Disclaimer: I do not gain anything personally by writing this. It's purely fan-made. I do not own the Harry Potter series even though I would be so happy if I did!
A/N: Alright! Here goes my rant….(there's my warning :P)
So, I was shocked by the sheer number of people who completely despise Ginevra Weasley. They say that she's a 'bitchy' girl and acts cooler than she actually is. Some even go as far to say that Harry can definitely do much better than her.
I completely disagree and here's my explanation. True, the movie definitely didn't portray Ginny's character to her full potential. But, looking at the fact that books are always better than their movie counterpart, no fan should judge the movie Ginny. If you want to judge Ginny at all, judge her book version. It's that simple.
J.K. Rowling has actually amazed me by her female characters. Hermione is a wonderful example: she's amazing at spells; completely trustworthy; and is basically the brains of the Golden Trio! Even Molly Weasley, despite the fact that she's a kind, poor housewife, proves that she's stronger than any other witch her age by killing Bellatrix! Bellatrix herself is THE best female villain I've ever seen (after Azula, of course! :P)! Just a few more examples to prove my point: Luna Lovegood, Lily Evans, and lastly, Minerva McGonagall.
To me, Ginny Weasley is the most inspiring. She's the kind of girl who doesn't take shit. She's an excellent witch, the brilliant Chaser of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and has survived (and still is surviving) a childhood filled with older brothers. That, in and of itself, should show her worth. I believe that she's the exact woman Harry needs and deserves: a woman who'll keep him in his place. A woman who won't ever let him crawl back into self-loathing (a special hobby Harry seems to love) Ginevra Molly Weasley is a woman I aspire to be.
And…she has an awesome name! :P
Well, this one-shot (which I might add more unnecessary fluff to later on), is just that! Blatant fluff and grieving. Here's your warning! XD ENJOY!
*O*O*O*O*O*O*O*
Ginny had cried and cried till her body was incapable of producing more tears. It was horrible, all that destruction and blood! Bodies covered the stone floors of the castle, almost as if they were pieces of litter thrown about. Each time she saw a fresh corpse, Ginny's breath caught in her throat, praying to Merlin that the family of the person would be okay. Being in a large family herself, she knew how tight-knit they could become. Losing one sibling, parent, or any other close friend would be like killing a part of your heart, till the entire organ broke into pieces.
But it was all over. Voldemort had been killed by her Harry. It was all over. It's done.
Her haunted brown eyes glanced over Hogwarts, her second home. It always seemed like Hogwarts would never be destroyed, it seemed untouchable. Now, that childish vision had been shattered. Hogwarts was now a pile of burning rubble reeking of death. All the deaths….Remus….Tonks….Colin…Fred
"Ginny," an equally broken voice called behind her.
Her hair whipped her face as she ran towards Harry, clinging to him with all her might. All the tears came rushing back and her body racked with her sobs. His arms wound around her back, holding her tighter, trying unsuccessfully to keep his tears from falling as well. The supposedly strong walls he created around his own heart crashed and burned from the sound of her weeping. All the years of practice of concealing his true emotions fell to his feet and allowed him to finally cry in her arms as well. They both clung onto each other refusing to let go as if they'd never see each other again. Every death swarmed over him till he became dizzy with pain, the only comfort being Ginny despite her crying. He ran his fingers through her hair, knowing from experience that it calmed her.
"Harry, it hurts so much! I can't do this…I can't…please!" she cried muffled, digging her head deeper into his chest.
"It's alright, Gin. Please don't cry. I can't stand to see you cry," he pleaded and tried to wipe the hot streams off her cheeks with his free hand.
Her sobbing turned into wheezing as her water supply ran out once again. "Fred…" she whispered softly, the pain evident, "How could they take him? What'd he ever do to them?" she had no idea who she was talking about, but it helped to blame it on an unknown source.
"All he ever did was prank everyone he saw! The prat, he must've have joked on the wrong person and his karma hit him. How'd this all happen, Harry? It went by so fast...please, tell me this isn't true. Tell me it's all a dream; tell me that I'm wrong! Tell me he's not dead."
He didn't respond and only hugged her tighter.
She cried harder and longer, each salty tear dripping onto Harry's already filthy shirt. Looking at her now, Harry couldn't help but cringe. Her usually tamed red locks were a disheveled mess, though Harry was doing a good job combing it back into place. Her once twinkling eyes seemed so distant and hardened, much like his own after Sirius's death. The thin clothing that was drooping off her body was singed, probably from running through the burning parts of Hogwarts falling frame. But worst of all, it seemed like all that determination that used to surround her seemed to vanish in the past night.
"I'm sorry," she stared at her feet ashamed, viciously swiping the tears off her cheeks. "I shouldn't be crying. I'm supposed to be smiling! You just defeated the darkest wizard of all time, and lived. I'm so proud of you, Harry. I knew you could do it."
He smiled sadly, "No need to be ashamed."
She didn't answer, still staring pointedly at anything except him.
"Gin, you're not doing anything wrong. Please look at me," he pleaded. But she still didn't obey.
He lifted her chin tenderly, quietly forcing her gaze onto his eyes, "Gin, you're not doing anything wrong. We all loved Fred, but he wouldn't want us to live in the past. Grieve now, Ginny, but remember that I'm still here for you. I'll always be here for you because I love you. I'm sorry for pushing you away after Dumbledore…left us. I honestly thought that you'd be better off without me. But seeing you now, I'm changing my mind. So please, can you find it in your heart to forgive a pathetic man like me?" He was now the one staring at his feet, hoping to the heavens that Ginny would come back to him.
To Harry, it seemed like hours had passed by in silence, though it might have only been mere seconds. Yet he didn't dare to glance at Ginny, frightened to the core that he'd see an expression of hate instead of love. 'I deserve this,' he thought to himself, 'This is what you get, Potter, for leaving the best thing in the world that ever happened to you. Ginny's a beautiful, strong, loving girl who deserves much more than a disturbed orphan boy.' He tried to savor the last looks of Ginny he most probably would get. He'd miss her sweet smelling hair, her intense stares at him whenever he kept his emotions locked up, her joyous laughs that warmed up his heart, but most of all, her soft, tender kisses.
His inner thoughts were interrupted by a swift, burning slap to his cheek. "What in Merlin's name was that?" he exclaimed as he cradled his face with his palms. His entire body was already sore and broken apart from his previous battle, but that last smack was the final blow to both his body and heart.
Ginny stood, unfazed that Harry was hurting. "That was for dumping me like I was trash."
Harry cringed and turned his back to her. 'That's it, Potter. You just messed up your entire life. Good work.' His eyes shut in agony and all he wanted to do was go run to a corner and cry till his death. Somehow, he managed to keep his voice working, "I understand. I won't do anything to you anymore. I'm sorry."
"Wait," she called, "I'm not done yet." She walked closer to him and despite the fact that she was so much shorter and petite compared to him, her menacing glower was sending shivers of fright through his body. "Harry James Potter, you are an infuriatingly noble boy. You always believe that others aren't supposed to suffer, yet you let yourself bleed. You break up with me after Dumbledore's death, believing you were doing the right thing –,"
"I was!" Harry cried out in his defense but it only made Ginny scream louder.
"No, you were not! You hurt yourself and me! How could that be a good thing? Not like that was enough, but you gave Mum a terrible scare by leaving with Hermione and Ron after Bill and Fleur's wedding! Did you know that she was frantic for days after? She barely spoke after a while. I bet she was numb, much like I was, sticking to her knitting, not able to keep a decent conversation with anyone for longer than a bloody minute, and panicking internally that you three could be dead for all we knew! And that summer after Sirius died, you went into a self-loathing funk, but you never asked for help! Yet after all you've done, you come back here begging for me to forgive you?" she screamed incredulously.
She sighed as she closed her eyes and tried to gain her composure back. The blood that rushed to her face slowly receded, going back into that freckled face Harry so loved. "Harry, do you have no idea how much we all adore you? When will you learn that you don't need to push away everyone who loves you?" She once again jumped into his arms. "Don't leave me ever again, Potter. Or else I'm going to make you pay," she warned.
Harry let out the breath he didn't know he was holding in and smiled as he twirled his fingers in her hair. He honestly thought he'd never do that again. "I promise I'll never leave you, Ginny. Or else I would never forgive myself."
She smirked, "Here comes that self-loathing again. I swear, Harry, I think we need to see a Healer for that!"
He chuckled before turning his genuine smile into a saucy grin, "But you absolutely love my nobility, so it should make up for the loathing shouldn't it?"
"Don't get too cocky, Potter. You're still supposed to be groveling."
"You still love it," he smirked.
"Do not."
"Do too!"
"Nope," she said stubbornly and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Don't hide it, Ginevra," he said his hands caressed her hips, "You love everything about me."
She scowled at hearing the name she despised. "Don't call me that. It reminds me of Mum's angry face when she found out what Fred, George, and I were planning out for Percy. And that's a terrible turn-off."
He chuckled as their foreheads touched. It had been a while since he'd smiled so much. Ginny could always make him feel so much lighter, as if he was flying on his Firebolt, except even better. "I doubt anything could turn this off," he replied before smashing his lips on her soft ones.
She smiled through the kiss and was thoroughly satisfied that Harry still had that passion behind his kisses. This special snog wasn't like their past ones. The older ones were passionate yet rushed since they never knew which snog session would be their last. But this one was slow and pleasurable almost as if they were officially getting back together through this one make out. She ran her nimble fingers through his dirty, raven hair and pushed his head lower. He obeyed as his hands roamed through her curves and groaned in approval as she kissed harder.
Everything else didn't matter to Harry anymore. All the cheering from the Light wizards and witches that the battle had been won was drowned by Ginny's husky groans. Just having this slip of a girl back in his arms made all the hard work worth it.
They broke apart, dizzy from the kiss, and smiled at each other. "You know you just told me that you loved me?" Ginny whispered smiling.
"I do. I'm in love with you, Ginny Weasley," he said, loving the way it felt to say what he always knew. "I've always loved you, even if I didn't know it for a while."
Ginny smiled as he moved the loose wisps of hair falling on her eyes behind her ear. "I love you too, Harry. So much."
Harry grinned hearing the words. "You know that this is the first time I told anyone I loved them?"
A shadow draped over Ginny's features as she cursed, "Damn Dursleys. I swear, the next time I see those overweight, stuffy gits, they won't know what hit them."
"Forget the Dursleys. They're a worse turn-off than an angry Mrs. Weasley. But I wanted to point out that you were the first ever person I said I loved them," Harry blushed. He'd never felt so similar to an open book before but it was only Ginny, so he really didn't mind.
"And that makes it even more special," she whispered pecking his cheek.
"This conversation went from crying, apologies, to more apologies, to screaming, then snogging!" Harry laughed.
Ginny pecked his nose, "That's what you do to me, Harry. One second, you make me so mad, I want to channel Voldemort just to tear you to pieces, and the next you make me want to shag you so bad."
Harry blushed a deep red, "Don't talk like that, Gin! They're Weasleys everywhere who could be eavesdropping!"
"I'm only saying the truth, love."
The nickname made the kitten inside him purr with happiness. She never called him that, but for some reason, it felt right. "Well, you're not the one who has to face your girlfriend's six older brothers if you so much as step out of line!" said Harry.
Ginny's smile vanished immediately. "Five brothers…not six," she said solemnly.
Harry kissed her forehead, determined to make her smile the rest of the day. "Come on, love. Let's go find Ron and Hermione before they find us. I doubt Ron would want to see his baby sister snogging his best mate."
"It's nothing he's never seen before," answered Ginny as she remembered all the times Ron had discovered Harry and her in various places; sometimes in her room in the Burrow, Ron's room, random broom closets throughout Hogwarts, the Gryffindor common room, Hogsmeade, and even near the Quidditch supply shack.
"True, but still we should go find them."
"What's the rush, Potter?" smirked Ginny as she slid out of her jacket, "We have all the time in the world to find Ronald. Besides, he's most probably testing the sound capabilities of every broom closet in Hogwarts with Hermione as we speak."
"No, he wouldn't be…he's most probably trying to calm Hermione down." Harry squirmed uncomfortably as his blood rushed down south. The sleeveless top she was wearing under her jacket was his favorite. It was a light yellow cloth that seemed to know exactly where to hug her body and exactly how to spur the raving monster in him. "Erm, it's getting a little hot isn't it? The weather looks great, doesn't it? Er, so, let's just…go outside…" he babbled incoherently, pulling at his collar embarrassingly. He tried to cover up his little friend in his pants but it was too late.
Ginny giggled, amused at his reaction and also very proud that she was the reason for it. "Aww, is little Harry trying to make an appearance?" she burst out laughing, "Harry, if you can't handle it, that's fine…" She grabbed her jacket and was about to wear it again, but Harry grabbed her hand and refused to let her put the jacket back on.
"Don't." He wrapped his hand around her waist, receiving a loving gaze from Ginny and started walking towards the cluster of red headed people.
"Ginny!" George cried as soon as he saw her. His freckled face, smeared with dirt and blood, was swollen and pink. Ginny smiled sadly as she hugged her elder brother.
"I can't believe he's gone," George whimpered, letting his 'manly aura' drop in front of his younger sister. Ginny patted his back lovingly; she'd never heard his voice this vulnerable her entire life. The twins always laughed, joked around, and were always the shining light of fun amidst the gloomy war. It was hard to believe that there wouldn't ever be a 'Fred and George' anymore.
Harry glanced at the Weasleys as all of them grieved over the covered body on the ground. Molly's shadowed eyes seemed lost as she cried on Arthur's shoulder. Arthur himself didn't look so good but he tried his best to stay strong for his crumbling wife. Bill and Fleur were cuddled together near Molly, the latter comforting Bill with soothing whispers. Charlie was standing tall with a stoic expression, obviously trying to be the sturdy brother for everyone else, despite that he himself had tears running down his cheeks. Percy was standing still, as if still trying to digest that his beloved brother who always teased him for being a Prefect or a 'Big Head' wouldn't be around anymore. Finally, Harry looked over to Ron. Being his best mate, he obviously wasn't surprised to see a shocked expression on his freckled face. The blazing red hair stood out starkly against his pale profile. Hermione, on her part, wasn't hiding her sobs at all.
He walked up to Ron and patted his back clumsily. "We'll all miss him, Ron," he tried to console him.
Ron stared awkwardly at him, "Let's face it Potter. You're terrible at consoling anyone other than Ginny."
"Shut it. I'm trying my best," Harry frowned. He could feel the stream of tears dripping down his own eyes as the Weasleys mourned their loss. Desperately forcing his mind onto warmer topics, he tried to send Fred internal thanks by paying tribute to all the times the courageous twin stood up for him or made him laugh. He couldn't help but chortle when he remembered the time everyone in Hogwarts thought he was the heir of Slytherin. Despite it being a serious topic, Fred and George had turned it into a laughable memory. The two would march behind him saying, "Make way for the heir of Slytherin! Seriously evil wizard coming through!" Percy had sent a disapproving look at them, but the twins refused to let Percy rain on their parade, "Oh, get out of the way, Percy. Harry's in a hurry!" Fred had scoffed. George quickly added, "Yeah, he's nipping off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea with his fanged servant."
And the time the twins introduced him to the prized Marauder's Map. Despite loving the map more than life itself, Fred had claimed that Harry's need for it was more important. "It's a wrench, giving it you. But we decided that your need's greater than ours." He really had always looked out for him even if most of the time he wasn't doing much good.
But Harry had helped the two equally as much. Such as the time he gave his Tri Wizard Champion prize money to their joke shop fund. Fred had literally thought that Harry had gone mental that day, but was eternally grateful. His loyalty to Harry never diminished after that day.
Every year, Fred and George had teased Percy mercilessly for being a Prefect. The day that teasing was focused on the newly entitled Prefect Ron, Harry couldn't help but sniggering. "Prefect? Prefect? No way. There's been a mistake." He had turned over to Harry and clapped him on his back, "Yeah, you've caused too much trouble, mate. Well, at least one of you's got their priorities right!"
His reminiscing of Fred's greatest moments was interrupted as an amused Ginny strolled towards him. "Why are you smiling like that?" she pointed at the goofy grin spreading on his face.
"I was just remembering Fred's best moments," he quickly explained and tried to remove the smile. He was dead! He wasn't supposed to be smiling!
Ginny smiled bittersweet, "I guessed as much. I was doing the same with George. I've never seen anyone laughing while crying!"
Ron came over and added himself to the discussion, "Which moments were you lot thinking of? I especially loved the time during our fifth year with Umbridge, when Fred and George busted out of Hogwarts yelling at Peeves to give the old bat hell. I've never seen Peeves listen to any student before."
Hermione came over with a watery smile plastered on her lips. "That Fred," she shook her head, "I remember when I threatened to tell his mother about some prank, and he had actually stood there horrified. He could've made a decent actor in the Muggle world."
George trudged toward the four teens solemnly, "I can use anything to smile right now, and you lot seem to be enjoying here so I'm joining." His eyes seemed to droop as he said this. He honestly needed a good laugh.
Ginny seemed to understand this. "We were just talking about Fred's greatest moments. Ron here thinks that you pissing Umbridge off was the best. Hermione believes that Fred could've made a good actor, whatever that is. Must be some Muggle thing because Harry laughed at the thought. But I personally think the funniest moment was when you two had those massive, puss-filled boils on your –,"
"Don't remind me," interrupted George, a slight shadow covering him despite smirking a little as well, "That was bloody hell."
The friends remained there for a few hours, reminiscing all the happy moments they can, occasionally crying over mourning together as well. Laughter and warmth was exactly what they all needed and considering how close they all were, it wasn't that hard. Eventually, the entire family joined in till their cheeks hurt and their eyes were swollen.
"I better get abs after this," wheezed Ginny as she clutched her stomach.
"That means it's a sign to go home. Come on, kids," Molly huddled her children together before apparating to the Burrow.
Harry couldn't help but grin when he inhaled the homely scent the Burrow carried. This was his real home and his real family; he couldn't be happier. His grin grew even further, if that was even possible, when Ginny's arms wrapped around his waist.
"Happy to be back home, love?" whispered Ginny.
"Of course."