This chapter is called The Burrow; it's pretty long so I hope you enjoy it! I really enjoyed writing it!
Harry stared at the top of his four poster bed. Ron mumbled in his sleep and Harry sighed. It was two days after Hagrid's funeral, but they were still at Hogwarts. They were going to go the Burrow after the funeral, but Harry told the others he couldn't bare leaving Hagrid. There was also another reason he didn't want go to the Burrow, Ginny. He had been stupid, he told himself. He had been gone for two years. He couldn't have expected Ginny to wait for him; it was a stupid thing to even consider. But, he had to admit it to himself; he had never quite given up that hope in the very back of his brain.
He rolled over and tried to fall back a sleep. After a few minutes he got out of bed and walked over to the water pitcher. He got a drink of water then got dressed. He went downstairs and sat down in his favorite armchair. Crookshanks jumped up onto his lap purring. He petted him absentmindedly, trying not to think of Ginny. A few minutes later Hermione came downstairs. They sat in silence as Crookshanks transferred himself to her lap. Five minutes later Ron came down, rubbing his eyes. He slumped down in the arm chair next to Hermione.
Three minutes later Ron broke the silence.
"Harry."
Harry looked up.
"Harry, I know you want to stay with Hagrid but…..well….Harry I really need to be with my family. I haven't seen them in two years."
"Two years? I haven't seen mine in 18." he said hollowly.
Ron looked horrified. "Harry, mate. I'm sorry. I didn't, I mean…"
"Save your breath. I don't want to hear it."
"What so you mean 'save your breath'!"
Harry didn't answer him.
"Harry-" Ron started but Hermione cut him off tearfully.
"Oh just stop it both of you! Lord Voldemort is gone and we are all still arguing! We have been fighting for peace haven't we? Let's try to have some!"
Ron and Harry stared at the ground, abashed.
"Sorry Ron, I didn't mean. You know-"
"Ya. I… Mate. No offence..."
"Ya."
"Well, now that we've stopped arguing. Harry, I really think that we should go to the Burrow." Hermione said quietly.
Harry remained silent.
"Harry," Hermione said calmly, "I know that you want to stay with Hagrid, we all do; but, Harry, we can't spend the rest of our lives here. The teachers are all gone and the House Elves deserve a break. They deserve more than a break actually, but for now I'll settle for a work break."
Harry thought quickly but could not find a strong argument for this.
"Fine." he muttered.
"Great." Hermione said, clapping her hands, "If we all start packing now we can leave by 10:00!" With that she rushed up the stairs to the girl's dormitory.
Ron watched her go, and Harry shook his head.
Two Hours Later
"Ron!" Hermione yelled up the stairs "Hurry up! What's taking you so long?"
"Sorry!" Ron's voice called up from upstairs. Five seconds later he came running down the stairs, luggage less.
"Ron," Hermione said exasperatedly, "Don't you want your luggage?"
"Oh, ya!" He said. He turned around and started hurtling up the stairs.
Hermione sighed. She raised her wand and called "Accio Ron's Luggage!" There was a loud BANG from up stairs. Ron yelled and ducked. The luggage came flying down the stairs and screeched to a halt by Harry and Hermione's trunk.
"Hermione!" Ron shouted "I had shut the dormitory door!"
"Well, how was I supposed to know that? I mean you were heedless enough to forget your stuff!"
"What's that supposed…."
Harry shook his head. He walked up the dormitory stairs. He walked up to the door and inspected the damage. A large square hole was right in the very center. He raised his wand and muttered 'Repairo' and the strewn wooden pieces of the door flew back into place.
He turned around to head back downstairs but something held him there. This could be his last time at Hogwarts. The thought had not crossed his mind before. He spun around and walked back into the dormitory.
He looked at dresser, window, pitcher and then to the window. He sat down and looked out the window. He had seen Sirius here, walking with Crookshanks. He had thought him the Grim then but still…. He got up and walked up to his four poster bed. He sunk upon it and lay down. This had been his bed for six years. He had never appreciated how comforting, how secure he felt until now. He had opened his first Christmas presents in 10 years here, gotten his favorite socks from Dobby. So many memories were in this room. How could he leave?
"Harry!"
He could hear Hermione's voice issuing from below, but ignored it.
"HARRY!" Hermione was roundly pissed off now, and Harry could not ignore her any longer. He got up and move across the room lethargically. As he opened the door, he turned around and took one last look at the room.
"HARRY!"
He took on last look at his four-poster bed then walked down the stairs.
"What were you doing?" Hermione demanded.
"Fixing the door." Harry said.
"And why did it take so long?"
"I-"
"Never mind." she snapped. He snatched up her wand, made their luggage float ahead of them and stalked away.
Harry raised his eyebrows at Ron, who shut his eyes, raised his hands and shook his head. Then they started after Hermione before she could yell at them again.
They stood in front of Honeydukes in the blazing sun. Hermione thrust her wand into the air and suddenly with a large BANG a large, incredibly purple bus materialized in front of them.
A pale boy, with large ears of 22 years of age jumped out of the bus and started to recite "Welcome to the Knight-"
"We know." Hermione said. She pushed Stan aside and proceeded to walk to the top floor of the bus.
Stan looked after her. "What's got er wand in a knot?"
"Nothin." Ron muttered. He then shoved himself on to the bus.
Stan turned around and saw who was left standing on the pavement.
"Arry Potter!" He shouted "Ern, come ere, come ere Ern. Look at who's ere. It's Arry Potter!"
"Hi Stan." Harry said.
Acutely aware of the fact that Stan was goggling at him, he caused the luggage to levitate into the bus as it was clear that San wouldn't; he was to busy staring at Harry. He walked onto the crowed bus followed by Stan. He started to look for a seat when he heard the excited voice of Stan behind him. "Ere Arry. You can sit right ere hind Ern."
Harry wanted to find Ron or Hermione, but could not think of an excuse to do so without being rude and it was much crowed on the bus today, so he stored their luggage in the over head compartment. He took his seat and the bus took off with a bang. He was pushed back into the splotchy purple and orange velvet seat underneath him.
They appeared in the middle of the country. They sped across the road, past cow pastures and caused a farm house to jump aside.
Stan was still staring at Harry. Harry was uncomfortably reminded of the time he bought his wand. Mr. Ollivander has also stared at him, grantedly with interest rather than reverence. It was getting tiring so he looked at Stan expectantly.
"Wow Arry. I really can't elive you did it. You really defeated You-know-ou!"
"Ya." He said.
"I mean, it only took o two ears to defeat im. Last time e had power fr bout leven didn't e?"
"Yep." Harry replied as the bus suddenly changed from the countryside to the city. Stan continued to talk but Harry tuned him out and his thoughts turned to, no matter how hard he tried to stop them, Ginny.
'What will it be like,' he thought 'to live in the same house after two years? She probably won't even notice me in the house, she'll be to busy thinking about Dean.'
A splattering on the floor above them interrupted his thoughts and Stan's talk. A man roared with disgust as it happened.
"Oh. I better go check on Madam Marsh; it sounds like she isn't feeling her best." Stan said. He got up to check on Madam Marsh and Harry turned to face the window again.
Ginny
Ginny yawned and rolled over in her bed. Light was streaming in through the window and it was 9:30, but she wanted five more minutes of sleep. She shut her eyes and as she was drifting off, the delicious smell of bacon hit her nose. 'Mmmmmmmmm' she thought. She continued at her attempt at more sleep though, knowing that breakfast would be hot and waiting when she was ready. Two minutes later Mr. Weasley opened her door.
"Ginny, breakfast."
"Urrrrrrrrrg!" Ginny said.
Mr. Weasley flipped on her bedroom lights.
"URRRRRRRG!" Ginny yelled and buried her head in the pillows heaped on her bed.
"Five minutes Ginny." he said and shut her door.
Seven minutes later Ginny stumbled into the kitchen with serious bed head and sleepy eyes.
"Morning Ginny." said Mrs. Weasley.
"Mmmmm." Ginny said.
She sat down at the table. In front of her was a heaping plate of eggs, pancakes, bacon and buttered toast.
"We have some news for you!" Mrs. Weasley beamed.
"Ya?" she wondered sleepily if Flur was pregnant.
"Ron, Harry and Hermione are coming here today!" she yelled.
"They are?!" Ginny yelled, now awake.
"I know, isn't it so exciting! Now hurry up, eat and get dressed, I need help with the cleaning!"
Ginny got up in a daze without eating anything and stumbled up the stairs. She reached her bedroom, opened the door, walked across her room and slumped on her bed. Her mind was spinning. She had seen him at Hagrid's funeral yes, but the grief at Hagrid's death had driven out all other emotions and left no room for thought. What was going to happen? How long were they going to stay?
She got off her bed and walked over to the closet. She flipped on the light and looked around. Ten minutes later she emerged in a pair of dark jeans and a tight brown, thick strap, low cut tank-top. 'Only because it is always nice to look cute.' she told herself. She put on a silver chain around her neck that had a silver heart locket hanging from it. She went into the bathroom, flossed and brushed her teeth, went to the bathroom and washed her face. For the next twenty minutes she experimented with her hair. In the end she ended up wearing it down with a small pony-tail resting on the top of the rest of her hair. She swiped some shimmery lip-gloss, a sprits of Vera Wang perfume and walked back into her room. 'I did all of that only because I like to look nice.' she thought 'I'm not, repeat not expecting Harry to have waited for me. He is probably seeing a beautiful vela girl right now. In fact, I know he is.'
She checked her clock, 10:25. She walked over and made her bed. She checked her clock again, 10:30 on the dot. She looked out her window just in time to see a large, insanely purple bus appear in the front yard.
Harry
"Bye Arry! Ope you ride again soon!" Stan yelled after them. He chucked their luggage after them, released Hedwig, Pigwidgen and Crookshankes, banged the door shut and the Night Bus shot off.
"Hermione, can you please get this stuff of me?" Ron said, very annoyed and greatly disgusted. It turned out that that disgusted roar had come from Ron, as Madam Marsh had thrown up on him.
Hermione giggled. "Of course." She pulled her wand out of her pocket and preformed a small movement with her wand, and the sick that was all over Ron's front disappeared. She made another sweeping motion with her wand, which had no apparent result. They stared at her.
"Sanitization Charm." she explained.
Before they could say anything else a lean looking Mrs. Weasley was running across the lawn yelling, "RON, HARRY, HERMIONE! YOU'RE HERE!" She reached them, grabbed hold of Ron and started sobbing.
"Mum. Get of me. Mum, your acting like you didn't see us just two days ago!"
"Oh, but Ronnie." She sobbed. "We couldn't greet each other properly at a funeral!" she continued to cry.
Harry found it hard to look at Mrs. Weasley. She was as thin as Hermione and her face was covered with lines. He felt so guilty to have pushed her to this.
"Harry, are you alright?" Mrs. Weasley asked, mopping her eyes.
"Ya. It's just really great to see you Mrs. Weasley."
"It's great to see you to Harry."
As Mrs. Weasley hugged Harry and then Hermione as Mr. Weasley walked out of the Burrow and over them.
"Ron, Harry, Hermione." He said, shaking Harry and Hermione's hands and giving Ron a hug.
As he released Harry's hand, Ginny came walking slowly across the lawn and Harry tried not to stare. Ginny looked stunning in a brown tank-top and her hair looked very pretty. He suddenly felt uncomfortablely aware of his untidy hair and rumpled robes. He looked away, 'She's Dean's Girlfriend again, don't stare, don't stare.'
She ran across the yard and hugged Ron. She hugged Hermione and, after an uncomfortable moment, gave Harry an aquard wave.
Harry returned it as he sighed inwardly.
Ginny
Ginny walked slowly down the stairs as she heard her mother run screaming across the yard. 'Don't rush, don't rush.' she told herself over and over again. She reached the kitchen, slipped on her white sandals, then loitered around the kitchen. She had just forced her self to not rush and now she was having trouble making herself move closer to the door. 'What's wrong with me?' she thought.
Finally she managed to force herself out the door and walked slowly across the lawn. She saw her Dad shaking hands with Harry. Harry glanced her way, the looked away. She suddenly felt really stupid, 'He is not even giving me a second thought. No matter how much I denied it to myself, I tried to look nice for him and look at him. He looks like he just got off a broomstick. That is hot, but still….. '
When she walked up to them, hugged Ron and Hermione then waved to Harry. He waved back, but his wave was half-hearted.
'What was I thinking, I must look like and idiot, all gussied up.' she sighed.
Soooooo, what do you think? I know that this is a long chapter, but I really enjoyed writing it and it came so easily, I just had to keep going. Please, please, please review. I really need it. So far I am averaging about one review per chapter and so this time I want 3 reviews before I update again. Yes, 3. Not that hard. Basically if you read it, send in a review! I'm sorry it took this long to update, I had a lot of hw this past week. I probably won't have a lot this week though, so I might get another chappie out this week, that is, if I get those 3 reviews. Bye :P