centerbOne Last Chance
Chapter Nine: The Way Old Friends Are/center/b
Harry woke up with a start; he did not know the reason to this sudden consciousness. He cracked his eyelids, and could tell it was around nine in the morning. Although the curtains were closed around his bed, he could hear the muttering around his dorm-room. He was wondering if that was what woke him, when he felt something move onto his chest. He looked down, gave a yelp of surprise and fell off his bed in his haste to move away from her.
His yelp and the laughter of the other occupants woke Ginny up. She saw her brothers laughing, and Harry looking at her wide-eyed, confused as to how she was there.
"You idiots were not so happy when I came in here last night. Can't you let me sleep?" she mumbled at her brothers who had stopped laughing when they saw her awake. They knew she was not a morning person.
"Get up here, Harry," she told him as fiercely as she could, although her voice was still sleepy. "I don't like my pillow running away."
She buried her head in his pillow and promptly went back to sleep. Harry put his glasses on, and sat on his bed, avoiding Fred, George, Ron and Charlie's eyes. He pulled the covers over Ginny, and let her sleep.
"What time is it?" Harry asked Ron, stifling a yawn. He would not mind getting back into his bed to sleep, but he didn't think Ginny's brothers would like it.
"It's half past eight. That's the reason none of us wanted to wake you," Ron told him. "She can be horribly nasty if we wake her too early in the morning."
"Yeah, better be careful," said Charlie, walking toward the door. Just as he was about leave, he turned around and faced Harry. "That was my sister you were with. She means the world to me. Just remember that."
He did not wait for Harry to reply. He walked off, leaving Fred and George gaping after him.
"I told you he's met a woman in his dragon reserves," said George.
"Yeah, you always say that," said Fred, rolling his eye at his twin, walking out of the room with George following him.
"So…um…I'll be heading for breakfast," said Ron, looking anywhere but at Harry.
He left before Harry could ask him anything else.
Harry let his head fall back onto his pillow. He was wondering how Ginny could have gotten into his bed in the night without him realising it. After living a year in tents, he had become quite a light sleeper. He could get up if there was the slightest disturbance.
He turned onto his side and pulled Ginny gently to himself. She came without any struggle. He could smell the distinctive smell he associated with her. After he had described what he had been up to, Ginny had told him what had happened during the last school year. She had been put under the iCruciatus Curse/i often, as part of her punishment for not obeying rules set by the Carrows. It was not easy for Harry to listen to her and her sufferings. He felt awful for having left her behind.
He blamed himself for it, although he knew, if he were given a chance to redo the whole thing, he probably would have left her behind again. The Trace was still on her, and, unless she was seventeen, he would have done anything possible to keep her back at home.
That was not all they had talked about. After both of them had told each other what had happened, Ginny had pinned him down and started to take out her past year frustrations, anger, hurt, sorrow and fear on him. He had been willing to comply, but they had almost gone too far. Had it not been for the fact that an owl sleeping on the branch of the tree they were leaning against hooted loudly, he was sure they would not have stopped.
The sexual tension still had lingered, and, seeing her in his bed in the morning, it had done nothing to ease it. A year away from her had made him insecure too. He was not going to admit it, but he really had felt like he had on stormy nights, locked up in his cupboard when he was younger. It had brought up unpleasant memories of the Dursleys that he had chosen to ignore and forget.
Seeing her, curled around his leg and her head resting on his pillow with her hair spread all over, made Harry realize that no matter what he would never leave her behind again. This August she would turn seventeen, and, after that there was no way he could bear to stay away from her.
He kissed her forehead and settled down into a more comfortable position, pulling Ginny closer. This was the first time he had slept with anyone next to him. It was an odd feeling to have someone by your side, trying to sleep. It was a pleasantly welcome change that Harry recognised; one that he associated with being secure as he slept. He did not recall a time in his life when he felt this safe.
Thinking about Ginny, he fell asleep, and that was how his parents and Sirius saw him as they came up to wake him up. Lily and James were shocked. This was their son, and the last time she had held him he was a baby. She freaked out at first, seeing her son in the arms of another woman.
Sirius gradually pulled the covers, and the three of them saw both of them dressed and sleeping peacefully. They did not want to wake them, but they knew it would be better if they did rather than the Weasleys.
Arthur, Remus, Bill, Charlie and Percy had gone back to the Burrow to check if it was in good condition. Apart from the fact that the Burrow had been thoroughly ransacked, and the whole place turned upside down, the house was standing as strong as ever. The Ghoul in the attic was found dead. They had set to work, and the place was as good as it had been before.
Bill and Charlie had returned to Hogwarts to inform the rest of them that the Burrow was safe. They had even reestablished most of the wards. Percy and Arthur had returned to Aunt Muriel's house to shift whatever they had been able to move.
When they had gone, James and Sirius had gone to Gringotts to make sure the will of Lily and James Potter was read out, and Harry got the whole Potter's inheritance. Explaining to them that they were alive had taken a while, but they had agreed to follow the will of Lily and James, and to hand everything over to Harry.
"Wake up, Harry," Lily was shaking Harry gently. He swatted her hand away, and burrowed his head further into Ginny's hair.
"Um…sleepy… away," Harry replied incoherently and pulled the sheets up, above his head.
Despite herself, Lily smiled at this tantrum. iHe is quite like me in this aspect,/i she thought. She tugged away the sheets again, and pocked him harder. This disturbance caused Ginny to flutter her eyes open; seeing the red hair, she turned around to snuggle into her pillow, only to find somebody, by her side. Then she remembered the fact that she had crawled into Harry's bed.
Ginny also heard some male voices whispering, in the dorm. She lifted her head and saw that she had been caught sleeping with her boyfriend by her boyfriend's parents and his godfather. Clearly embarrassed, she tried to get up, only to realize Harry had his arm around her.
She knew she was red in the face; still, she lifted her head and looked at Lily, with some caution. She was not sure what they might say about this.
"Oh! You're up," said Lily, clearly looking relieved. "Please, don't be bothered about this. I do understand what you might be going through, to seek his comfort. Do you think you can get him up and come down to the Common Room? Your father and brothers have gone to the Burrow and should be returning soon. We need to discuss something very important with Harry. Bring him down please."
Lily pulled James and Sirius, and went out of the dorm to let Ginny wake Harry. Ginny sighed out in relief. She was sure she would have been told off by Lily. She didn't think she could ever look at Lily in the eyes.
She faced Harry, and felt awful at having to wake him up. He slept so peacefully. There was neither care nor concern on his face, and he had a soft smile gracing his lips. As she continued to admire him, she realised she needed to get him to wake up fast. She shifted around so that he would be sleeping on his back. She carefully put his arms around herself.
She then placed her upper body onto his chest, and bent her head to kiss his forehead tenderly. She felt him settle more comfortably into his pillow. This was not what she had intended. She wanted him to get up.
Ginny sighed, a soft smile gracing her lips and her eyes drinking in Harry's facial features fondly. As her eyes rested on his lips, they twinkled with mischief. She pulled a strand of her hair, and ran it along his face.
He shifted his face away from her hair, and expressed his dislike by turning his head away from her. Ginny chuckled softly at his antics. He was so much like a child, yet he was a man, an adult who had gone through so many things in his life…
Ginny traced the out line of his lips with her hair, and then his eyes. It was a good thing she was watching him closely, because his eyelids cracked open with great difficulty. He saw her, and, the next thing Ginny knew, she was pinned to the bed under Harry.
Her eyes widened and she laughed at the look on his face. The sleep had not left his eyes, but he was looking at her with his deep emerald eyes, telling her silently, iYou are in big trouble, Miss Weasley!/i
Biting back her laughter, she said in the most innocent voice she could manage, "Harry, be a dear and move off of me, would you?"
"Why?" answered Harry, his voice laced with his sleep.
"You see," her lips twitched, as she tried not to give into her laughter, "I…uh…well I feel you are quite heavy, and I do not have the strength to hold your weight like this. I just got up and this," she continued with a straight face, pointing at their current position even as she saw him getting alert and the sleep disappearing from his eyes. "This will be difficult for me to end right now."
She could no longer hold her laughter at the incredulous look Harry was giving her. Her laughter was so infectious that Harry shook his head in amusement.
Ginny's laughter died in her throat as the look in his eyes changed. She knew that look. It was the same one he had when they used to end up in broom closets, or empty classrooms, or secret passages, or any deserted corner they could find immediately, back in her fifth year.
She gazed hungrily at his lips, which were parted and were inching closer to her lips. She wet her lips unconsciously, as she felt her throat go dry.
His lips landed on hers, and she was happy when he pulled away immediately. He rolled off her in disgust, which matched Ginny's.
"I hate morning breath," he stated scowling at his bed, as though morning breadth was its fault.
He blindly reached for his glasses, put them on, and swung his legs over his bed.
"I'm heading to the shower, and I'll clean my teeth, and then kiss you good morning," Harry vowed as he padded bare foot to the showers.
"Well," said Ginny, "make it fast. I don't want to wait long for my kiss, and your parents want to talk to you and me about something important. There are down waiting for you, in the Common Room. I'll catch you there."
She slipped into her shoes and padded over to the door.
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Harry reached the Common Room just as he saw Ginny descending the girls' dorm stairs. Ginny plopped her self onto the sofa next to Sirius, while Harry took great pleasure in crawling between his parents, a contented look on his face.
Lily leaned her head on Harry's shoulder, pulling him closer to her to kiss his forehead affectionately. Harry let his eyes close and the feeling of contentment washed over him.
"Harry," James reluctantly broke the moment, "there is much that needs to be discussed now. You were not easily available when you turned seventeen, and, well there has been a lot of confusion then."
Harry frowned at his father wondering where he might be going with his ramblings.
"You are aware that in our wills we," James continued, motioning to Lily and himself, "left everything we ever had in your name. I think what you are not aware of is exactly how much there is to be passed onto you."
"Wasn't the money in the vault, all you left for me?" Harry asked feeling more confused as his father went on. He had no idea what his father was talking about.
"Well," James pressed on, "Gringotts was supposed to have sent a letter to you on your birthday, handing over the Potter Family vaults and the keys to the various properties that have been passed down in the Potter family."
"So," said Harry tentatively, "does that mean there is more than what I have been using these past years?"
"Yeah," said James, looking at Harry carefully.
"So what do you want me to do? Why tell me now? It's yours, and you are alive."
"Harry," Lily sighed, "once the will was read just after our deaths, the Goblins will do as stated in the will. Now, the thing we wanted to tell you is that we need you to go to Gringotts and claim it. Otherwise it will go to the next pureblood family, the Malfoys. It is an old pureblood rule."
"I'm not going into Gringotts, unless you want me dead," said Harry, flatly refusing whatever his parents had to say.
"Harry," James said in partially raised voiced. "I'll be with you under the cloak, and you have to face them sooner or later."
"Later would be my choice," he muttered under his breadth.
Lily rolled her eyes at him. "Sweetheart, you don't really have a choice. What your dad is trying to tell you is you need to go down there and get a hold of the vaults, and then, I'm sure, Metcky is still around, and she would have kept the manor in good condition. Bill, your dad and Sirius can work on the wards, and then we can all move in there until the Burrow is in better condition."
"Manor?!" Harry's eyes had widened, and he was gaping at his parents and a smirking Sirius. "You are not serious, are you?"
"Nope," Sirius piped in, "only…" his voice flattered when he saw Lily's eyes narrowing on him.
"Yes, Harry," said James, "a manor."
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Ron and Hermione had not really liked what was being planned behind Harry's back, but they went on with it. They knew it was an action which was pushed to 'later' far too many times. The plan was, while James, Sirius, and Lily were telling Harry about the Potter family wealth, Snape, Remus and Molly would be making the last pointers for their next mission, 'Tormenting the Dursleys'.
The plan was to go in disguise and help the Dursleys shift back to Privet Drive. Dedalus Diggle had confirmed that 4 Privet Drive was destroyed, and the houses around it were also in ruins, due to the battle that had taken place when Harry was being moved to the Burrow.
No one wanted Harry to know about the Plan; hence they were sending Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Bill to deal with the Goblins.
Hogwarts was standing as tall as ever, and there was no big amount of damage to the building. Once the Room of Requirement was fixed, the Castle had been easy to restore. Minor construction charms here and there; a plastering charm, and elemental charms like iReparo/i and iEvanesco/i were used.
By the beginning of July all construction would be completed and all the teachers would have been appointed. The Board of Governors had promised a revision and upgrading of the syllabuses and curriculum.
The newly appointed Minister, Kingsley Shacklebolt, made a separate body, which would be independent of the Ministry's interferences, and would be responsible for the normal functioning of Hogwarts. All school rules were being revised and some rules were being bent. McGonagall was appointed headmistress and would take the position officially in June.
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"Why don't you enter?" Harry asked Ginny, as the five of them stood in front of the Gringotts door. He did not want to enter first. He was scared and nervous as to what the Goblins might do. He had not forgotten his first trip to the Wizarding bank.
i'If anyone but a Gringotts goblin tried that, they'd be sucked through the door and trapped in there.'
'How often do you check to see if someone's inside?'
'About once every ten years.' Griphook had said, with an evil smile that Harry was not about to forget in a hurry./i
"HARRY! How could you ask my sister to go in first?" Ron demanded.
"Well, I don't want to enter first, and I know, from a lot of incidents, that Ginny is very much capable of looking after herself," said Harry, looking at his girlfriend affectionately.
This earned him a bright smile from Ginny, and three scowls from the others, namely, Bill, Ron, and Hermione.
Ginny moved to enter the door when Bill pulled her wrist, before she could reach the door.
"Wait, Ginny; I think it is safer if I handle this. I was, after all, employed here," Bill said in a very calm manner, although the sweat on his brow gave away exactly how cool he was about this.
Ginny rolled her eyes at her oldest brother and stepped back, sweeping her right hand in an exaggerated manner, and welcoming Bill to enter first. He was very hesitant even to take a step forward. With great effort, he pulled the door open and all of them entered, swallowing the lumps in their throats with great effort. Hermione was biting onto her lower lip so hard, Ginny could see blood.
As soon as the goblins were alerted of their presence, they all rushed towards Harry, Ron, and Hermione, all of them trying to shake their hands, with loud thank you for removing evil Wizards and Witches from there.
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"NO," Lily screamed. "No, James, we can not do this. That is my sister. Whatever you say, or whatever she has done, I can not hurt her."
Molly, Arthur, James, Sirius, Lily, and Snape were standing right outside the shelter home that had been set up for all those who were in need of it during the war. Lily had been so sure that she would make her sister regret everything she had every done to Harry, but at the prospect of actually hexing her sister was looming right over her head, she had chickened out.
This would be the first time Lily would be seeing her sister in over eighteen years. The prospect of seeing her only sister confused her. She was angry at her sister for treating Harry like a house-elf, but, on the other hand, she was excited to see her. No matter what had happened, Lily always had loved her sister.
James sighed, and hugged Lily, trying to take her confusion and pain away from her; although it did no good.
"You always were an amazing woman Lily. I always admired your heart, and your being so willingly gave it to anyone in need of it." James spoke softly, so that only Lily could hear him. He brushed away her tears with the pad of his thumb and gave her a warm smile.
"We will do only what you want. No one is forcing you to do this. I have a suggestion for you; that is, if you are not willing to hex your sister. Will you hear me out?"
She nodded weakly, staring into James' serious eyes.
"Why don't we let Molly and Arthur get them out, and we, all in our hoods, can help them shift their belongings, and then you can talk to your sister. Call her out and tell her you were Lily's best friend, and you want to talk to her or something. Keep your hood on if it makes you feel better."
"Promise none of you will hurt her?" The vulnerability in her eyes tore at James' heart, but he nodded.
"Potter promise!" he said with a grin. She smiled back, remembering that last time he had made a Potter promise. She looked away from him, grinning from ear-to-ear, remembering exactly how determined he was to keep up his last Potter promise.
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They were bringing in the last few items back into Privet Drive, when James nudged Lily with his elbow and pointed to Petunia. She turned to face her sister.
"Um…Pe…Petunia," she said nervously, taking tiny steps towards her.
"Yes?" Petunia asked, not sure she had heard this hooded freak correctly or not. Something about the voice made her reply.
"Can…um…can I talk to you, in private?" Lily blurted out. Vernon's eyes narrowed onto the hooded figure; he knew it was a woman and not a man, but, to let his wife be with a freak; it was something he did not like. He did not say anything when Petunia led the hooded figure into the kitchen, which was not occupied at the moment.
"What is that you want to talk about?" Petunia asked, shivering slightly. She had a horrible feeling about this person.
"How…how are you doing?" Lily's voice trembled. Seeing her sister had made her very happy, and yet, at the same time, she could not forget the pain her baby boy had to go through. Some how she felt that had she not had died, this would have never happened.
"I…" Petunia faltered, she had recognised that voice, but it was impossible. Her eyes were as wide as saucers, her breadth coming in short gasps. Tears welled up in her eyes, blinding her. She took a step closer to Lily, and stretched out her left arm, but reality caught up with her, and she pulled her hand back.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "You reminded me of someone I loved very much, but my youth, jealousy, and arrogance made me push that person away."
"Never call my sister arrogant!" said Lily, tears choking her words before she pulled of her hood and hugged her sister, not giving her time to react.
Petunia was shocked beyond words, and did not return the hug. She tried pinching herself, and it hurt a hell of a lot. She also tried to remember if she was dead or something, but she was not sure.
Lily pulled back looked deep in to her sister's eyes, and Petunia knew what was coming. Petunia's shoulders slumped, and she looked back in her younger sister's eyes. Her courage, and years of old promises wavering. She let her guard down as she heard the dreaded word from her sister's mouth.
"Why Tuney?"
A/N: Do leave an honest review. Thanks to my beta- Ameli and Eric!