Harry Potter and the Secret Horcrux

Chapter Four: Plans and Relatives

The Burrow looked the same as Harry remembered it looking from the past year. It looked like home. The smell of Molly's biscuits could be smelt before the five of them even made it to the front door.

"I'm hungry enough to eat the entire kitchen," Ron said.

There were a few pans scrubbing themselves and a pot of something that smelt like stew simmering and stirring itself on the stove. In the corner sitting at the table was Molly Weasley. Her angry appearance greeted them as she sat with her legs and arms crossed.

"West Sussex?" Molly asked in a stern voice. "I thought you were just staying one night in Surrey?"

"It's my fault Mrs. Weasley," Harry spoke up. "I'm the one who wanted to go to Godric's Hollow."

"Harry, dear. I know you're trying to piece things together but there are other ways. We could have taken you there under protection. You're in serious danger. You can't just go off on your own like that. I don't care what you three have been through."

Her words hung thickly in the air and it caused Hermione's face fell, as she stood motionless taking in all in. She had never been comfortable at being reprimanded by an adult. Harry saw Tonks place an understanding hand on Hermione's shoulder and offer her a sympathetic look.

Molly looked like she as about ready to continue when Charlie placed his arms around her and gave a quick hug. "It's alright, Mum. We were watching them the entire time. Nothing happened. Didn't I promise you that we'd get them back here in one piece?"

"That isn't the point," Molly argued, looking flustered as she brushed off Charlie's arms. "The point is they shouldn't have run off without protection. It was reckless and none of us can afford to be reckless right now."

She rose from her chair and brushed out her knitted apron and sighed. "There are some fresh biscuits in the oven and some stew on the stove. Go ahead and eat up."

Harry felt guilt build in his chest as he saw a tear escape and fall down Molly's cheek. Ron frowned slightly as he watched his mother before he opened the oven door and grabbing a warm biscuit. Hermione took a seat at the kitchen table looking positively devastated.

"It'll be alright, Hermione," Tonks reassured. "Molly was just worried. You can't blame her. She does have a lot on her mind."

Charlie yawned as he took the biscuit that Ron had passed Hermione out of her hands and stretched his back. "Well I'm off to bed. I haven't had a decent night sleep in over a week."

"Why was Godric's Hollow deserted? What did the Ministry do?" Hermione asked quickly as Charlie approached the kitchen door.

He stopped and glanced at Tonks. It was apparent he hoped that she would answer the question so he wouldn't have to. Tonks, however, returned Charlie's look with a bit of apprehension. She shifted slightly in her chair and nearly slipped of the edge before Charlie finally responded.

"Not a lot is known about Godric's Hollow," Charlie began. "All I know is it came under the Ministry's control after Harry defeated 'you know who' the first time."

Tonks nodded, "People were afraid that the Dark Lord's supporters would seek their vengeance on the Muggles of Godric's Hollow so it was safer to relocate them which included erasing their memories."

"So what about the barkeep at the local pub?" Harry asked.

Charlie laughed lightly. "That old crackpot?"

"Dumbledore insisted that old Pete Mason be allowed to remain in Godric's Hollow. He is the great great grandson of a very powerful wizard and therefore had magical rights. The Ministry issued strict orders to leave the man be--it was something of a personal favor to Dumbledore," Tonks explained as she gave Charlie an unsure look.

Charlie shook his head and tossed up his hand. "As entertaining as this is I'm off to bed kids."

Tonks made a motion to turn back towards the door and stumbled slightly. She recovered from her near mishap gracefully and offered the three an thoughtful smile.

"I best be on my way as well. I'm suppose to be pulling a double tonight," Tonks explained. "You three stay put. Don't think we won't know if you try to run off anywhere." She paused and let her eyes rest briefly on Harry. "The only things you should be worried about is finished up your Seventh Year at Hogwarts at this point."

Ron snickered under his breath.

Tonks gave a wave and with a quick motion and a loud crack she was gone. Harry motioned for Ron to toss his a biscuit. His protesting stomach was informing him that the pastry that he had eaten earlier that day had long since been spent.

Hermione rose first from her position at the table and declared she was going to bed.
Harry and Ron lingered behind her a bit so they could finish up their bite to eat. By the time they had finished a couple of bowls of stew the hour was late. Ron stifled a yawn.

"I think I might sleep till noon tomorrow."

Harry smiled slightly. "If you had actually slept last night you might not be so tired."

"What are you talking about?" Ron asked as his face began to redden.

"With Hermione on your shoulder?" Harry asked in a voice that could have either been accusatory or teasing.

Ron's face grew a bit redder as he tried to collect himself. "Oh, well--we were just talking about stuff."

"Stuff," Harry repeated unable to hold back his grin.

"Stuff," Ron stated again looking more flustered with every word. "She's rather worried about you."

Harry raised his eyebrow. "So stuff would be me?"

"Not entirely," Ron corrected. "Don't get all bigheaded now. You weren't the entire subject of our conversation."

"Stuff?" Harry asked again, suppressing chuckle.

Ron scowled. "Oh shut-up. I'm off to bed if all you're going to do is pester me."

"Go on then. I'll just clean up this mess by myself. I'm sure if you hurry you might be able to peek in and tell Hermione goodnight. You might be able to talk about--stuff," Harry continued.

Ron tossed his half eaten biscuit at Harry's head before rising from his seat and walking towards the door.

"See you in a bit then, mate."

"Hey, I was only joking. You have to help clean this mess too," Harry called after Ron.

It was too late. Ron had already left the kitchen and was half way up the stairs.
Harry grunted as he did a bodge job of polishing up the kitchen. He decided if Mrs. Weasley was unhappy with his cleaning skills, or lack there of, he'd simply blame it on Ron deserting him.

He made one last attempt to wipe down the table before he tossed the dishcloth onto the counter and made his way out of the kitchen. He had almost reached the landing of the stairs when something caught the corner of his eye.

Lying on the couch was Ginny Weasley. Her knees were curled up into her chest as a blanket dangled revealing her small feet. Harry felt his chest constrict as his feet resist his demands to move. He had not been alone in the same room with Ginny since before Dumbledore died, and the stillness of the moment seemed to cause a fire deep within him to flare with a sudden spark.

Ginny shifted slightly and let out a deep sleepy breath causing the blanket slipped a bit further off her legs. Harry felt his heartbeat increase. The creature that had once raged inside his chest as he had battled his own personal feeling towards Ginny whimpered in defeat as he reminded himself that she was no longer his.

Ginny's hair hid most of her face in a sea of red and her nightdress revealed just a small patch of skin on her shoulder. It was almost too much of a temptation to go over to her and move the hair from her features. He would have given anything to be able to perform Legilimency at that moment, just to know for sure how she felt about their parting of ways.

Harry forced himself to turn back towards the stairs. He had made a choice, and it was the right choice. He had to forget about Ginny for her own good. The longer his heart yearned for her, the more danger she was in. As he crawled into bed and forced his eyes shut he tried to banish all thought of Ginny from his mind. The funny thing about dreams is they happen without the dreamer's permission. The harder Harry tried to force Ginny out of his dream the further she fought her way in.

Charlie hadn't exaggerated Fleur's wedding plans. The next morning The Burrows was a buzz with talks of cakes and flowers. Some of the more distant members of the Weasley clan starting arriving the following morning, with the promise of more to come as the big day approached.

In the excitement of it all, Harry had managed to avoid running into Ginny. There was one uncomfortable moment where they had been left alone together in the kitchen, but there were so many guest in The Burrows the moment was quickly lost. Harry had discovered why Ginny had been sleeping on the couch the first night He, Ron and Hermione had arrived. Apparently Ginny was more annoyed by Gabrielle than Fleur.

"Ginny is going to go insane," Hermione announced as she took a seat in between Ron and Harry.

Ron snickered, "You'd think Ginny would be use to this bridesmaid business by now."

"Fleur has her scheduled for brunch tomorrow. I don't believe I've ever seen Ginny dread something so badly in all her life," Hermione frowned as she propped open a book in her lap.

Harry shifted uncomfortably. It seemed like every time Hermione brought up Ginny she would watch him for a reaction. Harry however did not entertain Hermione.

He leaned over and peered at the book in her lap. "Found anything about any Potters in Wales yet?"

Hermione's forehead creased and she shook her head.

"Maybe the old loon was telling the truth-- Maybe it's aliens," Ron jeered, but neither Hermione nor Harry laughed.

Hermione thought for a moment then sighed. "Perhaps were going about it all wrong. Maybe it isn't Potters in Wales we should be looking for. The easiest way would be to ask somebody who knew your parents."

"Who would know anything about it?" Ron argued. "Well, who that would tell us anyway."

Finding out what was in Wales was only the beginnings of the problems with the entire idea. Harry seriously doubted that Mrs. Weasley would be all to keen on letting them venture back out into the world to go off on another adventure. Luckily it wasn't something that he had to be concerned about in the immediate present.

The Weasley wedding was turning into more of an event than any of them could have ever imagined. While there was some need to keep the wedding small, Fleur's idea of small wasn't just limited to close friends and relatives. After several heated arguments, it was decided that the wedding was to take place at The Burrows.

The week passed quickly as the final preparations for the wedding were going about as planned. Harry hadn't heard for certain, but he had a good reason to believe that Ron had finally swallowed his pride and asked Hermione to be his official date to the wedding.

Both his best mates were acting rather chummy with one another, though they were both desperately trying to look innocent of such acts. Every time Harry mentioned Hermione around Ron he had promptly changed the subject. Occasionally his mind would wonder if Ginny had also found a date for the celebration. Although he was fairly certain it was next to impossible, he had even mentally prepared himself for the arrival of Dean Thomas. He suspected Hermione knew the truth about Ginny's feelings, but he also knew she would never tell him anything Ginny had confided in secret.

That Sunday night the creature in Harry's chest stopped whimpering and began another familiar activity as the truth was finally revealed.

"Ginny, ete's time." Fleur cried as the doorbell rang.

Fleur paused and glanced at Harry and smiled broadly. "My cousin ete's ze only wizard to complete Beauxbaton with perfect scores. I have not seen him since in over a year."

Harry found her comment odd but tried to pay it little mind. As soon as Fleur opened the door a tall light haired man seized her around the waist and lifted her off the ground.

"Bonjour," he greeted. "Je vous ai manqué"

"Philippe it 'aves been far too long," Fleur replied as the boy set her back on the ground.
"I 'aves someone I want you to meet."

Fleur turned back towards the stairs and called out for Ginny again.

"I'm coming," Ginny hollered back sharply in an annoyed tone.

Fleur grabbed her cousin's hand and began to pull him towards the stairs muttering something Harry did not quite understand in French.

Ron frowned as he looked at Harry. "Wonder why she wants him to meet Ginny?"

The place where Harry's stomach normally sat suddenly felt like lead as Ron's comment opened up an entire world of possibilities. It was like being smacked up side the head with a large brick. This cousin of Fleur's was obviously Harry's replacement.

"I'm sure it's nothing," Hermione had added casually while eyeing Harry.

Harry's suspicion was confirmed that night when Fleur carefully positioned her cousin, Philippe, next to Ginny during dinner that evening. Ginny didn't even glance at Harry, even though Harry felt his traitorous eyes seek her.

"I just know you and Philippe will 'ave the best of time together at the wedding," Fleur said as she beamed at Ginny. "Isn't she such a pretty girl, Philippe?"

"Oui," Phillippe said with a cheeky grin. "Très Belle."

Ginny blushed slightly but made no motion to suggest if she was in favor or opposed this pairing.

Ron glanced at Harry then back at Ginny who was now trying to her best to avoid being the center of French conversation. It was the twins that displayed the least amount of tact as they chuckled under their breath.

"I though Ginny was going to the wedding with Harry," George finally commented causing both Ginny and Harry to snap their heads up in response.

Molly glanced warily at the twins. "Why would you think that, George dear?"

"Because he's an idiot," Ginny muttered miserably through her teeth.

"I dunno. Maybe there is more to Ginny and Harry than what you know," Fred jeered.

George grinned. "They've been awfully well behaved since the holiday started."

"And we're missing an entire batch of love potion," Fred added. "We have good suspicion it was an inside job."

Ginny gave the twins a murderous look before Ron intervened.

Ron shrugged. "Well, no offense, Phillippe, but aren't you a bit old for Ginny?"

"What does age 'ave to do with it?" Fleur snapped. "It doesn't matter, 'Arry is going with Gabrielle."

Harry choked as his pumpkin juice sprayed across the table at Fleur's comment.

" 'Arry, is something dis matter?" Fleur asked as she grabbed her chest dramatically.

"Love," Bill began as he reached for Fleur's hand. "Have you asked Harry about this arrangement?"

"If 'e doesn't want to go with Gabrielle 'e can tell me 'imself," Fleur said swiftly before eyeing Harry.

"I'm flattered," Harry said with a hard swallow, "but I'm really not interested in dating your sister, Fleur."

"You silly boy. I didn't mean for you to date 'er. I just thought the two of you could keep each other company during the wedding. She is very fond of you."

The twins started laughed under their breath and Fred coughed what sounded peculiar similar to, "So is Ginny."

"That's enough boys," Mr. Weasley said firmly.

"Indeed," Mrs. Weasley agreed. "Fleur dear, have you gotten any new replies who have R.S.V.P. for the ceremony. I would like to have an official count. There are security issues to consider."

"Oui," Fleur beamed. "Two of my friends from Beauxbaton 'ave confirmed."

Ron grinned slightly as a blush touched his face. Harry had to wonder if perhaps he had suspected wrong and Ron hadn't invited Hermione to the wedding as his date. Ron always did have a soft spot for French girls.

"Oh, and Viktor Krum 'as also owled me to let me know zat 'e is coming," Fleur added.

Suddenly it was Hermione who had a satisfied look on her face as Ron's innocent blush turned more into an angry flush.

"Krum was invited?" Ron asked in a disgusted voice.

Fleur nodded. "Oui, 'e was a 'ogwarts shampion. It wouldn't be right if 'e didn't attend."

Ron looked angrily over at Hermione and let out a grumble of something incomprehensible under his breath. Harry and Hermione both rolled their eyes and turned back to their plates. The wedding just keeps getting worse with each passing day.