Hermione drew her wand on him, sticking it under his chin, furiously glaring at him.
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
"So what was it like chasing the dragon?" Ginny asked Charlie once they'd ordered their food at the pub.
He chuckled. "Not quite as fun as it sounds. A lot of camping and false leads. We had to heal a few people who came in contact with her and wipe some memories, but thankfully she didn't kill anyone, and we've got enough wards around the area she's in now that she'll be kept away from the Muggles."
"Do you think you'll find a reserve to take her to?"
Charlie sighed, looking down at the table. "I hope so. I don't know what we'll do otherwise." Ginny nodded, and they sat in silence for a moment before Charlie looked up at her. "So what's been going on since I left?"
Ginny smiled. "Well, Harry and I just got back a couple days ago from a holiday to Shell Cottage, and we're working on fixing the–"
"You two went to Shell Cottage on holiday?" Charlie interrupted.
She raised her eyebrows testily, ready to defend it once again. "Yes, we did."
She was surprised when her brother just chuckled. "I bet Mum was real supportive of that."
She laughed now too. "Not at first. We had a bit of a row about how Harry and I are going too fast and we have our whole lives ahead of us to live and figure out who we are without tying ourselves down right now."
"She's right," Charlie commented, and Ginny gaped at her brother.
"No she isn't! And she changed her mind too! We love each other, and we want to spend the rest of our lives together. We're not even considering talking about marriage or anything, but we want to be with each other no matter what."
Charlie nodded, and he surprised Ginny once again when his expression softened and he spoke in a much gentler voice than she was used to. "I get that. But I don't think Mum was just talking about you when she said you've got a life to live. Knowing her, she was probably also talking about Harry. He's never really lived a normal life, and there's probably a lot of things he has to figure out about who he is now that he's not being hunted by Riddle. We all know that Kingsley's gonna be offering Harry a job with the Ministry any day now, and he'll need to figure that part of his life out too."
Ginny frowned. "But we both still want to be together. I don't understand why any of that has to affect the way we handle our relationship."
"I don't think it does, really. It just means that the two of you should focus on yourselves first and then the relationship. I'm not a big fan of my little sister having a boyfriend at all, but… even I have to admit that Harry's a great guy. But you both have so much time ahead of you to live and figure out who you are outside of Hogwarts before you take things much further and make a commitment like marriage, even if you're not talking about that yet."
"But we know what we want now, and that's not gonna change."
Charlie sighed. "Maybe not for you, Ginny. But… all Harry's known throughout his life is struggle and pain. I've never heard him talk about his childhood, but I know from everyone else that it wasn't good at all. And at Hogwarts, he's had to deal with his life constantly being in danger, and you became the bright spot in his life last year, right? But now, his life should be getting a lot brighter everywhere, and if you two continue growing even closer right now, it may hold him back from ever growing past the person he's been at Hogwarts that he was when you started dating."
"But we love each other," Ginny said quietly, desperately.
Charlie nodded. "That's why you shouldn't rush things. For both of your sakes. It gives the two of you time to grow up without worrying about war, and, if you still love each other, even though things have changed, you'll both know for sure and be better for it."
Their food came then, and they didn't speak again throughout the rest of the meal. Ginny could feel her heart pounding, and she couldn't taste anything she was eating. She didn't think it was possible that he was right, but when she'd argued with her mum, she was doing it because she was thinking about how her mum viewed her, without even thinking about how Harry factored into her mother's thinking. It made her feel sick, but a small part of her did wonder if Charlie was right and Harry would be stifling his growth if he kept becoming closer to her.
They walked in silence back to the Burrow, and Ginny was pulled out of her daze when she saw Kingsley walking away from the house towards them. "Afternoon, Kingsley," Charlie said, shaking the man's hand. Kingsley smiled at them both and extended his hand to shake Ginny's.
"What brought you here?" Ginny asked curiously.
Kingsley chuckled slightly and sighed. "I'm sure you'll hear more about it from them, but I came to offer Harry a job."
"In the Auror department?" Charlie asked.
Kingsley nodded before Ginny asked quietly, a little scared of the answer, "Will he be starting soon?"
Kingsley shook his head. "He… turned me down."
Her eyes widened. "He said no?"
The Minister nodded. "I'm afraid so. I told him the offer would always be there, but he said he wasn't interested. Anyways, I've got to be going, but it was great to see both of you, and Charlie, let me know when you hear from the reserves you contacted about that dragon."
Charlie nodded, and Ginny tried to smile at Kingsley as he walked away, but she imagined it looked more like a grimace considering how she was feeling. Her heart was in her throat. Charlie gave her a meaningful look as they made their way to the porch of the Burrow, where Harry, Ron, and Hermione were. He really was right. Harry was giving up these opportunities, and she was worried it was because of her.
Of course, Harry acted like nothing was wrong. He just smiled that damn smile she loved so much. "Hey, Gin," he said. For once though, Ginny couldn't find it in her to smile back. She felt sick.
She had to know. "Kingsley said he offered you a job, but you turned it down?"
"Yeah, he had some barmy idea about me becoming an Auror and training to take over as Head of MLE in a few years." Next to her, Charlie whistled deeply, apparently surprised or impressed or both. Ginny agreed with him. It was almost unbelievable that Kingsley would be offering this opportunity to Harry. Almost as equally unbelievable was the fact that Harry had turned him down.
"You don't think you would've been good for it?" she asked, desperately hoping there was a reason other than her that he would've said no.
He shrugged. "I dunno. I didn't think many people would like a really young Head of MLE, but besides–"
"But if Kingsley didn't think so, maybe you could've done it. You'd be a great Auror, and you'd certainly be an upgrade on the normal Ministry people that run everything," she said, beginning to feel relieved that he was just anxious about the idea of it. Maybe if he got over that anxiety and took the job, her family would see that they weren't moving too fast, and she wouldn't worry about holding Harry back.
Those hopes were shot when Harry stared deeply into her eyes. "Maybe, but I didn't want to do it."
She frowned, once again worrying that this was all because of her. She didn't want to ask, but she had no choice. "So what are you gonna do instead?"
Harry cleared his throat, and Ginny mentally braced herself. Whatever she was expecting him to say, it certainly wasn't what came out of his mouth. "Well… I was– er– I was thinking I'd go back to Hogwarts with you this year."
"What?" she asked. She couldn't have heard him right. There was no way he'd actually said what it sounded like he said.
"I don't want to work for the Ministry. I want to go back to Hogwarts with you."
She felt like she couldn't breathe. This was even worse than what Charlie had been suggesting. Harry wasn't just turning down Kingsley to stay with her; he was turning down the life he deserved after the war to go back to school with her. Some small part of her was ecstatic that Harry cared this much for her, but the rest of her, the more sensible part, was demanding that she had to put a stop to this. One day, he'd surely wake up and realise he'd made a mistake turning Kingsley down and going to Hogwarts, and it'd be her fault.
"But you hate school," she protested, desperately hoping that he'd remember and he wouldn't start going down this path that ended with him hating her for costing him the life he could've had.
"And I want to be with you," he answered plainly. Her heart felt like it was breaking, being torn apart by what she wanted and what was best.
"You– so Kingsley offered you a dream job, and instead of taking it like any person would've done, you want to go back to school, where you have all those awful memories, just to be with me?"
He smiled at her. "Yeah," he said. Her insides clenched, looking at his stupid, beautiful smile. Everything Charlie had said was happening now. She couldn't let him do this to be with her.
"You can't do that," she said, ignoring the small part of her that was screaming that she so desperately wanted him to go to Hogwarts with her, if only he wouldn't be giving up the life he deserved for it.
"What? Ginny, I–" he began, but she had to stop this.
"Kingsley's giving you the chance of a lifetime, Harry. You can't turn that down."
She hated crying, but she thought she might burst into tears, seeing how Harry's face had fallen. This was her fault too. Quietly, he said, "If you don't want me to go to Hogwarts with you, you can just say it."
She wanted to tell him that was all she wanted. But she cared too much for him to let him do this. "Fine. I don't want you to go to Hogwarts and give up on everything you want," she answered, even though it fully shattered her heart to say it.
"But you're–" Harry started to say, and then he stopped. He stared at her for a second, and Ginny saw his eyes darken as tears began swimming in them. Wordlessly, Harry jumped off the porch and ran away from the Burrow. Hermione and Ron called for him to stop, but he never did. He never looked back. He just disappeared.
"Ginny, listen…" Harry said quietly. "I can't be involved with you any more. We've got to stop seeing each other. We can't be together."
She'd been expecting this ever since Dumbledore had died. The war had come far too close to home, and Harry was far too selfless a person to ever let his happiness trump the safety of those he cared about. She tried to smile at him, even though smiling was the last thing she felt like doing. "It's for some stupid, noble reason, isn't it?"
Harry sighed. "It's been like… like something out of someone else's life, these past few weeks with you. But I can't… we can't… I've got things to do alone now. Voldemort uses people his enemies are close to. He's already used you as bait once, and that was just because you're my best friend's sister. Think how much danger you'll be in if we keep this up. He'll know, he'll find out. He'll try and get to me through you."
Once again, Tom Riddle was ruining things for her. She hated him so much, and she was so damn tired of the control he had over everything. These weeks with Harry had been the best of her life, and now, because of Tom Riddle, they were over. Desperately, she fought for their relationship. "What if I don't care?" she asked fiercely.
"I care. How do you think I'd feel if this was your funeral… and it was my fault…" Harry said, and Ginny had to look away from him, staring out over the lake. She'd done a good job controlling herself so far, but this was becoming too much. He cared so much that he wouldn't be able to stand it if something happened to her, and it wasn't because she was Ron's sister. It was because he truly cared for her.
Everything was crashing down. "I never really gave up on you. Not really. I always hoped … Hermione told me to get on with life, maybe go out with some other people, relax a bit around you, because I never used to be able to talk if you were in the room, remember? And she thought you might take a bit more notice if I was a bit more– myself." She turned to look back at him now.
Harry grimaced in something that looked like an attempt at a smile. Neither of them were in a smiling mood right now. "Smart girl, that Hermione. I just wish I'd asked you sooner. We could've had ages… months… years maybe…"
Ginny wished that too. As amazing as the past two months with Harry had been, the only thing that would've made it better was more of it. And that hope was gone. At least until Riddle was gone. Because as much as Harry cared for her, she knew that he wouldn't rest until he defeated Riddle or… died trying.
"But you've been too busy saving the wizarding world," she said, chuckling bitterly despite herself. "Well… I can't say I'm surprised. I knew this would happen in the end. I knew you wouldn't be happy unless you were hunting Voldemort. Maybe that's why I like you so much." The truth was, that was only one of a thousand reasons she liked Harry so much, but it didn't matter now.
Harry almost started to put his arm around her, but he seemingly caught himself, remembering that would've defeated the point of what he'd just said. Without saying another word, he stood and walked away, taking Ginny's happiness with him.
She never took her eyes off of him. She knew without a second thought that she'd wait. She'd waited her whole life already. After seeing how amazing life was with Harry, she couldn't ever pretend that any other relationship would ever hold a candle to this one. She'd wait, as long as it took, because she knew, just like she did when she was a little girl, that Harry Potter would be the hero who saved the day and came to be with her.
She finally felt the sting of tears in her eyes, and she did her best to blink them away. When she opened her eyes, she couldn't see him anymore. He'd disappeared, and now the waiting began again.
Ginny felt as miserable as she had the day she'd just relived in an instant. It didn't help that, unlike last time, she was surrounded by Ron, Hermione, and Charlie, who all would surely have their own opinions about what had just happened.
"What the bloody hell was that?" Ron asked furiously.
Charlie put a hand on her shoulder that did nothing to calm her. "She did the right thing."
"Are you mad? That was the worst thing she could've done!" Ron exclaimed. Hermione was staring at Ginny, looking like she was stuck somewhere between confusion and outrage.
"Harry has a whole life ahead of him. They're not breaking up or anything, but he needs some time to figure out who he is as a person without having his life constantly in danger. I was just telling Ginny that if he doesn't move on, he'll stay stuck as the kid who dated her last year, and he immediately proved that by turning down that job and saying he wanted to go back to Hogwarts with her. He doesn't know what he wants, and he needs to go into the real world and figure that out," Charlie retorted.
Ginny tensed, seeing Ron clench his fists, prepared to step between her brothers. She was surprised when Hermione stepped forward, looking scarier than Ginny had ever seen her. Her fists were clenched too, and she practically growled, "You don't know what you're talking about, Charlie, so shut the fuck up."
Ginny and Ron gaped at her, unable to believe what she'd just said. Charlie was ready to fight back, and Ginny heard him taking a breath to begin arguing, but she put her hand in front of him. She'd heard enough from Charlie. The way Ron and especially Hermione were acting told her she should at least hear them out. Charlie didn't say anything, and Ginny nodded at Hermione, who began speaking again.
"You weren't here when Harry and Kingsley were talking. He may have been thinking about the fact that he wanted to go to Hogwarts with you, but that's not what he said in front of all of us. He told Kingsley he couldn't accept the offer because he was tired of his life revolving around fighting dark wizards. He said he fought Riddle because he had to, not because he enjoyed it, and he felt like he deserved a break after everything he'd done. Based on what he said, I don't think he would've taken the job even if you two weren't dating. He doesn't want to be an Auror; he just wants to live a life that makes him happy."
Ginny felt a battle raging inside of her. If Hermione was right, and Harry wasn't turning Kingsley down because of her, that changed everything. Next to her, Charlie spoke up. "But that's my whole point. He can't possibly know what he really wants–" Charlie stopped talking when Hermione drew her wand on him, sticking it under his chin, furiously glaring at him.
"One more word," Hermione warned in a low voice.
Ginny stepped between the two of them. "Go inside, Charlie," Ginny said, not bothering to look and see if he listened. What Hermione said made a lot of sense, and she wanted to hear more about that.
"Don't listen to Charlie. We know Harry better than anyone… other than you maybe. He knows exactly what he wants," Hermione said, a little calmer now that Charlie was gone.
"But how can you be sure?" Ginny asked quietly, still a little afraid that they were all wrong and there wasn't a way this ended well.
Ron snorted and rolled his eyes, but Hermione looked earnestly at Ginny. "You weren't with him last year, Ginny. He was miserable all the time. His mood constantly swung back and forth between sad and mad. He's been happier than I've ever seen him these past two months, despite all the funerals and everything. I thought I knew what it looked like when Harry was happy, especially when we were younger, but… that was nothing compared to how he is now."
"Well, of course he was miserable all the time, Hermione. He was in miserable conditions and being hunted by Riddle. Riddle's gone now. It makes sense that Harry would be happier than ever. And even if he is happy with me, he shouldn't give up on everything else he wants in life because he doesn't want to lose me," Ginny responded, feeling even more justified in her belief that she'd be holding Harry back if he went to Hogwarts with her.
"It wasn't Riddle that Harry was watching on the map all the bloody time," Ron muttered, and Ginny frowned, not understanding that.
"What?" she asked.
Hermione looked at Ron with an odd mixture of pride and apprehension as Ron answered the question, staring unflinchingly and assertively at Ginny. "I said it wasn't Riddle that Harry was watching on the Marauder's Map every second he thought we weren't looking."
Time almost seemed to stand still, as Ginny processed what Ron was saying. She remembered wishing that she'd had the Marauder's Map during the last year, but she hadn't ever considered that Harry would still be using it, let alone for the reason Ron was suggesting. "He was watching me?" she asked.
Ron snorted again. "No, he was watching Neville. Of course he was watching you, you bloody idiot. He'd literally take the map with him when it was his watch and just stare at it for hours. It would've been disgusting if it hadn't been so damn sad."
Ginny couldn't speak. She felt her throat tightening, but for a completely different reason than before. She never would've imagined Harry had cared so much, even while he was gone, that that was how he was spending his time. Had she been the one who was wrong about all of this?
Hermione chimed in now. "He dreamed about you most nights too. He talks in his sleep, and he'd say your name all the time. They weren't nightmares either. It was just like he was remembering you. I thought he was going to hex one of us with how miserable he was on Valentine's Day. Once, I even saw him trying to draw you. He didn't do a very good job, but he missed seeing you so much that he was doing his best. Harry knew exactly what he wanted and what he was fighting for the entire time he was on the run. And then when he finally saw you for the first time in almost a year, it was at the battle.
"He only mentioned to us that he passed you when he walked to the forest, but… I'm sure he's told you more. I– I just can't imagine how difficult it must've been for him to want to be with you so desperately, and when he finally sees you again, he has to walk past you, without saying goodbye, to his– his death. He hasn't talked much about that with us, but I'm positive that experience fundamentally changed the way he views his life. He was totally prepared to die, and then he got another chance to live. He knows better than any of us just how fragile life is, and he definitely doesn't want to waste any of it without the one thing he wants more than anything else."
To really drive the point home, Ron added, "Look, Ginny. He loves you. You love him. You've both been through more than any couple should have to go through. Don't push him away because you're scared things might change or he may want something different. We know Harry. He wants to be with you. Everything else matters way less to him."
Ginny was pulled back into her memories again, remembering the moment she fell in love with Harry.
She'd asked him what he wanted in his future, assuming Voldemort wasn't a part of it anymore after telling him she wanted to play Quidditch professionally. Harry's brow furrowed again momentarily. "I don't really know about my career ambitions," he began. "I suppose a lot of people would expect me to want to be an Auror, and that does sound really interesting, but I think in this future, I'd be tired of fighting dark wizards for a while. I liked teaching enough in the D.A. even though I didn't feel qualified. Maybe I'll become a teacher." He chuckled a little, "And Snape could spend even more time with me without being able to give me detention."
Ginny laughed with him, even though she was a little surprised that he was talking about teaching. She'd always expected, like everyone else, that Harry Potter would of course be an Auror. Pleased that she'd thought to ask him about this, she was surprised when he continued.
"I hadn't really thought about it before, but Quidditch does sound like a lot of fun. Maybe we could even be on the same team!" he realised, grinning at her matching smile. "Honestly though, Gin? I have no idea what I want from my future yet. Other than I want you to be in it."
He looked at her with such intensity as he spoke that Ginny thought she might faint. He was always intense, but those green eyes had a special intensity for the things he cared about, namely her. And that look, as he told her she was his future, was what sent Ginny over the edge. She'd never stop adoring him.
Very pleased with that answer, she pulled him into a deep kiss that lasted for several minutes, and when she finally did pull away, she whispered, "I like the sound of that future. We should write it down in case we forget it."
Harry pulled out his wand and pointed it at the trunk of their tree. He carved 'H+G' with a heart around it. It was so bloody cheesy that it would've made Ginny sick if she'd seen anyone else do that. But with Harry, it felt so happy and special and right.
"Forever," she whispered to him before kissing her fingers and placing them against this promise of their future together.
"I'm an idiot," Ginny breathed out. Ron nodded vehemently, and Hermione elbowed him gently in the side.
"Maybe a little, but you're honestly a lot like Harry. You just pushed him away because you care so much about him that you'd rather he be upset at you than not have what he wants. Harry pushed you away last year because he cared so much about you that he wanted to give you the best chance of having a life at all, even if it made him miserable. But all Harry wants is you."
Ginny nodded, hesitating for a moment before pulling both Ron and Hermione into a hug. "Thank you," she said quietly, letting them go. Ron nodded again, but much more sincerely this time, and Hermione smiled kindly at her.
"Do you know where he is?" she asked.
Ginny nodded and followed the path Harry had just a few moments earlier, unable to believe how foolish she'd been. Harry had answered the thing she had been so worried about just now a year ago. He didn't want to be an Auror. All he wanted in his future was her. She spun on her heel, apparating to the place she thought Harry had gone to and hoping he'd forgive her.
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
Harry landed with a pop, feeling the sand shifting underneath his feet. He could also feel the salty air on his face, but he wasn't sure if that was from the ocean or his own tears. Once again, he found himself near Shell Cottage, unsure exactly why he'd come here in a moment of desperation. The beach just seemed to calm him, even though it wasn't doing anything to help him now. It almost felt like he should be having a panic attack, considering all the emotions running through his head, but he was just so devastated that his brain couldn't even try to process it through an attack.
He almost jumped out of his skin when he heard someone call "Harry?" He turned and saw Bill and Fleur walking along the beach toward him. He hadn't even thought about them being here, but then again, it was Saturday, so it made sense that they were at home. He quickly tried to wipe the tears from his face, but it was no use.
"Mon ami, what eez wrong?" Fleur asked, obviously seeing Harry's face as they drew closer. Harry tried his best to muster up a convincing story before he sighed at their concerned expressions.
"Kingsley came to the Burrow to offer me a job. He wanted me to become an Auror and start training to be the Head of Magical Law Enforcement in a few years," he began in a thick voice, and both Bill and Fleur's eyes widened.
"Wow, that's– that's something," Bill remarked, and Harry shrugged apathetically.
"I turned him down. I told him I needed to live life without continuing to fight dark wizards all the time. I've given literally everything, and I can't keep doing it. I deserve a change; I– I want more out of my life."
Bill nodded. "I'm impressed. I figured that Kingsley would ask you to join the Auror office, but I honestly wasn't expecting you to want to do that based on all the conversations we've had."
"But zen why are you crying?" Fleur asked, still looking at him with a great deal of worry.
He frowned, wishing he could forget it. "Gin– Ginny wasn't there when Kingsley was talking to me. She showed up as he was leaving, and he told her I'd turned down his offer. She asked me about it, and when I tried to explain to her why I didn't want to take the job, she kept trying to push me to take it. I told her I just didn't want to, and she asked what I was planning on doing instead. I–I told her I was planning on going to Hogwarts with her this year, and she acted like that was the worst idea she'd ever heard. It– it was like she didn't want to– to be around me there," he choked out, his voice breaking as he remembered the look on her face.
Fleur stepped forward and hugged him gently. Harry closed his eyes for a moment, but he opened them immediately. All he saw when his eyes were closed was Ginny. Once Fleur stepped back, Bill began talking as Harry wiped his eyes again.
"Harry, I don't know what's going on with Ginny, but I promise you, all she wants is to be with you. Just this week when you two were here, she came downstairs early one morning after you'd had a nightmare and told us about how she wants to be with you forever."
Harry felt a twinge in his heart. Forever. That was the promise they'd made. He thought she meant that as much as he did, but even Bill's attempt at encouragement just reminded him of how painful it was thinking that she didn't want him around.
"Women are complicated creatures, 'arry. I'm sure zere is somezing else going on or bozzering her. Eet eez impossible to look at ze two of you and not see just how in love you are. She loves you, 'arry. Don't question zat for a moment," Fleur added, and Harry nodded. He missed Ginny, even though he wasn't sure that she wanted to see him.
"I just– I don't actually care about going back to Hogwarts. I– I mean it would be nice to have a year without worrying about Riddle while I'm there, but… I just wanted to go wherever she went, and since she has to go back, I wanted to be there. I thought that's what she wanted too," he said sadly.
"I know it doesn't feel like it now, but this will work out. Ginny's stubborn, but she loves you. I remember how angry she was when she couldn't come see you when the three of you were staying here in April. Even when you were in the Hospital Wing that night at Hogwarts after the battle, and Ginny came to the Great Hall to get you some food, it was so obvious that all she wanted to do was to get back to you. You told me how she reacted when you told her about the forest. There's no doubt in my mind that she loves you completely and wants to be with you. I'm sure she has some reason for why she said that, but she'll come around, and probably pretty soon," Bill said.
Harry nodded, and they were silent for a moment. "I need to go," he said, suddenly realising that if Ginny was going to come looking for him, he'd rather be somewhere other than here.
"Don't rush her, 'arry. She'll realise her mistake, but eet needs to be on her time," Fleur said gently, and Harry shook his head.
"I'm not going back to the Burrow. Ron and Hermione were with her, and I imagine they're giving her an earful for what happened. I'm going somewhere else. She'll know where to find me if you're right and she changes her mind."
"Then I guess you'll be seeing her soon," Bill said, smiling a little at Harry, who nodded, praying he was right. Fleur hugged him again, and Bill clapped him on the shoulder. "I promise, it'll work out," he said quietly. Harry closed his eyes, willingly picturing her once again as he disapparated, wanting to go to the place they'd made their promise to be together forever.
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
Ginny landed in the sand and immediately began looking around for Harry. She didn't see him anywhere, but she saw Bill and Fleur, who were halfway to their home from the beach, turn around and look at her. As they walked closer, Ginny saw recognition on their faces, and even though she thought she knew the answer, she asked, "Has Harry been here?"
"He left about a minute ago," Bill said.
Ginny nodded. "Did he say where he was going?"
"'e said you would know where 'e was," Fleur answered.
Ginny frowned, trying to figure out where that would be, when Bill spoke again. "Ginny, whatever's going on… you need to talk to him. He's afraid you don't want to be with him anymore."
Ginny felt her heart sink. That was practically the message she'd been sending Harry at the Burrow, as much as it hurt, but it still killed her, knowing that she'd hurt him. "I was wrong. I believed what Charlie told me about Harry needing time to grow into who he is without being hunted by Riddle. He convinced me that Harry would turn down opportunities in his life just for me, and it wasn't fair to Harry to let him do that. I wasn't trying to hurt him; I just didn't want him to hate me later for him not taking those opportunities now."
Bill sighed and shook his head sadly. "Charlie means well, but he's not the most… emotionally inclined person. It says a lot that he's trying to look out for both of you, but he's wrong. Harry's more grown up than anybody I've ever seen at his age, and it was incredibly obvious, even before he showed up here today, what he wanted most. And so you know, I figured he'd turn down Kingsley if he offered him a job because he told me how tired he was of everything after the battle. It may have been partially because of you, but I think he would've turned that down even if the two of you weren't together."
Ginny sighed. "That's what Hermione told me. Do you– do you think he'll forgive me?"
"'e loves you, ma cherie. All 'e wants eez to be wiz you. Of course he'll forgive you," Fleur said encouragingly.
Ginny nodded, and quickly hugged both of them, hoping they were right. She still felt awful. She probably made Harry think she wanted to break their promise to be together forever, and that was the last thing in the world she ever wanted to do. With a start, she realised where Harry was, and she quickly turned on her heel, apparating to the gates of Hogwarts.
She didn't hesitate because she knew exactly where he'd be. She sprinted as fast as she could across the grounds towards the lake. Their tree came into view, and beyond it, she could see the phoenix statue, but she didn't see him anywhere. She ran even harder then, as if she could make him appear if she got to the tree fast enough. She reached the tree and dropped to her knees, panting as she reached out to touch the heart Harry had carved for them when they'd made their promise.
She heard a rustling noise, and she looked up to see that Harry was looking at her from the other side of the tree, where he'd apparently been sitting when she'd arrived. She could tell that he'd been crying. She hated herself for making him feel like that. All he'd done was show her love, and she pushed him away because she thought she knew what was best for Harry more than he did.
"I was wrong, Harry. I'm so sorry," she said, staring into his eyes that weren't as bright as usual, puffy and red from the tears he'd shed. He just continued looking at her, and she knew she needed to say more. "I was worried that if you started giving up opportunities like the one Kingsley gave you for me, one day, you'd regret it and resent me for it. I just– you deserve all the happiness you can possibly find, and I don't want you to miss out on any of it. But I don't ever want to push you away, and I'm so sorry for making you feel like I don't want you around because all I want is to be with you."
Harry blinked and took a deep breath. "You're all I want. You're all the happiness I need, Gin. Everything else that's good in my life doesn't matter if it's not with you."
"That's exactly what I told my mum when I said she was wrong about us moving too fast. Nothing matters without you," Ginny said, wanting so desperately to touch him and show him how much she loved him, but he had to be the one to forgive her. She couldn't force him to.
"I told Kingsley I didn't want the job because I don't want my life to be about dark wizards forever. I want more out of my life. I want you," he said, gazing at her with such intensity that she almost couldn't breathe.
"I was stupid. I should've remembered what you said the day I fell in love with you. You told me that you didn't want to be an Auror. You said that all you knew you wanted in your future was me."
"Forever. And I meant it. If you'll have me, I want to be where you are. That's what makes me happy."
"I always want to be with you, Harry. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I'm so, so sorry I allowed my worries to make me forget our promise. You're all I want, forever," she responded, almost tearing up as she saw his eyes brighten.
"I love you, Gin," he whispered, leaning in to kiss her gently. There wasn't any heat in their kiss, but that didn't make it any less passionate and loving. She didn't know how long they were kissing, but she knew she would've been happy to never stop. Finally, he pulled away slightly, resting his forehead against hers.
"I love you," she whispered back to him, and despite everything, he smiled softly.
"I'll never get tired of hearing that," he responded, and she giggled a little.
"I promise I'll keep reminding you."
"Forever?" he asked, smiling at her once again.
"I'll love you forever," she promised, kissing him once more to prove it.
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
They spent most of the day underneath their tree. Not that Harry minded at all. For a while, he'd thought this was going to be one of the worst days of his life, but it had quickly turned into a fantastic day spent with the woman he loved. And she still loved him too. He'd been scared, and he was more relieved than words could express when she found him and said she always wanted to be with him.
"So, Hogwarts, huh?" Ginny asked, smiling up at him.
He grinned and nodded. "You know how important I feel like my education is. I really don't think I'll achieve all my goals in life without completing my N.E.W.T.s."
Ginny laughed. "Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?"
Harry laughed with her and bent down to kiss the top of her head. "Honestly, I'd been thinking about it since the first time we came to help with the repairs. It sounds kinda nice, actually, to have a year here without being worried about all the danger that's out there."
"And I'll be here," Ginny said, beaming at the idea now, which Harry definitely preferred to her earlier reaction.
He chuckled. "And of course, my crazy hot, kind, smart, amazing girlfriend will be here."
She quickly kissed him. "I still can't believe you actually want to come back to Hogwarts to be with me."
"Hey, you said you'd go to Azkaban if I got tossed in for using an Unforgivable just to be with me. This is at least a little less intense than that."
"Well yeah, but you're not actually getting chucked in there. You know for a fact I'm coming here, and you still want to come."
"Without a doubt, I wanna be where you are," he said, and she just snuggled in to him. He suddenly remembered something that had completely slipped his mind after everything had happened today. "Although, I wouldn't bet on me not getting chucked into Azkaban. Kingsley said I have to go to a hearing in front of the Wizengamot in ten days."
Ginny quickly looked up at him, and he was so distracted by how fiercely her eyes were blazing that he almost missed her questions. "Why are they forcing you to come in for a hearing? They're not putting you on trial for something, right?"
Harry shrugged. "Kingsley said that he thinks they just want the story about what happened this year after hearing bits and pieces through the trials, but I'm not gonna be on trial for anything. Unless they find out about the Unforgivables, I guess."
Ginny put her hand on his leg, drawing circles on his thigh. "But that shouldn't come up, right? They definitely won't know about the Cruciatus, at least."
"Probably not, but if they hear anything about the rumours Bill said the goblins are passing around… I don't know what happens if I lie and get caught," he confessed, starting to worry himself a little as he thought about it.
"You didn't do it to hurt anyone, Harry. If you hadn't done it, we probably would've lost the war. I don't think the Wizengamot would dare put you on trial, let alone arrest you. The public wouldn't let it stand, and neither would Kingsley."
"I hope you're right. Maybe I should talk to Kingsley about it before the trial and see what he says. We're already gonna need to talk about what to say if I'm asked about the Elder Wand and how I can explain Horcruxes without talking about them in too much detail. I never told him about using the Imperius at Gringotts, but… I hope he'll understand."
"He will. He was an Auror, Harry. I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't always perfectly ethical either, especially when their lives are on the line."
Harry nodded, already feeling a little better about handling the hearing. Truthfully, he felt like he could do anything when she was with him. That was all he needed. Ginny looked up at him and smiled. "What are you thinking?" she asked.
He smiled back at her. "Just that the hearing doesn't seem so intimidating when I have you with me."
"Guess it's a good thing I don't plan on us ever separating again," she said, raising a hand to his cheek.
"I love you," he whispered for what must've been the tenth time that afternoon. She responded in his favourite way, and they spent the rest of the afternoon kissing underneath the tree before they finally apparated back to the Burrow in time for dinner.
Harry noticed Ron and Hermione both smiling at them when they walked in, holding hands. He was almost certain that they'd talked to Ginny after he'd left, and he was so grateful that they'd helped him in the best way they possibly could've. He also noticed Charlie looking at them curiously, but Harry wasn't going to say anything about it to him right now.
However, that night in bed, he did ask Ginny if she knew what that was all about. She sighed and looked at him sadly. "When we were at lunch, Charlie… sort of convinced me that I needed to make sure you weren't… letting your life revolve around me, I guess. He thinks you need to figure out more about who you are without the threat of Riddle hanging over your head, and he's worried that if I'm the focus of your attention, you won't grow after all of this."
Harry was surprised, honestly. He tried to puzzle together a response to that when Ginny added, "He wasn't trying to get us to break up or anything. He'd probably hate me for telling you this, but he said you're a great guy. I actually think he was trying to look out for you, even if he was wrong."
Harry nodded. "Yeah… he was definitely wrong. I've grown up far too much in the past few years, especially this last one. I don't know exactly what course my life will take without worrying about Riddle, but I don't care either, as long as I'm with you."
Ginny smiled up at him. "I sure do love you."
He kissed her gently. "The next thing on my list… I love you, not because you tried to push me away, but because you did what you thought was best for me, even if it made me question your feelings for me, because you care more about me than you care about yourself."
"Of course I do. You're everything," Ginny said simply.
"That's my line," Harry responded, cracking a smile before throwing himself on her. It was a very long time before they finally fell asleep, even happier than they'd been when they first got into bed.
The next day went by much smoother, thankfully, and Harry and Ginny spent the majority of the day with Teddy, Hermione, and, surprisingly, Ron, who was slowly seeming to warm up to the idea of having a baby around. A short while before dinner, Ginny randomly asked, "Harry, do you still have the Marauder's Map?"
Caught a little off guard, he nodded. "Yeah, it's in my mokeskin pouch. Are you thinking we'll need it at Hogwarts?" Harry asked, grinning at her.
She smiled. "Well probably, but I was just wondering since Ron mentioned it yesterday."
Harry glanced curiously at Ron, thinking he knew what that was all about. Ron just shrugged. "Sorry mate, I didn't know if you were keeping that a secret or not, but it worked, didn't it? Besides, I'm not the one that told her that you tried drawing her one time."
Harry's eyes widened as he looked at Hermione, who was blushing profusely. He wasn't surprised that they'd known he'd been looking at her on the map, but he had no idea that Hermione knew about the time he'd tried drawing Ginny. He wasn't much of an artist, but he'd been so desperate to see her after Valentine's Day that he did his best, as humiliating as it was now.
"I'm sorry, Harry. We were both trying to make sure Ginny knew just how much you cared about her, even when we were on the run," Hermione said, and Harry nodded, still appreciative of the help they'd given him even though it was pretty embarrassing. Or he was embarrassed until Ginny wrapped an arm around him.
"I thought it was absolutely adorable, and it made me love you even more," she declared, kissing him on the cheek. He grinned at that, and both Ron and Hermione smiled at them, apparently pleased with the work they'd done to help them.
As usual, Bill, Fleur, and Andi visited for Sunday dinner. Bill and Fleur didn't bring up everything that had happened yesterday, but Harry saw them glancing over at him and Ginny throughout the evening. They didn't try to hide their delight at the affection Harry and Ginny were showing at all, which made Harry surprisingly pleased that they were happy for them.
The next morning, Harry engaged in his now usual habit of staring at Ginny while she slept, just admiring her beauty. Everything about her– the freckles on her pale skin, her flaming red hair, her cute little nose and full lips, even the soft noise of her breathing– made him fall in love with her even more. She was all he wanted, which is why it was so difficult to drag himself out of bed. He shouldn't have been surprised to see Charlie on the porch, and, after debating it for a moment, he finally walked outside.
"Morning," Harry said cautiously, and Charlie nodded. This was definitely unusual. It wasn't like Charlie to pass up an opportunity to demand his two sickles for winning the daily game. They sat outside in silence for several minutes, apparently waiting for the other one to speak since they both clearly had something to say to each other. Just before Harry was about to break the ice, Charlie cleared his throat.
"Bill talked to me last night after dinner. He told me what happened at his place on Saturday, and then he spent a… very long time explaining why I was wrong. I… owe you an apology, Harry," he said, turning to look Harry in the eye, looking as uncomfortable as he sounded. "It wasn't right of me to try and interject myself into yours and Ginny's relationship. You're an adult, and, as much as I hate it, Ginny is a month away from being one too. I think… I fell into a mentality of seeing you as being similar to how I was when I was your age. I moved to Romania when I was about the age you were when you started dating Ginny, and it took a long time for me to adjust and grow up, to stop living like I was still in school.
"You're far more grown up than I was when I was your age. Ginny is too, to be honest. I shouldn't be pretending that I know what you want; Bill told me that you would've turned down being an Auror even if you hadn't been dating Ginny because you want a break from all the fighting, and I totally get that. I shouldn't have assumed any of your intentions or acted like I knew what was best for the two of you. Hell, your relationship is already longer than the longest one I've ever had, so what do I know? My point is… I shouldn't have pressured Ginny into acting the way that I thought she needed to, and I definitely shouldn't have suggested that there are things you should be prioritising over her. Genuinely, if Ginny had to have a boyfriend, I'm happy that it's someone who cares more about her than anything else. So… yeah… I'm sorry."
Harry just stared at Charlie. He never would've thought that Charlie would apologise for something this profusely, but he seemed genuinely sorry for what he'd said. And it wasn't like he'd even said anything that was malicious. He did have somewhat valid reasons for believing what he did, even if he was wrong.
"It– well, it's not exactly okay, but I don't blame you for it, Charlie. You were looking out for Ginny, and you were also looking out for me. I appreciate that, and I really do appreciate you apologising. Ginny and I are better than ever, and no lasting damage was done. But… if you do have an opinion about our relationship in the future, talk to both of us. We share everything with each other anyway, and then there's not a chance of something like this happening again where there's miscommunication or something. And I know exactly what I want. Ginny's all I want now that I get to choose what my life looks like."
Charlie nodded. "I believe you, and I'm happy my sister is being taken care of by someone who cares this much about her. Don't worry though, I won't be expressing any further opinions on it. Hermione made sure I knew to keep myself out of it the other day," he said, grimacing slightly.
Harry raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
Charlie shook his head. "Well, she told me to shut the fuck up when I shared my thoughts on everything, and then when I tried to argue with her, she drew her wand on me."
Harry's jaw dropped. "Wow. I really wasn't expecting that."
Charlie nodded. "Me either. I always thought she was the most straightlaced out of all of you. I was stunned when she pulled that."
Harry shook his head. "When she wants to be, she's honestly scarier than Ginny."
Charlie chuckled. "I'll make sure to not tell Ginny that. I know she prides herself on being terrifying when she's angry."
Harry grinned wryly, thinking he knew exactly how to give Charlie the small amount of revenge he deserved. "Well, she can still be scary when she's angry, but she's almost never angry at me. Plus, I happen to get really turned on when she's pissed off, which definitely takes a lot of the fear out of it for me."
Charlie groaned and threw his head back against the bench, rubbing his eyes. "I cannot believe you just said that to me."
Harry laughed. "You're the one who dropped the tough big brother act. That was just revenge for the other day."
"I can still be a tough big brother," Charlie threatened, but Harry shook his head.
"Nah, you can't. Ginny told me that you said I'm a great guy. There's no coming back from that one," he said, grinning again as Charlie put his face in his hands.
"Fine, I'll just settle for being a normal big brother," Charlie said, looking at Harry seriously, but not in an intimidating way. Somehow, he understood that Charlie was saying he was there for Harry too. Charlie wasn't Bill, but he had definitely shown that he cared about Harry. It might be a little awkward with the rivalry that seemed to be forming between them, and Harry was still mildly upset about everything that happened on Saturday, but it did mean a lot that Charlie was there for him too.
He nodded. "I'd like that," he answered truthfully, and Charlie nodded too, neither of them needing to elaborate any further. Instead, they simply went inside and began making breakfast together for the rest of their family.
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Before I get into my Author's Note for this chapter, I wanted to announce that there is now officially an audio/podfic version of Summer of Recovery that has been released on AO3! It's a passion project put together by a fan and reader of the book, and from what I've heard, it sounds amazing so far! I'm going to link it here and will also probably put it in my bio, and I highly encourage you to check it out if you want to experience SoR in a new way!
/works/56304496 (Turns out the url for AO3 is blocked by FFN, but if you go to AO3, this is the work number)
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A/N: Okay, I really hope that did a good job of making up for the cliffhanger last chapter! I promise it's going to be a while before I torture you all that much again!
One thing I want to mention off the bat is that Harry running away was very intentionally meant to parallel Ginny running away in Chapter 14 when Ron spilled the beans about the forest. I think, based on their histories, they are two characters who sometimes struggle to fully open up emotionally, and the default is to retreat to deal with it alone. However, they are slowly learning that when they face problems, it's better to run to each other rather than away.
Funny enough, the impetus for this becoming the third plot waypoint for the first two books was that I wanted to give Ron a chance to tell another secret that made up for revealing the truth about the forest by telling Ginny that Harry watched her on the Marauder's Map when she pushed him away from going to Hogwarts. What Hermione and Ron tell Ginny serves as a lot of my justification for why Harry wants to go to Hogwarts– he just wants to be with Ginny. I also couldn't help but include Ginny's memory of the 'forever moment' again from Chapter 4 because I was saying with that memory, from the start, that Harry wasn't going to go straight into law enforcement. All he wanted was to be with Ginny.
I hope my justification for why Ginny said all that makes sense too. I intentionally wrote her conversation with Molly last chapter to be framed largely around herself, so that there was an opportunity for her focus to be shifted to Harry, since she'd be much more likely to reconsider things when he was potentially at risk of making a mistake. And Charlie really was trying to help because, as much as he doesn't want to admit it, he does really love both of them, but he's really not the best source of relationship advice that Ginny could've been talking to, especially when Bill and Fleur prove their worth in that field with both of them in this chapter.
I really loved the idea of Hermione violently defending Harry against Charlie, but I also liked the idea of her revealing something even more embarrassing for Harry than what Ron revealed, by telling Ginny about Harry trying to draw her. I hope it doesn't seem out of character for Harry; honestly though, without any pictures and being separated from the love of his life, I could see him going to some dark places where something like that might've felt really necessary. And Ginny obviously appreciated it too.
So now the secret's out, and I'll confirm that Book 2 will take us through all of Harry and Ginny's seventh year at Hogwarts! I've said several times that I wrote these books because I felt like I had a different take on what happened after the battle than a lot of people. I do think there's been some moments that wouldn't have been predictable in SoR, but I really meant starting with them going back to Hogwarts together. This isn't the last surprise like this I'll pull because I do mean it when I say I have a different vision of life after the battle, but this is one of the most important and a big reason why I decided to write this series at all.
I feel like I should clarify that this series is canon-compliant with what I consider to be canon, which is just the main series, meaning that all that really informs where they all end up after the Battle is the Epilogue. I definitely don't consider Cursed Child to be canon, and I also don't consider anything published on Pottermore/Wizarding World to be definitive canon. I admittedly do use those as a reference and possible guide if I don't have any contradicting ideas; for example, Ginny's birthday isn't actually specified in canon, but JKR said on Pottermore that it was 11 August, 1981. I have no reason to not use that date, so that's her birthday in this series as well. To keep everyone generally on their toes, I'm not going to give examples beyond that because I want there to still be surprises with how things play out in everyone's lives, but I felt like that was an important clarification to make.
For the record, in Chapter 19 where I told you all that something really tiny happened with super huge ramifications, I was talking about this line, right after Ginny said she spent years wishing and trying to pretend she'd been in the same year as Harry: Harry smiled at her, even though he was thinking that he'd never really given much consideration to it before. He'd never realised that she had. This is the moment where Harry started thinking, for the first time, about what it would be like to go back to Hogwarts with Ginny.
Now that it's announced, I'm already so excited to start sharing with you all the return to Hogwarts, but there are some really great chapters before then that I can't wait for you all to read, starting with the next one!
Coming Tuesday: Part of the Family- "George is the one who's got me worried."
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As always, thank you all for your reviews. Reviews, follows, and favourites are really the only compensation that authors get for their work, and it means everything for me to see you all enjoying it so much! I'm including this section for consistency's sake since I do want the ability to interact with you all if there are questions or ways for me to add to the discussion. I don't think there's really much for me to say this week other than thank you to everyone who has reviewed and told me how much they're enjoying SoR and the last chapter, but I did want to highlight Dust1423's comment because I totally look forward to Tuesdays because of SoR too, and it's super cool to know that I'm making that happen for you all too!