First ever published works! Enjoy!


Disclaimer: I don’t own Harry Potter, or any of the other stuff in here that is probably copyrighted. (if I did I wouldn’t be writing fics)


Chapter 1
Harry Potter turned his head to look out the window, where a storm was raging, the lightning flashes illuminating the swaying trees and the sheets of rain pouring from the sky. There was a feeling of tension in the air; something was about to happen.

He looked across at his girlfriend, Sara, who was reading a book in her favourite armchair by the fire, and was obviously not feeling the suspense that was almost suffocating Harry. They had been going out for about three years now, which meant that everyone else thought that they were getting pretty serious, and it was only Harry who thought that this wasn’t going to be a permanent relationship.

Because the longer he was with Sara, the more he felt that he had to get away. The guilt and pain that he felt whenever he was around her made him want to yell out loud. She’s gone. You have to move on. But the more he told himself this, the more the thought of what could have been absorbed him, enveloping his heart in an ice-cold grip.

He stood up and walked into the lounge, needing to be away from Sara for a moment. He sat on the expensive, uncomfortable seat that she had insisted on buying last year, and picked up the photo album that Sara had been arranging all of their photos in for the past two days. Some of the photos were still sitting in the back of the album; he picked these up and started to shuffle through them.

These pictures were much older than the ones already in the album. There was some of Sara as a little girl, her smile frozen forever in a mischievous grin. Here were the photos of her first day at school, looking nervously excited as she clutched her bag in one hand and her mother’s hand in the other. Then suddenly, as he put down the last picture of his girlfriend, an invisible hand seemed to clutch his throat.

The last photo showed a pretty girl, laughing as she ran to one side of the frame, her brilliant red hair rippling in the breeze. She pulled a man with messy black hair and glasses into the frame, and he wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed the top of her head, before pulling her down onto the grass.

Harry put the photo down, gasping for air as though he had done two laps of a pool underwater. He thought he had put all his magical photos under the floorboard in his bedroom; Sara was a muggle, and he didn’t think she knew about Ginny either.

He picked up the photos from where he had dropped them on the ground, and started to put them back in the back of the album, leaving the picture of Ginny on the floor. He had just finished doing this when he heard Sara yawn, and her footsteps getting louder as she came closer to the lounge.

He quickly hid the photo and picked up a book that was lying on the coffee table, and pretended that he hadn’t heard her coming. She tapped him on the shoulder and he jumped in fake surprise, then stood and faced her.

“You know, you really should have that scar checked, honey,” she said, tracing it with her finger, “or at least cover it up.”

Harry nodded. He had long since learned that disagreeing with this remark caused long arguments, which was something he didn’t think he could handle right now. He watched as she stretched her arms wide and yawned, kissed him on the cheek (his heart felt like it was being jabbed with a knife), and walked upstairs to their bedroom.

Harry sat down again, feeling worse than he had in many years. Why did he have to be reminded of Ginny now? Because now that he had seen that picture, all the emotions that he had been ignoring and pushing away for so many years were finally coming back. Why couldn’t he tell Sara about what he was? He had felt comfortable telling Ginny anything. Why did he hate Sara so much for not liking his scar? Ginny had understood what it meant; not just to everyone else, but the deeper meaning, the more intimate meaning. She couldn’t have imagined Harry without it. Why did it hurt so much when Sara had to ask him what he wanted for a present, or even just dinner? Because Ginny had understood him so completely, and he her, that it had felt like they were one person; each of them had known the other more than themselves.

And why did he feel like he was being tortured every time Sara kissed him? Because he still loved Ginny. He had known this for a long time now, but tonight he was finally accepting it. He could never love someone else, when there was even the slightest possibly that Ginny was still out there.

She had been gone eight years now. Where, Harry did not know. But from tomorrow, he would not rest until he found out.

***

A cloaked figure moved quickly through the London streets, soaked to the skin and freezing cold. She was going to find him if it took her all night, and no little thunderstorm was going to stop her. Okay, not so little, she thought as she ducked, narrowly missing a branch that went flying past her ear.

She went into a bus shelter and took two scraps of paper out of the pocket of her cloak, and read them once more; though she had read them so many times already it felt like they was burned into her skull.

Ginny,
I know we cannot be together now, because I could
Not put you in danger, but
No matter what happens to me,
You know I will never stop loving you

This one was from Harry after he had left Hogwarts in his search for the Horcruxes; he had slid it under her bedroom door at the burrow before he left. After this, she had not seen him or Ron and Hermione for two years.

Love is....
What makes the ocean reach for the shore
Whatever it is that makes me want more
What makes the stars sparkle at night
What makes my knees weak at your sight
What makes us do the things that we do
What I will always feel for you

This one had been given to her by her mother, and after she had read it, everything had gone black, and she heard a voice in her ear, “Guess who?” She had squealed loudly and turned around to find Harry standing behind her; looking more handsome than ever, though with a large scratch across his face still dripping blood. He kissed her, then told her that they had finally destroyed the last Horcrux.

After that he had disappeared again. He had killed Voldemort, and become the most renowned wizard in the world. There were month-long celebrations, and Harry had come home. But then she had been kidnapped by Lucius Malfoy.

Again, she felt a horrible ache in her heart. Why had he never tried to find her? What if something had happened to him? What if he was…..no, don’t even think about it.

She walked out of the bus shelter, and was once again drenched in the pouring rain. Pulling her cloak tighter around her, she looked up at the house in front of her, and to her surprise, found exactly what she had been looking for. She walked up the front steps, and with only a moment’s hesitation, knocked on the front door.

***


Harry looked up quickly. Who could be here at this time of night, in this horrible weather? He put the picture of Ginny in his pocket and went to the door, peering curiously through the window as he passed it. He opened the door a fraction, and seeing the drenched figure in a cloak, he decided against letting them in without a name.

“Hello?”

“I’m sorry to bother you so late, but I was wondering whether someone by the name of Harry Potter still lived here,” said a female voice, slightly distorted by the rain pummelling the pavement outside.

“Yes, I still live here. Who is this?”

“An old friend, Harry.”

“Can you answer a couple of questions for me?” he hadn’t used security questions since Voldemort had been powerful, but he didn’t think it was such a good idea to let a nameless cloaked stranger into his house.

“Sure. Just make it quick, I’m freezing.”

“What form does my Patronus take?” he said, putting his easiest security question first.

“A stag.”

“Who are Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs?”

“The Marauders. Their real names are Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, your godfather, and James Potter, your father. I believe you still have a map of Hogwarts that they made.”

Harry was taken aback by this person’s knowledge of him. “Who was my first crush?” he said timidly, for this information was highly personal, and hard for him to talk about.

“I’m not quite sure, as you never actually told me, but your first kiss was in fifth year, with Cho Chang, that cow who turned out to be using you.”

He opened the door. The soaked figure stepped inside, pulled out her wand and began to dry her cloak and robes. While she did this, Harry took out the photo again, studying the face he would probably never see again. Before he could put it back in his pocket, however, the woman reached into her bag and pulled out two scraps of paper, which she put in his hand next to the picture. The words on the paper looked familiar.

“Where did you get these?”

“Someone gave them to me.”

Harry could feel the anger and confusion burning from within him. He tried to calm himself so the fury would not be heard in his voice, but when he spoke, his words had a harsh, steely edge.

“Who are you.” It wasn’t a question this time; it was more like an order. The anger in his voice seemed to startle the woman though, for she stepped back from him.

And as if in answer to his question, the woman reached down and pulled off her cloak, revealing who was underneath, her brilliant hair shining and her ice-blue eyes sparkling like diamonds.

It was Ginny.






That’s it until next time. Luv you all
chlo xoxoxoxoxoxo

Hi again guys!!! Thankyou to all my great readers, and especially to the fabulous people who reviewed!!!!! This chapter has been rejected two times, but third time lucky, I say! I'll do the disclaimer at the end so I don't give away any hints/surprises. Happy reading!


Chapter 2
Harry rolled over in bed, looking at the blurred shapes around his bedroom and trying to determine what had happened mere hours before. He felt a familiar lump rise in his throat, and tears welling up in his bottle green eyes. He stopped them, knowing that crying had never solved anything before; and probably wouldn’t help now.

Ginny. Alive. Ginny’s alive! He wanted to laugh out loud at the thought. Remembering what had come after the initial meeting, however, made this new-found happiness disappear as suddenly as it had come.

“Hi Harry,” she said innocently.

“Ginny?” he said hoarsely, sinking into the chair behind him, his eyes full of the pain and suffering of all their years apart.

“Why didn’t you come and find me, Harry?”

“Find you?” he said incredulously, “I practically combed the whole of Europe! All these years.... where’ve you been, Gin? I thought you were dead.”

“Dead?” she faintly, running her fingers through her shimmering hair.

“What was I supposed to think, Gin? You just disappeared. You didn’t tell anyone where you went, and nobody knew, so we just assumed…” he looked close to breaking down, his shoulders shaking, and Ginny noticed that his eyes had lost their spark; it had been gone for many years.

“Oh, Harry,” she said tenderly, brushing her hand against his cheek.

All of a sudden, he found himself pulling her into his arms, her fingers in his hair and his hands on her back. He kissed her, pulling her deeper inside himself, doing what he’d wanted to do for so many years. He lifted his mouth from hers, and heard soft footsteps on the stairs; Sara was coming.

He gently pushed Ginny off him, stepping backwards as he did so. He grabbed Ginny’s wand and threw it into the far corner of the room. Sara appeared at the living room door, peering curiously at Ginny; she was staring at Sara with daggers in her eyes.

“Oh, hey Sara. This is Ginny; she’s an old friend of mine. Ginny, this is Sara.”

Ginny looked at him, her eyes full of hurt and betrayal. She seemed to realise that she was meant to say something, so she turned back to Sara and said, “Hey Sara, nice to meet you.”

“You too, Ginny,” then she turned to Harry and said, “how come I haven’t met her before, sweetie? You always hide your friends from me!”

Harry cringed as she said ‘sweetie’, “Me and Ginny haven’t been in contact for a few years. She’s going to visit some relatives, but she couldn’t find the hotel in the storm, so she was wondering whether she could stay here for the night. You don’t mind, do you?”

“Of course not! Any friend of Harry’s is a friend of mine! But tell me, Ginny, has he always had that scar? Because I really think he should have it removed; it does take away from his exceeding hunkyness.”

“Yeah, he’s had it as long as I’ve known him. It’s kind of become his trademark.”

“Well I suppose I’ll have to live with it then.” She yawned, “I’ll head back up to bed. Can you show Ginny around, honey?”

“Sure, I’d be glad to.”

Harry waited until he heard their bedroom door click shut before turning back to Ginny, whose pale features were shining with tears.

“How could you, Harry?”

“Gin-”

“You said you would always wait for me, Harry! You told me you loved me!”

“I do love you, Gin. I’ll always love you”

“Just not as much as her.”

“No, Gin-”

“I thought you meant what you said! Now I know that it was all a lie!”

“Ginny, listen.”

“No! You have nothing to say that could interest me, Harry Potter! I don’t care what you thought, or what you think now! I thought you were different; I thought you cared about me. But I must have been mistaken.”

With that, she turned and walked out of the house, to be soaked once again in the pouring rain. She ran silently down the dark street and disappeared into the night.


***


Ginny woke in the morning, her vision obscured by large amounts of red hair and the tears still leaking out of her eyes. She wiped the tears from her face and pulled her hair into a loose ponytail. Ginny walked into the tiny kitchen that came with her hotel room and reached into her pocket for her wand, but to her great surprise, it wasn’t there.

I must’ve lost it running here, she thought, scorning herself for being so stupid. Then suddenly she remembered seeing Harry grabbing it and throwing it away, and the yelled conversation that had come after.

She shook the memories off her and turned on the muggle radio, which she liked to listen to. She set to work making breakfast, with a song called ‘Because of You’ playing in the background.

She was just settling down to eat her breakfast when she heard a rustling sound at the window. She turned around to see a flash of white feathers swoop past her head and land on the table in front of her. It was Hedwig, Harry’s beautiful snowy owl, carrying a rather bulky envelope.

She took the envelope from her, and waited for her to take off so she could throw the letter away. Hedwig had other ideas, though. She was obviously waiting for Ginny to read the letter before she went home. Grumbling into her bacon, Ginny roughly tore open the envelope, to find her wand, a piece of parchment, and three photographs. She stuffed her wand back into her pocket, put the photos down on the table, and picked up the parchment. At first she was confused by what she saw, but then began to see what the words in front of her meant.

This time, this place
Misused, mistakes
Too long, too late
Who was I to make you wait?
Just one chance, just one breath
Just in case there’s just one left
‘Cause you know, you know, you know.

That I love you
I have loved you all along
And I miss you
Been far away for far too long
I keep dreaming you’ll be with me
And you’ll never go
Stop breathing if I don’t see you anymore

I wanted, I wanted you to stay
‘Cause I needed, I needed to hear you say
That I love you
I have loved you all along
And I forgive you
For being away for far too long
I forgive you
I hope you forgive me too.

Ginny put the paper down, her heart pumping hard and fast in her chest. Then a smile crept onto her face as she recognised the author of the lyrics that she was reading; Nickelback was her favourite muggle band.

Ginny picked up the three pictures and looked at them. Each of them appeared to have a paragraph or two of writing on the back. The first picture was of Ginny standing with her family, Harry and Hermione out the front of the burrow. Fred and George’s heads seemed to have disappeared. She turned it over and read what was on the back.

Look at this photograph,
Every time I do it makes me laugh.
My eyes get so red.
What the hell’s on Fred and George’s heads?

Her smile spread wider; though her eyes were filling with tears. She vaguely recognised these words as more lyrics. She looked at the next picture, which was of a very tidy house standing in a street of very similar-looking houses, with large shiny cars sitting in the driveways. On the letterbox was a number four.

This is where I grew up,
All the Dursleys did was fix it up.
I never knew I ever went without.
Under the stairs is where I sat it out.

The last photo showed four figures in their mid-teens, one with messy black hair, one with bushy brown hair, and two with red hair, who looked like brother and sister. In the background was a humongous castle fronted by a vast black lake.

This is where I went to school,
Most of the time had other things to do
Ministry says that I broke out twice
I must’ve done it half a dozen times

I wonder if it’s too late
Should I go back and try to graduate
Life’s better now than it was back then.
If you were them would you let me in?

Ginny sighed to herself as she watched Hedwig sail through the window; this must’ve taken him ages. Why did he have to make it so hard for her to hate him?

---

Well, everybody, how was that??? I'm just dying to know what you all think. Anyway, just incase any of you are a bit slow, I do not own Harry Potter, or any of the characters except Sara, who is of my own creation. Also, the songs are both originally by Nickelback, even if I have twisted the words.

Until next time..........

chlo
xoxoxoxoxoxox

Hey guys!!!!!I know no-one reads this bit, so i'll make it quick, promise. Thanks to all of those fabulous people who reviewed, it really keeps me writing. To all those people who didn't review.......thanks for reading it, but just know that i am shooting you dark looks. Now, on with the story!!!

---

Chapter 3
Harry soared through the air, unaware of all things around him. He still couldn’t believe he’d broken up with Sara. He’d done it this morning, right before he’d sent off his letter to Ginny.

"What?" Sara said, sounding both disgusted and shocked. "You-you're breaking up with me?"

She stared at him for a moment, then slowly a look of comprehension dawned on her face. "It was that red-headed girl.....Georgie..."

"Ginny," Harry said through clenched teeth.

"You've been cheating on me!" she yelled. "All this time! I was always loyal, after all that I've had to put up with! And now you're going to kick me out, just like that, for some red-headed slut!"

Harry watched her as she paced the room, muttering to herself. He could feel the anger bubbling up inside of him, but he tried to keep his temper under control.

"All that you've had to put up with! Did I ever continually critisize your looks? No. Did I ever tell you to have removed one of the last links to your dead parents? No. Did I ever buy expensive and unecessary furniture at your expense? No. Did you ever have to put up with being yelled at every other night for no particular reason? No."

Harry paused, catching his breath. "Did you ever feel the pain of being in the with someone else, but not wanting to hurt my feelings? No. Because you have no heart, Sara. And the only way I've treated you is much better than you deserve."

With that, Harry turned and walked out of the house, leaving Sara looking rather put out by this turn of events.

Harry was pulled from his thoughts by a shout. He saw a blur flying towards him, and then everything went dark.

---

Harry was lying on something hard, darkness surrounding him, with his head throbbing painfully. Somewhere in the distance, he could hear voices yelling his name. “Harry! Harry, can you hear me? Harry!”

Harry heard some more yelling, people running towards him, and a female voice saying, “Occulus Reparo.” He felt something being forced onto his face; he opened his eyes to see a sea of freckled faces and red hair. Before he could even figure out where he was, his vision was once again obscured by a large quantity of bushy brown hair as Hermione hugged him; he could hear her crying into his shoulder.

“That was bloody scary, mate,” Harry looked past Hermione to see most of the Weasley family crowding around him, Ron at the front, his freckled face paler than usual.

“What happened?”

“You took a bludger to the head.”

“You were a bit out of it today, Harry,” Fred said, “not at all up to your usual standard.”

“Something wrong?” Charlie asked.

“Why isn’t Sara here, Harry?” Hermione asked, and Harry could see in her eyes that she already knew.

Knowing this was as good a time as any, he said quietly, “We broke up.”

The Weasleys’ reactions to this statement were just as he had expected. Hermione and Mrs Weasley began fussing over him, telling him he wasn’t to blame, and he mustn’t feel sad. Ron looked as though he wanted to hit something, and he began mumbling mutinously, saying that he’d never really liked her anyway.

Charlie, Mr Weasley and Percy walked over to him and helped him up, reassuring him that it was going to be okay. Lorena, Charlie’s girlfriend, went into the house to make some tea. Fred and George muttered something and then dashed up to the house with horrified looks on their faces, probably to undo some sort of prank that they had set up for Harry. All this only made Harry feel worse; they all seemed to think that Sara had broken up with him.

“Come inside, Harry dear, and we’ll get you something for your head,” Molly said.

For the rest of the day, everyone was much more subdued than usual. None of the Weasleys were saying it, but Harry knew that all of them were thinking about the last time that he had lost a girlfriend. Harry hadn’t told anyone about Ginny, but he knew he had to soon. So just before he left, he gave a note to Hermione.

I have to tell you something. Could you please come to my house as soon as you can. Don’t tell Ron.

Harry

---

Hermione walked up Harry’s front steps at seven o’clock, after telling Ron she was going out with some friends. She went up to him and said in a soft voice, “alright Harry, what’s wrong?”

“I saw Ginny last night.”

An incredulous look passed over her face. “What? Here? Where is she? Where’s she been?”

“I don’t know where she’s been. She came, and then, well…”

“You kissed her, I know. Then what happened?”

“Sara came down. Then I asked her whether Ginny could stay for a while, and she said yes and then went back to bed. Then Ginny started yelling at me, and she stormed out. I don’t know where she went after that, but I sent her a letter this morning.”

“So you broke up with Sara so you can start seeing Ginny again?”

“No. Well maybe. I don’t want to start seeing her straight away; her family don’t even know she’s alive. I’m going to go away for a while, to let her settle back in. And I’m not sure she’d even want to go out with me; she wouldn’t trust me.”

“Harry, why are you telling me all this?”

“Because I want someone to know what I’m doing, so someone knows I’m alright. And I know you won’t tell anyone about Ginny before she’s ready.”

“Will you come back?”

“I hope so. I’ll really miss you guys. Can you say good-bye to Ron for me, and explain why I couldn’t tell him?”

“Of course. I’ll miss you Harry,” she kissed him on the cheek, walked out the door, and disappeared with a crack, trying not to show him the tears shining in her eyes.

---

Ginny woke the next morning on the couch, the television still on from the night before. She picked up the remote and turned it off, cutting short whatever the woman on the screen was saying about a new brand of cereal.

She walked into the kitchen, and found Hedwig sitting on the table as she had done the day before, an envelope tied to her leg. The letter seemed to be calling to Ginny, Open me; you know you want to, it was saying. So she did.

This one contained a letter, three more photographs, and a strange slender box. As before, she picked up the parchment first, and began to read.

Looking at your picture from when we first met,
You gave me a smile that I could never forget.
You were a little shy,
But now I don’t know why.

I just want you to know
That I’ve been fighting to let you go
Some days I make it through
And then there’s nights that never end
I wish that I could believe
That there’s a day you’ll come back to me
But still I have to say
I’d like to go and start again
Just want you to know

That since I lost you
I lost myself
I just can’t fake it
There’s no one else

I just want you to know

Ginny could already feel the tears running down her face. To distract herself, she put the parchment down and picked up the pictures. The first showed a group of seemingly unrelated people, grouped together in front of some bookshelves, smiling and waving. A boy she recognised as Colin Creevey was running into the frame; he must have taken the picture.

Remember the old D.A.?
Learned every hex that was ever made
Marietta snitched on us for breaking rules
Since when did we follow them at school?

She smiled despite herself, remembering the purple pustules that probably still remained on Marietta’s face. She looked at the next picture, which was of Bill and Fleur’s wedding. There were lots of people in the photo; her family, Harry, Hermione, some of Bill’s friends, and many confused looking people from France.

We used to sit inside when it was cold out,
Listen to Fleur drowning the radio out.
I’m glad she and Bill got what they deserved
Married with two kids was the last I heard

Her smile widened as she remembered Fleur talking to cover the sound of the radio, which grew ever louder as her mother turned up the volume. She picked up the last photograph, and her heart gave a painful wrench. It showed Harry and Ginny somewhere in Diagon Alley, walking hand in hand. He bent down and kissed her, then noticed their photographer, and smiled sheepishly, before kissing her once more.

You’re the first girl I kissed
You were surrounded but I couldn’t miss.
Some say the first one I kissed was Cho
I’d say it was her that kissed me, though

Ginny stood to walk away, tears still dripping out of her eye, when she remembered the box. She picked it up and studied it, taking in its smooth white surface and velvety lining. She opened it slowly, savouring the moment for reasons she did not understand. She pulled back the blue velvet cloth and gasped.

Lying in the box was the most beautiful piece of jewellery Ginny had ever seen. It was a heart locket on a gold chain, with intricate patterns and tiny diamonds sparkling. She lifted it up and opened the locket, and found a piece of parchment, folded to fit into the heart. She unfolded the paper and read the words that had been so carefully written in green ink that reminded her of Harry’s eyes.

You will always have a place in my heart, and I hope I will have a place in yours, be it as a brother or friend.

It was then that Ginny understood. Harry was not sending her these letters to seduce her, or bring back what had been, despite what he might feel. He was sending her them to help her remember happier times, and to make her feel loved.

She had been selfish by yelling at him, and had probably broken his heart. He was forgiving her for that, so she in turn forgave him for Sara, who had helped him through the grief he must have felt when he lost her. Tomorrow she would go and see him, to tell him she still loved him, and thank him for what he had done for her.

She picked up her locket and summoned a picture of Harry, which she shrunk and put in the locket. She closed it, smiling as she watched Hedwig sail out of the hotel window, for what was hopefully the very last time.

---

Ta-da! I'm terribly sorry about the wait for the second chapter, hopefully this one won't take as long. Now that this one's in, however, I have to write the fourth and final chapter. That's right, folks. One more chapter and then finito!! *smiles sadly at disappointed faces*

Thankyou Backstreet Boys and the ever fabulous Nickelback for letting me borrow and alter lyrics which don't technically belong to me. Also, I don't own anything else but Sara, who sadly belongs to me.

Speaking of Sara, ouch!!! How about that breakup? I hope some of my anti-Sara fan club will be pleased. I worked rather hard on that.

Until next time........

chlo
xoxo

AAAAAAH!!!!! Last chapter!!!!! I keep having these nightmares. What if I've done it badly? What if they don't like it? I could get so much hate mail that it would crush me under its mighty weight!!!! But I have to post it or you guys would kill me anyway. Anyway, i can tell that no one's reading this by the way that your eyes are all somewhere down the page as you desperately try to finish, so i'll wrap it up now.

Enjoy the final instalment of this fic!!!!

---

Harry looked around his bedroom, his suitcase lying open, with clothes strewn across the floor and his bed, as if they had started walking to the suitcase, then changed their mind halfway. He could smell his dinner burning, but didn’t worry about it; he wasn’t hungry anyway.

He sighed and walked towards the kitchen, pulling his wand out; his food was well known for its ability to go up in flame.

After putting out his dinner, he walked back upstairs and started throwing shirts and jeans into the case, not caring what went in and what didn’t. He lifted up the loose floorboard and pulled out all of the magical equipment that he’d had to hide from Sara; his cauldron, potion ingredients, books, photo album, and his ever-faithful invisibility cloak. He went to his wardrobe and pulled out his robes and dress robes, then noticed his firebolt leaning against the door. Harry wondered whether he should take his broomstick with him, and decided that this time, he would have to leave it behind.

Seeing the time, Harry quickly finished packing and closed the suitcase. He changed into his pyjamas and got into bed, preparing himself for what was likely to be another sleepless night.

***

Hermione sat straight up in her chair, tense, acting like nothing was wrong. Harry was leaving today. If anyone noticed her anxious state, or forced laughter, they said nothing, and allowed her to continue on staring blankly out the window, wondering whether Harry was gone yet.

She thought of Ron, Harry’s best friend, and how upset he was going to be when he found out that Harry had left without saying goodbye.

Why had Harry told her all this? How was she going to explain to everyone that they might never see him again?

***


Ginny woke very late, and immediately jumped out of bed and ran into the kitchen, where she was surprised to find that Hedwig wasn’t waiting for her on the kitchen table, and that there was no letter to be found. Disappointed, she started making breakfast, wondering why Harry hadn’t sent her a letter today.

She was half-way through eating her breakfast, when she heard a quiet knock at the door, which caused Ginny to jump in alarm. She ran to the door, smoothing down her rebellious hair as she did so. She opened the door, and her heart sank; it was just one of the hotel staff.

With as much cheerfulness as she could muster, she said, “Good Morning.”

“Morning, miss,” the girl said nervously, looking slightly embarrassed at seeing a guest in her pyjamas. “I do hope I didn’t wake you.”

“No, just having breakfast.”

“Well, I’ve got a letter for you, miss,” she said, holding out an envelope with a shaking hand, as if Ginny was going to hit her over the head if she wasn’t careful.

“Oh, well thank you for bringing it up for me, Ella,” she said kindly, looking at the girl’s name badge.

“That’s all right, miss. Have a nice day.”

“You too,” Ginny said as she watched Ella curtsy and walk down the hall.

Ginny went back into her room and shut the door, wondering who on earth was sending her a letter by muggle post. She flipped it over and saw her name and the hotel’s address written on the front in green ink. Her heart soared; that was the same ink that Harry used. She ripped the envelope open, and found that there was only a single piece of parchment inside. She picked this up and started reading eagerly.

I miss you now
I miss your face
I can’t erase
I can’t replace it
I have to go
You know I’ve got to
So hard to stay
Too hard to leave you
I’ll probably be back some day
Until then this is all I have to say

Every memory of looking out the back door,
I had the photo album spread out on my bedroom floor
It’s hard to say
It’s time to say it
Goodbye, Goodbye

Every memory of walking out the front door
I found the photo of a girl that I was looking for
It’s hard to say
It’s time to say it
Goodbye, Goodbye

I’ll always wait for you
Promise me that you’ll wait for me too
Wait for me

Ginny gasped. She didn’t notice the tears streaming down her face, nor that her heart seemed to have stopped beating. He was leaving because of her; and she knew what she had to do, what she should have done before now. She grabbed her coat and apparated to Harry’s house, not caring that muggles were likely to see her, or that she was only wearing her pyjamas in the rain. She ran up the front steps, ignoring the curious looks she was getting from passers by. She knocked furiously on the front door and rang the bell, hoping desperately that he hadn’t left yet.

She turned around and looked down the street, squinting through the rain at a figure with dark hair standing next to what looked like a large purple bus. She started running, her heart soaring. The man turned his head towards her, and it didn’t seem to surprise him that there was a dripping wet girl running towards him, going so fast that she was knocking people off their feet.

After what seemed like an eternity, she reached him. He stepped down off the bus and looked deep into her eyes. “You came.”

“Why, Harry?”

“I’ve got to, Gin. You have to have time to settle in to your life again, including introducing yourself to your family, who, by the way, think you are dead.”

He spoke to her as if he didn’t know her, and yet his gaze said more than he ever could. He thinks I hate him. She grabbed his hand and looked into his hurt eyes, “Please, Harry.”

“I’ll miss you, Gin,” he said stiffly, pulling his hand from her grip and climbing up the stairs of the bus.

This was her last chance. “I love you, Harry.”

He stopped, mid-step, then slowly turned around to face her. “Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

He leapt off the bus, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her. He abandoned all pretence, merely concentrating on this one moment. Ginny heard the first wolf-whistle and blushed, before she too was swept away by the kiss. After a manner of minutes, she felt him pull away, and she reluctantly let go, slowly opening her eyes.

But when she looked up, both Harry and the bus were gone.

***

Ginny sat down on the top stair of Harry’s house, tears still streaming down her face and her breath coming out as loud gasps. She shut her eyes, shutting out all that had happened, and blocking out the pain. When she opened them again, she saw a flash of white in the corner of her eye.

She turned her head so quickly she cricked her neck. Tucked half-way under the door was an envelope. On the front, written in the green ink that so reminded her of Harry’s eyes, was one word. Ginny.

She carefully opened the envelope, holding her breath. Inside was a single photograph, slightly creased in places, as if it had been hastily folded several times. There were patches on the picture that looked like someone had been crying over it, but the tears had long since dried.

Ginny looked at the two people in the picture, smiling obliviously, unaware of the series of events that would shake up their lives in just a few months time. She saw the younger version of herself, her brilliant red hair blowing in the breeze and laughing, and asked herself why everything had turned out so wrong. She saw the man she loved, and wondered whether he knew that he would one day leave the girl sitting beside him. Before she knew it, she felt a lump in her throat, and tears dripping down her face and onto the picture, mingling with Harry’s.

But after a few minutes, she began to wonder why she was crying at all. Harry loves me. He waited for me for so many years. So why was she sad? She loved Harry, didn’t she? She understood why he was gone. And she would willingly wait until the end of forever for him to come back again. And I will wait. Forever.

She turned the picture over, and spotted something she hadn’t noticed before. Because like on the other photographs, Harry had written something on the back. Ginny knew what it would say before she read it, and so decided not to. She turned the photo back over, humming the tune of a favourite song. The two people in the photograph smiled at her, and she smiled back, her eyes sparkling like the diamonds around her neck.

Goodbye, Goodbye

---

And its going......going.....GONE!!! Finished!! Elvis has left the building!! Photographs is finally over!!! I think I'm going to cry........

OK, guys, what did you think?????? But before you go mad reviewing, I need to thank a couple of people. Firstly, thankyou SO much to all you guys who have read this story!!! I'd especially like to thank fairyville, who was the first to review this story, and has reviewed every chapter since (i think), and hel, for being SUCH a supportive friend.....*cough cough*.

So thanks everyone for reviewing because i can't mention you all here no matter how much i want to (but you all know who you are), and also to (the ever fabulous) Nickelback, for unknowingly providing me with both the basis and inspiration for this story.

If any of you are particularly interested in reading more of my stuff, I've got a Fred/Hermione story going, and I am about to post a one-shot about Harry and Hermione (not particularly good, btw)

So, once again, I thank you all a lot for reading this (I hope I didn't disappoint you all too much), and I hope to see you all again in the future (theoretically, of course).

chlo

xoxo


Goodbye, Goodbye



PS-just before you guys start using lots of capital letters and exclamation marks at me (i have received quite a lot of these reviews) i just want you to know that this wasn'y meant to be a typical love story, where they always end up together (although they probably will, later). Just a thought. Luv ya