a corridor branching off the left. There he saw a young girl sitting with her back against the wall and her knees tucked tightly into her chest. Her red head was set on top of her knees, her hair covering her face. It didn't matter; Harry knew he could recognize Ginny nearly everywhere at almost anytime.

"Ginny, are you alright?" Harry sounded, although it seemed like a completely stupid question.

Her head jerked up, startled by the sudden interruption. Her eyes darted quickly up to him; they were shining with tears and tinted red from her crying. She sniffled quickly as her cheeks turned red and she brushed at her eyes, trying to remove the falling tears.

"Oh, Harry," she managed to smile, "why aren't you at the party?"

"I was about to ask the same question," he said as he walked over to her. "Mind if I sit?"

"No," she replied with a struggling smile.

He smiled slightly and sat in front of her knees, his legs folded and hands in his lap. His back quickly flooded with pain as he sat, but he did not attempt to move away or change positions.

"It was a great game today," Ginny said after a few more quiet sniffles.

"Thanks," Harry grinned slightly. "Are you all right?"

At this, Ginny began to loudly sob and cover her face with her hands, her shoulders shaking violently. This reaction made Harry's heart jump and his eyes become wide and frightened. He hadn't meant to make it worse.

"Ginny?" he asked, not sure what else to do. Hermione never cried like this around him and she had never tutored him in how to correctly handle this situation...he would have to walk through it on his own.

"I'm sorry," she muttered out. "It's just that..." but she began to sob again very quickly.

"All right...ah...is it about your parents?" he asked quickly, not knowing how else to go about this. She couldn't stop crying long enough to tell him what had happened, maybe she could nod?

She shook her head, her red hair swinging slightly.

"Ok then...is it about...Ron or the twins?"

She shook her head again.

"Hermione?"

She shook her head once more.

"Me?" he asked a little apprehensive.

She let out a short laugh and shook her head. Harry sighed with relief and continued.

"Umm...Neville?"

Ginny sniffled again and took her hands from her wet cheeks and slowly nodded.

"OK, it has to do with Neville?"

"Oh! Don't even say his name!" Ginny burst out angrily as she covered her ears.

"Well...then, he-who-I-can't-say must have done something bad," Harry said...a twinge of a smile taunting the edges of his lips.

"Very," Ginny said harshly.

"Would you like me to arrange an ambush on him after Potions tomorrow? I could have at least ten really big guys have a row with him if you like?"

Ginny let out a laugh and smiled at Harry, "No," she replied. "Although it isn't a terrible idea. I'll keep that in mind."

"So...do I have to keep playing twenty questions or are you going to tell me?"

Ginny looked at her knees and took in a few deep breaths. She seemed calmer than when he had first found her and a little more at ease. Harry was thankful for this, he had never seen Ginny angry before and it appeared she was moments from hexing the next person to say anything to her.

"He dumped me," she replied with a deep exhale. She closed her eyes and two salty droplets slid their way down her flushed cheeks.

"Oh...well, I'm sorry, Ginny," Harry replied awkwardly.

Now he really wasn't sure how to handle this situation. Part of him had been hoping for this, but the other was watching Ginny cry over it and hated that he had once wanted her to feel this pain.

"I mean HE...broke up with ME! How could he have done that? If anything I should've broken up with him! He forgot what my favorite color is! He forgot about Valentine's Day! How can you forget Valentine's Day?" Ginny went on angrily.

Harry thought for a moment and realized it was coming to the end of February. The months had been slipping by him much more quickly since Christmas and he felt himself turn a little red at his own forgetfulness.

"Yeah, I know...how could you?" he replied, pretending to be outraged.

"It was just so nice...ya know? He really was sweet. And he said he felt bad doing it, but he had too much going on and you know what else he said? I'll tell you! He told me I am IMMATURE! Can you believe that? Ok, I did give him one of Fred's experimental candies, but I didn't know his ears would triple in size! And it really was funny!" she added with a depressed sniffle.

"I'm sure it was," Harry said as he nodded his head, deciding that agreeing with her was keeping him out of harms way.

She pulled a white handkerchief from her robes and dabbed lightly at her cheeks. Harry examined the material for a moment and noticed a "W" sewn in red adorned in one of its corners. He wondered if she had embroidered it herself or if it had been Mrs. Weasley.

"I'm sorry, Harry. You're supposed to be at the party celebrating. And here I've got you listening to me out in the hall," Ginny said as she replaced the handkerchief in her pocket.

"It's not a problem," he smiled. "No one in there to really talk to...Ron and Hermione are off somewhere."

"Snogging...broom closet to your left," Ginny said abruptly.

"Oh," Harry replied as he eyed the closed door, "well then, er - let's not disturb them."

Ginny gave a smile and rose to her feet and Harry followed, a sharp stab erupting in his lower back.

"You feeling all right? Doesn't your back hurt when you move too much?" she inquired, obviously catching his pain from his expressions.

"Not really," he lied as his back began to ease its throbbing. "Barely feel it at all."

"Thanks for listening, Harry...it was kind of you. I know I must look like a mess," she laughed as she again wiped at her cheeks.

"Nah, you look great," he said with a smile and immediately wished he hadn't.

Ginny turned to him and gave him her sweetest smile of appreciation. Harry felt his cheeks begin to heat up and turned them from her sight.

"So," Ginny began, "how's Zora?"

"What?" Harry asked, caught off guard by her question.

"I mean...you said she's not...er, you know...I was just wondering how she is? Is she helping us?"

"Well...I suppose she is. She's fine though."

"How is it that you...asked her? I mean, you couldn't have just asked out of the blue, right?"

"No, I ah, well...I found her studying," Harry said as he tried his hardest to keep Zora's secret. "And...she was looking up something on blood for Snape's class and I asked her what she knew about blood and vampires and we talked about it and she said she could never do anything like it and I joked about how some people thought it was a vampire who stole the blood...and they thought she could be one. She laughed of course, and makes jokes about it every so often."

"When did you talk to her?" Ginny inquired further.

"Ah...just a few days ago," Harry lied. "Why do you ask?"

"Just making conversation so the trip beck to the common room isn't silent or involving Neville."

"Oh," Harry laughed.

"So you and Zora...you're close now? Now that we know she's not...evil and all."

"We're friends," Harry concluded out loud.

"Well...I guess that's a good thing then?"

Harry looked above and saw the fat lady peering down at the two of them. The sounds of loud chatter and extreme laughter could be heard from where Ginny and Harry stood. Ginny gave a smile as she pressed her ear against the stone and listened.

"Fred and George are really insane...I think they've tied someone up with...licorice?" she said as she listened to the laughter.

Harry gave the painting a look and realized he was in no mood for celebration or for laughter.

"Are you coming inside?" Ginny asked Harry, obviously catching his mood swing.

"No...I think I'll take a walk. You go on...you need a good cheering up," he added encouragingly. "I don't think I saw him in there, so you're in the clear."

She smiled at him again.

"Thank you for listening...I didn't mean to burst out like I did," she said with her cheeks blushing slightly.

Harry suddenly got the impression that it wasn't just embarrassment over her crying that was forcing on the crimson highlight...perhaps his presence was contributing? But no...it couldn't be! She had only just broken up from Neville.

"It was nothing," he assured her.

She seemed as though she were judging Harry for a moment before she stepped closer to him. She stretched out her arms, open for a hug. Harry gave her smile and received her embrace.

"Thanks, Harry," she whispered in his ear and kissed his cheek.

She pulled out of his arms and spoke, "Fishpole." The painting swung open and Ginny's brilliant hair disappeared inside. With a half smirk and a light feeling around his feet, Harry turned and walked away from the common room, following his impulsive feet to where ever they wished to go.

It was of course no surprise to Harry's eyes when he found himself looking at the large painting of a vibrant summer's day. Harry gave a glance around; he realized he had not brought his cloak with him and immediately wished he had done so. As he searched for someone following his feet, he looked across the hall and saw to his astonishment the portrait of the light haired girl he had seen on Halloween night and several times before and since.

He approached the painting. It did not waiver before his eyes and the girl kept the same sad expression she had each time he had looked upon her face. As Harry stepped back to the painting on the other side, he wondered what an ordinary Muggle painting was doing inside Hogwarts.

He withdrew his eyes from hers, examined the hall once more and opened the painting door. He stopped inside the dim room and saw the stairs just steps away. He listened intently and noticed there wasn't a sound coming from the room below. He looked at his wristwatch and noted it was well past midnight. Harry casually walked down the stairs and saw Zora lying flat on her back, her arms stretched out from her sides and her eyes closed.

Harry did not ask and instead eased himself as painlessly as possible into a sitting position as close to her as he could and waited for her to acknowledge him.

"I guess you're not going to ask are you?" she finally muttered after nearly five minutes of watching and waiting.

"I've learned not to," he replied.

"Levitation...but I don't think I can do it," Zora replied, her eyes still closed and eyebrows pressing together in concentration.

"Something you can't do?" Harry inquired, a hint of her sarcasm was beginning to run into his tone.

"I'm not really physically strong...Levitation takes physical ability as well," she explained. "I looked it up."

"How long have you been trying?" Harry asked curiously.

"Hmm...about...three hours I guess."

"Just lying here?" Harry asked.

"Yeah...not much else to do. I'm actually caught up in lessons and no extra training tonight and I'm not really tired, I slept two nights ago, and I just wanted to give it a stab."

"Stubborn," Harry laughed.

"I wasn't programmed to give up, loyal and persistent. And yes, it means being stubborn."

"I wish you wouldn't say it like that," Harry mumbled quietly.

"I wasn't born like everyone else, Harry...I was programmed with the little emotions I have and everything else I learned as I went...you know that," she said, finally opening her eyes.

"You were still born...you have a mother," Harry replied.

Zora merely smiled at Harry as if he were a five year old who had just said something completely innocent and adorable. Harry hated that look from adults and it was especially strange coming from someone his own age.

"HAD, Harry...remember?"

"Just like me," Harry replied thoughtfully.

"The two orphans in school...destined to kill each other and instead become friends," Zora laughed. "How messed up is that?"

"Very," Harry laughed.

"Anyway...why are you here? Don't you have a celebration or something right now? Something about licorice?"

"Your dreams creep me out...and I didn't feel like celebrating. I talked to Ginny, she and Neville broke up."

"Really? Hmm...I didn't dream that one. Must have left it out somewhere, oh well."

"So you don't know...if...well-."

"If you two get together...well, I can't really tell you, now can I?" Zora replied.

"Not even just-."

Zora suddenly sat upright from the floor, her eyes wide. She held up her hand in front of Harry's face, requesting him to be silence. Harry listened but could hear nothing.

"Four people," she said suddenly in a hushed voice. "Put on you cloak."

"I didn't bring it!" Harry replied desperately.

"You what?!" she burst.

She rose to her feet frantically and Harry followed, forgetting his back until he was fully upright and almost as quickly was hunched over from the sharp stab he caused himself. Zora was glancing anxiously around the elaborate room. Although it was filled with many objects, Harry knew it would be impossible for him to hide anywhere safely.

"Ok...ok," she said as she began to think.

She threw her hands on Harry's shoulders and closed her eyes. Harry watched as she mouthed something and opened her eyes again.

"Harry?" said as she leaned forward, inches from his face.

Harry took a step back, her sudden proximity startling him. He looked down and saw that his body was completely transparent.

"What the...I'm invisible?"

"It'll last an hour...go to the wall where no one will walk into you," she said to the area around his neck.

Harry nodded his head although he realized she couldn't see him. "All right," he voiced as he moved over to one of the high windows and stood next to it.

Zora resumed her position on the floor, spreading her robes down so that it appeared she had been lying for hours as when Harry first entered. No sooner than she had spread her arms out, the painting door opened. Harry watched as several people marched into the room and began walking down the stairs.