Harry
Potter stood in silhouette on the other side of the room, sitting in
the simple, wooden chair with one foot planted on an old school
trunk, his head in his hands. He swept his hands back so that his
fingers ran through his hair and said, "You know it isn't as
easy as all that, Ginny." His voice was far away, as though they
were on opposite ends of the world, and he had not yet looked up to
meet his wife's eyes. "I have to go, Gin, and you know that,"
he said. "This whole time, I've always had to go." "Then
I'll go with you," Ginny said, her voice seeming to bounce off
of every object in their tiny bedroom. "You're not going to go
out there without me, Harry, and you can't stop me going." Harry
finally looked up at her and his green eyes swept over her brown ones
gently, lovingly. He didn't have the strong, courageous look that he
normally carried when he spoke of fighting in the final battle. The
light from a single lantern cast worried shadows in his eyes and he
said, "I know I can't stop you, Ginny, but I wish you would
consider staying here with Livvy, instead." "Mum can
take care of Olivia for me," Ginny said softly, determined not
to be talked out of coming. "The girl is nearly five years old,
Harry, and she takes after her father," she added with a soft
smile. "She can already take care of herself." Harry
made a small noise in the back of his throat, remembering how he'd
had to care for himself those years that he was under the thumb of
his aunt and uncle. Harry nodded slowly and finally conceded, "Fine,
then. It's settled." He got up from the wooden seat and stepped
wholly into the light of the fire. Ginny's breath caught in
her throat at the sight of her husband standing there and gathered
close to her all the changes that had taken place since he'd left
Hogwarts after Dumbledore had died. His hair had become more
cooperative, but only because it had become limp and lank under
stress. The lightning bolt scar that had made him famous was no long
a small under sight. It had somehow grown more defined over the past
few years, and darker, standing out dramatically against his
still-pale skin. His eyes were as vibrantly green as ever, though the
age lines that had prematurely touched the corners showed how much he
had grown past his actual age. His wand never left his hand anymore,
not even while he was sleeping. The time of the Death Eaters had
fallen over the world and everyone had to be prepared for
anything. Harry touched Ginny's cheek softly, smiled, and
kissed her gently on the forehead and said, "I'm going to have a
bit of pumpkin juice in the kitchen, darling." He left the room
and walked down the unlit hallway of the Order of the Phoenix Head
Quarters to a smaller room where Olivia was. He stepped inside and
walked to his daughter's bedside, pulling up a small stool to sit
next to her. He touched her long, black hair and the girl stirred in
her sleep. "'Sit mornin' yet?" she asked sleepily. Harry
smiled and said, "No, not yet, Livvy-love." Whispering now,
he told her, "I've come to tell you a secret, my sweet. Can you
keep a secret?" The small girl nodded and Harry leaned forward
to whisper something in her ear that made her smile and said, "I
love you, daddy." "I love you, too, Livvy-love,"
Harry said and kissed her hair and quietly stepped out of her room
once more. He closed his eyes and stood in the hallway, wand in hand
and said to himself, "I have to do something." He took a
deep breath, let it go in a rush, and pointed his wand at the door to
Ginny's room, flicking it twice and thinking, He
walked to the door and tested it before he was satisfied that no one
would be able to enter or leave the room unless Harry released the
curse or... was killed. Harry closed his mind against such thoughts
just as the door handle began to jiggle, slightly at first, and then
violently as Ginny became aware what her husband had done. "Harry!"
She shouted at the door. "Let me out at once!" Harry
placed the palm of his hand on the door, resting his forehead on the
wood and said, "I'm sorry, Ginny, but I can't let Olivia to grow
up without at least one of us. I..." he paused before deciding
that he needed to leave or he'd change his mind. "I love you,"
he finished, and walked away. With all of her might, Ginny
beat her fists against the door of her room and screamed, "Harry!
Harry, come back!" She stood back from the door and began firing
every curse she knew at the door, but it absorbed it as though she
were throwing nothing more than water on it. She fell to her knees
helplessly and banged the palms of her hands on the door, breaking
down into tears. "Harry..."
A pair of hands with long, bony fingers grabbed handfuls of Ginny's dressed gown and violently began rocking her back and forth. The woman sprang awake and grabbed the wrists of those hand, ready to defend herself when a small voice said, "Mommy, you were screaming in your sleep again."
Ginny's eyes met Olivia's and she calmed down after a moment. It had been ten years since Harry left them and Olivia looked more like her father every day. Ginny slipped her fingers into Olivia's hair and said, "I didn't mean to frighten you, Livvy-love. Go back to sleep, okay?"
Olivia smiled sweetly at her mother and said, "All right." But, instead of going back to her own room, Olivia climbed into bed with her mother and snuggled close. Words weren't necessary anymore; there was only a mother and a daughter. Ginny wrapped and arm around her daughter's waist and placed her head back on the pillow, falling asleep once more.
