It was a new school year at Hogwarts and Harry sat at the breakfast table with Ron. Neither Ginny nor her friends, nor most of his roommates - aside from Neville - were in the Great Hall yet.
"We're starting some new subjects today," Ron said, looking at his schedule, for once not just gulping down his food. "Hermione would have loved this, don't you think, mate?"
Harry felt his stomach drop.
"Yeah, she probably would have tried to take them all," Harry half-joked with a sad smile. He sometimes forgot that Hermione had been best friends not only with him, but with Ron as well.
They began eating in silence, neither of them mentioning the exchange again.
Later, their roommates joined them. Harry also saw Ginny and her friends at the Gryffindor table further away. Should he greet her? But what if it seemed awkward or desperate for attention?
Harry just kept sitting.
"We'd better go, look, Divination's at the top of the North Tower. It'll take us ten minutes to get there…" Ron said to Neville, Dean and Seamus, who had also chosen Divination.
"Good luck with Ancient Runes, mate," he turned to Harry. "I still think you are bonkers for taking Runes instead of Divination. Well, see you at lunch then."
Ron had ridiculed him several times for choosing Ancient Runes over an easier subject like Divination. But Ginny had persuaded him not to take Divination. Apparently, the Divination professor was a huge fraud and the subject was useless if you didn't have the Inner Eye.
"Yeah, later at lunch or Care," Harry answered, feeling a bit lonely. At least he had Care of Magical Creatures with Ron and the others.
The classroom for the Study of Ancient Runes was on the sixth floor, so Harry also departed shortly after Ron's group.
When he arrived, students were already slowly filling the classroom, while Professor Babbling was not there yet.
Just twelve students had taken Ancient Runes this year, so all four houses were taking the class together. Most were Slytherins and Ravenclaws. He recognised Davis, Greengrass and Zabini from Slytherin and Corner, Goldstein and Patil from Ravenclaw. He was the only Gryffindor.
It struck him that he usually had almost no contact with students from other houses.
Then Professor Babbling entered the room. She wore thick glasses and had her brown hair bound in a ponytail. She looked like the scholarly type, even though she was fairly young.
"Welcome, class, to the Study of Ancient Runes. My name is Bathsheda Babbling and I will be your professor for at least the next two years, up to your Ordinary Wizarding Levels and maybe even afterwards," she began after putting her bookbag on the teacher's table.
"Runes are not just the letters of ancient books and magical items. They are not just the written characters used by the founders of Hogwarts, the Peverell brothers or Merlin. No, they are symbols still widely used by the modern magical community today," Professor Babbling explained - she seemed quite motivated by the subject, which most would probably call boring.
"Runes are - in general - a class of symbols that can be used both phonetically and symbolically at the same time. You have already learned about the Transfiguration alphabet in your first year?" she asked and looked around to see some students nodding. "This year we will mostly specialise in Elder Futhark, since it is the most common set of runes in northern Europe. But do not forget that there are many other runes in the world," she continued. At least she seemed knowledgeable - Lockhart and Binns had really lowered his standards for teachers…
"If you want to specialise in, for example, curse-breaking or warding, or any field that studies rituals, then you will have to learn many different rune alphabets… Oh wait, I have to go through the class roster first…"
She did seem a little absent-minded, though.
Professor Babbling then - after going through the class roster - began to explain how Norse runes, also called Elder Futhark, were separated into three groups of eight - Freyr's Ætt, Heimdall's Ætt and Týr's Ætt - and their symbolic and magical properties, as well as the origins of those classifications.
Afterwards, Professor Babbling explained the twenty-four runes one by one. Harry only half listened until one symbol made him stop. It looked uncomfortably familiar…
No one had ever told him that his scar was not really a lightning bolt at all, but a Sowilo rune.
"Sowilo embodies the sun and stands for clarity, victory and enlightenment. It reflects the sun's role as a source of life and strength, illuminating darkness and restoring energy. In cultures that revered the sun as life-giving, Sowilo became a symbol of hope, vitality and positive change. Its shape resembles a lightning bolt or rays of sunlight streaming from the sky to the earth, underscoring its connection to energy and life force. In rune magic, Sowilo is commonly used to bring light, clarity and success, and to help overcome inner blockages and achieve one's goals," Professor Babbling explained.
After the class ended, Harry packed his things and left. He wanted to talk to Ginny about it - she always seemed to know more than anyone else, despite being a year below him. Hopefully, he would find her in the common room.
Unfortunately, he didn't find Ginny or her friends in the Great Hall during lunch. So he sat with Ron, Neville, Dean and Seamus. Afterwards, they walked together to Care of Magical Creatures.
Professor Grubbly-Plank stood waiting for the class some ten yards from Hagrid's front door, a long trestle table in front of her laden with many twigs. Harry felt a pang of sadness and guilt as he looked at Hagrid's empty hut - he was going about his normal school life while Hagrid sat in Azkaban at that very moment and there was nothing Harry could do to help him.
It was gratifying to see that Malfoy was keeping his distance not just from the Gryffindors but also from his fellow Slytherins. Apparently, they hadn't forgotten that Malfoy's father had blackmailed many of their families.
"Everyone here?" barked Professor Grubbly-Plank, once all the Slytherins and Gryffindors had arrived. "Let's crack on then - who can tell me what these things are called?" She indicated the heap of twigs in front of her. Nobody reacted until Neville shyly raised his hand.
"Bowtruckles," said Neville quietly. "They're tree-guardians."
"Five points for Gryffindor," said Professor Grubbly-Plank.
"Yes, these are bowtruckles, as Mr Longbottom said. They generally live in trees whose wood is of wand quality. Anybody know what they eat?" Nobody reacted. "Mr Longbottom?"
"Wood lice or fairy eggs," Neville mumbled, looking down and clearly not enjoying the limelight.
"Correct, take another five points. So whenever you need leaves or wood from a tree in which a bowtruckle lodges, it is wise to have a gift of wood lice ready to distract or placate it. They may not look dangerous, but if angered they will gouge out human eyes with their fingers, which, as you can see, are very sharp and not at all desirable near the eyeballs. So if you'd like to gather closer, take a few wood lice and a bowtruckle - I have enough here for one between three - you can study them more closely. I want a sketch from each of you with all body parts labelled by the end of the lesson."
Neville, Ron and Harry teamed up to study their bowtruckle for the rest of the lesson.
Back in the common room, Harry noticed Daisy and Emily sitting together in a corner. Harry hesitated, unsettled by their mood, then asked anyway, "Hey, Emily, do you know where Ginny is?"
Emily broke off her whispering and looked up, uncertainty written on her face.
"Hello, Harry… Ginny is in our room, calming down Mira," Emily answered quietly.
"Did something happen?" he asked, worried - Mira didn't seem like someone who would be shaken easily.
"Did you have DADA yet?" Emily asked instead of answering. When he shook his head, she continued, "Well, our first class was about boggarts and it revealed to everybody that Mira… likes girls. She is very distressed about how her conservative family will react now."
It took Harry a moment to realise what 'liking girls' actually meant.
For a moment, the memory of Dudley's secret video - the one with the two naked women - surfaced and Harry was sure his face turned red when he noticed the strange look Emily gave him. But thankfully, she decided to ignore it.
"Erm, can you tell Ginny I'd like to speak to her when you see her?"
He just wanted to escape this awkward situation.
Emily sighed.
"Sure, just be gentle with her," she cryptically advised.
"What?"
"Her boggart turned into the corpses of… her whole family… all Weasleys," Emily said, while Daisy stared at the floor. "She acted like she wasn't affected by it, caring more for Mira, but… I don't know, maybe you should talk to her."
Harry froze, shocked. Poor Ginny and even now, she was putting her distressed friend first.
He knew that she was strong, but he wanted to be there for her and he would be. So he just nodded to Emily again and left them alone.
"Hey ho, Harry, Emily said you wanted to talk to me?" Ginny's voice pulled him out of his thoughts as he sat in the slowly emptying common room.
She sounded and looked perfectly normal, but knowing about her boggart, Harry suspected she was only pretending to be happy.
"Ginny… are you ok?" he asked, unable to keep the worry out of his voice.
"Ah, you heard about our DADA lesson, didn't you? Did Emily tell you?" she said, her forced lightness dimming.
"Yeah."
"Don't worry too much. Yes, it was… difficult to see my parents and brothers dead, but I know it wasn't real. They are fine," she explained and Harry almost wanted to believe her.
"Are you really ok?" he asked, despite her assurances.
Ginny only sighed before sinking onto the couch next to him, her head coming to rest on his shoulder.
"To be honest, I'm more worried about Mira… Her family is very traditionally pureblood and I fear they will give her a hard time. Some conservative families don't look kindly on what they call witches' witches." She sounded exhausted. "They might even arrange a betrothal for her despite her… preferences," she continued.
Harry, who knew very little about pureblood culture, had no idea how to respond, so he simply listened, slipping an arm around her back.
After a moment, Ginny seemed to feel better and changed the topic.
"But that is not why you wanted to speak to me, right, Harry?"
Compared to Ginny's problems, his curiosity about his scar felt almost inane. Should he tell her?
"Come on, Harry. I want to think about something else," Ginny said gently, nudging him with her shoulder.
"Well… I just had my first Ancient Runes lesson… Did you know my scar isn't actually a lightning bolt, but a Sowilo rune?"
Ginny tensed and lifted her head from his shoulder, which left him oddly disappointed.
"Thank you for reminding me… I wanted to talk to you about your scar anyway," she said seriously.
She hesitated, looking around at the few Gryffindors still about - it was almost curfew.
"We should talk in private and I want to show you something anyway. Can you meet me with your Invisibility Cloak outside?"
Harry, now curious, just nodded and did as she asked.
After meeting again by the portrait of the Fat Lady, they ducked into a dark corner and threw the cloak over themselves.
Under his Invisibility Cloak, they walked through the empty castle, their steps silenced by one of Ginny's spells. She was in front of him and he tried to distract himself from Ginny being so close to him. It was really difficult, especially when her back would sometimes brush against his chest.
They stopped in a corridor on the seventh floor, near a moving tapestry of a wizard teaching trolls to dance, and Ginny turned around. She did so, so abruptly that their faces ended up only inches apart.
"I found a remarkable room… It's called the Room of Requirement. It can transform into anything you want and it helped me a lot when I researched your scar," Ginny whispered enthusiastically.
He could feel her breath on his face and it made it hard to think. Why did he have to remember their Beltane kiss now of all times… Wait, was she waiting for an answer?
"That… that is amazing, Ginny."
Did she realise that he hadn't been listening? Thankfully, she continued.
"We need to walk three times in front of this wall, then a door will appear," she explained.
Door for what? Well, he obviously couldn't ask, so he just followed her as they walked back and forth - he felt a bit silly but said nothing.
Just as Ginny had said, a door appeared and they slipped inside, pulling the cloak off.
Several bookshelves lined the room, each marked with a plaque naming its subject - 'Curse Scars', 'Dark Magic', 'Soul Magic', 'Rituals', … Harry could see a pattern here.
Meanwhile, Ginny moved towards a comfortable seating area, gesturing for him to join her.
"I used this room for research," she explained, as Harry was still amazed she had found it at all.
"Now, where should I start?" Ginny mused.
"Maybe with why my scar is an Elder Futhark rune?" Harry suggested.
"Yeah, Sowilo - the sun rune. Your parents probably used its light or success aspect in their ritual to counteract the Killing Curse. The whole room was likely filled with hidden runes. It would be fascinating to study," Ginny explained, still lost in thought.
"What? My parents did a ritual?" Harry asked, flabbergasted.
"Mm?" Ginny looked up. "Ah, that's more of a personal theory. It's said that your parents went into hiding - no idea why. But they probably prepared a protection for you, in case Moldyshorts found you."
Harry looked at Ginny with his mouth open for giving Voldemort, of all people, a nickname. Moldyshorts?
"Only a very complex blood ritual could defend against a Killing Curse. It's possible that your mother's sacrifice was part of a blood ritual. Hallowe'en would certainly strengthen such rituals…"
"But why is everybody pretending that I defeated Voldemort, then? Also, Moldyshorts?" Harry couldn't help but ask.
Ginny shrugged. "There is a Taboo - a powerful jinx - on the real name that registers when and where you say it. That's the only reason I bother saying You-Know-Who or Dark Lord. But that's not important at the moment."
Still, Harry wished someone had told him earlier. He had thought that it was just fear and wizard stupidity. Maybe he should also stop saying 'Voldemort'…
"About why nobody says that Lily Potter defeated him… well, maybe it's partly because she was a Muggle-born," Ginny continued and Harry could feel rage building in his gut, "but the main reason is probably that a blood ritual with human sacrifice, even if fuelled by love, is considered quite dark… The Ministry and Dumbledore probably didn't want it to be known that it was dark magic that finally defeated the Dark Lord."
There was silence as Harry digested those revelations, until he asked a question that had often been on his mind.
"Then why did my scar hurt near Vol… him? And why did my touch kill Quirrell?"
"The touch thing is probably because your mother's magic is still in effect. That your scar is hurting near him is what really worries me," Ginny told him, looking deep into his eyes with a very serious expression.
"Do you remember your scar hurting when you went between the two fires during Beltane?"
Harry nodded, not knowing where she was going with her explanation.
"Beltane fires should dispel harmful dark magic. Your scar hurting means that the Beltane magic registered the magic in your scar as harmful and tried to get rid of it."
"My mother's magic is harming me?" Harry asked, not really wanting to believe Ginny on this point.
"That's why I think it's something Moldyshorts did. Also, your scar hurt near him, even when he was just a soul possessing Quirrell, so the most logical explanation is that it's some kind of dark soul magic that might be harming you."
"Oh," Harry said dumbly. For a moment, he wanted to argue that Dumbledore would have done something about it if it were true. But he almost instantly dismissed that thought. "So you think there is dark soul magic, cast by… You-Know-Who, in my scar that is hurting me," he summarised Ginny's explanation. He felt a bit reluctant to call him Moldyshorts…
Ginny just nodded, her expression heavy with concern.
"It's just a theory, but Harry, I'm really worried that it could be bad for you…" Ginny hesitated before adding more. "I need to ask a huge favour, Harry. I want to conduct a blood ritual with you that will reveal what's really in your scar. If I'm mistaken, it won't hurt you…"
She gripped his hand, her gaze soft and trembling with emotion.
"Please, Harry."
Why was Ginny asking? Shouldn't he be the one to make such a request?
"Of course, Ginny. I want to know too if my scar is dangerous to me, after all."
Ginny beamed and threw her arms around him, murmuring her thanks again and again.
"Why did you think I wouldn't agree, Ginny?" he asked, confused, while she was still hugging him.
"Well… it's a rather illegal ritual…"
Of course it was.