Chapter 27: A Bit of a Fixer-Upper

When the knock sounded throughout Grimmauld Place that fine summer morning, Harry tripped on the stair landing in his haste to answer the door. The hiccup barely made a dent in his stride.

"Kreacher's gotta fix that step…." Harry muttered a mental note to himself as he excitedly rounded the corner and dashed into the foyer. His euphoria overshadowed any instinct of caution that he had by now well developed in his time on the run during the war. Thankfully, when he yanked open the door, there were no fugitive Death Eaters on his doorstep, waiting to send a Killing Curse at him in revenge. Instead, it was only Ginny who greeted him, with her bright smile and a kiss good morning as she pulled him close.

"Hey," Harry smiled, casting his gaze down to the suitcases and trunks scattered at his girlfriend's feet. "…. Welcome home."

"Thanks," Ginny smiled. "Mum and Dad only cried a little bit when I was leaving by Portkey…." She took a cleansing breath. "I have good news!"

"What news could be better than you moving in with me?" Harry teased her good-naturedly, though his brain quickly found a candidate in mind in the second before Ginny opened her mouth.

"I GOT THE CHASER POSITION WITH THE HOLYHEAD HARPIES!" Ginny squealed.

"Merlin, Gin, that's amazing!" And Harry hugged her. "But, wait – they're only telling you now? You tried out for them back in what – March? Summer training has to be starting…"

"…. Next week. I start next week," Ginny finished.

Harry frowned bemusedly. "Seems like awfully short notice to be informing you." Another thought struck him. "Gwenog's not going to require you to move close to the stadium, is she?"

"Not to worry – I'll negotiate the right to commute to practice into my contract. You're not losing a roommate that easily, Potter!"

" My girlfriend – the professional Quidditch player!" Beaming, Harry now suddenly swept Ginny off her feet, to her squeals of delight and carried her across the threshold, bridal-style.

"Harry! Is this really necessary?..."

"Old English custom…. and I am nothing if not traditional…." Harry grandly set her down, pausing for a moment to take it all in. They now shared a home together – just the two of them. Without anyone else cluttering up the space. "Kreacher should be doing his chores, but do you…. want to see the bedroom? Take a refresher tour?"

Smiling, Ginny gently took Harry's hand. "Show me," she whispered. Giggling, the couple raced upstairs.

Deep into that night, their first night together sharing a bed without having to worry about being caught, Harry was awoken suddenly by the sound of muffled shouting. Despite having full knowledge of and confidence in the wards that had protected Number 12 dating back to its time as headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix, Harry nevertheless pulled out his wand.

Then he registered where the sounds were coming from.

Next to him in the bed, Ginny was thrashing about and moaning, clearly in the grips of a nightmare. Shifting over to her, Harry attempted to shake her awake without getting on top of her or doing anything that would make her feel threatened, in case she woke up thinking she was still in the nightmare. As a seasoned veterans of nightmares himself, Harry understood how the terrors could easily consume you.

"Ginny! ….. Ginny, wake up! It's not real! It's not real!"

With a sudden, guttural gasp, Ginny snapped awake, her entire body locking rigid as her wild eyes landed on Harry. She was breathing hard, close to hyperventilating, and seemed utterly distraught.

"No!" she cried, panting. "No…. No….."

Harry quickly encouraged his girlfriend to sit up so he could gather her into his arms. Ginny quickly broke down against his shoulder, weeping bitterly; Harry wordlessly rubbed her back.

"It's OK, old girl…. you were just having a nightmare…."

"Neville…." Ginny breathed.

"Huh?" Harry drew back. "What about Neville? You were having a nightmare about Neville?"

Ginny shook her head. "No….. Sort of… It was…. I was reliving a memory…"

"A memory….?" Harry sat back, crossing his legs and focusing on Ginny, waiting, listening. Over the past year since they had reunited and reconciled, Harry had heard some things from Ginny about what it had been like to live almost like a prisoner in her own school. However, the Chosen One was well aware that his girlfriend would not have – and likely hadn't yet – told him everything. There were worse atrocities that must have gone on, surely, if Ginny was having nightmares about them more than a year later. "What about? Neville, I take it?"

She didn't answer him, accept to suddenly blurt out, "Harry! Harry, will you do something for me?"

"Sure, anything."

"Take me to Neville. I need to see Neville right now!"

Harry pondered Ginny for a long moment. "You want to make sure that he's all right." At Ginny's nod, Harry just smiled in soft understanding. "OK," he held out his hands to her. "Let's go find our boy Neville, then. We'll take the Floo!"

Neville had been living at the Rook with the Lovegoods, last Harry had heard. But since Neville and Luna had broken up, Harry had to imagine he was no longer there. But the Boy Who Lived did have another hunch. Calling out a destination for Longbottom Manor, Orkeney Islands, he and Ginny were whisked away in an inferno of green flames to a manse in the Scottish highlands.

Their arrival in the parlor of Neville's grandmother immediately set off the alarms and wards, as they certainly would at this time of night. Augusta Longbottom (the battle-axe!) was amiable and welcoming once the couple explained why they were there.

"Yes, my grandson has been back here with me since just after the Christmas holidays." The old lady's eyes twinkled knowingly. "He seems very cut up about losing that sweet, adorable Lovegood girl. I quite approved of him seeing her, you know."

Augusta proceeded upstairs to wake Neville up. As soon as the former DA general came plodding sleepily down the stairs, Ginny whimpered and sprinted across the living room to fling herself into Neville's arms.

Watching the two close mates embrace, Harry tried not to appear jealous. Not in the way that he had been much of his sixth year, when he had watched Ginny dating and snogging other boys like Dean Thomas and Michael Corner. Come to think of it, he had never really seen Ginny with a boy who she either wasn't related to or actively dating. It oddly comforted Harry to know there was a boy who Ginny could count on as a good friend.

Across the sitting room, Ginny and Neville were discussing something in low tones, but Harry couldn't make out what they were saying. Judging from the body language alone, however, it was clear that the two shared a platonic intimacy born of great mutual trust, respect and quite likely shared trauma. Neville hugged Ginny again.

"Always here for you, Gin, old girl. If you're ever worried like this again, come find me, day…." Neville glanced around the still manor and then out the window to the sleeping countryside just beyond. "…. or night."

"Neville, I need to talk with you alone," Harry rumbled gravely, moving towards the kitchen. He sensed Neville and Ginny glance at each other before the other boy followed.

Harry leaned against the kitchen island, head bowed and arms folded. Feeling Neville's anxious eyes on him, Harry glanced up.

"You have a connection with her…. that I'll never understand. Nev…. I know some of what went on when the Carrows and Snape were running the school, stuff from both you and Ginny. But I clearly don't know all of it – and I would never pressure either of you to tell me all of it unless you were comfortable." He paused grimly. "It is also clear to me that you and Ginny are good mates. I'm glad she has that. I'm glad she has you, as a good male friend. I imagine you feel the same way about Ginny, especially in light of…. your break up with Luna." Neville didn't move to acknowledge this, though from the heartbroken look in his eyes, the split with his lover seemed to have been painful. There was another pregnant silence. Neville said nothing, watching Harry and waiting.

"I know you didn't ask to lead an insurgency. Or fight a war on what we think of as sacred ground. I'm sorry you and Ginny and Luna and the others ever had to go through that. But you stepped up, and from what I've gathered, drove the Death Eaters stark raving mad." Harry smiled softly to himself. "I told you once that you were going to make your parents proud…. and you've done that. In spades." Neville grinned tiredly, heavily, his eyes dancing with humble gratitude at the praise. "You did what I couldn't do in that moment – you protected Hogwarts…. and everyone in her." The Boy Who Lived bowed his head in respect. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Neville responded.

Harry nodded, and moved to slide past Neville back into the sitting room. Stopping in the archway of the door, he turned to his friend and stated, "I trust you with her. Please know that. Especially if she needs you or Lu to comfort her in the future."

Neville nodded. "I'll always have your back, Potter. And Ginny's."

Harry grinned and clapped him on the shoulder. "You're a top man, Neville Longbottom."

Harry and Ginny were entreated by Augusta and Neville to stay for a cup of tea, during which the group spent hours talking. It was just past sunrise by the time Harry and Ginny Flooed back into Number 12, Grimmauld Place.

Harry froze as he listened to what sounded like music coming from the direction of the kitchen. Frowning, he pulled out his wand.

"Kreacher?" he called. No answer. Brow furrowing further, Harry waved his wand in a high arc. "Homenum Revelio!" Sharing a look, he and Ginny moved into the kitchen.

They came upon a familiar ginger-haired man wearing an apron and dancing about the counter as a ballad blasted from the wireless.

In the midst of fiddling with the Muggle toaster appliance, Ron glanced up at the entrance of his little sister and best mate. "Hello, you sleep-headed lot! Finally! I've been waiting for at least an hour! Have a good sleep?"

"We….. er…. were up, actually," Ginny glanced, cringing, to Harry, who just looked miffed. At the very least, he wasn't at all in the mood to explain where they had been; instead, he opted for an annoyed sigh.

"What are you doing here, Ron?"

"Well, the kipper was bare back at the Burrow, see, and so I figured, I missed having you lot around for breakfast and…."

"…. you wondered whether we had anything in our cupboards," Ginny guessed, rolling her eyes. "Of course – it couldn't possibly be because you missed me already, even though I haven't been moved out for even a day!" The sarcasm was practically dripping from her tone in the same manner that Ron was now dribbling jam onto some toast.

Harry turned his attention back to the wafting tunes from the wireless. "Well, at least we now know you can work a wireless! It's your telephone skills that are still lacking!"

"Yeah, isn't it great?" Ron picked up the wireless and began dancing around the kitchen island with it. Harry bemusedly thought he looked quite mental, but then again, his best mate had always been at his happiest in the kitchen, eating. "Hermione taught me how to work it!" He smiled down at the device in wonder. "I love this song, too – did you know it is great accompaniment to making jam and bread? Course, it would have to be, when it's called Bake Me a Higher Loaf!"

Ginny smirked in bemusement. After giving the song on the wireless a closer listen, Harry nearly did too, not to mention burst into laughter besides. "Um, Ron….. the song is actually called Bring Me a Higher Love," Harry explained with delicate patience. "By…."

"Yeah, yeah, I know, by the really good lead singer of that band Hermione likes – Phil Collins!"

"Steve Winwood."

"Steve Winwood! Right, of course, that's who… who I meant," Ron grinned boyishly. He now held out a plate to Harry. "Jam and bread?"

Barely stifling laughter, Ginny accepted the plate. "Are you sure this bread is leavened, Ron? If not, you might want to – ahem….. bake me a higher loaf!" she sang, smirking deviously.

Ron's ears turned an embarrassing shade of pink. "Shut up, Gin-Gin."

"Oh, no – not until you explain to your lady love how you thought you were listening to Phil Collins singing a power ballad about making yeast rise!" Ginny giggled.

Harry just sighed and rolled his eyes, grinning. "Stay for breakfast, mate?"

Ron grinned back weakly and sheepishly. "Too right! Thanks, old chum!"

And the three extended family members sat down for a meal together.