As expected, Ron is waiting for me—for us, really, since he's relieved to see Harry too—in the Great Hall. As is the rest of my heinously large family. I love them all, I really do, but sometimes it sucks to be the youngest one. Not to mention I'm a girl, and they're all overprotective older brothers who think they know what's best for me all the time.

But they don't react how I expect them to. There's no ranting that I went out alone, no screaming to be careful of who I'm with. Ron nods once to Harry, and my mother hugs us both. That's the end of it. They don't notice our hands entwined, or they choose to pretend they didn't. Either way.

And I don't realize until it's just simply not there that I actually need them to chastise me, to bother me, to care about me, because that would mean that everything was back to normal. It would mean that we were all here, not just some of us. It would mean that...that Fred…

Everyone in my family is trapped in their own silent grief: silent, because we've all cried too much. Only Harry is paying attention to me, notices the pain behind my eyes. Wordlessly, he wraps me up in his arms and lets me bury my head in his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Ginny," he says quietly into my hair. I know it's not just regret that Fred is gone, and that I should remind him the war needed to happen, but I can't right now.

It's not even real yet; I still expect Fred to jump up and laugh at us all for believing his joke. Because that's what would have happened in situations like this, normally.

And more than anything, I need my family to stop the silent vigil by my brother, because the Great Hall has never been a place of mourning and I don't know how I'll handle being in this room next fall, when we're supposed to be happy. Harry's wrong: he won't be the only one messed up at Hogwarts next year. There will be plenty of us joining him.

Finally, after far too long, Ron notices that Harry and I are standing together. Wearily, he talks to Harry. "Take care of her, mate. You hurt her, I'll kill you."

"You know I will, Ron," Harry responds as he wraps his arms tighter around me.

I look up to see the two of them, my brother and my—friend? boyfriend?—Harry smiling sadly at each other. Harry gently kisses my forehead. "I'm tired," I tell him. "Can you please take me back to Gryffindor Tower?"

"Of course, Ginny," he says. He keeps his arms wrapped loosely around me the whole walk there, and he seems reluctant to let go when we finally arrive.

I don't really want to be alone, either, so I push him down on the couch and snuggle up next to him. "Just stay here for a bit, yeah?"

He changes the way we're sitting so that he's more relaxed and I'm curled next to him with my head on his chest. "As long as you want me here," he promises. I don't think he realizes exactly how long that might be, but I let it go.

"I miss him," I whisper.

Harry hugs me tighter. "I miss him too, Ginny. You know, I gave them the money that started their joke shop. Don't tell your mum, though, she'd be furious."

I'm sure my eyes are bulging out of my head. "You gave them that money?"

"My Triwizard winnings. I didn't want them, after…"

"So that's why they were always giving you free stuff," I muse.

"Yes. Then there's also the time that Ron and the twins kidnapped me at the beginning of second year. Fred…" he swallows. "Fred and George picked the lock that got my chest out of the cupboard without magic." It helps to talk about happy memories, and Harry seems more than willing.

"Our whole house smelled like dragon dung on more than one occasion though. They were always blowing things up."

"I remember," Harry says. "I spent quite a few summers at the burrow."

I'm halfway aware that I'm falling asleep, but I can't make myself tell Harry. He'll get up, because he can't be ready for sleep yet. I don't want him to leave, so I don't tell him as I nod off.

There's sun in my eyes and something wrapped around my waist. Harry's arms, I realize, remembering last night. He really stayed all night. I allow myself a peek at him through my lashes, but he catches me and smiles. "How was your night, beautiful?"

"First good sleep in a while," I admit. "It probably helped that you stayed."

He's suddenly serious. "I told you, Ginny, I'll always stay as long as you want me."

I smile sheepishly. "That could be quite a long time."

"I can live with that," he says happily. "Breakfast?"

Yes, I know. This was supposed to be a one-shot, and I was supposed to update other things. Rest assured, I have been slacking equally between all my stories, this one included. I already had this written, and was trying to obey my own rules not to start a new story until I finished at least one, but that went out the window when I realized the immensity of the architectural project I'm currently working on for my studio class. I decided I could publish something that involved no work except copying and pasting. Please review and let me know if this one ought to be added to my current rotation, or if I should let it go until the others are done.