Not a Potter
Chapter 1
Ginerva Molly Potter stood outside the Ministry of Magic smiling- no beaming- yes, for the first time in a long time, Ginny Potter was positively beaming. No, not Potter, Ginny thought, I'm a Weasley again. An excited thrill went through her. Gone were the bounds of marriage, gone was the overwhelming responsibility of a new life and most importantly, gone was her good-for-nothing git of a husband Harry Potter.
Well, he wasn't really gone. He was about twenty paces behind her, trying to get his unhinged jaw to close. Ginny shrugged, it was his fault really, he should have seen it coming. Suddenly, a huge wave of giddiness came over her and she began to laugh maniacally. She laughed until tears poured out of her eyes. Wait until the press hears about this, she thought, the next headline in the Daily Prophet will be War Heroine Ginerva Weasley Divorces Husband; Loses Mind. This was the final straw.
If anyone were to walk past the Ministry at that time, they would have seen a tangle of copper red hair. If they went a bit closer, they would have seen the pale, lightly freckled skin and honey brown eyes of Ginny Weasley underneath it, writhing on the ground with mirth.
Wiping at her eyes, Ginny stood up and took a shuddering breath. Turning around and facing the door, she put on her most serious face and walked through the swinging doors of the Ministry.
To say that Harry Potter was shocked would have been an understatement. Harry Potter was absolutely flabbergasted. He was completely astonished, so much so, that he hadn't even realised he'd had his mouth open for over five minutes. He quickly snapped it shut. Oh, the press is going to have a hay day tomorrow, he thought.
"Mr Potter? Are you alright?"
He snapped his head around to see the Ministry staff member staring at him, biting her lower lip in a way that would have been endearing, if she wasn't in her mid-fifties and resembled McGonagall.
"Err… Yes, everything is fine." He replied tersely. Other than the fact that my wife has just divorced me.
He wondered where it had all gone wrong. Hadn't they been in love? Hadn't they lived together? Hadn't they promised they would always be with each other no matter what? So why were they getting a divorce? He racked his mind for answers to each question. Surely it couldn't be that he had neglected her, could it? He did have a busy job, he was the breadwinner for the two of them, surely she understood.
Maybe it was because you treated her like a tart… Arm-candy instead of a wife… Said the annoying voice inside his head. Harry shook his head. Surely it wasn't because of that.
Suddenly, the door to the room opened and the witch in question tumbled in, copper hair and all.
Ginny Weasley nodded at her former husband and sat in the plush chair, turning her full attention to the Ministry official in front of her, nodding gravely. On the inside however, she was laughing with such intensity, that a single wrong move could bring all of it tumbling out.
She sat through the whole thing, feigning attention and clutching the final copies of the divorce papers in her arms as if they were her life. Standing up, Ginny gave her back a stretch and walked out of the room, right into the arms of one Harry Potter.
"Sorry" she muttered, brushing herself off.
Looking up, she saw the intense, green eyes that she had grown to love all those years ago. The shockingly messy black mop of hair that would have made her heart flutter in her ribcage and of course the lightning-bolt shaped scar that would have made her knees feel all weak if she was talking about the days she was a girl of seventeen. But she wasn't seventeen. She wasn't a girl anymore. And, most of all, she didn't love Harry-the-hero Potter.
She watched him as he scanned her face, taking in every freckle and feature, almost as if he wanted to commit it to memory. She looked down, suddenly self-conscious.
"Why?" he asked.
She snapped her eyes back up to his face.
"What?" she asked, already knowing the answer.
"Why have you done this?"
She thought for a bit… Where to begin?
"Harry, we were never really suited to each other…" she began, taking in the confusion etched across his features, Ginny sighed.
"Look, you were always at work and we never really spoke to each other that much, it was always hard for me because I didn't feel like you loved me enough to put me first. In simpler words, our relationship was… Dysfunctional." she finished.
More like… You were always out partying with friends… I knew I was always second best or lower… You always saw me as a pretty girl instead of a strong, independent woman… Our relationship was doomed, thought Ginny.
She forced the tears that were threatening to spill out back into their glands and held her chin up defiantly. She was not going to cry in front of her ex.
Harry was staring at her dumbfounded.
"Okay" he said, shoving his hands in his pockets, "but you are making a huge mistake Ginny."
And with that, Harry Potter walked out of the Ministry on Magic.
Ginerva Molly Weasley was angry. No, not angry, she was positively fuming. How could he? How could he just say that she had made a mistake?
She scowled and shook her head, apparating to the Burrow.
At the Burrow, she was immediately enveloped in a huge hug. Ginny took a deep breath, smelling the scent of soil and flowers, tainted with a bit of pumpkin pie. She smiled. Mother.
Looking up, she was met with the concerned brown eyes of Molly Weasley.
"Are you alright dearie?" she asked.
No, she most certainly was not.
"Yes mum." she replied with a weak smile, "I'm going up to my room…"
Mrs Weasley pursed her lips and nodded as she watched Ginny trudge upstairs to her bedroom.
Upon entering her room, Ginny was met with impatient tapping. She looked to see a large tawny owl at her window with a letter and a package tied to its leg. She walked to the window and unlatched it, taking the letter and the parcel. Paying the bird, she collapsed onto her bed while ripping her letter open.
Dear Sister,
We heard you divorced Harry Potter. Well done! The git was horrible to you anyway, it's time he learnt his place.
The shop is doing really well, we almost have the best business in Britain (If it weren't for that money-making prat Malfoy's potion company, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes would be the most profitable business of all time). Ron's a pain in the arse as usual, always messing things up. Just last month he ended up stuck to the front door of our Hogsmeade store for weeks because he confused the Super Gum Balls with the spherical Stick-to-Anything magnets (which really just stick to the first thing you set your eyes on). The magnetic effect only lasts for an hour, but the idiot ate the whole packet.
Oh, but don't worry little sis, we worked our way around it by painting him to resemble the door and getting him to surprise everyone who decided to come into the shop. The only bad thing about it was when the spell wore off and he fell onto one of our customers, who just so happened to be McGonagall! (We paid them both lots and apologised profusely).
Anyway, back to the topic (was there one?) We are proud of you sis, and to show our gratitude, we have sent you a packet of 100 Super Gum Balls and 500 Stick-to-Anything magnets. Use them carefully. We will pay a visit soon.
Your favourite brothers,
Fred & George
George & Fred
Gred & Feorge
Ginny laughed a hearty laugh at her brothers' antics and fell into the most peaceful sleep she had had for a long time, her last thought being I'm finally a Weasley again.
