Chasing Harry

Chapter 15: Unanswered

***

Harry, you mustn't reveal the truth to anyone. The public will know someday, but not now. It would be better to act while we can still do something about it.

He recalled Dumbledore's words as Ron and Hermione pulled him out of the room. Act now? But he couldn't even do anything about it! He was strictly ordered to remain in Hogwarts while Tom was missing. In spite of Harry's desire to find him--or do something to help... anything!--he himself didn't know where to start. Tom and even the Death Eaters could be anywhere in the world. He hated to admit it but maybe Hermione was right, maybe he needed to stay still while they waited for news from Remus and Snape.

And how would we explain that the he's gone? Someone, it might've been Sirius, had asked back in Dumbledore's office.

It was Snape who gave the solution: He's away with me, a trainee for the special study of exotic potions. That way, both of us won't be missed. The less we say, the better it would be for everyone.

Still, in spite of Dumbledore's insistence to keep Tom's absence a secret, Harry had already betrayed him by telling Hermione and Ron. But they were different; he could trust his friends.

Ginny, though, was another matter. He trusted her as he would a sister. But he couldn't bring himself to expose her to the dangers he and his two best friends might face. Who knew what they might be called to do after Remus and Snape found Tom? It had taken Ginny a long time to recover from the experience in the Chamber. Ron agreed with him they must keep this current dilemma from her.

"HARRY!"

He glanced up. Ginny was at the top of the staircase, staring down at him with delight. She rushed down and hugged him with relief as Hermione made her way down, grinning.

"Where have you been? I was so worried!" Ginny stepped away and looked at him expectantly.

"Erm... I was in Hogsmeade," Harry answered.

"You mean, you spent Christmas and New Year there? With whom?" She was starting to look confused. Ginny turned to her brother. "Didn't you say you looked for him in Hogsmeade?"

"What Harry meant to say was that he got lost on his way back from Hogsmeade," Ron blurted out.

Ginny's brows rose and looked at Ron skeptically. "I'm not sure I understand." She turned back to Harry. "You got lost in Hogsmeade and it took you more than a week to get home?"

Hermione cut in smoothly, "Harry used the secret tunnel to Hogwarts on the way back. He got knocked out because of some spell gone wrong and woke up more than a week later." Ron gave her a relieved glance over Ginny's shoulder. "Luckily, almost no one knew about that passageway so Harry was unharmed."

Ginny nodded, "I see." She suddenly grinned and faced Harry. "That was some nap you took."

"Um, yes," Harry smiled back, ruffling his hair self-consciously. He should've made up an alibi earlier.

"There's something I've been wanting to show you." She linked her arm with Harry's and turned to Hermione and her brother. "Is it all right if I steal him for a while? We won't be long."

"Of course," Hermione replied. She watched the two Gryffindors walk away with a troubled frown.

Ron let out a sigh of relief. "Whew! That was close. It was stupid, what I said. Harry couldn't possibly get lost in Hogsmeade. Thanks for saving us there, Herm."

"Don't mention it." She glanced at Ron, still frowning. "Ginny has been acting a little strange, don't you think?"

"What do you mean?"

"I meant the way she seemed to attach herself to Harry." Hermione clicked her tongue thoughtfully. "It's not just now. I noticed it during the weeks before I left for the holidays, but I thought it was just a phase. You know... an extension of her former crush."

"Attached to Harry? But that was ages ago!" Ron laughed. "She's had a lot of dates since then, not that I approve of course. She was just worried, Herm. Even if she complains about us hiding things from her all the time, you know how she gets paranoid about danger, always thinking the worst has happened to us."

"No, no. I know worry when I see it. I was worried and so were you. This one just might be a little different."

Ron frowned. "But with Harry? I don't think there's anything unusual w--"

"Oh, never mind," Hermione laughed, waving the topic away. She took Ron's hand and led him away to the nearest exit. "It's just this silly female intuition acting up. Come on, let's take a walk. We may as well enjoy the day."

Of course, she fully intended to keep her eyes open.

***

Ginny wasn't stupid. She sensed that Harry was hiding something from her and that Hermione and her brother were willing conspirators. It had not been the first time that they kept secrets from their other friends but this was different. She felt that there was more to Harry's brief absence than what met the eye, and she intended to find out what was going on. Besides, unlike Hermione, the boys were horrible liars.

But she wouldn't pressure him today. She would give him the space that she sensed he needed before asking. After all, she wanted the best for him and his well-being was more important to her than mere curiosity. She didn't doubt that he'd tell her. Haven't he showed her so many times--with his responses, his glances, and his ways--that he loved her?

Right now, he just needed cheering up. And a good stroll around the snowy Quidditch pitch might be exactly what'll do the trick. She squeezed his hand and happily thought that they could finally catch up with lost time.

***

Severus Snape's nose itched. He resisted the urge to scratch it as the skin on the tip was a dangerous shade of red and was already peeling. He shouldn't have left the Vaseline back in Hogwarts. Extremely cold weather was murder on his skin. He pulled his bonnet low and tried to make do with what he had.

He watched impatiently as Lupin questioned the rotund old man. The pair had been chatting along in some foreign language for the last five minutes with Lupin gesturing somewhere toward the mountains. In truth, they had been doing this for the past three days--Apparating cautiously in secluded areas of several small muggle towns, dressed as muggles, and questioning the locals about any suspicious signs that could possibly be the effects of magical activity. Or, rather, Lupin asked while Snape dithered in the background, scowling while holding his pack. They had zeroed into the area according to the reports of the Ministries of Magic of the surrounding countries who had recorded magical activity from a supposedly no-magic-allowed muggle territory.

Lupin had been chosen by Dumbledore to go as he was well acquainted with the region from his years of travel. Snape was chosen by Lupin. He was glad to go, but the werewolf's choice seemed strange to him, as they were barely civil with each other. Just the other day, he finally asked Lupin why and the man quietly replied that Snape at least cared for Tom Riddle's well being, which made him ideal as a search companion. Aside from this exchange and certain necessary conversations about the search, the two avoided talking--which was all right with Snape.

Three days... and they still weren't close to finding Tom Riddle. Snape shaded his eyes from the glare of sunlight reflected on the snow and stared at the peaks. If Tom were still up there, then they would be lucky to find him alive. No matter how powerful, a wand-less witch or wizard could only do so much as a muggle.

He suddenly sensed a change in Lupin's tone. Snape turned his attention back towards the conversation before him. Lupin was smiling widely as he thanked the man and gave his leave. He nodded to Snape and started to walk away. The two strolled along the snow-dusted street and entered their small rented room in an inn. Immediately, Lupin draped an illusory shield around them and coupled it with a silencing spell.

"I think this is it," Remus said excitedly. "Tom isn't far. He said they saw some strange colored sparks above the trees a few days ago."

"Not during the past two days?"

Remus shook his head. "Nothing suspicious for the past three days."

No signs of recent magic. Could anyone even survive that that long in the cold? "How far is it?" Snape grunted.

"Quite far. It looks closer than it really is. We'll have to hurry and sweep the area. If he's there, he might be unconscious."

"I hope we find him unconscious," Snape said grimly. "At least he'll be alive."

"And you mustn't lose hope so quickly," Remus chided him gently. He rummaged in his bag for a few seconds and handed Severus a small tube of moisturizer. He gestured pointedly at the other's nose. "Here. I thought you might need this before we go."

***

In the Slytherin dorms, Blaise Zabini jogged up the stairs, taking two steps at a time. It was dinnertime and he was coming to ask Draco if he wanted to join the rest of them in the Great Hall or if he just preferred to have the food brought to him like yesterday and the day before. The others were already on their way out of the common room. He hoped Draco would decide to end his self-imposed exile. It wasn't healthy to eat alone every night.

"Draco?" Blaise opened the door to the room he shared with his fellow sixth year Slytherins, expecting to find his friend inside. But it was empty.

Puzzled, he noticed that the room was unnaturally cold. Considering that the house-elves were usually thorough with their housekeeping, he couldn't imagine what made them forget to heat this room today.

Then he noticed the open window. A cold draft blew in through the unlatched shutters facing Draco Malfoy's perfectly made bed. The racing broom that normally leaned against his bedpost was gone, and so was Draco.

***

A couple of days later, only two people were inside a hotel room. They were sitting on a rug, facing the fireplace. The flames in the grate glowed green, framing Albus Dumbledore's somber face.

"Are you absolutely sure that you checked thoroughly?" Dumbledore asked for the third time that night.

"Yes, Albus. If Tom Riddle is alive, then he certainly isn't where we first located him," Remus answered. "It is possible that he has managed to find a way out of there. But where he went, I can't say. We've questioned the locals in the surrounding towns and no one had reported seeing anyone remotely like Tom."

"We can't stop looking for him," Dumbledore insisted. "The Spiratio can't be performed on one individual more then three successive times. But wherever he is, he is certainly alive. He is far too important for anyone to kill him."

"There is one other thing..." Remus interrupted hesitantly.

"Yes?"

"There were tourists in the area around a day we performed the spell. They left just before Severus and I arrived. It could've been a coincidence but one description caught our attention."

Here, Snape took over. "One of the three men had long light-blond hair." He paused dramatically before adding, "and he had a cane with a snake's head. The girl from the inn had been very informative. It seemed that Lucius cut a striking figure among the locals. He also traveled with a man that closely resembles the description of Taylor Goyle. The third man's description was too vague, it seemed that he spent most of his time hidden indoors in the short time they were around."

"I see. Strange activities for tourists, staying very briefly and indoors most of the time." Dumbledore sighed after a moment. "It's an unusual time for coincidences because the timing coincides with young Malfoy's disappearance."

Snape's eyes widened. "Draco's disappeared?"

"He went out three days ago and never returned. He isn't at Malfoy Manor or in any of the family-owned residences around the world. From what you just reported, he may have been called by his father or chose to leave for reasons only he could know."

"Impossible!" Snape whispered. "Draco would never do anything like that. I know that he isn't in league with--"

"But he isn't around to prove it," Remus said gently, touching his arm. "I understand your loyalty to your student, Severus. But we can't be sure about everything that has happened lately. Remember, Draco Malfoy has chosen to keep silent about the events in his house and his actions could only be described as suspicious. That doesn't prove anything, of course, until we find out for sure whether he is involved or not."

The urge to defend his student swelled in his chest but Snape chose to remain silent. Lupin was right. It seemed that the work cut out for them only grew harder each day. Now they had two students to find.

"You two come home as soon as you can," Dumbledore instructed. "Where are you anyway?"

"Switzerland," Snape answered sullenly.

"Switzerland?" Bushy white eyebrows rose. "Why the detour?"

Remus smiled. "I needed to pick something up for Harry, a gift that might cheer him up. Good night, Albus. We'll be off tomorrow as soon as we get enough sleep."

"All right." The Headmaster of Hogwarts gave a wide yawn before smiling sleepily. "We've had so little rest the past few days. I'll see you then." In an instant, he disappeared along with the green flames.

***

Lost time, that's what it is, Ginny thought with dismay.

Harry had been back for a few days and she wasn't any closer to finding out the real reason for his holiday absence. She had tried asking him discreetly but he never explained anything or he almost always changed the topic soon after. Asking Ron was even worse: her older brother just clammed up and stammered that he needed to be somewhere else whenever she broached the question. And Hermione? The girl just stuck to the original story and advised her to ask Harry himself--which brought her exactly nowhere.

She wasn't eager to press Harry for details constantly. The last thing she wanted to be was a nag. But she sensed that he and the two were keeping something important and she was just tired of being kept in the dark for so long.

It would've been quite all right if that was the only thing about Harry that bothered her, but it wasn't!

They had spent most of their time together during the past week as Ron and Hermione seemed bent on making up for lost time by sticking with each other. Ginny accompanied him after classes and studied with him in the library when she could. She even stayed with Harry during Quidditch practice. Certainly, she couldn't complain about quality time. But even if Harry was with her physically, she sensed that he was never quite there!

His eyes would take on a faraway look every once in a while and he would lose the thread of conversation. Harry was never one to talk too much, but lately, he just stopped talking at all. Ginny found herself babbling more than a few times just to fill the silence when it became evident that Harry wasn't listening.

If she didn't know better, she'd say he looked sad, even hopeless sometimes. But that would be ridiculous. Harry was in Hogwarts with everyone he loved. Why would he be miserable? And what was the point on trying to show him how she cared when he never noticed anyway?

She tucked a lock of her long red hair behind her ear and stared at him unhappily. They were out on a Hogsmeade weekend and the two of them were sitting alone at one of the tables in The Three Broomsticks. They had arrived only a few minutes ago and already, Harry's mind was clearly somewhere else as he nodded absently with everything she said.

She took his hand, startling him out of his reverie. "Harry, is there something wrong?" Ginny asked with concern.

He seemed startled with her question. "Of course not. I'm all right." He bit his lip. "What made you ask?"

"Oh, I don't know... It just seems like you haven't been yourself since you came back. You're always distracted--staring off into space while we talk, or while I talk. I just get the feeling that you're never really with me."

"I'm sorry." He patted her hand, smiling at her gently. "I guess I wasn't very good company. I've just been worried about my lessons. I should thank you... you've been very nice to me for the last few days. I promise to be more attentive from now on."

"Is that it? Harry, what really happened while you were gone?" she pressed.

He shifted uncomfortably. "I told you before. I got knocked out."

So he wanted to be stubborn. Maybe she needed to try another approach, a more direct one. She sidled closer, looking at him warmly. "Harry, do you love me?"

If he was startled with her previous question, this one really surprised him. He gaped at her for three whole seconds before suddenly breaking into laughter.

"Did I say something funny?" she asked, confused and a little bit miffed.

"No, no..." He shook his head, grinning. "Where did that come from?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "You don't have to answer it if you don't want to."

"But of course I love you, Gin."

It was her turn to stare. "You do?"

"Yes. You're like a sister to me. You and your brothers are the closest I have to having a family. How could I not love you?"

"Oh." She looked down, deflated. A sister? It was a good answer, but not one she wanted to hear. "Thank you, Harry. It's a kind thing to say."

"You're welcome, but I wasn't being kind. I really mean it. But what ever made you ask that?" He raised his brows inquisitively. "It's quite sudden, coming from you."

"I just feel like you're hiding something from me, like you guys used to do before. Another secret."

He froze at the word. "Secrets? Don't be silly, Gin. If ever we decide to hide something from you, it'd be for a good reason, probably something that would mean life or death. Oh, look! Here's Herm and Ron!" he exclaimed (with a touch of relief, she thought).

Right on cue, Hermione set down several cold bottles of premium Butterbeer. She smiled at them widely, sitting between Ginny and Harry. Ron followed suit, taking the last remaining seat across her.

"What a surprise! I thought you two were still in Honeydukes. Mind if we join you?" he asked.

Yes. "No, of course not." Ginny smiled briefly at her brother.

"And what were you two talking about?" Hermione asked, shaking the snow out of her wavy hair. "You looked so serious that I just had to ask."

"Just some things," Harry answered vaguely. "Oh, Hermione, about our Potions assignment, the one Snape gave us just before he left, was it six feet of parchment or ten? I wasn't quite sure about the instructions but I thought I heard Dean say that it was six..."

Ginny tuned out. There wasn't anything interesting to listen to, anyway. She was living her younger years all over again--when she had been shut out of Harry's life no matter how hard she tried.

(tbc)