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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 93: A Dangerous Trip
"Poor Harry…" Hermione was sitting next to the couch where Dumbledore had lain him down.
"Why didn't he tell us all of that?" Ron frowned. "We could have done something about it."
"Don't you get it? He didn't want to get more people in danger. That's why he tried to do everything by himself." Ginny had spent the last hour trying her best to explain what had happened to Harry.
Starting with the time-turner incident in the Ministry, the creation of V, his mental struggles, and his fight against Voldemort. It was a lot to take in, so she could only hope she had done a decent job laying it all out.
Ginny didn't reveal absolutely everything that Harry had told her. Over this past month, he had entrusted her with all his secrets, and it felt wrong to expose it all. So she tried to convey only the most crucial pieces of information to Ron and the others, so they could understand the current situation.
"Yes, trying to do everything by himself to not put us in more danger sounds like something Harry would do," Hermione said. "Spending so long inside that frozen world didn't seem to change that about him."
"You think he is going to wake up?" Ron asked. "I don't like seeing him all wrapped like this. He looks like…"
"A mummy?" Fred said.
"I brought everyone some tea and coffee." Charlie returned from the kitchen. "I don't think we are going to get much sleep tonight."
Hermione seemed to be pondering something. "From what the Headmaster told us, these bandages are not meant to help Harry in any way, just prevent him from getting worse. Which means…"
"That we need to find a real solution before it's too late," Ginny said.
"I don't know enough about the Obscurus. I only read briefly about them in an old book of magical beasts. They manifest in magical children who have suffered some serious trauma, or those who spent too long repressing their magic," Hermione commented.
"And how do you get them out? Is there a cure?" Ron asked.
Hermione turned to Charlie. "You wouldn't happen to have some books on the subject, right?" She saw him shake his head and sighed. "I wish we were at Hogwarts… I need that library."
"Wait, that's right!" Ginny suddenly stood up. "I know what we can do!"
"Well? Don't leave us hanging," said Fred.
"Harry once told me about this strange witch who owns a shop in Knockturn Alley. She is supposed to be extremely ancient and powerful. He warned me to never go near her shop," Ginny explained.
"And that is your solution?" Ron looked at her as if she were crazy.
"Who is this witch?" George asked.
"Yeah, we know about a few merchants there," added Fred.
"Mmm…" Ginny needed a moment to recall the name. "Lady Rose."
"Never heard of her. You?" George glanced at his twin.
"Me neither," Fred responded.
"Knockturn Alley is huge, even bigger than Diagon Alley. It's not surprising that you haven't heard of her if her shop is deep into the alley…" Charlie said.
"I know where the shop is. More or less…" Ginny added.
"Ginny, what makes you think that this witch would know what to do with Harry?" Hermione asked. "If even Dumbledore is having a hard time finding a solution…"
"From what Harry told me, she could be many times older than the Headmaster. She also buys and sells information and seems to know a lot. I think that if there is someone who could know what to do with Harry… It's her."
"Mmm… I suppose we don't lose anything by asking," Hermione finally said.
"Are you crazy? You want to go to Knockturn Alley now? It's almost three in the morning," Ron exclaimed. "It's already dangerous to go there during the day. I bet it's filled with criminals at this hour."
"Perhaps it would be best if we wait until our parents return from their meeting. Then we can discuss this with them," Charlie suggested.
Ginny glanced at him. "You really think Mum would let us take Harry into Knockturn Alley? To see a witch who lives there? Besides… we may not have a lot of time."
"What are you talking about?" Ron asked.
"Voldemort is now in control of the magical hat," Ginny said. "With V, the Dark Lord is going to be unstoppable. He will eventually come here for us, and those wards will not be enough… not for him."
"She is not wrong," Hermione said. "If that hat can do half of what she told us, and now it is in the hands of You-Know-Who…" She felt a cold shiver run down her back. "We need Harry awake and ready to fight."
"Urgg… fine." Ron relented. "How do we get there? The Floo is disconnected, and Harry couldn't use it anyway."
"The Knight Bus can take us to the alley, but…" Hermione was considering their options.
"No, there is a better way," said George.
"We can go directly to Knockturn Alley by broom. It would take us less than an hour to arrive," Fred added.
"We only have three brooms in the shed," Ron said.
"Four," Ginny corrected him. "Harry gave him his Firebolt."
"That's not going to be enough for everyone," George said.
"It is, if we share." Fred shrugged.
"I hate flying on a broom…" Hermione groaned.
"You can fly with me," said Ron.
All eyes turned to him.
"I mean… we have to share, right?" Ron looked a bit embarrassed.
"For what it's worth, I still think this is a bad idea," said Charlie.
"You are the eldest brother here. Are you going to let us go by ourselves?" Ginny asked.
"Of course not!" Charlie stood up. "I'll carry Harry. Let's go get those brooms."
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