AN: A special thank you to Sam who inspired the soldier theme. For Kelly and Ash who made me want to really try my hand at this pairing.
Prologue
They stand before her with their crisp, neat uniforms and eyes paid to care as they deliver the news. For all the sense it makes to Ginny, it could be in another language.
"We're sorry for your loss."
No.
"He served his country well."
No!
"Your husband was a hero, Mrs. Potter."
Ginny doesn't realize the glass in her hand has broken until she feels the burning sting in her palm. But she barely even notices it because what's going on in her heart hurts so much more.
"Mrs. Potter?"
"Get out..."
"We have a support group. It meets every-"
"Get out!" she screams over and over until they finally do, and she slams the door behind them.
Tears fall, and she tries to wipe them away, blood smearing across her freckled skin.
There had been tears the day that Harry had deployed. They had held each other tightly as they'd kissed, tears dancing on their tongues. She had promised to wait for him, and he'd promised to come back to her.
Life has a cruel sense of irony, she decides as she slings the vase her mother had given them for Christmas against the wall, enjoying the satisfying sound of something breaking just like her.
She had waited and waited like a faithful wife, never straying, always thinking of him. Now, he's coming back to her, just as he'd promised, but he's coming back in a box.
