Disclaimer: You know what the Mighty One has created; now see what I make of it...
So it's Halloween, and it has been 30 years since Lily and James Potter were brutally murdered in the Harry Potter world. Here is a little story to remember them or anyone you love.
Please, do leave a review.
Read on...
The couple walked across the hard gravel, the night air and biting wind chilling them to the bone. All around them, the sounds of happy laughter filled the air. Groups of children wandered around them, all dressed in costumes of varying hilarity. Some chirped out a cheerful, "Happy Halloween!", but most simply passed by, eager to get to their next candy stop.
The pair walked away into a smaller side street, and soon the signs of this night being one of fun slipped away. Whereas on the other streets, houses looked warm and inviting, jack o' lanterns flickering merrily in the wind, here there was no indication of any of that. As they neared the end of the road, the man chanced a glance up at a nearby house. His mind filled with memories, terrible memories of a snake, an old woman and Tom Riddle. The woman looked where he was staring and laid a gentle hand on his arm. He turned away and looked into her eyes, the vivid green orbs shining with tears behind the round spectacles. She gently shook her head and intertwined his fingers with her own.
He gave her a thankful silver of a smile and began walking again. At the end of the road, they stopped and the man closed his eyes. She gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and he turned to face the derelict building. Just as it did the last and only time he had visited this place, his heart wrenched and he was filled with a burning pain. Half the top floor of the house had been blown away, leaving it open to the air. It didn't matter that it had been thirty years since the event that had caused this happened. It didn't matter that he had never remembered more than a flash of green light and a scream. It didn't matter that the man, if he could even he classed as that, who had caused this was dead. All that mattered were the people. His mother and his father. Two people he had never gotten to know because of one man.
Thirteen years on, and he still felt a sickening anger inside him every time he thought of Voldemort. The woman squeezed his hand once again, and he was brought out of his pain filled world with a snap.
The pair walked forwards hand in hand, the woman laying her ginger head on his shoulder, and touched the gate. Instantly, a sign rose from the ground and words appeared, etched in gold onto it.
On this spot, on the night of 31 October 1981,
Lily and James Potter lost their lives.
Their son, Harry, remains the only wizard ever
to have survived the killing curse.
This house, invisible to Muggles, has been left
in its ruined state as a monument to the Potters
and as a reminder of the violence
that tore apart their family.
All around the sign were scribbling from others who had visited. Some were plain and unadorned, some were even written in colour changing ink. Some were faded due to the passing of time, and some looked as if they could have been written yesterday.
"Do you want to write something?" she asked softly.
He merely shook his head and instead pulled out his wand. He simply read through the scribbling first, wondering what to do to make it special and different. Suddenly, a beautiful snow-white lily sprouted from the tip of his wand. He leant to place it in the corner of the sign, but she put out a hand to stop him. Confused he looked back at her. But she simply smiled and took the lily from him. She tapped it with her wand and he could see the stalk of the flower become greener, and the petals somehow brighter. She grasped his hand in hers and together, they placed the lily on the sign.
"This way, it can last forever." she whispered, looking him in the eyes, eyes which were now filling with tears.
He hugged her close to him and inhaled the sweet, flowery smell of her, the same one he had loved in their youth. Every time he hugged her, he would smell this smell. It was not something you could pinpoint; it was just... Ginny. He had missed this smell far too much at times in the past, and he hoped that from now on, he would never have to leave it. He wanted it to be around everything, in everything he did. It wasn't just her smell, it was her laugh, her smile, her eyes, every little thing about her that he had missed that one fateful year, and he never wanted it to happen again. He had almost lost her not long ago, and he would do all he could to stop it from happening again. Because he loved her then, and still does now.
She didn't care that he was crying into her hair; all that she cared about was that he was here. She had gone through far too long without him at times, and she knew he had gone through far too much pain. It was the reason she had insisted that she come with him today. Something like this was something you didn't want to go through alone. She had decided long ago that she would never let him go through anything alone, ever again. She would be there for him. Because she loved him then, and still does now.
He turned his head and she faced him. They were so close, their noses were touching, and if he had wanted, he could have counted every single eyelash around her eyes. He pulled her to him and she closed her eyes. He leant down and captured her lips in a kiss.
It wasn't a kiss of passion, or pain, nor was it a kiss of two awkward teenagers. It was a kiss, simple as that. It was the kiss of two people who loved each other, and knew it.
They broke off and simply looked at each other, seeming to memorise every line of the other's face.
"Ginny?" he asked.
"Yes, Harry?" she replied, eyes never leaving his face.
"I love you." He said, and as he looked into her eyes, he knew he had never been sure of another fact in his life.
"I love you too." She whispered, and she rested her head on his shoulder, meaning every word.
What did you think? This is my first try at a Ginny/Harry, so do tell. I felt like I had to write something- 30 years, people!
Please, take a small moment to think about love. Think not only about the fictional characters that we love, but of anyone you love in your life. Think about your parents, your siblings, your friends... anyone.
Love is all around us.
RIP Lily and James (even if you aren't real)
xxx
seeminglyharmless21