When Harry stepped inside the door, he saw that the bed in front of the door & the one to it's right had been put together side by side , so as to make a double bed . Mr. Weasley lay back against the headboard on the left hand side of the bed, his eyes still puffy & red. Mrs. Weasley was sitting in the middle with her head turned back onto her husband's shoulder, still sobbing quietly, & Ginny was on her right. She too was leaning against the headboard, her head towards the ceiling & eyes shut tightly. All the other beds were empty.
He took a moment to inhale the sweet floral scent of Ginny, which wafted clearly to him from even across the room, and calmed his frazzled nerves somewhat. All three of them looked up at the trio entering the room. Ginny slowly got up from the bed, & made her way over to where the trio were standing side by side. She first hugged her brother, and then Hermione, & then, as if in a trance, she turned to Harry.
He noticed that her eyes were slightly less red rimmed than the others. A single tear slid down her right cheek as she slowly looked up at him, and he could not hold one of his own rolling down his own cheek. She looked so small and tiny in front of him, & even in her current state, Harry couldn't fathom how beautiful she looked to him. He inwardly cursed himself for the hundredth time, for HE was the reason his little angel stood there in front of him, looking weak & frail.
Slowly, he reached out to cup her cheek with his right hand, and she closed her eyes shut tight, leaning into his touch. He clumsily wiped the tear off her cheek. She opened her eyes to look up at him, still leaning into his hand. He handed the tray to Hermione, and then pulled Ginny in towards himself, and hugged her so tight as if his life depended on it.
God, it had been too long since he'd held her so close, too long since he'd taken comfort in her arms. Even though it had just been nearly a year since they had had to separate, to Harry it seemed like a lifetime as he held her to him, her small body melding into him perfectly. He closed his eyes & rested his chin atop her head. He could tell just by the feel of the tightness by which she held him, that she needed his comfort as much as he needed hers. She sniffed slowly into his chest, and he rubbed her back soothingly with one hand, the other gently holding her face to him as he ran it through her hair behind her head. It felt as soft as it had always felt to him, and he took a moment to revel in its feel, slowly inhaling its intoxicating scent, which was as sweet & seductive to him as it had always been.
Unknown to either of them, Arthur Weasley smiled inwardly to himself watching the silent exchange taking place before him. All of his children had been through so much at such young ages, & it was nothing short of a miracle that so many of them had survived the war, though the thought of Fred caused a tear to roll down his cheek, onto his wife's head, who slowly looked up at him with silent enquiry in her red rimmed eyes. He nodded towards Harry & Ginny with his chin, and she turned in her arms to see her youngest child & only daughter being comforted in her adopted son's arms. Her heart melted as she recognized the intensity of love in Harry's eyes, sniffing once more, and shifted around slowly, trying to hold back her tears at the sight of the tray of food in Hermione's eyes.
At the sound of her sniff, Harry looked up towards her to see both of the Weasley parents smiling softly at him. Slowly he broke apart from Ginny ,place his left arm around Ginny on her shoulders ( the gesture wasn't missed by either of the Weasley parents, who smiled a little broadly), took the tray from Hermione in his right arm, and slowly made his way with Ginny over to the joined beds.
Harry reached the side of the bed Ginny was on earlier & put the tray on the bedside table, his other arm still around Ginny. Slowly he turned and sat her down on the bed ('Such a perfect gentleman', Mr. Weasley thought inwardly to himself). Then he picked up the tray of food & looked up into Mr. Weasley's eyes, silently asking for permission. The elder wizard smiled gratefully at him, nodding silently for him to go on. He knew that if anyone could convince his wife to eat, it was this man in front of him, whom he'd silently watch grow up ever since he'd met him first. Ron made his way over to the other side of the bed to join his father. Hermione sat down besides Ginny & put her arm around the younger witch's shoulder. With a heavy heart, Harry finally looked towards
"Mrs. Weasley?"
"Oh Harry." She cried and pulled him into another bone crushing hug, sobbing openly on his jacket & holding onto him as if never wanting to let him go. Harry slowly looked up at Mr. Weasley, who nodded for him to continue.
"Shhh, Mrs. Weasley. I know what you're going through, I really do. But does it make any sense to make it worse for yourself by falling sick? Believe me, I felt the same way after Sirius, and you all helped me through it. Never did you allow me to feel unloved, never did you allow me to feel alone, never did you eat before I'd eaten, nor sleep before I'd slept. You loved me as much as you loved any of your other children, perhaps even more so , seeing as that you never gave me any punishments, even though I'd been equal party in whatever they'd been upto."
"I know that nothing I say will reduce your grief, indeed I do not have words to say. I only know this that everyone who died today, Fred, Lupin, Tonks, & all those who gave their lives, did so that we could live at peace. I know that Fred died knowing that we'd all be safe, indeed he gave his life for all of us laughingly, & right now , wherever he is, he'd be extremely miserable if he would be seeing you like this. Fred always believed in making others laugh, he would want us to live happily, & would be highly disappointed if we continue to grieve like this for him, because he would always be very sad if anyone he knew was unhappy."
"I know Harry. It's just so hard. He was so young, had his whole life ahead of him. I didn't even tell him to stay safe. Last thing I said to him was a scolding for bringing Ginny to fight. How can I – OH", she exclaimed loudly and burst into another large round of sobs, falling onto him and holding him tightly.
Harry's jacket was now heavily wet and he felt his own tears start to roll down his cheeks. The loss of Fred was an unfathomable shock to him, just as the loss of Sirius had been; he couldn't even imagine what this poor mother was going through. He imagined what it must be like to lose one of his children had he been a father, and then it hit him; his heart stopped just at starting to think about the thought. He wrapped his arms tightly around her, not trusting himself to speak, just holding her, knowing that she needed him.
Slowly, her sobs subsided. She slowly looked up at him, and he raised his hands to wipe her tears. She took a few deep breaths, while he slowly rubbed her back soothingly. Then she spoke
"When Hagrid brought your body out of the forest, I was more terrified than I'd ever been in my life, and I could feel my heart break all over once again. After Fred, I just couldn't bear it." She looked at him sharply now.
"Why did you do it, Harry? Why did you go to him?"
Harry gulped, not knowing what to say. He recognized the indirect accusation behind the questions. He looked at Hermione, who looked back helplessly at him, & then to Ron, who was also at a loss for answers to help him out.
"I think we'd all like to know that", spoke Ginny, coming to his defence, "But right now, he needs to rest, mum."
Harry looked gratefully at Ginny, and smiled. She nodded back, smiling softly at him, and his breath once again caught in his throat at how beautiful she was. This was another thing he loved about her, that she understood his emotions perfectly without him having to speak a single word.
"I promise Mrs. Weasely, I'll explain everything later" he told Molly.
"Ok!" She still didn't sound satisfied, but nodded her understanding all the same.
"Now, have you eaten yet?" she asked him.
He shook his head. "I brought this for you.", he replied, pointing to the tray.
"Oh. You're such a sweet darling. Thank you. Here, eat this". She picked up a toast & lifted it to his mouth. He accepted it, and picked up a sandwich himself & lifted it to her mouth. She accepted it reluctantly, but gratefully at the same time.
Slowly, they ate in silence. Arthur Weasley watched the man in front of him, and vaguely remembered when he'd seen this man as a nervous boy sitting on a chair at the burrow nearly six years ago. He slowly reached out a hand upto Harry's head and ruffled his hair affectionately. Harry looked up at him, with Mrs. Weasley's head still resting on his shoulder, one hand still holding the glass of pumpkin juice from which she was slowly sipping. Arthur silently mouthed the word "Thanks" to him, who closed his eyes once & opened them to indicate his acceptance. Slowly Molly Weasley finished the glass, & kept it on the tray. Then she kissed Harry's forehead.
"Thank You Harry."
"It's the least I could do, considering everything you've done for me. I can't even begin to imagine what I'd have been like had you not taken me in as your own son, Mrs. Weasley."
"Don't be foolish, Harry." Said Arthur "You are our son, & you have proved it time and over again yourself. Though you aren't an official Weasley yet, you'll always be one in our hearts."
Harry gulped, and solemnly nodded.
"Alright, enough talking. Now as Ginny said dear, you need some rest. You can sleep here if you want to. These three," she indicated to Ron, Hermione & Ginny, "need to rest as well."
"Thanks Mrs. Weasley."
With that, he picked up the tray, kissed Molly on the cheek, gave Arthur a hug, & turned towards the door.
"C'mon Ron, 'Mione." Then he turned to Ginny, "You wanna come with us, or stay here?"
"No. I think I'll come. I'm not sleepy at all.", she replied, frowning at her mother who looked up sharply at her last statement.
"Alright." Then he turned round to face the bed. "I'll see you later, Mr. & Mrs. Weasley."
"Ok Harry dear. Make sure that you get some sleep before lunch. Make sure that THESE three get some as well."
"Don't worry. I will."
Mrs. Weasley was already settling down to sleep. The four nodded to the head of the Weasley household, and slowly exited the dorm, closing the door behind them as they did so. Mr. Weasley flicked his wand at the door, which locked it.
"Such a wonderful boy." Said Molly to her Husband, as they lay back down on the bed.
"I know dear" replied Arthur, smiling knowingly, "I know."
"Do you think they'll sleep now?"
"Well, you know our Ron. He'll probably fall asleep on the stairs. Hermione will surely get to a bed, or if she doesn't have the energy, she'll conjure one out of thin air. She's a good catch, that one. Only if our Ron wasn't so thick."
"Don't say that about your son. Besides, he's much less thicker than YOU are, my dear muggle fanatic husband." She admonished. "Besides, we didn't have to go through nearly one percent as they've had to, especially poor Harry." She finished sadly.
"Do you think he'll be able to sleep?"
"Not before our dear Ginny snogs his brains out." She replied, grinning.
"Do you think he'll get back with her?"
"Of course. Couldn't you see the love in him as he was holding her? I could feel it from here. And besides, I don't think that Ginny will let him off the hook at all. We Weasley women have got a habit of getting what we want; you should know that well enough."
"Alright dear. You looked tired. C'mon, let's get some sleep." With that, he kissed her tenderly, and then they fell asleep holding each other.
The four teenagers stepped outside, and Ginny shut the door behind them, and they heard a sharp click as it locked from the inside.
"Right Harry. I'm going up to sleep in our old sixth year dorm. You coming, Mione?" enquired Ron.
"And why exactly, Ronald Weasley, do you think that I'd sleep with you?" , asked Hermione, quirking an eyebrow upwards.
Ron, who now only realized the full meaning behind his statement, turned red at the ears before mumbling out
"It's j-just that th-those two a-aren't sleepy, so I thought --" he trailed off, suddenly interested in picking a spot in his jeans as his face went completely red as his hair. Harry had to bite back his laughter, while Ginny snickered openly behind her hand.
"The battle is over & we haven't even rested; & already you want to get me into bed with you?" asked Hermione, amused at the expression on Ron's face. God, this guy was SO THICK.
Ron, who was now redder than a tomato, grumbled something like "different beds" & "not be alone", before turning and storming up the stairs. As sure as they were sure he was out of earshot, the three burst out laughing. Harry was careful enough to set the tray down, before he collapsed onto the floor, positively howling with laughter. It'd been too long since he'd openly laughed like that, he remembered.
"If only he'd grow up!" said Hermione breathlessly.
"Ha. This is Ron you're talking about", Ginny burst out, still holding onto her stomach. "His body took up his brain's share of growing up a long time ago."
Harry, who by now had gained some semblance of control over his laughter, decide to intervene before his friends honor was totally blown up in front of his eyes by the two girls.
"Alright. The guy's tired, he can't think straight, let alone do what you were hinting at ,'Mione. God, give him a break, you two."
Both girls turned to face him, with identical quizzical expressions and wide grins plastered upon their faces.
"Since when did you get so good at mind reading, Harry?" Ginny asked, with an evil grin worthy of rivaling that of the twins.
"Yeah! Wasn't it you who called him a git in fourth year, & then again in sixth year?" asked Hermione , with an equally bemused expression on her face.
He couldn't think of anything to say, and both girls erupted into another violent fit of giggles. Annoyed, he turned to look out of the window. The grounds and the lake were clearly visible from here, even though Gryffindor tower was at the back of the castle. The sun was high & bright in the sky. Several people were out on the grounds, either sitting, lying down lazily, or just strolling around. He could see Hagrid's hut, where fang was lying lazily besides Hagrid, and Madame Maxime was entertaining him and Grawp. Several house elves were running around, popping in and out, bringing food to various people, while others were scurrying around collecting empty trays. The giant squid was basking in the sunlight in the middle of the lake, & what looked like several merpeople celebrating were just visible below the water's surface at the near edge of the lake. Harry could see several owls flying around, some making their way to the owlery, some to the castle, & some to those on the grounds.
When the girls' giggling had somewhat subsided somewhat, he turned around to face them.
"Will that be all, or are you two still finding excuses to humiliate us?", he asked sarcastically.
"No. you go on, Go down." Said Hermione. "I'll go up to Ron. Guess he wasn't thinking clearly after all. But," she continued with a wide smile, "You've to admit, the fat lady most certainly found a fitting name for him."
"What?" asked Ginny curiously.
"Pea – Brain."
Both girls burst into giggles yet again. Harry, clearly annoyed now, bellowed out:
"Alright. Cut it out."
"Fine. Fine." Panted Hermione. "See you both later."
"Yeah Yeah! Whatever." Harry replied dully, and turned to go back down the stairs.
The girls hugged quickly, & then Hermione turned and began to climb towards the sixth years' dorm. Ginny joined Harry by his side and took hold of his arm.
"C'mon. Let's go.".
And together, they slowly began descending the steps.