Sunday, June 4, 2006 – Afternoon
A gaggle of Holyhead Harpies wandered up the street. They had four hours to celebrate before leaving for Britain. Last night in Nice was another European victory for the Harpies. There would be lunch in the Café Nice; no booze allowed; no bad behaviour. It was full training again in the morning.
Ginny walked in and found a seat. She had been the second youngest ever recruited by the Harpies and was now their star chaser. She glanced at the table across the room and froze. She stopped talking and thinking for what seemed like a full minute. It was only seconds but even at the best of times your mind plays tricks on you. She saw someone familiar sitting at the table across the room. He was on his own. The table was set for more than ten.
Then she recognized him; he was different. He was taller. He was still thin. His hair was shorter. It was still messy and standing up in odd places.
He was Harry Potter.
He had disappeared, more than ten years ago. She had asked people who were supposed to know these things, ‘Where was Harry?’, ‘What is he doing?’, ‘Did he ever finish school?’. No one she asked knew anything. They didn’t know, or they did know and would not tell her.
Thanks a lot, Mum; you gigantic fruit loop.
She had to talk to him; before anyone turned up to claim him.
Ginny jumped up and rushed over to him.
“Harry! Harry Potter! Where have you been? What are you doing? Why didn’t you come back?”
He slowly stood up. His eyes showed fear. There was no flicker of recognition. He stared at her and didn’t say anything.
“Harry! Don’t you know me? I’m Ginny. Ginny Weasley, from Hogwarts.”
Harry took a breath.
‘Oh! I’m sorry Miss Weasley. I don’t remember you. I don’t remember anyone from Hogwarts. They tell me that I attended there for four years, but I don’t remember any of it.”
A hand latched onto her elbow. The grip was almost breaking her skin.
“Ginny! Come with me. Please don’t argue.”
It was Susan Bones.
Ginny turned her head to look at Susan. Then she glanced at Harry. A man had come to Harry and was motioning him to sit down and talk to him.
“Ginny! Please! Come with me.”
Ginny allowed herself to be dragged back towards the Holyhead Harpies. Ginny twisted and pulled free from Susan’s grasp. That hurt.
“What! What is it!? What is this!?” Ginny massaged her arm.
“I’m sorry Ginny. This is the first time in ten years that Harry has been able to do something like this. He is not used to crowds or people coming up to him and talking.” Susan was glancing back at Harry’s table.
The man talking to Harry nodded to Susan and gave a small wave.
“Is there something wrong? Why didn’t he know me?”
“The short story. During the third task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, Harry was severely injured. He was healed everywhere except his mind. He had a lot of brain damage. He recovered his health and slowly got his mental capacity back. He has no memories of Hogwarts and very little from before then.” Susan stared at Ginny. Susan wasn’t happy.
“Can I talk to him?” Ginny wasn’t giving up.
“I wish you wouldn’t. He doesn’t know you and getting used to people he doesn’t know takes him a long time. At first, when he regained consciousness, he couldn’t speak. He didn’t know what anyone was saying to him. He couldn’t walk, or talk, or do anything for himself. We have been working with Harry nearly every day since the Tournament. We took turns to read to him until he learned to speak. He had to learn to walk again. We helped him with every little thing that we take for granted that he had to learn to do again. For one person it would have been too much but with all of us we could spread the load and get ourselves time to have our own life. Harry is not the same as he was. He is not moody and broody. There is no sign of the old volcano temper outbursts. He is a lovely man. He doesn’t have a mean bone in his body.” Susan stopped and studied Ginny.
“Look! If you want to get to know Harry again; if you want to help him; you can do it by getting to know him again; slowly. It will take time.“ Susan looked back at Harry.
A burst of laughter came from the Harpies. They were watching Susan and Ginny with interest.
Ginny collected her thoughts. “I never wanted to leave him. I wanted to stay. I never understood the vassalage thing, but I wanted to stay with Harry. I knew it was important. I knew it was something bigger than me.”
Susan nodded. “We know. Luna told us about it. Nobody holds anything against you. We know it was all your mother’s doing. You were just a kid. We all were. You had to do what your parents wanted.”
“Will anything happen to mum because of what she did and said?” Ginny had a harder look on her face.
“She will have to settle with the higher powers eventually. They aren’t in a hurry.” Susan was concerned with where this was going.
“Good! I always hoped that she wouldn’t get away with it.”
Susan took a notebook from her shoulder bag and wrote something on a page. She tore it out and gave it to Ginny.
“If you want to, you can write to Harry at this address by muggle mail. Keep it to yourself. Once he knows more about you, he may want to write back and get to know you again. Tell him all about yourself. Put everything in that you remember about him and what he and the others did at school. We are collecting everything and putting it in a book for Harry. When he reads about his history it is like a story about someone else. Maybe, one day, his own memory will start to come back. We aren’t sure that we really want that to happen for him because so much of what was done to him was pretty bad. Remember to use muggle mail. Owls will not find him.”
Ginny had been observing Harry’s table.
“Who is the brunette fashion model sitting next to him now?”
Susan didn’t have to look. “That is Astoria Greengrass. She has been helping Harry more than any of us.”
“Susan glanced at Harry’s table. “The guy on the other side of Harry is Geoffrey Blaine, my husband. Then there is Daphne and Michael Plantier, then Tracey and Andre Plantier, then Su Li and her husband An Wang. You know Hannah and Neville Longbottom. Luna is on an expedition somewhere wild and remote.”
“Ginny! Ginny! Your drink is getting warm. Your food is getting cold.” The Harpies giggled.
“I will write to Harry. I’ll see you soon, I hope.” Ginny backed away.
--ooOOoo—
Piles of parchment were threatening to fall on the floor.
“Where did all this stuff come from?” Miriam Dawes was shuffling through several dusty piles of old essays retrieved from storage.
“Was all this Harry’s?” The question was directed at the Potter house-elf.
“Yes Professor; Master Harry never threw anything out. Here is a pile of parchments he received from Headmaster Dumbledore. Master Harry looked at them and put them away. He didn’t want anyone else to see them.”
Oh horrors, I don’t want to see them. I suppose I must.
The parchments were all dated during the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Dumbledore repeated his demands that Harry give up his connection with Lord Greengrass and the Unspeakables. Dumbledore didn’t tell Harry why he should push them away. There were repeated vague accusations dark motives driving Harry’s new allies with no proof.
“Take this lot to the incinerator.”
‘Yes Professor. Here is a packet of parchments which Master Harry wrote but never sent. ”
What is this? Why am I suddenly nervous?
Each parchment was addressed to Hermione Granger.
Oh No! I know why he didn’t send them. She burnt all his letters.
Each parchment began with the same opening lines.
I’m sorry Hermione, I wanted to explain it to you. I’m not going to make it.
Harry went on in each parchment to explain what the God’s of Olympus had done and why.
Harry explained what was happening in the Tournament and in Merlin House. As the Tournament progressed Harry became more certain that he would not survive.
There was no hint of any intention other than the wish to regain Hermione’s friendship.
Harry was convinced that he had failed to communicate the real situation to Hermione, which is why he kept on apologizing.
Miriam developed her own opinion.
First, no one would ever see these parchments.
Second, if she ever confronted Hermione Granger in this lifetime, Miriam Dawes would make Hades look like a cuddly stuffed bear.
190Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNC7tge2j9J
