Soulbound
At the end of his second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter found himself alone in the Gryffindor common room. This wasn't surprising, as it was the middle of night and all sane people would be asleep at this time. He sat on his favourite sofa in front of the fire and pondered the events of the year. He'd been harassed by an insane house elf, deboned by an incompetent professor, vilified by the entire school and tormented by the shade of the man who'd killed his parents. Worst of all, he'd had to kill a gigantic snake that could kill people by looking them in the eye. On the other hand, he still had support from his friends and the school had once more returned to adoring him, so that was alright.
None of this was the reason he was still awake. There was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind, a small pulsing sensation that demanded his attention. He had no idea what it was, but he'd been feeling it since he'd returned from the Chamber of Secrets. Whatever it was, it was growing more insistent as time passed, each day the pulsing growing slightly stronger. He was distracted from his musings by a small squeak and shuffling sounds from the girl's staircase.
His eyes snapped to the foot of the stairs where a small figure was huddled in the shadows. "Who's there," he asked, trying to pierce the gloom and pick out exactly who was spying on him. Another squeak was the response, and Ginny Weasley emerged, her face turning almost as red as her hair.
"Ginny? Why are you still awake," asked Harry, slightly confused at the thought of the girl sitting on the cold stairs instead of on the sofas.
"I couldn't sleep. Every time I try to, something wakes me up," she said haltingly, turning so red that Harry grew a little worried that her head might explode. "What about you?" She looked amazed that she'd built up enough courage to ask him a question.
"Same here," Harry replied, "Though it's more of a nagging feeling, like something's trying to get my attention." A small gasp escaped Ginny and she looked a mixture of surprised, hopeful and excited. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong. It-"she paused, swallowing hard, "It sounds like a soul-bond!" The last word was whispered with no small amount of awe and a tinge of hope.
"What's a soul-bond," Harry asked, thoroughly confused by something else he'd never heard of happening to him.
"It's a magical bond that happens when someone saves their soul-mate from a life threatening situation," she whispered, still showing her awe at this. "The bond is where the muggles got the idea of princes saving princesses from dragons and living happily ever after from. It must be between us, that's why neither of us can sleep." She was growing more and more excited as she went on. "'Soul-mates cannot be happy unless the bond is acknowledged.' That's how the story goes. Harry, you've got to accept the bond or you won't be able to sleep."
"I've still got no idea what that means, but if I've got to accept it to sleep, then fine. How do I do that?"
"You've got to focus on the bond, put all your feelings into to it and let it feel your acceptance," Ginny nearly squealed. All her dreams were coming true. She watched while Harry close his eyes and a look of concentration crossed his face. They'd be married soon after they left school. They'd have three kids; a boy named James, a girl named Lily and the third named after one of the people they respected. They'd live happily ever after. Her heart was pounding like a heavy metal drummer on speed.
As Ginny was busy planning every bit of their future lives, Harry was concentrating on the bond. He let all of his feelings flow over it; his desire to see his family, his hopes to being seen as just Harry, his dreams of being loved unconditionally. As the pulsing sped up he realised it was a heartbeat. As he accepted the bond, his magic surrounded him, giving him a visible aura and connecting him to his soul-mate. The connection sang as it felt the acceptance on the other end and the soul-bond was forged. The fireplace erupted to new heights, the magic in the air fueling the fire. The magic on both sides flared to an incandescent brightness, banishing away the shadows and blinding the rooms inhabitants. Slowly, the lights dimmed, leaving only a dim aura around the newly soulbound duo and revealing everything else in the room had been destroyed. Harry only had one thing to say.
"You're my soul- mate Fawkes?"
Ok, this started at nagging me and I had to write it. I dislike the idea of soul-bonds and Harry/Ginny in general. The pairing came out of nowhere in HBP, almost like JKR had just stuck it into the book after receiving the results of a poll for a pairing from the fans. This is not meant to be taken too seriously.
I don't own Harry Potter, proven by the fact that I've spent a lot of the last two years earning slightly less than minimum wage.