There's Something About Ginny

At first, Ron had alternated the endless days by sitting in silence in front of the Burrow fireplace - barely speaking, eating and sleeping ever since his little sister's abduction. As the fire devoured ember upon ember, he clung in despair and disbelief to their only concrete hope: Snape's return. Yet the man was running late, and since the predicted time of his arrival had become the property of the past, Ron only further became like a battered rock in the sea, distancing himself from the world.

Hermione sighed as she glanced at Ron from across a book on advance defensive magic. She had hoped that his desolateness was just a result from the shock of her abduction, yet as the days passed he simply grew more distant. Removing herself from the age-worn couch, she walked towards the redhead, putting her arms around him as she stood behind the armchair he was sitting upon, and leaning down to gently speak into his ear. "I'm sure he'll be here soon," she said in a reassuring voice as she nervously tucked a lock of bushy brown hair behind her ear, "and then we'll get Ginny back, I promise."

She forced herself to weakly smile as she peered into Ron's eyes as he looked back to see her, hoping to reassure him. Yet the sudden look of anger which appeared upon his face took her by surprise, and he rose from the armchair to face his friend, whom had stepped back in shock from the strongest outburst of emotion which he had shown for days. "Maybe Harry is right about him!" he cried, "Maybe it's Snape's fault that she was taken in the first place!" Hermione's mouth was open, yet before she could reply he continued, his voice growing louder as he spoke.

'I am sick of waiting! I am sick of being helpless day and night while my sister may be dead for all I know, with nothing to do but wait for bloody Snape!"

He took a step towards Hermione, holding her wrists so tightly that were it not for her trust in him, she would have feared that they would break. The firelight flickered, the reflection dancing in his eyes and giving them a madman's quality.

"Don't you understand, Hermione?" Ron's voice suddenly broke off; he looked away into the fire for a moment before he continued in barely more than a whisper. "They can be torturing her, murdering her, right now and there is nothing that I can do..."

His voice was hushed and pained, a stark contrast from the fiery monster unleashed just moments before.

He sighed, releasing Hermione's wrists as he looked down tentatively. They stood in silence for a few moments before he resumed speaking.

"When she was little, she would always turn to me for help." Ron stared into the shadows behind Hermione, memories dancing before his eyes. "Whenever Fred or George would pick on her, or if she scraped her knee falling from climbing a tree, she wouldn't go running off to Mum. She'd come to me... and I had always been able to help her."

Ron began to pace around the room, speaking more to himself than to Hermione.

"But then, in her first year, she had tried to come to me! She had tried to tell me! But circumstances drew her away..."

Slowly, Ron seated himself upon the tattered sofa. "Since then, she's been different, as though a different Ginny had been returned from the chamber."

"I overhead some people talking about her once... they referred to her as 'damaged goods'. She was 'damaged goods' and I couldn't fix her! And she was doing so well lately, but now there'll be no chance of my Ginny ever returned... if she's still alive."

He looked up, trying to cage the tears inside of him. 'The Order was right to decide to withhold him from Harry's visions." Hermione thought as she sat down besides him, seeing the pain in his eyes.

Hermione put her arm around him, pulling her close. She knew that now, any words of hers were superfluous. Ron could not restrain himself any longer, and soon he was sobbing into his best friend's shoulder, releasing all the torrents of emotion which he had up till now been denying.

At last Ron's sobs subsided. He looked at Hermione, an embarrassed look in his eyes. "I'm sorry," he said, "I shouldn't have-" Hermione quickly interrupted him. "Don't be!" she said firmly, "and Ginny is a strong young woman, she didn't emerge from the chamber as 'damaged goods', she returned stronger than before." Her tone became suddenly resolute. "She has been to hell and back, Ron," she said, "and she will do it again."

The silence that ensued did not last for long, as a pop besides them indicated that someone had just apparated into the Burrow.

~*~

The silence in the Order meeting room was so thick that it could be sliced by a dagger, engulfing all present in its ominous presence. A disconcerting atmosphere lay over the house, for the only man who would be able to help the Weasley daughter was supposed to have arrived the very morning. Not immune to this, Lupin's eyes were weighed down with concern and responsibility, still unaccustomed to having taken over the job as head of the Order following Dumbledore's demise.

Ever since Voldemort's rejuvenation, Harry had been plagued by occasional visions in which he was forced to witness Voldemort's actions through the Dark Lord's eyes. He had isolated himself in the attic, with solely the family ghoul for company. Molly Weasley would rush up every once in a while, soothing him as he told her what he had witnessed between cries of pain from his scar.

Taking pity upon the young wizard, Lupin had offered him a dreamless sleep potion, yet Harry had refused. As his scar seared into him in flashes of pain, he claimed that his visions would aid in her retrieval. Harry still loved her, Lupin knew, and understanding Harry as he did, he was certain that the black haired wizard must be feeling torrents of guilt from her abduction. And still, he forced himself to suffer pain as his scar burned a blood red and he saw Ginny being raped, tortured, suffering through the eyes of the culprit... it made Lupin certain that Voldemort was purposely forging the connection.

Lupin knew that Ginny had to be taken out of there as soon as possible, yet they were immobilized without Snape, and he was missing. That thought returned him to the present.

He was about to question Shacklebolt, who had just finished contacting the Peruvian minister of magic, when the door burst open. Ron entered the room, blood covering his maroon jumper. "Lupin..." he said in a terrorized voice, "He's back."