Author Notes: I would like to thank my reviewers very much; it really brightens my day to see such a positive response to my story. Anyway, enjoy! 

Chapter 7: Summer

After arriving back in Harry's room in Number 4 Privet Drive, the four friends came to an unspoken agreement to not ask about what happened at the current moment. It after all, the first time anyone besides a few members of the Order had really been inside Harry's room and had the chance to examine it. What they saw made Harry look worse off than the Weaselys had been.

The room was decorated with only the basic necessities. Along one wall of the room was the smallest bed possible that still allowed Harry enough room to just lye down. In the corner stood a bureau that appeared to only hold a five year old's cloths. In the last area there was a desk, an extremely small desk at that, under the window. Not including the trunk at the foot of the bed, that was all there was.

"Um, Harry, what happened to all the things you said Remus had brought over?" Hermione nervously asked.

"Well, you can all tell this room is a dump. I did what I could with magic while still keeping my uncle happy. My trunk is a lot bigger than you'd think, and has levels in it like Mad Eye's does. I put a lot of stuff in there," Harry seemed to talk about the room with such normality it was almost sad.

It broke Ginny's heart to hear him talk about the way his life was with his 'family'. He acted like it was no big deal and that was how things were meant to be. She figured any other man would have lost it by now, becoming another Voldemort or just ending it themselves. At the last thought she shivered.

"Cold?" Harry asked. He wrapped a quilt around her shoulders and tried to give her a massage to let her ease down. He could tell she was upset over something, though what he didn't exactly know.

"Just a bit, but where'd this come from? It wasn't here a minute ago," Ginny replied, leaning back into his arms that were still trying to massage her shoulders, and failing miserably.

Harry just smiled and snapped his fingers. In his hand appeared a dozen roses, pink in color and beautiful in smell. A soft "Oh" could be heard from Hermione as Ginny stared at the flawless flowers. Figuring he would be a nice guy, Harry snapped his fingers once more and a group of white roses appeared in Ron's hand. With the flowers, came an attached note. Give them to her, mate. Don't just stand there.
Ron grinned at Harry and handed the roses to Hermione. Harry knew he made his friends happy when Hermione grabbed the flowers and gave Ron a quick kiss, followed by an air kiss for Harry. Harry pretended to catch it but instead flicked his wrist. The pretend kiss was now floating in the air red as a fire truck. Quickly grabbing it, Harry pushed the kiss on Ginny's cheek where a small splat could be heard. She started to giggle and relax more into Harry's arms.

All of a sudden her eyes flew open. "What do you think you're doing, Harry! You're supposed to be resting. After a fight the likes I could barely imagine, you come home and do magic. The talismans need to regenerate, not be drained! You are to march right into bed this instant and I will not take no for an answer!"

Ginny looked so much like her mother that Harry couldn't help but laugh. He only stopped when he felt a light slap on his arm and his eyes met Ginny's glare. "You do know that being back here helps? Probably something with my mum's blood magic, but doing magic also helps. Unfortunately, you are not going to let me fool around any longer. In that case I need to tell you to get ready yourself because you still need to hold the talisman. Remember you were leaning against it before but it's starting to burn again."

Ginny immediately put a hand on the exposed talismans. As the pain started to leave Harry's face, Ron asked Harry where they would sleep. "It really is up to you. I can send you back home or you can be really cramped here tonight. You're welcome to visit whenever though, Arabella Figgs house is connected to the floo network. After a quick look, Ron and Hermione decided to return to the Burrow.

"Hand me a rose, Hermione," taking a white rose from his friend, Harry took out his wand. It was a rare occurrence these days but Harry wanted to make sure you performed it perfectly. "Portus," he muttered, while pointing his dragon heartstring wand at the flower. It turned a slight blue and glowed for a second until return back to normal. "Here, guys, just touch this and it'll take you back to the Burrow."

After a quick hug and slap on the back, Harry's first true friends disappeared from Privet Drive. Though anyone in a mile radius could have heard Molly Weasely's scream of surprise, Harry and Ginny just smiled at each other and laid back on the much too small bed.

"You know, Harry, this bed is barely fit for you. We could use a bigger one for the both of us."

Harry feigned a hurt look, "Does that mean you don't want to be close to me anymore?"

Ginny gave an appreciative chuckle, "What do you think I've been waiting all these years to do. Now come one and let's get to sleep. I want to wake up early tomorrow and give your relatives a piece of my mind."

"Would you like to borrow a set of battle robes for that? I'm not sure that my uncle and aunt will be happy to see you."

"Aha, I found what you don't know. You see, now that I'm your girlfriend, you pretty much do what I say. If I say jump, you say how high. Got it?" At Harry's nod, Ginny continued. "As for your relatives, I said I would take care of them, and being a Weasely I won't stop until they've had a good talking to."

"You mean now you're a Weasely. Someday that may just change," Harry said with a yawn. Ginny was saved from coming up with a response do to the fact that Harry had already fallen asleep and was started to quietly snore.

After a while, she managed to calm her happiness and fall asleep. But not before worrying that everything was going too good to be true, or at least stay this good.

The next morning Harry woke up a slight tingle on his face. At first he was confused, nothing in his room made him tingle. The tingling slowly turned into a tinkling sensation. He reached up to swipe away whatever was bothering him. What his hand met was not what he had expected, though he hadn't expected much.

Harry's hand had come in contact with another hand, a much smaller feminine hand. Opening his eyes, Harry saw Ginny leaning over him giggling. She was holding some strands of her hair and he quickly realized what the thing was that was tickling him was. "Why'd you wake me up so early?"

"It's eight, sleepyhead. Remember that I wanted to have a talk with your relatives this morning."

"Gin, I just want to sleep. You can go talk if you want," Harry mumbled trying to turn over. Unfortunately, the limited bed space caused him to almost fall off the bed. Ginny pulled him back and then sat on his stomach.

"You, Mr. Potter, really do need to learn the arts of dating. I believe I told you that what I say always goes. Well, I say that if you're a good boy and do as I say, I'll give you a special reward later," Ginny said in her most flirty voice.

"I don't have any reason to trust you will keep your end of the deal, Ms. Weasely."

Leaning downwards, she was still sitting on his chest, Ginny gave him a passionate kiss. "As you said earlier, I might not be Ms. Weasely for long."

With that, Ginny got off Harry and handed him a set of clothes she had picked out. They were muggle in appearance and Harry, after seeing Voldemort's main plans and putting him at a major setback, chose to not where his muggle battlerobes. He put on a pair of blue jeans and a white muggle t-shirt that said "Just Do It". He also put on his green cap he had become fond of and had his dragon wand under his jeans on his left foot.

Fortunately for his girlfriend, Harry could conjure simple muggle clothes. Seeing as how she only had the robes from yesterday, Ginny asked Harry for a low cut pair of jeans and a form fitting pink shirt. Once the clothes appeared, Ginny shooed Harry out of the room so she could change. She ended up grabbing one of Harry's Gryffindor ties and looping it through her belt while writing surf up on her shirt. She had found a blue marker within Harry trunk and ended up making a huge wave on the front of the shirt. Overall, she was happy with her look and expected Harry to be as well.

After pulling her hair back in a ponytail, Ginny left the room to find Harry on the other side of the hall. He seemed to not hear her as she slowly approached. The look of longing was written all over Harry's face as he stood looking at pictures of when the Dursley's were a younger family. Slipping an arm around his waist she asked if he was okay.

"You probably know that I would normally say, I'm fine, and then turn away. But Gin, I feel like I'm missing something. Looking at these pictures all I ever wanted was my own parent. Someone who would always be there and actually except me as their own. I guess you could say someone to love me. Once I had actually met a descent family, I was already a wizard. I had lost my need for a parent by that time but it didn't stop my want for one. The fame I always got from being The-Boy-Who-Lived never helped, even with your family. Everyone always treated me special and wanted to always be by me.

I guess you can say I'll never have a parent now. The closest thing I had was Sirius, and look where that got him. Your mom has always been great, but she also wants to suffocate me with too much care and not enough freedom. I'm a legal adult now and no longer need a guardian. No one in the muggle world would think about taking me in and I wouldn't want the fame of the wizarding world as a guardian. I think I'm trying to say is that I miss the chance to have never had a family." Harry's eyes were glazed over with unwilled tears, he didn't let a single drop fall though.

Seeing this Ginny spoke, "Harry, tears aren't a weakness; they're your biggest strength. Let one fall every now and then and let yourself stay human. You may not have had a family in the past, but you do now. Ron and Hermione have been with you for years. They would die for you, not to save The-Boy-Who-Lived, but to save Harry James Potter. You've added something to their lives, Harry, and you've earned their love; as you have earned mine. One day you'll have a family of your own and then you'll feel exactly what it's like to have a family. One day you will have a wife and some kids. One day you'll have a future to look forward to filled with only happiness and love. When that day comes, you will have defeated Voldemort, for love is your greatest weapon."

When Ginny finished speaking, Harry pulled himself away from the pictures and held his girlfriend in a tight embrace. Ginny could feel all of Harry's doubt and fear in that embrace and hung on to him. "Thank you," was all he said, yet Ginny knew what he felt, she could feel his emotions inside of her. That's strange.

The embrace was interrupted by the yell of, "Boy, get down here!" Taking her hand in his, Harry steeled himself for the encounter he knew was about to take place. Before they even entered the kitchen Vernon started speaking again, "I know those freaky friends of your have left, boy! It's high time you started to pull your weight around here. You will mow the lawn, trim the hedges, wash the car, and dust the entire house before four o'clock. I have company arriving and if your chores are not done than it will be no meals for a week! Marge will be coming to stay, and if you pull another stunt like last time I will personally finish what Voldywasits started sixteen years ago."

Ginny was appalled at what Harry's uncle had just said to his nephew. How could Dumbledore have left him here? "Excuse me?" she snarled. Her voice had startled the three Dursleys so much the Petunia dropped her frying pan, Dudley choked on his food, and Vernon ripped the newspaper he was reading in half. "I believe you owe Harry an apology. He has never done any wrong to your family, yet you treat him like dirt every day. Since he was a baby you mistreated and abused him! Since he became a wizard it only became worse. I ask you, what has Harry ever done to you?" After waiting a minute and getting no response, she continued. "Could it be the fact that Harry tried to tell you the truth about your bully of a son? Perhaps it's the notion that Harry managed to save that same bully last year when he could easily have left him for death? I had come here expecting a messed up household, but what I just heard makes me believe that you all deserve to be in a mental ward and jail!"

The next thing Ginny did surprised the entire room. She took a few pieces of toast off the table then spat at Vernon Dursley. Seeing his uncle get steadily redder, Harry stepped forward. "You won't hurt her, uncle. Trust me, I would make setting that snake on Dudley look like baby's play if you move an inch to hurt her. By the way, we'll be out for the day and will return back before midnight. I know you don't care, but right now I'm the only thing keeping the world you love so much alive. I wouldn't get on my bad side anymore."

Turning as one, Harry and Ginny walked out of the kitchen leaving a stunned silence in their wake. As soon as they made it outside, Harry burst out laughing and Ginny let a look of deep sadness cross her face. Noticing this Harry stopped his laughter and ask, "Gin, what's wrong?"

"Oh, Harry, you should have told someone the muggles were that bad. Mum and dad would have done something and Dumbledore could have gotten you out of there," seeing Ginny close to tears, Harry pulled her into another hug.

"I did tell them. They chose not to believe me. That's why it hurt so much the other day when I found out Ron and Hermione had lied to me. I felt like there was no one else I could trust. No one believed me before except them and they betrayed me in my mind. I understand what's happened over the years and why people chose not to believe me, so just trust me okay. Let's spend the day shopping and I'll take you to go see a movie tonight that way we can avoid Marge."

Ginny nodded so they headed out. After finally arriving at a shopping mall, Harry began to explain to Ginny how everything worked at what the different technological advancements did. All in all, the shopping spree worked pretty well in getting his girlfriend's mind off bad thoughts. When it neared lunch time, Harry bought them all some food called McDonald's.

Surprisingly it tasted very good and Harry was sent up to get seconds. Before they new it, the time was nearing three. Harry wanted to drop off their purchases back in his room before the movie and so they headed back. Mentally going over everything they bought Harry was for once in his life happy he was filthy rich.

Together they had spent over 2,000. Harry had purchased a laptop computer and two Ipods for their enjoyment. Truth be told, it had taken Harry a while to explain what they did, but once Ginny cottoned on, she immediately begged her boyfriend for a music player. Besides that, the two had bought what appeared to be an entire new wardrobe and had even got Ginny a beautiful earring to match the necklace Harry had given her the other day, the necklace that belonged to his mother.

After returning to Privet Drive and emptying their pockets of shrunken bags, Harry and Ginny left to catch a late night movie. They had sealed Harry's room with magic so no one could steal their things and had written a quick letter to the Order saying that if it was alright with the Weaselys, Ginny would be staying here for the rest of the summer. Harry also wrote something that Ginny could read and so she had continued to learn how to use her new Ipod. What Harry had written was the dates of the upcoming attacks and a list of all the Death Eaters currently in Voldemort's service.

Finally finishing the letter and sending Hedwig with it to Remus, Harry and Ginny took the long way to the movies. They passed through a beautiful park and had talked about anything that had come to mind. They seemed made for each other's company and when they finally reached the theater, they were reluctant to go in and leave the peacefully park. But in they went and Harry had bought tickets for a movie called Blade Trinity.

Ginny herself had thought the movie wasn't so bad and had enjoyed it. Harry had thought the show was excellent and wanted to try out some of the things he saw on the film. Both of them though had lost most of the plot itself due to the continual snogging sessions they seemed to take. By the time the movie ended, Ginny was practically in Harry's lap. Preparing for the worst, they couple had began they trek home. They arrived at eight forty-five and let themselves in.

The first thing that registered in Harry's mind was Marge, who was sitting directly across from the door in the dining room. She seemed to be almost waiting for him to return home and berate him. "I see the ungrateful little runt has finally come back. Why didn't you save this poor family the trouble and just stayed out?"

"Sorry, Marge, I didn't mean to interrupt your time. We'll be heading upstairs and we promise you won't see hide nor hair of either of us until you leave," Harry tried to reason, not wanting to the chance to be further provoked and losing control again.

They had made it all the way to the stairs before Marge spoke again, "Bringing in a filthy tramp at this late at night. I'd watch it boy. I know what type of despicable character you have and feel sorry for anyone who entangles themselves with you. Besides, from what Petunia has been muttering, she looks just like your bitch of mother. Remember how that had turned out?"

Harry desperately fought for control. The struggle could be seen by everyone who knew he was magical. Giving him a quick kiss on the lips to distract him, Ginny was able to lead Harry upstairs to his room where he finally let his anger out. What happened was a bit frightening actually, but she knew she was safe.

A mini hurricane arose. It started to twirl and spin in its natural anger and small flashes of miniature lightening could be seen with the cloud of emotion. As fast as it had come into being it vanished, and the few objects it had managed to misplace were quickly put right with a flick of Harry's finger.

"Harry, why didn't you tell us you were an elemental?"

Harry looked startled, "What? I'm not an elemental. I can't control the forces of nature. That just happens when I feel really angry or determined." He sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as her.

"Harry, that's what Elementals do. They control nature."

It had been a quick few weeks, the quickest Harry had actually ever felt at Privet Drive. Ginny and Harry went out every day. Sometimes they went shopping, other times they went to the movies. People could have claimed that they walked in the park so many times; they knew it like it was the back of their hand. No matter what the two were doing though, they were both growing more comfortable with each other.

At some points, the two seemed to be able to read each other's mind. A couple of times they actually felt the other's specific thought enter the mind. It was very confusing but they had started to try and control the action. As a matter of fact, they were able to communicate short sentences through their mind link. At the moment eye contact was essential and only short phrases could be made, though it was amazing all the same.

Another change had been their power levels. Every Saturday Remus, Moody, Tonks, Ron, and Hermione would come to visit. The three adults made sure the teenagers were still practicing their dueling, which Harry had been personally training Ginny in, and then discussed a little Order business. The most current concern was the impending attack on Diagon Alley that was scheduled for tomorrow. Harry had informed the other three what was going on and their plan to counter Voldemort this time.

In the event of a failed defense, Harry and Ginny had removed all of the belongings, not gold though they did bring quite a lot of that as well, back to Privet Drive. The couple had shrunken everything down and placed chest upon chest upon chest into his school trunk. He did leave Ginny though with the jewelry. Everything was packed up and ready for the departure the following morning.

Ginny was supposed to go apperate onto Platform 9 ¾ and head straight to the prefect cart, where she would meet Ron and Hermione. She had been made prefect and Harry had gotten Quiditch Captain. He already said she had her spot as lead chaser if she wanted, and she readily agreed. They had also made several special accommodations with Dumbledore.

At first they didn't know what to think about the mind speaking ability, so they tried to work it out. As they had grown onto each other, it had always been near impossible to fall asleep if the other person couldn't. Ending up sharing the same bed lead to peaceful sleep and had seemed to enhance their ability. Dumbledore had understood their need to share quarters and had agreed to let them use the Head Boy room in Gryffindor Tower if they promised to behave themselves and act as responsible adults. They had been doing nothing wrong and had just shared many passionate kisses.

While Ginny was on the way to Hogwarts, Harry was going to be already situated in Diagon Alley. They had no idea when the attack would begin and therefore made sure his alarm was set for a five o'clock wake up call. He had charmed all the muggle technology to run on magic and therefore was taking his Ipod with him on the battle. His battle robes, talismans (which were now on the same chain), and wands were laid out on the floor. Along with those items, Gryffindor's shield and sword lay on the floor as well. Harry had everything out and ready so as to be moving at a moment's notice.

Ginny had even seen to keeping a warm cup of coffee by their bed at all times and kept whispering words of encouragement and comfort to Harry. The plan was set up and it was the best defense they could manage at the moment. When the clock struck midnight, Ginny forced Harry to lie still and snuggled up close to him. Just before letting sleep claim her, she thought to Harry, "I love you."

His reply was spoken aloud, however and the words, "I love you too, Gin," were the words the two fell asleep to.