Until Proven Guilty

She was a few minutes early, so she bypassed her chair at the front desk and went to see Garret Morgan. At fifty-one, Garret was an accidental bachelor. As an only child, he had spent his youth caring for sick and then elderly parents. After his parents died, he inherited their home and could have lived comfortably on the money left him, but instead he chose to work long hours at the bookshop.

From her first day at the front desk, Ginny had discouraged familiarity, and everyone got the message quickly except for Garret. Everyday he insisted on making conversation with her. She had to admire his persistence and finally gave in to his friendly overtures.

“Hey, Ginny!” he greeted her.

“Hello.” she replied while opening the cover of a book called Diagon Ally Deaths-1580. “Who would want to read something like this?” She eyed the volume with distaste.

“Someone trying to trace their family history.” He ran a hand lovingly over the old book.

“So, what happened on The Passionate and the Loveless today?” Ginny asked. Most women she know followed the popular wizard soap opera, but Garret was one of the few men who did.

Garret pursed his lips. “Nothing new. Results of the blood tests are supposed to be announced on Monday,” he said, pulling some dusty books off a shelf.

“Well, I hope the tests show that the baby is Parker’s so Tori can quit torturing herself,” Ginny wished out loud, and Garret looked up sharply.

“What would be the point of that? Parker is not the baby’s father. You can count on it.”

Ginny turned a page in the death book, discouraged. She really liked Tori and hated to think about what would happen to the girl’s marriage when her husband found out that he was not the father of her unborn child. While she mused, someone came up and asked Garret an obscure question. He had a ready answer, and as the patron walked away, Ginny regarded Garret thoughtfully. “Do you ever listen to Ferris Burke’s music?”

“Never,” Garret replied. “Why do you ask?”

“I’m just curious about him and his murder case.”

“The man killed his ex-wife and her boyfriend with his nine-year old daughter in the house! He’s not only a bad musician, he’s a sloppy murderer!” Garret smirked. “The only person more contemptible than Ferris Burke is the scummy lawyer who’s defending him when everybody in the world know’s he’s guilty.”

Ginny smiled. “Actually, it’s the scummy lawyer I’m interested in. He offered me a job today, and I’m a little curious.”

“Draco Malfoy? Draco Malfoy offered you a job?”

She nodded. “My old headmaster at Hogwarts introduced us, and I just thought you might have read something about him.” Years of caring for his parents had turned Garret into a compulsive pleaser, and she saw the anxiety form in his eyes. It was going to bother him that he couldn’t answer her question. “It’s no big deal,” she promised. “If I watch the news tonight, I’ll find out more than I ever wanted to know about Ferris Burke and his lawyer.”

His troubled gaze followed her as she walked back to the front desk and Ginny regretted mentioning Draco Malfoy or the controversial case. During her break Ginny ate a package of nearly fresh crackers she found at the bottom of her purse. While she chewed, her mind strayed to the picture of Katie Malfoy in her pocket. Almost involuntarily, she pulled it out and stared at the beautiful little face.

At exactly 8 P.M. she clocked out and walked toward the side entrance. Garret met her by the door. “Ginny!” he gasped. “I’m glad I caught you.” He waved a magical video. “I have a cousin who likes Ferris Burke’s music, so I called and asked if he had anything on Burke. He had two music video’s and the Music Awards program from last year. He made you a copy.”

Ginny stared at her friend. “I feel bad that your cousin went to all that trouble,” Ginny told him with complete sincerity. She really didn’t care anything about Ferris Burke. All she wanted was a little personal data on his lawyer.

Garret waved this aside. “Draco Malfoy went to law school in London, so on my way back from my cousin’s house I stopped by there,” he continued, and Ginny’s mouth fell open in horror. “I talked to the head librarian and asked if they had anything on Malfoy. Grades and things like that are confidential, but she found a video of a mock trial he participated in years ago. She copied it onto the end of this.” He waved the tape again.

“Oh, Garret, you shouldn’t have.”

He shrugged. “I have a reputation to maintain as London’s best researcher. What would people think if they found out there was a question I couldn’t answer? Besides, I’m not eve scheduled to work today. I just came in because I didn’t have anything else to do.”

The caused Ginny’s frown to deepen. “We’ve really got to find you a wife.”

Garret’s eyes widened, and then he cleared his throat nervously. “It’s nothing, really,” he assured her as they walked outside.

***

Ginny decided she would watch the video during dinner, then contact Dumbledore and decline Draco Malfoy’s proposal.

Ginny put the video on the couch and stared out her small front window at the street below. Her expenses were modest, but her salary at the bookshop was ever more so. As a result, her savings would only cover about half the cost of traveling. Absently Ginny reached over and opened the manila envelope. Draco Malfoy was indeed offering a generous salary, and if she accepted the job for the three-month period, she would have enough money to pay for her traveling expenses. Her hand slipped into the pocket of her dress and pulled out the snapshot of Katie Malfoy. Ginny looked at the small face for a few minutes, and then her heart started to hurt, so she put the picture on the kitchen table and changed into sweat-pants and a t-shirt.

It was too early for her nightly run, so she sat on the couch and watched the video Garret had given her. She was familiar with some of Ferris Burke’s songs but had never seen any of his music videos. The first had been recorded years earlier, introducing his initial big hit, “You’re Loving Me Without Kindness.” Ferris stood alone in a dark room, singing woefully and gesturing toward the camera. Occasionally he would tap his foot or swing a hip.

The next video, “When You Break the Laws of Love,” was more professional, indication that Ferris’s financial situation had improved. This time he sang to a beautiful girl who was removed in handcuffs at the end. The song Ferris performed at the Music Awards was one she had never heard before. Ferris was dressed in gold satin and surrounded by men and women in fuchsia leotards. With a shudder she fast-forwarded to the mock trial.

The judge was an older man, probably the teacher. The prosecutor was a serious-looking young woman with a lot of hair and a distinct over-bite. A youthful Draco Malfoy was the defense attorney.

The hypothetical defendant was a garbage collector who had lost control of his wand while vanishing garbage and had set fire to a day-care building. His blood-alcohol level was above the legal limit at the time, so he had been charged with gross negligence and criminal endangerment. The evidence was staggering, and Ginny didn’t see how Draco Malfoy could possibly win, but by the end she felt sorry for the pretend prosecutor. Mr. Malfoy was well prepared and charismatic. He handled the witnesses, the opposing counsel, and even the judge with careless ease. The jury returned a verdict of not guilty and the fictitious garbage man went free. Unable to help herself, she rewound the tape to the end of Ferris’s Music Awards performance and watched the trial again.

It was late by the time she left her apartment to run the familiar streets, and as she ran she couldn’t keep images of Draco Malfoy and his daughter from her thoughts. It took three miles to achieve the blankness of mind that she usually reached in one. Slightly resentful toward Draco Malfoy and Albus Dumbledore, she returned, took a shower, then sat down to watch the eleven o’clock news. She told herself that she just needed to check on the weather, but was pleased when the anchorwoman introduced a clip of Ferris Burke’s press conference.

The camera showed Ferris standing in the background looking sad and misunderstood while his lawyer described the Ministry’s bungling ineptitude and the district attorney’s unreasonable vendetta against his client. He concluded by assuring the viewers that justice would be served and Ferris would be making platinum records again soon.

Ginny turned off the wizarding television and read her new book until she finished it at two o’clock on Saturday morning. She saw the picture of Katie Malfoy on her kitchen table when she checked to make sure the front door was locked. It reminded her that she hadn’t contacted Albus Dumbledore to decline the job offer. Irritated with herself, she tucked Katie Malfoy’s photograph into her pajama pocket and went to bed. And when she slept, she dreamed of blue eyes and blonde pig tails instead of death and thunder.

***

Ginny was scheduled to work from ten to four on Saturday, and she barely had time to get settled at the front desk when one of the catalogers came over and told her that the boss wanted to see her immediately. In the two years she had worked at Flourish and Blotts, Ginny had never known the boss to come in on the weekends. Curious and a little nervous, Ginny followed the cataloger back to the administrative area.

Ginny’s boss was sitting at his desk and politely invited Ginny to come inside. Once Ginny was seated in one of the upholstered chairs, the man informed her that he had some rather unpleasant news. “I was notified last night that due to recent municipal cutbacks, we are going to have to let you go.”

Ginny shook her head in order to clear it. “Excuse me, could you repeat that?”

“I know that finding another job will be inconvenient, but I’m sure someone with your education and experience could easily find another position.”

“You don’t have another job I could do?” Ginny asked softly.

The boss shock his head. “I’d have to fire someone with less seniority than you and give you their job,” he explained. “Arif has only been with us a few months, but he’s an exchange student and if he loses his job, he’ll have to go back to Kuwait. Then there is Leslie, but this job is her only source of income and she’s a single mother-“

“I understand,” Ginny interrupted. She couldn’t very well be responsible for deporting a teenager or for starving fatherless children.

“I hate to lose you,” The boss sighed as he stood. “But I have been given no choice.”

After receiving a brief handshake, Beth walked back to her desk in a daze. She needed a few minutes to compose herself, but it was not meant to be. Garret was sitting in her chair, awaiting her arrival.

“I’ve just come from that boss’s office,” she told him. “It seems my job has been discontinued.”

“What do you mean ‘discontinued’?”

“I guess it means I’m fired,” she responded. Garret was outraged. He offered to call a lawyer, organize a picket line, or quit himself. “It’s okay, Garret,”she assured him. “I told you that I was thinking about traveling soon and would have had to resign anyway. Besides, Draco Malfoy’s job pays a lot more than I make here!”

Garret’s eyes narrowed. “You’re going to take his job?”

Ginny shrugged, unsure of what she was going to do.

“What would he want you to do for him?”

“Move into his house and evaluate his relationship with his five-year-old daughter,” she answered, and Garret’s expression reflected comical confusion. “I’m actually more qualified to do that than to work in a bookshop.”

“Why do you have to live in his house to evaluate his kid?” he asked. “Couldn’t you just stop bu for a few hours a day and see how he treats her?”

“I guess the family court judge doesn’t think I’d get the full picture unless I’m there all the time,” Ginny informed him.

Garret was still frowning. “I’m surprised you’d even consider it.”

Ginny lifted a shoulder. “Well I’ve got to work somewhere, and the offer is only for three months. What could happen in that length of time?” Garret continued to glower. “And you don’t need to worry about me. He has a live-in housekeeper, so I won’t be alone with Ferris Burke’s sleazy lawyer.”

A customer came up at this moment and asked for Garret’s help in researching the death of a relative in the early 1500's. “We’ll talk mor about this later,” he promised Ginny as he rushed off to meet this new challenge.

During her first break Ginny got a floo-call from Albus Dumbledore. “I’m sorry to disturb you at work,” he said when she answered “But I felt I had to make a final effort to hire you in Draco’s behalf. He has until six o’clock today to find an evaluator. After that, he’s at the judge’s mercy. I don’t know what kind of impression Draco made on you...” Albus paused, but when Ginny made no comment, he continued. “He’s a private sort of person, and that works against him in a situation like this-makes it look like he’s got something to hide. Which is not your problem, but I feel very strongly that you are the right person for this job. So I’m going to ask you to do it as a personal favor to me.”

In all the time Ginny had known Albus, he had never asked her to do anything for him. “You’re desperate.”

“I need a good lawyer in my back pocket,” he teased, and Ginny had to smile. “Seriously, though, it’s not very often that we get to step into family situations early enough to prevent problems. I’d like to see if we can help Katie now, without getting the courts more involved.”

“I thought the evaluator was just to appease the press and Mr. Malfoy’s in-laws.”

“That’s the way Draco looks at it.” Albus was silent for a few seconds, and Ginny go the impression that he was reluctant to proceed. “Draco seems like a nice enough man, but I’ve never been to his house or met his daughter, and his parents were concerned enough about the situation to consult a family court . So if you agree to take this job, you will have a responsibility to observe and report fairly. I don’t want to see Katie’s name come across my desk again a few years form now when it’s too late to do anything.”

Ginny’s hand slipped into her pocket and clutched at Katie’s picture. “They told me this morning that my job here has been discontinued.”

“That’s simply splendid!” Albus responded with inordinate enthusiasm.

“I don’t know if getting fired is splendid, but it does leave me at loose ends for a while...”

“You’ll do it,” he whispered eagerly.

“For you,” Ginny answered slowly. “But just for three months.”

“I’ll contact Draco and let him know.” The relief in his voice was obvious. “Can you start immediately?”

“How ‘immediately’?”

“Monday if possible.”

“That soon?” Ginny felt the old anxiety surface. Too many changes in such a short time would upset the delicate balance of her life, so she searched for a plausible excuse. “I’ll have to give them a two-week notice here.”

“If your job doesn’t exist anymore, I don’t see how they could expect a notice,” Albus responded with amusement.

Her mind raced. “I’ll have to get out of the lease at my apartment...”

“Explain that situation to your landlord and if there’s a penalty or anything, I’m sure Draco will be willing to pay it.”

“I’ll let you know,” Ginny said, then ended the floo-call abruptly. She stopped by the boss’s office and asked when her employment would officially end. She hoped it would be far into the future, making it so she would have to tell Albus that Monday was not a possibility.

“You won’t need to come back after today,” the boss said with a polite smile. “We’ll owl your final check.”

Surprised and a little hurt, Ginny went back to her desk. It wasn’t that she thought the bookshop couldn’t function with out her. She knew her job was routine and could probably be performed adequately by a eight-year-old. But she’d been there for over two years, and it was sad to think that they wouldn’t even miss her.

During her lunch break she flooed her landlady, expecting resistance to a sudden departure. However, Mrs. Paterson said that several people were waiting for a vacancy and since new tenants could be charged for higher rent, she would happily release Ginny form her contract.

Garret stopped by later that afternoon carrying two candy bars and a stack of papers. “So, what did you think of the video?” He extended one of the candy bars and piled the papers on her desk.

She accepted that candy and replied honestly, “I couldn’t bear to watch Ferris.”

“I had some free time this morning, so I dug up what I could on Draco Malfoy,” Garret told her with his mouth full of chocolate. “Newspaper articles, stuff like that. None of it’s good.”

“It must have taken you hours to collect his!” she scolded, already reading the top sheet.

Garret shrugged. “It wasn’t hard.”

“Dumbledore said Mr. Malfoy is a very good criminal lawyer.” Ginny looked up from a handful of articles on a case involving a professional quidditch player.

“Emphasis on criminal,” Garret muttered. “Take this guy,” He tapped the picture of huge man holding a broom. “He admitted that he was paid to throw a quidditch game, but Malfoy contended that the prosecution had to prove that man actually played below his potential on that particular day. Malfoy swayed the jury and the quidditch player walked. Then there’s this healer that was supposed to fix this woman’s spleen and took out her appendix instead.”

“How could anyone make such an awful mistake?”

“Malfoy blamed it on everybody who had the misfortune of being in the hospital on that date.” Garret took another bite of his candy bar. “He did a good job of spreading the responsibility around, but his real coup was finding lab results that showed the appendix was enlarged at the time of the healing.” Ginny raised an eyebrow. “According to an expert medical witness, this meant it could have been about to rupture,” he explained.

“No way,” Ginny breathed.

Garret nodded. “By healing the wrong thing, the healer may have saved the woman’s life. What jury would convict under those circumstances?”

“He always seems to win,” Ginny murmured with grudging respect.

“Even though his clients are always guilty,” Garret agreed. “Now he’s got his eye on being the next head of the Magical Law Enforcement Department. When Jeremiah Dobson announced a few months ago that health problems were going to prevent him from doing his job as well as he liked, Draco Malfoy ‘expressed interest’.” Garret indicated toward the ‘Malfoy Enters Political Ring’ article.

“He wants to be a politician?” Ginny asked as she scanned the column.

“Show me a lawyer who doesn’t,” Garret replied cynically. “And I promise you that a competitor like Draco Malfoy won’t be satisfied with a measly head of any department.” Ginny studied a grainy newspaper picture of Draco Malfoy standing beside a tall, heavyset man. “That’s Oscar Addison, as you already know as the Minister of Magic. He was one of Malfoy’s professors in law school, and whoever Addison endorses is sure to get the appointment.”

“So he wins without a fight?” Ginny asked as she studied the white-haired man.

“No, London’s finest attorney wants the job too, and he’s popular with the voters.” Garret handed Ginny another article. The picture of Harry Potter explained his public approval rating. With messy jet black hair and emerald eyes, he looked like an older version of the Harry she used to know a long time ago. Garret didn’t ask if she knew him, so she didn’t comment on it.

“They both seem young for the Head of Law Enforcement Department,” she mused, studying Harry’s picture.

Garret shook his head. “A lot of men begin political careers in their early thirties, and the state senate is a great place to start. Besides, Jeremiah Dobson is as old as Albus Dumbledore. Maybe Oscar Addison thought the voters were ready for some younger blood.” This last statement earned Garret a little smile. “Mr. Addison can’t just give the appointment to Malfoy, so he’s focusing media attention on the Ferris Burke trial. It will be a big one. Draco Malfoy will defend while Harry Potter prosecutes.”

“And whoever wins gets the Head appointment?” Ginny asked skeptically. “Like a contest?”

“Unofficially, I guess so.” Garret frowned. “The accusations that Malfoy is neglecting his daughter haven’t come at a good time. That’s not the kind of publicity he wants.”

“Which is where I come in.” Ginny examined the article entitled ‘Malfoy Unfit Father?’ A fellow employee walked by for the second time, and Ginny thought that staying in her section too long might get Garret in trouble. So she hastily stacked up the papers he had given her. “All this sounds like interesting reading, and you are unquestionably my very best friend. But since you still have a job here, you’d better get back to work.”

Ignoring Ginny’s suggestion, he continued to stare at the stack of papers. “Garret,” she said finally. “Today is my last day at the bookshop.” She paused when she saw moisture collecting in his eyes, then forced herself to continue. “But just because I won’t work here doesn’t mean I can’t come to see you!”

“Ginny.” he reached over and touched her arm in a rare personal gesture. “I feel bad that you won’t be working here anymore, but after reading this stuff, what really worries me is the thought of you dealing with Draco Malfoy.” Ginny smiled, but Garret didn’t. “I’m serious, Ginny. He’s rich and powerful, and one of those articles hinted at ties to organized crime! If you have to report anything negative about him to the court...” He shuddered. “Why can’t you find another job? Something nice and safe like a store clerk.”

“I’m only going to be there for a few months.” Ginny tried to hide her amusement. “I’ll watch his little girl while he tries to figure out a way to convince the jury to acquit the obviously guilty Ferris Burke. Then I’ll leave his house and forget all about Draco Malfoy.”

Garret refused to be distracted by her attempt at humor. “I mean it, Ginny. I have a bad feeling about this,” he whispered as he walked away his forehead still wrinkled with concern.

Ginny had no close attachments to any of her other coworkers, which made the rest of her good-byes brief and unemotional. At four o’clock, she packed her personal effects and the papers about Draco Malfoy in a cardboard box and with a soft ‘pop’ she was home.

After making a sandwich, she curled up on the couch and slowly nibbled on it. As she ate, her hand slipped into her pocket and once again closed around the photograph of Katie.

She thought about visiting her family and sharing the news of her new job, but the thought of talking in person didn’t appeal to her. Her family would be so happy to see her and it would annoy her when they nagged about her welfare. So she walked over to the fire place instead.

Soon Molly Weasley’s head appeared. “Is everything alright, Virginia?” Her mother was the only person who used her full name.

“Everything is fine, Mum.” Ginny spoke in a flat tone she had perfected for emotional situations. Ginny quickly told her mother of her new job.

“I had no idea you wanted to be a live-in nanny.” Her mother didn’t sound pleased.

“I wasn’t looking for the job, Mum. Albus Dumbledore suggested it.” Her mother had always been fond of Albus, and Ginny knew his name would carry a lot of weight. “The salary is good, and it’ll be an easy way to earn money.”

“Albus Dumbledore is one of the nicest men I know.” Molly still sounded hesitant. “He was so good to you after...” Her voice trailed off into an uncomfortable silence.

“I feel ready to do something different, Mum,” Ginny said into the quiet. “And Albus is determined that I help this little girl.”

The conversation moved to safer issues, and Ginny listened to her mother discuss an ill neighbor for almost thirty minutes before she ended the conversation. After an encounter with her mother, she needed stress relief, so she changed into her running clothes. The sweat pants didn’t have pockets, and for some inexplicable reason she couldn’t bear to be separated from Katie Malfoy, so she tucked the picture into her sock. After she returned, Ginny stayed up late finishing a book.

***

Later Sunday evening, Ginny received a call from Draco Malfoy’s secretary, Roberta Smith. She gave Ginny detailed directions to the Malfoy estate and confirmed that they would meet there the next morning at ten o’clock.

Usually Ginny didn’t run on Sundays, but the events of the past couple of days had left her nerves raw. While putting on her sweat pants, she berated herself. She had built a predictable, safe life. Why was she risking change? Automatically her hand reached into the pocket of the dress she had worn that day and closed around the photograph of Katie Malfoy. Then, with a sigh, she transferred the picture to her sock and ran outside.

***

Ginny woke up before dawn on Monday, nervous and almost excited. After showering in the tiny bathroom for the last time, she loaded her possessions into her trunk. She then handed her landlady the key. Her hands were shaking, but she did not cry.