Your Welcome
As we left Dumbledore's Office we glanced around the castle. We couldn't stop looking around, stop touching its walls. For the past six years we have walked through these corridors but this year the walls that hold Hogwarts Castle are in rubble. The portraits were scattered across the floor, some broken and some empty. The Hogwarts stronghold was in ruins but it wasn't destroyed, no. It was wounded that's all, it'll get mended and be the stronghold again.
We passed through the corridors and did all we could to mend what the giants, the spiders, the Death Eaters, and every single one of them did to our home. We tried to fix the home we grew up in since eleven years old. We put the portraits back in their place and tried to fix the walls but it needed stronger magic. We tried to fix what we could no matter how big or small. The portraits were waving and thanking us as we headed to the Great hall. We stood in the entrance just looking at everyone. People didn't see us standing there which suited me just fine. There were people mourning over their loved ones that died, family hugging who hasn't died and crying of joy and sadness. Ron and Hermione went where the Weasleys were sitting.
Mrs. Weasley was beside Fred holding his hand tears rolling down her cheeks, she was touching his face, he was still smiling even after death. George was looking at his twin hoping he'd sit up and say "Gotcha!" I couldn't see the rest of the Weasley brothers. I scanned the room and saw them arranging the people who died at one part of the Great Hall before rejoining their family. Then I saw Ginny. She was behind her mother, a serious look on her face, her eyes brimmed with tears she didn't let fall.
Its been almost a year since I truly saw her. She got paler, there were scars on her wrists, her hair was disheveled, and her eyes, even from here I could no longer see the fire in them. Even a year later my heart still beat violently at the sight of her, the creature in my chest still purred at the remembrance of the feeling of her in my arms, and I still find her absolutely beautiful. I wanted to talk to her, touch her, hold her but I don't have that right anymore.
I looked around the room and felt a need to leave. I shouldn't be here. I felt guilty. I felt responsible for the deaths. No matter how many times they'll tell me no its not I'll still feel it. I didn't want to talk to anybody, I didn't want people looking at me or congratulating me. I turned and went outside. It was a warm day but not warm enough to make you uncomfortable.
I didn't know where I was going but my feet knew where they wanted to go. They lead me to the big tree near the lake. I've come here so many times to think, to escape, to reflect, or to have something to do. I have come here more often when I found out my parents were under this same tree. Before I sat down I looked on the side of the tree that's facing the Forbidden Forest. I saw the engraving there, crafted gracefully by a wand. JP + LE. These could belong to any couple I thought at the beginning but the snitch beside the JP and a lily flower beside LE gave way the truth. I sat on the side facing the lake. I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. There was silence, a few birds in the trees, the sound of water against the shore. It was peaceful, a sound that couldn't be heard in years.
Then I heard footsteps, subconsciously I go for my wand but before I took it out completely I stopped. I knew those steps, I knew those steps very well. I would listen for those steps every time I was out here and every time they came. It was a minute until she was standing over me. When I looked up she looked mad, she looked furious. She reached down and pulled me up then slammed me against the tree.
"What were you playing at Potter?" she said. Her eyes were on fire, they were blazed with anger. They were brimmed with tears she wouldn't let fall. Ginny never cried and when she does she doesn't let anyone see.
"How could you just walk in there like that? Do you have any idea how we felt? How I felt Harry?" she said looking up at me.
"You didn't say goodbye, you didn't even say anything to any of us. Fred didn't die just so you can turn yourself in Harry. He didn't die so you can die too," she screamed. My anger started to flare. I didn't suffer through hell for a year to be yelled at by my ex girlfriend. I wanted to yell back. I went through a lot just to save her, to save all of them. I was going to yell, tell her I didn't choose to, I didn't want it that way but I saw something that made my anger diminish. Her eyes were filled with anger but I saw what she was trying to hide. I saw hurt, resentment, sadness, and fear. I wasn't angry anymore. I felt guilty again. It was my fault she felt that way.
"You left for a year Harry! You left with no contact whatsoever and when I do see you you look disappointed and then you die. Who do you think you are to do that to me? Who the bloody hell think you are?" she said the last sentence with vigor and started hitting me. She was hitting my chest with all her strength and her tears still wouldn't fall. I didn't try to stop her. Who was I to do that to her? She was hitting me and I didn't stop her, I deserved a lot worst for that. I hurt her something I try never to do. I didn't know what to do so I only did the logical thing that came to my mind. I hugged her. I hugged her tightly.
She didn't want me to, she hit me more forcefully. She started pushing me away but I didn't let go. I hugged her tighter to me. I could see the tears falling down her cheeks now. She stopped fighting then, she let me bring her close to me and wrap my arms around her. She wrapped her arms around me tightly and cried. It wasn't heavy sobs, it was silent tears rolling down her cheeks. They were tears of someone who doesn't show weakness even at the worst of times. Tears that had to be shed but not seen. I brought us down so that I was sitting down and was holding her in my lap while she cried on my shoulder. She hugged me tighter, bringing me closer. I have never seen Ginny cry. No matter how hard the situation was she never let anyone see her cry. So I held on just as tightly and let my own tears fall.
It was a few minutes until we calmed down. The tears stopped but we didn't let go. I didn't want to let go, I wanted to hold her and never let go.
She eventually pulled away and said, "I'm sorry."
I pulled her back into my arms. After not holding her for so long and then having her again I couldn't part with her. I wrapped my arms around her again and she wrapped hers around me.
I whispered in her ear, "Ginny you have absolutely nothing to be sorry for. Your right, I did leave. I didn't contact you or anybody for a year and I'm sorry for that. You truly have no idea how many times I wanted to come back, to see you, to write to you. I watched you at Hogwarts. I had the Marauder's Map and looked at your dot moving through the corridors every second I could. I know you have a morning free period on Monday and Tuesday. I know you sit by the fire in the Common Room until early morning on Friday night. Ginny I missed you so much."
I cuddled her, I buried my face in her hair smelling her scent, it brought back memories of my sixth year. I've heard people tell me they've never seen me so happy then when I was with her. They were right, I've never felt happier then when I was with her. I have never felt free and as the weight of the world wasn't on my shoulders.
She pulled away and said, "Then why did you leave Harry? Why didn't you tell me where you were?" She looked away and continued," When I saw you in the Room of Requirement you didn't look happy to see me."
I pulled her face to look at me. I looked into her eyes. Her chocolate brown pools were locked with my green ones. How many times I've dreamed of looking into her eyes for the past year? As I looked into them now red and brimmed with tears she didn't let fall, I decided to tell her the truth. I didn't want to have anymore lies between us.
So I told her. I told her everything. From the start of my first year to what happened this past year. She didn't interrupt, she didn't say to stop. She sat and listened she cried when I told her what happened in the graveyard, when I saw Sirius die, and when I saw Dumbledore die. Every detail she knew. Every moment of terror and despair she knew. Every moment of happiness and bliss she knew. Ginny knew more then Ron and Hermione now.
"Ginny I did look disappointed to see you in the Room of Requirement. I didn't want to see you there," I told her. She looked away, two tears spilled over but she wiped them quickly. She got up hastily and walked toward the castle. I got up quickly and stepped in front of her and put my hands on her shoulders to make her stop.
"Ginny wait. I--"
"Its ok Harry. I understand, don't worry about it. I'll be fine," she said wiping the tears from her face and stepping around me. I stepped in front of her again and cupped her face, wiping the tears rolling down her face.
"Ginny there is only one reason I didn't want to see you in the Room in the Requirement and its not for the reason you think," I told her.
She was shaking her head, turning away from me. I turned her head up to look at me.
"Ginny Weasley. Ginerva Molly Weasley," I smiled saying her name. I looked into her eyes, trying to show her how I feel. "Voldemort took my parents from me, then he took my godfather. He decided that wasn't enough so he took my mentor away too. It still wasn't enough so he took three close friends also." I wrapped my arms around her shoulders and she wrapped her arms around my waist.
"Ginny he couldn't take you. He has taken everyone Ginny, everyone. He couldn't take you, I wouldn't let him. I didn't want him to even look at you. I can't lose you too, I can't. Your mine Ginny, mine. And he couldn't have you."
I looked in her eyes again and touched her cheek, then it clicked. She smiled up at me.
She leaned up and I leaned down and we kissed. It was soft and gentle. It was slow and caressing. There was no need to hurry. Voldemort was gone so I didn't have to go away or hide. I could kiss Ginny for as long as I wanted without the fear of Voldemort coming after her. When the need for air came we pulled away. This kiss sealed what already clicked in my head.
I have never said the words and no one has ever said them to me. I've read, heard, and seen what the words are suppose to mean and represent but until right now I understand how it feels.
"I love you Ginny."
She smiled a smile that reached her eyes, "I love you Harry."
And then I smiled too and kissed her again. I needed her as much as she needed me and I wanted her as much as she wanted me. That thought made the deaths of so many loved ones less painful. There is a lot to recover from and a lot of healing. After so much dark the light is finally rising. It hurts to know we won't see them again but I know they wouldn't want us to mourn forever. They died so we can have a life of happiness.
We broke apart and smiled. I let go and held her hand. I brought her to the tree and showed her the engravings. She reached up and touched them.
"James Potter," she said touching JP. "Lily Evans," she said touching LE.
"It seems we have a lot more in common with them besides looks," I said laughing a little.
She laughed too. "I guess your right." She continued to touch their initials. She looked up and said, "Thank you Lily and James. If it weren't for you," she looked at me. "Harry wouldn't be here."
I smiled at her then looked up, "Thank you mum and dad. If it weren't for you," I looked down at her. "I wouldn't be here."
"Dang Prongs anything else you want to give your son. The messy hair, your looks, Quidditch, and now a love for redheads," said one of the Marauders; Sirius.
"And what is wrong with redheads Sirius?" the red haired Lily said as she snaked her arms around her husband.
"Oh nothing is wrong Lily. I'm just observing how young Harry here is more like is father then not," Sirius said.
"Good thing pig-headedness, arrogant, selfish, and annoying fool weren't some of them," said Moony who was holding hands with a pink haired beauty.
The only one not laughing was James himself.
When a red haired boy stopped laughing he said, "Aww don't tell me a Marauder can't take a joke."
"Of course he can Fred, he just doesn't want to admit that that's why Lily never paid attention to him," said Sirius.
Before Lily can agree and James retort they heard it, all of them.
"James Potter….Lily Evans"
All of them looked around trying to see where the voice came from and who said it but eventually realized it came from the couple they were just observing. They looked down to see them touching the tree. It didn't take long for all six friends to smile down at them.
"Its like watching your clones," Tonks said to Lily and James.
"Yea except instead of Harry chasing Ginny, Ginny was chasing Harry," said Remus laughing.
"Thank you Lily and James. If it weren't for you…Harry wouldn't be here."
The parents looked down at their soon-to-be-daughter-in-law. The love she feels for their son can be seen in her eyes as clearly as you can see it in Harry's.
"Finally after seventeen years he'll have peace and happiness. They all will," said Lily looking down at her son.
"He's been through a lot, more then he should. They all have. He'll finally be happy," said James also looking down at her son.
"They better. I didn't die just so they can mourn forever now did I?" said Fred cracking a smile.
"They will. I know he'll also take care of our son," said Tonks wrapping her arms around her husband.
"Of course. He won't let what happened to him happen to anyone else if he could do something about it," said Remus kissing his wife's forehead.
"Its his saving-the-world thing," said Sirius chuckling while looking down at his godson.
"Thank you mum and dad. If it weren't for you…I wouldn't be here."
They looked down at their son and knew that the sacrifice they made was worth it. They couldn't have had a better man for a son then the man that just pledged his love to the girl of his dreams.
"You're welcome sweet heart."
"You're welcome son."