As Mrs. Weasley ushered all the young people out into the hazy August morning, Harry wondered with a smile whether anyone had eaten anything at all for breakfast. He himself spent most of his time trying to ignore the smell of Ginny’s shampoo and the small, distracting weight of her hand on his knee.
When he did take the time to observe the others, he noticed that Ron and Hermione spent more time sneaking glances at each other than paying attention to their breakfasts. Ron had actually dumped an entire plate of sausages onto his lap (much to the hilarity of Fred and George) and Hermione may as well not have cleaned herself off “ she kept dripping syrup onto her lap because she was apparently distracted by the mere sight of Ron across the table from her. Harry vaguely hoped that the two of them (and himself, he supposed) regained their senses in the next few days. They were going to need them. And how.
As they all stood blinking in the sunshine, Fred and George seemed to be observing the other four with beady-eyed amusement.
“Good god, Gred, I really wish we could hang around a bit, don’t you?” George shook his head in mock sorrow.
“I don’t know Forge, I’m not sure I can take much more of this. My heart is breaking,” he put his face into his large hands, his shoulders shaking, seemingly wracked with sobs.
“What are you two on about?” Ron eyed his brothers with distrust. Hermione was turning pink again. Ginny elbowed Harry hard in the side and they smiled at each other.
“It’s ok, Forge, it’s ok. You’ll just have to bury yourself in work,” George put a comforting arm around him and shot Ron a nasty look, “This is all your fault, you git. Can’t you see how this is eating him up inside?” Ron still looked flabbergasted, but Harry was trying not to laugh. He saw both of the girls were biting the sides of their cheeks as well.
“I really wish I knew what”” Ron was puzzling over this display of unwarranted hostility, when Fred suddenly launched himself towards Hermione, throwing himself at her feet.
“Will, you stop, Fred, honestly,” Hermione gazed down at the prostrate twin with a mixture of exasperation and hesitant amusement. She shot a glance over at Ron.
“But darling, dear, sweet Hermione,” he pawed at her hand, “how can you leave me for another? Especially,” he rolled his eyes at Ron, who, Harry noticed, had a thunderous look on his face, “especially for this one over here?!?”
“Don’t you two have to be at the shop or something?” Ron prodded Fred’s prone form with the tip of his shoe.
“Ronnikins is right, Fred, we best be off. All this wedding and love nonsense is distracting, but we still have a business to run,” George assisted Fred off the ground.
“Alright, alright,” Fred whispered, teary-eyed, “remember me, won’t you Hermy-poo?” He walked dejectedly back to George, who was waiting for him. Harry burst out laughing. Hermy-poo. Priceless. The world would be far too serious a place without the Weasley twins. Now even Ron was smiling reluctantly.
Then, without warning, Fred turned and planted a large, wet kiss smack on Hermione’s laughing mouth. Without further ado, he and George Apparated.
Harry and Ginny couldn’t contain their mirth, but Hermione stood blinking as if she’d been hit with a Confundus charm, and Ron appeared more than a bit put out.
“Thank god for those two, honestly, where would we all be without a laugh?” Ginny wiped her streaming eyes, echoing Harry’s thoughts from a moment ago. “Not a terrible lot to laugh about these days, right, you lot?” She suddenly seemed very serious and looked hard at Harry. “So, are you three going to tell me the whole story about what happened last month, and what you guys are going to do about it, or what?” Ginny shifted her gaze to Ron and Hermione, who were standing close together.
Harry looked over at his best friends. Ron had his arm resting lightly around Hermione’s shoulders. Neither of them said anything. It was Harry’s story to tell, or not to tell, as he saw fit.
“So,” Ginny stamped her foot, “not a single one of you is going to explain to me why you aren’t going back to Hogwarts this upcoming term?”
“What?!? How did you know? I mean “ what are you talking about?” Damn. Harry was angry at the slip. He looked over Ginny’s head at Ron, who shrugged. Hermione, as well, seemed confused.
“Wait a minute,” Hermione’s eyes narrowed, “Ginny, I thought…you mentioned in your letter “ I just assumed Harry had told you!” Hermione seemed upset. So did Ron.
“Yeah, Gin. What was all that about last night? You going on about losing all three of us? How did you “ I mean, what is that you think -” Ron cut himself off after a significant glance from Hermione.
Ginny seemed ashamed, but stood her ground. She glared at the other three. “Ok! Ok! I wasn’t “ entirely “ fair to you guys. But, but, I never actually lied to any of you about what I knew. I mean, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out something big is about to happen with you three, right? So, I just thought, that if I, well, just let you guys think I knew more than I did, I could figure out what was going on. I’m sorry. But, you have to understand, I know what you all are doing is going to be dangerous, but, well I’m stuck here. I have to, to just, just watch you all go. I shouldn’t have done, but I did. I should have just asked what was going on,” she looked directly at Harry, and he could tell she was trying mightily to hold back tears. She threw her hands up into the air and walked away from them. She settled herself under the big maple, with her back to them.
Harry was torn. He wanted to tell her so badly, but what about his promise to himself to protect her by letting her go? But, he thought, she deserves to know. As he stood with Ron and Hermione, he knew there was more to it than that. He saw how close his friends were standing to each other. The peeks they stole when they didn’t think the other was paying attention. I can deal with the two of them in love, he thought, but I want it too. I want Ginny. He suddenly remembered Tonks, clutching Lupin’s threadbare robes at Bill’s sickbed last month. Friendly, helpful, cheerful Tonks who had been so miserable last year because Lupin had tried to push her away, for her own good, he said. It hadn’t succeeded in the end, had it? In the end, love finds a way. Maybe Dumbledore was right, maybe there was powerful magic in loving someone.
“Ron, Hermione,” Harry began, “I’m going to tell her. All of it. I “ I have to,” Because I love her, he thought.
“Well, go on then, Harry,” Hermione whispered, and gave him a little push, “Go on, and tell her.”
Harry turned from them and headed towards Ginny, who looked up as he approached. The answers were already falling from his lips as he sat down next to her, in the shade of the big maple, on a beautiful August morning, in one of the places he loved best in the whole world. She had asked, out of love, and he answered with the same.
The Time is Now by Hermione816
Chapter Notes: Ginny's tricky - and clever. The Trio realizes that she's been plying them for information all along - and Harry decides it's finally time to tell her the whole truth.