I've had this idea kind of boiling in my mind for awhile, but haven't done much about it. I haven't used fanficiton in awhile, but I figured I'd get my lovely creative juices flowing again…sooo here we go…
Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling and her genius brain.
Ginny pulled the hood of the cloak low over her face and tucked her fiery hair into a bun inside of it. She huddled her gorgeous sons Albus and James close to her in an embrace. "Whatever happens, I love you. Understand that," she whispered, "and never forget it." She twisted the rusted knob on the front door of the Potter house and creaked it slowly open, making sure that the darkness was safe to step out in. "Stay close," she told her boys.
"But…Mum," Albus half-shouted.
"Shh!" Ginny scolded.
"What about Lily?" The face of Albus Severus Potter could not have looked more terrified.
"She's with your father," Ginny gulped. "It's safer that way." Of course, she had no business telling anyone that what they were doing was safe. Her husband played a dangerous game, and she'd been fool enough to get involved with it.
Ginny urged her sons to keep up with her as she hurried down the cobblestone pathway that led from their home.
Every howl of wind, ever shuffle of leaves, every breath, Ginny jumped. It was her job to get her boys to safety, even if the cost was her life.
They were getting closer to their destination by the second, but it raised Ginny's nerves rather than calming them. Something was wrong, out of place.
A shuffle sounded in the shrubbery on the opposite side of the road, and Ginny gasped.
"Mum!" James whispered frantically, "Mum, what is that?"
Whatever it was that James had seen, Ginny wasn't planning on sticking around to find out for herself. She grabbed the arms of both her boys, one on either side of her, and broke into a near sprint. She felt her wand shifting around in the pocket of her cloak and she swore under her breath. If her wand fell from her cloak, there would be no going back for it. It was a risk she simply couldn't take these days. She'd buy a new wand in Diagon Alley if it came to that.
Ginny could hear the soft sobs of her son Albus as she continued running down the street. "Just keep going, Albus, you'll be alright once we get there. I promise. Just keep going." Albus's sniffles continued as Ginny nearly toppled over a crack in the road. A sprained ankle, nothing more, she judged. She'd heal it later.
She passed several street signs, but none of them had the right name. Then, finally, Ginny let out a sigh of pure relief as she tugged her boys along with her onto none other than Privet Drive.
All three Potters came to a halt at the driveway of number 4 Privet Drive. Ginny led the boys to the doorstep, rang the Dursley's doorbell, and waited. She shoved her hand into the pocket of her cloak, gripped her wand, and put an arm around her boys as they all attempted to catch their breath.
"Mum," James said, tears trailing down his cheeks, "I saw something back there, something huge. Almost like a wolf. And it—"
"It's fine, James, it was only a hallucination. I promise." A lie.
"But you started running, Mum, and—"
"I know, James, I know." Ginny rang the doorbell twice more, becoming impatient. They had to be home. There was a muggle automobile in the driveway. Ginny wasn't positive, but she was almost sure that the car wouldn't be there unless the muggles were there as well. "You just startled me, is all," she told her son. Another lie.
Finally, the door was pulled wide open, and a short, stout man with a red, cherry-like complexion stood face to face with her. He took in a long breath, as if attempting to clam himself. He closed his eyes, opened them, and then proceeded to growl in one breath, "Do you know what bloody time it is? This is a house of peace and quiet and I would most certainly like to keep it that way, do you understand me?"
Ginny pushed past the man and into his home, herding her boys in before her. She shut the door carefully behind her. "Thank you, Vernon, for inviting us in," she smiled.
The man's mouth hung open. Ginny wasn't sure if it was due to the fact that she'd barged into his house without his permission, or if it was because she somehow knew his name.
"Excuse my ill manners," she apologized, "please let me introduce myself. I'm Gi—"
"What the bloody hell is going on down here?" Petunia Dursley stormed down the stairs in a robe and curlers. "It is the middle of the night, and I would personally like to know what you would consider so important as to be ringing. My. Doorbell."
"Petunia, please," Ginny took a step forward.
Petunia sucked in a breath. "If you take one more step forward, I will call the police on you, you filthy little vermin!"
"Please," Ginny said wearily. She pulled the hood off of her head. "My name is Ginny Potter, and I am in dire need of your help."