Harry ended his seventeenth birthday with his two favorite Weasleys. Missing Moment DH.
"Seventeen"
Harry Potter sat outside the Burrow on the hard earth. His knees were drawn to his chest, his forearms resting on top. He couldn't help but look at the watch on his wrist. Emotion had flooded him all day when Molly Weasley had presented her brother's watch to him. He didn't care that the leather was worn. He didn't care about the dents. It was special. It made him feel like family to be given such a sentimental piece. He honestly hadn't even expected it.
He vaguely knew about the tradition. He remembered when Fred and George got their watches during breakfast of their sixth year. They were watches that had once belonged to each of their grandfathers. He remembered Ron getting his last March but had no idea who it had belonged to. Ron had smiled politely, his fingers brushing against the battered watch before he placed it on his wrist. He didn't show it off like most had done.
The back door squeaked open. Harry held his breath, wondering who was still up at such an hour. Mrs. Weasley had been working all day cooking and cleaning for the wedding, but she had taken the time to bake Harry a cake and a nice birthday dinner. No matter how busy the Weasleys were in preparations for Bill and Fleur's wedding, they made sure to celebrate Harry's seventeenth birthday. The very thought made his stomach perform somersaults.
Harry continued to finger the watch, his throat narrowing with emotion. A body plopped itself onto the ground next to him, lanky arms and legs mimicking Harry's position. Harry glanced over to see Ron next to him.
"You like it then?" Ron nodded towards the watch on Harry's wrist.
"Yeah, it was really thoughtful of your Mum."
"She, uh, asked Lupin if he knew if your dad or Sirius had a watch set aside for you." Ron rubbed the back of his neck. "He said he didn't know if they did. If they had, he had no idea where they would have kept it. She wanted to make sure you got one, you know? It's an important tradition."
Harry nodded. He highly doubted his dad had set anything aside for him. He was just fifteen months old when his dad died. He vaguely wondered if Sirius had even thought about it but also doubted it. He was over a year away from being of age when his godfather had passed away.
"I doubt it." Harry voiced his thoughts.
"You know what's really cool?" Ron shifted next to him. "So, my uncles, Gideon and Fabian, were twins. The watch I got for my seventeenth belonged to Gideon. Yours belonged to Fabian."
"Yeah?" Harry's heart swelled at the information.
"Yeah, so I guess since our watches are brothers… that makes us officially brothers, right?" Ron had a lopsided grin on his face.
"I've considered you to be my brother for a long time now." Harry swallowed the lump in his throat. "I reckon the watches are a nice touch."
"I think it's the first time in my life that I don't mind having a hand-me-down." Ron brought his left wrist up and showed Harry the watch. "They match. They're identical."
Harry rose his wrist until the worn leather bands were touching. They were identical. It was the same frayed, dark brown leather. The black face with the golden Roman numerals and hands. Harry felt the corners of his lips tug up.
"I'm glad they match." Harry looked up at Ron.
"Just, for the record, I've always considered you my brother too. It didn't really take the watch to make it official." Ron cleared his throat.
Harry nodded, withdrawing his arm and plopping it back on his drawn knees. He looked out into the night, his gaze resting up at the stars. His eyes scanned for the brightest star in the sky. He wanted to feel close to Sirius on his birthday, to gaze upon the Dog Star brought him just a smidge of comfort. He had looked for it the previous summer, his heart clenching painfully as he had searched the night sky.
"Mum was worried, you know. She felt bad she couldn't get you a new watch or that she didn't have something from your dad or Sirius."
Harry locked his gaze on the Sirius star and blinked. There was very little light pollution at the Burrow, which made finding his target star fairly easy.
"She didn't have to worry about that." Harry frowned up at the sky.
"That's what I told her, but she still felt bad." Ron dug his heel into the earth. "She's been feeling guilty about a lot of stuff concerning you lately."
Harry tore his gaze away from the stars to look at his best mate. His brows furrowed at the information. There should be no reason for Mrs. Weasley to ever feel guilty about something concerning him.
"What?"
"Yeah… I overheard her talking to Dad at the beginning of summer when the whole watch thing came up. She said she felt bad for the way she treated Sirius. That she blamed him for the way your life turned out and she couldn't see the good in his relationship with you. She wished that she had talked to him more, talked about you more with him."
Harry's heart thumped in his chest. He knew that Mrs. Weasley and Sirius hadn't really gotten along. They bitterly threw snide comments in each other's faces and communicated in a series of frowns and scowls.
"She blamed herself for Sirius' death." Ron shook his head as he let out a low whistle. "Completely mental. The both of you."
"Why?" Harry's brow furrowed even more.
"She said she should have made an effort to go over to Grimmauld more when we were at school. She said she should have invited him to the Burrow to get him out of the house. She thought maybe if she had made more of an effort, he wouldn't have been so reckless to go to the Ministry after us." Ron shrugged. "She cares a lot about you. I think she was just upset that you lost your godfather because you two were close."
"It's not her fault." Harry squared his jaw. "She should know that the people close to me wind up dead. It's why I broke it off with Ginny. I couldn't… I couldn't have him know she meant everything to me."
Harry looked back up at the sky, his gaze finding the Sirius star once more. He blinked rapidly to keep his tears at bay, his neck flushing at the admission. He felt like he was missing a limb ever since Dumbledore's funeral. He would catch Ginny's gaze or her smell her lingering scent and want nothing more than to feel her pressed up against him in his arms. Except he was Harry Potter. He didn't get to be happy. He didn't get to have loved ones.
"After we, you know, destroy all the Horcruxes, are you going to get back together with her?"
Harry laughed humorlessly, his head shaking.
"I think we both know that the chances of that are close to zero."
"She'd take you back. She knows you're just trying to protect her, even if that annoys the ruddy hell out of her."
"No, Ron, I don't mean it like that. I mean, what are the chances that I actually survive this? It has to be me. I have to kill him after we destroy the Horcruxes."
Harry wasn't stupid like many people suspected him to be. He knew how this next adventure would likely end. He had watched Voldemort and Dumbledore dueling at the Ministry. He knew he couldn't duel as well as Dumbledore, knew he wouldn't be able to hold his own against Voldemort. He just needed to destroy the Horcruxes. It was the only mission he had in mind. The rest could come later.
"We're in this together, mate. I'll always have your back." Ron elbowed him in the side. "We're brothers until the very end."
"Brothers until the very end." Harry's voice cracked.
Ron bid him goodnight. Harry said he'd follow in a few minutes. He looked down at the watch on his wrist, feeling so glad that he and Ron had the same exact watch. He glanced up at the sky one last time, his gaze burning into the star his godfather was named after before he made his way back inside.
It was well past one in the morning. The entire house was still and quiet, which was eerie and a little unsettling. He had grown used to the hustle and bustle at the Burrow. He loved the constant noise, the nonstop talking, the rooms never being empty. There was always someone to talk to, something to do. Harry didn't even mind helping at the Burrow. He was more than happy to get up early and cook breakfast alongside Mrs. Weasley, despite her protests. He was thrilled to answer all of Mr. Weasley's questions about Muggle objects that he had collected in the shed but never knew what they were or what they did. There was always someone to talk to between Ron, Hermione, George, Fred, and Ginny.
Harry stilled. Ginny. He knew breaking up with her was the right thing to do. He'd never be able to forgive himself if something happened to her because of him. He'd never be able to look any of the Weasleys in the eye ever again. Too many people had already given up their lives for his. He wasn't about to allow Ginny to join that list.
Suddenly, sleep seemed a lot less appealing. He knew he should head up and attempt to grab even just a few hours of shuteye. The morning was going to be hectic and everyone would most likely be up insanely early to prep for the wedding. Except, he wasn't tired at all. His mind was reeling with emotions and plans.
"Should have known it was you who was up."
Harry whipped around to see Ginny standing in the doorway of the kitchen. Her lips twitched as she glanced at him. Harry felt something deep within his stomach coil as he remembered her soft lips on his. He wanted nothing more than to pull her close to his chest and feel his fingers tangle through her hair.
"What are you doing up?" Harry whispered, his eyes flickering behind her as though he half expected one of her brothers or her father to rush into the room.
"Couldn't sleep." She shrugged. "You?"
"Not tired." He curled his fingers around the edge of the kitchen table, bracing himself.
"I think we're alone now." She wiggled her eyebrows as she entered the kitchen, her hips swaying and driving Harry crazy.
"We are." He gulped.
"I could finish giving you my birthday gift that Ron rudely interrupted earlier."
"There was more?" His fingers tightened around the table as his breathing picked up.
She grinned, her fingers trailing down his bicep. "You've snogged me before, Harry. That definitely was not in the top five. A birthday snog should definitely be in the top five."
"Ginny… we can't."
Harry licked his bottom lip as he lost himself in her mischievous brown eyes. He was very well aware of how she snogged. He had found himself in more broom cupboards in the last few weeks of school than he had found himself in during his entire Hogwarts career. She brought out a more fun, light-hearted side of him. He felt giddy anytime she grasped his hand and tugged away for some innocent fun. He wasn't the Boy Who Lived or the Chosen One when he was with her. He was just Harry. He rather enjoyed being just Harry.
She took a step forward. Honeysuckle assaulted his nostrils. Her nails raked pleasantly up his chest. He stood still, trying to think of anything except Ginny's intoxicating scent that was making him twitch and tingle.
"I know why you broke up with me, Harry. It has nothing to do with not liking me anymore."
She pressed her body against his, causing his lips to part. He loved how tiny she was. He would never dare say that out loud or tell her that, but he loved that she was petite. Her slight body fit against his perfectly, and he loved how he could rest his chin on the crown on her head. He loved burying his face into her soft hair and losing himself in her flowery scent.
Her forearms rested on his shoulders, just barely. Her fingers were tickling the sides of his neck. She rose on her tiptoes, leaning completely into him so he had no choice but to wrap his arms around her waist to keep her close and steady. Her fingers massaged his hair at the nape of his neck and he slowly found his resolve crumbling.
"I just want to keep you safe," he whispered, ducking his head down so he could feel her breath tickle his chin.
"I'm a target if I'm dating you or not."
"You're more of a target if you're dating me though." He tightened his grip around her waist.
"Well, luckily, there are no Death Eaters around so we can pretend for five minutes that we're still happily together."
He studied her face, watching as the freckles on her nose crinkle together as she smiled. A grin broke out across his face. Five minutes of bliss with Ginny Weasley with nobody to see? It was almost too good to be true. His head drew closer to her as though being tugged by an invisible string. His lips met hers, and his entire body exploded with pleasure.
They were just as soft as they had been earlier in the day. There was a distinct hint of strawberry flavor on them like she had applied a lip balm before bed. The taste only made his body vibrate in response.
When he kissed Ginny, it was like the entire world around him melted. Nobody and nothing mattered outside of the way their lips brushed against each other, the way his tongue teased her mouth, the way she playfully nipped his lip.
Her grip on his hair tightened, and his desire spiked. She pulled him into a hungry, desperate snog. It was the kind of snog that made him see stars and hear symphonies echo in his ears. It was the classic Ginny snog that he knew and loved, the one that drove him crazy as they explored broom cupboards and library study rooms. It was the kind of snog that drove him to crave more and want her mouth on other body parts of his.
Like every time they kissed, he couldn't help but feel disappointment when they parted. It was never long enough. Her lips were pleasantly plump from the bruising kiss. He pecked them chastely as though he could make the swelling go down with something so pure and innocent. Then his lips found the corner of her mouth before trailing a line of kisses up her jaw. He paused at her ear, his breath tickling her skin. Pulling back, he rested his forehead against hers. He was losing himself in her… just like he always did.
"There are so many things I want to say to you right now," Ginny whispered, "but I know you have a job to do and I don't want to cloud your mind with my requests."
Harry's heart hammered in his chest. She didn't need to say the words. He already knew what was on her mind. Don't be stupid. Don't be reckless. Come back alive. He couldn't promise her any of those things, and she knew that. He was grateful for her not to say them out loud, so he was forced to break a promise.
"I'll try, Gin." His hands road up her back and tugged her pajama top up in the process. He felt her smooth skin underneath his palms.
"Save me a dance tomorrow?" Her thumb brushed over his bottom lip.
"I'm not one for dancing." He chuckled, his fingers skirting dangerously close to the band of her pajama bottoms.
"Well, you owe me a birthday gift too, mister. In case you forgot, it's coming up very soon."
Harry laughed loudly, Ginny shushing him. Her palm flattened against his mouth and a string of giggles escaped her lips. They stood frozen in the kitchen, stifling their laughter as they waited to hear a creaking on the stairs. Nobody cared to get out of bed, which Harry was grateful for. Her hand left his mouth and cupped his cheek. She leaned her body into his, her nose poking his collarbone.
"I know when your birthday is." His hand cupped the back of her head and held her close to his chest. "Maybe I already have a birthday present in mind. Maybe I want to give you a birthday snog."
"I wouldn't object. Can it be late at night like this so we're alone?"
"I'll take that under advisement."
She pulled out of his embrace and slapped him playfully on the chest. He only grinned in response. She flicked her hair behind her shoulder, which was just one more thing about her that drove him crazy. He loved her hair, the way it was a medley of oranges, reds, and golds. He loved the way it shimmered when the light hit it.
"Goodnight, Harry."
"Night, Gin."
She sauntered out of the kitchen, pausing at the doorway to give him one final look. She blew him a kiss with a grin, and Harry had the childish urge to reach out and try to grab it. Instead, he shoved his hands in his trouser pockets and tried to adjust himself discreetly. He smiled at her before she disappeared completely.
Once she was out of sight, he couldn't keep the goofy grin off his face. Maybe if things worked out, and he didn't die during his newest quest, Ginny would want to get back together. Maybe he'd be lucky enough and she would wait for him. He didn't expect her to. It could be months or years away. He had no idea where to go or what to do. There wasn't a starting point or a realistic time frame. He could only selfishly hope she would wait for him.
As he climbed the stairs, he thought about what kind of birthday gift he could give Ginny before they left. He didn't even consider he wouldn't have the chance to give her a gift or even say one last goodbye. It would be a thought that would haunt him for months while he was cold and hungry, when he slipped into a depression at finding nothing for months at a time, when he started to hate the canvas walls of the tent around him. He would stare at her dot on the Marauder's Map and think about their missed goodbye… the missed birthday gift… the missed final year at Hogwarts together… the many missed opportunities.
Hope you enjoyed this little missing moment, not much plot or point but just a little something that was floating around in my head. I hope you enjoyed it! Please, don't forget to leave a review and let me know your thoughts. They inspire me and make my day!