Twilight

It's funny, the effect that death can have on a person. And, as Harry James Potter lay in the dust on the barren, depraved battlefield that had claimed the innocent blood of a thousand of his martyred comrades, he reflected on what had been gained, and what had been sacrificed. Voldemort was dead. He was finally, truly, irreversibly gone. But, so was Harry. In his heart he had always known that it would come to this. The Dark Lord wasn't foolish enough to let Harry beat him without a price. Harry's deepest, darkest suspicions had been confirmed. Voldemort had split his soul into seven pieces, as Dumbledore had said. What neither of them had counted on was that he had but one of those maggot infested slivers in Harry. It had all been part of Voldemort's plan to prevent Harry's defeating him. The Dark Lord had never tried to kill Harry at all. He had simply made him a Horcrux, the final one. It was quite ingenious, making Harry into some warped form of him. It was rather like playing chess with oneself. You couldn't lose no matter what went wrong. What Voldemort hadn't counted on was that Harry was willing to kill himself if necessary. That was the power that the Dark Lord knew not. Harry loved his friends and the whole world enough to die for them. Voldemort could never have understood that.

Of course, none of this meant that Harry didn't have any regrets. He regretted that Ron would walk with a cane for the rest of his life, that Hermione would have no one to give her away at their wedding because Voldemort had sent Bellatrix after her poor muggle parents. Harry regretted the fact that Cho Chang would have to hear about the death of another loved one at the hands of the Death Eaters. She and Oliver Wood had only been married six months, and she was due to have a baby in four. Harry regretted that Fred and George would have to live with the memory of killing their Death Eater brother, Percy. Harry regretted that Neville and Luna had both lost their lives in battle. Although, Neville took both of the Lestranges with him. But, what Harry regretted most was watching as the woman he loved hysterically shook his lifeless body, after having killed him herself.

Harry had arranged that Ron would do it to begin with, but he had been a bit busy settling a score with Greyback. He had told the members of the Order and his closest friends what he was going to have to do a few days before the final battle. They hadn't been at all happy about it, but they had understood that it was the only way. Ginny had come to his room that night. She had tried to tell him to forget it, to let Voldemort take over. She told him that he was more important to her than her freedom. She poured her beautiful, selfless heart out to him. Harry couldn't handle it, he broke down. He brushed her disheveled hair out of her face with a shaking hand. He remembered telling her that he had to do it, that it was bigger than he was. She cried and screamed that it wasn't fair, that she loved him. No one had ever said that, for as long as he could remember. And, as he looked into her teary, pleading eyes, he felt more passion than he had ever felt in his life. He had approximately forty-eight hours to show Ginny what she meant to him, that the idea of coming back to her had kept him going throughout the Horcrux hunt. She had said she loved him. This, beautiful, fiery creature was broken before him, begging him to stay with her. Being a hero had never hurt so much.

What Harry did next blew even him away. Before he knew it, he was kneeling before Ginny, telling her everything that he had hidden from the world. He told her that she was his everything, that it was ripping him apart to have this chance at a life. He told her that all he wanted was to get rid of Voldemort, to spend his life with her, to have a family with her. Ginny had let out an agonized sob and crashed her lips to his. Harry pulled away and breathlessly asked her the question he never thought he'd be able to.

"Marry me, Ginny, please? I know we'll only have hours together, but my life has no purpose if it isn't joined to yours. Please, just say you'll be mine, if only for a moment."

Harry didn't care how unrealistic it was, or what anyone would say. If he only got to live for two more days, there wasn't anyone else he wanted to be with. Ginny cried harder than ever, but smiled through her tears.

"Are you kidding? I've been waiting for you my whole life."

Harry grabbed her by the hand and dragged her downstairs. They hadn't even reached the foyer when Harry started yelling.

"Mr. Weasley!"

A red head popped out from the parlor. Mr. Weasley wore an expression of mixed grief and fear. He feigned a smile for their sake.

"Mr. Weasley, I'd like to ask your permission to marry your daughter."

In all the years Harry had known Arthur Weasley, he had never seen him look quite this lost. He looked between the two of them, and a single tear fell from his eye.

"But, Harry….the battle…Voldemort. Besides, you and Ginny haven't even… Where is this coming from?"

Ginny took a deep breath beside him. He could feel her spirit rising.

"Mum! Can you please come out here?"

Ginny's voice was quivering, but her eyes were determined. Molly Weasley emerged. Her face was red and blotchy. She was holding a cup of tea in her trembling hand. Her eyes filled with fresh tears upon seeing Harry. She looked down and fixed her watery gaze on Harry's and Ginny's clasped hands.

"What is this, Ginny dear? Why are you holding his hand?"

Mrs. Weasley's voice seemed to catch in her throat. Harry looked at Ginny for strength. It was now or never. Harry tried not to think how true this sentiment was. Ginny squeezed his hand. Her small gesture filled him with a much needed warmth that gave him the courage to go on.

"I…well…you see… Ginny and I have kind of been seeing each other off and on over the past year. We really weren't trying to hide it from you. We didn't want to let people know, because I didn't want to put her in danger. But, the thing is…I've fallen in love with her. She's the source of my happiness, my strength…well, my everything, really. As you already know, I only have a few more days to…time is running short. For a while now, I've known that I wanted to share my life with your daughter. I know it's sudden, but I don't really have any time to waste. I want to ask your blessing. Ginny and I want to get married. Please, I…none of this is worth it if I can't be with her."

Mrs. Weasley was crying harder than Harry had ever seen her cry. She kissed Harry on the cheek repeatedly and pulled him into a tight hug.

"Oh Harry! That's the most wonderful, horrible…oh dear…but…Ginny?"

Ginny turned to look Harry in the eye. She took a steadying breath and opened her mouth to answer her mother.

"Mum, you know it's always been Harry."

Mr. Weasley had moved to sit in a chair nearby. He was holding his head in his hands. Mrs. Weasley looked as though she couldn't find the words to say.

"Since I first saw him at King's Cross, I've known. Please… Mum, Dad. This is the only chance I'll get to marry the man I love, the only man I'll ever want. However much time we have, I don't want to waste a moment. Please…"

Silent tears slid down Ginny's tired face. She looked hopefully between her parents. Mrs. Weasley couldn't seem to stop sobbing long enough to say anything. Mr. Weasley was quiet. Molly seemed to be attempting to force herself to breathe.

"I know, Ginny. A mother always knows when her baby meets their match. You two are very special, and I've always hoped it would be him in the end. You have a bond of destiny that's part of something bigger than this stupid war. Who am I to keep you apart?... Arthur…"

Mr. Weasley looked up from his hands. He stared Harry blearily in the eye.

"Harry, you've been a son to us for years now. If it weren't for you, most of this family wouldn't be here right now. We owe you everything. If you ask me, there isn't a better man alive on this Earth, and no better husband for my little girl. I just wish you two could have longer together."

They had held the ceremony that very night. Conveniently enough, any ministry official could preside, so Mr. Weasley kindly did the honors. Harry couldn't remember ever seeing Ginny look so beautiful. She wore a simple, white sundress, but she radiated an indescribable loveliness unlike anything Harry had ever seen. Harry and Ginny shared one of 12 Grimmauld Place's many spare bedrooms that night. They had two days filled with more passion and love than most people ever see in their whole lives.

When the fateful day came, Harry kissed his wife goodbye, and walked through the smoke and the death to face his destiny. He held his head high, and looked the Dark Lord in the eye. When Ron couldn't be there to make the sacrifice, Harry looked around. His beautiful, battle worn love stood behind Voldemort himself. He nodded to her, trying to tell her silently what she was to him. She nodded back, raised her wand with more pain than he could bear to watch, and sent a cutting spell right through his abdomen. Harry used his enemy's moment of surprise to cast the spell that would finally be the end of Tom Riddle. Ginny ran to him. She held his dying form in her soft, loving arms. Harry stared up into the face that made this pain and fear worthwhile. She was safe. She would live on, and he had helped make it possible. He smiled at her as she held her small hand to the wound above his navel.

"I love you so much, Gin. Thank you for being so brave. And…thank you for loving me."

Harry felt his light start to dim, and found he could no longer speak. Ginny was crying, her salty tears falling on the gash she had made. Harry could see her heart breaking as he faded away. He felt a sensation not unlike that of portkey travel, and found himself standing outside his useless body. A hand was suddenly on his shoulder. He looked behind him to find his godfather. Sirius hugged Harry roughly. It was an odd feeling, there was no warmth in the contact.

"We're all so proud of you, Harry. Really, you were amazing."

Harry looked longingly back at his bride of two days. He would never grow old with her; never have a big, Weasley family like he'd always wanted. He noticed Ron and Hermione huddling together nearby. The Weasleys were gathering around, all joy gone from their faces.

"Sirius, I don't want to leave her. It isn't fair. We haven't had enough time."

Sirius patted him on the back consolingly. His dark eyes glinted in the rising moon.

"Really love Miss Weasley, do you, Harry?"

Harry continued to watch the scene before him. Ginny was still holding him close, kissing his forehead through her unbridled sorrow. He could almost feel it.

"More than anything. She's my perfect match. She gave me a reason to live when I thought I'd lost everything."

Sirius sighed, despite his lack of breath. He looked thoughtful. Harry tried to tear his gaze away from Ginny to look at him, but he couldn't bear to look away from her.

"There might be a way. You see, you're not technically dead yet. Your soul left your body because it needed to make room for Voldemort's filth to leave it. He's still holding on by a thread, but if you can re-enter your body at the same moment he lets go, and if someone heals it, you might yet live. Get as close as you can without touching anyone, especially your own body. When you feel Riddle lose control, try to enter your body again. If the Weasley girl truly is your soul mate, you'll be able to tell her what to do without words. But you cannot speak to her once you're in your skin, and she'll have to heal you after the switch has been made. It's never been accomplished before, but you seem to have a knack for paving new paths. Please be careful, though, and hurry."

Harry stood near his body. He concentrated on telling Ginny what Sirius had said. He thought it over and over, pushing against her mind with his. After a moment, Ginny suddenly quieted. She stared at the spot where Harry stood. He felt her trust in him. She knew. Harry let out an unneeded breath.

"Oh…Sirius. It's Potter now. Her name's Ginny Potter."

Sirius laughed heartily. He waved his hand dismissively, though he was beaming. Harry smiled back, thanked his godfather, and readied himself. He could feel the Dark Lord's hold loosening, their connection breaking. Harry threw himself into his body as he felt the bond become impossibly weak.

The next thing Harry felt was excruciating pain. He curled up, his wound still wide open. Ginny felt his movement and gasped. She groped the ground next to her for her wand. Finding it, she held it to his injury, and started to clean it out. Mrs. Weasley, seeing what she was doing, tried to pull her away. Harry used every ounce of strength he had to reach a hand up to Ginny's arm. Mrs. Weasley saw this, and loosened her grip on her daughter.

"Impossible…he was…it can't be done…"

Ginny ignored this, and resumed her healing spells. Hermione detached herself from Ron and rushed over to help. Mrs. Weasley soon broke out of her disbelief, and got to work shouting orders to the girls. Harry was taken to St. Mungo's, still not having strength enough to open his eyes. He could feel Ginny's hand in his nearly every second of his stay. She talked to him, begged forgiveness for hurting him, even if he had wanted her to, and pleaded with him to wake up.

After two weeks, his strength returned. He looked next to him. A beautiful mane of red hair half covered the face Harry had been most longing to see again. She appeared to have fallen asleep in her chair. Her arm rested on the bed beside him. He reached down to stroke it ever so gently. He didn't want to wake her, but not touching her was too much to bear. She didn't stir. She was thinner and paler than before the battle, but as stunning as always. Harry spent the next few hours just watching her sleep, studying the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed deeply; memorizing the flutter of her eyelashes, and praying to God that he would have at least five more decades of this.

When Ginny woke up, she nearly tackled him. She cried tears of joy, her happiness almost contagious. Harry moved over, and Ginny climbed into the bed with him. He wrapped his arms around her, planning never to let her go again as long as he lived. As they lay there, at the beginning of their new life together, a thought occurred to Harry. Maybe his power to defeat the late Tom Riddle had nothing to do with him. Looking at the woman he was holding so close, he knew that all of his power came from her. This was the embodiment of love, the strongest weapon he had.

OOOOOO

A/N- Thanks for reading, everybody! This story started out all angsty, and Harry wasn't supposed to make it out alive, but I couldn't do it in the end. ;)