"Hey."
I looked up into a pair of shining eyes . . . eyes of the one whom I loved. She wasn't supposed to be here tonight.
"What are you doing here . . . it's too dangerous." It killed me to see her look this way. It was all for me too. She was grieving for me, scared for me, loving me. It was too much, she had to leave.
"Look," her glossy hair fell past her shoulders, glinting in the sunset. "Peter is dead. It won't happen again! I can help you defeat Tom . . . we can do it, together."
My eyes closed and I reached blindly for her hand. "No. I can't let you do that."
Even with my eyes shut, the waves of anger were apparent. They pushed against my feeble barrier, grinding their way into my soul. No! I can't give in, just can't . . . Won't let it happen again . . .
"Why not? You let Ron and Hermione fight, but not me? For goodness sakes, even my mother is fighting! I'm no baby, no matter what you do or say!"
Jesus, she's tearing me apart. "I know you're not a baby. Forgive me if I gave you that impression."
Stamping her foot, she tore her hand out of mine. "Well, you've got a helluva way in showing it."
"You just can't fight sweetheart . . . you can't . . ."
The waves of anger were subsiding; I can do this, I had to stay strong. Giving in would be as bad as handing her in to Draco Malfoy himself.
"Don't call me sweetheart . . ." She sniffed, turning her back to me.
Sighing in frustration, I reached past her, producing a bottle of Fire Whiskey. Though I never liked the stuff, it seemed to help calm the nerves in dire situations. Predicaments such as these.
"You shouldn't drink," she said, petite fingers closing around the top of the bottle. Oh god, her touch is intoxicating.
I reluctantly released my grasp, staring into the fire once again. "And you shouldn't be here."
The slight pressure on my left side told me she had sat down. "Of all people . . .I would think that you would know what it feels like to be locked up."
Crash.
She had thrown the bottle of Whiskey. It exploded onto the floor, spewing bits of glass and it's contents across the floor. She didn't even flinch.
"I'm keeping you away for different reasons then Dumbledore did me."
Her hands had moved to cup my face, turning it towards her. No. Don't do this to me . . .
"And what reasons are those?" it came in a whisper, so close to his ear, and yet so far. I started to breath unevenly as her stare penetrated my barrier again. It was ripping away, the bricks of my mental wall slipping through my fingers like water. I can't bear it . . .
"I--" Her face was dangerously close; darn it, move! Too late, she's won . . . The barrier had been destroyed. In it's place, a new wall stood. One that she had made unknowingly . . . One that I had tried to hide; to forget.
"You can't fight . . . as long as I'm in love with you."
XoxoxoX
Harry woke with a start, his heart pounding in his throat. That dream . . .
Glancing at the sleeping form of Alex, he rolled up and shakily stepped into the bathroom. His body was drenched in cold sweat, and he felt as though he might be sick.
It was the third time in a row that this dream had haunted him in sleep, ever since he signed the papers for Ginny. Only this time, was the first that he saw her face. The past two nights held her face in shadow, as if he had forgotten what she looked like before going into a coma.
But this time . . . it had been so real. Harry saw the Golden flecks in her brown eyes, the anger in her stance, and even the freckles on her face. Giving himself a mental shake, Harry discarded his clothing and stepped into a hot shower.
"You can't fight . . . as long as I'm in love with you."
He turned the heat up higher. Steam cascaded around him, as he banged his head against the shower door. Why did he even care? In three months he was marrying Alex. Little Ginny Weasley wasn't here anymore.
Yeah, because you killed her.
" I tried to save her twice . . . I just lost the second time. I did not kill Ginny." Even though his body said it, his mind disagreed.
XoxoxoX
"Good Morning Ginny." Hermione walked into the room with a vase of fresh flowers. She carefully set it on Ginny's bedside table, then turned to her younger friend.
"I have good news for you."
Ginny sighed heavily. It had been three days since she had woken up, and she was still in the hospital. Even worse, she could not stop thinking about Harry. The only good thing that had come to staying in the hospital was that she was looking quite healthy again.
"What is it, Hermione?"
The brunette sat on the end of Ginny's bed, smiling brightly. "You get to leave the hospital today."
A grin broke out across Ginny's face. It had been ages since she had smiled, and had to admit, it felt great. "Are you serious?"
"Yes, of coarse. There's one thing though."
Ginny's smile flickered a bit. "What? Do I have to sit in a Wheel Chair for a month or something?"
Chuckling, Hermione shook her head. "Ron and I were wondering . . . Since you have no place to stay, would you like to live in our flat for a while?"
"Oh my . . . I would love to, but on one condition. I stay only until I find a place of my own."
Ginny leaned in to hug Hermione. "Of coarse Gin, whatever you want. Oh, by the way. Your Mum wants to see you again in two days."
The younger girl nodded. Only minutes after she had made Ron promise not to tell harry anything, Mr. And Mrs. Weasley had burst into the room. Ginny had spent two whole days with her mother, and just yesterday, she had gone home knowing her baby was awake, and also not to tell Harry anything.
"Perfect. So am I going to your flat today? I mean, I'd really like to get into my own clothes."
Hermione gasped. "Oh my gosh, I almost forgot." She picked a box off the floor and placed it on Ginny's lap. "It's some of your things, like your wand and- other things. I'll be outside if you need me."
Ginny looked up at her curiously until her friend disappeared behind the door. Then, with a deep breath, she opened the cardboard box.
Hermione had been correct. Her wand was the first thing that Ginny picked up. She was surprised that the Healers had put it in the box. Held together by only a few splinters, the mahogany wand was ruined. Even worse, there was a small, dark-red stain near the bottom of the handle.
My blood.
She bit her lip before moving on. There were only two more items in the box. One was a black cloak with large rips and holes throughout it. It was obviously the one she was wearing when Malfoy attacked her, only it looked as if it had been cleaned of blood. The final item in the box was wrapped in a white handkerchief.
Hands shaking, Ginny slowly unwound it to find a glittering silver necklace. It had a Tiffany-style chain, the front holding a flat heart. Something inside stirred as she turned the heart over to find an engraving:
GMW+HJP
Luv Forever
With an electric shock, Ginny dropped the necklace to the floor. The sound of the solid silver hitting hard floor made Hermione open the door nervously. "Ginny, are you going to be okay?"
A single tear could explain the world.
Ginny wordlessly picked up the necklace, holding it to her face as she cried. It was the only remainder of her love with Harry, her only reminder that it wasn't all just a dream.
XoxoxoX
"Are you sure you're going to be okay, sis?" Ron leaned against the doorframe to the Guest bedroom of his and Hermione's flat. Only an hour earlier, Hermione had checked Ginny out of the hospital, bringing her to her temporary home.
Ginny remained silent, hugging her knees to her cheek. The necklace now glinted from around her neck, light bouncing of it's engraving.
Sighing, Ron took hold of the door knob. "If you decide you want to talk, Mione and I are always here for you, okay? Mum will be here the day after tomorrow, but if you want me to call her over, feel free to ask."
As he closed the door with a snap, Ron walked across the hall to his bedroom. "Please, convince her to tell Harry, Mione."
Hermione looked up from her reading book, though it seemed as though she was just staring at it aimlessly. "I know, I know. It's been three days, and tomorrow four. I'll have a chat with her, don't you worry."
He nodded, face expressionless. "How do you think Harry will react?" Ron pulled off his shirt and slid into the cool sheets next to his wife.
"I . . . I don't know." She paused, eyebrows furrowed. "Did you know that Harry gave her the necklace?"
Ron pondered it for a moment. Had he known? Well, Harry and his sister's relationship had been a bitter-sweet one. About two months before Harry had killed Voldemort, she had been captured. Ironically, it was not Malfoy who had done it the first time.
No, It had been Wormtail. The look on his best mate's face when he found out, was undescribable. Even today, he wasn't sure how Harry brought Ginny back.. It was only afterwards that Harry and Ginny had come forward to tell the family that they had been dating.
Then, Ron had thought the relationship was just to cover up feelings of grief for the war. Now, he knew it had to be something else. Something happened two nights before Ginny was put into a coma. Ron suspected that it was on that night that Harry gave her the necklace.
"No, I didn't know."
XoxoxoX
Ginny stared at the door after her brother closed it. If only they knew what happened between them . . . that the night Harry had given her the necklace, was also a night she was going to cherish forever.
But now, Harry was getting married. To some woman named Alex. Ginny closed her eyes, searching her brain. The name Alex sounded familiar. She knew there was noone at Hogwarts that was named Alex, so why did she find it familiar?
Hi Ginny. It-its me. Harry. Look, all this time that I've been visiting you- I haven't told you about something . . . or really someone. Her name is Alexandra. I met her about two years ago in a dance club . . .
I-I think I love her Ginny . . .
I'm going to marry her . . .
Ginny sighed, pressing a fluffy pillow to her face. Harry had told her about his fiancee before he pulled the plug. As to why he did, well, that was what she had to find out.
XoxoxoX
The next morning, Ron and Hermione were surprised to see Ginny come into the kitchen with a small smile on her face. She sat down in a chair and helped herself to a piece of toast.
"Feeling better, Gin?" Ron was looking at her with a small amount of concern. Did he really want to bring up the topic of Harry when Ginny was feeling good this morning?
She just nodded through a mouthful of food. When she swallowed, she asked a question that almost made Hermione drop the pot of coffee, "Could you tell me where Harry lives?"
"Wait," Hermione said, mouth open slightly. "You want to see Harry? And Ron and i didn't even have to send you there?"
Ginny couldn't help it. She chuckled softly, looking from her brother to Hermione. "So can you tell me where he is? I think I'm going to talk to him . . . Today, around noon."
Ron, patted her on the back. "The sooner its over, the sooner you can relax, Gin. Tell you what. In the office today, I'll make sure Harry is at his flat around noon."
"Okay, thanks Ron. Um, Hermione? Do you have anything casual, yet nice that I can wear?"
Hermione stood up from the table, gesturing for Ginny to follow her. "I have just the thing."
XoxoxoX
Ron was going through paperwork. It had to be the most boring part of being an Auror. At the moment, he had half a mind to curse Tonks for telling him the paperwork wasn't that bad. Sure, whatever.
It was around 11:30 when Ron decided he'd better go and see Harry. As he walked down the hall to his old friend's office, he tried to come up with a way to get harry to go home. Ron was just about to knock on the door to the office, when it burst open.
"Huh? Ron? Hey, what's up?"
One look at the bag on Harry's shoulder and the stacked paperwork meant one thing: Harry was going home.
"Oh, hi Harry. Erm, where are you off to?" Maybe I don't have to do anything after all.
Harry started to push past Ron, giving him a shake on the shoulder. "Sorry mate, love to chat, but I promised Alex I'd be home by 12:00."
Ron palled. "Wait, what? You going on a date or something? I thought you two don't live together."
Harry raised an eyebrow. " You could say that. And, no, we don't live together . . . Not yet. Anyway, I'll see you later Ron. We have to get together to decide upon wedding details."
"No, don't," but Harry had already apparatted. "Dammit Harry, you'd better not be snogging when Ginny gets there!"
A/N: Yes, you know what's going to happen. You got even more of a glimpse of the plot in this one, too. Please review!