Chapter 14 – Into the Trunk
The night was filled with nightmares for Harry. Voldemort was angry; there was no question about it. What he didn't know was why he was angry. Death, destruction, and torture flashed on all sides of him. The Cruciatus Curse was constantly assaulting his body. He tried desperately to wake up, but to no avail. He shut his eyes, but couldn't block out their screams. Finally, finally, Voldemort's chilling laughter faded from his ears, the screams diminished, and Harry woke up with tears coursing down his cheeks.
Harry opened his eyes, and tried to wipe the tears away. He didn't want Ron to wake up and see him crying. Looking at his clock, he noticed it was nearly 6:00. The dreams had lasted the whole night. Not wanting to sleep anymore, Harry went downstairs to see who was up. The kitchen light was on, so he went in. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny were sitting at the table sipping their tea. They both smiled as Harry walked in.
"Sit down, dear!" said Mrs. Weasley. "Ginny was just telling me about your plan so she could go back to school."
Ginny looked worriedly at him, hoping he didn't mind her telling her mother. Harry smiled at her reassuringly.
"Well I didn't want her to miss a year of school because of this," he told Mrs. Weasley.
"Yes, I know. But I won't be able to see my darling baby for 9 months! And I'll miss the birth of her first child. My first grandchild. Ginny said there wasn't enough room for three people to live in the trunk. I wanted to come and stay with you two."
Harry looked at Ginny who was shaking her head furiously at him. "Yeah, she's right. There really isn't enough room. But every month or so, we can come out so you'll be able to see her. It won't be a month to you, though. Probably won't even be a day."
Ginny smiled gratefully at him. "Yeah, Mum. And I can come out for the birth. I doubt Harry knows how to deliver a baby."
"Alright, dear. I know you have to do this. I'm just a bit upset. You're so young. I always thought Bill or Charlie would give me my first grandchild."
At that exact moment, Bill walked into the kitchen. "Sorry, Mum. No grandchildren from me. Got anything to eat?"
"In the fridge, Bill."
"What are you doing here?" asked Ginny fearfully. He didn't appear to have heard their previous conversation but she couldn't be sure.
"Just came over for the day to see you all. Charlie's coming too. But you know him, he likes to sleep. He should be getting here around seven. Said he'd see if Fred and George wanted to come too. He was quite worried about going to their flat though. Didn't know what traps there would be."
"7? Well, look at that. All your brothers will be here today, Ginny," Mrs. Weasley said pointedly. "Well all except Percy," she added sadly.
"Yeah..." said Ginny faintly. "So who wants pancakes?"
"I do!" said Bill, who was rummaging through the fridge.
"Harry?"
"Sure. Thanks Gin."
"Why don't you make some for everyone?" suggested Mrs. Weasley. "I'm sure they'll start waking up soon."
Ginny nodded and went to the stove. An awkward silence fell across the room, until Bill and Harry started a conversation about Quidditch.
Soon the smell of pancakes drifted up the stairs and people started appearing. First came Ron, sleepily rubbing his eyes. Harry held back a comment on seeing Ron and Hermione apart.
Next came Tonks, followed shortly by Hermione and Remus. After that, Sirius came down. While everyone sat down to eat, two loud cracks were heard, followed by a softer pop, and Fred, George and Charlie Apparated into the kitchen.
"Smells lovely, Mum. Any for us?" asked George with a cheeky grin.
Ginny set down some plates in front of her brothers and then sat down with a plate for herself next to Harry. The chatter filled the kitchen, but Harry was concerned about the shaking redhead next to him.
"Angel, what's the matter?"
"Nothing!" squeaked Ginny. "Why would you think something's wrong?"
"You're shaking."
"Oh. She's going to make me tell them all today." Ginny sank into Harry's arms and he wrapped an arm protectively around her. Ginny didn't say anything further, so the two continued to eat their breakfast in silence.
Finally people began to finish their breakfast and leave. Mrs. Weasley stood and called them back. Everyone sat back at the table and look curiously at her.
"Now, I have to make an announcement that will affect you all to some degree. Ginny?"
The girl in question shook her head and sank deeper into Harry's arms. "I can't...," she muttered quietly.
"Alright. Ginny is pregnant." Absolute silence followed this statement. Ron shot a murderous glance at Harry, but Ginny, thinking it was aimed at her, whimpered softly.
"Now, what I tell you after this is to be kept a complete secret. If I ever hear of one of you talking about it again, even amongst yourselves, there will be severe consequences," said Mrs. Weasley, cutting through the silence. "We do not know who the father is. Ginny was raped by the Death Eaters when she was kidnapped. We may know by the child's appearance, but Ginny has decided she does not want to know any other way. Do NOT pester her about this."
The entire kitchen was silent. Tonks made a face at Ginny in an attempt to cheer her up. It failed miserably.
"I'll pound their bloody faces in for this!" muttered Bill angrily. "Those...!" The rest of the Weasley boys seemed to share his sentiments.
Mrs. Weasley spoke up again. "Harry knows of some place where time travels faster than it does here. He and Ginny will be going there, so she will not have to miss a year of school."
"But Mum!" Ron stammered. "You can't send them there alone! They might...you know..."
"They have to, Ron," said Mrs. Weasley patiently. "No one can go in without Harry, and there isn't enough room for me to live with them."
For the first time, Harry looked up and met the eyes of everyone in the room. "Ginny'll be fine. I promise. I would never do anything to hurt her," he said, mainly to her brothers. Ron seemed to be the only one that had a problem with it though. The other four Weasley brothers present seemed to trust Harry enough to leave their baby sister with him.
Ginny also noticed this. She finally looked up and said, "We were planning on going today. We want to have some time afterwards, so that I wouldn't have to take a newborn baby to Hogwarts."
At this, Mrs. Weasley looked startled. "No Ginny. I thought I would take care of the baby. You can't have a child with you at Hogwarts."
"No, Mum. I couldn't leave the baby with you. You've had seven of your own. You shouldn't have to take care of another one. Professor Dumbledore said he would give me my own room so I wouldn't wake any of the other girls up. It'll be connected to their dorm though, so no one else would know. Jessica and Perl are great. I trust them, they'd never tell anyone, if I asked them not to."
"Well, we'll talk about this later," said Mrs. Weasley, clearly not pleased. "Now, why don't you and Harry get ready to go? Don't leave before you say goodbye, though!"
"Yes, Mum." "Yes, Mrs. Weasley," mumbled Harry and Ginny simultaneously.
They climbed the stairs in awkward silence. Finally, Harry said, "Why don't you pack whatever you'll need, and we'll put it in the trunk before going to say goodbye to everyone?"
Ginny nodded, and they lapsed into silence again. When they finally reached Ginny's room, Harry stood just outside the door nervously. 'Was he supposed to go inside?' Fortunately, Ginny smiled wanly, and said, "You can come inside you know. I won't bite."
Ginny silently packed her clothes, while Harry stood by the wall trying to find something to say. He couldn't think of anything, so he stayed silent. Finally, after everything was packed and deposited in Harry's trunk, the two went downstairs to say goodbye.
After a rather tearful parting, on Mrs. Weasley's part, and promises to come out and visit often, Harry and Ginny finally went into the trunk to start the next year of their lives.
******
Once inside, Ginny went to put her things away in the bedroom she had used before, and Harry went to start lunch. Not long after that Ginny was drawn to the kitchen by the wonderful smell of pasta.
"Hey Harry."
"Hey Gin. I made some pasta."
"Smells good." She paused. "Are you mad at me?"
"No, why do you ask?"
"Oh, well you weren't talking to me. I thought you were mad," she said, slightly embarrassed.
Harry smiled. "No, I'm not mad. I just didn't know what to say. I never say the right thing and I didn't want to upset you. You know, after having to tell everyone..."
Ginny grinned and accepted her plate from Harry. "So, how often are we able to leave here?"
"What? Tired of me already?" asked Harry, teasingly. "We can leave whenever we want. Although, we probably shouldn't leave more than once in two weeks. Well two weeks in the trunk."
"Okay. Except...how are we going to know how long we've been in here?"
"Ah, I'm glad you asked. Come here." Harry led her over to the blue hand pad that allowed them to exit. Above it were two clocks she hadn't noticed before. "This clock," he said, pointing to the first one, "resets every time we enter the trunk. So it tells us how many hours we've been in here. It might show days as well, but I've never been in here for more than a day so I don't know. The second clock only resets when I tell it to. However, when no one is in the trunk it stops working. Therefore, we'll know how long we've been in here total."
"Wow! That's amazing!" exclaimed Ginny. "Did you make those?"
Harry laughed. "No, those are pretty complicated. They were in here already. Anyway, we'd better go eat before it gets cold. I didn't place any charms on the food."
"Right," smiled Ginny walking back to the kitchen. After finishing the meal, both teens stood up to clear the dishes at the same time. Ginny, not expecting a body to be standing where she was trying to stand started to fall. Unthinkingly, Harry reached out and caught her in a hug, preventing her from falling.
However, Ginny, panicking because of the unexpected physical contact, pushed him away, causing Harry to fall instead.
"Oh SHIT! Harry, I'm so sorry. Oh my gosh, are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to push you. You aren't hurt are you?"
Harry smiled wryly. "No, I'm fine Angel. Just a bruised bottom, is all. Why did you push me away this time though? I had my arms around you earlier and you were okay."
Ginny turned a scarlet red that rivalled her hair. "Uh...I guess...it's because I didn't start it. And I didn't expect it. Earlier I leaned against you first."
Harry smiled and stood, brushing himself off. "Alright, well I'll keep that in mind. Don't surprise you."
Ginny looked guilty. "This isn't a good idea. You have to live with some emotionally unstable girl, who will push you if you move suddenly. We should go, and I'll just take a year off. Spend time with Mum, or something. It'll be fun."
"Ginny don't be silly. I'm fine! I'll just have to be more careful. I'm not going to let you miss a year of school. You stuck with me when I was a major prick after I found out the prophesy, and I'm going to stick with you when you're 'emotionally unstable' as you call it. It's what friends do. And just for the record, I don't think you're unstable. You're just a little scared. Anyone would be after that."
Ginny was nearly in tears. "Thank you Harry," she said, flinging herself at him and pulling him into a tight hug. "Thank you," she whispered. They stood like that for a few moments, until Ginny pulled herself away. "Well," she mumbled, slightly embarrassed. "I'm going to the library, okay?"
Harry smiled. "Sure. I think I'll come too, if that's alright with you?"
Ginny nodded, and the two set off towards the library, dishes forgotten on the table.
A few hours later, Harry looked up from his book and saw Ginny staring listlessly off into space. "Gin!" he called. She looked up, startled. "How'd you like to start on sixth year Potions? I have a lab here. We might as well start now, because I doubt you'd want to be hovering over a hot cauldron eight or nine months from now."
"Sure Harry. But could you Charm me, so nothing I smell will affect the baby? Mum told me about it this morning. She showed me how to cast it, but I can't, since I'm underage."
"You can practice magic here. The ministry won't be able to detect it with time going this fast."
"Really? Wow. Alright." Ginny pulled her wand out of her pocket, and waved it muttering under her breath. A blue glow surrounded her, and then faded. "Alright," she said smiling. "Let's go!"
The next few hours were spent comfortably over a cauldron, and both Harry and Ginny came to realize why Snape loved potions so much. 'Many more children would like Potions if Snape wasn't the teacher,' mused Harry. They were both shocked to realize how the time had flown, and they were both getting rather tired.
The two had gotten through the first week of Harry's notes. Alright so they were really Hermione's notes that had been copied. Harry discovered that Ginny was actually pretty good at Potions, despite Snape being her teacher.
After finishing up a final Potion, Harry yawned and said, "I think I'll go to bed. I woke up pretty early today and I'm exhausted."
Ginny smiled, pushing the hair out of her eyes. "Yeah, alright," she said distractedly. "I'll be up in a minute. I just want to try this last potion again. I didn't quite get it last time."
Harry nodded and went to his room. A while later, he opened his door to go to the kitchen, and found Ginny standing at the other side, looking nervous. When she saw his door open, she jumped and turned to flee. "Wait! Gin. What did you need?"
"Nothing!" she said quickly, her eyes darting around. "Nothing, just...ummm..."
"What's the matter, Angel?"
"I...uhhh...Willyoustaywithmeagain?"
Harry stared at her trying to figure out what she'd said. 'Will you stay with me again?' Oh.
"Sure Gin." To tell the truth, he'd also wanted to stay with her, but had been afraid to ask. That night with her had been the first nightmare-free night he'd had in a while.
"Thanks Harry," she said, blushing the customary Weasley red. "I don't like sleeping alone. Which is strange, since I don't like anyone touching me either."
"No problem."
Once in the bed, Ginny curled up to Harry, and he rested a hand on her arm. 'I could get used to this,' was his last thought before slipping into sleep.
However, not too long later he was awoken, by a soft sound. He soon realized that Ginny was crying.
"Ginny, what's wrong? Did I kick you or something?"
"Sorry I woke you," she said through her tears.
"That's alright. What's wrong?"
"I don't want a baby!" she sobbed. Her sobs were taking on a hysterical edge, and Harry didn't know what to do. Again. 'I hate tears,' he thought to himself.
"I...don't want to do this! I hate him! I hate them all! Can I just give it to Mum?!?"
"If you want to, Gin. I know she'll look after the baby, if you want her too."
"But I DON'T! This is MY baby. She's mine! I don't want her to grow up with out her mother. It's bad enough she won't have her father. Maybe it's better I give her to Mum. She can grow up thinking Mum and Dad are her parents. She'll be better off, than having some messed up teen mother."
"Why do you keep calling it, 'she'? Do you know it's going to be a girl?"
"I don't know. It just feels like a girl. And I don't want to call her 'it' all the time."
"Alright. Well, she'll have you. And she'll have me. I told you I'd be here for you. You won't be a bad mother Ginny. You're so loving and caring. You might make a few mistakes to start, but all new mothers do, I expect. You'll be wonderful. But if you want to, you still can leave it—her with your mother. You don't even have to decide now. You have months to decide."
"I know. I'm just being stupid. But I hate this. I don't even want to have a child. I don't want to make this decision! I want to be a child again, Harry. Please. Please make it go away..."
Sobs wracked her body. Harry pulled her close to him, trying vainly to comfort her. He wished that he could make it go away. He couldn't stand to see her suffer like this. Slowly, Ginny's sobs quietened, and she settled into an uneasy sleep. Eventually, Harry's eyes grew heavy, and he too, fell asleep.
**************************************************
A/N: Okay, here it is! Chapter 14. I'm so sorry about the long wait. School and everything else got in the way. But I should be getting the next few chapters out quicker. I know the Weasleys didn't react to this too much, but they were in shock. They'll react when Harry and Ginny see them next though. It'll only be a few hours to those outside the trunk. Also, someone asked why Harry would do this for her, when he only 'kinda' liked her. Well firstly, he is her friend, so he would do almost anything for her. And secondly, he's a teenage boy. They are generally known to understate their feelings. Especially Harry. He's not a feelings person.
And you guys have to remember this is from HARRY'S point of view. He says Ron and Hermione have been snogging all the time, which may be partly true, but it also means, that they were doing other things that didn't include him. Which couples often do. And yes, I do believe Hermione may act like this. She did a LOT of things in the fifth book, which I never thought she'd previously do.
Okay, sorry, I just had to get that off my chest. Sorry I can't respond to each review, but FF.net won't let me. If you have a specific question you want answered, leave your email in the review, or email me, midnightlily69@hotmail.com and I'll reply.
So thanks to, lluvatar, Kaylin, Serap-89, chrismkingg208, jbfritz, atlantis- rob, Ms.Marvel, BabyBlu4, Iris, Dee, Borg, Hunta, athenakitty, FroBoy, Laura, The Vampire Story Hunter, Silvercrystal77, Fan-Of-HP, Silnar.
The night was filled with nightmares for Harry. Voldemort was angry; there was no question about it. What he didn't know was why he was angry. Death, destruction, and torture flashed on all sides of him. The Cruciatus Curse was constantly assaulting his body. He tried desperately to wake up, but to no avail. He shut his eyes, but couldn't block out their screams. Finally, finally, Voldemort's chilling laughter faded from his ears, the screams diminished, and Harry woke up with tears coursing down his cheeks.
Harry opened his eyes, and tried to wipe the tears away. He didn't want Ron to wake up and see him crying. Looking at his clock, he noticed it was nearly 6:00. The dreams had lasted the whole night. Not wanting to sleep anymore, Harry went downstairs to see who was up. The kitchen light was on, so he went in. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny were sitting at the table sipping their tea. They both smiled as Harry walked in.
"Sit down, dear!" said Mrs. Weasley. "Ginny was just telling me about your plan so she could go back to school."
Ginny looked worriedly at him, hoping he didn't mind her telling her mother. Harry smiled at her reassuringly.
"Well I didn't want her to miss a year of school because of this," he told Mrs. Weasley.
"Yes, I know. But I won't be able to see my darling baby for 9 months! And I'll miss the birth of her first child. My first grandchild. Ginny said there wasn't enough room for three people to live in the trunk. I wanted to come and stay with you two."
Harry looked at Ginny who was shaking her head furiously at him. "Yeah, she's right. There really isn't enough room. But every month or so, we can come out so you'll be able to see her. It won't be a month to you, though. Probably won't even be a day."
Ginny smiled gratefully at him. "Yeah, Mum. And I can come out for the birth. I doubt Harry knows how to deliver a baby."
"Alright, dear. I know you have to do this. I'm just a bit upset. You're so young. I always thought Bill or Charlie would give me my first grandchild."
At that exact moment, Bill walked into the kitchen. "Sorry, Mum. No grandchildren from me. Got anything to eat?"
"In the fridge, Bill."
"What are you doing here?" asked Ginny fearfully. He didn't appear to have heard their previous conversation but she couldn't be sure.
"Just came over for the day to see you all. Charlie's coming too. But you know him, he likes to sleep. He should be getting here around seven. Said he'd see if Fred and George wanted to come too. He was quite worried about going to their flat though. Didn't know what traps there would be."
"7? Well, look at that. All your brothers will be here today, Ginny," Mrs. Weasley said pointedly. "Well all except Percy," she added sadly.
"Yeah..." said Ginny faintly. "So who wants pancakes?"
"I do!" said Bill, who was rummaging through the fridge.
"Harry?"
"Sure. Thanks Gin."
"Why don't you make some for everyone?" suggested Mrs. Weasley. "I'm sure they'll start waking up soon."
Ginny nodded and went to the stove. An awkward silence fell across the room, until Bill and Harry started a conversation about Quidditch.
Soon the smell of pancakes drifted up the stairs and people started appearing. First came Ron, sleepily rubbing his eyes. Harry held back a comment on seeing Ron and Hermione apart.
Next came Tonks, followed shortly by Hermione and Remus. After that, Sirius came down. While everyone sat down to eat, two loud cracks were heard, followed by a softer pop, and Fred, George and Charlie Apparated into the kitchen.
"Smells lovely, Mum. Any for us?" asked George with a cheeky grin.
Ginny set down some plates in front of her brothers and then sat down with a plate for herself next to Harry. The chatter filled the kitchen, but Harry was concerned about the shaking redhead next to him.
"Angel, what's the matter?"
"Nothing!" squeaked Ginny. "Why would you think something's wrong?"
"You're shaking."
"Oh. She's going to make me tell them all today." Ginny sank into Harry's arms and he wrapped an arm protectively around her. Ginny didn't say anything further, so the two continued to eat their breakfast in silence.
Finally people began to finish their breakfast and leave. Mrs. Weasley stood and called them back. Everyone sat back at the table and look curiously at her.
"Now, I have to make an announcement that will affect you all to some degree. Ginny?"
The girl in question shook her head and sank deeper into Harry's arms. "I can't...," she muttered quietly.
"Alright. Ginny is pregnant." Absolute silence followed this statement. Ron shot a murderous glance at Harry, but Ginny, thinking it was aimed at her, whimpered softly.
"Now, what I tell you after this is to be kept a complete secret. If I ever hear of one of you talking about it again, even amongst yourselves, there will be severe consequences," said Mrs. Weasley, cutting through the silence. "We do not know who the father is. Ginny was raped by the Death Eaters when she was kidnapped. We may know by the child's appearance, but Ginny has decided she does not want to know any other way. Do NOT pester her about this."
The entire kitchen was silent. Tonks made a face at Ginny in an attempt to cheer her up. It failed miserably.
"I'll pound their bloody faces in for this!" muttered Bill angrily. "Those...!" The rest of the Weasley boys seemed to share his sentiments.
Mrs. Weasley spoke up again. "Harry knows of some place where time travels faster than it does here. He and Ginny will be going there, so she will not have to miss a year of school."
"But Mum!" Ron stammered. "You can't send them there alone! They might...you know..."
"They have to, Ron," said Mrs. Weasley patiently. "No one can go in without Harry, and there isn't enough room for me to live with them."
For the first time, Harry looked up and met the eyes of everyone in the room. "Ginny'll be fine. I promise. I would never do anything to hurt her," he said, mainly to her brothers. Ron seemed to be the only one that had a problem with it though. The other four Weasley brothers present seemed to trust Harry enough to leave their baby sister with him.
Ginny also noticed this. She finally looked up and said, "We were planning on going today. We want to have some time afterwards, so that I wouldn't have to take a newborn baby to Hogwarts."
At this, Mrs. Weasley looked startled. "No Ginny. I thought I would take care of the baby. You can't have a child with you at Hogwarts."
"No, Mum. I couldn't leave the baby with you. You've had seven of your own. You shouldn't have to take care of another one. Professor Dumbledore said he would give me my own room so I wouldn't wake any of the other girls up. It'll be connected to their dorm though, so no one else would know. Jessica and Perl are great. I trust them, they'd never tell anyone, if I asked them not to."
"Well, we'll talk about this later," said Mrs. Weasley, clearly not pleased. "Now, why don't you and Harry get ready to go? Don't leave before you say goodbye, though!"
"Yes, Mum." "Yes, Mrs. Weasley," mumbled Harry and Ginny simultaneously.
They climbed the stairs in awkward silence. Finally, Harry said, "Why don't you pack whatever you'll need, and we'll put it in the trunk before going to say goodbye to everyone?"
Ginny nodded, and they lapsed into silence again. When they finally reached Ginny's room, Harry stood just outside the door nervously. 'Was he supposed to go inside?' Fortunately, Ginny smiled wanly, and said, "You can come inside you know. I won't bite."
Ginny silently packed her clothes, while Harry stood by the wall trying to find something to say. He couldn't think of anything, so he stayed silent. Finally, after everything was packed and deposited in Harry's trunk, the two went downstairs to say goodbye.
After a rather tearful parting, on Mrs. Weasley's part, and promises to come out and visit often, Harry and Ginny finally went into the trunk to start the next year of their lives.
******
Once inside, Ginny went to put her things away in the bedroom she had used before, and Harry went to start lunch. Not long after that Ginny was drawn to the kitchen by the wonderful smell of pasta.
"Hey Harry."
"Hey Gin. I made some pasta."
"Smells good." She paused. "Are you mad at me?"
"No, why do you ask?"
"Oh, well you weren't talking to me. I thought you were mad," she said, slightly embarrassed.
Harry smiled. "No, I'm not mad. I just didn't know what to say. I never say the right thing and I didn't want to upset you. You know, after having to tell everyone..."
Ginny grinned and accepted her plate from Harry. "So, how often are we able to leave here?"
"What? Tired of me already?" asked Harry, teasingly. "We can leave whenever we want. Although, we probably shouldn't leave more than once in two weeks. Well two weeks in the trunk."
"Okay. Except...how are we going to know how long we've been in here?"
"Ah, I'm glad you asked. Come here." Harry led her over to the blue hand pad that allowed them to exit. Above it were two clocks she hadn't noticed before. "This clock," he said, pointing to the first one, "resets every time we enter the trunk. So it tells us how many hours we've been in here. It might show days as well, but I've never been in here for more than a day so I don't know. The second clock only resets when I tell it to. However, when no one is in the trunk it stops working. Therefore, we'll know how long we've been in here total."
"Wow! That's amazing!" exclaimed Ginny. "Did you make those?"
Harry laughed. "No, those are pretty complicated. They were in here already. Anyway, we'd better go eat before it gets cold. I didn't place any charms on the food."
"Right," smiled Ginny walking back to the kitchen. After finishing the meal, both teens stood up to clear the dishes at the same time. Ginny, not expecting a body to be standing where she was trying to stand started to fall. Unthinkingly, Harry reached out and caught her in a hug, preventing her from falling.
However, Ginny, panicking because of the unexpected physical contact, pushed him away, causing Harry to fall instead.
"Oh SHIT! Harry, I'm so sorry. Oh my gosh, are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to push you. You aren't hurt are you?"
Harry smiled wryly. "No, I'm fine Angel. Just a bruised bottom, is all. Why did you push me away this time though? I had my arms around you earlier and you were okay."
Ginny turned a scarlet red that rivalled her hair. "Uh...I guess...it's because I didn't start it. And I didn't expect it. Earlier I leaned against you first."
Harry smiled and stood, brushing himself off. "Alright, well I'll keep that in mind. Don't surprise you."
Ginny looked guilty. "This isn't a good idea. You have to live with some emotionally unstable girl, who will push you if you move suddenly. We should go, and I'll just take a year off. Spend time with Mum, or something. It'll be fun."
"Ginny don't be silly. I'm fine! I'll just have to be more careful. I'm not going to let you miss a year of school. You stuck with me when I was a major prick after I found out the prophesy, and I'm going to stick with you when you're 'emotionally unstable' as you call it. It's what friends do. And just for the record, I don't think you're unstable. You're just a little scared. Anyone would be after that."
Ginny was nearly in tears. "Thank you Harry," she said, flinging herself at him and pulling him into a tight hug. "Thank you," she whispered. They stood like that for a few moments, until Ginny pulled herself away. "Well," she mumbled, slightly embarrassed. "I'm going to the library, okay?"
Harry smiled. "Sure. I think I'll come too, if that's alright with you?"
Ginny nodded, and the two set off towards the library, dishes forgotten on the table.
A few hours later, Harry looked up from his book and saw Ginny staring listlessly off into space. "Gin!" he called. She looked up, startled. "How'd you like to start on sixth year Potions? I have a lab here. We might as well start now, because I doubt you'd want to be hovering over a hot cauldron eight or nine months from now."
"Sure Harry. But could you Charm me, so nothing I smell will affect the baby? Mum told me about it this morning. She showed me how to cast it, but I can't, since I'm underage."
"You can practice magic here. The ministry won't be able to detect it with time going this fast."
"Really? Wow. Alright." Ginny pulled her wand out of her pocket, and waved it muttering under her breath. A blue glow surrounded her, and then faded. "Alright," she said smiling. "Let's go!"
The next few hours were spent comfortably over a cauldron, and both Harry and Ginny came to realize why Snape loved potions so much. 'Many more children would like Potions if Snape wasn't the teacher,' mused Harry. They were both shocked to realize how the time had flown, and they were both getting rather tired.
The two had gotten through the first week of Harry's notes. Alright so they were really Hermione's notes that had been copied. Harry discovered that Ginny was actually pretty good at Potions, despite Snape being her teacher.
After finishing up a final Potion, Harry yawned and said, "I think I'll go to bed. I woke up pretty early today and I'm exhausted."
Ginny smiled, pushing the hair out of her eyes. "Yeah, alright," she said distractedly. "I'll be up in a minute. I just want to try this last potion again. I didn't quite get it last time."
Harry nodded and went to his room. A while later, he opened his door to go to the kitchen, and found Ginny standing at the other side, looking nervous. When she saw his door open, she jumped and turned to flee. "Wait! Gin. What did you need?"
"Nothing!" she said quickly, her eyes darting around. "Nothing, just...ummm..."
"What's the matter, Angel?"
"I...uhhh...Willyoustaywithmeagain?"
Harry stared at her trying to figure out what she'd said. 'Will you stay with me again?' Oh.
"Sure Gin." To tell the truth, he'd also wanted to stay with her, but had been afraid to ask. That night with her had been the first nightmare-free night he'd had in a while.
"Thanks Harry," she said, blushing the customary Weasley red. "I don't like sleeping alone. Which is strange, since I don't like anyone touching me either."
"No problem."
Once in the bed, Ginny curled up to Harry, and he rested a hand on her arm. 'I could get used to this,' was his last thought before slipping into sleep.
However, not too long later he was awoken, by a soft sound. He soon realized that Ginny was crying.
"Ginny, what's wrong? Did I kick you or something?"
"Sorry I woke you," she said through her tears.
"That's alright. What's wrong?"
"I don't want a baby!" she sobbed. Her sobs were taking on a hysterical edge, and Harry didn't know what to do. Again. 'I hate tears,' he thought to himself.
"I...don't want to do this! I hate him! I hate them all! Can I just give it to Mum?!?"
"If you want to, Gin. I know she'll look after the baby, if you want her too."
"But I DON'T! This is MY baby. She's mine! I don't want her to grow up with out her mother. It's bad enough she won't have her father. Maybe it's better I give her to Mum. She can grow up thinking Mum and Dad are her parents. She'll be better off, than having some messed up teen mother."
"Why do you keep calling it, 'she'? Do you know it's going to be a girl?"
"I don't know. It just feels like a girl. And I don't want to call her 'it' all the time."
"Alright. Well, she'll have you. And she'll have me. I told you I'd be here for you. You won't be a bad mother Ginny. You're so loving and caring. You might make a few mistakes to start, but all new mothers do, I expect. You'll be wonderful. But if you want to, you still can leave it—her with your mother. You don't even have to decide now. You have months to decide."
"I know. I'm just being stupid. But I hate this. I don't even want to have a child. I don't want to make this decision! I want to be a child again, Harry. Please. Please make it go away..."
Sobs wracked her body. Harry pulled her close to him, trying vainly to comfort her. He wished that he could make it go away. He couldn't stand to see her suffer like this. Slowly, Ginny's sobs quietened, and she settled into an uneasy sleep. Eventually, Harry's eyes grew heavy, and he too, fell asleep.
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A/N: Okay, here it is! Chapter 14. I'm so sorry about the long wait. School and everything else got in the way. But I should be getting the next few chapters out quicker. I know the Weasleys didn't react to this too much, but they were in shock. They'll react when Harry and Ginny see them next though. It'll only be a few hours to those outside the trunk. Also, someone asked why Harry would do this for her, when he only 'kinda' liked her. Well firstly, he is her friend, so he would do almost anything for her. And secondly, he's a teenage boy. They are generally known to understate their feelings. Especially Harry. He's not a feelings person.
And you guys have to remember this is from HARRY'S point of view. He says Ron and Hermione have been snogging all the time, which may be partly true, but it also means, that they were doing other things that didn't include him. Which couples often do. And yes, I do believe Hermione may act like this. She did a LOT of things in the fifth book, which I never thought she'd previously do.
Okay, sorry, I just had to get that off my chest. Sorry I can't respond to each review, but FF.net won't let me. If you have a specific question you want answered, leave your email in the review, or email me, midnightlily69@hotmail.com and I'll reply.
So thanks to, lluvatar, Kaylin, Serap-89, chrismkingg208, jbfritz, atlantis- rob, Ms.Marvel, BabyBlu4, Iris, Dee, Borg, Hunta, athenakitty, FroBoy, Laura, The Vampire Story Hunter, Silvercrystal77, Fan-Of-HP, Silnar.