Telling Ron
Chapter 19: The Nightmare
Author's Note: I know it's a lame title but I didn't now what else to call it. Guys, thanks a lot for the reviews.
Disclaimer: I thought I'd better put in a disclaimer for this chapter since I'm quoting some parts of OotP from Harry's perspective at the beginning. So, I don't own anything related to Harry Potter. It all belongs to the great and wonderful J.K. Rowling who is a genious.
His eyes widened and he fell backward through the veil. Harry watched in horror as his godfather disappeared before his eyes. He yelled out Sirius' name but it did no good. He was gone. Lupin grabbed Harry to hold him back as Harry ran to the dais.
"There's nothing you can do Harry-"
"Get him, save him, he's only just gone through!"
"It's too late, Harry-"
"We can still reach him-"
"There's nothing you can do, Harry...nothing...He's gone."
Harry's eyes snapped open. He felt sick and hot. He was breathing heavily and sweating like he was in a sauna. He pushed his sheets off and sat up slowly. He was having this dream at least twice a week. He wasn't getting sick afterwords anymore like before but felt awful all the same. Ron rolled over and opened his eyes, sleepily. He saw the look on Harry's face and sat up.
"You okay, mate? What's wrong?"
"Just a bad dream. I'm alright." Harry wiped the sweat off his forehead and rubbed it on his sheets. Ron's eyes filled with worry.
"Like a prophecy type dream or just a plain nightmare?"
"Nightmare about Sirius when he, you know..." Harry looked at the ground, a lump forming in his throat.
"Is that what's been happening lately? I thought I was hearing someone rush to the lavatory at school but decided it was in my dreams."
"Yeah that was me. I keep having the same dream. I know I miss him but why can't I stop dreaming about it?" Harry looked at Ron angrily. "Why can't it leave me alone?"
"I don't know Harry."
Harry exhaled and stood up. "I'm going outside to get some air."
"You want me to come with?" Ron put his feet on the floor, ready to stand.
"Thanks but I'd like to be alone." Ron nodded and Harry pulled on some trousers and a shirt (don't know what he sleeps in but we'll say boxers. Oh the thought...ahhh. Ron too...Mmm. K, shut up Michelle). He went down the stairs as fast as he could and pushed open the back door. Despite the snowy weather and the fact that he wasn't wearing a jacket, the cold felt wonderful against his hot body. He sat down on the porch and looked up at the clouds above him. It looked like more snow was coming.
He sat outside until dawn and then entered the house again. He made himself a cup of tea and sat at the kitchen table, wondering what Voldemort was up to. No one had heard anything from him and the Order wouldn't say anything until he was seventeen and could join. Fred and George wouldn't even talk about it with them since they had become members. They knew what it was like to wonder on the outside but still kept their mouths shut. It frustrated Harry beyond anything else in his life. He was going to be seventeen in seven months and felt like he should be told what was going on. It was he who had faced Voldemort countless times and escaped while others in the Order had never come face to face with him. It was his parents who had died from direct contact with the Dark Lord while he survived. He deserved far more than most to know his whereabouts. He sighed heavily and heard footsteps on the stairs behind him.
"Hi Harry. Why are you up so early?" Ginny sat down in a chair across from him and put her hand on his. He had never been happier to see her in his life. He pulled her into a hug and felt that lump in his throat come back. Ginny felt surprised but squeezed him tightly.
"What's wrong?" she whispered in his ear, softly running her fingernails up and down his back. He didn't answer and Ginny felt his body shudder. She knew he was trying not to cry and her heart grew heavy. He took deep breaths to regain composure and fought the tears in his eyes, allowing only one to drop. She ran her fingers through his hair and kissed the side of his head, fighting tears herself.
"Did something happen?" she choked out. He pulled away but held onto her hand. Looking in her eyes, he used his other to wipe away a tear running down her cheek.
"I had a dream about Sirius a few hours ago." The rest of the tears in her eyes overflowed and she sobbed. "Oh Harry, I'm so sorry."
He pulled her onto his lap and she put her face in his chest. "I wish I could have been there for you." Harry smiled into her hair and rubbed her back.
"You did what you could for me. And we're together now. I'm here for you and you're here for me. Well I assume you are," he said jokingly. She looked into his eyes and sniffed.
"Harry I will be there for you the rest of my life. Well that's what I have planned right now. So yes, I'm here for you. I...I thought it was too early to say this but I'm going to say it anyway. Harry...I love you. I love you so much...more than you'll ever know. I have for so long but when I first met you, it was a crush type love. I'm deeply in love with you now. I hope that doesn't scare you because I don't want to scare you away," she sobbed and wiped her face. Harry stared at her in amazemnet. Then a smile came to his lips. He pulled her into him again and whispered, "Ginny, I promise you'll never scare me away."
He kissed her head and continued down to her cheek and around to her lips. She closed her eyes and put her hands on his face, holding him to her. She pulled her face away occasionally to wipe away her tears and he looked at her beautiful, puffy face the entire time. She laughed at the adoration in his eyes.
"Don't look at me like that. I look horrible."
Harry shook his head. "No you look so beautiful Ginny. You have no idea." She blushed and he leaned into her again. She caught him with her lips and held his upper arms as he carressed her face with his strong hands. Ginny heard a noise nearby and opened one eye to see Hermione standing in the doorway to the kitchen. Ginny gave a small shriek and fell off Harry's lap, onto the floor. He stared at her confused and looked behind him.
"Hermione! What are you doing?" Harry stood up quickly and helped Ginny up. Hermione giggled and smiled at them.
"I was right then. You two were keeping this a secret from everyone."
Harry blushed and Ginny said, "What do you mean you were right? How did you know?"
"I saw you two doing, well what you were just doing, outside by a tree a couple weeks ago."
Harry and Ginny looked at each other, grinning. "That was when we got together," Harry said.
"And our first kiss," Ginny said happily.
"Yes, I figured. Well congratulations. You've kept the secret very well but you're lucky that I wasn't Ron. If you want to continue keeping this a secret then you'd better be more careful next time."
Harry nodded, realizing what could've happened if Ron had walked in on that. "So you'll keep it quiet then?" he asked. She nodded and grinned at him. He smiled and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Were you guys crying?" Hermione asked, noticing Ginny's red eyes.
"Oh I was. Harry had a bad dream and I got a bit emotional, that's all."
Hermione nodded but didn't believe her. She could tell Harry had shed a tear or two as well.
"Well we better go get dressed. Your Mum was going to wake us in half an hour anyway. You might want to wash your face to hide the crying." Hermione motioned for Ginny to follow her back upstairs. Ginny kissed Harry's cheek and took Hermione' hand as they walked up the stairs. Harry put his teacup in the sink and headed up behind them. He needed to think of a really good Christmas gift for Ginny and would be leaving for Hogsmeade in about an hour and a half.
He entered his room to a deafening snore from Ron. Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise and suppressed a laugh. That was the funniest thing he'd ever heard Ron do. He rifled through his trunk for some clothes for the day and grabbed a pair of Uncle Vernon's largest, ugliest socks to throw at Ron to wake him up. Ron opened his mouth to snore just as Harry threw the socks and they landed right on his lips. He sat up sputtering and pulled a piece of lint off his lower lip.
"What in the name of Merlin are you trying to do? Suffocate me with foul smelling socks?"
"No just trying to wake you. We're going to Hogsmeade today. Get up."
Ron grumbled but stood up and headed to the loo. He came back a few minutes later to see Harry sitting on his bed, fully dressed with his head in his hands, massaging his temples.
"Brain ache?" Ron joked.
Harry lifted his head to look at Ron.
"Just thinking about gifts. I don't know what to get everyone this year. I don't want to give the same gifts every year like usual. It's the first time I've been here for Christmas and I want everything to be special."
"I'm sure you'll think of something," Ron said, pulling on a pair of trousers. Fred and George would probably give you a discount on any jokes you got from them."
"That's not a good gift for girls though. I've got to shop for Hermione, Ginny, your Mum, and Tonks is coming too. Tonks might fancy a joke though. We'll see."
"Come on, let's go eat breakfast. I'm starving," Ron said opening his door. They went down to the kitchen and sat down to wait for the food.
Author's Note: Now that wasn't a cliffhanger was it? You guys aren't anxiously waiting for something, right? Well, you might be looking forward to Hogsmeade but otherwise, it wasn't a cliffy. Hope not. Ok, I know you R/Hers might be complaining about the huge amount of H/G in this chapter but it just came to me. I didn't even plan a chapter like this. Don't worry though, R/H fluff in next chapter. Thanks for the gift suggestions. A few of them have helped out. I don't need anymore ideas about that. I think I know what Ron's gift from Hermione wil be but if anyone gives me a better idea, I'll use it. I also have Ginny's gift figured out from Harry but I could use some help for his gift from her. You're gonna like what Ron buys for Hermione. I'm not going to wait for Hermione to open it for you guys to know what it is. It'll be some...what's that word when the audience knows something the characters don't? I don't remember but it'll be like that. You will all know what Hermione's gift is but she won't. What is that word? We learned it when we read Romeo and Juliet in school. If you know it, tell me. It's going to drive me nuts until I think of it. Is it dramatic irony? Is that it? I don't know. Tell me if I'm right. Thanks! Sorry for all the blabbing.
One more thing. Like I said thanks for the gift suggestions. I know you all thought this would be the Hogsmeade chapter but this'll give you guys a bit more time to think of the gift ideas. If you can't think of anything, don't worry about it. I just thought I'd ask but I'll figure something out if no one can think of anything. If you do think of something, e-mail me by Friday. I plan on having the next chapter updated by Friday night. They're going to Hogsmeade next so I need any gift thoughts ASAP. Ok, let me thank you all properly.
Individuals:
DanceChic0869: I'll try and put the 'talk' in the next chapter but I have a lot planned already for Hogsmeade. No, I'll probably put it in anyway. It'll end up being a really long chapter but I don't think anyone would mind that! : )
'Mione Weasley: I'm evil too with all my cliffhangers. It's just as bad as not updating soon. We're both evil authors yet we have similar fans. Interesting...Don't worry I'll update very soon.
thekecmaster: Thanks, I'm glad it was good!
Lissa: I agree! I mean they've only been together about a month but I feel like they've fancied each other for years! They should be making out. I've made Harry and Ginny's relationship a bit slower since they haven't been together that long plus they haven't had feelings for each other for years like R/H. Well maybe Ginny has but Harry hasn't.
PiNkRiBbOn13dancegirl: Thanks for the ideas. They're really good but I think I read the one about the Cup picture and I don't want to copy. I figured out Hermione's gift now but thank you for the thought!
Hermione2004: Thank you! Yeah, I don't have Microsoft Word so I don't have spell check. I'm a pretty good speller though and usually I only make a mistake because I'm typing fast so I can update faster!
hplova4eva: Thank you!
puppydog-eyes: I might use the watch suggestion unless I get a really astounding idea from someone else. Thanks! I may end up using your bracelet idea too but I'm not sure. Glad you liked the chapter. I'll read your fic when I get a chance. Probably both, actually. They sound good! Question: Who's Sean? In your bio it says a fav pairing of Ginny and Sean. Is he an OC in one of your fics? I'll read and find out.
HermioneClone: You're welcome. I felt bad that I had done so many of them so I'm stopping for awhile. It'll be tough but I promise I won't! Also, thanks for the idea you sent! It was a great idea and I'll probably use it!
angelface58: Thank you! Glad you like it! Yeah I try tp update fast because it bugs me when people neglect updating their fics for a really long time. I mean, I know everyone's busy but still. Waiting three weeks or a month to update is way too long. You can't expect people to wait for a new chapter that long and continue reading.
Cheese Diva: Thanks! I love fluff too! Yeah, the girls gifts we be some kind of jewelry but I won't say what until they go buy them.
Kagome19: Thank you! Yeah, I know lots of you want the F and G speech and the 'plans'. It'll come, don't worry. Yeah, if you think of something good for Ron, e-mail me by Friday so I can decide whether to use the idea or not. If you can't think of something good, don't worry about it. I have a good gift but I want to make sure no one thinks of anything better before I write it and put it on the site.
Lily106: Thank you! Here's a tissue, : )
GinnyPotter: Thanks! Those are good ideas. I'll think about them and see if I get any others.
Manga-lunatic: Thank you!
Penelope Richwood: Yes, the shop is in Diagon Alley. I hope you like the rest of the story when you read it!
Chapter 19: The Nightmare
Author's Note: I know it's a lame title but I didn't now what else to call it. Guys, thanks a lot for the reviews.
Disclaimer: I thought I'd better put in a disclaimer for this chapter since I'm quoting some parts of OotP from Harry's perspective at the beginning. So, I don't own anything related to Harry Potter. It all belongs to the great and wonderful J.K. Rowling who is a genious.
His eyes widened and he fell backward through the veil. Harry watched in horror as his godfather disappeared before his eyes. He yelled out Sirius' name but it did no good. He was gone. Lupin grabbed Harry to hold him back as Harry ran to the dais.
"There's nothing you can do Harry-"
"Get him, save him, he's only just gone through!"
"It's too late, Harry-"
"We can still reach him-"
"There's nothing you can do, Harry...nothing...He's gone."
Harry's eyes snapped open. He felt sick and hot. He was breathing heavily and sweating like he was in a sauna. He pushed his sheets off and sat up slowly. He was having this dream at least twice a week. He wasn't getting sick afterwords anymore like before but felt awful all the same. Ron rolled over and opened his eyes, sleepily. He saw the look on Harry's face and sat up.
"You okay, mate? What's wrong?"
"Just a bad dream. I'm alright." Harry wiped the sweat off his forehead and rubbed it on his sheets. Ron's eyes filled with worry.
"Like a prophecy type dream or just a plain nightmare?"
"Nightmare about Sirius when he, you know..." Harry looked at the ground, a lump forming in his throat.
"Is that what's been happening lately? I thought I was hearing someone rush to the lavatory at school but decided it was in my dreams."
"Yeah that was me. I keep having the same dream. I know I miss him but why can't I stop dreaming about it?" Harry looked at Ron angrily. "Why can't it leave me alone?"
"I don't know Harry."
Harry exhaled and stood up. "I'm going outside to get some air."
"You want me to come with?" Ron put his feet on the floor, ready to stand.
"Thanks but I'd like to be alone." Ron nodded and Harry pulled on some trousers and a shirt (don't know what he sleeps in but we'll say boxers. Oh the thought...ahhh. Ron too...Mmm. K, shut up Michelle). He went down the stairs as fast as he could and pushed open the back door. Despite the snowy weather and the fact that he wasn't wearing a jacket, the cold felt wonderful against his hot body. He sat down on the porch and looked up at the clouds above him. It looked like more snow was coming.
He sat outside until dawn and then entered the house again. He made himself a cup of tea and sat at the kitchen table, wondering what Voldemort was up to. No one had heard anything from him and the Order wouldn't say anything until he was seventeen and could join. Fred and George wouldn't even talk about it with them since they had become members. They knew what it was like to wonder on the outside but still kept their mouths shut. It frustrated Harry beyond anything else in his life. He was going to be seventeen in seven months and felt like he should be told what was going on. It was he who had faced Voldemort countless times and escaped while others in the Order had never come face to face with him. It was his parents who had died from direct contact with the Dark Lord while he survived. He deserved far more than most to know his whereabouts. He sighed heavily and heard footsteps on the stairs behind him.
"Hi Harry. Why are you up so early?" Ginny sat down in a chair across from him and put her hand on his. He had never been happier to see her in his life. He pulled her into a hug and felt that lump in his throat come back. Ginny felt surprised but squeezed him tightly.
"What's wrong?" she whispered in his ear, softly running her fingernails up and down his back. He didn't answer and Ginny felt his body shudder. She knew he was trying not to cry and her heart grew heavy. He took deep breaths to regain composure and fought the tears in his eyes, allowing only one to drop. She ran her fingers through his hair and kissed the side of his head, fighting tears herself.
"Did something happen?" she choked out. He pulled away but held onto her hand. Looking in her eyes, he used his other to wipe away a tear running down her cheek.
"I had a dream about Sirius a few hours ago." The rest of the tears in her eyes overflowed and she sobbed. "Oh Harry, I'm so sorry."
He pulled her onto his lap and she put her face in his chest. "I wish I could have been there for you." Harry smiled into her hair and rubbed her back.
"You did what you could for me. And we're together now. I'm here for you and you're here for me. Well I assume you are," he said jokingly. She looked into his eyes and sniffed.
"Harry I will be there for you the rest of my life. Well that's what I have planned right now. So yes, I'm here for you. I...I thought it was too early to say this but I'm going to say it anyway. Harry...I love you. I love you so much...more than you'll ever know. I have for so long but when I first met you, it was a crush type love. I'm deeply in love with you now. I hope that doesn't scare you because I don't want to scare you away," she sobbed and wiped her face. Harry stared at her in amazemnet. Then a smile came to his lips. He pulled her into him again and whispered, "Ginny, I promise you'll never scare me away."
He kissed her head and continued down to her cheek and around to her lips. She closed her eyes and put her hands on his face, holding him to her. She pulled her face away occasionally to wipe away her tears and he looked at her beautiful, puffy face the entire time. She laughed at the adoration in his eyes.
"Don't look at me like that. I look horrible."
Harry shook his head. "No you look so beautiful Ginny. You have no idea." She blushed and he leaned into her again. She caught him with her lips and held his upper arms as he carressed her face with his strong hands. Ginny heard a noise nearby and opened one eye to see Hermione standing in the doorway to the kitchen. Ginny gave a small shriek and fell off Harry's lap, onto the floor. He stared at her confused and looked behind him.
"Hermione! What are you doing?" Harry stood up quickly and helped Ginny up. Hermione giggled and smiled at them.
"I was right then. You two were keeping this a secret from everyone."
Harry blushed and Ginny said, "What do you mean you were right? How did you know?"
"I saw you two doing, well what you were just doing, outside by a tree a couple weeks ago."
Harry and Ginny looked at each other, grinning. "That was when we got together," Harry said.
"And our first kiss," Ginny said happily.
"Yes, I figured. Well congratulations. You've kept the secret very well but you're lucky that I wasn't Ron. If you want to continue keeping this a secret then you'd better be more careful next time."
Harry nodded, realizing what could've happened if Ron had walked in on that. "So you'll keep it quiet then?" he asked. She nodded and grinned at him. He smiled and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Were you guys crying?" Hermione asked, noticing Ginny's red eyes.
"Oh I was. Harry had a bad dream and I got a bit emotional, that's all."
Hermione nodded but didn't believe her. She could tell Harry had shed a tear or two as well.
"Well we better go get dressed. Your Mum was going to wake us in half an hour anyway. You might want to wash your face to hide the crying." Hermione motioned for Ginny to follow her back upstairs. Ginny kissed Harry's cheek and took Hermione' hand as they walked up the stairs. Harry put his teacup in the sink and headed up behind them. He needed to think of a really good Christmas gift for Ginny and would be leaving for Hogsmeade in about an hour and a half.
He entered his room to a deafening snore from Ron. Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise and suppressed a laugh. That was the funniest thing he'd ever heard Ron do. He rifled through his trunk for some clothes for the day and grabbed a pair of Uncle Vernon's largest, ugliest socks to throw at Ron to wake him up. Ron opened his mouth to snore just as Harry threw the socks and they landed right on his lips. He sat up sputtering and pulled a piece of lint off his lower lip.
"What in the name of Merlin are you trying to do? Suffocate me with foul smelling socks?"
"No just trying to wake you. We're going to Hogsmeade today. Get up."
Ron grumbled but stood up and headed to the loo. He came back a few minutes later to see Harry sitting on his bed, fully dressed with his head in his hands, massaging his temples.
"Brain ache?" Ron joked.
Harry lifted his head to look at Ron.
"Just thinking about gifts. I don't know what to get everyone this year. I don't want to give the same gifts every year like usual. It's the first time I've been here for Christmas and I want everything to be special."
"I'm sure you'll think of something," Ron said, pulling on a pair of trousers. Fred and George would probably give you a discount on any jokes you got from them."
"That's not a good gift for girls though. I've got to shop for Hermione, Ginny, your Mum, and Tonks is coming too. Tonks might fancy a joke though. We'll see."
"Come on, let's go eat breakfast. I'm starving," Ron said opening his door. They went down to the kitchen and sat down to wait for the food.
Author's Note: Now that wasn't a cliffhanger was it? You guys aren't anxiously waiting for something, right? Well, you might be looking forward to Hogsmeade but otherwise, it wasn't a cliffy. Hope not. Ok, I know you R/Hers might be complaining about the huge amount of H/G in this chapter but it just came to me. I didn't even plan a chapter like this. Don't worry though, R/H fluff in next chapter. Thanks for the gift suggestions. A few of them have helped out. I don't need anymore ideas about that. I think I know what Ron's gift from Hermione wil be but if anyone gives me a better idea, I'll use it. I also have Ginny's gift figured out from Harry but I could use some help for his gift from her. You're gonna like what Ron buys for Hermione. I'm not going to wait for Hermione to open it for you guys to know what it is. It'll be some...what's that word when the audience knows something the characters don't? I don't remember but it'll be like that. You will all know what Hermione's gift is but she won't. What is that word? We learned it when we read Romeo and Juliet in school. If you know it, tell me. It's going to drive me nuts until I think of it. Is it dramatic irony? Is that it? I don't know. Tell me if I'm right. Thanks! Sorry for all the blabbing.
One more thing. Like I said thanks for the gift suggestions. I know you all thought this would be the Hogsmeade chapter but this'll give you guys a bit more time to think of the gift ideas. If you can't think of anything, don't worry about it. I just thought I'd ask but I'll figure something out if no one can think of anything. If you do think of something, e-mail me by Friday. I plan on having the next chapter updated by Friday night. They're going to Hogsmeade next so I need any gift thoughts ASAP. Ok, let me thank you all properly.
Individuals:
DanceChic0869: I'll try and put the 'talk' in the next chapter but I have a lot planned already for Hogsmeade. No, I'll probably put it in anyway. It'll end up being a really long chapter but I don't think anyone would mind that! : )
'Mione Weasley: I'm evil too with all my cliffhangers. It's just as bad as not updating soon. We're both evil authors yet we have similar fans. Interesting...Don't worry I'll update very soon.
thekecmaster: Thanks, I'm glad it was good!
Lissa: I agree! I mean they've only been together about a month but I feel like they've fancied each other for years! They should be making out. I've made Harry and Ginny's relationship a bit slower since they haven't been together that long plus they haven't had feelings for each other for years like R/H. Well maybe Ginny has but Harry hasn't.
PiNkRiBbOn13dancegirl: Thanks for the ideas. They're really good but I think I read the one about the Cup picture and I don't want to copy. I figured out Hermione's gift now but thank you for the thought!
Hermione2004: Thank you! Yeah, I don't have Microsoft Word so I don't have spell check. I'm a pretty good speller though and usually I only make a mistake because I'm typing fast so I can update faster!
hplova4eva: Thank you!
puppydog-eyes: I might use the watch suggestion unless I get a really astounding idea from someone else. Thanks! I may end up using your bracelet idea too but I'm not sure. Glad you liked the chapter. I'll read your fic when I get a chance. Probably both, actually. They sound good! Question: Who's Sean? In your bio it says a fav pairing of Ginny and Sean. Is he an OC in one of your fics? I'll read and find out.
HermioneClone: You're welcome. I felt bad that I had done so many of them so I'm stopping for awhile. It'll be tough but I promise I won't! Also, thanks for the idea you sent! It was a great idea and I'll probably use it!
angelface58: Thank you! Glad you like it! Yeah I try tp update fast because it bugs me when people neglect updating their fics for a really long time. I mean, I know everyone's busy but still. Waiting three weeks or a month to update is way too long. You can't expect people to wait for a new chapter that long and continue reading.
Cheese Diva: Thanks! I love fluff too! Yeah, the girls gifts we be some kind of jewelry but I won't say what until they go buy them.
Kagome19: Thank you! Yeah, I know lots of you want the F and G speech and the 'plans'. It'll come, don't worry. Yeah, if you think of something good for Ron, e-mail me by Friday so I can decide whether to use the idea or not. If you can't think of something good, don't worry about it. I have a good gift but I want to make sure no one thinks of anything better before I write it and put it on the site.
Lily106: Thank you! Here's a tissue, : )
GinnyPotter: Thanks! Those are good ideas. I'll think about them and see if I get any others.
Manga-lunatic: Thank you!
Penelope Richwood: Yes, the shop is in Diagon Alley. I hope you like the rest of the story when you read it!