When Harry woke up he was confused. The last thing that he remembered was being cold and alone on the floor, covered in his own vomit and blood. But his current situation was the exact opposite of that. He was tucked into a warm bed, the fireplace blazing near by. He had on a pair of clean pajamas and he could no longer smell himself, so he assumed had been bathed. His glasses were on the bedside table, along with his wand. To his surprise his stomach rumbled and he felt hungry. It wasn't the hunger he had felt before when he was starving himself. Rather it felt like he had ate not long ago and was ready for another meal.

With a groan he managed to push himself into a sitting position. His body ached slightly and his head pounded, but he felt stronger than he had in weeks. The air cracked beside him and suddenly Kreacher was standing beside him, peering into his face.

"Master! You are awake!" Kreacher bowed low, then looked frightened. "Master, please do not be angry with Kreacher!" The house elf lunged off the bed and towards the bedside table. He began beating his head against it rather vigorously, crying out in agony. The sudden move surprised Harry so much that it took him a moment to respond.

"Kreacher!" He yelled. "Kreacher stop!"

"Kreacher disobeyed Master. Kreacher must be punished." The old elf continued brutalizing himself and Harry feared that he might seriously injure himself.

"Kreather, I command you to stop!" Harry put as much force into the words as he could muster To his relief the knobby house elf stumbled backwards, rubbing his head as tears shone in his eyes. "Kreacher, why are you punishing yourself? How have you disobeyed me?" Harry desperately tried to remember anything that had happened before this moment, but his memory seemed fuzzy and out of reach.

"Master told Kreacher to go away. Kreacher knew that Master only meant away from him, but Kreacher was worried...Kreacher brought her here after Master said none may enter." His lip quivered and he eyed the bedside table as if he might start beating himself again. "Master did not want anybody here, but Kreacher knew Master needed help."

"Kreacher, who did you bring?" Harry asked gently, reaching for his glasses. He was touched and concerned at the same time. Who had Kreacher brought? Just how badly had he treated the elf? Where was the person that was in his house? Just how bad of a shape had he been in?

One of his questions was answered as the door floor open. "What in the bloody hell is all of that racket?" She entered the room with an armful of laundry. Her hair was pulled back in a bun, but several strands had escaped and hung about her face. Her eyes were fiery and full of concern, but she looked as if she hadn't slept in a week. Harry stared at her for what seemed like an eternity, watching as she looked back and forth between Harry and the house elf.

"Kreacher, I have several letters that need to go out. Would you mind sending them for me?"

"Of course my lady." Kreacher bowed low and wobbled from the room, still holding his head. The laundry was deposited in a chair and Harry finally found his voice.

"Ginny." His voice was thick. Bless the little elf, Kreacher had brought Ginny.

"You are a stupid git." Was her only rely as she picked up a shirt and began folding it, giving him a fierce glare. Harry shrunk back and swallowed; he had seen that look given to her brothers many times, and it was often followed by a hex. The room was silent and tense as she folded several more articles of clothes before slamming a dresser drawer shut, causing Harry to jump.

"What in Merlin's name were you thinking?" She demanded, crossing her arms. Normally Harry considered Ginny rather attractive, but she looked down right murderous at the moment.

"I-" Apparently Ginny was interested in his answer because she cut him off.

"I haven't heard from you since the Battle of Hogwarts. No one has. No one knew were you had gone off to, and no one has been able to contact you. Then all of a sudden Kreacher shows up in my room in the middle of the night and half beats himself to death on my bedframe. I finally managed to make out something about you being in trouble. I was terrified- he wouldn't tell me anything else. I managed to drag Kreacher here and made him let me in. He went into hysterics, telling me how you wouldn't eat or move. I walk in and find you lying in a pool of your own vomit and blood. You were nearly dead!" Her voice cracked and Harry was surprised to see tears in her eyes. "What in the bloody hell were you thinking?" She repeated sadly.

"I was thinking that I am a miserable excuse for a human being. I caused so much pain, so many people died for-"

"No one died for you, you stupid git!" Ginny wasn't taking his pity party as a valid excuse. She crossed the room and glared down at his, and Harry couldn't help but be reminded of the time Ron got a howler. "No one died for you!" She repeated, swiping a hand across her face. "They died for all of us. For the people they cared about, for the things they thought were worth fighting for. They fought for the same reasons you fought."

"But-" She cut him off once more.

"Stop being so damn noble. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and responsible for everything. You can't make yourself accountable for the actions of everyone who died Harry. You always blame yourself whenever something happens, even though no one else does. Sirius-"

"Ginny, don't." Harry blanched, but she wasn't done.

"Lupin, Tonks, Ted, Fred...none of them died because of you! They died fighting so that the people THEY loved would have a chance to be happy. So stop bloody blaming youself and wallowing in self-pity. They died so that we might have a chance to live a better life. They died so that I could stand here and yell at you right now. They didn't die for you. They didn't die because of you. So stop being a bloody git!"

"Ginny!" Harry had never seen her quite this mad. Each word seemed to slap him across the face.

"You shut up and listen to me Harry Potter! You always do this to yourself. Every bloody time you run off and every bloody time you end up realizing you need a friend in the end. So how in Merlin's name did you think this time would be any different? Especially after everything we went through. Did you think holing yourself off from the world would help? Did you think that we would just forget about you and not worry? Mum was already devastated over Fred, but then you disappeared without a word and she went bonkers. People care about you Harry, whether you like it or not. People love you." She gave him a searching look. "So why won't you ever let us help?" Her tone deflated as her rant ended, and Harry could see the exhaustion on her face.

The weight of her words seemed to be beating him like a thousand bludgers. She had several valid points and he knew it. She had blown holes in all of his logic. Even if people had died for him, how would letting himself waste away repay them? Harry swallowed hard and felt thick tears on his face. Why did he keep hurting the people he loved?

Ginny moved and he flinched, half expecting to be hit, but she simply sat beside him. He tried to wipe his face, ashamed of the tears, but she pushed his hands away. She gently took his glasses off and set them aside. She then pulled him into a tender hug, his head resting in the crook of her shoulder. For the first time since before Dumbledore death he felt safe. So naturally he lost it. He felt ashamed as he sobbed into Ginny's shoulder, the weight of the last several years and the realization of his actions over the last several weeks crashing down onto him.

Ginny just held him as he cried, her hand gently running through his hair and across his back, her own tears falling. She loved this stupid git so much. She had lost him once when he ran off after the Horocruxes and it had nearly crushed her. The months that had spent together before that had been the best of her life. She had never felt so connected with another person. But he had came back from his crazy mission, only to appear to be lost all over again, defeated by Voldemort. But when the smoke had cleared Harry was left standing once more, and for the first time since he left she had felt hopeful. She had known that there would be demons and pain to deal with, but she hoped that she could be the one to hold him and help him through. But then he had disappeared completely, shutting the world out, and she had lost him all over again. But now Ginny had a hold on him, and this time she was not going to let go. Harry would not get away from her this time.

Ginny had no idea how long they sat there before Harry's sobs finally died down. After a moment longer he sat up and ran a hand across his face, looking at her sheepishly. "I'm sorry." The look on his face let her know that he was apologizing for more than just the tears.

"Yeah, well, you can't help that you are a git." She pulled him into another hug and was pleased when he wrapped his arms around her.

"Ginny, I'm-"

"It is going to take time Harry. Time and rest. Nothing I or anyone else can say will make it all go away." Harry looked surprised- it was like she read his mind. "But I'll help you the best I can. And if I can't help, I'll at least be here for you. And that is a promise."

Thoughts so far? I definitely can't see Ginny letting Harry wallow and blame himself, or simply being all "poor baby." Again, this is just my take on things. Chapter 3 coming tomorrow :)