Chapter 71 Resolutions

Harry had his arm around Ginny and she continued to sob as they wended their way through the seated crowd. Many people and other beings there recognized Harry and waved or gave a thumbs-up, which Harry returned with his free hand. Luckily all were so enjoying the show they chose not to pester Harry. He and Ginny made their way back up to the castle and found a secluded bench to sit on.

"Harry, I hadn't thought much about what happened in the Chamber over the years. I mean, sometimes, I gave some thought to being possessed, and whether there was any lingering damage, but, well, when I woke up down there, there was just a bit of the basilisk visible and you were there – a right sight. I was too shaken up that evening to remember what you said happened. I had no idea what you had faced. For me!"

"Yeah, well, you know, I had to give it a go. I couldn't just walk away."

Ginny threw her arms around his neck. "Please don't ever leave me," she cried.

Harry hugged her back, and then pushed away a bit to look in her eyes. "Ginny, I don't want a life with someone because she's afraid, or grateful, or pities herself or me. That won't last and we'd end up miserable. You're quite the fighter now yourself. You don't need to be taken care of."

"But Harry, …" she began and he quieted her.

"I've sort of been avoiding you since the battle. You see, there's something I need to confess. I know I had promised never to use legilemency on my friends, but when we were on the island, I wasn't in control when Riddle made me read your minds. I fought it, but had no strength. In addition to seeing the foolishness of the guilt you all felt, I saw how you really felt about me. I had never felt such relief or joy in my life as when I saw how much you really cared."

"Oh, Harry, why would you have been in doubt about that?"

"Well, the way Hermione made it sound yesterday morning, it was all part of the plan – you volunteered, you got detentions so you could study Occlumency to hide your mind from me, you got roped into exploring the caves with me, you knew when I was going to be most vulnerable and then you came to me willing to be my support and share your eyes and, well, all the things we've shared. She showed how it was all a piece of the plan. You see, it sounded like it was just a job you had to do to make the plan work. I thought you had been remarkably convincing, and I was terribly hurt, angry and confused. I just accepted it, though, as part of what I deserved, as the guy who made all the bad things happen, but was key to putting a stop to it. I can't begin to tell you how overjoyed I was to find that all you were hiding was the plan, and that you really did love me."

"Oh, Harry, I'm sorry that you had to be put through that, and a bit annoyed that you ever doubted, but I am glad that you've seen the truth. Of all people, I can certainly forgive doing something while under Voldemort's control." She squeezed her arms around him. "But don't you dare look in my mind ever again – that excuse is gone!"

Harry laughed. "I won't."

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"You know how I feel about you. We've been very close and affectionate, but you haven't really said how you feel."

"How about if I show you?"

Ginny smiled on one side of her mouth. "Do you think I'm the sort of turnip who'd fall for a line like that?"

"I didn't mean to show you that way. I meant with a kiss."

"Well, we've kissed plenty, Harry, but if you think you can make it more special, I'll let you have a go."

Harry looked deeply in her eyes. He bent down and, putting his entire concentration and powers into his feelings for her, he began to kiss her. After a long kiss, he said very quietly, "I love you, too."

Ginny gasped, and responded quietly, "Lucky for you, buster: you can't give a girl a kiss like that and just walk away."

"I have no intention of walking away."

"Yeah," said Ginny, still catching her breath, 'you say that, but you'll be off at auror school or some-such next year, forgetting all about schoolgirls."

Harry shook his head. "I'll be here next year as instructor. I'll be working with Dumbledore on research and skills. It'll give me some time to figure out how to live life without someone trying to kill me. One of the great attractions of that arrangement is that you'll still be here."

Harry and Ginny spent a nice long time, just holding each other. They hugged, made meaningless conversation, just enjoyed being together. After a time they noticed the sounds of people moving in the area and realized that the show must have ended. Soon they heard a deep voiced man pointedly clearing his throat to catch their attention. Harry turned to him.

"May I help you?" offered Harry.

"Yes, Mr. Potter, I'd like to talk to you about appearing on our famous wizard cards, the ones that come with chocolate frogs," explained the wizard, dressed in robes and grossly oversized tam, all the garments bright orange and covered with images of chocolate frogs, which were actively hopping and crawling all around them.

"I never would have guessed: not exactly subtle, are you?" said Harry, indicating the robes, at which the man just grinned. "Ginny, Professor Dumbledore told me to expect this. I need to do a bit of negotiation here. Will you be okay?"

Ginny smiled mischievously at him and pointed her wand at the sky, shouting "Valentina!" Red sparks shot from the tip of her wand, erupting into an enormous red heart in the sky which lingered, pulsing.

"Don't be too long," she said, walking off.

The man grinned and jerked a thumb toward the display in the sky. "Like love potions – all the witches pick that one up by third year, and we wizards haven't got a clue."

Harry and the man went into the entry hall and talked, working out the details. After settling the terms, the man took some fresh pictures. Harry then saw Ron and

Hermione getting a butterbeer. He called them over, put his arm around their shoulders and said "Shoot." The man took a picture.

"What was that about?" asked Ron.

"Oh, that was your picture for a Chocolate Frog card."

"What?" cried Hermione. "My hair's a fright."

"How else would you be recognized?" laughed Harry. "Listen, there's going to be a series of 'Harry Potter' cards with different things I've gotten into. There had to be at least a couple with you two also. I couldn't have survived without you."

"That's cool," said Ron. "Any gold in it for us?"

"Yeah," said Harry. "I'm getting 12 knuts for every Potter card, except the ones with the three of us – we each get 4 knuts for those. You'll be owled a contract and release next week. They plan the new cards to be released in a couple of weeks."

"Well, you know me, Harry," said Ron, "I don't mind a bit of gold coming in."

"Do we get to review what the card will say?" said Hermione. "I don't want it to make me out to be some Harry Potter flunky, or worse, a groupie."

"Oh, do I have groupies?"

"Actually, Harry, there have been a number of times that girls have fairly thrown themselves at you, and not just the ones who were at training camp," said Hermione, with Ron nodding. "We couldn't tell for sure if you were too noble or too dense to take advantage."

"Erm, let's go with the first explanation" said Harry, and they all laughed.

As they laughed, Remus and Tonks came in.

"Out all this time," said Ron, suggestively smirking, "what have you two been up to?"

"Now, now, Ron." said Remus. "Actually, the moon's just now gone down. I couldn't tear myself away. I've always been afraid before and now to be able to look at it, it's just beautiful."

"Yup, that's right!" said Tonks with unmistakable disappointment and annoyance in her voice. "That's all he was interested in."

"Say," said Lupin, after a glance and smile at Tonks, "I didn't get to tell you three my other big news. Now that I'm no longer a werewolf, Dumbledore wants me back as Defense Against the Darks Arts teacher. Maxime is returning to Beauxbatons; unfortunately it looks like Hagrid will be going there, too. Anyway it seems I had good recommendations from some students Dumbledore really respects. Ah, finally, a real job I should be able to stick with."

"Great," said Harry, "I'll be here coaching the DA and teaching flying and apparation. We can coordinate Defense lessons with DA practices – get the theory and the practice together. Not worried about the jinx, are you?"

"Nope. I have a feeling a lot of old problems are melting away now," said Lupin with a broad smile.

"Hey, Remus," said Ron, "let's go find a boggart!"

Lupin laughed. "Now why would we want to do that? I might need them for classes next year."

"Aah, but now that I like spiders and you like the moon, we don't know what to be afraid of. The boggart'll show us what we really fear now."

Lupin thought a second and said, "You know, Ron, that's not a half-bad idea. It should be fun, in a weird way. Let's go."

Before they could go, an enormous shout was heard echoing throughout the entry hall. At first it sounded like Molly Weasley in a towering fit, but then they realized it was Ginny shouting "GRANGER!"

Ron quickly grabbed Harry, Lupin and Tonks and shoved them away toward the wall. "Duck," he hissed at them, pulling them down behind a bench.

"Ron, how can you just abandon Hermione out there like that?" asked Remus.

"Because I know what Ginny's like when she's angry. They had her in mind when they made up the phrase 'Hell hath no fury like a woman!'"

"I believe that's '… a woman scorned,' Ron," corrected Tonks.

"I know what I'm talking about!"

"Granger!" shouted Ginny again, red-faced. She had her wand aimed right at Hermione. "What were you thinking telling Harry I didn't care for him!"

"I didn't say that!" said Hermione, shaking in the face of Ginny's obvious rage. "I told him how hard you worked at the plan and volunteered to pose as his girlfriend, and, oh, erm, …" She turned toward Harry to explain. "Harry, I didn't mean, ... that is, what I was saying is she volunteered because, … You know, she worked at it, … and …" Hermione sounded ever more panicky as she realized how she had misled Harry, though unintentionally.

"Not only did you come near to screwing up our relationship, but you almost ruined the plan – Harry felt like he wasn't worth loving because of what you said!"

"Really?" said Ron with a bemused smile quietly to Harry.

"I had kind of a self-image problem," admitted Harry, taking up the joke.

"Probably explains why you were handing out signed photos in second-year."

"Would you two shut up?" said Tonks. "This is serious. There aren't many things more dangerous than a woman when another woman has threatened her relationship with her boyfriend – especially when that woman's as powerful as Ginny. Harry, go take her wand from her."

"No, thanks. I've done my fighting for a while," said Harry. "You're the auror – you do it."

"Granger, draw your wand," dared Ginny.

"You aren't really going to let them hurt each other, are you, Harry?" whsipered Tonks.

"I'm afraid anything I do might make things worse. Since Voldemort's gone, I have undiluted control of the power we had shared, so I really don't know my own strength. The only magic I've done since then is healing, flying, a bit of conjuring, and that duel at Hagrid's when I was holding back. You go stop them."

Hermione tried to calm the situation. "Now, Ginny, you know I'm sorry about that. I get overexcited at times. You see, that's why you were so much better for it, erm, not that you weren't the best anyway, because, …, I mean, I certainly didn't want to pose as …, I mean,…"

"Ron, that's your sister and your girlfriend. Go stop them," said Tonks.

"Pft! Yeah, right!"

"Granger, draw your wand," growled Ginny.

"Remus, you stop them."

"Harry's right – you're the auror."

"Yeah, but I've seen what those two can do – I'm not going out there."

"But you'd send me? I like that!"

Hermione stared at Ginny. She started to crouch like she was about to fight, and then she straightened up.

"No, Ginny, I won't." She gingerly pulled her wand out with two fingers and dropped it. "There's been enough fighting. You're angry and I understand that. You have a right to be. I made a terrible mistake – but that's all it was, a mistake. I was very excited with the battle beginning and I wasn't clear about what I was telling Harry. Sometimes when I get wound up, I don't express myself so well. So if you're going to hex me, go on and do it. In fact, you choose the hex, and I'll bear with it until it wears off – anything you want to do to punish me for my mistake."

"Whoa, that's brave," whispered Ron, "but then she didn't grow up with Ginny."

"Do you think she'll hex her?" asked Remus quietly.

"No doubt," said Ron. "She's just trying to choose one."

"Ginny,...!" called Harry, in a tone which asked her to consider carefully what she would do.

The seconds ticked by and the Hall was silent. Suddenly Ginny grinned wickedly. She flicked her wand and shouted "DEPILLIATE!" The red and white spell flew at Hermione and wound around her.

"Huh?" said Ron. "Never heard of that one."

"I have," said Harry. "It removes all hair from a person. Tonks is great at it."

"Ooh, thanks, Harry," said Tonks.

"But it didn't do anything," said Ron aloud, as they all stood up.

Hermione turned her head and glared at him, and Ron gave a shocked 'Eep!' as her head turned independently of her big bushy hair. Then the hair lost balance and fell down the back of her robes, all as one, showing that she was as bald as a dragon's egg. Ron came walking up slowly and looked closely at her.

"Whoa, got your eyebrows and eyelashes, too," said Ron. "That's freaky."

Hermione grimaced and glared at him. Then she turned to Ginny, "Are we even now?"

"You're not going to do anything to hide it or make it grow back, are you?"

"No, Ginny, I made the offer and I accept it. I was hoping it would just be the bat-wing bogey hex, but at least it wasn't something that causes permanent harm. Thank you for that."

"Alright then," said Ginny. "Next time think before you speak!"

"Yes, Ginny, you're right."

Ron was gently tugging at Hermione's arm to talk to her.

"What IS it, Ron?"

He whispered a bit in her ear.

"Yes, Ron, ALL," she said peevishly.

He whispered some more.

"Really, Ron?" she said quietly.

He whispered more.

"Really, Ron?" she said breathily.

He whispered again.

"Really, Ron?" she purred. Then she said hurriedly, "Um, Ginny, you certainly have taught me a hard, erm, stern, lesson and I'll never forget it. Got to go now!"

With that, Hermione snatched up her wand and grabbed Ron's hand as they went running up the stairs.

Ginny began to laugh uproariously.

"What?" asked Harry, "What was all that about?"

"Oh, gosh, Harry, you really have missed out on a lot of things, haven't you? I'll explain it later," said Ginny with a relaxed smile.

Then Ginny started to squint and glower at Harry. "You know, Potter, I just realized that you thought I was selling my affections to make a battle plan work. Just what kind of a girl do you think I am?"

"Ginny," gently interrupted Tonks. "Let me tell you what kind of a girl – Harry told me last night about it, or I guess it's two nights now. He has Voldemort's memories of Harry's mother willing, begging, to do anything and everything for Voldemort to save one life – Harry's. If he thought you were willing to do the same to save thousands of lives, I'd say he's putting you in pretty good company."

Ginny looked at him and he nodded. "Oh, well, when you put it like that…" said Ginny.

"Besides," said Tonks boisterously, "he's pretty good to lay some affection on – I know!"

Harry, Ginny and Remus all glared at Tonks. Remus spoke first, "You just had to add that one last bit too much, didn't you? We'd better get out of here while the getting's good. Help me find that boggart - maybe we'll both get good and scared and have to comfort each other."

"Ooh, that sounds like a plan," giggled Tonks, "but who needs the boggart?"