Mark Five
Hermione’s strident complaints and Ron’s desperate excuses echoed down the stairs. Ginny, like Harry, was ignoring them.
Fat drops of rain trickled down the large panes of the bay window like the tears of a thousand mourners. Harry stood in the window, peering out through the downpour. Ginny sat on the sofa, watching her boyfriend. His back was to her, and his right hand was on the crown of his head. His fingers were twisting and teasing their way through his already tousled hair. She was about to ask whether he thought their plans would have to change when he spoke, apparently anticipating her question.
‘It isn’t raining on the other side of the Strait, Ginny,’ he said. The noise from upstairs abated, and he took his hand from his hair. ‘The fine weather seems to be heading this way. I think the clouds will pass over soon. Hopefully we’ll be able to have a barbecue in your back garden after all.’
Before Ginny could reply, there was a popping noise outside the window. Harry’s head jerked to the left. He stared through the window, gave a brief wave, and turned back into the room.
‘It’s George,’ Harry said as the doorbell rang. ‘He’s still got the beard, at least some of it, despite what everyone told him on Sunday. Do you think he’s okay, Ginny? He doesn’t look well.’
‘I told him on Sunday, he’s drinking too much and not eating enough,’ Ginny replied as she stood. ‘It seems to be worse than ever this year. He goes into a depression on his birthday, and doesn’t come out of it until after the anniversary of The Battle. You should ask him to help you with the bike, Harry. He’d enjoy helping, and he needs the distraction; if he’s not kept constantly busy, he mopes.’
The doorbell rang again, this time with more urgency.
‘He’s getting wet,’ said Harry.
‘Not as wet as Ron and Hermione got,’ said Ginny, but she walked out into the hallway to let him in.
‘You took your time,’ George told her when she opened the door.
Ginny looked up into his face. ‘And you look ridiculous,’ she told him.
‘Everyone complained that my moustache was long and untidy,’ George protested. ‘So I shaved it off, and a bit of the beard, too.’
‘Not enough of it,’ said Ginny. ‘When Harry and I were in the USA last year--in Washington--we saw a statue of one of their Presidents. He had a beard like that; it’s called a chin curtain. But his wasn’t straggly and untidy and, although I only saw black and white pictures of him, I’m pretty sure it wasn’t ginger, either. We all know you’re an idiot, George, you don’t need to look like one.’
‘I didn’t come here to be insulted,’ George protested.
‘Where you go doesn’t matter. You’ve got the mangy remains of a ginger tomcat glued under your chin,’ Ginny said acidly. ‘If you seriously believe that you can turn up on my doorstep looking like that and not get insulted you really don’t know me very well, do you?’
George laughed. ‘I don’t care what you think, I’m keeping it,’ he said stubbornly, as he stroked the straggling strands of his untidy beard.
‘I’ll let you in this time,’ Ginny said. ‘But I’m warning you, Lugless, the next time you come here, you will be leaving the beard outside.’ She led her brother into the living room.
‘Hi, George,’ said Harry.
‘Afternoon, Harry, is Ron here yet?’ he asked.
Ginny noticed the evil grin on her brother’s face. ‘You did know didn’t you?’ she said.
‘Know what?’ asked George. ‘That the first time I visited you, Ron had set the Portkey for a location on the beach that was below the level of high tide? Of course I knew. I have eyes, and a brain. When I suggested today for the second test of the Mirrorphone I checked the tide tables, and I realised that the tide would be in. That’s why I Apparated directly to your front door.’
George opened his mouth and clasped his hands over it in a pantomime of shock. ‘Ron didn’t arrive in the sea did he?’
‘Side-along Apparition, he had Hermione with him,’ said Harry.
George roared with laughter.
Part of Ginny wanted to be annoyed with him, and she knew that a part of Harry did, too. But George was laughing. She exchanged a glance with her boyfriend. The memory of Ron and Hermione’s arrival--he damp and disgruntled, she drenched and displeased--made her smile. Harry caught her mood and, like her, he struggled not to laugh.
‘You evil git,’ said Ron as he walked into the room. George shrugged dismissively.
‘It’s not George’s fault,’ said Hermione, as she followed her boyfriend through the door. ‘You’re the one who Apparated us into the sea, Ron. Of all the stupid things you’ve ever done…’
‘That one doesn’t even make the top ten,’ Harry observed loudly, cutting across Hermione’s complaints before she could start again. Harry folded his arms, and gave his friend a wry smile. ‘Does it, Hermione? Admit it.’
To Ron’s obvious relief, Hermione laughed. ‘No, it doesn’t,’ she admitted. ‘But that water was freezing, and there was quite an undertow. If Ron hadn’t grabbed me I’d have been swept off my feet.’
‘Surely it’s Ron’s job to sweep you off your feet,’ Ginny observed.
‘Surely it’s my job to support her, too,’ Ron retorted. Hermione smiled.
‘Nice try, Ron, but we know you’re useless,’ said George.
‘He’s not,’ Hermione protested.
‘At least I can shave myself properly,’ Ron told his brother. ‘Did you get shaved in the dark or something? I hate to tell you, George, but you missed quite a big bit under your chin.’
‘Don’t you start,’ said George. ‘At least I didn’t Apparate into the sea with my girlfriend!’
‘You can’t, because you don’t have a...’ began Ron angrily. Hermione tugged Ron’s sleeve, and he stopped mid-sentence.
Ginny immediately filled the silence, and tried to calm things down. ‘You said you’d have the Mark two ready in a month, George,’ Ginny reminded him. ‘That was ten weeks ago! Did you have a problem?’
‘I did have it ready in a month, sweet little Ginevra,’ George told her. ‘Didn’t I, little Ronniekins?’
‘Yeah,’ Ron agreed, ‘But we did have a problem...’
‘The Mark two was a disaster,’ said George. ‘So Ron and I started again. The Mark three almost worked, but I didn’t like it. And then Ron didn’t like the Mark four. You are going to be the first person to test the Mark five. Apart from me and Ron, only Fenella and Terry have seen this version. Let’s see if you can break it.’
‘I’ll make us all a cuppa.’ Harry offered. ‘Try not to destroy the thing before I get back, Ginny.’
‘I baked some ginger biscuits yesterday, Harry,’ she told him. ‘They’re in the green biscuit barrel.’
‘Ginger? My favourite! Are they as good as Mum’s?’ George asked.
‘They’re better,’ said Harry as he walked out of the room.
‘So, Hermione isn’t the only one with a creep for a boyfriend,’ George called after him.
‘Oi,’ Ron protested.
Ginny simply stuck two fingers up at George. ‘No biscuits for you, Lugless,’ she told him.
George ignored her, and instead shouted after Harry. ‘Just wait until I tell Mum what you’ve said about her biscuits, Potter,’ he shouted down the hall.
‘I’ll tell Molly that I only said Ginny’s were nicer because I didn’t want to hurt my girlfriend’s feelings,’ Harry called. ‘Your mum will forgive me!’
Ginny laughed. ‘Good plan, Harry!’
George turned to his sister, grinned, and hugged her. ‘Merlin! You’re really turning him into a Weasley! Well done,’ he told her. He released her, and put on a mock frown. ‘Ten weeks work, and you won’t even feed me homemade biscuits. That’s not fair, but you’ll change your mind when you see this beauty! Sit down, and be prepared to be amazed.’
Ginny gave a dismissive snort, but sat in the armchair. Hermione and Ron sat side by side on the sofa, and watched in silence as George pulled a small box from his pocket and handed it to her. The box was a black so dark that it seemed to be sucking in light. It was about six inches long, and three inches wide, and it was no more than half an inch deep. On the front, in mirror-like silver block lettering was the word: –MIRRORPHONE®â€, beneath it, in a smaller, cursive script, were the words –a W.W.W.® productâ€.
‘Top marks for the box, George,’ said Ginny. ‘It’s understated and tasteful. So, obviously, you had nothing to do with it.’
‘I told you she’d realise, George,’ Ron said. ‘I designed the box. I thought we needed to make it look classy.’
‘Apart from the silver writing, it looks just like the box this necklace was in,’ said Hermione. She lifted the fine silver chain around her neck. ‘It was my Christmas present from Ron,’ she told George.
‘It’s not like you haven’t stolen good ideas,’ Ron protested, as his brother called him names. ‘In fact this entire thing is stolen. The original Mirrorphone was just a magical copy of Hermione’s mobile phone.’
‘Was!’ said George firmly. ‘This one isn’t, Ron, and you know it isn’t.’
‘You said you hadn’t changed it much,’ accused Hermione, glaring at her boyfriend. ‘What have you done?’
Ginny lifted the lid. Resting on the padded black satin lining the box was a mirror. The surround was solid-looking and well-polished walnut wood, and the corners were smoothly rounded. The entire thing was about two-and-a-half inches wide, four-and-a-half high and no more than one-third of an inch thick. The mirror was set within this solid block of wood. There was no instruction book, because there was no room for one in the box. Inside the lid were the words –Please follow the instructions on the Mirrorphone®.â€
‘That’s nothing like a mobile phone. Where are the buttons?’ Hermione asked.
‘We did away with them completely when we started on the Mark three,’ Ron admitted. He hastily turned to speak to his sister. ‘Hermione hasn’t been involved in the design since the Mark one. It’s been me, George, and Fenella. Terry helped, too. Fenella dragged him in to sort out an Arithmancy problem, something to do with the calculator function, and the caller identification algae rhythm.’
‘Algorithm,’ George interjected.
‘We couldn’t get rid of him,’ Ron continued, heedless of George’s interruption. ‘I think he thought Fenella was spending too much time with George.’
‘He’s got no worries there,’ said George. ‘She’s not my type.’
‘I didn’t know you had a type,’ Ginny observed. ‘Other than female.’
‘I have my standards,’ George told her. There was little conviction in his voice.
‘But doesn’t look like a mobile phone,’ Hermione protested. ‘It’s too thin, and too long and too wide. It looks like a mirror.’
‘That’s because it is a mirror, Hermione’ said Ginny. ‘I think it looks good, and because it’s so thin, it will probably fit in my pocket just as easily as the smaller, fatter Mark one version. And you told me that ten years ago mobile phones were the size of a brick. Perhaps in ten years Muggle phones will look like this.’
As she lifted the mirror from the box, George said. ‘Welcome to your new Mirrorphone, are you the owner?’
Ginny looked up. Her brother’s lips weren’t moving; his voice seemed to be coming from the mirror itself.
‘It’s automatic,’ George explained. ‘It speaks to the first person to touch it.’
‘Why use your voice?’ Ginny asked.
‘Please answer the question!’ the phone said firmly. ‘Are you the owner of this new Mirrorphone? Answer yes, or no.’
‘It was either me, Ron, or Fenella, so I did it,’ said George. ‘Now answer the bloody question.’
‘Yes,’ said Ginny.
‘Please look into the mirror, and speak your name,’ the mirror told her.
Ginny lifted it, stared at her reflection, and said, ‘Ginny Weasley.’ There was a burst of light from the mirror and although Ginny blinked and moved, her reflection did not.
‘Welcome ... Ginny Weasley,’ the phone said. Although George’s voice was speaking most of the words, Ginny’s name was in her own voice. ‘Your Mirrorphone is now operational. You have no contacts, and cannot, therefore, use many of the Mirrorphone’s functions. Please touch the screen for options.’
Before Ginny’s forefinger had touched the glass, Hermione was on her feet, and babbling excitedly. ‘Verbal instructions, instant recording of ownership...’
She peered over Ginny’s shoulder, and was just in time to see the image of Ginny fade. As it vanished, writing appeared on the glass.
‘How to... Contacts, Games.’ Hermione read. ‘The writing is very clear. Did you use the Protean Charm, coupled with...’
‘Hermione!’ George bellowed. ‘This is a test! Ron knows pretty much all of the answers. I’m surprised that he’s managed to keep it secret from you. Either shut up and let Ginny try to figure it out, or go somewhere else and ask Ron.’
‘But...’
‘I’ll tell you later, just watch, please,’ Ron begged.
With some effort, Hermione stopped hopping around in excitement, and fell silent.
Ginny put her finger on the words How to... and the writing changed. Ginny read the options: How to add another mirror to your contacts; How to write a message; How to make an image...
‘It can make an image!’ squealed Hermione. ‘That’s amazing, how...’
‘Please, Hermione,’ Ron said. He reached into his pocket. ‘I’ve got one for you, and one for Harry, too.’ He stood, placed one of the black boxes on the table, and handed the other one to his girlfriend. ‘We’ll go through into the kitchen. You can ask me all your questions while George watches to see whether the instructions are Ginny-proof.
As they left, George rolled his eyes. ‘It’s so much easier to work without little miss clever clogs asking questions and making suggestions every second,’ he muttered.
Ginny grinned, and touched the words How to add another Mirrorphone to your contacts.
First, find someone you want to talk to. Second, touch your Mirrophone to theirs. Third, follow the instructions.
‘You’ve got this far without a problem, Ginny,’ George told her. He pulled an identical Mirrorphone from his pocket. ‘The writing and imaging and games options are simply bells and whistles. The important thing is that we’ve figured out a way to make a mirror which effectively enchants itself. There is no limit to the number of contacts you can have.’ George paused, and shook his head. ‘That’s not quite true. Terry says that...’ George pulled a scrap of paper from his pocket, and read. ‘Because of the Arithmantic constraints created by codifying the connections, the number of connections is restricted to eleven cubed, which is…’ he pulled a piece of paper from his pocket, ‘one thousand three hundred and thirty one...’
‘Over a thousand connections, that should be enough,’ Ginny began.
George shook his head and hissed her into silence.
‘The maximum is, therefore, the one thousand three hundred and thirty first prime number, or ten thousand, nine hundred and fifty seven connections,’ said George, waving the piece of paper. ‘I wrote it down, in case someone asked. Now, do you want to try this?’ George held up his Mirrorphone, and Ginny touched hers to his.
‘Contact between... the amazing George Weasley... and... Ginny Weasley,’ the phones announced. George’s recorded identifier was a lot louder and less formal than Ginny’s. ‘Please place a finger on the Mirrorphone.’
Ginny did as instructed, and George followed suit. She was becoming used to the verbal instructions, and the sudden switches between her voice, and George’s.
‘Ginny Weasley...’ the Mirrorphone asked. ‘Do you wish to establish contact with... the amazing George Weasley?’
‘Yes,’ Ginny said.
The Mirrorphone then repeated the process with George.
‘Contact established... Ginny Weasley... please provide an identifying name for... the amazing George Weasley.’ the Mirrorphone said.
‘Lugless,’ said Ginny. George grinned.
When the process repeated itself George said, ‘Harpy.’
Ginny moved her Mirrorphone away from George’s.
‘Ginny Weasley... to contact... the amazing George Weasley... simply touch the mirror, and say... Lugless.’
While Ginny’s phone spoke, George’s was also repeating his version of the message.
‘That’s it,’ said George. ‘You can send written messages, too, but I’ll let you to figure that out for yourself. It wasn’t easy to put the instructions onto the phone, but it was easier than simplifying the original instruction book. Keep it, there’s one for Harry, too. See if you can figure out what else it can do. Try to break it, and let me know what you think. We’re not going to go into production until we’re sure it works.’
‘Tea and ginger biscuits,’ said Harry as he walked into the room carrying a tray. ‘I’ve left Ron and Hermione in the kitchen. For some reason she’s trying to explain what prime numbers are to Ron. Even though it’s obvious he doesn’t want to know.’
Ginny sat back down in her chair, touched the Mirrorphone, and said, ‘Lugless.’ Her voice echoed back to her from George’s Mirrorphone.
George touched his mirror and said, ‘Hello, Ginny.’ His face appeared in the glass, and he winked at her. ‘Much easier than pressing buttons and dialling numbers, isn’t it?’ he asked.
‘You can help yourself to biscuits,’ she told him via the phone.
‘Thanks.’
‘Very impressive,’ Ginny said. ‘But how do you break the connection?’
George didn’t answer, he simply dropped his Mirrorphone into his pocket. His image immediately vanished from Ginny’s mirror.
‘No skin contact, no connection?’ Ginny asked.
‘That’s right,’ George confirmed. ‘And it doesn’t matter how many times you speak my name. If I don’t touch the phone and speak, then you can’t contact me.’
‘Lugless,’ said Ginny, still holding the phone. ‘Lugless!’
George folded his arms, and the echo of her voice continued to come from his pocket.
‘Lugless!’ Ginny said again. George pulled the Mirrorphone from his pocket. ‘About time!’ Ginny said, but her voice didn’t echo from the phone. George dropped it back into his pocket.
‘Touch the phone and speak,’ George said. ‘If I don’t knowledge you, the only word the mirror sends is the identifying name.’
‘My lugless brother is a genius,’ said Ginny experimentally. Only the word lugless echoed back at her.
‘Very clever, but how can you stop it from talking?’ Harry asked, as he opened the box containing his own Mirrorphone. ‘If I’m on a mission, I don’t want someone shouting my name at the wrong time. It could be dangerous.’
George frowned. ‘Damn! You can’t,’ he said. ‘That’s a good point, Harry. I can’t see a way to prevent Mum from having a Mirrorphone, and I don’t want her shouting her name from my pocket all day. I’ll have a word with Ron, we’ll figure out how to add a silencing charm to the Mark six.’
‘It would be good if you could find a way to silently let Harry know I’m calling,’ said Ginny thoughtfully. ‘Perhaps you could couple the silencing spell with a dancing jinx. If the Mirrorphone starts to dance in Harry’s pocket, then he will know someone is calling, but there won’t be any noise.
‘And I can easily show him who it is,’ said George, tugging at the straggling hairs beneath his chin. ‘I wondered whether to put the image of the caller on the mirror. I didn’t because when you answer dick up your Mirrorphone and answer, you can see the caller. But making the phone dance, and putting an image of the caller onto the mirror would be easy.’
He helped himself to a ginger biscuit, crunched it, and gave his sister a thoughtful look. ‘Don’t tell Mum,’ he said, waving the uneaten half of the biscuit. ‘But I think Harry’s right, these are better than hers.’
Hermione hurried into the living room. ‘This is a remarkable piece of magic,’ she said. ‘Very clever use of the Flesh Memory spell, and it’s so useful! Let’s link, Ginny.’ She held the mirror up. ‘Harry, you haven’t even opened your box yet! What have you been doing?’
‘Eating ginger biscuits,’ Harry told her.
‘Ginger biscuits! Where?’ asked Ron.
George tried to hide the barrel.
‘Ginny.’ Harry’s voice was barely audible over the hubbub, but Ginny heard it.
‘Hi, Harry,’ she said, pulling her Mirrorphone from the pocket of her jeans, which were hanging on a peg in front of her. ‘Where are you?’
‘I’m stuck in a tiny little place called Baltimore,’ he told her. ‘It’s in the south west of Ireland. I’m sorry, Ginny, this looks serious, an entire family has been killed, and it looks like the Killing Curse. I won’t be able to get...’
‘It’s only a friendly game, a try out for the newly selected England players,’ Ginny reminded him, trying to keep the disappointment from her voice. ‘And I’m in Poland. You’d never be able to get here before the game starts.’
‘Who’re you talking to?’ asked Barbara Boothroyd, stepping up to stand alongside Ginny.
Harry’s eyes opened wide, ‘I can see you!’ he said, turning his head away from his mirror.
‘Put your robes on, Babs,’ said Ginny, turning the mirror to one side, away from the bare-chested Beater. ‘You’re giving Harry an eyeful.’
‘There’s a naked Quidditch player over your other shoulder, too, Ginny,’ Harry said, blushing. ‘I’d better go. Bye.’ With that, he broke the connection.
‘You were talking to Harry Potter! Is that a magic mirror? Where did you get it?’ Barbara asked.
‘My brothers made it,’ said Ginny. ‘It’s still a test version. Unlike most mirrors, this one doesn’t simply have one paired partner. It will connect with a lot of other mirrors. George and Ron are looking for a couple of people to test the next version. Would you be interested?’
‘Yeah,’ said Barbara eagerly as she fastened her bra.
‘What about you, Maddie?’ Ginny asked the other female member of the team.
‘Okay,’ she said.
‘Great, watch this.’ She looked back into the mirror, and said, ‘Lugless.’
‘I’m listening to the wireless, Ginny,’ George said. ‘There are only three minutes before your match is due to start! Is something wrong?’
Ginny turned the mirror slightly. ‘How would you like to be able to say –as tested by the female members of the England Quidditch team on your advertisements?’ she asked.
‘Hello Maddie, and helloooo, lovely Babs,’ George shouted. ‘You’re the best looking Beater I’ve ever seen! Are you two ladies interested in getting a free Mirrorphone? Come and see me when you get back to the UK, and we can discuss terms. We can do it over dinner, if you like.’
Barbara Boothroyd peered into the mirror. ‘I wouldn’t be seen dead with anyone who has such a ridiculous beard,’ she said.
‘I can shave it off,’ George offered.
‘Got to go, George,’ Ginny said.
‘So, when we get the phone ready to market...’ George began.
‘If you want us to appear on any advertisements, we can discuss terms,’ Ginny told him. ‘Bye.’
She dropped the Mirrorphone into her pocket.