Begin Again
Chapter 1 Moving On
Ginny got up especially early that morning because he had a six o'clock meeting at the office. This meant she had to make breakfast an hour earlier than usual. It was fine as she planned on going to the stadium to practice more of the new spinning technique Gwenog devised for the Harpies' next game. She tiptoed on her way out of the bedroom, taking care not to disturb him in his sleep to give him a few more minutes of rest.
She went directly to the kitchen and decided on eggs and sausages on toast. It was easy and fast to make, no sautéing, simmering or fifteen other steps and ingredients required to accomplish. In short, a meal she knew she could not muck up while still half asleep. She was gifted in flying, not cooking, she reasoned as she hummed her favourite up-tempo tune to jog her nerves.
Ginny then went back to the bedroom to wake him before going to the bathroom to take a shower, pretending everything was normal like all the other days when in fact, things had shifted. Just last night, he lent her his coat before Apparating home and there, on his right hand pocket, she felt the unmistakable shape of a jewelry box. The exact kind that spelled forever. She didn't know what to do so she pretended to know nothing as it was evident he forgot it was there.
Forever. That was mind-boggling. She hadn't thought about it in a very long time and thinking about it now made her feel overwhelmed and a little bit anxious. She was only twenty-two and she still had at least a few more years in the league. She loved him but if she said yes now, she was agreeing to be both wife and mother. She didn't even know the first thing about stain removal and wives and mothers knew that. She wasn't ready.
"Oh, hell," she muttered to herself as she stepped out of the shower. Maybe she should talk to Hermione about this business. If there was anything to know, she could surely ask her newly-engaged soon-to-be sister-in-law. It may just turn out she was just suffering from nerves.
Harry Potter woke up on Monday morning queasy. It was their third year anniversary and he was popping the question.
He's had everything planned a week early – a dinner reservation at the glitzy restaurant in Hogsmeade, a pre-ordered bouquet of red roses, and lastly, an exquisite 14k solitaire nestled in a black velvet box on his sock drawer.
And yet his gut was telling him there was something wrong. He was sure he had the date correctly so it wasn't that. He had even gone as far as asking her father for her hand so it wasn't that either. He couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was and he's been racking his brain most of the night thinking what he might have missed but to no avail. If only his scar would open up and make him see it. Unfortunately, the lack of sleep wasn't helping him think coherently now, either.
He stayed in bed a few more minutes, knowing she was preparing breakfast in the kitchen and wouldn't want to be interrupted. She had always been a morning person, something he could not relate to as he preferred sleeping in until the last alarm had gone off. He could hear her now singing while cooking and he could not fathom how anyone could get that enthusiastic at that ungodly hour.
Pulling the covers and burying his head with a pillow, he again went over his situation: asking her to marry him. He came upon the idea a few weeks ago, right after his 22nd birthday. Suddenly, he saw that what he had was not enough. He craved for a family of his own and a home to come home to at the end of the day. So the following week, he went to a famous jeweller and bought a diamond ring in a classic Edwardian design that he knew would fit her personality perfectly.
He loved her, it was the right time and he was taking the right step, he thought, forgetting the queasy feeling as he descended the stairs and followed the smell of pancakes to the kitchen. He gave her the customary kiss on the cheek and said "Happy Anniversary, Cornelia," and then went to pour himself a cup of coffee.
He was moving on with his life.
A/N: You're probably exclaiming "Not Ginny?" right about now and cursing me in your language of choice but listen to me when I tell you that this is a Harry/Ginny fic so all is not lost. How this came to be will be explained on a later chapter so hold that question. I'd love to hear your comments, questions and suggestions so write me a review. Ciao!