Ginny hummed to herself as they walked through the secret passage connecting the Whomping Willow with the Shrieking Shack.
"You seem happy, Ginny," Harry observed, amused, as he walked behind her.
Ginny turned around with a beaming smile.
"Of course I'm happy! This is the first time my boyfriend has actually invited me on a date. I had to practically drag you with me to the Beltane dance or the Weird Sisters concert."
Harry grimaced slightly. "So that were dates," he muttered to himself.
"I'm sorry, Ginny. I will take you on as many dates as you want," he promised her earnestly.
Good boy.
"I'm looking forward to it," Ginny said and turned around to continue towards Hogsmeade.
She had accepted Harry as her boyfriend in a moment of weakness.
Thomas's behaviour had effectively been mild sexual assault - fortunately nothing more. Combined with the lingering effects of the Love Potion and its antidote… Ginny doubted she would have started this relationship under normal circumstances.
She had even considered ending it shortly after... Harry himself had been very aware that they had become a couple when she was especially vulnerable and emotional.
But he had nevertheless been the perfect boyfriend for her.
He had cut back on Quidditch training to Wood's frustration after just one comment from her that she felt ignored.
He also was also the only person she truly felt safe with since he was magically bound never to betray her.
In their subsequent Occlumency sessions since Christmas, Harry had allowed her to see all his most private moments, without the slightest doubt in his trust in her. He was embarrassed, of course, wanting to look cool and strong in front of her, but not once did he suspect that she would betray him and use those memories against him.
Harry would also smile in understanding when she asked for space, yet he would drop everything the moment she needed him - even if he had to quit Quidditch training or spend less time with Ron or other people.
Ginny really could get used to having a boyfriend.
"You have the Ageing Potions?" she asked.
"Yeah," Harry said, giving her one - probably bought from the twins…
They drank the potions and prepared their clothes and disguises like last Beltane.
This Saturday wasn't a Hogsmeade holiday for Hogwarts students, so the streets were pretty empty.
They wandered from shop to shop while holding hands and talking to each other. It was a really nice, relaxed date. Nothing special, but Ginny didn't mind at all.
She simply wanted to experience what a normal date as a girl felt like. One of her goals had always been to live as a normal teenage girl and that included having a boyfriend.
"You look really beautiful today, Ginny," Harry said shyly, as they walked down the cobblestone road.
Ginny beamed at him and he turned even redder.
"Thank you!"
Harry had even asked some older students, like Katie Bell or Angelina Johnson, for advice, which must have been mortifying for him. Complimenting her appearance as often as possible had probably been their advice.
She still had to giggle at the memory of Wood trying to advise Harry that girls only liked boys who took Quidditch training seriously - she had seen it during one of their Occlumency sessions and had reassured Harry that she preferred him to spend time with her instead.
At the end of the date, they decided to drink a Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks… Ginny found that she didn't like Butterbeer very much - way too sweet. Next time she would order something different.
There weren't many people in the pub. Three drunken wizards were especially loud, unfortunately.
"Walden!" one of the three drunken guys exclaimed as a tall, black-haired man with a moustache joined them. Without moving, Ginny shifted her focus entirely to their table, her head still resting on Harry's shoulder. She tried not to react, but… tall, moustache, Walden… Could this be Walden Macnair?
When you thought about it, Magical Britain was actually quite small, so it wasn't impossible.
Hogsmeade was the only purely magical village, without Muggles, and Azkaban guards also went to bars after work, so why not? Ginny could certainly relate to wanting a drink after spending a whole day with Dementors and insane prisoners - that had to be the worst job imaginable…
"Amplificus," she muttered as she secretly pointed her wand at herself below the table. At once she could listen to every conversation in the pub if she concentrated, no matter how distant or quiet the voices were. This was the opposite charm to the Amplifying Charm, Sonorus, which amplified your voice.
Harry shot her a questioning glance, but pretended nothing had happened - good boy. She leaned into Harry and whispered into his ear, like lovers lost in their own world.
"Do you see the tall man with the thin black moustache who just joined the others?" she began in a low voice and felt him nod silently. "This is Walden Macnair," she explained - one of them had greeted him with 'Macnair' instead of Walden, so she was sure by now.
"Don't react. Just focus on their table in your mind. Amplificus," she whispered in his ear as she cast the spell again.
"Why are you so dour, Bertram, did the Dementors act up again? Fucking soul-suckers…" Macnair asked the brown-haired, thin man sitting next to him. Bertram… Wasn't Bertram Aubrey the guard that found Black's body?
"It's not the Dementors that annoy me. I was visited by Moody, of all people… His eye freaks me out! He just didn't want to accept that those wards sometimes stop working," Aubrey complained, taking a good swig from his beer.
"Bah, the wards in that block were last renewed over seventy years ago and now the Ministry is giving us grief for it… Fucking pencil pushers," Macnair waved him off. "Fudge just wants to shift the blame. Merlin forbid that his budget cuts could be questioned."
They kept listening, but the conversation never returned to Black.
Throughout it all, they kept up the act of a relaxed young couple just enjoying their evening. No Hogwarts students were present, as it wasn't a Hogsmeade weekend for them, but some other young people - maybe nineteen or early twenties - were still sitting at some tables, so that Ginny and Harry weren't attracting much attention.
"We haven't learned much from listening…" Harry muttered as he was lovingly stroking Ginny's hair – her head was still leaning against his shoulder. Ginny found herself unexpectedly content.
Since they had become a couple, Harry had grown more self-assured in situations like this and she liked it. Then again, shy Harry had been adorable.
"Yeah… How about following Macnair when he leaves? I distract him and you stun him while hiding under your Invisibility Cloak like with Lockhart," she whispered back enthusiastically. Harry stiffened at once, alarm flashing across his face.
"No!" he answered, a bit too loud, but then looked around - nobody was looking. "I won't let you endanger yourself," he added in a lower voice.
But Ginny had already made her decision. It would look suspicious if they left shortly after Macnair…
So she rose in one smooth motion and straddled Harry's lap - their faces now directly in front of each other and her body pressed against his.
Harry's face turned red - he tried to act cool at times, but she still had quite the effect on him.
"I'm going and I remember you swore to always protect me, so…" she whispered with a playful smirk, alluding to their Blood Pact. Her hands tangled in his hair - she loved the wild Potter mess.
Harry's breath hitched - whether from alarm or the closeness, she couldn't tell.
She closed the last inch between them and their lips met hungrily. She really couldn't get enough of kissing her boyfriend.
For a moment she even forgot that they were still in the Three Broomsticks or that she planned to ambush Macnair moments before…
Someone cleared their throat politely behind them and Ginny ended the kiss and turned around, still sitting on Harry's lap.
"While I hate to tell young couples what to do…" Madam Rosmerta began dryly. "I must remind you that this isn't Puddifoot's Tea Shop. So if you would please keep your hands to yourself, darlings," she added, with suppressed mirth.
Ginny pouted exaggeratedly.
"Fine…" she relented, standing up. "Come, let's go somewhere private," she said, pulling Harry along with her, as Harry threw some coins apologetically on the table for their drinks.
When they left, Macnair was still at the table with the other three, drinking. He had complained that he would have an early meeting the next day at the Ministry and had to leave soon, so Ginny knew they had to act quickly.
"Harry, you take the Invisibility Cloak and stun him in the back while I lure him into that alleyway," Ginny ordered, pointing at a dark alley that branched off from the main street.
"No, Ginny. I don't agree with this plan in the first place and I certainly won't allow you to endanger yourself," Harry declared with a firm voice.
"Please Harry…" she said, taking his hands and stepping closer so that she had to look up a bit - very effective, given that he was blushing slightly.
"No… Ginny.
"Please," she pleaded again, eyes wide.
"Fine… but you take the cloak and I play the bait," Harry relented.
That worked for Ginny.
"Okay!" she agreed immediately with a smile and Harry probably realised he had been played, given his exasperated sigh.
"Wait in that alleyway. I will make sure he walks down there. I have a plan… Don't worry, it won't endanger me," she added, foreseeing his objections.
With another sigh, Harry did as she said and they waited - Ginny under his Invisibility Cloak.
About ten minutes later, Macnair stumbled out of the Three Broomsticks, clearly drunk.
He was staggering down the street, even slightly barging into a wall. This should be easy…
Ginny cast a Compulsion Charm on him to walk into the dark alleyway where Harry was waiting.
Macnair froze. That was a strange reaction to her charm…
Then suddenly Macnair took out his wand and looked around suspiciously. Her heart was beating hard in her chest as his gaze wandered over her position.
"Want me to walk down that alleyway, do you?" he muttered to himself.
Her Compulsion Charm had failed? That had never happened before, but she had always used it on Hogwarts students, never on adults - aside from Pettigrew.
He cast a silent charm, but Ginny recognized the wand movement. He was searching for invisible opponents. But fortunately it seemed that he didn't succeed.
Good thing she was using Harry's cloak - one of the three Deathly Hallows - instead of a simple Invisibility Charm.
"Well, then let's play," he declared with a sharp grin and walked down the alleyway towards Harry.
Suddenly Ginny had a very bad feeling about this whole idea…
"Well, well… did you cast the Compulsion Charm earlier?" Macnair asked when he saw Harry waiting in the alley for him. "Speak, boy!"
Harry looked confused for a moment, then decided to play along.
"That's right. I just want to know one thing from you… Did you kill Sirius Black, Death Eater?" Harry asked, levelling his wand at Macnair, who didn't seem very impressed.
Ginny, about to attack from behind, paused, interested in how he would answer.
"You are not the first to annoy me with this question… I really wished I had been the one to kill that filthy blood traitor," he answered with a shrug, while grinning. "But unfortunately, someone else was faster than me…"
Ginny had heard enough and cast a silent Stunning Spell and Shield Penetration Spell, just in case. The bluish-white and red spells interwove with each other.
"Think you can attack your betters?" Macnair muttered, clicking his tongue.
A slab of earth rose behind him, intercepting Ginny's spells, and with a wave of his wand, Ginny went flying against the wall next to her, the Invisibility Cloak slipping off.
"Ginny!" Harry screamed in panic. "Expelliarmus!"
Ginny steadied herself against the wall, just to see Harry's spell being intercepted by a Shield Charm.
She then cast a Blasting Curse and a Reductor Curse in rapid succession, but the Shield Charm also absorbed her two curses. Protego Horribilis?
Suddenly an unnaturally fast white light hit her and her whole body became paralyzed, as she fell over. She had been hit by a Full Body-Bind Curse.
She tried to concentrate on her magic and cast a wandless General Counter-Spell, as she heard Harry struggle.
'Finite Incantatem… Come on! Finite Incantatem!' she thought desperately to free herself and help Harry.
Finally, it worked and she looked up.
Macnair had seized Harry by the neck and pulled him upright, so that his toes were barely touching the floor.
"I will make your death very slow and painful, boy," he growled into Harry's ear - Ginny was barely able to hear it from her position. "Then I will have my fun with your little bitch…"
Somehow, Harry still held his wand, but it seemed that he had no breath to utter an incantation. Macnair was groping towards the hand with his wand, when Harry jabbed it into Macnair's eye.
Macnair let out a howl of pain.
"Stupefy," Ginny gasped out and the spell finally hit Macnair in the back and he fell to the ground unconscious.
"Harry… are you alright?" Ginny asked weakly as she slowly made her way to Harry, who was coughing while kneeling on the ground.
Ginny flicked her wand and Harry's Invisibility Cloak settled over Macnair's unconscious form just in time, as she realised that others must have heard the sound of their fight with Macnair or seen the flashes of light from their spells.
A few small pops and a loud crack were heard, as four figures in deep red Auror robes appeared at the end of the alleyway.
"Magical Law Enforcement! Identify yourself and stop any magical activity!" they shouted as they stormed the dark street.
Harry was still sitting on the floor, coughing and trying to breathe.
Ginny on the other hand acted fast and levelled her wand at Harry and screamed, "You bastard!"
Harry looked up confused, even forgetting to cough. Then his eyes darted to the approaching Aurors and widened in understanding.
"You kissed Amy?! Amy of all people! You told me you loved me!"
"Ginny, please," Harry began - she nearly winced at his terrible acting. "I'm sorry!"
Couldn't he have used a fake name for her?
"Drop the wand, miss," the first Auror ordered, pointing his wand at Ginny. "Residents have complained about magical combat in this alleyway. Please explain the situation," he stated calmly, trying to de-escalate, while a second Auror went to Harry to check for injuries.
The apparent rookie Auror at the back moved uncertainly, almost stepping on the invisible Macnair. Ginny had to act fast, so she played up her fury to get their attention.
"Drop my wand!" she exclaimed, while turning around, wand still raised. "This bastard cheated on me!"
"Please Ginny! Amy gave me a Love Potion! It wasn't my fault," Harry explained, growing more convincing as he settled into the role he had to play.
Good job!
"What," Ginny whispered in disbelief as she lowered her wand, pretending to be shocked by Harry's revelation. "Amy did what?"
"Expelliarmus."
A Disarming Charm hit her and one of the Aurors caught her wand, but she paid it no attention, still staring in disbelief at Harry.
"Is that really true?" she whispered as she slowly walked to Harry, who had stood up by now.
"Yes, I swear," he said a bit awkwardly. He clearly wasn't comfortable acting in front of the Aurors like this, so Ginny pretended to be overcome by emotions and threw herself in Harry's arms.
"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, while the leader of the Aurors watched awkwardly.
"While this is very touching… I would need to hear what had happened here. Several neighbours complained about sounds of fighting and flashes of spells coming from this alley."
Then Ginny explained very emotionally and apologetically how she had discovered the kiss, misunderstood the situation and hexed her boyfriend. Their wands were also checked with the Prior-Use Spell, Prior Incantato, for Dark magic - the Blasting and Reductor Curses were not legally considered Dark, so there was no problem. However, the Auror told Ginny not to cast such curses against her boyfriend in the future. They also had to pay a fine for duelling in public. Otherwise, there were no further investigations, since this was only a misdemeanour.
Thankfully there was no magical passport and identities in Magical Britain were only magically checked if someone was arrested. The interaction with the Aurors would have played out very differently otherwise.
Soon the Aurors departed, leaving Harry and Ginny alone. Macnair was still unconscious under Harry's Invisibility Cloak. Ginny had managed to subtly prevent any Auror from stumbling over him.
"Let's see if he knows something about Black's death," Ginny said, slightly lifting the Invisibility Cloak and levelling her wand at him.
"Legilimency."
Almost immediately she regretted having done so… She had assumed she was numb to violence and death - she was wrong.
Legilimency worked by jumping from one associated memory to the next. A memory of a strawberry cake might lead to the colour red, which in turn triggered a memory of a fire truck.
That's why emptying your mind was a beginner Occlumency technique - there would be no starting point for the memory chain.
The most vivid memories surfaced first. Unfortunately, that meant that for Macnair, Ginny had to see the Death Eater's favourite memories to find out something about Black's death.
Macnair was raping a Muggle woman catatonic from Cruciatus exposure… He was slowly torturing a seven-year-old child, whose accidental magic had been detected by the Ministry, in front of his bound Muggle parents, while laughing loudly… He was slowly sawing off Caradoc Dearborn's arm the Muggle way, since the Dark Lord had ordered him to be interrogated. Macnair hadn't asked any questions yet…
Ginny felt sick. But the association between Dearborn, the Order of the Phoenix and Black was there.
Macnair was fighting - his mask covering his identity - seeing Sirius Black and James Potter nearby, facing the Lestrange brothers…
There it was!
An alarm sounded from Block B. The dementors were restless. Macnair went to investigate. He found Bertram near Black's cell, which was swarmed with dementors…
"What happened?" he asked grumpily.
"The wards to Black's cell… they just failed," Bertram explained, looking fascinated, with a small smile at the blackness emanating between the bars.
Macnair snorted and tapped his wand against the wall next to the cell entrance. The rune cluster managing the wards became visible and Bertram turned around with a frown.
"See that rune there," he said, pointing at the Eihwaz rune. "This would monitor if the wards were lowered manually or failed by themselves. If you smudge it slightly, nobody will be able to tell what happened to the wards," he explained as Bertram's eyes widened in understanding.
Macnair, on the other hand, just turned around and left without another word…
Ginny emerged from Macnair's memories.
What the fuck?! That background character had killed Sirius? You've got to be kidding me…
"Ginny?" Harry asked cautiously.
"I'm alright, Harry. He just had some truly sick memories - murder, torture, rape… you get the picture," she said with a tired sigh as Harry paled.
She couldn't get the scream of pain of the little Muggle-born boy out of her head, as Macnair used the Cruciatus Curse on him while laughing…
Before she realised it, her wand was pointed at Macnair's head. One Expulso Curse and his head would be squashed like a watermelon. The tip of her wand glowed blue.
"Ginny! What are you doing," Harry shouted alarmedly as he grabbed her wand hand. "You can't do this!"
"You haven't seen his memories," she countered angrily, even though he was right. She didn't want Aurors after her - they would just see a dead Ministry official, after all. She slammed up her Occlumency to calm down.
"Please, Ginny. You are better than him," he pleaded - such a goody two-shoes.
"Fine! But I won't let him just walk away!" she pretended to give in. She hadn't really planned to commit a murder here - that would have been such a drag…
"Can you buy some glass phials?" she said, pointing at the store nearby - J. Pippin's Potions. "In Diagon Alley, they cost three Galleons at Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment. Make sure they don't bamboozle you."
She was tired.
"Ah, and make sure they are enchanted to hold memories," she reminded him as he reluctantly walked away - he probably was still scared that she would kill Macnair.
"Obliviate."
There was no reason for Macnair to remember this encounter.
Later, she extracted some memories about crimes and the memory implicating Aubrey in Black's death and sent them anonymously from the Hogsmeade Post Office to Amelia Bones. This should be more successful than her earlier tip about Crouch, hopefully…
"So Macnair really killed my godfather…" Harry half stated, half asked while they walked back to the Shrieking Shack.
"Mmh? Oh, no! He didn't."
"What?"
"Oh, it was Aubrey - another guard at Azkaban," Ginny explained flippantly.
Harry stopped in the middle of the street and looked at her in disbelief.
"Are you telling me we fought the wrong Death Eater?" he asked with a faint voice.
"Yes? But now the Aurors have all the proof to catch both, so… all well that ends well?" she replied with humour.
"Ginny…" he sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Dates with you are far too exciting."
"I'm sorry, Harry," she said, trying to sound genuine. "Is there anything you want me to do to make it up to you?" she asked with a flirty smile.
"Ehm…" he faltered, blushing slightly, and looked away.
"But nothing from your perverted Muggle videos!" she declared firmly, while he froze.
"Ginny!"
She couldn't keep up the act and began laughing.
"You're going to be the death of me," he lamented as he followed her back to the castle.