A/N: Wow, the responses to last chapter were quite enthusiastic. Keep reviewing, it makes my day.
Surprisingly, the reaction to the new relationship between Harry, Ginny and Tonks was somewhat low-key. As Harry found out from Neville later on, the majority of Gryffindor Tower had thought it had happened long ago. After all, the two hottest girls in the dorm spending all their time with the hottest guy in the school and nothing happening would be quite strange. Then again, Harry often was strange.
Of course, the one exception to that was Ron. Harry, Ginny and Tonks were sitting on the couch studying late one night, Ron and Hermione sitting in armchairs doing the same. The common room was quiet; the only sounds the scratching of quills on parchment and the muttering of students. The next day was the final day of final exams before the winter break and the students were studying as much as possible. Slowly, as students finished their work, they started to make their way up to their rooms and fall asleep. Tonks rose first, stretching slightly. She gathered up her parchment and quills. She gave Ginny a light kiss on the cheek and then planted a light peck on Harry's lips. If one listened quietly, one could hear the sharp intake of breath from Ron at the sight. Only Harry and Hermione heard it, and Harry ignored it while Hermione wouldn't dare make a sound. As Tonks turned towards the door, Ginny rose as well.
"Hold on Dora, I'll go with you. I'm done too." Tonks nodded and waited by the stairs, leaning slightly against the curving handrail. Ginny gathered her notes, which took significantly longer as she was preparing for the OWLs. Her final paper was on the other side of the couch, and she leaned across Harry's chest to reach it. Harry, who until that point had been reading his assigned DADA book, (which ironically, was on the possible effects of mixing the DNA of multiple magical beasts within one subject) grinned and kissed the pale white neck that was before him. Ginny giggled quietly and paused as he kissed her neck again. Finally she withdrew, standing up and sliding her parchment in to her bag. With a smirk to Harry, she turned towards the stairs and walked away.
Harry frowned. "No kiss from you then?" Ginny turned and winked at him and continued to walk away. "Fine, then I won't do the you-know-what to your you-know-where." Ginny stopped and her face darkened to the world famous Weasley red. A few sniggers were heard around the room. Harry was talking about the sensitive spot behind her ear, and how he could make her melt with one nip on it. The common room, as Harry intended it to, interpreted it very differently. A smattering of laughter rippled across the room and Ginny turned to retort when Ron leapt up, scattering his parchment and knocking Hermione over.
"What are you doing with my baby sister Potter?" Harry sighed quietly while Ginny glared at Ron. She handed her work to a ready Tonks and turned to defend her boyfriend. Harry sighed again.
"Nothing Ron. Go finish your work, or better yet, help your girlfriend off the floor." Ron snarled, pulled Hermione roughly in to a chair and turned back towards Harry.
"Listen Potter, get away from my sister. You're no good for her." Harry moaned, as if the words caused physical pain.
"Ron, you know I don't like to brag, but if I hadn't been here, your sister, or as I like to call her, my girlfriend Ginny, would be dead. Twice." Harry accentuated his point with a stare at Ron, as if he was amazed at his stupidity. Ron glared at Harry who threw an apologetic glance at Ginny who smiled back.
"If she's your girlfriend, and I'm not saying that's okay, then how come you just kissed Nymphadora over there?" Ron smiled and crossed his arms, believing he had Harry right where he wanted him.
Harry rubbed his eyes roughly, as if he thought that if he couldn't see Ron, he would disappear. "Because she is also my girlfriend." The room fell silent at that, as it was the first time that it was made official that Harry was going out with both of them. Ron continued to smile, before turning to Ginny.
"Sis, you know what to do." Ginny winked at Harry before responding. Ron was watching Harry and his smile widened as he heard Ginny's infamous Bat Bogey Hex being announced. Harry smirked at him back as the bats exploded out of Ron's nose. Ron collapsed in to the ground as Harry stood on the couch and cleared his throat.
His voice rang out in a monotonous tone, slightly reminiscent of a courtroom guard taking an oath. "Gin, are you okay with the current situation regarding me, Nymph and you?" Ginny nodded in the affirmative. "Nymph, are you okay with the current situation regarding I, Gin and yourself?"
Tonks smiled wickedly. "It is fine, most… pleasurable." Her voice came out saucy and silky. Tonks winked before dragging Ginny up the girl's stairs. Harry laughed, as did most of the Gryffindors.
For the Christmas break, the Weasleys returned to the Burrow, accompanied by Tonks, Harry and Hermione. Harry's various familiars stayed at the castle. The ride back on the Train was uneventful, though the car service from Kings Cross to the Burrow was awfully quiet. As the car parked in front of the misshaped home of the Weasleys, Ron and Hermione jumped out and went in quickly. Harry levitated his bags, along with Ginny's and Tonks', and led them in to the house.
As Harry entered and let the bags drop softly on the floor, he heard a squeal and saw Ginny race by him and run across the room. "Bill!" She leapt in to the arms of her oldest brother. He swung her around the room and laughed. Harry chuckled before sitting quietly on the couch, Tonks besides him. Finally, Ginny released her oldest brother, allowing him to come greet Harry.
"Bill. How are you doing?" Harry smiled and shook Bill's hand. Harry always got a good vibe from Bill, who seemed like someone who treated people the right way. In some ways, he was very much like his father, and you could clearly see the bond the two had. Though he was the Weasley that Harry knew the least about, he had an instinctive feeling that he was a good guy.
"Hey Harry. I'm fine. And who is this? Your girlfriend?" Harry smirked. He quickly introduced Tonks, while Bill adopted a thoughtful look.
"Hmm…Tonks you say? I think I was in Hogwarts with a Nymphadora Tonks?" Tonks scowled at Bill but Harry just laughed.
"Yeah, that's me. I came back for some extra studies and to help with security around the school. And call me Tonks, not Nymphadora." She made a face at the name while Harry sat down laughing. Tonks sat next to him, still muttering about insane mothers sentencing their new children to years of ridicule. After hugs were passed out, Ginny came and sat on the other side of Harry. Harry pulled Ginny over and whispered in her ear.
"Who knows about us?" Ginny smiled and indicated Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Ron, Hermione, the twins and Charlie.
She whispered back in to his ear, causing his skin to tingle from her breath puffing over his neck and ear. "Percy knows as well, but he won't be here for Christmas. He's spending it with Penelope." Harry sighed, and realized that Bill was going to figure it out soon, and it may not be pretty.
By this time, Harry had unconsciously grasped both girls' hand and was rubbing the back of their palms with his thumb lightly. It had become a habit of his, and both girls had agreed that Harry was someone for whom physical contact wasn't always available. As if Bill had been reading Harry's previous thoughts, he pulled an armchair up in front of them.
"Harry, looks like you got your girls over here." Bill winked while Harry smiled weakly. The room got quiet, as the family watched how the oldest brother and heir to the Weasley name would react. Ron sat back with a triumphant smile, as he knew Bill wouldn't let Ginny be some harem-woman for Harry.
"Actually Bill, I wanted to talk to you about this. Everyone else knows, but I wanted to tell you, you being Gin's oldest brother." Bill glanced at Ginny before whistling lowly.
"Wow. She let you call her Gin. The only person she lets do that is Dad and…boyfriends?" Bill's words ended in a question. Harry nodded slowly. Bill smiled.
"That's fine. We always knew she would end up with you anyway. You always were only hers in her heart." Ginny blushed in embarrassment, but much to Bill's surprise, Harry's face didn't break out in to signs of relief.
"That's not entirely true. I'm not just hers." With a grimace, Harry slowly held up Tonks' hand and closed his eyes. In the darkness beneath his eyelids, he expected an arrangement of blows to come, both physical and verbal. But nothing happened. Harry slowly opened his eyes and looked at Bill. He was pale but still sitting. He narrowed his eyes at Harry before turning to Ginny.
"You okay with this Firefox?" Ginny blushed slightly at Bill's pet name for her. But she quickly regained her composure.
"Yes Bill. I really like Harry and I really like Dora and it's just… we're trying and if it doesn't work, it won't. But please, your permission means so much to me." Her voice was pleading and Ginny was on the verge of tears, as was Tonks. Bill sat back in his chair before glancing at his parents, who looked at him approvingly.
"Alright." His voice was quiet but seemed to reverberate around the room. Harry breathed a sigh of relief and Tonks collapsed in to his arms while Ginny grabbed Bill tightly. He returned the hug and watched as Ginny sat next to Harry and he wrapped a protective arm around her. The older Weasley's were smiling and the twins were dancing a small jig. "But." The room quieted again. "If you hurt her Potter, I swear there will be no end to your pain." Charlie smiled as Bill unknowingly imitated him, rearing up to his tallest and most intimidating. Not going to work Bill
Harry shakily rose to his feet before standing firmly in front of Bill. "I wouldn't expect anything different. No one shall lay a hand on her OR Nymph, and if they do, they will be punished. By me, the ministry won't get there in time to clean up the bodies." Bill smiled and held out his hand and Harry shook it firmly. Harry sat back down and the girls immediately curled up around him, laying their heads on his shoulders. The room fell in to quiet whispers. The only exception was Ron who stormed up the stairs, meekly followed by Hermione. Charlie stepped forward and took Bill aside. He intended to show Bill that Ginny was in safe hands.
The next evening, Harry was dressing in his room. He smiled as he pulled on a green-button down that matched his eyes perfectly. He had been quietly begging the Weasley parents to allow Ginny and Ron to accompany the 6th year students on a trip to a muggle nightclub. The various students going had to receive permission from their parents and they were meeting at the club. He had already received permission for the trip overall from Dumbledore, provided they are escorted and watched by Order members. The chaperones were to be Tonks (who would be going anyway), Remus, Kingsley, Moody, the twins and two people of the Weasley's choosing. After much discussion, Bill and Charlie had saved the day by volunteering to go. The girls were getting dressed in their room and Harry smiled wider at the thought. Even though it had been less then a week since they got together, Harry couldn't remember being happier then he was at the moment. He had two beautiful girls, Ginny's family approved outside of Ron and all was good. Even Voldemort had been quiet lately.
Harry finished dressing and looked in the mirror. His shirt was accompanied by dark blue jeans and stylish sneakers. He left his glasses in his room (now free of Ron, due to their rocky relationship). He went quietly to the living room and saw Charlie and Bill lounging around the room. Both boys looked at him
"Looking good Harry. The girls will be pleased." Charlie grinned at Harry, who nodded in recognition. Bill stepped forward.
"Listen Harry, Charlie told me about, well everything, that has happened at Hogwarts this year. And I'm sorry about questioning your motives yesterday. Ginny is clearly happy with you and that makes me happy. Thanks for everything you've done for her." Bill sat Harry down and Charlie sat on Harry's other side. Charlie sent him a reassuring smile. "We, meaning her brothers, tend to be really protective of her. She's gonna hate that I'm telling you this. But when she was born, it was pretty touch and go for a while. She kept getting sick. Ron and the twins don't remember, but Charlie, Percy and I know. We passed on the protection instinct, you could say, to Ron and the twins." Harry's head dropped, imagining how his life would have changed without Ginny. Charlie patted him on the back lightly and Harry raised his head.
Bill finished. "We are telling you this, because we trust you to protect her and more importantly, make her happy." Harry smiled gratefully at them before standing. He nodded at them and the mood relaxed, Harry asking about the wards Bill worked with at Gringotts. Ron joined them but didn't join in the conversation. He sat there, throwing mutinous glances towards Bill and Charlie, both of whom were laughing and talking with Harry.
A noise on the stairs drew their attention. Bill and Charlie smiled and got up. They went to the door, and waited at the sides. Hermione came down first, smiling shyly at Ron. She was dressed in a fancy blouse along with a shin-length dress. Ron hugged her gently and whispered words in her ear which made her blush. Harry stepped up to her. "You look great Hermione." Hermione smiled at him and nodded her thanks.
Harry turned back towards the stairs and watched as two beautiful women descended. The redhead was first, in a knee-length jean skirt with a studded belt. She was wearing a form-fitting black tank top, hair up in a tight ponytail, giving her a youthful but very sexy look. The older girl was behind her. She was in a frilly thigh-high skirt and high heels, due to the fact that a certain Weasley matriarch couldn't tell her how to dress. She was in a tank top as well, hers was white and you could see the faint outline of her dark bra through the material. Her hair was a platinum blonde for the evening, cascading down her back. Her clothes were much more risqué than the first girls had been. Harry was thunderstruck as both girls approached him. Ginny and Tonks exchanged nervous glances; they had prepared for hours, getting dressed and trying on different makeup combinations.
Harry opened his mouth but nothing came out. Finally, he managed to squeak something out. "You…two…beautiful…gorgeous…unbelievable…me….lucky…" Finally he stopped from embarrassing himself further. Ron and Hermione were waiting at the door, as were Charlie and Bill, neither of whom could stop themselves from chuckling quietly. Ginny and Tonks kissed Harry lightly which snapped him out of his daze. He held out his arms, which they took and they walked towards the door and out to the car.
As the car pulled up to the club, he noticed that they were probably the last to arrive but the gathered students were too nervous to go in. He saw Neville by the door, standing quietly next to Dean, Seamus, Lavender and Susan Bones. Harry got out of the car and lifted Ginny and Tonks out and they made their way to the door. They received more than their fair share of stares and wolf whistles, which only made him pull Tonks and Ginny closer to him. Harry glanced at Kingsley, who gave him a nod and Harry opened the club doors and headed inside.
He quickly found one of the club managers, and Harry led the group over to their assortment of tables in the back. He sat down and Ginny and Tonks sat in their customary spots on either side of him. First the talk was awkward but it slowly got settled as the 6th years relaxed.
Over the loudspeakers, an announcement came on. The group quieted down to listen. The DJ announced the next song and Harry hopped up. He turned dramatically to Ginny and Tonks, and smirked. "Will you dance with me?" Both girls jumped up and he wove his way to the center of the floor and waited for the song to begin.
I see you winding and grinding up on that pole
I know you see me lookin' at you and you already know
I wanna love you (love you), you already know
I wanna love you (love you), you already know, girl
Harry pulled the girls closer as the song went on. Midway through, the crowd around them had opened up, and the other Hogwarts students had a close up view of the dance. The girls were facing away from him, leaning against his chest. Each girl was resting against one of his thighs, straddling them as they danced. Ginny's ponytail was down and both girls' hair was covered in sweat. Harry had one arm wrapped around both girls' waist, ending in his strong hand stroking the skin on their lower stomach, raising their shirts to their belly button. They were grinding in rhythm to the song, bodies meshed together. The girls' heads were thrown back on to Harry's shoulders and he was whispering the song lyrics in to their ears, in-between kisses planted on their neck and shoulders. Ginny's hands were snaking around Harry and Tonks, touching as much of them as possible while Tonks had hers raised in the air, wrapped in her own hair. The surrounding dancers were shouting encouragement and whooping at them. The Hogwarts students could only stare until a whispered fuck it was heard. Neville rose shakily and made his way to Susan and grabbed her hand.
"Want to dance Susan?" She nodded at him happily and they started to dance together, not as heavily as Harry though. The majority of the Hogwarts students paired up and went on the floor. The song changed multiple times, though it remained the same type of club hit and Harry, Ginny and Tonks continued their dance in the center of the floor uninterrupted, caught in their own world.
Finally the trio broke apart and made their way to their table, collapsing in to their chairs. Harry closed his eyes and held the girls to his chest, as all three of them were exhausted. They sat there, talking quietly, planting light kisses on each other in the midst of the conversation. Harry smiled throughout it all, amazed that such sexy, amazing, wonderful girls were interested in him. He made a mental note to smack himself if he ever thought of leaving them. Soon another song came on, and Harry's head shot up and he smiled. He gathered the quietly protesting girls, and brought them to their feet, and pulled them to the floor. The song came on and he pulled them close.
Nobody wanna see us together but it don't matter no
(Cause I got you babe)
Nobody wanna see us together but it don't matter no
(Cause I got you babe)
The three rocked slowly, the girls' heads resting lightly on Harry's chest. Ginny smiled as she heard and felt his heartbeat. Ginny's arms were around Harry's waist while Tonks' were around his neck. They were facing him this time, and he wrapped his arms around them tightly, pulling them closer to him. They were barely dancing, just swaying side to side lightly. Harry's head was bowed, singing to them softly. He had hoped they would play this song, as he thought it fit well with their relationship.
The song ended and a faster one came on that Harry didn't know. He fell silent and rested his head against the girl's heads and kept dancing. Around them, the other dancers sped up and started dancing faster and raunchier. Harry and his girls kept their pace and stayed there silently swaying side to side. Finally Ginny and Tonks moved, dragging Harry through the crowd to a darkened corner of the club, where they shoved him against the wall. He looked at them with a questioning look. Before he could ask a question, Ginny was against him, kissing him with such passion that he could do nothing but respond, grabbing her face and holding it to him with force. Her hands were all over him, sliding in to his shirt and running over his chest. Suddenly she broke away and Tonks replaced her, kissing him with just as much passion, worming her tongue inside his mouth and tasting his mouth eagerly. Tonks was pulled back too and Harry looked at the girls before him, panting slightly. He wondered why they were teasing him like this.
All of a sudden, the sight before Harry caused him to gape in silence. Ginny and Tonks were pressed together, lips swallowing each other in passion before they returned to alternately kissing him and his neck and chest. The girls had never kissed like that before. In the few days since they had gotten together, they had only kissed each other in the heat of the moment, and that was always on the cheeks and necks. But tonight, something had changed and soon the three were caught up in passion, kissing and holding each other with strength that would put Hagrid to shame.
A light against his eyelids awoke Harry the next morning. He groaned and tried to ascertain where he was without opening them. The smells were firmly of the Burrow which comforted him. At least he hadn't passed out in the streets. All was quiet, outside of the normal sounds of early dawn. He slowly opened his eyes and saw he was on the couch in the living room. He was alone thankfully and still dressed in his clothes from last night, minus his shoes, which were on the floor beside him. He didn't have a headache, but a general fatigue from the dancing and whatever happened after that. He couldn't seem to remember. The last thing he could recall was being led to the wall by Ginny and Tonks. He stumbled up to his room, which had been Percy's, checking his watch as he did so. 5:39. Ouch, that's early.
He peaked through his door, and almost laughed at the sight. The twins were curled up together on his bed, snoring lightly. Glancing in to the room shared by Charlie and Bill, he saw them sleeping normally in their beds. Ron was in his room, but sleeping on the floor, as he seemed to have missed the bed. Hermione was in Charlie's room, in her pajamas, sleeping quietly, with books strewn around on the floor. Finally, Harry stumbled to Ginny's room and looked in and saw Tonks and Ginny in there sleeping peacefully. As he was closing the door, he noticed that Ginny was in Tonks' bed and vice versa. He chuckled to himself as he left the room. He knew the twins' room was empty as they were in his room, so he found it and fell asleep in the bed quickly.
Later that day, the family was all up besides Ron. They were eating a quiet lunch, while the majority gathered, which means everyone except for Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were trying to remember portions of the night before. Harry had remembered the more exciting events earlier, and had needed a cold shower. Glancing at the hungry looks Ginny and Tonks were throwing his way, so did they. They finished eating, leaving a significant portion out for Ron when he awoke. They settled in the living room. The various family members were playing chess, reading a book or talking quietly. Harry was in one of the armchairs, dozing. Ginny and Tonks were on his lap, leaning against his chest and talking about gossip and girl talk.
The silence was broken by a yell. "POTTER!" Harry snapped up, grabbing the girls to prevent them from falling. They sat back in the chair as Harry turned to an irate Ron. "I saw you with my sister last night. Explain yourself."
Harry sighed and wiped his tired eyes. "Your sister has a name. Use it. And we were dancing. That is what one does at club. You and Hermione were doing quite a bit of it." Hermione blushed at the statement and the twins shot up, gasping.
"Wait a moment Harry boy."
"What you are saying…"
"Is that at nightclubs…"
"One is supposed to dance!?!?!"
"I thought that you were…"
"Supposed to stand and do…
"homework!" The twins collapsed to their chairs, moaning on their stupidity and ignorance of social custom. Harry, along with the majority of the other occupants of the room laughed. Ron's voice broke through.
"Not like that! And you weren't just dancing! I saw what happened afterwards. When my sister and Nymphadora pulled you to the wall…" Ron trailed off, smirking triumphantly at Harry who whitened, while Ginny and Tonks blushed. Harry recovered a moment after.
"Call her Ginny. And Nymph has already made it clear she doesn't want to be called by that name by you. Respect her wishes. And what we do is none of your business. The members of your family whose permission Icare about have already said that as long as Ginny is happy, then we are fine. Back off." Harry's voice had dropped to an icy chill that silenced everyone in the room. Ron was taken aback, as Harry rose to his full height, his eyes and hair intimidating Ron for a moment.
Ron managed to answer back. "Well…I saw what Ginny and Ny-, Tonks were doing." Tonks and Ginny whitened and looked down at their feet. The other occupants of the room looked questioningly at them. Harry's rage grew at seeing the two most important people in the world, at least to him, saddened. He whipped around towards Ron.
"Yell at me. Fight me. Threaten me. Don't dirty them by mucking around in their business. Do it again, and I will punish you." The gasp by the female members of the room was quite audible and Ron fell back against the wall as Harry stood in front of him, glowering at him. Ron didn't respond so Harry turned and walked steadily back to his chair.
Ron recovered and stood up. "What! I can't believe this! He has all of you wrapped around his finger just because he is Harry bloody Potter, The-Boy-Who-Lived. He's just a stupid orphan." The air was sucked out of the room at this. Harry had been about to sit in the chair again, but just grasped the armrests tight. He stood shakily and made his way to the window. Ginny and Tonks were glaring at Ron and were about to storm over to him. But Harry grabbed their arms and shook his head slightly. Harry walked heavily towards the window, sunlight shining through. His shoulder hung as if a great weight was on his shoulders.
His voice was low and full of restrained emotion. "Ron, what's your mum's favorite color?" The room remained silent. "Charlie, what was your dad's dream job as a kid? Fred, how did it feel when you were a kid and you scrapped your knee and your mum kissed it and held you in her arms until you stopped crying?" Harry remained staring out the window, but the eyes of the rest of the room were glued on him. Mrs. Weasley rose to comfort him but her husband pulled her back. This was something Harry needed to get out.
Harry turned towards them. "Ginny, what do your mum and dad smell like?" Harry looked at her expectantly.
Tears streaming down her face, she managed to answer. "Flour. Mum smells like flour and the oven right as something is finished baking. And dad smells like newspaper ink and soot, from the explosions from his muggle shed." Tears ran down her face unchecked as she looked with love at her parents. Suddenly, Fred and George, whose eyes were suspiciously went wet, stood and hugged their parents gently. Bill and Charlie followed and even Ron made his way over. Ginny turned and fled in to their arms, crying openly. Bill and Charlie wiped their faces quickly and Fred and George stood together, arms on each others shoulders.
Harry turned towards Ron, and spoke quietly. "Ron, I will never have any of that. I have my dad's invisibility cloak, the Marauder's Map and an album of pictures. When I cut myself when I was young, Aunt Petunia would smack me for getting blood on the carpet. I broke my arm when I was 7, and it set improperly because they locked me in my cupboard. Ron, when I met you, I wanted to be you so badly, it physically hurt me." Harry's face was stone, and wasn't crying. The only sign of his discomfort were his eyes, raging green with the turmoil he was re-experiencing. "For you to say that, it hurts Ron. Everything that happened this year I can forgive because it's natural and somewhat explainable. But this…this is deep Ron." Ron looked distraught at Harry who had turned back towards the window.
"Listen Harry." No one noticed at the time what Ron called Harry. "I am sorry. But just because you got some training, you act like you're the boss. Send me there. I'll train. This is still ridiculous." Harry barked out a laugh that made everyone in the room jump.
"Ron, I told you I was there for the equivalent of five years." Ron nodded. "I didn't touch a wand, sword or dagger until the middle of the second year. Until that point, I just watched. I watched the history of men, wizard and muggle." Harry looked off in to space, clearly delving in to memories. "You ever heard of the muggle writer Charles Dickens?" The gathered listeners shook their heads, besides Hermione who nodded. "He wrote It was the best of the times, and the worst of times. It was. I saw the greatest of mankind. I saw newborn babies. I saw men running in to burning houses to save their wife and children. I saw the joy on a five-year-olds face when his father told him that he was proud of his boy. I saw the tears in a mother's eyes when her youngest girl is getting married." He snuck a glance at Ginny, who laughed softly along with Mrs. Weasley. "I saw men step in front of the Killing Curse, saving their children." Harry's face dropped in to stone. "And… I saw the worst of mankind. I saw villages burned to the ground over politics. I saw entire families murdered in cold blood. I saw a single man stand in front of a muggle war machine, protesting his unfair life. I saw hundreds of naked unfed people shepherded in to shower rooms, where instead of cleansing water, they received poisonous gas that didn't stop until they were dead. I saw women strapped to a long table, raped by men in uniform while their crying husbands were forced to look on. Any man who made a noise or looked away was killed. I saw muggles torturing each other with cruel weapons of metal and wood. I saw Wizards bleeding and dying in flashes of light and screams. This world is covered in blood of the innocent, spilled by cruel men whose only love was inflicting pain. Voldemort is not the greatest evil ever to grace our Earth."
The room was dead still, as if the very house, the very foundations of the building were listening. The tears had stopped, as crying couldn't express the emotions that were running through the various people listening. Harry shuddered, as if he was breaking out of his memory. He turned back to Ron. "I wouldn't wish my training on anyone, not even Voldemort himself. There are some things that just should not happen, and what happened to me growing up is the least of them." With that, Harry walked out through the kitchen and in to the backyard. Tonks and Ginny waited for a beat, before silently following him. The remaining occupants of the room left quietly besides Ron and his parents. Mrs. Weasley stepped towards Ron who looked up at her. With a resounding smack across his face followed by a mothering hug and kiss to the forehead, she voiced her opinion and stepped upstairs to her room.
Mr. Weasley stepped towards Ron. His voice broke the complete silence that had begun once Harry had finished. It was quiet, but any Weasley could tell you that it was scarier than the loudest of Molly Weasley's yells. "Don't ever speak to your brother like that again." Mr. Weasley hugged Ron tight before following his wife.
The remainder of the day was spent in near silence. The next day was Christmas and the entire family would be going to Grimmauld Place for dinner, joined by the higher ups of the Order. Harry spent the entire day in the backyard with Ginny and Tonks, lying in silence, taking comfort in each others touch. No kisses were exchanged; they lay together enjoying the feeling of having the ones you love most close to you. The twins were in their room, making no noise whatsoever. Hermione had buried herself in her various books. Mrs. Weasley was cooking for the big dinner the following night. Mr. Weasley, Bill and Charlie sat together in the living room, talking quietly about happenings at the Ministry, Gringotts and the Dragon Reserve. Ron sat alone in his room, staring at the wall.
The family managed to loosen up by the dinner the following night. There was almost no awkwardness as they moved their most important belongings from the Burrow to Sirius' old home. It was the first time that Harry had been back there since Sirius' death. He managed to overcome it, and the night was joyful and happy. The twins were in their element, pulling pranks on everyone who sat down with the exception of their parents and Ginny, who they only bowed low to and she smirked in response. The opening of presents had been delayed until they were all together and was much enjoyed by all. Harry had ordered two necklaces for Ginny and Tonks. Ginny's was set with a ruby, while Tonks' was set with a sapphire, the girls' favorite jewels after emeralds.
It was with many goodbyes that they bid goodnight to the assorted Order members. Harry was the last person to Floo through and stepped out to silence and a cold wind. His thoughts broke. A cold wind? He took a look around and gasped. The Burrow was gone. The only wall remaining was the one that held the fireplace, and that promptly disintegrated behind them. Rubble and trash was thrown around them. Harry pulled Ginny to him, where she burst in to tears. Tonks came over and hugged them both. Mrs. Weasley cried in to her husband's chest, Hermione comforting a silent Ron. The four older brothers stood together, gathering strength from being together. Charlie stepped away and walked carefully through the rubble. About fifteen feet from where the family stood, he bent down and picked something up. He cradled it in his arms and carried to his mother. It was the family clock; unbelievably it was undamaged. Mrs. Weasley grabbed it and held it to her chest. Mr. Weasley smiled gratefully at Charlie.
Mr. Weasley turned towards the kids. "Let's apparate back to Number 12. We are all okay, which is the important thing. Ron you come with me, Hermione can you go with Molly? Harry, take Ginny." Everyone nodded and Mr. Weasley disappeared with Ron and Mrs. Weasley with Hermione. The four older boys disappeared with a series of sharp cracks. Ginny looked around sadly and hugged Harry tighter. He held her, and smiled warmly at Tonks. She looked tearfully at him, and he pulled her to him as well. He closed his eyes, and they disappeared with a soft cloud of black smoke.
The last few days of Christmas holidays were subdued. They learned that many homes were destroyed and many people died, though none that the Order knew. A few students wouldn't be coming back to Hogwarts, and a few more were now orphans and even more had lost brothers and sisters. Ginny barely left Harry and Tonks, and Harry consistently found himself on the couch or chair holding her as she lay in his arms, sometimes crying. Mrs. Weasley was in the kitchen constantly, cooking up enough food to last them to next Christmas. The ride back to Hogwarts was uneventful and sadly quiet.
A/N: Well there you go. It was quite a chapter, very emotional. Writing Harry's monologue was very emotional for me, mainly because the joys (good parts) were contributed by members of my family and the evils were usually based off of real events, such as the Holocaust. I made up a few, but that was no easy task. I hope you enjoy it and you realize that life isn't all fun and games for Harry, he still has his issues to deal with.