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Chapter 14

"I cant believe the nerve of that prat!" Ron shouted as he and Hermione entered their house that evening.

The rest of the party fizzed out after that. Percy and Audrey quickly grabbed their child and left without so much of a goodbye. Nobody seemed too bothered by that, and was only too glad to see him leave. Even his parents seemed happy about it.

After that his brothers gathered their families and apparated or flewed away. Hermione insisted that she and Ron stay a bit longer, if only to help with the clean up. She was concerned about Mrs. Weasley with the whole situation. She didn't once start yelling, or scolding, or lecture, or anything else she had done when one of them were being bad.

"I don't know why you cant, he's always been a complete arse." Hermione replied. They walked up the stairs to their bedroom. It was pretty late and while still too early to go to bed Hermione decided she wanted to relax in bed after the excitement of the day, and Ron decided he would join her, and try to read that book on Muggles.

"That doesn't mean I cant be shocked you." Ron said pulling off his shirt to get in his night clothes. They got ready for bed and then settled in. Ron turned off the over head light while Hermione turned on the bedside ones. She liked to read at night by them, saying they were softer and more focused.

She grabbed her book from her nightstand and opened it up to the page she was reading, but she couldn't really concentrate. She reread the same paragraph over and over again several times before finally putting it down in a slight huff and looking over at Ron beside her who was staring off into space.

"Ron." She said softly. He just made a soft hum sound to acknowledge her speaking. "Do you think Percy was right?" she asked.

"About what?" He looked over at her. She bit her lower lip thinking. Ron was a little sensitive when it came to Harry.

"About Harry, being in an asylum?" She said. He thought for a moment about it. He didn't want to think about it really too much. Whenever he heard the word asylum, especially in reference to ones in the Muggle world he always pictured what he saw on television which reminded him of prisoners in Azkaban and how they loose their minds.

"I honestly don't know." He said sincerely. "What do you think?"

"I think he could be telling the truth." She admitted. He nodded in agreement and turned to look straight ahead.

"I don't like it." He said. Hermione scooted over closer to him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close and she leaned into his chest.

"I don't either, but it makes sense really. He was really bad off before he left Ron. I didn't want to admit it at the time, or for the longest time really, but I always thought that, well.." She couldn't finish that sentence. She never could ever in the past and knowing her fear to not be true now still didn't make it any easier.

"Yeah I know. Every time I searched for him I was looking for him alive, but I knew the possibilities. I'm just glad that we were proven wrong." He confessed.

"I feel bad about doubting Luna. She knew the truth, and its not like she kept it a secret exactly."

"Yeah but while she gave us clues, I doubt she would have told us where exactly she saw him. Otherwise she would have come and told us even though telling everyone else to leave him alone." Hermione pulled away enough to look at him.

"Do you really believe that Ron?" She asked him. Ron shook his head yes.

"its something I cant explain but Harry and Luna had a sort of connection. They seemed to understand each other in a way we never could understand either of them. Harry doesn't seem to know it but there are so many people out there who are still and always will be watching his back, no matter what." He said.

Hermione leaned up against him again, wrapping her own arms around him. She enjoyed moments like this where they could just lay in each others company. Ron begin to stroke her hair and she closed her eyes and gave a slight shiver at the feeling.

"So." Ron started quietly. "We didn't get to announce to them about our impending marriage." Ron commented.

"yeah well. We've been engaged for so long to them Ron I can wait another day or so." She said.

"Yeah, but not too much longer, especially if we want a summer wedding." He said. Hermione smiled into his chest.

"It will be fine Ron. The weddings been planed for years. All we need to do is tell everyone the date and have them show up." She sat up enough to plant a passionate kiss on him. He responded accordingly, parting his lips to grant her more access.

"Yeah, everything will be fine." He repeated breaking off the kiss to turn off the lights.

Ginny sat nervously on the couch at Harry's house. They had flewed over to Ron and Hermione's house. Harry then proceeded out the back door and did something that she didn't think he's done in years, and defiantly not with Evelyn before. He held her tight and then apparated away.

Ginny followed a moment later after she recovered from the surprise of it to see him open the front door. She jogged up the pathway to it bewildered.

"How'd you get in so fast?" She asked him. He just shrugged.

"I'm the only one who can get through the wards." He explained. She entered the house and was instantly greeted by Evelyn's crying. Harry turned away from Ginny to go back into the living room to Evelyn who was laying on the couch crying. Harry sat down on one end of it and picked her up, cradling her in his lap. He took a tissue and wiped her mouth before pulling his wand out and cleaning up the sick on the floor. Apparently Evelyn didn't do well with the apparition.

"Its ok sweetie, I'm sorry. We're home now." Harry cooed softly into her hair holding her tight. She had her arms around his neck in a death grip and just sobbed like there was no tomorrow. He started rubbing her back in a soothing way trying to calm her down. Ginny sat down next to them.

"Why didn't you just walk home." She inquired. Harry placed a little kiss on the side of Evelyn's head.

"Because she was really upset and walking the several blocks home would have been a nightmare, and I'm way too angry to deal with it. People in this neighborhood are very, well, neighborly. If that makes sense." Ginny nodded her understanding.

They sat there again for a little bit, Evelyn's sobbing slowing down at Harry's administrations and attentions. About 10 minutes later he asked quietly to Ginny if she could get a small glass of water for Evelyn. When she returned with it she watched as he coaxed her to separate a bit from him and to drink some water, telling her it will make her feel better after all her crying.

The evening went by somewhat quickly in some respects and slowly in others. Ginny couldn't help thinking back on the day and being amazed that just a few hours ago she was in the Quidditch game of her life, won it, was celebrating it, and then finding out that Harry had been at a looney bin, and now she's over at his house as he calms down his daughter who her brother had attacked.

She let out a quiet shy walking towards the window of the front room to look out. The sun was finally setting over the horizon. She thought over the past few weeks since Harry had come back into their lives. So much drama had been brought up, so much stress. But she wouldn't change it. She wouldn't ever wish for Harry to leave again, or to never have come back.

She turned around at the sound Harry trying to stand up, Evelyn in his arms still. Harry walked towards the stairs telling her he'd be back in a few. Poor Evelyn must be worn out from the afternoon. She couldn't believe the stuff that her brother had shouted at them. At her. About Harry.

She's thought a lot about Harry and Evelyn since that lunch he came back at. She knew everyone else thought she should be angry and upset. Even devastated at the fact that he apparently found someone else, and had a child with them. And truly in some ways she was.

She had the evening after she had left her parents house smashing everything possible in her apartment. She screamed and raged out her anger and jealousy. How could he. She had thought over and over as she broke another thing or through another book. Eventually she had worn herself out and she just collapsed on the floor where she cried and sobbed what energy she had left.

The next morning Hermione has found her that way. She had come to check on Ginny, knowing the shock of seeing Harry again could not have gone as well for her as it had seemed. Upon being wakened and the sight of her best friend she immediately grabbed hold of Hermione and sobbed into her, surprising herself even that she could cry anymore.

They sat there like that for a long time, in silence at first. But then she had to ask Hermione the questions she'd been asking herself all night. About Harry, where he was, what he's been doing, and mostly about his child.

Hermione, she could tell was trying really hard to be a good friend to both of them. She was trapped between comforting Ginny and defending Harry. She agreed with everything Ginny was feeling and asking. She too felt somewhat betrayed by Harry, and abandoned. She had put off marrying and such until they found him, while he did whatever and ended up with a child.

But she couldn't, and would not condemn him. He was still her best friend. She loved him so much, that she was willing to forgive him and move past this and bring him back into her life. She didn't care what he's done, she would never let him go again. And besides, she reasoned with herself as well as Ginny. They didn't know the whole story. They have no idea what had happened after he left.

Ginny had felt much better after talking it out with her. She did a lot of quiet thinking on her own once Hermione left after lunch that afternoon. She tried to sort out her feelings for Harry. She decided, without much thinking on it really, that she still loved him, with all her being. She decided much later that if Harry showed any interest in her as well, she would return it, she, like Hermione, never wanted to let him go again.

As for Evelyn. She didn't even know what to think of her at the time. She was aware that no matter what she felt about Harry and what came about with that, Evelyn would be there as well now. She started to cry again at that. She should have been the one to give Harry children.

"You alright Ginny?" Harry asked coming down the stairs breaking her out of her thoughts. She nodded her head and pasted a small fake smile on her face, but could still feel those feelings she had in her thoughts.

Harry walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her comforting. She wrapped her arms around his waist that they stood there like that for a few moments just responding to the comfort of being in each others presence. Soon however it ended and he pulled away from her a little so that he could look into her face. He leaned in closer and captured his lips onto hers.

Her heart fluttered as it always had whenever Harry kissed her. She mentally made a note to never take it for granted again. She loved the way he made her feel when he kissed her, the way he asked politely with his tongue for entrance to her mouth then proceeded gently to explore. How he would hold her tight and rub her back, and how she would always feel safe and loved.

After a few moments he pulled away slowly. Placing little kisses upon her lips as they separated. He looked directly into her eyes, a silly grin on his face.

"Evelyn's asleep." He said simply. He detached from her, running his fingers down her arm lightly causing goose bumps on her skin, before tenderly taking her hand and pulling her gently to the couch. He sat her down on one end of it and left for the kitchen. She looked after him slightly confused.

A few minutes later however he brought out two wine glasses and a bottle of red wine. He set the glasses down on the table in front of them and opened the bottle. He poured some into the glasses and handed on to her. Sitting down on the couch near her, but not too closely he took a sip of his own. She turned her body again to lean against the arm of the couch to face him.

"Whats going on?" She asked him, sipping her own wine. Harry lowered his glass to his lap and fiddled a bit with the handle.

"Well, with Evelyn asleep, I thought, perhaps, maybe its time to tell you." She said simply. She looked slightly confused. "Your brother, he revealed some things, and Luna found me. and well. I want you to know the truth of what happened."

"Harry. You don't have to tell me you know. I know you will in your own time." She said silently. She desperately wanted to know. But she didn't want to push him. A small smile graced his face.

"That's why I love you, you know." He said as if he had just read her thoughts. "You wont push me. But I drugged Evelyn so we might as well take advantage of it." He laughed lightly.

"You what?" She asked him confused again.

"I gave her a bit of calming draught and dreamless sleep potion. Poor girl would probably have nightmares." He said taking another sip of wine. "I swear, you're brother does that again to her I probably will end up killing him." He said. Ginny lowered her eyes, feeling kind of ashamed her brother had done it.

"I'm sorry about that Harry." She started. He raised his finger to her lips, quieting her.

"Its not your fault." He said quietly.

"How did you get a calming draught and dreamless potion?" She asked curiously. He gave a bark of a laugh at that.

"Just because I live as a Muggle in a Muggle area doesn't mean I gave up on magic and stuff. I still make potions, I still do magic. I am a wizard. I cant turn my back on who I really am." He stated. Ginny nodded, feeling slightly embarrassed her question now. "Even with all the pain its caused me, it was still what saved me."

"From the Dursleys?" She asked him.

"Yes, and whatever life would be available to me once I had grown up. My life was very dull, mundane, and full of hurt. I just wanted to be loved. Well, not even that. Even I didn't have any hope that I would ever get that." Ginny looked at him sadly.

"Don't say that Harry, you are very worthy of love and you should have gotten it without having to ask. How they treated you was just wrong." She stated firmly. He gave a sad smile.

"I realize that now, and I supposed I knew that then, but back then, I don't know. I just didn't feel worthy of love. I believed what they said about me. That I was worthless, a freak. That I was lucky I was alive and should leave it at that." He sighed. "No, I craved love but I didn't have a hope for it. I just wanted to be, I don't know, treated better. At least to have their reaction when I walked into the room be better then if I had stepped in dog shit."

"That's not right Harry. You should have wanted more." She scolded lightly.

"It's hard to want more when you don't know more. Its been the same since the day I got there. I didn't even remember my parents. I didn't even know their names till Hagrid came. I never knew what they looked like till the Mirror of Erised."

"But you were eleven! You didn't even know what your parents looked like?" She asked horrified. He shook his head no. "You're aunt didn't have any pictures at least of your mother?"

"I don't know if she did or not. I never thought to ask growing up. That was key to survival at the Dursleys, 'Don't Ask Questions.'" He said firmly. "It didn't really matter anyways. They were dead, and nothing would change that. Knowing their names and faces, would have been nice but it wouldn't matter at all.

"But it would have given you some connection to them. Some comfort." She argued. Again Harry laughed.

"That was beaten out of me long ago Ginny. My life was that of a servant, or slave. Whichever way look at it. The only reason I was able to escape to go to school was because of the law." He paused for a moment.

But anyways, I thought we'd take advantage of this time alone." He took a deep breath. "Ill start from when I left the Burrow, and you were still sleeping"

TBC

A/N Thanks for all the reviews! next update: Tommrow