Moving Ginny
Ginny stared at the posters on her wall – one each of the Harpies and the Weird Sisters. She’d spent many hours doing this since her return home. There was a scar on Gwenog Jones’ left hand that she’d never noticed, and the famous captain was only four inches high when measured between Ginny’s thumb and forefinger from her position on the bed.
With the condition of her world as it was, Ginny couldn’t seem to shake her melancholy mood, regardless of where she found herself at any given time. At school, she worried about her family, and now that she was home for the Easter holiday, she couldn’t tear her mind away from her friends.
There were loud footsteps on the stairs, followed by a sharp bang on her door that rattled the hinges. Fred called out as he passed, “The evacuation plan has begun!”
She scrambled to the door and threw it open. Her father was there—his hand raised as if to knock. She watched him soften his expression for her benefit. “We’re going to Muriel’s.” He looked past her, flicking his wand to levitate her trunk. They both moved out of the way as it floated through the doorway toward the stairs. “Good news,” he continued. “Ron’s all right. He’s at Shell Cottage with Bill and Fleur.” He grimaced and glanced down the hall. “But they know he’s with Harry now.”
The implications washed over her, her worst fears mingling with the relief of knowing they were still alive. Ron, Harry, and Hermione were all right, but now the family would be in serious danger. They would come here looking for information on Ron, or to do damage in order to control him. She glanced around her room, suddenly appreciating it more than she ever had before.
“We’re not safe here. Bill’s gone ahead.”
Bill had been here tonight, she realized, and no one had even called her downstairs. Apparently, he’d delivered the news and left immediately. She had not seen him in six months, at least.
“Gather anything else you think you will need,” her father told her.
Something inside her rose up to fight, but she knew there was no point. There was no stopping this now that it was in motion. She grabbed her rucksack and glanced around the room. She saw herself once again standing with Harry on his birthday, sunlight streaming in the window, and wished the scene would not play out to its real-life conclusion. But somehow, it always did.
Downstairs, Fred and George were excited.
Ginny rolled her eyes. “You do realize we are going to Aunt Muriel’s?”
“The newest location of our traveling office,” George said easily.
Business. Of course. Here they were, being forced out of their regular lives and into hiding with someone she knew the twins did not enjoy any more than she did. And yet, they had their work to use as a distraction. She envied them: they had a purpose, something to do wherever they found themselves. And, of course, they always had each other, didn’t they?
Ginny went with her dad by side-along, and they all met up in Muriel’s front garden. Bill was there waiting for them, and got to work setting up magical protection the moment they arrived. The twins and her parents went inside immediately, but Ginny hung back, watching her oldest brother.
“All finished, then?” she asked as Bill approached. In the light of the moon, she could see something different in his face. She thought he looked tired, or older… something.
“I’ll need Dad for the last bit,” he said casually before catching her expression. “What’s wrong?”
She bit back the ache in her throat. If only he hadn’t asked, she would have been able to stay strong. But he was giving her that parental look he sometimes got when he knew she was upset about something, and his eyes betrayed his worry. There was nothing like sincere concern for bringing emotion to the surface.
“My friends,” she said quietly. “They need me, Bill. I shouldn’t be here. Neville and the others… they’ll be so worried if I don’t return to school.”
“Ginny.” He seemed to choose his words carefully. “Do you think Dad wants to hide in this house? Or Mum and the twins? We all want to do more. Everyone here is itching to join those who are already fighting against him, but this… well, this is what it has to be right now for our family.”
She stared at the house, its lines and edges blurring in the wake of unshed tears. Bill made a lot of sense, but that didn’t make accepting this feel any different.
“I haven’t seen you since the wedding.”
She met his eyes. They were warm and blue, and she was so glad he was here with them, at least for a little while longer. He was right: it had been months and months since they’d seen one another, and the seriousness of all that was happening in and around their family and circle of friends… well, it made those months seem even longer. She had missed him.
“Can I get a hug?” he asked, pretending frustration.
She stepped into his embrace, and that ache in her throat grew into a lump the size of a Snitch. He was holding her tighter than she wanted him to, the way he had always done since she was little. She usually thought it was sweet, but tonight she didn’t want to lose control of her emotions. She withdrew, but he kept an arm around her as they walked toward the house.
“They’re all right, then?” she asked softly.
“Harry seems okay. Ron took a few blows… but he’s fine.” He opened the door and held it open for her.
“What about Hermione?”
His expression darkened, and Ginny felt a knot of fear forming in her stomach. Something had happened to Hermione.
“Fleur thinks she’ll be all right,” he said, obviously trying to console her before he began to tell them all what little he knew as they stepped together into the warmth of Muriel’s kitchen… and closed the door on the night.
.
Moving Ginny by WeasleyMom
Story Notes:
This was originally a drabble I wrote for a Missing Moments class on the Beta Forums. We were studying and writing about what was going on elsewhere while the trio were out hunting Horcruxes. I decided to expand into this rather short one-shot.
Chapter Endnotes: Well, don't just sit there. What did you think?