Chapter 7: All Clear?

Harry plopped down next to Ron and Hermione in the common room the next day, before lunch. Ron was sitting grumpily, while Hermione held his hand, giving him her reasoning about a very important matter.

"Come on Ron," Hermione said desperately. "You're mum agreed to it, you should too. If she agreed than she must have a very valid reason to do so."

'The ever intelligent Hermione,' Harry mused.

"No. I want to know what she said to mum." Ron argued. "I want to know what mum said to you Harry." Ron said pointing at him.

"She told me," Harry started. "That her decision might have been to quick, and that she wants her back on the team."

"THAT'S IT?!!" Ron yelled catching the attention of everyone in the room.

"Ron may be she didn't want us to know the reason..." Hermione said wisely.

"Why not? Ginny is my younger sister and I don't want her getting hurt while playing Quidditch." Ron interrupted angrily.

"You allowed her last year." Hermione said.

"That's 'coz we were short of players. And I wasn't completely happy with it then even." Ron justified.

"Why are you so against her playing?" Harry piped in.

Ron looked shocked.

"YOU are asking me that?" He asked. "Even YOU were against her playing."

"You didn't answer my question." Harry said ignoring his comment.

Ron remained silent before answering,

"She is my YOUNGER SISTER. I am supposed to protect her."

"Maybe you protect her too much, give her some room." Hermione said.

Before Ron can answer Harry said,

"Listen Ron, just go talk to Ginny about it, OK? Talk to her rationally, don't start shouting at her. She will tell you everything." Harry said indicating the end of the argument, while Ron just nodded.

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Ginny Weasley had had a bad day. Excessive homework, run in with Malfoy, and detention with Professor Snape because she punched his favourite student (Malfoy) and tried to explain herself when asked her to explain.

'Honestly, I can never understand how that man's mind works.' She thought.

So, the last thing she wanted was to face her brother and have a row with him. However, when she arrived in the Common Room before dinner that night, he was there waiting for her.

"Ginny, I wanted to talk to you." He called her as she was heading for her dormitory.

Ginny sighed, stopping, and turned around to face Ron.

"I am all ears Ron." She said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"What did you say to mum?" Ron asked not very nicely.

"RON! Why don't you just accept that I am back on the team?" She said exasperatedly.

"What did you say to her Ginny?" Ron demanded now furious.

"If you must know," Ginny answered equally furious. "I didn't say anything to her."

"So she put you back on the team just like that," He said. "Yeah right!"

"Why don't you ask HER then?" Ginny said angrily, turning around to leave.

"Ginny, how did you persuade her?" Ron demanded.

"ASK HER!" Ginny said moving towards the staircase.

"GINNY..." Ron yelled to her.

Within moments, Ginny turned to face Ron, and whipping out her wand performed the first few curses that came to her mind, including the Bat- Bogey curse, leaving a stunned Ron lying on the floor before heading upstairs to her room, for a much deserved break.

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Ginny was silently doing her homework in the Common Room two days later, when an angry Ron barged in followed by a worried Hermione and a calm Harry.

"You are going quit Quidditch this moment." Ron said snapping her book shut.

"Am not." Ginny replied hotly, looking at Ron furiously.

Harry noted her eyes had a reddish tint in them.

"Are too." Ron said enraged.

"Merlin, Ronald Weasley. Why can't you get it through that thick head of yours that even mum allowed me to play." Ginny relied fuming, standing up to face him, even though he towered over her.

"And I want to know why." He said. "Why did she change her mind, once she took you off the team?"

"I told you to ask her." Ginny replied.

"And I demand you to answer me." Ron said hotly.

"I do not have to answer you anything." The youngest Weasley answered.

By now, both teenagers were livid and the whole room was watching in interest.

"Go back to whatever you were doing. This is not a show." Harry yelled to the room.

"Both of you sit down, and sort it out like civilised people." Hermione said motioning them to nearby chairs.

Ginny sat down in a nearby armchair, with Ron sitting across from her and Harry and Hermione on either side.

"Tell him everything Ginny, finish it c'mon." Harry said.

"I don't need to tell him anything. If he doesn't want to accept the facts, then that's his problem." Ginny relied glaring at Ron.

"I am only trying to protect you..." Ron glared back.

"I DON'T NEED YOUR PROTECTION!!!" Ginny yelled.

"I SAID GO BACK TO YOUR WORK." Harry yelled to all the people who were staring at them again. "What's wrong with them? And you two, keep your voices down." Harry said exasperatedly to the three sitting next to him.

"I think you do. You were unconscious for..." Ron said.

"I am alive, Ron." Ginny interrupted, positively livid.

"You could have died." Ron replied fuming.

"But I didn't."

"It still doesn't justify why..."

"I didn't say anything to mum, OK, I swear I didn't." Ginny said exasperatedly.

"Then who did?" Ron inquired even angrier if possible.

"Dad did!" Ginny said sighing.

Ron was shocked.

"Dad..." He whispered.

Ginny leaned back suddenly tired, and closed her eyes.

"Yes he did." She said weakly.

"Dad...but how...why?" Ron whispered, bewildered as Harry and Hermione also looked at Ginny, curious.

"He came to me when we had a fight the other day, when I was kicked off. He was the one who talked to mum." Ginny explained.

"What did you say to him?" Ron asked still surprised.

Ginny stayed silent, her eyes still closed, resting against the armchair.

"You weren't there for me when I opened the Chamber of Secrets, Ron." Ginny whispered maintaining her posture.

The three were shocked by her abrupt change of subject, by her mentioning such a dreadful event.

"Ginny what..." Ron said but Ginny interrupted him.

"You weren't there for me when I needed you the most Ron." She said, sitting up straight looking at him intently. "I was only eleven then. And I was all alone, but I survived, as much as I could, I did."

"What are you trying to say Ginny?" Hermione spoke up, looking confused.

"You have to accept the fact that you can't always protect me." Ginny replied, trying to make them understand.

"But we can do whatever we can." Ron said in a low almost defeated voice.

"Now it's too late." Ginny said.

"Wh...What do you mean?" Ron asked looking scared.

"There is a war coming up Ron, a war like no other. There will be losses...terrible losses." She explained leaning back. "Think about it Ron, what if I lose all of you?"

"It can't happen Ginny." Ron said shocked by what she had said.

"It is a possibility." Ginny explained.

The three now had their heads bent low.

"Look, there is no point running away from what is in front of us. There is no point pretending that everything is all right. The sooner we prepare, the less painful it will be." Ginny explained.

Ron and Harry gulped as they looked at her, while Hermione had tears streaming down her face.

"We will not let anyone hurt you." Harry said protectively.

"As I said, you can't always be there for me." Ginny said smiling weakly. "We will have to move on after the war, alone, each one by himself. We have to recollect the broken pieces and recreate our lives...without any help. You will not be there to do that for me...no Ron...you won't be there no matter what you say...you know that deep inside you...don't deny it. I have to live my own life, make my own decisions...and you have to accept whatever decisions I make. You will not live my life Ron, I will...and I do have to live in this world...all alone. I have to be stronger for the more painful injuries that come to me later, and I have to prepare for them right now...I also have to enjoy my life today, I may not be there tomorrow...please Ron...please...let me live." Ginny finished, her throat too tight to speak anymore, her eyes pleading Ron to understand.

By now, even Ron had tears in his eyes, and Harry wasn't much far off. Hermione was sobbing by her side.

For a few minutes everything was quiet. Everyone in the Common Room was staring at them, but for them the world had dissolved. It was like being in another place, a place without people, a place without any type of sound, a place where everything was still...

Then without any words, Ron got up from his seat and moved over to Ginny, engulfing her tightly in a hug, as if to forget whatever she said was true, as if to find this was all a dream when he woke up, to find they were only 6 year-olds, playing with each other in the Burrow.

But this was far from a dream, this was the harsh reality. At that moment, all of them knew, they had to stick together, they had to fight, they had to restore everything back, as it was about ten years ago...

Both brother and sister clung to each other as if their life depended on each other. When they broke apart, Ron looked at Ginny with tears,

"I just realised you grew up," he said smiling at her. "I am sorry Ginny, for everything..."

"It's OK Ron." Ginny replied, smiling back through tears.

Ron wiped off her tears,

"You know Harry," He said not taking his eyes off Ginny, "We have an excellent Chaser on our side, the Quidditch Cup is definitely ours this time".

The rest of them smiled through tears, as Ron sat next to Hermione who leaned against his shoulders crying freely.

Harry and Ginny shared a smile, nothing needed to be said between them as they held each others hands and connected their free ones to Ron and Hermione's forming a circle.

They will stand united...they will avenge the death of those who sacrificed themselves...they will win...

As Ginny closed her eyes for a moment, only one thought crossed her mind,

'May be now, everything was clear...'

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A/N: Yes, I did it. I am supposed to be studying right now; I have an exam on Monday, but...

Well...This was not supposed to be so long, it was just supposed to be a paragraph, but I am glad it became a chapter. Stay tuned for the next one. It will not be so sentimental, but important stuff will happen...at least I think it will.

Thank you for all your reviews. I am glad you like the story so far.

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