(¯·..·TWO·..·´¯)
Ginny Weasley sighed.
She shook a few locks of dark red hair from her eyes and looked away from her book turning her gaze blankly out the window. She couldn't help but think about him…the scruffy mop of dark brown hair, the bright green eyes, shining with the determination to go on when all he had loved was brutally lost or else threatened.
Slowly, Ginny frowned, her eyes hardening with a defiant glimmer, shadowing the bitter sadness. She'd finally had him to hold her, and it was lost. She wouldn't let it…but she had to, didn't she? And she would…for now. Hopelessly, she watched a large tree in the front of her yard lift slightly with the wind, wondering vaguely if- no, when- Voldemort would be gone. Harry…
Hearing a ruckus downstairs, Ginny sat up with slight interest, listening.
"It's about time," her brother Ron said, sounding excited and pleased. "It's been ages- well, only about two weeks."
Hermione. Ginny rose, stretched luxuriously, and headed out of her room, stopping dead and nearly causing herself to trip and fall all the way down the stairs in surprise at the response. She listened silently to the other voice, a smile curling her lips quickly as she pressed herself against the wall.
"I know…I came for the wedding of course…Bill is recovering then? And also…" The other voice stopped, and Ginny took a few of the steps, listening intently.
"Ginny," she could practically hear Ron's eyes roll in his voice. "She's upstairs I guess…And Bill, well, as good as can be expected. But, there's something I've got to tell you mate-"
"Oh, hello Harry," Ginny said smoothly, having bound down the rest of the stairs before stopping abruptly to make a smooth, nonchalant entrance. Casually, she sat down at the kitchen table and selected a large, green apple, rubbing it absently on her Muggle jeans.
"Hey, Ginny." His voice sounded slightly strained, overly forced as he tried to speak in a normal, neutral tone.
Ron frowned slightly, whether it was a discomfort with the fake voice and tension between his sister and best friend, or if he was still slightly confused as to whether or not they were still together and how exactly he felt about it.
"Er, Hermione's due here any minute now, so I'll go and um, check the fireplace for a few minutes, since Dad managed to hook hers up to our for the day…," mumbling, Ron turned and left the room, leaving Ginny to stare down at her apple.
"Harry," she choked, and looked up to see him looking slightly startled and more than a little strained. Flinging herself from the chair, she wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her forehead in the familiar hollow above his collarbone, leaning in against his sturdy form. After a moment he allowed an arm to slip behind her shoulders, his other elbow hanging awkwardly near her shoulder as he smoothed the free hand against her hair.
Tangling her fingers in his hair, Ginny leaned back and looked up at him, her eyes swamped with a bitter sadness. "Get him, Harry," she said steadily. "Get him and be done with it, so no one has to worry anymore. So you can live Harry. So you can, can have a life."
"With you, then?" he asked, and she pulled away, shrugging.
"Whatever you need, whatever you want. You deserve it, Harry. There's no reason for all this to rest on you."
"I want-" but her stopped as Mrs. Weasley bustled in from the yard, smiling widely as she hugged him briefly, exclaiming as usual about this appearance.
"Oh and Harry, dear, you're just in time, the wedding's tomorrow, did you know?"
"Yeah, Ron-"
Ginny slipped away from the scene, feeling to emotional and confused to remain with her ignorant mother, pestering Harry about such trivial things as a wedding. The wedding of her semi-werewolf brother and his semi-veela love. Would that end their pureblood line? Did she care? What did blood matter anyway...Voldemort seemed so intent on Harry's, as well as on everyone's being pure and only pure when his own was so tainted by a handsome Muggle that Harry had told her all about...
Voldemort- dare she even think the name? She did, on those quiet, sleepless nights of lying upon her bed in a living death, aching for a life unhindered by Dark wizards and tantalizing love. At least now she knew it wasn't an unrequited love she had for Harry...But what was worse, loving him without possibly knowing he wanted her as well, or knowing he yearned for her as she did him, but a single concept of a curse-happy fool ruining it all? But then again...if He...if Voldemort hadn't given Harry that scar, if Ron hadn't sat with him on that first train ride to Hogwart's, and began a friendship that extended away from school- would she have met Harry, a year above her, a normal teenage wizard?
Feeling all too dramatic and deep, Ginny wandered into her living room, stopping abruptly and laughing out loud at the scene. Hermione quickly pulled away from Ron, her face blazing with red embarrassment, while Ron looked slightly embarrassed, though more pleased than anything.
"Ginny, you git," he said foully, though he grinned.
"Ron, no," Hermione said, berating him. "Ginny, hi," she said happily, smiling. "How's your summer so far?"
"Oh, good," she lied, smiling as well.
"Harry!" Hermione squealed suddenly, causing Ginny to turn on her heals. "Seeing all three of you at once, it's great. How- how are you, then?" Hermione asked, looking anxiously between Harry and Ginny, who busied herself with a loose thread on her shirt hem.
"Well, you know. The Dursley's were as usual, and when I left and told them I shouldn't be back, as I'm an adult now- well," Harry grinned, seemingly unconcerned.
"Well what?" asked Ron, "What happened?"
"Nothing really. Uncle Vernon was pleased, of course. He bickered about the mess I was leaving behind, I'm filthy ingrate of a wizard and all that, but you know, I've never seen him so puffed up... Except maybe when he thought he'd won that best kept lawn thing…"
Hermione and Ron laughed with him, as Ginny smiled wistfully, not knowing what on earth they were talking about.
"And well, I couldn't resist," Harry continued, "setting some Bat Bogies in Dudley's room. I didn't know how they'd get rid of them, and I didn't care," he plowed on, ignoring Hermione's tuts of disapproval. "But my uncle saw them, he went bloody purple, and I ended up vanishing them."
Ron looked disappointed.
"Hermione, tea?" Ginny asked brightly, her smile too wide.
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"Harry, Ron! Hermione! Ginny!" Mrs. Weasley hollered up the stairs, urging them towards the fireplace as they came down the stairs. "Come on, come on," she said, taking the pot of Floo Powder and shoving it at Harry. "Take a pinch dear, it's still early, we may get most of the shopping down before it gets crowded. Do you all have your lists? Oh I'm so pleased Hogwarts is reopening, I'm sure Professor McGonagall will do finely as a headmistress, though I want you all to wish her luck from me…Harry, take a pinch, won't you?"
Harry looked uneasily at Ron, Hermione exchanged a glance with Ginny, and then the three of them looked at Harry. Mrs. Weasley looked irate. "What, forgot your lists upstairs? Hurry up," she ordered. None of them moved.
"Er, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said slowly. "I'm not going back to Hogwarts." She looked unpleasantly shocked.
"Not going back?" she whispered questioningly. Harry shook his head. "What on earth are you talking about, of course you are! You've got to finish school, so you can go into being an Auror, and get well, You-Know-Who. You've got to finish your education this isn't even funny. Take a pinch, won't you!"
"I can't, Mrs. Weasley. "I- I've got things to do. I need to go to Godric's Hollow…I've got to find the H- got to find Voldemort, and get rid of him."
"That can wait," she said despairingly.
"No, it can't…"
"I'm going with Harry as well, Mrs. Weasley…" said Hermione slowly.
"Me... me too," Ron added nervously, taking a step back from his mother, who was looking hysterical.
"Oh no you are not, Ronald! I know I can't order Harry and Hermione to go to school though I wish I could, but you-"
"No, Mum! I'm- I'm of age now, I'm an adult and I can do what I want."
"Just like Percy!" his mother hollered hysterically, eyes bright with unshed tears.
"No! Percy's a prat, Mum! I think helping Harry to, to I dunno, save the world- I think it's a bit better than going away to that corrupt thing of a Ministry and getting puffed up by a git of a man calling me Weatherby." Molly Weasley turned away from her youngest son.
"Come, Ginny, time to get your things."
"I'm going with them, Mom." This caused yet another argument, but Mrs. Weasley flared up and won this time, with the actual help of Ron, Harry, and of course, Hermione. It's not safe, they told her, though she didn't care. She wasn't of age yet- at least finish her Sixth Year like they had, like even her twin brothers had.
"Fine," Ginny snapped, her eyes bright. Taking a small handful of Floo Powder she tossed it in the empty hearth, stepping into the sudden blaze of emerald green flames. "Diagon Alley!" she choked, and began to spin, disappearing.
"I'll be back," Mrs. Weasley said darkly, following her only daughter.
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Coughing, Ginny stepped out of the fireplace and shook soot from her robes into the empty hearth. She looked up and saw that she wasn't in Diagon Alley, but rather in the living room of someone's house. Tentatively, she stepped forward, looking around. The mantle of the fireplace held a jar of familiar Floo Powder, there was a cage, it's door wide open, on a large desk with a young, tawny owl inside it, and a few scrolls of parchment and a quill next to them, as well as a jar with a magical light charmed inside of it, casting a glow around the room.
After a moment, Ginny moved to the desk and picked up one of the scrolls, unrolling it and reading.
Ally,
I can't believe that of all places, you'd decide to move into a purely Muggle town. Do you realize that you don't live near any other witches or wizards? But that's you, always taking a side of things most of us wouldn't. In fact, I bet you're delighted to be surrounded by so many Muggles.
I do suppose at least now you'll keep ready a nice jar of Floo Powder for traveling, since you can't use your beloved broom around so many non-magical people. Or maybe you'll actually get used to Apparating? It's so much easier, hon.
I'll send this with Avie now, Gary is supposed to be here any moment to pick me up. We're going out to eat at that new place in Hogsmeade, the Muggle Cauldron.
Since we've graduated now, I won't be seeing you again next week on the first! So we'll have to arrange sometime to get together.
Love,
Mariah
Interested, Ginny re-rolled the parchment and placed it back as it had been, leaning over to read the bit of fresh parchment with the quill laying across it.
Mar,
Yes, I know there's no one magical out here! But I think this town suits me for now, I rather have a feeling- and no, don't go getting on me about how Divination is a silly subject! If I recall, you are the one that encouraged me to sign up for it, back in our Third Year.
Not my fault dear Trelawney deemed you giftless of the third eye. Haha, that was a laugh.
Your Avie is too tired to take my letter right now, and my darling Haren isn't here, he's out somewhere. So I'll just finish this when I get back from Gringotts and send it when he gets back…
Going cold, Ginny realized that this witch Ally could Apparate or return by Floo Powder any moment now. And find an underage girl reading her letters? Quickly, Ginny raced from the living room, looked around frantically, and made her way down the hall and through a door- to the outside.
Night was falling, the sky growing hazy with early evening. Gathering her cloak closer about her, Ginny looked back at the witch's door.
Diagan, Ally
14
Grimacing, Ginny remembered her cry of 'Diagon Alley' and realized she'd choked on 'diagon' and said 'diagan', ending up at this Ally Diagan's house. Not the least amused, Ginny contemplated running back into the witch's living room and using her Floo Powder, but looking at the window, she saw it suddenly flash green, and knew the witch had timely returned through her fireplace.
Miserable, but feeling rather adventurous, Ginny hopped off the porch and slipped into the street, shedding her witches cloak to look more normal in her Muggle clothing. Shivering slightly, she snuck into a side alley and ran down it, all other anxious thoughts leaving her as she whooped at temporary freedom.
Breathing hard, she stopped running as she came to the other end of the alley and emerged into a new street. Looking around she spotted a sign proclaiming "Old Orchard Rd" and looking the other way, she gasped. Quickly melding into the shadows, Ginny's eyes widened- anxious, surprised, and interested in the appearance, farther down the street, of the familiarly blonde haired boy.