Chapter Four: A Moment of Forever

Harry's mouth fell open as two exact replicas of Ginny andhimappeared before his very eyes.

He watched himself turn and recognize Ginny's presence. She tried to silence him, yet he would not stop talking. She looked at him menacingly and told him off for "playing games" with her. So far, so good.

He explained the prophecy and the Horcruxes in good measure, but refused Ginny's proclamation of accompanying him.

"I won't be alone," his look-a-like said. "Ron and Hermione are coming with me."

"Oh, so I get to sit around at home, wondering if you're still alive or not?" Ginny's replica asked spitefully.

"Ginny, this is not how you're supposed to be taking this!"

"And how am I supposed to take it? Like a good little girl who does everything she's told, and wait patiently for your return, even though I have no idea when you're coming back?"

"Maybe!" Ouch. I said that?

"That's it! Harry James Potter, if I never speak to you again it will be too soon."

"Fine."

'Ginny' departed angrily, and the two figures faded away with the end of the memory.

Hermione directed the strand of thought back to Harry's brain, closed her eyes, and shook her head slowly. "Well," she said with a sigh.

"That bad, eh?" Harry asked timidly.

"The worst I've ever seen is Ron, and I don't think he's even done this horribly."

"I'm aware of the fact I did this the wrong way," Harry said impatiently. "I need you to tell me how to fix it."

"That will be a challenge."

"With the exception of that time in first year with the Devil's Snare, when you honestly forgot you were a witch, I've never known you not to rise to a challenge."

"I second that," Ron offered in a strained voice from the stairs. "Come on, Ginny."

Protruding from the stairwell was Ginny, who was struggling under a rope-binding spell.

"Ron, really!" Hermione gasped, quickly muttering the counter-spell. Ginny immediately turned back to the stairs, but Ron's somewhat lacking Keeper reflexes won out in the end.

"Now then," Hermione said after helping Ron force Ginny into a chair. "Ginny, I know exactly what happened."

"And what did happen, Healer Granger?" Ginny asked mockingly, glaring down at the rug.

"You're angry at Harry's blatant disregard for your own decisions."

"You hit that nail right on the head,"she remarked, never shifting her eyes from their position.

"Harry," Hermione turned to him, "why don't you let Ginny decide whether she wants to go or not?"

"She'll be too rash in her choice. You and Ron have had ages to decide, but Ginny hasn't. And, it's too dangerous," he added as an afterthought.

Ginny stood up, fire blazing in her chocolate orbs. "No, it's not. If it's experience with danger you're talking about, I went to the Department of Mysteries with you—"

"And came out of it with a broken ankle."

She ignored this fact and plowed on. "I've had plenty of time to decide, Harry. I've known the implications of being close to you since my first year, for Merlin's sake!"

"Then you know why I want to protect you?"

Ginny plopped back down onto her seat, and a bewildered expression overcame her face. "I…yes, actually."

"So you will stay here?" Harry asked hopefully.

Her face changed as she scoffed, "No!"

She continued, "You might need me, Harry. What if you and Ron and Hermione had to split up two ways? I know you would convince them to let you be the one alone, and I don't want that happening." She said the last part in a manner such as that of Mrs. Weasley scolding the twins.

"If I go," she concluded, "I can help."

"I would like to point out a slight problem," Hermione chimed in. "You mother won't allow you to come with us, Ginny, whether Hogwarts reopens or not."

Ginny's look of fury slowly turned into one of crestfallenness. "Damn, Hermione. You're right," she said quietly.

"Big shocker there," Ron said in a sarcastic tone.

"No one needs your cynicism right now, dear brother," Ginny snapped, shooting daggers at him with her eyes. "Okay, so maybe I can come anyway, if Hogwarts doesn't open."

"Even if, by an amazing turn of fate, your mother did let you come, you're still underage for more than a year," Hermione reminded her.

"I don't care!" Ginny refused."

"Mum does, though," Ron said.

Ginny shrieked in exasperation, causing Remus Lupin to stick his head in the room.

"Everything all right in here?" he asked worriedly.

"Fine," the four of them grumbled.

As soon as he left, Ginny continued, this time in a calmer voice, "If I explain to Mum what we're doing—"

"No, we're not telling her all I've told you!" Harry warned her.

"Why not?"

"The more everyone else knows, the more difficult our mission will become."

Ginny shut her eyes tightly for several moments, while Harry, Ron, and Hermione waited for her reaction with bated breath. Finally, the tension in her forehead withdrew. She sighed heavily and looked to Harry with watery eyes.

"Then I guess I have no choice but to let you go," she whispered. Ginny looked so hopeless that all Harry wanted was to take her in his arms and stay there forever. He opened his arms to her in hope he could have at least one of his wishes granted. A fresh wave of tears poured from Ginny's eyes as she rushed forward to embrace him.

Ron and Hermione took this act as a signal to retreat upstairs, so as to let Harry and Ginny be alone to bask in this occasion of great emotion.

They sat that way for a long time, Ginny sobbing onto Harry's shoulder and Harry stroking Ginny's hair comfortingly. It hurts so much to see her like this...

"Harry?" Her voice was hoarse from crying.

He pulled back gently. "Yes?"

"Do you think I'm being pathetic?"

"Never," he said truthfully, looking into Ginny's deep brown eyes. Unable to contain himself any longer, Harry brought his lips down upon Ginny's. And so they kissed, not knowing, not caring what the future would bring, as long as they could share that single, shining moment of forever.

A/N: Harry shows us by reconciling with Ginny that even the most determined of us go back on our word.