Ginny

...Or Not

Eventually, the case of Ginny's disappearance had gone to Dumbledore, who had insisted that a search of the school be conducted anyway. It had, as Harry, Ron and Hermione had suspected, been unsuccessful.

Although the entire school had been searched with a fine-tooth comb and Harry and Ron together had spent almost a whole day scouring through the secret passages that they alone knew, the only thing they had found had been a wand in the long grass by the greenhouses. Ron had recognised it as Ginny's but it had been slightly rotten with damp and had moss growing on it. It looked like it had been there for years.

Dumbledore had called Ron into his office when the results had been negative. He had returned biting his lip till a glistening drop of red blood stained his skin, followed by another, then another. Curled in a corner of the common room, he refused to speak to anyone, and simply stared mournfully into the fire.

*****

"Hey. Are you OK?"

Ginny blinked. It wasn't Harry. The boy staring, puzzled, at her had the same untidy black hair and very similar large, round glasses. His face was different to Harry's in only very subtle ways, and apart from his stunning hazel eyes and the absence of any scar on his forehead, Ginny was amazed that anyone could look so much like Harry Potter.

"Why are you in your pyjamas?" he asked. "It's midday."

She staggered sideways. She didn't remember anyone looking like Harry, other than Harry himself, in her first year at Hogwarts.

There was no one around, everyone else having disappeared inside to escape the rain. Drops of water trickled down his glasses. He reached one hand up, and pushed his sopping wet hair back off his forehead.

"I'm sorry I knocked into you. Wasn't looking where I was going," he grinned sheepishly.

Ginny stared at him, panic stricken. He was still talking to her! Why didn't he just go away already?

"Um, okay. Well, I'll see you around ... " he looked questioningly at her, "I'm sorry, I don't think I know your name. Silly, really, you look about my age, you're a fourth year, right?"

She opened her mouth, then shut it again. What should she tell him? She couldn't tell him Ginny Weasley that would never do! If her younger self were there, too, what would he think? She glanced around, at the greenhouses, and her gaze alighted on a Lily of the Valley, growing in the corner of the greenhouse closest to her. She looked up at him.

"Lily," she said, trying to keep her voice calm, "my name is Lily."

He smiled again, "I'm James. James Potter."

*****

Ginny was now officially missing. Her parents were insisting that posters and notices advertising her disappearance be put up, but Harry suspected that, really, they'd lost hope too. Voldemort was the prime suspect; it was common knowledge - well, rumour to be precise - that, after famous Harry Potter's last confrontation, the Dark Lord had indeed risen once again. The Ministry was denying it furiously, to no avail.

All the same, Harry and Ron were now looking for a photo of Ginny suitable for display on the 'Missing: Ginny Weasley' posters. The photo album was open on Ron's lap. Like the one for the real Ginny, the search for a suitable photo of her wasn't going very well, since Ron seemed more interested in staring morosely at page after page of smiling Weasleys.

"That's Ginny when she was six," he said dismally, pointing to a photo of a small girl looking exceedingly miffed about something, presumably the fact that she was being photographed in a frilly pink dress. "And that-" he broke off, seeing Harry's puzzled expression. "What?"

Harry was staring at the picture, seeming fascinated by it. "Her eyes," he murmured. "Weren't - aren't Ginny's eyes brown?"

"Oh. That," said Ron. "Long story. She got on the wrong end of one of Fred and George's 'experiments'. She dropped a toy frog in to see what happened and a bit splashed in her eyes. She screamed blue murder. There was such a fuss. We had to take her down to the Mediwizard in London. Her vision had almost completely gone by the time we got there, and anything she could see was all red. According to her anyway. The Mediwizard said that she would be fine, but the eye repair charms at that time weren't that good. They could only fix them to basic brown. I don't think she minded much, though. She said that it made her stand out. In a way, I guess it does. None of the rest of us have brown eyes, you see. The charms have improved since her accident, but she's never wanted to have them changed back."

Harry had stopped listening. He was staring at the photograph of Ginny, who was glaring angrily back at him with glittering green eyes that somehow seemed so familiar...

*****

James Potter. Where had Ginny heard that before? Suddenly realisation dawned. How blindingly obvious. James Potter. Harry's father - which would, of course, explain why he looked so much like him. James Potter, who was killed by the Dark Lord along with his wife -

"Lily?" He looked at her. "You did say that was what your name was, didn't you?" Ginny nodded mutely. Bugger. "Um - what house are you in? I'm sure I've never seen you before." He paused. "Uh... you do go to Hogwarts, right? You're not a Muggle, are you?"

Ginny shook her head. Idiot. Muggles never went near Hogwarts. Especially not in their pyjamas. On the other hand, maybe, whenever it was now, Muggles normally wore pyjamas? I mean, thought Ginny, I'm talking to Harry Potter's dad. This must be ages ago.

"Oh. Good," said James quickly. "So you do go to Hogwarts, right?"

Ginny opened and closed her mouth again, feeling somewhat like a fish. She couldn't tell him she went to Hogwarts. She could tell James was in Gryffindor because of his crimson Quidditch robes - and because, well, it was a well known fact that Harry's parents were Gryffindors - so she'd have to say one of the other three houses. But by the surprised tone of his voice, it looked as though James knew who most people in his year were. Fourth year, he'd said. She was in fourth year; she couldn't say she was older or younger because they'd find out eventually. If she said she didn't go to Hogwarts, though, then of course they'd assume she was a Muggle and memory charm her. It didn't bear thinking about. It was - wait. Memory charm. If they thought she'd been memory charmed - "I - I don't know," said Ginny, trying to look confused.

James looked momentarily surprised. "You don't know?"

Ginny was beginning to feel James could easily be a bit brighter. Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, she looked around her in what she hoped was a worried fashion and said, "No... I can't remember..."

He looked at her hard. "Are you sure?" Ginny nodded, wanting very much to stamp on his foot. "Can you remember anything at all?" Ginny said nothing for a while, before shaking her head. "You ... you did say your name was Lily." Sod, sod, sod. "Twice," he added. "Um."

Ginny bit her lip, then nodded. "Yes..."

"We should, um, we should ... go to Dumbledore," he looked pleased at this idea, "yeah, Dumbledore will know what to do. It's, er, this way." He strode off towards the castle.

Ginny dumbly watched him walk off. She had always thought the Quidditch robes weren't all that flattering but on Har - no, James, they looked quite ... NO! She smacked herself mentally over the head. She was not going to think anything like that. She would find a way back, and -

"Are you coming?" James was standing a little way off, looking expectantly at her.

Oh, well, she better make this look plausible. She didn't want anyone suspecting anything. "Who ... who's Dumbledore?"

"Uh, the Headmaster." Ginny tried to look as confused as she possibly could. "Of Hogwarts." Ginny blinked. "... This school."

"Oh." It was more a noise in her throat than a word. James smiled, took Ginny carefully by the hand, and began to lead her slowly away from the intimidating greenhouses and into the warmth of the castle

*****

As they walked through Hogwarts in the direction of Dumbledore's office, Ginny and James passed quite a few students, most of whom gave Ginny puzzled looks. She was confused by this for a while until she remembered that she was wearing her pyjamas.

James clearly knew where he was going. Ginny couldn't remember ever having gone to Dumbledore's office herself and was quite surprised when he stopped at a rather nondescript gargoyle. He stared at it for a moment and then clapped his hand to his forehead.

"Damn. It's been a week since I last came here, he'll have changed the password by now."

Suddenly the stone creature stirred, and James was halfway through saying "that can't have been it!" when a tall, slim boy of about 15, looking very stoned, stepped out of a door the gargoyle had been concealing. He had dark brown, near black hair, which flopped lazily around his face. He seemed to be aiming at an "I'm to rebellious to wash, cut or comb my hair" sort of look. His pale blue eyes rested briefly on Ginny without registering any surprise, or much emotion at all. Ginny watched James' face break into a grin.

"Sirius! What'd you do this time?"

The other boy, presumably Sirius - Ginny was sure that sounded familiar - shrugged. "Expanding dungbomb in Filch's office - he couldn't get the door open until it went off. Hah, you should've seen his face..." Expanding? Since when did dungbombs expand?

James rolled his eyes. "You had to stay around to watch, didn't you?"

"Yeah, Dumbledore didn't seem to think it was worth being sent to his office though - he looked a little annoyed at Filch, to tell you the truth - so that's OK. What're you here for?" He indicated the broomstick James was still holding. "Just come from Quidditch practice?"

"Yeah ... I, uh, kind of found this girl wandering around the greenhouses," James said, looking worried.

Sirius seemed to notice Ginny properly for the first time. "In her pyjamas?" Why did everyone notice the pyjamas?

"Um, yes. She says she doesn't know how she got here and I don't think she knows who she is, except that her name's Lily, I think..." here he cast a questioning glance at Ginny, who nodded very slightly, "... so I thought I'd better take her to Dumbledore..." He turned to Ginny. "Lily, this is Sirius."

Ginny nodded again and said "Uh-huh," in case they began to think that nodding was all she was capable of.

"What's the password, Sirius?" asked James, nodding towards the gargoyle, which was covering the entrance again.

"Shrimp Bucket. Don't ask me, I don't make them up. Mad as a spatula," Sirius said, as the gargoyle grumpily moved aside.

"Thanks," said James, and motioned Ginny through the door in front of them.

"I'll wait here, shall I?"

"Don't bother. Tell everyone else where I am, OK?"

"Okey dokey. Whatever tickles your pickle." Ginny watched Sirius slope off before the gargoyle moved back into place, blocking her view of the corridor.

She followed James through a small room to another door, and wondered why she recognised Sirius' name as James knocked and waited. At length the door was opened by Dumbledore, who looked a little younger - but not that much - than Ginny remembered him.

"Mr. Potter - " He did not seem very surprised until his eyes fell on Ginny. His bushy eyebrows moved some way up his forehead. "Who is this young lady?"

"Uh, she's the reason I'm here, Professor. I bumped into her round the greenhouses on the way in from Quidditch practice... She doesn't know how she got here, and she says all she can remember is her name is Lily, sir."

Dumbledore's eyebrows wriggled, looking unpleasantly like strange albino caterpillars. "Maybe you should let her speak for herself," he said, turning to Ginny. "Your name is Lily, is it?" Ginny nodded, beginning to wish she had a Sickle for every time somebody asked her to confirm that. "Good. So you say you cannot remember how you came to be at Hogwarts?" Ginny nodded yet again. And a Knut for every nod, she thought. I'd be rich. "Can you remember anything before Mr. Potter here bumped into you?"

Ginny decided it was probably time to start making things up. "I - I - All I can remember is waking up - " she thought quickly. What direction had she been running in? " - in a forest," she said, deciding that it was feasible that she could have been running in a vague direction that could have been described as 'away from the Forbidden Forest', "and it was ... dark, and something was coming towards me, and I ran, and then I bumped into him," Ginny pointed at James, who looked from her to Dumbledore.

The headmaster nodded slowly. "We best ask you a few simple questions, er, Lily, to see how badly this memory loss has affected you. What is the year?"

Might as well go the whole hog. "1922?"

"And the Minister of Magic is?"

"Um... Edmund Blackadder." (A/N: it was originally Wee Jock Poo Pong McPlop, but we thought that was pushing it a bit).

"I see. I fear that quite a strong memory charm may have been used. Even with the possibility of false facts being implanted in the mind to fool anyone who questions her. Hum." He looked thoughtful and twisled his eyebrows.

"Professor," said James hesitantly, "do you think she might have been... you know... something to do with... You-Know-Who?"

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. He was doing that a lot, and it was beginning to grate on Ginny's nerves. "A spy? I hardly think the Dark Lord would employ unarmed, pyjama-clad girls - "

"No, Professor - you know, kidnapped and memory charmed - "

"I know that's what you meant," said Dumbledore, raising a hand. "I just wanted an excuse to say 'pyjama-clad'."

Ginny and James stared for a moment, before Dumbledore continued speaking. "Well, I do think it is the most feasible explanation, given the circumstances. I'll owl the Ministry and see if we can find your parents," he said, turning to Ginny. "In the meantime, I think it's best that you stay here at Hogwarts. James, do you think you could show her around?" James nodded (and Squeaky was shot for over-use of the word 'nodded'). "Good. I think it's best you stay in the Gryffindor fourth-year dormitories, since there's a bed free there and of course, James can show you there and introduce you to some of the other Gryffindors. We would put you up in the Infirmary but there was a rather vicious Quidditch match a day ago, and we're quite full up."

James shrugged. "Ok."

Dumbledore beamed, and with that James and Ginny left him to his paperwork.

*****

Ginny followed James nervously along the familiar path to the Gryffindor common room. Things weren't going very well. Not only had she come back to the wrong time, she had been seen by many people, including her brother's best friend's dead father, and introduced herself as having the same name as her brother's best friend's dead mother. She wondered how she managed to be so damn stupid. Oh, well, it was done now; she would just have to stick it out for a day or two, then find a convenient time to return to her present. And it's wasn't like James was able to tell anyone she had turned up when he was 15: after all, he was dead.

Ginny shivered. It was an odd feeling, being around someone who you knew was going to die. To be killed, moreover, by one of the most evil wizards of all time. To know someone's fate, and yet be unable to tell them.

Looking up, she realised that they had arrived at the portrait hole. The Fat Lady in that horrible pink dress was already there, at present gorging herself on a box of Belgian chocolates. It was odd; Ginny would never have thought that pictures could taste anything. Evidently she was wrong, if the delighted look on the Fat Lady's face as anything to go by.

Glancing away from her box of chocolates, she eyes James warily and, after swallowing a truffle, said, "Password?"

"Niiiiwomp," he replied.

Egads, thought Ginny. They were all mad, mad as spoons. She decided it must be catching given she had just thought the words 'egads' and 'mad as spoons'.

Nevertheless the portrait swung to one side, revealing the narrow passage into the common room. She followed James in, twisting her hands in front of her nervously. The common room was quite crowded, with everyone crammed in to get out of the rain. Not many people looked up as they walked in, and no one that did looked surprised. Maybe James often turned up with soaking wet pyjama-clad girls? Certainly, she was thankful for the decided lack of attention; she had been getting very uncomfortable with the sideways glances shot at her in the corridor. James wandered off to a table pushed against the wall on the far side. At it were sat two girls, one with pale blonde hair, and paler complexion, the other with darker blonde, almost brown hair and a measly spattering of freckles.

Ginny stood a moment, feeling stupid, then pattered, barefoot, after him. He bent down and spoke softly to the two girls, motioning to her with one hand. The fair girl turned and smiled warmly. The darker one simply raised her eyebrows. Ginny's stomach flipped over.

"Erm, Lily, this is Narcissa," he said, gesturing towards the fair haired girl, who had smiled at her, "and Roísín. You'll be sharing their dormitory." James stood up, looking satisfied. "If you don't mind, I must go and rescue the rest of our Quidditch team from the changing rooms. They sent me to get umbrellas 45 minutes ago." And with that he hurried out of the common room, only just remembering to grab a few of the scarlet umbrellas drying next to the fire.

"We'll show you up," grinned the one he had said was Narcissa, "it'll be nice to have a bit more company. There're only two of us girls for Gryffindor in our year, it can get a bit lonely at times."

Roísín nodded, "Narcissa's awfully nice to look at, but there's not much upstairs, if you know what I mean," the other girl said tapping the side of her head. Narcissa scowled and poked her brutally. "Oh please do stop your dreadful poking. How can I stand any more of such torture," Roísín declared deadpan.

"Come on, Lily, let's go upstairs. Don't worry about her, she's like an insect. If you ignore her she'll go away," Narcissa said, but without any malice in her voice. She extended an arm to Ginny. "Shall we go?" Ginny smiled nervously, reached out her own arm and allowed herself to be led away.