Ginny didn’t shut her eyes as tightly nor hold onto Harry as firmly as their previous Apparition, but she didn’t stalk away from him when they arrived either. They both walked silently towards the Burrow. Harry was lagging behind Ginny, feeling the guilt of his absence and actions weighing on him.
Ginny stopped and turned around. ‘Harry — the sooner you get this over with the better.’
She took his hand, pulling him forward and he reluctantly followed her. His mind reeling through what kind of reception he would receive. He couldn’t imagine the entire family being furious with him, but anything was possible.
Ginny’s mood seemed to lighten as they neared the house. Her pace had quickened and Harry had to make a concerted effort to keep up. ‘Ginny —’ he started to say, but she gave him a reassuring look that forced him forward.
Ginny opened the door to the kitchen and Harry was surprised to see the warm, smiling faces of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Mrs. Weasley came forward quickly embracing Harry and forcing Harry to let go of Ginny’s hand. ‘Harry Potter — you have been far too much of a stranger!’
She beamed at him as Mr. Weasley came forward. ‘Harry — wonderful to see you again. I hope you got my note. We were hoping you’d spend the summer with us, though I hear you’ve been to see Kingsley already.’
Mr. Weasley smiled knowingly as Mrs. Weasley bustled about the kitchen. Harry moved forward. ‘Mrs. Weasley, please don’t go to any trouble, we can look after ourselves!’
Harry didn’t realise it until after he said it, he’d referred to himself and Ginny as ‘we.’ Ginny seemed to notice and gave Harry a half-smile before she hugged her mother and stopped her from moving around the kitchen. ‘Really, Mum, its fine — Harry and I don’t need you to wait on us. Besides, it looks like you’ve already had dinner.’
Mrs. Weasley nodded. ‘Well, Bill and Fleur had stopped through, and Ron and Hermione were already here. We didn’t know when to expect you.’
Ginny smiled. ‘Its really fine, Mum — we’re fine.’
Harry smiled and nodded, shouldering his rucksack more closely. He wasn’t certain what to say. He wanted to apologise again for what had happened, but no one seemed to want to acknowledge anything. Harry looked down at his feet, finding it hard to look either of the Weasley parents in the eyes, but forcing himself to do so. He fumbled for a second, ‘I…er, well, I’m really sor —’
Before he could finish the sentence Mrs. Weasley waved him off. ‘We’ll have none of that, dear — there is nothing for you to apologise for, save not coming around here sooner.’
Mr. Weasley stepped forward taking his wife’s arm. ‘Harry, it is wonderful to see you. We really are glad you’ve decided to come stay with us, hopefully for as long as you can. Let’s chat tomorrow, if you like, about what Kingsley may have said to you. In the meantime, it’s been a long day — good night to you both.’
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley walked briskly out of the kitchen, seemingly pleased with Harry’s appearance. Harry was concerned that they had left so quickly and looked over at Ginny, who was now busy putting something together for them to eat.
‘Ginny?’ He said quietly, walking over to where she was and placing a hand on her arm. She stopped abruptly and looked at him. ‘Are they okay?’
He gestured to where her parents had been and before she could answer continued. ‘I mean, they left in an awful hurry.’
He left his thought unspoken, but again Ginny knew what he was alluding to. ‘Harry, you worry too much. You’re the ‘boy-who-saved-the-world.’ Of course my parents are happy to see you.’
She placed a couple of plates on the table but he didn’t drop it. ‘That doesn’t really answer my question — I just, I feel like this was a bad idea.’
He looked down, knowing the stare he’d be receiving would be hard enough to bear.
‘Harry — I thought we’d gone over this already.’ She sounded exasperated. Quite frankly, he couldn’t blame her.
‘I just don’t want people to feel weird around me, you know?’ He picked up a couple of forks and spoons, but Ginny came over putting her hands over his.
‘We’re not eating anything that requires a fork or spoon, Harry.’ She had a smile across her lips and continued softly, ‘And if you weren’t ‘hiding,’ then people might not feel put off around you.’
He started to protest but she put her hand up. ‘Didn’t we agree not to argue?’
He smiled mischievously. ‘Is that what we agreed? I honestly can’t remember.’ He leaned in close, trying to steal a kiss from her, but she pulled away.
‘Harry,’ she sounded tired, ‘I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted — as much as I enjoy your company, I really wouldn’t mind going to bed soon either.’
He must have looked hurt because she leaned in and kissed him lightly on the cheek. ‘Don’t look at me like that, Harry.’
‘I didn’t realise I was giving you any unusual looks.’ He smiled at her and followed her back to the table, sitting across from her.
They ate in silence, Harry watching Ginny as she picked at her sandwich, while he inhaled his. He leaned forward a little, hoping to strike up a little conversation, but she didn’t look at him directly. ‘So, what are your plans for tomorrow?’
She seemed distracted, but replied uninterestedly, ‘Just going back over to Diagon Alley — those are most of my plans until we get a letter from Hogwarts. I still have another year to complete, though I’d argue my last one was rather incomplete.’
He watched her closely, she didn’t seem pleased about going back to school. ‘Well, I hear the construction is going fairly well, but the school is still a mess.’
She nodded absently. ‘I can’t imagine things being sorted out any more quickly…’
The silence fell upon them again and Harry looked at her sadly. She seemed to lose herself in her thoughts again, despite his presence. He leaned further across the table, taking her hand in his, squeezing each finger in turn. ‘If you don’t mind the company, I would love to go with you tomorrow.’
Her eyes were following his hands across hers, her shoulders becoming less rigid. He let go of her hand and moved around the table, sitting down next to her. ‘I’m not sure I’m enjoying this new, silent phase you’re going through.’ He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, taking her hand back in his and brushing his lips across her cheek. ‘But when you do decide to let me in, I’m right here.’
She didn’t say anything, but leaned closer to him, despite the discomfort the wooden chairs created. They sat there quietly for a while before Ginny slowly pulled herself away from him. ‘If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were trying to get me to fall asleep right here, Harry!’
He smiled and helped her clean the still full table. ‘Well, you certainly look like you haven’t been sleeping. Anything I can do to help that, you know I will.’
She smiled but remained quiet, looking towards the door to the hallway. ‘It’s getting late, so we should probably get some rest. I’m sure there’s a bed set up for you in Ron’s room. To be honest, I’m surprised we haven’t seen either him or Hermione tonight.’
She furrowed her brow and Harry smiled at how cute she looked when she was thinking. Watching Harry’s expression, she smiled back. ‘Either way, I think we should both get some rest.’
Harry picked his rucksack up off the floor and waved his wand at the dishes. ‘Scourgify!’ The dishes began cleaning themselves as he and Ginny ascended the stairs, both stopping at the first landing. They avoided each others’ glances for a few seconds, Ginny finally breaking the silence.
She looked up at him. ‘Good night, Harry.’
Harry didn’t want to miss any opportunities, and leaned in pulling her towards him. He kissed her softly, wrapping his arms around her waist. She didn’t push him away, her hands sliding up his arms to wrap around his neck, pulling him closer to her. He used his momentum to press his body against hers, pushing both of them into her closed door with an almost inaudible thud. He ran one of his hands up her back to rest on the back of her head, buffering her head from the surface of the door as he continued kissing her, feeling the touch of her lips on his, the smell of her all around him, her body pressed against his and her delicate fingers running through his hair. He could feel her grip on him slowly loosening and took that as a cue, pulling away from her slowly, his lips lingering on hers for a few seconds.
Letting go, he whispered ‘Sweet dreams,’ before reaching for the doorknob, opening the door. She smiled at him, kissing him on the cheek before going into her room and shutting the door.
Harry waited a few seconds; then grudgingly walked up the stairs to Ron’s room. The lights were dimly lit in the staircase and Harry pushed open the familiar door to what was becoming a more familiar sight, his two best friends wrapped in a rather fierce kiss.
Harry cleared his throat loudly, ‘Hope I’m not interrupting anything.’
Both Ron and Hermione jumped at his entrance, but Ron didn’t let go of Hermione. Slightly scowling at Harry, he said, ‘I think that you are, mate.’
But Hermione must have felt the mood had been broken, she pulled away from Ron slightly. ‘I’m glad you finally got here, Harry — how is Ginny?’
She and Ron were both sitting comfortably on Ron’s bed, Ron’s hand intertwined with hers, she leaning against his chest. Harry placed his bag on the opposite bed and sat down heavily, looking at his feet. ‘Well, she doesn’t hate me — that much I’ve figured out. But she’s running really hot and cold. Which I can’t really blame her for, you know?’
Ron sighed and Hermione nodded, saying, ‘Yes, she’s been like that since we’ve left Hogwarts. I don’t think any of us know exactly what she needs, but any mention of your name and she either seems to soften or get really upset. I think you just being around might help her. Even console her a little.’
Ron nodded. ‘Yeah, I thought she was broken up last summer, but seeing you dead, even if you weren’t really dead,‘ he added hurriedly, ‘it was a lot for all of us to deal with. She’s really falling for you.’
Despite Ron’s older brother protectiveness, Harry understood. ‘Well, to be honest, Ron, I’m really crazy about your sister, but I just don’t know what to do.’
Hermione finally pulled herself away from Ron completely, getting up to sit down next to Harry. ‘You’re doing what you’re supposed to be doing — just be there for her. She’ll open up when she’s good and ready.’
She patted his hand reassuringly. ‘It’ll be okay, Harry — I don’t think you should give up on her.’
Harry shook his head. ‘That had never crossed my mind.’ Then he laughed. ‘Until you just said it — I hope she doesn’t give up on me!’
He looked distractedly at the floor. ‘I just…’ He couldn’t even put into words how he felt. ‘I just, I feel better when she’s around, even if she isn’t speaking to me, or if she’s angry with me — just being near her. It’s just...’
He threw his hands up, falling across the bed and heard Hermione laughing. ‘Harry — you are so in love you can’t see straight!’
He sat up abruptly, realising that she was right, that was what it was. He was really and truly in love with Ginny. He smiled. ‘I think seeing straight is over-rated, anyway.’
He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and turned around, Ginny was standing in the doorway. She had gotten dressed for bed, but had covered her pajamas with a bathrobe in a light shade of green and detailed work around the edges in a light grey. Her eyes smiling and her expression soft, she said quietly, ‘Since you weren’t in my room I was getting worried Ron had kidnapped you.’
She was speaking to Hermione but she was looking directly at Harry. A strange silence fell over the group, Harry wasn’t sure if he should get up, or even assume she’d heard everything he and Hermione had said.
Hermione got up slowly. ‘Ron didn’t quite kidnap me — but we were waiting for the two of you to get back.’
Harry laughed. ‘So you found something better to do with your time other then waiting up for us, like snogging each others’ brains out?’
Both Harry and Ginny laughed, but Ron looked slightly offended. ‘Hey, mate, I see your hands all over my sister all the time too — there’s nothing wrong with being affectionate to my own girlfriend in the privacy of my own room.’
Ron sounded indignant, but Hermione just smiled. ‘Oh, Ron.’ She walked over and kissed him on the cheek. ‘I think it probably is time to get some sleep.’
Ron smiled mischievously. ‘Well, that’s also something we could do together.’
Harry and Ginny exchanged startled looks while Hermione just shook her head. ‘I think we both know that isn’t going to happen. Good night to you both.’
She stalked out of the room, looking slightly irritated, stopping briefly to place a reassuring hand on Ginny’s shoulder before descending the stairs.
Ron looked thoroughly frustrated, but neither Ginny nor Harry would look at him. He sighed, ‘Bloody hell,’ and leaned back against his bed. ‘Ah well, it’ll make the making up that much better.’
Ginny looked uncertainly at Harry and he felt himself concentrating hard on the fringes of her robe. The colours accentuated her features, her hair pulled back, still looked radiant. He smiled as his eyes slowly ascended her form, red forming in her cheeks as she caught him looking at her intently.
‘Harry —’ she started, but stopped, clearly lost for words. Harry wasn’t certain how to react, however he was now certain she’d heard everything he’d said, but he didn’t want to take it back either — he wanted her to know; he almost felt better having said it.
She still seemed confused and he stood up slowly, realising how much he wished this weren’t Ron’s room and that Ron weren’t watching. He gave a sidelong look to Ron before taking Ginny’s hand, leading her out of Ron’s room and shutting the door, giving them a little privacy. He looked at her seriously. ‘You heard everything I said, didn’t you?’
She didn’t say anything, but nodded, smiling shyly, with both a happy and curious look on her face. ‘Harry,’ she started again, ‘I didn’t mean to — I really was just looking for Hermione.’
He smiled back at her. ‘Its okay — I actually feel better you knowing — I think this should convince you I’m not messing around.’
She laughed a little. ‘Well, you do confide things to Hermione and Ron that you don’t to me — so I figure you didn’t say that for their benefit. And by the look on Ron’s face, he probably would have preferred not to hear it.’
They both laughed and he said more quietly, ‘I meant every word — whenever I’m around you, when I even think about you, I just, I feel better, you know?’
She nodded, saying breathlessly, ‘Yes, I know exactly what you mean.’
She pulled him towards her, her head resting on his shoulder, shutting her eyes. He wrapped his arms around her, and she continued more quietly, ‘I know you want me to say I feel the same way about you, Harry, and I do — but I just don’t know if I’m ready, emotionally or anything, to get really involved with you. I just…’
She left the sentence unfinished and Harry kissed her softly on the forehead. ‘I told you I’d wait and I will, I just hope you haven’t totally given up on me. I don’t think I could bear having no chance with you.’
Ginny pushed him away a little, looking into his eyes. ‘I’m not asking you to wait forever. I’m not sure when I’ll be ready, but I will be. And I know it is you who I’ve always…’ She was grasping for words, her fingers pulling at the fabric on his shirt, his arms still wrapped around her.
He didn’t say anything, but pulled her closer, resting his forehead against hers. Inhaling her scent and feeling the texture of her hair between his fingers.
‘Harry.’ She didn’t push him away and he leaned down, kissing her deeply, stopping her from mounting any sort of argument. With each kiss he felt they were becoming more and more intimate. It was as if their bodies continued to get closer even though it seemed impossible. Every part of her body pressed against his and he felt freed by their closeness. He could feel her react to him, her one hand gripping his shirt more firmly, her other hand bringing his face closer to hers.
He could have stood there all night, exploring her entire body with his lips, but he knew he was probably pushing it a bit as it was and loosened his grip around her. She realised what he was doing and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him, their foreheads touching. She sighed a little. ‘I think I’d really better be getting to bed.’
Harry smiled. ‘It is only getting later, and we have lots of time to…catch up with.’
Ginny pulled away, despite Harry’s hands lingering on her arms, as she turned away from him and headed towards the stairs. He impulsively kissed her again on the cheek and whispered, ‘Good night.’
‘Well aren’t you up awfully late,’ came a deep, sullen voice from the corner of the unlit hallway opposite the staircase. Harry instinctively stood in front of Ginny, remembering his wand in his back pocket.
Emerging from the darkness, dressed all in black, George appeared, his eyes darkened and a smirk across his face as he sneered, ‘You’ve got awfully busy hands as the chosen one, Potter.’
Despite Harry knowing it was George, it sounded like something Draco Malfoy would say to him. He could feel Ginny move forward, but he held his ground, not letting her pass. He hadn’t expected the entire Weasley family to be happy to see him, but he mustered his courage. ‘Hello, George — ’
George waved him off. ‘Politeness is over-rated, Potter — I think you should mind your manners while you’re in my house.’
Ginny pushed past Harry to stand between him and George. ‘It isn’t your house, George. It’s Mum and Dad’s house.’ Her tone softened. ‘George, have you been sleeping at all?’
The sneer remained fixed to his face. ‘Ah, don’t worry about me, little sister, I’ll take care of myself and my family.’
He looked pointedly at Harry. ‘With that in mind, you can just imagine how thrilled I am to see you here — they should call you, ‘The boy who destroys families!’ That seems more appropriate, wouldn’t you say?’
Harry balked at George, taking a step forward. ‘No, I don’t think so — I didn’t mean for any of that to happen, George, and —‘
But with a crack George was in front of Harry, his wand pointed just under Harry’s chin, pushing his head backwards. ‘Don’t even think about it, Potter! I don’t want to hear one syllable of ‘I’m sorry’ or any other rubbish cross the lips that have been taking advantage of my sister!’
Harry stood frozen. He could reach his wand from here and he couldn’t quite feel it. He was also afraid should he move, George might do something they both might regret. He held his arms out to his sides, parallel with the floor. ‘Don’t, George — this isn’t like you.’
George sneered, coming closer to Harry’s face. ‘What do you know what people are like, Potter? Besides their being pawns for your grand adventure! Can’t help being the hero, can you? Let’s see you get out of this one with your trademark luck.’
Ginny had been watching horror-struck. ‘George,’ she cried desperately, ‘please don’t do this — we know you’re upset, but this isn’t going to solve anything!’
George ignored her, but Harry stole a glance in her direction and saw she was edging closer to them. He was afraid she might try something and tried to wave her off, but she grabbed George’s arm. ‘Don’t do this, George, please!’
George kept his wand pointed at Harry and pushed Ginny away forcefully, knocking her into Ron’s door, slamming it open. Ginny landed on the ground in a crumpled heap, before slowly sitting up, rubbing her head. Ron jumped up out of bed, seeing the commotion and reached Ginny as he saw George and Harry.
Harry’s eyes were full of rage. He clenched his fists and set his jaw, leaning forward menacingly. He couldn’t believe George would attack his own sister. It took all of his self control to realise that should he move further, he would be of no help to anyone, as George’s behaviour was wholly unpredictable.
George followed Harry’s eyes. ‘Can’t have any interference while school is still in session for you.’
Harry’s eyes narrowed. ‘How dare you! If you’re angry with me, fine, but leave everyone else out of it!’
Ron had helped Ginny up slowly and they both seemed rooted to Ron’s door. From what little Harry could see, she seemed okay, though slightly dazed. ‘George,’ Ron said tentatively, ‘come on — this isn’t right — you know it — we know you know it.’
A sudden gasp came from the stairs that startled all of them as Hermione stood at the top of the staircase in her pajamas, and was horrified to see the scene at hand. George’s attention was also averted and before anyone knew what had happened, a clear voice called out, ‘Stupefy!’ and they all saw George fly across the hallway.
George lay motionless on the floor and Harry, Ron and Hermione all turned to see Ginny with a wand raised and a tired look crossing her face. Harry turned immediately to Ginny, pulling her towards him. ‘Merlin’s beard! Are you okay?’
He kissed her on the cheek and started to examine the cut across her head. He swore under his breath. ‘I am so sorry.’
She put her hands comfortably on his chest, sighing. ‘No, Harry, we’re sorry — we probably should have warned you that George has been a little…off.’
Hermione was glued to the stairs and Ron was looking sadly at George’s unconscious body. All of them knew that a spell cast by Ginny would keep George out of commission for a good while. Harry continued running his hands across Ginny’s arm and side, trying to determine if she was hurt more severely, but he couldn’t find anything more serious than the cut on her forehead, he said quietly, ‘Let me fix that.’
He reached into his back pocket but his wand was gone. He turned around looking at the floor and heard Ginny laughing. ‘Don’t you know your own wand when you see it?’
Harry looked at her confused, and there in her hand was his wand. ‘But how? I…’
She smiled. ‘You’re adorable when you’re confused.’ She took a step closer, holding his wand out to him. ‘I pulled it out of your pocket when George started taunting you and you wouldn’t let me get past you. I don’t carry my wand with me when I’m heading to bed, so I took yours.’
Harry took the wand from her, their fingers brushing against one another’s, as he pointed the wand at her forehead. ‘Episkey.’ And her cut disappeared, leaving just a little blood on her forehead. He wiped it away with his thumb, leaning forward and kissing her forehead to make sure it was okay.
He pulled her closer, into a warm embrace, but she turned away from him slightly, looking at Ron and Hermione. ‘We can’t leave him here and I’m not sure I trust him once he comes out of that.’
Ron stepped over to George and bent down, nudging George. ‘You okay?’ but got no response. ‘Yeah, he’s out. Maybe we should wake Mum or Dad?’
‘No, you won’t, they need their rest!’ came the voice of Percy, who had quietly come upon the situation. ‘I didn’t see everything that happened, but enough. Ginny, you really shouldn’t be using spells on George, even if he was being impossible; Harry, nice to see you.’
Harry didn’t feel like that was a terribly warm welcome, but much better than George’s welcome. Ginny broke away from Harry to face Percy. ‘Oh come on — you don’t know what he might have done if I hadn’t stopped him!’
Percy raised his hands. ‘I’m not going to argue with you — I just think there are other ways to deal with him. I know I haven’t been around a lot, but I’m doing better and I’d like to think I’m having some effect on him.’
He gestured to George but Ron broke in. ‘Yeah, if this is the impression he’s getting from you, don’t let the door hit you on the way out!’
Percy grimaced at Ron’s words but didn’t leave. ‘Look I’ll get him back in his room and keep an eye on him. Then we can tell Mum and Dad what happened in the morning. They’ve hardly been sleeping, so if they’re resting, let’s let them.’
No one argued and Percy pointed his wand at George, lifting his unconscious body and taking him back to his room, where he shut the door.
This left Ron, Hermione, Harry and Ginny to stare at one another for a second, before Hermione broke the silence. ‘Well, this has proven an exciting ‘homecoming’ for you, hasn’t it, Harry?’
He sighed. ‘Yeah, I could do with a few less of these.’ He didn’t complete his thought, but other than the three friends standing before him, no one seemed to be terribly thrilled he was there.
Ginny leaned over to Harry, kissing him on the cheek. ‘I think that is enough excitement for me — I’m going to bed.’
Harry pulled her into a protective embrace, ensuring one last time that she was okay. She pulled away slowly, smiling up at him before heading down the stairs. Hermione smiled over at Ron and Harry before following Ginny, leaving the two to their thoughts.
Ron gestured towards the room and Harry followed in. He didn’t know what to think. He had never expected George to be homicidal towards him. Though, honestly, he couldn’t blame him. It was his fault that Fred had been killed. He could have given himself up sooner so many lives could have been saved.
Ron looked as though he was going to pass out, but he said quietly, ‘I know this is going to sound crazy, but don’t take it personally, mate. He’s upset with all of us; unfortunately, he’s directing it mostly at you. That famous name of yours is going to get you in trouble yet.’ He smiled and continued, rolling over, ‘And, seeing you happy seems to make him crazy, but makes Ginny happy — so good luck balancing that!’
Harry smiled and shook his head. Ron was right, being with Ginny made him insanely happy, but George wouldn’t want that. He wasn’t going to stop being with Ginny; he couldn’t. And despite the talks they’d had, he didn’t think she’d accept it either. He pulled the covers back on the bed and decided he’d have to brush up on his charms and place a protective one around Ginny so George couldn’t hurt her again, whether he was there or not. He’d have to ask Hermione how that would work, or take advantage of some products that carried protections like those at George’s store.
Harry drifted off to a restless sleep that involved happy moments with Ginny. But the darkness would come in again and George would be there, cursing Harry into various things, forcing Ginny to not want to be with him.