“Hey.”

 

Ginny looked around from where she was washing the dishes the Muggle way towards the doorway, unconsciously tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. (She had tied it back after it kept on swinging into her eyes and threatening to get covered in bubbles.) Harry was standing by the table, a tentative smile playing on his lips. The colour had returned to his face and the scowl he had been sporting earlier had gone. She didn’t know whether Holly had left her room yet, she didn’t seem very willing to when Hermione and Ginny left her half an hour ago. She gave him a small smile.

 

“Hi.”

 

“Are you alright?”

 

Harry was watching her closely, as if her were scrutinising her. Ginny quickly looked away and nodded her head, then continued to scrub away at a mug with quite a bit of force. It was one Hermione had bought her for Christmas, a Muggle mug with a picture of the four of them on it. It was taken on Ginny’s nineteenth birthday, all of them solitarily smiling at the camera. (Hermione told her afterwards that she found the wizard version of those mugs slightly unnerving; the moving people in the pictures would always shield their faces when they were washed. It seemed almost cruel to use them when they seemed to be almost real.)

 

“Are you sure?”

 

Ginny stopped washing the dishes, placing the clean ones on the drying rack. Then she sighed and turned to Harry, untying her hair at the same time. “I’m fine. . . I’m just in a bit of shock, that’s all.”

 

“You’re not the only one. It made me realise though,” he paused, looking into Ginny eyes. “That we’ve never actually talked about, you know, the Chamber. Not since it happened really.”

 

Ginny shrugged and pulled out a chair, then sat on it. She tilted backwards unconsciously, running her hands through her hair briefly to get rid of the kinks.

 

“Well, for basically the first five years of knowing each other, I don’t think you even realised I existed.”

 

There was a definite hint of teasing in her tone, her mouth curling into a slight grin.

 

“Hey that’s not fair, I knew, I was just...”

 

“A very thick prat?” Ginny asked, raising an eyebrow.

 

“Thanks Ginny, it’s just so wonderful to know what you think of me.”

 

Ginny laughed.

 

“So...” Harry started, pausing as he carefully sat down opposite her. He laid his hands on the table. “Do you want to, you know, talk about it?”

 

Ginny stopped rocking on her chair and bit her lip.

 

“It happened so long ago but-“

 

“It doesn’t make any difference about how long ago it was,” Harry interrupted her. Ginny gave him a strange look.

 

“Usually I would be annoyed at you interrupting, but seeing as you’re actually right...” Ginny said, trailing off, as she stared into Harry’s eyes, noticing that it contained a pain she recognised as the same as hers. The pain that would never go away, no matter how much time passed. It was the pain of being touched by pure evil. Neither of them spoke for a moment.

 

“You know, you’re probably the only person who will ever understand what its like to be.... affected... by Riddle,” Ginny said softly after a moment. Harry shrugged his shoulders.

 

“Well, I’m not the only person, I mean, Ron and Hermione for example-“

 

“No,” Ginny interrupted quietly. “I mean actually meeting him, being attacked...possessed...” Her voice trembled at the last word. Harry opened his mouth, and then closed it again, looking quite lost. He understood what she meant now.

 

“If its not too painful... can you please tell me what happened that year... I never really understood...” Harry’s low voice stopped suddenly and he looked guiltily down at the table. Ginny closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again. Her palms were starting to sweat as she thought about her horrible first year at Hogwarts. She cleared her throat and then started to speak, quietly at first.

 

“I was always jealous of my brothers, they always used to tease me about not being old enough to go to Hogwarts...they always used to brag how exciting it was there and I was stuck at home peeling potatoes with mum. I was so looking forward to starting school, I was so excited,” she paused, her throat constricting a little. Harry’s warm, encouraging gaze gave her the courage to continue. “Then I found the diary in my cauldron, I thought mum had given it to me or something. So I wrote in it...and he was so nice to me...and you know what happened there....he used to listen to me, and I told him everything... everything....how my brothers, Ron in particular, used to ignore me, and how you didn’t even know I existed, and how you were so nice not to laugh at me when I used to trip up and stuff....” she paused again to cough and blush slightly. Sometime during her talking, Harry had moved so he was sitting beside her, listening attentively.

 

“You couldn’t have known it was Voldemort, he was smart and cunning and well...he knew how to manipulate people. You can’t blame yourself,” Harry replied quietly. Then he looked down. “And I’m sorry for being such a git back then.”

 

Ginny shook her head and waved her hand dismissively.

 

“You did nothing wrong back then, you were perfectly nice to me, but I had that hopeless crush on you....and thank you....I know it was Voldemort who did all that, but it’s still reassuring to hear you say that.”

 

Harry caught Ginny’s hand and squeezed it gently.

 

“Anytime,” he said, catching her eyes again and smiling slightly.

 

“So where was I?” Ginny said faintly. She frowned, suddenly remembering. “Oh well, at school... I’m not sure when I realised, but I noticed I seemed to end up places I couldn’t remember going...I felt really tired, I could barely sleep, and then Mrs Norris got petrified and it all began. No-one seemed to notice...not one of my brothers...” Ginny’s tone suddenly became harsher. “Well perhaps Percy, he noticed I was a bit paler than normal, but he was more interested in his girlfriend. But how can I blame them? They’re boys. They had their own lives, they didn’t need their little sister to barge into them. Ron particularly, made that clear.”

 

“Have you talked to them about this?” Harry asked. Ginny shook her head. “You should. But for the record, they do love you more than anything...they were just...how can I put it... boys show their... affection differently to girls... you’re their little sister, you’re like their little princess...”

 

Harry seemed to be struggling immensely with his words and also looked even slightly uncomfortable. But he didn’t drop his gaze from Ginny’s. However, something in his phrasing seemed a bit...off. Her eyes narrowed in spite of herself.

 

 “Where did you hear that?”

 

Harry cocked his head to the side. “What?”

 

“The Princess thing.”

 

“Well...er.... a coincidence?”

 

Ginny raised an eyebrow and moved closer to Harry.

 

“Ok...Ron told me once loads of stories about when you were all younger, as did Charlie and Bill....when they were a little bit tipsy...”

 

“What?”

 

Harry’s cheeks turned red. “Change of subject please?”

 

“Ok...for now...” Ginny said, a ghost of a smile on her lips.

 

“So are you going to talk to your brothers about this?” Harry asked, cocking his head to the side.

 

“Probably, but not yet,” Ginny sighed. “I’m still not used to talking about it...I haven’t even really told Hermione or my mum anything...”

 

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to, I’ll leave if you like,” Harry said, suddenly standing up. Ginny caught hold of Harry’s hands again.

 

“No, I want to. I need to,” Ginny said, her eyes imploring him to stay. Harry sat back down, not letting go of Ginny’s hands. They were sitting facing each other.

 

“I don’t want to push you, or pry,” Harry replied quietly.

 

“You’re not.”

 

Ginny swallowed and closed her eyes for a second, her mind filled with old memories.

 

“Okay, well, the irony of the whole situation, the more times he...possessed me... the more I closed up to the world and opened up to him. I never noticed at the time how he was manipulating me, making me dependant on him, making me resent everyone else. He told me me how my brothers didn’t care about me, not in those words of course, how he was the only one I could trust...and I believed him.”

 

“Ginny, please stop blaming yourself, you couldn’t have known! You tried to fight him, but he, he was pure evil, he wouldn’t stop .You couldn’t have stopped him,” Harry said fiercely.

 

“But you did! All these years, you’ve fought him, you’ve never so much as thought of turning to the dark side or giving up-“

 

Harry gave a hollow snort.

 

“Oh I have before thought of giving up before, believe me... but there’s a difference Ginny, I knew what I was fighting was evil, it was an actual physical battle. What he did to you was much subtler; it was...a seduction...”

 

Ginny shuddered and clenched her fists. She took a deep breath in.

 

“Do you want a cup of tea? I’m going to go and make a cup of tea!” Ginny said abruptly, starting to stand up. It was Harry this time that grabbed hold of Ginny’s hand and gently tugged her towards him. She sat back down on her seat, not wanting to look at Harry. They were both silent for a moment before Harry started to speak again. His voice was weaker and cracking at first, but gradually growing in strength.

 

“Listen to me Ginny...you have a strength that I could never have... you have an inner strength, you managed to go on after all that happened, rebuilt your life, came back stronger, and you were only eleven. My courage isn’t the same, mine is...like an adrenaline rush. It comes in bursts. I could never have to strength that you have. If you knew what he was, I knew you would have fought, and would have won.”

 

Ginny felt a lump grow in her throat, but she forced it down. 

 

”You have that strength too Harry, you have had that since you were small, you’ve lost so many people...your parents, you saw Cedric die, Sirius....” Ginny trailed off as Harry’s eyes glazed over for a second.  “That’s what we’re all about really, aren’t we? Surviving, going on after those we love die.”

 

As the two of them fell silent again, Ginny noticed that Harry tracing light circles on her hand with his slightly callused thumb and couldn’t suppress a slight shiver. She wasn’t sure whether he even knew he was doing it, but she couldn’t deny that she liked it.

 

“I don’t know anymore Ginny, so much has happened, I still haven’t worked everything out in my mind yet,” Harry said finally.

 

“Well, you’ve got your whole life for that now,” Ginny said, smiling slightly.

 

“Yeah...” Harry said, the light seeming to come back in his eyes which had faded at the mentioned of the deceased slightly.

 

“It’s funny that even after all these years, if feels like it only happened yesterday. The war, the Chamber, everything,” Ginny said after a minute, her eyes wandering around the room.

 

“Does it still hurt to think about him?” Harry asked quietly.

 

“Not so much anymore, even less since you got rid of him for good...since I knew he could never come back again for me.” Ginny said, giving Harry a slight smile.

 

“Yeah, you’re not the only one being able to sleep easier without think he would try and kill me again,” Harry added, returning her smile. Then his face turned serious again as he looked deeply into her brown eyes. “Will you do something for me Ginny?”

 

“What?”

 

“Will you talk to your brothers? Tell them how you felt that year. They deserve to know. For me. Please.”

 

Ginny hesitated, a small frown decorating her features.

 

“Okay Harry, for you. Although it’s going to be quite an awkward conversation,” Ginny replied, letting out a nervous laugh that was too high to be real.

 

“I think that they’d appreciate knowing how you feel, they’ve all grown up since then, even the twins. They’ll understand.”

 

After a moment Ginny nodded, and Harry squeezed her hand.

 

“Be with me when I talk to them?”

 

Without missing a heartbeat, Harry replied. “Of course.”

 

Harry leaned forward and placed a tender kiss on her forehead, lingering for a moment. Ginny closed her eyes briefly.

 

“Thank you for listening Harry, thank you for understanding,” Ginny said, her voice trembling the slightest bit as Harry moved away from her, not breaking eye contact with him.

 

“No problem, anytime. If there’s anything you want to talk about, ever, I’ll always be there. I promise,” Harry said sincerely.

 

“You’re not going to disappear again are you? Like when you went to find the Horcruxes, or like last year?” Ginny said, her voice almost breaking with emotion, a lump rising in her throat, tearing her gaze from him for a moment, and she looked at the floor. Somehow, the thought of Harry never leaving again, seemed to be a dream. He was Harry Potter, the hero of the Wizarding world! Why would he want to stay here?

 

“Hey, that was just something I had to do. I’m not going to leave again,” Harry said, tentatively raising a hand to graze her cheek softly, the roughness of his fingers contrasting with the smoothness of her cheek. “Next time, if there has to be a next time, I’ll at least tell you first and ask what you think. I won’t just go running off any more, I swear to you, I won’t.”

 

“Thank you.” Was all Ginny could say. Then she pulled Harry into a tight hug. Harry was just Harry, a man who had happened to defeat Voldemort, but was still just an ordinary man, she way being ridiculous to think otherwise.

 

 “Is there anything else you would like to tell me?”

 

Harry’s voice was muffled due to the embrace, and Ginny smiled involuntarily, feeling as though she had just drank a bottle of Butterbeer on a cold day. They both felt closer to one another than ever before, and there wasn’t even a hint of awkwardness. It even felt as though those awkward feelings between the two of them had never been there in the first place.

 

Many hours passed before Harry and Ginny left the kitchen to join their other friends, and by that time, Ron was already asleep on the sofa, Hermione was dozing off and Holly had already gone to bed. More words were exchanged in that time, a closeness was established that had always been there beneath the surface, but was unnoticed, untouched, never properly formed, until then. In those hours, the two didn’t just feel as if they got to know each other even better, but themselves as well, in an indescribable way. Their past events had tied them to each other, answers to questions and feelings that only the other could answer and understand. Many witches and wizards had suffered during the war, but no-one had experiences that were as unique as the two of them, which had unknowingly caused a bond to form between the two of them the moment that they left the Chamber of Secrets all those years ago.

 

 

 

“I would just like to say, I think you have all been doing very well in training so far- Ron pay attention.- I don’t think I can teach you anything more about spells, actually I think I need you guys to teach me, I’ve never been able to do some certain spells very well, and we’ve still got some stuff to do, you’re definitely not nearly as cocky as you were before! Well Ron I think you need some work on that, and Hermione, you need to stop trying to think as much during the duels, and let your instincts take over, they won’t lead you wrong, oh and Ginny, try not to jump around too much, it’ll wear your energy out. Oh also, Harry you need to stop trying to take over the whole battle and rely on your friends a bit more, half the time, you’re more concentrated on the others than your own fight-”

 

“And this is meant to be a ‘well done’ speech,” Ron grumbled to Hermione, who made a shushing noise at him. Holly shot him a dirty look.

 

“I’m not trying to say it in a bad way, Merlin knows you’ve improved so much. Other than a few little things, I’m happy,” Holly said, smiling at them. Ginny was giving Harry a look that was saying ‘let go of that bloody stupid hero complex you have, you git,’ Harry was looking sheepish and rubbing the back of his neck, Hermione was listening attentively and looked as if she was very much wanting to take notes and Ron was looking sullen.

 

“I’m not cocky,” Ron said, frowning. He turned to Hermione. “I’m not, am I?”

 

Hermione hesitated. “Well...”

 

“Oh Hermione you’re meant to be on my side!” Ron whined, raising his hands in the air.

 

“I am Ron, its just sometimes, you get a bit overconfident when it comes to duelling...only a little bit!” Hermione said, her voice getting higher as Ron stormed away from her.

 

“Oh just ignore the bigheaded prat,” Ginny said loudly enough for Ron to hear. “He’s just grumpy because Harry almost beat him on chess this morning.”

 

“He did not!” Ron shouted, glaring at his sister.

 

“He did and don’t try to deny it like you did when Bill beat you that time!” Ginny said in a singsong voice.

 

“Bill didn’t beat me and I haven’t played him since I was seventeen!” Ron defended.

 

“And why do you think that is?” Ginny said, obviously mocking him. Ron started to move towards Ginny, glowering.

 

“Okay, break it up kids and try and act mature,” Holly said, grabbing Ron by the arm and pulling him to the side.

 

“Look, I didn’t mean it in a bad way, but I’ve noticed that sometimes, you tend to try and wait until the last second to dodge and don’t take the first opportunity you get to beat the opponent once you feel you have the advantage. It’s not a massive thing, but it is worth working on, you never know, it could save your life,” Holly said in an undertone. Ron seemed to relax a bit and Holly smiled lopsidedly at him.

 

“Okay, thanks,” Ron replied, smiling back.

 

“No problem, now that’s get back to the others, they’re starting to look a bit impatient,” Holly said, gesturing to the others. Harry and Ginny had now conjured two large sticks and were sparring with each other, attempting to playfully whack each other with it, both laughing. Ron snorted and walked over to Hermione, who was watching Harry and Ginny with a smile on her face.

 

“They’re mad aren’t they?” Ron said, making Hermione jump slightly as he suddenly appeared beside her again. He stuck one of his hands in his pocket and bounced on his heels, looking at Hermione through the corner of his eye.

 

“They’re just as mad as each other,” Hermione agreed, laughing. She turned to Ron, slipping a hand into his. “Are you in a better mood now?”

 

“Yeah, I’m sorry, I overreacted,” Ron said, looking down at the engagement ring glittering on Hermione’s left hand.

 

“It’s okay,” she replied, smiling back at him. Ron placed a gentle kiss on her lips and then whispered,

 

“I love you.”

 

“I love you too.”

 

“Okay, I hate to break this up, but maybe we should go back to the training,” Holly said suddenly, clearing her throat. The sticks Harry and Ginny were holding faded away and after giving each other a grin, they looked at Holly.

 

“I hope I didn’t offend anyone from what I said, but I thought it would be best to be truthful, there’s no point in sugar coating it.” Holly was interrupted with a chorus of ‘no of course not!’ and ‘don’t be silly!’ Holly smiled at them. “Good, but we’d better get back to what we were going to do before the interruption.”

 

She unconsciously looked at Ron for a fraction of a second, as did the others. Ron’s ears turned pink and Hermione giggled quietly.

 

“I thought that this time, it would be a bit more relaxed, play a few games, you know, just have a bit of fun for once. I know I’ve been quite harsh on you lately...” Ginny snorted and muttered ‘broken leg’ disguised badly as a cough. Harry winced, as did Hermione and Ron. Holly had certainly been harsh, feeling that just missing one week of training for Hermione and Ron’s engagement party meant three weeks of extra intense training, which had resulted in a quite a few broken ribs, a fractured jaw and a broken leg. Although the four of them did find it quite amusing (even though it shouldn’t have been in the least bit funny) when Holly joined the rank of the injured, breaking three ribs in the course of one session. Ron had noted earlier that it was lucky Ginny was a fully trained Healer and was able to fix their injuries. They didn’t know how they could explain extensive injuries every week without raising eyebrows and maybe even making the newspaper. Ginny had grumbled at first about her Healer abilities being taken for granted, but came round after she experienced injuries herself and couldn’t think of a reasonable explanation to go to the hospital with them.

 

“So who’s up for a game of stick-in-the-mud?”