Disclaimer: Look at chapter one.
A/N: I really wasn't planning on writing more on this one, but all the reviews said to continue it. So I'm giving it a try. Don't blame me if its not too good. I was being such a stupid ass…of course Godric's Hollow was destroyed! Urgh! So sorry, but if I correct myself, then there will be no story. So the mistake stays….right, read on!
Chapter 2
"Harry?" Ginny whispered softly, climbing into the bed and sliding under the heavy covers.
"Mmm?" Harry mumbled, his eyes still closed.
"What if…what if we were to move into your parents' house?" Bright green eyes shot open.
"You want to?" Harry was now sitting up very straight. There was a very pregnant pause as he stared at her, incredulous.
"Well…" Ginny began, her brown eyes serious. "It is a beautiful house, and with a little cleaning and fixing it would be perfect for us."
"D'you know, I was thinking the same thing yesterday?"
"Why didn't you say anything?" Ginny asked him.
"Well, I would have, if you hadn't been sobbing so damn hard," Harry grinned at her. Ginny playfully slapped his arm.
"Good point," Ginny said, covering a yawn. "Let's talk more tomorrow." Harry leaned over to kiss her cheek.
"G'night, Gin."
"'Night, Harry."
Ginny woke up the next morning to irritatingly bright sunlight. She gently picked up Harry's arm, which was snaked tightly around her waist, and laid it aside. As quietly as possible, she thrust her feet into some slippers before pulling on a bathrobe and heading downstairs.
"Shit!" She cursed under her breath when she stubbed her toe on a table leg. Getting herself a bowl of cereal and some milk, Ginny grabbed the Daily Prophet and sat down at the table. She was glancing through an article about Gilderoy Lockhart's return to the wizarding world, when Harry walked in. His black hair was as tousled as possible and his white shirt and flannel bottoms were still crinkled with sleep. He was truly the most gorgeous man in the world.
"Good morning, scarhead," Ginny greeted him with her usual greeting.
"Morning, Mrs. Riddle," Harry replied, playing along. Ginny snorted.
"When'd you come up with that one?"
"Last night," Harry answered nonchalantly. He helped himself to Ginny's cereal. Ginny pulled the bowl back to her after he'd taken a few spoonfuls.
Ginny chewed thoughtfully and swallowed. "What if we were to take another look at the house today? Go magick a couple of things to function and clean up a bit?" Harry nodded taking a swig of coffee. Ginny stared at him, slightly disgusted.
Harry looked up at her. "What?"
"How can you stand coffee?" He shrugged and made a big show of taking another deliberately slow sip. Ginny shook her head, and dumped the breakfast dishes into the sink. Paying no attention to Harry with his coffee, she ran up the flight of stairs and into the bathroom for a quick shower.
Harry got ready as soon as Ginny was out and a half hour later, they were back at the weeping willow. Judging by the clear sky, it was definitely going to be a nice day.
"Things are looking nice and cheery today," Ginny commented, glancing sidelong at her husband. He smiled and said nothing.
The big house came into view directly in front of them. Ginny sighed happily. "Its so gorgeous, Harry!" They hurried forward, finally reaching the dark wooden door.
"You know, Gin?" Harry pushed open the heavy door. "It never occured to me to look around some more downstairs yesterday."
"Yes, I'm positive that there are some more rooms in this mansion." Ginny walked up to the window in the parlour and pushed it open, letting the fresh air weave in through the musty rooms. She pulled out her wand and cleared up the nasty-looking cobwebs. "You take the family room and I'll do the living room." Harry nodded and left, shooting his wand at several cobwebs and dust bunnies on the way.
Ginny went in the direction of the family room. It would've been an extremely elegant save for the three-inch layer of dust over everything. Ginny's wand took care of that.
Two hours later, not a speck of dust was visible in the entire house. Ginny threw herself down on the sofa, thoroughly exhausted and feeling not too clean. Harry joined her a few minutes later; he had been tending to the wild, untamed garden. Ginny leaned into his arms and the two promptly fell asleep.
A loud crash out in the back during the late afternoon startled the sleeping couple awake. Harry stood up quickly and ran out to investigate. Ginny followed, feeling a little scared. When she was out the back door, she saw Harry crouching down on the ground, talking to something. A knobbly, potato-like something.
"Ginny, look!" He exclaimed, pointing excitedly at the ugly creature. "A garden gnome!" Ginny groaned loudly while Harry petted the dratted thing. "Can we keep him, Gin?"
"I don't think we can get rid of him very easily, Harry," Ginny yawned as she kneeled down beside him. The gnome looked up at her with its beady black eyes, and she could swear that the stupid potato had smirked at her.
"C'mon, Gin; he looks so harmless."
"We'll see what you have to say a month from now," Ginny replied pulling Harry away from the shrewd gnome. "Let's go back inside." Harry obliged and followed her into the house. The two of them stood in the kitchen for a minute, admiring all their hard work.
"Ginny, do you suppose there's an attic in this house?"
"There should be; let's go upstairs and check again." Climbing the spotless staircase, they stood in the hallway and looked up, searching the roof. A small square panel protruding about an inch caught Harry's attention. He searched closer and found a small handle in the center. He reached up and tugged gently. The small motion set the whole thing into action and a second later, a spiraling black staircase stood in front of him.
"Wow," Ginny breathed.
"This vaguely reminds me of Divination," Harry said, trudging cautiously up the delicate steps. The attic was surprisingly clean, in comparison to the rest of the house.
"I bet there was some sort of charm or ward on this," Ginny suggested, looking around the circular room with wonderment. Tall, coarse-looking shelves lined the walls and old trunks were scattered around the room. Ginny stooped down beside the nearest trunk and opened it with an 'Alohamora!' The contents made her gasp sharply. Under multiple layers of tissue paper lay a beautiful white wedding dress. Carefully pulling it out of the trunk, Ginny held it wishfully against her body.
"Makes you want to have another wedding, doesn't it?" Harry asked softly, looking dazed. Ginny nodded mutely before folding up the gown and carefully placing it back in the cradle of tissue. She closed the trunk with a soft click and joined Harry next to a rusted trunk. She watched as he struggled to open the latch, and finally succeeded. Yellowed rolls of paper and canvas were stacked neatly in the trunk.
Ginny lifted one out of the trunk and unrolled it on the floor. It was a beautiful sketch of the house. They looked at a few more, some sketches of James on a broomstick, some of the sunset.
"Your mum was an artist," Ginny said kissing Harry's cheek as he looked at the drawings in awe. Harry nodded in agreement and began to put them back into the trunk.
"C'mon, Gin," Harry stood up and held out a hand for her. "We'll have plenty of time to frolic in the attic once we move in. Let's get back to the flat now." Ginny accepted his hand, and together they locked up and walked back to the Weeping Willow.
A/N: Sorry if it wasn't up to your expectations…Please review anyway. I don't know where exactly I'm going with this story, so don't expect to see any updates too soon. Thanks to all who reviewed the first chapter. You're greatly appreciated.
