CH 2- a teacher and a promise
"No! You can't come, not now anyway." Harry said for the tenth time. "But you don't understand mate, you promised that we could join you!" said his best friend Ron Weasley, "Besides you cant destroy the Horcruxes alone, you need help." Said Hermione. "I've told you this before, I'm not going to destroy the Horcruxes, not yet anyway, that would be foolish, it would be like rushing head on into Voldemort's lair and challenging him to a duel, it would be suicide. I need a teacher" Harry said morosely "then why not come back to Hogwarts with us, it's re-opened and Professor Mcgonagall is a great head mistress she may be able to teach you." Said Hermione sensibly. "No!" Harry replied forcefully startling everyone "I need a teacher who can teach me things I cant learn in Hogwarts, someone who can teach me to fight, and to kill" Harry said grimly "I wouldn't put that task on Mcgonagall, she has enough to worry about, being new head mistress and all."
It was the day after Fleur and Bill's wedding and school started in one week. Every one was trying to convince Harry to return but he refused, officially for the reason stated above, but secretly it was because Harry knew Hogwarts would never be the same without Dumbledore. The wedding was an amazing affair, though going to it was interesting enough, Harry had been waiting since he got to the Dursely's house so he didn't bother to unpack his trunk. He informed the Durselys that he would only be staying for a week or 2 and then he would be gone forever. The Durselys took the news stoically neither happy nor unhappy at the news. Harry laid on his bed looking out the window when a car parked itself in the driveway probably one of Dudley's friends going for "tea" thought Harry as a figure walked toward the door. "Dudders there's a pretty girl at the front door for you" yelled aunt petunia, "now this I have got to see," Harry said as he walked down the stairs. Then the figure spoke "I'm not hear for anyone named Dudders, I'm hear for Harry" said a voice that made Harry's heart jump "Ginny?" he said as he stood at the foot of the steps, in other circumstances he would have run up and kissed her, but he had broken up with her at the end of the year, to protect her from Voldemort, they had avoided each other ever since. She turned to him "hello Harry" she said sourly "I'm hear to take you to the wedding, do you have your things, or maybe you decided to walk out of that to. " Harry was taken aback by her anger. She had been very understanding at the end of the school year. "Now's not the time Ginny, you know what I did was necessary " said Harry sharply "yes I have my things up in my room, Ill go get them." Through out all this Vernon and Dudley were watching this with the utmost fascination and confusion. Who was this girl, she obviously knew Harry and was very angry with him, and what did he mean "you know what I did was necessary". The only person who wasn't watching this was aunt petunia, which was odd because she was the normally nosey one; she had disappeared to do something. Harry came down ten minutes later with his trunk broom and Hedwig in her cage. "I'm ready to go," he said and followed Ginny into the car "wait!" exclaimed aunt Petunia, "I have something for you, this came with you in the basket." She handed over an envelope with two bumps in it "they were your parents" she said simply, and with that she walked away. Perplexed Harry entered into the car, which was apparently driving itself. Ginny was sitting silently on the other side looking out the window trying to ignore him. Harry looked at the envelope but decided to wait to open it; instead he tried to bridge the gap between Ginny and him. "Gin" he said quietly "Shut it Harry, I don't want to hear it" she snapped "yea well you will" said Harry sharply "I did it to protect you, I thought you understood that, if he killed you I don't know what I'd do" "o don't give me that shit, if that was true then why are you bringing Ron and Hermione, you just broke off with me because you don't want any loose ends while your out on your little escapade, don't even talk to me, as far as I'm concerned you're just another relative I don't want to meet, just leave me alone!" she yelled, tears in her eyes, at that she turned away from him. The rest of the car ride went in silence; this isn't how I imagined my trip home, thought Harry to himself, for that's what he considered the burrow, his home. Man, I wish Ron and Hermione could have come and picked me up, or at least Fred and George. Harry found himself thinking. Eventually they reached The Burrow; it was filled to the brim with people, Fleur's family as well as assorted Weasleys, all with blazing red hair. Harry left the car silently, opened the trunk took out his stuff, grabbed Hedwig and walked up the pathway, trying to hide his face and ignore Ginny at the same time. It all worked up to the point when he entered into the Front door then he found himself in a back breaking hug with Mrs. Weasley "Harry dear, its good to see you" She exclaimed "how was the car ride?" she asked "it was ok" he said, afraid that she didn't know about the break up "you two had a row didn't you" she said sadly. "Is it that obvious?" said Harry, "Its my fault, I'm sorry I shouldn't have sent her. It's just that she's been really depressed since she got home" Explained Mrs. Weasley "it started with sadness but then it became outright anger, she locked herself in her room for days and refused to come out, from what I gathered from Ron, and more recently from Hermione that you two were going out then broke up, so I decided that maybe if you two saw each other again you would make up and she would be happy again" she finished sadly "why exactly did you break up with her?" said Mrs. Weasley, suddenly suspicious "Mrs. Weasley I know this sounds like a foolish thing to say, But I love your daughter, in fact she's all I think about most of the time. I broke up for her, to protect her from Voldemort" he paused as a slight chill went down Mrs. Weasly's spine "You've seen what happens to people who are close to me, I don't want her hurt. I thought she understood that, but I guess she's had a month to dwell on it, this is all my fault" he said with remorse, "But enough about that, this is a happy occasion, where's everyone and when's the Wedding" he said, trying to change the subject "of coarse there all back hear…"
Harry spent the next 2 ½ weeks with the Weasleys hanging out with Ron and Hermione and avoiding Ginny. The wedding was a happy occasion and on that day Harry decided to find out what was in the envelope. He opened it to find his parents wedding rings, one was a silver band with an amethyst stuck in it and another was a gold ring with a very feminine diamond stuck in it. "O Harry there beautiful" exclaimed Hermione as he took them out, "yes they are" Harry said quietly, already putting on his dads ring, he pocketed the other ring already planning on what to do with it. "we better get back to the reception" he said
And now hear he is arguing to his friends about how to run his mission. "Fine, but at least tell us who's going to teach you," said Hermione "isn't it obvious?" said Ron "its Lupin, right?" "No" said Harry, "he's a good teacher, but I don't want to put on his conscience the fact that he taught his best friends son to kill, besides he has enough to worry about" said Harry nodding toward Lupin and Tonks, who were holding hands. "I need someone ruthless and willing to kill Death Eaters without remorse, I need mad eye Moody." "Moody!" exclaimed Hermione "him, but he's completely insane!" "Exactly, the perfect person to teach me, he's already agreed to do it," Ron and Hermione finally gave in "fine, but when do you start training" "next week, Ill be at the train station to see you off and then Mad Eye has something to bring up during an order meeting and then the year is pretty much free"
For the next week Harry practiced his spells and reviewed his books wondering what he would learn, throughout the week Mrs. Weasley become obsessed with getting Harry and Ginny back together, such as making them do the same chores, they'd either ignore each other or Harry would try to talk and they'd get into a row, leaving them alone in the house together, she only made that mistake once, and finally, on the way to the train station she had Harry and Ginny in the same car. So as not to harm the driver they just didn't talk to each other. Harry, for some reason he could not understand, was still in love with Ginny, no matter how many fights they got in he just couldn't help it, but he had no idea how Ginny felt for him.
They were escorted into the station by Harry's new mentor Mad Eye Moody. After saying farewell to his friends He and Madeye stood watching everyone board the train; Harry stared on regrettably as Ginny walked toward the train. "You know Harry now would be a good time to tie up some loose ends." Said Mad Eye knowledgably, Harry needed no second bidding, and without even asking how Mad Eye knew about that conversation he ran off toward Ginny "Ginny stop!" yelled a desperate Harry, she just kept walking and ignored him. "O that's it" Harry said finally snapping, he pulled his wand out of his cloak and pointed it at Ginny's receding form "Petrificus Totalis!" he bellowed, Ginny instantly stiffened up and began to fall "Levicorpus!" he said before she hit the floor "Illusius" he said so as to make her unnoticeable. He then walked toward the nearest shadowed area, he then stopped and waited for Ginny to reach it. Her beautiful brown eyes contorted in anger and indignation, "alright Ginny, I'm going to let you go." Said Harry calmly "if you run Ill do one of to things, ill stun you, or ill kill you, and with the week I just had I'm leaning more toward the latter" Harry then un-petrified her and she calmly sat down "you have 2 minuets, then I'm getting on that train alive or a ghost," she stated. "Look Ginny, there are a few people who would consider me a fool in saying this, but I love you more then life itself, my life, I love you more then I love my own happiness, and that is why I broke up with you, so that, even at the sacrifice of my own happiness, you wont get hurt. But I want to give you this." He said and produced from his cloak his mother's wedding ring. "This is a promise, a promise that as soon as this war is over with I'll date you again, and even go as far as marry you." He said, then blushed slightly feeling like a fool. He then looked up, not seeing scorn in her eyes but tears, "O Harry!" she cried and hugged him "Harry I'm so sorry, I've been like the anti Christ this past week haven't I, o Harry I love you" she sobbed uncontrollably. Harry patted her back and comforted her, he lifted her chin up and kissed her, "Now go or you'll miss the train." He said to her as he shoved the ring in her hand, "remember, I love you."
He stared at her until she boarded the train, he then walked back over to were Mad Eye stood by the entrance, and "So how'd it go?" he asked, almost as if asking about the weather. "I just have one question, how the Hell did you know about our conversation, the one about loose ends?" Mad Eye just winked and said, "Do you really think that car was driving itself?" "I did until now"
A/N: sorry I couldn't post last time, but this is my first time, I decided to do these both together since the first was really short. Once again please R&R.