Broken

Broken

"Virginia Weasley, due to your crimes against the Wizard community you have been sentenced to loss of your license to practice magic. Please hand your wand over."

Ginny could hardly believe her ears. Stupidly, she handed her wand over. Cornelius Fudge deftly snapped her wand in half. Red and gold sparks fizzled from the broken ends. Ginny could not believe her eyes. Her ability to practice magic had been taken away by a simple mistake she had made in her first year at Hogwarts. How could Fudge hold this against her now? Didn't he need all the supporters he could get? Still, Ginny refused to cry in front of Fudge and her family. She did not want anyone to pity her. At twenty years old, she was hardly a little girl anymore. Yet, her family still treated her as such. Now her family could no longer do anything for her.

Puffs of purple smoke filled the small room as photographers from the Daily Prophet photographed the snapping of her wand and Ginny's reaction to it. Ginny stiffly turned away from the scene and gathered her winter cloak. Arthur Weasley helped her pull it on and guided her from the room. Her family and friends quickly followed.

"I cannot believe he snapped your wand because of Voldemort's possession of you in your first year!" Molly Weasley, her mother, fumed. "Everyone knows Lucius Malfoy was behind this! Why isn't he having his wand snapped instead of you?"

Ginny shook her head mutely. She was trying to ignore her family's rumblings as she walked to the nearest floo point. She could hardly wrap her mind around the idea that she was going to have to leave this world and live as a muggle. Dumbledore had offered her a semi-groundskeeper position at Hogwarts, but Ginny had refused his hospitality. How could she work at a school of magic when she could not use magic herself? It was as good as being a muggle. So Ginny had decided to become a muggle. Ginny knew that her mother and father would object. They wanted her to at least continue to live in their home, under their protection. After a loud argument with them, Ginny had refused to change her mind. Ginny had informed her family of her choice should she lose her wand. Now that it had actually happened, Ginny wanted to flee the magical world as soon as possible. The humiliation she felt was incredible. The sooner she could leave and become an average muggle the happier she would be.

Ginny noticed Hermione, her brother Ron's wife, watching her closely. "It won't be so bad, really. I mean I lived as a muggle for several years."

Ginny sniffled and hugged Hermione. "I know. It's just that I have always lived with magic. What will life be without it? I'll have no friends. What will I do for a job?"

"Well, I talked to my parents and they said they'd be happy to take you on as a receptionist. You could work for them." Hermion was always so good to her, Ginny realized. Ron was a lucky man.

"Perhaps, Hermione. I don't know. Perhaps it would be better to stand on my own." The Weasley family was crowded at the firegrating, waiting to be next to floo home to the Burrow.

"You can't Gin! You don't know anyone or anything there. My parents could take you on. They'll help you gradually learn about the muggle world." Hermione threw a pinch of green floo powder into the fire, which roared to life. "We'll talk about this at home, alright?" Ginny nodded and Hermione stepped into the emerald flames. "The Burrow!" Quickly most of Ginny's family followed Hermione home. Ginny waited until she was the only one left before she made the hardest choice of her life. Throwing her cloak to the cold marble floor of the Ministry of Magic, Ginny walked out the front doors and straight into muggle London.

Back at the Burrow, Ginny's family waited impatiently for her to floo into their home. Minutes passed without Ginny appearing. "What's taking Ginny so long?" wondered Fred.

"I dunno. I'll floo back to the ministry and find out." Bill stood up from his seat at the kitchen table. He walked over to the fireplace, took a pinch of the green powder and tossed it into the fire. "Ministry of Magic," he said loudly and swirled into the green fire, back to the Ministry of Magic. After what seemed like an eternity of sweeping past various fireplaces, Bill stopped in one of the Ministry of Magic's firegratings and stepped out. He brushed the unnecessary soot off his cloak and began looking around for Ginny. He quickly spotted her cloak and walked over to pick it up. It was still warm from her body heat, so he assumed she must have recently left it. Bill pulled out a small piece of parchment and began unfolding it. The parchment unfurled into a rather large map of England. He tapped it with his wand and watched as lines began waving across the page, mapping out the various places in England. He tapped the map again and said, "Ginny Weasley". Suddenly a red dot appeared on the map, slowing progressing across the map to stop at Gringotts bank in Diagon Alley. Bill wondered why Ginny had ditched coming home and had decided instead to stop at the bank. Once again he folded the map up, pocketed it and apparated to Gringotts.

Ginny was standing in front of a rather wizened goblin that was counting out her entire life savings. Ginny had decided to change her wizard money in for muggle money and simply disappear from the world once she had it.

"Four thousand pounds." The goblin eyed her from behind his large brass scale that he had been using to weigh her money.

"That's it? I slaved for two years at your bank and all I can get is four thousand pounds? I know for a fact that this at least is worth six thousand pounds." Ginny eyed the goblin and tried to stand at her full height. As it was, she could barely see over the counter where he was glowering down at her.

"You forgot that the muggle economy isn't doing so well. You lose some money due to that." The goblin began sweeping her money into a large leather pouch. "Well? Are you going to take it or leave it?"

Just then Bill walked up behind Ginny. "Whatever are you doing, Gin? I just asked Griphook and he said you had emptied your entire vault. What's going on?"

Ginny turned toward her brother. "I'm changing it over to muggle money. I can't spend wizard money in the muggle world, can I?" She turned back to the goblin. "Alright, I'll take it. But I know that you're cheating me."

The goblin grinned at Ginny ferally and began counting out the muggle money. "As you wish."

Bill grabbed Ginny's upper arm. "Why are you changing all your wizard money in for muggle money? Are you going to live as a muggle after all? You know mom and dad are against that."

Ginny took the money from the goblin. It had been sealed in a large envelope. She pulled Bill away from the goblin so that they could talk in private. "Listen, I don't want a big fuss over this. If I can't practice magic, how will I live in this world? What am I supposed to do? Be a burden on my family? I think not. "

Bill hesitated before he spoke. "Were you just going to leave us without a goodbye? You cannot do that to you family."

"Bill, help me out here. I don't want any more pity. I see how you all looked at me. It's terrible. Another series of goodbye will just make us all feel even worse. I love you all, but I need to go without a big deal. Can I count on you to help me out with that?"

Bill looked into his little sister's eyes and saw the pain in them. He knew that leaving her family like this would break their hearts, but he understood why she was doing it. Finally he hugged her closely. "Alright, Big Red. But I want to do something for you first."

Ginny smiled at Bill. "What?"

Bill grabbed her hand and pulled her to the old goblin's desk. "Gargamel, I would like to empty out my account and have it changed into muggle money." Bill heard Ginny gasp beside him, but gripped her hand tighter. He turned to her and said, "Gin you need money. Life is not easy in the muggle world. You'll have no identity there. Some of my cash might help you buy some. Don't say no, please."

Ginny nodded and watched as Gargamel flicked his wrist. Stacks of knuts, galleons and sickles appeared before her. Quickly, the goblin assessed the amount of money. "That'll be ten thousand muggle pounds."

Bill nodded his assent. Ginny turned to him and asked, "Where did you get so much money?"

Bill laughed. "Ginny, I live at home now. I have no one to support and I don't need much. I just save what I earn. Of course, I try and give dad some. He won't take it of course, but I try. Now I want you to take it. I have a friend in the muggle world. His name is Bart Burns. Look up his address in the phone book and tell him you're my sister. He makes fake birth certificates and the like. He'll set you up for a fair price. Alright?"

Ginny nodded again and hugged Bill tightly. "Tell everyone that I love them and miss them." The goblin handed her Bill's money. Ginny thanked him and turned towards Bill again. "I'll write you and tell you where I am, okay?" She kissed him on his cheek and hugged him tightly again. When Bill let go, Ginny quickly stepped away from him and ran out of the bank. She ran until she was out of Diagon Alley and guessed she was somewhere in muggle London. 'Muggle London,' she thought. 'Just London now. I'm a muggle too.' Though tears were filling her eyes, Ginny knew she could not change things. She began walking without any destination.