Title Needed (Desperately!)
Chapter 7: Under the Moonlight
A/N: Hehe, I was evil last chapter!!! But I just posted it, so I'm starting this right away!!! So maybe (*I hope!!*) I'll get this up soon. Once again, thanks to anyone who cares enough to review my story. It means a lot to me (not you though Evelyn, you don't count! :-P!). Okay, I'll shut up and start writing... Wait, once again, I'm apologizing for this story now taking on a life of it's own... I have some idea where this is headed... and I fear it may be a sad ending... oh well, if you want to read humor, go check out my story "Harry Potter and the Pi Day Project"... it's worth 3.14159265.... laughs... that was bad... lol.. oh well....
Disclaimer: A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away... I owned Harry Potter!!! Darn, that makes a second disclaimer I have to do... I don't own Harry Potter, and I don't own that infamous catchphrase at the beginning of this disclaimer... I think we all know who they belong to....
***
"I can't help who I am, Ginny. If I'm like him, then maybe I'm supposed to be like him," James said in response. A tear slid down his cheek and landed on the ground. Ginny looked him in the eyes. A flash of recognition passed through her.
"Harry?" she asked weakly, barely above a whisper. Her eyes were wide with disbelief. She clearly did not trust what her eyes and heart told her she saw.
"You can't tell anyone. Please!" James pleaded with Ginny, who had come rushing over to him when she realized that it was really him. (A/N: I just have to clear this up real quick. I'm going to start calling him Harry when it's just w/ people who know the truth, but the rest of the time he's James, k?).
"Harry! We all thought you were dead! I mean, how can you NOT be dead?" she asked, pulling away to look at Harry in the eyes. He looked up at the statue for a moment, the figure illuminated in the pale moonlight.
"It doesn't matter. All that matters is I'm back. But you can't tell anyone Ginny. Not Ron, or Hermione, or Sirius. No one. Not even Dumbledore knows it's really me. I mean, I think he has some idea, but he doesn't know for sure. You can't tell them though Ginny," Harry once again begged her.
"Harry. It's really you. Oh Harry! You don't know how much this means to me. All these years, I never got to say goodbye to you," Ginny was once again in Harry's arms, crying uncontrollably as she spoke. "Why'd you go Harry?" she asked softly. Harry sighed.
"I don't know. I'm not really sure myself, but after I killed Voldemort, I just felt compelled to leave. So I did," Harry replied. He felt Ginny shudder slightly as he said Voldemort's name, but he chose to ignore it.
"Why won't you tell the others though? They miss you as much as I did. Especially Ron and Hermione. They felt so guilty about letting you go that night. And Sirius was a wreck for a good six months straight. We all thought he might not make it, but then he became an Auror and took out his grief on the Death Eaters. About five years ago he was made Minister of Magic," Ginny said.
"I can't tell them. I want them to be happy. You all finally got to be in the spotlight, where you should have been all along. I never wanted or deserved all that fame everyone gave to me," Harry replied quietly.
"Don't say that, Harry. Whatever the reason was, you shouldn't blame yourself. Please," Ginny comforted him. Harry nodded slightly.
"Thank you. So, what else has been going on with you guys?" Harry asked, trying to lighten the mood. Ginny sniffed a little.
"Ron and Hermione got married a little while after, well, you know, and they had a son. They named him Harry," Ginny said. Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"How old is he?" Harry asked, feeling slightly flattered that his two best friends had named their first child after him. Ginny smiled.
"He's ten now. He'll be attending Hogwarts next year. Oh Harry, he's such a darling child, although I think Fred and George have gotten to him. Mischievous, he is. He's so adorable though. Auburn hair, and chocolate brown eyes. He'll be a lady killer, that's for sure," Ginny said, smiling as she wiped away her tears.
"What about you? How have you been? I mean, I heard you were married and all. Who's the lucky man?" Harry asked, only the slightest bit of jealousy in his voice.
"His name's Frank. He's a Muggle actually, but I fell in love with him after he ran into me in the middle of the street. He was so sweet, and even sent me flowers in apology. I couldn't resist his charm," Ginny replied, a note of longing hidden in her voice.
"No kids?" Harry asked, almost hopefully. Ginny blushed a little, and turned to look at the statue to avoid meeting Harry's gaze.
"I have a daughter. She's five now. Frank stays at home with her when I work, but I visit whenever I can," Ginny replied. She could almost picture the look on Harry's face.
"Oh. What's her name? What does she look like?" Harry asked, trying to hide the sadness in his voice.
"Everyone says she looks like me, but with her father's eyes. She has red hair, and crystal blue eyes. We weren't expecting a daughter, so we didn't even have any girl's names picked out for her, but when I saw her, I knew the perfect name. Her name is Lily," Ginny said, still with her back turned to Harry. She heard him gasp softly. "Oh Harry, I'm so sorry. I didn't even think about what you would ever say. I mean, I thought you were gone, and the name just seemed so perfect for her," Ginny said, turning back to Harry, almost begging for forgiveness.
"No, don't be sorry. Lily is a beautiful name, and I'm sure she's a beautiful girl if you saw fit to name her that. Especially if she looks like her mother," Harry said, him being the one to turn his back now. Tears started coming to Ginny's eyes once again.
"Harry, please. What was I supposed to do? Pretend I never met you? Pretend you didn't touch my life like no other person ever has? Or should I have just forgotten? Forgotten about everything we had together, just like you did? Because that's what you did when you left, Harry Potter. You decided that you could just leave us all behind and pretend like none of it ever happened. But you never once thought about what it might do to us. We thought you were dead, Harry. Sure, we might not have found a body, but where could you have gone? Surely, the Great Harry Potter wouldn't run away. He's not a coward. And anyway, what would he be afraid of? He wasn't even afraid to face the Dark Lord, alone, when he was only a child. I guess you were more of a child than anyone ever thought. And now you think you can just come waltzing back into our lives like none of it ever happened. You're wrong Harry. Terribly so," Ginny said, tears of anger and pain and grief running down her cheeks as she vented her emotions to the man she had once loved.
"I'm not trying to come back into your lives. That's why I don't want you telling anyone about me. For their sake. And you know what, Ginny? I don't know what I was afraid of. But I was. No one's perfect. Not even me. I'll be the first to admit that. I never wanted to be famous. I never wanted to be the one that millions of people counted on to save them from some crazed megalomaniac. I just wanted to be a normal kid, with a loving family and a few good friends. But I never got that. I guess heroes don't get that chance, now do they?" Harry replied, anger and guilt flooding out with his words. "I'm sorry. What else do you expect from me?"
"It takes more than an apology. You were dead for ten years. I won't tell the others. Not for your sake. For theirs. They don't need the pain. All I have to say though, is you are extremely selfish. I have to leave now. Good night," Ginny said, turning and walking towards the castle. Harry didn't try to follow her. He just turned to look at the statue of his former self.
"I hate you," he muttered to the statue as he headed towards the castle he had called home for seven long years of his life.
***
A/N: Eek... short chapter, I know... Okay, so I have this done tonight (Tue.), but I think I'm going to wait until either tomorrow or Thursday (probably Thursday) to post it so it's not being posted in the middle of the night when no one will see it to read it... Yeah... Well, I guess my story plans just went bye-bye... this WAS supposed to be a fluffy chapter, but *sigh*... I guess not... Please review and tell me what you think!
A/N 2: It's Thursday, and I'm posting! Please review this!!! I really would like to know what people think of it!!!!
A/N 3 (3-29-02): I'm re-formatting this for (*hopefully*) an easier read. Plus I have some mistakes to fix in some of the chapters. Please bear with me!
Chapter 7: Under the Moonlight
A/N: Hehe, I was evil last chapter!!! But I just posted it, so I'm starting this right away!!! So maybe (*I hope!!*) I'll get this up soon. Once again, thanks to anyone who cares enough to review my story. It means a lot to me (not you though Evelyn, you don't count! :-P!). Okay, I'll shut up and start writing... Wait, once again, I'm apologizing for this story now taking on a life of it's own... I have some idea where this is headed... and I fear it may be a sad ending... oh well, if you want to read humor, go check out my story "Harry Potter and the Pi Day Project"... it's worth 3.14159265.... laughs... that was bad... lol.. oh well....
Disclaimer: A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away... I owned Harry Potter!!! Darn, that makes a second disclaimer I have to do... I don't own Harry Potter, and I don't own that infamous catchphrase at the beginning of this disclaimer... I think we all know who they belong to....
***
"I can't help who I am, Ginny. If I'm like him, then maybe I'm supposed to be like him," James said in response. A tear slid down his cheek and landed on the ground. Ginny looked him in the eyes. A flash of recognition passed through her.
"Harry?" she asked weakly, barely above a whisper. Her eyes were wide with disbelief. She clearly did not trust what her eyes and heart told her she saw.
"You can't tell anyone. Please!" James pleaded with Ginny, who had come rushing over to him when she realized that it was really him. (A/N: I just have to clear this up real quick. I'm going to start calling him Harry when it's just w/ people who know the truth, but the rest of the time he's James, k?).
"Harry! We all thought you were dead! I mean, how can you NOT be dead?" she asked, pulling away to look at Harry in the eyes. He looked up at the statue for a moment, the figure illuminated in the pale moonlight.
"It doesn't matter. All that matters is I'm back. But you can't tell anyone Ginny. Not Ron, or Hermione, or Sirius. No one. Not even Dumbledore knows it's really me. I mean, I think he has some idea, but he doesn't know for sure. You can't tell them though Ginny," Harry once again begged her.
"Harry. It's really you. Oh Harry! You don't know how much this means to me. All these years, I never got to say goodbye to you," Ginny was once again in Harry's arms, crying uncontrollably as she spoke. "Why'd you go Harry?" she asked softly. Harry sighed.
"I don't know. I'm not really sure myself, but after I killed Voldemort, I just felt compelled to leave. So I did," Harry replied. He felt Ginny shudder slightly as he said Voldemort's name, but he chose to ignore it.
"Why won't you tell the others though? They miss you as much as I did. Especially Ron and Hermione. They felt so guilty about letting you go that night. And Sirius was a wreck for a good six months straight. We all thought he might not make it, but then he became an Auror and took out his grief on the Death Eaters. About five years ago he was made Minister of Magic," Ginny said.
"I can't tell them. I want them to be happy. You all finally got to be in the spotlight, where you should have been all along. I never wanted or deserved all that fame everyone gave to me," Harry replied quietly.
"Don't say that, Harry. Whatever the reason was, you shouldn't blame yourself. Please," Ginny comforted him. Harry nodded slightly.
"Thank you. So, what else has been going on with you guys?" Harry asked, trying to lighten the mood. Ginny sniffed a little.
"Ron and Hermione got married a little while after, well, you know, and they had a son. They named him Harry," Ginny said. Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"How old is he?" Harry asked, feeling slightly flattered that his two best friends had named their first child after him. Ginny smiled.
"He's ten now. He'll be attending Hogwarts next year. Oh Harry, he's such a darling child, although I think Fred and George have gotten to him. Mischievous, he is. He's so adorable though. Auburn hair, and chocolate brown eyes. He'll be a lady killer, that's for sure," Ginny said, smiling as she wiped away her tears.
"What about you? How have you been? I mean, I heard you were married and all. Who's the lucky man?" Harry asked, only the slightest bit of jealousy in his voice.
"His name's Frank. He's a Muggle actually, but I fell in love with him after he ran into me in the middle of the street. He was so sweet, and even sent me flowers in apology. I couldn't resist his charm," Ginny replied, a note of longing hidden in her voice.
"No kids?" Harry asked, almost hopefully. Ginny blushed a little, and turned to look at the statue to avoid meeting Harry's gaze.
"I have a daughter. She's five now. Frank stays at home with her when I work, but I visit whenever I can," Ginny replied. She could almost picture the look on Harry's face.
"Oh. What's her name? What does she look like?" Harry asked, trying to hide the sadness in his voice.
"Everyone says she looks like me, but with her father's eyes. She has red hair, and crystal blue eyes. We weren't expecting a daughter, so we didn't even have any girl's names picked out for her, but when I saw her, I knew the perfect name. Her name is Lily," Ginny said, still with her back turned to Harry. She heard him gasp softly. "Oh Harry, I'm so sorry. I didn't even think about what you would ever say. I mean, I thought you were gone, and the name just seemed so perfect for her," Ginny said, turning back to Harry, almost begging for forgiveness.
"No, don't be sorry. Lily is a beautiful name, and I'm sure she's a beautiful girl if you saw fit to name her that. Especially if she looks like her mother," Harry said, him being the one to turn his back now. Tears started coming to Ginny's eyes once again.
"Harry, please. What was I supposed to do? Pretend I never met you? Pretend you didn't touch my life like no other person ever has? Or should I have just forgotten? Forgotten about everything we had together, just like you did? Because that's what you did when you left, Harry Potter. You decided that you could just leave us all behind and pretend like none of it ever happened. But you never once thought about what it might do to us. We thought you were dead, Harry. Sure, we might not have found a body, but where could you have gone? Surely, the Great Harry Potter wouldn't run away. He's not a coward. And anyway, what would he be afraid of? He wasn't even afraid to face the Dark Lord, alone, when he was only a child. I guess you were more of a child than anyone ever thought. And now you think you can just come waltzing back into our lives like none of it ever happened. You're wrong Harry. Terribly so," Ginny said, tears of anger and pain and grief running down her cheeks as she vented her emotions to the man she had once loved.
"I'm not trying to come back into your lives. That's why I don't want you telling anyone about me. For their sake. And you know what, Ginny? I don't know what I was afraid of. But I was. No one's perfect. Not even me. I'll be the first to admit that. I never wanted to be famous. I never wanted to be the one that millions of people counted on to save them from some crazed megalomaniac. I just wanted to be a normal kid, with a loving family and a few good friends. But I never got that. I guess heroes don't get that chance, now do they?" Harry replied, anger and guilt flooding out with his words. "I'm sorry. What else do you expect from me?"
"It takes more than an apology. You were dead for ten years. I won't tell the others. Not for your sake. For theirs. They don't need the pain. All I have to say though, is you are extremely selfish. I have to leave now. Good night," Ginny said, turning and walking towards the castle. Harry didn't try to follow her. He just turned to look at the statue of his former self.
"I hate you," he muttered to the statue as he headed towards the castle he had called home for seven long years of his life.
***
A/N: Eek... short chapter, I know... Okay, so I have this done tonight (Tue.), but I think I'm going to wait until either tomorrow or Thursday (probably Thursday) to post it so it's not being posted in the middle of the night when no one will see it to read it... Yeah... Well, I guess my story plans just went bye-bye... this WAS supposed to be a fluffy chapter, but *sigh*... I guess not... Please review and tell me what you think!
A/N 2: It's Thursday, and I'm posting! Please review this!!! I really would like to know what people think of it!!!!
A/N 3 (3-29-02): I'm re-formatting this for (*hopefully*) an easier read. Plus I have some mistakes to fix in some of the chapters. Please bear with me!