Hermione saved the day for Harry, as she had so frequently in the past. The sound of her car honking outside destroyed the moment. Adrenaline rushed through Harry and his mind cleared as it always did in times of danger. Jumping up, he grabbed Ginny's arm and pulled her from the sitting room. He cast his eyes anxiously about as he tried to think of where to hide her. Finally, his gaze set down on the latch on the wall beneath the staircase. Ginny's eyes widened as he opened the door and ushered her into the dark, dusty chamber. "Is this where.." she began to ask.

"Yes… the floor creaks so don't move too much. I'll get rid of him as soon as I can," he whispered quickly. He had just closed the door when he heard a loud knock, followed by the sound of keys rustling in the lock. Just as Harry's heartbeat started to slow to normal, he noticed Ginny's jacket and shoes sitting on the floor at the foot of the stairs. He leapt forward and stood over them just as Jenkins opened the door and entered.

"Hullo, Potter," he croaked with a toothy grin. "I see you're up and about." Jenkins dragged a hand through his greasy, damp hair. "Spot of rain today," he added, looking down in distaste at his moist fingers. He gave Harry a nasty smile as he wiped his hand on the wallpaper, leaving gray streaky stains across the floral pattern. "Better clean that up before Vernon gets back," he cackled. Harry simply scowled.

Ignoring Harry, Jenkins made a great show of examining the furniture and fixtures throughout the downstairs. When he moved into the kitchen, Harry quickly grabbed up the jacket and shoes. He dashed to the cupboard door and tossed them onto a startled Ginny before shutting it again. Jenkins returned finally to the hallway. Harry sat down on the stairs. He struggled to look normal, but inside his mind whirled. In the clarity of the moment, a fog had lifted. The answers he had known all along, but refused to seek or accept, sprung fully formed from the depths of his brain. How could he have been so stupid?

"Are you listening to me, boy?" Jenkins snarled. Harry realized that he'd stopped paying attention. He felt a wave of impatience and annoyance rise over him.

"Should I have been?" he snapped back. He just wanted this man to leave now, before he lost hold of what was in his head, before his feelings slipped back into the depths.

"Watch yer mouth or I'll make you sorry!" Jenkins growled. "I said that I'd be back in a couple days, unless you're ready to make it worth my while not to come back."

Harry's response made Jenkins' jaw drop in amazement. He laughed. He laughed loudly and joyously. Everything finally made sense. He knew now, at last. He went and opened the door for his handler, still giggling gleefully. By the fearful expression on Jenkins' face, Harry could tell that Vernon had told him stories of his crazed, criminal nephew. Jenkins backed out the door cautiously and then turned and fled down the path. Harry watched him go, smiling all the while. As Jenkins' car pulled away, Harry strolled out to Hermione's car. She rolled down her window, staring at his smile uncertainly.

"I can never thank you enough, Hermione," Harry said quickly. "Do you mind staying a little while longer out here? We have some things to finish up."

"Is everything all right, Harry?" she asked him with concern. "Where's Ginny?"

Harry leaned down to kiss her forehead in a tender, friendly way. "I think it is going to be all right, Hermione. I'd better get back in now, though. I've left Ginny in the cupboard!" He laughed again at her puzzled astonishment and darted back to the house.

Walking down the hallway, Harry recalled the many lonely days and nights he'd spent under these stairs. He'd been much smaller than Ginny, of course, so she probably had it a bit worse right now. Still, he couldn't help but think that it was good for both of them that she'd know at least a little of what it had been like.

"Ginny, it's ok, he's gone," he called out as he slid the latch and opened the cupboard door. He found her crouched down, shoes and jacket lying in her lap. The light filtering in from the hallway revealed a light coating of dust that must have fallen on her when he sat down on the stairs. He extended a hand and helped her up and out. He could feel the tenderness in his smile as he gazed down on her. Her eyes betrayed her confusion.

"They made you sleep under there?" she asked him in a small voice.

Harry nodded slowly, failing to release her hand. With a glance, he let her know that he did not want to discuss that just now. Instead, he drew her over to the stairway and sat her down a few steps up so that their eyes were level when he took a knee before her. She followed along with this but watched him warily the entire time.

He had so much to say, but could hardly think of where to begin. Thankfully, she waited, letting him collect his thoughts into coherent words. After a deep breath, he finally spoke.

"Here's the thing, Ginny," he began slowly. "There were a lot of things I didn't know about when I first went to Hogwarts. I mean, not just about magic and wizards and all that." He glanced up at a point in space over her shoulder, recalling what he had been like back then. "I had never had a friend, Gin. I didn't know how to be a friend. I didn't know what to say or what to do. What can you tell a friend? What should you not tell them? What do friends do together? I'd seen Dudley with his friends, but that didn't seem like a good example." He could see the moisture forming at the edges of her eyes as she considered his words and could feel it mirrored in his own eyes. "Ron, and then Hermione, they taught me about friendship and ever since, I've been blessed with the most wonderful group of friends anyone could ever ask for." He cast a warm smile back towards the door and beyond: to Hermione, to Ron, and to all the rest of the people out there who cared for him.

"That wasn't all, though, Ginny. I'd never known what it was like to have parents, or any sort of adults care for me. Someone to take care of me if I was sick, to tell me that everything was going to be all right when things were tough. I never had anyone to teach me how to live my life like a good and proper person. Your mum and dad, they showed me that. Fred, George, everyone, they showed me what it meant to be part of something larger than myself, to be part of a family. I can't ever tell them how much they have meant to me." He smiled at her, thinking of times he'd sat at the Weasley kitchen table enjoying a home-cooked meal. He remembered Mrs. Weasley's comforting hugs and Mr. Weasley's way of patting him on the shoulder just so that he'd know he'd done something worthy of pride. If it took him the rest of his life, he would find a way to repay their kindness and their love.

"The thing I realized today, though, Gin, is probably the most important thing."
He shifted down onto both knees before her and took her hands in his own. "Ron, Hermione, your family, Hagrid, Sirius, Dumbledore, everyone… they taught me what it is to be loved, but there was something else I had to learn. I had to learn how to love myself. I had to learn that I was worthy of being loved, not because of this," he tapped his scar lightly, "or because of what I'm destined to do, but for me. They all tried, for a long time, but no one broke through. I never could bring myself to believe that I could be worth so much love, worth the sacrifices that have been made for me. Knowing that all these people loved me so much made feel guilty and small." Before she could reply, he placed a finger tenderly on her lips and smiled fondly at her. "It's my turn, now, so you have to let me finish my speech." She blushed and grinned sheepishly at him, but did not speak.

"It's you, Ginevra Molly Weasley," he said quietly, tears rolling silently down his cheeks. "You've shown me what no one else ever could. You've shown me my strengths, my weaknesses, everything. I look in your eyes and it's like a mirror into my own soul. Listening to you today, I saw myself through your eyes and realized that I must be worthy of love. If someone as intelligent, wonderful, and good as you could love me, then there must be something there, right?" She nodded her head in awed silence.

"All that time at the Burrow before the wedding, when I thought I was avoiding thinking about you, things were just sorting themselves out deep down," he tried to explain. The words came more hesitantly as he realized that he was explaining it to himself as well as her just in the process of the telling. "That's when I figured out the first important thing about you and I. I figured out that I loved you, Ginny. Once my heart realized that, it led me to your side and the words just came out."

"That wasn't all, though. All the weeks here, I think I started to understand, even if I didn't know it. Then, when you were there on the doorstep, looking so beautiful…" He paused, focusing once again on her and recalling a hundred memories of her: standing, sitting, flying, studying, laughing, crying. Bewildered, he reached out and gently brushed a stray lock of hair back behind her ear, murmuring, "So beautiful." The blood rushed to her cheeks, but Ginny remained still, struggling not to sniffle too loudly as tears fell across her fair skin.

A long moment later, Harry laid his hand back down on top of hers in his lap. He continued on as if he had never stopped speaking. "Today, when I listened to you, it all finally fell into place. Not just that I loved you, but that you loved me, too. You really and truly loved me. You, the person who knows me better than anyone, whom I can always talk to, who isn't afraid of my moods, who doesn't pity me or make me out to be more, or less, than I really am. You love me, and that makes everything all right."

Ginny stared at him, struggling to understand what he was saying. His calm gaze told her that he was done, for now. Words fled as soon as they popped up in her head and left her speechless. Finally, she hit on something…something that still lingered between them. At first, her voice faltered, but that passed quickly. "What about… what about what you said at the funeral, Harry?" Before he could reply, she remembered that she'd put this bit off earlier and recalled what she'd planned to say. "You know it just doesn't work, right? Do you really think that Voldemort doesn't know about you and I? You know I'm a Weasley, right? I think we're all targets." As she spoke, she felt the fire returning. How could he have been so stupid about this! "That's not all, Potter! I mean, it wasn't just you in the Ministry and in the Tower, you know! I gave those bastards better than I got and they bloody well better know that I can kick their arses when I have to." Her eyes flared defiantly, challenging him to deny anything she had said.

Standing up, Harry tugged tenderly on her hands and pulled her up off the stairs. His fond, loving smile had never left his lips. If anything, it radiated brighter than ever. Ginny marveled to see the love in his eyes, to see the true depth of his feelings for her. The walls had all come down and she knew that things between them had changed forever.

"I know that now, Ginny. I used to think that I'd have to fight this alone, but now I realize just how wrong that is. I know that you'll be with me, right by my side, and Ron, and Hermione, and anyone and everyone else that wants to help me. If anything happens, it will happen to us together, because I know that we'll always be together."

Ginny's expression softened, but her passion did not dim. She had a sudden vision, as clear as day, of the two of them, hand-in-hand, surrounded by their friends and bathed in a soft golden glow, ready to face anything and everything the world had to throw at them. She smiled shyly and brought the back of one hand up to rest against his moist cheek.

"I love you, Ginny," Harry said, just as he had the first time they danced.

"And I love you, Harry Potter," Ginny replied, realizing that this was the first time she'd ever said that to him directly.

Slowly, they leaned forward, heads tilting and lips coming together in a soft and perfect kiss. Suddenly, each felt a physical charge jolt through them. Their eyes flew open and they saw themselves surrounded by a warm, pink light. It flowed out from all around them, from the walls, the floor, the stairs, the door, everywhere. Harry and Ginny felt the energy gather around them as they stood in a tight embrace. Instinctively, they both knew that this was no threat, but a very important and good thing. The field swirled around them and seeped into them until finally it vanished. Their eyes shone brightly and they struggled to catch their breath.

Before they could comment on what had occurred, the door flew open and Hermione dashed inside, wand drawn. "Something's happened, I could feel it outside. Are you both all right?" she asked in a mild panic.

Ginny simply stared up at Harry in amazement. She could feel him. Deep inside, she could feel him as if he were a part of her. She imagined she could actually see a thin, red cord connecting them and she knew that no matter how far apart they ever might be, they would always be bound together.

"We're fine, Hermione," Harry replied with wonder in his voice. "Better than fine." He smiled down at her with a pure, unadulterated joy that Hermione had never seen in him before. "Do you think you could do us one more favor, though?"

"Of course, Harry, anything," Hermione said, desperately struggling to figure out what exactly was going on.

"Can you give us a ride to the Burrow? I just need to dash upstairs and pack my stuff up."

Hermione shot him a startled look, but Ginny smiled slowly as understanding dawned. "But Harry, it's still two days till your birthday. You know you need to stay at home until then to keep your mother's protection," Hermione said, putting her wand away at last.

Harry glanced at Ginny and, seeing her knowing nod, dashed upstairs to pack. She understood and she could explain it to Hermione. Meanwhile, he did not want to waste one more moment than necessary in Privet Drive.

Hermione watched Harry go and looked at Ginny in utter confusion. Ginny smiled, wondering how much Ron would pay for a picture of Hermione looking so completely and utterly befuddled.

"Harry's mom's spell protects him as long as he stays at home, Hermione," she explained as the sheer miracle of it all swept over her.

"But this is his home, or the closest thing to it anyway."

"Not anymore," Ginny replied dreamily. She cast a blissful gaze up the stairs, laying a hand across her chest. "His home is here, now. With me."

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A/N: Wow, my first HP fanfic! Thank you for reading it. Please review if you have time. Authors (at least me) can never ever get enough feedback.

A couple of points: the alarm clock is battery powered and the doorbell is a bell on a pull string. :) (I realized on the 7th read-through that the electricity cut-off was an issue.) Second, I plagiarized myself a little bit as I used the notion of "home is where the heart is" in a different (Sailor Moon) story. I guess that notion is also stolen from a Billy Joel song as well.

I'm not sure about the ending. It seems a bit abrupt, but I think it works. If you have suggestions, I'd love to hear them. In any case thanks again for reading:)