After the Hallows
Chapter One
"That wand's more trouble than it's worth," said Harry. "And quite honestly," he turned away from the painted portraits, thinking now only of the four-poster bed lying waiting for him in Gryffindor Tower, and wondering whether Kreacher might bring him a sandwich there, "I've had enough trouble for a lifetime."
And with that, Harry turned, seeing his two best friends do the same. As they left the office, they heard the portraits on the walls start talking to each other, but the babble faded as they descended the spiral staircase into the corridor below.
"I'm glad that's over," sighed Ron.
"What?" asked Hermione, slipping her hand into Ron's.
"The war, the dying, the disappearances… Everything," Ron replied.
"Yeah, me too," Harry muttered, while Hermione nodded vehemently next to him.
They walked in silence to the entrance to Gryffindor Tower, where they stopped, looking at the Fat Lady. Or rather, where the Fat Lady was. Her portrait had been blasted into smithereens, and there was a blackened whole where it had been.
"Oh, my!" Hermione exclaimed. "Why did they do this?"
"No id- Harry? Where are you going?"
For Harry had suddenly run forward into the Common Room and sprinted towards the girl's staircase. He had just seen a flash of red. Not like the hangings, like hair. To be precise, Ginny Weasley's hair.
Ron and Hermione looked at each other, bewildered. Then they followed after Harry.
"Ginny?"
Silence.
"Ginny?" (more urgently)
Silence.
"Ginny, please, I know you're in here."
Still silence.
"Ginny!" Harry looked under the bed's, in the trunks and cabinets, and under the blankets, and behind the curtains.
"Ginny, please! I love you!"
He had not meant to say that. Why did he say that?
'Because it's true,' said an unbidden voice in his head.
But it had worked. Ginny came slowly out from behind the door, staring at him. Her brown eyes were huge and brimming with tears.
"You have no clue how long I've wanted to hear that from you," she said.
Harry smiled. "Yeah, well…"
"And now I wish you hadn't said it," Ginny added, her eyes hardening. "You leave me for months, with no warning, after dumping me because you 'had to go save the world,'" Ginny sneered. "Then you come back, also with no warning, you could have been dead for all I knew. But did you care? Oh, no, of course not, I was just 'Ron's little sister', always have been, always will be. You were just teasing me last year, weren't you? Oh, I should have known it was too good to actually work out, but I wished, oh, yes, Potter, I wished." Her voice was rising to a scream. "You don't even care that I lost a brother today, do you? He was my best friend out of all my brothers, and he's gone now, thanks to you!" Tears were streaming down her face now. "And then when you come back, you completely ignore me! Me, the last girl you went out with, the only girl you went out with successfully!"
And with that, she spun on her heel and stormed out of the dorm. Harry ran after her, trying to catch her, shouting at her to wait. He ran past a confused Hermione, and an even more confused Ron, who, after exchanging bewildered looks, followed after him.
Ginny ran towards the Great Hall, tears streaming down her face. She could hear Harry- no, Potter, she reminded herself, Potter- running after her, calling her name, but she ignored him. She rounded the last bend, shouted "Glisseo!" at the marble staircase and it turned into a smooth stone slide. She slid down it, then shouted the counter-spell and it turned back into stairs, right under Harry's feet. He stumbled and fell, cursing as he went. Ginny ran into the Great Hall, and people turned as she sprinted past, staring. She came up short in front of her family, who were staring at her, all with red-rimmed eyes, though none so much as George's. George started towards her, but then she heard footsteps running into the hall. She turned slowly, and there he was. Potter. She glared at him.
"Ginny, I'm sor-" he started.
"Oh, don't say you're sorry," Ginny snapped at him. She could feel her family staring at her back, and that made her feel stronger. "Potter, I hate your! You are a worthless piece of trash, and you had better not ever come near me again!"
He flinched. "Look, Ginny-" he started again.
"It's Weasley to you, Potter!" she shouted. The whole hall was watching now, and, for once, Ginny didn't mind all the attention. She was to focused on Potter.
He was coming towards her. Oh, Merlin, he was coming towards her! What should she do? Pull her wand out and curse him? No, he could easily block that. He was right in front of her now. And, without thinking, she punched him. Once, twice, three times, and again, as hard as she could. He doubled over. Obviously he hadn't been expecting to get hit. The idiot bastard.
She kept on punching every part of him she could reach. She could hear her family yelling, the teachers shouting, girls screaming. And then, above all, she heard Hermione's voice, right behind her, softer than anyone else's, yet still audible.
"Ginny, that's enough now. Come on, let go of him." Ginny had been pounding her knee into his chest. "I think you got your point across. You can stop." As Hermione physically pulled Ginny off of Harry, she heard that the hall, loud moments before, had gone completely silent. Everyone was staring at her, scared to move.
Hermione led Ginny out of the hall, up the marble staircase, up and up until they reached the seventh floor, in the corridor of Barnabas the Barmy. Hermione let go of Ginny here, and walked back and forth in front of the blank wall, until a door appeared there. She turned around when she heard a sob. Ginny was still up against the wall where Hermione had left her, but instead of standing, she was curled up in a ball on the floor, sobbing. Hermione hurried over to her, and took her hand, pulling her up.
"Come on, now, honey, let's go into the Room, and we can talk about it, alright?" Hermione half pulled, half carried Ginny into the Room of Requirement, which had transformed perfectly for the occasion. It was a small room, with some tea, a sofa, and a crackling fire. Hermione walked over to the sofa, still holding Ginny's hand. They curled up together, Ginny's head on Hermione's chest. She was sobbing harder than ever, and soon Hermione had a wet spot on her chest, but she didn't care. She kept rubbing Ginny's back, not saying anything, just being there for her 'little sister'.
A quarter of an hour later, Ginny sat up, breathing hard, a perfect example of what redheads look like after crying. Her face was blotchy and her eyes were red.
"Do you want to talk now, honey?" Hermione asked her, still hugging her.
Ginny shrugged.
"It's up to you," Hermione said softly.
Ginny stood up, walked over to the fire, and stood facing it, staring into its depths.
"F-fred was my favourite brother, you know, Hermione. He was the only one who treated me like an equal, instead of a baby. Bill was always really nice, but he treated me like a baby, almost. Fred was always there for me. He was there when Ron stole my teddy bear when I was three. He was there when I broke my toy broomstick when I was seven. He was there when I started at Hogwarts six years ago. He was there when I came out of the Chamber. He was there when Potter broke up with me last year. He loved me, more than anyone else, I think. He was always there for me," Ginny repeated.
Hermione sat watching her, her vision going blurry as she remembered Fred, the prankster, the funnier of the twins.
"Now he won't ever be here again. I wish I could talk to him now, about Potter, about the war, about everything. But I can't. He's d-dead, Hermione, dead!" She was sobbing now, but she kept talking. "I loved him so much, I can't imagine life without him. He was my life. The reason I'm still here. If it weren't for him, I probably would have killed myself by now, with five older brothers to cope with. And the other person that really loves me is down in a bloody mess in the Great Hall! Because of me! I hit him, Hermione, I hit him as hard as I could, because I hated him. I don't anymore. I wish I could curl up with him right now, tell him everything. But I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't want anything to do with me anymore. I'd deserve it. He actually loves me, Hermione, he said so, and I could have said it back, but I didn't. I just told him- I told him that I didn't want him anymore. I think he believed me."
And with that, she collapsed, sobbing again, onto the hearth rug.
"Oh, Ginny!" Hermione cried, running over to her. "I'm so sorry! I love you, Ginny, you're the little sister I never had," she sobbed. The hugged, rocking back and forth, sobbing.