Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, propaganda, etc.
After another awkward silence in which Ginny realized Harry didn't have a clue what to do, she decided to take matters into her own hands.
"All right, I don't know how to make a bluebell flame without any starter, but I'll go gather some wood and you can light it since you are obviously very skilled in that department," she said in an authoritative voice, referring to the incident earlier.
Harry blushed a bit as she left, which cheered her up. Maybe it was the fact that he was slowly but surely catching up to the millions of times she had blushed because of him in her first, second, third, and fourth years at school.
"Accio wood, Accio wood, Accio wood!" she yelled, trying the spell she had been yearning to use since Harry's first task in his fourth year. Glancing around at the pieces of wood, she noted that none of the wood seemed to be moving. Except one. Hurtling towards her was a measly little stick about one and a half inches around, and she would have been pleased with her progress if it hadn't been flying through the air at such an amazing rate. She started to run, but it gained on her quickly and hit her sharply in on the behind with a loud WHACK. It fell to the ground limply, and she picked it up and carried it back to their "camping" spot, trying to conceal her own blush. Harry was smiling widely as he performed the "accio" charm easily, and probably would be laughing hysterically if it weren't for the presence of the dementors.
"How about this," he smiled. "I won't say anything if you promise never to mention the fire thing again."
"Deal," Ginny smiled, shaking his outstretched hand. She gathered the rest of the wood without magic, and they soon had a small fire cackling. They sat around it to shelter the tiny flame from the wind, both fighting internal battles against the evils of their minds.
"Ginny," Harry finally said, rubbing his numb hands over the fire, "What do you see when the dementors come?" He had been wondering about that for a while now, and talking helped to distract him.
Ginny looked at him inquisitively for a moment, her head cocked slightly to the side as she considered him.
"I remember my second year, of course, that was probably one of the worse times of my life. I remember last year, when we all thought dad was going to die. I remember the Ministry of Magic, when everyone was getting hurt and I thought none of us were going to get through alive and sane. I remember......"
"Yes?"
"Well, I don't even know how this one got thrown in with the rest of them, because it's silly really, and it's not anything compared to thinking dad was going to die. It's strange, but I remember when you were just turned down by the girl you asked to the Yule Ball, and Ron said you could go with me...... you had this look on your face like you would much rather be with someone perfectly beautiful and popular like Cho, but you would take me if you had to and there was no one else. Really dumb thing to dwell on, actually. Nothing to make a big deal about."
Harry felt a guilty twinge in his stomach. He had never thought that something as simple as a look could be in her worst memories. "Ginny, about that—"
"Don't start. I was never angry with you, there's no need to apologize, like I said I was turning a little thing into a big deal. Besides, you hardly knew the real me back then, so there was no reason for you to want to go with me. What do you think about when they're close, anyways?"
Harry blanched slightly, and Ginny felt almost guilty for asking.
"It used to be that I'd just hear my parents screaming, but now there's a bunch of things that have sort of dimmed them out. I still hear them, but I also see the night in the graveyard with Cedric, and Sirius's dying. I remember everyone getting hurt at the Department of Mysteries, and remember knowing that it was me that made it happen," Harry said bitterly, glaring at the fire.
"It wasn't your fault, you had know way of knowing—"
"No way of knowing, eh? I guess I didn't tell you about the handy little two-way mirror Sirius gave me so I could contact him whenever I needed to. He was probably carrying it in his pocket when I left on those thestrals, all I had to do was pick it up and say his name...... none of this would have happened." His barrier was breaking, the carefully constructed wall he had made over the summer to hold in all of his feelings was about to crumble.
Ginny reached over and wrapped her arms around him, letting her head rest on his shoulder as he held her around the waist. She cried silently, letting the tears stain his robes and soak through to his skin. She cried because he had been forced to grow up without a family to care for him. She cried because he had lost the person who had been the closest thing he'd had to a father. She cried for Lily and James, for Cedric, for Sirius. She cried in his place, because he was too strong to ever let go. They rocked each other gently back and forth as a flood of tears that had been brewing inside of both of them broke loose, and for a second she could forget where they were and what they were doing there, she could block everything out besides the bitter aching of her tears and the warmth of Harry's arm around her waist.
But not for long. Over the lip of the canyon wall, a black shape silently glided, sending a wave of cold. Neither of them saw it, neither of them realized just how close it was. If they had, they might have been a little more prepared.
A/N: That last page was amazingly hard to write for some reason, and I'm still not sure if I like the way it turned out. Oh well. The last chapter will be coming soon.
After another awkward silence in which Ginny realized Harry didn't have a clue what to do, she decided to take matters into her own hands.
"All right, I don't know how to make a bluebell flame without any starter, but I'll go gather some wood and you can light it since you are obviously very skilled in that department," she said in an authoritative voice, referring to the incident earlier.
Harry blushed a bit as she left, which cheered her up. Maybe it was the fact that he was slowly but surely catching up to the millions of times she had blushed because of him in her first, second, third, and fourth years at school.
"Accio wood, Accio wood, Accio wood!" she yelled, trying the spell she had been yearning to use since Harry's first task in his fourth year. Glancing around at the pieces of wood, she noted that none of the wood seemed to be moving. Except one. Hurtling towards her was a measly little stick about one and a half inches around, and she would have been pleased with her progress if it hadn't been flying through the air at such an amazing rate. She started to run, but it gained on her quickly and hit her sharply in on the behind with a loud WHACK. It fell to the ground limply, and she picked it up and carried it back to their "camping" spot, trying to conceal her own blush. Harry was smiling widely as he performed the "accio" charm easily, and probably would be laughing hysterically if it weren't for the presence of the dementors.
"How about this," he smiled. "I won't say anything if you promise never to mention the fire thing again."
"Deal," Ginny smiled, shaking his outstretched hand. She gathered the rest of the wood without magic, and they soon had a small fire cackling. They sat around it to shelter the tiny flame from the wind, both fighting internal battles against the evils of their minds.
"Ginny," Harry finally said, rubbing his numb hands over the fire, "What do you see when the dementors come?" He had been wondering about that for a while now, and talking helped to distract him.
Ginny looked at him inquisitively for a moment, her head cocked slightly to the side as she considered him.
"I remember my second year, of course, that was probably one of the worse times of my life. I remember last year, when we all thought dad was going to die. I remember the Ministry of Magic, when everyone was getting hurt and I thought none of us were going to get through alive and sane. I remember......"
"Yes?"
"Well, I don't even know how this one got thrown in with the rest of them, because it's silly really, and it's not anything compared to thinking dad was going to die. It's strange, but I remember when you were just turned down by the girl you asked to the Yule Ball, and Ron said you could go with me...... you had this look on your face like you would much rather be with someone perfectly beautiful and popular like Cho, but you would take me if you had to and there was no one else. Really dumb thing to dwell on, actually. Nothing to make a big deal about."
Harry felt a guilty twinge in his stomach. He had never thought that something as simple as a look could be in her worst memories. "Ginny, about that—"
"Don't start. I was never angry with you, there's no need to apologize, like I said I was turning a little thing into a big deal. Besides, you hardly knew the real me back then, so there was no reason for you to want to go with me. What do you think about when they're close, anyways?"
Harry blanched slightly, and Ginny felt almost guilty for asking.
"It used to be that I'd just hear my parents screaming, but now there's a bunch of things that have sort of dimmed them out. I still hear them, but I also see the night in the graveyard with Cedric, and Sirius's dying. I remember everyone getting hurt at the Department of Mysteries, and remember knowing that it was me that made it happen," Harry said bitterly, glaring at the fire.
"It wasn't your fault, you had know way of knowing—"
"No way of knowing, eh? I guess I didn't tell you about the handy little two-way mirror Sirius gave me so I could contact him whenever I needed to. He was probably carrying it in his pocket when I left on those thestrals, all I had to do was pick it up and say his name...... none of this would have happened." His barrier was breaking, the carefully constructed wall he had made over the summer to hold in all of his feelings was about to crumble.
Ginny reached over and wrapped her arms around him, letting her head rest on his shoulder as he held her around the waist. She cried silently, letting the tears stain his robes and soak through to his skin. She cried because he had been forced to grow up without a family to care for him. She cried because he had lost the person who had been the closest thing he'd had to a father. She cried for Lily and James, for Cedric, for Sirius. She cried in his place, because he was too strong to ever let go. They rocked each other gently back and forth as a flood of tears that had been brewing inside of both of them broke loose, and for a second she could forget where they were and what they were doing there, she could block everything out besides the bitter aching of her tears and the warmth of Harry's arm around her waist.
But not for long. Over the lip of the canyon wall, a black shape silently glided, sending a wave of cold. Neither of them saw it, neither of them realized just how close it was. If they had, they might have been a little more prepared.
A/N: That last page was amazingly hard to write for some reason, and I'm still not sure if I like the way it turned out. Oh well. The last chapter will be coming soon.
