Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter. I only own myself. How sad is that?
Ginny apparated right outside her flat. She collapsed under exhaustion. How could she do this every day? The ginger witch slumped down and rested her head gently on the door. An uncontrollable sob wracked through her body and she quickly entered the apartment before any of the neighbors came out. She flopped down onto one of the dining room chairs and shoved off some paperwork. She took her head in her hands and let out another sob. Her shoulders wracked and the ginger witch let out another wail. All of the sudden, she heard rushing water. Snivelling, she brushed her hair back into a ponytail. She wiped her nose and her eyes on her sleeve and gulped.
Neville entered the dimly lit room slowly. He reached down and hugged her. She cried into his shirt.
"What happened this time?" Neville asked gently, rubbing her back.
"Practice was good, but tiring." Ginny sobbed, not really listening to him. Neville lifted her head in his hands and wiped away her tears. After she took a few shuddering breaths, she sighed.
"I guess it just has been a long day. And it's just so hard. I don't know anymore. What's the point?"
"Hey. I am here for you." Neville leaned in slowly and pressed his lips against hers. They tasted like coffee and they were warm. She squirmed uncomfortably and broke away.
"Neville. We have talked about this. I am not ready for you yet." Ginny turned her head away and pushed him away.
"Ginny! I am here for you every day! You never offer your thanks, but turn me away every time. You say that every time! You will never be ready for me. You keep on pushing everyone who loves you away. First Harry and now me." At Harry's name the ginger witch let out a devastated whimper.
"Neville how could you say that?! I will never love you." Ginny told him harshly. Neville wrinkled his nose.
"Oh don't even start. Every bloody day I look after him and every bloody day you turn me away. I can see why Harry doesn't want you. Who wants you?" Ginny slapped him hard across the face, before shying away, regretting her actions. Neville looked murderous for a second before he regained his professional composure.
"I will be busy tomorrow night. Don't bother." Neville said as she tried to reach out. He disapparated and Ginny was left there in the messy den, sitting alone on a hard wooden chair. She sobbed loudly.
"I can't do this." Ginny cried into her hands. She curled up and wailed. She barely registered the soft padding of feet. A small body climbed onto her lap.
"It okay Mummy. I here!" A soft voice told her. The small boy wrapped his small arms around her waist. She cried into his shoulder for what felt like hours before she finally took several deep breaths.
"I wuv you Mummy." The boy told her.
"I love you too James. Sorry. Mommy is a little tired." Cradling the boy, she walked to the kitchen. "How about I make us some hot cocoa?" James nodded his sleepy head and rested it on her breast as she heated the milk. As she added the chocolate, James asked her a question.
"Why you sad?" He looked up at her with such similarity to Harry that Ginny had to stifle another sob.
"I miss Daddy, hun." Ginny told him, giving him a small mug. She took a sip and swallowed the hot beverage, feeling warmer, but it still did not burn down the lump in her throat.
"Tell me story!" James clapped his hands excitedly as Ginny sat down. She smiled. The ginger witch and James finished their warm beverages. James looked up at her expectantly.
"How about tomorrow, James?" She asked him smoothing down his jet black, messy hair.
"No, no mummy! Night!" He squirmed as she turned towards his room. "Mummy's bed!" Ginny sighed as she tucked him into her bed. He immediately grew more sleepy as soon as she tucked him in. He extended his pudgy arms and she crawled into bed and set her wand on the table. He curled into her and rested his head on her chest.
"I remember the first time Daddy kissed me. I had just won the Quidditch tournament and Daddy came back and … " told Ginny. She knew it was James' favorite story. Soon, he was asleep by her breast. She slowly eased out of bed and cast a warming charm over him as he stirred. Ginny stripped and stepped into the hot shower. She scrubbed away the sweat and dirt and tears from the Holyhead Harpies practice. She had been training and doing Quidditch with them for years. Recently, though, she was thinking about retiring. But it made a steady income and James enjoyed watching her tournaments with N-neville. She gulped and stepped out of the shower, toweling her hair with a fluffy towel. She debated placing James back in his bed, but decided she needed the company tonight. Pretending it was Harry holding her, she curled up into him and fell into a deep, restless sleep like all of the other nights since she left him.
The morning light filtered into the room. Ginny grinned, knowing that she had a break from Quidditch today. She stretched and carefully eased out of bed to make eggs on toast, James' favorite.
Ginny hummed and set the plates on the table and laid out chocolate milk in plastic glasses. She heard a cry and rushed to James' room. He was crying for her. She sighed, knowing what he wanted. She pulled down her shirt and breastfed him until he was happily awake.
"I made your favorite today, chocolate milk and eggs and toast!" Ginny told him. He looked around the bedroom and soon became more and more frantic and squirmy, biting down finally.
"Ouch James! What was that for?" Ginny asked, removing James.
"Where Daddy?!" James screamed frantically, wriggling out of her arms and running around the house.
"James?" Ginny called quietly. She knew what was happening. Every couple of weeks, James had a dream that their Daddy was there. He called for him for hours on end. He finally gave up and for the rest of the day was resigned and disappointed. It broke her heart to see him like that. Like he knew that Harry wasn't coming. Sometimes Ginny wondered what he would say if he saw James. Ginny shoved that thought out of her mind. She walked into the den where she always found him. He was staring passively at a picture of Harry and Ginny and crying. She scooped him up and he cried into her shoulders. He didn't notice Ginny's tears. She rocked him until he fell asleep. She tucked him back into bed. After eating breakfast, she cleaned the house and sighed.
Ginny decided to go to a local Muggle park that James loved. He liked the swings the most and Ginny knew that he would love flying.
Hours later, at the park, James sat on the swings. He was allowing himself to become momentarily distracted by the swings to not resume his depressed attitude. She giggled as James clapped his hands. She pushed him higher and higher. After doing this for thirty minutes, James became weepy again. Ginny took him to his favorite cafe by their flat, knowing that he had only had her milk this morning. As they sat down and they ordered, James reached towards the middle of the table. This was new. Ginny handed James a flower in the middle of the table. He grasped it.
Ginny gasped. The floor was opening and closing rapidly, becoming a blossom and then a flower and then shriveling and then all over again. This was James' first display of magic ability! She smiled and lifted James up.
"Good job James!" The ginger witch laughed gleefully.
"Yes. Good job." A man in black robes told him. Ginny grabbed James fearfully who was still fascinated with the flower in his hand. He smirked and grasped something in his robe. Ginny pulled out her wand.
"Don't c-come any c-closer." Ginny trembled as the man stepped closer. He shot a green nonverbal spell towards her. She dodged it and screamed. No one was watching. James was now scared. He had sensed danger. He let out a wail and buried himself into Ginny's chest. She clutched him closer, but to no avail as the man cast a curse.
"Altum Somnum!" The red spell hit James right in the chest. The man disapparated with a snap. But Ginny did not notice. She has horrified. In her very arms, James was writhing and squirming and crying out. Something was definitely wrong.
Hi! This is my third fanfiction story (one is not published on the site yet). I am sorry, this chapter is a little boring. I will also make these a little longer, but at the time being, this is kind of a pilot story. A "first chapter".
By the way, I love Neville, but he will not be portrayed as many of you would have liked in the beginning.
I will continue to write in this story, but school had just started, so probably one or two chapters per week.