Chapter 11

Harry floated back up to consciousness following the voice. Someone was calling him back. Calling his name.

"Harry? Harry?" Slowly he opened his eyes, to see Remus Lupin leaning over him. "How are you feeling?" He asked, smiling slightly. Harry tried to sit up, but found he was as stiff as a board, "Like a herd of Hippogriff's just played hopscotch on my head." He groaned, wincing as he put a hand to his eyes.

"You look an absolute state, you know." Remus grinned, "Cuts and bruises all over. Add that to your spectacular entrance. Well…let's just say people were quite shocked to have you burst in on their start of term feast yesterday evening. They were quite sure Voldemort was about to follow you through the doors." Harry almost snorted with laughter, but caught himself in time; he didn't think it would help his sore muscles or pounding head. He didn't, however, have to ask the question he was dying to have answered, as Lupin answered it anyway,

"Snape's in custody, they took him to Azkaban, and Mad-eye's watching him twenty-four hours, he's kept in a full body bind the entire time, except for two meals a day and trips to the bathroom." Harry nodded, breathing a sigh of relief.

"So, you're awake then?" Said a strict voice from Harry's right. He turned to see Madame Pomfrey and she did not look happy. "I think…I think, Potter, that I specifically told you, NOTHING MORE STRENUOUS THAN LIFTING A FORK TO YOUR MOUTH!" She yelled. Harry was not at all surprised at her reaction, though he was slightly taken aback by her shouting. "It was only yesterday you were in here with a broken rib! Sit up." She snapped. Harry did so, though with great difficulty. "Drink this." She ordered, and shoved a cup of dark violet liquid into his hands,

"What is it?" He asked, she glared at him, "Never mind." He muttered sullenly and downed the awful tasting potion in one. Once she was satisfied he had swallowed the entire potion, she took his temperature and checked all the bandaged wounds from the cruciatus curse.

"Twenty minutes is a long time to be under, Potter." She stated as she checked a particularly deep gash along his shoulder that was actually healing quite quickly,

"You don't have to tell me that," he muttered. Remus met his eyes, pity evident.

"I'm surprised you suffered nothing more than physical wounds." Harry started at the implications of her comment. He remembered all too clearly his visit to the closed ward at St Mungo's. It had been an uncomfortable experience seeing what had happened to Neville's parents from prolonged exposure to the cruciatus. He wondered idly, how much longer it would have taken for him to lose his mind. Not long he thought, refraining from snorting derisively again.

"You will remain in here for at least three days. Do you understand me?" The matron asked dangerously. Harry nodded quickly, ignoring the pain that lanced through his forehead as he did. At least the disgusting potion he had just downed had gotten rid of most of his aches and pains. She turned on her heels and marched across the ward to her office. Suddenly there was a hammering at the door. Harry winced and Lupin, seeing this, jumped up and stalked to the doors, swinging them open. Unsurprisingly, Ron, Hermione and Ginny were left staring at Lupin's dangerous face,

"Do you have to be so loud?" He asked, glaring at them. Harry chuckled as Ron and Hermione managed to looked slightly sorry, but Ginny was too busy staring at Harry under Lupin's arms, and Harry was looking right back. Suddenly she ducked under Remus' arm and ran across the ward flinging herself at Harry. He didn't even mind that the pain almost returned in full measure as she gripped him tightly. He hugged her right back. God he had missed those arms around him, missed the sweet smell of flowers that came from her hair. Slowly she raised her eyes to look at him, and Harry was startled to see tears leaking out of them.

"Ginny, what…"

"I thought you were going to die!" She cried. Harry noticed Remus shooing Hermione and a disgruntled Ron out of the ward, closing the door tightly behind him.

"Honestly, Ginny, I'm fine." He murmured, barely refraining from reaching up and tucking a loose coppery curl behind her ear. Suddenly, as Ginny scrambled onto the bed next to him, he did feel an awful lot better. Without thinking, he kissed the top of her head. She sighed and leaned her head against his chest.

"Remus told us Snape performed the cruciatus on you." Harry nodded, as she looked up at him, "He said it was for ages and that you're lucky to still be alive." Harry shrugged,

"I guess so."

"Ron told me that you destroyed another horcrux though?" Harry nodded,

"Yeah…Slytherin's locket. We got Snape as well."

"I know I heard you tell McGonagall before you passed out." Suddenly she grinned, "You should have seen the chaos in the Great Hall after you blacked out! If I wasn't so scared that you were about to die, I would have laughed my head off!" Harry frowned in mock outrage,

"Well that's just lovely!" He joked. Ginny grinned at him,

"Hey, you broke up with me, Mr Potter. I can laugh all I like at the pandemonium you cause!" He knew it was meant to be a joke, but he just couldn't take it that way. His grin faded and as it did, Ginny too, became more sombre.

"I'm sorry Ginny, I really, really am. I don't want to put you through all this, especially when I still like you…I still want to be with you, I just…" before he had figured out what to say to explain how he was feeling, Ginny had leaned up and kissed him passionately on the lips. It took him only a millisecond to get over his surprise before he was so enveloped by the passion that he was unaware of anything else around him. He could feel her hands on his chest and hardly registering the pain it caused as he raised his arm and slid his hand up her neck and into her soft, coppery hair.

"I'm sorry," she smiled as they broke apart, "I just couldn't bear to listen to another, 'I love you but I've got to save the world' speech."

"I guess I end up giving those a lot, don't I?" He asked. Ginny grinned,

"Just occasionally." Harry chuckled, as once again, he raised his hand, this time to tuck a stray strand of flowery scented hair behind her ear. Ginny sighed contentedly. "I know we can't 'be together', but I'm going to wait for you, Harry. When this is all over, and I've stayed at Hogwarts like a good little girl, we can run off together and have lots of babies. Okay?" Harry grinned,

"Sounds like a bloody good plan to me." He said,

"You had better write to me," she threatened,

"Like I said at the Burrow, I'll write but I don't know that I'll be able to send the letters very often."

"Well, I guess that's as good as I'm going to get." She sighed, Harry nodded,

"I'm afraid so, Gin." She leaned forwards and kissed him gently on the lips again, a lingering, yet restrained kiss, which also seemed to hold the promise of more.

"I'll come and see you before you leave, okay?" She promised and Harry smiled,

"That would be nice, one-who-is-not-my-girlfriend," She rolled her eyes at him,

"Oh and by the way, loads of people have been telling me to ask you if they can come and visit." Harry frowned,

"Like who?"

"Like everyone!" She cried exasperatedly, throwing her arms in the air, "Like the entire Gryffindor quidditch team, not to mention most of Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaw's too. Along with Dean, Seamus, Neville, Lavender, Parvati, Luna and every other Tom, Dick and…Henry we know." Harry grinned,

"Sure, tell them all they can stop by. It might be nice to see them." She nodded,

"Oh and McGonagall said she'd be by later as well." Harry nodded again, slightly less thrilled at this prospect. "Bye, Harry. I'll come back soon." She whispered, kissing him quickly on the forehead. He smiled at her as she spun round, her floral scent lingering, and she walked out of the hospital wing, Harry feeling lighter than he had in a long time. He still had a long way to go, but he had just destroyed one of the horcruxes, and he now had Ginny on his side again, which felt wonderful.