Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 106: What Kind of Help?
When Ginny came back to her senses, she found herself lying on a couch. At first, she thought she had collapsed in Lady Rose's shop, but it soon became evident that she was in a different place.
All around her were pristine walls made of white stone, forming a circular room with an incredibly tall ceiling.
Above her were spiral staircases leading to a small library.
"Where am I?" Ginny did not have to wonder for long.
The door of this strange room opened, and Harry walked inside while holding a tray with a cup of hot tea.
"I figured you were about to wake up," Harry said, walking closer to her and leaving the tray on a coffee table next to the couch.
"Where are we?" Ginny asked.
"This is the Ivory Tower that I talked to you about," Harry said.
"The one you built? You mean the…" She took out the necklace he had given her.
"Yes, that one. It is probably one of the safest places in the country. I worked hard on its security features. It even has some of the same golems I used on your house," Harry explained.
"Why did you bring me he—... no, hold on! It's coming back to me." She looked down at the ring on her finger and panicked. "You said we were married!"
"Please, don't collapse again… we don't need to talk about that right now," Harry said.
"My mother is going to kill me!" Ginny cried. "No…" She pointed at him. "She is going to kill you!"
"We don't have to tell anyone. I mean… it wasn't exactly an official wedding or anything," Harry suggested. "I was unconscious, and you weren't really told what those were normally used for."
"You are right. This is not our fault. Mother can go kill Lady Rose instead." Ginny nodded.
"I'm not sure that's even possible." Harry would rather not think too much about Lady Rose right now.
Ginny looked at the cup. "You made me tea?"
"I did. I hope it's good. My sense of taste is very different in the real world." He had plenty of chances to polish his culinary skills while inside the Frozen World, but it is hard to get things right when everything tastes like cardboard.
"It's really good!" Ginny exclaimed.
"Thanks." Harry was glad they could move past that unpleasant business. He didn't like seeing her in distress.
"Okay, so I know where we are. But why did we come here? What was that important thing you needed to get done?" Ginny asked.
"I will show you in a moment. Why don't you finish your tea while I finish preparing things? Then you can join me on the last floor of the tower," Harry told her before leaving.
"Okay…" Ginny felt he was being unnecessarily cryptic. What could it be that he didn't want to explain? She wondered.
'He wouldn't have gone through so much trouble to suggest doing something naughty… right?' Ginny shook her head and immediately discarded the ridiculous idea.
They were in the middle of a war. The Ministry of Magic had been taken over by a maniac wizard with a magical hat. Her family home had just been attacked, and everyone was currently in hiding.
"Not a chance…" Ginny muttered.
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Feeling a lot more relaxed, Ginny made her way up the stairs until she reached the top floor. There wasn't much to look at inside the tower. It was obvious that Harry hadn't paid much attention to the decorations, but she had to admit that the few things he had placed were all made with top-quality materials.
She finally got in front of the door and opened it with anticipation. "Harry? I'm here now, so…" Ginny froze.
As soon as she poked her head inside the room, the first thing she saw was a shirtless Harry, who was currently struggling to take off his pants.
Ginny's face became red with a mixture of embarrassment and anger. "What are you doing?!"
"Mmm? I was about done with the preparations," Harry said. He pulled off his pants, leaving himself with only a pair of underwear.
"Preparations for what?! Harry… this is not the time for this." Ginny sounded outraged. "Just because we are technically… it doesn't mean that… you know… I'm not ready!"
"Oh…" Harry made an expression of realization. "I think you have misunderstood my intentions." He walked toward a large rectangular table situated at the center of his laboratory.
Different kinds of metallic tools had been neatly arranged on it. There were also several bottles containing a pitch-black liquid.
"Misunderstood?" Ginny just noticed the table and the tools lying on top. She also realized that this room was filled with all sorts of crafting devices, from tools for rune carving to large cauldrons meant for potion making.
This was far from the bedroom she had first pictured in her mind. This was a workshop.
There wasn't even a couch in here, much less a bed.
"Come closer, and I will explain what I intend to do," said Harry as he picked up one of the tools. It looked like a sharp knife. Its blade was curved inward.
Ginny had the feeling that she was not going to enjoy whatever came next.
"Okay, you can explain now… what is this all about?" she asked.
Harry showed her his forearms. "Remember these?" He pushed a bit of magic through his limbs, and runic symbols came alive, shining with a bright red light.
"I do remember the marks… of course." She had grimaced the first time that Harry told her the story of how he had carved those runes into his flesh.
"Well… I need your help this time, because I intend to make a much bigger runic array. One that will cover most of my body, and there are many places where I can't quite reach."
Ginny flinched. Her instincts had not been wrong. She was not going to enjoy this.