Ginny had been sent to bed promptly by her mother the previous night. She had begged to be allowed to wait up for the search party to return, but her mum had refused. In rebellion, Ginny had gone to bed but she hadn't gone to sleep. Instead, she listened intently for sounds, desperate for any sign of the search party returning.
Some hours after she had gone to bed, Ginny heard the front door of the house crash open. She immediately leapt out of bed, dashed out onto the landing, and descended the stairs until she reached the hallway. By the time Ginny reached the ground floor, everyone seemed to have gone into the dining room. So, moving cautiously so that she wasn't seen, Ginny approached the door and peered in. There was a crowd of people in the room. The centre of attention was the person that was lying on the table in the middle of the room with Professor Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey standing over them.
She could see Remus sitting in a chair with his head in his hands. Tonks had her arms around him and appeared to be comforting him. Others were standing around the room watching what was going on, but generally trying to stay out of the way. She spotted Bill standing alone in one corner of the room.
Ginny tried desperately to figure out what was going on it, but it was difficult without revealing herself. If anyone saw that she was there, she would get sent straight back to bed.
Suddenly, Madam Pomfrey moved away from the table and Ginny had her first glimpse of the person lying there. It was a black-haired boy. His eyes were closed, but his face was pointed slightly towards her. Ginny stifled a gasp with her hand as she recognised him. It was Adam! They had him! He was alive! Ginny nearly sobbed out loud in relief, but managed to control herself. She realised that they must have removed the appearance spells from him; that was why he had different colour hair. Ginny thought he looked slightly odd with black hair, but at least he was alive. Suddenly Adam's eyes cracked open a little and Ginny found herself staring into a pair of bright green eyes. Then as suddenly as they opened, the eyes seemed to cloud before they slid closed again.
"Albus, he must go to St Mungo's," Madam Pomfrey said as she returned to Adam's side. "I don't have the supplies to treat this severe exposure to the Cruciatus Curse."
"Poppy, sending him there would not be wise. It could give them an opportunity to recapture him. Please do what you can for him here," Professor Dumbledore replied.
"Albus, he must go! He has severe damage to his nervous system. If he doesn't go, he may never walk again!"
Ginny openly sobbed at this. What had happened to him! Oh, Adam!
Suddenly, there was a clatter and a sound of expletives being uttered in the room. Ginny realised, with alarm, that the noise she had made might have attracted attention, so she slipped out of sight.
"Remus!" Professor Dumbledore's voice rose suddenly. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Taking him to the bloody hospital," Remus snapped, sounding far angrier than she had ever heard him before. "If you're not going to do it, then I will."
"He must go, Albus," Madam Pomfrey added gravely.
Ginny heard a sigh. "If that is where he needs to be, then that is where he must go. I will join you to ensure his safety," Professor Dumbledore continued.
Upon hearing this, Ginny realised that they would soon be coming out of the room. So she dashed back up the staircase just in time to see Remus carry Adam out of the dining room and through the door that led to the kitchen and the Floo.
Once they had passed and Ginny once more found herself alone, she sprinted back upstairs and shut herself in her room. She threw herself down onto her bed and allowed the turmoil of emotions inside her to come to the surface. She cried in relief that Adam was alive and had been rescued, and she cried in despair for the injuries he had suffered. How badly he must have been hurt to make Madam Pomfrey think he might not walk again!
Ginny didn't get any sleep for the rest of night. She lay awake thinking of Adam being tortured, thinking of him now lying alone in St Mungo's hospital. She couldn't describe how badly she wanted to go and see him, but she couldn't. She couldn't because it would be noticed and how would she explain that? She couldn't go because she was just little Ginny and she couldn't go anywhere without her parents or one of her older brothers.
The next morning, Ginny dragged herself out of bed and walked tiredly down to breakfast. The atmosphere in the house felt oppressive and when she arrived in the kitchen she saw Ron, Fred and George sitting at the table eating breakfast.
"Something's the matter with Mum," Ron said to her as she sat down next to her. "She looks upset."
Ginny felt her stomach plummet. Something has happened to Adam!Oh, please, please, please let him be alright!
"And what's the matter with you?" Ron continued. "You look like you haven't slept a wink."
Ginny scowled at her brother.
"Morning, Ginny dear," Mum murmured, as she turned around from the stove. Ginny could immediately see what Ron meant. Her eyes were slightly red, as if she had been crying. She approached Ginny, patted her on the back and placed her breakfast down in front her.
"Now that you're all here, I have some news," Mum said, sitting herself down at the table. "Last night, they went out on a rescue mission to get Harry. They were able to rescue him and he is currently recovering at St Mungo's."
Ginny managed to control herself, but inside she was jumping for joy.
"However," Mum continued, "I'm afraid to tell you that Sirius was killed in the attempt."
"No!" Ginny blurted, not quite believing what she was hearing. It had only been yesterday that she had spoken to him. "No, no, no!" she cried, feeling tears welling up in her eyes. She had encouraged him to go after Adam!
"Ginny?" her mum queried. She seemed surprised by how Ginny was reacting, but then, she didn't know that she and Sirius had become friends over the last year.
Ginny, without a word to her mother, fled the room. She raced up the stairs to her bedroom, where she cried until, finally letting exhaustion take her, she fell asleep.
Adam June 28th 1996
"Ohhhh," Adam moaned as he drifted back to consciousness. His entire body seemed to burn with the sensation of pins and needles. It was rather uncomfortable.
He struggled slightly, trying to figure out what was happening to him. He opened his eyes, and tried to look at the blurry room he was in, but all he could see was a plain white ceiling.
He vaguely recalled that every time he had regained consciousness over the last few days, everything had seemed confusing. There had been people around his bed, saying things to him that he couldn't understand. These people, who he didn't know, invariably forced a strange liquid into his mouth soon after he woke. The liquid, once swallowed, always sent him spiralling back into sleep.
However, this time things seemed somehow calmer, no liquid was forced into his mouth and there were no strange people in the room.
Upon realising this, Adam moved his hand slowly and painfully up to his face to rub his eyes. Hang on! He could move his arms again!
"Welcome back, Adam," a voice said from the other side of the room.
Adam tried to lever himself up. However, after several seconds of struggling, he gave it up and sank with a groan back down onto the bed. He simply didn't have the strength in his arms.
"Do not try to get up. I will come over to you."
Adam relaxed on the bed and stared up at the blurry ceiling. A few seconds later a head with lots of white hair appeared in his eye line.
"Pro… Prof…" Adam croaked out, with his throat feeling scratched and torn. Even with his blurred vision, Professor Dumbledore was unmistakable.
"It is I, Adam," Professor Dumbledore replied. "I am glad you remember me." Then, holding out a flask of clear liquid, Professor Dumbledore said. "Open your mouth, Adam."
"N…N…N…" Adam protested, shaking his head, he didn't want them to make him go back to sleep. He wanted to find out what was going on!
"This is only to help you talk, Adam," Professor Dumbledore reassured him.
Adam finally complied and he suddenly felt a cool liquid soothing his torn throat.
"Much…" Adam coughed, "…better."
"The potion will enable you to talk for a short while and, with regular doses, will heal your throat. The Healers were reluctant to give it to you before because they needed to get other, more vital potions into your system."
"What… what… the matter?" Adam asked in a croaky voice.
"You are suffering from the after-effects of the Cruciatus Curse," Professor Dumbledore replied. He continued in a sad sounding voice, "They tortured you, didn't they?"
"The… pain," Adam replied. He remembered the pain.
"I know, my boy. We have given you potions to help your body recover; in time, you should be as good as new," Professor Dumbledore paused. "I… I am very sorry you had to go through that, Adam. I hold myself to blame. I should have told you everything."
"S'okay," Adam coughed out drowsily.
"I will tell you everything you ask of me," Professor Dumbledore replied, "but not today. Once you are recovered some more, we will talk."
"Ginny…?" Adam asked weakly, suddenly feeling incredibly tired. "Can I see Ginny now?"
"I am afraid not, Adam," Professor Dumbledore replied. "I will bring her to visit you very soon. I promise."
Adam could only nod. He was feeling sleepy again. His eyes slid closed and he forced them open again.
"Sleep," Professor Dumbledore said. "I will watch over you."
Adam barely heard what he said. He was already drifting off to sleep.
Ginny June 30th 1996
In recent days, Number Twelve Grimmauld Place had become a very depressing place. With Sirius' death, the ownership of the house at Grimmauld Place was now in doubt and so Professor Dumbledore had decreed that it was no longer safe here. So, at her mother's request, Ginny had packed her clothes back into her trunk because they would be returning to The Burrow tomorrow.
The last few days had been hard, very hard. Ginny had cried and her mother had comforted her, without fully understanding why she was so upset. Ginny guessed her mother just thought she was being overly sensitive. Fortunately, her brothers had the sense not to bother her.
Ginny felt extremely sorry for Remus. She knew that Sirius had been his best friend and she couldn't even begin to imagine how he must be feeling.
Fortunately, Remus had Tonks. Ginny had seen Tonks comforting Remus on the night of the mission, but the couple hadn't spent any time at the house since then. Remus needed to keep up the charade regarding Adam, and Ginny could understand that the house wasn't particularly pleasant to be in right now.
Ginny was helping her mother clean the kitchen in preparation for their departure when Professor Dumbledore suddenly emerged from the Floo.
"Oh, Albus!" Mum exclaimed when she saw him. "How is Harry?"
"He is recovering well, Molly," Professor Dumbledore replied. "But I am afraid I have come here to ask yet another favour of you and your family."
"Albus, I'm not sure… I don't think…" her mum replied.
"Molly!" Albus said jovially. "I was going to ask if some of your children would consent to spend some time with Harry while he recovers. I think some contact with people his own age will do him good."
Mum looked relieved. "Of course, Albus! Why, Ron is his age, I believe," Mum replied eagerly.
"Molly, I was actually thinking of taking Ginny along tomorrow, or the day after, if possible," said Professor Dumbledore. "She has already met him."
"I have?" Ginny exclaimed.
"She has?" Mum exclaimed.
"After that incident in your second year, when you and Adam barged into my office…" Professor Dumbledore began.
Ginny paused for a second, collecting her thoughts. "That was Harry?" she exclaimed, playing along.
"Yes," Professor Dumbledore replied with a wide smile. "So are you alright with this, Molly?"
"Oh, erm, yes, I suppose. You'll be with her?" Mum asked.
"Of course, and I will also call on the boys over the next few days, if you don't mind."
Ginny didn't hear what her mother said in response. She was too busy trying to hide the unexplainable grin that was on her face. She would be seeing Adam tomorrow!
"Albus," Mum continued speaking, "I've been meaning to ask you. When is Adam coming back?"
The mention of Adam's name immediately attracted Ginny's attention.
"He's been gone a long time and I am sure he is missing all of us. If you haven't made any progress yet, I suggest you give up so he can come home!"
Ginny immediately recognised the tone in her mother's voice. She was building up to losing her temper.
"Mum!" Ginny exclaimed, before Professor Dumbledore could say anything in reply. "Adam really wants to find out if he has any relatives! He knows we're his family but…" Ginny hesitated, thinking rapidly of what to say. "I think if he knew that he didn't have any relatives out there, he'd be fine. It's the fact that there might be some relatives of his out there that makes him want to find out more."
"Oh…" Mum replied, looking slightly flustered at Ginny's outburst. "If you're sure he's safe and well?"
"He is," Professor Dumbledore replied.
"Good," Mum replied, now looking slightly happier but not all-together satisfied. "If you're sure…"
As she watched her mum's face, Ginny felt a sudden surge of guilt that she was lying to her, but she was doing it for Adam. Surely that made it alright?
"So, Miss Weasley," Professor Dumbledore spoke again, "I'll be along tomorrow morning to take you to St Mungo's."
"Huh," Ginny said distractedly, not understanding what Professor Dumbledore was on about.
"To go and see Harry, Miss Weasley."
Suddenly realising what Professor Dumbledore was saying, Ginny once again had to fight to keep the grin off her face.
She was going to see Adam again!
Adam June 30th 1996
Today was the first day that Adam had been able to stay awake for a significant amount of time without falling back asleep. It was also the first time they had allowed him to eat normal food, instead of pumping him full of Nutrient Potions. Apparently, they were designed to help him recover the weight he had lost and Adam thought they probably did that job very well. Unfortunately, they tasted foul.
Adam was sitting up in bed, bored and somewhat restless. One of the medi-witches had sat him up earlier, a nice change from staring at the blurry white ceiling. Although he was still very weak, he had a lot of control back in his arms and movement was coming back into his legs.
The door to his room clicked open and Professor Dumbledore walked in. He looked very tired and his robes were badly creased.
"Good morning, Adam," he said brightly as he walked to the chair that was positioned at Adam's bedside.
"Morning, Professor," Adam said, his voice still a frog-like croak. It had improved greatly over the last couple of days, but it was still gravelly. At least he could now make himself understood without the aid of potions.
Professor Dumbledore passed Adam a small package wrapped in brown paper. Adam ripped open the paper and stared at the two sets of glasses inside.
"Brilliant," he said. "They came."
Professor Dumbledore had arranged for the optician to see him the previous day. At last Adam could see properly again!
"Your prescription has changed a significant amount. It seems that when Peter altered your eye colour he also changed them in other ways."
Adam picked out the frames in his old design and slipped them onto his face. Immediately the room came into focus.
"Great," he said with a grin. "But why two different designs?"
"I thought that it might be odd for Harry Potter to be seen wearing the exact same glasses as Adam Winters," Professor Dumbledore replied sagely.
"Ah… right…" Adam replied with a smile. "Thanks, Professor."
Adam tried on both sets of frames. The other set had circular lenses with round black frames. Even though he preferred his old set, they were both pretty good.
"I would like to talk to you today, Adam, if that is acceptable?" Professor Dumbledore asked, interrupting his examination of his glasses.
Adam nodded cautiously in reply.
"Adam, I know this may be painful for you, but I need you to tell me everything that happened since the Portkey took you from the Department of Mysteries," Professor Dumbledore continued.
Adam nodded numbly, thinking back over events. He realised that he never even found out why his parents had been attacked. That was the reason he had gone to the Ministry in the first place. Somehow, it didn't seem quite so important anymore.
"If I tell you, will you answer my questions?" Adam asked defensively.
"I will," Professor Dumbledore replied and he waved his wand and the room seemed to shiver for a second. "All this happened because I did not trust you enough to tell you the reason your parents were killed. I won't make that mistake again." Professor Dumbledore paused. "I propose an agreement between us. I will be completely honest with you, but in return I would like you to be honest with me. I hate to say it, but the only person who benefits from us not being honest with each other is Voldemort."
Adam nodded in agreement. If Professor Dumbledore had told him about his parents, then he would never have been captured, and he never wanted to experience anything like that again. He would do anything to avoid it, even if it meant giving Professor Dumbledore one more chance. At least he'd never tortured him.
Finally having come to a decision, Adam haltingly retold the story of his captivity. The pain, the strange sensation of the appearance spells being removed and then events at the graveyard.
"So he took your blood?" Professor Dumbledore asked intently, leaning forward towards Adam, when Adam described what Wormtail had done.
"Yeah…" Adam replied. "He said something like, 'blood of the enemy'."
Professor Dumbledore suddenly sat back in his chair, a strange expression crossing his face.
Adam continued with his tale, pausing from time to time to collect himself. He clasped his fists in anger as he told the Headmaster about the duel Voldemort had attempted to make him participate in.
"Priori Incantatem," Professor Dumbledore muttered, once more leaning forward in interest.
"What?" Adam asked.
"The Reverse Spell effect." Professor Dumbledore then added, "Adam, yours and Lord Voldemort's wands share cores. Both have a tail feather from my very own phoenix, Fawkes, as a core. They will not work properly against each other."
"Wow…" Adam murmured.
"That is…" Professor Dumbledore said faintly, "…one of the reasons why I suspected you of wrongdoing in your first year…" he bowed his head, "…to my eternal shame."
Adam nodded stiffly, not really sure what to say in response to the Headmaster's confession.
"Regardless," Professor Dumbledore continued, "if two wands that share cores do battle… a very rare effect will take place. One of the wands will force the other to regurgitate spells it has performed — in reverse. The most recent first… and then those which preceded it. Did you see anything unusual other than the beam of light joining your wands?"
Adam shook his head.
"Very well," said Professor Dumbledore and, to Adam's surprise, he looked almost disappointed. "Please continue with your tale."
"That's about it, really. Next thing I remember is waking up here."
Professor Dumbledore nodded. "Thank you for telling me this, Adam. And now, as I promised, I will tell you about the Prophecy you saw in the Department of Mysteries." Professor Dumbledore paused. "As you may know, the Prophecy is about you. It was you that Voldemort was after that night."
"I sort of guessed that much," Adam said softly, taking off his glasses and fiddling with them, so he didn't have to look at Professor Dumbledore.
"The exact words of the Prophecy are…" Professor Dumbledore coughed slightly and then began speaking again, "'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches… Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies… and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not… and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives… The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…'"
Adam just stared at Professor Dumbledore, not quite sure what to make of what the professor had just said.
"Those are the exact words of the Prophecy," said Dumbledore.
"W-W-What does that mean?" Adam asked uncertainly.
"It means that the person who has the only chance of conquering Lord Voldemort for good was born at the end of July, sixteen years ago. This boy would be born to parents who had already defied Voldemort three times."
"Me?" Adam exclaimed.
"The odd thing is, Adam," he said softly. "It may not have meant you at all. The Prophecy could have applied to two wizard boys, both born at the end of July that year, both of whom had parents in the Order of the Phoenix, both sets of parents having narrowly escaped Voldemort three times. One, of course, was you. The other was Neville Longbottom."
"But then," Adam stuttered, slumping back onto his pillow, "…but then, why was it my name on the Prophecy and not Neville's?"
"The official record was relabelled after Voldemort's attack on you as a child," said Dumbledore. "It seemed plain, to the keeper of the Hall of Prophecy, that you were the one to whom the Prophecy was referring. Who else but the one named in the Prophecy could have destroyed Voldemort as a baby? That you were apparently killed in the process was deemed a tragic sacrifice."
"Then — it might not be me?" said Adam hopefully. "Could the keeper of the Prophecy have been wrong?"
"I am afraid," said Dumbledore slowly, "that there is no doubt that it is you."
"But you said… Neville was born at the end of July, too?"
"You are forgetting the next part of the Prophecy, the final identifying feature of the boy who could vanquish Voldemort… Voldemort himself would mark him as his equal. And so he did, Adam. He chose you, not Neville. He gave you a scar."
"Scar?" Adam asked. "I don't have a scar."
"You do, my dear boy," replied Professor Dumbledore, and he went to a drawer in the cabinet in Adam's room, withdrew a mirror, and passed it to Adam.
Adam stared at his reflection in the mirror; it was the first time he had seen himself with his… natural appearance. He saw a boy with black hair and bright green eyes staring back at him. Gone were the grey eyes he had seen in the mirror since his earliest memories. Adam found it very disconcerting.
Professor Dumbledore leaned over and gently drew back his fringe and Adam saw a jagged, lightning-bolt scar on the right side of his forehead. Adam drew a sharp intake of breath.
"Might… might he have marked the wrong person?" Adam asked hopefully.
"He chose the boy he thought most likely to be a danger to him," said Professor Dumbledore. "And notice this, Adam. He chose, not the pureblood, but the half-blood, like himself. He saw himself in you before he had ever seen you, and in marking you with that scar, he did not kill you, as he intended, but gave you powers, and a future, which have fitted you to escape him."
"Why did he do it, then?" said Adam, who felt numb and cold. "Why did he try to kill me as a baby? He should have waited to see whether Neville or I looked more dangerous when we were older and tried to kill whoever it was then…"
"That might, indeed, have been the more practical course," said Professor Dumbledore, "except that Voldemort's information about the Prophecy was incomplete. The Hog's Head Inn, where the Prophecy was made, has long attracted, shall we say, a more interesting clientele than the Three Broomsticks. It is a place where it is never safe to assume you are not being overheard. Of course, I had not dreamed, when I set out that day, that I would hear anything worth overhearing. My… our… one stroke of good fortune was that the eavesdropper was detected only a short way into the Prophecy and thrown from the building."
"So he only heard…"
"He heard only the first part, the part foretelling the birth of a boy in July to parents who had thrice defied Voldemort. Consequently, he could not warn his master that to attack you would be to risk transferring power to you… again, marking you as his equal. So Voldemort never knew that there might be danger in attacking you, that it might be wise to wait or to learn more. He did not know that you would have power the Dark Lord knows not."
Adam nodded numbly. "The end of the prophecy… it was something about… neither can live…"
"…while the other survives," said Professor Dumbledore. "Indeed, and so I assumed that you had defeated Voldemort but, somehow, by some twist of fate, you were destroyed, too. I believed that the Prophecy had been fulfilled and that Lord Voldemort was gone for good."
"W-W-What does that mean now?" Adam asked uncertainly. "Now… that I'm alive?"
"I believe," replied Professor Dumbledore after a long pause, "that it means one of you has to kill the other."
"I-I-I have to kill someone?" Adam asked disbelievingly.
"That is what the Prophecy says," replied Professor Dumbledore gently.
Adam's face hardened. "If that's what needs to be done to stop him," he said.
"Very good, Adam," replied Professor Dumbledore. "You will not have an easy road ahead of you, but to prepare you, when we return to the school in September, I will be giving you private lessons."
Adam looked blankly at Professor Dumbledore. "Thanks, sir."
"Now, Adam," Professor Dumbledore continued, "there is one other thing that we need to discuss. I understand the final stages of the battle at the graveyard are unclear to you for obvious reasons."
Adam nodded.
"It was actually Sirius that located you. He was able to get word to me and the remainder of the Order who were still searching the Riddle house for you."
Adam grinned. He knew Sirius would come through for him.
"Adam… I…" Professor Dumbledore hesitated.
Adam felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.
"I'm sorry, Adam. Sirius was killed in the battle."
Adam felt like he had been punched in the gut.
"No… No…" he said feebly.
"I am so sorry…"
"Why couldn't you save him?" Adam asked.
"There was nothing we could do; he was hit by the Killing Curse."
"You saved me!" Adam spat, anger boiling inside him. "Why couldn't you save him?"
Adam glared at Professor Dumbledore for a second before turning away. He felt tears burning behind his eyes. He felt completely numb inside.
"Adam…" Professor Dumbledore said softly.
Adam choked back a sob. "Leave me alone," he replied in a trembling voice.
"Adam…"
"Leave… please," Adam managed to choke out.
"Very well," replied Professor Dumbledore and he stood and left the room, leaving Adam to his grief.
Ginny July 1st 1996
Professor Dumbledore ushered Ginny up the four flights of stairs to the Spell Damage Ward at St Mungo's hospital. She felt unbelievably excited. She was going to see Adam!
"Miss Weasley, I just want to remind you that he is still very weak, and please be careful to call him Harry around any hospital staff," Professor Dumbledore informed as they entered the Spell Damage Ward.
Professor Dumbledore led her down the long ward. As they walked along, Ginny was only too aware that the people in the beds on either side of the ward were watching them. Eventually, they paused at the door of a private room. How Professor Dumbledore had managed to wrangle one of the few private rooms in the hospital, she didn't know.
He smiled at her. "Go on in, Miss Weasley. I will wait outside."
Ginny pushed open the door and looked into the room. Adam was sitting up in bed, wearing his pyjamas and a different set of glasses, reading a piece of parchment. It was quite disconcerting to see him with black hair, but Ginny had to admit, it did seem to suit him.
Adam still hadn't seen her so, grinning, she knocked on the door.
Adam's head shot up and he looked straight at her. He now had green eyes and Ginny felt her insides flutter when she saw an expression of pure joy appear on his face when he saw her.
"Ginny!" he exclaimed loudly, causing her to flinch as his voice echoed out into the corridor.
Ginny shut the door behind her and charged forward. She leapt nimbly onto his bed and hugged him. She felt his arms wrap around her and the two of them clung to each other.
"Adam…" she said softly.
"Oh… Ginny…" he replied. It seemed like he didn't know what to say. "I…I…"
Ginny didn't answer. Instead she hugged him tightly, savouring the physical contact between them. Eventually they settled, sitting next to each other on the bed, with her head on Adam's shoulder and his arms around her.
"I missed you so much!" she exclaimed suddenly, breaking the easy silence that had fallen between the two of them.
"Me, too," Adam replied. He blushed slightly. "When it was really bad, I used to think about you…"
Ginny pressed a kiss to his lips, interrupting him. "It's all over now," she said as she cuddled up to him.
"So, what do you think of my new look?" Adam blurted suddenly.
"What?" Ginny replied. "You look different, but it's still you…"
Adam grinned back at her. "Thanks…"
"I do like your new eyes," she continued with a wink.
"Er… Thanks," Adam said hesitantly.
"I'm not sure about the new glasses though…" she teased, picking them off his face and examining them.
Adam stuck his tongue out at her, reached for his bedside table, and pulled out a set that looked exactly like his old ones.
Ginny gave an exaggerated sigh, cuddled into his side and said, "Ahh, much better."
Adam and Ginny talked for some time and, reluctantly, Adam recounted his horrendous experiences over the last few weeks.
"Adam! Oh, Adam!" she gasped once he had finished speaking, pulling him close and feeling tears welling up in her eyes. "You're safe now! You're safe…"
Once she had recovered, Ginny told the story of his rescue from her point of view. Once she was finished, both of them clung to each other as they shed tears for Sirius.
Even with the distress Ginny felt over everything that had happened, she relished the feeling of simply having Adam here, being able to touch him, hug him, and simply be around him.
The sound of raised voices outside of Adam's room sometime later startled them.
"I want to see Potter now!" a male voice exclaimed loudly.
They heard Professor Dumbledore reply, but couldn't make out what he was saying.
"You've hidden him from me for all these years! I have a right to see him!"
Once again Professor Dumbledore replied.
"I don't care if he's ill and I won't tolerate any more of this rubbish about You-Know-Who! You appear miraculously with this boy who has supposedly been dead for over a decade and then claim he has been abducted by You-Know-Who! It's a load of nonsense. I won't tolerate these lies, Dumbledore! You're lucky I was able to keep it out of the paper!"
"Who is that?" Adam asked.
Ginny shrugged; she didn't recognise the voice either.
"I'm glad Professor Dumbledore was here to stop him getting in," Adam said quietly.
"He's been here nearly the whole time," Ginny told him.
"Oh," Adam said softly. "I didn't know."
Eventually, the voices stopped, the door clicked open and Professor Dumbledore entered, causing Ginny to deftly hop off the bed.
"Ah…" Professor Dumbledore hesitated. "The Minister and I had a slight disagreement. I'm afraid he doesn't believe that Voldemort has returned."
"What?" Adam replied angrily. "How can he think that?"
"He's afraid," Professor Dumbledore replied simply, "but don't you worry about that. Let me worry about convincing the Minister." He paused. "After all… I made the same mistake once."
"What?" Adam asked curiously. It felt somehow reassuring that Professor Dumbledore was confessing his mistakes to them.
"When everyone thought you were dead, I truly believed the Prophecy had been fulfilled." Professor Dumbledore sighed. "I always suspected that Tom would target you, as opposed to Neville, and when he was destroyed that night, I rejoiced. With both of you dead, it seemed as if the Prophecy had been fulfilled. I had to believe that Voldemort was gone for good because — if he could come back and the one who was foretold as his vanquisher was dead — then what hope did we have?
"So I convinced myself that I had won and that Voldemort had finally perished. This… made me somewhat… lax. I overlooked an obvious attempt of Lord Voldemort to return. He tried to steal a precious Stone that would have enabled him to return to life. I thwarted the person he was acting through, but I merely wrote it off as the actions of a rogue professor," he sighed. "I refused to accept it, because to accept that Voldemort was back was to accept that I had been wrong for nearly ten years…"
Adam just stared at Professor Dumbledore, who was now looking deeply uncomfortable.
"Anyway, I have some other news. As part of my ploy to enable Miss Weasley here to come and visit, Fred, George and Ron will also be coming, but they do not, obviously, know who you are."
Adam nodded. "So I'll have to pretend I don't know them…" he said glumly.
"If you still want to proceed with keeping your identity secret, then yes," replied Professor Dumbledore. "I also just spoke to one of your Healers. He suggested that while Miss Weasley is here to assist you, that you have your first attempt at walking."
Ginny looked at Adam, feeling completely shocked. He couldn't walk!
"Is it alright if I let the Healer in?" Professor Dumbledore asked. He now turned to Ginny. "Remember, if we are to keep the act going, Ginny, you must refer to Adam as Harry."
Adam nodded and Professor Dumbledore let the Healer into the room.
"Ahh, good morning, Mr. Potter," the Healer said as she bustled into the room. "As you know, we have been giving you Strengthening Potions over recent days and I'd like to now see about getting you on your feet again."
"Okay," Adam replied nervously.
At the Healer's direction, Adam wriggled about on his bed until he was sitting on the edge with his legs dangling over the side.
"Okay, Harry. I want you to try and put your weight on your legs," the Healer instructed him.
Ginny watched Adam gingerly put his weight on his legs. However, when he did so, they seemed to fold up under him and if the Healer hadn't caught him, Adam would have collapsed to the floor.
"Okay, Miss—? " the Healer asked.
"Weasley," Ginny replied.
"Right, Miss Weasley. Can you come and support Harry to help him get to his feet?"
Ginny went over and stood to one side of Adam. Together, with Adam's arm around her shoulders, she helped him to his feet, taking most of his weight. She heard Adam hiss with pain as his legs took some weight.
"Well done!" Ginny exclaimed to him.
"Miss Weasley, can you allow him to take some more of his own weight?" the Healer instructed her.
After an hour or so, some further Strengthening Potions and a lot of Adam nearly falling over, he stood unsupported on his shaky legs.
Ginny grinned at him. "I knew you could do it!"
"Well done, Harry!" Professor Dumbledore encouraged him. He then turned to the Healer. "Shall we see how well he can walk?"
The Healer hesitated for a second before turning to Adam. "Harry," she said, "do you fancy beginning to take a few steps?"
Adam looked very uncertain. Then his face took on a determined look and he nodded his head decisively.
"Go on, Harry!" Ginny said. "You can do it!"
It felt very weird to call Adam 'Harry'.
Adam moved one leg, which Ginny noticed was still trembling slightly. He grimaced, but continued and moved the other one.
"Come on! You can do it!" Ginny chanted encouragingly.
Adam, gingerly, took three more steps until, reaching the chair in the room, he promptly sat down, breathing hard.
"Well done, Harry!" the Healer exclaimed.
Ginny wanted to rush over and hug him, but she realised she probably shouldn't do that in front of the Healer, so she jumped up and down excitedly and congratulated him. "Brilliant! Well done!"
Adam July 1st 1996
Once Adam was back in bed and the Healer had left the room, Professor Dumbledore said, "I think we had better get you home, Ginny."
"Oh," Ginny sighed in disappointment.
"Will you be able to come again?" Adam asked hopefully.
"I do not see why not," said Professor Dumbledore. "The others will come over the next few days, but if you're still here after that, then I will bring Ginny back."
"Professor," Adam asked hesitantly, finally voicing one of the things that had been troubling him, "when I get out of here, where will I go?"
"Hmm," Professor Dumbledore said, with a twinkle in his eye. "I have been surreptitiously adding wards to The Burrow over the last few days. By the time you are released, it should be as safe as any place outside of Hogwarts," he smiled, "so I think you can return there."
Adam grinned in delight. "Thanks, Professor," he replied.
Things were beginning to look up and, much to Adam's surprise, he actually found himself beginning to get along with Professor Dumbledore. The Headmaster, as far as he was aware, had been completely honest with him over the last few days and had bent over backwards to help him. Perhaps he was turning over a new leaf.
"Adam," Professor Dumbledore continued, "I would like you to consider, perhaps, telling the Weasleys that you are Harry Potter."
Adam tensed at Professor Dumbledore's suggestion. What would happen if he told the Weasleys? Did he want to be known to the world as Harry Potter?
"I'm not saying you have to, Adam," Professor Dumbledore clarified. "It is just something to consider."
Adam nodded numbly at the professor. He had a lot of thinking to do.