After Hogwarts

Chapter 12:

The Full Moon:

Ginny ran back to The Daily Prophet as fast as she could, poor Willow had trouble keeping up. She went straight to Miranda's office and looked around frantically, but Miranda wasn't there. Ginny checked upstairs with Theo and Madame Chesney neither of who knew where Miranda was. Ginny finally went back to Miranda's office and scribbled a note for Miranda that she was looking for her. Ginny left it on her desk, before she hurried off.

Ginny then rushed to the Ministry to find Percy. When she tried to walk through the entrance, she couldn't get in. She cursed herself and stamped her foot in frustration because she should have remembered that she needed the password of the day. She was desperate to find either Percy or Miranda. She quickly looked around to see if anyone was walking towards the Ministry, but no one was.

She then remembered it was lunch time and thought she might catch Miranda eating lunch at The Commons. When she got there, she didn't see Miranda. Willow started to pull on her leash wanting to head home. Ginny looked at her little bunny and saw that Willow looked very tired.

"I have been running you around, haven't I?" Ginny said to Willow. The rabbit continued to pull on her leash.

"Okay, okay, I'll take you home," Ginny told her. Ginny quickly ran Willow upstairs to her apartment. She took off her leash and lifted her onto the bed. Ginny then went into the kitchen to get a plate of veggies and some fresh water for Willow. By the time she got back to her room, Willow was stretched out on Ginny's pillow, fast asleep. Ginny put the water and food on the floor and went back to The Commons.

Ginny saw several people eating their lunches, but she still didn't see Miranda. She sat on a park bench and ran her fingers through her hair. When she looked up, she saw Miranda coming out of a little sandwich shop. She stood up to walk over to Miranda and then saw Percy exit right behind her. Great, they're together, Ginny thought, as she started frantically waving her hands to get their attention. Miranda and Percy came right over.

"I need you both to sit down for a minute," Ginny said. They all sat down and Percy and Miranda both started eating half of their sandwiches.

"Something happened that I need to tell you about," Ginny began. As she relayed what happened at the pawnshop, she unwittingly grabbed the other half of Percy's sandwich and begun eating it without realizing it.

"Tell me more about the silver chest," Percy requested. Ginny started going into a lot of detail about the contents of the chest. As she spoke she became more and more animated. After she finished Percy's sandwich, she then reached over and inadvertently grabbed Miranda's uneaten half and munched away. Percy and Miranda both looked at each other and shrugged as Ginny continued talking. Ginny was too engrossed in what she was telling them to notice that she unknowingly ate their lunches.

"So the old man who runs the shop saw Willow as a rabbit," Percy suspiciously said.

"Yes," Ginny confirmed. "And he was wearing a serpent ring."

"You were smart not to use magic on him with that pregnant women coming in the shop," Percy said.

"Was he unusually thin and really creepy?" Miranda asked.

"Yes he was," Ginny answered. "Something about him really unnerved me. I can't put my finger on it." Percy noticed that Miranda's face looked distant, like she was very far away.

"What are you thinking?" Percy asked Miranda.

"He sounds like the old man that I've been seeing in my crystal ball," Miranda explained. "And the fact that at least three pregnant women went to see him today falls in line with what I've been seeing." Percy put his index finger up against his temple as he thought about what she'd said.

"I think that you should look into your crystal ball again and pay closer attention to what you see," Percy said to Miranda. "There may be other less obvious clues that you've missed." Miranda looked a bit indignant at his remark, but she knew he didn't mean to be insulting.

"I don't tend to miss important clues from my visions," Miranda assured him. "But I will do as you request."

"What should I do?" Ginny asked. "Should I go back to the pawnshop to retrieve the artifacts?"

"No," Percy said. "I think it will be best if I send out several scouting and rabbit retrieving teams. But, I'll need the exact directions." Ginny frowned at Percy's suggestion, she wanted to be the one to further investigate, but wrote some directions for him anyway on a piece of parchment he handed to her.

"It's nothing personal," Percy responded to Ginny's frown. "You've done excellent work, but I think it's best to send in professionals who are specifically trained for this type of work." Ginny still didn't like his answer, but she knew he was right.

"I suppose I should try to catch up with Narcissa," Ginny said.

"I think that you've found out all you're going to from her today," Percy said. "Why don't you take the rest of the day off?"

"I don't think that's your call," Miranda interjected, sounding very serious. "Ginny doesn't work for you."

"Do you want me to go back out today?" Ginny tilted her head, curious about Miranda's response. Percy sat there speechless.

"No," Miranda said. "I think you should take the rest of the day off and head back out tomorrow." As Ginny got up to leave, Miranda winked at Percy without Ginny seeing. His face softened and he smiled because he then knew she was just teasing him.

"Percy," Ginny turned to her brother. "When will you be sending out the scout and rabbit retrieving teams?"

"Probably as soon as I get back to the Ministry," he answered.

"Will you let me know what happens?" she asked.

"I will send you an owl post as soon as I find anything out," he promised.

"Thanks," she answered. "I'm going to go home and get some sleep, suddenly I'm really tired." Ginny waved goodbye and then she left.

"No wonder she's tired..." Miranda pointed out once Ginny was out if hearing range, "...she just ate both our lunches!"

"She sure did," Percy agreed and they both started laughing.

Ginny stopped for a moment when she heard Percy and Miranda laughing. She turned around saw them sitting close together enjoying something funny. She thought it was nice that they seemed to be getting along and Ginny had observed that since Miranda and Percy had become friendly, Percy had become almost tolerable...almost.

Ginny arrived home in a matter of minutes. She went straight to her room and found Willow still sleeping on her pillow. Ginny thought Willow had the right idea and crawled under her covers. She quickly fell asleep.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Ginny sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes.

Tap. Tap. Tap. She looked to her window and saw an owl outside tapping away. Ginny begrudgingly got out of bed, irritated that she had once again been disturbed when she actually got the opportunity to indulge in some extra sleep, to open her window. The owl promptly flew in, unaware that he had woken her from a restful slumber. Ginny untied the letter that was attached to the owl's leg and gave him a few Knuts that she had laying on her dresser.

She then realized that the letter might be from Percy as to what happened with the pawnshop and no longer was upset about being disturbed from her nap. She eagerly opened the letter.

Ginny,

The scout and rabbit retriever teams just got back and as promised I wanted to let you know what happened.

When they got to the pawnshop, it was abandoned and boarded up. It looked like no one had been there in years. When they went inside, the building was completely empty. I know something is definitely off about this. I believe that very dark magic is definitely involved.

I spoke to both Snape and Black about this and they are going personally supervise an investigation using their best people. Needless to say, I don't want you to concern yourself with the pawnshop. Leave it to the Ministry. You should continue following Narcissa and keep me posted on any new developments.

Percy

Ginny crumpled the letter and threw it across her room. How was this possible? She started to pace around her room going over everything in her head. This was the first lead she had in a month. She knew what she saw! She looked out her window and looked at the dark sky. The moon was full and very close that night. She stared at it for several minutes. A month, it's been exactly one month since I found the first artifact, Ginny had an idea. She quickly ran over to journal and looked up the date she found the first artifact and then went to her calendar that was hanging on her wall. That date was also a full moon. She wondered if there was a connection.

She decided that she should tell Percy of this, so changed out of her muggle clothes into a robe and went to the Owl Post in The Commons. She quickly wrote out a note to Percy and sent it with one of their owls. She then went back home.

Ginny didn't sleep well that night. She tossed and turned having nightmares about the old man at the pawnshop. When Clock woke her up the following morning, she felt as if she hadn't slept at all. She looked at Willow deeply sleeping and decided that she was going to give Willow the day off.

As she got dressed she was still plagued by Percy's note. If the building was empty, then what happened to the old man and all the artifacts? She was torn because she wanted to go back to the pawnshop, but Percy told her not to do anything.

When she got to the Malfoy estate, she hid behind her favorite Cherry tree. Narcissa took a long time to leave that day; she finally left her house sometime after noon. As usual, Ginny followed discretely behind. Today appeared to be a typical day of Narcissa stopping in little shops here and there. The sun had just started to set when Narcissa stopped at a spa that she frequented from time to time. Ginny knew that this always took several hours and Narcissa always went home afterwards. Ginny rolled her eyes at the thought of hiding outside the stupid spa just waiting for Narcissa. Ginny's eyes then lit up! This was the perfect opportunity to go back to the pawnshop. She knew that she shouldn't, after all, it was now Ministry business, Percy warned her to stay out of it. The only problem was that she really wanted to go and check it out. She debated what she should do for quite awhile. She kept going over the same arguments in her head. She finally concluded that it would be okay to go take a look. After all, she wasn't going to do anything; she was just going to look. Percy didn't say anything about looking.

Once Ginny was certain that Narcissa was in the spa, she left for the pawnshop. She was on the opposite side of town, so Ginny had a long walk in front of her. As she walked she kept trying to come up with logical reasons for Percy's scouts not finding anything and she couldn't come up with one good reason.

It was dark outside by the time she got to the pawnshop. None of the street lamps were working, fortunately the sky was clear and the moon was bright. The pawnshop was indeed boarded up and looked empty, just as Percy wrote. She scratched her head and stared at the building. This is not possible, she thought. I was just here, yesterday!

Ginny wanted to look inside despite Percy's instructions. She saw where a board was loose on one of the windows and concluded that must have been how the scout teams got inside.

Ginny was glad she was wearing her usual jeans and crop top as she climbed through the window. Once she got inside, it took her a few minutes for her eyes to acclimate.

"Lumos!" Ginny said as she pulled out her wand. The glow from her wand made it easier for her to see. Percy's scouts were telling the truth in what they reported. The chests were gone. The furniture was gone. The counter was gone. The room had nothing in it that it had the prior day. Ginny walked to the backroom that the old man had come from and it was also empty. She looked though all the closets and still found nothing. When Ginny heard a noise from outside, she decided it was time to go.

"Nox!" she commanded and the light from her wand ceased. She then crawled out from the window she had entered. Once she was outside, she saw that there were several large men standing outside the pawnshop. As Ginny walked away from the building, the three men surrounded her.

"Whatcha doin' 'ere little girl?" the first man snarled.

"Seems to be she's stickin' 'er nose in matters that are none of 'er business," the second man answered.

"We don't like snoopin'," the third one growled as he moved closer to Ginny. Ginny backed away and started to reach for her wand.

"Don't think of usin' that magic junk on us," the first man warned as the third man grabbed Ginny by her arms.

"See this," the second man shoved his hand in Ginny's face revealing a serpent pinky ring. "I see you for what you are. And I showed the others."

"That's right," the third man wickedly laughed. "And we were warned your kind would be nosin' around..."

"Shut up!" the second man elbowed the third man in his belly.

"The old man said to keep quiet..." The first man added.

"You shut up too!" the second man yelled as he smacked the first man in the head.

"Oh yeah, we're not suppose to talk 'bout the old man," the first man said out loud.

"How many times do I have to tell you to shut up? Both of you just shut up," the second man commanded the others.

"Sorry," both first man apologized.

"What do you want me to do with the girl?" the third man asked as his grip on Ginny tightened. Ginny didn't give anyone a chance to answer.

"Please let me go, please let me go," Ginny pleaded, "I don't know what you're talking about. I think you have me confused with someone else." Ginny was really afraid. She couldn't get to her wand and without that, she was helpless. As the third man was grip tightened, her fear increased. She was painstakingly aware that she was at a serious disadvantage.

"Don't ya' lie to me little girl," the third man sneered as he tightened his hold of her once again. Ginny was sure that her arms were going to snap. He then put his ugly face really close to hers. Ginny tried to be brave, but she was petrified. The second man put his hand with the ring on it to his ear before he responded to Ginny's pleas.

"I've been told ya' are lyin'," the second man finally said. He then moved closely behind Ginny as he pulled a hunting knife from his coat "We're gonna teach ya' a lesson." He gently pressed the knife along the side of Ginny's face. Ginny started to cry out for help, but he covered her mouth with his other hand.

"Ya' keep quiet, ya' hear?" the first man whispered as he circled around. "And maybe we won't hurt ya'"

"Or maybe we'll hurt ya' anyway," Ginny felt the knife move across her neck as the second man laughed wickedly. Stay calm, stay calm, she told herself even though she could feel the panic building stronger. She wanted to break free and run away as fast as she could, but was unable to because the knife pressed against her throat. She didn't know what to do.

"EXPELLIARMUS!" Ginny heard a familiar voice yell as she saw a green flash knock the knife from the second man's hand and he started to run away. The third man started dragging Ginny away. She struggled to get free.

"LOCOMOTOR!" Ginny saw another green flash hit the third man who was holding her. His feet froze and she realized that his legs were locked. She punched him hard in the stomach and quickly backed away.

"Ginny! Look behind you," a familiar voice warned her. Ginny quickly pulled out her wand as she turned around.

"MOBILIABUS!" she pointed her wand at the first man causing him to be in a full body bind. When Ginny turned back around she saw the second man running away. She pointed her wand toward him, but didn't get to use it.

"WINGARDIUM LEVIOSA!" a blast of green light surrounded the second man and he began to float above the ground. His feet and arms were still pumping like he was running, but he was suspended in the air.

"MOBILIABUS!" another flash of green light was directed at the second man, putting him in a full body bind. Ginny quickly surveyed the situation and after a moment, she knew she was safe, at least for the moment. She stopped to take a closer look at who saved her. It was hard to tell in the dark, but it looked a lot like...no, it couldn't be, could it?

"Draco?" Ginny hesitantly asked.

"Yes," he answered as he dragged the second man across the air and then pulled him to the ground besides his two companions.

"What...why...what..." she began, but was lost for words. She thought she was about to die and then she was saved. Just not saved, but saved by Draco Malfoy.

"I think we need to put serious memory charms on these three," he stated as he pointed his wand out. He then cast several memory charms on all three men. Ginny was still in shock, but as if someone else was controlling her body, she automatically walked to the second man and discretely took off his pinky ring, putting it in her pocket and she thoroughly checked to see if the others had any artifacts. Surprisingly the other two men had no artifacts on them.

After she had the ring, she sat on the curb of the street and put her hands over her face. Her mind was still working too fast - the pawnshop, three men attacking her, Draco saving her - none of this made sense.

"Draco, why are you here?" Ginny's big brown eyes were wide and innocent as she looked up and spoke to Draco. Draco then finished his last memory charm and they watched the muggles wander off aimlessly, before he sat down next to Ginny.

"I got here the same way you did," he avoided eye contact as he vaguely answered.

"I don't want to play word games with you," she sounded so drained as she spoke.

"Look Ginny," he softly started. He knew Ginny was fragile after what just happened to her and he didn't want to push her. "I know what you've been up to."

"What do you mean?" her eyes misted up, like she was going to cry.

"I know you've been keeping tabs on my mother," Draco said. Ginny tried to say something, but Draco cut her off, "It's okay. I've been keeping an eye on my mother longer than you have. There's been something strange going on with her and I'm worried."

"Draco..." Ginny quietly tried to explain, but what was she supposed to say...Oh by the way, I've been following your mother because I think she may be out to destroy our society as we know it? Ginny now knew for certain that Draco had been the one following her, but because he had been following her, he was there to save her. And he did save her when he didn't have to. She wanted to be angry, but how could she?

"It's okay," Draco reassured her and put his hand on her shoulder. "I think we're on the same side and I think we may be able to help each other. But, that can wait till tomorrow. You know, by the portkey or maybe your favorite Cherry tree..." He tried teasing her to make her smile, which didn't work. He hated seeing her like this. He much preferred when she was being rude to him.

"Draco..." Ginny started again. "I can't discuss this with you. It's work related. I can't." Ginny wrapped her arms around herself as she began to shiver. She wasn't really cold; she was just in shock.

"Listen Ginny," he took off his trench coat and placed it over shoulders. "There's time for all this tomorrow. To prove I mean it, I won't even ask you about that ring you stuffed in your pocket."

"I..." she tried to speak, but was too tired to come up with excuses.

"Just relax for a minute. You just went through a lot," Draco was being unusually kind. She looked at him for a moment. Was this a trick? Was he spying on her for his mother? He seemed so sincere and she was finally really beginning to feel safe, but after all, he was Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius Malfoy. She had no reason to believe in him except for that he just saved her life.

She then felt him put his arm snuggly around her. She instinctively rested her head against him and he awkwardly patted her shoulder. Before she knew it she had begun to cry. Once the first tear fell, many others followed.

"It's okay, it's okay," Draco soothingly said to her. Ginny wasn't sure how much time went by before she finally lifted her head and wiped her eyes. For a moment, she was lost in her own tears and her own pain. She forgot where she was and whom she was with. As she looked closer at this person who taking care of her, being so gentle with her, she remembered that it was Draco's shoulder she was crying on.

"Draco, I'm sorry for acting so childish," she immediately said, feeling uncomfortable. She was sure she looked like an idiot.

"For what?" he asked as he handed her a tissue. She didn't know why he was being so nice.

"For crying like a baby," she said.

"I didn't see a thing," Draco smiled.

"I think I should be going. I have work to do," Ginny's thoughts were scattered and she knew work would focus her. Besides, she had to tell Percy and Miranda what happened. She wasn't looking forward to that, she knew Percy would be angry.

"I think you work too much," Draco interrupted her train of thought.

"How would you know?" she asked, but then realized that he did know because he had been following her. She then slowly nodded her head in agreement. She did work a lot. Maybe she should just go home and wait until tomorrow to tell the others.

"When's the last time you've been out to have some fun?" he asked. She shook her head; she couldn't remember the last time she had some fun.

"It doesn't matter," she lowered her head, sadly replying. She had no time for fun.

"Sure it does," he took his hand and placed it under her chin, lifting her teary face up.

"Why?" her eyes filled up again. Why was he being so nice to her? Was this a trick? What did he want from her? There was no reason for him to be kind to her, to care about her. Why was he doing this?

"I don't know," his honesty was evident as his blue eyes met hers. Perhaps it was because he could relate to her. She seemed just as alone as he was, kindred spirits so to speak. "Don't you have friends that you do stuff with?"

Ginny bit her lip and looked to the ground; she didn't know how to respond. She had friends, but they were work friends. Even Miranda spent most of her time working. Ginny didn't have friends that she just did things, fun things with.

"That's okay," Draco saw that she was having trouble answering. "Son's of convicted Death Eaters don't have a lot of friends either." Ginny looked up at Draco. He wasn't the same boy she remembered from Hogwarts. Perhaps with the arrest of his father, he had changed. He certainly changed enough to save her, even after how she'd treated him lately.

"I haven't even thanked you," she finally said. Draco stood up and helped Ginny up.

"I wasn't going to point that out," he gently teased, giving her his arm to lean on while they walk. "But some people like to point out other people's flaws like when they don't apologize. Did you know that?" Ginny looked over to him, giving him a slight smile as she remembered how she given him such a hard time for not thanking her for saving his mother.

"Well thank you Draco," she said, leaning her head against his shoulder as they walked. "You saved me."

"I haven't saved you yet..." he smiled. "Getting you out for some fun is what's going to save you."

"I guess for tonight I have no choice," she was too tired to argue and it was actually nice having someone take care of her even if it was just for one night.

Ginny and Draco walked to a local muggle pub that was several blocks away from Rose Street. It was a quiet, neighborhood place that they could be innocuous. There were several table and booths throughout the pub. On one side of the pub were four pool tables whereas the other side had a small stage with a local band playing and several people were dancing on the dance floor. Ginny was glad that there were many muggles at the pub because this made it was easy to blend in.

Ginny found them a table in the back and in the corner while Draco went to get them something to drink. Draco returned shortly with two pints of beer. He handed one to Ginny and he sat down.

Ginny was very quiet and her face looked tense. Her mind was still racing over the evening's events. The whole night felt like a bad dream and then there was being out with Draco. She found that even stranger. She knew she should be asking him lots of questions like why was he following her and what did he know about her investigation, yet at that moment, she didn't really care.

"Ginny, I told you no work tonight," Draco said before he took a sip of his beer.

"What gave me away?" she asked.

"It doesn't matter," he replied. "Tonight we are just two people out to have fun, okay?"

"Okay then," Ginny agreed. "Lets have some fun." Ginny and Draco lifted their pints and toasted to having fun.

Ginny started feeling better as she drank her pint. The uneasiness of being with Draco was fading, as was the horror of her evening. Draco did not talk about work as he promised. They talked about nothing in particular, yet had lots to talk about. They played pool, they ordered a pub sandwich, and they even danced.

By the time they left, Ginny was laughing and having a good time. She forgot how good it felt just to have fun. She pushed all thoughts of work and worries about tomorrow from her mind; tonight she just was enjoying herself.

Draco walked Ginny home. Ginny knew it must be later than she thought because Fred and George opened the door as soon as they heard her walking up the stairs. They then stood on the top with their arms crossed. They hadn't seen Draco yet because he was walking up the stairs behind Ginny.

"And where have you been?" Fred demanded.

"You never come home this late! Do you know what time it is?" George added. Ginny shrugged once she got to the top of the stairs because she had no idea what time it was and she didn't care. She wanted to hold on to this bit of happiness that she found, even if it was only for one night. There was time enough for seriousness tomorrow.

"It's 1:00 in the morning," Fred informed her.

"We were worried sick," George added. Both brothers were so intent on Ginny, they didn't notice who she was with.

"Look guys," she began. "It's nice to know that you worry about me, but I am all grown up and I can go out when I want to." Neither brother knew how to respond; to them she was still their little sister. Draco then stepped forward, he knew that Ginny had just begun to unwind and she didn't need any more stress.

"Besides, she wasn't alone, she was with me," Draco revealed, causing both Fred and George's expressions to change from concern to disgust.

"If it isn't Draco Malfoy," Fred said to George.

"Yeah, who could forget him?" George replied.

"We only wish we could," Fred muttered under his breath loudly enough for Draco to hear.

"So how is your father?" George pointedly asked Draco, very well aware of where Draco's father was. "Oh wait, he's in jail for being a Death Eater. He worked for You-Know-Who..." Ginny watched Draco's eyes narrow, but he said nothing. Ginny knew Fred and George didn't like Draco from their years together at Hogwarts. But, she knew Draco wasn't the same person, at least not tonight. She wasn't going to let her brothers bully her...her friend.

"Fred! George!" Ginny commanded. "Draco is here with me, not to visit you. I suggest you both go inside." They both opened their mouths to respond.

"NOW!" Ginny commanded. Against their better judgment, George and Fred went back inside. Ginny could have sworn that as Fred shut the door he said that she was just like their mother. At that she couldn't help but to smile.

"I'm sorry about my brothers," Ginny turned around and faced Draco.

"I'm used to the Death Eater stuff," Draco nonchalantly said. "To be honest Ginny, even with out what my father has done, I never gave your brothers a reason to like me. And then again I'm Slytherin." The house of Slytherin and the house of Gryffindor were typically at odds.

"So what? I'm Gryffindor," Ginny reminded him.

"But you're different Ginny. I don't know why," Draco shrugged, trying to diminish what he was feeling. She was different and he wasn't sure what that meant. "Maybe it's a guy thing. When we were at Hogwarts, everything was so competitive. And in light of recent events, a lot of what was fought about when we were at school really was inconsequential." Ginny thought about what happened tonight and realized he was right. They all had grown up and life was very different.

"You're very different than I remember you," Ginny said.

"Not really," Draco replied. "I'm the same person I've always been, I've just grown up."

"Well you were really here for me tonight Draco," Ginny said.

"It's nothing," Draco smiled.

"No, it is something. I want to thank you again," Ginny quickly kissed him on the check, then opening the door to go inside, but before she did, she turned back around. "I did have fun tonight Draco."

"Then I suppose tomorrow I'll see you at the Cherry tree," Draco said as he headed down the stairs.

"No work talk!" Ginny called after him.

"You right, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Draco exaggeratedly apologized, bowing down before her as he walked backwards down the stairs.

"Goodnight Draco," Ginny smiled as she went inside and closed the door.

"Bye Ginny," Draco said.

When Ginny went inside, she found Fred pacing back and forth and George sitting on the sofa with his arms crossed.

"I don't want to hear a thing," Ginny wagged her finger at them, warning them.

"Listen Ginny, you may be grown now..." Fred started.

"And you can do whatever you want to..." George added.

"We're just questioning who you're choosing to do it with," Fred stated. Ginny knew her brothers were only concerned about her. If they knew what had happened, they'd understand, but she just didn't feel up to relaying everything that happened that night.

"I'm going to bed now," Ginny said as she walked to her room, but stopped at her door and looked at her brothers, "I do love you both, you know. Don't worry about me."

Ginny quickly climbed into her bed. Willow hopped up and cuddled next to her. Ginny was amazed that she had so much fun with Draco. She would have never guessed. She wouldn't have believed it a few hours earlier, but she easily fell asleep with happy thoughts and surprising had a good night's sleep.