Revelations and Romance

Revelations and Romance chapter 17/25

---

17: The Betrayer

March 16th, hospital wing

Last chapter ended with:

Harry remains in an enchanted sleep. Ron, Hermione and Ginny see the Hufflepuff Quidditch team bring in a pupil they'd rescued from the lake. It turns out to be Ginny's friend Raine Dunsmuir, who had already told them she knew who cursed Harry, but that it would be too dangerous to tell them. She is still unconscious.

---

'Oh, Raine!' said Ginny, sitting on the edge of the bed and grabbing her friend's hand. 'Why didn't you take Hermione's offer of protection if you went to tell Dumbledore?'

Ron and Hermione joined Ginny at the bedside. 'She's got to get better,' said Ron. 'She knows who cursed Harry.'

'She will get better if it's within my power,' said Madam Pomfrey sharply. 'I don't care what she knows, she is a patient and I will do what I can for her.'

'He didn't mean it that way,' said Hermione. 'I wish we'd been able to convince her to tell Professor Dumbledore earlier, though. She was going to tell him today -- and now look at her. Whoever it was must have found out she was going to tell.'

Ernie entered the hospital wing again, carrying both Firebolts. 'Is she any better?' he asked. 'Lorelei says her name is Raine Dunsmuir, if you don't know her.'

'She's not better yet, but we know her too,' said Hermione, taking the brooms and putting them near Harry's bed, to take up later. Ernie and Ron followed her.

Ernie shook his head. 'Two pupils attacked -- this is like when the Heir Petrified you and the others. How many more this time?'

'I hope it's not that bad.' She told him how Raine had implied she knew who cursed Harry.

'So, if she gets better, that should end the attacks? I hope she does, either way.'

Hermione looked over at Raine's bed, now hidden by curtains as Ginny helped Madam Pomfrey undress Raine and dry her.

'How are you doing with the Firebolts?' asked Ron. 'It sounds as if Hannah's doing all right.'

'Yes, she and Lorelei are both doing well. This should really help us against the Slytherins -- thanks.'

'You're welcome,' said Hermione, 'as long as you beat them into last place.'

'I hope so. This is our best chance in years, thanks to your team stopping them getting any points at all in their first game,' said Ernie. 'I suppose Harry will be better before the end of term?'

'I hope so,' said Hermione. 'That's a week and a half away.'

'Madam Pomfrey said she was going to wake him on Friday, if he's well enough,' said Ron.

Ginny emerged from the curtains and came over to join them while Madam Pomfrey put the curtains away. Ron hugged her, as she looked so upset.

Madam Pomfrey said, 'I still can't tell if she will recover, or if she was underwater long enough to suffer from oxygen starvation. Even magic can't reverse the damage that causes.'

Professor Dumbledore arrived in time to hear the last comment. 'This is too much like three years ago,' he said.

'Did she say anything to you about who cursed Harry?' asked Ron.

Dumbledore told them she had not. 'We can be reasonably certain that this was why she was attacked. We have that connection, and I hope there will be no more attacks. If she recovers, we will know who is behind this -- apart, of course, from Voldemort.'

'Sorry, but none of us saw who pushed her in,' said Ernie.

Ginny went and sat beside Raine. 'Wake up, Raine. Even if you don't tell us anything, you're too nice to just die, and you'll miss tomorrow, too.'

Madam Pomfrey smiled at her, pleased that at least one person wasn't only interested in what her patient knew.

The door flew open, and Fen ran in, then stopped when she saw Ginny next to Raine. 'It's true, then?'

'Someone attacked her and threw her into the lake,' said Ron. 'It's probably the same person who cursed Harry.'

Fen knelt beside Raine's bed. 'Why didn't you tell us? You could have told us, I'm sure we could have done something to help you! And why today?' She wiped her eyes and took a letter from her pocket. 'Ginny, she said I should show you this.'

Ginny took the letter and started to read it.

The letter slipped from Ginny's hands and fell to the floor. She felt weak, and almost fell onto the bed next to Raine's. She sat there, saying, 'Oh, Raine, Raine.' Ron bent to pick up the letter, and Ginny said quickly, 'Don't read it! Give it to the headmaster to read.' Ron looked at her oddly, then handed the letter to Dumbledore, and sat beside Ginny.

'What did she say?' he asked.

'A lot,' she replied. 'I can't believe it. All that time, and we just never guessed. I need to think about what she said -- don't ask me yet.'

Dumbledore was frowning as he read the letter. When he finished it, he said, 'I would have had to contact her parents anyway, given the seriousness of what happened, but now the news will be doubly bad. Do what you can for her, Poppy.' He strode out of the room, carrying the letter.

'I don't want to be here when her parents arrive,' said Ginny. 'I really don't. As Harry's not going to wake up today, can we go back to the common room after dinner, please?'

Ron and Hermione agreed, and after going to the Great Hall for dinner, they all returned to the common room, where they sat doing their homework and not speaking much.

'Are you going to tell us what was in the letter? Have you had enough time to think about it?' asked Ron.

'There was a lot. It would be better if you read it, if Dumbledore will let you,' said Ginny.

'How about the short version?'

Ginny sighed, and summarised the threat to Raine's parents, the switching of the two headbands, and Raine's decision to kill herself.

'So that's why she asked us if it had been checked -- so that she'd know it was safe to switch them?' asked Hermione.

'Oh, I hadn't even thought of that.'

'So nobody pushed her? And she knew it wasn't Malfoy, because it was her all the time?' asked Ron. 'Then Malfoy definitely won't be expelled,' he added, in a disappointed voice.

'She just used me. I introduced her to Harry. I told him she could be trusted, and everything else. I agreed with her when she said Harry looked good in the headband -- I don't suppose he'd have worn it so much if it was just her that said it.' Ginny's voice was trembling; she was close to tears.

Ron sat beside her and hugged her. 'It's not your fault. None of it was. Think about Quidditch practice tomorrow, instead.'

'We can't practise. Harry won't be there.'

'Then Dennis will have to take it in turns to be each team's Seeker. He'll get all confused, won't he?'

Despite everything, that image made Ginny smile.

'Good. Look, you'd better do your homework -- take your mind off everything.'

'You're sounding more and more like Hermione. She's having a good influence on you.'

They got on with their homework for a while, and then Ginny said, 'Oh, no.' Ron and Hermione looked at her, and saw she was holding her sketch of the expanded Tarot layout.

'What's the matter?' asked Hermione. 'I thought Trelawney gave you a good mark for that.'

'She did. I've just realised what the reading said. The stolen thing was the uncursed headband. The hidden enemy wasn't You-Know-Who, it was Raine. It was him behind it all though, so that card was right. The faithless lover -- that wasn't the Prophet at all, it was a "fan" who betrayed him. "Betrayal by someone he trusted" -- that's obvious now, and so is the "far-reaching deception". And that's why it said "mistrust" for what he ought to do -- he shouldn't have trusted her. I suppose that's the "betrayed, lost, loveless" and "unpleasant surprises" for the outcome, too.'

'If you write that up and hand it in next time, you'll probably get another A-plus,' said Hermione. 'It's almost enough to make me believe there's really something in Divination.'

'Not when Trelawney does it, only when Ginny does,' said Ron, grinning.

'Even if I am a True Seer, what's the point, if I didn't know what it meant in time to warn Harry?' asked Ginny. 'I never even suspected her. It's all so obvious now. When she first saw Harry lying there, she kept saying she was sorry, and I just thought she meant that she was sorry she hadn't managed to get Malfoy expelled. Then I thought she was sorry she hadn't told Dumbledore earlier.'

'You knew she was clever,' said Ron. 'I suppose You-Know-Who did, too. I wonder how he knew; do you think it could have been Malfoy that told him?'

Ginny shrugged. 'Now I know what it was like for Hermione when I betrayed her.'

'That was definitely the Malfoys' fault, and not yours,' said Hermione. 'We keep telling you that.'

'Where does Harry keep that map?' asked Ginny. 'Is it in his trunk?'

'Usually, if he doesn't have it with him,' replied Ron. 'Do you want me to go and get it?'

'No.' She thought for a moment. 'Accio Marauder's Map!'

'How do you know where Harry's trunk is?' demanded Ron.

Ginny just grinned at him. 'I know, but you'll just have to guess how.' She laughed at his expression, and then turned sharply as she heard someone fall down some steps. 'No! What's Olwen doing on your stairs?'

It was Owen that slid down to the bottom of the stairs, though, as the map flew through the air to Ginny's waiting hand. Olwen rushed over to her brother, helped him to his feet and glared at Ginny.

'You don't like either of them, do you?' asked Hermione, trying to hide a smile.

'What is wrong with those two?' asked Ginny. She took her wand, touched it to the map and said, 'I solemnly swear I am up to mischief.'

Nothing happened. 'It's "up to no good",' said Ron.

Ginny repeated it correctly and the lines and dots appeared on the map. She studied the part of it that showed the hospital wing. 'It says Angus and Morag Dunsmuir are there. I suppose those are her parents.'

'That was quick,' said Ron, looking at his watch. 'Oh, not that quick. I didn't know it was so late.'

'Hagrid's visiting Harry again, too. Dumbledore's also there, so he must be showing them the letter.' She looked at Ron. 'That must be awful. They've both been Aurors, and her dad's the head Auror, and look what she did.' She looked back at the map, and said softly, 'I never asked Mum and Dad what they thought about what I did.'

'Raine wasn't possessed though, she was blackmailed,' said Ron. 'I remember her saying she didn't know what she'd do if something happened to her parents.'

Ginny groaned. 'I wonder if she just said that because it was true, or if she was hinting? Maybe she wanted us to guess.'

'She could just have told us, if she wanted us to know -- or told you, anyway,' said Hermione.

'I don't care about what she wanted,' said Ron. 'I want to know how you know where things are in our dorm.'

'They're in the same place as the last time I was in there,' she said, grinning at him.

'Ron, if you kill Harry for this, I won't sleep with you again!' said Hermione, also grinning.

Ron was glaring at his sister. 'I thought you two hadn't done anything! You both said so!'

'We've done lots of things together,' she said airily.

'I suppose this is a good way to release tension about Raine, but Ron's going to have a heart attack and end up in the bed next to Harry if you keep this up,' said Hermione.

'Raine.' Ginny sighed and cleared the map. 'Raine, Raine, go away, don't come back another day.'

Hermione put her hand on Ron's. 'You remember when Riddle's diary was stolen? I bet Ginny hasn't been back into your dorm since she took that.'

'Oh,' said Ron, his tension visibly leaving him. 'So you were just being silly?'

'I was trying to take my mind off my so-called friend,' Ginny told him. 'Your expression ...' She giggled, then her own expression became more serious. 'I just remembered teasing Harry here, after finding out what you two had been up to.' She sounded close to tears again. 'I'm going to bed, I can't do any more homework now.' She swept her books and parchments into her bag and hurried off up the stairs.

'Poor Ginny,' said Hermione. 'Poor Harry. Even poor Raine, I suppose.'

'Poor Raine?' echoed Ron.

'Remember when I asked Dumbledore about keeping my parents safe? I think I can understand what she was thinking when Wormtail approached her.'

'Oh! The rat that turned into a Death Eater -- of course. For some reason I thought he just Transfigured himself. Of course it was him. I wish Crookshanks had eaten him. I'd have forgiven you just the same, and we would never have known what he was.'

'Sirius wouldn't be a free man now, though.'

'No, that's true. But You-Know-Who wouldn't have been back. Where is Crookshanks, anyway?' he asked.

'Upstairs. I think someone scared him -- I haven't seen him outside my dorm for a while now.'

'He'll get over it. Do you think Ginny will? She still hasn't got over what Riddle did.'

'Riddle used them both,' said Hermione quietly. 'It might help her to think of it that way.'

'You should tell her that.'

'I've just realised -- we need to make sure we see her before school, even if she doesn't feel like any breakfast. One of the parchments she put in her bag was the map.'

'Oh! Yes, we don't want her writing on that,' said Ron.

*

Ginny did come down for breakfast on Thursday morning. 'Oh, I didn't realise. Do you know which of these it is? This one looks a bit old.'

Ron tried the magic phrase on it, and the map appeared. 'Good, that's the one.' He cleared it again and put it inside his Charms book.

At breakfast, a note appeared in front of Ginny, which read:

'I suppose it's about Harry and her,' she said, passing it along to Ron and Hermione.

'Her?' asked Hermione. 'She's got a name.'

'I'm not using it any more.'

Fen looked round at her, sighed and went back to what she was eating. Shona looked more understanding; apparently Fen had told the other fourth-year Gryffindors what Raine had done.

'Oh. I need to ask Dumbledore about tomorrow's duelling lesson, too. With only me there, it's probably not worth doing the lesson,' Hermione commented.

'It didn't help Harry anyway,' said Ron.

'I know. I hope he does ... no, I hope he doesn't ever need to use his duelling skills,' said Hermione. 'If anyone deserves a "happy ever after" life, it's him.'

*

Ginny joined Ron and Hermione outside the Charms classroom after classes ended for the day, and they went along to Dumbledore's office.

'Grocyn said in Potions that "she" was still in the hospital wing, but she's awake now. Her parents got all upset when Dumbledore told them, and they yelled at her,' Ginny told the other two as they walked. 'Now they've gone back home, or to work. Nobody's talking to her, so she's not having much of a birthday.'

Once inside the office, Dumbledore gave Ron and Hermione the letter to read.

'She's going to be expelled, isn't she?' asked Ginny.

'Miss Dunsmuir? Considering her reasons for acting as she did, she will be suspended for the rest of term, as was Mr Malfoy. I will consider during the Easter holidays what to do about punishment.'

'What? She almost killed Harry!'

'I will be asking Harry, when he recovers, for his views on the matter. He was, after all, the victim, and his opinion will be relevant.'

Hermione looked up from the letter. 'Ginny, You-Know-Who used Raine to attack Harry ...'

'Yes, I noticed!' retorted Ginny.

'... just as he once used you to attack me and other Muggle-borns.'

'That's not the same at all!'

'Why not? Because he used Malfoy's dad to get to you, and Wormtail to get to Raine? It's the same thing. You and Raine were both his victims, just like Harry, just like I was.'

Ginny stared at Hermione in bewilderment. 'I thought you liked Harry. But you're defending her!'

'I forgave you ...'

'... about once a week, recently,' commented Ron without looking up from the letter.

'... and I can see why Raine did what she did, so when Harry's better, I'll probably forgive her, too. I bet Harry will, as well.'

'I believe that that is likely,' said Dumbledore.

'Oh,' said Ron, giving Hermione the letter, as she had stopped reading it to talk to Ginny. 'It's a pity her dad didn't believe her about Wormtail.'

'He told me, after reading the letter, that his daughter had missed a lot of sleep over Christmas, and had also claimed that a bird was following her home on the train, and from the station. He thought she was imagining that, and the rat. Naturally, he now regrets this, and believes that the bird was making sure Voldemort knew where she was going.'

'It's not going to help him in the Ministry, is it?' asked Ron.

Dumbledore shook his head. 'He is even considering resigning his job, on the grounds that if he cannot find a Death Eater in his own garden, he is not fit to lead the department. I have tried to dissuade him.'

Hermione finished reading the letter and put it back on Dumbledore's desk. 'What did the wand do to the Quidditch Cup?'

'As yet, we have been unable to determine that. You must understand, nobody can touch the Cup until we know what the enchantment is.'

'But Raine did.'

'Yes. She told me that she pretended to be eager to hold the Cup, and Professor Snape let her carry it back to the Trophy Room and replace it in its case before he locked it again. The spell may have been delayed to have no effect for a week, or until the wand was burnt. The fact that it was safe for her to touch it then is no guarantee that it is safe for anyone else to touch it now.'

'I suppose it isn't.' She looked at the others, neither of whom seemed to want to say anything at the moment. 'Professor, I wondered about tomorrow's Dark Arts lesson. Should I join the other Gryffindors in their lesson?'

'To avoid your being my only pupil, you mean? No. There would be no point in your practising duels with the others in your year, as they are not up to your standard.'

'So I should just curse the target dummies as usual, then?' she asked.

'The alternative is to have you join the sixth-year duelling class, who would provide you with more of a challenge.'

'You're kidding,' said Ginny, astonished.

Dumbledore smiled at her. 'I am not. Which do you wish to do, Miss Granger?'

'It would be interesting to join the sixth-years,' said Hermione. 'It doesn't clash with any of my other lessons, does it?'

'The sixth years' class is after the end of classes on Friday, at the same time as the fifth-year Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs duel.'

'Shame, I can't watch her, then.' said Ron. 'You'll make sure they go easy on her, won't you?'

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. 'I will, of course, make sure that the duelling is fair.'

'You're very quiet, Ginny,' observed Ron.

'I haven't got anything to say about duelling, just her. She pretended to be my friend. She was betraying me all along,' said Ginny, her voice drained of emotion.

Dumbledore frowned. 'Perhaps I can offer some slight comfort. I have spoken to Miss Dunsmuir about this. Firstly, she was not recruited by the Death Eater until the Christmas holidays. If she was your friend before then, her friendship was genuine.'

'Genuine?' echoed Ginny. 'How genuine could it have been, when she betrayed me?'

Dumbledore said gently, 'I cannot deny that her actions betrayed Harry to Voldemort. However, you may not be aware that she reported back to him that Mr Malfoy was lying -- that you were not Harry's girlfriend. There were many consequences of her reporting this.' Ginny was interested. 'One was that the Daily Prophet printed a retraction -- it appears that one of their staff may be under Voldemort's control, or is perhaps a willing Death Eater. Another was that the reporter who had written the story was killed by an unknown Death Eater. A third was that Lucius Malfoy was subjected to the Cruciatus Curse for passing on this supposedly false information. The fourth, of course, is that Miss Dunsmuir ensured that Voldemort had no reason to threaten your life. Therefore, she may, in the most extreme case, have saved your life. I do not believe that she betrayed you, only Harry.'

'I thought she was joking,' said Hermione. 'When Ginny told her how worried she was, Raine struck a dramatic pose and declared that she would not allow him to hurt Ginny. So she meant it?'

'I wish I'd realised that at the time,' said Ginny. 'She almost gave herself away, and we all missed it. I just thought she wanted to cheer me up.' There were tears in her voice. 'Was she my friend or not?'

'It sounds as if she was,' said Ron gently. 'Having friends in Gryffindor is probably why she got recruited as a spy.'

'Oh, don't say that! I feel even worse now -- and I still can't even decide how I feel about this whole thing!'

'I cannot tell you what to feel,' said Dumbledore. 'I do, however, agree with your brother -- her friendship probably did attract Voldemort's attention.'

Ginny was now openly crying, and Hermione put her arm around her, trying to comfort her.

Dumbledore added, 'Miss Dunsmuir has given me some further information which may be of use. I cannot yet tell you what it is, except that it does not directly concern her actions. She is currently restricted to her dormitory and common room.' He held the letter out. 'You may as well take this to show to Harry.'

*

An owl brought Hermione a letter during Friday morning's breakfast. When she opened it, she found a pre-printed paper envelope inside, along with a letter from her parents. 'Oh, no.'

'What's wrong? Not more bad news?' asked Ron.

'Not really. My parents thought of something about the holiday in Spain which didn't occur to me. Have you told your parents yet?'

'Ah, no. Not yet.'

'Your family all went to Egypt the other year, didn't you? Does that mean you've got a passport, or don't we need them in the wizarding world?'

'We had a passport, yes.'

'It covered all of us,' said Ginny. 'And it was signed by the Minister himself, instead of Mr Crouch, because Dad works at the Ministry.'

'I don't think that sounds anything like a Muggle passport. Ron, if you're travelling with my family, you'll need one for just you. That's what's in this envelope, an application form.'

'So all I need to do is sign it?' asked Ron.

Hermione opened the envelope and pulled out several sheets of printed paper.

'That looks complicated,' he said, staring at them all.

'That one's not part of it, it's just what to do if something goes wrong ... this one's instructions on how to fill it in ... it's only these four pages that you need to fill in.'

'Only? Oh, good,' said Ron quietly. 'Eight pages of instructions on how to fill in a four page form? Are they serious?'

'Yes. Mum says you need two photos and a birth certificate. You won't be able to use Trollaroid photos, since they move. Muggles don't expect photos to move.'

'You could ask Colin about the photos,' suggested Ginny.

'That's true,' said Hermione. 'OK, that leaves the birth certificate. I don't suppose you have the same type of certificate as Muggles?'

Ron frowned. 'I'm not sure if I've even got one. I'll write a letter during my free period, telling them about going on holiday, and asking if it's OK ...'

'Great timing,' said Ginny.

'... then say I need this birth thing.'

Hermione stood and went along to where Colin was sitting, eating his breakfast quietly. 'Colin, Ron needs to have a Muggle passport, so he needs to get two copies of a passport photo. You're the only person I know here who might be able to develop a photo that doesn't move.'

Colin finished his mouthful and then said, 'Yes, I send my parents normal photos of the scenery around here, so they can show their friends. I've got a film like that in my camera, if you want me to take the photo tomorrow.'

'Oh, that would be great -- thank you. I'll pay for what you need to use, of course.'

'You don't need to.'

'I ought to, though.'

*

When Hermione returned to the common room after her Ancient Runes lesson, Ron showed her the letter he'd written to his parents.

'That looks all right,' she said. 'I hope they can get a birth certificate for you, otherwise you won't be able to come with us.'

'I don't think they're going to believe this is an innocent child going on holiday with one of his best friends,' said Ron glumly. 'Not when that Prophet article was so soon after I owled back the permission slip for them to sign.'

'At least, if they guess now, you won't have to work out how to explain to them in person,' she pointed out.

'I suppose that's true. I am not looking forward to going home this summer after they've read this letter.' She frowned at him, and he hastily added, 'I'm looking forward to the later part of the holiday, though!'

'Good. After all, my parents have already booked for four of us. I'd have to take someone else if you couldn't come with us, wouldn't I?' she teased.

'Ginny could go.'

'She'd have the same problem about birth certificates though. Harry probably wouldn't -- he lived as a Muggle for years, I'm sure the Dursleys had to get all the things like birth certificates for him. He deserves a nice holiday, after everything that's happened too, doesn't he?'

'No! I'll get this sorted out, and Harry can have a nice holiday with Sirius! I'm sure Dad knows someone at the Ministry who can get it done -- I suppose people like Seamus' Mum must have to get Muggle stuff when they marry Muggles without telling them.'

'Good boy,' she said, grinning at him.

*

Ginny hurried along to the hospital wing after the end of Muggle Studies. When she got there, Madam Pomfrey was checking on Harry, who was still asleep.

'Is he ... are you going to wake him now?' she asked, trying to get her breath back.

'Yes, I am, but I'll let you get your breath back first,' Madam Pomfrey said. 'Another couple of minutes won't matter, and you'll be able to talk to him.'

Ginny smiled, nodded and sat down on one of the chairs while she got her breath back. 'I think I can talk properly now,' she said after a couple of minutes. Madam Pomfrey removed the Sleep Charm, and Harry groaned and opened his eyes.

'Hello, sleeping beauty,' said Ginny, smiling at him.

'Hello.' He looked round. 'I was in Potions -- what happened?'

Madam Pomfrey told him about the cursed headband. She didn't mention Raine. She took the vial of Pepperup Potion from the table beside his bed, and handed it to him.

'So that was why I was so suspicious and everything? Where are Ron and Hermione? Never mind, I can guess.'

'They're in duelling class. Hermione's joined the sixth years for today's lesson,' Ginny told him.

'She's already had duelling today. I was there. Why's she doing extra lessons -- I thought she stopped that two years ago?' He stretched. 'Oh, I feel as though I've been asleep for ages.'

'One week,' said Madam Pomfrey briskly. 'Now, when are you going to drink that Pepperup?'

'A week? A whole week?'

'Yes. Drink it, you'll need it after sleeping for so long.'

Harry drank it, with the usual result of steam leaving his ears. Ginny giggled at him. Madam Pomfrey shook her head at them both. 'You'll still be weak for a while, so you'll stay here tonight.' Harry nodded, and she returned to her office again.

'What have I missed in this week, then? Do you know who gave me the headband, and why Flitwick didn't find it?' he asked Ginny.

'A few shocks. Do you mind if I let Dumbledore or someone tell you about the headband?' Harry nodded, and she continued, 'We explored the Chamber of Secrets -- it does have another entrance in the Forest. I don't know how to get to that one without going through the Chamber, though.'

'The Chamber? But -- oh, Ginny, I'm sorry. You had to tell Dumbledore, then?'

'It's not your fault. It wasn't your idea to be cursed, was it? And there were a lot more different passwords to say. One of them was just "let me out"!' She giggled.

Harry laughed. 'I suppose Slytherin was running out of ideas by then. You can't have found anyone hiding there, or you'd have mentioned it before that password.'

Ginny said carefully, 'There's nobody living down there, and nobody seems to be visiting it either. Riddle didn't go past the statue when he was possessing me -- he probably didn't when he was a pupil, either.'

'That's good. Did you find anything interesting?'

'Yeah, there's four rooms filled with old wizarding equipment. Even Flitwick and Binns didn't know what they were. Oh, you should have seen Binns. He was much more awake than I've ever seen him before. He didn't even notice that he was standing in the equipment when he was studying it.'

'Oh, that must have been fun to watch.' He sighed. 'Everyone already knows I'm a Parselmouth. If only Dumbledore had taken me down there last Sunday. No, it was the Sunday before that, wasn't it? So it's the eighteenth today?'

'Yes, that's right.' She looked around as the door opened and Pansy Parkinson entered with Raine.

'Hello. What's the matter, Raine?' said Harry.

Raine looked at Ginny. 'Haven't you told him?'

'I didn't know how to,' Ginny told her. 'It's not the sort of thing I've ever had to tell someone about a "friend".'

Pansy said, 'Come on Dunsmuir, you tell him.'

'Yes. Harry, I'm really sorry about all this. It was me. I sent you Voldemort's headband and then took away the one Flitwick had tested and gave you the cursed one.' She continued to explain the rest of it, avoiding looking at Harry. When she finished, she looked up to see him gaping at her.

'All that time? It was you, not Malfoy?'

'It was me.'

Ginny told Harry that Raine had reported back that Malfoy had lied, and that was why the Prophet story was retracted.

Raine said quietly. 'I thought he'd just leave you alone. I didn't know he'd get the paper to say that -- and I had no idea he was going to kill the reporter who wrote the story.'

Harry was still absorbing all this news. 'I have missed a lot.'

'I'm sorry. I really didn't know it was going to affect anything but Imperius, and I thought the teachers would spot it immediately. And I'd never even spoken to you then, and I was worried about my parents.'

'If you don't have anything else to ask her, Potter, it's time she went back to her dorm.'

'I can't think of anything,' he said. Pansy took Raine back out of the hospital wing. Raine looked back at Harry tearfully as she left.

Ginny decided to talk about something more cheerful, and told Harry about Ron needing a Muggle passport.

'Your dad will like that, won't he? More Muggle stuff to look at.'

'I hadn't thought of that. Ron hasn't either, he's too worried about Mum and Dad's reaction, and whether they'll guess about him and Hermione.'

Harry shrugged. 'I bet Hermione's not worried at all, since her parents already know. She even offered to tell your parents to save Ron having to.'

'She didn't! Really?' Ginny looked at her watch. 'I didn't realise Raine took that long explaining. It'll be dinner soon. You get the same food in here as in the Great Hall, don't you?'

'Yes. Were you going to offer to bring something up to stop me starving?'

'I would have done. I've never spent much time in here, not like you.'

'Yes, I've been in here every single year now. I was hoping to miss this year. Oh, well.'

Ron, Hermione and Katie entered as he said that. 'Are you feeling better now?' asked Hermione.

'Raine's just been brought in to apologise to me. I had no idea, I'm still numb from that. I'm better, I suppose. Just shocked.'

'She wanted to protect her parents. I think I can understand that.'

'I suppose I can, too.' Harry fell silent, thinking about the parents he couldn't remember.

Hermione took Raine's letter from her bag. 'This is her suicide note, explaining everything.'

'Suicide? What?'

'You said you'd just seen her. You know she's all right, then.'

'How did your duelling class go, Hermione?' asked Ron as Harry started to read the letter. 'Did they go easy on you?'

'It was quite fun. We did what you've been doing, duelling in groups so that nobody knows who's going to be attacked next. I haven't tried that before.'

'We can't do that, unless Dumbledore joins in,' said Harry.

'We didn't go easy on her, no,' said Katie.

'What? Dumbledore said he'd make sure it was fair!' exclaimed Ron.

'Did he want to give you a really hard duelling test, then?' asked Ginny.

Hermione grinned at the two Weasleys.

Katie said, 'Oh, he made sure it was fair. He had a list of spells that couldn't be used. Reducto, Pyroderm, Dracocorpus and something else.'

'Lapiform,' said Hermione.

'Good,' said Ron. 'I thought you'd done some of those, though.'

'We've done all of them, and Hermione can block them all.' Harry suddenly laughed. 'Katie -- haven't you learnt those?'

'No, we haven't,' she said in an aggrieved voice.

Ron blinked. 'You mean, Hermione was told to go easy on the sixth-years?'

'Oh, don't rub it in!' Katie begged.

Hermione nodded. 'Now you know why Dumbledore smiled when he said he'd make sure it was fair. I didn't guess he meant that, until today's lesson.'

'We're further ahead in duelling than the sixth-years?' said Harry. 'This really is a day for shocks.'

'Please don't do Duelling next term,' joked Katie. 'I'd like to get my N.E.W.T. in it before you two get one each.'

Hermione laughed, and Harry joined her.

'What spell did you use most on them?' asked Ginny.

'Finite Incantatem,' Hermione replied, and laughed again.

Katie told them, 'Don't ever get in a duel with this girl. She's really hard to block. Dumbledore kept moving her between the groups to see if anyone could consistently block her, or get past her blocks. When we'd all tried, he gave up and left her with my group. My arms are still sore from all those Gravicrus curses.'

'Gravicrus? Which one's that -- the one that makes your limbs feel really heavy?' asked Ron. Harry, Hermione and Katie all nodded.

'Harry can block her -- can't you?' said Ginny.

'Well, we learnt together. So, yes, I can,' he replied. 'It'd be nice to have other people to duel with, like that. I wonder if we can join Katie's class -- then Dumbledore would have those two periods free.'

'Two of you? Not on any regular basis, I hope,' complained Katie.

Madam Pomfrey appeared from her office. 'Come on, he's awake, you don't have to be so upset you aren't hungry now. Go and get your dinners, and leave him in peace to eat his.'

'I'll see you later,' said Harry. 'Now I can get on with reading this letter.'

*

On Saturday morning, Ron and Hermione went outside with Colin and Dennis and found a stretch of pale wall to use as a photo background. Colin took two photos of Ron, to make sure, then took photos of the lake to finish the film.

'He can't take photos of the castle for Muggles to see,' said Dennis. 'He did when he was a first year, and sent us some wizard photos of Hogwarts.'

'But our parents could only see a ruin on the photos,' explained Colin.

'That's when they found out I was a wizard,' said Dennis happily. 'At first they just thought I was pretending I could see the castle, but after a while they believed me, when Colin came home in the summer and they found out I could see the same picture he could.'

'I didn't realise that the charms even work on photos of the castle,' said Hermione, 'but I suppose they would have to, with the number of times it must have been in aerial photos.'

They went back into the castle, and the Creevey brothers went to develop the now-finished film, while Ron and Hermione went to join Harry and Ginny in the hospital wing.

Ginny looked up as they entered. 'Harry's forgiven her already!'

'I thought you would,' Hermione told him. 'Does she know?'

'She's still shut up in her dorm,' said Harry.

'She's going to miss this week's lessons, and then it's whatever Dumbledore decides,' said Ginny.

'You don't sound as angry with her any more,' commented Ron.

'I don't know how I feel about all this. I'm not really the best person to blame her, am I? Harry said the same thing you did, Hermione.'

'Can you two stop thinking alike?' asked Ron. 'I'm starting to get worried about that again.'

'Oh, shut up,' said Harry. 'But Raine does remind me of what Ginny went through. Obviously, she's older, and she was blackmailed, not possessed, but it's the same basic idea of someone I'd never suspect being forced to do something for Voldemort. Sorry, for You-Know-Who.'

'Asleep for a week, and he forgets his manners,' sighed Ron, but he was smiling.

'I wonder if You-Know-Who knows what Tom Riddle's diary did to Ginny? He can't remember it -- but I suppose Malfoy's dad might have told him,' said Hermione. 'Maybe that's where he got the idea to use Raine to do his dirty work.'

'After all that sleeping, I couldn't get to sleep last night. All I did was lie here and remember bits of dreams from the past week. I don't remember what actually happened in Potions, after Malfoy jumping up onto the table.'

'It's probably best not to remember,' Ron said.

'There were some really odd bits of dreams. One had Malfoy thinking he was some sort of prince, and kissing me to wake me up.'

Ginny frowned.

'It's only a dream, Ginny! I really don't want to kiss Malfoy.'

Hermione grinned at them. 'Ginny did kiss you to see if it woke you up. I think she's upset you can't tell them apart.'

'Oh, sorry Ginny!' He thought for a moment. 'How would I be able to tell people apart by their kisses? I've only ever kissed Ginny.'

'What?' demanded Ron.

'I already told you that,' said Ginny impatiently.

'Oh, on Valentine's Day? OK.'

'And today,' she said impishly.

'When?' asked Harry.

Ginny leaned over and kissed him. 'Just now -- don't you remember?'

'Now I remember,' he said, smiling at her.

'Well, Potter, you're clearly feeling better,' said Madam Pomfrey, who had joined them unnoticed. 'You may as well get dressed and go now. The Headmaster wants to see all of you in his office when you're ready.'

Once Harry had dressed, the four of them went round to the gargoyle that guarded the stairs to Dumbledore's office. Harry gave the password and they went up to the office. Dumbledore invited them in.

'Have you read Miss Dunsmuir's letter, Harry?'

'Yes. I didn't realise she'd tried to kill herself.'

'None of us wanted to tell him that,' said Hermione.

'It's just as well she didn't use her Potions knowledge to try to kill herself, I suppose,' said Harry.

'I have spoken to Miss Dunsmuir several times over the past few days, and various disturbing points have been revealed. I suppose you will not be too happy to hear that Mr Malfoy's suspension has been lifted?'

'No, but if it's unfair, I suppose he can't stay suspended.'

'Indeed he cannot. Remarkably, he seems to have had your interests at heart when he attempted to curse you but cursed Mr Creevey instead. His method left much to be desired, but his motivation was laudable. Nor did he steal the objects that were found in his dormitory. Miss Dunsmuir had taken them over the previous weeks, to be used in any such situation.' Dumbledore opened a drawer in his desk, and placed a folded, shimmering cloth before Harry.

'That's an Invisibility Cloak!' said Ron.

'Is this your father's -- your Cloak?'

'I don't think so,' answered Harry. He looked at Ron.

'Yours was still in your trunk the last time I looked,' said Ron awkwardly. He and Hermione, happier now that Harry was awake, had visited the Prefect's bathroom again on Friday evening.

'Did Raine use that to take the things, and then get into Malfoy's dorm without anyone seeing her, then?'

'Yes. This is one of the objects she was provided with by Wormtail. She told me she left it out of the letter as she had a lot else to write, and it was not directly concerned with cursing you.' He put it back in his drawer. 'I will retain it until I can find out whether it was stolen, and from whom. As for the second item ...' he placed a sheet of blank parchment on the desk. 'I believe you know a phrase that activates this?'

Harry stared at the large square worn parchment. 'It's the map!' He touched his wand to it, and recited, 'I solemnly swear I am up to no good.' As he expected, the outline of the Marauder's Map appeared, with the dots moving about. 'When did she steal my map?'

'We used your map on Wednesday to see if Raine's parents were here,' said Hermione. 'This must be a different one.'

'It is,' said Ginny, who'd been looking closely at it. 'Look, there's the Chamber of Secrets.'

'Oh, yes,' Harry agreed. 'Mine doesn't have that; my dad and his friends didn't know where it was.'

'If you are certain that this is a different copy, it must have been amended by Voldemort before he gave it to Wormtail to give to Miss Dunsmuir.'

'I suppose it's Wormtail's original copy, then. Good, now he doesn't have it,' said Harry.

'I will retain it. It is a useful map for a headmaster to have,' said Dumbledore, replacing the map in his drawer without clearing it. 'Miss Dunsmuir Transfigured the uncursed headband which Mr Malfoy found, to prevent it being found again. This is that one -- it is safe, I have checked it. However, I do not know if you would want it back.'

'I don't know. I might wear it just during Quidditch.' He took the headband and put it into his pocket.

'I have also checked the Quidditch Cup -- Miss Dunsmuir was willing to touch it, regardless of any risk. It appears that the wand she touched to it merely strengthened its "identity", similar to a sense of self, if an inanimate object may be said to have such an attribute. I am not certain how that may be of advantage to Voldemort. Professor Flitwick has suggested that she may have been given the wrong pre-spelled wand, and that it was intended to be used to cancel a curse such as that placed on the headband.'

'So it seems to be safe? I suppose even Voldemort has to make mistakes, like when he tried to duel me last year,' said Harry.

'We will continue to examine the Cup, as I do not wish to make that assumption while other possibilities remain.'

Harry nodded.

'There were two other points Miss Dunsmuir told me of. One may allow us to gain an advantage against Voldemort. I certainly hope that to be the case.'

'I don't suppose we're allowed to know the details?' asked Harry.

'It would be better that you do not. The most disturbing point does not concern Voldemort. Miss Dunsmuir wrote in the letter that she made sure it was too late for anyone to save her. She chose a moment not long before the start of dinner, at a time when she expected nobody to be outside except for a Quidditch team, and not her own house's team.' He sighed. 'She also did not think any Hufflepuff would want to rescue a member of Slytherin house. Naturally, Miss Abbott simply acted when she saw someone fall into the lake, and neither knew nor cared who it was.'

'Does she know now that Raine wasn't attacked, that she jumped?' asked Hermione.

'She does. It does not change the value of her actions, and she earned fifty points for her house. This was partly due to your lending her a Firebolt -- Miss Dunsmuir did not expect the Hufflepuff team to have such a fast broom available. Also, Professor Sprout encourages the pupils in her house to learn to swim, which she considers an important skill, and to continue to practise swimming.'

'So the Hufflepuff team were the most likely team to be able to rescue her?' Hermione asked him.

'They were. The disturbing point is that Hufflepuff house is constantly underrated by members of other houses, due to a tendency to achieve what they do quietly. Miss Dunsmuir truly believed that they would not want to rescue her, and that they would not be able to rescue her. In the long term, inter-house rivalry may be more damaging to the school than the actions of Voldemort.'

'Why did she jump into the lake instead of hiding in her dormitory and taking a poison? From what Ginny says, she would have been able to brew one,' Hermione asked next.

'She was too embarrassed to explain that. Madam Pomfrey told me, however, that she did find traces of poison as soon as she examined Miss Dunsmuir, and cured those before she knew what damage the immersion might have had. It seems she combined the poison with her fall into the lake to make doubly certain.'

Harry asked, 'Professor, what is going to happen to Raine now? You haven't said anything about that.'

'She has been suspended for this week, but will remain in her dormitory and common room, as her father is unable to take any more time off work than already planned. I will decide during the holidays whether to extend the suspension or expel her.'

'I don't know if it counts, but I don't want to see her expelled, or even suspended for too long. I know she was blackmailed, not possessed by a diary, but it's just like when Ginny was doing what Voldemort wanted.'

'I will consider that amongst other matters. Now, I need to make sure of one thing. Harry, I would like to try the Imperius Curse on you once more, to make certain that you can again resist it.'

'Good,' said Harry, smiling. 'I don't suppose Voldemort is going to leave me alone just because this idea failed.'

'I am forced to agree with you. Imperio.'

Harry felt the familiar floating sensation, and heard Dumbledore's voice saying Hug Ginny -- hug Ginny now, and for a moment he was almost tempted, but forced himself to sit still.

'Very good,' Dumbledore said, smiling at him. 'A command to do something which you would willingly do without being under Imperius is the hardest to resist. Clearly, you are fully recovered, at least from that aspect of the curse. Now, I believe you may go and enjoy the rest of the weekend.'

'Harry, if that headband is safe, and you wore it as much as you used to, You-Know-Who might never know that you've been cured,' suggested Ginny.

'I hadn't thought of that. It's a good idea,' he replied, taking it from his pocket and putting it back on.

Dumbledore nodded. 'He will know that we have discovered Raine's part in his plot, but if he hears that you are still wearing the headband, he may be fooled. He has a low opinion of others' intelligence.'

They left his office and wandered outside and around the lake. Ron said, 'I still don't really see how you can forgive her so fast. Even Hermione was going to wait to see how you felt before definitely forgiving her.'

'"Even" me?' asked Hermione.

'Well,' he teased, 'you're a sucker for poor house-elves, Neville the cauldron melter and now Death Eaters in training.'

'How is Neville?' asked Harry. 'Is he back yet?'

'No, he's not,' said Ginny. 'We should have asked Dumbledore about him while we had the chance.'

'Well, whatever you three think, I'm going to have to wait a while before I can forgive her for what she did to Harry, and the way she betrayed Ginny's friendship,' said Ron.

'I still don't know what I think,' said Ginny. 'She's very confusing. If she'd just betrayed us all, or been nice to us all, it would be easier. Betraying Harry, but then lying to You-Know-Who to protect me ... I just don't know.'

'You probably have the best idea of anyone what she went through,' said Harry gently.

*

Harry was back at lessons on Monday morning. The Slytherins were much more cheerful in their Care of Magical Creatures lesson than they had been in their shared lessons the previous week. Crabbe and Goyle were happier because Malfoy was going to be returning next term (Lucius Malfoy had told Dumbledore he saw no point in Draco returning for only one week) and they had been at a loss without him. The other Slytherins were happier because Crabbe and Goyle had stopped following them around like giant lost puppies, in hopes of getting, if not affection, at least attention from them.

Professor Trelawney didn't speak to Harry during the Divination lesson, but she kept looking at him, as though checking whether he was still alive. The thought that Divination would end as soon as he'd taken his O.W.Ls was all that stopped Harry shouting at her.

Ron and Hermione had been too upset about Harry to have continued their usual visits to the Prefects' bathroom while he was asleep, but now that they knew he was all right, they had spent quite a while playing there on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and went there again before dinner on Monday. Harry and Ginny sat in the common room, doing their homework. Harry had a lot of homework to catch up on, even with the copious notes that he'd borrowed from Hermione.

'I wish I was back in the earlier years,' he told Ginny, as he rubbed his hand to get rid of a writer's cramp. 'We didn't have to catch up on all our homework when we'd been ill then.'

'It's more important for you to do it all now, isn't it? I hope You-Know-Who leaves you alone next term, after this curse didn't work. You need to get some O.W.Ls.'

Harry knew that Bill and Percy had managed to get twelve O.W.Ls each, which was a good number, unlike the twins who had disappointed their mother by only managing six each. He was hoping to get nine at least, feeling that an average of the twins and Percy was a respectable number.

'I'm sure Hermione will do well in hers,' added Ginny, 'but I wish Ron would spend less time in that bathroom with her, and more time worrying about his exams. You know what Mum was like with the twins. And I'm not just being jealous of him and Hermione, either!'

'I know, you're being the protective little sister. It's your revenge on Ron.'

She giggled. 'Is that what it seems like? I suppose you're right.'

They met up with Ron and Hermione at dinner, and returned to the common room and more homework. 'I wonder if Madam Pomfrey's got a charm to prevent writer's cramp?' muttered Harry.

'Stop at the end of each page, and stretch your hand,' suggested Ginny.

'Give up on your homework and play chess instead,' advised Ron.

'That's not going to help him get his O.W.Ls, is it?' asked Hermione. 'Or you, either.'

'You and Ginny are both more worried about Ron's exams than he seems to be,' commented Harry, taking Ginny's advice to stretch his hand at the end of his essay. 'How many did Charlie get? I know about your other brothers.'

'He got ten, didn't he?' Ginny asked Ron.

'Yes, I think so.'

'Twelve, like Percy, is really good,' said Hermione. 'The record was fifteen for ages, until someone got sixteen earlier this century.'

'Please tell me it wasn't Tom Riddle,' begged Ginny.

'Sorry, Ginny.'

'At least I can beat the twins -- I hope,' Ginny sighed.

'Please tell me you didn't read that in Hogwarts, A History,' begged Ron in the same tone of voice as Ginny. Hermione tickled him by way of an answer, and he retaliated.

'Do you think there's an O.W.L. in romance?' Harry asked Ginny. 'They'd both be guaranteed that one.'

*

Ron and Hermione returned to the common room on Tuesday evening soon after they'd left for the Prefects' bathroom. 'There was a queue,' complained Ron. 'Hannah was hanging around outside, waiting to go in. Hermione talked to her about Raine, and then we gave up and came back.'

'She's upset that Raine tried to kill herself,' Hermione explained. 'I told her that didn't change what Hannah did to save her, but she's still bothered about it.'

'I wouldn't be bothered if I got fifty points for doing something,' said Ron.

'You got two hundred points in one lump once,' Harry reminded him.

'That's true. I don't suppose many people ever manage that.'

'Stop living in the past and do some homework,' said Ginny.

'Just because you're the oldest sister I've got ...' muttered Ron, getting out his Potions textbook.

*

Hannah and Ernie were waiting for the Gryffindors outside the Herbology greenhouse on Wednesday, both looking happy. 'Hello, Harry, Hermione.' said Ernie. 'Do you remember that rumour that Lisa Turpin started about you two, or Hannah and me, being in the girl Prefects' bathroom together?'

Harry and Hermione both nodded. Hannah said, 'Hermione, you saw me waiting outside there yesterday. It was Lisa in there, and when she came out of the bathroom, she just froze when she saw me.'

'Why?' asked Hermione. 'Was she so shocked that Ernie wasn't with you?'

Hannah laughed. 'No. Then someone else said "shift up, Lees" -- it was a boy called Barnabas.'

'He was in there with her?' asked Harry. 'So that's why she thought you or Hermione were doing the same sort of thing?'

'That must be it,' said Ernie.

'What did you do?' asked Hermione.

'I took ten points off each of them,' said Hannah. 'She said she was going to complain to Professor Flitwick, but I reminded her that meant he'd ask me why I took the points. I don't think she's going to complain, judging by how pale she went when she thought about it.'

'You're much happier now, then,' said Ron.

'Oh, yes.'

*

Professor McGonagall had an announcement to make at the start of Thursday's Transfiguration lesson.

'As I trust you all know, the subjects you started studying in the third year end with the O.W.Ls next term.' She walked among the class, handing each pupil a sheet of parchment. 'These are the subjects from which you must choose your subjects for the N.E.W.Ts. I am assuming, of course, that none of you intend to use the option to leave Hogwarts after taking your O.W.Ls. Given adequate study and concentration ... Mr Finnigan? Thank you. As I said, if you pay enough attention and study hard enough, I see no reason why each of you should not pass enough O.W.Ls to be able to continue on into the sixth year.'

Harry glanced at Hermione. She didn't look at all surprised, but it hadn't occurred to him that passing too few O.W.Ls would stop pupils coming back next year. He supposed it did make sense, though.

Their lesson continued with the current subject, which was Transfiguring a single goblet into a set of cutlery, consisting of a knife, fork and spoon.

Walking down to the Great Hall for lunch, Hermione was reading the list. 'These all sound interesting.'

'Oh, no,' said Ron. 'Not again. Not another year like the third year.'

'All right, I promise I won't do more subjects next year than there's time for in a week. Normal time, I mean.'

'Good,' said Ron.

'You could leave at the end of the year and get a job mass-producing cutlery,' Harry teased her.

'I'm not going to do that! For one thing,' she looked around and finished softly, 'I'm really going to miss this place when I do have to leave.'

At lunch, Ginny looked at Harry's list. 'Medical Magic? You should do that one. It's got to be useful.'

The twins came over, having heard part of the conversation. 'Oh, so you got your lists. Have they put Joke Shop Management on there yet?' asked Fred.

'Just a general Business Management,' said Ron.

'We got our list just after having to turn goblets into cutlery,' said George. 'Fred decided he was only going to make knives, though -- drove McGonagall crazy. She knew he could do it properly if he wanted to.'

'Hermione decided one set wasn't enough, and made seven place settings,' Harry told them.

Ginny laughed. 'That's probably a better way to drive McGonagall crazy than Fred's. Does she have lots of extra goblets and stuff for your lessons?'

'Yes, she expects Hermione to need at least half a dozen of everything. Otherwise she'd just sit watching everyone else for most of the lesson and put us off.'

'I bet she gets points for that, instead of losing them. How many did you lose for that, Fred?'

'Be serious, that was two years ago! Do you think I can remember every point I've lost?'

'I've lost eighty,' said Hermione sadly.

'And earned a few thousand, right?' said Ron, grinning at her.

'You've kept a count?' Harry asked Hermione, amazed. She blushed.

*

Harry flew as the main team's Seeker again at that afternoon's Quidditch practice, but discovered that he wasn't quite up to his old standard yet when Dennis caught the Snitch again. Dennis didn't ask if he could borrow the headband this time.

*

Harry and Hermione both joined the sixth-year duelling class after the normal end of classes on Friday. Professor Dumbledore began by saying, 'We have two guests in the class today. Before we start on the lesson itself, I would like to address the points in the petition I have received. As regards the first, I may reassure you that the "duelling menaces" referred to are not permanent members of this class. I do not intend Mr Potter and Miss Granger to duel with you after today's lesson. The second point is more reasonable -- I will limit the number of Gravicrus curses cast against any one opponent to one. Is that clear?' The class nodded. 'As last week, the curses Reducto, Pyroderm, Lapiform and Dracocorpus will not be used in this class.'

Harry was told to try competing against each member of the class in turn, to see if they could block him casting Aphasic. He didn't know most of the people in the class unless they were in a Quidditch team, which meant Katie Bell, Jenny Saint and Cho Chang. He hesitated before attacking Cho, telling himself it was important for her to know if she could block his curses. Like most of the class, she couldn't; it seemed that even with a simple curse, he was putting a lot of power into it.

'I don't believe anybody can block him,' complained a Ravenclaw called Barnabas Dalton. 'Why are we even trying?'

Harry offered to curse Hermione, to show that it was possible to block him. As they expected, she blocked his curse with no problem.

'And that's why Lavender calls you the duelling menaces,' said Katie. 'That name's spreading now.'

'It's an interesting compliment,' said Harry, grinning. 'Even if Lavender didn't intend it to be one.'

Dumbledore put Harry, Hermione, Katie and another Gryffindor, Niall Gray, together into one group. They took it in turns to choose one other pupil to attack, keeping the lesson less predictable than it had to be with Harry and Hermione alone.

'Professor,' asked Katie after some rounds, when it was her turn again, 'can Niall and I attack together, against just one of them, to see if we can get past one of their blocks?'

'I see no reason why not.'

Harry was a little concerned by that idea, but soon found that both his and Hermione's blocking skills were equal to the task. He hoped Katie wasn't about to suggest that all of the sixth-years attack them at once, though.

After the class, they met up with Ron, and told him how the class had gone.

'Well, I've got as far as being able to block any of the others in my group. McCardle's got us in groups of five or six now.'

'Good. So you've improved a lot then,' said Harry.

Ron nodded happily. 'I even got another five points today.'

*

Saturday morning kept Harry busy, as he tried to decide what he'd need to take with him to stay with Sirius over the holidays. He saw no point in taking the Invisibility Cloak, which he lent to Ron, along with his Firebolt, 'in case you can ever leave Hermione alone for two minutes and want to go flying with her instead,' he joked. He was taking some homework with him, but managed to keep the books down to one each for Potions, Transfiguration and Herbology. This meant that he could fit everything he was taking into the bag he carried during the school day, apart from Hedwig, who would go in her usual cage. He was packing in the morning in case the afternoon's Prefects' meeting took longer than expected.

Having packed, he joined the others in the common room. 'Don't forget, you've got to chaperone these two lovebirds,' he told Ginny. 'And Sirius said you can Floo to visit me.'

'I asked McGonagall about that,' said Ginny. 'We've only got permission to leave the school to go to Hogsmeade, so we've had to write home to ask if we can visit you.'

'She said there's only one fireplace in the school that's on the Floo Network -- and it's behind a locked door, in a corridor with a locked door at the end and another in the middle,' Ron added.

'Well, that's not likely to stop you, is it?' Harry asked Hermione.

'She told us the charms on the doors are much more powerful than Alohomora can cope with. Nobody wants You-Know-Who to Floo here, after all,' Ron said, adding, 'And Dumbledore has to do something to make it be connected, as well -- most of the time, it just wouldn't work.'

'Are you taking that list of subjects with you?' asked Hermione.

'Yes. I'm going to ask Sirius what he thinks -- he must have done some of them.'

'I was going to ask the twins,' said Ron, 'but I think I'll ask Lee instead. He's more likely to tell the truth.'

'You don't trust our brothers!' accused Ginny.

'Nor do you.'

'Of course I don't.'

*

On Sunday morning, Ron, Hermione and Ginny went with Harry to Hogsmeade station. Only about a quarter of the school's pupils went home for the Easter holidays, and Harry recognised Hannah among them. He also recognised Pansy and another Slytherin Prefect, who seemed to be escorting Raine to the train.

'How do you feel about Raine now?' he asked Ginny quietly.

'I still don't know. I suppose it's true that it's just like the diary and me, but ... I don't know. I'll see how I feel at the end of the holidays.'

Harry nodded.

'I still don't think we should ever trust her again,' said Ron. 'Even if that means I'm disagreeing with Hermione.'

'Well, you don't have to agree with me about everything,' she said. 'Harry, you've only got about five minutes.'

'OK,' he said, opening the nearest door and getting in. This was the corridor side of the train, and he slid the window in the door open so that he could talk to the others until the train went. He promised to owl them to tell them what name they'd need to use to get to Sirius' flat, and they reminded him to find all the interesting places to visit in the village. Hermione seemed oddly emphatic when she said that.

Once the train started, they waved their good-byes, then Harry closed the window and walked along the train, looking into the compartments. With so few pupils going home, many compartments were empty or contained only one or two people. Finally, he found the one he'd been looking for; Raine was sitting alone in one, looking out of the window. He entered, closing the door behind him. She looked around, and stared in surprise when she recognised him. He sat opposite her, putting his bag and Hedwig's cage on the seat next to him.

'Have you come to gloat that I might get expelled?' she asked.

'No. I asked Dumbledore not to expel you. I didn't know if you knew that.'

'Why?' she asked, surprised again.

'You only did it because your parents were threatened, didn't you? I don't remember my own parents, so I don't know how I'd have reacted in your place. I've seen Ron and Ginny with theirs, and Hermione with hers. Hermione's an only child, like me -- and like you as well, right?'

She nodded.

'If you're as close to yours as she obviously is to hers, I can see you didn't really have much choice. Ron says Hermione forgave you almost as soon as they found out. She understood why you did it, too.'

'Ginny didn't forgive me,' she said, turning to look out of the window. Harry saw from her reflection in the window that a tear was rolling down her cheek.

'Even she's not sure if she has yet, or not,' he admitted. 'But she knows you aren't the first pupil at Hogwarts to be forced to do Voldemort's work. I'm sure she will forgive you, if she hasn't yet.'

She turned back to look at him. 'Who else do you mean?'

'I can't tell you that. It's somebody's secret -- back when the Chamber of Secrets was opened.'

'So how does Ginny know about it?'

'That's hard to answer. She does know, though.' To change the subject, he asked, 'Do you know who the Death Eater rat was?'

'Sorry. I can't tell you anything else about him, except that he's got a metal hand. He didn't even tell me a name I could call him.'

'He's Wormtail, or Peter Pettigrew. He betrayed my parents to Voldemort, then faked his murder and framed my godfather for it.'

'Oh. How did you know that?'

'I found out two years ago. Sirius -- that's my godfather -- and Professor Lupin managed to capture him. Snape interfered, and he got away, and later helped Voldemort come back. Snape's your Head of house -- you might want to ask him why he did that, and blame him for what you were made to do. He'll probably deny it, though.'

'I think I will,' she said, smiling for the first time since Harry entered the compartment. 'You really have forgiven me, haven't you?'

Harry nodded. 'It's Voldemort's, and Wormtail's fault, and maybe Snape's, but I can't blame you.'

'He killed your parents, and now he's almost killed you. Oh, Harry.'

He nodded.

'Ginny said something odd when she was blaming herself for telling you that you looked good in the headband. She said it was her fault Hermione almost died. What did she mean?'

'You'll have to ask her that.'

She frowned at him. 'Hmm. So Ginny almost killed Hermione, she knows who the other person Voldemort forced to do things was -- very interesting. And you can't tell me why in either case?'

'Definitely. I am not going to tell you that.'

'All right. You're worried you've said too much, aren't you?'

He nodded ruefully. 'Especially if you've just made a wild guess at something I've been keeping secret.'

'OK. I don't want to upset little Ginny any more than I already have, anyway.'

'"Little"? She's about the same age as you.'

'She's not tall, though.'

'True.'

The witch with the food trolley slid back the door. 'Anything off the trolley?'

Harry and Raine both stood, reaching into pockets. Raine said, 'You can't pay, I owe you more than just this much.' Harry smiled and accepted that. They sat eating Pumpkin Pasties and Cauldron Cakes. Harry had some Chocolate Frogs too, but Raine hadn't wanted any.

'Maybe you'll be on one of those one day,' she suggested, seeing him looking at the cards that had been in the Frog packets.

'I don't think I'll be that famous.'

'You already are. Maybe you'll help catch Voldemort one day. You deserve to.' She frowned. 'I hope Dad stays an Auror and can catch him.'

Harry nodded again. 'Even if he doesn't want to stay in charge, I think the Ministry probably needs all the Aurors it can get.'

Raine nodded. 'Look, there's something I didn't put in the letter. I told Dumbledore, and he didn't want me to tell anyone else, but I think you should know too. I had to get some messages back to Voldemort, saying things like I'd managed to switch the two headbands.'

'Let me guess -- you told Malfoy, who told his father, who told Voldemort?'

'No. Malfoy does tell his father things, but the rat -- Wormtail -- told me that Voldemort thinks Lucius wants more power, so he doesn't trust him. No, if I had something to report back, like Ginny not being your girlfriend ...'

Harry smiled at her. 'I liked that one.'

'... I told Malcolm Baddock, who somehow passed it on to Voldemort. I think Dumbledore's going to use him to get false information back to Voldemort -- either to lure him into a trap, or to make him too scared to do anything.'

'Clever. OK, I'll pretend I don't know. Thanks. I won't tell anyone else.'

They sat eating the snacks and watching the scenery until Harry remembered something. 'I just thought -- you keep saying "Voldemort" now, but you always used to say "Dark Lord" like Malfoy.'

'Dad says you can't catch someone if you're afraid even of his name. So I usually say it, but Ginny doesn't like it, and even the other Slytherins don't. So I tended to say "Dark Lord" to fit in. It doesn't seem to bother you, though.'

'No. Do you want to be an Auror when you leave Hogwarts?'

'I did,' she said quietly. 'It's not going to happen now, is it? They'll never be able to trust me, or they'll say I only got the job because of Dad breaking the rules and ignoring what I did.'

'You've got a bit of inside knowledge -- that might help.'

'No. I might manage a job in the department Ginny's brother is in, or her dad, since I like Muggle Studies, but I've got to forget about being an Auror.'

Harry accepted this, but hoped he could do something for her one day. He knew that there was at least one Death Eater at the Ministry, and it seemed only fair for a former Voldemort spy to be a loyal Ministry employee to balance that.

'Talking about how old you and Ginny are -- she said it was your birthday last week. It can't have been a good one.'

'No. I expect Ginny and the others had got presents for me, and I just couldn't ...' she was weeping, but finished, '... I couldn't face them, especially Ginny, when she didn't know what I'd done to you.'

'Oh. Malfoy's timing was really bad for you.'

'But good for you, because it meant you know now that Voldemort is definitely after you again. Malcolm must have told him I failed, though.'

Their conversation turned to what they were going to do during the holidays, although Harry had to admit he knew very little about the village Sirius lived in. Raine had a better idea of what she and her parents were intending, from a family get-together to the more mundane shopping for new robes and potion ingredients in Diagon Alley.

At King's Cross, they got out, Harry helping Raine with her trunk. Raine's parents, a haggard-looking man in a well-worn suit, and a woman in a wheelchair, greeted her, and were surprised to see Harry with her.

'I can see Sirius over there -- I'll see you next term, Raine. And I will see you there!' He waved good-bye to her and her parents and went over to see Sirius, who was grinning.

'Hello Sirius. They said you came to see me, but I didn't notice.'

'Yes, I did, when you were asleep. I met Ginny, too. That wasn't Ginny -- is there something you might want to tell me?'

'Raine's a friend of Ginny's. It's a long story -- I'll tell you later.'

'OK. We'll Floo home from the Leaky Cauldron, it's the simplest route.'

Harry followed Sirius towards the exit to the Muggle part of the station. 'Wouldn't it be more practical to have a fireplace somewhere in the station? If it was on this side of the barrier, people wouldn't need to try to dress like Muggles -- just look at those two, over there. Everyone's going to stare at them when they're on the Muggle side.'

'Yes, when I started at Hogwarts, there still was one here. But when they rebuilt part of the Muggle station, the chimney went, and nobody got round to working out how to put in a new chimney without the Muggles noticing. So the fireplace is there, but you can't use it.'

Harry laughed. 'That's silly!'

'Lots of things are silly. Let's go home.'