Right Before the Finish
Chapter 1: Only The Lonely
So far, it had been a depressing summer for Harry Potter. The highlight had been returning briefly to the Dursley's home to pack the rest of his belongings, as he was leaving for good. Packing had given him the strangest mixed emotions- as many times as he'd wished he had another place to go in the past, he felt quite sad as he put the memories of the past seven years in his suitcase and trunk. After he left their house, he would truly be without any family to speak of. Truthfully, he could not call his Aunt and Uncle family, and would not keep in touch. He was as good as an orphan as far as they were concerned, and had made Harry feel as such his whole life.
Nevertheless, Harry had already made his plans. After moving out of the Dursley's, he was going to stay with Ron's family at the Burrow until after the wedding, and then start his search for the final Horcux. It left a heavy burden on his heart, but he knew he had to do it, for Dumbledore.
Mourning the loss of Dumbledore was hard enough in itself. After all, he had been a father figure to Harry, had guided him, helped him, believed in him in ways that had made him not only a better wizard, but a better friend; yet Harry had also been mourning another loss, another trouble that hurt his heart so badly that he fought every day to keep from weeping, and that trouble's name was Ginny Weasley.
Beautiful, confident Ginny. She was his first true love, the only girl he could ever love, and not only because she understood him inside and out. He loved her for her strength, for her determination, for her sassiness, her laughter, her smile—hell, she was even fantastic at Quidditch. She had blossomed right before his eyes, from a shy, uncertain girl to a bold and wonderful woman; it had hit him like a ton of bricks the first time he kissed her.
Harry often thought bitterly how unfair it was to love someone the way he loved Ginny and not be able to be with them. There were, of course, the ifs. If he found the final Horcrux and it led him to his nemesis Voldemort, and if he was able to defeat the most feared wizard of their time and if he lived to tell the tale, he would be able to be love Ginny the way he wanted, to have as normal a life as he could. But then that would require Ginny waiting for him and his quest could take months. Years. He may never even come back, and this was a possibility he had accepted long ago.
Of course Ginny would have suitors. She already had them, several, for what man in his right mind wouldn't be attracted to her? What man wouldn't love to run his fingers through her long, thick, silky auburn hair? Or stare into her eyes, the exact color of the sky before a storm? What man wouldn't want to kiss her pouty lips? And, Merlin, the way she had developed over the years…her curves drove Harry mad whenever he thought of her, especially last summer, when she'd worn that green polka dot bathing suit to go swimming, screaming with laughter as he splashed her with water. She had the body of a goddess and the temper of one too- she feared nothing. She was intelligent and fiercely loyal. She was brave. She was the one he wanted and needed so desperately but could not have, not unless she was willing to wait.
Harry doubted she would wait; after all, why should she? She could have anyone she wanted, probably anyone she didn't want (he'd heard rumors that even Malfoy had been interested in her), and he was cursed; he was doomed to be alone. It just wasn't fair.
So many times before he knew he'd be seeing her at the Burrow, he'd started to write her letters:
Dear Ginny,
I can't stop thinking about you. All I want to do is run away with you, just forget all of what I have to do and take you away
Ginny,
Do you hate me for breaking up with you? Do you understand why I had to? I love you
Gin,
Have you found someone else? Already? If I see you with another man, I'll lose my mind.
All the letters ended up as crumpled parchment in the bottom of his trunk. He knew he didn't have the nerve to send them. And knowing her, well, she'd probably turned against him by now. She was too tough to wallow in misery over him, she probably would have waited until she saw him again to hurl the letters back in his face, snarling at him, "You jackass! I got over you months ago!"
Yet the time had come that he had been apprehensive about yet anticipating—Bill and Fleur's wedding weekend. He was arriving at the Burrow two days early. And it was time to go. He had no idea what to expect from Ginny or from the family. Maybe they all hated him for breaking up with their daughter. Ron seemed to understand. But maybe his parents didn't.
He would find out soon enough.