Chapter 4

Ginny grunted, swatting at the air. Something was poking her shoulder.

"Lea me alone," she mumbled sleepily.

"Sorry," a high soft voice said. "We have places to go. Now get up, I don't have all night."

Ginny blinked and rubbed her eyes. She sat up and looked at her visitor. The girl was barely three feet tall. She couldn't have been older than six or seven, but there was something about her. Time seemed to cling to her. It was as if she'd lived several lifetimes, gaining the wisdom of those lives, but not the age.

Ginny tried to examine the girl's features, but that was difficult. At one moment, her eyes were a warm chocolate brown. A second later, they were a silvery green. Her hair changed color as well. It was red one moment, and then shifted to a dirty blond, then to Chesnutt brown. Ginny looked away from her. The girls shifting appearance made her head hurt.

"Who are you?" she asked.

The girl's lips twitched. "I don't know."

"What?"

"I. don't. Know," the girl said slowly, as if Ginny were particularly stupid.

"Did you get hit with a memory spell or something?" Ginny asked leaning forward.

"Nope," the girl said popping the P. "It's complicated."

"You can't be older than six. How complicated can it be?"

The girl took Ginny's arm with a small hand. Ginny noticed that even her hands were changing. At one moment she had short stubby fingers. The next they were long and slender.

"Come on," the girl said.

Ginny hesitantly climbed out of bed. "Where are we going?"

The girl widened her ever changing eyes. "The future," she said dramatically.

Ginny stared at her.

"Wizarding families," the girl grumbled. "I'm so glad my Dad was raised a muggle."

Before Ginny could say anything in response, the ground dropped out from under her feet. She tried to grab onto something, but there was nothing to grab. She let out a long loud scream as she fell through the air.

XXX

Ginny's feet slammed into the ground and she fell over. Rolling over, she glared at the giggling girl standing above her.

"That was fun," the girl said, clapping her tiny hands.

Ginny sat up. "Fun, is not the word I'd use," she stood up and looked around.

They were standing in an alley behind a small wooden building. The walls of the building were cracked and rotting. The floor of the alley was churned up earth. Ginny breathed in and nearly choked. The smell of old piss and sour shit filled the air. Broken bottles, empty cigarette packs, and unidentifiable trash littered the ground.

"What is this place?" Ginny asked turning to her guide.

"It's a pub isn't it?" the girl said looking around.

"Okay," Ginny said slowly. "Why did you bring me here?"

The girl led her deeper into the alley. Ginny jumped slightly as a rat scampered passed her. They approached a lump on the ground. The only thing that told Ginny it was a person was the loud snores coming from it. As they got closer, Ginny wrinkled her nose.

Whoever this person was, they smelled awful. Underneath the overpowering smell of whisky, Ginny could smell dirt, unwashed flesh, and piss.

Coughing, Ginny turned to the girl. "Who is that?"

Before the girl could answer, the person rolled over, revealing their face. The bottom half of his face was covered by a dirty and matted beard. His hair was lank and greasy, but was just as red as his beard. One long arm was thrown out to the side. In his other hand, he clutched an empty whisky bottle.

Ginny stared at him. "Ron," she whispered, horrified.

"Yes," the girl said solemnly. "It's him. How did you know? He looks a lot different than he does in your time."

Ginny swallowed thickly. "Very few of my brothers are that tall. Regardless of how he looks, he's too young to be Bill."

"Pretty good deductive reasoning," the girl said smiling slightly.

"Deductive?" Ginny said. "I'm surprised a girl your age knows such a big word."

The girl's smile widened. "I have the potential to be quite intelligent."

Ginny looked down at her passed out brother. "What happened to him?"

"Life," the girl said unsympathetically. "When you don't let go of your anger and hate, this is where it can lead you. Really, this is one of the better things that could've happened to him."

Ginny's head snapped around. Her brown eyes flashed with anger. "How could you say that? My brother doesn't deserve this."

"I didn't say he did," the girl said calmly. "I said that this was one of the better things that could've happened to him. He could've turned out to be a murderer. At least as a drunk he's not hurting anyone besides himself."

"Don't you have any compassion?"

"Of course I do, but he did this to himself. No one forced him to become a drunk. No one made him turn his back on his family. He did that all on his own."

"Ron would never turn his back on his family," Ginny growled. "He's a hothead, he has a temper, and he doesn't always think things through, but he's loyal to his friends and family."

The girl didn't answer. She pointed behind Ginny. Ginny turned to see a man dressed in torn and ragged robes sneaking down the alley. He looked around before continuing to walk forward. When his beady little eyes landed on Ron, he smiled.

Throwing all caution to the wind, the man scurried over to Ron and began digging in his robes. A few seconds later, he stepped back, clutching a couple gold coins in one grimy hand.

Ginny started forward, but the girl's hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"We're just spectators here. We can't interfere."

"But he just stole money from my brother," Ginny snapped.

"Yes," the girl said as calm as ever. "This isn't the first time Ron's been rolled and it probably won't be the last. Shame though, that was the last of his paycheck. I wonder how he's going to pay the rent on his flat now."

Ginny stamped her foot. "How did this happen? What brought Ron to this point?"

"His own anger and jealousy," the girl said quietly. "You see, Ron's always been afraid that Harry would steal Hermione from him."

"Harry wouldn't do that," Ginny said immediately.

"Not intentionally," the girl said. Ron and Hermione never completely reconciled. They kept fighting and arguing. The final straw was when Ron refused to go with Hermione to get her parents. Harry and Luna ended up going with her. Harry was raised in the Muggle world and between him and Hermione they managed to teach Luna what she needed to know."

"But what about Ron?" Ginny asked.

"Ron continued to allow his anger to get the better of him. He went from job to job until he ended up here."

"Didn't my family try and help him?"

"Of course," the girl said, "but he didn't want to be helped. He insisted he didn't have a problem. Molly's insistence that it was just a phase he was going through didn't help things either. This phase has lasted for over ten years. Eventually, the family just gave up. They realized that they couldn't help someone that didn't want to be helped.

Ginny looked down at her unconscious brother. She'd known he had issues, but she never expected them to lead him here." She jumped when the girl took her arm.

"Come on, we have other things to see."

Ginny looked up at the girl. "Can't we do anything for him?"

"I told you," the girl said patiently. "We are just observers. We can't interact with anyone on the physical plane. If it makes you feel any better, this hasn't happened yet in your time. You can still change things."

Before Ginny could say another word, the ground dropped out from under her and she was falling once again.

XXX

Ginny's feet slammed into the ground. This time she managed to stay upright. She looked around the room and instantly knew where she was.

"Why are we at the burrow?" she asked the girl.

Looking around the room, Ginny's eyes widened. There were old food incrusted plates littering every surface. Torn bits of parchment, half-eaten chocolate bars, and empty gin bottles littered the floor. From somewhere close by, Ginny could hear a whistling snore. Stepping towards the sound, she entered the kitchen and saw an enormous woman slumped over the kitchen table.

The woman had to weigh at least 300 pounds. Fat hung from her arms like bags of doe. Her ham sized hands were folded on the table in front of her, and her flabby face rested on them. Ginny gaped at the woman before turning to her guide.

"Who is that?"

Her guide stared at the fat woman sadly. "Don't you recognize your own Mother?"

Ginny's eyes widened. "No!" she exclaimed. "That can't be my Mother. My Mother was a little plump, but she was nowhere near that… that…" She stopped completely lost for words.

"Big?" the girl suggested tactfully.

"Yes," Ginny said gratefully. "That big."

The girl stepped towards Molly and looked down at her. She reached out, as if to brush a strand of grey hair away from the sagging jowls. "She's all alone now." She sounded like she really felt sorry for Molly.

Ginny's heart clenched. "What are you talking about? Has something happened to my Dad? What about my brothers? Why don't they come to see her?"

"Your Father left her about three years ago. He couldn't take her yelling at him anymore. From what I've been able to gather, he remarried and has a child on the way. As for your brothers, they couldn't handle her continued attempts to control their lives. They just stopped talking to her. Ron stayed in touch the longest, but eventually Molly couldn't handle his drinking and kicked him out."

"What about me?" Ginny said.

"Oh," the girl said smiling. "We'll be seeing your future next. I don't want to spoil it for you."

Ginny looked around the kitchen. It didn't look any better than the living room. The sink was full of dirty dishes. The once clean floors were covered in at least an inch of grime. As she stood there, she thought she heard a scuttling sound. Drawing her wand, she lit it and peered around the kitchen more closely. She gasped and took a step back towards the living room.

At least seven fat rats scurried over the floor. Their tiny feet made a scratching sound as they dug through the dirt looking for scraps. Ginny looked at the girl. She opened her mouth to ask a question, but a flash of red light froze her.

Turning back to her Mother, she was just in time to see one of the rats heads explode in a flurry of bone and brains.

"Got ya, you little basard," Molly slurred, picking the rat up by its tail. She waved her wand, summoning a dirty bowl from the sink. A few spells later, she had cleaned the bowl. She turned away from the table, and held the rats spurting corpse over the floor.

"What is she?" Ginny began.

There was a wet ripping sound. Ginny gagged as with a twist of her wand, Molly peeled the skin off the rat. The empty skin folded itself neatly and fell to the floor. Another wave of the wand, and the meat yanked free from the skeleton.

Rising jerkily to her feet, Molly dropped the rat meat into a pot of water on the stove. With a gesture, the pot of water began to boil. Molly added potatoes, green beans, corn, and a bit of barley to the pot before beginning to stir.

Ginny leaned over, clutching her stomach. She felt the girls hand on her shoulder and she flinched back.

"Why did you show me this?" she whimpered. "I know we should've treated Harry better, but my Mother doesn't deserve this. She doesn't deserve to be all alone living off rats."

"I agree," the girl said, "but your Mother's actions brought her to this point. She let her grief and anger control her life. This may not happen, but it is a possibility."

"What do you mean?" Ginny asked hopefully.

"All the visions I've shown you are just possibilities. The future is not set in stone. It is possible that your Dad wouldn't have left your Mum. It is also possible that even if he had, your Mum wouldn't have ended up this way. Think of this like a worst case scenario."

"I can't take that chance," Ginny said firmly. "The future has to change."

The girl smiled at her happily. "Very good, you are learning. Now, come on, we have more to see."

"Wait," Ginny said, pulling away from her.

"What?" the girl asked innocently. Her eyes were silver green once again and twinkled with mischief.

"Is there another way we can travel?"

The girl pouted at her. "Let me think," she said scratching her chin.

"Okay," she said, lips twitching. "I've thought about it and the answer is, no." Before Ginny could protest, the girl had grabbed her arm and they were falling again.

As they fell, the only thing Ginny could hear over her own screams was the girls tinkling laughter.

XXX

When she became aware of her surroundings once again. Ginny looked around. They were clearly in a girl's locker room. She could hear the splashing sound of water on tiles and the giggles and yells of several girls.

"Where is this?"

"Holy head Harpies locker room," the girl said.

Ginny's eyes widened. "You're serious," she said excitedly.

"I'm serious," the girl said. "You're in the shower over there." She pointed to a closed shower door across the room.

Ginny's stomach lurched. After what'd happened to her Mother and brother, she was a little afraid to see her future self. Before she could do anything, she saw a mass of wet red hair, and then her future self emerged from the shower.

Ginny smiled. Her future self looked amazing. Her legs were toned and muscular. Her stomach was flat with not an ounce of fat showing. Her red hair fell in a tangle around her shoulders. Ginny watched herself raise one small hand and push the hair out of her face.

Past Ginny looked at the little girl beside her. She gaped. The girl's hair and eyes had changed to match her own. Before she could ask about it, the girl spoke.

"Your future self looks pretty good, doesn't she?"

Ginny nodded. "I assume I'm a quidditch player?"

"You assume right," the girl said. "You are a chaser for the holy head harpies. You've been playing for the past four years."

Ginny looked at her future self. As fit as she looked, there was something missing. She noticed how her future self never looked up at anyone. She never spoke to the other girls. Her brown eyes remained fixed on the floor in front of her.

"She doesn't look happy, does she?" the girl asked conversationally.

Before Ginny could answer, one of the girls spoke up. "Hey Ginny, are you coming with us clubbing tonight?"

Ginny watched as her future self nodded. "Sure," she said without enthusiasm.

Another girl laughed. "Still trying to get over your X-husband?"

Future Ginny shook her head. "No, I'm just going to enjoy playing quidditch. I'm not going to worry about getting married again until I retire. Maybe I'll pick up some random guy, but no relationships until my quidditch career is over."

Ginny stared at her future counterpart in horror. How could she speak so casually of the failure of her marriage? She whirled on her guide. "Why did I divorce Harry?"

The girl raised one currently scarlet eyebrow. "Harry? Who said you were married to Harry?"

Ginny gaped at her. "You mean I wasn't?"

"Nope, you married Neville. When you two divorced, you just walked away from everything."

"Why would I do that? Why wouldn't Neville at least try to make our marriage work?"

The girl's eyebrow arched higher, almost touching her hairline. "Who says he didn't? He tried to talk to you about your traveling, but you were so focused on your career that you wouldn't listen. A relationship needs work to keep the love alive. Eventually, you two just drifted apart."

Ginny looked down at the floor. "Did I ever have a chance to be happy with him, or was I doomed from the start because I didn't get with Harry?"

Her guide snorted. "You assume that there is only one person that you could've been happy with, and if you don't meet that person, you'll be miserable, correct?"

Ginny nodded hesitantly. "Harry and I were soul mates, weren't we?"

The girl looked heavenward, as if asking for patience. "You and Harry were a great match for each other, it is true. However, Harry wasn't your only match, nor were you Harry's."

"So what happened to Harry?" Ginny asked.

The girl laid a hand on her arm and they began falling again.

XXX

When they landed, Ginny looked around. Chairs and tables of various colors and heights sat around the room. Some of the tables were only knee high. Some of the chairs were hard wood, while others had plump cushions covering them.

Ginny heard a cooing sound. She looked to the sound and saw Luna sitting in a large chair breastfeeding a tiny baby. She smiled lovingly down at the baby.

"Are you full Xino," she said softly.

In response, the baby burped, causing Luna to giggle. She gently stroked the baby's messy blond hair. "Sleep now, baby," she said softly. "Me and Daddy need to work on number three."

"You just gave birth to Xino," a deep voice said from behind her. "Don't you want to rest before you give birth to number three?"

Ginny turned to see Harry standing in the doorway, smiling at Luna. She stared at him in awe.

He had definitely filled out. His muscles were well defined. His black hair was a little longer than it was now, just covering his neck. The added length appeared to have tamed it. He wore no glasses and his green eyes sparkled with happiness.

"It's never too early to start having more kids," said Luna smiling dreamily.

"Harry and Luna?" Ginny asked her guide.

"Yes," the girl said. They got together a few months from your point in time."

"But what about me?" Ginny whispered. "Didn't he love me?"

"Of course, but he couldn't put his life on hold forever."

"So, I'm not going to be with Harry?"

"That remains to be seen. There is a chance."

Ginny noticed that the girl's hair had turned dirty blond and her eyes were silver green again.

"You're his daughter," Ginny said her eyes widening.

"Yep, but it hasn't been decided who my Mother is yet. There are three choices."

Ginny remembered when the girl's eyes and hair had matched her own. "So I could be your Mother?"

"Possibly," the girl said cheerfully. "I just have one request."

"What's that?"

"Whether you end up being my Mother or not, please stop Daddy from naming any of his kids Albus Severus."

Ginny smiled. "I think I can handle that."

"I guess I'll see you later," the girl said. "Remember, there are more important things than quidditch."

"Thank you," Ginny said.

The girl waved at her and then Ginny was falling again.