Lightning
Written for hinnymicrofic on Tumblr. September 23 prompt
December 1993
Ginny Weasley sat at the kitchen table in the Burrow, busy making some decorations for the Christmas tree, as per her mother's orders. In any other year, Ginny would have looked forward to celebrating Christmas with her family, soaking up the festive atmosphere of the Burrow and eating her mother's food to her heart's content. Not this year. If asked, she would have said it was because she was curious about the Christmas party at Hogwarts, since she had not really been able to experience it last year because of Tom and the Diary. She also knew that the Diary and Tom were also the reason why Mum and Dad wanted her home. This way they could check that she was all right. She knew that they still felt guilty for not noticing anything strange about her last year. Thoughts of what had happened the year before brought her back to the real reason she wanted to be at Hogwarts. Harry. She wondered if they would have spent more time together in the semi-deserted castle; if she would have mustered up the courage to talk to him, if only to wish him a Merry Christmas...
"What have you got there, Ickle Gin-Gin?"
George's voice surprised her. His gaze fell on the piece of cardboard she was cutting out, and her face turned bright red.
"Nothing!"
Ginny tried to cover her work, but it was no use. George saw that she was making a garland of lightning bolts of a distinctive green color. It was not her fault that her thoughts kept going back to Harry, to his eyes and his scar, to how he had saved her from the Chamber.
George smiled, and his was face uncharacteristically not mischievous.
"I think he would like it. I think he'd like to know that a part of him can celebrate here with us, with a family."
December 1998
Ginny sat at the kitchen table in the Burrow, making decorations as per her mother's orders. She was glad to be home, and the thought of not spending her last Christmas at Hogwarts made her only slightly nostalgic. At least this way she could see...
"What have you got there, Ickle Gin-Gin?"
George's voice surprised her.
"I'm seventeen, you know?"
Ginny showed him her work: she was making a garland of lightning bolts of a distinctive green color.
"Well, he never saw it the first time," Ginny said simply.
George smiled, and they both remembered the moment five years earlier.
"Some things never change, do they?"
"You're wrong, everything has changed." Ginny smiled at him, her eyes full of affection. "Now he can celebrate with the family… And I can snog him."