Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter series. I do however wish I owned the Harry Potter series. For then I'd be rich and not have to worry about college or financial aid or three tests, a lab, and chart due within a three day time span. Oh the joys of college…

Well, I had some serious writers block and I think this chapter is a load of crap thrown together in a Word Document. I hope you find it better than I do. I seem to have very little confidence in my writing, at least when it comes to chapter that I'm not sure how to write. And this was one of them. I got what I wanted to in the chapter and that's all that matters I guess, well not all but w/e. I hope you like it more than I do!

Well, like I mentioned in the disclaimer, I have three tests, a lab, and a chronology chart of Jesus' life due all before Wednesday. One test is done with, good or bad we'll find out. I have yet another tomorrow along with my Biology lab. I wrote this chapter when I should have been studying for my impending English exam tomorrow morning… Ah well! Another test on Wednesday and the chart due and that's all the homework I'll have until I'm back from spring break! Oh this Friday couldn't come soon enough.

Anyway, I'll stop rambling now. I hope you enjoy this chapter enough to leave a review! Oh how they brighten my day. And trust me, after a week like I've been having, I need them.

So, without further ado…

Chapter 39 (ALMOST TO 40!)

Ginny POV

The next few weeks were hard. I had gotten so used to seeing Draco, having the physical reassurance that he was okay, that not getting to see or hear from him, or even know if he was okay, was killing me. I took my dad's advice though and tried not to worry but it was easier said than done. But I did try.

Every Tuesday I still went to the cottage in the woods with the hope that he would show up. The first time I tried not to get my hopes up. But there was the hope that last week had just been a fluke and that he'd be back this time. It was with a hopeful smile on my face that I apparated to the so familiar cottage in the woods.

The cottage was dark when I opened my eyes. The shadowy trees loomed overhead as I slowly made my way to the door. My hope wasn't gone yet, I almost always made it here before him. I swung the door open and put the healing things I brought away and started a roaring fire before kicking my shoes off to wait nervously on the bed.

The hours ticked by slowly. The tears I'd hoped I was done crying came back with a vengeance when the clock struck five. He didn't show up again. My hope was crushed and I'd returned home with tear-filled eyes and had stayed in my room that day. Mum was worried about me but at least Dad understood why, or he could have easily guessed. Staying true to my unspoken wish, he'd not told Mum what I'd said the other day.

The next week I had even less hope that Draco would come back to me but it was there nonetheless. Again I waited and waited, tears filling my eyes as the clock ticked by. So, again that hope was shattered when I apparated home without even a trace of Draco to be seen.

More weeks passed and each Tuesday I would make my way to the cottage. Each time I was greeted with nothing but the cold, dank rooms. These days were the hardest. Lying in the big bed we had shared on countless nights, I would curl up alone with a pillow that smelled like him. Eventually even the pillow lost the scent of Draco. It got harder and harder to just get from day to day. I was so very lost without my Draco.

I tried to stay strong for the sake of my family, but it wasn't easy by any means. I had no appetite and would only barely make myself eat when Mum shoved food in front of me. It was like when I lost Draco, I lost the will to live. The only thing really that I had to hold onto was the necklace he'd once given me and his promise that he'd always come back to me. He'd never break his promise.

My seventeenth birthday came and went. That was one of the few days I'd been able to smile in a long while. I'd gotten a small package by owl that freaked everybody out, seeing as how owl post was no longer safe. But I recognized the writing on the tag that said 'Red,' the nickname I hadn't heard in so long. It was from Blaise, I realized, my heart going into my throat. After reassuring everyone that it was fine, I opened it to revile a small glass vile.

It was filled with a clear liquid that I couldn't even begin to guess what it was. As my family gathered closer around me, even four month pregnant Fleur craning her head for a better look, to find out what this mysterious gift was, Bill picked up a tiny scrap of parchment from the bottom of the box. "Phoenix tears," he read aloud in an awed voice.

Phoenix tears were rare and priceless. A single drop could bring someone back from death's door. I felt tears fill my eyes as I stared at the little glass vile in my hand. This tiny bottle was worth more than all the money I'd ever seen in my entire life. This little bottle was worth more money than maybe even Draco had ever seen. It was literally priceless, especially in times of war.

I didn't even try to understand how this came into Blaise's possession. I was more than a little shaken to my core at this gift. I'd also gotten, from my parents, a small bag. It wasn't pretty by any means and no bigger than the size of my fist. But, as they explained to me, only the owner of the bag would be able to open it and no amount of magic could break that. Also, it would keep everything inside of it as pristine as the day it was put in, even if it were run over by a train or trampled by a giant.

It was with a feeling of awe that I turned the vile over in my hand once more before slipping it securely into the bag and pulling the strings closed. Slipping the long cord around my neck, I let the bag settle on my chest where it would stay safe.

After that day, things kind of went back to how they'd been. When September 1st rolled around, there was no question about me not going back to Hogwarts, though it was still kept open. Things just stayed how they had been. I still went every Tuesday to the cottage and still Draco did not come back. I quickly slipped back into my depression I'd been in before.

About another month passed like this. It had been over two months since I'd seen Draco I was starting to wear thing, like too little butter scraped over toast. It was mid-November when Mum and Dad sat me down in the sitting room to talk to me. I wasn't sure what they were going to say as I perched myself on the small sofa in front of the fireplace. I looked up at them confused.

Mum came over and sat down next to me, her arm wrapping around my shoulders and pulling me to her. I let myself be cradled in my mother's grasp. "We've been so worried about you lately dear. This war is really taking its toll on you," she said before letting me go.

I looked from her to Dad, still confused. "It's hard on everybody," I said in a voice hoarse from underuse.

"Ginny," Dad said from where he stood by the fire. "We think it would be best if you get away from everything for a while." He smiled softly down at me. "It will be good for you."

I froze. "Where are you sending me?" I asked in an almost terrified whisper.

Mum pat my leg reassuringly. "Not to worry dear. You're only going to go stay with Bill and Fleur at Shell Cottage for a while. It will be good for you to stay away from the war," she said, trying to ease my fear. "It's a lovely little place, peaceful and quite. And I'm sure Fleur would like another woman around during her pregnancy."

I heard my dad cough, sounding suspiciously like "not a woman yet." I think he was still in denial about his little girl being so grown up. I felt a grin settle on my lips for the first time in many weeks. Maybe this idea for me to go to Shell Cottage wouldn't be so bad. But what if they kept too close eye on me that I couldn't sneak out to wait for Draco on Tuesdays?

"… and you'll get to help! Don't you think that will be fun? " Mum asked.

"Huh?" I asked back, too lost in thought to realize she'd been talking to me.

"I said you'll get to help with the baby room. They're adding another room onto the cottage just for it. They want to keep the guest room since you'll be staying with them for a while. You'll get to help fix and decorate the new room. Don't you think that will be fun?" she asked again, a smile on her face.

"Yeah," I agreed halfheartedly, trying to sound enthusiastic about it all. I was still worried I wouldn't get to go to the cottage though. What if Draco finally did show up and I wasn't there? He would think I'd given up on him!

"Well, go pack Gin-bug and we'll have you settled in in time for lunch," Dad said, helping me off the sofa and to my feet.

"Alright," I said as I made my way back up the stairs. I knew they were doing what they thought was best for me, but what if it wasn't really best? What was going to happen once I was cut off from everything?

I packed quickly, not wanting to prolong this. In a way, I was excited. I'd never had the chance to see Shell Cottage yet and I hadn't seen my brother or sister-in-law since my birthday. Plus, I'd get to be a part of the pregnancy of my first ever niece or nephew. How could that not put a smile on my face? I felt like this was going to be a god thing in the long run. Whatever the obstacles put in my way, I'd still make it back to Draco.

I grabbed my trunk, the one that had been with me since my first year, and set it, full, on the floor of my bedroom. Years ago, Mum had magically modified it to fit much more than usual, much like Dad did to that old car Ron accidentally set loose in the Forbidden Forest. Such fond memories.

Then I coaxed a very reluctant Amour into her cat carrier. She hated that thing, not that I blamed her. But there was no way I'd leave without her. She was the only living link I had to Draco. Finally, I grabbed my teddy bear that had gotten me through countless nights. Putting him under my arm, I levitated my trunk and cat carrier downstairs, a no so happy Amour meowing pitifully from her cage.

"I'm ready," I called out as I descended the last flight of stairs down into the sitting room.

I heard Mum bustling around in the kitchen and Dad was just walking back inside. "Okay," Mum called from the kitchen. I sat my things down and slipped my cloak on from where it hung on the cloak rack by the stairs. "I'll be done in a moment. I'm just finishing up some soup and bread to take for lunch." She was afraid that Fleur wasn't eating enough and always made a point to make extra food each time we got together.

I walked into the kitchen to see Mum standing over a bubbling pot on the stove and Dad stomping his feet to get the snow off by the back door. Seeing me standing in the doorway to the sitting room, he said, "I'll take your things over to Bill's. Why don't you lend your mother a hand?"

"Okay," I said with a shrug as I went to help Mum. She silently pointed me to the bread. I took the fresh loaves out of the oven and wrapped them up before putting them beside the basket we would be taking over there. After a moment, Mum put a large covered bowl, holding the delicious smelling soup, in the basket before putting the bread around it. Covering the basket in a cloth and tapping it with her wand to keep it from cooling off, she handed it to me to carry.

"Let's go dear. Your father is already there and I'm sure they're waiting for us," she said as she took my hand and led me out the back door and into the chilly mid-morning air. Seeing as I'd never been to Shell Cottage before, I didn't mind when she took me via side-along apparition.

What awaited me looked like the front of a muggle postcard. A stunning little cottage was nestled on the cliff overlooking the sea. The cliff slowly sloped down to form a pretty little beach. The area around the cottage was a winter wonderland covered in snow with trees and rocks poking out at odd places. It was beautiful.

I'll try and keep this author note short seeing as how I should have been in bed hours ago since I have an early test.

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