Out of the Shadows (A Harry Potter Fan Fiction)

Chapter 20- Empty (Ava)

Remus paused, "What I'm saying is... it's difficult, but things will get better, Ava. We'll do all that we can to help you."

I swallowed the lump in my throat, unsure of what to say. I knew that it was difficult for Remus to bring up things about the past and about Sirius.

"Remus," I finally started to say, "I can't just stay in that house all day. I'll go mad-"

I was cut off as Remus wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tightly. He stroked my hair and muttered to me quietly, "Ava, if you didn't go mad in Malfoy Manor, you're strong enough to stay sane here. We'll keep you sane, anyway."

I finally allowed myself to smile, and leant my head against Remus' chest, "Thank you, Moony."

He chuckled softly, and began to lead me back towards the house. I followed him as I asked him about Tonks. A certain pride seemed to fill his eyes when he talked about Tonks, and I could tell how much he truly loved her.

"Tonks and I just came here because I need to discuss some things with Arthur, and Tonks begged me to let her come." Remus' eyes darkened for a moment, "She would be safer at home, but she was being rather persistent."

"Oh, come on," I muttered lightly as we approached the front door, "You can't force her to stay inside all day when you're out of the house so much."

Remus just grinned, rolling his eyes skywards, "You and Tonks are relentless."

"That's why you love us," I laughed, closing the door behind us, "I suppose I won't be allowed to sit in the kitchen with you and Mr. Weasley, will I?"

Remus shook his head, "We don't want to keep secrets Ava, but it's regarding something we ought to keep quiet..."

I sighed, "I'll be upstairs with Ginny. See you later."

I darted up the stairs and glanced at Ginny's door. It was slightly ajar, and I could hear only silence within. I knocked on the door quietly, "Ginny?"

"Come in," She muttered. I opened the door and saw her sitting on her bed, staring out of the window silently.

"What's the matter?" I asked, rushing to sit beside her.

Ginny shook her head quickly, but when she saw my disbelieving expression she sighed, "I'm just worried about Harry. I want to do all that I can to help our side, but Mum and Dad won't let me join the Order. I just feel like I'm doing nothing..."

I paused, "Ginny, I know you're worried about Harry. I am too. But he's a fighter. He's been through so much in the past few years, and he's still going strong. Plus, with Hermione and Ron by his side, he'll be fine."

Ginny nodded, "But, while he's away on his mission, I'm here doing absolutely nothing for the Order. It just feels so... wrong."

I exhaled, "There must be something we can do, Ginny."

"When I was at Hogwarts before the Christmas holidays, Neville, Luna and I set up Dumbledore's Army again. It was getting into full swing just before I left."

"Really?" I leant forwards, my interest piqued, "What did you guys do?"

She hesitated, "Mostly teaching first years how to defend themselves, but we also helped to heal students who had been tortured or harmed by the Death Eaters."

I looked at her, "You could go back to it."

Ginny snorted, "Mum would never let me. Besides, it was dangerous."

My mouth quirked up at the corner, "I love danger, Ginny. You know that."

She rolled her eyes, "Don't remind me. You've changed so much since we first met you, Ava. It's difficult to believe that you're the same person."

I studied her expression- her hard set mouth contrasting with her warm eyes, "So have you. What happened to the girl that used to tease me about Fred every living moment?"

She smirked, "Well, I heard George got into a bit of pickle this morning, involving you and a certain somebody in bed..."

My cheeks flushed, and she burst out laughing, "Very sly. You're lucky that no one heard."

"Fred may have cast a silencing charm on the door." I murmured, "Anyway, I feel weird having this conversation with you. Why don't we do something? Shall we play Exploding Snap?"

Ginny watched me for a moment, trying to figure out if I was being serious or not before beginning to laugh, "Feels a bit insubstantial when everyone else is out fighting the Death Eaters."

I stood up and gestured for her to follow, "Well, if they're not going to let us do anything, or even leave the bloody house, looks like we can't do anything meaningful for this bloody war. So we'll have to resort to games to prevent us from going mad with boredom."

"I warn you," Ginny grinned, "Playing Exploding Snap with Fred and George all of my life has trained me well. I'm not sure if you're ready to face me."

"We'll see," I chuckled, but as we trooped downstairs to the kitchen, I couldn't help but think about Dumbledore's Army back at Hogwarts. It seemed like it had been a good idea to restart the group, especially if the teachers had no shame in torturing their students.

I wondered what it would take for Remus to let me go back to Hogwarts.