Harry found himself in an unusual situation for him. He was sitting in the Hogwarts infirmary beside the bed containing his unconscious cousin; it was usually Harry that was in Dudley's position. After hearing Tonks explain what happened he actually thanked her for showing restraint, had Dudley tried those moves on Ginny or Hermione, Harry knew his cousin would not have got off so light. It would appear there was no 'quick fix' on the horizon for Dudley Dursley.
Harry started to wonder if that's all they had been doing, dispensing 'quick fixes' that would unravel, leaving the world worse off than when they started. Was he any better than Dumbledore and his 'greater good'? The reprimand that came over the bond almost had him jumping out of his chair, but the feelings of love that accompanied it soothed his aching conscience. Both he and Hermione had doubts but since Dumbledore escaped it seemed any progress they had made was being undermined.
Harry's thoughts turned to what set him on this path of self-doubt.
Ginny had spent over an hour last night, crying in their arms, trying to convince them that she wanted to remain Ginny Potter. For all the years she lived at the Burrow Ginny didn't know what part of Molly was real and what part spell induced, her problem with Arthur remained. It would be impossible to determine if he was under any kind of enchantment when he signed her life away, but the fact that he wasn't now and hadn't done anything about that or the tuition gold left very serious doubts in the mind of the former Miss Weasley.
Ginny loved her brothers but they mainly ignored her and led their own lives, she had four brothers at Hogwarts but was still so lonely that she confided in that bloody diary. She was terrified that Harry, Hermione and everyone else would think she wanted to remain a Potter for the new clothes and fancy house. Ginny genuinely loved her new parents and extended family, their methods of explaining things to you instead of screaming like a banshee were so much more effective on the young girl.
There was also the fact that they both despised marriage contracts, Ginny had already chosen the wizard she wanted to marry and her seventeenth birthday would be an ideal date for the wedding, whereas the Weasleys might think they have a say in the matter.
They had tried to reassure her at first before realising that this was something she needed to get of her chest. When she started repeating her arguments Harry knew it was time to end it. "Ginny Potter, we are your parents and this is your home for as long as you wish it to be. There is no one with the power - political, financial or magical to take you from us against our wills. Now go give your boyfriend a kiss and get into bed, your own bed that is!"
Ginny threw herself at her parents and kissed them goodnight before heading towards Neville's room. Ginny Weasley would have been shouted at, confined to her room then given days of tedious chores as some form of punishment, the idea of a boyfriend, never mind being sent to his room to kiss him goodnight was so far of the scale of possibilities there wasn't a word for it. Ginny Potter was trusted, trusted to learn from any mistakes she made in life and trusted not to do more than kiss Neville goodnight. The thought of how disappointed her parents would be if she betrayed that trust kept her on the straight and narrow. She knew that she could calmly discus anything with her parents and reach decisions regarding her future, to Ginny that was worth more than clothes and houses.
Harry thought they had a good handle on the Ginny situation but it was Dylan and Freda that had them really worried.
Both were being kept unconscious by means of a potion but they could find no way to break the illegal spell. Hermione was currently researching Rowena Ravenclaw's journal but the best that seemed available was a shield charm to prevent other elves becoming victims of the ancient spell. Even with the law on their side the elves couldn't break free of the spell. Hermione had surmised that because the spell had been cast directly onto them, rather than a diluted version passed down from their ancestors, it could be used to once again enslave the elvin nation.
They were being woken periodically to take some nutrients and be updated on the situation but they had made a decision that shocked Harry and Hermione to the core, they had chosen to die in each other's arms with as much dignity as they could muster. The Potters had immediately protested this decision but it was a mournful Winky who gave them the whole story.
"Dylan and Freda apologise for the trouble they've caused and asked me to thank Ginny for rescuing them. If they did not follow orders the other elf would have been tortured while the one refusing was made to watch. If they disobey a direct command then they will die in minutes, this is why we have to keep them drugged but their magic is draining so fast they wont last another twenty-four hours. If we gave them more magic it would only delay the inevitable and might damage their bond. They plan to lay in each others arms until called then refuse together, while sending out a message to the wizarding world that elves will never be slaves again – we would rather die!"
Dobby continued, "there's a lot more at stake here than the lives of Dylan and Freda, if that spell were to make it's way into the general wizarding population it would be open season on elves. Every witch or wizard with a wand could have themselves a house elf if they knew the spell, but if they see we would rather die than become slaves then hopefully this will act as more of a discouragement than whatever punishment the ministry decides."
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