He would have preferred to fly to Voldemort's clearing, as he had before, but he didn't have a broom. His Firebolt got Luna's three children to safety during Wakefield's attack (which was now being called The Second Battle of Hogwarts), but it had snapped in half 15 feet off the ground. Terrell broke his arm. Suraj broke his leg. Min was fine but now planned a career as a quidditch star. She even ran around on a broom she made, which Harry thought he saw levitating for a moment.

It was nearly dark before the trees closed in above him. He lit his wand and held it ahead of him, ready for trouble. None came. He could clearly hear every living thing in the forest rushing away from him. The surviving spider had told its tale to its brethren, and the rest of the forest must have heard. Nothing wanted to chance a confrontation with him.

Harry moved deeper into the forest, following his memories. Headmaster Panoply didn't know what a pensieve was, didn't even know it was hidden in his office. He approved Harry taking it, as he was too busy repairing the damage, helping build a memorial to fallen teachers, students, and one Ministry official.

His memories from the pensieve were clear and sharp. He didn't even need to use his eyes. After a few minutes of walking, he reached his destination. He bent down, feeling the wet dirt and pebbles at his feet. It was tempting to use his wand, but he decided against it. His fingers were sensitive enough to tell the sharp angles of the Resurrection Stone apart from ordinary gravel.

There was something sharp in the mud. He dug at it with his fingernails for a moment before it popped into his hand. He stood and curled his muddy fingers around it.

Ginny appeared immediately. She shimmered, transparent, and smiled at him.

"I forgot how beautiful you were."

"I'd blush," she said, shyly looking at the ground, "if I still had skin."

Harry laughed in spite of himself. He'd forgotten she was funny, too.

"Please tell me you aren't planning on walking to your death again," she said.

"No," he said. "No. I needed to ask you something. I needed to tell you something, too."

"I'm all ears."

"The morning of the Battle of Hogwarts. I'd defeated Voldemort. I walked back into the castle, and everyone was applauding. I walked straight to you. We kissed. We hugged."

"I remember," she said, looking suddenly uncomfortable.

"I walked past Luna. Barely acknowledged her. Did you-"

"Yes," she said, cutting him off. "Yes, I altered your memory. I used obliviate to make you forget you'd screwed her in the coat closet."

Harry sighed and leaned back against a tree.

"Why?"

She raised her eyebrows.

"'Why?' Seriously? Because I saw you! I saw you go in, and I was worried. I followed you. And I saw Luna."

Ginny rolled her eyes into the back of her head and let her mouth hang open. She put her arms around an imaginary boy and made little squeaking sounds.

"Yes Harry! Yes Harry!" she said in a nasal voice.

"Stop it," Harry said.

"I ran out of the castle. I wanted to die. I was going to duel the first Death Eater I came across. If he didn't kill me, I'd go find another and another until I found Voldemort or someone got me."

"But you saw an injured girl and helped her."

"You saw that?" Ginny said and slapped her forehead. "Right, the invisibility cloak. Anyway, you died, and I thought I'd lost you, but you came back. I realized, if I didn't do something, I'd lose you again. You'd walk straight to Luna and forget about me. After all, we'd just kissed a few times. She gave you… Well, you know."

Harry nodded. "I don't remember Luna telling me about our baby. She said I looked at her funny and acted strangely."

"That was me," Ginny said, "under the table. I cast another obliviate. Then I told her to never bring it up again."

"How could you?" Harry said, surprising himself with his own rage. "How could you keep that from me?"

"Because you would have left me!" Ginny said, her anger matching his. "We weren't married yet. Now, suddenly, you have a baby coming with another girl. I'd have to admit I'd altered your memory. You'd have left me for her. For them."

"You don't know that."

Ginny shrugged. "Are the rest of the questions the same?"

"Harriet went to Hogwarts with Teddy. They knew each other. He even gave her the Marauder's Map. He practically lived with us over the summer breaks. How come I don't remember him mentioning her?"

Ginny sighed. "Yes, I altered your memories and asked him not to mention her again."

"And when she went missing?"

"I hid the newspapers. Asked your coworkers to work the case without you. Asked friends not to mention it. And yes, I had to alter your memory once. Or twice."

Harry squatted, rubbing his dirty palms into his eyes. He nearly dropped the Stone.

"How many times?" Harry said. "How many times did you alter my memory?"

Ginny wouldn't meet his eyes. "I don't know."

"Five times?"

"I don't know."

"Ten? Twenty?"

"I said I don't know!"

"How can you not know?" Harry said, practically shouted, at her. In the distance, more creatures ran. "Ginny, that many obliviates can cause permanent brain damage."

Ginny didn't answer. She just kept looking away.

"Were you ever going to remove the charms?"

"I don't know. Yes. Someday when you weren't obsessed with Luna anymore. Someday when I knew you wouldn't leave me for her."

Harry gaped at her.

"I was never obsessed!"

"Really?" she said. "I let you name our children. You picked six names." Ginny held up six fingers. "Two dead parents." She lowered two fingers. "Three dead teachers." She lowered three fingers. She held up her thumb. "And Luna."

Harry flushed with embarrassment. He hadn't even realized what he'd done.

"I wouldn't have left you," he said.

"No?" she said, crossing her arms. "How long after I died did you wait before you ran to Luna? Hm? Was I even cold in the ground before you rushed over to bury your head neck-deep in her cunt?"

Harry jumped a little in surprise.

"Never heard you use the c-word before. Thought you hated swearing."

"Yeah, well, dying changes a person," she said, smiling a little.

Harry stared at her smile for a long while. He'd forgotten how much he liked it. The forest was still and calm.

"Why?" he said. "Why didn't you trust me?"

"How can you not know the answer to that?"

"Just tell me," Harry said.

She groaned and brushed back her hair.

"You could have had anyone," she said. "Any girl in the school. Probably any boy, too."

"Don't exaggerate."

"I'm not. You could have picked Hermione, the smartest girl in school. You would have lived a life of intellectual stimulation. You could have picked Romilda Vane, the richest girl in school. You would have lived a life of wealth and relaxation. You could have picked Padma, the prettiest, and everyone would have been jealous. You could have picked Cho-"

"Ginny," Harry said, trying to interrupt. She ignored him.

"But you picked Ginerva Molly Weasley. You picked the girl who was only the best at being obsessed with you. From the moment I saw you, you were all I wanted. And you? You got a life with someone who would do anything, anything at all, to keep you."

She sighed.

"In the end, I guess, Luna still got you. Every single time you took me to bed, I'd see her face." She did the impersonation of Luna orgasming again. "Now she gets you again."

Ghostly tears had formed in her eyes. He reached out to comfort her but pulled his hand back. She wasn't really there.

"I didn't pick you because you were obsessed with me," Harry said. "I picked you because I couldn't imagine picking anyone else. Maybe you weren't the richest or the smartest or the prettiest-"

"You sure know how to flatter a girl," she said.

"I picked you because you were the most you. And, you know what? I got someone smart and pretty and funny and a good mother."

Ginny was crying freely now. She smiled at him.

"There's more," Harry said. "I wanted to tell you… I wanted to tell you I found your killer."

She stiffened for a moment.

"Who?"

"I thought it was a dark wizard trying to hurt me. I was cursed and brought it home to you. However, it was just Harriet's memory repair spell. It shouldn't have hurt anyone. Krum said it met some unexpected resistance in me and became malignant."

"You're saying I killed myself."

Harry nodded. "When you put all those memory charms on me. It twisted the spell, made it leap out and hurt you."

She crouched on the ground, covering her face. "Fuck! I screwed up. I screwed everything up."

He wanted to reach out, to comfort her, but it was no good. None of this was any good. He regretting finding the stone. It wasn't giving him closure. It was just making him sad.

Ginny brushed her hair back. "Mulciber was right. It always is family."

"Me, you, and Harriet. He was right three times."

"So, what now?" she said, standing. "You going to move in with Luna and Harriet?"

"I can't. If the three of us are together too long, the sidhe will be able to find us. Come back to our world for revenge. We'll have to take turns. Luna is going to spend a few months with Harriet. Travel the world. Help her deal with her trauma. I'll take care of the boys. See if we can transition Min out of foster care. Then I'll switch with Luna. Spend a few months getting to know Harriet. Then, who knows?"

"Then you and Luna can get back to fucking."

"Ginny, what do you want from me?" Harry said, exasperated. "You're gone. We can't be together. Do you want me to spend my life alone? Is that really what you want?"

"I want you," she said, staring up at something Harry couldn't see. "It's all I ever wanted. When I got you, I held on so tight it killed me. Now it doesn't matter what I want. What do you want? Do you want to drop that stone in the mud again and forget me? Do you want to hang on to it? Maybe talk to me every now and then?"

Harry looked at the grimy stone in his hand. It was easier than looking her in the eye.

"I don't know."

"Take your time," Ginny said. "There's no hurry."

She stood and watched him until long after the sun rose.