A/N - OMG, The Honourary Weasley has just uploaded a new story, what's going on here? :D It's been far too long, and while I'm working on updating my existing stories, I couldn't resisting adding a little extra something... So here we are, after at least six months, I've finally written something. I hope I haven't lost my touch ;)
Harry sat alone in the corner of the Room of Requirement. He had found himself wanting to be alone more than usual recently. He repeatedly reminded himself that he had more than enough excuses.
His parents were dead, Sirius was dead, and Dumbledore was ignoring him. He'd been put through countless traumatic experiences over the years, but nobody ever seemed to say "Maybe you need a rest. Maybe you're not superhuman; maybe you just need some normality from time to time."
"Maybe you're a normal kid."
No, that was something Harry James Potter had never been. He had never been normal. Since the night his parents were killed, Harry had stopped being a normal child and had become some sort of celebrity among other children, and most recently he had become the figurehead of a student revolution. Wow, it sounded stupid when it was phrased so simply: a bunch of school-age children running around, getting into things way over their heads.
He had just tonight attempted to teach them how to inflict physical pain on an opponent using magic. What child should need to know that, let alone teach it to other children?
"Hey, Harry?"
Harry looked up. Ginny was standing in the middle of the room.
"What's up, Ginny?" he asked.
"Aren't you going to bed?" she asked. "You look exhausted."
"I am exhausted." said Harry, pulling his knees to his chest and resting his forehead on his knee. "But that's the thing about being head of this thing, as well as everything else… It doesn't matter if I'm tired, or fed up or angry or upset or frightened: I'm expected to get on with things."
He could sense Ginny walking towards him. She sat down next to him on the floor, but kept a space between them.
"Harry, you're only human," she said. "Sometimes you need a break, the same as any of us."
"I wish you could really understand, Ginny," said Harry. "And I know you try."
"The best I can do for you, Harry, is to be another friend to you. If you need to talk to talk about anything and feel that Ron and Hermione are too closely involved in everything… I'm always around," said Ginny. "Remember that."
"I will." said Harry, smiling weakly at the redhead girl next to him.
"Next time you come to the Burrow, I'll make it my personal duty to make sure that we all have fun together," said Ginny, brightening the tone a little. "And I've got dibs on the best Seeker Gryffindor house has ever seen to be on my team for three-a-side Quidditch in the garden."
"Oh, I wonder who he might be," replied Harry, laughing for the first time in what felt like weeks.
"I think he might be around here somewhere," said Ginny. "If only some rotten old, stupid toad wouldn't make it so hard for him to play on the team!"
"Please, don't talk to me about Umbridge," said Harry, instinctively hiding his hand as he remembered the detention in which he had been forced to inscribe his lines into his own flesh. It was still a little painful, not that he ever talked to anyone about it.
"Yeah, who wants to talk about that old hag," laughed Ginny, making Harry smile again.
Harry looked at his watch. "We should really get going," he said. "It's getting late."
"Yeah, the old hag would hang us out to dry if she thought we'd been doing anything she wouldn't approve of…" sighed Ginny, standing up.
"What exactly do you mean by that, Ginny?" asked Harry, trying not to laugh.
"Oh, shut up and get your mind out of the gutter," said Ginny, crossing her arms, even though she knew it was only a joke and was trying not to laugh herself. "Are you coming?"
"I just need to sort out one last thing here," said Harry. "But you go on, I'll see you tomorrow."
"You're sure?" asked Ginny.
"Yeah, sure," said Harry.
"Okay, see you tomorrow then." replied Ginny, as she turned and walked away, fixing her ponytail of long red hair as she went.
Once she was gone, Harry sat back down. As much as he hated it and tried never to admit it - even to himself - Ginevra Weasley was what kept him going through every battle and all the hardships that just kept being thrown at him. She was a piece of Heaven in what sometimes seemed a lot like Hell, but he could never be with her.
But that was okay.
As long as he could always have her in his life, even if only as a friend, and so long as she was happy, he would be okay. That was what really kept Harry Potter sane.
With that thought, he picked up his wand off the floor and put it inside his schoolbag, which he slung over his shoulder.
"I love her." he thought to himself. It was the first time he had ever so much as let himself have that thought. It felt good.
"I love her!" he said aloud to the empty room. "I love Ginny Weasley!" he then yelled, laughing to himself as his voice echoed around the room. Hearing himself say aloud what he felt so, so strongly gave him a feeling of escape, a feeling of relief, a feeling of happiness, that he hadn't felt in a long, long time.
For the first time in far too long, something in Harry James Potter's life left right, however wrong it was.
And it felt amazing.
A/N - So there we have it! I'm honestly very proud of this little story, so a review would make my day :) Thanks for reading, it really means more to me than I can describe to you in an author's note :')