A Time of Reflection Part 1
Summary: As Harry and Ginny's wedding approaches, Lily reflects on Harry and Ginny's relationship and how they got here.
AN: Written in honor of Lily's birthday.
Lily sat at the kitchen table in Potter Manor's kitchen. James's childhood home, once a place of refuge for their son and his friends during the war, was now the location of Harry and Ginny's wedding. Ginny had fallen in love with Effie's flower garden when they were there for Sirius and Hestia's wedding three years ago.
Getting married at Potter Manor was the first decision Harry and Ginny made regarding the wedding after Harry proposed on their annual trip to the coast. James felt honored they wanted to get married at his childhood home, and Lily knew if her inlaws were alive, they would be equally as thrilled.
Lily turned to look out the window, Effie's garden in clear view. Tomorrow, it would be transformed into Ginny's dream wedding.
All Harry wanted was for Ginny to have the wedding she dreamed of. Molly was speechless when she saw the garden and a picture of Ginny's vision for her wedding. She was so speechless, in fact, that her tears of happiness spoke for themselves.
Sitting in the quiet kitchen, she reflected on how they had gotten here.
She wasn't blindsided by the news Harry had feelings for the Weasley girl as some thought. On the contrary, she saw it coming. It wasn't because of the supposed Potter family curse where all Potter men marry a redhead. She saw it coming after Harry's second year. Something had changed in how Harry and Ginny interacted. Yes, Harry was friendly towards her like he had been since they met when Ginny was five after he met Ron at the ministry.
Did she think it would result in marriage? No. Harry was twelve. She wasn't thinking that far ahead.
She often had a front-row seat, watching Harry and Ginny's relationship grow from being just friends to boyfriend and girlfriend.
When asked how she felt about it, she had the same reply.
"Ginny is a sweet girl. I couldn't ask for a better girl for my son. She's been like a daughter to me."
That was true. Since Ginny came to Hogwarts, she often came to Lily and confided things with her. Sometimes, Lily wished she had seen the signs her first year a little sooner. It wasn't until after the Chamber of Secrets deal that she knew how lonely Ginny was. Ginny came to the hospital wing in her second year to speak with Lily. She set up a floo call for Ginny to call Molly to talk to her Mum when she got her period at the beginning of her second year.
Molly had turned to Lily when she noticed Ginny's periods seemed heavier than usual. Lily suggested a potion, one that she invented herself. It worked similarly to Muggle birth control, helping regulate a woman's cycle. It was even recommended to Ginny by her own healer, whom Molly consulted. Lily assured during the trial that the potion was tested on a few girls around Ginny's age with no complications.
After speaking with Lily and her healer about switching, Ginny was now on the women's version.
Lily couldn't help the thrill that filled her when Ginny asked how long she needed to be off it before she and Harry tried for a baby.
"A month, just to be safe," She replied.
Lily still brewed it for her future daughter-in-law, imagining the day she would be brewing a pregnancy potion for the same daughter-in-law.
She was getting ahead of herself. The wedding was tomorrow. Ginny mentioned she and Harry wanted to be married for at least a year before starting a family. Lily didn't miss the grin on James's face when the possibility of grandchildren came up.
As she sat reflecting on Harry and Ginny's relationship, she couldn't help but remember what Janice had told her.
"You come second in his life."
She felt that was how it was supposed to be. Ginny was the number one girl in Harry's life.
She was more than okay with that.
She thought about her and James's wedding. Effie welcomed her with open arms and called her her daughter, not her daughter-in-law. Even though Ginny did have her mother, she thought of her as a daughter.
Molly admitted to her while they were planning the bridal shower for Ginny that she knew it would be Harry Ginny would marry.
"Arthur and I are looking at this as we're gaining another son," She told Lily.
That made Lily happy.
Her mind began to wonder. She remembered the early days of Harry and Ginny's relationship. She watched from afar, a smile on her face.
If there was anything in this world she couldn't do, she couldn't thank Ginny enough for making her son so happy.
Out by the Lake (Fifth year)
Lily stepped out of the hospital wing, the echo of her footsteps a stark contrast to the usual hustle and bustle the hospital wing was on any given day. The hospital wing was unusually quiet today, which was welcomed by Madam Pomfrey and Lily.
Deciding to take advantage of the quiet, Lily decided to go for a walk.
Stepping outside, she wrapped her cloak around her. It was always an adjustment coming back to Scotland, but this year, it felt colder than usual in early November. The weather didn't deter the students from being outside.
As she approached the lake, the sun glowed on the water's surface, casting a yellowish glow. She could hear the birds chirping, owls hooting as they returned to the owlery, and soft conversations from the students she passed.
It was peaceful, serene, entirely different than what the hospital wing had been over the last ten days.
Flu season was upon them. Somehow, they had managed, this time, for the flu not to spread throughout the school. As the school healer, Lily was responsible for the well-being of every student and staff member at Hogwarts. It was a job she took very seriously. The job could be taxing at times, draining even, but it was rewarding nonetheless.
As she approached the tree she and James frequented during their own days at Hogwarts, she spotted a familiar figure sitting under the tree.
It was her son, Harry. Sitting with him was his girlfriend, Ginny.
Taking advantage of the fact she hadn't been spotted, she observed them silently.
They were sat close together, their hands entwined. It was like they were the only ones in the world.
She watched Harry push back her hair, the wind blowing the loose strains in her face with his free hand. They were talking about something, but Lily didn't get close enough to hear what.
As she watched the young couple, Lily noticed how happy Harry seemed. The smile seemed to be a permanent fixture on his face.
Lily wasn't complaining. She loved seeing her son happy. Since he and Ginny got together, it had been like this.
James commented that he had noticed how much happier their son was. Sirius and Remus had made the same comment. Minvera told her over a cup of tea yesterday how nice it was to see Harry smiling again.
Not wanting to be noticed by her son, Lily stepped away, smiling softly at the scene she had just witnessed.
Yes, it was nice to see Harry happy. She had Ginny to thank for that.
How little did she know it was the beginning of a long-term relationship?
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Lily picked up her cup of tea taking a sip. She looked towards the door leading out to the hallway. The room across from the kitchen was a Great Room. It held lines of chairs ready to be taken outside and set up for the wedding—an arch sat on the far side of the Great Room. Arthur had built it for Ginny's wedding.
After the wedding, the arch would be stored here at Potter Manor until Harry and Ginny move into a house and have the garden space for it.
Jewels, the florist, was decorating it with the mix of flowers Ginny had picked for the wedding—a blend of roses and peonies to match the flowers in Effie's garden.
Outside in the garden, the marquee was already set up, a job Ginny had given to four of her brothers. Arthur assisted them, along with James and Sirius.
It had been a year in the making. Ginny had set a date for their wedding in June, which nearly sent Molly into a state of panic because Harry had proposed at the end of May. Ginny quickly assured her mother she was talking about next June. Molly sighed in relief, holding her chest.
Lily was sure if Ginny told Harry she wanted to get married in two weeks from the day they got engaged, he would make it happen.
He had a habit of making her happy. It was of the many things he had learned from James.
Lily had to give her husband credit. He taught their son how to love and respect the woman he loves well.
Harry claims it was because James set the example of how he treated Lily. She couldn't disagree.
Taking Care of his Girl (Sixth Year)
Lily had seen the box be delivered to Ginny during breakfast. She knew what was inside the box, knowing where it had come from. The apothecary always sent feminine care items in discreet boxes. Anyone else would think Ginny got a care package from Molly or even Charlie, who was known to send things to his siblings occasionally. However, the fact that Ron didn't get one told Lily it wasn't from Molly.
Her suspicions were confirmed later when Ginny arrived at the hospital wing for her potion. Because of sudden onset side effects, Ginny and any other girl taking the potion had to take it in the hospital wing under Lily's supervision. Luckily for Lily, none of the girls experienced any side effects.
"Do you know what your son did?" Ginny asked.
"What did he do?" Lily inquired, playing along
"I mentioned to Hermione that I need my supplies, and I'll need to get them this weekend when we go to Hogsmeade. I had admitted to her I didn't think I would have enough money to purchase them and the other things I needed."
Lily had a feeling she knew where this was going.
"I thought the boys weren't paying attention. Well, apparently, Harry was."
Lily smiled.
"He ordered my sanitary pads and cleaning cloths."
"He did, did he?" Lily knew. Harry had asked her for the order form and the catalog. When he flipped to the feminine care section, she had a feeling what he was doing. She was even more surprised when Harry pulled wrappers out of his pocket.
"I had Hermione get them for me," Harry informed her. "She brought them to me, and I stuffed them into my pocket before anyone saw."
Hermione later told Lily she had pulled them out of the rubbish bin in the bathroom. Ginny had enough to manage until the weekend, and if she needed anything, Hermione would share some of her supplies.
Lily smiled. "I had walked in on him making the order. I knew they were for you. All I can say is Ginny, he wants to take care of you."
That was what Harry said when she asked why he ordered Ginny's supplies. She knew why but wanted to hear it from her son.
"I want to take care of her, Mum. This way, she doesn't have to worry about having enough money to buy them."
Lily smiled. "Alright, James Potter," She said. "You are just like your Dad. He's bought my supplies before and more."
James even paid for her to go to healer's school. There was so much James Potter did for her that Lily had literally lost count at this point.
"All I can say, Ginny, is my son has a kind heart. He wanted to take care of you."
Ginny smiled.
"When I told my friends, they were shocked. Their boyfriends won't even touch the package of pads. Ron would if Hermione asked him to get her some for her."
Lily chuckled.
"Do I have you to thank for teaching Harry how to look after me?" Ginny asked.
"No, actually, it was James. He showed Harry by example. James has been nothing but good to me since we got together. He paid for everything I needed, even though he really didn't need to. James stepped up tenfold when my parents died," Lily paused and swallowed down the lump in her throat. "He paid for my schooling. He told me when I said I would pay him back, he said I didn't need to. All he wanted was for me to be happy."
Ginny smiled. She had seen how James treated Lily, bringing her tea and anything she requested from the shop.
"Does he know that Harry did this?"
Lily nodded. Harry mentioned to her while filling out the order form he remembered James telling him how he looked after Lily.
"I say yes, he's probably seen the transfer from the account by now."
Lily had signed the order form for Harry to have the money transferred from Harry's account. She told James about it over the mirrors. James couldn't help but grin.
After talking to Lily about how she felt the potion was working, Ginny left the hospital wing.
Madam Pomfrey came over as Lily was cleaning up.
"I got to give James credit. He did a good job. Harry did learn from the best."
Lily grinned. "I knew Harry went to James for advice. Occasionally, he comes to me, but he goes to James."
"And James set a good example of how to treat the woman he loves."
"He has," Lily agreed.
That wasn't the first time that year Harry had ordered or bought Ginny's feminine care supplies.
Actually, it was something Harry has continued to do even to this day.
Harry was going to make sure Ginny was taken care of by any means necessary.
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Lily took her cup to the kitchen sink, rinsed it, and put it in the sink to be washed in the morning. She returned to the kitchen table, sitting down in one of the chairs.
Sitting in the quiet kitchen, Lily looked at the starry sky out the window. Star gazing was one of the many things she did during their time in hiding. She would look out at the sky, wondering where her son was. It was a long nine months of wondering where her son was. Was he safe, or was he alive?
Three years later, here they were the night before his and Ginny's wedding.
As she reflected over the past three years, she remembered the days following the war. She had a moment of deja view, reminded of the summer following Harry's fourth year—nightmares, sleepless nights, and not eating.
The only difference was he had Ginny. She was a source of support for Harry, and he returned the favor to her.
There were funerals, memorials, and even celebrations.
Harry had attended most of the funerals and memorials but had only attended one celebration, the celebration of life Geroge put on for Fred. It was how George had coped with the loss of his twin brother and was the start of his own healing.
The loss of Fred, Remus, and Tonks, among others, weighed on Harry. He thought it was his fault. It took seeing a mind healer for Harry to realize the deaths wasn't his fault. None of the family blamed him. James and Sirius didn't blame him for Remus's death. Andromeda didn't blame him for Tonks's death. When he attended Colin's funeral with Ginny, Dennis hugged him, telling him they had no ill feelings toward him.
It was a long summer of healing as they adjusted to their new normal—a life without the threat of Voldemort.
A lot of Harry's healing came from having Ginny.
Lily saw the healing herself and had Ginny to thank for helping her son heal from that horrible year.
Healing After the War
Lily had put it off long enough. It was time to unpack the room Remus stayed in when he was staying with the Potters. The number of bedrooms was a selling point when they viewed the house many years ago. James commented that Remus and Sirius could have their own room when they stayed over, sharing the hall bathroom.
Taking a deep breath, Lily opened the door to the bedroom. It was filled with boxes. The furniture sat in the middle of the floor. James and Sirius didn't want to be in this room longer than necessary.
Lily couldn't blame them.
There was a handful of Remus's personal belongings in the room he kept at the Potter's for the occasions he had to stay over unplanned.
Opening the first box, Lily found a picture frame of James, Sirius, and Remus. She stared at it for a second before sitting it down on the dresser.
She pulled out books, more framed photos, mostly of James, Sirius, Remus, and Harry, and the little knickknacks she decorated the room with.
Using her wand, she moved the furniture back into its place.
They had packed up the house in haste. So quickly, in fact, she had found some things in these boxes that belonged in their bedroom. One of which was a picture of James and Harry taken at Harry's first quidditch match when he was five.
She picked up the items she needed to move to her bedroom and left the room, walking across the hall to her and James's bedroom.
Sitting the picture of James and Harry on James's nightstand, Lily glanced out the window for a second.
She smiled at the scene before her.
Harry and Ginny were in the hammock, nestled in a cocoon of comfort and tranquility. There was a softness in their posture, a silent acknowledgment that they had found solace in each other.
Ginny was curled up against Harry's side, her head on his chest, her arm around his waist. Harry was on his back, his arm around her.
Harry had unearthed James's hammock from the box that went out to the storage shed. He had found it when he helped James unpack, clear out, and organize the shed. It was hanging between the two trees, the divider between the quidditch pitch at the further end of the garden and the part of the garden close to the house.
The sun cast dappled shadows through the leaves, creating a mosaic of light on their faces. Harry's glasses were slightly askew, his hair as untamed as ever, but his expression was one of utter peace. Ginny's red hair glowed like a halo. Her lips curved in a gentle smile as she whispered something that made Harry chuckle softly.
The summer wind rocked them gently.
Lily couldn't help but smile and was grateful that James was in the office at the moment. He would have interrupted their time together.
It had been almost a month since the Battle at Hogwarts. It had been a week since the last funeral, but it all felt unreal.
Ginny had arrived that morning a little before ten.
Harry took her into the village to explore and eat lunch at the diner. The same diner where Harry worked at for two weeks, filling in for one of the bussers who was on vacation, and Harry put the money he earned towards a new broom for Ginny.
She still had it. She brought it with her last week so she and Harry could go for a fly and play a game of one-on-one quidditch. Ginny also wanted to run a few Chaser drills, and while Keeper wasn't Harry's strong suit, he did it for her.
Her broom was still in the broom shed in the Potter's back garden.
Lily watched them for a moment. This wasn't the first time she had seen them in the hammock. She had found them in the hammock the summer before Harry's sixth year. She just watched them, trusting them completely, which is what she was doing now.
She could see lips moving but didn't know what was being said.
Lily's heart swelled with a mix of pride and joy as she watched her son and the girl he loved. She had been there through it all: the fear, the battles, and the heartache. To see her boy, now a man, finding moments of happiness and love filled her with an indescribable sense of peace. The war had taken so much, but it had also brought them closer, forged in fire and tempered by the love they shared.
Lily took one last look at the hammock and returned to her task.
"You come second to him now," Her subconscious said.
"And?" She thought.
Once again, Lily felt she couldn't thank Ginny enough. Even while dealing with her own grief, she was helping Harry heal from his. They both were helping each other heal.
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Lily smiled softly, remembering the journey that had led to this moment. Harry and Ginny had faced so much together, their bond growing stronger with each challenge. She had seen how Harry's eyes lit up when Ginny entered the room, how Ginny's laughter brought a sparkle to Harry's soul. They were a perfect match, two hearts that had found their way to each other.
Harry was afraid to date her because she was his best friend's sister. When he admitted to Ron that he had feelings for Ginny, Ron was more than supportive. He was encouraging.
Even though he, Fred, and George had the same question.
"Do you know what you're getting yourself into?"
To this day, Ron still says why he was so supportive of Harry dating Ginny.
"I trust him with Ginny. I know he'll treat her right."
The kitchen door creaked open, and James stepped inside. His hair was messy from sleep. His pajamas were wrinkled. He paused momentarily, taking in the sight of his wife deep in thought.
"Penny for your thoughts?" James asked, his voice gentle as he crossed the room and sat beside her.
Lily looked up, her emerald eyes meeting his hazel eyes.
"Just thinking about tomorrow," she replied with a soft smile. "It's hard to believe our little boy is getting married. How did we get here so fast?"
James chuckled, reaching out to take her hand. His fingers enlaced with hers. He brought her hand to his mouth to kiss the back of her hand.
"Time flies, doesn't it?"
Lily nodded.
"He's found his own happiness with Ginny. They're so perfect for each other."
"They really are," James agreed. "You can see it in the way they look at each other, the way they support each other. They've been through so much, yet here they are, stronger than ever."
Lily nodded, her heart swelling with pride and love.
"I couldn't have asked for a better girl for Harry. Ginny is everything he needs and more."
James squeezed her hand gently. "And we're lucky to have them both. Tomorrow will be a beautiful day. A celebration of love and family."
As they sat there in the quiet of the kitchen, the anticipation of the coming day filled the air with a sense of magic. Lily leaned her head on James's shoulder, feeling the steady beat of his heart. Together, they had faced their own battles and come out the other side, their love unwavering.
Lily broke the silence that descended on the kitchen.
"We've done well, haven't we?" Lily asked, her voice filled with emotion. "Raising Harry?"
James kissed the top of her head, and a gentle smile played on his lips.
"Yes, we have," he said softly. "Look at what we've built, Lily. We've raised an incredible son who has found his own path and happiness. We've faced every challenge together, and we've come out stronger because of it."
Lily's eyes shimmered with unshed tears.
"We've given him the love and support he needed to become the man he is today. And now, we're watching him take this next step with someone who loves him just as deeply."
James kissed the top of her head. "We have, love. Tomorrow, we'll see the next chapter of our family's story unfold. I can't wait."
Lily closed her eyes, savoring the warmth of the moment between her and James. As the night before the wedding stretched on, she knew that the love they had built would continue to shine through the generations, lighting the way for Harry and Ginny as they embarked on their own journey together.
AN: Announcement! A Very Potter Wedding is coming in 2025!