Disclaimer: I don't own anything. It all belongs to J. K. Rowling. Well,
except the part that me and Stacy thought up. She's an amazing beta reader,
and her e-mail's silenceofthemind@hotmail.com if anyone needs one.
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Chapter 12: Five Years Later...
I sat, alone, in the Three Broomsticks, ordering butterbeer after butterbeer and staring at the table in front of me like it had the pages of a novel written on it. I had finally found a decent babysitter for Chrissy, and was planning on taking full advantage of that.
I had just gotten off work, around three o'clock, and decided to come down for a drink. I worked at The Daily Prophet. I liked to call myself a journalist, but that's about as far from the truth as you can get. I wrote the obituary, but was determined to climb my way up the ladder until my articles found their way onto the front page. Then maybe I'd have the power to fire the stupid bastard who placed me in that dumb ass job in the first place.
It wasn't my fault I was writing the obituary, though. I had spent nearly five years moving in and out of flats, from London to Ireland and back again, and trying desperately to hold onto the waitress jobs I kept accepting.
But, now, I was finally in a stable living situation. Sure, my flat was small, but it was very close to Diagon Alley and just big enough to fit me and Christina.
That's right. *Just* me and Christina. I had recently moved out of Devon's place, concluding that he was just as bad as I'd remembered. It had taken me five years to figure out that he was blaming me for everything that went sour in our relationship. I'd come home one night from a seven hour shift with ketchup and burger grease all over my work clothes, to find Devon in bed with another woman. I can't really remember what she looked like, I was too busy throwing things and screaming profanities to notice. So I packed my and Chrissy's bags, picked her up from the friend's house she was staying at, and left Ireland.
Now, it's not like Devon and I were married or anything, but we were still kind of going out. I wouldn't refer to him as my boyfriend, but he had told me not to date anyone. He said it would just be too confusing to Christina and, like an idiot, I agreed. So, you can imagine my reaction when I found him with a girl.
A million things clicked in my head that night. How he was always setting rules, forcing me to follow them, and acting like they didn't apply to him. How he always had something better to do when I asked him to baby sit Christina, but I had to cancel plans with friends when he suddenly felt like going somewhere and forgot to call someone to look after our daughter. How his left eye twitches when he lies. How his laugh just makes me want to smash a pillow over his face and just hold it there until, slowly, the laughter dies away and he just stops breathing...
But enough about my many contemplations of murder during the five year I lived with Devon. I was now in a completely different country from him, and the next time I'd have to see him would be when we work out who sees Chrissy when. And if that means having to take him to court, then so be it. I'd just have to make sure that the judge was a woman who hated men, that's all.
I was just finishing off my fourth butterbeer, begging for some kind of buzz, when someone sat down on the stool next to me.
"Can I have a butterbeer, Tom?" Came the voice that I was almost certain I'd forgotten forever.
I turned, very slowly and very dramatically, and saw him. Sitting on the chair next to me, handing the bartender a galleon, was Harry.
He smiled at the Tom and glanced at me. His smile flickered, but then came back as strong as ever.
"Ginny," He said breathlessly. I wasn't sure if I was happy or not with seeing him. It'd been so long, and there were painful memories in our past that I didn't want to tap into. But he had spotted me, and it was too late to flee, so I just smiled back, trying desperately to remember how to speak my native tongue.
"How are you?" Harry asked with a huge grin on his face. "What are you doing in London? How's Chrissy? Is she here?"
My brain was working overtime just trying to catch all of the words that were flying out of Harry's mouth. I sat there for a few second, looking a little dazed, before I finally stuttered a response.
"I-I'm fine." I said. Harry chucked to himself.
"What are you doing in London?" He asked again.
"I live here." I said, watching his eyes light up. "Chrissy and I moved here a few months ago."
"And where's Devon?" Harry asked hesitantly.
"He's still in Ireland." I reassured him, watching his eyes light up once again. "We're no longer together."
I hesitated before saying, "You were right, Harry. Devon was just blaming me for everything. I moved out after I found him with another woman."
"I'm sorry you had to find that out for yourself." Harry said sincerely.
"So am I." I said, smiling weakly. "I'm really sorry if I hurt you, Harry. I know that you must hate me for just leaving you like that."
I hadn't even meant to say that out loud. I'd been thinking about it for years, but never intended on voicing it to Harry.
"I don't hate you." He reassured me. "I didn't handle the situation very well either. You have no idea how many times I kicked myself for not giving you my address. I regret that day more then anything."
There was a strange silence. I'm not sure if it could be classified as awkward, but it was pretty damn close. Harry and I hadn't seen each other in five years. The last time I'd talk to him, I'd just dumped him to move to another country with Devon. There were a lot of feelings still there, but I wasn't sure if I wanted him to know about them.
"You're not wearing it." Harry said sadly, pointing to my right middle finger. I knew exactly what he meant. I wasn't wearing the ruby ring he'd given me at Christina's baby shower.
"I stopped wearing it once I moved to Ireland." I said, remembering it all too well. It had taken a lot of courage for me to pull that ring off of my finger. And, once it was tucked safely away in my jewelry box, my finger felt naked without it. Even after five years, it still didn't feel right.
I looked down at the table, focusing on the scratches on the wood as I said, "I thought it'd make it easier to forget you."
"Did that work?" Harry asked.
"No." I muttered, looking up at him timidly.
We both looked at each other with sad eyes. I wanted to look away, but his green eyes continued to hold my gaze, until finally he broke the silence.
"So," he said, looking down at his hands. "how's Christina?"
I wasn't sure if I was happy that he had changed the subject. I was debating whether or not the feelings I was feeling at that moment were real or just there because of how long it had been. But, for some reason, I felt the same way I'd felt about Harry five years ago. Except, this time, the only thing that was standing in the way was the amount of time we'd spent apart.
"Chrissy's wonderful." I smiled, trying to act breezy. I didn't want him to know that my brain was working overtime, trying to find out what the feelings I had meant.
Harry smiled sadly. "I really miss her." He said, almost to himself. "Let me guess; does she look exactly like you?"
"Why don't you find out for yourself?" I said bravely. "I only live a few blocks from here. You can come over and see her right now."
I don't think I'd ever seen Harry look more happy. Okay, so maybe I had one time. But that was a long time ago, on the day Chrissy was born. When we were laying in bed, naked, and I was singing to him.
I quickly shook the memory out of my head. It hurt too much to remember how things use to be.
"Are you serious?" Harry asked happily, looking like a little boy who'd just been lead into a candy shop and told that everything was free. I couldn't help but giggle at his delight.
Harry quickly paid Tom for his drink, and pulled me out of the Three Broomsticks.
"So, did you finally get that great place you were hoping for?" I asked as we walked down my street.
"Oh, didn't you hear?" Harry asked, glancing up at me briefly before looking back down at the ground in front of us.
"Know what?" I asked.
"I moved in with my girlfriend a year ago." Harry said simply.
I felt like someone had just turned the universe upside down. I'd been gone for five years, and suddenly everything's changed. Why didn't anyone tell me he had a girlfriend? Does this mean he's over me? Is she pretty? I bet she's fat. The stupid cow.
Harry continued to talk. Something about how they live just outside of London. He could have said that they lived on Mars for all I cared, because my attention was on other things.
Like, why hadn't my family or Hermione told me about this? Did they not know, or were they just avoiding it because they knew it'd crush me?
All of these buzzing questions were erased from my brain for a few seconds as I noticed that we were by my flat. The babysitter was sitting on the stoop, looking particularly worn out as Christina played in the yard.
Chrissy looked up from what she was doing and saw me walking toward her. She smiled, her green eyes sparkling in the sun, and started running toward Harry and I.
"Mummy! Come see! Come see!" She giggled excitedly. She grabbed my hand with her little one and pulled me toward the spot on the yard she had just occupied. I glanced back at Harry and motioned for him to follow.
"Look!" Christina said, pointing at the ground were a patch of mushrooms were in the shape of a circle. "I found another one mummy! See? Fairies have been here!"
"That's great sweetie." I smiled, avoiding Harry's eyes.
Christina smiled, but when she noticed that Harry was there her face suddenly got very nervous. I can always tell when she gets uneasy because she's grab a strand of her wavy red hair and start chewing on it. She always got like that around strangers.
"Chrissy, this is my friend Harry." I said, smiling at her warmly as she grabbed onto my leg and tried to hide behind me. I knew it was pointless to try and get her to be social when she was extremely shy, so I saved her the trouble. "Why don't you go inside. I'll be there in a second."
Christina, still gnawing on her hair, nodded and quickly ran inside. The babysitter followed her, leaving Harry and I alone outside.
"I'm sorry about that. She's always so shy around strangers." I said to Harry. But he didn't seem too worried about that part.
"Why'd you tell her that thing about the fairies?" He asked, almost accusingly. "You know that fairies aren't smart enough to construct simple shapes."
I sighed, knowing that he'd bring this topic up.
"If you tell her all of those muggle tales like they're true, she'll have a hell of a time sorting it all out when she's at Hogwarts." He said. I shifted my weight from foot to foot uncomfortably, and Harry suddenly realized why. "... Christina is going to Hogwarts, isn't she?"
"I'm not really sure if she's a witch." I said, biting my lip nervously.
"You think she's a squib?" Harry asked.
"Well, she hasn't done anything witch-like yet. So I'm just not using any magic around her." I said, still not meeting his gaze.
"Christina doesn't know you're a witch?" Harry asked, his jaw on the ground. "You've been hiding your whole world from her?"
I sighed with annoyance and finally looked at him. Well, more like- glared at him.
"I don't want to be like Neville's family and hang her out a window. It's just better this way. Now, if she is a squib, she won't feel the disappointment."
I knew that that wasn't the best solution to the problem, but I hated seeing Chrissy sad. And I would do anything to protect her from the sadness that comes with knowing that you're the only one in your family who isn't magical.
"Why don't you come inside." I said to Harry. "You can eat lunch with us."
Harry smiled and agreed. I lead him up to my flat. When we walked in, Christina was sitting at her little table coloring. She didn't look up when we came in, seeming to be very consumed in her art work. I paid the babysitter-far too much, in my opinion-and she left.
"Why don't you sit in here. I'll go fix lunch." I told Harry, heading into the kitchen.
Now, I was in another room at this point, and wasn't aware of the conversation below till some time later. But here's how Harry told me it went.
~~~~~
Harry sat down on one of the tiny chairs next to Christina, and glanced at her picture with curiosity.
"What're you drawing?" He asked as Chrissy reached across the table for a red crayon.
"I donno." She muttered, coloring with one hand and using the other to seize a piece of hair and shoving it into her mouth.
Harry leaned closer, getting a good look at the picture. It was a woman stick figure with a purple dress in the shape of a triangle. She had a pointed hat on and was carrying a broomstick.
Harry chuckled to himself.
"Who's that?" He asked, pointing to the woman Christina had drawn.
"She doesn't have a name." She muttered through her hair. "She's a witch. Like the one in the story."
"What story?" Harry asked curiously.
"Mummy tells me stories about witches and wizards. They cast spells and make potions. This one can fly a broom." Christina said.
"Do you like to draw?" Harry asked. She nodded and reached under her chair, pulling out a pile of drawings and handing them to Harry. He flipped through them all, noting that everyone had a pointed hat on and was either carrying a wand or a broom.
"So you like witches and wizards." Harry smiled. Christina nodded to her paper, grabbing a blue crayon and starting to color in the sky. "You know, there's a place where all of the witches and wizards go. They buy wands and brooms and ingredients for their potions there."
Christina let go of the strand of hair she was chewing and looked up at Harry.
"Really?" She asked happily. "But mummy says it's all make-believe."
"Aw, rubbish." Harry said dismissively. "It's called Diagon Alley... You know, I could show it to you sometime. But you can't tell your mum because then it'll disappear and you'll never see it again."
Harry knew that that was a lie, but he had to tell her something so that Ginny wouldn't find out. Christina was obviously interested in the magical world, and it wouldn't hurt to show it to her. She was only five, and would probably forget it once they were sure she was a squib. That, or she'll think she dreamed it up.
~~~~~
"Okay, lunch is ready." I said, coming out of the kitchen holding the food I'd spent hours slaving over the hot stove making.
"Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches." Harry said matter-of-factly.
"Christina's favorite." I said defensively.
"Only because that's all you can make." Chrissy laughed.
That's right, even after five years of being a mother, I still couldn't actually cook anything. I was a professional PB and J maker, but nothing more. You'd think that Christina, like most children, would be content with just eating paste and dirt. But no, she had to be extra picky and would only consume foods that could actually be labeled as edible. She'd always ask me to fix her spaghetti or something. She might as well of asked me to turn wood into gold. I actually tried that one time-not the gold thing, but fixing spaghetti. I ended up with a two degree burn, three stitches and a broken finger. I'm horrible at making things the muggle way, but since I had forbidden myself from doing any magic around Christina, she'd just have to get use to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
"So," I said, very eager for a subject change and saying the first thing that popped into my head. "Chrissy, what do you want for your birthday?"
"Gin, her birthday isn't for another seven months." Harry said. I was impressed that he actually remembered, since Devon still didn't know.
"I'll be six." Christina smiled.
"You know, you're birthday is the same day as an anniversary." Harry said, looking up at me and wagging his eyebrows quickly before looking back at Christina. "It was the first time your mum and I-"
"Met." I finished sharply. He looked up at me with raised eyebrows and a small smirk on his face. I just glared, ignoring my daughter's curious eyes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Draco-FutureBF: Yea, I tried to make this chapter extra funny to make up for the sadness in the last few. But now, as you can see, Harry is back and Devon is gone and everything is okay!... except that Harry has a live-in girlfriend and he and Ginny aren't as close anymore... okay, so maybe everything isn't okay...
Herbie: lol, I thought that'd be your reaction about Mrs. Weasley. I didn't want her to come off as mean, but I figured I should have someone convince Ginny to go.
Foags: WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT?! Damnit Nicole, use your head!!! Apparation! Sometimes I forget how gifted our wittle Harry is.
Bballgirl02: There together! Yay! Thank the gods for five-year-time-lapses!
Pheonixgurl: noooooooooooooooo! I'm so sorry! I hate making people cry, but it's fun writing sad things! It's a double edged sword!... I think.
Mintytoothpick: Sorry, I don't mean to make Hermione bitchy. I just... I donno, need someone who's different from Ginny. Anyways, even though you don't like Hermione, I'm still going to try and make her less bitchy.
Merit Somnia: Now Ginny's happy! And Devon is... well, I suppose he's pretty happy too, seeing as he strung Ginny along for so long. Anyways, no more angst. Happiness!
OfTheWest: Just for you! Blissful reunion!... kinda. They're friends, just not lovers....yet.
Neeva: You're the second person to say the thing about apparition (Foags was the other). I donno why I didn't think of that. As weird as it sounds, sometime I forget that they're wizards!
Snapes Gryffindor goddess: Sorry I made you cry! I like writing sad chapters, but I hate making people sad (kinda twisted, I know). When are you moving to Arizona? I hope I can finish it before you move, but if I can't you can still read it in Arizona, right? Anways, Arizona rocks, it's warm! What's better then that?
Strayc@t: No more sadness!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hpfan73: Nope, things aren't over, just a little delayed. And once we find a way to get Harry's new girlfriend out of the way, it's aaaaaaaaaaaall good.
Duke20104: I DID! ARE YOU HAPPY? I HOPE SO!
ChickFlick004: Yes, I think she has lost her mind. But then she found it again, so everything's gooooooooooood. Sorry 'bout the grief and frustration, but I hope this chapter brought you happiness and laughter!
Dolphingirl79: I hate crazy computers. Mine goes a bit wacky sometimes too, so no worries.
g-@-b-S-t-E-r*07: I totally agree! That's why I had Ginny wise up and move back to where Harry just happened to me. Muhahahaha!.... btw: thanks for the luck you gave me on my finals. I think it worked, because I was suddenly able to hablo espanol!
Faith456: heehee, I hope you continue to hate Devon and love the story! (btw: you sooooooooooooo need to update your story Him? Whaddya mean, Him? I love that story!)
Gatsu87645: sorry! I know, Ginny went a bit craaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazyyyyy, but now she's all better! EVERYTHING IS FIXED!!
Fentoozler612: heehee, wouldn't it be nice if no one had finals? Anyways, good luck to you too!
LittleGreenPerson: Thank you so much for the help with my Britishness. I get so confused! Have you ever seen the HP movies? In the second one, Ginny was like: "Mummy, have you seen my jumper?" and Mrs. Weasley said something about it being on the 'cat.' And I was thinking, "Why is a cat wearing a dress?"
Tyster: Don't hate me! I fixed it! I fixed it! All for you!
Kneh13: No, Molly doesn't think that Harry would be a bad father. She loves Harry. It's just that Devon is a lot more stable and, from what Molly has seen, wonderful. I suppose she just wanted Ginny to have a roof over her head, and forgot for a second about what Ginny really wanted.
Courtney: heehee, you're the first person who's said 'YAY!' about this chapter. Anyways, yea, pretty melodramatic. But what can I say? I'm a sucker for that kind of crap.
KeeperOfTheMoon: Aw, be happy! Everyone's in the same country again!
Chelles: I like that quote from your friend. It's very true, and I'm a firm believer in it. But we don't always write what we believe... well, I don't. Which I suppose is a bit strange.
Unperfection: heehee, yep, that's exactly what I should have done; had Ginny march from Ireland to London in the name of love! But I loved your mature way of dealing with the sad situation. Poopie solves everything.
MoonGoddess25: Wow, I've really made people turn against Hermione and Mrs. Weasley. Not my intent, I assure you, but I'll get you all to love them again.
Fredngeorgegirl: Thanks.
Me222: I'm glad I got a reaction out of you, but I hate making people cry. So, cheer up! Ginny's back in the same country with Harry again!
Dude: I'm glad you found the chapter beautiful instead of totally horrible. How do you find the energy to love angst? Whenever I read those kind of stories, I just feel so drained. But writing them is fun, so I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Lita: Every Friday! I promise to write more!
Grace: Er, sorry I made you hate so much. But can you love it again? I fixed it, right?
Angelic Vampire: lol, totally hardcore! I'd never lie to you guys! And you have my permission to beat Devon into whatever kind of pulp you'd like.
Da90schic: Thanks so much! I promise (cross my heart and all that) to write a new chapter every Friday.
HogwartsGrl13: Besides this little mishap (I had to leave early for a memorial so I couldn't access a computer on Friday), I promise to post a new one every Friday. I'm so glad you like it!
Luna Lovegood2: Thanks for reviewing! Omg, you're name reminded me of something; I was reading the fourth book for, like, the millionth time, and I realized something I'd never seen before. They mention the Lovegood family in the fourth book! Isn't it amazing how J. K. Rowling plans ahead so well?
Denaumo: Thank you!
Legolasfan: lol, I'm glad you're so into the story! And see? All your praying paid off because they're back together... well, okay, so maybe not *together* together, but they're in the same country, and that's saying something, right?
Eric2: *shakes with compressed laughter* omg, I never even thought about that! I'm not really good at geography at all, so I don't exactly know where Ireland and England are (I know, I'm stupid). I never even thought about not being about to take a train there! But, hey, they're wizards, right? They'll find a way.... actually, one time I took a train from Paris to London and we went under water.
Parvai Elana Nakeiisha Name: Be happy! Smile! Ginny's not in Ireland anymore!
lovey30: lol, no hunting required. I'm working on them getting back together.
purfectchild: I totally agree with you, and I'm working on it!
lightprincess: I'm so glad you love this story, cause that just makes my day when people say that! And, to keep your love, I made it happy again. Plus I love writing happy things, it makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.
Fancyeyes: Thank you so much! I'll update every Friday.
Faer: Glad you at least found it sweet in a sea of sadness. But not to worry, all happiness now.
*wipes sweat from forehead* man, that was a lot of writing! But THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THE REVIEWS! OVER 300! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!
Okay, must stop typing now. My left pinky is really sore (for some unseen reason), as are the rest of my fingers. Must go watch Friends reruns.
~hugs kisses and everything in between~
Nicole
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If you want me to e-mail you when I update, just give me you e-mail address in the review and I'd be happy to do it :)
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Chapter 12: Five Years Later...
I sat, alone, in the Three Broomsticks, ordering butterbeer after butterbeer and staring at the table in front of me like it had the pages of a novel written on it. I had finally found a decent babysitter for Chrissy, and was planning on taking full advantage of that.
I had just gotten off work, around three o'clock, and decided to come down for a drink. I worked at The Daily Prophet. I liked to call myself a journalist, but that's about as far from the truth as you can get. I wrote the obituary, but was determined to climb my way up the ladder until my articles found their way onto the front page. Then maybe I'd have the power to fire the stupid bastard who placed me in that dumb ass job in the first place.
It wasn't my fault I was writing the obituary, though. I had spent nearly five years moving in and out of flats, from London to Ireland and back again, and trying desperately to hold onto the waitress jobs I kept accepting.
But, now, I was finally in a stable living situation. Sure, my flat was small, but it was very close to Diagon Alley and just big enough to fit me and Christina.
That's right. *Just* me and Christina. I had recently moved out of Devon's place, concluding that he was just as bad as I'd remembered. It had taken me five years to figure out that he was blaming me for everything that went sour in our relationship. I'd come home one night from a seven hour shift with ketchup and burger grease all over my work clothes, to find Devon in bed with another woman. I can't really remember what she looked like, I was too busy throwing things and screaming profanities to notice. So I packed my and Chrissy's bags, picked her up from the friend's house she was staying at, and left Ireland.
Now, it's not like Devon and I were married or anything, but we were still kind of going out. I wouldn't refer to him as my boyfriend, but he had told me not to date anyone. He said it would just be too confusing to Christina and, like an idiot, I agreed. So, you can imagine my reaction when I found him with a girl.
A million things clicked in my head that night. How he was always setting rules, forcing me to follow them, and acting like they didn't apply to him. How he always had something better to do when I asked him to baby sit Christina, but I had to cancel plans with friends when he suddenly felt like going somewhere and forgot to call someone to look after our daughter. How his left eye twitches when he lies. How his laugh just makes me want to smash a pillow over his face and just hold it there until, slowly, the laughter dies away and he just stops breathing...
But enough about my many contemplations of murder during the five year I lived with Devon. I was now in a completely different country from him, and the next time I'd have to see him would be when we work out who sees Chrissy when. And if that means having to take him to court, then so be it. I'd just have to make sure that the judge was a woman who hated men, that's all.
I was just finishing off my fourth butterbeer, begging for some kind of buzz, when someone sat down on the stool next to me.
"Can I have a butterbeer, Tom?" Came the voice that I was almost certain I'd forgotten forever.
I turned, very slowly and very dramatically, and saw him. Sitting on the chair next to me, handing the bartender a galleon, was Harry.
He smiled at the Tom and glanced at me. His smile flickered, but then came back as strong as ever.
"Ginny," He said breathlessly. I wasn't sure if I was happy or not with seeing him. It'd been so long, and there were painful memories in our past that I didn't want to tap into. But he had spotted me, and it was too late to flee, so I just smiled back, trying desperately to remember how to speak my native tongue.
"How are you?" Harry asked with a huge grin on his face. "What are you doing in London? How's Chrissy? Is she here?"
My brain was working overtime just trying to catch all of the words that were flying out of Harry's mouth. I sat there for a few second, looking a little dazed, before I finally stuttered a response.
"I-I'm fine." I said. Harry chucked to himself.
"What are you doing in London?" He asked again.
"I live here." I said, watching his eyes light up. "Chrissy and I moved here a few months ago."
"And where's Devon?" Harry asked hesitantly.
"He's still in Ireland." I reassured him, watching his eyes light up once again. "We're no longer together."
I hesitated before saying, "You were right, Harry. Devon was just blaming me for everything. I moved out after I found him with another woman."
"I'm sorry you had to find that out for yourself." Harry said sincerely.
"So am I." I said, smiling weakly. "I'm really sorry if I hurt you, Harry. I know that you must hate me for just leaving you like that."
I hadn't even meant to say that out loud. I'd been thinking about it for years, but never intended on voicing it to Harry.
"I don't hate you." He reassured me. "I didn't handle the situation very well either. You have no idea how many times I kicked myself for not giving you my address. I regret that day more then anything."
There was a strange silence. I'm not sure if it could be classified as awkward, but it was pretty damn close. Harry and I hadn't seen each other in five years. The last time I'd talk to him, I'd just dumped him to move to another country with Devon. There were a lot of feelings still there, but I wasn't sure if I wanted him to know about them.
"You're not wearing it." Harry said sadly, pointing to my right middle finger. I knew exactly what he meant. I wasn't wearing the ruby ring he'd given me at Christina's baby shower.
"I stopped wearing it once I moved to Ireland." I said, remembering it all too well. It had taken a lot of courage for me to pull that ring off of my finger. And, once it was tucked safely away in my jewelry box, my finger felt naked without it. Even after five years, it still didn't feel right.
I looked down at the table, focusing on the scratches on the wood as I said, "I thought it'd make it easier to forget you."
"Did that work?" Harry asked.
"No." I muttered, looking up at him timidly.
We both looked at each other with sad eyes. I wanted to look away, but his green eyes continued to hold my gaze, until finally he broke the silence.
"So," he said, looking down at his hands. "how's Christina?"
I wasn't sure if I was happy that he had changed the subject. I was debating whether or not the feelings I was feeling at that moment were real or just there because of how long it had been. But, for some reason, I felt the same way I'd felt about Harry five years ago. Except, this time, the only thing that was standing in the way was the amount of time we'd spent apart.
"Chrissy's wonderful." I smiled, trying to act breezy. I didn't want him to know that my brain was working overtime, trying to find out what the feelings I had meant.
Harry smiled sadly. "I really miss her." He said, almost to himself. "Let me guess; does she look exactly like you?"
"Why don't you find out for yourself?" I said bravely. "I only live a few blocks from here. You can come over and see her right now."
I don't think I'd ever seen Harry look more happy. Okay, so maybe I had one time. But that was a long time ago, on the day Chrissy was born. When we were laying in bed, naked, and I was singing to him.
I quickly shook the memory out of my head. It hurt too much to remember how things use to be.
"Are you serious?" Harry asked happily, looking like a little boy who'd just been lead into a candy shop and told that everything was free. I couldn't help but giggle at his delight.
Harry quickly paid Tom for his drink, and pulled me out of the Three Broomsticks.
"So, did you finally get that great place you were hoping for?" I asked as we walked down my street.
"Oh, didn't you hear?" Harry asked, glancing up at me briefly before looking back down at the ground in front of us.
"Know what?" I asked.
"I moved in with my girlfriend a year ago." Harry said simply.
I felt like someone had just turned the universe upside down. I'd been gone for five years, and suddenly everything's changed. Why didn't anyone tell me he had a girlfriend? Does this mean he's over me? Is she pretty? I bet she's fat. The stupid cow.
Harry continued to talk. Something about how they live just outside of London. He could have said that they lived on Mars for all I cared, because my attention was on other things.
Like, why hadn't my family or Hermione told me about this? Did they not know, or were they just avoiding it because they knew it'd crush me?
All of these buzzing questions were erased from my brain for a few seconds as I noticed that we were by my flat. The babysitter was sitting on the stoop, looking particularly worn out as Christina played in the yard.
Chrissy looked up from what she was doing and saw me walking toward her. She smiled, her green eyes sparkling in the sun, and started running toward Harry and I.
"Mummy! Come see! Come see!" She giggled excitedly. She grabbed my hand with her little one and pulled me toward the spot on the yard she had just occupied. I glanced back at Harry and motioned for him to follow.
"Look!" Christina said, pointing at the ground were a patch of mushrooms were in the shape of a circle. "I found another one mummy! See? Fairies have been here!"
"That's great sweetie." I smiled, avoiding Harry's eyes.
Christina smiled, but when she noticed that Harry was there her face suddenly got very nervous. I can always tell when she gets uneasy because she's grab a strand of her wavy red hair and start chewing on it. She always got like that around strangers.
"Chrissy, this is my friend Harry." I said, smiling at her warmly as she grabbed onto my leg and tried to hide behind me. I knew it was pointless to try and get her to be social when she was extremely shy, so I saved her the trouble. "Why don't you go inside. I'll be there in a second."
Christina, still gnawing on her hair, nodded and quickly ran inside. The babysitter followed her, leaving Harry and I alone outside.
"I'm sorry about that. She's always so shy around strangers." I said to Harry. But he didn't seem too worried about that part.
"Why'd you tell her that thing about the fairies?" He asked, almost accusingly. "You know that fairies aren't smart enough to construct simple shapes."
I sighed, knowing that he'd bring this topic up.
"If you tell her all of those muggle tales like they're true, she'll have a hell of a time sorting it all out when she's at Hogwarts." He said. I shifted my weight from foot to foot uncomfortably, and Harry suddenly realized why. "... Christina is going to Hogwarts, isn't she?"
"I'm not really sure if she's a witch." I said, biting my lip nervously.
"You think she's a squib?" Harry asked.
"Well, she hasn't done anything witch-like yet. So I'm just not using any magic around her." I said, still not meeting his gaze.
"Christina doesn't know you're a witch?" Harry asked, his jaw on the ground. "You've been hiding your whole world from her?"
I sighed with annoyance and finally looked at him. Well, more like- glared at him.
"I don't want to be like Neville's family and hang her out a window. It's just better this way. Now, if she is a squib, she won't feel the disappointment."
I knew that that wasn't the best solution to the problem, but I hated seeing Chrissy sad. And I would do anything to protect her from the sadness that comes with knowing that you're the only one in your family who isn't magical.
"Why don't you come inside." I said to Harry. "You can eat lunch with us."
Harry smiled and agreed. I lead him up to my flat. When we walked in, Christina was sitting at her little table coloring. She didn't look up when we came in, seeming to be very consumed in her art work. I paid the babysitter-far too much, in my opinion-and she left.
"Why don't you sit in here. I'll go fix lunch." I told Harry, heading into the kitchen.
Now, I was in another room at this point, and wasn't aware of the conversation below till some time later. But here's how Harry told me it went.
~~~~~
Harry sat down on one of the tiny chairs next to Christina, and glanced at her picture with curiosity.
"What're you drawing?" He asked as Chrissy reached across the table for a red crayon.
"I donno." She muttered, coloring with one hand and using the other to seize a piece of hair and shoving it into her mouth.
Harry leaned closer, getting a good look at the picture. It was a woman stick figure with a purple dress in the shape of a triangle. She had a pointed hat on and was carrying a broomstick.
Harry chuckled to himself.
"Who's that?" He asked, pointing to the woman Christina had drawn.
"She doesn't have a name." She muttered through her hair. "She's a witch. Like the one in the story."
"What story?" Harry asked curiously.
"Mummy tells me stories about witches and wizards. They cast spells and make potions. This one can fly a broom." Christina said.
"Do you like to draw?" Harry asked. She nodded and reached under her chair, pulling out a pile of drawings and handing them to Harry. He flipped through them all, noting that everyone had a pointed hat on and was either carrying a wand or a broom.
"So you like witches and wizards." Harry smiled. Christina nodded to her paper, grabbing a blue crayon and starting to color in the sky. "You know, there's a place where all of the witches and wizards go. They buy wands and brooms and ingredients for their potions there."
Christina let go of the strand of hair she was chewing and looked up at Harry.
"Really?" She asked happily. "But mummy says it's all make-believe."
"Aw, rubbish." Harry said dismissively. "It's called Diagon Alley... You know, I could show it to you sometime. But you can't tell your mum because then it'll disappear and you'll never see it again."
Harry knew that that was a lie, but he had to tell her something so that Ginny wouldn't find out. Christina was obviously interested in the magical world, and it wouldn't hurt to show it to her. She was only five, and would probably forget it once they were sure she was a squib. That, or she'll think she dreamed it up.
~~~~~
"Okay, lunch is ready." I said, coming out of the kitchen holding the food I'd spent hours slaving over the hot stove making.
"Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches." Harry said matter-of-factly.
"Christina's favorite." I said defensively.
"Only because that's all you can make." Chrissy laughed.
That's right, even after five years of being a mother, I still couldn't actually cook anything. I was a professional PB and J maker, but nothing more. You'd think that Christina, like most children, would be content with just eating paste and dirt. But no, she had to be extra picky and would only consume foods that could actually be labeled as edible. She'd always ask me to fix her spaghetti or something. She might as well of asked me to turn wood into gold. I actually tried that one time-not the gold thing, but fixing spaghetti. I ended up with a two degree burn, three stitches and a broken finger. I'm horrible at making things the muggle way, but since I had forbidden myself from doing any magic around Christina, she'd just have to get use to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
"So," I said, very eager for a subject change and saying the first thing that popped into my head. "Chrissy, what do you want for your birthday?"
"Gin, her birthday isn't for another seven months." Harry said. I was impressed that he actually remembered, since Devon still didn't know.
"I'll be six." Christina smiled.
"You know, you're birthday is the same day as an anniversary." Harry said, looking up at me and wagging his eyebrows quickly before looking back at Christina. "It was the first time your mum and I-"
"Met." I finished sharply. He looked up at me with raised eyebrows and a small smirk on his face. I just glared, ignoring my daughter's curious eyes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Draco-FutureBF: Yea, I tried to make this chapter extra funny to make up for the sadness in the last few. But now, as you can see, Harry is back and Devon is gone and everything is okay!... except that Harry has a live-in girlfriend and he and Ginny aren't as close anymore... okay, so maybe everything isn't okay...
Herbie: lol, I thought that'd be your reaction about Mrs. Weasley. I didn't want her to come off as mean, but I figured I should have someone convince Ginny to go.
Foags: WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT?! Damnit Nicole, use your head!!! Apparation! Sometimes I forget how gifted our wittle Harry is.
Bballgirl02: There together! Yay! Thank the gods for five-year-time-lapses!
Pheonixgurl: noooooooooooooooo! I'm so sorry! I hate making people cry, but it's fun writing sad things! It's a double edged sword!... I think.
Mintytoothpick: Sorry, I don't mean to make Hermione bitchy. I just... I donno, need someone who's different from Ginny. Anyways, even though you don't like Hermione, I'm still going to try and make her less bitchy.
Merit Somnia: Now Ginny's happy! And Devon is... well, I suppose he's pretty happy too, seeing as he strung Ginny along for so long. Anyways, no more angst. Happiness!
OfTheWest: Just for you! Blissful reunion!... kinda. They're friends, just not lovers....yet.
Neeva: You're the second person to say the thing about apparition (Foags was the other). I donno why I didn't think of that. As weird as it sounds, sometime I forget that they're wizards!
Snapes Gryffindor goddess: Sorry I made you cry! I like writing sad chapters, but I hate making people sad (kinda twisted, I know). When are you moving to Arizona? I hope I can finish it before you move, but if I can't you can still read it in Arizona, right? Anways, Arizona rocks, it's warm! What's better then that?
Strayc@t: No more sadness!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hpfan73: Nope, things aren't over, just a little delayed. And once we find a way to get Harry's new girlfriend out of the way, it's aaaaaaaaaaaall good.
Duke20104: I DID! ARE YOU HAPPY? I HOPE SO!
ChickFlick004: Yes, I think she has lost her mind. But then she found it again, so everything's gooooooooooood. Sorry 'bout the grief and frustration, but I hope this chapter brought you happiness and laughter!
Dolphingirl79: I hate crazy computers. Mine goes a bit wacky sometimes too, so no worries.
g-@-b-S-t-E-r*07: I totally agree! That's why I had Ginny wise up and move back to where Harry just happened to me. Muhahahaha!.... btw: thanks for the luck you gave me on my finals. I think it worked, because I was suddenly able to hablo espanol!
Faith456: heehee, I hope you continue to hate Devon and love the story! (btw: you sooooooooooooo need to update your story Him? Whaddya mean, Him? I love that story!)
Gatsu87645: sorry! I know, Ginny went a bit craaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazyyyyy, but now she's all better! EVERYTHING IS FIXED!!
Fentoozler612: heehee, wouldn't it be nice if no one had finals? Anyways, good luck to you too!
LittleGreenPerson: Thank you so much for the help with my Britishness. I get so confused! Have you ever seen the HP movies? In the second one, Ginny was like: "Mummy, have you seen my jumper?" and Mrs. Weasley said something about it being on the 'cat.' And I was thinking, "Why is a cat wearing a dress?"
Tyster: Don't hate me! I fixed it! I fixed it! All for you!
Kneh13: No, Molly doesn't think that Harry would be a bad father. She loves Harry. It's just that Devon is a lot more stable and, from what Molly has seen, wonderful. I suppose she just wanted Ginny to have a roof over her head, and forgot for a second about what Ginny really wanted.
Courtney: heehee, you're the first person who's said 'YAY!' about this chapter. Anyways, yea, pretty melodramatic. But what can I say? I'm a sucker for that kind of crap.
KeeperOfTheMoon: Aw, be happy! Everyone's in the same country again!
Chelles: I like that quote from your friend. It's very true, and I'm a firm believer in it. But we don't always write what we believe... well, I don't. Which I suppose is a bit strange.
Unperfection: heehee, yep, that's exactly what I should have done; had Ginny march from Ireland to London in the name of love! But I loved your mature way of dealing with the sad situation. Poopie solves everything.
MoonGoddess25: Wow, I've really made people turn against Hermione and Mrs. Weasley. Not my intent, I assure you, but I'll get you all to love them again.
Fredngeorgegirl: Thanks.
Me222: I'm glad I got a reaction out of you, but I hate making people cry. So, cheer up! Ginny's back in the same country with Harry again!
Dude: I'm glad you found the chapter beautiful instead of totally horrible. How do you find the energy to love angst? Whenever I read those kind of stories, I just feel so drained. But writing them is fun, so I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Lita: Every Friday! I promise to write more!
Grace: Er, sorry I made you hate so much. But can you love it again? I fixed it, right?
Angelic Vampire: lol, totally hardcore! I'd never lie to you guys! And you have my permission to beat Devon into whatever kind of pulp you'd like.
Da90schic: Thanks so much! I promise (cross my heart and all that) to write a new chapter every Friday.
HogwartsGrl13: Besides this little mishap (I had to leave early for a memorial so I couldn't access a computer on Friday), I promise to post a new one every Friday. I'm so glad you like it!
Luna Lovegood2: Thanks for reviewing! Omg, you're name reminded me of something; I was reading the fourth book for, like, the millionth time, and I realized something I'd never seen before. They mention the Lovegood family in the fourth book! Isn't it amazing how J. K. Rowling plans ahead so well?
Denaumo: Thank you!
Legolasfan: lol, I'm glad you're so into the story! And see? All your praying paid off because they're back together... well, okay, so maybe not *together* together, but they're in the same country, and that's saying something, right?
Eric2: *shakes with compressed laughter* omg, I never even thought about that! I'm not really good at geography at all, so I don't exactly know where Ireland and England are (I know, I'm stupid). I never even thought about not being about to take a train there! But, hey, they're wizards, right? They'll find a way.... actually, one time I took a train from Paris to London and we went under water.
Parvai Elana Nakeiisha Name: Be happy! Smile! Ginny's not in Ireland anymore!
lovey30: lol, no hunting required. I'm working on them getting back together.
purfectchild: I totally agree with you, and I'm working on it!
lightprincess: I'm so glad you love this story, cause that just makes my day when people say that! And, to keep your love, I made it happy again. Plus I love writing happy things, it makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.
Fancyeyes: Thank you so much! I'll update every Friday.
Faer: Glad you at least found it sweet in a sea of sadness. But not to worry, all happiness now.
*wipes sweat from forehead* man, that was a lot of writing! But THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THE REVIEWS! OVER 300! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!
Okay, must stop typing now. My left pinky is really sore (for some unseen reason), as are the rest of my fingers. Must go watch Friends reruns.
~hugs kisses and everything in between~
Nicole
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If you want me to e-mail you when I update, just give me you e-mail address in the review and I'd be happy to do it :)
