PhoenixSong.net :: A Harry/Ginny Fanfic and Fanart Archive

Author: Arnel

Story: Summer Story

Part: 16: Dudley Helps Out

Rating: Young Teens

Status: WIP

Reviews: 11

Words: 5,308

Updated: October 21, 2008, 8:55pm

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16: Dudley Helps Out

31 August 1997

Ginny paced the floor of her bedroom. She couldn't sleep for worry about Harry and Professor Dumbledore, and she knew that if she went downstairs for a cup of hot chocolate, she'd find either her mother or Ron sitting at the table staring at nothing in particular. Night was not a good time at The Burrow for anyone these days.

The last month had been torture for everyone in her family. During the first week after the kidnapping, hopes had run high that Harry and Dumbledore would be found swiftly and the Death Eaters responsible taken into custody because of the mental pictures she had received from Harry. She knew the pictures had been helpful, showing her, if not the precise location, the general area where Harry had been taken. However, the longer she looked at the magical relief map that her father had finally obtained from the Ministry, the more confused she became; there were so many lakes in the mountains of Scotland that they seemed to morph one into another. Thousands of caves pockmarked the Scottish terrain, many created or protected magically. Locating the right one would take months, if not years. But to Ginny, no news was good news, and she clung to the hope that eventually her boyfriend and the Headmaster would be found alive.

That hope had leaked away as the days turned into weeks and the weeks to a month. She was upset because Harry had missed so much, including Bill and Fleur's wedding in France. The happiness her family should have felt over the joyous event had been stripped away, and an air of gloom had hovered over the nuptials.

Even more depressing was the fact that Harry was going to miss the start of the school year. Tomorrow, September first, she, Ron and Hermione would be going back to Hogwarts without Harry. She wasn't looking forward to the ride on the Hogwarts Express. It just didn't seem right that he wouldn't be on the train, and his absence surely wouldn't go unnoticed. People were bound to ask questions. She groaned as she realized that Slytherins like Draco Malfoy, who had spent three weeks at the castle and had gone back to Grimmauld Place for the last week of August, would most likely be unbearable.

Ginny looked at the clock. It stared back at her, its hands showing it was a little after three o'clock in the morning. She sighed and threw herself down on her bed, pulling her pillow over her head. Why can't Harry be safely at home? she wondered miserably. Eventually, Ginny rolled on her side and stared gloomily at the clock again... half past three...

A loud scuffle down in the kitchen suddenly echoed through the silent house. As Ginny threw open her door and began descending the stairs, other members of her family followed suit. A minute later, the entire Weasley family converged on the ground floor and stared at the three figures of Dudley Dursley, his father and Dedalus Diggle, who were covered in soot and wrestling in front of the kitchen fireplace.

"I demand you go back!" Vernon Dursley roared, making a grab at Dudley's shoulders.

Dudley batted his father's hands away. "No, Dad! I will not go back!" he shouted.

"Let him stay," Dedalus squeaked, trying to insert his small body between the two Dursleys. "He has a right to be here!"

Harry's uncle pushed Dedalus out of the way and finally seized Dudley's arm. "You're coming home, Dudley," he snarled, dragging Dudley towards the fireplace. "I will not have you associating with these freaks and their unnaturalness."

Dudley braced his legs and tugged back. "I asked Dedalus to bring me here. Now let me go! I want to help Harry."

Glaring at his son, Vernon raised a fist as if to strike him. "You're coming with me, Dudley. That is final," he said, his voice now dangerously low.

Ginny's father pushed his way through the assembled Weasleys towards the Dursleys, his wand levelled at Vernon. "Mr Dursley, you will not strike your son," he said evenly. "I will not tolerate violent behaviour in my house. If you insist on man-handling Dudley, I will stun you. Your behaviour is not wanted in this house and I must insist you act like a civilized human being."

Vernon stared at Mr Weasley, his grip on Dudley's arm making his son's hand turn purple. Dudley's eyes were wide as they zeroed in on Mr Weasley's wand and where it was pointed.

Mr Weasley narrowed his eyes as he repeated his request, "Mr Dursley, please let go of Dudley and step away from him. If you do not, there will be consequences," he said, reminding Ginny of the many times he had broken up altercations between her brothers.

Finally, as Vernon took his hands from Dudley's arm and stepped back a pace, a collective sigh of relief swept through the other members of Ginny's family. Mr Weasley lowered his wand, but kept it visibly at his side.

"Dudley, come here, son," Mr Weasley requested gently.

Dudley glanced at his father's furious face before walking over to the Weasleys. Drawing himself to his full height, he offered his hand to Ginny's father. "I'm sorry for how my father is acting," he said. "He doesn't want me involved in the Wizarding world, thinks Harry has always been a waste of space. But I don't. I've come to help you find Harry."

Ginny gaped at Dudley as her father said, "We're glad to have you, Dudley. But why come at such an odd hour of the night?"

Dudley hung his head. "My Dad didn't want me to come during the day and Dedalus said sneaking out on my own was dangerous. I thought this would be the safest time to come, so I asked Dedalus to bring me. Dad heard me leaving and grabbed my shirt to prevent me from coming when I stepped into the fireplace with Dedalus."

"Mr Diggle is correct, Dudley," Mr Weasley chided gently. "It is dangerous to be out alone anywhere these days. Now, how did you want to help us?"

Dudley raised his head and looked directly at Ginny. "However I can help, I will. I can help you find my cousin," he said quietly.

Ginny shouldered her way past Ron and George and walked up to Dudley. Smiling the first smile she had in days she said, "Thank you, Dudley. It means a lot to have you here."

"Good," Dudley said, returning the smile. He turned back to Dedalus. "Take my father back. I'm staying whether he likes it or not," he said.

"Yes, Dudley," Mr Diggle said, looking rather chagrined. "I'll have Hestia bring your things later on." And before Vernon Dursley had the chance to protest, Mr Diggle threw some Floo Powder into the grate and dragged him into the green flames.

"Well, that was interesting," George commented as he stepped forward with the rest of the family to greet Dudley. Out of the corner of her eye, Ginny saw her mum sidle into the kitchen and turn on the kettle for tea.

"How did you know Harry was missing?" Ginny asked as she walked with Dudley to the kitchen table several minutes later.

Dudley eased his bulk onto the chair next to hers. "I heard Dedalus and Hestia talking several nights ago," he said, running a finger over the marks in the scrubbed wood of the table. "... And, I... Look, he's had a tough time of it. I just felt really bad for him."

Mrs Weasley levitated the family tea service onto the table. Dudley's eyes grew wide as the kettle sailed across the room and began pouring water into the big family tea pot. When the tea was ready, she asked, "Milk and sugar, Dudley?"

"Er... er... black... no, milk, please," Dudley said hesitantly. His eyes followed the milk pitcher as it rose and poured a measure into a mug which then floated to a stop in front of him. He hesitantly plucked it out of the air and took a sip. "This is good," he said. "Thanks." Mrs Weasley smiled and directed the rest of the mugs to her family.

The conversation drifted from topic to topic until Ron turned to Dudley and asked, "What do you know about Harry and Professor Dumbledore's disappearance?"

"Not much," Dudley answered. "Only that he and your headmaster were kidnapped near your school." He looked hopefully at Ron and Ginny. "Can you tell me more?"

Ron looked to their father before saying, "Yeah. Here's what we know..." Between the two of them, Ginny and Ron told Dudley what they knew of the kidnapping and its aftermath. As the rest of the story unfolded, various other Weasleys added their information until there was nothing left to tell.

"Blimey, you people have nutters just like we do!" Dudley exclaimed, shaking his head. He turned to Ginny. "You said Harry sent you some mental pictures of the terrain they were towing him over. Do you have a road map of Scotland handy?"

Mr Weasley answered with a shake of his head. "We don't, Dudley, just a relief map showing the elevations of the mountains."

Dudley smiled as he said, "I know how I can help. I think you need a road map with all the Scottish lakes and roads on it. Those maps usually have other information on them, too. I'd like to go into town and get one for you."

Mr Weasley looked at his assembled family. "That's as good an idea as any we've had so far," Fred said. "Harry's hints were good, but since he didn't know the names of the towns and lakes he was seeing, we've had to guess where to look."

"Have you been looking at the buildings?" Dudley asked.

"Like castles and stuff?" Ron asked.

"Yeah."

"Ginny said there was a white building on the shore of one of the lakes," Dudley said. "Was it in ruins or had it been restored?"

"Restored?" Mr Weasley asked.

"Uh-huh. Fixed up so people could live in it," Dudley explained.

"Dudley, dear," Mrs Weasley said, "most of the buildings Muggles consider ruins or run-down, unliveable dwellings we know to be fully inhabited."

Dudley's eyes grew wide. "No! Magic can conceal something like that?" he asked. "I bet you can find and conceal places like caves, too. Doesn't your government keep track of stuff like that?"

"That's the problem, Dudley," Mr Weasley said, stifling a yawn. "They do, but the Ministry of Magic won't let me use its resources to research the area where Harry was last seen. We've been conducting our own searches with what little information we have."

Dudley harrumphed. "Why won't they let you have access to the information you want?"

"In a word, politics," Mr Weasley said wearily. "Also, a lot of it is classified because many of those buildings are Unplottable."

"Unplottable?" Dudley asked, looking mystified.

"It means they can't be put on a map, dear," Mrs Weasley explained. "Some people don't want to be disturbed, so they conceal their buildings from prying eyes."

"I think I get it," Dudley said, shaking his head. Under his breath he murmured, "Weird."

Ginny and Ron hid their smirks as he continued aloud, "I think I can help you. I'll need to go into the nearest village. Will my mobile work in the house? I want to make some calls."

Ron answered, "No. If you're thinking of calling the Ottery St Catchpole taxi, you'll have to wait until seven when the taxi service opens up and then walk out to the road. Either that or we could just walk into the village."

"I'll try calling first," Dudley said. "It'll be faster."

Ginny kicked Ron under the table to get his attention. "How did you know that?" she whispered.

"Research," Ron answered vaguely and Ginny guessed it had something to do with transporting the two of them to King's Cross Station the next day. They both yawned at the same time. Mrs Weasley noticed and said, "There will be no calling of taxis until we've all had some sleep. Dudley, come with me and I'll show you to Percy's old room."

Ron grinned at Ginny as they followed their mum and Dudley up the stairs. "I think we might get somewhere with his help," Ron said hopefully under his breath.

"I hope you're right," she said, opening the door to her room. "I'm getting frustrated with how long this search is taking. Good night, Ron."

Dudley was gone when Ginny came downstairs several hours later. For the first time in a month she felt more rested with only the few hours' sleep she'd gotten than she had on the nights she had lain awake for hours. Over a large plate of bacon and eggs she listened raptly as Ron related the story of Dudley's departure.

"How long has he been gone?" Ginny asked when he finished.

Ron glanced at his watch. "Almost two hours. He didn't say how long he'd be gone, though," he commented as someone knocked on the front door.

Mrs Weasley went to the door, but didn't open it. "Who is there?" she called.

"Dudley Dursley," the newcomer answered.

"Who is your cousin and how did you help this summer?" she called back.

"I helped Harry Potter train on free weights."

Mrs Weasley opened the door and let Dudley in.

"What was all that about?" he demanded as soon as the door was closed.

"We have to be very careful who we let into our home," Ginny answered as Mrs Weasley walked past them, taking a load of laundry upstairs.

"Someone could have taken Polyjuice Potion and be pretending to be you," Ron explained. Dudley raised an eyebrow at Ginny and mouthed, "Polyjuice Potion?" to which she responded, "later," as Ron said, "The questions are for our safety as well as yours. You got off easy this time. Next time you'll have to ask the other person something that only you two know so that you'll know it's safe to enter."

"Makes sense," Dudley said, nodding. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two packets of folded paper which he spread out on the kitchen table. "Road map and attractions map. That one was hand drawn like a cartoon and won't be too accurate about the roads and distances, but it lists all the castles, lakes and caves we know about. It even has information on which castles are inhabited, which are ruins open to the public, and which ones have been turned into museums," he said, inviting Ginny and Ron to have a look. He pointed to a small lake in the middle of the attractions map. "Ginny, I'm guessing the lake with the big white building Harry flew over is Loch Earn. Here, have a look."

Ginny came round the table and peered at the attractions map and then at the road map, trying not to get her hopes up. She followed Dudley's finger, whispering to herself, "Three lakes: one with a mountain, one with a building, one with a village," and gasped as Harry's image nearly matched the picture on Dudley's maps.

"What is it?" Ron demanded.

"Go get Mum," Ginny whispered, groping for a chair. "I think Dudley found the first pictures Harry sent me."

Ron stared between Ginny and Dudley, his mouth hanging open. He closed it and, with a whoop, raced up the stairs to find their mother.

Dudley sank into the chair next to Ginny's. "Your dad said you don't have road maps," he observed. "Do w-wizards use a map?"

Ginny sighed, one eyebrow raise in Dudley's direction. "Not for every day stuff, no. We learn to read them before we go to Hogwarts and some of the professors make us use them for our school work, but on the whole, we don't need pictures of where we need to go. We either take the Floo Network or Apparate to the destination we're going to." When Dudley looked blank, she explained, "Disappear from one place and appear a moment or two later somewhere else."

"Then you miss all the good stuff," Dudley replied. "Half the fun of driving somewhere is seeing the scenery."

Ginny stared at Dudley in disbelief. Was this the same Dudley who had tormented Harry most of his life? Deciding this new Dudley would need some getting used to she said, "I see your point," as Ron and Mrs Weasley entered the kitchen.

"Is it true, you've found the right lake?" Mrs Weasley asked breathlessly.

Dudley stood and showed her the map as he had done with Ginny and Ron. "Bless you, Dudley," she said, opening her arms to embrace the startled boy. "Thank you."

Dudley awkwardly patted Mrs Weasley on the back. "You're welcome," he said as

Mrs Weasley released him.

"Oh my, I've got to tell Arthur," she said, sounding flustered. She bustled back upstairs and returned a few minutes later wearing an old Muggle dress and clutching a blue handbag that matched her shoes. "I shouldn't be gone more than a half hour. If anyone from the Order calls, tell them there is an emergency meeting at noon at headquarters."

"We will," Ron and Ginny said together as Mrs Weasley stepped into the fireplace.

No one stuck his or her head in their fire while Mrs Weasley was gone and with nothing really pressing to do but wait for their parents, Ginny and Ron started teaching Dudley to play Exploding Snap. Dudley, it turned out, was rather good at cards and he seemed to be enjoying himself immensely when Mr and Mrs Weasley returned.

"I'm going to make lunch early today," Mrs Weasley announced, walking into the kitchen and tying an apron around her middle. "Who wants corned beef sandwiches?"

"Not me," Ron said immediately.

"Then you'll just have to find something for yourself," she said, taking the left-over brisket out of storage and charming a knife and fork to cut thick slices. Ginny grinned as Dudley walked over to the counter to watch the sandwiches make and stack themselves on a platter while her mother turned her back to find the condiments and make tea for the meal.

After her parents left for the Order meeting, Ginny took a glass of pumpkin juice out to the garden to think and wait for what she knew would inevitably come. The overgrown flower beds were a riot of magical colour and the heady floral fragrance calmed her as she stepped through the gate and walked over to her favourite bench and sat down. She hadn't been there very long before the gate creaked open again. She looked up, startled to see Dudley striding up the path towards her.

"It's nice out here," he said, taking a seat on the opposite end of the bench. "My mum's garden on Privet Drive wasn't like this at all."

"How so?" Ginny asked.

"It was always so perfect."

"What do you mean?" Ginny asked. She spied a gnome and pointed it out to Dudley.

He peered at it curiously.

"Too clean. One of the things she always made Harry responsible for was the weeding, pruning and mowing of her garden. Harry went without meals a lot when we were younger because Mum was never satisfied with what he did," Dudley admitted. "She never made me do any of the work Harry had to do and I'm beginning to realize just how hard she and my dad were on him." His voice was barely a whisper as he said, "I don't like how that makes me feel." He pulled a long blade of grass from between the bricks in the path and began shredding it.

Ginny remained silent; she had heard admissions like this from her brothers over the years and knew how important it was to just lend her ear. Besides, she wanted to hear what else Dudley had to say.

Finally, Dudley cleared his throat. "Mum would have a coronary if she'd seen something in her garden like that," he said, looking up at the funny little creature.

Ginny chuckled. "Our garden's full of them. When we were little, Mum would punish us by sending my brothers and me out here to degnome it. Fred and George always thought it fun to do something bad enough to make her send them out here," she answered. "They made a game of it, tried to see who could throw the gnomes the furthest. They still do." Dudley raised an eyebrow, so she explained, "Mum still makes them degnome whenever we're having company even if they're living over their shop half the time."

"Sounds like fun," Dudley said. He was silent for a time as they watched the gnome strip the leaves off a weed and stuff them in its mouth. His voice, when he finally spoke, was so soft Ginny had to strain to hear it. "Does she... does your mum... does she always hug people like that?"

The question struck Ginny as somewhat odd, but she answered truthfully. "Yeah, she does. She wouldn't be Mum if she didn't."

Dudley rose and crept closer to the gnome. It ignored him and pulled up another weed. "It felt nice," he said without turning around. He cleared his throat. "She could join the wrestling team at my school. With a hug like that she'd win every match."

Ginny giggled. "Yeah, she probably would," she said to cover up what she really was thinking; that Petunia Dursley's hugs had to have been very perfunctory if her own son found them lacking to Molly Weasley's. The thought made her sad. She changed the subject. "When does your school start?"

"Don't know," Dudley answered. "I doubt if I'll be going back to Smeltings. Things weren't all that good for me last term and, now that we've gone into hiding, I haven't received any of the letters that usually come during the summer."

"Do you want to go back?" Ginny asked, crouching next to him. The gnome eyed them warily.

Dudley sat back on his heels and finally looked at her. "I do, but I don't. It's my last year there, but I dunno what I want to do after I leave school. The teachers all started pestering me about my future at the end of last term. I don't think I could stand another year of that."

Ginny thought about how conflicted Ron was over what he wanted to do with the rest of his life as she said, "You're not the only one, Dudley. Ron still doesn't know whether he's going to try out for professional Quidditch or go to Auror school. I think it really depends on whether the war is still going on next summer." She sighed. "I think Harry was, I mean, is the same. The Wizarding World is so full of contradictions right now it's really hard to know where we'll be in six months."

Dudley inhaled to respond, but Ginny tuned him out as she suddenly clutched her head and fell to the ground. Her wait was over: Harry was sending her painful, pain-filled thoughts and as he screamed, so did she. His thoughts were a jumbled mess of bits of conversation with his parents, fear of his captors and a cry for help that tore at her insides, making her wonder what the hell the Death Eaters were doing to him.

"Ginny! GINNY!" Dudley's voice sounded panicked as the stream of images and thoughts lessened and finally stopped. She opened her eyes to see him bending over her, a look of sheer terror on his face. "What's wrong?" he asked.

She sat up shakily, picking grass and leaves out of her hair. "I'm really sorry about that, Dudley," she apologized.

"What's going on? You seemed fine a couple of minutes ago."

"I told you about my bond with Harry, right?" When he nodded, she went on. "Every day, about this time, Harry transmits his thoughts to me. I don't think he knows he's even doing it. This last month he's been sending me more than just those pictures of the lakes. My guess is that the Death Eaters are torturing him in some way and whatever they're doing finally pushes him into reacting." She stopped and rubbed her forehead which throbbed at an irregular pace. "It's usually not this bad."

"Can you feel it?"

"What, the torture?" she asked. "Not really. It's mostly Harry's reaction to it."

"Then what made you scream like that?"

"Harry was screaming," she said quietly. She stood up, feeling suddenly restless. Spying the gnome they'd been watching earlier, Ginny had an idea. Turning to Dudley she asked, "Want to learn how to degnome the garden?"

Surprised, Dudley said, "All right," and within minutes the air was full of flying gnomes. As they worked, Ginny began to feel a little better.

Ron came out to join them when Dudley hurled a gnome farther than Fred's longest recorded toss. "Can you do that again?" he asked, grabbing a gnome of his own and whirling it over his head. The creature let out a squeal of profanity as it sailed over the fence and half-way into the field.

"Sure," Dudley said. "It's good accuracy practice." He grabbed a gnome by the leg and whirled it overhead, a look of great concentration on his face. He let go and the gnome went sailing out of the garden to land just shy of his first toss.

"Brilliant!" Ron commented as they continued searching for more of the pesky little creatures.

Dudley beamed. "Thanks."

There were enough gnomes in the garden to keep the three busy until Mr and Mrs Weasley returned at half four from the Order meeting. As Ginny and Mrs Weasley set about making an early dinner, Fred and George tumbled through the fireplace followed by Bill and Fleur who had just recently returned from their honeymoon in the Hebrides. The four stood around the hearth brushing the soot from their clothes as her father and Dudley walked over to greet the newcomers. It always amused Ginny to watch her father introduce people to each other.

"Just in time," Mr Weasley said. He turned to Dudley. "You haven't met my oldest son, Bill and his wife, Fleur. This is Dudley Dursley."

"You're Harry's cousin." Bill offered his hand. "Pleased to meet you, Dudley. What brings you to The Burrow?"

"I'm helping with Harry's rescue," Dudley said, sounding important.

"He found the lake with the white building on it," Ginny called from her place at the counter where she was hand-slicing carrots.

"So we 'eard at the meeting," Fleur said. "Dudley, you 'ave done a great zing for zee Order. Your information has 'elped us narrow our search area. Thank you."

Dudley's eyes widened. "It has?"

"Absolutely," Bill said, pulling out a chair at the table. "The first search group will go out at midnight tonight."

Ginny stopped slicing. "Will you and Fleur be going out?" she asked nervously.

"Not for a few days," Fleur answered, looking pointedly at Bill. "We must set up 'ouse first. Zere is so much unpacking to do."

"Do you want some help?" Ginny asked, not really thinking about what she was asking.

Her mother dropped her cauldron of self-stirring gravy and whirled to face her. "If you think you're going out on one of the searches or even helping Bill and Fleur," Mrs Weasley said, pointing her wand at Ginny, "you'd better get that notion out of your head, young lady. You're going back to Hogwarts tomorrow to be where you belong."

Ginny looked at the mess, feeling contrite. "Sorry, Mum," she mumbled, reaching for a rag to start cleaning up. "I wasn't thinking about what I was saying."

Mrs Weasley flicked her wand and the cauldron righted itself. The spilled gravy vanished, leaving a clean spot on the floor in front of the cooker. "I'm not thinking very clearly myself," she said as she put her arm around Ginny's shoulders. "I know you aren't looking forward to tomorrow and it's going to be hard for your dad and me to have you so far away. Hopefully, with Dudley's help, we'll put an end to this horrible waiting game we're going through sooner than we would have done otherwise. I'm sorry I snapped."

Ginny smiled and looked at her assembled family. "You're forgiven, Mum, but only if you help me finish dinner for this hungry lot."

"I think I can do that," Mrs Weasley said. "Shall we ask Fleur to help?"

"Only if you have her make the salad," Ginny said so only her mother could hear. "Otherwise we'll still be cooking when the sun goes down and I'm not sure Dudley and the twins can wait that long."

Mrs Weasley chuckled and turned back to her cauldron. She and Ginny had the food floating to the table within twenty minutes and soon everyone was helping themselves to baked chicken, creamed potatoes and glazed carrots.

Later that evening, after the dishes had been done, Ginny slipped out of the lounge and away from her family. Her forehead still throbbed and occasionally one of Harry's thoughts or an image would pop into her head and she decided it was just too much trouble to try hiding her discomfort from the others. Her only thought was to close herself in her bedroom and suffer in solitude.

She had just reached her door when someone called softly, "Ginny, hold on!"

Turning towards the sound, she saw Dudley standing on the landing below. "What is it, Dudley?"

"Is your head still bothering you?" he asked.

She nodded and sat down on the top step. "Yeah, it is."

"I'm sorry about that." Dudley ascended the stairs and they sat next to her. "Have you seen or felt anything specific?"

"No. I just know Harry's terrified and half-delirious. The Death Eaters are doing something awful to him, Dudley, but he's not giving me any clues to where he is or what they're doing to him. I feel so helpless," she half-sobbed, holding her throbbing head. "I don't want to go back to Hogwarts tomorrow, but I know I have to."

Dudley didn't respond right away. Finally he said, "If it's any consolation I'll try to write as much as I can. Maybe by keeping each other informed we'll be able to bring Harry back here sooner."

Ginny stared at him in the semi-darkness. "Thanks. I'll write back to you, too." She stood up and opened her door. "I'll see you in the morning. Good-night, Dudley."

"Good night, Ginny."

A/N: Some of you have been wondering when Dudley will show up. Well, now you know and from now on, he appears with some regularity, mostly in the Ginny chapters, until Harry is rescued. I hope you continue to enjoy this new, more mature version of JKR's character.

My list of thank yous seems to have grown a little longer with this chapter. Jedi34 has joined my pre-beta team and along with GhostWriter, has found all the little quirks and mistakes that needed to be taken care of before I sent the final version to my beta for final approval. Thank you two for your suggestions and grammatical help that polished this chapter and made my beta's job a little less arduous. Aggiebell, thanks for making me take a look at the timeline for this chapter. A second look is always good and helps to clarify things; I was happy to do that. Thank you, too, for all the nice comments and suggestions. Finally, to my readers, I hope you liked this episode enough to let me know your opinions. No matter whether you offer praise or constructive criticism, I always write back.

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