Shelter from the Storm

Ginny stepped out into the street, and then took a deep breath to clear her head. A few seconds later she drew her winter cloak tighter around her body to shield herself from the icy wind and the falling snow. The orange-glowing street was almost empty, although it was New Year’s Eve. Ginny was sure that everyone was celebrating in a warm and festively decorated house or flat. And not only the Muggles; she knew that the Wizarding community had much to celebrate. The Darkest Wizard, Lord Voldemort, was finally defeated. Wizards and witches had mourned their lost ones in the past months, now it was time to rejoice.

Ginny looked around and sighed. The snow was almost knee-high in front of the building and it emanated a coldness she could barely stand. She stayed on the street nonetheless. She looked back and could scarcely make out the sign “Purge and Dowse Ltd.”; she merely knew that it must be there. This place was becoming like a second home to her. The dummies in the window were barely lit, just enough to see them. Ginny looked up and another sigh escaped her lips. There, on the fourth floor the three most important people in her life were lying in their hospital beds, still battling, but this time the darkness was in their own heads. Only one of them was failing to put up a real fight, as if he decided that, for him, there was no reason to live. Ginny fought back the tears welling up in her eyes.

She remembered the past three and a half years, as the people in her life went away. One by one they went; first Sirius, then Dumbledore and the others soon followed. The break-up with Harry made everything worse, but the first real shock came when Fleur died. And Ginny felt real guilt for the second time in her life; she knew she should have been nicer to Fleur. Bill was, of course, devastated, it happened three weeks after their wedding. Fleur had gone to France to help Madame Maxime to rally the French wizards against Voldemort. After Fleur’s funeral, Bill was not the same anymore. Of course, no one had much to laugh about, but Bill was depressed. No treatment was effective enough to help him, no friends could console him. He only showed any emotion when news about dead or captured Death Eaters reached them. Then there was something in Bill that scared them all; an almost evil glint of triumph appeared in his eyes, when Kingsley informed them about a successful raid or when Moody reported that he caught some Death Eaters down south.

And then came the second shock. Moody, the indestructible Mad-Eye Moody, was killed during a raid at a home of a known supporter of Voldemort. Not long after that, the Weasley family had to revisit the graveyard; Bill was murdered on his journey back from the Delacours’. Her Mum and Dad stood there in a kind of stupor, and no one could comfort them, not even their own children. But that was only the beginning. By the end of the year, the Order was decimated; and no one knew, not even Ginny, if Harry, Ron and Hermione were still alive. Ginny spent Christmas at Hogwarts. She felt like a coward, but she thought she couldn’t stand the blank look in her mother’s eyes. It made her losses somehow final. And then more guilt descended upon her. On the very morning of the new year, Errol brought a letter. Her mother was injured and hospitalized. As if a bad omen, the old family owl died after Ginny detached her father’s letter from his leg. McGonagall let Ginny go, but her mother couldn’t speak to her anymore. She could kiss her one last time; and it was at her Mum’s funeral that she last saw her father and twin brothers, who were killed by Voldemort himself on a fateful night, when the remaining Order members and the Death Eaters clashed in a battle of great importance.

Charlie came to Hogwarts to tell her the bad news. It was almost June and Ginny went home to an almost empty Burrow. Charlie was of course there, he was her guardian, but Ginny barely talked to him. Together they went to visit Percy; they wanted to be reconciled with him. But he wasn’t home, and no one knew at the Ministry where he was. They were still worried about Ron, when on a muggy night the three appeared at The Burrow. Ron and Hermione went to pay their last respects to the members of the Weasley family and they had stayed in the graveyard till the next morning. Ginny spent the whole night sobbing into Harry’s robe, but after sunrise the three of them disappeared just as unexpectedly as they came.

From then on Harry always sent a letter to her, telling her they were alright. He persuaded her to go back to Hogwarts for her last year, and Ginny finally agreed. His letters came once a month and Ginny found comfort in them, although they contained no real information. She sat her N.E.W.T.s on a balmy June day, and the whole world seemed to stay still for one perfect moment, when Harry arrived at Hogwarts and took her into his arms. He had changed a bit, but so had Ginny. Ginny discovered a side to Harry that wasn’t there before. A darker, more dangerous side. Before that she couldn’t imagine Harry using one of the Unforgivable Curses, but right then and there, Ginny knew he would be able, if he was forced to. They visited Dumbledore’s tomb, where Harry told her everything about the Horcruxes and his mission to find them. He had just completed this mission, he informed Ginny. Hermione even succeeded in destroying three of them. Two had already been destroyed, one by Dumbledore and one by Sirius’ brother. But the two remaining parts of Voldemort’s soul were still intact.

Harry, Hermione and Ron consulted Kingsley and Remus, and they succeeded in rallying the whole Order one more time against the Death Eaters. Ginny joined them, although Harry asked her to stay behind. And because of her choice her best friend was dead, her two brothers and lover were hovering between death and life. The first tragedy of that historic evening resulted from Hermione’s decision to throw herself in harm’s way in order to save Ginny from a curse, which was aimed at her. When Ron rushed to her aide he was badly hit with a nasty spell from Bellatrix Lestrange. Ginny could only watch in horror as his back arched into a tight curve and then he fell back next to Hermione. She wanted to run to them but her legs didn’t obey. Charlie had to help her up, and then sister and brother fought back to back against the remaining Death Eaters. But Ginny’s mind was occupied with the images of Hermione’s and Ron’s defeat so she couldn’t pay attention. She only noticed that Charlie was falling when it was too late. Harry cast a last look at her, before he went for Voldemort. Ginny thought she saw dismay and rage in his eyes. Voldemort used this exact moment to cast a spell similar to the body-binding spell on Harry. He announced that he would kill everyone off and all Harry could do was watch. Ginny, as if coming out of a stupor, realized that there was her final chance. While Voldemort went after Remus, she woke Harry up. Harry was still feeble, so Ginny knew that it must have been a more effective spell than Petrificus Totalus. Harry’s stir didn’t go unnoticed by his nemesis. Ginny saw this coming and gripped Harry’s hand which was holding his wand. With all her might she concentrated on Harry. They had to say the spell, which put an end to the Dark Lord’s life and reign in this world, together. Harry collapsed on the spot and had never regained consciousness since then. In the newspapers and magazines Ginny was celebrated as a heroine, which only added to her survivor’s guilt.

She could hardly bear it, but she knew she had to go on. She ate whenever someone put a plate in front of her. This was usually Cho or Tonks. She looked up again and imagined them sitting up there on the fifth floor, not talking to each other; just somehow finding some consolation in each other’s presence. In any case that was how Ginny felt. She couldn’t remember the last time she heard them talking, but she was thankful for them being there. Tonks came to offer Ginny some moral support, but Cho’s arrival at the hospital was something of a surprise, although Ginny knew that Charlie had asked her out on a few dates. How exactly they first met, she didn’t know.

The wind was getting icier and stronger every minute. Ginny took a last look around and turned to go inside again, when she noticed a slightly familiar figure heading towards the hospital. Although his head was bent down and his back was hunched as he fought his way through the raging snow-storm, Ginny knew in an instant who he was. As he drew level with her, she whispered his name.

“Percy.”

Ginny doubted that he heard her whisper, but nonetheless he looked up and an indescribable emotion swept across his face. Ginny’s heart was filled with joy upon seeing Percy, but at the same time she was anxious to see how he would react.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, his voice almost accusatory.

“What am I doing here?” Ginny asked back in a high-pitched voice, anger rising up in her. How does he dare? she thought and then shouted, “How dare you ask me that? Our two brothers―”

“I know why you are at St. Mungo’s,” Percy interrupted her. “Why are you out in the cold?”

Ginny swallowed her anger and looked at her brother. He is worried about me? she silently asked herself.

“Let’s get inside!” Percy took her arm and they stepped into the hospital through the watery substance.

Ginny was still thinking over her brother’s reaction, so she let him lead her up to the visitors’ room. Cho and Tonks looked up as they stepped into the room, but ―to Ginny’s utter puzzlement― they were deep in conversation so they barely nodded to greet Percy. If Ginny heard them right, they were talking about Charlie’s condition.
“Sit down!” Percy told her. Ginny wanted to protest first, but then realized that she wanted to sit down anyway.

“Why were you out in the cold, Ginny?” he asked with a frown, as he took his seat, after placing two cups of tea in front of them.

“I wanted to clear my head,” she explained. “Why were you?” she asked back.

“I came to escort Penny home. Her shift is soon over.”

“I see. So you two are…?” she asked.

“Married, yes,” Percy replied. “How are Charlie and Ron today?”

“Charlie is getting better, but Ron’s condition is ‘unchanged’ as the Healer-in-Charge told us,” Ginny informed him.

“I see,” Percy murmured and lowered his head.

Ginny took in his appearance. She already noticed that his face was lined, he was getting older, and he looked even older than he really was. His robe and cloak were clean, but not very fancy. His hands showed signs of physical work. He seemed to be stronger when she last saw him.

“And how are you, Percy?” Ginny asked him.

He looked up for a moment and Ginny saw pain in his eyes.

“I’m okay,” he answered.

“Where are you living?” Ginny inquired.

“In London. We have a little flat near St. Mungo’s.”

“And what are you doing?” Ginny asked.

“I’m working for the Mortimer Lumber Company.”

“Are you a logger?” she asked. She couldn’t hide her astonishment; Percy had never done any work around the house when he lived at the Burrow.

“It’s a job to keep us above water,” Percy said. “Since no one will give me a job in the Wizarding World,” he said with some bitterness in his voice.

“Well” Ginny wanted to say something encouraging, but words failed her.

“I know it’s my fault, Ginny,” he told her.
“Yes, it is,” Ginny said with a nod. “But not only yours. I have had enough time to think things over, Percy. We’ve never understood your desires. We’ve made fun of you and I know that must have hurt.”

“It did,” Percy admitted.

“And Mum and Dad―”

“They were always very supportive of whatever I wanted to do, Ginny,” Percy said, with a warning undertone.

“I wasn’t saying anything bad about them. I’ve just wanted to say that they wanted to control your opinions, when they told you that Fudge is only using you. They were over protective, and that was okay, because they were our parents. But they should have known that wouldn’t work. Besides, maybe you would have come to this conclusion sooner or later. You were very clever.”

“Yes, but very tenacious and pushy at the same time,” Percy owned up.

“You weren’t pushy, just ambitious,” Ginny corrected him with a little smile.

“Those ambitions made me blind,” he said, the bitterness returning into his voice. “I mean, I can’t recall that Mother or Father ever wanted to make me do something I didn’t want, unless there was some very good reason. That should have been a good enough indication.”

“That’s right,” Ginny said with a nod. “But you were a teenager and teenage boys tend to question authority. That’s what Harry told me once,” she added in a whisper.

“How is he?” Percy asked her.

“Better, they think,” Ginny replied.

“But…?” Percy wanted to know, why Ginny didn’t say this with a little more enthusiasm.

“Do you think he would ever forgive me for being the cause of one of his best friend’s death?”

“I thought Hermione Granger was your friend, too.”

“We were best friends,” Ginny whispered.
“Then she gave her life with no regret,” Percy told her.

“But I― never mind, I don’t want to talk about this,” Ginny brushed the topic aside with a movement of her hand.
“But you are here and you are waiting for him to wake up,” Percy stated the obvious.

“I love him,” Ginny said, giving the simplest but most persuasive explanation in the world.

“What about them?” Percy asked, indicating Tonks and Cho with a slight movement of his head.

“Tonks is here because of me. Cho came because of Charlie. I think she really likes him.”

“That’s good,” Percy said with a little smile.

“Talking about relationships, how was your wedding?” Ginny asked curiously.

“Simple,” came Percy’s answer.

“Why didn’t you invite us to the ceremony?” Ginny wanted to know.

“It was a Muggle-ceremony, Ginny. Penny’s brother and mother escorted us to a registrar.”

“And what about the Wizarding ceremony?” Ginny asked slightly taken aback. She couldn’t imagine a marriage without a Wizarding ceremony.

“I didn’t want it. I wanted Father to be our Bonder,” Percy explained.

“But he is dead, Percy,” Ginny told him.

“I know that!” Percy replied in a stifled shout. “I was at their funeral.”

“I didn’t see you there,” Ginny told him accusingly.

“I was there,” Percy said. “I saw their coffin, Ginny,” he said, his voice breaking.

Ginny blinked back the tears in her eyes and looked at her brother again. She saw him nursing his cup, but now he was clinging onto that little thing like it was his lifeline. She reached out and took his hand into hers. She felt his hand quivering, but then it came to a rest. Percy let out a relieved sigh and looked into Ginny’s eyes.

“Thank you,” he spoke, barely audible.

Ginny smiled at him in reply and they sat there in silence for almost a minute.
“You know, you and Penny should move into The Burrow,” she suggested, and it sounded as if she had entertained this idea for quite a while.

Percy looked up at her with a mingled expression of surprised shock and weary wistfulness.

“I don’t think that―” he began, but was interrupted promptly by his sister.

“It’s empty. I don’t know what Charlie wants to do, but he told me once that The Burrow is not close enough to a mountain, and he can’t imagine his life without having a house with a view of a nice mountain.”

“And you?”

“You can keep a room for me, but The Burrow is a house for a family. And I won’t have any, not without him.”

“And what if―”

“No ‘what ifs’ now, Percy,” she forbade him to explore the chances. “Are you taking the offer?” she asked outright.

“If you’re really serious about this, then yes,” he consented.

“Yes, I’m deadly serious. Make yourself home at The Burrow and have some kids. The house is yearning for kids; that’s what Charlie said last time we were there. And I think―”

“But I don’t think I’m worthy of―” Percy wanted to insert, but was interrupted by Ginny.

“Have you ever stopped loving them?” she asked bluntly.

“No, for Merlin’s sake, no!” Percy exclaimed, outraged.

“And I’m sure they know that,” Ginny reassured him.

“But I was utterly cruel to all of you,” Percy said with a regretful sigh.

“That’s right,” Ginny acknowledged. “But Ron, the twins and I thought you were a git, and we wouldn’t have minded quite as much if you hadn’t been so mean to Mum. But you are right; you were cruel to Mum when you sent that jumper back.”

“I know and I very much regret all of that, Ginny. And don’t tell me you weren’t hurt. I sent you that letter, which was not only cruel but malicious, too.”

“It only showed how very little you knew me then. No one could have made me give up on Harry; I was so in love with him. I still am. No one could convince me to desert him, or leave him for sure. I forgave you long ago. And Mum forgave you, too. There was only one thing she couldn’t forget,” she added. Ginny knew she couldn’t withhold the truth from Percy. “You never visited father when he was at the hospital on that Christmas.”

“I was here, when he was asleep. I saw that Bill was sitting with him,” Percy told her. “And Penny always reported me whatever happened to him.”

“I see,” Ginny said. “So then there is nothing in your way, you can move in. Really,” she emphasized her point with a nod of her head.

“Thank you, Ginny,” he replied gratefully. “I should look for Penny, then.”

“Good, do that,” Ginny said, nodding while she smiled. He bent down and placed a light kiss on the top of her head. That was what Bill used to do, whenever he went away.

“Everything will be all right, Ginny,” he reassured her. “See, it’s New Year already,” he pointed outside, where colorful fireworks lit up the sky. “Everything will be fine this year,” Percy promised her.

Ginny nodded, but couldn’t believe in that promise. She knew she was beyond salvation until Harry would awake and even then maybe forever.


Many thanks to Lys, my beta!