AN: Fifth and final chapter. Bit of an abrupt ending, but by this point, the climax is in the paralleling and needed to be wrapped up.
Can't say that I didn't find him attractive.
Oliver Wood was everything every girl had always wanted: attractive, smart, athletic, kind, and funny. But I never really saw him like that until situations had changed.
He's was much older than me in school, and by the time I got to see him on a regular basis, he'd had a wife and a child and I had Harry and my three children. I never thought what I did was ever possible. How could I turn the back on the one I love?
Only for Oliver.
We were in the same house in Hogwarts. My brothers always had him over. He showed up for the Last Battle, but all of that aside, we never really talked until both of our children started Hogwarts. He had a daughter the same age as James and a son a year older than Lily.
We sort of had a ritual. After dropping the kids off at Platform 9 ¾, the three of us, Oliver, Harry, and I, would stop in at the Leaky Cauldron for a bite to eat and catching up.
Of course the first time there was so much to talk about. We hadn't seen him in years. Except in tabloids. He was still the Keeper for Puddlemere and had married a gorgeous French model.
He told us they met when he was touring with Puddlemere. They were at some party and there she was. He said she was like an angel. She lit up his life like something magical.
Only to dim it when she left. She met some sleazy rockstar from Germany and left him and the two kids.
That must have been during Albus' first year. We didn't see Oliver for a year or two later. It was sort of odd not having that ritual of tearfully saying goodbye to our children and then heading to the Leaky Cauldron for something to eat. It was odd not having his cheeky grin or his wild grin. I suppose I did subconsciously miss him, but I didn't want to admit that my perfect marriage wasn't perfect. After all, longing for another man would admit that I did not, in fact, have the perfect marriage that was displayed in every magical magazine in print.
But we did see him, Lily's first year. It was his son's second year, but this time, Harry couldn't make it. This was right around the time that a new breed of Death Eaters had cropped up and unfortunately, Harry tended to reprioritize his duties above his duties of maraige. Not that I minded, I was off in a delusional world of perfect marriage.
But Oliver had changed that.
After we had dropped our children off, he made our usual trek to get something to eat. We avoided the subject of his failed marriage or the fact that mine was. He reminisced about Quidditch and the twins. We talked about old rivalries like him and Flint or Harry and Draco, who was much more subdued now.
We sat there and talked. We laughed, we joked and for once it was like nothing had happened. Perhaps that was what was so alluring about me. I won't be all cliché and say, "He made me feel young again". No, it was more like he made me remember things I had stored away for so long.
And once again, charm was my weakness. And if anyone of you have seen any of his pictures on Quidditch Weekly or the like, then you know what I mean. Oliver had always possessed this finesse about him, this grace and charm. Perhaps it was something all attractive Quidditch players hold, but Oliver was just so cute. He still is, nearly forty years later.
Nothing major really happened that first meeting. We made plans to see each other again and with a kiss on the cheek, we left just friends.
It wasn't for nearly seeing him once or twice a week for nearly a month that I began to notice the touches and the embraces we both shared. I was not blameless in this, I will admit. But I was so desperate for something completely spontaneous and imperfect that I not only jumped into this, I delved headfirst.
We said our farewells with a kiss. This time it was mouth on mouth. Our hands found each other's bodies. We stood off to the side in some sleazy alley, snogging. It was like we were teenagers back in Hogwarts. The thought of it still makes me smile.
Did I feel guilty about it? At first, sure. I did and still do care about Harry. But with Oliver it was fun and secretive. I still had to return to my duties of Motherhood.
I guess I just really wanted that moment of freedom. I got to escape the façade of perfection and do something I shouldn't have. Riddle once told me that I had the makings of a Slytherin, and I think this is the period of my life where I was the slyest and most cunning. Maybe he was actually right.
We ended up sneaking about. He didn't need this in the papers and I didn't need my husband to find out. We'd usually meet at his flat when he was back in the country. I'd Floo there and then we'd have our fun. We'd laugh and flirt and end up in his bed.
What can I say? He is, indeed, the charmer.
I guess I knew all along that it would have to end. I mean I didn't love him and we led two completely different lives. We both had our own kids and drama to worry about. That and I still had Harry. And I think he was getting suspicious.
After they threw a relative of Malfoy's into Azkaban for inciting riots, Harry's job at the Ministry was much more lax. I couldn't sneak off as much and I was running out of excuses.
Talking to both men about what took place was a rollercoaster of emotions. I knew I had to break it off, but would he be able to forgive me?
"Harry, I need to talk to you…" I remember telling him as I entered the study.
"Oliver, we need to talk." I said as I appeared in his doorway.
"Something happened… and I don't know how to tell you." Merlin, this hurt worse then seeing Cedric and Cho together. Somehow, I felt like I was going to lose everything.
"Something's have changed… I don't know if I can do this." I told Oliver, feeling like I was gaining a piece of myself back.
Harry looked up at me, glancing at me bewilderedly.
Oliver simply nodded. He knew this couldn't go on.
"I… oh, Harry… I'm sorry." I teared up.
I looked down, not able to look at Oliver. I was too ashamed of what I've done.
Harry took me in his arms. I tried to fight him.
I ran into Oliver's arms; he didn't fight it.
"No, Harry, listen… I… I slept with Oliver. I've been…" I choked up, teared pouring from my eyes.
He stared blankly at me. "What do you want to do, Ginny?" Oliver asked.
Harry stared blankly at me. "What do you want me to do, Ginny?" Harry said, confusedly.
"I need to go back to my family. I love him, Oliver, but…"
"It's over, Harry. I swear. I realize what I was doing."
He turned from me. Harry couldn't look at me. I felt so dejected and yet, I deserved it. I had torn the foundation of the family we had. How could I selfishly do this? I loved, and still do, him
I kissed his cheek before I turned to go. Oliver turned back into his apartment and I sighed. I deserved this. I knew that I needed to end it. However selfish it was, I was breaking the heart of someone I loved.
I thought I had lost Harry forever when he left the room. I knew I lost Oliver forever, but the thought that everything was gone had created a huge whole in my heart. Why was I so stupid? I'll never truly know. I won't lie and say I don't regret what I did, but I know that it was wrong. I had truly hurt the one that I love in ways unmeasurable.
But he returned. Hours later, drunk as piss and eyes swollen, but there nonetheless. We cried it over. I vowed on everything that I would never do such a thing. And somehow, just looking at me, he knew. Harry knew I could never do it again. He saw how much pain I was in. He knew that I knew how much he was in. I betrayed him.
It didn't go back to perfection, but we dealt with our problems. We became closer, because of it. We realized our flaws and our marriage continued for another thirty years. And I know that when I finally see him again, he will take me in his arms and there I will be for eternity.
And so now you know. Now, you may judge me as you please, but I will still be Ginny Weasley, Ginny Potter. I will go about my day, see my grandchildren, walk with my head held high. For I will never forget who I've always truly loved.
AN: So, that's it. Please review! I have a bunch of other stories up if you're into AU, though only one other of my stories has Ginny as a central character. Thanks a bunch for reading!