Never Forget

Harry looked around the ward. Ginny was sleeping. A little while ago, Madam Pomfrey had moved the screens around his bed so that he could see out. Ginny's screens were still round her bed, but he had used a Locomotor charm to edge one back, so that he could see her face and watch her as she slept. There were only a few people in the ward now. Two had been moved to St. Mungo's that morning. He hoped the others would soon be fit enough to be moved as well. He had not been able to sleep, as he kept getting stabbing pains from his ribs and nose as they were healing. He hated Skele-Gro. It always had that effect on him. His chest was still sore too. The burn was beginning to heal, but still wasn't good. He hoped that he and Ginny would be allowed out soon. He wanted to talk with her. No, he needed to talk with her. Time passed slowly.

Harry had just heard the clock on the front tower chime twelve. Merlin alone knew why it still worked, given the damage to the tower. Ginny opened her eyes and looked across her bed straight into Harry's eyes. They both smiled.

"Afternoon, sleepyhead," said Harry. "Feeling better?"

She grinned. "Lots. I had a brilliant sleep. I don't know what that potion was, but it worked." She stretched gracefully, almost cat-like.

"So, you are awake." Madam Pomfrey was peering round Ginny's screens. "Well, in that case, I think I had better let a few of your visitors see you. Professor McGonagall will be first; she has a few things to discuss. Then your family, Miss Weasley."

Harry looked down the ward as Professor McGonagall came through the door. It swung back behind her, opened a little and then swung shut. She came over and sat down between Harry and Ginny.

"I am pleased to see you are recovered, Mr. Potter. I am very proud of what you have achieved. You are a credit to your school, and your house. I would like to offer my thanks. You have saved us all from a great evil. You have shown tremendous courage this last year." She looked at Harry over her glasses, and smiled slightly.

Harry blushed slightly. "I did what I had to do. Anyone would have. I am just so sorry so many people had to suffer though."

"I am sure others would have, if they could. You, however, were placed under a burden many could not have borne. I am sorry that you also have suffered," she continued. "I am afraid that the burden was not of our making. I feel that many of the teachers would have wished to help you more, if we had known."

"Just don't let anyone make me out as some sort of hero," Harry said. "I hate it. I hate people looking at me like I'm different or special. I just want to be me."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "Perhaps now that this is over, you will have that chance."

The screen next to Ginny's bed moved slightly. Harry suddenly leaned forward, grabbed a wand off his side table and wordlessly fired off five stunning spells in an arc. The first two struck the wall on the opposite side of the ward, and the last broke a window. The third and fourth produced no reaction except that something hit the floor heavily. A wand appeared and bounced across the tiles.

"Professor, can you lift the Disillusionment charm on whoever that is?" Harry asked. He put down the wand again.

McGonagall was already on her feet, absolutely astonished, and wide-eyed with surprise. The first of Harry's spells had missed her by scant inches. Nonetheless, she reached out with her wand and tapped something close to the floor. A man appeared, tall and spare, with straggly long blond hair. He wore a travelling cloak and mask.

"Good grief, a Death Eater," she exclaimed. She leant down and pulled off the mask. "Well, well... Ivan Barakov. He is a cousin of Dolohov. I wondered where he went. I saw him stunned during the battle, but he was not among those captured later. How did you know he was there?"

"I saw the door open after you came in," Harry explained. "I also saw a bedcover move down the ward. Then Ginny's screen twitched. I knew it wasn't anyone we knew, as I have my Invisibility Cloak here. He was after Ginny."

"Nonsense," Ginny exclaimed. "Why would anyone go after me?"

"He passed my bed to get to where I stunned him. If he was after me, he could have hit me with any spell he wanted from halfway down the ward. I think the idea was to make me suffer by hurting you, or perhaps…" Harry got out of bed and reached down. "Yes, look under the cloak. I think that's a Portkey." He pointed to a small metal jug, carefully avoiding touching it. "I think I still have the touch of death. You would have been taken." He shook his head. "I'll have to get help to protect you until the last Death Eaters are rounded up."

Professor McGonagall had her sternest look on. "I have summoned an Auror. Barakov will be taken for questioning. And I think that the sooner we get this castle repaired, and all the protective enchantments back in place the better. In the meantime…" She flicked her wand, and ropes sprang from it and bound the Death Eater. Another flick of her wand and a muttered charm disabled the Portkey.

"Now, assuming we will not be interrupted for a few minutes, I will explain why I am here," she said, sitting down again.

"As you know, there were many casualties in the battle. There will be a general memorial service here at Hogwarts tomorrow, and then the families will take their own to be buried near their homes. It is going to be a very difficult time for all of us. Now I must come to the most delicate point. I must ask you if you will undertake a painful task."

She paused and looked at him, and then continued, "Almost every family has asked if you would attend the funerals of their loved ones, Mr. Potter. Again this means a heavy burden for you, should you accept, as you will be expected to speak at each one. I would not blame you if you wished to be… ah… selective about those you felt able to attend. The families have asked if you would be there for them, but I have made each family aware of the number of requests that have been made. I think they would understand if there were some you could not attend."

"How many?" asked Harry jerkily, his face tight and emotionless.

"There are fifty three in total. A number of these are from the same areas, and the families are talking of joint funerals," McGonagall replied calmly. Her face gave away the emotion she was clearly feeling as she continued, "It would mean almost two weeks of funerals, with scarcely any break."

Harry looked out across the ward, seeing nothing but the images of the dead that he knew of. He spoke, and his voice was distant, as though he was speaking to himself, "I'll go… to all of them… I owe it to them, and their memories. They've given up far more than I have. So have their families. I'll be there for them. They'll need everybody to share their burden."

Ginny was watching him and interrupted sharply, "You'll be there for them… so who's going to be there for you, and share your burden? You can't do this on your own."

Professor McGonagall looked at her and said, "I agree with you. Harry will not be alone. I will accompany him myself. If there are any others who wish, they may also accompany him."

"Right… then I'm going wherever Harry goes. I want to. No one's going to stop me." Ginny was again being very assertive in her manner, and as McGonagall looked at her, she knew this was no idle request.

"Very well, Miss Weasley. If your parents give permission, you may accompany us," she replied.

Ginny looked down at the bed sheets, and muttered something inaudible.

Professor McGonagall stood up, ignoring the stunned Death Eater at her feet. "I will leave you to think this over. I also know that there are other people wishing to see you, and I have taken up a great deal of time. I will return when the Aurors arrive. Again, I must thank you for what you have done for the wizarding world."

She walked away down the ward, and as she did so, a large group of people passed her. It looked to Harry as though the entire Weasley clan, as well as Hermione, had come, with Molly Weasley to the fore.

"Harry, dear, we were so worried when we couldn't find you this morning. Bill came and said your bed was empty. There was blood on your sheets, and Ron, Hermione and Ginny were missing. Then Ron and Hermione came and found us at breakfast and told us that you were here." Molly Weasley was in full motherly mode, and Harry grinned inwardly. At least some things hadn't changed, "What on earth happened to you?" she asked.

"Well, I got a bit injured the night before I got Voldemort," he answered evasively. He didn't want to go over the story again. "Madam Pomfrey and Ginny put me right. I'm nearly better now."

"Ginny?"

"Yes, she helped Madam Pomfrey," he explained.

Mrs. Weasley looked at him carefully. She could tell from the bald statements Harry had made that he was keeping a lot back, but decided that he would tell her in time. "Well, one thing is quite clear. None of the three of you have been eating properly for far too long. You look quite thin, all of you. We must get you back to the Burrow and feed you up."

"I won't be able to come back for a while, Mrs Weasley. I have a lot of funerals to go to. I seem to have been invited to go to every single one." He grimaced slightly. "I think I should go, too. I owe so many people so much."

Arthur Weasley interjected, "No more than they—and all of us—owe you. We all owe you a debt that we can never repay. You saved the whole wizarding world from a long period of darkness. That is a great boon."

Harry shook his head. "No, I couldn't have done it without a lot of help. From all of you, from Ron and Hermione, from Ginny, keeping the fight going here." He stopped speaking for a moment, and then went on, speaking very quietly and not looking at them. "I haven't had a chance to tell you yet, but I am so sorry about Fred. I was there with him, and couldn't help. I wish it hadn't happened, and I would have done anything for it not to have been him. He didn't deserve it. In a way, I feel it's my fault for leading people in that direction. If we hadn't been just there… I'm so sorry." He looked away, ashamed of the tears forming in his eyes, and feeling a tight knot in the pit of his stomach.

Bill came forward, and put a hard hand on Harry's shoulder. He squeezed hard and said, "You don't have to blame yourself. We don't. You didn't kill Fred. The only person to blame is… er… Voldemort." He winced slightly as he said the name. "It was just bad luck. Yes, we're all really sad about it, gutted in fact, but Fred knew what he was doing. He knew the risks, but he thought it was worth it. Sometimes you have to fight, and in fights like that people get hurt. He wouldn't have backed down any more than you would."

Harry looked up, his eyes glistening, "Thanks, Bill. Thank you all. If there is anything at all I can do… well, you know." He gulped. "I'm still sorry. I'm going to miss him a lot."

Ron looked at him. Like all the Weasleys, talking about Fred brought tears to his eyes. "We all will, mate. It's going to take a lot to get used to it. But we all have each other. We can pull through as a family. We owe Fred that too."

Molly Weasley sat down on the chair beside Harry's bed. "Now, what's all this about funerals? I know we all want you to be there when…when we… for Fred. I know you will want to go to some others, but you said everyone's. You can't possibly do that."

Harry looked down again. "Yes, I can. They all deserve that. They asked me, and it's the least I can do. I can't make up for all their losses, but I can help share it with them. It's the only thing I can do. So I'm going. Professor McGonagall's going too."

"And me," interjected Ginny. "I'll be with him as well."

"What? Who said…" Mrs Weasley asked. "I don't think you should be doing this at all. Besides, I am certainly going to need you to be at home for some time, preparing for… Fred."

"I'm going," Ginny said stubbornly. "Harry is going to have to carry all that pain. He shouldn't have to carry it by himself. It's not fair. Someone needs to be there for him, and it's going to be me. I'm going." Ginny's face was at its most mulish. Everyone could see that she was spoiling for a fight about this.

Arthur Weasley spoke up, "I think we need to take a little time to talk about this calmly. I understand why you feel like this, Ginny, but your family needs you too. I think we will need to work out a compromise. Let's not decide anything until we have all given it a little thought."

Ginny looked at her father. She knew that when he spoke like that, he would put a stop to any further dissent quite sharply, so she didn't press the issue.

"All right, Dad, but I want to help Harry as much as I can."

Percy suddenly tripped slightly as he stepped forward. "Hey, who's this? What's he doing here?"

"Death Eater," Harry said. "The Aurors should be here to pick him up shortly. I stunned him. I think he was trying to get Ginny…or me… He was Disillusioned"

Percy looked shocked, as did they all. "So we owe you more thanks. Father, is it quite safe to leave Ginny here?"

"She can probably leave soon," Harry put in. "Madam Pomfrey was talking of her leaving at lunchtime."

"I'll ask if she can leave when we do," Mrs Weasley said.

"What if I want to stay with Harry? He doesn't have to be here on his own."

"Ginny, it's all right. I'm sure I won't be here much longer myself," Harry said. "I can find you later."

Just then, Madam Pomfrey came over, "Miss Weasley, I heard what your mother said, and yes, I think it will be all right for you to leave. You are to leave the bandages on until tomorrow, and then you will be fine."

"Mr Potter, there are two Aurors here to see you," she sniffed. "Battles right here in the hospital wing – I don't know…"

"We had better leave then," Arthur Weasley said. "Come along, everyone. Harry will need to talk to the Aurors, and he can do that better without an audience. Ginny, you can change in the end cubicle. We'll wait for you outside."

Harry looked across at Ginny. "Later…" he mouthed.

She smiled slightly, gave him a little wave, and moved off.

Two men were coming down the ward with Professor McGonagall. One Harry didn't know. The other was Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"Minister, what are you doing here?" asked Harry, "By the way, congratulations on being made Minister for Magic."

"Temporary Minister, Harry, just temporary," Kingsley responded. "And thank you. For everything. You did astonishing work. As for why I am here, I am still an Auror, even if I am acting Minister. Quite frankly, the ranks of the Aurors have been severely reduced during the last year. We suffered many casualties, so I have to fit in two duties."

He looked down at the stunned Death Eater and went on, his rich voice suddenly hard. "This one I was looking for. You seem to have stunned him very effectively. He'll be out for hours yet unless we Rennervate him, so I think we will just take him as he is. I think we will get a lot of useful information if we introduce him to Veritaserum."

He grinned suddenly. "I think if you keep on taking out Death Eaters like this, I could find a job for you. I understand you spotted him even though he was Disillusioned. Most impressive. We could use help like this in the Magical Law Enforcement office. Bear it in mind, won't you?"

"Yes, Minister," Harry replied, "I had thought about being an Auror. I missed out on my NEWTs year though."

Shacklebolt nodded, "I think that your level of practical experience would more than make up for examinations. If you were to find yourself behind in any subject during training, there are always additional courses available. We can discuss this further, but if you do decide to pursue this as a career, the next training course starts on the first of October. You can talk to me at any time."

The other Auror interjected, "Minister, we do need to get this fellow off to Azkaban. There are two further captures to take care of in London."

"Very well, Horkan," Shacklebolt replied. "I have one more thing to say to Mr. Potter." He looked back at Harry, "I should have added that I have agreed with Professor McGonagall that I am going to leave two Aurors permanently stationed here at Hogwarts in case there are further attempts at reprisals on you or anyone else. They will stay until all of Hogwarts' defences are back in place. Professor McGonagall has started making arrangements for that already. A goblin workforce is being assembled, and should be starting work in a couple of weeks."

"Goblins?" asked Harry.

"Yes. You may not be aware of this, but they still retain the special skills needed in magical masonry that no others have. It was goblins who helped build the school when it was first founded, and a lot of the protections that the school had were first invented by them for the school. There are not many even among goblins that have the skill, but they are being gathered together from around the world." He shook his head. "Their prices will be astronomical, but it must be done."

Shacklebolt stood up. "Right, Horkan, you can levitate him. Goodbye, Harry. I will see you again at the service tomorrow." He shook hands with Harry and led Horkan and the stunned Death Eater out of the room.

Professor McGonagall looked at Harry. "I think that also takes care of the promise I made you in your fifth year, to help you become an Auror if you so wished. You seem to have made a good impression on Kingsley Shacklebolt, and I can think of no better supporter for you in that endeavour. Congratulations. Now, I must carry on. I have many families still to see." Her lips tightened. "A sad duty, but one I must fulfil. I will see you later, Mr. Potter." She walked out.

Harry sat back in his bed. He knew the next few hours were going to be very boring. Madam Pomfrey would keep him there for ages yet.

At four o'clock, Madam Pomfrey came over to him, and looked him over. "I think that you have healed quite well, Mr. Potter. I had thought you might need to be here overnight, but your ribs and nose have healed better than I expected. You may leave. Your friends have left you a clean change of clothes. Those you came in with are fit for nothing."

Harry got up, and changed behind his screens. He then went over to Madam Pomfrey and said, "Thank you for putting me right."

She looked at him. "I think that it is I that should thank you. You did well. Now get along. I don't want to see you in this wing again, except as a visitor. You have kept me quite busy over the years—more than almost any other student. I wish you well." She looked back down at the parchment she was reading, and Harry knew himself to be dismissed. He grinned slightly. Madam Pomfrey always sounded sharp, but he knew how much she cared for the students. He walked out of the ward, throwing the invisibility cloak around himself.

Getting down into the main entrance hall, Harry wondered what he was going to do. He walked out into the grounds. The school was quiet, but as it was near tea time, he knew most people would be in the Great Hall. Just now, he needed space and time to think. He walked down to the lake and sat down by the very bush he had sat by after he had found out about the prophecy. He still felt separate from everybody. He was still a marked man. Death Eaters were still going to try to get at him, or try to prove that he was only human. Anybody near him was still at risk. This morning had proved that. He hated the thought of the newspaper articles that would be written. Once again, he was going to have to go through the staring and pointing routine that had started in his first year and never really gone away. He wondered what it would be like to be ordinary. He had no recollection of any time since he found out that he was a wizard that he had only had lessons or homework to worry about. He sat down. Again, he found himself seeing all those people who had died and thinking of all the things that had happened over the last week. The pain of it was overwhelming, and he could feel the tears run down his face. At least there was no one to see, and he let them flow, wracked with sorrow and guilt. Why should others be dead when he had survived? Why couldn't people stop congratulating him, when all he had done was try to disarm Voldemort? Tom had killed himself. He had done nothing.

Back in the Great Hall, supper was in progress. It was quiet, even though there were so many people there. Students, parents, and people from Hogsmeade were all there. Most people were silent as they ate. Many looked forlorn and grieving, or just looked emptily at their plates. Conversation was in low tones, where it went on at all.

Ginny came over and sat down next to Hermione. "Where's Harry?" she asked. "He left the hospital wing a couple of hours ago, and he's not anywhere I can think of."

"I think he will probably have gone off by himself," Hermione answered. "Goodness knows he can do with a break. He ought to eat though. Did you check the grounds?"

"I've been looking all over the place. He's just vanished."

Ron looked up from the other side of Hermione. "He did have his cloak with him. Don't let everyone know you're looking for him, though. Mum will go spare, thinking he's been killed or something. Under that cloak he's quite safe."

Hermione looked at Ginny and said in a voice barely above a whisper, "You're worried, aren't you? I know how much you… worry. You care about him still, don't you?"

Ginny blushed slightly and nodded, "I don't know whether I want to hex him or hug him. Why's he doing this? He can be such a stupid git sometimes."

"Well, he's feeling guilty about everybody dying. He's probably ashamed, even though he has no reason to be. He still thinks he ought to be some sort of outcast, especially after that Death Eater came after him this morning. He's grieving for all the friends he's lost." Hermione looked up, and continued, "He needs someone to help him through this. He never has got used to the idea that other people care about him."

Ginny stood up again. "I think there's one place still to check. Down by the lake."

Ron stood up as well. "We'll come with you. Just let me grab a piece of that pie."

"No way. I'm going on my own. I'll be okay. There are still several people out in the grounds, and it'll be light for another hour. If I can't find him in half an hour, I'll come back, and then we'll search together, but I want to do this myself."

"What if Mum wants to know where you are?" Ron asked. "What are we to tell her?"

Ginny looked at him exasperatedly, "Tell her whatever you like, I'm going—now." She walked out, careful to stay out of her parents' line of sight.

Ginny went out of the hall and into the grounds. She suddenly knew where Harry was. He'd pointed out the spot to her last year. His quiet spot.

She walked down there, and looked through the bushes to the lake. He was there, exactly where she had expected. It was clear he was unaware of her presence though. Tears were running freely down his face, and he was just looking out over the water. Ginny waited for a few minutes, until she saw him rub his hands over his face and then called out quietly, "Harry?"

He spun round, wand rising and saw her. He turned away again. "Hi, Ginny. I suppose I am wanted for something in the castle?"

"No, you idiot. I wanted to see you. I was worried when you didn't come and see me when you got out of hospital… No, not worried—worried AND furious. You're ignoring me, just like you're ignoring everyone. Don't push everyone away. Especially, don't push ME away, unless you like bats. Now what's up? You have to tell me."

"Lots to think about," he said. He picked up a stone and threw it viciously out over the lake. "I hate being dangerous to know. I hate being the object of attention. I hate being pointed out all the time. Even with Voldemort gone, it hasn't got any better. This morning proved that."

He sat down, looking at the lake again. Ginny quietly sat down beside him, not looking at him, and waited for him to continue.

"Everybody seems to want me to be the strong silent super-warrior, accepting the applause like a gladiator. I can't DO that. It's not me. I'm only me, not some invincible hero. Nobody sees that."

"Some of us do," Ginny interrupted. "I do. I've seen how much all this hurts you. I've seen you bleeding over me. I've seen you with cuts, bruises and thorns all over you, and I'll never forget it."

She turned, and looked directly at him, "I've also seen you flying; I've seen you laugh; I've seen you struggling to keep up with Ron at chess and laughing about it. I've seen you running your hands through your hair when you're thinking. I know there's more to you than most people will ever know about. So do others—even Ron, who understands emotions about as well as he does advanced Transfiguration." She reached out and took his hands. "You just have to let us share. Let me share… please."

Harry looked down at their joined hands, astonished at a sight he thought he would never see again, "Er… yes, well… I'm sorry. It's sort of hard to share. Not used to it. I know I can talk to Ron and Hermione about some stuff. Like what we did since last summer. I haven't talked to them even about… stuff… feelings… you know."

Ginny squeezed his hands gently. "We used to talk a bit, didn't we?"

"Yeah, we did. I thought you wouldn't want to know me much because of Dumbledore's funeral, and what I said then. And even though you gave me a birthday kiss last year, I sort of thought that was thank you and goodbye."

"Not exactly. Yes, in a way it was goodbye, because I was afraid I'd never see you again. It was also please come back. At the time, I knew you were being a stupid noble prat, but with Hermione Obliviating her parents, and Ron disguising the ghoul, I knew you were afraid for me… for all of us. I was really angry at first, because I hate being the little girl that has to be protected. The whole family does that still, and it drives me mad. Eventually, though, when I saw what the Ministry was doing, and that they had no clue about what was going on, I sort of understood. I still didn't like it."

Harry kept on looking at Ginny's hands. The monster in his chest sniffed the air, and a knot built up in is stomach. "We could never have taken you with us. I don't think any of us would have ever been able to leave without that panic at the end of Bill's wedding. If I had even suggested you coming, your Mum would have gone berserk. Besides, I was afraid I would get you hurt. I still am, after this morning. I was afraid I'd get Ron or Hermione hurt too. I wasn't even sure we would all live through it. But I couldn't stop them from coming; they knew the risks. You would have too, but I couldn't risk you."

"Couldn't risk me? And if I would have taken the risk?" Ginny's face was reddening. Her temper, always close to the surface, was showing.

"Too precious," was all Harry said. He still hadn't looked at her. He just shook his head, lifted his hands from hers, and put his face in them, elbows on his knees. "I always knew I'd lose you. If I took you with us, you could have been killed. It's a miracle the three of us survived at all. But if I didn't bring you, you'd hate me."

Suddenly Ginny understood why Harry was holding back. He was afraid of what she would say. He thought she was going to say she never wanted to see him again. She remembered what Hermione had said after reading his letter. She pulled her knees up against her chest and looked out over the water. Harry was still holding his head in his hands.

"I don't hate you, Harry. I could never hate you. Yes, I've been angry with you, but I came to understand why you did what you did. I looked at it from your point of view, and I understood. I cried a lot after the wedding. I thought I would never see you again. I was terribly afraid you'd be killed. I thought you were dead when Hagrid carried you in. I thought I wanted to die too, but I had to fight on to avenge you. I couldn't believe it when you appeared in the Great Hall, and faced down Voldemort. I spent the whole year afraid that moment would come. I still feel about you as I did before. I've always wanted to be with you."

Harry looked up, hope suddenly dawning, and fear with it. "Even after I dumped you at the funeral? That was cruel of me—I know it was—and I'm really sorry. I knew it then, but all I wanted was for you to be safe. So few people I know have stayed safe. You're not safe still. Look at what happened this morning."

"Even after… unless you met some Veela while you were gone?"

"No Veela. Not even any sort of female, unless you count Bathilda Bagshot, and she turned out to be a snake. No female Death Eaters either. At least, none that wanted to go out with me."

Ginny listened and hunched her shoulders slightly. She knew something else was coming. Harry's voice was turning harder. "Don't let him turn me down, don't…" she thought. She knew he was trying to say something hard.

"So…er… do you think… would you… can we still see each other?"

"What are you asking, Harry?"

"Can we… you know… go out again?"

Ginny flung herself at Harry, knocking him back into the grass, and buried her face in his neck. "Yes… oh, yes… please." She kissed him hard, and he responded, wrapping his arms around her neck and back, pulling her closer. Eventually, they broke apart, panting at the release of emotion, and sat looking at each other, holding hands.

Ginny grinned suddenly, "So if I'm still not safe, why let me in now?"

Harry grimaced. "If I hadn't been there this morning, I couldn't have stopped that Death Eater. It seemed to me that if I could keep near you, maybe I could keep you safer. It doesn't seem to matter that we broke up. People are still going after you. They were doing so even last year, from what Neville said. It was one of the things I was thinking about. I was terrified you wouldn't want me."

"It's always been you," Ginny whispered, "Even when you left, I never really gave up hoping."

She stood up, and held out her hand. "We'd better get up to the school. Ron will be sending out search parties. He wanted to earlier when you didn't turn up after tea. I eventually guessed where to find you though."

Harry took her hand, and she pulled him to his feet. "Didn't you guess what I was trying to tell you all day?"

Harry shook is head. "No, I didn't guess. I saw the signals, but I was afraid I was reading you wrong. I didn't dare hope. I thought maybe this was just because we were… well, I don't know… I was grateful though. It was good to feel that someone at least cared a bit."

They started walking. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "What are we going to say to everyone? They all still think we broke up."

"We're going to say nothing. People can think what they like, and I don't care," Her arm matched his and snaked around his waist. They walked on. "They can work it out for themselves. If they don't like it, that's their problem, not ours."

She leaned her head against Harry's shoulder. They walked slowly back up to the entrance hall, and inside. "I still feel guilty in a way, though. Part of me feels I shouldn't be happy. Especially with Fred…"

"I know," Harry interrupted. "I feel like that too. I'm not going to change how I feel, though. I can't help it. I do sort of feel that this could all disappear just as fast as it came. It's a bit scary, really."

"Have you ever had a chance to feel happy and in charge?" Ginny asked. "I get the feeling you don't know how that feeling goes. You'll have to learn how to feel happy… Can I help?"

She grinned, mischievously.