�Aw, bloody hell, Ron. You can�t do it like that.�

Ron glared at George and took the flowers he�d just bought, out of his hands. �And why not? Mum says-�

�Taking romantic advice from Mum now, are we? That seems right, since she hasn�t been properly romanced in forty...�

�Fifty years, more like. Aw, come on, little Ronnie. Do you want the girl to say yes or no?�

Ron glared at Fred. �As for your information, Mum has had quite a bit of romance that you two don�t even know about...�

Ron was interrupted by one of the medi-witches walking by. It was the third time in the last hour the girl had walked by them and each time she had looked at George as though he had just won her a basket of Honeydukes finest chocolates. Ron watched as George would casually glance in her direction and then run his hand nervously through his hair, pretending that he hadn�t noticed her at all. And he was here taking advice from the loveless twins? Right.

�Look you two, maybe if you ever get a girl between you, we�ll talk. But as it is, since I�ve not only had a girl for six years but lived with her as well, I think I know more than the both of you put together.�

Fred and George exchanged glances. �Whoa ho ho. Down there, Ron. No need to get you hair on end. We just want to make sure...�

�That Hermione actually says yes, but hey, if you think you�ve got it all worked out, go to it. Just don�t come whining to us if she finally wakes up and realizes what a git you are,� Fred held his head up high and brushed past him.

George grinned cheekily and took one more glance at the flowers. �You know she�s allergic to those white ones, don�t you? What a beautiful time to propose, right in the middle of her sneezing and scratching her eyes out. Indeed, what a knowledgeable romantic you are, little brother.�

Ron closed his eyes and wished them away. He heard them laughing to themselves and watched as they wandered down the hallway, in the same direction the medi-witch had gone. Fred was saying something about seeing if she had any friends...

Ron took a deep breath and steadied himself. He could do this. He had her parent�s permission; his mum�s beaming vote of confidence and most importantly he had the ring. At least he thought he did.

Ron put a hand to his robe pocket and felt for the box, only to realize it wasn�t there. With a panic he moved his hand to his other pocket... and sighed in relief as he felt the outline of the ring�s case. He�d looked at so many rings today he wasn�t sure he had chosen the right one. It wasn�t a diamond mine or even a rare piece of jewelry, but it was the best that he could do. Feeling as though he�d just been on the receiving end of a Blast Ended Skrewt attack, Ron shook his head and went into her room.

She was reading, of course. Browsing through the book the healer had given her, Modern Herbs or some such thing. Leave it to Hermione to turn a stay in the hospital into a learning experience. She glanced up when he entered and her eyes brightened.

�Ron! Are those for me? They�re lovely. I was wondering when you�d be back. Your Mum told me you had some errands to run? Did you hear anything from work? I�ve been dying to know what happened with the Fagan trial, it took place this morning-�

Hermione stopped and looked at him. �Ron? Are you okay?�

Ron remembered to breathe and then exhaled. Moving numbly around, he placed the flowers on a table across the room, mindful of her allergies.

Hermione gave him a strange look. �Well, why on earth are you sticking them way in a corner? I can barely see them from there. Put them closer to me,� Hermione nodded to the desk that sat by her bed.

Ron shook his head. �No, you�re allergic to the white ones. Can�t have you sneezing...�

Hermione laughed. �Well, who ever told you that? I love Myrtle flowers. Come on then, over here.�

Ron mentally kicked himself for ever listening to George about anything. But then he frowned. Hadn�t that just been another example of how much he didn�t know his own girlfriend?

Hermione smiled at the flowers as he moved them and then looked expectantly at him. Ron shifted nervously on his feet, his hand moving into his pocket.

�Er...um... what... what�s wrong?� he asked her.

�The question about work... did you find out anything about the hearing?�

Ron shook his head. He wondered if he could just fling the box at her and then run out. He reckoned that wasn�t such a romantic thing to do.

Hermione sighed. �Oh well, thanks to this little emergency of ours I didn�t even get to submit a protest. I�m sure they�ve lifted the ban on his magical powers by now. He�s probably out terrorizing the world at large. I swear, I hope Donald Fagan doesn�t take over for Amelia Bones, I�d like to tell him a thing or...�

�Hermionewillyoumarrryme?�

Hermione stopped and looked at him, her eyes widening a little bit. She laughed. �I�m sorry... it must be this potion they have me taking, but I could have sworn I just heard you-�

Ron took a deep breath and forced his voice to come out slower. �Marry me.�

Hermione�s mouth hung open and she looked at him, concerned. �Ron, are you feeling alright?�

Looking away in exasperation, Ron shuffled his feet. �Yes. I�m fine. Bloody wonderful, except I�m nervous as all get out and I�ve asked you twice now and you don�t seem to want to answer and-�

�Are you really asking me to marry you? I mean... you can�t be serious, can you?�

Ron nodded. He crossed over to her bed and took her hand. �I know I�m not the most romantic of sorts, but... Hermione... I love you. I don�t know why I haven�t asked you this before now, but marry me. I promise I will spend the rest of my life making you feel special. And loved. And beautiful.�

Hermione�s eyes softened and she petted his hand. �Oh Ron. You�re just upset, because of what happened. It�s okay.�

Ron frowned. �What do you mean, it�s okay?�

�It�s okay if you felt you had to do this, but really... I think our life is fine just the way it is, isn�t it? We�ve never even discussed marriage-�

�Yeah, that�s right! Why is that? I didn�t even know what... sort of herb you had to take. I just took everything for granted. Well, not anymore. Here...� Ron reached into his robe and pulled out the little red box that held his future. He placed it into her palm and looked at her.

Hermione blinked at it and looked into his eyes to make sure he wasn�t joking. Shaking her head, she picked up the box and traced her finger over the writing that moved across the top of it.

�Why it�s French...� she said as she paused, reading. �Je t�aime a jamais. A jamais, je t�aime. That means-�

�That I love you forevermore. Forevermore, I love you,� Ron said softly. Hermione met his eyes in wonder. He watched as she opened the box with a shaky hand. A small cloud of red and gold came out and hovered over the ring. They both watched as the cloud formed a heart. In gold writing, Hermione�s name appeared, followed by Ron�s. Hermione gasped in amazement and it dissipated into stars and comets, twirling higher and higher above them. They watched as it floated upwards and then burst into a million falling sparks. Hermione looked back down at the ring finally and placed her hand on her chest.

�Oh... Ron... it�s... it�s...�

�Not much, I know, but when I saw it, I thought of you-�

Hermione took the ring out the box and held it up. �Why it�s... it�s white gold and the stone, it�s...�

�Wishing Opal. And the inlaid scroll around it and the base, that�s done in rose quartz, I think. The shopkeeper told me it represented love. And she told me it had special properties...look,� Ron picked up her other hand and slipped the ring over her finger. He screwed up his face in concentration and recited from memory. �When love is new, it goes on almost clear, with only hints of dark pink here and there. And as love grows the connection is deepened and the color becomes more constant. The darker the color around the opal, the deeper the love. Or so they say-� Ron opened his eyes and stared in disbelief as the ring changed from pink to solid dark red. He looked up and saw that Hermione was crying.

�Er... Hermione? Are you alright?�

She wiped at her eyes and then nodded.

Ron bit his lip. �Well, do you like it? Is it... is it nice enough? I wish I could have gotten you something more worthy of-�

Hermione pulled him forward and kissed him, deeply. She pulled back from him and smiled. �As far as I�m concerned it�s the most beautiful ring, ever. And yes, I will marry you Ronald Weasley.�

Ron blinked to make sure he had heard her right. As she kissed him again, he smiled and pulled away from her. Hermione giggled and nodded her head.

Ron felt as though he had just single-handedly captured the snitch, blocked all the Quaffles and won the Quidditch World Cup.

Ginny was standing in the middle of Winifred Eaton�s bedroom. They�d gone to the small flat she had called home to see if Ginny could pick anything up. Although her father was an important Ministry worker, Winifred had opted to pay her own way and live on her own. In that regard, the flat was small and not very nice, but she had tried to do the best she could. Working as a secretary for Obscurus Books could not pay that well, Ginny knew, but Winifred had tried to make up with style and flare what she lacked in quality.

But still, it was a girly room, full of pink flowers and dolls. Winifred�s mother had said that her daughter loved to collect Muggle dolls, and she certainly had enough of them. She�d even made a couple of them herself. Ginny ran her hand over one in particular that seemed to be a favorite- a tall strawberry blonde with bright eyes. She was dressed in an old-fashioned type frock, complete with apron and small white gloves. Ginny could tell that Winifred had sown a small batch of wildflowers onto the doll�s apron by hand. Judging by the picture she had been shown of Winifred, this one looked most like the girl herself.

Ginny could hear murmuring going on outside and closed the door to block it out. Harry and Dex were talking to the Eaton�s about the last time they�d seen or heard from their daughter.

Ginny shook her head. She was getting absolutely nothing from this room. Whatever had happened to Winifred had not happened in this room, thank goodness. Ginny noticed a book leaning against the bedside table and picked it up, realizing it was a diary. She used her wand to unlock it and then peeked inside. She felt a bit bad for reading the girl�s private thoughts, but maybe something would trigger some sort of thought or feeling inside her.

There was short knock on the door and Harry came into the room. Ginny looked up from the diary and offered him a small smile.

�Any luck?�

Ginny shook her head. �No... this room is pretty cold, as far as picking anything up goes. I can tell you she hasn�t been here in at least a week though.�

�Really?� Harry looked around and noticed the dolls. He walked over to them, frowning.

Ginny watched him and had to remind herself not to concentrate on every little move he made.

�That strawberry blonde was her favorite. She put a lot of love into her when she made her.�

Harry looked at the doll she meant and touched the hair. �This doll could look like you, if your hair were lighter. She�s even got brown eyes.�

Ginny nodded. �Winifred is a redhead too. Reckon she thought she�d immortalize our celebrated tresses a bit.�

Harry turned and smiled at her and Ginny felt her stomach tighten. Concentrate on work, please, she told herself. Taking a deep breath she continued.

�Did her parents have anything else to say?�

�No. Well, not to me, anyway. I think Dex is getting them to open up a bit more. They kept staring at my forehead. Mrs. Eaton kept saying, �I wonder where it�s gone...� over and over again. I had to make myself scarce for awhile.�

Ginny nodded. She knew what It referred to. �Well, no worries. Dex is really good with questions. He has a way of getting you to talk about stuff when you don�t realize what you�re doing.�

�Yeah,� Harry said dryly, �I may have noticed that.�

Ginny met his eyes and smiled. �I�m sorry, you know.�

�About what?�

�Before. Jumping on you. Snapping your head off,� she paused. �Pulling away you.�

�Well, you had a right to be angry, I did come in there to take over your department...�

�No, I meant last night... yesterday evening, at the hospital, when you asked me about Dex. I made it seem as though you were selfish for asking about him. And then I pulled away from you without explaining myself. I imagine your little talk with him did cause some worry. Dex can be quite... well, direct.�

Harry shrugged in a non-committal way and went back to looking at Winifred�s dolls.

�Harry.�

�What?�

�Please tell me you don�t still think... I mean... Dex is handsome and smart and I�ve worked with him a long time-�

�Yeah. I know.�

Ginny smiled. �But after what just happened in my office... you can�t honestly believe there�s anyone else in my heart besides you, can you?�

Harry looked at her. �Well, no, but... I wondered. Dex is all those things you said and well... I�m just me, right?�

Ginny tilted her head and held out her hand to him. He walked over to the bed and took it. Just touching him again made her entire body heat up.

�You�re such a silly duck, Harry.�

Harry frowned. �Gee, thanks, Gin-�

�If you think for one second that Dex could even hold a candle to you, then you have not been paying attention. I�ve been attracted to Dex, sure...� she smiled when she saw him frown. �But I�ve only ever liked the things about him that reminded me of... well, you, Harry. Actually, you should consider that a blessing. It�s because of that horrible character trait of his that I never thought of dating him seriously,� she said playfully, hoping to break his mood.

Harry looked down at their hands. �Well, he�s not really like me, is he? He�s never hurt you. That�s what he said to me and he�s right, he never has-�

�Harry,� Ginny said smiling, �to quote my ever surprising and brilliant brother, love isn�t about not getting hurt. You should know that better than anyone.�

Harry met her eyes again and all Ginny wanted to do was to hold him and tell him every last secret in her heart. That she was his for the taking and that she always had been. That it scared her a little bit to think of what that meant. That she could lose herself in those eyes of his and she didn�t think she�d care much either way. She could tell him how she, Ginny Weasley, always known for being proud and strong on the outside, felt about as weak as a broken quill on the inside, every time he looked at her. Instead, she kissed him gently.

�I�m not sure that�s a good thing to do while we�re in such proximity to a bed, Ginny,� Harry said after a moment, his voice low.

Ginny blushed and felt a shiver pass through her. She released his hand. �Nor is it probably good to do while I�m supposed to be working either. Ah Merlin! Really, I�m never going to get anything good while you�re around-�

Ginny�s voice broke away as she spotted a corner of something sticking out from under Winifred�s bed.

Harry continued her train of thought. �Yeah, can you imagine me telling Amelia Bones that while we were on the job, me, her top Auror and you, her top seer just couldn�t keep-� Harry looked down and frowned in the direction she was staring. �What is it?�

�I don�t know... something about that seems odd. Reach down there and see if you can tell what it is.�

Harry squatted down and lifted up the lace bed cloth to see if he could get the item under it. As he bent his head down, Ginny got a better view of the item and couldn�t believe it. She rested her hand on his shoulder.

�Harry! I think know what that is... pull it up so I can really see it.�

Harry did as she said and Ginny gasped. It was a small painting. In fact, it was very much like one of the ones she had seen at Matilda Bowering�s. She�d almost swear it was by the same artist... except... something about the scene was off. There were no beautiful people for one thing. And something about the colors...

�Wow... this is really good. Do you suppose Winifred painted it herself? She�s wasting her time on dolls-� Harry looked up at her as she reached out and touched the painting. �Ginny? What�s wrong... Ginny!�

Ginny felt herself being pulled into the painting. Everything around her, the room, Harry, even her own body was gone and all she saw were the swirling colors of the painting. Down and down she fell until she was covered with them. She could hear moaning and someone was crying. She tried to look around, to get her bearings, but the images just flowed like water around her. Suddenly she felt an icy sensation touch her and a dark shape entered the frame and she was suddenly, inexplicably scared. She knew why he had come... she knew what he wanted...

With a jolt, Ginny felt herself jerked back and she found herself staring up into Harry�s eyes. She had landed on the floor. She blinked once and tried to focus but her mind was still in the place she had just gone. She watched Harry�s mouth form words at her and she knew he was speaking to her but she couldn�t hear. She watched as he aimed his wand at her and felt the warming sensation of the spell embrace her and caress her. She�d never noticed before how when you cast a good spell, part of yourself went into it. She could feel whatever it was that made Harry... well, Harry, all around her. The spell kissed her and shimmered around her. She smiled and felt him pulling her up. Another pair of hands were on her too and she thought she saw Dex by the door and then suddenly she was on something light and fluffy and she knew it must be the bed.

Harry was going to try to revive her again when she held up her hand. The world came screaming back to her.

�Ginny, are you okay? You went as cold as ice just then! Your eyes got all... you looked dead. And then you just fell to the ground... say something, please!�

Ginny swallowed and realized her throat was dry. She tried to shake her head.

�Oh, poor thing, she looks as though she�s had a dreadful fright,� Mrs. Eaton said from the doorway next to Dex.

�What do you mean I went as cold as ice? Didn�t I disappear into the painting?�

Harry looked relieved to hear her voice and shook his head. �No... you just sort of... well... froze. And your skin it went from warm to cold and your eyes...I�ve never seen anyone�s eyes look...�

Dex interrupted. �She had a vision when she touched that painting. Didn�t you Weasley?�

Ginny nodded and forced her heart to calm. She reached out and took her small stone out of its pouch. As soon as she made contact with it she felt better. She glanced up at Dex.

�It was like the Darby case, but about a million times worse.�

Dex nodded and looked at Harry a bit smugly. �She does that sometimes, when she gets a strong sense from something. It must have been that painting. It must have meant something to Winifred.�

Harry glanced down at the painting he had dropped and picked it up again. Winifred�s parents looked at it as well.

Mr. Eaton cleared his throat. �Well, I don�t know where Winnie got that, but she sure as Merlin didn�t paint it. The girl can�t paint to save her life. Gets it from my side of the family, sad to say. Small fingers, hard to hold a brush-� He held up his hand, indicating how stubby his fingers were.

Mrs. Eaton clucked her tongue at her husband. �Well, never mind about that. But I�m quite sure I�ve never even seen this painting. Where do you find it?�

�Under the bed. Ginny found it actually. It�s very good whatever it is, although the paint is a little... odd.�

�Let me see it again, Harry.�

Harry shook his head. �Oh no, you�re not going through that again. You just lie there and rest.�

�Let me just look at it then, hold it out in front of me.�

Looking as though he considered this a bad idea, he did as she requested. For the first time Ginny got a good look at the painting. It was an odd choice for a painting; it appeared to be of an old manor house with many windows, all of them boarded shut even though the house showed no signs of decline. Something about it looked familiar and yet... not familiar. Almost as though Ginny had seen a picture of it standing somewhere for real. The image drifted through her memory, trying to find a reference point, but nothing came. Like the paintings she had seen at Bowering�s, the colors were vibrant and almost too much to bear. But despite that fact, the artist was good and the house seemed to float right off the canvas in front of you. Ginny noticed that one of the windows on the top floor was painted bright red. She frowned.

�Harry, do me a favor, and touch that red window there.�

Harry looked down at it in confusion. �It does stand out, doesn�t it? It�s almost as though-�

Harry reached around and put his finger lightly on the window and then pulled it away again. �That�s odd. It�s still wet. But... why isn�t the rest of the painting like that?�

Dex spoke from beside the bed. �Look at your finger, Harry. That�s not paint... I think it�s blood.�

�I have to touch the painting again,� Ginny said suddenly.

Harry looked at her. �Oh no you don�t. I�m the Auror on duty here and you are not putting yourself into harms way. I won�t have you... well, I won�t have you going through that again. So-� Harry paused and shook his head stubbornly when he saw her reaching out for the painting, �You can put that thought right out of your mind, Ginny Weasley. You�re not getting near this thing.�

�Harry! I think if I touch it again, I�ll be able to find her.�

Winifred�s parents looked at each other when she said this and then hopefully back at her. Ginny made up her mind.

�Harry, give me that painting.�

�No.�

�Harry! This could save her life!�

Harry narrowed his eyes and then mindful of Winifred�s parents staring at him, he tried a different tack. �What if you do touch it and you black out again and no one can wake you? What good would knowing anything do you then? We�d still be in the dark and you�d be worse off than before!�

Ginny knew he didn�t want her to put herself at risk, but she had to touch the painting again. She just knew that when she did, she�d know exactly what had happened to Winifred Eaton.

�Harry, look, I can�t promise anything to be foolproof, but I think if I ground myself in the right way, I�ll be able to handle it. It caught me unaware last time, that�s all. The minute I start to... go cold again, just yank the painting out of my hands... okay?�

No one said anything for a moment and then Mrs. Eaton touched Harry�s arm. �Oh do let her try again. I... I�d really like my daughter back.�

Harry turned and comforted her but shook his head at Ginny. �Fine. But I�m warning you, as soon as I notice a change in you, I�m taking it out of your hands faster than you can say Chocolate Frogs. And,� Harry said as he nodded at her hand, �I�m holding on to you. No disputes.�

Harry moved and sat down on the bed in front of her and kept the painting balanced on his knee. He took her hand into his and glared at her. Ginny knew better than to argue with a Gryffindor when he had his mind set. Especially the particular one in front of her.

�Fine. Actually, that�s what I had in mind. Now give me just a moment. Everyone be quiet for me?�

Dex and the Eaton's stepped back from the bed and went quiet. Harry pursed his lips and shook his head at her. Ginny rolled her eyes and tried to block out his stubbornness. Closing her eyes, she picked up her stone once more and started to deepen her breathing. She felt Harry�s hand tighten over hers and she smiled to herself. He�s so protective.

After a little while, Harry�s breathing slowed as well and she knew that she had calmed him down. Unlike before, when Harry�s touch had seemed to thrash her about in the wind, this time she felt safe and protected. But it was different then what she felt when she touched Neville. With Neville that was all there was... with Harry... well, with Harry there were possibilities.

Reminding herself to tell him that later, Ginny smiled and then used her mind�s eye to go into the place inside her where it was just her and her gift. No one else was allowed in. She saw it then, thanks to her many years of meditating with Miracroix, and she knew at once that it was ready to work for her.

Ginny let the stone fall from her hand into her lap. She reached out and felt the rough edge of the canvas under her fingers. With a determined air she moved her fingers over it until she touched the place where she knew the blood had been. The reaction was immediate.

Ginny saw her. She saw the way she was lying there, for the entire world to see. Her body was harsh and waxen in the light of the evening. Her skin seemed to glow and Ginny couldn�t tell if it were just because her power was reaching out to the girl or if it was because something had been done to her. Frowning, she pushed forward again and noticed her hair fanned out behind her and suddenly she knew why Winifred seemed to be glowing. He had put a protection spell over her to keep her from being found. The spell he had used was responding to Ginny�s power pushing forward.

�She�s... near the water... the docks. Where the boats come in. She�s... in ... I can�t... no, it�s near a part of... it�s surrounded by Muggles. He�s... he�s hidden her from them with a spell. She�s not moving... he�s done something to her, some sort of-�

Ginny was interrupted by the sound of something breaking and she opened her eyes in reaction. The image she had been seeing faded from her eyes. She growled at Dex.

�Dex!�

Dex smiled apologetically at her. �Sorry, I seemed to have backed into one of these bloody dolls.�

Harry looked at him and then back at her. �Are you...?�

Ginny nodded grimly. �I�m alright. Thanks to the break in concentration though I lost whatever images the sicko who took her had left behind. It�s gone...� Ginny took the painting from him and shook her head. �Sometimes that happens. I just get whispers of things, like memories or pictures that move backwards. Once they play, they�re done.�

�But you saw her? You saw our Winifred? She�s okay? Where is she? Can we go there?� asked Mr. Eaton.

Before Ginny could answer, Dex was pushing the Eaton�s out the door. Probably to make up for being such a clumsy git. �Let her sort through what she just saw. Let�s go into the kitchen and get a drink.�

Amid the protests of the Eaton�s, Ginny watched as he led them out of the bedroom. Harry got up and closed the door after them. He ran a hand through his hair.

�Well, what do we do now?�

Ginny stood up, shaky. �We go get her, before her parents know we�ve gone.�

Harry looked at her. �But... why?�

�Because she�s in bad shape Harry. She�s naked for one thing and he�s... he�s done things to her. Her parents don�t need to see that.�

�Is she still alive though?�

Ginny shook her head. �I don�t know... I couldn�t tell. I think there�s some sort of spell around her or... I don�t know. It was there but then when my concentration was broken, it was gone.�

�Well, I guess we�d better go. Should I go to St. Mungo�s and have a medi-witch meet us somewhere?�

�I suppose you�d better. I�ll go to the Ministry and arrange to get a car.�

When Harry looked at her, she explained. �I don�t know where to Apparate to at this point. Just somewhere near the river. We could be out all night.�

�Then I�ll meet you in the Atrium in say.. ten minutes?�

Ginny nodded and with a pop! Harry disappeared.

Ginny looked down at the painting and frowned. There was something about this whole thing that was definitely very strange.

�I�ll take that if you want.�

Ginny startled and looked up at Dex. She hadn�t heard the door open. He smiled. �Sorry. I can�t seem to do anything right these days...� his voiced trailed off and he frowned. �You�re going out with him to find her, aren�t you?�

Ginny nodded.

�Seems I�ve been replaced,� Dex flashed her a brief smile. �I�ll keep her parents entertained then. Want me to take that back to the office?�

Ginny knew it was irrational to hang on to it but... she shook her head. She was being silly.

�Yeah, if you would. I�ve got to arrange for a car. See if I can figure out where I saw her at.�

Dex nodded and looked sheepish. �I�m sorry Ginny, for... well, for everything. I�ve been a bit of a git. Tell Harry I�m not usually so all mouth and no trousers. I didn�t mean to get in his face about you. I should have asked you to go out with me a long time ago.�

�I�m not sure you would have had much a chance to begin with, Dex. I�m finally realizing...� she paused and shook her head. How to explain her and Harry? �See Harry and I... we�re...�

�Meant to be together? Yeah. I get that. Now. I never got that with Longbottom... I reckoned that�s why I got lulled into a sense of complacency. Thought I had all the time in the world to let you know. Little did I know you�d already been spoken for.�

Ginny turned pink under his gaze and tried to make a joke.

�Well, the night is still young... me and Harry could decide to be mad at each other again for something.�

�Yeah. Right,� Dex said, taking the painting from her. �As if you�d let your natural born tendency to be pig headed stop you from being happy. Well, go to it. You two go save the world. I�ll baby-sit her parents.�

Ginny frowned at him. �He�s not replacing you Dex. Not as a work partner. It�s just...�

�He�s Harry Potter. He saved the world. Who wouldn�t want that as back up?�

Ginny shook her head. She shrugged her shoulders and tried to smile at him. He was right, really. Why try to lie about it?

�Your non-answer is all the proof I needed,� Dex said with a strange smile. �Get on with it then. Hurry back so I can let the Eaton�s know.� After giving her one last look, he closed the door behind him.

Ginny looked around the small bedroom and found herself hoping that she�d have good news to report and that Winifred Eaton wasn�t as abused as she seemed.