To the Future
A HariPo fanfic
by mew-tsubaki
Note: Nothing much to say except for the usual "these characters belong to JK Rowling." Sigh… I saw the fifth movie. If you've read the book, don't see it. Otherwise, go see it. Sigh…
P.S. REVIEW! & don't kill me for the pairing. :)
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The Second Telling
Ginny's dream was strewn throughout with scenes of the past, like she had just gone through things all over again when, in fact, it had happened a little over a year ago…
Flashback
That was it. They had won. Harry was standing in front of Hermione, Ron, and Ginny. Once again, a battle had taken place in the Ministry, but now it had been completely demolished. What had once been the magical law enforcement body of the wizarding world was now nothing more than a leveled, debris-dusted playground. Harry took a step forward.
Hermione squealed with excitement. "YES! Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!!" She threw her arms around Harry's neck and jumped up and down. "That's it!! He's gone!! You've fulfilled the prophecy, Harry!!!"
Ron placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Well done, mate."
Finally, Ginny herself ran forward and clutched Harry's arm. "You were wonderful, Harry!"
But Harry was distracted. His eyes glazed over and he swiveled his head behind him. He pursed his lips. "Something's coming…"
Sure enough, an archway materialized and the veil solidified several yards away from the quad. "Wait," Ron scoffed, "what's it doing here? Shouldn't it be gone with everything else in the Ministry?"
Hermione squinted. "Th-those are…runes on the edge!!" The genius pulled away from Harry and dashed to the veil. "'For one to be, another must be given.'" She faced the others. "I think we can get Sirius back!"
"What?" Harry rushed to Hermione's side. "I…I would do anything to have…my last connection to the past…" He stopped and clenched his fists. "I want my godfather back!"
At once, a misty silhouette appeared in the veil –it was Sirius Black. He smiled and reached forward. His lips moved and it was undoubtedly forming Harry's name.
Harry reached to touch Sirius's hand, but Hermione slapped him away. "Don't touch him! If you do, you'll be caught in the veil!"
"What?" Harry's eyes widened. "But Sirius-"
Hermione shook her head in frustration, the short locks of hair flapping in her face; a stray spell had singed the rest of her bushy hair right off. "The runic message expresses an equivalent exchange. A live body for a live body. If you sacrifice yourself for Sirius, it would be-" She stopped short.
"Well, it was pointless for him to die protecting me, Hermione," Harry snarled back, fully aware of what she had not said. Again, he went for Sirius, but Ron shoved him back.
"What's pointless is for the two of you to keep missing each other," Ron said with a half smile. He held his hand out and grasped Sirius's sleeve, pulling Harry's godfather through the veil.
"No, Ron!!!" Ginny had screamed at the top of her lungs. Even so, she could see Ron's determination remain resolute.
Ron didn't look back. "Harry, take care of Hermione. Ginny, tell Mum and the others I'm sorry." Finally, he glanced one last look at Hermione. "'Mione…I love you." Then he was gone.
Hermione's screams wouldn't stop as the veil crumbled and disappeared. Harry held Hermione in his arms as the two sank to their knees. Sirius moved at Ginny's feet and snapped out of his zombie-like daze to assess the situation. As Ginny's mind processed the information for a third go-around, Hermione's shrill sobs pierced her thoughts…
End flashback
Ginny awoke with a jolt, suddenly realizing what had been Hermione's screams in the memory were now her own. With a flick of her wand, Ginny summoned a glass of warm milk, but then thought better. Did she really want to relive that in her sleep again?
There was a knock at her door. "Ginny?" her father called. "Are you all right?"
Th redhead glanced at her window, catching a glimpse of the setting blood red sun. "Um, yeah… I'm just fine."
"Why don't you come downstairs for supper, sweetheart? You don't have to stay for the whole meal –just eat some mashers if you want. Oh, and we have guests, too!" Ginny could hear her father bustling about as he made his way downstairs and joined the others. She already resented the company below, since he was most likely to be there: the man she now hated the most in the world…
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"Hi, Ginny!" Tonks leapt forward and enveloped her in a huge hug. She backed away and brushed back the hair in Ginny's face. "You okay? We heard you screaming up there like you were being attacked by a boggart."
"'We'?" Ginny repeated, crimsoning. "Everyone heard?"
Tonks didn't have a chance to comment as Verity and Angelina pushed through to greet her, so Tonks finished with just a change in her hair color back to her gloomy, mousy brown.
Unfortunately, and not entirely on purpose, Ginny tuned Verity and Angelina out, scanning the room for the bit of food that would allow her to return to her room after she ate it. And there it was, flying out of the kitchen: mashers and biscuits followed by butter and meat. "Sorry! A bit hungry," Ginny stated to the women, and she squeezed in between them –only to bump into a familiar, washed-out Lupin.
"Did Tonks tell you the news?" he asked Ginny.
Ginny forced a smile. "She didn't have a chance to-"
"What Remus meant to ask," Tonks cut in, reappearing beside her husband, "was 'Did Tonks tell you the good news'?"
"What? His 'furry little problem's' gone?"
Remus smiled. "Uh –not exactly-"
"I'm pregnant!!" the metamorphagus excitedly exclaimed. "Oh, I do hope the baby has your eyes, dear…"
Ginny lifted an eyebrow and caught Remus' eye; he pulled her aside for a second. "I'd thought you might appreciate a heads-up: He's here." His eyes mimicked the frown on his lips. "Be kind, though, Ginny. He's not an evil man."
Ginny frowned herself. "I wish you people would stop treating me like I'm the bad one here. You know damn well that I don't want to see his face."
"If Molly and Arthur can stand him and even manage to show him some kindness, I think you would be an even better person for forgiving him, as well."
"What's there to forgive?" Sullen now, the redhead picked up a biscuit, but found she had lost her appetite. Ginny turned on her heel to head back upstairs. What am I doing here? she thought, standing still and looking at the others. There's no way things can be what they once were… A soft hand on her shoulder made her jump and look over her shoulder. She fought the urge to scowl.
"Hello there, Ginny," Sirius said.
Reluctantly, she met her eyes with his. He was probably going to comment about her being all right, just like the others… Jeez, you scream once and everyone's freaking out. She rolled her eyes under her closed eyelids, licked her lips, and tried to smile. "Hey, Sirius."
He sipped his mug of coffee. "Molly tells me you're going back to Hogwarts."
"Oh! Um, yeah…" Ginny –again –frowned. He may have brought up a new subject, but it was one Ginny wanted to discuss even less. "To tell you the truth, I don't want to go back. Kind of dumb. But Mum's been a little bonkers since you-know-when…" She squinted and brushed the hair off her shoulder. "But there's nothing for me anywhere anymore, so I might as well get out of here while I can…"
Sirius half-smiled. "Don't say that. There's always something to do with one's life. Maybe you'll figure that out at Hogwarts."
"As long as I'm not incarcerated at St. Mungo's first for trying to kill Snape." She and Sirius laughed. "Did you know Mum already set up my schedule? I only know about half of it, but I've got Potions once again with that delightful whimpering self-absorbed bat."
"You forgot 'greasy'," Sirius added.
They laughed again. Damn it, Ginny! Get a hold of yourself! You shouldn't be laughing with him, but plotting his death! He took Ron away! Ginny pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind. One foul thought could reveal her mood and ruin things for everyone else. "So…how have you been?" she asked. Like I really want to know…!
"A bit busy myself. I've been-" But Sirius was cut off as Mrs. Weasley came out of the kitchen carrying other appetizers and such, ushering everyone to the table and giving Sirius no opportunity to finish his sentence –not that Ginny cared much, of course. As everyone sat down and dug in, Ginny played with her food, giving people short nods and the like in reply. She looked at the others' cheery expressions. Is it just me or has everyone become a bit po-faced lately…?
Dinner dragged on and finally Ginny was dismissed. Mrs. Weasley started going on about her daughter going back to Hogwarts as Ginny disappeared upstairs; she slammed the door shut and looked around the room. "Just a little bit more to go," she muttered to herself.
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Hope you're liking the story! Sorry if it's dragging in places; it'll really pick up in the next chapter!
Has anyone else finished the DH? I hated the ending! How could Lupin, Tonks, Fred, and Mad-eye have died? And why was Sirius suddenly ACTUALLY DEAD?!!! Why did George lose an ear? That last one's really puzzling.
PLEASE REVIEW!!! I don't care if you hate it, love it, or just like the title/pairing/whatever –PLEASE REVIEW!!!
Thankx!
-mew-tsubaki