Ginny was rather apprehensive as Fred and George picked her up from the Burrow; the three of them Flooed to the twin's shop in Diagon Alley, and made their way over to Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlor. Ginny wasn't quite sure what to make of it as her brothers hadn't said a word since picking her up. She had tried to ask, but they had both been tight-lipped. When they arrived, the twins quickly found the table they'd been looking for, and sat down, practically dragging Ginny along.
To her surprise, they had sat down across from Neville, who was looking at the twins in confusion, then looked at her with an unreadable expression. Ginny couldn't really meet Neville's eyes, knowing that he was one of Harry's supporters, as well. Finally, the awkward silence was broken by the boy they had come to meet.
"So, why did you bring her here? You only said that you had to talk to me," Neville asked neutrally, looking at Fred and George.
It was Fred who answered, placing an arm around Ginny's shoulders protectively. "A few things changed at the Order meeting last night. Looks like quite a few people finally got it into their thick skulls that Harry is on our side in this. Ginny here gave Mom quite a talking to."
"You should've seen it," George added, "it was bloody brilliant!"
At Neville's confused look, Fred leaned in close, though it was unnecessary - the nearest occupied table was a few yards away, filled with four children who were chattering about this and that excitedly. "Look, Nev, Ginny realizes she made a mistake in listening to the drivel Mom's been spewing about Harry, and she's feeling real bad about it. We were wondering if you could, y'know, arrange something."
"I don't know," Neville looked at the twins dubiously. "She was rather vocal in the crusade against Harry. Are you sure that it'd be a good idea?"
Before either of the twins could answer, Ginny had stood, her chair scraping loudly against the ground, and left with a muttered excuse that she had to go to the bathroom. Neither of the three boys missed the tears that she was desperately trying to hold back. They watched as she slid through the door into the parlor, and Fred turned back to look at Neville. "She made a mistake, Nev. She's young, and Mom… well, she can be a real harpy when she's dead set on something. We can't understand it, ourselves, why she'd turn on Harry so quickly, but think about it. She's been pulling every trick in the book to convince everyone she meets of Harry's guilt."
"That's a lot of pressure," George added. "Especially since Mom refuses to talk to the neighbours ever since she found out that they don't believe Harry's guilty. Ginny is afraid that Mom would disown her, or something like that, as unlikely as it would be. But you've got to look at it from her perspective. She was scared and unsure of what to believe, and Mom was there with all the right words."
"I see…" Neville looked torn as he glanced between the twins and the door to the ice cream shop. "You think talking to Harry would help?"
"She almost had a complete breakdown last night, mate. It's really been eating her up, now that she realizes that everyone's been too quick to condemn Harry," Fred informed him.
"And I think it'd do Harry a world of good, too," George added. "I mean, he's got a wife and a kingdom to run now, but maybe some closure with the old crowd would be a good idea. It worked out with Hermione, didn't it?"
"That's a good point," Neville conceded. He'd seen how much more at ease Harry was around other people, after Hermione had gotten him to let her stay, and after Bella had convinced him to give her a second chance - a real chance, not the instant forgiveness Harry had been so quick to mete out without trying to work through the tension between them. And Harry and Ginny had been rather close, as well, during his last year at Hogwarts. "What do you suggest?" he finally asked.
Fred and George looked at each other briefly, before George replied. "We were thinking maybe we could take her to Nair'i'caix to see Harry. Actually, take her to see Bellatrix first - she seems much better at dealing with people that are coming to beg Harry for forgiveness than he is. See what she thinks, and then she can work on Harry until he agrees to see Ginny."
"As much as I like springing surprises on Harry, I don't think just popping in with Ginny is a good idea, so I agree with that," Neville agreed. He eyed the twins with a suspicious look, and grinned. "Are you sure you aren't just using that as an excuse to get a grand tour of the castle?"
"Oh gosh darn, there goes our secret plan. Brother dearest, he found us out," Fred bemoaned theatrically, placing his hands over his heart.
"Well," George shrugged, "there's always Plan B."
The three boys fell silent for a while, until Neville looked at the ice cream parlor with a worried expression. "Don't you two think you should go look for her? Ginny's been gone for a while."
"We're not going into the girl's bathroom," George protested.
"But we'll knock and see if she's doing all right," Fred finished, and the two got up and left. Neville's worry turned out to be unfounded, as the twins returned a few minutes later with their sister, and Neville could see the tracks left by tears she must've hastily wiped away when her brothers had come to get her. Ginny sat down in front of Neville with a sheepish expression, her brothers flanking her on either side.
"Sorry I ran off like that," she said quietly, not making eye contact. "I deserved that, though. I said some horrible things to Harry, and I understand if you're mad at me."
Neville sighed heavily - he somewhat understood what Ginny had been going through, but he couldn't help but feel a bit of resentment towards everyone who had abandoned Harry. In a sense, Neville understood all too well what it had done to his friend; after all, he had been in a similar situation during his first few years at Hogwarts. He'd been the clumsy one, with very little magical aptitude. He'd been the one who always lost stuff or forgot stuff, which had ultimately left him feeling very much alone, because everyone else always swarmed around the popular people. His gran had been the only one he'd ever called family… but that had changed when Harry had come along. Harry, who had also lost his parents; Harry, who had also spent his whole life as an outcast, and the two had become friends, and Neville liked to think he'd become a better person because of it.
If Neville was brutally honest, then aside from his grandmother, Harry was the only real family he had. Sure, Hermione and Ron were friends, but only Harry ever really bothered to get to know Neville beyond superficialities. Only Harry really knew that Neville was a leader, and only needed the encouragement to become someone others would follow without hesitation. When Neville tried to imagine what he would have felt if Harry had turned his back on him, he could only shudder, and hope that he would have the same strength as Harry to survive it, because it would've been a terrible blow.
"Ginny…" Neville began, unsure of what exactly to tell the younger girl.
"You don't have to pretend you don't hate me," the redheaded witch took it from him. "You've always been honest with me, Neville, and I understand if you believe we don't deserve Harry's forgiveness. I don't believe I deserve it. But I need to talk to him, I need to let him know that at least some of us have realized what big of a screw-up we've made." Her resolve hardened, and she sat up with her back straight, staring at Neville as if to dare him to disagree. "And I need to tell him that whatever he wants me to do, I'll do. I will do everything I can to help him end this war, whether he likes it or not, because that's the only way I can even begin to forgive myself."
Neville shook his head. "No, Ginny, I don't hate you. I… resent you, for turning your back on Harry. The same goes for everyone who should have known Harry, but betrayed him, anyway." His expression softened somewhat when he noticed Ginny taking it like a proverbial man, and nodding in agreement. "But I can understand why you did it, why you believed everyone else over Harry, even when I can't understand why the others did. Public opinion is a powerful thing, and you're young - heck, we're all young, but you look up to your mother for guidance, and she-"
"Can be rather convincing," George chimed in.
Neville nodded. "Right. On the plus side, unlike everyone else, you realized you made a mistake and are willing to make up for it. The only question that remains is this: will having you around and pressing your self-inflicted penance on Harry actually hurt him more or less than just cutting all ties with you?"
"I don't know," Ginny whispered, hanging her head. That was the one thing she hadn't worked out, and despite Fred and George's best assurances that finding closure would be the best thing for both her and Harry, she wasn't yet totally convinced.
"But I think at least talking wouldn't hurt," Neville concluded with a small smile. He reckoned that if he was in Harry's shoes, he would have liked to know that other people believed in him, even if he didn't need them anymore. Closure with the past was something he figured everyone needed - even if they didn't like to admit it.
"So-"
"I think something can be arranged. Give me a few days to run it by a few people, and we'll see," Neville concluded with a small smile. He got the feeling that things were looking up.
"So that's your plan?" Snape mulled over the information he, Remus, and Moody had been given as Harry informed them of his war council with Xerina and Hiscophney the previous day.
"That Count has a point," Moody grumbled. "You shouldn't let your guard down just in the hopes of some magical weapon that will defeat Voldemort and his troops for you."
"But if Voldemort really did take steps to ensure that his soul is immortal, then how are we going to kill him?" Remus asked.
"It's not even sure that he did." Snape glanced at Moody. "As far as I know, he has not yet let anything slip about his alchemical and transformational magicks working. And he doesn't strike me as the type who wouldn't not boast about such an achievement. For all we know, he's perfectly mortal."
"The way he was perfectly mortal when he was hit by a killing curse and ended up floating around as a spirit for the next ten years?" Remus snorted.
The Potions master glared at that comment. "The circumstances are completely different this time. However, I do agree with the Minister's assessment that you shouldn't be dueling Voldemort, Potter. While I admit that you did reasonably well the last time you faced him," and all present could see the reluctance with which Snape ground that out, "you are nowhere near his level of skill. Or raw power. He's had decades to study ancient lore and undergo strengthening rituals, and while he was weakened by his physical body dying, he has regained most of his strength since his rebirth."
"I say we lay a trap and goad him into dueling Potter," Moody suggested, "and when he does, we spring everything we've got at him. Hide a few dozen Unspeakables under invisibility cloaks, and have them use the nastiest curses they can think of."
"You were thinking of doing something like that, right, Harry?" Remus asked worriedly. "When you said you were planning into forcing Voldemort to attack the Ministry to make him duel you?"
"Of course," Harry rolled his eyes. "What do you think I am, Moony, daft? I know Voldemort doesn't play fair, so even if we can force him to attack the Ministry, he's going to go for an all-out assault. He'll likely bring everything he's got. And that's what I'm counting on," the teenager finished with a feral grin.
"A good idea," Moody concurred. "If you just took down Voldemort alone, we'd spent years hunting down his remaining allies. This way, we can defeat them all in one go."
Harry nodded. "Also, I've got about four thousand troops in reinforcements, from soldiers to battlemages and sorcerers. Eight entire contingents of battle-ready soldiers, just waiting to be sprung on Voldemort's army. I reckon if we can lure him out into bringing everything he's got, then we can hit him with everything we've got. Otherwise, we'll never be able to use the troops I have to full effect. If we can make our stand at a location of our choosing, with fortifications and traps in place, that's even better."
Snape arched an eyebrow at that decidedly un-Gryffindorish behavior. "Why, Potter, that's rather Slytherin thinking of you."
Harry copied Snape's expression with a smirk. "Why, Professor, of course it is. I almost ended up in your house, after all."
"What?" Snape sputtered in surprise, but before he could inquire further, Harry had already changed the subject.
"That reminds me, where's Tonks?" Harry glanced around at them. Out of the adults he trusted that he regularly held council with, only Tonks and Kingsley were absent. He already knew that Mockridge had requested that Kingsley himself supervise the Ministry's renewed campaign against Voldemort, as well as see to the fortifications of the Ministry for the final stand. He hadn't heard from Tonks, however.
"We don't know." Snape, Moody, and Remus glanced at each other. "She's been on some top-secret mission for Dumbledore, and he's refusing to tell us about it. Mockridge didn't know anything about it, either," Remus finally said.
"And what's worse," Moody growled, "he sent her without backup."
"And that's not all," Snape added. "She's two days overdue. Dumbledore finally let it slip earlier today that he sent her on a mission for him the night you defeated Voldemort at that village."
Harry froze, shock and fear flashing across his face. Please let her be all right, please let her be all right, he repeated silently as he fought to remain calm. The adults had seen the expression on his face, as well, and almost regretted having to tell him, but after having had so much vital information kept from him, they figured he deserved to know. Besides that, the trust he had in the rest of the wizarding world was fragile enough without them trying to get away with keeping secrets from their last best hope in an attempt to sugarcoat the situation for him.
"I'm sure she's fine, Harry," Remus finally said, placing a calming hand on his honorary godson's arm.
"That's right, she's a big girl and a trained Auror," Moody rumbled in agreement. "Though Dumbledore should really have sent her with someone to watch her back. Constant vigilance!"
Harry managed a weak smile that still held a tinge of fear at their efforts to reassure him. "Thanks. Besides, I don't think it's uncommon to be late a day or two on top secret missions, right? I mean, she could've been held up in traffic, or something. Or maybe the weather got too bad for her to travel."
"That's right. She'll be back in no time, you'll see." Remus smiled at him.
Harry took a few moments to get a grip on himself. He was still scared for Tonks, but unless he could press the headmaster for information on where he'd sent her, he couldn't do a thing about it - and although a part of him wanted to go do just that, there were matters he had to discuss with the three men before he could contemplate squeezing the information out of Dumbledore. "So, is there anything else that's been going on with the Ministry?"
Snape looked uncomfortable when Remus and Moody both looked at him pointedly. The expression lasted only for a second before his neutral façade slammed back into place. "Minister Mockridge has dispatched teams of Aurors to seize properties that belong to known Death Eaters, as you know. A number of teams have run into trouble - traps, heavy wards, and so forth - but in all, the raids were rather successful. However, the Minister has expressed concern that today, for the first time, the Ministry has lost contact with one of the teams. It's being led by Amelia Bones, from Magical Law Enforcement."
"On the other hand, we also have a few good news," Moody commented. "That new Minister of ours had everyone in the Ministry tested for their loyalty and mind-controlling drugs or spells. You'd be surprised how many came up positive."
"And here I thought I was just that unpopular," Harry snorted dryly.
"It's a step forward, but it's kind of frightening how far Voldemort's influence reaches, if he can put that many people in high-ranking Ministry positions under his control." Remus looked thoughtful. "But now that they've been checked, we've deprived Voldemort of his main instrument of controlling the government's actions, which means you should have a much easier time getting people to cooperate."
"Did anyone check the Order members?" Harry asked.
"Yes, we did. There were no involuntary spies for Voldemort there," Snape told him, though Harry could tell something was wrong. Upon a pointed glance from the youth, Snape shrugged and told him. "A few of the Order's reactivated members from the first war turned out to be voluntary spies for the dark lord. They weren't in any important positions, and were not privy to any vital information, but it's shaken up a few people on just whom Voldemort has managed to convert."
"Wait…" Harry began. "You said you checked for mind-controlling spells and potions… what about mind-altering ones?"
"Mind altering potions?" Snape arched an eyebrow. "Such a thing wouldn't benefit the dark lord in any manner he would find useful."
Harry crossed his arms over his chest and looked thoughtful. "Even if it meant getting his worst enemy thrown into Azkaban?"
"What're you saying, Harry?" Remus asked, alarmed.
"I think what Potter is saying is that he suspects a few people who've been rather vocal in disowning him publicly may be under the effects of certain spells or potions," Moody growled, irritated that he hadn't thought of that before. "It's an ingenious plan, and no one would even think to check for a whole number of potions that would have just that effect, because, like Snape said, there's no reason he'd be using them."
"You think Molly and Arthur and the others are under some kind of spell or potion that made them turn against Harry?" Remus looked skeptical. "I don't think so. I mean, Hermione realized she was wrong about Harry on her own, and if there was a potion or some other mind-affecting spell, I don't think she'd have admitted she was wrong."
"You forget the youngest Weasley, too," Snape added.
"She gave Molly a right talking to the other day," Moody grinned toothily. "It was brilliant."
Harry managed a weak smile, though he really didn't want to think about it. Despite all the talking to by Bella, the betrayal of his friends still hurt. It was getting better - he was now able to look at Hermione without cringing, after all, and he was sure that he was beginning to heal, but he wasn't quite ready for all of them to come running to him begging for forgiveness yet. And, he thought with a dark frown that vanished almost instantly, he wasn't sure he even wanted to forgive some people. It wasn't the Gryffindor thing to do, holding grudges, but he'd been trying to be the perfect Gryffindor most of his wizard life, and look where that got him.
In the meantime, he had found that he was better off just not thinking about what to do about his former friends for now. After all, he had a war to plan, and there would be ample time to contemplate their fates after the battles were won. For the moment, it was best to let thoughts of the future rest, until they were sure they had a future. The four of them talked things through a while longer, until the adults were satisfied they had a firm grasp on Harry's strategy for the battles to come, because they knew that coordinating efforts on their end with his actions would be vital to defeating Voldemort. Finally, they left, stating that Dumbledore had called another Order meeting to discuss the Order's plans for engaging Voldemort's forces. Harry saw them off, only to turn around and find Bella standing in the doorway behind him, an uneasy expression on her face and a flask with an odd purple liquid in her hands.
"It's complete," she told him quietly.
Harry nodded in understanding, knowing what she meant. The potion and spell she had been researching to cure the Longbottoms was done. Now all that was left was to give it to them.